We're All Just Locks or Keys
From Behind the Scenes
Echo followed her mother through the corridors, keeping silently behind her, head down. Subservient. Obedient. Unknown.
Her mother spread her wisdom to all the Fairies that gathered around her. Echo had heard it all before. She kept to the corners, waiting for the next batch to come in, just as shy and in awe as the ones previous. She watched them all as they sat in a circle around her mother, their wings, if they had them, fluttering softly.
Telemarians, Anquines, Lankins, Qui-Los, even Shenters, crawled out of their respective holes in their secretive places to hear her mother’s words. Every Fairy, regardless of species, was born with a date imprinted into their minds. Today was that date.
Echo recorded the number of each species that came in as a group, keeping track of which was a majority. Of course the Telemarians were thought to be the majority. But oddly enough…
Mama, the Shenters have come more than any other species. Including the Telemarians.
Echo passed the note during one of her mother’s breaks. She watched as her mother scrutinized her tabulating, going over all the numbers without looking up. After a few moments, her mother looked back up at Echo, eyebrow raised.
“So it seems,” she whispered, a smile creeping across her lips.
Echo rose an eyebrow, not saying a word. She kept her eyes on her mother, waiting. She knew that, if she waited long enough, her mother would break down.
But before she could answer, Leora was greeted with another round of people. Just before Echo returned into the shadows, Leora looked over at her, her eyebrows raised, a questioning look across her face.
They were all Shenters. Echo let a smile crack across her face as the shadows swallowed her up. Disappearing behind the curtain, Echo slipped into the hidden corridor, waiting for the nest break. She knew it was going to be a while. As great as her mother was, she had difficulty grasping the Shenters’ native tongue, so it took her longer to translate her words.
Echo smiled inwardly. She could speak perfect Shai, which stunned many non-Shenters. It was said to be a difficult language, but Echo figured out the pattern of speaking, long before her professor had, or anyone else. The series of clicks and thwangs made it hard to distinguish words and just normal clicks and thwangs in their speech. The key was to read the hand gestures. They spoke more with their hands than their words. Their words, they’re just proverbs that can possibly relate to the words they wish to convey.
But people don’t seem to see how someone can speak without words. They cannot see how well people communicate without saying a single word. In a world that’s made up of noise, can people learn to listen with their eyes?
```
Echo wandered the halls, knowing that no one actually saw her, so it didn’t matter. Normally, people looked away from her, or she’d shrink away from people, and they’d just ignore her. But this time, she didn’t shrink away. She walked the halls like she belonged there. And she did. She belonged there just as much as anyone else did.
Nobody saw that though. They just saw the one stain on the immense sheet of her life and person. They didn’t see her capability to be just like them. But in reality…she is just like them. She may be a Hybreed, but she’s still Pure, to a certain extent. She’s not part Fairy, and part something else. She’s all Fairy. But still, no one knew that. No one even cared to know that at this point. It became just known that she’s not worthy of a placement anywhere in their society.
Echo found herself standing outside the door of the Room of Antiques. The brass lettering above the door swirled upon itself, making it unclear to what it even said anymore. The words had a mind of their own, changing constantly. Echo never knew why, but she figured it had some Shenter charm over it. Shenters practically built everything that’s in every Fairy village. They created almost everything.
Sighing, Echo looked down to the doorknob. It too was brass; it stayed still. It looked like an ordinary knob. It was sphere-like and stuck out of the door insert. It looked too weak to handle the load of someone forcibly pushing or pulling at it, and still handle the large wooden door it’s attached to. But nonetheless, the doorknob did its duty, and opened the door.
But Echo didn’t open the door. She didn’t even touch the doorknob. She merely looked down at it. Turning around, she walked away from the Room of Antiques. She knew she wasn’t allowed to enter it, but there as something about it…something about its mystery that enticed her to visit the door as often as she could. She knew she would never be allowed to enter it; the doorknob recognizes handprints. Only those of the high Council is allowed to enter, and they cannot bring anyone else in. Again, the theory is that a Shenter placed a charm on the doorway to catch any and everyone who tried to enter that didn’t register with the doorknob.
Going over all the facts of just one doorknob hurt Echo’s head. How can I remember all this? she asked herself as she ran her fingers over the windowsill. She looked out over the city, seeing the bustling people beneath her, buying, selling, gaining, losing. Closing her eyes, she pictured herself being down there.
