Chapter 12

CHAPTER TWELVE

Sebastian went down a music rabbit hole online. He streamed song after song on his phone, catching up on what he'd missed.

His favorite pop artist had put out four albums while he was away. "Four!" he exclaimed aloud to the small kitchen. Talking to himself was a habit he'd had before James had gotten stuck at Storm House. It was making a reappearance now.

He called his lawyer and asked the man to order headphones and a few other electronics for him since he was too impatient to wait for his new debit card to arrive in the mail.

Sebastian figured he could dissolve the Storm trust and look after all his own finances now that he wasn't cut off from the world, but he wasn't going to make any big decisions yet. Keeping the lawyer felt like a security blanket. He'd been the only person Sebastian could turn to for so long.

He made himself take one more trip to the General Store before it closed that evening to grab a few things. He bought himself some reusable bags, almond milk, tofu, and vegetables for a stir fry, using the rest of James's cash. He'd packed rice and spices from the pantry at Storm House, so he had everything else he needed.

Back home, he enjoyed his dinner, especially since he hadn't had any bell peppers in his garden recently. Listening to all the new music took the edge off being by himself. The duplex didn't feel so empty when it was filled with his favorite pop songs.

So many little things would have made his life at Storm House more bearable, like music, but Sebastian couldn't dwell on the unfairness of how cut off from everything he'd been. That kind of negativity would consume him. It was better to just enjoy what he had now, and he'd always loved music.

It was too bad the piano wouldn't fit in the duplex. Sebastian didn't think wanting to play it would be enough to make him venture into that part of Storm House, so he wasn't sure when he'd be able to play again. Unless he got an electric keyboard.

After dinner, he decided to bake bread. He put one of his new favorite songs on repeat until he knew the words and could sing along.

Hours later, the loaves were finally in the oven. Sebastian could barely tell how late it was with the bright kitchen lights on. He felt like a time traveler, marveling at all the modern shit he'd been deprived of. Where was the challenge in getting the oven to the right temperature when you had buttons to do it for you and you didn't have to light and stoke a fire?

Every time he had a thought like this, he grumbled at himself in annoyance. " Don't be such an old man ."

This kitchen felt bare compared to his old one, and the sight of the sparsely stocked pantry kept giving him a jolt of panic. Sebastian had only brought some of the food he had at Storm House, and he wondered if Eli would mind helping him pack the rest tomorrow. Would it all fit in his car? Sebastian had lived like a prepper for so long that he didn't think he'd be able to break the habit. He needed enough dried goods and preserves stocked to survive for six months minimum, or he wouldn't be able to relax .

Sebastian stayed up way too late eating bread. Eventually, he made himself retreat to the bedroom.

He couldn't sleep. The room was too dark without the warm glow of the fire he'd had in his old room.

After lying awake for what felt like forever, Sebastian got up and stared out the window. The duplex was two stories, while most of the buildings in the center of town—other than the library and town hall—were only one. He had a good view from his bedroom as a result. He was around the corner from the small bar on the opposite end of the circle from the ice cream shop and could see all the way across.

With all the new lights that had been installed, Sebastian could see the tall stone in the center of the street. It was a weird landmark, almost like a natural monument, jutting toward the sky. Supposedly, it'd been there since before the town was founded.

A shade swooped around the stone, running its hand over the smooth rock as it circled. It almost looked like it was dancing. Another joined it. Sebastian watched, mesmerized, as they wove between one another.

More shades flew into the center of the circle, and after a few minutes, there had to be about a dozen. The light was faintest where the stone stood, but Sebastian wondered why so many shades had come into such a brightly lit part of town.

Shades swooped above the stone in addition to the ones circling it. A flash of color caught Sebastian's eye. One of the shades was wearing his purple robe! It had been lost the night he and James made their first attempt at the transfer spell, but he'd never have guessed the shade that snatched it would have kept it. He'd never seen one wear human clothing before.

"That little shit," Sebastian grumbled in disbelief. He wanted his robe back. It looked ridiculous flowing off the shadowy beast.

The thief joined the shades swirling around the stone. As Sebastian watched the odd display, he noticed a dark mist gathering on the ground. Shadows seemed to be seeping out from between the surrounding buildings and spilling into the street like water, flowing over the pavement illuminated by the streetlights. Sebastian had never seen anything like it.

