Between the Willow Trees [NaNoWriMo 2013] (Editing)

3: The Cambion

Chapter 3: The Cambion

Thorne teleports us to just outside an odd little shop with no name above the door in a dark alleyway, lit by old streetlamps. The shop display is odd. There are cobwebs everywhere plus the window looks lined with dust and grime. The display in the window is formed of two wooden mannequins. Neither of them are wearing any clothes and they have no faces. Their limbs are arranged at odd, uncomfortable angles making them seem even less human than they already are. Overall the shop doesn’t seem at all welcoming but that’s probably the idea. If the shop looks off-putting then they’re less likely to get stray humans wandering in there.

Thorne hands me a tiny parcel the size of a thimble which I slip into my coat pocket.

“Remember to do exactly as I told you and do not panic. I will be by your side the whole time but no one will be able to see or hear me. If something unexpected happens then I will guide you through it. You must remain calm though and try not to react to my words. We cannot have them suspecting that you have someone invisible with you.”

I nod. I am determined not to mess this up. If I do then we’ll have to find somewhere else to get the ingredients from. Thorne explained to me that it’s difficult to get ingredients in my world because very few Elethorians (people from Elethoria) live here.

The best place to purchase and find the ingredients would be in Elethoria but Thorne said that it is best if we avoid travelling there because of certain on-going disputes. That and apparently it’s just a little bit illegal for a human to go to Elethoria. I’ve already broken that law though, when I was five years old, so I’m not afraid to break it again. If we have to go to Elethoria then I’ll convince Thorne to take us there. I’ll do anything to save my parents.

Thorne disappears and I take that as my cue to walk into the shop. A little bell rings as I open the door and a young man appears behind the counter. Immediately I realise there’s something surreal about him. I can’t quite place my finger on it though. He looks like a normal guy, but I know that he must be something other than human. He has dark black hair and when I get a little closer I can see his ocean blue eyes. I have to admit that he is very good looking but now is not the time to consider his appearance.

Thorne reappears by my side. I try not to react to his sudden arrival, even though it does startle me a little. I’m still not used to him popping up everywhere unexpectedly.

“Beautiful day isn’t it?” the shopkeeper asks. I know that this is a key phrase and that I must respond with the password otherwise the man would not give me access to the full shop. Instead he would insist that I am lost and will somehow convince me to leave the shop. Thorne had explained that the owners had to be cautious who they trade with in case the wrong person gets their hands on dangerous items. That’s why they came up with the password and they’ll only trade with people they know or recognise. Again, this causes a minor problem for us. It means that I will have to lie about who I really am otherwise I won’t be able to trade in this shop. It’ll be even worse if he figures out that I’m human.

“Not as beautiful as my homeland,” I reply. The response references Elethoria, a place that will always be more beautiful than ordinary Earth.

The man smiles at me.

“Have we met before?” he asks.

“I believe we have not, for I rarely venture out of Elethoria,” I reply. I’m trying her best to mimic the way that Thorne talks. I know that he likes to use formal words and he doesn’t use contractions. “I am Aurora, younger sister of Alexander the shape-shifter. I do believe that you have met him before.”

“Ah yes. I am familiar with that name. What brings you here then, Aurora? I assume you are here to trade and that this visit isn’t of greater importance. Perhaps you’re here with news from Elethoria?”

I walk towards him until I am right in front of the counter, as I am walking Thorne frantically talks to me in a hushed voice.

“I was not expecting Levi to be running the shop today. You will need to be more cautious. He is a cambion and one of his abilities allows him to read people. He can probably sense that you are lying, so try to be extra convincing.”

“I am here to purchase a fairy wing and an angel wings feather,” I explain to Levi, smiling to make myself appear trustworthy and friendly.

“Say that it is for a healing potion,” Thorne prompts.

“It is for a healing potion,” I echo.

Levi nods his head and disappears through a red velvet curtain behind the counter.

“We do have some healing potions in stock if you wish to just buy one. It would save you a lot of effort,” Levi calls from the other side of the curtain. Thorne had warned me that this might happen. He’d also explained how to get around it.

“You know what to say,” encourages Thorne.

Levi returns with a black wooden box in his hands. He takes out the fairy wing and angels feather, placing them on the counter in front of him. Then he picks out a small glass bottle that contains a translucent green liquid and is sealed with a cork. The bottle contains a healing potion.

“I am afraid that the item I have to trade with is not worth the potion itself, but only a few of the ingredients.”

I take the parcel out of my pocket and place it on the counter. I unwrap the paper to reveal a vampire’s fang and then I hand it to Levi, who takes it between his thumb and index finger to study it closely. He smiles as he places the fang in the wooden box.

“I’ll give you the full healing potion for this fang and a kiss,” he offers. His smile turns into a mischievous grin. I hesitate with my response, wishing Thorne would tell me what to say but he doesn’t speak at all. Do I flirt back? Do I decline his advances? Thorne doesn’t help me out, so I’m left to improvise.

“I am afraid that I cannot give you that kiss. I shall not betray my partner by kissing another man,” I explain, desperately hoping that my excuse will work. It seems it does.

“I understand.” Levi places the potion back in the box. He puts the feather and wing into a paper bag and hands it to me. I thank him, placing the paper bag into my bag.

Just as I am about to turn and leave the shop Levi says one last thing.

“How about some basilisk venom or dragon scales for your puppet Thorne? Doesn’t she need those to complete the final spell?”

“Get out of here now,” says Thorne. “QUICKLY!” he shouts when I don’t act immediately. His eyes are suddenly bright blue.

“Only one portal left-” Levi begins but I don’t get to hear the rest. I am just about to run out of the door when suddenly the shop disappears. I am surrounded by the rainbow clouds, the hands on the watch around my neck spinning rapidly. Thorne teleports us both out of there before I even have the chance to run.