Fable (on hiatsu)

27. T'Ko and Craft

Hm? Craft fell asleep... but he's still 'watching' through my eyes... What in the world? Is that even possible?

I sorted through his memories for a minute, as I was hunting for a couple four-leaved clovers. An airy, but cold breeze blew through the forest. The air was already much colder than it had been last night, on the school rooftop.

He's sick? I realised as I tried to make sense of his blurred memories. Is that why? This is the first time he's been sick since we first met!

I finally found the clovers, next to a crumbling old house wall, overrun with vines and moss. The only thing that made it visible in the forest was the shadow it cast and it's hard, regular lines. I put the plants into my basket and begun the short hike back to Issa's shop.

Funny enough, it's the close paces on the mountain that take the longest for me to get back. If it's too far, I usually just fly back, but when it's close enough to walk, I do that instead. I hopped over a murmuring brook and whistled to the birds. They didn't answer me, too occupied in getting ready for winter. A raven cawed somewhere above head and a great billow of wind bent the trees.

"Whoah!" I gasped, grasping for my basket and the meagre layer of plants held within. The wind made my long black hair wave in the wind for several seconds. I got some in my mouth and had to stick the basket under one arm to get it out. "Yuck." One's own hair doesn't taste good, although it might be worse in the case of humans. They coat their hair in something Craft calls 'shampoo' and it smells like a horrid blend in hundreds of different smells.

I continued to walk back, watching the silent forest live it's life. Somewhere in the distance, fauns were dancing and a haunting tune sung its way through the mountain. To the East was the Inversed Shrine, where Onii toiled endless hours making it as clean as possible and where Reverse-sama slept most days away. At the very top of the mountain slept a Dragon, the one we call Wrath. Son of the Stars and the Void, he is older than the world, but is more down-to-Earth than the other Old Ones who come from the same tales as he. Down by the meadows, near the Town, live the dwarves alongside all other sorts of underground-dwelling beings.

This mountains is so filled with Spirits that you would wonder that there ever is any room for everybody. I'm surprised evry time I turn a corner and someone isn't there, be they ghost or Being.

As I plow through another set of brambles, I finally see the Shop. 'Issazawa's Herbal & Healing Shoppe' is it's real name, but everyone just calls it 'the Shop'. It's the only place on the whole mountain that stays in one place. To make up for losing so much mobility, Issa has Enchanted the front doors so that they only open up to customers or to Craft and I. They can be opened from anywhere as long as it's within a twenty mile radius of the shop itself. So that's the entire town and the surroundings. All you have to do is open a closed door while wanting to be here.

I'm sad to say several people have been startled by that.

I shoved the doors open with my shoulder and walked in. Issa was sitting behind his desk, which was really more of a shiny wooden box and a pillow to sit on, reading a book. He lifted his head, glancing at me for a second, before returning to the pages of his novel.

"Just put them in the usual spot, T'Ko," he waved me towards the last two rows of cubicles. I walked past him and opened one, a stuffy smell was mixed with the bitter smell of drying leaves. I pulled out the dried stuff, making sure they were well dried and replaced them by the new clovers I'd foraged. The dried ones were placed in the cupboard for 'usage' where they would eventually be grinded and added into a potion of some kind. I lay out the fresh plants, one by one, filling the space then I closed the cubie.

"What're you reading, Issa?" I asked as I picked up my broom.

"Mm, a novel about Fables," he frowned slightly, "Well, that's what the title was. This is an actual story, though."

"Huh." I replied as I began to sweep, not really paying attention.

"Yeah, well it's one of those future ones. The kind that are written two or three years in the future."

"What, so it's sci-fi?"

"Nonono. I mean I bought it from someone who came from the future and said I'd probably like it," Issa corrected me.

So that means that people would go from their present into the past to get him to read it?

"Does it concern you?" I asked instead.

"Yeah. You too, but when I opened the book it says to never let T'Ko, Craft, Kit, Jo, Toby, Kyuu or anyone but Issa-san read this if someone brought it to the past."

"That's pretty specific."

"Well, apparently Craft wrote it with Kyuu and some others narrating the chapters he wasn't there for."

"Craft is going to write a novel? Like Veronica?"

"Who's that?" Issa asked, twisting in his position.

"His mom."

"Huh." We spent a few hours quietly, then I remembered something.

"Ah, that's right. Issa, Craft's not coming today."

"What? Why?"

"He's sick." I answered hesitantly. I still felt the connection with Craft clearly. It wasn't a problem right now, but it would be when he woke up and didn't undo it.

"That boy is sick? That's impossible, T'Ko."

"Well, he used too much Spirit Energy last night. And he couldn't recover enough, so he got sick. And he also said that he blames you guys for it."

"Why would he blame us? We didn't make him- oh, wait. He did say that he didn't have enough energy left to make us a light... Whoops, I guess it is our fault!" Issa laughed.

I'm pretty glad Issa couldn't see under my mask, because I was pretty damn peeved at him.

Seconds later, I didn't care. Craft woke up and the world doubled in two directions.

Light tickled my eyes and I opened them. Wow! It was already the afternoon!

I collapsed to the ground, filled to the brim with all of our conflicting senses.

I groaned, feeling the hard floor of Issa-san's shop where T'Ko had collapsed and feeling the comfy support of my own bed.

I felt awake and tired all at once. I looked at Issa's worried face as he ran over to me and I saw the light blue ceiling of Craft's room.

I felt sick!