A/N: This whole story happened because the opening line and the imagery for the first two paragraphs popped into my head after reading Kate Griffin's A Madness of Angels. It's the first in her Matthew Swift series, and some truly stunning urban fantasy. I definitely recommend it.
Disclaimer: The characters in this story are from Tales of Vesperia and do not belong to me.
There was a unicorn in the cafe.
It wandered between the tables, keeping to walkways where the sunlight fell thickest through the windows and skylights, and flickering in and out of reality as if it was nothing more than racing cloud shadows. The sound of its whinny was trilling birds and a distant car horn, nothing unusual for the area, certainly nothing magical. Almost no one so much as glanced around.
As he wiped down the counter, Yuri watched it out of the corner of his eye. It was small, about the size of a goat, and with the same floppy ears. It had a tail like a lion, and a bearded chin. Its fur lengthened to a fringe of hair running down the backs of its legs and around its cloven hooves. The color of its coat couldn't be described as anything but that of sunlight. Passing through the brightest beams, it all but disappeared, and dust motes seemed to dance right through it. Most importantly for a unicorn, it had the horn: a long, spiraling protrusion that was bright as a flash of sun through leaves when seen straight on. As for its eyes, Yuri didn't like to look at them. Pupil-less and a pale, blind blue, they looked like stars in a daytime sky. Nothing with eyes like that ought to have very good sight, but whenever that gaze turned his way, Yuri felt as if the unicorn could see right through him.
He was so caught up in keeping an eye on the unicorn that he didn't notice Judith until she was close enough to rest her arms on the counter top. Her presence politely demanded his attention, and he tore his eyes away from the unicorn just as it craned its neck to lick the cream off a girl's cappuccino. No one noticed. No one but him ever noticed it.
"Hey, Judy. Usual?"
"Please." She glanced back over her shoulder, then turned her smile onto him once more. "It looks like you've got an unusual customer today."
"You can see it?" He was so startled that he blurted the words out before his brain could even suggest that she meant one of the cafe's human occupants. Judith didn't bat a lash over his reaction.
"I'm more surprised that you can." She shifted, turning sideways so that they could both watch the unicorn as it explored between the tables. "Do you know where it came from?"
"Wish I did. I'd send it back." He grimaced. "It's been following me for a week. I thought I was going crazy."
"Following you? That is interesting. You know, most of the lore surrounding unicorns says that they're attracted to pure, young maidens." Her smile was suggestive and just a little curious.
"Yeah, well, nothing I found said anything about them being invisible or having a taste for Reddi Wip." Just then, the implications of her earlier words sank in, and Judith suddenly became more interesting than the unicorn. "Wait. Why are you surprised that I can—?"
"Do you have a phone book?"
"Huh?" The question caught him off guard. "Yeah, probably. Have you seen things like that before?"
"If you're looking to get rid of it, I might be able to help, or at least point you toward someone who can."
"Yeah, right."
Yuri let his questions go as he searched beneath the counter for a phone book. When Judith didn't want to talk, nothing could pry answers out of her. She'd been a regular for a couple years, long enough for him to figure that if she wasn't going to share her secrets then they probably didn't concern him. He found the phone book buried under a pile of paper take out bags and dropped it onto the counter.
"I don't know how much good this is going to do. I'm pretty sure you aren't going to find a section for unicorn wranglers."
She just smiled and turned the book so that it was facing him. "You might be surprised."
"Okay, I'll bite." He started to reach out, but Judith opened the book first.
"Allow me."
She flipped through the pages, the thin paper fluttering with a sound like startled birds taking flight. After a moment, she slowed, watching names, numbers and ads flash past, all of them upside-down from her perspective. She'd passed the 'U's and run straight into 'W' with its listings for walkers, wallpaper, water heaters. She slowed further, turned one more page, and one more after that. All of a sudden, she stabbed down with her finger at a small ad near the center of the page.
"Here we are. Take a look."
