Lu, Tru and the Mystics.

I sat in the twilight drenched room, staring with trepidation at my bank account on my phone. 47 dollars. A heavy sigh escaped from the bottom of my being. Fragments of sunlight from the setting sun played on the walls, drawing my attention back to the present. The light stretched, twisted and flickered in a way that reminded me of a child playing and giggling. My mind unexpectedly went to the backyard of my childhood. To the memory of my sister Celeste, frolicking with our best and imaginary friend, Atrutha or Tru as she liked to be called- a fairy that only we could see. I hadn’t thought about Atrutha or that day in years.

That evening in the summer 24 years ago had a sunset as playful as this one. The yard was alive with reds, oranges and golds. Then suddenly the ground opened up swallowing my sister. The image of Celeste’s startled face and her pigtails frozen in mid air surrounded by an abyss, then Atrutha glowing a bright red - something I’d never seen her do before and her face warped with unbridled rage as she threw herself into the hole after celeste and they were gone forever. This image is seared into my mind, although I’d since convinced myself I’d dreamt the whole thing and that my sister was kidnapped.

After Celeste disappeared so much happened quickly. My foggy, traumatized brain only stored snippets of memories. Mama and daddy being unreasonably angry but not at me. Uncle William showing up and yelling- bellowing “We don’t owe them anything”. Then the warmth of being carried half asleep hours later and being put into the backseat of a car. I woke up the next morning in some strange woman’s house. And that had been that- no explanation- nothing. Just Mrs. Justine putting me to work in her gardens and teaching me herbology until I was old enough to escape. Since then it's been one metaphorical or literally prison after another.

A nurse interrupted my memory by poking her head in the door.

“Hey Lu, you okay”

I laughed bitterly “I’m dying and in severe debt because I am dying. So I’m gonna say NO”

The nurse said flatly “ Join the club, are you in need of anything right now.”

“My apologies,” I said as nice but sarcastically as possible “I need a proper diagnosis as to WHY I am dying and 19,893 dollars to pay my previous hospital bill, from the last time that they couldn’t figure out what’s killing me”

The lights on either side of the door above the nurses head flickered briefly.

“Okay, no pain pills then. G’night” she said while letting out a hard sigh then slamming the door.

A wave of pain washed over my body. Two years now and still no answers as to why. The hospital staff was always keen to pump me full of treatments without knowing what they were treating. As much as I could, I declined drugs. My bill was gonna be high enough already.

I turned from the door rolled onto my back. I tried to picture Celeste, Mama and daddy even the faint memory of our imaginary friend. At wits end I spoke to them, begged them to find me- take me with them, no matter if they were dead or alive.

“Please just l make this pain end” I said aloud to no one. I was always alone.

“Okay, I can help” a sweet clear voice said.

My eyes snapped open and there in the corner of the room stood, Atrutha. Looking exactly as she had when I was a child, the gaps in my memory filled by her sudden presence. Her skin was a deep copper brown and she was the size of a 7 year old child- her top half was as a woman’s would be- just small. Her legs were tiny and covered in thick, fine hair and her feet were backwards. She was slightly different in a way I couldn’t quite put my finger on but glowing her usual light blue. Atrutha stood completely still, eagerly smiling and not breaking eye contact.

I choked on my spit, causing me to cough violently and scurried backward.

“Atrutha” I said in a hoarse voice.

“Call me Tru remember. What do you need?” She countered.

Caught off guard after a long pregnant pause- I croaked “20,000 dollars”.

“Okay” she said and she was gone.

After another long silent moment of me staring at the air where she had just been, I grabbed my cell phone and logged onto my banking app. Twenty thousand and 42 dollars. I yelled “Idiot. Why didn’t you ask her to heal me” Then hopefully to no one, “Atrutha?!”

She reappeared just as she had been before. “Call me Tru please.”

“Tru…” I began speaking quickly. “Are you real? I mean I think that money is real, it’s in my account. You’re here again, like when I was younger. Am I dying?”

Atrutha cocked her head to the side and said “Nothing is real and everything is real and every living thing is dying.”

“Not… quite the answer I was looking for. Look, can you heal me?”

Atrutha put hand onto my chest, furrowed her brow and said “I cannot”.

At this I lost it and began to cry uncontrollably. “What. Is. Happening.” I screeched between sobs.

Tru looked deeply concerned “Please stop crying. Lumiere.”

This shocked me back from hysterics. “No one’s called me that in a very very long time”

Atrutha stared blankly for a moment, then she smiled a sweet sad smile “We have much to discuss”. She made her tiny body comfortable on the edge of the hospital bed and began to tell me as much as she knew about the mystical people, of how I came to be and my baby sister Celeste.

