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The sofa in the living room is the only thing comforting right now. Dalia, Colette, and Yui were asked to wait in their rooms so me and JB could talk about what happened.
JB sits in front of me, her eyes locked on my face. I do my best to not meet her eyes but find myself unable to, and when I do look at her, I see that she's not looking at me but rather trying to see through.
My mind searches for anything that I can use to have a single second of not thinking about what happened.
"You shouldn't punish yourself so much; the scrappers are not dumb, and now that you're working against them, it wouldn't take much time for them to figure out your name on their own."
I know she's trying to pull me out of my self-pity state, and even if I can see the logic behind her words, I can't bring myself to just believe them because a part of me begs to just drown in this feeling, to stop while I'm still on top. A part of me I don't need right now.
Closing my eyes, I imagine myself walking towards a familiar, bottomless pit. My hands feel heavy, and blood drips from between my fingers.
Soon I realize the heaviness on my hand is because I'm carrying myself in my arms, and my feet move on their own towards the darkness. I drop the body without regard down the pit, watching as it slowly disappears as if consumed by the darkness that tries to climb the endless, extensive walls of the ever-extending pit.
Opening my eyes, I see a small smile on JB's face, trying her best to comfort me, but I brush it off. "What do we do now?"
The sudden seriousness in my tone catches JB off guard, apparently; her smile finally fully blooming. "Efficient, huh?" The woman laughs. "You're really a perfect fit for my unity—just another someone with some loose screws."
"What you'll do is take a free day tomorrow, go train, study, or whatever. As for me, I'll talk with some people and try to find some solid location or clue for us; just be ready for when I call you."
Nodding my head, I interlock my fingers, my eyes focused on my hugging hands—so focused in fact that I don't even notice JB approaching me.
Her hand stops atop my head, gently ruffling my hair in a motherly way, her voice soft as cotton. "Keep your head in place, okay, puppy?"
I don't answer, but I guess the look on my face has the same value as one. With a proud smile, the woman walks off to the door, soon disappearing and leaving me to myself in the lonely living room.
Raising from the sofa I grab the bag and box I got from my apartment and walk to the vacant room of the house. And stopping in front of it, something feels different. Looking at the wood sign that was hanging on it this morning is no more; a new one taking its place.
My name stares back at me on the sign: Olivia. My fingers guide themselves to the sign, my heart slightly aching, my touch lingers on it for some seconds before pushing the door open.
Throwing my bag on the bed, I grab the spare clothes, storing them in the empty wardrobe near the bed. Most of the clothing options I brought here are plain shirts, hoodies, jeans, underwear, and just in case, a fancy black dress Tina forced me to buy last year and the fake white roses that came with it.
On the box, I grab a foam board carefully wrapped in bubble wrap. Along with it is some other material, like pins, yarn strings, highlighters, and some double tape.
I walk to a table in the room, and using the tape, I put the foam board on the wall, and now it's time to set this up.
After about ten minutes, I'm done. My crazy wall is ready, with printed photos all pinned to it and a map of the whole city on the side. For now, the separation is messy, but I guess it makes sense. A rough sketch of the faces I found through these past days is my focus.
The masked man, the blonde woman, a faceless sketch of the unknown boss, organized in a pillar system, with the boss on top and the others just below.
All the other things I got till now are resting on the table: the burned newspaper, two origami doves, and Verda's file, all to be analyzed now.
Or so I wanted. Before someone knocked on my door, breaking my concentration, a voice comes from the other side.
"Detective," Dalia's voice. "May I come in?"
I wanted to avoid the others tonight; I'm not really in the mood to talk right now, but if I just hide here, it will be worse tomorrow. "Come in."
The door opens, Dalia enters the room, and her eyes fall on me, standing next to the evidence board. "Can we talk?" The look on her face makes her seem worried.
Dalia walks to my bed and sits on the edge, waiting for me to do the same, and after some seconds, I give in, doing exactly so.
"I thought you would like to know more about us, so I took the liberty to grab these for you." She says while grabbing a bunch of books from beneath the bed, resting them on the nightstand.
