[Chapter 4: The Art of Controlling Inanimate Objects.]
"Starry, starry sky, how may I see you tonight?
Sky, oh, my true sky, how ever could you lie?"
We find our trio all on grassy field, looking up at the night sky that replicated the real world's stars, with James finding the most constellations. The girl watch in amazement at how many shooting stars actually fly through the sky on a daily basis. She pointed out at least 20 of them shooting by. Illusion just watched the sky in a half daze. This worried James and the girl, with the pair of hands gesturing toward her, and the girl slightly understanding what he was trying to say. She looked over and shock came rushing at her like a head on car collision. Illusion was crying, looking up at these real stars that were out there and Illusion would never be able to see them. The girl gripped her fist and crawled over, and put her face right in front of Illusion, scaring her right out of her hat.
"Hey! This is no time to be moping around, Illusion!" The girl said, smiling brightly. Illusion slowly sat, rubbing her tears away. James patted her back, making Illusion feel like she was in an emotional wreck.
"I-I'm fine! I'll be fine. Thank you guys." A wide smile came to her lips, making the girl smile and James put up a thumbs up. Illusion then looked back up at the sky and then gasped, having a great idea. "Hey, I have an idea! Do want to see my house?"
The girl was quite surprised that Illusion had a home here, so there was no way she could say no. The girl had no effort about getting up as fast as she could, hopping around in joy with James, who was motionless for a moment, but that couldn't stop the celebration. James knew that Illusion never showed anyone her home ever since Reality was here. That was the only person she went to her house with. This was a step. Illusion got up off the ground and watched the two dance around the grassy field like a couple of fools. This made Illusion laugh softly at first, but it turned into a hearty laugh. The two fools turned to see her laughing, looking at her for a while, but then they ran, or for the hands floated, over and tackled her. The three laughed till they were in tears. Within the air, the wind echoed once more before the three were up and walking:
"Starry, Starry sky, how you give dream to children,
Sky, oh, my true sky, may you stretch on forever."
The path to Lady Illusion's house was very strange. They first had to go though a dark forest where the creatures ruled the shadows. The girl got scared easily from this and the pair of glove protected her as Illusion moved through, happily greet some of the monsters. Illusion had told them this was the Forest of Dare-Say Nightmares. After that they passed a river were baby sharks lived in harmony with Koi fish. Illusion hopped stones to get across, with James offering to carry the girl when she went into an outrage about how, making Illusion laugh. The girl eventually just went over on her own. Next was through a small desert that large trees survived in, making The girl feel a little suspicious on where Illusion lived, and what was even more stranger was that Illusion was eating the sand, saying it was edible. This confused the girl even more, with the urge swelling up in her that she had to try the sand. It tasted like chocolate.
Finally the three ended up at the valley, where a two story home stood. You could visible see a spiral stair case on the outside sides of the house. The front had two large doors that were a bright red, so it looked from the top of the hill that lead into the valley. James and Illusion were the first ones to head down, with the girl following closely behind.
The girl looked at her first at first, but then at the house again and saw that the doors had changed colors. It was a different color in the light. The girl was more interested than ever just how powerful Illusion could be. It was obvious that she could bend light the way she wanted, create a forest full of monsters, and paint a night sky before her very eyes. Though, she was reminded that they were all Illusions, made to be real, but ended up on the side of false truth. Even though Illusion kept this in mind, the girl insisted they were real. It felt real, like before when they were playing in the snow, she felt the coldness of it. The heat of the sun felt real, she knew it was true. The girl had a small bit of hope that Illusion would believe that too. Would she at least try and believe that? Or is something stopping her? The girl's thoughts were interrupted when she suddenly started walking on pavement. She didn't see this from the hilltop so it was kind of strange. Trying to roll with it, she walked along the path. The casual Illusion and James walked along like it was nothing uncommon. When they reached the doors, they were a grayish black tint. Illusion waited a moment for the girl to come in viewing sight, and proceeded to open the door with a simple snap. The doors creaked open, and what the girl found inside was something she had never, ever seen in her whole life. It looked like a mansion inside.
The girl twirled inside and smiled widely, intrigued by every inch of Illusion's home. Illusion watched in awe as this girl could see everything in this home. The regular human could not see this because they did not believe Illusions were... true. This girl insisted that everything she made was real and that gave Illusion power, just a bit. Long ago, she had made this house with Reality and shared it for thousands of years. Now, engraved into the home, the realness stayed within the walls as well as a spark of majestic power. Upstairs lay Illusion's room and Reality's room. Down stairs was where all the fun is at. Illusion curled her lips into a silly smirk and pranced over to the girl, tapping her dazed shoulder.
"How about we go play some games?" No hesitation from the girl to say "Yes!" and they were off down a hallway. James, on the other hand, pulled his gloves back and headed for the kitchen. It was his turn to shine in this two sided story. The spark also lay in James. The personality, the attributes, all of it made James. He was a loyal servant to both Illusion and Reality, but on that faithless day when Reality left, James chose to stay by Illusion's side. He had known about the dangers of leaving her all alone in her own illusions and the chance of her trying to kill her immortal body were in a sad reaching distance. James placed his hands against the counter top of the kitchen and a flicker of his body appeared, only for a moment. James wiped his invisible forehead and pulled off his gloves Now, he was completely invisible. Though, due to this very spotless man, (you would see the spots of dirt on him if they were there) he would use an apron to keep himself clean as he cooked a nice meal for everyone. Cooking could be a slow step in getting the newly formed crew more together. Once the tying was complete, the cooking commenced. In his own way, James would start with the desert, since it would always be the most extravagant, and then the meal. The apron swished around to look at the clock and it read 'four o'clock' in the world of Illusion. In about 30 minutes in the human world time, it would be five o'clock. Time her pasted a lot faster than in the real world, so dinner would be done a lot sooner. With a turn to the stove, the cabinet doors began to fly open as James began his process to a great dinner.
