Lumen (17 page)

“Good, there is no need to be nervous here. I just have a few questions,” he said.

“
Well I’m going to come and visit anyway, just wanted you to ask,
”
 
Jac said.

Daniel nodded and Reuben continued. “How has your first month been? Good?”

“I’d be lying if I said so. I’m—I’m 
scum
 to these people,” he said, taking a deep breath to continue.

“Ah, I know about this, and I’m sorry that it’s happening. You’re a threat to these people because they don’t understand the concept of power, it doesn’t come from wealth or where you’ve lived or studied. It comes from those who have a pure heart.”

“
Pure heart? What’s he been drinking? Is that what the water does to you up there?
”
 
Jac laughed.

Daniel nodded again. “I think the people around here are jealous that you are late bloomer, and when you bloomed, everything about you burst, unlike some people who have yet to learn how to teleport or even dabble with the Divides, let alone learn about them,” he explained. “I know that you can teleport, and I know that you can create and tamper with the fine bonds of fire. You should really be in the advanced classes. Which brings me to my next point; you didn’t join any clubs, why not?”

“You join clubs to make friends, and 
I
 can’t make friends. They said that my mum was unfaithful, and—and,” he gulped and took another deep breath, “and it’s stupid that they say stuff like that.”

“
Who? You never told me! Well I did teach you that invocation stint, just use that, you might be able to frighten them,
”Jac snapped, causing Daniel to stand abnormally straight.

“That’s their jealousy, but I propose that it will all end, like I know it will. I’m setting up a group. A select group. There’s not going to be a list out in the hall for people to join. Only the best and brightest students, including my nephew, Jasper,” he said, leaving Jasper’s name to ring through his mind, of course that’s why he thought he owned the place, because his uncle did. “It’s going to be held on a Tuesday morning, and of course you don’t have a lesson, because you didn’t pick up any extra-curricular.”

“
So it’s his nephew then. That psychopath, the one who wanted to kill you, bet you’re glad you didn’t out him when he tried to then, aren’t ya,
” Jac said.

Daniel hummed, thinking over what they’d both said. “Okay. What’s the class about?”

“Natural energies and stones,” he said, first glancing down to the paper on his desk and then back up at Daniel. “You're the only first year attending, so best not brag, or that could earn you some more unwelcome attention.”

It was easy for Daniel not to brag, because he had no one to brag to, except for Jac, but everything Daniel heard and sometimes saw was relayed to Jac.

“So, what do you say?” Reuben asked.

“Sounds great,” he said.

“
Lies! I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I can feel it!
”
 
Jac shouted.

“It starts this Tuesday then?”

“Yeah. Do you have any personal matters that you’d like to discuss?”

Daniel hesitated, his heart throbbed in his throat as he contemplated saying anything that could offend him about his nephew or equally anger him to ask him if he could go and see Mia, in fact bringing up anywhere off the island could spark something far worse than anger, but that was only a theory.

“
Don’t do it! But if you’re going to do anything, ask if I can visit,
” Jac said, his voice bouncing around Daniel’s head.

“Sometimes I just can’t control it. And I went somewhere once. And I’m sorry,” Daniel blurted, biting his bottom lip from quivering.

“I’m not following,” Reuben said, wrinkling his face at him.

“I was the one. I went off the island that time. I went to a skyscraper somewhere and it was amazing, and then I woke up here again,” he said.

Reuben smiled, or grimaced, Daniel waited on his lips to move and push something other than the anticipated angry shouting. “I thought so. You seem like the type to have the means of teleporting that far. I think congratulations are in order for progressing faster than any other student here, and even faster than I did,” he said. “I’m a little shocked that you just came out with it, people have been killed, like I told you before. Why did you tell me?”

“Honestly. I don’t know. It felt right and, and it paid out. Right?”

“Well now I can cover for you, instead of setting a man hunt for someone who’s heard rumours of the outside world and touched the outskirts of it because that’s as far as they could get,” Reuben grinned, but it could have been a snarl.

