Late summer by the bay
It's getting on toward fall now and things have been odd as of late. I agreed to move in with Devon and his mom down by the bay. We can actually see the buildings of San Francisco from here and I like the house. It's two stories tall, and while I adore multi-story houses I do tend to dislike moving into them. The sandy brown paint on the outside of the house and the general structure of it kind of reminds me of Mexico.
Elizabeth came over late in the day after most things were moved in and it was good to see her. I always adore her bright smiling face. She asked me if there was anything left for her to help with, but we just laughed and invited her in for food since we were far more interested in relaxing with some food and enjoying her company than putting her to work. Things seemed good.
A few days later was when I found it the first time. It was sitting in a shopping cart next to the house, along with many other things. It seemed to belong to a homeless woman who was digging through our garbage. At first I was irritated, but then relaxed and just watched. She was humming some kind of stirring melody that reminded me of sprites and fairies in the spring time. I wondered why it caught my attention so much, but didn't put any other thought to it as I went back inside.
A week later I was working around the house, cleaning and taking stock of everything that had been unpacked and put away. We were finally done putting everything in it's place. School was starting up soon, and I began to go through my schedule for fall quarter to prepare for senior year. I was glad to be getting toward the end of what seemed like an arduous journey. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted a green plant. I'd never seen one like this, it seemed alien to me and was growing through the wall of the house. It had little faint roots spreading through the material of the wall but otherwise seemed unremarkable. I showed it to Devon's mom and she just nodded with concern and told me she would take care of it. I went back upstairs to my room to study while she did.
The next day it began to rain, and I love it when it rains. I looked out my window at the drapes and curtains of rain coming down on the city and dappling the bay with little droplets. I put on my coat and headed downstairs, I enjoy sitting out on the porch while it rains and watching the world as it is cleaned and made new again. I noticed it again, and it appeared that the homeless woman still had it. She was using the umbrella to keep dry, but this time I knew there was something strange about it. It gave off a soft glow inside. Had I known what the next few minutes would bring I wouldn't have just sat watching her in silence.
The woman became harder to see as it started to rain harder and got darker. I strained to see the glow, but lost it quickly. I wondered who she was for a moment and then heard a monstrous and sky splintering shriek as if emanated from two automobiles tearing each other apart at high speed. There were no cars in site, no horns, no screeching tires. I ran to the alley where the woman was, where the sound came from. I could not see the woman, for there was this creature before me.
Spikes and jagged bone erupted from all over it's body as though this creature was somehow bred for a dark war. I took out my amulet quickly and chanted the words of protection. It began to hum and glowed deeply blue, which caused the creature to shrink back for a moment, and then it's jaw unhinged and released that horrid sound once more. I clutched my ears in pain at hearing it and fought to keep my eyes open.
As it stopped, I drew my dagger and slid my fingers along it's blade which became a sword, glowing a deep blue. Fear crossed the creatures face and it lunged for me, perhaps hoping to catch me before I was ready. I braced myself and thrust the blade deep into the creature. It howled in pain and clawed at me, but the aura about me and the aura in the sword sapped the creatures strength enough that I was protected from it's ever weakening state.
The creature slumped to the ground and slowly started to fade into the stone and debris beneath it. I looked to where the woman was, and saw that she had been rended by the creature and had almost completely faded. Just as she faded out completely, the glow of the umbrella did too. I was sad to see her go, not having learned who she was. I took up the umbrella and closed it.
Weeks passed since the homeless woman died. Beth and her sister Amy began spending a good deal of their time with me as we started unraveling the mystery of the umbrella. We found that it was missing some things. Not normal umbrella things, but pieces of it's magical nature. We weren't sure what the pieces looked like, but as with the first one we found we noted that we knew them on sight.
Amy told me that morning that she knew I was in love with her sister, and that she thought it was sad because Beth could not return my love. I told her that it was ok because I respected her sister greatly and was happy for Beth and Jeff. I could see how sorrowful she was at the situation, and I knew how much she didn't like Jeff. I told her that Beth would always have a place in my heart, but being friends with her was important to me. She nodded and gave me a hug, which I think was more comforting for her.
After we discovered the first piece of the umbrella, we began to learn of it's powers. It gave off a soft healing glow as well as lifting your spirits and pushing back any dark power that found it's way under the umbrella. I wondered what kind of mage would make such a thing into such a mundane object, but smiled at how adorable the idea was.
A month went by as Beth and Jeff grew closer and she talked about him more and more. Beth, Amy and myself also gathered more pieces of the umbrella. We found some of them misplaced in the dark corners of a coffee shop, or in a pawn shop. One we found was being used as a baby rattle. We gathered up all of them that we could, and found that we were only missing two now. Devon's mom had been finding more and more of the strange plants in the house and dealt with them as best she could.
Beth knocked on the door and came in smiling brighter than usual, which is a feat in and of itself. She happily told Amy and I that something wonderful had happened between her and Jeff, and that she was very happy. Before she could tell us more, the umbrella started to give off a soft blue glow, which it always did when it sensed danger was coming. We raced for the door and went outside to find that a darkness had spilled out over the area. Looking about we saw that something was happening in the nearby park. I drew my blade as we ran toward the park, and whispered to the girls to stay behind me. They weren't mages themselves and I didn't want them to be hurt.
