That Grey Area - Book 1 - The girl from Otherworld

The winner of the Sphinx Tournament

I sigh and tuck my chair in. This is going to be a long evening.

'I need a book on animal symbology,' Izzie declares after a while, standing up to survey the library.

'Where should I look? ' I ask, keen for something to do that is within the bounds of my abilities.

Izzie eyes me up and down like a misbehaving servant. 'It should be in the symbology section.'

'I can look too,' Rowan says.

'Thanks,' Izzie says, granting him a rare smile, almost shyly. I grumble silently. Sure, be nice to the handsome boy.

A few minutes later, we are back at the table, poring over latest encyclopedias we have taken off the Wise One's bookshelves. I pick up one of them but there is no index for me to find one of the animals mentioned in the riddle. Next to me, Izzie holds a hand over the book, the pages shuffle then fall open on a page related to birds.

'The crow, symbol of death and magic, related to: magpie,' Izzie reads. 'Magpie is magic and mystery I think. But why black? Aren't all crows black anyway?'

'And it's a green lion', I say, happy to finally contribute.

'And?' Izzie says.

'Well, green lions don't exist for real.'

I feel like I'm stating the obvious; they all chuckle, and I feel like an idiot for having said it out loud.

'Lacie,' Rowan adds with an impatient smile, as if explaining something obvious to a small child, like yes, honey, water makes you wet or birds can fly because they have wings. 'Lions don't exist. What does it matter that it's green? I mean the colour might be relevant but...'

I smile cautiously, as it must be a joke. When I realise they are in fact serious, I giggle nervously.

'What? You don't have lions here? At all?'

'Of course not! Lions aren't real, they're Otherworld Tale creatures. They're imaginary.'

Izzie frowns, and looks at me like I'm crazy. I imagine it would be like someone laughing at you because you don't believe in unicorns.

'What are you saying?' Rowan asks, suddenly unsure.

'Well, in my w... where I'm from, there are lions, real lions, but they're definitely not green, they're a yellowy brown.'

'Are you sure?' Rowan asks as if I'd just bumped my head on something.

'Of course I'm sure. I've seen them.'

'Hang on, you're telling me... lions exist?'

'Well, apparently only where I live.'

'Actually, where do you live?' Izzie asks.

'Oh, I don't really know where it is in relation to here,' I say, attempting to follow Esther's only instruction to me. 'But it's far away. It's called, um... Brittany.'

'So, what are you?' Rowan asks.

'Um... I...' What kind of a question is that? 'A girl?'

Rowan smiles, as if I'd been joking. 'Very funny. But seriously, what are you?'

'What do you mean?' I ask.

'What species?' Izzie says. 'Not a witch, obviously.'

'You look like a dwen,' Rowan says.

'No, her hair is not white enough, yet too fair for a korrigan.'

'She's a shadow,' Esther answers from the doorframe. She's entered so quietly I didn't even notice she was back, a black cat at her heels.