shadows

1 - 06

Tabby led the way. The two new friends and roommates walked out. And paused just long enough by May. Tabby and May exchanged a glance. And then the older woman’s kind eyes rested upon Emilia.

“She’s moving here,” Tabby explained. And smiled in reply to the question on May’s face. “She’s pregnant. She’s looking for a nice place to call home. Somewhere beautiful to give birth to her baby. She believes Avian is that place. That’s nice, isn’t it?”

“It is,” May agreed. “This is a beautiful town. Beautiful people. You will see. You will love it. Your baby will love it here. I’m sure he will agree.”

“He?” Emilia asked.

“Don’t bother trying to ask,” Tabby said. “Or trying to understand. She’s like that. She’s got this gift. She can look at a mother’s face and tell if it’s a boy or a girl.”

“And you’re always right?” Emilia asked May.

May smiled. And, again, Tabby answered. “Yes. She’s always right.”

“Wow.” Emilia was starry eyed. “Thank you.” Her hand was on her stomach. And a smile lingered on her lips, lighting up her face.

“She’s going to be staying with me,” Tabby continued, explaining to May.

“Your house?” May asked. “That’s nice. It’s a big place,” she said to Emilia. “It’s good. You could use the company,” she said to Tabby.

Tabby smiled.

-

The house was a two minute walk from the clinic. From the clinic, down to the corner and left there. And then a short walk. The house was a two story villa with stone walls, a heavy, black iron gate. Balcony on the first and the second floor making up the face of the building. It was all stone. The glass on the windows stained. The doors a deep brown. The only colour on the outside.

The villa was like every other building, every other house, on the street. And like every other building in the town. Like it was a century or two too old. Still, there was a strange beauty, an aura about it.

“Home,” Tabby said, inviting Emilia in. “It has been in our family since forever. I was born in there. Back then, actually even now, we give birth at home. I go over. May goes over. She’s helped with more births than her years. But I’m telling you right now, knowing I might sound terribly mean, you can’t give birth in here. You must be at the clinic.”

“I know,” Emilia said. Not a flutter in her expression. The smile unaffected in the slightest.

Tabby nodded, pleased. She gave Emilia a tour of the house. “There are so many stories in every room. Every hallway. No rush. I’m sure we’ll cover them, slowly. I like you. You look like a good listener.”

“I do enjoy stories,” Emilia admitted. And she didn’t forget to praise generously. “You are a good storyteller. I can’t help wanting more.”

The two women shared a smile. The tour ended with a bedroom on the first story, with a door opening to the balcony.

“This isn’t the best room, I admit,” Tabby said. “But you are pregnant. And the stone stairs can get a little difficult in the night. Light and shadows like playing around a little too much. You would be a lot safer, and much more comfortable down here. Plus, I’ve got an office upstairs. I keep running about. You never know when you’ll get a great idea. And I am not particularly careful about closing the doors nice and soft when I’m lost up here.” She pointed at her head. “I have terrible sleeping habits. I wouldn’t want to disturb yours. You need all the rest you can get. Nicer is better.”

“Thank you,” Emilia said. And she meant it. She was honestly grateful.

-

Tabby returned to the clinic. May was waiting. And it was an ordinary day. The clinic was freer than it was busy.

“Was it her?” May asked.

Tabby nodded. “I was with her. In the same room. I felt it from so close. You can imagine how it felt.”

May’s eyes were glittering.

They were talking about Emilia. From when she was getting checked. When Tabby started with the personal questions, there was a ripple. Like a needle stabbing the fabric of the laws. Leaving a hole, that was unmissable. They couldn’t have been blind to it if they tried.

And they hadn’t tried. They weren’t prepared. Which was why they were shaken so terribly.

“Have you ever felt anything like it?” May asked. She was the older woman. But Tabby had a higher standing. As such she had no qualms asking openly.

“No,” Tabby replied honestly. “I don’t know if that is a good thing or bad.”

“I see what you mean,” May said after a moment.

“No,” Tabby said, shaking her head. “You don’t. It’s not just that we have no way of knowing how things will be, or what she will stir up. Don’t you realise it yet? It’s just you and I. Where are the rest?”

“The rest?” May asked. She was confused though briefly. And then, realisation dawned. She looked outside. There really was no one. Disbelief shrouded her. “How could it be?”

“Exactly,” Tabby agreed. “How could it be? Didn’t anyone else feel it?”

They were talking about the other townspeople. No one else had rushed over to the clinic. It was as if no one else had felt the ripple.

Tabby then stared at May. “Describe to me how it was for you?”

“How it was for me?” May repeated, as she remembered. “It was faint.” As she spoke, her eyes widened. Her volume lowered. Her body stiffened. “Like it was coming from far away. And like any ripple, it was weakened by the distance. I had to look hard, really concentrate, and only then did I really see it. It was an aura that didn’t belong. A presence that violated the laws.”

“Yes,” Tabby said. “It was that. An aura that didn’t belong. A presence that violated the laws. I couldn’t have put it better. As always, you are better with words. I have only one thing to add. It wasn’t like us. It wasn’t a Shuuto. And it was coming from Emilia. Not her. But from her. Like she had done something. Something I didn’t see. Couldn’t see. She clearly has a secret. And it concerns us deeply.”

“Is that why you invited her to your home?” May asked. “To keep a watch?”

“Something like it,” Tabby said. “I don’t know what to expect. But I can’t help but feel that we should prepare. Storm’s coming.”

“Storm’s coming,” May repeated. There was no doubt in her voice. Or in her mind. Like she could see the child inside a mother, Tabby could intuit danger.

And no one doubted the premonition of a Waters.