The inside of Aurelia's cottage was just as pleasing as it looked from the outside. An antique shoe rack right next to the door held huge boots made of a hide he didn't recognize but knew they belonged to Xander. Aurelia's shoes and a pair of glittering black heels were lying haphazardly on the floor, the laces tangled and managing to make him stumble as soon as he stepped inside.
The cozy wooden interior was alight with pools of golden light and smelt like sweet cinnamon. Fake potted plants hung from the ceiling, green creepers trailing on the banister of the curved staircase that led upwards. A kettle was boiling on the stove, while Scarlet hummed merrily as she moved about in the kitchen, the counter littered with a hurricane of pots and pans. A huge window opened into the backyard with a strawberry patch, the scent of which reminded him of spring.
The upper floor was a hallway with two bedrooms and a bathroom at the end, which Aurelia had shown him to clean up. He was doing quite a bad job at it, as he stared at his gaunt face in the mirror, the hollow eyes looking back at him in demand as to why he was punishing himself. It had been three days since he had last eaten anything, and even the adrenaline was tired.
He cast his eyes around for something else to look at, save his hollow-cheeked reflection, when his eyes fell on a cup with four toothbrushes. Three of them were of normal size, but a fourth one was the size of a toilet brush with bristles slick with spit, resting against the wall. There was a carving on the stick and it took Falcon a few seconds to understand what the letters spelled. 'Bessie.' He whispered. 'Who's Bessie?'
Falcon splashed a handful of icy water on his face, shaking his head to clear the fatigue, and left the bathroom, just so he could tell her he cleaned up.
His eyes fell on the bedroom opposite him, the door a splash of vibrant art which reminded him of the graffitied walls of the alleys he grew up in. Hideous drawings of monsters and a large scaly serpent stared back at him and he wondered when Aurelia drew all this. The art looked old and clumsy so maybe she was young then, spray painting the door while her parents were asleep.
Falcon approached the staircase cautiously, peering to see if Scarlet could spot him. He could tell she disapproved of him but was silent for the sake of her daughter. He placed his cap back on, pulling it real low this time to avoid looking her in the eye, and was about to go down when he heard her voice, hushed but demanding as she reprimanded her daughter.
'What did I tell you about bringing boys home, Aurelia?'
'He's a guest, Mom. We will leave in the morning.' Aurelia responded, sounding angry and somewhat tired.
Leave? They hadn't decided on what they were going to do next, so was she lying or did she have a plan in mind?
'You are not going anywhere, Aurelia. You are barely home now, always doing something for your grandfather. How many monsters will you kill? The real demons are humans, and you can't stay away from them.' Scarlet seethed. 'I don't like the looks of that boy.' She continued.
Aurelia gave a long exaggerated sigh. 'When will Father be home?' she asked after a while, changing the topic completely.
'He might not come back tonight. You know how busy they are at the council after the disappearance of your grandfather. They are going over the appointment of the new village Guru.'
'The new Guru? But this makes it look like Grandpa is dead. They shouldn't do this, this is insane.' Aurelia said.
Falcon stepped low on the steps until he could see her, sitting by the door and zipping up boots made of sleek leather which Falcon immediately wanted to own. She had tied her hair in a short ponytail again, a few strands that always hung around her face adorning her features. Her bottom lip was swollen, like she had bitten it harshly and with the anxiety pulsing through Falcon's veins, he didn't blame her. Her face was free of the grime that stayed in the crease of her smile and she looked fresh and determined.
Falcon realized he was snooping and coughed slightly as he approached her. He slipped his feet into his boots, which, unlike Aurelia, he had placed neatly in the shoe rack, and watched the lamp light dance on her curls out of the corner of his eye.
Scarlet was standing with her back to the kitchen counter, the kettle in one hand as she gripped a mug with "World's Best Mother" written in sprawls. Her face was scrunched in distress, mouth turned downwards as she stared at her daughter. 'Where are you going now?'