About three hours later, the food was done. James was still spotless when the end product was finished. He had made a delicious Lasagna followed with a rich ratatouille, assorted fruit, an arrangement of drinks and wine, and a decorated and perfected Devil Chocolate cake with chocolate strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and a sprinkle of blueberries. There was a lovely setup of the dinning room area with the plates having a little picture of a swallow on it with the placements having little shapes sewn into it. James took a sip of his wine that he had out and quickly set it down, washing his hands of leftover residue, then putting his clean white gloves back on. He untied his apron and hung it back up on the hook where it belonged, then headed out to retrieve the two rambunctious girls. What he found was something that would need a lot of cleaning up later on their behalf. Pillows were tossed onto the floor, every single board game had either been pulled out and played with, or pulled out and just never touched it. The movement of his hands showed when he was looking at the girls, who sat on a couch, playing a competitive video game that apparently required shouting and jumping on the couch.
When Illusion lost, she threw the controller onto the couch and the girl hopped up and down, having a victory dance. In words only Illusion could hear, she turned and smiled.
"James! Want to join us?" The gloves made it easier for the girl, who was now looking over, to understand and just shook his index finger side to side. In a silent communication, James spoke to Illusion and she gave a nod, and smiled.
"James made dinner for us. Let's go."
The girl was very surprised to hear that he could make dinner, more than he had made dinner. The two got off the couch and proceeded to the dining room.
Their gaping mouths could not stop the drool that poured out of the girls' mouths. Everything was sparkling with deliciousness and even the flavor of everything could be wafted in. The aroma was intoxicating tingling with the taste of the food. The girl felt like she could practically eat the air.
The two sat down as James served them their plates of delicious food. The girl could tell James was a professional just from the look of the food. James took a sip of his wine that was brought to him from the kitchen by a servant that was in the form of a playing card. During dinner, things began to become comfortably fun. James shared the story about when a child asked to go to a dinosaur era, and after, Illusion shared a traumatizing even of when a stupid little boy wanted to visit dinosaurs from the most dangerous era. The girl was laughing so hard tears formed, and during her laughter the two argued playfully about other stories that were new to the girl's ears. The girl felt something swell inside her, a feeling of comfort and safety, something she never really felt before. Before the girl was totally swept up in the new atmosphere, the girl bonged with new curiosity --curious about a few things that had been bothering her for a while, most of the journey. She had to ask them, before she forgot again. However, she waited, in fear of interrupting James's and Illusion's deep debate on how a moving tree was or was not in the story Alice Through the Looking Glass. Illusion had turned back to the girl and several times swept her up in another fascinating story about something new and strange, something never before heard. The girl felt as if she had been locked in a trance by a kind witch.
For a while, the three shared a few more hilarious stories until the servants came back around and took up their clean plates. James offered to serve the dessert and both kindly accepted the offer. Dishing out the wonderfully beautiful cake, the two females were dazed by it's chocolate beauty. The girl and Illusion had no hesitation taking their first bite and It took them into heaven. Every bite melted with chocolate goodness in their mouths. Swept up in delicious cake, the girl was on her third bite, until she realized she needed to have her questions answered. Finishing her bite and then asked Illusion. So, what exactly are you? " Illusion was surprised by the question, but didn't hesitate to show her proud colors, exclaiming. " Why, I am a Demi-God. O-or, well, umm, " Illusion turned slightly James's way, but still looked at the girl. " Im like a branch of God that is slightly weaker than the top dogs, umm... " Illusion was now fully facing James, who moved his hands in a scratching-invisible-head gesture. Turning back to the girl, with another idea. " I am more of a Guardian, lets say that. " James quickly gave a thumbs up and Illusion nodded, smiling at her before being shot at by another question. " What are you pow- " Illusion held up her hand and placed it on her own lips, but then smiled gently, almost a little desperate. " Could you give me a list of question so that I can answer them all at once? " The girl nodded and sat back in her chair. For a while, the girl tried coming up with a list of questions important to her right now. James and Illusion sat in silence, daring a bite of their cake. Just before the bites were made, the girl rose from her seat abruptly. " Question number one, for Illusion: What are your powers exactly? Question two, for Illusion: What does James look like? Question three, for James and Illusion: Did Illusion make you? Thats all the questions I have right now. " The girl sat down with a wide smile, but the others were the opposite. James, after the third question, was shock and accidentally flipping his fork off his plate. He caught it quickly with two fingers, but fear of the girl taking a glance, so he switched to catching it with his full hand. Illusion stared down at her cake for a while. Slowly, she placed her fork down and turned her head to James. Her face only shared a sorrowful smile, making James's fists tighten up. Turning back to the girl, Illusion rubbed her hands together, pushing her plate away. " I think it is time to tell her everything. The truth. "
[Chapter-4 part 2]
For a while, it was silent. The room was at a stand still and no one moved. James was looking (or at least the girl thought he was because his hands were turned in that direction) at Illusion, who had her head down for a moment, as if she were recollecting thoughts. The girl was looking back and forthwith at the two and felt the need to break the silence. To think she thought these would be easy questions. The girl was just about to speak until Illusion lifted her head and turned to the girl, with Also James turning towards her. Illusion was the first one to break the silence. " Let start from the every beginning. My name is Illusion and I am the Guardian of Nightmares and Dreams. I protect humans and Nots, the other species I protect. Humans and Nots have a lot more in common than you would think. " Illusion sighed and tried to keep herself on track, closing her eyes for a moment and opened them up shortly after. " It all started in Olympus, I was born by the Gods to protect humans and Nots from getting devoured by there Nightmares, and corrupted by their Dreams. I keep the dreams of every soul inside of their hearts, to only reveal when it is fully inspired. I even let the nightmares come out when they feel most vulnerable. It keeps everyone alert and awake in a way. However, for many years, I have been weak due to the lack of inspiration within hearts because no one believe in their dreams. Most just try to take the easy way out when those dreams they think are impossible achieve are in their grasp. Only few people realize this and I get such little power from it. Every so often a riot starts up and my power increases, but it is used sooner or later. " Illusion turned to James and then smiled softly. " James is only visible when Reality is around, and that should bring up your next question. " The girl sat back and listened closely, now curious