"Thank you." I look at the books; the one on top reads 'Forest Spirits, a Bestiary of Supernaturals, Vol. 1' "I'll check them later."
"Or, I could help you study tomorrow," Dalia says with a sweet smile, apparently happy at the prospect of studying. Is she a bookworm?
With a sigh, I let my back fall to the bed. "Yeah, we could do that." I focus my eyes on the ceiling, searching for the invisible point on it.
I notice Dalia's eyes linger on my face. Scooting over, she lays beside me on the bed, looking at my face still, almost as if searching for something.
"What?" I ask without looking at her.
Dalia's eyes change to a curious and almost caring tone. "How are you dealing with everything?" Her voice sounds as soft and gentle as the morning wind. "Yui told me you had a crazy look in your eyes in the car, and when you got here, you looked to be on the verge of a breakdown."
I ponder for a few seconds. I could lie to her and say I'm okay to avoid the headache, or I could just talk, letting the darkness of the pit climb up and take me too.
Turning to my side, I notice how close Dalia is to me; her eyes locked on mine prompt me to do the same; my hands rest near my chest; and Dalia's hand rests on top of mine.
"Talk to me." She says, almost begging.
...
The defenses I built so carefully are crumbling in front of me, and so easily... My eyes feel so heavy that I feel like I could fall asleep at any second now. But I want to bathe in this feeling a little more; I don't want to have that nightmare again. I'm so tired of running.
"I'm fine," The lie climbs out of my lips, ripping my throat in the process, making it feel dry. "If I'm already completely worn out, what kind of weakling am I?" I force a laugh; it hurts; my eyes sting, but this time not from sweat; the tears I tried to hold so much start to find the cracks in my defense, a few slipping off and meeting the covers of the bed.
Dalia's arms wrap around my body like vines, keeping me close to her, our foreheads meeting hers, her eyes closed. "I'm sorry if I pushed too far." warmth, closeness, safe. "You don't need to talk if you don't want to."
The defenses I built so carefully are crumbling in front of me, and so easily... My eyes feel so heavy that I feel like I could fall asleep at any second now. But I want to bathe in this feeling a little more; I don't want to have that nightmare again. I'm so tired of running.
My hands move to the empty space on Dalia's back, holding on to her like she's the only thing keeping me sane, and she may as well be right now.
"Just don't leave." My voice comes in a low tone, red marks hang beneath my eyes, making more apparent the darkness there too, showing how tired I am and how near the edge I got.
With a smile Dalia's gentle fingers pinch my cheek, treating me like a little kid. "I wouldn't dare to." The softness of her tone, the truthfulness of her words...
Not being able to stay awake, my eyes close, my breath slowing down, and my consciousness finally experiences some peace after all the complications that happened this week, and yet, the week is far from over.
Dalia's POV.
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How can someone be so strong and yet so fragile? Maybe that's what I forgot about being human—how every little thing can hurt like hell or bring infinite joy.
So many centuries have passed that I don't even remember anymore how I was as a child; I don't even remember the faces of my parents and sisters; the only thing I remember is that I had a family.
The detective looks like a sweet kid right now—something so precious.
I fear I'm taking advantage of her weakened state, but at the same time, I feel that I need to be near her; she makes me feel human. I'll stop thinking for now; my only thought has to be focused on being near this important person.
I hum an old melody—a lullaby forgotten by time—while caressing her hair, a spell I learned from my mother, or at least I feel I did. A spell to push away nightmares and help good dreams bloom in someone's sleep.
As the melody ends, I grab the covers and put them atop us, protecting us from the cold and keeping our shared warmth still.
Sleep takes me too. How interesting. How many years have gone by without feeling this familiar warmth? How many seconds in eternity...
Detective's POV.
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Morning arrives, and for once, no nightmare came to plague me while I was asleep.
Dalia's arms are still wrapped around my body, still holding me close. Raising my face slightly, I'm able to look at her sleeping face; she looks even more pretty up close. I'd never been so close to someone before, and it's the first time I've slept in the same bed as someone since Tina's house was without light, so she crashed at my apartment. And too, Tina was the only one who had ever seen me cry before.
