The Children of When (Complete)

Chapter 5: Leah Meets Dub

Leah stepped out of the portal, her mind dazzled by the colours and aromas all around her. She was standing in a clearing, similar to The Circle in Naissance, but the fact that both were clearings was where the similarity ended. Here, tall pine trees, their needles blanketing the ground around her, surrounded The Circle.

Trumpet-shaped flowers, of the purest sky-blue, nodded in the gentle breeze, interspersed with brightly coloured mushrooms, ranging from dark red to lavender pink. She took a deep breath, inhaling the heady scents. Outside The Circle, a dirt road disappeared off into the distance. To her right, a sprawling mountain range was silhouetted against the clear blue sky, while to her left, a lush green forest teemed with trees and foliage, the like of which she'd never seen.

Ok, so far so good.

Maybe she'd just stay here for a while and soak up the beauty of this amazing place. She looked longingly at the large rock at her feet, offering her the perfect place to sit and let her senses run wild.

"Don't even think about it," the rock said, in the same gravelly voice she'd heard when she was inside the portal. Before she could even begin to register her surprise at the rock's seeming ability to talk, she realised it wasn't a rock at all. She watched in horror, as the most hideous creature she'd ever seen unfolded its short, squat body and stood before her. A mane of long, flowing hair surrounded his ugly face, his protruding eyebrows almost touching the large bulbous nose below them. His jaw jutted out so far, his lower incisors rested on his top lip. Although his eyes darted in every direction, he couldn't hide the hurt look in his eyes.

"So, this is how you thank someone for trying to help is it? By wanting to sit on them? Honestly, I think it's time I retired from this job. Some people are just so rude!" he muttered, as he brushed the dirt off his ugly clothes.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't realise... I thought you were a..." Leah stammered in confusion.

The creature waved his hand in dismissal. "Yeah, whatever. Anyway, I'm Dubheasa, but most people call me Dub. And I do apologise for being the 'most hideous creature you've ever seen', but coblynaus aren't usually known for their good looks." He almost spat the words at her, mimicking her thoughts exactly. "Whoever named me must have thought it was a great joke calling me Dubheasa, which everybody knows means 'dark beauty.' Either that, or they hoped I'd grow into it."

Leah felt the heat rising in her face. How did he know...?

"Because I can hear your thoughts, as if you were yelling them, obviously," he sneered as she stared at him in dismay. "How do you think I knew you were having trouble deciding which door to choose? Mind you, if I'd known how rude you were, I certainly wouldn't have bothered."

Leah wanted to curl up into a ball and die. The first person she'd met in this new world, and he thought she was a rude, ignorant brat. And she didn't blame him one little bit. Every word he'd said was true; she had no right to go around judging other people.

"Oh alright, I know you didn't mean to offend me. To be honest, I'm still recovering from the shock myself. This is all new to me too; it's the first time I've ever been able to hear someone's thoughts. Here I was, sitting and minding my own business, waiting for someone to step out of the portal, when I heard your voice in my head. I knew the voice had to belong to whoever was inside the portal, because you were obsessing over which door to open. Come to think of it, I've never heard of that happening either. Mind you, I only do this job when they can't get anyone else, which isn't often, luckily."

She smiled in relief at Dub's readiness to forgive her. Snapping his fingers as if he'd suddenly remembered something, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small notebook and a pencil. He flicked past a couple of pages, and then held the pencil poised over the one he had obviously been looking for.

"Ok, so today is obviously your fourteenth birthday, and you came from Naissance Three. So... name?"

"Umm, it's Leah. And yes, I came from Naissance. But wait... why'd you call it Naissance Three?"

"Well, of course you came from Naissance, that's what all the villages are called. You see, Naissance simply means 'the place you grew up'. So each village has a number, in case we ever need to know which one you came from."

She knew it was silly, but knowing she'd grown up in a village that was just another number hurt. It was like finding out she was Leah number three, and Leah number four and five would be here soon.

Dub was looking at her with a puzzled expression on his wrinkly brown face. "Why does it matter?"

Leah shrugged. "I don't know really. I think it's because I hate feeling like I'm just another number." She thought of Miriam cooing to the new baby earlier that morning. Well, Miriam had never been hers, and now it felt like Naissance hadn't been either. For once, she wanted to feel like something was hers to keep.

Dub was nodding in sympathy as he listened to her thoughts. She liked not having to put what she was thinking into words. Dub winked in agreement, then stuffed the little notepad and pencil back into his pocket.

"Well, welcome to Florisia. Now we'd best get moving, Madame Persimmons doesn't like it when we're late."

"Ummm... what's a Florisia, who's Madame Persimmons, and where are we going?"

Dub stopped, and slapped his forehead. "Oops, sorry, keep forgetting you don't know anything. Florisia is the name of the world in which you are now standing, and Madame Persimmons is the headmistress of the Fey Academy, where you'll be living and going to school."

Leah opened her mouth to ask more questions, but Dub held up his hand. "I promise you, all your questions will be answered when we get there. But we need to get a wriggle-on. It's a good ten-minute walk to Fey, and we've dawdled long enough. Oh, and before I forget, don't mention the stuff about me talking to you through the door. We're not supposed to interfere, and I'd rather not have to explain about the extra doors or the mind reading thing."

Dub was looking at her, waiting for an answer, so she smiled and promised she'd say nothing. He nodded, obviously relieved the subject had been dealt with.

They veered left at the fork in the road and headed towards the Fey Academy. Questions tumbled madly through her brain as she tried to keep up with Dub's surprisingly quick pace. She was in a completely different world? She was going to live in a school? Well, at least it meant she'd be around other kids, didn't it? Maybe she'd even make some new friends? So many questions she might finally get answers to from this Madame Persimmons. Maybe this wasn't going to be as bad as she'd thought.

"And can you please stop thinking so much! You're giving me a headache," Dub grumbled.