who Reality was. " Reality used to be my partner. He was born a few seconds before me. He is the Guardian of Truth and Knowledge. He lives in the world of Reality, which is your world were things make sense. I live in the World of Illusion, where everything doesn't make sense. Just like me, Reality doesn't have much power either, even though he is surrounded by the power everyday. Most humans forget or don't seek the truth, but when they do, he gains power. Unlike my, though, His fluctuates on a daily basis because of the knowledge seeking humans and Nots. Back to James, he can only be seen when Reality is here because he helped me make him. We both made him. Whenever James touches a part of Reality's things, or is in that world, you can see his boy, or even a flicker of it. " James placed his on Illusion and she looked over to him, softly sighing, translating for him. " James says a few generations ago, Reality just suddenly decided to leave, turning the middle of a wondrous ball, when the clock stroke twelve o'clock. Before he left, he asked me to go with him and I said no, in fear of Illusion killing herself. " The girl was very shocked to hear the last part, turning her attention to Illusion, when her last focus was on James. " What?! Why would you- " Illusion patted the girl's head and then looked at her with soft, sad eyes. " Because it was very likely I would try and kill my immortal body from all the nightmares and dreams overloading my head. I would have never been happy. My happiness is what changes the mood of the day for a few humans. I have to be very careful with what I do at all times. " Illusion sat back and took a deep breath, while James rose from the seat and took the plates of cake into the kitchen, with Illusion getting up from her seat. " I didn't know... " The girl was going to start, but Illusion knelled down in front of her and whispered. " Now, you know the truth. Share it. " Just as Illusion rose back up, James ran out of the kitchen in a panicking fury, with his hands moving around in a freaked gesture, with Illusion suddenly exclaiming. " What?! "
Illusion Ran into the kitchen with James, followed by the girl, with all of them staring at the lobby. The girl couldn't see and was really wanting to, looking through crevices of bodies(All the servants had gather to see it), but James moved her up to the front so that she could see a little stream of light, in the shape of a long tube like thing, leading upstairs. Illusion looked the most nervous as James tried pushing her forward. The girl was once again confused and asked up to James, " What is that light? " James Felt at a halt because he couldn't explain it with hand gestures, so he just simply patted her head and held up a wait-one-moment sign. Illusion was slowly creeping to the light, her eyes baffled at what she was seeing, and when she gently placed a finger on the light, her eyes widened and images flashed through the room. A flicker of James came out again, with the girl not being able to catch a glimpse because she was so fixated on the images. Illusion pulled her finger away slowly as a new aroma filled the room. A mixture of coffee and cologne that reminded the girl of her father before he went to work. The cologne was different, but the coffee was very similar. The girl noticed then that Illusion was trembling, From what? Then, Illusion bolted up the stairs of so suddenly, with James and the girl startled by the move and ran after her. Illusion ran through one hallway where the light went through and she opened a door. The two other runners met up with her, also looking into the room. More flickers of James's body began to appear, and he grabbed his head, backing away a bit so that he was invisible again. The girl was disappointed to not be able to see him, but it was shot lasted. Illusion went into the room and followed the light. The girl got a glimpse of the room and it was full of computers and blue prints and a bed covered in papers from years ago. Illusion had found the light source and slowly picked it up, almost in tears when finding it. A slow walk to the door revealed a doll, that looked exactly like her.James tightened his fists so lightly, he was bleeding through his gloves. The girl had ran up to Illusion and gazed at the doll where the light was coming from. " I want to go. " Illusion suddenly spoke, with the girl more confused. " Go where? " The girl asked, looking back and forthwith between Illusion and the doll, looking at the similarities. " When this certain light appears, it means it is a link to the World of Reality and the World of Illusion. This link usually mean that someone wants to talk to me in that world, children know how to do this, but it only because they are in the biggest struggle with their dreams. That is when I find a link to go to them, and to meet them, I go into the body of an inanimate object. This one...this one is.... " Illusion was trembling again, with her smiling growing very large. " I-its from... Reality. " In the background, there was a close thud and crack in the wall, The girl turned around and gasped lightly. James had punched a hole through the wall. That certainly was not part of his character, but the girl was now curious why he was so mad. Jealousy? Anger for him leaving? The girl tried to think for a few reasons why he would be mad, but Illusion would be the only one who did know it. " I am going to visit him. James, I will be back. " Walking over to him, it seemed as though she placed her forehead against his for a moment. Illusion then took a step back and placed the doll on the ground. The girl also took a step back and stood next to where she though was next to James. Illusion placed her hands forward and took a deep breath, then crossed her hand and folded them in to where the hands simultaneously grabbed her shoulders. After, she slowly lifted her hands up high unto the air and snapped her fingers once, then her whole body turned into this golden dust that vanished into the doll. James place his hand on the girl's head and ruffled her hair, having a new pair of gloves on with the other ones dirtied with blood handed off to a servant. " Will she be back? " The girl looked only forward at the doll, her eyes jumping with the sensation of wanting to know the knowledge of this world. James simply put a thumbs up, and with that, the two sat on the ground to wait for her return. " S-so, do you like cards? " The girl asked in the silence. James put up a thumbs up and she pulled out a deck of cards from her pocket.
~
Oh me, oh my! Now we see that Illusion has this uncanny ability that lets her go into inanimate objects and help others. But why did Reality summon her? Does he want to talk? Oh dear, my heart is racing with all this excitement! Oh, and don't forget that James is feeling a little strange from this. I hope he is okay. Lets hope to find out what is wrong with him very soon. Everything is being to roll out in a nice red carpet. Lets read on.
Chapter 5: Greeting an Old Friend.
The Night echoed with the sounds of lone car horns and glowed with the multi-colored marquees. The curtains were drawn shut to block the fabulous lights away, yet the moon still had found a way penetrate light through the blinds and graze the wood floor with a beam of light. The very spacious room was dark, but visible. You could see the man turning in his bed, give up on the third turn and open his eyes. Reality could not sleep that night, Slowly rising up from a laid down position, he rested his elbow on his knee while his hand was stressfully pressing against his forehead. He despite not getting sleep. Looking over at the clock that sat patiently on his bed room stand read three o'clock a.m, and some other details he was to tired to care about. The grown man closed his eyes and had a flashback of his adventure with the young boy yesterday and though he had done the right thing when explaining himself to him.
