He walked down the alleyway, leather coat with boots and all. His eyes were hidden behind black sunglasses and he looked like a character from The Matrix. He had passed streets with nightclubs and strip-clubs, all playing the same-old songs that were supposed to be X-rated.
He cracked his fingers beside him and was focused in the wall up ahead. The dumpsters and homeless who were fast asleep were the only other presences in the alleyway, meaning he could do this without being seen.
Standing in front of the wall, red bricks with grey cement lining and dividing them, he whispered something very quietly. It was so quiet that it almost sounded like he was hissing or struggling to breathe. The bricks down the middle of the wall all moved like snakes past each other and seemed to sink in and melt back.
Closing his eyes, he stepped forward and walked right through the wall. He breathed in deep as he seemed to vanish into the wall and exit the other side, leaving the wall solid as it was before. He opened his eyes and was now in a wide and white painted corridor with brightly coloured bottles hanging above him, fireflies that flew inside shining beautiful lights against the walls. At the end of the corridor was a huge man standing in front of a bead curtain. He walked to the man and tried not to smile. He had seen Toror a million times and always Toror would refuse him inside. Toror was huge and masculine. His body was covered head to toe in dark-orange fur. Both his hands were literally made of steel and his posture was like a gorilla.
He carried himself on his feet and knuckles. Behind him was a long and skinny tail, waving like a happy dog.
Toror’s jaw was bulky and strong, as were his black eyes and bumpy, bald head. He didn’t have fangs, but he did have powerful teeth that could crush anything. “Well, if it isn’t my favourite baranana.” he said as he walked up to Toror. Toror grunted and stood in his way. “What do you want, Dev?” the baranana asked, angered and frustrated.
“Oh please, you know I wanna talk to her.” Dev told him, flashing him a smug smile.
Toror grunted, refusing to let him by. Leaning his head to the side, Dev raised his eyebrow at the big beast. He tapped his finger on his thigh, and Toror could see he was getting impatient as usual.
So was he. This wasn’t the first time Dev had come around and tried to force his way inside.
Toror felt it to be a bit unfair that Dev could enter without a ticket like the rest of the customers. Just because he used to go out with Toror’s boss does not grant him any privileges.
“She’s busy with another customer.” said Toror, trying his best to keep Dev away, but in a way Dev was smarter than him. “Tell her her favourite customer is here.” Dev said, his head still leaning to the side and the smug smile on his perfect face. Toror didn’t want to, but he had no choice or else he’d have to fight with Dev once again. Very pissed and angry, he stomped away and went through the bead curtain.
Dev could have easily walked through the curtain, but he had done it so many times that he felt like cutting Toror some slack and not piss him off more than he already was. Toror returned to Dev and stared at him with his black eyes. “Follow me.” he said, turning around and walking inside with Dev right behind him. The beads moved slowly over him.
Dev entered a room with soft yellow walls and silk drapes all strung around them. Tables covered in fruit and cheese and yogurt were all near the walls, waiting to be eaten. Right in the middle of the ceiling was a floating chandelier with shimmering diamonds and gems. Under it was Isa Furlough, dressed in a white sheet robe like a Greek goddess, her curly black hair sitting on her shoulders as she ate from the purple and green grapes in the bowl before her.
“Hello, Dev.” she greeted him, sucking the inside of the grape and tossing the skin in another bowl right next to it. Dev walked past Toror as he returned to his post by the entrance. The more Dev came closer, the more he saw what he had left behind.
Both Isa’s eyes were big and completely dark purple; no white and no pupils, only two white circles reflecting from the lights around them and onto her watery eyes.
With small and pink lips, she also had the palest of skin. Her veins bulged on her hands. Over her puffy hair was a crown stabbing into the skin of her forehead, but she didn’t bleed.
“What do you want this time?” she asked him, spitting the grape skin into the bowl. Dev knelt down and started taking off his shoes. Isa lied on her most favourite carpet she claimed was made of unicorn hair. It was white and silver with no added patterns. She rested on black pillows behind her.
Smiling as if Isa was glad to see him, Dev walked over to her and left his shoes behind. He had his hands folded as he came to her. Isa licked the juice off her pink lips and swallowed it down. Her eyes didn’t move an inch off of him.
To her, Dev was something she used to play with and then throw into her box when she was finished. But now, she could play with him without having to throw him away. And no matter how many times she played, he would always come back.
“If it isn’t the most glamorous pixie in the whole world,” said Dev. That was the only line he could say when he was close to her.
When she asked him why he’d always say that, his answer would always be the same, “I say it because it’s true.” Isa sat up and stretched her thin arms, balling her long fingers that were painted black on the tip.
Dev sat down in front of her, on her carpet, and ate one of the grapes. He ate it passionately, trying to arouse her as always. Isa snatched the second grape he put in his mouth before he could chew it.
She put it to her lips and sucked out the inside and spat the skin at him, smiling afterwards.
“Cute.” Dev said, picking up the grape skin and eating it. Isa just hated it when he thought he was romantic, when he was just gross and being a man. “Let me guess,” she said in her soft but clear voice, whispering her words. “You want your future told, eh?” “Why on earth would I want my future told if I’m in charge of it?”
“Because you’ll most likely ruin it, so you want me to tell you how you’ll ruin it so that you can try and fix it, but only end up ruining it more than it already is.”
“Why do you like reminding me of what happened between us?” Dev asked, looking down at the bowl. Isa grabbed him by his chin and turned his head to face her. With an adorable smile, she told him with true honesty, “Who ever told you there was something between the two of us?”
“Because I’m one of the luckiest men to have ever slept with a pixie.” he said. Outside, Toror grunted loudly and made them turn to the bead curtain.