She’d go down there and glance through the stalls, seeing the good the men were selling. She could smell the Trach meat being cooked in a nearby stall, and the sweet scent of the Oniac flowers just down a couple stalls. The women would be haggling with the engaged Fairy keys, trying to raise the price of their obscenely decorous rings and necklaces. Echo would smirk, seeing the seething lies, but decided against intervening. Walking farther down, the sounds of laughter and merriment would die down and darkness and silence would encompass her. Stalls became fewer and fewer as the streets narrowed and split away from the main street. Wandering farther, she eventually found herself standing in front of Soris’ door. Soris.
‘Soris,’ she would whisper.
‘Ah, my darling!’ The covered figure extended its cloaked arms towards Echo, and wrapped himself tightly around her. ‘I’ve been waiting for you.’
‘It’s been a hectic day,’ Echo said simply, not wanting to elaborate.
‘Oh but of course! There’s no need to feel sad Darling, it’s completely understandable,’ he whispered joyously in her ear as he guided them into his shop. No one took notice. No one could.
‘How about a nice cup of tea for my lovely darling?’ Echo couldn’t see his face, but she knew that he was smiling a grin that, if seen, could crack one’s soul.
‘No thank you,’ Echo declined softly, looking down.
‘Now now now,’ he said brightly, guiding her to a chair. He lightly pushed her into it. Turning swiftly, his cloak swirling around his feet, he placed a pot of water on the burner. ‘It’s impolite to reject food or drink from your host.’
‘I’m just not in the mood Soris. You know why I came. I’d rather just leave as soon as I can,’ Echo said bluntly, not tip-toeing around the corners. She kept her eyes on Soris, watching as he had moved so quickly and delicately around the room. But he stopped now. He didn’t budge an inch from the burner, his back to her. Through the thin black cloth, Echo could see his back, his pale white flesh, ripple softly as he tried to control himself.
‘You came to me remember?’ Soris said so softly, that echo almost didn’t hear him.
‘Yes, I know. But if I remember correctly, you came to me. Several nights ago,’ she added, trying to jog his memory.
‘Ah. That.’ Soris turned back around. Echo detected a smile hiding beneath his hood. ‘Did you enjoy the performance? It took me weeks to perfect.’
‘I hate when you Dream-Drop into my mind. Especially when you try to tamper with my memories,’ Echo growled.
‘But it was quite good, wasn’t it?’
‘It was beautifully orchestrated, but you know I don’t like Dream-Dropping.’
‘You asked for it.’
‘I asked for you to contact me before you tried to test me out. We both know you have ways to do that Soris.’
‘But this was faster.’
‘But it wasn’t completely comfortable. That’s what I was annoyed and hesitant with using it. It didn’t always feel like it was my mind creating this,’ critiqued Echo.
Soris tsk-ed. ‘You asked for me to create a tool that allowed you to enter the mind of your target and I delivered.’ He turned away from her, crossing his arms.
Echo rolled her eyes, thinking drama queen. ‘I asked for you to find a way for me to gain a thread into his mind. Not that whole damn ball of yarn,’ Echo muttered harshly, clenching her fists against the arms of the chair. She was looking away from Soris, but when she looked back up, his face was but an inch from hers.
‘I take it you used…the whole damn ball of yarn, to its fullest, no?’ His breath, the stench of ariogoglia herbs, flushed over her. She wanted to move away from him, but she didn’t dare budge.
‘If you really want to know, yes.’
‘Good!’ He exclaimed loudly and exuberantly, jumping up and away from Echo. ‘Then the Dream-Dropping wasn’t totally wasted.’
‘No it wasn’t, but-’
‘Then don’t waste my time,’ Soris hissed, bringing his face down to the same level as hers. ‘I delivered. I gave you my best gift I possess. Don’t complain child.’
Echo scoffed. ‘I’m not a child. I’m older than you by several centuries, don’t you ever forget that.’
Soris sighed as he stood back up. ‘How can I, when you use each chance you get to remind me?’
Echo scoffed again, but didn’t answer the question. ‘I came to inform you that you’re wanted at the castle. I suggest applying another layer.’ With that, Echo stood up and left the house. But not without a whisper from Soris.
‘Goodbye Darling.’
Echo gasped, taking in as much air as she could. Breathing hard, she clung to the railing of the window. Looking around, she was alone. With heavy breaths and uncertain legs, she tried to make her way back to the ceremony room.
But she couldn’t. Sliding down, she sat down beneath a window sill, keeping her eyes closed, trying to steady her breathing. Eventually she could breathe normally, and with the help of the sill, she pulled herself up. Walking slowly, she made it back to where her mother was graciously welcoming the next group of Fairies. Nodding to her mother, Echo sat in the back again, this time, counting the Fairies.
