by KD Blakely
Olivia fell through first, pulling us after her. Going through the tree felt even worse the second time.
I’m stuck in a tree. I can’t breathe.
My lungs screamed as I tried to inhale the thick clammy air.
I can’t see anything. I can’t feel my arms or legs.
My head spun dizzily.
Are Faith and Olivia still with me? They wouldn’t really leave me…not like my dream. Would they?
I yelled their names — well shrieked really — but still couldn’t hear myself. That’s when I began plunging down.
We went down before, shouldn’t we be going up now? What if we aren’t going back!
I stumbled several steps before I realized we were out. And definitely back home. The salty air and gloomy cemetery made me want to do a happy dance.
“Wow,” I said, “did that really happen?” I scrubbed my hands over my face, then shook my head. No way. It couldn’t be real. Things like that only happened in books and movies…or dreams. That was it, I was dreaming. This whole day must be part of my nightmare! I grinned in relief and pinched my arm.
“Ouch!” I scrubbed at the place on my arm that was throbbing and stinging. I’d been way too enthusiastic. Not that it would have mattered if I’d been asleep.
So, not a nightmare. Maybe I’d gone crazy. That would suck, but at least it would explain things. I turned to the others. “Did you notice anything…odd just now?”
They both gaped at me. Like I was speaking Greek. Backwards. Olivia said impatiently, “Of course we noticed something odd. Are you nuts?”
Note to self - Apparently I’m not crazy.
Faith ran her hands through her hair, her gaze blank. She started to lean back against the tree, but her eyes snapped back to awareness and she jerked away before touching it. She took two small steps away before saying, “Something happened. But I don’t have a clue what.” She hunched her shoulders and slipped her hands in her pockets, a favorite position when she got nervous.
So, it was all real. I blurted, “Going through that tree was gross-i-mundo. I may never eat jello again.”
Olivia said, “Jello? You’ve gotta be kidding! I’m gonna be afraid of the dark for the rest of my life! I was blind in there.”
“I can beat that,” Faith told her. “Think Disneyland Teacups. Remember?”
Olivia and I both cringed. Those teacups had been the start of a hard and fast rule — Faith was not allowed on rides that went in circles.
Olivia pinched her nose and shuddered. “Yuck!”
I didn’t like being blind or deaf, but maybe not being able to smell anything in there was a good thing!
I asked, “Where do you think we went?“
Their answer was muffled by the bells in the nearby church as they pealed loudly, just once.
My mouth fell open and I sucked in a quick breath. “That can’t be right!” I pulled my phone out of my pocket and turned it on. It was working again, so that was good. But something was wrong with it. It showed 1:00 pm.
It can’t be that late!
“What time do you have?”
Olivia and Faith both exclaimed in excitement when their phones worked too, but they all showed 1:00 pm.
How did it go from 12:34 to 1:00? We were only — wherever — a couple minutes.
But I realized I hadn’t heard any sounds from Ray or the others since we’d been back. We must’ve been gone more than a few minutes. At least we’d kept our Blood Sister promise. That almost made all the weirdness worthwhile.
Faith said, “Do you know where—?” just as Olivia yelled, “H-e-double-eck. Its 1:00! I have to be home!”
I had no idea I could run that fast, but Olivia’s mom would be mad if she wasn’t home in the next five minutes. Olivia chanted, “Be green, be green,” as we neared the traffic signal on Main. Someone must have been listening. It turned green right before we reached it
It was 1:04 when we got to the corner where we’d go our separate ways. We’d never covered the five blocks between Main Street and Olivia’s house so fast.
As she ran up the sidewalk to her house, she made our sign for ‘call me’ — pinky to her mouth, thumb to her ear. “8:30!” she yelled, then threw open the door and hurried inside.
Faith sighed, “I’ve gotta go, too. You know how Mom gets when I’m not home from school on time.”
“Yeah, she’s the biggest worrier in town.”
“Actually, it’s the town that makes her worry. I think it’s the TSYE’s fault.”
I nodded and said goodbye, then crossed the street towards my house, one short block away.
Chapter 6
Jinxed
My feet were dragging when I got home. I locked myself in the bathroom and stared at my reflection in the mirror. Why didn’t anything about me look different?
I fell through a tree. I was blind. I landed in the dirt. In a weirdorific place. Shouldn’t something be different?
Other than a smudge of dirt, my face didn’t look any different. I’d look better by summer, but this was the dead of winter, and being only a few shades darker than polar bear white was totally normal.
Darn it.
Obviously my hair hadn’t changed. Light brown, way too and straight. Boring really. Even so, I wasn’t going to agree with my mom’s suggestion to cut it.
My height was the same — short! I’d finally broken five feet. Barely. If I stood up really tall. This year, for the first time, both Faith and Olivia were taller than me.
And just like my hair, the rest of me was thin and straight. When I turned sideways I could still be described as very…slender.
So okay, I wasn’t going to be a super-model any time soon. And really, who wants to be a super-model? I should be glad nothing was different. That everything about me wasn’t changing, like Faith and Olivia.
With a sigh, I dropped to the edge of the bathtub and thought about my two best friends.