The shadows converged on the stone, winding up the smooth surface as the circling shades melted into it seamlessly. Was the shadow nothing but hundreds of shades in semi-solid form? They moved like a river, over the ground and up the stone into the sky.

It gave Sebastian chills.

He thought he saw a figure at the far end of the circle, and his heart skipped. No person should approach that many shades. The figure emerged from the shadows and headed from the middle of the street near the ice cream shop toward town hall.

The way it moved wasn't human. It appeared dark, more like a shadow than anything, and was hard to make out even under a streetlight. It glided, but its body didn't look wispy like the other shades. It was much more humanoid.

The human-like shade made its way completely around the street. Then, it drifted forward and joined the others at the stone. The figure dissolved into the black shadow and wrapped around the stone. Sebastian thought he could still see it amid the other shades as it moved skyward. He watched until he could see nothing but blackness above.

There weren't any stars in the sky, even though Sebastian could have sworn it had been a clear night.

The next morning, Sebastian woke up late to the sound of his phone. It was a text from Eli asking if he'd like to head out to Storm House in an hour. He replied with a quick yes and got up to get dressed .

Sebastian looked out his front window as he waited for Eli. It was a dark day. The clouds hung low, and it looked like it would rain. Sebastian's phone chimed again, the screen displaying a message from James.

James

I'm going to go for a swim while Eli is out at Storm House with you unless you want the extra company?

Sebastian bit his lip. He wanted James to do the things he enjoyed like he normally would have before Sebastian entered his life.

Sebastian

No. Go for a swim.

A car pulled up, and Sebastian spotted Eli in the passenger seat. He grabbed his keys and went out to meet him.

"The weather said nothing about a storm," Eli said to Parker as Sebastian climbed into the back seat. "I can't believe this."

Sebastian frowned at the sky. "They look like thunderclouds."

"That's what I said," Parker mumbled.

"I don't disagree," Eli insisted. "I just wasn't expecting it. Guess you can't trust the forecast."

As Parker pulled onto the road, Sebastian returned his attention to his phone. There was a new message from James waiting.

James

Okay, cool. It felt so good to be back in the water yesterday.

Sebastian smiled as he typed his reply.

Sebastian

Maybe I'll come watch you sometime.

James

Why? Wouldn't that be boring?

Sebastian shook his head.

Sebastian

No. I never thought it was boring before.

James

You've watched me swim before?

Honestly, the man was ridiculous sometimes. He was the town athletic champion. The star of their high school swim team. Of course Sebastian had come to watch him at the team's home meets.

Sebastian

Yes, I've watched you swim. You mean to tell me you never noticed the scrawny redhead at the back of the bleachers?

He'd meant it as a joke, even if it was true, but James took so long to respond that Sebastian wished he could take the message back. He wasn't supposed to reveal how long ago his crush had begun.

At last, the phone vibrated.

James

You weren't scrawny. You were cute.

Sebastian stared at the message. It was silly that it made his heart flutter. Sebastian knew James liked him now. He knew their attraction was mutual. But still, it felt damn good to know James had found him cute all those years ago.

Sebastian

OMG, you thought I was cute! You liked me, didn't you?

James

I noticed you, that's all.

Like in that frustrating way you notice someone you don't quite know what to do with.

I wish I'd figured it out sooner.

Sebastian was officially smiling like a fool, his heart overflowing with affection.

Sebastian

You've definitely figured out what to do with me now.

James

Yes. I missed you in my bed last night.

Sebastian

Me too. I'd tell you exactly how badly, but sexting with your brother two feet away feels weird.

James

LOL. OK, I'm going swimming now.

Sebastian

I'll be picturing it.

James

What? Why?

Sebastian

Oh my god, James, you're hot. Now go work out so I can imagine you all wet and out of breath, muscular chest heaving, etc., etc.

James

You're a nightmare. Now I'm going to be distracted.

Sebastian

Whatever. You love it.

James

Yeah, I do.

In the clearing, Eli ripped off the sections of paper that had data recorded on them and slipped them into five separate folders. He noted the time he did this for each mechanism.

