I don't stay at Noelani's mansion for much longer. The mayor seems eager to kick me out, so I quickly finish my drink and get the fuck out of there– something tells me not to trust a sorcerer who's patience is wearing thin.
Noelani sends me off with a sullen look, She seems lost in thought. I hesitate in the doorway, wondering if I should bring up the strange dream I had in the diner earlier. I open my mouth, but my instincts scream at me to stop. I should wait until I have more information.
"Goodbye, Mayor" I say instead.
She gives a curt nod. "Miss Wilde," she says simply, sliding the door shut and flipping on the porch light.
Wow.
I turn my back to the mayor's stone castle, hoping to find warmer reception somewhere else in Moonwake. Deities, where am I going to sleep tonight?
The sun is almost completely set and people still wander about the town square. I find myself wandering too, people watching as, one-by-one, they begin to slip inside the safety of their homes for the night. How are they so comfortable here? What? They just built brand new lives on top of the knowledge that they are completely abandoning everything they've ever known? What about their jobs? Their families?
What am I doing here?
Did I really just stumble into a magical object and trap myself for eternity? It doesn't seem like something I would do. None of this makes any sense without my memories. Noelani explained that it will take a couple of days to remember everything. Hopefully then I'll get some answers.
I stumble past all the stone buildings until the city lights fade and I'm standing at the edge of an abyss.
Literally. An abyss.
This must be the edge of Moonwake. Shockingly, there's nothing out there except a blanket of darkness. It's an unsettling sight and I find myself reluctant to stare at it for too long. What would happen if someone wandered out there? The thought makes me feel sick to my stomach.
I turn my attention to the sky instead, hoping that the stars will lift my spirits a bit.
More darkness. Great.
The night is completely void of stars. In fact, the only object in the sky at all is a large, bright moon. It must be an illusion, right? A fake moon created by Noelani's magic. Just how powerful is this woman exactly? If she can create an entire town– a freaking entire celestial body– why can't she free us from this hitchstone?
It makes no sense.
I grumble and turn back towards the town. I'll figure this out tomorrow, I decide. Right now I need to figure out where I'm going to sleep.
As the lights of Moonwake enter my line of sight again, a singular building catches my attention. It looks bright and lively. As the door swings back and forth, I hear the pounding sound of music. I perk up a bit.
A bar?
As I get closer, I find that my initial thought is correct. The front of the building has a bright neon sign. The neon words, Arabelle's Pub, blink in and out of existence against the darkened sky.
Arabelle is a strange name, I think as I push open the door and make my way to the beautiful wooden bar at the back of the building. The place has a sort of underground vibe– the bright lights and lively music does a lot to cover up the misery of those who likely spend all of their time here soaking up ways to pass the time. That and probably gallons of alcohol, I would imagine.
I smile to myself. Finally. My people.
I feel the burning gazes of those I pass as I make my way to an empty barstool. Their stares don't feel hostile, just curious. I wonder what they think of me, an outsider invading their town. But then I remember that we're all in the same predicament– at the end of the day, we all opened the same hitchstone.
"What can I getcha?"
I jump in my seat a little and turn towards the bartender. She's a short woman– I'm taller than her even while sitting on a barstool. Her light brown hair is tied up on the top of her head, and a twinkle of something shines in her eyes for a moment. Understanding? Sympathy? I can't tell.
"I'll have a beer," I say. "Something dark."
She nods, and with the practiced grace of someone who has done this a thousand times, she grabs a bottle from under the bar and swiftly removes the cap.
She sets it in front of me. I don't hesitate for a second, grabbing the bottle and taking a long swig. Not bad.
"Thanks," I say. "Are you Arabelle?"
She nods, "That's me. And you are?"
"Mila," I reach out a hand and we shake.
She grabs a rag and idly begins wiping down the bar. "You just get here today?"
"Yeah," I chuckle. "That obvious?"
She waves a dismissive hand. "Oh, we all know each other's faces around here, so it's not really your fault."
I sit in silence for a moment while I sip my beer and Arabelle serves a couple of other customers at the bar.
"Can I ask you a question?" I ask when she returns.
"Go ahead."
"Are people really okay with being trapped here?"
While sitting here it has dawned on me that not everyone in the bar is drowning their miseries. Rather, many of them are having a good time, letting their lives pass by normally. Well as normal as they can, I guess.
Arabelle smiles softly. "Most people come to terms with it," she replies. "It takes some longer than others, but..."
She trails off, but I get the gist of it. Is it really that easy? Just accepting things for the way they are?
I couldn't possibly do that. It's like accepting defeat without even trying.
"The mayor is a little...odd," I comment after a moment.
The bar owner chuckles. "A bit," she admits. "I suppose Noelani hasn't fully adapted to this world."
"Like you have?" I ask, catching her off guard.
I've suspected that Arabelle isn't from Tsulona since the moment I read her name on the sign out front. Watching her mannerisms for the past half an hour has only cemented the thought. Arabelle seems more adjusted to Moonwake than Noelani, but the nasal twinge to some of her vowels matches the mayor's accent perfectly.
She stares at me in shock for a moment and clears her throat. "You're pretty observant," she comments. "Yeah, I'm from Armenta, but I don't remember much," she admits. "Everyone else is from Tsulona, though. Somehow the hitchstone moved worlds."
I feel my brows furrow. "I thought the memory loss was temporary?"
"It is for most," she says. "Unless you have the knowledge to break the seal." She wrinkles her nose. "It's like the hitchstone's weird defense mechanism or something. I don't know, magic isn't exactly my specialty."
