Heritage

I heard Zack calling the police and calling private investigators to investigate my whereabouts from my place in the attic. I could just see him pacing around the office through the floorboards, tapping his pen and running his fingers through his hair, looking rather stressed. I jumped when the phone abruptly rang and Zack snatched it up. He kept his voice low so I couldn’t hear him clearly. But he did grab his jacket and walk out of his office. I jumped back up and looked out of the window, watching the car drive out of the garden. I turned and jumped when I saw the spirit woman behind me.

“Don’t do that, you scared me,” I whispered and pressed a hand to my heart.

“If you meditated more, you’ll learn not to get jump scared so much,” the woman said indignantly and folded her arms. I took a deep breath and looked up at her.

“I need to contact Dune,” I told her “I…I want to make sure Vincent’s alright.”

“There seems to be something else on your mind, Zelda.” I sighed and hunched my shoulders.

“I saw a boy,” I muttered “I want to try and find him, see if he’s alright.”

“A boy? Why do you want to find this boy?”

“…I don’t know.” Was it really just a crush that Dune mentioned? But I felt a connection when I saw those beautiful bright pink eyes. I had the urge to comfort the poor boy. The woman gave me a wary look and I shrugged. “He’s this street beggar that I saw and I just want to see him again.” The woman folded her arms.

“Why? Why must you see this street beggar again?”

“Because…I felt this connection,” I explained and looked down “It’s hard to explain but I felt the urge to just protect the boy.” The woman’s face seemed to soften.

“What kind of connection?” she asked.

“Like I…like I want to protect him, like I said,” I tried to explain, it just felt like an instinct of sorts “I want to help him. He’s poor, he’s alone and he has to suffer cold nights outside, vulnerable and exposed to all sorts of danger. And what if he’s a supernatural? They’ll arrest him and he’ll be so helpless…” A warm smile appeared on the woman’s face and she disappeared. I ran downstairs when I heard the burglar alarm being turned off and rushed to the phone, looking up the head of security’s phone number and dialling the number. I pressed the sleeve of the sky blue kimono against the mouthpiece in case I had to disguise my voice.

“Hello?” Dune’s voice came out and I sighed, pulling the sleeve away from the mouthpiece.

“Dune, it’s me,” I said.

“Zelda…!” Dune paused for a moment and then began whispering “Is everything alright? Everyone’s been saying you’ve disappeared.”

“I’ve been hiding from Zack,” I said back “I just can’t face him, imagine what he might do to me after I revealed the fact that I’m an elf! I’ve ruined his reputation and frankly, I feel pretty good about it.” Dune chuckled.

“Yeah, well Vincent’s fine, he’s so dashing in his new clothes!” I winced at the squeal from the gay vampire. I rubbed my ear tenderly before pressing it back to the earpiece.

“Dune, I hope you’re making him feel comfortable.”

“Oh don’t worry, he’s got his own room next to me and I’m not putting any moves on him. Yet.”

“Dune, I need your help.”

I scowled as I fidgeted in the casual clothes Dune had put me in for my disguise. The jeans felt a bit tight and scratchy while the hoodie felt baggy and I felt a bit too warm in it. But when we slipped by a couple of policemen who alerted us that I was missing, I felt relief wash over me when they didn’t see through the disguise. The spirit woman’s kimono was folded up neatly on the back seat of the car as I pulled the silk scarf closer to my face to conceal it. We stopped at the shopping mall and I ran one of my thumbs over the biggest diamond of the choker I held in my hands. I held tightly onto Dune’s hand as we walked through the bustling crowds. After selling the necklace, which cost two hundred gold coins, we found the poor boy in the spot where I first saw him. He wasn’t alone.

“Come now, beautiful,” a man in a business suit crooned “I could give you a home, food and comfort. Just come with me.” The boy stayed silent and shook his head. His dirty bare foot nudged the little cup forward a bit, silently asking the man to either give him some money or just leave him alone. My whole body shook in anger when the man grabbed the boy by his dirty beige clothes but Dune placed a hand on my shoulder and strolled forward. No-one would recognize him, he wasn’t wearing his wig but he did have his contact lenses in to avoid suspicion of being a vampire.

