Power of Words

Chapter 4: Others

      For the second time today, the bell to the cafe tinkled above me. Shimmer had moved to the high counter and now sat on the left of Jesse and Aura. Shimmer smiled when she saw me again and she called out, "Hello, Hana!"

       I waved at her and saw Jesse's face pop over Shimmer's shoulder. As I got closer, I saw how cute and boyish he looked. I sat down in a swivel-seat and turned towards the people--creatures? Is that racist?--to my right.

     "So..." Shimmer extended the 'o' for a good couple of seconds, "Question and Answer session, then?"

     "Yep." I popped the 'P'. It was quiet for a minute. I mean, completely silent. No cups clinking on little plates or noisy people slurping their drinks or even people talking. Silent. That was weird. I couldn't help but to look around the cafe. There was no one. No one but us.

     Confused was a bit of an understatement. Like, this place was usually packed, well, not packed exactly, but pretty darned full. To see the three--oh, four, sorry Aura--of us here alone was quite a surprise, to say the least. I looked at the open sign and saw that it was still glowing away like any other Tuesday afternoon. I frowned, then pushed it out of my mind. I hadn't texted Shimmer for a Q&A just to have her look at me looking at an OPEN sign. I swiveled back to my new friends.

      She gave me an expectant look.

     "Umm... alright. So...." Ugh. So much for Q&A. This was as good a start as any, right? "Where is everyone?"

    "What do you mean?" Shimmer asked, faking innocence.

    "You know what I mean." I stared her down.

     "They just... left." she lied. I knew that she wouldn't get anything else out of Shimmer, not about that, anyways.

     "Oh-kay" I said it in two distinct syllables, "So, how do I know who's a.... regular person and who's an, erm, character?" I asked, trying to phrase it gently.

     "You don't. All you have to off of is your knowledge of books and characters." she saw me looking at Jesse and Aura and added, "Unless, of course, they have some sort of physical trait that gives them away." She smiled slightly at the two of them. Aura glowed brighter, as though she were happy about her acknowledgement.

     "So, what do I have to do with all this? Why can I see all this fairy tale stuff when no one else can?"

       "I said this before," Shimmer said, exasperated, "You just pay attention. It's like everyone else is walking around with blinders on, not paying attention to what's in front of them."

     I looked over at Jesse and Aura, "You're really quiet. Not really talkers, hmm?" I inquired.

     Jesse spoke up then, "Shimmer is more... experienced with explaining this kind of stuff than we are."

     "You've done this before? Like, explained this stuff to other people before." Okay, yeah, I was being an idiot right then, but honestly, it seemed like I was the only who was going through this crazy experience.

    Shimmer and Jesse nodded... Aura kind of just hovered there. I considered asking if Aura could speak, then thought against it. She would pipe up if she wanted to be heard.

     "So who else is like me?" Jesse and Shimmer looked at each other while Aura's golden light dimmed a bit. I was confused. Was it that bad of a question? After a long silence, I piped up again, "Alright, so I'll have to find that out myself, then, I'm assuming."

     Jesse nodded and Shimmer explained, "Sorry, there are rules for this sort of thing."

    "Alright, what sort of rules are we talking about here?" I inquired. It was then that it really got complicated. I was smart enough to put it in a list, because goodness knows that I wouldn't be able to keep things straight.

1. Don't tell anyone, they'll think you're crazy.

2. Don't try to find anyone. They'll find you. (Most don't want to be found)

3. If you meet someone you don't know, don't ask where they're from. It's insulting.

4. Keep track of who you know. There may be more than one of the same character out there. (Asking where they're from isn't insulting if you're honestly trying to keep track)

5. Don't take pictures, just notes. Pictures can be found and shared as evidence. Notes are better and less suspicious to those who don't know.

6. If picture is necessary, don't put out in the open. Do not share pictures. Destroy ASAP.

7. Not everyone speaks the same language. Don't ask for a translation, just nod and grin and try to understand as much as possible.

     After a crap-ton of questions on the rules that they had listed, it was getting to the late afternoon. Shimmer told me that I didn't have the full list of rules and that we'd have to meet like this again. I agreed without a moment's hesitation. I then started home to make supper, thinking about what I had discovered today while I walked.

A.N. Thanks to those that have been reading Power of Words. Please comment and vote. Love to read comments but I'm not receiving a lot so far. Ah well. Hopefully that'll come with more reads and more time. :) Hope you enjoyed this chapter.