“
Did I hear that? He’s talking about pulling some serious shit to let you get away with that. You could have just been killed. Don’t you think. Don’t you consult me anymore?
” Jac ranted, aching at Daniel’s brain. “
Now ask him if I can come visit.
”

“Power is stronger off the island, there isn’t this 
blanket 
over there,” he said gesturing to the ceiling, “that’s how they know when someone goes, because a foreign blimp appears, I can erase that blimp though, but then nobody would know that you’re in or out.”

“We’re constantly being followed?”

“Not followed, but watched. And it isn’t just 
us
, it’s the blanket, if you try to take too much then you suffocate yourself, and that’s why people die when they try changing. It is a miracle that you can handle it,” he said.

“
Well that actually makes sense. Why didn’t you read a book with that in? That would be good stuff to sell in the Lowerlands,
” Jac laughed, although his voice was quieter, as Daniel pushed him to the back of his head.

“So what do you have to do?”

“Just take you off the map. Like you’ve been deleted, but only on the surface of things.”

“Delete me?” Daniel asked, “and why just me?”

“I take it that you can still do that wing trick.”

“
Trick
? Well, yeah.”

“Don’t do that over there, if you expose yourself in any nature, then that’s as good as asking for a man hunt over you.”

“
Can I have a pass? Ask him? Go on,
”
 
Jac’s mind prodded Daniel, but he continued to ignore him.

Daniel nodded obediently. His hands loosened to his sides, he wanted to bow to Reuben. The mere thought of calling Mia and telling her that he’d get to see her again sent phantom vibrations from the phone in his pocket.

“May I leave?” Daniel asked.

“Of course, but remember, your power is much more powerful there because of the bounds. I should know, I’ve lived there, but I’ll tell you that some other time,” he chuckled and then gestured for Daniel to leave the room.

Chapter Twenty-One

Daniel hadn’t heard a word from Jac since he’d left Reuben’s office and walked straight into his dorm room. He sat down on the end of his bed and fell back, he stared at the ceiling for several moments and then burst a teeth clenching grin. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and phoned Mia.

“Was it bad? Did you get told off?” she asked in a low sympathetic voice.

“No, no, no. I have some good news, some really great news in fact,” he said, hushing his excitement

“What is it?”

“I can visit you. I—I’m allowed to visit,” he said, giggling over the phone.

“Oh my god, really? How?”

“I don’t know. I told him, like it was the most natural thing in the world, and he supported it!”

“When can we meet?”

“Now?” Daniel asked, biting his lip, he hadn’t forgotten what she looked like, but he was unsure if he could picture her perfectly.

“Yes. There’s this coffee shop across from the building. So meet me on the roof and we’ll go there. They make really nice coffee and muffins and cakes and, just meet me okay,” she rambled.

“Okay.”

 “Wear something warm, it’s kinda cold here. When you get there, just wait for me, I’ll be like a few minutes.”

“I will,” he said in an excited whisper, and then hung up. He slipped the phone into his pocket.

He took his hooded jacket off and routed around in the mess of clothes on floor of his wardrobe to find the only jumper that he owned. He put it on and then put his jacket back on. He wore his cushioned shoes; they always kept his feet warm but were surprising loose.

He stood and looked at a piece of the mirror that had stayed on his wall, staring into his eyes. He closed them and in his mind he pieced together Mia’s face, and then the butterflies rolled in as he recollected the sound of her voice. His skin quivered as tiny electric tendrils reached out of him, and his heart flipped, over and over. Then the cold bit his face, and he took a deep breath.

“Mia?” he said as he opened his eyes. The sky was bright and blue without the imperfections of clouds or waves of heat. He stood there for a moment, looking over the ledge where he’d first met her.

“You made it,” she said, seeing Daniel as she walked out of the security door.

Daniel smiled and nodded. She grinned and hugged him as he wrapped his arms around her. She pulled away and smiled, wiping her fringe from her eyes. “I’m glad you’re here.”

“Me too. It’s been a while since I’ve been here.”

“And yet you’re all I’ve thought about since you were here, and since you told me about being 
you.
 You’re really special,” she said.

