Protected by Stone (A Paranormal Romance Novel) (28 page)

“Wait,” I called, stepping forward. Tessa stopped, looking back at me with her too kind face. “I—what do I do about Grault? How do I fix him?”

“Why would you wish to fix him?” she asked, eyes sparkling in their shared metallic light. “Don't you think he's perfect just as he is?”

What does that mean?
“No, I—I meant about the stone! He's become stone!”

She gave me a knowing smile, acting as if the answer was clear. Orange and silver, mixing as one, they walked into the lake together.

––––––––

I
was nervous about entering the house. It had made so much noise, I didn't know if it would crumble down on me.

But I needed to see Grault.

What was Tessa saying? She acted as if... as if he was...
My boots carried me quickly down the hall. I was running fast, faster than I should have risked. Soaked in water, my shoes slipped out from under me.

With arms over my head, I cried out in dismay. The fall would hurt, I knew it in my gut. Squeezing my eyes, I hoped I wouldn't injure my ankle all over again.

His arms caught me, cradling me so comfortably I couldn't speak. “Farra,” Grault said, watching me with wide eyes. “Are you okay? I was looking for you, the lantern, and...”

I crushed my lips to his, not caring if it made them sore. He could have been pure stone still, I would have pressed just as hard.

“Farra,” he gasped, setting me down, holding me steady. “What happened? Why are you crying?”

“Am I crying?” I sniffled, reaching up to erase the salty tears. “How stupid, I went this long without letting you see,” I laughed. “I'm awfully ugly when I cry, now you know.”

He took my wrists, forcing them from my cheeks. Gently, he kissed my red skin, the corners of my eyes. “It's impossible for you to be ugly. I was just worried what was wrong.”

My cheeks were hurting, my smile too wide. “Nothing is wrong. That's the thing, Grault. Everything is just so, so good.” Laughing again, I felt a hiccup escape. That just set me giggling all over again. “Everything is so wonderful.”

It was clear he didn't understand. I knew I'd have to explain everything to him. For now, all I wanted to do was to hug him, to feel him, and remind myself that he was flesh and blood.

My mind was whirl of thoughts and turbulent emotions. I'd have pushed him to the floor right then, if he had let me. “Farra,” he said, husky, “what has come over you?”

I expected to struggle, to blush. My tongue would surely be numb, stopping me from speaking. With incredible ease the words fell from my lips. “I think I'm in love with you, Grault.” He was staring, so I rushed on with a nervous grin. “It's not my fault. Apparently you're perfect, or something.”

I was happy he didn't ask what I meant. His hand went to the back of my neck, guiding me against his smooth chest. “Farra, I love you, too. More than I ever thought possible. I didn't expect, with what I am, that you would ever—”

My kiss was close to angry. “Shh, stop that. I told you before, I don't care. Who would care about something like horns and wings?” I teased, running a hand over his forehead. “Maybe I even like them, what do you say to that?”

He sucked in air through his nose, burying his face in my shoulder.

And, really, that was as fine an answer as any.

****

G
rault told me he had woken up in the greenhouse, the sun shining down on his skin. It had brought him back to life, but I got the sense that he'd been certain he was doomed to be a statue forever.

I caught him a few times, just opening and closing his hands when he thought I wouldn't see.

Together we had walked the house, at first too nervous to touch the walls. I was concerned it would all crumble down any second.

Nothing satisfied me until Grault made me stand outside, his strength put to the test on the structures. Slamming his shoulder into doorways, walls, and even testing the strength of the ceilings, he could find no flaws.

“It's safe,” he told me. “I don't think I understand any of this, Farra.”

“Does it matter?” Brushing my fingers over the arch of the hall, I shrugged. “Whatever changed when Tessa's—or Bizzy's—revenant left, it didn't effect the stones and beams. That's good, isn't it?”

“Good,” he said, “but I don't like not knowing the reasons.”

My smile was tender, meant to sway him from the subject. I didn't want him to worry about what had happened, I didn't want him to worry at all.

I knew I would do enough of that, myself, until I understood everything that had occurred in that house. “Come on,” I said to him, taking his hand just to feel his skin. “Let's get everything ready for when the revenants come back.”

