Watford Tales

Daffodils

Simon

The dirigible drops us in the forest outside Watford and we make our way through the woods to the rabbit tunnel; the six of us, plus Ebb, with Johnny Depp on her shoulder. When we get to the rabbit gate the gwythaint flies up onto the stone wall and perches there, high above us. He spreads his wings and squawks impatiently, like he can't understand why we're not all taking the easy route and following him. His black wings glint in the moonlight. I feel the pull of my own wings between my shoulder blades, but I manage to keep them tucked away.

I unlock the door with the rabbit key and everyone goes in, quietly. We're all spent and there doesn't seem to be much to say. Baz is hanging back, reluctant to enter the grounds, and I see that little furrow between his eyes. I press the rabbit key into his hand. "Go hunt," I whisper, my lips brushing his ear lightly. "I'll see you back at the room."

Penny's Mum is in the courtyard, waiting for us, when we come through the tunnel. She grabs Penny in a tight hug and won't let her go. It's a bit weird, because I don't think I've ever seen them touch each other before, or show physical affection of any kind. She looks her daughter over. She brushes the the wound on her head with one light finger. "Your father called and told me what happened," she says. "You're sleeping in my room tonight. The rest of you had best get to bed."

********

It's nice to have the room to myself for a few moments. It's peaceful. Something I haven't felt in a while. First thing I do is take the dream catcher out of my pocket and hang it over Baz's bed. He has a box of pushpins on his desk in his hyper-organized way (I probably have a couple in the bottom of a drawer somewhere) and I grab one and drive it into the wall and hang the leather loop over it. It sparkles and pulses slightly against the cream colored wall.

Then I strip out of my filthy, bloodstained clothes and step into the shower, making it as hot as I can stand. The water pounds my skin and the steam surrounds me. I look down at my naked self. My skin is covered with moles that always make me feel like I have smallpox or something. Baz doesn't seem to mind, though. I think of him, of him being here in the shower with me, and watch my cock grow hard and long and stick straight out in front of me.

I dry off in the steamy bathroom and wrap a towel around myself. Back in our room I switch on the bedside lamp and turn out the overhead switch, so the light is soft and cozy. I wonder, for a second, if I'm acting too gay, adjusting the lighting like that, and then realize that I don't really give a fuck.

In Baz's closet there's another one of his posh dressing gowns. This one is a made of dark green satin. The fabric is heavy and shiny and looks almost black at a certain angle. I put it on. I like the feel of it against my skin, smooth and dense. I stand by the window and look out across the quiet grounds. It's the middle of the night and there's no one about. I see a light on in the headmaster's window, up in the Weeping Tower, where Penny and her Mum must be rehashing all that's happened. I look over at the barn, where another light shines low in the darkness, and I know Ebb is down there, feeling sad about her brother. I'll have to go visit her tomorrow.

I stand at the window and think about everything that's happened. Baz said I was a hero, but I don't feel like one. I just bumbled my way through, as usual. All instinct, no control. A bull in a china shop, and luckily, this time, no one I care about got broken. And it's not really over yet, either. They're both still out there, somewhere. The Mage and the Humdrum. I wonder if they'll find each other, start working together again. I wonder how much time I have.

An owl calls in the night, the spooky barking cries reverberating on the stone walls surrounding the silent courtyard.

I see a dark shadow, moving across the grounds. Baz, striding purposefully, tall and lean, his cloak billowing around him. My pulse quickens at the sight of him.