Skyrise

Evening on the Town

Spectre

"Guys! Wait up!" I called. "Guys?" I asked, checking the nearest sign. "Birch Avenue... I've never even been here." I muttered.

"Are we lost?" Lilith asked behind me.

"Yeah. Don't worry, though. I'm--!"

"Good, now..." she said, flattening me against the nearest building. "What the hell was that, Merlin?" Her eyes were like lightning.

"What the hell was what?"

"You know exactly what! When we were dancing, something happened. I wasn't in the square with my brothers anymore. There was fire and ice raining down from the sky around us. Where were we? How did you do that? And--?"

"I'm gonna have to stop you there, Princess. I thought that was something you did! Wait...Merlin? Seriously? That's really the most clever nickname you could come up with? Merlin?"

"Yeah, and what of it?" Lilith asked, stepping back and taking her warmth with her. It was a cold day, so I zipped up my jacket. She rested her hands on her left hip.

"Er... Nothing. Let's go find the others."

"I'd rather not." She said.

"What?! Why not?"

"I'm gonna level with you, those guys are SO boring! They never let me do anything! My dad tells me that I'm important to the balance of the family, but really? It's a good thing I'm trained in a bow, otherwise they would've killed me ages ago. And speaking of ages... I'm 19. How old are you?"

I was a bit shocked. "I thought everyone loved their brothers. Well, those who have them."

"Nope, and you're not answering my question. How old are you, Merlin?"

"How do you even know I'm a wizard?!"

"The hat." She said, pointing. I tore the hat off my head. "Your age, please, Merlin?"

"The name's Spectre, and I'm 19."

"Okay Spectre. We're gonna have some fun together."

"Like what?"

"Like..." A firefly floated in front of her face. "Catching these glowing things!"

"They're called fireflies."

"Come on, help me catch it!" I laughed as the princess chased the creature. "Caught you!" She exclaimed, opening her hands to reveal a smashed mess. "Oh..."

"You should try cupping your hands next time." Immediately after I said it, it started to rain. "Oh, drat! Come on, let's get inside... What are you doing?"

"Taking my shoes off."

"Why?"

"Well how else are we gonna dance?" She asked.

"Dance?"

"Yeah! Come on!" She grabbed my hands and started running in circles around me. I was following her lead and noticed several people staring. I stopped worrying about my soaked hair and kicked my black and white sneakers off, too. We splashed in the puddles and into the library.

"Does Skyrise have these flowers?" Lilith asked, pointing to a picture in a storybook.

     "Yeah, they're pansies." I went back to reading my book on dream interpretation as she zoomed back to the bookshelves.

      "Ooh! Look at these! They... They're beautiful! Mephiles's books never had these things! What are they?"

     "Dandelions. They're weeds. If you get one when they look like white fluff balls, make a wish, and blow on them, their seeds blow away in the wind and the wish is supposed to come true."

     "What are weeds?"

     "Irritating. Annoying to gardeners because they steal nutrients from the flowers and crops they want there. All of them are stubborn, though, and never want to die."

     "They're like me."

     "Oh?"

     "Yeah. I'm not supposed to be here, either. But I refuse to die, too. Do you think I'll become a wish, too?"

     I paused. What to say to her? I felt genuinely bad for her. "Maybe not a wish, but I'm willing to bet you're somebody's dream come true. Someone out there is waiting for a girl like you."

     She sighed. "I know. It's hard to remember sometimes. Thanks. If I find a dandelion, do you know what I'll wish for?"

     "I recommend you don't tell me--"

     "I'd wish for another evening like this. This world is truly beautiful, Spectre. And so is your soul. I can feel how powerful it is. You're really very lucky, and so is any girl who gets you!"

     I could've said anything. Anything sweet, funny, literally anything. But I didn't get to, because I heard a knocking on the window. "Hey, Spectre!" I turned to find the rest of the group outside. We had completely missed dinner, and the Shadows had to go home. I honestly wished the night was a tape I could rewind and play over and over.