Daniel’s white cheeks blushed a light pink as he supressed a smile. “I think you’re pretty special as well.”

Mia slipped her hand into Daniel’s. “Are we going to the coffee shop?” she said.

Daniel nodded, blushing a deeper shade of pink. Mia grinned and guided him out of the security door to climb down some narrow steps until they got to another door. She opened it and stuck her head out to see if there was anyone outside. The corridor was deserted so they rushed out to the end of the hall where there were 2 elevators.

“We could just teleport,” he grinned.

“That would be risky, wouldn’t it?”

“Yeah,” he said, stopping at the elevator. “They could probably use one of these where I’m from.” He squeezed her hand lightly, and turned to see her staring into his eyes.

They were face to face, staring into each other’s eyes and before they kissed the elevator dinged and the doors opened. Their lips touched, but only just. Mia backed away and pulled him into the elevator.

“I’ve never—I’ve never kissed a girl before,” he said, taking his hand out of hers and wiping it on his jeans.

Mia grinned at his honesty and then opened her mouth to speak, but smiled instead. They stayed in the comfortable silence, glancing to and from each other until the elevator stopped. They reached the ground floor where they had a clear view of the entrance doors and the cars whooshing past in all blurs of colour.

Daniel pushed the front door wide open and remained in a state of shock. “These are cars?” he asked.

“Yeah,” she laughed.

“They’re so loud,” he said, smiling. “And fast!” his head going side to side as he watched the cars pass him.

“You don’t have cars either?” Mia asked, raising her eyes.

“No. But I guess we don’t need them. We have carts, which cars are modelled after, and I did read a restricted book about them once, but there was more black smoke in that.”

Mia laughed. “They are polluting the air, it’s just invisible.” Daniel continued to stare at them in wonderment. “C’mon, traffic lights are up ahead,” she said grabbing his hand and pulling him.

He followed her, still watching the cars and the drivers who slammed fists to the horns in their cars. He also witnessed something else, the light above him changed from green to red.

“Traffic lights. To control the traffic,” she explained.

“So why are they angry?”

“Because it’s nearly rush hour, well it’s always rush hour. Everyone tries to get ahead of it but no matter what, everyone else has that same thought, and then some people think that they’re wise not to, and it just makes every hour rush hour,” she sniggered. “A vicious circle.”

“Yeah. We don’t have anything like that. But you do get a lot of angry people in the market.”

“You’re going to have to take me to wherever you live one day. No cars or traffic, it sounds like my kind of heaven at the minute,” she said, still leading Daniel down the street.

They stopped outside a tall building with steps leading to a huge green door with green glass panes, and a silver metal sign hung above it,
 Berlucci’s Café 
written in a fancy calligraphy. A bell chimed as they entered, and the sound of soft jazz welcome them. A woman jumped out in front of them. “Hi, I’ll usher you to your seats. Table or booth?”

“Booth,” Mia said.

“Okay, right this way,” she said and led them to a free booth. She pulled a menu out from her underarm and handed it them to share.

“I normally just get the cappuccino,” she said and noted the puzzled look on Daniel’s face, “It’s coffee, but with a layer of frothy goodness. Sometimes I put chocolate dust on top.”

“Where’s the band,” he said, glancing around.

“Band? Oh, you mean the music,” she giggled. “It’s played on a CD, through the speakers.”

“But where’s the music coming from? There are no instruments.”

“It’s recorded on a CD and that’s played through a CD player and then the speakers,” she explained, grinning at his innocence.

“That sounds complicated.”

“No more complicated than you having all that 
magic
,” she said. “So what do you want to order? I’ll pay, but then you can show me something.”

“It’s still complicated. I’ll have a—one of them, cappa – cuppa – cappuccinos,” he said.

Mia flicked her hand up in the air to signal one of the waitresses. A woman came to their table and she placed the order. The woman came back minutes later with a rack of condiments; white sugar, brown sugar, cocoa shaker and icing sugar shaker. And then minutes later she came back balancing a metal circle tray on the palm of her hand with two small thick cups of cappuccino, a third of each had been up of froth.