“Excuse me,” he purred and the man turned to him “But can I help?”

“Shove off, this one’s mine,” he snarled. But with a flash of his fangs and a snarl which threatened to spill blood, Dune was scaring away the man back into the crowds. I shot forward as the boy fell to his knees. I gave a pointed look to Dune, silently telling him off that he would get arrested if that man reported him.

“It’s alright,” I soothed as the poor boy recoiled to my touch “I won’t hurt you.” He crawled away as I sat down by his blanket. I offered the sack of coins to him and he stared at me when I placed it down because of how heavy it was. We sat in silence for a while and I carefully pulled the hair back that covered my ears. The boy’s eyes widened slightly and I looked at him. “I know you’re not human,” I said “It’s alright, I won’t turn you in, I’m a supernatural too. We’re here to help.”

“I…I…” I never expected him to push back the golden hair to show his pointed elven ears. I thought he may have been a kind of hybrid, perhaps a vampire like Dune. But no, he was an elf. Like me. We stared at each other for a while, only breaking eye contact when a passer-by threw a couple of bronze coins into the cup, telling us to get a room. I felt a light blush crawling onto my cheeks and cleared my throat.

“So my name is Zelda,” I muttered.

“Aura…” the poor boy whispered and coughed. I hesitated and looked to Dune, tossing a gold coin to him. Dune raised an eyebrow and pouted.

“What am I, your servant?” he said.

“Just get some water, please,” I said and rubbed Aura’s back. A bottle of water later and I somehow found myself holding hands with him. I gave him a warm smile. “How long have you been like this?” I asked.

“A…long time,” he whispered “I…my family was attacked. I remember, our house…was burned away…”

“Burned?” Images of being in a house that was on fire flashed in my mind and I retracted my hand with a wince. Aura tilted his head at me and I smiled. “Well, we sold one of my necklaces to get some money to give you,” I said and nodded to Dune “We could find a small apartment for you to rent out perhaps?” Aura’s beautiful pink eyes widened.

“You would do that for me?” he whispered and I nodded.

“I could fund you for as long as I possibly can,” I said as I stood up with the bag of coins “You might even have enough to get some new clothes.”

“We’d better get going quickly,” Dune cut in as he stepped forward “I don’t think that perv will keep his mouth shut for long.”

“Wait, I need to go and get Bell,” Aura stood up, picking up his cup and other things.

“Bell?” Dune tilted his head to the side. Aura nodded shyly as he looked at me, avoiding Dune’s gaze. I couldn’t blame him, Dune had a sort of allure to his gaze which made me draw toward him but feel afraid at the same time. I held Aura’s gaze with a friendly smile.

“Who’s Bell?” I asked.

I can’t believe it. I’m holding a baby Nekarose. She was so small in my hand and she looked so sweet as she slept in my palm. Dune drove us through the streets as Aura and I sat in the back. I ran a finger along the spine of the black kitten as the rest of the litter with their mother rested on Aura’s lap. I carefully placed the kitten next to her mother and looked up at Aura.

“They’re adorable,” I said. So Aura wasn’t so alone. He had a family of Nekaroses to keep him company. They slept in a park near the mall at night time. Imagine, having to sleep on an uncomfortable, cold, wooden bench with nothing but dirty linen cloth to keep you warm. After collecting the small family of Nekaroses, we bought a cat basket to carry them in with some feeding bowls, a litter box and cat food. Aura smiled softly as the car stopped.

“Right, this is the closest we can get to the border of Aurallion,” Dune sighed “One of those apartments should have your name on it somewhere, Aura.”

“My name on it?” Aura frowned curiously.

“It’s a phrase,” I said and opened the door “Come on, let’s see if they have a free apartment.” Aura carefully cradled the cat basket as we waited outside while Dune went in to check for any spare apartments. I couldn’t help but coo and adore the little kittens as they moved around their mother. The mother Nekarose, Bell, looked up at me with her magenta eyes and mewed. The adorable sound made my heart swell.

