Waverly returned with the carriage and helped HalfHyde lift Judson into it. She felt the urge to pack up a few supplies for Judson in a bag while HalfHyde said a prayer of supplication to Judson's mother, Juniper. Waverly picked up Calaire and placed it around her wrist. She picked up Karya as well and placed it in a random sheath she found. Just when she picked up her short sword, HalfHyde urgently called for her outside.

She hopped into the carriage and sat next to Judson. HalfHyde drove the carriage and they travelled at a high speed. Waverly did not know where they were headed but she earnestly prayed that they arrived there quickly. Judson's head rested on her lap, bopping up and down as the carriage bounced along on the bumpy road. His breathing was so raspy and cracked that Waverly feared he was struggling with his own life. She wiped the tears out of her eyes and tried her best to keep him balanced. Inside the blankets he looked bulky, like there was someone else in it with him. This was only because of his wings.

Waverly's gaze dropped to his smoky wing. The blanket was beginning to burn even without flames and bits of the ashy remains dropped onto the carriage seat which also burned upon contact. It was the strangest thing Waverly had ever seen. She wondered if Judson's rising temperature could produce enough heat to set things on fire.

"Pa! He is going to burn through the covers. We have to hurry." She warned. The carriage had already begun to smell like burnt wood.

HalfHyde grunted in response and whipped the horses. They took a sharp turn that almost spilled Waverly out of the carriage along with Judson. She gripped his frame firmly despite the intense heat and pulled him close. She looked out of the carriage and realized that they had already begun to leave the town behind. Huddersfield owned the fastest horses in the whole of Lake Borough and Waverly was thankful that HalfHyde had asked her to go to him other than anyone else.

The evening darkened and the temperature rose which made the inside of the carriage feel like a baking oven. Waverly opened the carriage windows but it was no use. She felt tempted to go out and sit with HalfHyde but could not leave Judson on his own. His glazed eyes were still open and they unnerved her greatly but she composed herself.

The town quickly became nothing but trees and single grassy paths. Waverly watched as a bunch of birch trees blurred past, a few streams, a waterfall and a wide cornfield. After a series of tall bushes raced by, they finally came into a different town. Its housing structure was the same as Lake Borough's but the colors there were different and the town had a great possession of beautiful vegetable and flower gardens instead of lakes. Waverly sighted the townsfolk roaming the streets in the dead of the night. Some camped around fires telling stories, most of them laid leisurely in their gardens watching the stars. Others simply sat in front of their houses with their young ones in their laps.

Waverly wondered whether anyone in the town was currently in bed given how late it was.

The carriage zoomed by and nobody even bothered to stare. The idea of a horse driven carriage racing at high speed into their dwelling in the middle of the night did not seem to be something of news to them.

Waverly immediately recalled the name of the town - Slumber Hill. It was an ironically hilarious moment to recall the name because nobody seemed to be asleep.

The carriage went deeper into the maze of houses until it stopped in front of a large brick house. HalfHyde got off and picked Judson who had burned through half of the blankets so that now his black wing stuck out halfway. Waverly had little time to admire how appealingly different this house was because HalfHyde was already rapping his knuckles against the door. It flung open at once and a very short man in violet robes stood there glancing up at them with unsettling ink blue eyes and a bald head.

He was a Dwarf.

"Greetings of the eve, Crillion! Shall we come in? We have travelled with haste." HalfHyde said.

The Dwarf grunted and moved aside for them to enter. Waverly did not need to look twice to know that the Dwarf had a bad leg. He tilted unevenly when he walked. She greeted him curtly but he paid her no attention.

"What is the matter?" The Dwarf asked HalfHyde. He had the grumpiest voice Waverly had ever heard. He guided HalfHyde to a large table where he could set Judson down.

HalfHyde was covered in sweat by the time he was done unwrapping Judson from the blankets. He spoke a different language to the dwarf that Waverly did not understand. Then she suddenly remembered that HalfHyde himself was not born entirely of Elvish blood. He was Half-Elven which meant he was part Dwarf. He understood the language they spoke.

Their host (whose name was Crillion) tensed when HalfHyde was done explaining things to him. Waverly watched him disappear to the back of a charcoal stained brick wall and out again wearing simple clothes under a short white coat. In his hands was a large tray filled with so many tiny vials that Waverly wondered how he could tell which was which. He walked over to the table and grunted exasperatingly. The furniture was too tall for him.

Waverly had begun to imagine why he had such a high table built in his home even though he could not reach it when suddenly, the table dropped to his waist level. When she looked closely, she saw that Crillion had pulled a lever in the wall. He took out a pair of large glasses - which were not as good as HalfHyde's in Waverly's opinion - from a drawer built into the table and put them on. They stuck fast to the bridge of his nose magnifying his terrible face.

