The Lost Soul

Chapter 2

"Sheharazalea says not to."

"What does she know?"

"She is the chief's daughter... we'll get into trouble if we go against her wishes."

"That's true... but it doesn't usually stop us, does it?"

He heard faint voices as he drifted out of a long deep sleep.

"Hmph?" he muttered, interrupting the discussion that was going on so close to his face.

He tried to open his eyes, but they felt like they had been glued shut. And when he tried to lift his arm, a dull pain prevented him from making any further movement with it.

Lifting his other arm, he managed to rub at his eyes, unsticking them from their days' old sleep.

His head throbbed, and his whole body ached as if he had been run over by a bus.

"Wh...at's.... going... on....?" he croaked as he tried to locate the sound of the voices.

"We're in BIG trouble now," said a squeaky voice.

"You got THAT right," replied the other.

Peering upwards, he spotted what appeared to be two brightly coloured hummingbirds flitting backwards and forwards right above his head.

"We'd better get out of here!" yelled one of them, before they zoomed off into the distance.

"What....the...?" he said to himself before he could take in his surroundings.

Placed on a soft bed of what appeared to be silver hay, he gently used his stronger arm to lift himself upwards.

"Where am I?" he croaked to no-one in particular.

Squinting at the bright sunlight, made all the shinier by the silver that seemed to be just about everywhere, the man shivered, reaching for the soft blanket that had kept him warm the past few days and wrapped it around his semi-n***d body.

Shuffling to his feet, his body wasn't strong enough to take his weight, and he stumbled, falling to his knees with a thud.

A stifled giggle echoed not too far away before a woman's voice yelled, "Glypholia and Evanessa... get away with you! He is suffering, and you do nothing but wake him and giggle at his weaknesses. My father will hear about this. Be away with you and go and make yourselves useful," she scolded before she appeared before him in all her splendour.

His breath caught in his throat. It felt like it had been an awful long time since he had seen such beauty, but then his memories had all but disappeared, and he couldn't be sure. The sudden realisation he had no idea where he was, or even who he was, caught him off-guard and his muscles all but gave way altogether, leaving him completely slumped to the ground. Gentle sobs began to leave his lips as the emptiness gripped his chest. His heart, which felt like it had been shut down for so long, began to ache uncontrollably.

"Oh my," said the woman, approaching him calmly. "Let me help you up," she said as he gratefully took her arm and pulled himself up back onto the bed.

"Here, my dear... lay back down. I will return in a moment with some broth to warm you. And perhaps some tea to help your sorrow."

He watched her walk away, her thick, long black hair skimming her bottom, bringing back a very vague memory of another woman. A woman he had absolutely no idea who she was. His sobbing became louder and louder until, eventually, he had neither the strength nor the tears left to continue.

With a heart so heavy, he closed his eyes and waited for the gentle woman's return.

Minutes later, a soft, smooth hand gently traced the contours of his face. Opening his eyes, he was greeted by two huge lilac eyes framed by long silver lashes, a small button nose and a pretty little pink mouth. Her presence soothed him as she helped him sit up, placing a soft cushion behind his head.

"Drink this," she said, offering him a coconut shell filled with a warm golden liquid.

"You're probably wondering where you are?"

He nodded wincing.

"We found you at death's door. Another day and you would not have survived. You are fortunate that we have some very inquisitive folk among us. We are told not to wander out of our kingdom, but some of us do from time to time. It was one of our wanderers that found you."

"But... where is this? Where am I?" he asked, the drink finally giving him back his voice.

Smiling, the young woman stood up, turned away from him and flicked her hair sideways.

He gasped at what he saw.

She turned suddenly, confused, "Have you not seen my kind before?"

Shaking his head, his eyes grew larger as he admired the two small wings that sprouted from her shoulder blades. Wings that had previously been hidden by her hair. Lilac in colour, they matched her eyes.

"Then forgive me. My name is Sheharazalea, and this," she said, holding out her arms and looking around her proudly "is Argentumalea, home of the Malean faeries, among other kinds. My father is Chief of the forests of Moharth." She smiled as she watched his expressions change. "Perhaps you can tell me a little about yourself?"

Before saying another word, he took another sip of the golden liquid and placed the coconut shell on his lap. "Sheharazalea?"

A smile touched her lips, and she nodded, "That's right."

"I'm...I d... don't remember," he sobbed.

"You don't remember your name?"

Gently shaking his head, the man rubbed at his temples.

"I... I can't remember anything."

"I am so sorry, my friend. Do you remember how you got here, to the outskirts of my kingdom?"

He shook his head, "I really don't know. I feel like I've been in a nightmare for a long time. I wish I knew, but I don't know... I don't know anything, anymore," he sobbed.

"Now, now. You are safe now. We will care for you until you are strong once again and have regained your memories, and perhaps then we can help you find your way home."

"Sheharazalea! Sheharazalea!" shouted a voice in the distance.

"I am here, father. I am with our guest."

