It was well past afternoon and close to dusk by the time they arrived at Brookstone Apartments, where Jeff’s friend lived. The whole place was a complex of brick-and-wood townhouses with slanted roofs, with each holding a pair of two-story housings. In spring, the place would feel lively, but winter had taken the leaves off the trees, giving it a drab appearance.
Jeff and Mireya had to park on a nearby street, as while the apartments were barred behind an automatic gate with no intercom. Mireya felt out of place as they strolled into the place, for judging by the two girls they passed, it was a complex that catered to college students. At least Jeff looked the right age.
As they approached Apartment D-7, Mireya could feel Jeff tense. He glanced over his shoulder twice. "You okay?" she asked.
"Yeah. It’s just that it’s been so long, and—" Jeff made a face as they came up to the door. "I didn’t have the best relationship with Lucy."
"I see." Mireya flashed a disarmingly warm smile, seeking to give him comfort. "Don’t worry, though. I’m here for you."
Jeff took a deep breath and pressed the button by the door. Chimes sounded inside. A moment later, the door was opened by a gorgeous girl in her mid-twenties. Platinum-blonde hair fell past her shoulders, and melon-like breasts swelled inside her blouse. Her arms and face suggested she was naturally of a slim build, but the top of her ragged jeans supported a small belly—the first bud of pregnancy, Mireya realized.
For a moment the girl gazed back blankly and Mireya and Jeff. Then she said, "Hello?" but made no move to open the door further.
"Uh... Hi, Lucy," Jeff said in a shy mutter. "Y-you look nice, as usual."
The girl—Lucy—only stared back. "If you're looking for Scott," she said, "he's at work and won't be back for a while."
Mireya felt Jeff's sidelong glance of surprise and dismay. She stepped up. "You’ll have to forgive my friend, miss," she told Lucy. "We stopped by to see you— Well, we're in town for the wedding."
"Oh," Lucy said, but her expression didn't warm. "Well, I'll tell Scott you—"
"You mean Taylor, right?" Jeff blurted out.
Lucy stared, then caught her breath. "How did you—?"
"It's me, Lucy!" Jeff hissed. "Will? You and me and Taylor—"
Lucy's eyes seemed to pop halfway from her head, and she stepped back and slammed the door in their faces. Almost instantly, though, she yanked it again. Her mouth was hanging open, and a red flush was beginning to creep up her neck.
Then, before anyone could say anything, she grabbed Jeff and yanked him—stumbling over the threshold—into the apartment. Again, the door slammed in Mireya's face.
For what seemed a very long minute she stared at the door, wondering what was going on on the other side, and what she should do about it. She had just about made up her mind to go charging in, when the door opened again, and Lucy, with a very pale and tentative smile, gestured Mireya inside. "I'm sorry about that," she said. "But you can't be too careful. Come in, please."
Mireya warily stepped into a rather modest apartment through which a whirlwind seemed to have blown. The dining room table was covered of brochures and lists, and two of the chairs each held a clothing bag. There were samples of decorations and flower bouquets spread around, and a half-eaten dish set aside. There were also other objects still on their boxes, such as a cradle and a baby seat, as well as other decorations of a different kind. Were it not for all this clutter, the place would resemble a typical college dorm, with a simple couch and a love seat, a small flat-screen TV, a desktop computer set aside and a small kitchen. The wallpaper seemed refurbished and the air had a slight reek of mold, but it was warm and inviting nonetheless.
Lucy still seemed nervous, though. "She’s with you, right?" she asked Jeff.
"Yes," he said. He shot Mireya an embarrassed glance. "This is Mireya, a friend from New Jersey. Mireya, this is Lucy. She's, um, the girl I told you about."
"Told what about me?" Lucy sharply asked him.
"It's okay," Jeff stammered. "Mireya works for the firm—y-y'know, the Stellae!"
It was not a friendly look that Lucy gave Mireya. "Like, she knows Frank and Joe?"
"Know them?" Mireya scoffed. "I could say I trained ‘em!" The girl was getting on her nerves.
"Oh. Well." Lucy's tone warmed slightly. "It's nice to meet you then, I guess." But she her gaze narrowed as she studied Mireya. "She's not wearing one of those stupid masks, is she?" she asked Jeff.
"No! Though if you want to try tearing her face off, the way you tried tearing mine—"
"I'll take your word for it." She did a double-take at Jeff. "You're looking nice, though! I didn't recognize you at first—"
"I could tell."