'The Town Hall.' Aurelia stood up, dusting her pants as she turned towards the door.
'Every time you go running off to the town hall in rebellion of a new rule, you get a probation point. Do you want to take the place of your grandfather as the head trainer or not?' Scarlet said.
'But they cannot replace Grandpa like this, Mom.'
'You are going to go off running anyways, so make sure to tell your father I expect him home tonight. He has a wife and daughter to give time to.'
'Yeah, and this village is his mistress, hence, the attention.' Aurelia said, but she looked a bit guilty.
Falcon watched Scarlet's wretched expression, a hollow feeling of understanding in his heart. The woman was lonely, waiting for her husband and daughter who were always out, and trying to protect them by keeping them home at the same time.
'Be safe.' Scarlet called after them as Aurelia opened the cottage door, bright sunlight streaming in like an intruder and Falcon squinted against the sudden attack. He hitched his backpack higher and stared at the ground determinedly to evade Scarlet's judgmental stare and also to show her that he was sorry this was happening. He could still feel her gaze on his back as he shut the door rapidly and started down the street after Aurelia.
'My mother thinks I am a hot-headed teenage girl.' Aurelia mumbled furiously as she jogged briskly, her hand clasped around the hilt of the dagger at her belt.
'Then stop bringing boys home.' Falcon fought a smile coming on his lips with much difficulty as he avoided looking at her directly, his eyes on the pebbles.
Aurelia turned to him, baring her teeth in an almost comedic anger. 'Don't even start...'
He grinned as he surrendered to the smile, but shook his head. 'You are not hot-headed. You are smart and most of the time you know what you are doing.'
She smiled slightly. 'Most of the time?'
'Yeah, like right now? Why are you trusting me? Why did you ask Zue to take down my pictures? Why do you care so much if I get into architecture college or not? I am a murderer. I could stab you when your back is turned.' Falcon knew he was annoyed at the surprising emotions brimming inside him, but the rush of words surprised him even more. This was the most he had ever spoken in one go, and it didn't help that Aurelia was particularly easy to talk to.
'And I have trained under a demon slayer, Falcon. I can take you out in combat faster than you can blink.' She hadn't even flinched, turning a corner and almost running now. 'And just so you know, I am not rooting for you to get into college, but this is a partnership and we are working together. The first step would be to trust each other, like you said on the train.'
He realized they had reached the town square, the bustle of activity washing over him like a wave. The world was too loud during the day, and too sorrowful in the night, and he knew which one he preferred. She was trying to trust him, but was he doing the same? With a sinking heart, Falcon realized his feelings towards her had gone beyond trust.
A soft breeze blew his way and he inhaled a lungful. The air in Lapis Valley was so clean, that he could feel it in every breath he took. He cleared his mind as the sweet elixir perfused his body and used the rush of wind to clear away the confusing and somewhat disturbing thoughts.
'You are acting weird.' Aurelia said, and Falcon's heart jumped. Had she noticed? Please don't know, he prayed and turned to her, but her attention was already on something else.
Falcon realized they had reached the Town Hall and the building in front of him took his breath away, driving all thoughts from his mind for one blissful second. The town hall was a massive structure of slate grey stone, with magnificent mahogany double doors fitted with bolts so golden, they were practically sparkling in the sunlight. A curved sign on top of the door said TOWN HALL in graceful italic letters, painted gold to match the bolts.
A horse carriage stood right outside the door, the horseman trying to stop the brute from munching on the flowers outside the building. Aurelia grimaced at the sight of the carriage and mumbled "he's here too" before she went straight up to the massive doors and pushed them open with much difficulty, and stepped inside.
Falcon closed the doors behind him and they banged, the thud echoing in the ginormous chamber they had stepped into. The foyer was a wide space with lots of benches and a table at the head, like a place where students would take entrance exams.