He pulled a curved iron structure close to Judson's head and Waverly heard a faint click. Bright light suddenly shone into Judson's face but he did not blink. Waverly stared at the strange light - it was white. Lanterns and every other light in Bremeton usually produced a yellow glow except for the light from the moon. She had never heard of nor seen a light so bright and round and white as the one Crillion had. It illuminated every inch of the house, casting their shadows so largely against the walls that they resembled black mountains. HalfHyde moved back to sit and bumped into a cluster of bottles that rattled and clanked against each other.

"Careful now! My family sleeps! We must remain furtive." Crillion warned.

The sinister way with which he spoke of his family made Waverly almost believe that they were monsters but she doubted it. Then again, Dwarves were natives of Hammiton and Hammiton was the realm of dangerous creatures and rabid animals. If Crillion's family were rabid animals then Waverly did not want to speak a word til dawn.

Crillion ran his gnarly hands across the length of Judson's body feeling different parts of him; his neck, chest, arms, legs, side, scalp and face. Waverly did not see how exactly this exercise helped and she was very tempted to say something to Crillion but remembered his warning about his family and kept shut. Besides that, she realized with a bit of relief that at the Dwarf's first touch, Judson stopped burning. This made her wonder if Crillion was some sort of witch doctor.

She walked toward a large and comfortable bouncy couch and sat in it, leaning on her bag for support as she watched Crillion apply the contents of his vial all over Judson; putting some in his mouth and some in his eyes. This procedure went on for quite a long while and Waverly watched until her eyelids began to feel like they carried boulders. She would often fall into a light sleep then shake herself awake because she wanted to witness the moment when Judson would wake up but the moment did not seem to come.

She leaned further into her bag which she now used as a pillow and stretched her legs out, sleep weighing heavier in her eyes by the second. She shut them and let the drowsiness take over and before she knew it, she had fallen asleep. Of course, Waverly did not get to tuck in and as expected, she was pulled into a mare though she could not decide if it was a mare after she woke up.

Waverly found herself standing in front of a looking glass.

It was strange a thing to see because only the rich Ladies of Bremeton could afford looking glasses of sheer size. Waverly was used to seeing her reflection in a lake but that one was always blurry. Looking at herself now, she realized why women loved using the item to check their appearance. She could see every imperfection in her face; the cut on her cheek that had now become a sharp scar, her black hair that was so shaggy she looked no different from a wild raccoon. Her skin was plagued with blemishes, her eyes were tired and had black lines under them.

Waverly flinched slightly at her appearance. She was not in a particular room or a place but the surrounding felt oddly familiar. The looking glass suddenly shimmered and a child appeared behind her. She gasped and turned but there was no one. When she looked into the glass again, the child was still there. She realized she was only seeing things inside the glass.

Waverly easily guessed that the child was around the age of four. He had black hair that stuck up in the most adorable manner on his head. In his tiny hands was a transparent jar with an iron handle, one that Waverly knew was used to hold fireflies in case one could not sleep with a lantern. She watched the child walk around giddily - in the steps of a youngling -  swinging the jar as he did. He was bare chested, revealing his delicate slightly pink skin. He wore only a pair of tattered grey shorts. Waverly could not clearly make out where he was but guessed he was surrounded by grass when he bent down to pluck them off.

The vision stayed the same way for a while - focused on the boy walking endlessly under the light of the sun. Waverly wondered why she was seeing a strange child. She suddenly realized with a sad ache that the child was all alone and had no idea where he was going. He simply kept on walking.

A sudden rumble shook the ground where he stood. He looked forward, his tiny lips parting in surprise. A bunch of adults were coming towards him but Waverly could not make out their faces or their clothes - only their figures. The sky darkened as they came up close to the boy and the sunlight was snuffed out by darkness.

Waverly gasped when the figures fell to the ground. She wondered why they stuck so close together but then she saw that it was just one person. The person had a cloak on that constantly rippled in the vision from the glass making him seem like he was three persons in one. The figure began to crawl toward the child although Waverly doubted he was aware of the child's presence. The vision had no sound but she could tell that the adult was screaming in terror. The child watched innocently yet dumbstruck as the approaching darkness threatened to swallow the helpless stranger. Then he shook himself out of his trance and began to climb atop a boulder. It was only a few inches off the ground but it was high enough for any child to hurt himself if he fell off. The boy opened up his jar and lifted it skyward whilst standing on his tippy toes.