Thinking about it, in these twenty-four years of my life, I never dated anyone, and it's not like I didn't try; it's just that in this city, you either date your neighbor or you don't date anyone; you can't be too picky.
I guess that quote is more true when you're like me. A sigh escapes me, a lock of Dalia's hair covering her cheek, and with my fingertips, I carefully put it behind her ear before sitting up on the bed, guiding Dalia's arms so she's hugging the pillow to not wake her up.
Walking to the bathroom, I take my bath. Today Airy didn't come to talk to me, so my bath was quicker this time. With some new clothes, I sit on the edge of the bed to put on my boots. My ears pick up the low sound of a groan. Dalia hugs the pillow closer to her. A smile comes to my lips. Maybe I'll ask for her to sleep with me today as well... maybe.
Getting out of the room, Colette stands near the door, wearing running shorts and a running tank shirt, making me stop and look at the way her clothes hug her body. She's really strong. With her back resting against the wall and her arms tightly crossed on her chest, I question how she's breathing.
Her eyes fall to me, the furrowed brows from before now softening. "You're finally up." She uncrosses her arms and stands in front of me. "Come, you'll run with me to the station from now on."
"But first, I made you a balanced breakfast to help you build some... form." Yeah, nice way of softening a blow.
I nod my head. Colette walks to the kitchen, and I follow. Me eating breakfast; now that will be nice. A lot more, as I consider the fact that most of the food I eat throughout the day comes either from Tidy's shop or the vending machine at the station.
In the kitchen, two plates and cups stand on the table; on the sink, what looks to be the breakfast of the others is covered, making me unable to see its contents. I sit beside Colette; in front of both of us is a plate of scrambled eggs, bacon, some beans, toast, and in the cup some orange juice... This is heaven.
Colette opens her mouth to talk, but I'm quicker, stuffing my mouth and eating the food. In less than one minute, my attack is over, and the only traces left on the battlefield are so few that it's almost like the war never happened.
I see a hint of both a smile and a frown on Colette's face, and so I remember I didn't even thank her in my hurry. "Oh, thanks, by the way." I grab my plate and walk to the sink. "For the breakfast and for wanting to help me improve and all."
Colette watches me clean the dishes, shaking her head as she starts eating her food. "Don't thank me; I'm doing this for everyone's sake."
A chuckle escapes me. "I don't see it like that."
"So, how do you see it?" Collete's voice sounds serious, but with a hint of curiosity.
I stop cleaning the dishes, looking at her for a few seconds before looking back at the sink and resuming the cleaning. "It's not important."
Colette stops for some seconds, her eyes burning holes in my back, before finishing her food and walking to my side, grabbing the cleaning cloth and taking the dishes I already cleaned and drying them.
Grabbing her plate and cup, I repeat the same process, enjoying the quietness as I clean them.
After we are done, me and Colette walk to the exit door, finally leaving the house with ten minutes before I have to get to the station.
We run through the forest together. Colette has an inhumane speed compared to me, which makes sense, but I see how she tries to slow down to keep near me, and even so, I do my best to keep up so this isn't boring to her.
Compared to what I saw of her, she looks less troubled than usual; she seems almost at peace.
Nearing the end of the forest, something catches the attention of Colette, or so I assume based on her ears slightly twitching and the quick motion of her face towards something.
I watch as Colette gets near a bush, and from it, a red light almost hits her face before landing on my hand. Good thing I reacted fast.
The light, not to my surprise, changes its form, mirroring a lot from what I remember of Airy's body and face, the only changes being the hair color and the more muscular arms.
"Ghosh." The neighbor looks at my face and grins; Their voice is deeper than Airy's, but it still holds a feminine tone. "Thanks, miss. It would have been a hard landing from this high."
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
Colette's face shows she's not happy about the scare, but ultimately she brushes it off and stops beside me, keeping quiet for now.
I guess I'll have to be the one leading this conversation. "Are you okay? Why were you flying in such a hurry?"