She turned the phone book around, careful to keep her finger on the ad. Yuri watched, wondering what good a window washing service was going to do him, until the ads began to flicker in his vision. They blurred and twitched, straining to come into focus. Odd ideas jumped out at him from across the page—alchemist, altar, anthropomorphism—and sank back into the paper, almost returning to the banal text that should have filled the page...almost, but not quite. Trying to squint them into focus did nothing but make him feel slightly dizzy. The ad Judith had indicated fluttered, trying to blend back into the rational world, but held in place beneath her neatly manicured nail.
Knights' Animal Control
Guaranteed discreet removal of magical creatures and enchanted beasts
"Call them. They can help."
Yuri hesitated as he stared at the unlikely ad. He definitely didn't want a unicorn following him around indefinitely, but he didn't want it to get hurt, either. Looking up unicorns online hadn't told him a lot, but it had indicated that the horn was considered a valuable commodity. He met Judith's eyes.
"What happens when they come to get it?"
"This group is what you might call catch-and-release. They find suitable homes for creatures that have no place in a modern city."
Yuri didn't say anything but, from what he'd seen, this particular unicorn was very at home in the city.
"They only kill the creatures they're called on to remove if they're up against something particularly nasty. They'll see that your unicorn won't come to harm, unlike some of the other groups who do this work."
"It isn't my unicorn," Yuri mumbled.
He grabbed a pen off the register and jotted down the phone number on a napkin. For a moment, he stared at it, just an ordinary line of digits. It was weird to think of all the strangeness surrounding the number. He shoved the napkin into his pocket as Judith shut the phone book with a snap.
"So," she said brightly. "About my coffee...?"
The clip-clop of tiny, cloven hooves followed Yuri down the sidewalk, sounding like a child's hurried tread. He didn't look back, not even a quick glance over his shoulder. It seemed like acknowledging the unicorn could only encourage it. Trying to scare it off certainly hadn't done any good. He'd learned on the first day that waving his arms and shouting 'Shoo!' only amused it.
Around him, people walked along or sat in traffic and no one spared a glance for the little unicorn trotting down the street. Yuri heard it whinny, somehow knowing that the sound of squealing brakes wasn't coming from a car. Only a few blocks from the cafe and it was already changing, leaving behind the carefully planned natural feel of that place for something more urban. When it overtook Yuri its coat had lost the buttery yellow of sunshine from the cafe and taken on the cool silver of sunlight off glass. It twinkled like a thousand-windowed skyscraper, all light and bright reflection. Beneath the passing shadows of pedestrians, it sparkled like mica-flecked asphalt.
Yuri watched it as it led the way along the packed sidewalk. He had seen it trot through oncoming traffic like a ghost, follow him into shops through plate glass doors as if it were no more substantial than the sunlight it resembled, and gambol through crowds on the subway platform—all without been seen by anyone else up until Judith's startling revelation. He wasn't quite so surprised that it existed anymore-"More things in heaven and earth" and all that—but he still didn't understand why it had started following him around or why almost no one else could see it. Those were the questions that really made him nervous, and the more he thought about Judith's little slip earlier, the more he wondered if he needed to have a serious talk with her sometime soon.
Reaching the top of the stairs leading down to the subway, the unicorn stopped and waited for him. It looked its most solid in the fluorescent shadow of that descent, though no less fantastic as its aspect morphed. Underground, it became a creature of cigarette smoke and exhaust and the dull shine of aged, cracked tile. Its eyes took on the luminescence of LED bulbs, pale enough to hide the stars unless Yuri stared too long. Its nickering sounded like the distant clatter of wheels upon the subway tracks. It didn't like boarding the actual trains, but it always caught up to him after he disembarked at his stop.
As usual, the unicorn shied away from the rush and clamor of the train as it arrived in the station. It trotted back and forth unhappily as Yuri boarded, but wouldn't follow him through the doors. It would catch up soon enough, Yuri knew. After two days, it had found his stop and begun following him home rather than waiting for him outside his apartment building. The day after that, it had worked out how to get into his apartment via the fire escape and a window. The unicorn had no interest in the solidity of glass, and would pass through it without a thought like a strange and playful ghost.