The young faery stood and smiled as in strode a tall, striking man, bearing a full white beard and long white hair that had been plaited and hung down his back in between his two larger silver wings. His silver eyes twinkled as he approached.

"I am glad to see you are awake and well, dear friend. It is a pleasure to see. It is not often we have strangers in our midsts and to have almost lost you to the other side. Well, that would have been tragic, tragic. How are you feeling?"

"To be honest, I don't feel so good, but grateful, so grateful to you and your daughter. Thank you, thank you for helping me."

"It is our great pleasure to help you. Now tell me, who are you? What is your name? Where have you come from? Do you think you could find your way home?"

"Father, he has only just awoken from his five-day sleep. He is exhausted. He is not ready for your inquisition. Plus... his memories have gone. He remembers nothing."

"Forgive me... it is not often we receive company. I am eager to hear more about you. But my daughter is quite right, as usual. You must rest some more. We will talk when you are feeling a little more... alive. Perhaps then your memories will have returned. It is clear you have been through tempestuous times," he smiled and turned to walk away.

"My father is very keen to learn about other kingdoms, please forgive him," said Sheharazalea shyly.

"There is nothing to forgive. He seems like a charming gentleman, erm, faery... chief."

Sheharazalea smiled at him and placed her soft hand against his face once more. The sorrow that filled his every pore made her feel sad, an emotion she knew only too well. Ever since her younger sister had disappeared, Sheharazalea had felt a deep sense of sorrow herself.

CHAPTER FOUR

"There's more to these headaches than meets the eye, you know Moira?"

"What on earth do you mean, mother?"

"I'm not sure, it's just something I can feel. I can feel it in my bones."

"Oh mother, for heaven's sake. You don't have any bones! How can a dead woman feel anything in her bones?"

"I'd really rather prefer it if you didn't refer to me as a dead woman. I find it dreadfully disrespectful, you know, darling."

"Well, what should I call you then?"

"I'd rather be called a ghost than a dead woman if it's all the same to you."

"Fine!"

"If you two have finished, we were talking about my headaches," interrupted December who sat on the sofa in Rose's cottage, propped up by a couple of large fluffy cream pillows.

"I am sorry, my darling, I do get distracted when someone calls me a dead woman," answered December's grandmother, Ruby.

Moira raised her eyebrows and shook her head. The three of them chuckled together as Lilly and Rose walked back into the living room carrying a pot of tea.

"Where are the boys today?" asked Rose.

"They're with Carmelo and Jo. They offered to go help look for Jemima again."

"Oh, I do hope they find that poor girl," sighed Ruby, floating from one end of the room to the other.

"How are you feeling, December? Have the headaches eased at all?" asked Lilly, who sat on the sofa with her friend.

"No, they seem to come and go in waves. One minute I'm fine and the next it's excruciating, and I feel almost like I'm floating, you know. Like I'm having an out of body experience. It's so weird."

"Well, Mother, I guess you were right. My headaches were never like that. They were quite painful, but I don't ever remember having out of body experience-type feelings. I think we ought to get her checked out."

"I can't very well go to a doctor, Mom... not if it's connected to my being a witch, anyway."

"That's not what your mother was suggesting, my dear," said Ruby, drifting over to December's side.

"Your mother was suggesting we need to head back home, to communicate with the dead."

"Oh... can't we communicate with the dead here, Mom... please? I really don't want to go back to Washington. I want to stay with Lilly," said December, linking her best friend's arm through her own.

The two girls gave Moira a wide-eyed look, but her mother had made her mind up.

"Nope, I'm sorry girls, but we can only communicate with these particular spirits in our own basement. To set up another purple room here would simply take too long."

Seeing the girls' expressions, she added, "Perhaps Lilly can come with us for a few days instead?"

Lilly's face lit up like a Christmas tree.

"Oh, but what about school and work?"

"It'll only be for a long weekend. I'm sure Ben will be okay with that, and as for school, we'll speak to your teachers and assure them you'll catch up when we all get back," said Rose with a cheeky grin.

"Hang on... did you just say 'when we all get back'?"

Moira, Rose and Ruby shared a look, and all three grinned at the same time.

"That's right... we weren't going to tell you yet, but I guess the secret's out now. Your mother has bought old Mr Black's cottage. We're moving to Powell River!" announced Ruby as the two girls squealed and jumped up and down until December winced.

"Oh, sorry, December... I'm just SO EXCITED! We're going to be neighbours! Wait until we tell Chris and Oliver! Wait, we need to go and tell them, like NOW!"

"Woah, Woah, slow down, slow down," said Moira, "let's just calm down for a second, okay? We'll go back to Lilly's, get all packed and then we'll try and get hold of the boys, okay? The most important thing now is to get to the bottom of these headaches. So calm down."

The two girls finally plopped themselves back down on the sofa, neither of them able to wipe the huge grins from their faces, even though December's headache was getting worse.

oOo

"Do you remember coming to Lund with Duran, Chris?" asked Carmelo as he sat in the front passenger seat alongside his soon-to-be wife, Jo, who had convinced him she should drive the car for once.