“Have you ever seen a Nekarose before?” Aura asked.

“I know of them, I’ve never been this close to one before,” I replied as I tickled Bell’s ears “I wish I could take one of the kittens away with me but I highly doubt it will stay still at the house I’m hiding in.” Aura reached to stroke Bell too and our fingers brushed. I withdrew my hand and looked up at Aura to see his concerned look.

“Isn’t it a bit risky to hide in the very house that your guardian lives in?” he asked and I nodded.

“It’s alright, I’m protected,” I assured him.

“By what?” I told him my story about the ghost woman who lived in the attic. I explained how she taught me about various elf traditions and the culture itself. I also learnt about different races, different parts of the world and so many creatures that fascinated me. I even let him take a look at the fans I was given. “Wow, Zelda,” he said as Dune came out “I would like to learn about those traditions too. I was too young for any of that stuff before…well, you know.”

“Perhaps I could teach you sometime,” I smiled.

“Got the keys,” Dune announced, making the both of us jump “Wow, you two seem to be in your own little world when you’re together. Do I detect a little romance?”

“Dune, where’s the apartment?” I abruptly changed the subject. Dune simpered and we followed him into the building and into the lift. Aura jumped when the metal doors slid shut and I placed a hand on his arm to reassure him. As we ascended, the kittens woke up and began mewing in surprise and Dune chuckled.

“Aren’t they just so cute?” he simpered and reached out to tickle Bell but retracted his hand quickly as she took a swipe at him. Aura smiled.

“She’s a bit hostile,” he explained.

“She’s fine with Zelda!” Dune huffed and folded his arms “You elves seems to get along with any kind of animal yet. I bet you could even convince a Careem wolf to roll over and play dead!”

“Maybe they know you’re a vampire and are afraid that you’ll suck the life out of them,” I said with a smirk as we reached the floor. Dune stuck his tongue out as the doors opened and led us out to one of the numbered doors. Aura seemed so awestruck when he entered the apartment and Bell jumped out of the basket almost immediately to explore. I stood by the entrance as Dune led him around the apartment to show him the ropes of how to work the bathroom and how to make the bed, et cetera. Dune mentioned the safe where he had placed the money, which still had a hefty one hundred and forty nine gold coins, thirty nine silver coins and twenty three bronze coins.

“We should get you some clothes,” Dune said after fifteen minutes of showing him around the apartment “I know this fantastic tailor who will make you look like a prince.”

“Dune, we have a budget, the money we have now will keep Aura in here for about two more months,” I said before he got any more ideas.

“Well, we can work something out,” Dune shrugged.

“No, let’s go for some simple clothes first,” I said sternly. A brief argument ensued while Aura poured water and food into the bowls for Nekarose.

“Now, just be careful, spend the rest of the money wisely and please just be safe,” I said to Aura as we all stood outside the block of apartments, Dune next to the car. Aura gave a warm smile, holding the bags of clothes that we bought for him. There was still enough money for him to stay in the apartment for about two months. I still couldn’t help but worry.

“Thank you for everything,” he said “What will happen if I run out of money?”

“You let me worry about that, I’ll find some more money somehow,” I assured him “Just…please be safe.” I couldn’t help but admire his pink eyes again as he stared into my own violet ones. We jumped apart when Dune slammed his hand on his car horn.

“We’d better get a move on, Zelda!” he called. I blushed, smiled once more at Aura before running down and jumping into the back of the car. Dune gave me a knowing wink as I got changed back into the spirit woman’s kimono when he drove us back into central Aurallion. “So, Zelda,” Dune hummed as he drummed his fingers on the steering wheel “Feeling the love tonight?”

“I barely know him, leave me alone,” I scowled and held the kimono close to me.

“I don’t know, you two seemed to bond pretty quickly,” Dune shrugged with a grin “I think the two of you are pretty cute as a couple.” I felt my cheeks heat up and curled up on the seat.

“We both lost our families in the same way,” I mentioned “But he remembers his family clearly whilst I only have fragments of a burning bedroom and shadow outlines of what could be my parents.” Dune regarded me in the rear view mirror and smiled sympathetically.