Approaching the edge of the grass, I could feel that the park had become something more. It was a battleground. Stepping into the park, the veil was lifted and I could see what was happening here. A large black creature, much like the one I fought when I first acquired the umbrella, was in the midst of several men and women in blue and white cloaks. I ran to their aid, but knew that they were better trained warriors than myself. Drawing out the umbrella, I opened it and the creature looked at me ignoring the other warriors for just a moment. It looked at me with hate in it's eyes. No... not hate. Fear. I surged forward to help the other mages, some of whom had been laid out by the creature.
An epic battle roared within the park, as mage and creature alike struck out with their weapons of war. I dodged and darted, getting closer to the creature. Trying to strike it with my weapon when I could. After minutes of hard battle, the fight was finished and the creature lay fading on the grass. Several of the other mages had faded as well, but two remained standing. They gathered up their wounded friends and bade farewell to me as they quickly sought aid for their friends.
As the park grew a little lighter and the creature faded a little more, Beth and Amy came to my side and looked in awe. None of us had seen anything such as we did this night. As we watched the creature fade, we noticed at it's heart, or perhaps stomach, were the last two pieces of the umbrella. A pair of keys lay on the grass where the creature had been. I picked them up and inspected them. They had runic engravings on them and I could only wonder what they were meant to unlock. Placing them inside the umbrella, they began to glow brightly and merged with the umbrella, which I then held above the three of us. It began to glow brightly and white light burst forth beneath the umbrella, the light seemed to be fighting to get out, and then instantly it exploded from the umbrella in all directions, not just beneath it as it had before. The light pushed back the darkness in a wave and left only a blue sky dappled with clouds. Everything bathed in that light seemed cleaner and more joyful than it ever had. It was the most beautiful thing any of us had ever seen.
We watched for a few moments and then closed the umbrella and put it away. I looked to Beth who had tears in her eyes. She hugged me and cried on my shoulder. I didn't know why she was crying, but then girls did some strange things sometimes. I just hugged her back and so did Amy.
As I was talking to Jeff the next day, as we sometimes did, I found out that he and Beth had gone through a bonding ceremony of some kind. A promising to each other. They had sworn that they would be with each other and no other. It wasn't marriage exactly, and while it sounded like he asked her to marry him, I was informed that the comparison didn't apply. I wasn't sure what to make of it, but I was both happy and sad.
I realized that I thought Beth's sadness was due to the realization that Jeff would never bring such beauty as the umbrella to her as I did. I'm not sure if that's true, but it feels right. I'm happy for them though. I care for her and want to see her happy, even if it's with someone else.
Elizabeth came over late in the day after most things were moved in and it was good to see her. I always adore her bright smiling face. She asked me if there was anything left for her to help with, but we just laughed and invited her in for food since we were far more interested in relaxing with some food and enjoying her company than putting her to work. Things seemed good.
A few days later was when I found it the first time. It was sitting in a shopping cart next to the house, along with many other things. It seemed to belong to a homeless woman who was digging through our garbage. At first I was irritated, but then relaxed and just watched. She was humming some kind of stirring melody that reminded me of sprites and fairies in the spring time. I wondered why it caught my attention so much, but didn't put any other thought to it as I went back inside.
A week later I was working around the house, cleaning and taking stock of everything that had been unpacked and put away. We were finally done putting everything in it's place. School was starting up soon, and I began to go through my schedule for fall quarter to prepare for senior year. I was glad to be getting toward the end of what seemed like an arduous journey. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted a green plant. I'd never seen one like this, it seemed alien to me and was growing through the wall of the house. It had little faint roots spreading through the material of the wall but otherwise seemed unremarkable. I showed it to Devon's mom and she just nodded with concern and told me she would take care of it. I went back upstairs to my room to study while she did.
The next day it began to rain, and I love it when it rains. I looked out my window at the drapes and curtains of rain coming down on the city and dappling the bay with little droplets. I put on my coat and headed downstairs, I enjoy sitting out on the porch while it rains and watching the world as it is cleaned and made new again. I noticed it again, and it appeared that the homeless woman still had it. She was using the umbrella to keep dry, but this time I knew there was something strange about it. It gave off a soft glow inside. Had I known what the next few minutes would bring I wouldn't have just sat watching her in silence.
The woman became harder to see as it started to rain harder and got darker. I strained to see the glow, but lost it quickly. I wondered who she was for a moment and then heard a monstrous and sky splintering shriek as if emanated from two automobiles tearing each other apart at high speed. There were no cars in site, no horns, no screeching tires. I ran to the alley where the woman was, where the sound came from. I could not see the woman, for there was this creature before me.
Spikes and jagged bone erupted from all over it's body as though this creature was somehow bred for a dark war. I took out my amulet quickly and chanted the words of protection. It began to hum and glowed deeply blue, which caused the creature to shrink back for a moment, and then it's jaw unhinged and released that horrid sound once more. I clutched my ears in pain at hearing it and fought to keep my eyes open.