When Yuri got off the train five blocks from his apartment, the unicorn was waiting. It danced up to him as he disembarked, happy to see that he had once more made the perilous journey unharmed. Faced with a creature so obviously glad to see him, Yuri couldn't help smiling. He watched the unicorn out of the corner of his eye as it walked with him back up into the sunlight, back to where its coat lost the dull and dingy yellow-gray of the subway terminal air, where sunlight refreshed it and left it flickering in the crowds, an urban mirage. It pranced along, curious about everything and taking joy in exploring the city streets. Yuri figured that, if he had to get stuck being haunted by a unicorn, he could have done worse than one with a decent sense of fun and adventure.
Feeling for the napkin shoved into his pocket with the phone number for Knights' Animal Control written on it, he wondered if it would be so bad to let the unicorn stay. It was a bit more weirdness than he'd ever intended to deal with, but it wasn't as if the little guy was hurting anybody. Maybe he could just call and get some tips. 'Thank you for calling Magical Animal Control. Press one for the care and feeding of unicorns.'
Yeah, right. He smiled crookedly as he stepped into his apartment complex and started up the stairs. He wasn't about to invite the unicorn in with him. Even if no one else could see it, he didn't need anyone wondering why he was holding doors open for empty air. If it wanted to come, it would find its way in via his bedroom window. Otherwise, it could wait outside until Yuri came back down with Repede. The unicorn was smart. It had learned Yuri's routine after only a few days. It would know that he would be down again in minutes to take Repede to the park. Joining them seemed to be one of the unicorn's favorite things.
Repede was waiting for him just inside the door, holding his leash in his mouth.
"Ready for our walk, I see. I hope you're feeling energetic today. Your little friend was being extra bold at work."
With a whuff and a wag of his tail, Repede pressed forward to offer the leash. He was eager to play, and Yuri smiled as he clipped leash to collar. Sometimes, he could swear that Repede's responses meant that he understood every word. Other times, he wondered if he was just imagining things and needed to find a roommate he could actually have a spoken conversation with before he went nuts. Straightening up, he shook off that thought and gave Repede a couple of solid pats.
"All right. Let's go."
Back on the sidewalk, the unicorn was waiting for them. It greeted Repede excitedly and was welcomed with a lick. That was the only reason Yuri knew for sure he wasn't crazy. If Repede could see the unicorn, then it had to be real. Who'd ever heard of a dog that hallucinated?
They started making their way to the park, Repede padding along by Yuri's side, and the unicorn meandering where it would. Everything about the city seemed to fascinate it, from the calm of the cafe where Yuri worked to the crammed-in hustle of rush hour. It raced ahead and lagged behind as they walked, and its curiosity made Yuri take fresh note of the buildings and bustle and life surrounding him.
The route to the park took them on a walk through the city's mid-tones. The neighborhoods never got too rundown that they felt unsafe or too exclusively wealthy that they obviously didn't belong, but he passed by apartments that would be easier to demolish than repair; alleyways that spilled their ground-down detritus of trash out onto the sidewalk, bits of broken bottle shining like seashells in sand; rusting fire escapes that left dark, dripping stains down the bricks of their buildings; five-foot-high graffiti tags lurking down a side street, neon bright even in the reflector orange glow of the sunset; laundry strung between buildings; pots of flowers that turned window ledges into tiny, urban gardens; a huddle of bikes all black and gunmetal, fluorescent orange and jewel tones; a hot dog vendor, his cart charcoal gray with the accumulated exhaust of years spent serving the city; a twenty-four hour convenience store, the buttery light inside only just beginning to compete with the fading sun. Apartment buildings built within the last five years, recently painted and only just gaining a new coat of scuffs and smudges gave way to brick townhouses with iron fences; trees lined the sidewalk every few feet, their leaves turning yellow, orange, brown with the advance of autumn. Pawnshops and drugstores took over from the residential area, melting into a few blocks of small businesses: galleries, specialty shops, florists, grocery stores, and trendy restaurants.
