Eternity Glass

XIV: An Errand

Jeremy left the note on his desk with an unceremonious toss, yet it broke his heart nonetheless. He tried not to think of how Fallon would react once she read it, what she'd do. He'd hoped that she'd at least fully understand his message. Well, this was Fallon. She'd always understand, and that had always been a feature he'd find irritating.

He'd told his brother the very least of the situation, giving him half truths of how he had to take time to himself no matter how hurt Fallon would be for leaving without a word. Jeremy had never been one for uplifting pep talks or even tough love, but the look he gave... it could ice the deepest seas. It had just been for a second, bested by the role the older brother had to play for the younger one.

As for his parents, he'd lied outright, saying he'd be going back to the lake house for the rest of the summer trip.

Morgant waited for him at the docks, trying and failing to blend in with the small town. Gods probably never had a clue on human comprehension; she could have been wearing uggs, leggings, and an oversized sweater, but nothing could hide her mostly scaled skin and finned ears. A man passed her by from behind and stared long enough to forget where he was going and fall straight into the water.

"You're going to cause an accident at this rate," Jeremy said.

The woman pulled the cloth of her scarf closer together, clearly not used to any sort of wind. Summers in Beverwall never really reached heats that allowed its residents to wander around without sleeves or long pants; one would do well with a thick enough shirt and jeans, maybe a light jacket in the mornings and nights. Morgant just screamed "tourist" with her trench coat and boots, which confused many natives on its own since Beverwall barely had any tourists.

"If there is an accident, it's the fault of those who couldn't mind their own business." She cut him a sideways glare. Leave it up to the matron of the oceans to not sugarcoat things. "Are you ready?"

Jeremy shrugged. "As I'll ever be,"

Morgant took out a small vial with pink liquid inside for him to view. "I had Salulla make this yesterday. Dab a drop of it on your person every twenty-four hours for it to work."

He took it, already feeling his heart rattle in his chest. "Should I-"

"Not yet. I've got one more errand to run." She didn't try at all to hide the sickening morph of her face.

~

When Morgant mentioned an errand, Jeremy did not expect it to include stalking the very person he planned to avoid.

Fallon and Salulla idled in a boutique the two used to make fun of for being too expensive for either of them to afford. He didn't think she'd expect him to be there, so dodging for a place to hide wasn't on his agenda. Rather, he used that effort to glare silently at Morgant, who'd been looking elsewhere.

The woman glanced back at him, her glassy sea-green eyes unwavering. "I suspect your friend has another attendee at her back," she stated. Her attention returned to the spaces around the shop, sometimes looking directly inside, but as if she could see through the walls and towards the back of the buildings.

Jeremy did the same, more to entertain the woman than anything else. He couldn't sense anything like she could, or even how Fallon's magic could. While her magic had been given to her by her biological father and therefore evolved like a semi-sentient being, Jeremy's limits were whatever was taught to him. He'd done some readings about the celestial world and their various rules in his spare time, constantly asking Morgant questions until it drove her up the wall and she had to return to her original dwelling to retrieve some old books she had in her possession.