“Stop eavesdropping!” Dev yelled at him. Toror gave another grunt, ignoring him after. When Dev turned back to Isa he saw her dark purple eyes had become a light blue colour. “Aw, my sweet Isa,” he said in a voice meant for soothing babies, slowly wrapping his arm around her perfectly skinny body. “Pixies are so sensitive when it comes to things like this.”
Her eyes turned orange when he mentioned that. She elbowed him in his hip and he let go of her, rolling to his side and holding his hip. “Why are you really here?” she asked him, her eyes still the colour orange. “I know it wasn’t to come and flirt with me.”
Dev was still holding his hip as the pain stung him deep. As it came to an ease, he scoffed and moved back closer to Isa. “You know me so well.” he said, relaxing himself before Isa slapped him. “She found the wand. She found it and she’s going to give it to him tomorrow night.” Isa’s eyes turned from orange to yellow, and she got intrigued. “Why would she give Ronin the Silver Wand?” Isa asked, looking Dev in his eyes. Dev saw he had gotten her attention, and he didn’t want to let it slip away so easily. Pretending to know but making as if he didn’t, Dev shrugged and said he had no clue.
Isa was irritated by his answer. She looked down at the carpet and thought hard on what to do. Dev saw her hard-in-thought face and tried not to laugh. “We have to get that wand.” she told him, looking up.
Dev raised his right eyebrow and asked her exactly how they were going to do that. “Ronin is a master-sorcerer.” he said. “Warlock, not sorcerer,” Isa said, correcting him. “Warlock, sorcerer, wizard; same thing in the end,” Dev said, swaying his hand as to imitate how common it was to get it wrong. “They aren’t, actually.” Isa said, but she didn’t feel like explaining it to him, again. She stood up from the carpet, her robe slipping down and showing her perfect shoulder.
She didn’t even bother cover it. Dev looked at her shoulder, and up to her neck. Trying not to look interested, he gazed away and stood up the second she walked off of the carpet.
“Follow me.” she ordered, walking to one of the drapes. Dev was soon close behind as he watched Isa pull away the white drape and revealing a door camouflaged by the wall.
With just one push, Isa was able to open the door. She led him down a short hallway and they came into her big bedroom. Dev had been here a few times and experienced some … stuff. There was a big queen-sized four-poster bed right smack in the middle of the room with a metallic bedpost and silky, thin canopies.
Shelves packed with colourless candles were a few centimetres away from the walls. The whole room was the shape of a pentagon. Five pedestals with sculptured heads of Isa were in each corner. In the corners closest to the four-poster bed were two bookshelves against the walls next to the pedestals.
“If I’d known we were coming to your room, I’d have brought my fancy boxers.” said Dev, leaning against one shelf. Isa grabbed to the under part of her bedpost, trying to find something.
“Don’t be cute.” she told Dev, grabbing her wand and taking it out of its hiding spot. She walked back to him, looking at her wand with clear disappointment. “I need a new wand.” Isa said as she walked up to Dev and showed him hers. It was an aspen-wand with white skin that looked like it was peeling off. The wand was nice and thin with a sharp tip and a branch-like end. “Why?” Dev asked, but when he saw the cracks in her wand he knew why. “Pixies aren’t allowed wands,” Isa said, gripping her bony fingers around the wand. “So using this one countless times is destroying it.” “That’s what you get from stealing wands.” Dev said as he dived onto the soft mattress and snuggled his face into her grey pillows. They were so soft he almost thought he was snuggling a pack of marshmallows.
“I didn’t steal it. I deserve a wand like the rest of you.” Isa angrily said, her eyes turning a bright maroon. “And besides, that wand didn’t belong to anyone.” “But you still took it like it belonged to you or it had your name on it.” Dev said, his face still in the pillows. “Isa you know very well how the rules work. Pixies, goblins and fairies are not allowed wands because of what you’re capable of.”
“Just one little mistake from a few pixies, goblins and fairies and all of a sudden wands are banned to be used by us?” Isa angrily asked. “But when I get my hands on the Silver Wand, I’ll be able to use it without destroying it.” “How are you going to get it?” Dev asked, rolling around and resting on the pillows as he looked at her with a questioned face. “Ronin will kill you from a mile away.”
“You, maybe, but even without a wand I’m dangerous.” Isa said, feeling proud of herself. She looked at the wand and couldn’t bear to see the cracks anymore. Biting her lip, she grabbed at both of the wand’s sides and snapped it into two.
A spark jolted from the broken wand, sending a streak of smoke to float up and disappear just like that. She threw both pieces to the floor and turned to Dev. “Where do you guess Ronin will take the Silver Wand after she gives it to him?” she asked him, jumping onto the bed and sitting with her legs bent.
Dev put his two fingers under his chin, rubbing it as to show Isa he was thinking. “He might go to Au/Ra.” he finally said, looking at Isa with uncertainty. But when Isa heard Au/Ra she knew Ronin would go there.
“Au/Ra is the one of the few places Enchantants and other beings of Crimson Creek still hang out or even live.” Isa said, partly telling Dev and partly telling herself. “If he’s going there, it’ll be easy to find where he’s hiding out.”
“Do you even know how to get into Au/Ra?” Dev asked her. “I’m not allowed there any more after I destroyed that guy’s face.”
“No need to go there. I have a baranana who visits Au/Ra a few times whenever I need something.” Isa said, staring down at her fingertips as she gave Dev a sinister smile.
“So, let’s be patient, shall we?” Dev moved forward and put his face up near hers. She could smell his chalky breath. “Can’t we entertain ourselves while we wait?” he asked, tip-toeing his fingers against Isa’s arm. “You don’t know when to quit, do you?” she asked him, her eyes turning orange again.
When Dev bit his lower lip and nodded while scanning her from head to toe, Isa sighed, rolled her eyes and left him on the bed as she walked back out to her ‘office’.
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