And everywhere people: walking along the sidewalk, spilling out of doorways, rolling past on skateboards, talking on their phones, zipping past traffic on a bike, hurrying through crosswalks, dashing through a tangle of stopped cars, eating a hurried meal on the go, studying a map, meeting up for a date, laughing, pointing, chatting, carrying on with their lives amid a million others doing the same.
A busker played the saxophone on the corner where Yuri waited at the last crosswalk before the park. The music swelled to fill the sky and all the spaces between the buildings. It was a huge sound, clear even over the rumble of engines and honk of horns and shuffle of a thousand feet over pavement. The miracle of that soaring sound was as incredible as the unicorn, and Yuri tossed a couple dollars into the open case at his feet before continuing on. The music followed him into the park, waning as slow as the setting sun.
Even the park was busy during rush hour. Its paths were filled with joggers, couples, and families out for a walk. People in expensive suits passed by skaters in worn hoodies, dogs on leashes came and went with their owners, an elderly couple sat hand-in-hand on a bench beneath an oak tree.
The unicorn wove through it all with the same fluid grace with which it navigated congested sidewalks. It never quite touched anyone, and nobody noticed the sun spear of its horn, the flash of its hide like a falling leaf catching the light. Its mane swayed as if underwater, adding to the odd illusion that it wasn't thick, autumn sunlight that flooded the park, but spilled tea. Yuri felt like he could have floated away on the honey gold light and its promise of warmth, on the freedom of the evening and the calm he found amid the bustle of the city. He drew a deep breath, savoring the feel of cool, crisp air against his throat, filling his lungs, waking his cells and renewing his energy.
"Come on, Repede."
Grinning, he broke into a jog. Repede was all too happy to keep pace, and the unicorn cantered gleefully along with them, unnoticed. They sped through the park, heading for the field on the far side where dogs were allowed off their leashes, provided they played nice. Once there, Yuri guided them to a secluded corner near the border of trees. There were a few other dogs and owners around, and he didn't particularly feel like being sociable. Repede already had a playmate anyway. He and the unicorn went gallivanting across the grass, charging at each other and darting back, mock fighting.
Yuri leaned against a tree, watching them and keeping an eye out for anyone who might think his dog a bit odd. He only remembered the animal control service when he shoved his hands down into his pockets. By that time, the napkin was badly scrunched and wrinkled. The ink was blurred, but legible. He studied it for a minute, then, figuring it couldn't hurt to at least ask for some information, pulled out his phone and dialed.
'Thank you for calling Knights' Animal Control. This is Flynn. How can I help you?'
The voice on the other end of the line wasn't what he'd expected. Not that he'd known what to expect, but he hadn't thought it would be anyone so...normal-sounding. The man's voice was soft, not quite breathy, but the kind of voice that caught a little as it slipped into the speaker at the far end of the connection. It was a calm, quiet sort of voice which, when Yuri thought about it, was probably a good choice if this company actually specialized in magical animals like Judith had suggested. Probably helped calm people down when they were dealing with an infestation of the enchanted variety.
"Uh, hey. I've...um...got a couple of questions." He rubbed the back of his neck, suddenly feeling ridiculous. What if Judith had just been messing with him? This guy was going to think he was nuts.
'I'll do my best to answer.'
"Do you..." This was going to sound insane. "Do you handle stray unicorns?"
There was silence for a moment, then: 'Not usually.'
Shit. Judith really had put one over on him. He was lowering the phone when he heard the man continue.
'It's very rare for them to wander into populated areas, or even to allow themselves to be seen. How old is it?'
"Uhhh...like, a kid?" Would that be the right term? Or should it be foal?
'Is this your first experience with something of that nature?'
"Yeah. It started following me around the city about a week ago and...honestly, I'm a little weirded out."
He wasn't sure why he'd admitted that to Flynn-with-the-calming-voice. He'd barely been able to admit it to himself, fearing that it would only lead downwards to self-diagnosed insanity. Maybe he'd needed someone to talk to about it more than he'd thought. He wished Judith hadn't taken off so quickly, earlier. It seemed like she might have known something, and at least Yuri knew her just well enough to excuse talking about this. Not that it mattered anymore. Flynn would have to do.