Olivia Larson had been my BFF since pre-school. She’d been the biggest tomboy in town — never afraid to climb trees, scale fences or ride her bike down ‘suicide hill’ without any hands. Lately, I’d watched in amazement as my previous-daredevil-tomboy friend began to pay attention to boys.
Olivia loved her developing figure, and kept experimenting with different styles for her thick, dark brown hair. Just last week, I’d seen her practicing flirtatious gestures in the mirror when she thought no one was looking.
Ugh!
As a reformed tomboy, she suddenly didn’t enjoy doing things that could get her too dirty or messed up.
She’d even begun spending her allowance on eye shadow and mascara instead of books and candy. Not that her mother let her out of the house all made up. So we had to wait a block from her house while she ‘put on her face’ each morning.
Double ugh!
It was first grade when Faith Xenakis turned Olivia and me into a trio. Until recently, I’d been tallest. Now, Faith was nearly six inches taller and still growing.
Faith wasn’t developing an interest in boys. No, she’d turned into Ms. I’m-all-about-soccer. She devoted hours every week, including most of Sunday, practicing with her team. I really missed the time we used to spend together.
I wasn’t really sure what I liked anymore, but I wasn’t willing to lose my two best friends. The Three would stay together. No matter who changed. No matter how much.
No matter what.
I did know one thing. I wasn’t going to think about that afternoon. Not until I could talked to Olivia and Faith.
8:30 seemed way far away.
What I needed was something to help me keep busy. Right now, maybe I should just think about finishing my English essay. It didn’t matter that it wasn’t due until next week. Getting it done early was being smart. Efficient. Practical. And other words like that.
It did not mean I was being a wuss.
Working on the essay helped. A lot. By the time I was done, I didn’t feel all freaked out. Instead, I’d started to feel curious abo
ut that place. It might be cool to check it out.
Then I remembered what it felt like going through that tree. I hated that part. If going back to that place meant doing that again, I really wasn’t so interested after all.
“Kat, dinner.”
Mom’s voice was a relief. I didn’t need to think about going back now. I only had to think about eating.
At the table, I felt even better once I sat at the table. Mom had a meeting that night, so she’d brought home one of my favorites — pepperoni pizza. By the time I finished eating, I was feeling pretty good.
I’d go to my room, put on headphones, and chill with my favorite tunes until 8:30, when I could finally talk to Faith and Olivia. I hated waiting so long, but Olivia’s mom wouldn’t let her use her phone or computer until she helped get her brothers and sisters in bed. I just would not think about anything strange till then.
That sounded like a great plan.
Too bad fate had something else in mind.
Chapter 7
The Book of Light and Shadow
It was nearly eight o’clock when Mom stopped by my room after her meeting. When she asked if my homework was done, I could virtuously say I’d finished all my homework for the week. She didn’t do a good job hiding her surprise. Normally, I like to wait to the last minute to do homework, and we argue about it. A lot.
My left my room and downstairs. I could hear her talking to Dad. I was glad she hadn’t stayed to talk tonight. I was too anxious to know what Faith and Olivia would say about that afternoon.
Time crawled the last few minutes. It was 8:23 when I went downstairs for a glass of juice. I was passing by the front door when the doorbell rang, and I stopped in surprise.
Who’s at the door this late?
Mom and Dad were watching TV in the family room and I didn’t think they’d heard the doorbell. Not over the sound of laughter from the television. I moved to the door, placed my hand on the knob, and called quietly, “Who is it?”
There was no answer.
I glanced through the peephole but couldn’t see anyone. My pulse increased as I reached tentatively for the doorknob. Knowing Mom would ground me for a week if she saw me, I opened the door a few inches and peered out.
No one was there. But a package wrapped in brown paper leaned against the house near the front door. I could see my name, written in fancy script in thick black ink. I reached out, my fingers cold and shaky, and picked it up, carefully, like it might blow up in my hand. I gave another quick look around, wondering who could have left it there.
It was very dark past the glow of the low-watt light on the porch. The clouds and mist from the afternoon had thickened into a deep grey fog. The street lamps could barely penetrate it, creating patches of dim light at regular intervals that disappeared down the street.
Though it looked like a muffling blanket, the fog amplified sounds. I could hear the mournful drone of the foghorn in the bay. The sound of fast moving traffic on Highway 101, even though it was at least a mile away. Closer at hand, I heard the sound of fog singing on the electric wires.
That was all.
At first, I wasn’t sure what I was listening for. With a start, I realized there should have been footsteps. Where was the person who’d left the package?
Are they hiding? Are they just…watching me?
How many times had I seen a teenager standing clueless on a porch in a movie? Right before a mask-wearing-knife-wielding maniac leaps out of the bushes. It would really suck if that happened now. Especially since I wasn’t a teenager yet.
I looked around nervously, half expecting someone to jump out and grab me. The faint sound of gravel crunching close by made my knees shake and I sucked in my breath in alarm. The night air smelled strongly of salt and dirt and wet asphalt. I held that breath, keeping very still, my ears straining for any other sound.
What did I just hear?