After a dinner of meatloaf for the boy and steak for the man, Reality sat him down once again at the dinning room table and began to speak. " I think it's time you learned who I really am, instead of going of this basis that I am a complete stranger who took you in for a couple days. " Adjusting his sleeves, Reality got a little more relaxed and sat forward, his hand curled in a light fist with the other hand covering it lightly, looking at the boy again, who was now sitting in a closer seat than he was before near Reality, which creeped him out a bit, but he just simply coughed it out. " My name is Sir, Reality, I am a Creation of the Gods and Goddesses to protect the Truth and Knowledge of Humans and Nots, a different species that I look over that looks closely similar to humans. Yes there is other species out there. " The boy had his hand up before Reality stated his last comment, which disappointed the boy a little, but he soon recovered. " I am a Guardian to keep the balance of Truth and Knowledge at bay in the Human's and Nots's hearts and minds. But I am not... alone per say. " The boy's eyes perked up, more curious on what he meant by that. " Umm, what do you mean "Not alone?"' The Boy asked before Reality could go on, but the question made his mouth quiver and he sighed. " I have a partner... or had. Her name was Illusion. She is the Guardian of Dreams and Nightmares that haunt the Human's and Nots's hearts. We are equally balanced in Human hearts, however, We live in separate worlds. She lives in the World of Illusion, where any of your wildest dreams or fears lurk, and You and I live in the World of Reality, where Truth is in the details and Knowledge is in the texts. Though... We had a problem. " The boy was even more interest, scooting his chair closer to Reality as he began once again. " One night, I attended a Gala for Illusion's Birthday. Servants, friends, like my Friend James, were all attending and- " The boy cut him off by raising his hand. Reality chose his hand and the boy asked. " Who is James? " Reality could only smile as he leaned back, folding his hands in his cross legged lap. " He is my Creation that I made with Illusion. You could say he protects Illusion for me when I am not around. " The boy nodded, and allowed him to finish. " Everyone was attending, and Illusion was wearing the most beautiful gown that night. She was greeted by Gods and Goddess and by me finally. Ahem! A-any who, By the end of the ball, I knew I would have to leave for work in the morning, and it was like this almost every day. I knew Illusion would hurt so I... left. I promised to myself I would not hurt her anymore, so I left. Recently I don't know if that was a good choice or not- " The young boy unexpectedly rose from his chair and slammed his hands down on the table. " How could you leave a Girl?! I mean I maybe just a kid, but I know when I say you can't do that! Girls want to be around their best friends! I am saying this because my best friend is a girl and I never leave her, ever! If she need my help, I will be there! So, Make amends with this Illusion, or whatever her name is and forgive her, and plus I really want to meet her! " Reality's eyes widened and stayed like that for a long time. The shock of being told something so simple by a child almost made him lose his dignity, but he kept his composer and simply nodded, ruffling the boy's hair. " Alright. "
Make amends huh? Is it... to late? Reality just kept looking down at his sheets, if at all, trying to see if he was tired enough to go back to bed. Being reminded of Illusion brought back so many memories, The good and the bad ones. Reality felt like he shouldn't look at the doll at should be above his head on the shelf. He didn't want to. It would still be sitting there, lifeless, with Illusion not responding to it. He knew he had screwed up, yet he hated to admit that he was... Wrong. I am always wrong with her. Reality turned his head slightly to the side, looking down to avoid eye contact as much as possible from the inanimate object in fear it still sitting there. A risky glance showed that he was wrong yet again. The doll was gone, but Reality didn't catch on to quickly. He had thought the darkness was playing tricks on him and he closed his eyes, and opened them again to look back and the doll was still gone. His head rose slowly from his knee and began to scan his room for any evidence- My door. The door was slightly opened, which gave Reality the force to get up from the bed and walk out of his room. Pull the door out of his way, he saw a figure that had a soft glow around the body, placing flowers in a vase delicately, trying to arrange the flowers, mostly blue tulips, perfectly. Reality stepped vacillating his steps, trying to find the words that would not come out. There, in his kitchen, was Lady Illusion, but not in flesh. A little doll body was standing in the kitchen and the soul of Illusion was visible standing around the doll. Illusion was first to catch Reality's eyes, that looked so deeply concerned so suddenly. Illusion blinked and then smiled her heart-stopping smile. " Hey there. " Illusion's voice had a soft echo to it, which hurt Reality a little knowing she wasn't fully there, but he was still glad just to hear her voice. " Hey there. " Reality called back, slowly walking to the kitchen, where Illusion stood so... bewitchingly. Reality calmly leaned against the counter as Illusion looked at him, still having the radiant smile Reality had always craved. " You called me? " Illusion asked, with Reality snapping out from the gander at Illusion's ravishing body, cleared his throat. " Y-yes, Umm... " He left like he could even get out two words without staring at Illusion. He had forgotten how devilishly amazing she looked and how her smile took a whole room of men and turned them into puddles of there own self regret. Illusion waited patiently for him to speak up, judging by the stance she always made when she knew she would be talking with a person for a while. Crossing her legs and folding her arms in. Reality couldn't even speak, so he tired something else that he knew she would understand. He slowly walked over to her and gently touched her cheek with his hand, surprising Illusion to feel the warmth of his hand pulsing through to her. I am sorry... Illusion... You may never forgive me but... Just remember I... Reality's eyes suddenly went wide as the light slowly began to twinkle against Illusion's skin. Day break. Illusion could not be inside of an inanimate object during day break and night fall or else she would be sucked into the object. Illusion looked up at Reality and almost had a sorrow look in her eyes, and just before she could say anything, he spoke. " Come to my world tomorrow. If you don't, I will be most upset. Please... Illusion. " Illusion gave the man a gentle nod and whispered. " Thank you. " Then winked into golden dust, with the doll falling onto the ground with a clatter sound. Reality stood there for a moment, slowly lifting up his hand to remember the warmth of her cheek and... the feel of tears running down her cheeks. To think, all these years I pretended to dislike her... to get her hurt in the process... Reality gritted his teeth and moved his hand across his face and through his hair, whispering. " I will fix this, for her. " His hand fell down to his side by the end of his last comment, and standing there for moments on end. In one move, he pivoted to the flower arrangement that Illusion had set up that still sat there on the counter top in mid-illusion form. With one outstretch touch of the vase, the flowers burst to life and the colors bloomed just as much as the flowers did and he gently took a blue Tulip and held it between his fingers, with his black hair covering his torn apart eyes. " She still remembers. " Chuckling under his breath, a tear rolled down his cheek and onto the flower. A mistake in hopes of being fixed.