For some reason, Waverly caught herself smiling. She did not know what the youngling was doing but it seemed a selfless action. He remained standing on his tiptoes, trying to get even higher. The vision rippled twice allowing her to see above the child's head.

She gaped at the scene - the boy seemed to be trying to catch the sunlight in his jar.

An impossible feat. Waverly thought but stared on in shock.

Right above the darkness, bright sun rays were projected against the ground far beyond the boulder where the child stood and it seemed to be what the stranger was desperately crawling toward - light.

Waverly felt herself getting anxious as the events torturously yet slowly unfolded.

The darkness was closing in swiftly on the stranger. Rays of sunlight began to move at an annoyingly slow pace until at the last minute it hit the opening of the jar, filling it with blinding light. The child wasted no second. He swung his jar into the darkness and the light inside of it repelled all of it in an instant.

Sunlight bathed the earth once again - the stranger was safe.

Waverly heaved a sigh of relief. She held the child in great admiration already. He was a young hero but she had no idea who he was. A distant echo suddenly made her turn. It sounded strange, like someone had called her name from the depths of the ocean.

She looked into the glass where the clouds were beginning to part like a large fluffy curtain. The echo came again and its effect became much stronger on her now, almost drawing her backwards.

She began to feel numb. Somehow, she knew she was about to leave the scenario behind. She glared at the looking glass, desperate to see the rest of the scene and who was to descend the clouds. The echo rang in her ears again and Waverly yelped. Her eyes opened with great force.

"Ye must eat!" HalfHyde said into her face.

The house was illuminated by blinding sunlight and almost sent Waverly's brain into a frenzy. It took a while before her vision adjusted. She took one look around the room and asked the first question that formed in her head.

"Pa, is Judson alright now?"

HalfHyde open his mouth to say something but decided against it and heaved a heavy sigh instead. His face carried a kind of remorse. Waverly felt panic raid her entire being in an instant.

"The boy woke long when before ye but tis not in my position to say whether his state currently is alright or not." HalfHyde said.

Waverly swallowed, feeling both relieved and conflicted. If Judson was awake, why did her father make it sound like it was terrible news?

"Come! Crillion requests he speaks with ye but only after wash and breakfast." HalfHyde said.

Waverly had been too frantic the previous night to be able to admire the Dwarf's house but as she sat in an enormous bathub filled with rosy water and bubbly steam, she did not exactly know which word fit enough to describe how incredible the house was. Crillion was small but only as small as the shortest Human. Everything else in his house was plus size. Waverly felt he was subtly compensating for his stature but she also knew Dwarves were never ones to be ashamed of their nature.

The walls of the house were built from bricks that had been bleached to resemble stone dust and then splattered with charcoal (which Waverly had previously mistaken for stain from the kitchen stove). The house felt old because of the appearance of these bricks. The ceiling was a towering one coated with smooth tar. The floors were white granite in some places and red wood in others. The wood was smooth and so finely polished that one could catch the faintest glimpse of their reflection in it. The stairs, tables, cabinets, doors and windows were all fashioned from the same red wood.

In the fire bath, Crillion placed a large looking glass so apparently a guest could watch themselves bathe. That made Waverly uncomfortable. The floors were also white granite; the same as everywhere else. The bathtub was crafted from a rare cream colored translucent stone that strangely complimented the charcoal walls.

Waverly was treated to a decent breakfast after her bath and she was thankful that none of Crillion's family members had insisted on joining in. She was handed a pair of new clothes to wear and when she asked Crillion where he got them from, HalfHyde's gaze on her turned stonelike. Crillion, on the other hand, seemed unoffended and told her that he had Human relatives that sometimes left their belongings behind after spending their holidays there.

After breakfast, Waverly followed Crillion to his backyard which was a magnificent tomato garden. There were white, high fences bordering it from the rest of the street. In the middle of the garden was a shade and under it was what Waverly assumed was a tea table. The entire furniture was red and on the table were neat trays filled with snacks and next to them, a pile of books. Waverly thought she would like to relax in a place as pleasant as Crillion's tomato garden.

"Sit, girly." Crillion offered.

His grumpy voice snapped her out of her musing state. She took a seat opposite him and tried to hide her discomfort.

Why was HalfHyde leaving her to talk with Crillion alone?

Had she done something offensive?

Maybe sleeping on the couch without being offered the luxury was a punishable offense in Slumber Hill.

Waverly wrung her hands together. If not for the Dwarf's stern look, she would have enjoyed the slightly breezy and sunny morning. Her clothes were comfortable and they felt strangely light against her skin. She had never worn raw cotton before but believed that was what the clothes were made out of.

