Something Wicked This Way Comes

Chapter 56

Getting everything and everyone ready to go ended up taking more of his time and energy than Jim would have preferred it to. By the time he wrangled everyone into the courtyard, it was nearly noon and the storm looked like it was getting bigger. He did a quick head count:

Claire, Douxie, Carter, Harley, Toby, Steve, Krel, Aja, Jamie, Olivia, Antigone, Pantelis, Toril, and at the last minute Rook. And, of course, the Pets; Archie, Fenris, Mama, Pickles, and Rhu—who'd shown back up not too long ago, looking ready to go with them. The unicorn was introducing herself to everyone and glaring a lot at Pickles. Maybe she was still mad at him for tearing up the island.

"Jim," Claire said. "Is that a unicorn?"

"Yeah, she helped us get here." Jim said absently, helping Harley with the sword holster Pwyll had given him. "Her name's Rhusaema, I've been calling her Rhu."

Claire nodded slowly. "You have a unicorn?"

"Well, she's not mine." Jim said, looking up at her.

"Uh-huh."

"Claire, I'm serious."

"Sure." She shook her head, shooting a look at Douxie.

Who nodded in clear solidarity. They said nothing to each other, but Jim rolled his eyes anyway. It must have been a wizard thing, but they always seemed to be sharing entire sentences without saying a word out loud. It was annoying.

"Hey, Jim?" Harley said quietly.

"Yeah?" Jim looked at him, heart twisting at the look in Harley's eyes.

Harley took a deep breath, lowering his voice and whispering, "I think... I think someone is going to die... like for real."

Jim stared at him. He wasn't going to pretend to be surprised Harley would know or be able to feel something like that. But hearing him say it at all made Jim want to throw up.

"Are you sure?" He asked quietly.

Harley nodded, gaze taking a quick sweep over the group. He didn't want to acknowledge that for just a moment, Harley's eyes stayed on Carter for a moment longer than anyone else. "I don't know who... but I've had this feeling for a few days and it got... more intense this morning."

Jim took in a deep breath, fighting down his sudden nausea. "I'm not dismissing this, okay?" He took Harley's shoulders between his hands, making the kid look him in the eye. "But we've beaten stuff like this before. Nobody is dying on this quest."

Harley looked like he wanted to believe him. To agree with him. But it was like he couldn't quite convince himself. He just looked scared.

"Okay?" Jim said.

Harley took in a shaking breath, something intense coming to his eyes. Intense, but still scared. "Not even a divine king can defy Death... not even one as good as you."

Jim sighed. His mind strayed, for half a second, to the Time Stone they'd locked in Merlin's old vault. Only Douxie had the key to it, and they'd all agreed never to open its lock. Never to use the stone. But Jim was certain Douxie would rather abandon everything about who he was than watch Carter die a fifth time—and stay dead.

"Jim," Harley said his name so quietly, he'd barely spoken. Jim looked at him again, seeing something again in his eyes that made him take pause. He didn't know what it was, but it was something. "Some things are bigger than you."

"Bigger or not," Jim said. "I'm not going to stop fighting to change things supposedly written in stone."

"He won't let you. Someone might have to die, to set things right."