The Lost Girl (43 page)

He eyed it curiously and opened the wrapping. Inside was a very ancient wooden box, and when he opened the lid, we saw a beautiful crystal hourglass laid inside, but in his the sand was translucent and transparent at the bottom.

“This feels really valuable. As in,
priceless
,” he murmured in a low voice “Do you know what it is for?”

“Look at your note.” I pointed at the yellow parchment stuck to the top of the box, just like mine had been.

He took it and read out loud:

For a moment with your loved ones long gone.
Spend them wisely. Sky.

And then he whispered, “Wow.” This is …
amazing
.” He gaped and then turned to look at me. “What does yours do?”

“Free pass to her home,” I explained, twirling the coin slowly between my fingers.

He frowned, looking puzzled. “She has a
home
?”

“I suppose she does,” I said, scrunching up my nose in deep thought. A fleeting memory of a glass palace flashed in my mind. Had I dreamed about this? It felt like such a blurry, unreal vision, but also all too familiar somehow …

“Well, I think we should put these in a very safe place,” Tristan said, closing his box carefully.

“Agreed. I’ll put them both in the safe in our room,” I said, and took his box.

“Do you want me to go with you …?” Tristan asked.

“Nah, go ahead and party with the boys. I’ll put them in the safe and be right back,” I said, giving him a quick kiss and walking back towards the house.

After I had locked up our unworldly gifts safely, I wandered outside to the balcony to survey the party which was happening a little further down the hill.

I leaned over the railing and glanced down; my eyes glanced at the black marking on my wrist. I instantly thought of Vigil.

It would be amazing if he could be here today. I had my boys present, all my friends, my mom; even Sky had surprisingly showed up for the event. I wondered if Vigil was still too far away; or if I dared to call him, would he be able to come right away?

I pressed my fingers over my tattoo and thought of him.
It couldn’t hurt to try, right? It’d really mean a lot to me if he could be here, even if it was for only a brief moment.

A smile spread over my lips when my wrist started to throb with pain. I turned around to see Vigil standing a few feet away, dressed as usual in his formal gray clothes. He still looked older, just like he had in the last dream, his shoulders larger, his chest stronger. He looked a little distressed, but still managed to smile affectionately at me.

“Vigil! I can’t believe you came,” I exclaimed, running to give him a big hug. “I’m so happy you’re here!”

“Of course I came. When have I not?” he said with a chuckle.

“I thought you wouldn’t because you’d be so busy dealing with the rest of the Gray Hooded Ones,” I explained. I was particularly jittery as I knew he had broken some serious rules because of me. “Is everything okay?”

He gave a strained smile. “Work problems are resolved.”

“Are you all right?” I asked, cupping his face in my hands.

“Y-yes. Everything is fine,” he said, slightly uncomfortable at my closeness and my affectionate gesture.

“What happened, Vigil? Did you explain to them what happened? Did everything work out fine?”

He surveyed the view in silence for a while, and when he spoke again, his voice was nervous. “I sort of …
retired
from work,” he finally confessed.

“Did they force you to do it? Because of the power switch accident and the warehouse …” I trailed off, unable to dwell too much on that last memory.

“No. It was not forced. I had to discuss what happened at the warehouse. Complete annihilation is something of a big deal for us, so I had no other choice but to report it.
And I knew the outcome would be severe punishment,” he told me, and I flinched with guilt. I’d known he would be in trouble because of me, but it stung me to hear it confirmed.

“Oh, God, Vigil. I’m so sorry! It’s all my fault—” I began, but he interrupted.

“It was
not
your fault. It was entirely my decision and I do not regret a second of it,” he said firmly, his tone harsh. “Normally, I would take whatever punishment they think fair, but I have had this idea brewing inside my mind for a while.” His voice softened as he continued, “I did not know how I was going to make them all agree to this, though. It had been only possible to put it into motion after this latest incident.”

“What idea did you have? What did you want them to agree to?”

“I wanted out. That brief time I spent as a human in our power switch was a mind-opening experience for me. When I got my powers back, I no longer wished to bear the Gray Hood. I no longer wanted the title and the responsibilities it held,” he stated. “But how could I make them release me from my duties as a Gray Hood Bearer? None of us has ever wished for this before.”