A balcony lined the foyer and Falcon felt a ripple of dread for the sights villagers might have witnessed while standing against the banisters. A long staircase led upwards and he followed Aurelia, who was taking three steps at a time, the concrete vibrating from her stamping.
They turned into a corridor and Aurelia stamped her feet in agitation as her eyes fell on a closed door at the end. 'The council.' She ground her teeth in frustration. 'The good-for-nothing old men with….' Falcon placed a hand on her mouth hurriedly as he heard a grating sound from inside as if someone had just pushed back their chair. He wondered if they had heard her when the door opened with a snap and Aurelia dropped her hand which was hovering over the knob, like she was debating whether to interrupt the council or not.
A pair of annoyed hazel eyes met his' and Falcon stepped back. Cyrus's ginger head poked out and he said gruffly. 'Miss Aurelia.'
Aurelia glared at him and Falcon was surprised at the hostility when he remembered this was the first time she was seeing him again after he had told her the man had a crush on her mother. Aurelia looked like she was about to march into the room, so he placed a firm hand on her lower arm and pulled her back.
'Is Mr. Renatus in there?' Falcon said.
Cyrus gave him a long hard look before he nodded and opened the door a little wide, stepping aside to let them pass. His shoulder brushed Falcon's arm and a scent of herbs floated over, and Falcon was struck with the ominous feeling that he had smelt it before. He shrugged the thought out of his mind and fixed his attention to the room.
There were seven men sitting around a large wooden table, their eyes focused on the two intruders. Xander was sitting at the head, a sheaf of paper in front of him held down by a paperweight in the shape of a dragon. He looked mildly curious, and the only person who didn't look offended by them barging in the room.
The other men were all elderly, their eyes shrunken and skin wizened by the sun. One of them raised a glass of water to his lips with a shaking hand, his eyes boring into Falcon, who could feel the weight of them on him like a Ford Ranger truck.
Aurelia bowed her head slightly before she turned to her father in a hurry. 'Father, is the council appointing the new Guru?'
'We have appointed actually.' The old man spoke up, his voice quivering tremulously like his hand. He was sitting on Xander's right, his face an apathetic mask of indifference. 'Just like it had been decided, your father has taken the place of Darius Renatus.'
'But, Mr. Arlo, my Grandpa is not dead, the council cannot make the appointment yet.' She said, wretched.
'Oh, but how do you know that?'
Aurelia grew quiet, but her nostrils had flared, a quiet fury in her eyes, and Falcon could sense it dissipating off her in waves. Xander pulled back his chair and approached her gently, tugging her until they were out of the room. 'Ari, you know the council's decision is final. This is what your Grandpa wanted.'
Aurelia looked like she was about to argue, but then she closed her mouth and nodded and Falcon was grateful she had realized that her arguing was only killing the time. 'Did you organize the search?' she said instead.
Xander nodded. 'I asked Cyrus to arrange search parties all over the valley, but none of them returned with any news, except that Father has vanished like he never existed. I am leaving for the hut right after the meeting adjourns.'
'There's nothing there.' Falcon found the words leaving his mouth before he could stop himself. 'We searched around and Mr. Renatus is nowhere to be found.'
He noticed with a start that Xander was looking at him interestingly and realized this was the first time he had spoken in front of him. 'Thank you, Jason.' Xander nodded. 'I will keep that in mind, but I can't exactly sit about while my father is missing.'
Aurelia sighed. 'If you find anything, please tell me.'
'Of course.' Xander turned back towards the room. He pushed open the door and Falcon heard Arlo's loud grumble. 'Xander, you need to keep this wild girl under control…..'
His voice faded away as the door shut behind him. Falcon turned to Aurelia to see her reaction, but she was deep in thought, her hands at her waist as she stared at a spot on the ground. She sensed him staring at her and looked up, her eyes distant, and when she spoke Falcon had to lean in close to hear what she was saying.
'Falcon.' Aurelia said slowly. 'How good can you bluff?'