"—so I thought maybe you were up to your old tricks again."
Jeff seemed to deflate. "I talked about wearing one of them out here, but Mireya said I looked different enough that I wouldn't have to."
"She was right." Lucy gave Jeff’s shoulder a vigorous massage, and smiled. "With the beard and everything." Her smile widened as she reached out to give it a sharp tug. Jeff winced as she chortled. "Oh hey, you've got it glued on good!
"Oh, but where are my manners?" Lucy continued. "Sorry for the mess—what with the wedding and everything." She gestured them toward the couch while she moved into the kitchen. "So what about you? I've only heard little bits here and there from Scott."
"Well." Jeff seemed hesitant to answer, and took a deep breath. "I’m training with the Stellae. I’m gonna work building stuff for them."
"Building stuff?" Lucy asked as she poured some water at two glasses. "What, you’re gonna be an engineer or something?"
"Kinda," Jeff guffawed. "You... You know what I told you back then, right? About finding my purpose as a magician?"
Lucy’s expression instantly fell. "Don’t tell me you’re still on with that stupid idea of—?"
"Well, I can’t help it." It surprised Mireya how sharply he now spoke to her. "It’s the best use of my talents."
Lucy lifted an eyebrow, then turned to give Mireya a meaningful stare. "Wouldn't it be a better idea to leave it to the ... 'experts'?" she asked.
"Well, that’s the thing, Lucy." Jeff sighed. "Turns out, I’m still in training, but I kind of am one of those experts."
Lucy visibly jerked in surprise. "Whaddya mean ‘one of those experts’?"
Jeff shrugged helplessly. "I mean, like Frank and Joe. I'm a ... uh, a Stellae." He shrugged again.
Lucy stared at him for a long moment, her mouth hanging open. She looked between Mireya and Jeff, but didn't react even when the former nodded at her.
"Alright," she finally said. "If you're like them— Scott—Taylor—he said they have, like—" She hesitated. "Magic powers?"
Jeff seemed to writhe inside his skin. "Uh, the 'experts' like to call them 'prodigies.' But yeah, I got them. Some."
"Pah!" Lucy gasped. "Well, I guess you ended up getting what you wanted. Yer a wizard, Will!" she exclaimed with barely concealed sarcasm.
Jeff made a face. "Not a wizard, Lucy," he said, "just ... Well, remember how I told you I wanted to do good with magic? Well, that's what the Stellae do. Try to do. Some of them, like Frank, are out there trying to stop the bad things. Others, well, they're teachers, and tinkerers and scholars, and—" Jeff glanced at Mireya. "And even healers. They do good stuff, Lucy! And once I finish my training, I’m gonna help ‘em by figuring out things and making good use of ‘em. Just like I promised you."
He ended by lifting his chin and throwing his shoulders back, as though to defy her.
A strangely tender look crept onto Lucy's face. "Well, I'm glad to hear that, Will," she said, and to Mireya's ears she sounded sincerely impressed. "Seems you had everything figured out."
Jeff hung his head a moment, then looked up. "So that's it for me. And you guys? You're expecting a baby?"
Lucy giggled, and laid a hand atop her belly. "Yep. Me and Taylor."
"That's so great, Lucy! Is it going to be a boy or a girl?"
Lucy flashed a grin. "A boy."
"So how did it happen?"
Lucy's face fell. "What do you mean, how did it happen?" she demanded. "You've taken a sex ed class, haven't you?"
"Well, sure!" Jeff stammered. "What I mean is, um, did Taylor take his mask off when you were, um—"
"Jesus, Will!" Lucy exclaimed. "You want me to paint you a picture?"
"Jeff," Mireya started to warn him.
"It's just professional interest!" Jeff protested. "The thing is, Lucy, you shouldn't be able to— I mean, Taylor, when he's wearing the mask, he shouldn't be able to—" He started to turn very red. "I mean, he should be, um, shooting blanks!"
Lucy looked like she was about to detonate. "Well, he's not!"
"While wearing the mask?" Jeff pressed.
"Jeff," Mireya tried warning him again.
"I told you, it's professional interest! I just want to be sure the, uh, masks are working the way they're supposed to and not—"
"You mean you're still fooling around with them?" Lucy demanded.
"Yes," Jeff bluntly declared. "I want to know everything I can about them so I can unmake them."
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