“What did you do to make them agree?” I asked with wide eyes.

“When the punishment was being discussed, I subtly implied that it should be exactly what I wanted, for them to dismiss me from my duty and strip me of my cloak. I tricked them, made them think that taking my job away would be a fair punishment. There has never been anyone who ever wanted to ‘quit’ before.”

“And they agreed?” I asked, surprised.

“Not at first. They thought it was too drastic a
punishment, to take away my purpose in life like that. They did not know I’ve already found a new purpose. I had to steer them in the direction I wanted, make them think I was being honorable for taking this decision and that it was a fair result of my actions. I made them agree.

“I manipulated them and lied. I am no longer one of them. I wasn’t even before they agreed,” he said in a low voice, his tone mixed with shame, excitement, fear and a hint of vulnerability as well.

“Does that mean you’re human now?”

“No, it does not. But close enough … the closest I could ever get, I suppose,” he explained with a soft smile. “I do not have the Gray Hood powers, but I am still of their race, and we have a magic of our own. And I still have Death’s gift bestowed on me, which makes me far from powerless. But I am, however, officially and fully excused from my duties as a Gray Hooded One from now on.”

“And let me guess, you’ve decided to spend your retirement days on this lovely little planet called Earth, am I correct?” I asked, grinning widely and squeezing his hand eagerly.

“Indeed I have.” He smiled back. “So, are you going to tell me why you are dressed like this?” Vigil asked, changing the subject.

“Oh, today is my wedding day!” I exclaimed happily. “And this is my wedding dress,” I added, beaming proudly.

“Wedding? Is it a celebration of sorts?” he asked, puzzled.

“Oh, Jeez, Vig. You still have so much to catch up on about human habits!” I huffed at his clueless face. “Yes, it’s a ceremony we humans have to celebrate the union of two people who love each other and want to spend their lives
together,” I explained. “So we have this party and call all our friends to commemorate the moment with us. That’s why I called. You are a special friend and I wanted you to be here with us.”

“Oh, I see. It makes sense. Tristan is your soulmate, after all. It is inevitable that you want to be with him,” he stated matter-of-factly.

People had often spoken that line during the years I’d known Tristan, and sure, it sounded romantic, but to be honest, I wasn’t much into this fairy-tale nonsense. Soulmates and happily-ever-afters and things like that just didn’t exist.

“Come on, you say it as if you really believe in this, like it’s a real thing.” I laughed at him.

“It is very real. How could you not believe in it?” he said, puzzled.

“Are you saying that Tristan is the other half of me? The piece that is missing to make me whole?” I said, playfully.

He shook his head. “Actually no. That is not how it works. To explain about soulmates, I first need to explain about auras,” he said, thoughtfully. “Every person has a unique aura, like a signature code built in each soul. And each aura ‘vibrates’ on different frequencies. So, sometimes there are auras that connect with your own wave signals. That happens when you find true friends or kindred spirits. Your auras vibrate in similar ways. Your boys all have connecting auras, as do you,” he explained.

Okay
. That actually made a lot of sense and explained quite a bit.

“But soulmates are not complementary or co-dependent, as you have put it. Your auras are fully functional and complete on their own; there is no missing piece at all. They work completely fine alone. But when
you are together, when you find a soulmate, you will have the highest points of connection ever made, and your auras connect in a way that they normally don’t with others. It is a deeper connection, with a far more finely balanced tune. The frequency then amplifies, intensifies. In other words, the connection makes them both better, stronger, brighter. You become more when you are with your soulmate; you are a better version of all the things that you already are.”

He paused and watched my awed expression. “A-and Tristan is really …” I trailed off.

He watched me intently before answering me. “It is blindingly bright when you two are together. Like your souls are exploding in continuous blasts of pure energy.” Then he leaned over and grazed his fingers lightly over my cheek. “You are greater when he is at your side, and so is he when you are at his.

“Your human wedding tradition is probably a celebration of that,” he mused. “Then I am very honored to be present on your wedding day, Joe Gray.” He bowed respectfully, one of his hands still holding mine so I wouldn’t feel any pain.

