Headphones | An Original Story

1.4 - Munny Right

{Calix}
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I gasped, breaking out of Kallistrate's song. I coughed, inhaling the scent of the dirty air. I realized that I hadn't fallen over, and I felt more...normal than I usually have after one of Kallistrate's spells. Yes, my throat was burning as if I had spent the day throwing up, and my pulse was beating in the space between my eyes, but other than that, I was fine.

I assumed it was because we were underground, but it might have been because we were getting farther away from the castle, too. A single butterfly appeared in my stomach. We were getting closer to home.

I steadied myself, watching black spots dance in front of my eyes. I locked eyes with Ronan, who shook his head. No one else in the room seemed to care about our sudden double seizure.

"Rhea," I said carefully, "I think we need to leave."

Rhea frowned. "Why? I just met your friend here, and you're both undernourished." Ronan rolled his eyes, and I could tell he still felt nauseous from the display in the dining hall.

I sighed. "I guess, maybe, staying one more day would be a good idea," I glanced at Ronan again, "so you can rest."

"I'm fine, Calix," he assured me, but his eyes were bloodshot and his whole posture showed how tired he was. I just stared at him.

Rhea pulled her sweatshirt sleeves over her hands and crossed her arms. "I was in the middle of meditating with my goblins. You two want to join us?"

Ronan held out his hand to politely decline. "I think we're okay. Do you mind if Calix and I just walk around for a while?"

"Not a problem," Rhea said. "If you get lost...." She trailed off and stared into one of the black rectangles painted sloppily on the wall closest to us. Slowly, she walked back over to her throne, as if she were in a trance, and sat cross-legged in her seat, with all her silent minions wandering around the room.

Vander sauntered up to us and rolled his eyes, the little black ovals disappearing under his purple eyelids. "I can take you on a tour," he suggested.

I was going to accept his offer, but Ronan cut me off. "We'll be fine. We won't leave the shelter."

"How will we find our way back?" I asked.

Vander laughed. "Don't worry, you will. Our shelter is designed to fit your mortal memories, so wherever you're planning on going, the shelter will make the room up for you."

"Kind of like the Room of Requirement?" Ronan said plainly.

I blinked. "You mean from Harry Potter? I didn't know you read that series, it's my favorite!"

Ronan stared at me in disbelief. "In that case, we have a LOT to talk about."

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"The whole ironic situation with James? And how his best friend is Sirius?" I laugh.

"I know! I didn't want to say anything to either of them, because I doubt they actually read," Ronan says with a goofy smile, causing me to laugh even more.

"It's insane, I love it!" I say as we both shake our heads.

It went quiet for a few minutes after that, but I happily walked in that comfortable silence, taking in my surroundings. My eyes had adjusted to the brightness of the hallways again, and now I could see the magical furniture that cluttered the hallway, watching as they faded like a holograph when you tried to touch them. We passed several other medieval-styled doors, and Ronan even tried to pull on one of the handles, but they all seemed to be locked.