That would bring the telemarian count to an even 120,000. Only several million to go.
Her mother spread her wisdom to all the Fairies that gathered around her. Echo had heard it all before. She kept to the corners, waiting for the next batch to come in, just as shy and in awe as the ones previous. She watched them all as they sat in a circle around her mother, their wings, if they had them, fluttering softly.
Telemarians, Anquines, Lankins, Qui-Los, even Shenters, crawled out of their respective holes in their secretive places to hear her mother’s words. Every Fairy, regardless of species, was born with a date imprinted into their minds. Today was that date.
Echo recorded the number of each species that came in as a group, keeping track of which was a majority. Of course the Telemarians were thought to be the majority. But oddly enough…
Mama, the Shenters have come more than any other species. Including the Telemarians.
Echo passed the note during one of her mother’s breaks. She watched as her mother scrutinized her tabulating, going over all the numbers without looking up. After a few moments, her mother looked back up at Echo, eyebrow raised.
“So it seems,” she whispered, a smile creeping across her lips.
Echo rose an eyebrow, not saying a word. She kept her eyes on her mother, waiting. She knew that, if she waited long enough, her mother would break down.
But before she could answer, Leora was greeted with another round of people. Just before Echo returned into the shadows, Leora looked over at her, her eyebrows raised, a questioning look across her face.
They were all Shenters. Echo let a smile crack across her face as the shadows swallowed her up. Disappearing behind the curtain, Echo slipped into the hidden corridor, waiting for the nest break. She knew it was going to be a while. As great as her mother was, she had difficulty grasping the Shenters’ native tongue, so it took her longer to translate her words.
Echo smiled inwardly. She could speak perfect Shai, which stunned many non-Shenters. It was said to be a difficult language, but Echo figured out the pattern of speaking, long before her professor had, or anyone else. The series of clicks and thwangs made it hard to distinguish words and just normal clicks and thwangs in their speech. The key was to read the hand gestures. They spoke more with their hands than their words. Their words, they’re just proverbs that can possibly relate to the words they wish to convey.
But people don’t seem to see how someone can speak without words. They cannot see how well people communicate without saying a single word. In a world that’s made up of noise, can people learn to listen with their eyes?
```
Echo wandered the halls, knowing that no one actually saw her, so it didn’t matter. Normally, people looked away from her, or she’d shrink away from people, and they’d just ignore her. But this time, she didn’t shrink away. She walked the halls like she belonged there. And she did. She belonged there just as much as anyone else did.
Nobody saw that though. They just saw the one stain on the immense sheet of her life and person. They didn’t see her capability to be just like them. But in reality…she is just like them. She may be a Hybreed, but she’s still Pure, to a certain extent. She’s not part Fairy, and part something else. She’s all Fairy. But still, no one knew that. No one even cared to know that at this point. It became just known that she’s not worthy of a placement anywhere in their society.
Echo found herself standing outside the door of the Room of Antiques. The brass lettering above the door swirled upon itself, making it unclear to what it even said anymore. The words had a mind of their own, changing constantly. Echo never knew why, but she figured it had some Shenter charm over it. Shenters practically built everything that’s in every Fairy village. They created almost everything.
Sighing, Echo looked down to the doorknob. It too was brass; it stayed still. It looked like an ordinary knob. It was sphere-like and stuck out of the door insert. It looked too weak to handle the load of someone forcibly pushing or pulling at it, and still handle the large wooden door it’s attached to. But nonetheless, the doorknob did its duty, and opened the door.
But Echo didn’t open the door. She didn’t even touch the doorknob. She merely looked down at it. Turning around, she walked away from the Room of Antiques. She knew she wasn’t allowed to enter it, but there as something about it…something about its mystery that enticed her to visit the door as often as she could. She knew she would never be allowed to enter it; the doorknob recognizes handprints. Only those of the high Council is allowed to enter, and they cannot bring anyone else in. Again, the theory is that a Shenter placed a charm on the doorway to catch any and everyone who tried to enter that didn’t register with the doorknob.
Going over all the facts of just one doorknob hurt Echo’s head. How can I remember all this? she asked herself as she ran her fingers over the windowsill. She looked out over the city, seeing the bustling people beneath her, buying, selling, gaining, losing. Closing her eyes, she pictured herself being down there.