“You think they will?”

Qui'nxious and his words entered my mind.
Even before Tessa did all of this, the revenants were drawn here.

I handed him a mop, ignoring how he wielded it awkwardly. “Yes. I think they will.”

They didn't start returning until half a week had passed. When they did, it was like a leak had sprung. There were more than before, so many that I was relieved we had enough rooms.

The slate had been washed. There was no way to deny it. The house would be different, it could never harken back to the time of Tessa.

But that was fine. I'd learned my way, even if different, could work. Brute labor, determination, and the ability to ask for help.

Even if it was boring, or practical...

It was still magic.

****

“Y
es, I know,” I sighed. “I'm writing it down right now, I'll talk to Coga later—“

“I'm only
saying
,” Junlit said, leaning close over my reception desk, “that I think if people have gotten new rooms, I have the seniority to get a bigger one, too!”

Turning the thick guest book, I tapped what I'd scribbled down. “I know. See this? It's a note to talk to Coga for you. Though I don't know why you even need a bigger room, you're very...”

“What?” he huffed, bloating like he'd sucked air into his non-existent chest. “Go on, say it. Small?”

“You are small. Yeah.” Snapping the book shut, I smiled in the face of his overblown offense. “I will talk to him for you. Okay?”

The slug flitted down the hall, looking like gold gelatin in the new lights I'd had installed. No room or corner of that house would be left to crawl in darkness anymore. “Honestly,” he mumbled, voice fading with distance. “It was much better when there were only a few of us, I got more pancakes and everything, I...”

Shaking my head, my lips curled at the edges. I didn't have long to stay smiling. Shifting on the chair, I looked forward at the figure I'd been waiting for. “Qui'nxious,” I said, “I wondered when you would return.”

The tall revenant didn't move from where he stood. “I never left, Farra Blooms.”

Just observing,
I thought in defeat. It did no good to get mad at him, I'd learned. “Will you be staying here still, even with all the changes?”

His beak pointed to the ceiling, a sharp finger to motion with. “You've done many things here. I'm not sure the revenants can truly appreciate the plumbing and electricity.”

“I was just relieved that they stayed out of the plumber's hair while he was working.” The memory of how tense I'd been, expecting the workers to flee the house, made me fidget.

“It turned out fine, yes?”

“Yes,” I agreed softly. “So far, everything has worked out very well.”

“You seem concerned by that, child.”

Pushing the book around on the desk, I used it to keep my hands busy. Even now, they wanted to reach for a lantern that was not there. “I'm wondering what will happen now. Tessa told me... something. It's been swirling in my head like a gnat.”

His thin arms were extremely bright blue, moving to touch my fingers where they rested on the guest book. “Will you tell me? Yes?”

It was hard not to look at him and be reminded of the memory, of him kneeling before my young grandmother in that small room. “She said that she was never good at helping the revenants, you, move on. That she was scared of them leaving her.” On my skin, his tiny fingers twitched. “She told me I could do it, I've done it already. Twice, even,” I added quietly.

“What is your quandary, Farra Blooms?”

Lifting my eyes, I studied his shining, tar colored body. “Do I hang on to these people, to everyone, like she did? Or do I help them find their meaning, their memories, so they can move on finally?”

“You should do what you feel is right. Yes.”

The breath I took in was sharp. “You tell me what's right. I would say helping them remember, so they can find peace like Vibbs... and like Tessa.” My lids crushed tight, it still made my body ache to think of her. “So, you. You're the one that knows the most about this, even if you won't say why. You told me about the revenants, then told me that
you
didn't want to move on.”

He pulled his hands from me, as if I could sear him to ash. “I'm not ready, still, Farra Blooms.”

“That's what I'm saying,” I whispered. “How do I tell when anyone is ready, when they don't even know who they used to be?”

Qui'nxious turned away, heading towards one of the halls. “It is not easy to be a caretaker, magic or not. Yes. It is on you to decide if, and when, you will assist the revenants.”

“Hold up, please,” I said quickly. It took my self control to not run around the desk and stop him in his tracks. “I have one more thing to ask, before you vanish for who knows how long.”