The neighbor scratches its head, seemingly embarrassed. "Sorry about that, but I'm okay... Kinda off."
"You see, some suspicious humans have entered the forest, and as I was charged with scaring them away, I tried spooking them." She looks down. "But I might have failed, and they might have entered the forest and all."
"Oh, but I shouldn't be bothering you two about it."
Colette sighs before crossing her arms. "Humans in the forest, how did they manage to break the protection?" a hint of anger in her voice that slowly starts to turn into a growl.
"No idea," the fae shrugs. "That's why I ran when I noticed they were able to see me." Their shoulders slump.
I grab my phone and check the time, and as I thought, I'm already late. Colette looks at me, noticing my worry. "You should go; I'll take care of this."
Shaking my head, I text Tina, telling her to create a story for me while I'm gone. "No, it's okay; I just have some paperwork to do and a file to deliver; all things I can do later."
"You sure?" Colette's voice softens slightly.
Nodding my head, I gently put the neighbor on my shoulder, where she crosses her legs and sits happily.
The fae looks at me and smiles. "Thanks, Iustitia; you may have the honor to call me by my name, Flamma."
Colette looks at Flamma before looking at me. "Why are you calling her 'Iustitia'?"
Flamma tilts her head before looking at my face. "You don't know? We neighbors call others by what their soul is filled with."
Colette seems to understand something, but I don't, and neither of them cares to explain, so I focus on the problem ahead. "Flamma, can you tell us where those humans are now?"
Shaking her head, Flamma sighs sadly. "No, I lost them a while ago."
In our silence, we both look at Colette, earning a frown from the woman. "Is there something on my face?" she growls.
"Oh no, that's not it." I start by trying to calm her a little. "It's just that as you're... you know... can't you just 'track' them?"
Some more seconds of silence pass, followed by a death stare from the woman before she finally nods her head, not happily. Colette starts sniffing the air around her before gesturing with her head for us to follow.
Following Colette, we dive deeper and deeper into the forest. Animals run, and faes dance all around us, seemingly giving us permission to enter their territory.
It's really a beautiful scene, almost something you would read about in a children's book. In their curiosity, some other neighbors sit on my shoulder, talking with Flamma and finding what seems to be comfort in my presence—an odd but still nice feeling.
Colette doesn't look so amused, and the faes don't seem to get so close to her either. Soon enough, we reach the place Flamma talked about, and something feels... off, to say the least.
The group looks to be composed of teenagers. The smell of pot hanging in the air is something that would be normal if we were at the abandoned red brick factories, but at the forest? Would they really dive so deep in the forest for a smoke? And at this time of the morning? This seems fishy, to say the least.
Colette's hand stops me as I try to take a step forward. "What's your plan?"
"Talk with them, show my badge, and if something happens, arrest them," I say while gently pulling her arm out of the way. "Relax, I got this."
Colette looks at my face, and for some seconds none of us move—that is, until Colette nods her head and lowers her arm out of the way.
Grabbing my badge, I put it on the waistband of my jeans, taking my first steps towards the teens. I watch as one of them takes a long drag of a blunt before laughing out loud.
"Damn, where did you get this one?" The first teen, a boy with a military cut, passes the blunt around their circle, composed of two more.
Another laugh as well. "I can't tell you; it's a commercial secret." With a grin, the other boy with long brown hair and a small scar on his lips talks, grabbing the blunt and guiding it to his mouth.
The third one stays quiet, a girl; her eyes are more cautious about her surroundings than the other two, so it's no surprise to me that when I come into view, she is the first to notice me, and once her eyes fall to my badge, she gasps.
And with no second, though, the girl runs away. The other two look at me and then at each other before laughing their asses off. "First fairies, and now cops, how high are we again?" the one with the military cut asks.
The other shrugs before taking another long drag.
I walk to the one smoking and grab his blunt, and using my thumb, I unmake the wrap holding the blunt together. The weed falls to the floor before the wind swipes it away, their eyes widening. "Go home, you two; eat something and sleep."
"And if this happens again, I'll go have a little 'talk' with your parents." Crossing my arms, I firm up my feet on the grass.
