Doort, Part 11 - Path

Oh no.

Oh no oh no oh no.

She's leaving.

What do I do?

I don't know, I don't know!

I could go after her--

No, that would make it worse. She seems to think me the antagonist now, think I did this to her on purpose, chasing after her would only serve to reinforce that idea. I need to gain her trust, even a bit of it. I need to let her go.

I stay still, hovering in the air, watching her run away.

She's left.

I rub my hands together.

What do I do now?

~x~

I wait around for a bit, to see if she comes back. She doesn't, which isn't surprising. But she'll have limited options now, in the In Between. She's not physically in her world anymore, so she can't really... do anything that requires tools, since she is now only semi-corporeal and can't really touch anything that isn't also in the In Between.

Well, no, she can still touch things, she just can't Influence them. No lifting up things, no moving things around. No footprints in the snow.

It's going to be quite an adjustment for her, I'm sure, but hopefully it'll be as temporary as possible. Hopefully.

I take a deep breath and rub my face. I should go to the Grand Oak.

~x~

welcome, the Forest says as I get closer to the clearing. I've not yet Manifested myself, so the acknowledgement gives me pause, but it is short lived. I really ought to know better than to assume the Forest doesn't know I am there even if I am in the In Between. They are a being of both realms after all, and a reasonably powerful one at that. This isn't even the first time this has happened.

I Manifest myself in the Faerie Realm, because while the Forest is in both realms, it is easier for them to communicate there, what with the overflow of arcane energy. Sure, there's still some left in the Human Realm, but not nearly as much as there used to be, and it has been slowly draining. Either way, the Forest is much better at Influencing the Faerie Realm than the Human, so that's where I Manifest.

"Hello, Forest," I say, addressing the Grand Oak. It's not actually necessary to talk specifically to the Grand Oak to speak to the Forest, but the Oak is the Heart of the Forest, and it is the most convenient here. The Forest can see everything that happens within, but the further from the Heart, the harder it is for them to Influence.

you are here about the girl, the Forest says. A squirrel pops his head out of a hole in the Grand Oak's trunk and looks at me judgingly.

"...yes," I say. It's may have been on the outskirts of the Forest, but it was still in the Forest. They saw what happened, or some of it anyway.

she is not here with you, the Forest points out. I wince a little.

"Yeah, no, she, uh, ran away." The trees hum. "I was bringing her to you, and then when she realized she wasn't in her own realm anymore, she freaked out and ran."

you should have told her what had happened to her, the Forest says.

"Probably, yeah," I admit.

tell us what happened, they request. I take a deep breath and then nod.

"Okay so, I made a Door for her a few days ago, which you probably knew already--" the branches nod in confirmation "--and then this morning she came back and she was looking for me. It's... it was probably quite selfish of me, but I was quite happy about that, since sometimes... I get a bit lonely and I thought that it might be fun to talk to her, but I'm not supposed to Manifest in the Human Realm, so I couldn't reveal myself to her. And then she started to leave--"

and you didn't want that and opened it while she was walking through the door?

I shift, uncomfortably.

"Uh... yes," I say.

and she is in the in between now?

"Yes..."

A sigh flows through the trees, echoes in the shrubbery.

you're a reckless little creature, the Forest says.

"I know, I--" I start, but they don't let me speak.

you will make this right. you will get the child back to her world.

"I thought maybe you would be able to do that," I try. "That you would tell me what to do." I shift in place again, rub my hands together. "I... I know how to open doors between the Faerie Realm and the Human Realm, but I don't know how to get anyone but myself in and out of the In Between."

you know we have no power in the in between, the Forest says and yes, of course I know, but I was still hoping they could provide me with some kind of guidance. we cannot help you where we cannot go. we cannot even see her in the in between.

"Uh, yes--" I start, but the Forest speaks over me again.

but the power of the token on her is strong, they say. I perk up a little. Yes, the token! we can feel it, even if only vaguely, even when she is in the in between. she is close.

Close?

I glance around, trying to see if she is somewhere close, but don't notice anything. But if the Forest says she's close, that means she must be. I should go find her while she's still here.

Then I remember something.

"Uh, one more thing," I say, turning back to the Grand Oak. It waits, with a patience that one gets after living for centuries. The Forest probably heard the girl shouting earlier this morning, so this shouldn't be something new, but if I want to gain Charlie's trust, then... "The girl was in the forest this morning apparently looking for a way to get some relative of hers out of Faerie Realm. He got stuck here some time ago..."

The Forest cuts me off once again. I would like to say it's unusual, but I'd be lying.

very well, they sigh, sounding really quite tired. you are allowed, this once, to bring a mortal into the faerie realm, if it is her will to look for her relative, but remember, there is no guarantee she will ever return to her own world.

This I know, of course. Though I am worried about how Charlie will react. I bow to the Oak and start to leave.

and remember, they say before I sink back into the In Between, until she is back home, she is your responsibility.

"Of course," I say, bow once more, and Obscure myself.

I sigh. The Sun isn't even at her highest and I am more than ready to end the day here.

Well, no use sulking, better go and find Charlie.

I turn and almost fly straight into her. She jumps back a little.

"Oh!" I exclaim. She really wan close. "Uh, hi."

She looks away, rubs her arm. Glances up at me.

"What am I between of?" she asks.

"Uh," I say. I figured she'd heard something, but I wasn't sure how much. Not that it matters, really, I should probably tell her everything...

"You're in the In Between," I say. She frowns, cocks her head. "It's a place between the Faerie Realm and the Human Realm. It's the place that connects the two."

"So I am not in the Faerie Realm?" she asks.