As it stopped, I drew my dagger and slid my fingers along it's blade which became a sword, glowing a deep blue. Fear crossed the creatures face and it lunged for me, perhaps hoping to catch me before I was ready. I braced myself and thrust the blade deep into the creature. It howled in pain and clawed at me, but the aura about me and the aura in the sword sapped the creatures strength enough that I was protected from it's ever weakening state.
The creature slumped to the ground and slowly started to fade into the stone and debris beneath it. I looked to where the woman was, and saw that she had been rended by the creature and had almost completely faded. Just as she faded out completely, the glow of the umbrella did too. I was sad to see her go, not having learned who she was. I took up the umbrella and closed it.
Weeks passed since the homeless woman died. Beth and her sister Amy began spending a good deal of their time with me as we started unraveling the mystery of the umbrella. We found that it was missing some things. Not normal umbrella things, but pieces of it's magical nature. We weren't sure what the pieces looked like, but as with the first one we found we noted that we knew them on sight.
Amy told me that morning that she knew I was in love with her sister, and that she thought it was sad because Beth could not return my love. I told her that it was ok because I respected her sister greatly and was happy for Beth and Jeff. I could see how sorrowful she was at the situation, and I knew how much she didn't like Jeff. I told her that Beth would always have a place in my heart, but being friends with her was important to me. She nodded and gave me a hug, which I think was more comforting for her.
After we discovered the first piece of the umbrella, we began to learn of it's powers. It gave off a soft healing glow as well as lifting your spirits and pushing back any dark power that found it's way under the umbrella. I wondered what kind of mage would make such a thing into such a mundane object, but smiled at how adorable the idea was.
A month went by as Beth and Jeff grew closer and she talked about him more and more. Beth, Amy and myself also gathered more pieces of the umbrella. We found some of them misplaced in the dark corners of a coffee shop, or in a pawn shop. One we found was being used as a baby rattle. We gathered up all of them that we could, and found that we were only missing two now. Devon's mom had been finding more and more of the strange plants in the house and dealt with them as best she could.
Beth knocked on the door and came in smiling brighter than usual, which is a feat in and of itself. She happily told Amy and I that something wonderful had happened between her and Jeff, and that she was very happy. Before she could tell us more, the umbrella started to give off a soft blue glow, which it always did when it sensed danger was coming. We raced for the door and went outside to find that a darkness had spilled out over the area. Looking about we saw that something was happening in the nearby park. I drew my blade as we ran toward the park, and whispered to the girls to stay behind me. They weren't mages themselves and I didn't want them to be hurt.
Approaching the edge of the grass, I could feel that the park had become something more. It was a battleground. Stepping into the park, the veil was lifted and I could see what was happening here. A large black creature, much like the one I fought when I first acquired the umbrella, was in the midst of several men and women in blue and white cloaks. I ran to their aid, but knew that they were better trained warriors than myself. Drawing out the umbrella, I opened it and the creature looked at me ignoring the other warriors for just a moment. It looked at me with hate in it's eyes. No... not hate. Fear. I surged forward to help the other mages, some of whom had been laid out by the creature.
An epic battle roared within the park, as mage and creature alike struck out with their weapons of war. I dodged and darted, getting closer to the creature. Trying to strike it with my weapon when I could. After minutes of hard battle, the fight was finished and the creature lay fading on the grass. Several of the other mages had faded as well, but two remained standing. They gathered up their wounded friends and bade farewell to me as they quickly sought aid for their friends.
As the park grew a little lighter and the creature faded a little more, Beth and Amy came to my side and looked in awe. None of us had seen anything such as we did this night. As we watched the creature fade, we noticed at it's heart, or perhaps stomach, were the last two pieces of the umbrella. A pair of keys lay on the grass where the creature had been. I picked them up and inspected them. They had runic engravings on them and I could only wonder what they were meant to unlock. Placing them inside the umbrella, they began to glow brightly and merged with the umbrella, which I then held above the three of us. It began to glow brightly and white light burst forth beneath the umbrella, the light seemed to be fighting to get out, and then instantly it exploded from the umbrella in all directions, not just beneath it as it had before. The light pushed back the darkness in a wave and left only a blue sky dappled with clouds. Everything bathed in that light seemed cleaner and more joyful than it ever had. It was the most beautiful thing any of us had ever seen.
We watched for a few moments and then closed the umbrella and put it away. I looked to Beth who had tears in her eyes. She hugged me and cried on my shoulder. I didn't know why she was crying, but then girls did some strange things sometimes. I just hugged her back and so did Amy.
As I was talking to Jeff the next day, as we sometimes did, I found out that he and Beth had gone through a bonding ceremony of some kind. A promising to each other. They had sworn that they would be with each other and no other. It wasn't marriage exactly, and while it sounded like he asked her to marry him, I was informed that the comparison didn't apply. I wasn't sure what to make of it, but I was both happy and sad.
I realized that I thought Beth's sadness was due to the realization that Jeff would never bring such beauty as the umbrella to her as I did. I'm not sure if that's true, but it feels right. I'm happy for them though. I care for her and want to see her happy, even if it's with someone else.