Crillion pushed a tray of snacks towards her. There were pink buttery biscuits in them piled next to a set of brown and gold ones. Waverly picked the brown ones and took a bite. It tasted of honey and chocolate.

"You must be wondering why I have asked to speak with you privately." Crillion began. In the sunlight, his ink blue eyes seemed oddly transparent. He still had his white coat on but it looked fresher than the ones he had been putting on the night before.

"Do not fret, child. Your father and I have already discussed this matter while you slept. He thought it best that I break the news to you myself."

Waverly's eyes became slits.

Something HalfHyde did not want to tell her himself?

She indeed began to brace herself subconsciously.

"But before I proceed, I must ask you this one question." Crillion interlaced his lumpy fingers together. "The young man, how long have you known him?"

Waverly held the biscuit halfway to her lips, her eyes clocking sideways as she pondered the question. She really was no good at calculations.

"We met when he was eight and I, seven. I am thirteen now."

Crillion quietly did the math for himself and nodded satisfactorily. "Six years then. Interesting! And, did the boy tell you anything of his background?"

Waverly tensed. The Dwarf had said he had only one question for her. "No, he does not remember much about it."

She wanted to add that Judson's mother was the goddess Juniper but held her tongue. Crillion might have helped Judson but mentioning that he was Zanaan might stir some trouble if not a lot.

"I see." Crillion said. His gaze was excruciatingly intense but not in a threatening way. It made Waverly suspect he knew more than she thought he did.

"I have found no cure for his predicament."

Waverly repeated the new word in her head. Pre-di-ca-ment. She had no idea what it meant but guessed Crillion was referring to Judson's illness.

"But Sir, did you at least discover why he is dying?"

Crillion chuckled despite himself. "D-dying?" He sounded baffled in an amused way. His entire body jerked as he laughed. "You think, child, that the young man is dying?"

Waverly frowned unhappily. She hated to think that Crillion was mocking at how little she knew even though his question had made her feel a little relieved as well as a little confused.

"That is what he told me."

The Dwarf nodded. "I see. Well, I do not blame the boy for thinking such. Anyone in his state would think that they were on the brink of death but no, he will not die. Not anytime soon at least."

Waverly did not know how to feel about Crillion's last statement so she decided to ignore it. "What is wrong with him then if he is not dying?"

"The boy simply bears a burden." Crillion's face creased deeply as he said this and Waverly read regrettable pity in his expression.

Sympathy.

This assured her that he was indeed an apothecary to some degree and that he was used to saying things like that to the people who came to him for help especially to the ones he could not help. The thought left her feeling helpless.

"A burden! What kind of burden?" Waverly looked at the tray and realized she had eaten up all the brown and gold biscuits. She doubted the pink ones tasted just as good but picked one anyway and took a bite. It tasted like vanilla and cream. She loved it more than the previous ones.

"It will be difficult to explain to you but I will try my best. Girly, you see, your friend has a very rare unnatural problem - supernatural you might even say. The gods have not been fair with anyone in the olden days and I dount they will begin now but this. . . this is too much for a child of the boy's age."

Waverly watched Crillion as he spoke. She did not quite understand him but she listened with rapt attention anyway. Crumbs from the biscuit fell and stuck to her cotton shirt but she paid no attention to them because she had suddenly begun to recall being told something about a burden once long ago but the memory was like smoke in her mind now.

Crillion paused and examined her. He sighed and leaned back. "All of this rambling is of no use. What I have been driving at is quite simple, girly. Your friend has two hearts."

Waverly stopped chewing. The biscuits in her mouth tasted like sawdust all of a sudden. She blinked a couple of times hoping that the action would clear out the wax in her ears. She thought she had heard incorrectly.

"He does what?"

Crillion sat up again. "I said he has two hearts, girly. One rather, but it was split in two halves."

Waverly put the biscuit down, her stomach twisting into uncomfortable knots. "Who would do a thing like that? How is that possible?"

"Like I said, the problem is purely supernatural. This is an act of a god and it is not an act of recent, I assure you. I believe the young man has been living with two hearts for a very long time, probably years before you both became acquaintances."

Waverly looked around uncomfortably. She suddenly felt that someone was eavesdropping on the conversation.

"What do we do? How do we help him?"

Crillion nodded agreeably. "A logical question, my dear. Very logical. I dabble in Shade magic but only to an extent. The boy can only be properly taken care of by someone with much more elaborate skills than the ones I possess; a Dakritonian priest or priestess, whichever, girly. The boy has to go back to his homeland."

The Honor of Light|
Book 02