His profile was like a crane in shadow. “Go on, Farra Blooms. Ask.”

“I know you were... were there with her, that day,” I mumbled. “She asked you not to talk about it, fine. But do you know
why
, if Tessa's magic, her revenant, has left this place, how it could still be standing as it is?”

He didn't shift an inch, but I thought he was considering his answer before he spoke. “What she did, splitting herself, was special, yes. It was dangerous, but special. I can't say, but I believe the shell left behind has nothing to do with Tessa herself.”

“What? Then who?”

Qui'nxious began to walk away, each step letting him linger. “Her dog wanted to protect her. Perhaps these walls of stone are just a result of that desire. It's interesting, Farra Blooms,” he said, not once looking back. “Interesting that you are always protected by stone.”

Protected by stone. He's talking about more than this house,
I realized quickly.

There were no more words to share. He vanished into the hall, blue hands waving at his sides like cloth.

Cloth... wait...

Why would I think about blue cloth?

For a long while, I stared after where he'd retreated. I couldn't shake the sensation that I knew who he was. Who the revenant who'd been so kind to me, so affectionate to Tessa, truly was.

In my mind, I couldn't wipe away the photograph. The three of them, together in the snow with their brand new blue mittens and scarves.

I wonder if Tessa ever realized.

****

A
ctual winter was on the world. Walking through the light snow into Barrow Village lacked the familiar joy I would have felt in the past.

The trauma from the magical blizzard would take a long time to shake.

Trudging across the shoveled walkways, I caught someone staring at me. I didn't recognize them, but I'd grown used to the stares.

Lifting my head, I spotted an older man.
Go on,
I thought in private defeat,
Ogle me like I'm the devil come calling.

The stranger blinked... and then he tipped his hat with a smile. It made me freeze in my tracks.

Had someone just
smiled
at me? In Barrow Village? The phenomenon continued as I walked, villagers catching my eye and casting friendly, knowing smiles.

I was disturbed, more than ready to knock Dirk's door down. Just seeing him when he cracked the door for me was a relief. “Farra!” he laughed, “come in, come in. It's freezing out here.”

“I know,” I said, kicking ice off on his front step. Inside, his house was warm enough that I undid my jacket right away.

He motioned for me to come upstairs, the place smelling minty and strong. “What is all this?” I asked, spotting the tiny paper bags dangling from the rafters.

Tugging one down, he tossed it to me. “Just a special tea for the village, lot of colds cropping up. This is good for the sinuses.”

Sniffing the satchel, I held it away with a groan. “Wow. Strong.”

“I'll make you something else,” he assured me, pouring water from a kettle he'd had sitting on the stove.

Setting the tea bag on the table, I peeked out one of his windows. The buildings below all wore hats of white snow. “Speaking of everyone in town, they were acting... weird when they saw me.”

Dirk set a steaming mug in front of my clenched fingers. Sipping from his own, he dropped into the chair across from me. “Weird how?”

“Smiling,” I muttered, shifting on my seat. He began chuckling, hiding his mouth behind his mug. “What, what's funny?”

“Oh, Farra. Are smiles so weird?”

“From people who used to glare at me, yes!”

He placed the cup down, thumbs rubbing on the rim. “They're much more welcoming.  How could they not be, after what you did for them?”

I stared down into my tea, my reflection muted in the green liquid. “How could they know I did anything?”

“The people here aren't unaware of who you are,” he said gently.

“I'm just me,” I said, forcing a hollow laugh. “A stranger to them, still.”

He cocked his head, considering me. “Maybe, but they're quick, aware of the world. They knew the snow wasn't normal, and when we all fled, they were frightened of what it meant.” His eyes closed briefly. “The day the blizzard stopped, the sun returning, I knew you had been the one to stop it. It's obvious they suspect the same, and they're grateful. Good people, Farra, just superstitious.”

Blowing on the steam, I eyed him thoughtfully. “They think I saved their town. I guess it'll be nice to have people not running from me anymore.”

“You know,” he said, “back when Tessa's mom was around, most accepted what went on at that house. People went to her for help, to contact dead loved ones... all sorts of things. They came from miles around. It was lucrative work, my dad would say to me.”