[Chapter-5 part 2]
After about an hour of staying up, the man had fallen back to sleep, in attempts of having better slumber, but was only awaken by the knocking-at-his-ear-drum alarm clock at 6:00 o'clock a.m. The man slowly pulled his torso up from the warmth of the bed and took a moment to look around. Today was the day that would be the longest day in his long life. Reality, turned his head to the clock, giving a process of getting out of bed and to the shower during the quick glance at the clock, but stopped to stretch. His bones and body felt limp after a few pops and pulls, making his arms hang loose in front of him. Then, he began to trudge onto the bathroom, in the process of taking off his shirt. Once there, he closes the door and out of habit locks the door to keep anyone out, and begins to strip. However, just as he is pulling his boxers off, his memory recalls the meeting last night with Illusion and he gasps. He had to find a way to see her today, but he couldn't get in trouble with his boss. It was going to be extraordinarily hard to coordinate that in, but Reality had to make something up, to see Illusion and make things right again. After the thought, Reality removed his Boxers and stepped into the glass panel shower, needing to get started on the day and plan.
Even if it was early enough for school, the alarm went off near the boy, but not a blaring sound like Sir Reality's. The young boy slowly arose from the bed that Reality kindly allowed him to borrow and he rubbed his tired crusted eyes. Looking back at the ongoing alarm, the boy gently pressed his index finger on the "disarm" button and then faced back forward to try and grab at a sense of awareness. I'm awake. The boy ruffled his hair before making a move out of the plush bed. A slight wobble in walk, the boy began to move forward to the personal bathroom within the room, just like Reality, only the bathroom was much smaller. His first objective on his routine was to comb his hair with a preferably wet brush. The boy grabbed the brush given to him to use by the Sir, he ran the brush under cold water. Boy, I wonder what Mr. Tightwad(Reality) is planning for us to do today at his office. He said it would be a fun experience but just what does he do? I mean, he is a Demi-God(Guardian) of Truth and Schooling(Knowledge), right? Why would he even need a job if he has so much power? Maybe I can ask him. In a quandary of his self curiosity, the boy brushed his hair like any boy would, mess and not cared for. He brushed his teeth after that, and then put on deodorant so that would cover up part of the smell the boy emitted from his body. The boy left the restroom after that and made his way to the closet, where he then threw clothes about the room in search of a good outfit. " No, no... No..." The the muttered under his breath, until he was all out of clothes in the closet. When the boy turned around in thought of style, to his ignorant disbelief, the room was a mess. Maybe I can find some matches in the mess. He guessed, and at that he went on the search.
The aroma of Men's Body Wash and cologne disseminated all throughout the bedroom and most certainly in the bathroom. Reality looked as if he stepped out of the clouds themselves as the steam poured out around him, with a towel wrapped around his waist and another being used to dry off his hair in a vigorous fashion. The process for getting dressed starts in 3... 2... 1. Reality threw the towel drying his hair off in a calm, yet careless onto the wet floor of the bathroom, then took out the tools for grooming. With on had, he took a dark olive comb and a white hair dryer in the other. Plugging it in and turning the dryer to high, the heat bombarded his hair and the come neatly slicked it's way through Reality's gorgeous Womanizer locks. Turning it off after only one stroke of his comb, his hair was slicked black with only a few short straight stands of hair hanging in front of his forehead. Next came the brushing of his teeth, a process repeated three times for ultimate cleanliness, gargled with mouthwash. Deodorant, and then the moment of truth, the waist towel came off. Walking from out of the lingering steam, the naked Guardian walked to his closet and slide open the black wood door. The Closet was composed of basically all wood with black paint and some metal chrome for taste. Reality picked out a dark navy blue coat with a black tie acquired with a barely visible stitched in pattern, white dress shirt for underneath black Ashton dress shoes(which cost around 300 dollars), black socks, and a silver plated wrist watch with sapphire edging(around 400 dollars). Getting dressed was just as easy as picking his clothes. It happens in steps: First the undergarments, slipping on some black boxers with a deep red as the elastic rim. Then the pants an hidden belt that is usually covered up by the coat. Strapping the belt on, he turned to the next phase, the undershirt. A loosely fitted white collared shirt to cover up his extremely toned and sexy muscles, buttoning up only to the second the first button, closest to the collar. Next was the tie, which required a lot of looping and slight tugging, but then finally the coat was before the wrist watch. The wrist watch was always difficult because you had the difficulty of putting it on by yourself and holding in place while you looped it in the strap loop. The coat was was the most easiest. Finally, Reality was ready to hit the world with his dashing good looks and Silver tongued charm.
For the young boy, however, he had been finished an hour ago and had made and eaten breakfast. The boy had actually found some decent clothes in the mess he had created, but didn't bother to clean it up. He wore a loose green plaid flannel shirt with a black workout shirt as the undershirt. Patching the pants was a black pair of cargo pants with some dark green plaid sneakers.For Breakfast, he ordered two omelettes with everything on it and a glass of orange juice. When Reality stepped into the room, with his full gleam, an eye brow raised at how informal the boy was wearing. Reality just sighed and rolled his eyes in passing the irritation and walking into the kitchen, robotic speaking " Good Morning " To the boy as he went to the fridge for an apple. The perfect time to mess with him! The boy mischievously thought as he acted on casually drinking his orange juice, but made the comment after his sip was done. " Who gave you the flowers, huh? " A thud from the fridge was suddenly heard during the comment, with reality quickly pivoting to the direction of the flowers, which were still there. Oh no...! Reality rushed over to them, but the boy quickly pulled the vase of Flowers away from him and smirked, swishing his finger back and forwards. " Who gave them to you? Come on, you can tell me. Reality was in a slight panic, gazing at the flower for a long time, and then back at the boy. " No one " He had flatly lied, turning his head away from the boy, who was in an outrage about him lying. Reality ignored him and had his teeth clenched. Why are the flowers now real? I didn't do anything to them to make them permanently real. Unless.... Reality moved his teeth around and narrowed his eyes in the confusion. He was fully analytical about this and had to solve the problem. Just as Reality was about to respond to the pest boy, his watch began to beep at him. Reality took a look down at it and gave a nod of his head, quickly grabbing an apple from the fridge, grabbing the boy by the hand, and walking out of his apartment as the computer hummed. " Have a wonderful day Master Reality. "
Reality stared at the chrome wall of the easy moving elevator, fixed on the digital level counter. I am so flustered. What will happen when I see Illusion? Will James be- of course he will, and he will be mad at me. Then if James might be mad, what will Illusion think? Will she ignore me? Better yet what if Illusion doesn't like the new world I have created? Gah! W-wait, pull yourself together Reality. Focus on the main task, not on...argh damn it! I don't know what to do! On the inside, Reality was being hit hard by his thoughts, effecting him on the outside. This came to action by his head making a loud thud against the elevator wall. The boy just looked up at him with a little bit of worry. He had not been in a pleasant mood after the incident with the flowers and the boy felt partially at fault because of that. However, he knew only one thing to cheer up a man when he was down. Placing his hand on Reality's back and patting him, the boy said
"If it's a girl problem, just remember the man's code." Like a small spark of hope zipping into Reality's thoughts, He slowly took his head off of the wall, smirking.