“Would you like me to tell you how I lost my family?” he offered. I looked up at him at his red eyes that were concealed by the blue contacts. I nodded and he grimaced. “I was about ten years old,” he explained “My parents had lived in Aurallion for years, they had me and my brothers and sisters here. I don’t know who but they all died at the hands of a vampire hunter that was paid to assassinate them.” I saw tears brimming his eyes.

“You don’t have to say any more,” I reached out and touched his shoulder.

“No, it’s fine,” Dune sniffed “It’s just…I had a twin sister who died in that attack. And we…we had the most ridiculous argument and I never got to say sorry to her.” I was surprised he wasn’t bursting out into tears and sobbing like a girl at this point. “I had stormed out of the house and I took a walk around the area to clear my head. That’s how I survived. I came back and found them all with wooden stakes in their hearts!” He turned into the nearest car park to stop and let his emotions out. He wiped his tears away from his face and I climbed into the front.

“It’s horrible that you must carry those memories,” I said while placing a comforting hand on his arm. I gave him a comforting hug as he leaned towards me. I felt the warm tears pooling on my shoulder and stroked his head comfortingly. We stayed like that for a while and when Dune finally went out to clear his head with some fresh air, I quickly dashed out to grab ingredients for a simple calming perfume. It was pretty dark out so I went unseen, I hope. The perfume did its work as Dune calmed down more when he came back and regained his composure.

“Zelda, Vincent’s family was killed too,” he said as we stayed silent for a while. I looked at him and he shrugged. “He found me with a photo of my sister and I told my story to him. He then told me his story.”

“Was his home burned down?” I guessed and Dune blinked in surprise.

“Yes, how did you know?” he asked and I laughed dryly.

“My home was burned down, Aura’s home was burned down, Vincent is an elf so I guessed a pattern and I was right,” I sighed and ran my fingers along the small perfume bottle Dune had bought for me to mix the calming perfume in “How old was he when it happened?”

“It happened fairly recently actually,” Dune said as he ran his fingers along the steering wheel “He was sixteen. He went out to train with his katana, was out a bit later than usual and came back to see the whole house ablaze. He ran and escaped into the alleyways of Aurallion, survived off stealing food from the market and then got arrested.”

“He’s got a katana?” I was intrigued. I had never seen a weapon other than my fans. I would like to see how elves would wield such a beautiful, elegant weapon. But to my dismay, Dune shook his head.

“No, it was taken away from him when he was arrested,” he sighed “I tried to get it back but my guardian just refused.” He gave me a grimace. “It belonged to his father. He looked so angry when I explained that I had no power to get it back.”

“How dare they take away something of such sentimental value from him!” I snarled which made Dune jump.

“It’s a weapon, any supernatural with a weapon will be arrested and have the weapon confiscated and sold off,” he explained and I sighed in frustration, clenching my hands “I guess humans don’t care so much even if it does have sentimental value.”

“Humans don’t seem to care about anything!” I snarled and glared at the dashboard in front of me. Dune winced and placed a hand on my wrist.

“Zelda, don’t let hate consume you,” he said and I felt like I was talking to the spirit woman, which calmed me down almost immediately “All humans are not the same. I bet there are humans in this city that are outraged with the law to get rid of all supernaturals and they are out there working against Zack to bring it down.” I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, getting calmer.

“Sorry, Dune, I just…why does Zack have something against us? Why did he adopt me and why did the humans who also hate supernaturals adopt you?” Dune shrugged and looked out of the window.

“I guess they thought they could convince us that we should live like humans,” he said “It didn’t work but we shouldn’t let them know that.”

“Zack knows,” I muttered and hunched my shoulders “And what about you? Don’t they think it’s a bit suspicious that you go chasing after me and you bring back home an elf that you took off the street?” Dune grinned and folded his arms.

“All vampires have different abilities,” he said then jabbed a thumb into his shoulder “I can use my good looks and allure ability to coax my guardians into doing things I want. I can only use it to a certain extent otherwise I would gladly get myself out of the pressure of marrying some rich woman.”

