Now You See Me

Four: An Awkward Dinner

I was shaking by the time I reached the dining room behind Courtney - a small one, she explained, for when there weren't that many inmates. She had me sweating at 'small' and trembling at 'inmates'. Lorien's guide to all the people he liked, didn't like and why didn't help at all; nor did the fact that the hum of conversation inside stopped as soon as Courtney opened the door and stood aside to let me in.

I didn't want to leave the safety of the shadowy corridor, but a poke in the back from Lorien had me stumbling into the Judgement without a shield.

Fortunately, there really weren't that many people. All of them looked outwardly normal aside from the odd inhuman feature; except one. The only one who hadn't craned her neck to get a good look at me when I walked in, the pale teenage girl in the corner stuck out like a sore thumb. She didn't smile when I glanced at her; she met my gaze for a moment, holding it there, with eyes black as her clothing and ringed with deep bruise-like circles, before looking away as if she'd merely watched a fly buzz around the room.

"You must be Damien." A thickly accented female voice drew my focus from the strange girl in the corner to an intimidatingly tall woman with black hair braided to her waist. Her eyes were a warm shade of amber, and thankfully welcoming. "It's good to have you here."

She stepped away from the table to clasp my hand in both of hers, and I was suddenly all too aware of how clammy my palms were. I tried not to grimace with embarrassment, and shook her hands as if I hadn't noticed, but I was relieved when she released it and I could wipe it on my jeans before someone else came to shake it.

"I am Feila," the woman said, smiling, and her eyes seemed to glow golden. "I'll be the provider of any psychological care or support you might need during your stay."

"It's nice to meet you," I said, and a twinge of déjà vu struck me so hard it almost knocked me breathless. To my disappointment, no actual memory came with it.

Feila sat back down opposite Leia. The sorceress was swinging back on two legs of her chair, one arm behind her head and the other fiddling with one of her many necklaces. She had that judgemental look back in her eye that I was beginning to think wasn't even intentional. She winked at me when she saw me looking, but stopped staring when Feila seemed to reprimand her with a look from across the table. Her smile switched to a stormy scowl in the space of a blink.

"You've probably heard my name dropped a few times in your stay," a deep voice boomed from behind me, making me jump and freeze for the briefest moment. I pivoted on one heel and came face-to-chest with the tallest man I had ever seen. He smirked, which reminded me to close my mouth, quit staring, and robotically hold out a hand to shake. "I'm David," he said. His eyes were black, too, but weren't empty like those of the girl. "And as a standard welcome practice for every newcomer here, I'm going to politely ask you not to trash your room during your stay."

He grinned, and I was soon smiling back.

"David, love, you're blocking the door," Thea said from behind David, who grunted and shuffled out the way to take a seat at the head of the table between Leia and Feila. Thea wandered in afterwards, sending him a smile that was distinctly flirtatious, and it was strange to see a giant like David blush like a schoolgirl. Thea swanned past him, drawing a finger along his shoulders and making him squirm, before finally taking a seat on Leia's other side.

"Feel free to take a seat, Damien," Courtney said. I took one between Lorien and Feila. Courtney moved to sit on Lorien's other side, and both seats on either side of the pale teenager remained vacant. It didn't seem to worry her in the slightest.

"Is everybody settled?" Feila asked, and a general murmur of assent passed around the table. Feila made a sweeping motion with one arm, and the food appeared. I slid back in shock, and almost overturned my chair in the process. "Oh, I'm sorry, Damien." Feila chuckled, laying a hand on my shoulder. "I should've warned you."