Meeting Tahku Again
They follow me to the bookshop where they say their goodbyes. I get to the bookshop and begin cleaning while Hugo watches me from the back of the counter as usual. He doesn't look as distracted as he has been all week. "Why don't you use magic to complete the tasks?" he asks suddenly.
"Wouldn't it be slower than doing it manually?" I ask confused. I could do as he asked and use magic but what I can do with telekinesis is limited. For instance, I could carry up to four books with a hand and use the remaining to arrange them on different parts of a shelf but if I use telekinesis I won't be able to carry that many books unless they are together. And if I wanted to arrange them on the shelf, the precision needed just means I can only control one book and will have to drop the rest of the books elsewhere.
"Slower?" He snaps his fingers and the books I had been holding jump out of my hands. From all over the shop book fly out and rearrange themselves on the shelves. At the same time, a broom and duster fly out and begin working just as the tables and chairs arrange themselves. In less than a minute the shop is spotless. I look at Hugo in shock. Why would he ask me to do all those menial tasks when he could just snap his fingers and get them done in a flash.
He chuckles as he sees my expression. "I had to give you something to do," He says, answering my thoughts.
"Can you teach me how to do that?" I ask, imagining myself snapping my fingers and getting all my chores done at home.
"Sure. But not today. Now go home, it's getting late."
I nod and after telling him goodnight leave the shop. On the way home, I spot a girl in front of me who looks familiar. I can't see her face clearly as she is looking down at her phone. She turns her head slightly and I finally get a glimpse of her face. Immediately my heartbeat picks up as I stop walking. It is Cassandra. I have not seen her since the holiday began and now that I can see her in front of me I can't help but get excited. For some strange reason, the fact that I have not seen her in a while makes her look more beautiful. I take a deep breath and compose myself, putting on what I think is a cool expression before walking forward calmly.
"Cassandra?" I say when I get close to her, doing my best to sound only slightly surprised.
She turns to look at me, a puzzled expression on her face before recognition dawns on her, and a smile appears. "Hey, Ian."
"Hey. What are you doing here?"
"Oh. I was supposed to meet up with one of my friends but she just called to bail out. I was just about to start going home."
"Do you mind if I escort you? These streets can become pretty dangerous at night and having a man like me at hand can help keep danger away."
She laughs. "Man? You? Wait, have you been working out?"
"Yeah. What tipped you off?"
She shrugs. "I don't know, you just look… fitter than before." She begins walking and I follow her. We begin talking about what we have been up to, or at least she does, I just listen and comment when I feel the need to. Time flies and soon we are near where she lives.
"I was wondering, would you like to come to a concert with me?"
My heart skips a beat. Is she asking me out on a date? "A concert?"
"Yeah. My dad bought me some tickets to the Rolling Hills concert to reward me for my good grades. I invited some of my friends but I still have an extra ticket and since you helped me with pre-calc I just wanted to invite you."
"Oh. I'll ask my mom and if she agrees then no problem." While I might not be alone with her, I am not too disappointed. Rolling Hills is a band that went viral a couple of years ago and I am sort of a fan of theirs. If I go to the concert then I get to listen to them and go out with Cassandra at the same time. That's not too bad.
"Okay. The concert's in two weeks." She tells me. We are already in front of her house.
"I'll remember. Bye." I say and wave at her.
She waves back and goes into her house. I turn around and begin walking away, a wide smile on my face. I can't wait for the concert to begin. "You're pretty far from home aren't you?" a voice says suddenly from beside me.
I jump and turn around to see Tahku walking beside me, his hands in his pocket and a small smile on his face. As I look at him I get the feeling that he is not alone. Immediately I activate second sight and see the Minotaur beside him. The Minotaur bares his teeth at me in a creepy sort of smile. My heart jumps as I see that threatening smile. "'Taur, stop that," Tahku says and the Minotaur stops, but it still has a smug smile on his face.
"What do you want?" I ask Tahku warily. He had made out the Laen to be evil when we first met and tried to get me to work for him in a strange manner. Now that I am a part of the Laen and can clearly see that they are not evil, I can't help but distrust him.
"I can see you are enjoying your stay with the Laen," Tahku says, not answering my question. "You shouldn't be so far from home, this city is not as safe as it seems."
"And staying at home will make me safer? I can take care of myself, thank you."
He laughs. "You aren't even a Wranth yet, you think the little you know about magic is enough to keep you safe? Even I can't say I'm totally safe?"
I ignore him and keep on walking. He puts a hand on my shoulder to stop me. I try to swat his hand away but meet nothing but air, I turn around to face him, a bit angry but cautious at the same time. I have not forgotten the way he froze time in my house. If he wants me dead, then there's nothing I will be able to do to stop him.
"What do you want?"
He speaks, this time seriously. "From you? Nothing yet, believe it or not, but I am not here for you. I have a warning for you though, stay away from this block for the time being. Th-shit!"
All of a sudden I feel a very oppressive aura coming from the building opposite me. Fear immediately strikes me and my breathing stops. Before I can do anything Tahku grabs me. The world shifts and everything goes dark. I feel a strange force pulling my body in all directions and then it all stops. I fall to the ground, unable to see a thing as my body aches and nausea wells up within me. Unable to withstand the feelings I curl up on the ground, my eyes shut tight. I circulate my Uua and after some time I begin to feel better. Slowly I open my eyes and stumble to my feet. The world moves beneath my feet and it takes me a second to find my balance. I look around me, wondering where I am. I am no longer near Cassandra's house. It takes me a second, but I soon realize where I am, in an alley close to my house.
I stumble to my house and walk inside. Inside, Emily who is sitting in front of the television turns to look at me. Her look immediately turns to one of concern. "What happened to you?" she asks as she stands up and tries to help me walk.
"I'm fine, I'm fine," I say, waving her away as I walk to my room. "I'm just feeling a little sick." She leaves me alone and watches me walk away with a look of concern and another strange expression on her face. In my room I stumble to my bed and flop on it, hurriedly circulating my Uua as I try to get rid of the effects of whatever Tahku did to me. Slowly but surely I begin to return to normal.
I think of what just happened and my stomach churns as I remember that oppressive aura, trying to figure out what could possibly have caused it. It seems the world is still as dangerous as before, just that instead of normal humans what I have to fear most are powerful magicians and the Fasuru. For now, I just make up my mind to be more careful. Still, some part of me is grateful for Tahku getting me out of there, even if I still don't fully trust him.
I hear a soft knock on my room door. "What is it?" I call out.
"Dinner's ready." Emily says from behind the closed door. A pause. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah. I was just feeling a bit sick. I'll be down soon."
"Okay," she replies before walking away.
I stay on the bed for a bit longer before getting up and heading down for dinner.
My mom comes home after we are done with dinner and I talk to her about the concert. She agrees and I leave her alone happy.