I take a long sip of my beer, processing her words. "But Noelani seems to remember everything," I state.
Arabelle nods. "Noelani's magic is...different. More powerful. She has the ability to read people's memories, so I guess it makes sense that the hitchstone can't affect her."
I frown. Or she's stealing everyone's memories and blaming it on the hitchstone.
A few customers walk in and Arabelle makes quick work of greeting them and grabbing a few drink menus. I sit alone with my beer as I ponder the strange town of Moonwake.
"Do you have a place to stay tonight?" Arabelle asks suddenly.
I jump, not realizing that she's made her way behind the bar again. She's scared me twice now.
"Um, no," I say.
"I live in the apartment above the bar," she explains. "You can stay in my spare room if you promise not to murder me."
"Only if you repay the favor," I chuckle– I can't imagine the tiny woman in front of me hurting a fly. "Thank you," I say sincerely.
Arabelle waves a hand in the air. "Don't mention it," she says easily. "We look out for each other here."
A few hours later, Arabelle manages to kick out the last two patrons. I attempt to help her clean up, but she waves me off quickly.
"I'll clean up in the morning," she tells me.
I nod, secretly relieved to be heading to bed soon. My headache from earlier has begun to return, and I know that my eyes will seal shut as soon as my head hits a pillow. Any pillow at this point.
Arabelle leads me through a narrow hallway behind the bar. She lazily flicks a switch and a tiny light bulb fires up at the top of a wooden staircase. She leads the way and I follow slowly, my heavy boots stomping on the rickety stairs.
"So not everyone in Armenta can do magic?" I ask randomly, stifling a yawn.
Arabelle doesn't seem to mind my questions, so I keep asking away, gathering as much useful information as I can. There's this burning need inside of me to make sense of it all and I can't seem to ignore it.
"Most can to some extent," she answers. "Some are more powerful than others– magic comes naturally to them. Others, like me, don't have any natural talent. If they are taught, they have to work extra hard to cast and there will always be certain abilities that they can't master."
Arabelle pushes the door open, flipping on a few lights and showing me the way. Her apartment is simple and clean. There's a plush carpet covering most of the area and a worn down couch shoved in the far corner of the room. She makes quick work of showing me around, perhaps sensing that I'm about to fall over on my feet.
"Kitchen's over there," she mutters, pointing to the right of the front door. "Bedrooms are down this hallway. Mine's the first on the right, yours is on the left. The bathroom is next to my room."
I follow her to the guest room, glancing through the door. I see a sizable mattress and a couple of other undistinguishable furniture pieces in the unlit bedroom.
I turn to her with a tired smile. "Thank you again, Arabelle."
"No problem," she says. "There should be some spare clothes in the dresser. Wake me up if you need anything."
I waste no time in stripping myself of my jeans and climbing into the cold bed. I don't even have the energy to find pajamas at this point. The bed is comfortable– the perfect temperature and lumpiness. I fluff my pillows and settle in, knowing that I won't be awake for much longer.
Just as I'm drifting off to sleep, my stomach clenches, a burning sensation taking hold of my body and rapidly spreading through my chest to the back of my head.
Fuck. Not again.
I flex my muscles, but it's too late. I'm already paralyzed against the mattress.
I expect the piercing ringing sound this time, but that doesn't make it any less painful. I try to cry out for help, but nothing happens.
Just as fast as it starts, the painful experience is over. I open my eyes, only half surprised to find myself back in the stone library.
Noelani and that older lady stand in front of me in the exact same position I left them several hours ago.
"Mother won't be happy that you've lied again."
Those exact same words, spoken just as vehemently as before. The princess spins on her heel, her dress flying wildly around her as she marches off into the labyrinth of bookshelves. The blonde woman, Ettiana I think, races out of her seat and chases after her.
"Noelani, the Niraki is real. So is Tsulona. Just listen to me okay? I never meant for Cormak to disappear like that, but he's not dead. He's not gone. I pro–"
"Don't you speak to me about him!"
The force behind her words catches me off guard. I gasp in unison with Ettiana, and only then do I realize that I haven't actually made any sound at all. I frown, trying to speak once more but I hear nothing but silence.
"I'm sorry," Ettiana says softly, bringing my attention back to the scene.
She begins to say something else, but I barely register her words as I walk around to where Noelani is standing.
I wave a hand in front of the princess's face, expecting some sort of reaction but getting nothing. I move a little closer and try again. Nothing.
I assume I must be seeing the past– some sort of vision of Noelani before she left Armenta.
But why?
My eyes snap to Noelani's face as she says something in response to Ettiana. I realize she looks exactly like she did in person earlier today. Not a single wrinkle or sun mark on her face is different– the woman hasn't aged a day.
Didn't Noelani say that she's been trapped for ten years?
Slowly, it dawns on me. Hitchstones are used to preserve objects or trap people, but is it possible that they can also... preserve people?
I shutter, trying to shake off the thought. That's just creepy. How old is she really? Could someone live forever in a hitchstone?
Dream Noelani storms off again, bringing my attention back to reality. Okay, not reality, but this bizarre vision my mind has somehow conjured. Ettiana quickly walks off towards her. I'm debating whether or not I should follow them when I feel my headache return.
The pain is thankfully less excruciating this time and it's not long until I'm opening my eyes back in Arabelle's apartment again. Exhausted and annoyed at the inconvenient interruption, I roll onto my side and squeeze my eyes shut, willing myself into a dreamless sleep.
Tomorrow sure is going to be an interesting day.