Sebastian peered over Eli's shoulder. "What's the time for?"

Eli glanced up from his notebook. "For cross-referencing. I recorded the time each device started making measurements, and a measurement was taken every minute. Noting the time I cut off the paper means I can check if the right number of measurements were recorded."

Sebastian had no idea why that might matter. "Oh." He glanced at Parker, who shrugged.

Eli smiled. "If the time that's passed since we started recording and the number of measurements don't match up, then we'll know something went wrong and the data isn't accurate. Also, it will allow us to see when any changes in magical flow happen."

That seemed to make sense. "Like if it spikes at a certain time of day or something?"

"Yeah. Or if energy spikes in the different branches of the intersection at different times." Eli closed his notebook. "I'll type these up and import them into my stats software, but we'll probably need more than a day's worth of data to see anything happening."

It didn't look like the shades had tried to mess with their setup, or if they had, Parker's wards had held strong. The sky was still dark enough that they feared a heavy rain was coming, so Sebastian led the other two to the barn to try and find something to cover the mechanisms.

The best they could do were a few old crates covered in tarps, but with the tarps secured to the ground, hopefully, they wouldn't blow away, and combined with the moisture-repelling spell, it would be enough to save the paper in case a storm hit.

Sebastian was beginning to realize how slow the process of solving the imbalance would be. Even collecting data to get started would take a while, but no one else seemed too concerned, or if they were, they were hiding it well.

Eli and Parker helped Sebastian raid his pantry and pack up as much of the kitchen as possible. It was surprisingly easy to convince them to help harvest the ripe vegetables in the garden.

"I really need to pick the apples." Sebastian gave the trees a guilty look.

"Want some help?" Eli stole a quick glance at Parker. "We could do it now."

Sebastian tried to bite back his surprise. "You sure?"

Eli nodded eagerly. "This place is actually pretty cool. Other than the creepy house."

Sebastian laughed. "Thanks. But I don't think we have room in the car for the apples along with everything else."

"I can drive your stuff to town and then come back," Parker offered.

"Oh." Sebastian squirmed. "You don't have to."

"I know." Parker shoved his hands in his jeans pockets. "But I don't have anything pressing to do today, and I'd rather do this than help Eli type up his spreadsheets."

"Hey." Eli shoved Parker playfully on the shoulder. "You know you're going to have to help. There's thousands of data points already."

"I know. But apples seem more fun. I think we deserve to enjoy ourselves before getting into the rest of the work." He smiled adoringly at Eli before looking expectantly at Sebastian.

"Okay. You'll need the key to my place." He reached into his pocket and pulled it out. "Just dump everything in the living room."

Parker grabbed the key. "Will do."

Sebastian and Eli started picking the apples, and luckily, it didn't rain. Time flew. Eli was easy to talk to, partly because he was extremely chatty and seemed happy to carry most of the conversation. He told Sebastian all about magical veins of power and the project he'd originally been doing when he'd moved up here at the start of fall.

It was cold and dreary, but Sebastian couldn't complain. He was almost able to forget his problems. He'd never imagined spending time with people here, enjoying himself and making a new friend. It was happening anyway, and it made Sebastian think about how different being trapped at Storm House would have been if he'd had friends to visit him or people who hung around for more than a minute.

Maybe Sullivan and Simon didn't think being trapped was such a big sacrifice because they weren't alone, and that's why they were—apparently—so accepting of being the protectors of Moonlight Falls. It could also be part of why they hadn't tried to find a better solution to the imbalance.

Or maybe there had been no better solution back then, but like with the fuel cell, now there was some new magical advancement that could help them.

Sebastian hoped there was. As Eli talked, he intermittently mentioned going back to LA to finish his degree and graduate. It was almost like he'd forgotten that, at the moment, making a trip down south wasn't possible. None of the curse's three new prisoners had tried to leave Moonlight Falls since getting trapped. Parker's and Hazel's lives seemed to revolve around the town, and they must have been happy here. But Sebastian knew the day would come when the curse started to impede all their lives.

Hopefully they would have a solution before Eli needed to return to LA. However, Sebastian couldn't help thinking that four and a half months didn't feel like very long.