"No, not at the moment," I say. She hums a little. She sounds disappointed.

"I'm sorry," I say. She looks up, somewhat surprised. "It's my fault you're stuck here, and I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to do that to you."

"Oh," she says. "...thank you, I guess. It's nice to know that." There's a pause. "I'm still pretty mad though!" she exclaims, pointing a finger at me. I flutter back a bit. "I'm stuck in this 'between' or whatever because of you! No one can hear me or see me and I can't pick anything up! And apparently you have no idea how to get me out??"

"Yes, well," I say. "This, this situation is kind of a... first to me. To anyone, I think. Things aren't actually supposed to exist in only the In Between. Not... not for longer than a fraction anyway, when moving from one realm to the other."

"You exists in it though?" she says, squinting again. "Or have I misunderstood?"

"No, or well... Not really," I say, trying to figure out the way to best explain this to her. "I... I'm not a typical faerie."

"Okay...?" she says.

"I don't know why, exactly, but I have the ability to move between realms," I begin, slowly, trying to choose my words carefully. "See, there's different kinds of beings; those in one realm and those in both realms. Humans and faeries and animals and the like are in one realm. The Forest, or the Stars and the Sun or the Wind, are in both realms. The beings that can only be in one realm need a Door to pass through to the other one, while those that are in both are, well, constantly in both. And all of that, the beings of one realm and the beings of both, Everything, is in the In Between. Except they're not, because Nothing is, really. Except me."

She stares at me. I feel my face start to heat up.

"Okay, um..." I say. "Let's put it this way. See that bird?" I point up at a blackbird sitting on a branch slightly to our right. She looks to where I'm pointing and nods. "That blackbird is in the Human Realm."

"How do you know?" she asks.

"At some point you can tell the difference," I say. "But that's not the point. See that funny looking mushroom?" I point to the foot of the tree. Charlie's eyes widen.

"Oh, I've never seen a mushroom like that before! It's growing out of the snow!"

"Yes, that's a chillshroom, they grow in the Faerie Realm. Both of these are beings of one realm. The tree that the mushrooms grows on and the bird sits on, is a part of the Forest and is a being of both realms."

She walks over and pokes at the mushroom. It doesn't move.

"It's soft, but..." she says.

"Yes, when you're in the In Between, you can see and hear and feel and sense all the things that are in either realm, but you can't Influence them. That means that you can't lift it of move it or make it notice you. The mushroom is here, but it's not really here. It's in the Faerie Realm." I fly over to the mushroom. "Now," I say, landing on top of it. "At the moment, I'm in the In Between and as such can't Influence the mushroom. But," I say and Manifest myself into the Faerie Realm, "if I go into the Faerie Realm, I can." I reach down and break off a part of the mushroom's cap. "See? When we're in the same realm, I can Influence it."

"That makes sense," she says and nods.

"Good," I say. I pop the piece of mushroom in my mouth, so as not to waste it. I continue, after swallowing, "Now, on the other hand, if I am in the Faerie Realm and someone else is not, I cannot Influence them." I fly up and stand on the branch next to the bird. "This bird is in the Human Realm, therefore I cannot Influence with it. In fact, I can't even see it, nor touch it." I push a hand towards the bird and it passes through it.

"That's so weird," Charlie says. "I mean, it makes sense, but it looks weird."

"Yes, it does, when you can see both of the realms at the same time," I agree. "But it happens, sometimes. There's no harm to either creature on either side, though."

"That's good," she says. "Because it really looks like you have your arm shoved in the poor bird's chest."

I take my hand away and sit on the branch. I Obscure myself again, let myself drop back into the In Between.

"Do you understand now?"

She's quiet for a moment, thinking.

"So most things exist in one of the realms," she says. "And a thing in one realm can't touch a thing in the other realm. And if a thing exists in both realms, it can touch things from both realms. And a thing in the... Between can touch all the things, but can't... adjust anything?"

"Essentially," I say. "The things that you see here aren't the actual things. That mushroom isn't the real mushroom and that bird isn't the real bird. Those things exist in their own realms. What exists in the In Between, is more of a... a model of the thing. Something that appears to be a thing but isn't really. Because Nothing exists in the In Between."

Charlie is quiet again, not meeting my gaze and playing absently with the hem of her... coat.

"What about..." she starts, almost too quiet for me to hear. "What about me then?"

"Ah," I say.

"I mean, you, you seem to be some kind of... guardian of this Between place, since you know so much and can move in and out with will, but, but..." She trails off, looking away again and biting her lip. "What about me? If nothing exists in the Between, but I am here now, what does that mean?"

"I... I don't know, unfortunately." She looks up at me. Her eyes are teary. "I don't know if I'm supposed to be a 'guardian', and if I am, I don't think I'm a very good one, I doubt I know as much as you probably think I do, but..."

I stop. I think for a moment. I fly off the branch and hover in front of her.

"Hello, my name is Lin," I say and raise my hand in greeting. She blinks. A tear drop rolls over her eyelid and down her cheek.

"W-what?" she asks.

"We'll start again, on a new path. Properly, this time," I say. She sniffles. "So. Hello, my name is Lin."

She sniffles again and then dries her eyes on her sock.

"Hi, Lin," she says and gives me a small smile. "I'm Charlie."

"Nice to meet you, Charlie," I say and grin. "I'm going to teach you how to Manifest yourself."

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I'd actually kinda want to continue writing, but I don't have the time and that seemed like a pretty good place to end. I'm really kinda liking this story! Very excited to see where it goes eventually lol

Anyway, next topic issssssss "Expertise"

Pie out.