She’d go down there and glance through the stalls, seeing the good the men were selling. She could smell the Trach meat being cooked in a nearby stall, and the sweet scent of the Oniac flowers just down a couple stalls. The women would be haggling with the engaged Fairy keys, trying to raise the price of their obscenely decorous rings and necklaces. Echo would smirk, seeing the seething lies, but decided against intervening. Walking farther down, the sounds of laughter and merriment would die down and darkness and silence would encompass her. Stalls became fewer and fewer as the streets narrowed and split away from the main street. Wandering farther, she eventually found herself standing in front of Soris’ door. Soris.
‘Soris,’ she would whisper.
‘Ah, my darling!’ The covered figure extended its cloaked arms towards Echo, and wrapped himself tightly around her. ‘I’ve been waiting for you.’
‘It’s been a hectic day,’ Echo said simply, not wanting to elaborate.
‘Oh but of course! There’s no need to feel sad Darling, it’s completely understandable,’ he whispered joyously in her ear as he guided them into his shop. No one took notice. No one could.
‘How about a nice cup of tea for my lovely darling?’ Echo couldn’t see his face, but she knew that he was smiling a grin that, if seen, could crack one’s soul.
‘No thank you,’ Echo declined softly, looking down.
‘Now now now,’ he said brightly, guiding her to a chair. He lightly pushed her into it. Turning swiftly, his cloak swirling around his feet, he placed a pot of water on the burner. ‘It’s impolite to reject food or drink from your host.’
‘I’m just not in the mood Soris. You know why I came. I’d rather just leave as soon as I can,’ Echo said bluntly, not tip-toeing around the corners. She kept her eyes on Soris, watching as he had moved so quickly and delicately around the room. But he stopped now. He didn’t budge an inch from the burner, his back to her. Through the thin black cloth, Echo could see his back, his pale white flesh, ripple softly as he tried to control himself.
‘You came to me remember?’ Soris said so softly, that echo almost didn’t hear him.
‘Yes, I know. But if I remember correctly, you came to me. Several nights ago,’ she added, trying to jog his memory.
‘Ah. That.’ Soris turned back around. Echo detected a smile hiding beneath his hood. ‘Did you enjoy the performance? It took me weeks to perfect.’
‘I hate when you Dream-Drop into my mind. Especially when you try to tamper with my memories,’ Echo growled.
‘But it was quite good, wasn’t it?’
‘It was beautifully orchestrated, but you know I don’t like Dream-Dropping.’
‘You asked for it.’
‘I asked for you to contact me before you tried to test me out. We both know you have ways to do that Soris.’
‘But this was faster.’
‘But it wasn’t completely comfortable. That’s what I was annoyed and hesitant with using it. It didn’t always feel like it was my mind creating this,’ critiqued Echo.
Soris tsk-ed. ‘You asked for me to create a tool that allowed you to enter the mind of your target and I delivered.’ He turned away from her, crossing his arms.
Echo rolled her eyes, thinking drama queen. ‘I asked for you to find a way for me to gain a thread into his mind. Not that whole damn ball of yarn,’ Echo muttered harshly, clenching her fists against the arms of the chair. She was looking away from Soris, but when she looked back up, his face was but an inch from hers.
‘I take it you used…the whole damn ball of yarn, to its fullest, no?’ His breath, the stench of ariogoglia herbs, flushed over her. She wanted to move away from him, but she didn’t dare budge.
‘If you really want to know, yes.’
‘Good!’ He exclaimed loudly and exuberantly, jumping up and away from Echo. ‘Then the Dream-Dropping wasn’t totally wasted.’
‘No it wasn’t, but-’
‘Then don’t waste my time,’ Soris hissed, bringing his face down to the same level as hers. ‘I delivered. I gave you my best gift I possess. Don’t complain child.’
Echo scoffed. ‘I’m not a child. I’m older than you by several centuries, don’t you ever forget that.’
Soris sighed as he stood back up. ‘How can I, when you use each chance you get to remind me?’
Echo scoffed again, but didn’t answer the question. ‘I came to inform you that you’re wanted at the castle. I suggest applying another layer.’ With that, Echo stood up and left the house. But not without a whisper from Soris.
‘Goodbye Darling.’
Echo gasped, taking in as much air as she could. Breathing hard, she clung to the railing of the window. Looking around, she was alone. With heavy breaths and uncertain legs, she tried to make her way back to the ceremony room.
But she couldn’t. Sliding down, she sat down beneath a window sill, keeping her eyes closed, trying to steady her breathing. Eventually she could breathe normally, and with the help of the sill, she pulled herself up. Walking slowly, she made it back to where her mother was graciously welcoming the next group of Fairies. Nodding to her mother, Echo sat in the back again, this time, counting the Fairies.
That would bring the telemarian count to an even 120,000. Only several million to go.