'It can be slightly overwhelming. The first important thing to remember is that you aren't crazy.'
Yuri couldn't help laughing. "Sounds like you get this sort of thing a lot."
'You would be surprised.'
He could hear the smile in Flynn's voice. It put him a little more at ease. "So, if that's the first important thing, what's the second?"
'With unicorns, you don't really have a lot to worry about. Be careful of the horn, of course. It will be incredibly sharp. They're generally good-natured, though, so you should be okay until tomorrow.'
"What happens tomorrow?"
'I can come get it. Tonight's no good, but I can fit you in first thing if you'll let me know where I should come pick it up.'
"Whoa, who said anything about taking him away?"
There was a short pause. 'You called Knights' Animal Control. I thought that was understood.'
"I just wanted some tips."
'Sir, I—'
"It's Yuri."
'...Yuri. I strongly recommend that you allow me to relocate the unicorn.'
"You said it wouldn't do any harm."
'I said that they're mostly good-natured. There is a world of difference between—'
"What I'm hearing is that it isn't gonna hurt anybody."
'On purpose and probably. There is no guarantee this one has a normal temperament! It's already strange that it came into a city. They aren't suited to that sort of environment.'
"Trust me, this little guy is uniquely suited. Now, if there isn't any actual warning information..."
'Call back when the trouble starts. Since you're a first time customer, I'll schedule you in without even saying 'I told you so.' Have a nice day.'
The line went dead. Yuri scowled at his phone. "My hero," he muttered. Phantom unicorns and rude, short-tempered 'knights.' He shook his head and let it go with a sigh. It wasn't like he'd ever have to talk to Flynn again.
The phone rang once.
"Don't pick up. Don't pick up, I don't want to hear it."
Twice.
It was still early. Maybe their office wasn't open yet. Maybe Judith would come back to the cafe and Yuri could get her to call.
Three times.
"Don't pick—"
'Thank you for calling Knights' Animal Control. This is Flynn. How can I help you?'
Fuck. "I need you to come pick up the unicorn."
The pause was almost unbearably smug. 'I thought I recognized that number. Have you run into a problem?'
"Yeah, I get it, you were right. How soon can you come out?"
'Immediately, if you aren't too far.' His manner had switched back to professional quick enough that Yuri was a bit startled.
"Comet Cafe on Lower Avenue?"
'Businesses aren't exactly ideal for this sort of thing.'
"Look, I have to be down there to open up in half an hour, so can you come get the little monster, or not?"
'I can. What, exactly, did it do to change your mind?'
Yuri almost didn't say. It was his conscience that got the better of him, pointing out that if what he'd seen that morning was going to have repercussions, Flynn would hopefully know about them and come prepared. He didn't want to be responsible for a unicorn dying of food poisoning.
"It ate the shine off my favorite CD."
The silence over the phone sounded suspiciously like muffled laughter. Flynn's voice was thick when he spoke once more. 'Just the shine, right? Not the plastic or the foil?'
"You don't sound surprised."
'Unicorns drink reflections. I don't think the reflection off a CD will hurt it, but...'
"Kinda seems like junk food. Got it." He glanced down at the unicorn that was currently investigating his closet. It hiccuped, sending laser-bright rainbows shooting over its coat. "It's had a case of the hiccups since then. Should I be worried?"
'Unicorns can look after themselves. You said you would be at the cafe in half an hour?'
"Yeah. I'll have a little time before we open up to the public."
'Good. I'll see you shortly, then.'
"Thanks." The gratitude was only slightly grudging.
'My pleasure.' He sounded like he meant it, the bastard. Probably getting a kick out of all this.
With a sigh, Yuri hung up and looked down at the unicorn. Within his apartment, it seemed more solid, but only insofar as a reflection on water is more solid than the air on a misty morning. It glowed the dull yellow of the bulbs behind the old light fixtures. He knew it could become as warm and solid as Repede because it had done so. On nights when he had taken his dinner into the living room to sit on the couch and watch TV, the unicorn had hopped up onto the cushions and curled up at his side. It liked to lay its head across his lap and, although its coat shifted constantly, taking on the flickering light of the TV screen, it had actual substance when it slept. Yuri supposed that meant it was comfortable around him, though he wasn't yet entirely sure if it gained mass by choice or if it simply couldn't carry on being a living flash of light when it wasn't awake.