At my words, both boys nod rapidly before getting up and running back toward the city. Flamma moves from behind my neck back to my shoulder, and I walk back to Colette.
"That was easy." Flamma grins while making a pose mirroring mine.
"Still," Colette says. "It doesn't explain how they got past the barrier."
"What's that 'barrier'?" My question makes Flamma grin widely.
"Glad you asked." With a little jump, Flamma flies to my eye level. "Our forest is protected by a magical barrier that makes everyone who isn't like us." She points at herself and Colette. "To not be able to enter without our permission, and none of us gave it to them."
I raise an eyebrow in curiosity. "But how exactly does the barrier stop people from entering?"
"It inflicts great fear and anxiety on the intruder who enters uninvited, making them turn away by their own resolution."
Colette steps to my side. "Forests have secrets," she says in a serious tone. "It's what they're for. To hide things. To separate one world from another."
"Humans are not capable of dealing with our existence; that's why you can't talk with anyone about the agency." Colette's hand stops atop my shoulder, and when my eyes meet hers, she isn't angry or imposing it; at least she seems to understand how this can affect my life.
"I know," I say plainly. Taking a step forward, her hand leaves my shoulder. "I need to get back to work while I still have one. Thank you for the exercise."
Without saying much more, I walk away. Flamma flies and stops to rest on top of my head.
Colette's POV.
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I watch as the detective walks away, the expression on her face unreadable. Furrowing my eyebrows, I feel my instincts talk to me, trying to guide me toward her smell. There's something about her that I need to be careful about.
Yui told me the detective was able to not be affected by her seduction, which sounds impossible; no human can withstand a supernatural's power, but it wasn't the first time the detective was able to do something similar.
Crossing my arms, I shoo the other faes away from my face before walking back to the house. I'll have to talk about this with Julia.
Detective's POV
At the Station
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Entering Verda's laboratory, it's the first time I come here and find that he's not; he never leaves this place. His coat isn't on his chair either, so this means he came here earlier, at least.
Maybe he is out to talk with Doctor Foster, which isn't rare considering that he's the only man smart enough in this town who can be of some help to Verda when the hospital fucks us over.
Dropping the file on his table, Flamma sneezes.
"Why does this place have to be so cold?" Flamma hugs a strand of my hair and uses it as a coat of sorts.
"This is the place where we bring bodies to be analyzed." I gesture towards a big metal bed, where the victim's body rested so long ago. "And the place needs to be cold so the body doesn't rot, the samples too, anything that can spoil basically."
Flamma nods her head before looking at the file I brought. "And what's that paper?"
"This?" I grab the file and open it, showing Flamma the paper inside. "It's the results from the hospital about the blood of a girl who died."
"Hum." I start reading the file; it confirms that the victim was intoxicated, and something more interesting. "Her cause of death was acute internal hemorrhaging."
"What does that mean?" Flamma is curious.
"It means the person was bleeding a lot from inside; that's why she died." More questions.
I continue reading; the file mentions what Verda already said to me: that the victim's blood wasn't entirely hers, but it says here that a mutation was forced on her, and that caused the bleeding to occur. But who would do that? And why?
We initially thought her murder was strange, of course, but this is beyond strange. Maybe that's why the hospital was hiding this from us, but still...
'Conclusion:
The discovery of a forced mutation within the victim's blood represents a significant development in the investigation. It suggests a calculated and targeted attack, utilizing advanced biotechnological methods to inflict harm.
Further inquiry into the motive behind such a heinous act is warranted, as is the identification of potential suspects with access to cutting-edge genetic engineering resources.'
I take a photo of the file before closing it; my head is already starting to hurt. I'll talk with Dalia about this later and see what we can take from it.
Going back to my office, I start doing my paperwork. Flamma sleeps on top of my head, snoring softly.
They're really strange creatures; I don't know why they are so comfortable around me when they were kinda avoiding Colette earlier, but with her mood, I'm expecting too much.
Some hours go by, and when I see it's time for me to go, I grab my notebook as well as some files about the case before exiting my office—all things to add to my crazy wall.