The crunching sound came again, then grew louder. I drew back, clutching at the doorknob behind my back.
What is it?
When the neighbor’s dog, Lucy, trotted out from the side of the house, along the gravel path Dad built to the backyard, I couldn’t stop the giggle that erupted from deep inside my chest. I watched Lucy head toward home, and slumped against the house in relief. I let myself rest there another minute, but nothing else moved.
After assuring myself there really was no one there, I brought the package inside and shut the door, quickly turning the deadbolt.
Note to self – Be careful. The package might be something nasty from Ray or Andrew!
I held the thin package tentatively at arm’s length as I climbed the stairs to my room. Andrew must be angry we’d gotten away that afternoon. Who else would leave something for me on the porch, and then hide?
I grabbed scissors from my desk and carefully cut away the brown paper and tape, exposing a blank manila file folder. I opened it warily, ready to drop it if there was something disgusting in it. Instead, there were several color copies of old parchment pages, covered with small beautifully formed letters. The top page said, “Book of Light and Shadow”.
There was a sticky note inside that read:
I know where you went. Read this and share it with your two friends. Meet me tomorrow at Johnny’s at 8:00 am.
There was no signature.
I was reading the note a second time, wondering what it could mean, when my computer beeped. I flinched at the sudden noise, then sighed in relief when I realized it was 8:30. Time to talk to Olivia and Faith.
My heart was beating hard enough that my fingers shook, making it hard to key in Olivia’s number. Faith was already on the line. I described the package on the porch, and the words written on the note.
They asked me to send them a copy so I snuck down to Dad’s office and scanned them. While I waited for Olivia and Faith to get my email, I skimmed through the pages.
I paced while they read them. I’d decided what I would do — I was going to check it out in the morning. I just hoped Olivia and Faith would go with me.
My knees went weak with relief when Olivia agreed. Faith was more reluctant. After she started to complain, for the third time, that we didn’t know who would be waiting, Olivia said, “Got to go”, and disconnected.
It was 9:00 pm — our curfew. Olivia’s mom would be checking to make sure she was off her phone and computer.
Faith said, “See you,” and disconnected too, leaving me unsure if she’d be meeting us in the morning.
My head spun with everything that had happened. Fortunately, Mom and Dad didn’t seem to notice anything strange when I wished them goodnight.
As I climbed into bed, I thought those pages had given us more questions than answers. Who could have left them? How could they know we’d gone to that strange place? How did they know who I was? Or where I lived?
But more than that, I kept thinking about the words on those pages. Could they be real?
After considering possibilities that grew crazier by the minute, from Harry Potter to Invaders from Mars to some elaborate trap staged by Andrew and his friends, I finally slipped into strange, disturbing dreams. I tossed most of the night, waking often, sweating, heart pounding. But I couldn’t remember my dreams when I woke.
Not that I was complaining.
Book of Light and Shadow
Creation of Chimera
The world of men has turned against us.
Though the alliance between Magickal and Mundane had always been uneasy, by the year 1536 it had been torn asunder. For 50 years, the book condemning witches, Malleus Maleficarum, was used by the church to instruct witch hunters and inquisitors. It was an evil creation, designed to help identify, interrogate and destroy users of magick.
We no longer believe it will ever end.
Intolerance and cruelty has swollen from a trickle to a flood, scouring compassion and logic from the world. In Europe, tens of thousands were burned for witchcraft. Tales of evil crones who worshipped the devil were used
against innocent mid-wives and healers. In France, terror of the supernatural brought about the death of thousands more, accused of being werewolves.
Such persecutions should have caused horror in all people of good will, but fear can utterly destroy reason. It was a time of darkness referred to by many, Magickal and Mundane alike, as the Burning Times. And it was the Mundane who suffered, as most beings of magick were able to evade the inquisitors.
Though the Burning Times were started by religion, it was obvious that science, still in its infancy, was to become important to the Mundane. The Magickal world could see that when those without magick turned to science, they would turn further against us. We could see the end of our world approaching.
So it was that we finally agreed to leave the world of men. We could only pray this would bring an end to the burning.
We gathered together; undines, sylphs, salamanders and gnomes, fairies, elves, ogres and dragons, pixies, giants, wizards and witches, along with many others. Even creatures with long histories of enmity would work together, this one time. We agreed to create a world that would exist outside the space and time of men.
There we could be safe from humankind.
Our alliance continued to be exceedingly fragile, and deciding upon the name of our new land almost destroyed it before it began. After furious arguments punctuated by curses and spells, it was decided our realm would be known as Chimera. Most accepted one meaning: “A creation of imagination, especially a wild creation.” The other meaning, “A monster made of many parts,” was ignored. I sometimes wonder if I am the only one who has thought it the more appropriate description.
We all knew our truce could not last. Our history has proven that, over and over. It is simply not in the nature of many of our kind to get along. There were some who believed this new land would prove too small for the hundreds of us to co-exist. Despite this, we succeeded in creating Chimera; ripping land from its place in Europe, transporting it to the other end of the earth, to the far western edge of the New World. There we joined together and created an extraordinary spell that moved Chimera beyond the confines of normal time and space.