"Yeah,..." Women come first. The two we're just looking at each other, smiling. When the elevator door opened, the two walked out with the confidence of warriors heading for battle.
Fresh air couldn't have been a better gift to the morning. The two took a moment to reach out to the life inches away. The birds, the distance traffic, the rustle of trees in the morning breeze. Simultaneously, Reality and the boy took a deep breath in and released it all out in a unison motion. Right foot forward, they set off for Reality's car that loitered the dirty streets. Into the car they went and in a swift flick of the wrist, the car purred to life, the way the morning casually did.
Reality, after a moment of situating himself in the car, pulled out and considered Starbucks to be a great way to start the day off. It was the essential in a working adults life. Without Starbucks, mornings would be equivalent to hell, or of that nature. That was about a ten minute drive, listening to the radio, droning out the silence that ushered the atmosphere, till the boy opened his mouth.
"What's she like?" The boy asked, turning his head to the driver's seat. Reality sat in a comfortable manner with both hands loosely on the wheel, staring at the road tentatively, but still interactive.
"Who?" Reality asked, the boy uttered a sigh as he leaned back in his chair, playing with the sun visor that couldn't shadow him from the morning glare of the sun.
"The woman you talked about... umm I am pretty sure it started with an A-"
"Illusion." Reality cut him off, with the boy turning his head, sparking with remembrance.
"Yeah! Thats the name! What is she like? Is she funny, smart, what?" Reality heaved a sigh, prehensile of the boy's question, but not very willing to answer it at the time.
"Umm, well, she is...okay. She is kind and humorous, definitely smart, but acts like a child at times. But you can't blame her, she has been cooped up in her world for millions of years." The boy looked at the moving road and thought about this strange person that was just like Reality, only she felt figment to him.
"Do you like her?" He asked, catching Reality off guard as he haulted to a stop light, looking at his hands that nervously grasped the wheel.
"As a friend, sure. Sure she can be annoying... and pestering, and nosy, and irritating and-" Before Reality knew it, the light was green and the boy signaled it so. It calmed Reality to relax his mind on driving, it eased the tension off his shoulders. "But, yes. She is a friend. However I haven't been treating her as such. I am lucky to have a second opportunity today." Suddenly, it shocked Reality that she was coming over today, she would be entering his world for the first time in... ever. This made the turn into Starbucks more of a jerk and a abrupt stop into a parking space, pressing himself against the seat, just staring out the window.
" What do you mean "today?" Is she coming today?" Reality turned his head to the window and grind his teeth in frustration, forgetting all about today. He would have to leave work early, find out where she will be entering from, which could be anywhere in town. However, I have the doll, so she might try and enter somewhere near my apartment. Oh Gods, if only you could be a little useful to me right now! Just as he said this, the radio buzzed on a news station out of the area, startling the boy. Only Reality was unamused by the trick. Very funny. He thought back up to those jokers in the clouds, then proceeded to exit the car with the boy into the famous coffee shop.
Luckily the lane wasn't long and the two got their drinks on a timely manner. Once in the car, fastened up, the boy slurped his hot chocolate while Reality's iced coffee sat in the cup holder as he backed out of the parking space and lingered onto the road. So many things to do, my mind is at a loss of time. More of his thoughts of panic hopped into his mind. It felt like he was near Illusion already. As if she was the one pulling the strings, making it so he was nervous and at a panic. It was familiar and he liked it. This strange familiarity as he drove down the empty morning street to work filled him with old memories of him and Illusion. Reality's driving was more controlled when those thoughts came to mind, which eased the boy loads more, telling by the relaxing face on his child face. Reality payed no a blinking eye to the boy as the car past pavement, and soon a turn in with an added speed bump. They had arrived to a large set of buildings, three standing side by side. The boy pressed his cheek against the window to get a good look at these towers, but that all disappeared when Reality pulled into the parking garage. The dim orange lights reflected off the gleam of the sleek car, following it's turns and movements. A free space called for Reality's name and he swiftly pulled out and then swung the front of the car into the parking space by a gently spin of the wheel. Right in between the lines.
"I wish I could drive."The boy said to himself, still pressed against the window awkwardly.
"It gets boring fast." Reality interjected as he got out of the car, grabbing his coffee. The boy sighed as he opened his door and nearly scratched the car door with a random square column that Reality parked next to, sliding cautiously between the door and column and quickly closed the door that locked behind him.
"But if you like to do something, it wouldn't get boring, would it?" Reality glanced down at him, grimacing a smile.
"Touche." The boy and Reality walked down a vacant row of parking spaces, except for a few exceptions of all-nighter workers, and walked to the elevator. Right next to it was two vending machines; one was a candy and gum machine that the boy asked for change several times to get a pack of gum, and a soda machine, which the boy also asked for money. Both times Reality said no. On the wall by two elevator doors was a button to go up, surrounded by a neat green light. Reality pressed it several times and watched as the numbers above the elevator doors counted down all the way to "B2". When the doors slid open and Reality and the boy walked inside, a voice came from around the corner and yelled.
"Hold the elevator, friend!" Reality closed his eyes as if he didn't hear anything, irritation already popping up to his face. It was the by who held the door open for a man with dirty blond hair and a sharp grey suit running in. "Thanks sport." The man said in a mature, but playful voice. When the boy removed his hand and the doors closed, conversation began.
"Morning, Mr. Xavier" Reality mumbled, his eyes still closed and paying mild attention to his presence.
