Heat and Soul: A Soul Eater Love Story (xKid)

~Chapter Three~

I am awakened Saturday morning by Auntie Io around eight-o-clock.

“Ember, sweetie, wake up. I want you to come with me today.”

I yawn and ask, “Where are we going?”

“Come along and you’ll see. Now hurry up. We have to leave soon.”

I dress quickly and hurry to follow her, momentarily forgetting about my meeting with Daemon. It’s only when we walk past the square that I remember my promise.

“Um… Auntie Io? How long will this take?”

She glances at me, “It varies. Sometimes it’s two hours; sometimes it’s only forty-five minutes. Why? Did you have something planned today?”

“Kinda… But I guess as long as it’s not a two-hour-long day, I’ll be fine. Will you tell me more about it now?”

“Sure. We’re going to witch mass.”

I stumble, “Witch mass?”

“Yes, sweetie. People with powers like I have are called witches. We gather once a week or so to get caught up with each other and report anything strange to our leader. That is witch mass.”

I let that sink in for a moment, “So are there wizards, too?”

She laughs, “Yes and no. There are male witches, but they aren’t called wizards. Besides, ninety-five percent of us are women anyways. For some reason, witch blood doesn’t usually affect male children.”

“That’s kind of strange, don’t you think?”

She shrugs, “There probably is some scientific explanation, but I don’t know it.”

We approach a strangely-dressed woman blocking the street. She merely glances at Iodama before stepping aside. I assume she’s a guard. The area we emerge into is quite large, and starting to fill up with women, presumably all witches. They all look different and diverse: short and tall, dark and light, cruel and kind… I even spot one who seems to still be a child sitting on top of a man’s shoulders. A witch wearing iridescent green and purple comes over to talk to Iodama. Iodama introduces her as Crysalis, but then they start talking about spells and gossip.

After a minute or two, Iodama gets my attention, “Ember, you have to be quiet during mass, all right? Even when we all say things together, you don’t need to do it. Just stand respectfully and don’t bother anyone.”

I agree and look around again. It seems like the meeting is starting. Iodama joins in a strange chant. When it’s over, I see that there is a witch with one eye standing on a dais in the center of the area. She starts asking the witches one-by-one what they have to report. If anything seems strange, the other witches ask questions until the witch on the dais makes a command. A typical political meeting… How boring. I tune out the proceedings and instead admire all the different hats I can see. I pick out quite a few that are obviously animals. Mouse ears, frog eyes, bug antennae, fish fins… I think Crysalis is supposed to be some sort of bug’s pupa. I glance up at Auntie Io’s feathered hat. Maybe hers represents a bird? I make it a game to pick out what animal each witch represents. By the time I only have a handful left, the witches all chant again. When they’ve finished, the witch in the center steps down from the dais and the women begin to leave.

“All done. That wasn’t too bad, was it?”

I shake my head. Auntie Io takes my hand and leads me out.

“Auntie Io… What time is it?”

She glances at a watch I’ve never noticed before, “Almost ten-thirty, why?”

I flinch, “I was supposed to be somewhere at ten… I’ll meet you back home, Auntie Io. Is that okay?”

She nods and I run to the square. To my relief, Daemon is still there, sitting on the edge of the fountain, playing in the water. I see a group of teenage girls watching him from a distance. I scoff at them and walk right up to him.

“Sorry I’m late Daemon. Auntie Io wanted to take me somewhere and I didn’t know how long it would take.”

He looks and me and shrugs, “That’s alright. I haven’t been here that long.”

“Can we take a walk?” I suggest, “My legs are stiff from standing for an hour and a half. Also,” I glance back at the giggling girls, “we could use the privacy.”

We spend the next hour or so walking around town, catching up. I eventually tell Daemon about both of my previous houses being burnt, but I leave out details like my parents’ death, the fireman friend who seemed to know what I was, and that the incidents occurred only when I was really angry. In return, Daemon tells me tales about Shibusen and the people he’s met: Master Shinigami, the headmaster; Sid and Stein, teachers; the quality of the lunch food; the after-school activities… It all sounds like a lot of fun and I find myself getting jealous and (dare I say it) missing high school. Soon, it’s almost noon. Daemon offers to buy me lunch somewhere in town, but I turn him down.

“I should get back to Auntie Io; she’ll be wondering where I am. But we should do this again.”

“Tomorrow, same place but different time?”

I laugh, “Don’t be a jerk… Fine, how’s eleven tomorrow? And we can go out for lunch while we talk.”

“Deal.”                                           

After a quick hug, we part ways. I return to Auntie Io’s house, happy to have seen my best friend again. Iodama is waiting with sandwiches and iced tea for me when I get back. As we eat lunch, I tell her about my lunch plans for tomorrow. She approves but then asks me out of the blue if I miss school.

“Well, hearing other kids talk about it… Yeah, kinda… Is there somewhere to enroll around here? I didn’t think this town had a high school…?”

“It doesn’t,” she pauses for what seems like an hour, “But you could attend Shibusen, if you like.”

I perk up, but remember Auntie Io’s reaction to the last mention of Shibusen. Why let me go all of the sudden?

Seeing my confusion, she clarifies, “You wouldn’t just be there for fun.”

“What would I do there, Auntie Io?”

“You would spy for me.”

“Spy?” I’m confused again, “Why would I be a spy?”

She meets my eyes, looking fierce, “There’s someone in that school that has wronged me greatly. But there’s a barrier around the school, so it’s difficult for me to get to him. You would find a secret passage or a weakness in the barrier for me.”

I turn the thought over in my mind. Surely it wouldn’t hurt if it was just one person…? I could be with Daemon every day, like so long ago.

“Of course, you’d still have to pass the entrance exam… And that means controlling those powers of yours.”

“How do I control them?”

“I’ll have to teach you a little spell is all. But it would help immensely if you had a friend who could keep quiet about all this.”

She looks at me expectantly. Does she mean Daemon? But I never told her that he goes to Shibusen…

“Well, Ember, think about it and give me an answer whenever you’re ready.”

“Auntie Io, I’ve already got my answer…”

She waits for me to continue, smiling.

“I’ll do it.”