Either way, it wasn't going to be his concern for much longer. It was time to get this over with. It wasn't just about the CD. He'd had some time to think about what Flynn had said the day before, and he figured the guy was probably right. The city wasn't where the unicorn belonged, and Yuri didn't particularly want to spend the rest of his life trying to ignore a creature that could interact with the world around it without being noticed at all. Plus, its eyes seriously did give him the willies. How something so otherwise benign could have eyes like that... Whatever. Flynn could come take the unicorn back where it came from, and Yuri's life would go back to normal.
Right? Mostly normal, at least. Knowing there was weird shit around wasn't the same as having to deal with it. But, there was that weird thing Judith had said. And the fact that Yuri had been able to see the unicorn in the first place. Hadn't most of those websites said that unicorns were supposed to be attracted to virgin girls?
"Missed the mark a little there, buddy," Yuri muttered.
The unicorn looked up at him and hiccuped twice in rapid succession. Rainbows danced over its fur and Yuri looked away from its eyes.
"I don't have any pity for you. Flynn said you'd be fine, and he oughtta know."
He hurried to pull on his socks and shove his feet into his boots. The discovery of the CD had been an unpleasant surprise, and he was running late. He would have to run in order to catch his train.
"You'd better show up at the cafe," he muttered to the unicorn. "Last thing I need is that guy showing up for nothing after everything I said."
The unicorn shook its head, whinnying like silverware rattling in a drawer.
Yuri was busy trying to roll silverware, set the tables, and keep the unicorn away from anything reflective. Now that he knew to look, he was seeing evidence of its snacking throughout the cafe—coffee pots and glass pitchers that had lost their shine, vases that no longer sparkled in the sunlight, even the window panes low enough for the unicorn to reach didn't look quite right, as if they were nothing but empty air. He caught it trying to graze—if that was even the right word—a couple of times. Eventually, he stopped what he was doing to set out a bowl of whipped cream to distract it. The unicorn tucked in with glee, and Yuri wondered how far down on the unicorn junk food scale that fell. Had to be below CDs, right?
A knock at the front doors grabbed his attention, and he turned to see a man standing just outside. He wore a heavy-looking black leather jacket over a bright blue polo, jeans, and work boots. He was young—around Yuri's age—fit-looking, blond and blue-eyed, and staring straight at the unicorn. Glancing quickly back to be sure his manager was still out of sight in the back room, Yuri hurried to the door. He didn't open it.
"You Flynn?"
"At your service."
"Go around back."
He jerked a thumb toward the patio behind the cafe. Away from the street, there would be less chance anyone would see them. On his way back through the restaurant, he paused beside the unicorn.
"Stay here for a few minutes," he said quietly. "I want to talk to this guy before he takes you anywhere."
It was in the name, right? 'Knights.' According to everything he'd seen online, knights hunted unicorns. The lore was a little unclear on why, although he'd read enough about the value placed on the unicorn's horn to hazard a guess. Flynn had seemed an okay guy over the phone, but Yuri wasn't about to turn over the little unicorn if he set off any alarm bells in person.
Quietly, Yuri let himself out the back door and onto the patio. Flynn was just coming around the corner, and he extended a hand as he came closer.
"Flynn Scifo," he said as they shook. "It's good to meet you."
"Yuri Lowell. Likewise." He seemed sincere enough. "You could have warned me about the CDs."
Flynn's smile went crooked. "Does it also bother you that I didn't warn you against letting a wild animal into your home? I try to extend people the courtesy of assuming they have some common sense."
He sort of had a point, but... "Hey, I don't let it do anything. You ever tried scaring a unicorn back out the window it just jumped right through? 'Shoo!' doesn't really cut it, even if you actually open the window first."
That made him laugh. It was soft, but it still crinkled up his eyes and shook his shoulders. It was a nice laugh, genuine, friendly. Yuri couldn't help smiling despite himself.