“Thank you for coming, Vigil,” I said in a shaky voice, giving him another tight hug.

“It is my pleasure. Congratulations on your wedding, Joey,” he said, before stepping aside. “I must leave now, there are some things I still need to do for my transition to your world to be complete, but we will see each other again soon.”

He nodded gratefully again and bowed one last time before disappearing into thin air.

“You look so handsome in your fancy suits,” I exclaimed, walking towards Harry, Sam, Seth and Josh, a hand fluttering over my chest appreciatively after I left the balcony where I’d met Vigil and went back to the party. The boys were all wearing dark-gray suits with gray shirts underneath, and a different color tie each. I hadn’t had the opportunity to properly gush over how beautiful they all were until now.

A slow song started playing and Josh extended his hand to me. “Okay, so, I’ll take this dance with her, if you all don’t mind,” he informed the boys as he took my hand, directing us firmly to the center of the plaza.

“You look like a fairy-tale princess,” he complimented. “I’ve never danced with a princess-looking girl before … it’s a bit thrilling,” he reflected, mostly to himself, with a goofy smile.

“Stop being silly. I ain’t no princess, boy,” I teased him in a mocking tone.

“Twirl?” he suggested, already stepping away and twirling me to the rhythm of the music. He wrapped his arm around my waist again as we continued dancing across the stone floor.

I was glad I had discarded the high heels. My dress was very long and covered my feet, and no one could see I had no shoes on. Tiffany would never find them under my bed, which meant I got to walk around barefoot, unworried and pain-free the whole day.

Sam suddenly cut in on our dance. “
Excuse me
, but it’s my turn to dance with her now. Scoot away.” Josh made a funny face at him and walked away shaking his head in amusement. Sam could be so silly.

He grinned like the daft fool that he was, and twirled me around. “So, you are aware that you need to have a little
talk
with Amanda and tell her to drop the nagging about wanting to get married too, right?” he asked in a slightly worried tone.

I laughed loudly at his scared face. “All girls go into marriage-nagging mode at weddings, Sammy. Suck it up and take it like a man. It will be over by the end of the day, don’t worry.”

“Oh, really? I didn’t know that. Huh,” he mused thoughtfully. “You and Amanda look really gorgeous today,” I remarked.

“It’s easy for Amanda. She’s beautiful in everything. I, on the other hand, actually had to put a lot of effort in looking this awesometastic today!” he said, giving me a cheesy grin, and then Harry was tapping him on the shoulder, jumping up and down to get our attention.

“Hey, let’s trade!” Harry suggested, handing a cheerful Robin to Sam while he swiftly manoeuvered in between us to have his turn dancing with me. “I never got to thank you for introducing Robin to me, by the way. She is truly amazing, Joey.”

I smiled and he leaned closer, resting his chin on my shoulder and sighing quietly while we danced. “You’re welcome, Harry. I knew you’d like her.”

“Maybe some day I’ll love her as much as I love you,” he said, quietly into my ear.

I almost skipped a step. “Harry …” I hesitated, slowing down our dance.

He leaned back to look me in the eyes. “What?” he asked, blinking curiously at me.

“I-I thought … we talked about this …” I tried to find the right words so I wouldn’t make him feel bad, but I didn’t know where to begin.

His face softened when he recognized my worried
hesitance, and he smiled a little. “I know,” he said. “But I really do love you, Joe. You’re my best friend. You don’t know how happy I am for you and Tristan. Seeing you two so happy like this makes
me
so happy,” he confessed, with genuine honesty flashing in his green eyes.

“Really?” I said quietly.

He paused and looked intently at me, brushing his hand softly against my face. “Really, Joey.” He spoke firmly. “I was so ecstatic when you told me the news; I’ve always known you two belonged together. And I wanted you two to celebrate this moment with us, you know? Why do you think I ratted you out to Tiffany in the first place?”

I glanced at him, grateful for his honesty and for speaking what was truly in his heart. Along with Vigil, Harry was the only person that had never, ever lied to me. Even if the truth was painful or embarrassing for him, he’d always speak his mind. I was so lucky to have him in my life, to have him as my true friend.