“How long will these effects last do you reckon?” I asked, feeling a bit uneasy that he might coax me into doing something I might not be uncomfortable.

“Long enough to figure out how to get Vincent out of Aurallion, I hope,” he sighed. We sat in silence as I circled the rim of the bottle thoughtfully with one of my fingers. “How are you going to get back? Zack’s probably at home right now, you could get caught if you went back. Maybe you should come back with me, I should be able to hide you for a couple of days.”

“No,” I shook my head “I’m sure I can manage. I learnt something when I got back the last time.”

“And that is?” I smiled at him warmly.

“I’ll try it now,” I said “I learnt an elven trick you see and I practiced for a while but I’m not sure if it’ll work with this distance.”

“And if it doesn’t work, what do we do?” Dune asked as he tilted his head.

“We’ll worry about that later,” I said and leaned over to hug him “Thanks for taking me out.”

“No problem I guess,” Dune hugged back and I withdrew, closing my eyes and lacing my fingers together. I focused on the attic and gasped when I fell and landed on the cold wooden floor. Thousands and thousands of petals covered my body and I sat up, eyes wide when I saw I had covered the whole attic in light pink petals.

“Oops,” I said softly to myself.

“My goodness, what happened?! What’s going on?!” The spirit woman flew right across the room as the petals fluttered down and she looked at me. We stared at each other for a while and I jumped when she began laughing. “Oh, my dear. Oh, you remind me so much of when I was young like you.”

“I’m sorry,” I said and stood up, the petals brushing off me and falling elegantly onto the floor “I didn’t mean to, I mean…how did this happen?”

“How far away were you?” the spirit woman asked as she circled around the room curiously, brushing some petals off the boxes.

“I’m not sure actually,” I grimaced “I wasn’t sure on how to get back so I decided to try this technique to see if it worked.”

“The teleportation isn’t the hard part,” she gave me a sympathetic smile and blew a pile of petals off one box and onto the floor “Controlling the element that teleports you however, is a different matter.” I felt my cheeks heat up as she simpered. “May I ask how your trip was?”

“Oh,” I looked up at her “He was an elf living on the streets. No-one has known that he was an elf because he managed to hide his ears with his hair.”

“I see, does this young boy have a name?”

“Aura.” Something flickered in her ghostly eyes as she mouthed the name to herself and floated closely.

“Did this Aura give you a last name?” she asked.

“He doesn’t remember a lot,” I shook my head “His home was burnt down when he was a child and he fled here to Aurallion. I sold one of my necklaces and we managed to put him into an apartment of his own.”

“Hm…” The woman paused for a moment before looking at me concerned. “I know you put your trust in that vampire, but I’m worried he may take advantage of your trust.”

“How so?” I frowned. Dune would never do such a thing.

“Vampires may be elegant beasts in human form and are supernatural but they can get vicious when they set their sights on a potential mate. You are very beautiful, Zelda and your blood is pure. You are simply a gold mine in a vampire’s eyes.”

“You have nothing to worry about,” I smiled and she narrowed her eyes “Dune is gay. He doesn’t see me as a potential mate.” When I mentioned the word gay, her eyebrows shot up and I remembered that I had no idea what elves thought of homosexuality. But then she relaxed.

“I suppose that is a good sign,” she said.

“What do elves think of homosexuality?” I asked carefully. She simpered lightly and leaned in.

“It’s very common amongst elves,” she whispered “I believe your father was gay before your mother met him.” My cheeks burned and I blinked.

“You knew my parents?” I said but she waved me off dismissively.

“I’ll tell you more later,” she said “Have you eaten?” I nodded, I had a light dinner with Aura and Dune before we dropped Aura back at his apartment. “Good, then rest. I sense a disturbance within the balance on nature.” I didn’t question her words as I felt rather sleepy, my eyesight blurring and my jaw stretching into a yawn. I made a little bed out of the petals to lie on, they were much more comfortable than the wooden floor, and used the kimono as a blanket. As I drifted off to sleep, I pictured my father, just an older male version of me I would guess, wooing another man and snickered. I wonder how my mother turned him heterosexual.