I was expecting Tina to greet me at her table, but she doesn't seem to be here either. She responded to my message earlier when I sent it with a picture of a cat holding one paw open in an 'okay' sign.
So I believe that she's okay and probably killing time to avoid a night shift at Tidy's shop or the bar; we used to do that in our earlier days at the station.
I walk back home, delving deep into the forest. Flamma wakes up when I reach half the way.
She yawns. "Is it night?" her voice sounding sleepy.
"Yes." I avoid nodding my head out of habit to not make her fall. The moon starts rising in the dark skies. "I'm going home; are you going back to the forest?"
"Not by my own volition," Flamma says, stretching her arms, preparing to fly. "Thank you for letting me sleep on your head; I'll find you again tomorrow, Iustitia."
"Good night, Flamma." I watch as the neighbor flies, disappearing between trees. I think everyone I've met so far has a strange trait, but I'm starting to grow fond of those strange characters I'm meeting.
Arriving at the house, I take off my boots, resting them near the entrance door. I walk to the living room, and I see a familiar face, Dalia.
She holds a book in her hands and glasses on her face. Strange, I didn't think she needed glasses. I sit beside her on the sofa, letting out a tired groan.
Dalia looks at me with a smile. "Welcome back."
I return her smile before looking at her book. "What you reading?" My eyes fall on the page; it seems to be talking about faes and pacts.
"Just studying a little bit to teach you about the neighbors," She brushes a lock of her hair away from her face before looking at the book. "Colette told me you already met them."
I nod, and she continues. "So I was meaning to teach you some things about them."
Dalia opens the book more and shows me the page she's on. "I'll try to be quick. The Faes are a race of magical beings born from the forest; they can wield magic, choosing to do so either for themselves or to aid others."
"They generally don't like humans, only on really rare occasions. Actually, I believe it only happened once or twice in history."
Crossing my arms, I look at the book. "If they only like humans rarely, then why like me?"
Dalia stops to think before seemingly thinking of an answer. "It's just a theory, but you know how they call you Iustitia?"
"Well, I believe the faes value certain aspects of an individual soul; the first human to have been aided by the fairies was told to have been filled with bravery, determination, and kindness. And in your case, they call you Iustitia, which means justice."
With a sigh, I uncross my arms and look down at the floor. "But I didn't do anything." My feet start to hit the floor rhythmically.
Dalia smiles, putting a hand on top of my knee to stop my feet. "Actually, that's the cool part. It's not about what you did or didn't, but what you are. The faes seem to consider you a human pure of heart."
The troubled look on my face seems to make Dalia's hand linger on my knee. I stay quiet to process things, and Dalia resumes reading, our shoulders touching.
This continues for some more time. Looking at the book from time to time, I learn that the faes can make pacts with any supernatural or human, but they control the duration of it, meaning if they don't want anymore, they can just break the pact and go on their way.
Apparently, their lifespan is quite short, ten years maximum; the only fae that lives longer is the queen, who has lived since the birth of the forest.
Feeling tired, I rise from the sofa, looking at the stairs.
Dalia's voices reach my ears. "You're going to sleep?" There's softness in her tone.
I nod my head, opening my mouth to talk, to ask her if she... forget it; it's best to not bother her.
Walking away, Dalia holds my hand, making me stop. "I'll come by in half an hour; I just have to finish this book." Even if she doesn't take her eyes off the book, I can still see the slight hint of care in her eyes.
Squeezing her hand gently in return, she lets go, and I resume the walk to my room. Reaching the door, I push it open, and grabbing my things, I start to add the files to my crazy wall.
Putting my notebook on the table, I start working on a resume of what we've learned so far about the investigation, as well as the things I'm learning from Dalia.
My eyes fall to my phone, and I open my chat with Tina. I really can't tell her anything, and I know that, but still, I feel this bad taste in my mouth from having to hide everything from her.
I send her a goodnight text before putting my phone aside, and without wanting to think more about today, I plop onto my bed, quickly succumbing to the sleepiness hugging my mind.
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