The North Star Chronicles

Chapter 4

Andy

Seattle was bigger than I had ever dreamed. Back home at Proctor's, I'd see the occasional passersby from the windows, but nothing like the thousands upon thousands of people that bustled about this city. Cars filed bumper to bumper across the myriad of streets and intersections while people on the sidewalk operated similarly. It was constant movement and chatter. The scents of coffee, perspiration, and perfume, combined with vehicle fumes bombarded my senses. There was so much to process at once. I popped my medication into my mouth and swallowed, hoping to dampen down my creeping anxiety.

"On your left!" someone shouted from behind me and I spun around just in time to dodge an oncoming bicycle. The cyclist turned around for a moment, looking at me with confusion before turning back around and speeding away.

Ben the bus driver was already long gone so there was no going back now. Seattle had been the last stop on his route before he made his way back down to Mississippi once more.

Before I'd left Proctor's, Ronda and the rest of the staff had made it their mission to educate me on the outside world. Which included making sure I knew how to navigate, and had access to a phone and the internet. I'd visited Seattle hundreds of times online, watching videos and scrolling through countless hours of photos. I opened my phone and mapped to the ferry port that I would need to take in order to reach my intended destination. Back at Proctor's the back garden had been filled with flowers, primarily wolfsbane, which was a beautiful flower, but highly poisonous, Ronda advised. I'd been told since I was a child to give them plenty of space, but in the name and upon my research, this flower led me exactly to where my heart longed to go, Bainbridge Island. Straight west of Seattle, across Elliot Bay, every cell in my body was urging me to get there.

The food on the way here had always been something fast from a gas station, usually a cold cut sandwich or something along those lines. But now, here in this city, I let the aromas wafting out of buildings guide me to my next meal. Before long I found myself sitting at an outdoor bistro table, taking short sips of coffee while watching the busy city move around me. Back at Proctor's for the last several years we had a bee hive in the back garden. This city was much like that hive, a constant hum of activity. The music radiating from the outdoor speakers was loud, the people sitting amongst the other tables talked amongst themselves, their words all drowning together in the midst of the bustling city noise. I took measured breaths, taking in the scenes around me, bouncing my leg in attempt to control my anxiety. I was doing my best to hold an episode at bay. Keeping calm and pushing my emotions deep down was the best way to avoid it. Breathing exercises. Meditation. Take you're medication. Those were the three steps that Ronda drilled into me for the last several months before my departure. I'd been doing these things religiously, but the closer I came to Bainbridge, the worse it became. My food arrived and I thanked the waiter with a small smile. I twirled the pasta onto my fork, savoring each morsel of pesto-coated chicken.

After departing the cafe, I made my way to the ferry port and purchased my ticket. The next ferry wouldn't be ready to board for another two hours so I purchased a locker to stow away my rolling luggage, and took it as a chance to wander through town visiting the local tourist traps. It was a peculiar feeling to be able to wander as I pleased. The few instances that I'd been able to leave Proctor's, which had only happened in my last few months there, I'd been heavily guarded with many chaperones on any of the outings. But walking freely here now, it was exhilarating and anxiety inducing all at once. I thumbed through post cards, examining the photos on each one before settling on one that pictured Elliot Bay and Bainbridge Island on the horizon. The card read Bainbridge Island: The land of wolves. I held it in my hand as I continued working my way through the contents of the small shop in search of some sort of souvenir that I could send back to Ronda. I looked around, noting the mother and daughter selecting their own souvenirs, the clerk checking out an elderly couple with coffee mugs and a man wearing a dark green hoodie and jeans with his back turned looking at an assortment of jewelry.

Upon checking out, I made my way to the next shop, drawing closer to the ferry port. I decided to grab a coffee before boarding the ferry with over an hour left to kill. The coffee shop of choice was directly across from the ferry port, I crossed the alley, looking both ways before making my way to the shop entrance. A small cluster of smokers congregated at the back of the alley, likely workers from surrounding shops gathered for a break near the dumsters. The bell at the top of the door jangled, sounding my entrance. A quick, half hearted "welcome" came from the teenaged gaggle of baristas. I waited patiently, stepping forward as each patron was helped, the doorbell continuing to jangle behind me. I ordered my drink, paid the cashier and turned to leave, walking past the line of customers. I recognized the dark green hoodie at the back of the line, but passed with a small smile. I sat at one of the outdoor tables as I sipped my drink, watching as customers cleared out and the streets grew more quiet. It was calming to watch people move about their day, so I sat quietly as bustling of the city street turned into a trickle. The sun was setting and the coffee shop was near closing, I could see the ferry arriving in the distance, still too far off to make out any details. I could hear the lid open and close on the dumsters in the alley, saw the lights turn off in the corner of my eye at the coffee shop, a set of keys jingling in the hands of one of the baristas as they turned to lock up.

I took that as my cue to pack up and head to the ferry, it would be docking in a little over twenty minutes, which gave me about forty minutes to wait. Crossing past the alley I kept my head down, focusing on my feet as my anxiety began to kick in. I gasped as a shoulder nudged into mine, nearly knocking me off balance. "I'm so sorry," I began to apologize profusely. I raised my eyes to see the sleeve of the green hoodie once more.

A sinister smile played on the mans features. "Not yet you aren't." as he pushed me once more. I fell into the arms of three other strangers that quickly pulled me from view. It was the same people I'd seen smoking in the alley nearly an hour before. I felt the cold steely grip of hands on my throat, any screams that attempted to escape becoming a choked whimper. My heart pulsed in my ears, the monitor on my watch sounding its alert that my heart rate had reached its xenith, and my episode was about to begin. "Help." I uttered my small choked cry in vain.

Gale

The entire ferryride to the mainland, her scent had grown increasingly stronger. Gale drank it in, memorizing every note. The sun had set and the night sky was slowly painting its way across the horizon. As they approached port, passengers gathered their belongings and formed their queue for departure. The air shifted, Kaito's senses perked. It was clearly their Luna, but it was different than before. The energy in the air grew tense and to their heightened senses, Gale could very faintly make out a collection of energy pouring together from surrounding stars, forming directly across port. Gale bounded off the ship, jumping over guard rails and pushing past passengers, bursting into full speed as his feet struck the pavement.