Page 66 of Outside the Veil
He watched and listened from the shadows he had pulled about him. Not fearful, merely cautious. Humans could be so strange. But this one’s heart shone so bright, his blood sang so clear and true, how could he be anything but a friend? He took on a songbird shape and hopped into the sunlight.
“Good morning, little one.” The man smiled. “Did you come to join me in my song?” He cocked his head to one side, white-blond hair gleaming in the light. “Though you are no more bird than I am fish. I hope you do not hide yourself out of fear of me.”
The man put his harp down and his smile grew brighter. “Here. I will show you what I learned today.” When he stretched out his hand, a tiny whirlwind grew on his palm. The nest of wind tugged at the air and became a miniature cloud. The cloud hovered over his hand, gray as a dove’s wings and plump with moisture. Upon his skin, mist-sized raindrops fell.
A laugh like a stream in spring flood leaped from him…
“There, my love, was that one better?”
Diego hugged him tight. “I felt it! I felt what he did! Reaching, yes, a kind of twist of thought. But it’s more than that. I could feel him…it…connect!” In his excitement, he tore himself from Finn’s grasp and vanished from the Dreaming.
Finn opened his eyes to find Diego’s essence staring at his body convulsing on the bed.
“That’s disturbing…”
“I feared it would be.” Finn sat up with a sigh. “You must not lose contact with me when we face the beast. Please.”
“Sorry. I got so caught up. The man with the harp, that was me, too, wasn’t it?”
“Indeed. A different you, but you all the same. From long, long ago.”
“Was that…”Diego’s shimmer flickered and rippled. “Wasthat the first time we met?”
“Yes, my hero. The very first. I loved you from that first moment. Sometimes it takes me longer to recognize you. Most times, you have no memory of me at all. But it is always good to find you again.”
“Did you know me on the bridge? Is that why you came with me?”
“Not in that moment, no. I was frightened and in pain and simply saw a bright, shining heart, without guile or malice. And then I did not wish to see, hid the knowledge from myself to guard my own heart.”
“You’re not going to tell me. When you knew.”
“If you must know, it was when you brought me the crayons,” Finn grumbled. “Enough. Concentrate. Do you see your lightning now?”
“Yes, I think so. Like fireflies.”
Finn wrapped his arms around Diego’s shimmer to guide him since Diego still thought of himself as a physical being. “Gather it together. On your palm if you like, as you saw with the little cloud. Feel how it sings to you, through you, for it is yours. Yours to command. That’s it, m’boy, sing with it, ask of it, try to—”
The ball of lightning suddenly grew to the size of Diego’s head. He whirled and flung it out of the open window. A sharp crack split the air and fire blossomed in the sky, bright enough to rival the afternoon sun.
“Like that?”
Finn stared at him in shock, unable to recall how words were formed. He cleared his throat twice, his voice shaking when he spoke. “Yes, love, something like… Just like that. That was… How did you do that?”
“It sort of…told me how. It just felt right.”
“Do that tomorrow night and I don’t think we need worry,” he said with a grim chuckle. “But pray be certain you don’t hit me instead.”
“I’ll do my best,mi vida.How do I get back into my body?”
“Ah, for that he still needs me.” Finn swept him a little bow and held out his hand as if asking for a dance. “With your permission?”
Diego’s hand of white light settled in his and Finn led his essence back to his body, lifted it and settled it back where it belonged. The twitching, flailing body immediately quieted and Diego was once more ensconced behind his walls.
He tried to recall all the things Diego would need when he woke and fetched extra blankets, the little bottle of white pills and water. His heart still hammered, but he slid under the covers to take Diego in his arms and send warmth to his chilled body.
Chapter nineteen
Heart of Ice