"Good morning, Mr. Child-Care-Service."The man crackled with a smile, the boy looking awful confused as to why Reality was clenching his fists to the point that they were white knuckled. The boy thought the man's comment was funny. "How have you been, sir?" The blond haired man flicked his hair back as his luscious blue eyes slyly picked at Reality's anger.
"Fine, actually. Your presence is an annoyance in itself and has made my coffee taste bad, thanks." This itched at the blond man, who now looked also irritated, but it was Reality who cracked the smile now. As the elevator binged to "L1" and the doors opened, Reality stood up straight, just as tall as the blond man, and began to walk out with a last comment.
"By the way, Old Spice isn't the deodorant that you lather over your body." The blond man growled and was about to yell out something, however the elevator saved the comment for later. The boy was just crackling at the "finesse" of the conversation that took place back in the elevator, however, his merriment lasted only seconds. Reality approached the front desk of the lobby that they had entered and he pulled out his wallet and took an ID card from it, showing it to the woman that sat in a comfy wheeled chair.
"Good morning, Mr. Porter." Reality took back his ID while the woman activated the gates that lined on either side of the front desk. Reality walked over to them with the boy, his waist not even reaching the tripod of poles as he went through. The boy had little difficulty, but it still mad him furious that Reality was tall enough to think the gates as something you could step over(Reality is not athletic in the least bit). When at the elevator doors, about three on each side, the boy asked. "Mr. Porter?" Reality gave a nod, taking a sip of his coffee as they waited.
"Rick Edward Porter. The name that I use here." A bing caught the boys attention off of Reality and the two walked in, waiting for to close. Reality chose a button that read "L8" and the elevator moved from the command. "Like I said before, I have many names."
"Oh! Like Mr. Child-Care-Ser-" Reality slapped a hand onto the boy's mouth, who was trying to finish the sentence, but Reality's anger prevented it from happening.
"Never again! It's bad enough there is one of him." Reality struggled with the boy, and as the elevator stopped on "L3" to pick up a person, they both stopped and separated. A person who entered was a woman who looked exactly like the secretary down stairs. The boy simply was freaking out as Reality just greeted the woman with a nod of his head.
"Good morning, Mr. Porter." The woman smiled as she came in, papers at hand, and she reached over to press a button, but stopped to see they were heading the same way and just stood back and watched the doors close and the elevator rise. The boy, still confused, gazed up at the woman in a pencil skirt and asked.
"Weren't you downstairs." Reality and the woman both looked over at the boy, one giggling while the other sighed.
"Oh no, but I get that all the time. Down stairs is my twin, Sam. I am Linda, nice to meet you." This woman, Linda, smiled at the boy, who was slightly blushing from the embarrassment while Reality rolled his eyes.
"But, Mr. Porter, I didn't know you had a son." Linda kept her smile, but Reality shot up from his casual self and grabbed the boy glaring at her.
"Like hell I would have a son, and you know that Linda." Reality growled lightly as this other playful person laughed. When they reached the floor, they all walked out, but in different directions.
"Well, Mr. Porter, I will see you soon." Reality rolled his eyes once more and walked the other way.
"Great, more papers." He said, hearing her laugh as they walked away. Reality dragged the boy by the collar of his shirt, but the boy was content to simply waving good bye to Linda. A new crush. Reality took the boy all the way down the hall, passing large wooden doors, a section of cubicles, and then to another large door that was labeled with a slide in name card that read Reality's fake name. Some curious early works took a peek at the little boy that Reality had dragged in, believing it was a younger brother or little cousin that he had to take care of. It was a forbidden phrase to say if he was married or if that was his kid, for Reality would always, first blush, and then kill you and toss you out of his office. This was the boy's first question when he was plopped into a stiff chair that had not been broken into.
"Why is that such a sensitive subject?" Reality sat down in a chair behind a very large desk, and then booted up his computers, sighing at the question and leaned back in the chair, taking his coffee into his hand.
"I rather not talk about it." The boy kept glaring at Reality and just as Reality was about to take a sip of his coffee, The boy's ignorance popped up.
"Did you ask Illusion to marry you?" Reality sip up some of his coffee, mostly it spilling onto the carpet. Veins popped from his forehead when he raised himself from his embarrassment. He flared up at the boy.
"I said I don't want to talk about it!" Reality got up and went around his desk and went out of his door to get paper towels, and this gave the boy a rare opportunity to search Reality of information. The boy ran to the desk, opening drawers. Mostly he found pens and pencils, but when he opened the one drawer on the other side, his eyes widened slowly. There, sitting there to collect dust, covered with papers that the moved out of the way, was a picture of a beautiful woman with long purple black hair and gorgeous green eyes, hugging Reality with one arm, and a peace sign to the camera. It looked like she was laughing, but that was also the same case of Reality, who held her by the waist, and wasn't gazing at the camera, but at her. He looks so... happy. The boy felt guilty for taking even a seconds look at the picture, for it was just to precious. He quickly put it back where he found it and closed the drawer and hopped up from Reality's seat just as he came back. Reality was preoccupied about the mess and cleaning it up then what the boy had been doing and went behind his desk and began to scrub the floors. The boy closed the door, his guilt seeping through to his face. Reality felt the true emotion in the air from the boy and heaved a sigh, rolling his sleeves up.
"I don't understand humans." The boy turned quickly from this, looking down at Reality. "They feel sorry for you and think they can help you, but in cases like this, there is no help, especially for me," He said, "I screwed up along time ago."
Work hours passed for them like minutes. The boy played with a strategy games that Reality had stocked in the room, keeping the boy occupied, but most of the time Reality was answering the boy's question about work. When people came in, mostly Linda, with papers, Reality would finish them at lightning speed, which amazed the boy every time. He asked questions about how Reality did such things so fast, and Reality said that he just uses logic to answer stupid questions that were written formally on paper. Reality was trying his very best to get through all of his work so that he would be done at lunch time so that he could go see Illusion. The boy was also excited, tapping his feet and making annoying sounds that distracted Reality. Both were anxious, and both wanted to get out. The lunch beeping on Reality's watch woke himself up in his work coma. He abruptly stood up, simultaneously with the boy, and then both walked out of the room, quickly walking out of the office. The boy waved 'good bye' to Linda, still with papers wrapped in her arms, but she still waved back. The anxiety filled up Reality rapidly, some sweat dampening his forehead, trying his best to keep cool. It made him feel worse to see the boy running and getting excited to the elevators, and soon to the car. Reality would soon be in front of Illusion, and he was scared.
