WALPURGIA ✔️

Chapter 21 - Alive or Dead - make your choice

☽

Genevieve really left me to myself after the incident, even Whitlock, who had often become clingier than my own shadow.

An opportunity I couldn't pass.

Day after day, I went into the library to read up on knowledge we didn't have in our time, always accompanied by Thomas who had gotten strangely clingy towards me. While I had imagined things to go slower and smoother, Thomas turned out to be a little monkey: climbing the bookshelves, never still, always jumping around me when I tried to read.

I had to chase after him often, never having time to think about writing Baldwin, an escape route or the baby. He surely kept me entertained a whole day long, and often I didn't manage to even finish my research because of him. Yet, I couldn't bring myself to tell him off, he seemed to blossom whenever he talked to me.

I felt him nuzzle against my legs one morning as I reached for a book with my family's surname on it. I had wondered why he had been so strangely quiet this morning.
"I'm sorry I scared you that night", Thomas started. "Prof Ashcroft told me about your reaction. I didn't mean to frighten you."

I had to smile.

"It's ok", I ruffled his hair. "I didn't know you didn't like that name, it was my fault."
"There's a reason I don't like it", he muffled into my dress.

"That is?", I crouched down to him.

"It's a secret. Nobody but me knows about it", he looked around dubiously.

"You can tell me. I'll keep it to myself."

"Promise?"

"Promise", I wiped away the breadcrumb from his cheek.

"My mother used to call me that. But only when she went insane."

"Insane?"
"That's what Whitlock calls it. She switched into the daemon realm."

"Daemon realm?"

He must have meant their natural state. Daemons were either terrifyingly clever or crazy - no in-betweens. They appeared normal if they could control their visions or dark thoughts, but only for a limited time.

Thomas nodded. "Whenever she entered the daemon realm her eyes would change and she would start saying strange things. Often, she would call for me, using that name and ... yeah."

"And? You didn't finish your sentence, Thomas." He looked to the ground, tucking at his shirt.
"She would beat me."

"Oh." And idiot me must have made him recall everything.

"Oh Thomas", I opened my arms to him. He instantly moved into them. "I'm sorry."

"It's alright", he hugged me and astonished I had to smile. "Can I stay with you again today?"

Sarah must have given him a proper earful for him to be asking me that. "You don't need to ask that. Of course, you can." I picked him up - he was so lightweight I worried if he was eating enough - and carried us to the couch we always sat on.

☽

Thomas soon fell asleep and I laid down the book on my lap.

I needed to act. The baby, our little girl, was healthy, thank goddess for that. Baldwin was still clueless about me - what was he doing right now? Think, Rebecca, think.