Tru explained she is indeed a fairy- an Aziza Fairy to be exact. She said that every mythical, magical creature human beings had ever described or thought up- did in fact exist. Every last one. They existed simply because a human had thought them in existence. Humans had no idea the power they possessed and what havoc they had wreaked. Most mystic beings were benevolent but some are made from humans deepest fears. The mystics, as they called themselves, lived in another dimension that laid directly atop ours but separated by a thin veil of reality. The veil was inexplicably thinner in some places. Since the dawn of time the unspoken law was that mystics could not interact with humans.

My parents inhabited the same space but in different dimensions- my father human and my mother Fae. Tru continued misty eyed- and any time they were near each other- the veil would thin and they could see each other. Eventually they found a way to communicate, then my mother found enough power and started passing through. Tru wasn’t sure how she had done this. My mother would stay for months in the human world. My Parents had three children in secret.

“Three?!” I yelled

Tru nodded, paying no attention to my surprise and continued; “One of the more malevolent beings found out and said parents had disrespected all mystics and felt you mother and her children should be put to death.” Tru continued a look of dismay on her face.

“Your mom escaped to live in the human dimension. A different angry being stole Celeste as payback. I don’t know which. I’ve been searching for her since then.” By the end of it Tru looked deflated.

The sun had gone down completely and we sat in deep darkness. She handed me a worn small black notebook, covered in what looked like ruins that glowed the same light blue light as she did. The light filled the room. No matter what I tried, I couldn’t open it. “What is this?”

“It was your mothers. It's bound with powerful magic, once you figure out how to open it- It should answer some questions... Look Lumiere-”

“Just call me Lu”

“Alright Lu, I never stopped looking for Celeste but there are untold dimensions and I’m alone. It could take all eternity”

Feeling suddenly overwhelmed I said “Why now, why are you here now?”

Tru smiled, “Because you called for me”.

Anger and sorrow at how long I had been alone, at how long I had been in pain rose in me. “So all this time you could have saved me. But you didn’t because I didn’t ask?”

“Exactly, but let’s not dwell on that.” Tru said “I’m not only here to help you, Lu, I need a favor. I need to to help me find your sister”

“In a different dimension!?” I balked. “Why do you need MY help?

“You are much braver than you know and much more powerful than you can imagine. You’re the key and I am your guardian.”

“Tru" I scoffed, "this is a lot to process. And honestly it sounds like I’m having a stroke. Can I think about this?"

“We must start now Lumiere.”

I thought about what I had waiting for me in this world, which was negative nothing. Monetary and emotional debt. I wasn’t completely convinced that I hadn’t had a psychotic break but what did I really have to lose. “Okay.” I said half convinced. In an instance my hospital gown was gone and I was standing dressed in some weird tactical gear I’d never seen before. “Wait..” I sputtered “What about my other sibling, or my parents? I… I need more information before I go.”

“You already agreed” Tru had turned back to the corner where she first appeared. There was a glowing mirror hung there now.

“Everything will be answered in time” She said then she put her hand to it and disappeared. I stood in front of the mirror not understanding what I was seeing. Reflected was the same as our world but different- somehow darker. Frightened and shaking, I placed my hand to the glass. There was a feeling of being on a roller coaster that was out of control. I felt like my insides were a carbonated drink- all my atoms scurrying about- and then I was being thrown on to the ground. I landed on something thick in my back pocket, my mother’s notebook, I presumed.

The portal, I guess it was, made me sick to my stomach. After emptying it onto the ground, I noticed the pain was gone. The pain, my constant companion, was completely gone. I looked up to Tru to tell her but her face was grim. "How does it feel to be home" Tru said blankly.

I shakily got to my feet and as I opened my mouth to say something, a gruff voice from behind me called, “Atrutha, is that you?”

Her grim expression didn’t change, she glowed red like that day. “Got one”, her voice was still saccharin sweet.

“Atrutha Andalie, it is you. How’d you trick a human into coming to our side. We haven't had one in ages.” The giant dirty grotesque man loomed over me. “This is a good one.”

“You tricked me!” I spun towards her.

“Kinda" Tru shrugged. "A little truth and a lie. Atrutha Andalie. It’s my full name and my nature but trust me. Trust me.”

My face was hot with rage.

The giant man laughed, then grabbed me with one massive hand and put shackles on my wrists the other. He was nimble for being enormous.

“Thanks Andalie” The giant man said in a gruff overjoyed voice.

I caught a glimpse of her face as dragged me away by the link connecting my limbs. She smiled wide, winked and yelled “Don’t forget to call for me.”

Great. Another prison.