Chapter 6: Wings of a Bird and The Stinger of a Bee
"Come to my world tomorrow. If you don't, I will be most upset. Please... Illusion." The words echoed inside Illusion's head over and over, her face beat red, her body trembling, leaning against a wall in Reality's old room. Papers were scattered across the floor around her, the room more of a mess than it was, and yet Illusion couldn't break herself of her racing heart, the feeling to be able to stand in front of him and feel his strong presence over her, his body pushed against her, the warmth that escaped from his body and flowed into hers. Illusion covered her face with both of her hands, trying as best as she could to conceal these throbbing emotions. I wanted him... The tears slipped through her hands and onto her cheeks and shirt, her body trembling more. I wanted him closer... oh.... An emotion she had not remember in a long time had spurred up. She tried hard to be quiet with her tears, but she knew she wouldn't be able to stop her dear friend James from worrying about her.
While Illusion was inside Reality's room for minutes on end, James' hands crossed over an invisible chest and he seemed to be leaning against the wall. The girl also leaned against a wall, but on the opposite side of James. Constantly she looked up from her tense body to see if the door would open, listening into the slightest sounds, hopeful of what happened to her. The girl looked back over to James and could help but to asked the see through man.
"Do you know what happened?" Through their journey together, James and the girl have come up with hand signs for them to communicate to each other, but only simply things, nothing too detailed. This time, for yes, James gave a half-hearted thumbs up, making the girl more worried.
She asked again, "Are you worried about her?" James gave a more power thumbs up, seeing he was making a move off the wall and towards the door, then he seemed to be pacing now. Definitely worried. At the same time, both of them heard sobs from the other side and rushed to the door, James was the one who flung the door open and ran over to Illusion's side, who was crumpled up against the wall, The girl ran over to her as well, but she stopped, and gasped. She saw a truer outline of James, noticing his legs and how he was crouched beside Illusion, his face and saw how truly handsome he was, and then his fade-in-fade-out skin tone; he was African American. She had nothing against different colors, but it was just surprising to her that, surrounded by a white skin-toned community, a man with such dark, fair skin could be so handsome and great. The girl seemed memorized by his beautiful skin color, however in faded out in seconds and she heard his voice for the first time. Such a resonating voice had to make many fall for him, but this voice was worried and holding Illusion close in his arms.
"Illusion?! What happened, please don't cry, love." Illusion's cheeks were wiped by James's sleeve, making her look up, however both the girl and James were surprised to see a beautiful smile on her face. She plucked out a few giggles and then turned to both of them. What came next was shocking.
"Reality said to come to his world, tomorrow!" The girl gasped, both were in shock. The girl broke the silence with a shout of joy, startling James's fading body. Illusion smiled brightly at the girl's reaction, parting herself from James's arms and standing up.
"Wahoo! We are going to the real world, to my home, right?" The girl twirlled around, looking at Illusion who came over, her back to James, and ruffled up the girl's hair.
"Thats right, back from whence you came, but instead of just you, it's all three of us! Right Jam-" Illusion turned around and her smile dropped. The girl curiously looked over and her smile also dropped. James stood a good six feet, four inches tall, but right now, he was cast over by the darkness, his fists clenched in anger. His white gloves were the only thing that shined through the darkness of his glower.
His voice was still chimes to the girl's ear, but she was more scared now," How... can you even think of going back...?" James turned to Illusion, his eyes a dull golden color, by were stricken in rage. "How can you even dare think of going back to a man that left you! That left us here!" Illusion's presence changed, her face hardened and her eyes shifted to a cold stare, almost as threatening as James's wrathing emotions.
"James, he-"
"Don't defend him! I was there, Illusion! I was going to kill him for leaving you, but you stopped me," James released the grip on his gloved fists, now in a more quiet, defeated voice. "He loved us, and we loved him. He was like a brother, a brother that I loved. You are my sister, and I vowed to protect you when Reality wasn't there. He left and hurt you, and anyone who tries to hurt my sister will be killed." James lifted his head to Illusion, who never dropped her glare. James didn't give up either.
"I love you, sister."
"James...," Illusion walked over to James, and as if James was expecting it, she slapped him. The girl gasped and covered her mouth with her hands, hoping she wouldn't interfere with this fight.
"James, I told you once before that I would never give up no matter how hard the fight is. Reality is the only man that I will never give up my love for. He hurt me and eventually I learned that I was meant to wait. I had to wait until Reality learned that time will either catch us, or stop us and we just have to flow with it. Nothing can stop time, but many can alter it. Please understand." Illusion turned away from him, but she didn't leave without grabbing James's hand and leading him out. The girl pulled her hands away from her face just as the argument died down, and a hand was offered to her.
"Will you continue to follow me, little one?" The girl stared at the hand, like she had on the first day of meeting her, and without another moment of hesitation, the girl took Illusion's hand and gave a thumbs up.
"You can always count on me to be at your side, my lady!" The girl smiled brightly, giving Illusion a bundle of joy in her heart. All three of them stepped out of the room, and to the girl's disappointment, James's body, hair, voice, and eyes disappeared. Illusion lead both of them to her room, where the girl really wasn't surprised to see that her room was a cluttered world of toys, party decorations handing from her ceiling, and random things across the floor. But what did surprise her was there was a chair, silhouette by the window. A rocking chair to be more precise. The soft light that branched off from the blinds hit the chair, making it strangely attracting. The girl was on the verge of walking over there, but James, who was now free from Illusions hand, took the girl and shook a finger at her. He meant 'No can do.' Illusion was busy packing a small bag of things to take with her, busy grabbing some strange, random things, but at the same time grabbing jewelry.
"Umm, why is that chair off limits, Illusion?" The girl asked, because if she asked James nothing more than a shake of his hand is any answer she would get from him.
"It is a portal maker." Illusion answered back calmly, walking back out of the room, disappearing for a few seconds, and then coming back with the doll.
"A portal maker?" the girl's confusion stretched out from her voice.
"Yes, it is the one link Reality sometimes used to get to and fro from the Real world and my world. However, he has a bracelet that already allows him to