"It sounds like you've had a difficult time."
"It's been a surprising week," he conceded.
They fell silent, retreating into the shuffling quiet of people who aren't quite strangers any longer, but may only be acquaintances through the end of a task.
"So where do—?" Yuri started at the same time Flynn asked: "What was it—?"
They smiled. Yuri let Flynn ask his question first.
"What was it eating when I showed up?"
"Whipped cream. More unicorn junk food?"
"I'm not sure. I've never heard of one eating whipped cream before. Maybe you shouldn't have—"
"It's been stealing it off people's drinks for days. If it hasn't gotten sick yet, I think it'll be fine."
Flynn didn't look entirely convinced, but he didn't pursue it. "What were you going to ask me?"
"Just wondering where you're gonna relocate him."
"I'll try to take him to the Wild Wood. If I can get him there, he should be able to make his way back to Faerie proper." Seeing Yuri's expression, he paused. "Something wrong?"
"'Try?' 'If?' 'Should?' You don't sound too sure of yourself. How long have you been doing this, anyway?"
"Long enough to know my business. The Wild Wood isn't an easy place to get into on purpose, not from this side. It's kind of like a barrier between Faerie and the human world. Usually, humans only wander in by accident."
"Okay..." He wasn't sure he was ready to be convinced. "Should you be telling me all this? Isn't there some sort of code about keeping mystical secrets?"
Flynn grinned. "You did ask. But no, there isn't any reason to keep this from you. A unicorn has been following you around for a week, and you're trying to see it safely relocated rather than use it for personal gain. I think a few trade secrets will be safe with you."
He scuffed a sneaker on the pavement. "Yeah, well, it's not like anyone else could see it anyway." Except for Judith, but he wasn't about to tell Flynn that. "Anyway, let me go get him so both of us can get to work."
Though Yuri was a bit surprised by how obedient the unicorn had been, he was grateful it had listened. Flynn seemed trustworthy enough. Even though they'd only spoken briefly, Yuri had always felt that he had a good sense for people. He was satisfied that Flynn wasn't a danger to the unicorn.
"Hey, little guy. Vacation's over. Time to head home."
He hadn't been certain that the unicorn would let him pick it up, but it didn't put up a fight. It felt like little more than the warm weight of sunlight on his skin, at first. Once it had made itself comfortable, however, head resting against his chest, it grew more solid, just like it did when it slept on his lap at his apartment. He stirred his fingers in its soft fur as he carried it outside.
Flynn stood waiting, a length of deep gold paracord in his hands. Yuri paused to look at it, startled by how mundane it seemed. Flynn glanced down at it and shrugged.
"Traditionally, it ought to be a gold rope, but the real thing isn't exactly cost effective."
"Does that actually work?"
"Do you think I'd be using it if it didn't? Give me some credit." He stepped closer, adjusting his grip on the rope and watching the unicorn. A smile was tugging at the corners of his lips. "He looks so peaceful. I hate to disturb him."
"Wait until he eats one of your CDs."
Flynn laughed softly. "I'll take care to see that doesn't happen." He glanced up to meet Yuri's eyes. "You know, unicorns aren't just attracted to women. What's important to them is—"
"It would make me really happy if we could not have this conversation."
Surprise widened Flynn's eyes for a moment, then was replaced by another laughing smile. "As you wish. Hold still. This will only take a minute."
He looped the rope over the unicorn's head, shimmying it down against the pillow the unicorn had made of Yuri's chest. It opened its eye to stare briefly at Flynn, but didn't seem to be alarmed. Even as Flynn tied a knot, leaving plenty of slack to be sure the unicorn was comfortable, all it did was nuzzle against Yuri's chest.
"Is the rope really necessary? He seems all right with you."
"It serves to keep him substantial. He won't be able to hop out the window this way."
"Got it." He didn't, really, but it seemed the best answer.
Giving the unicorn a quick scratch behind one floppy ear, Flynn stepped back.
"You can put him down now. He'll follow along."
Gently, Yuri set the unicorn on its feet. He ran a hand down its neck and along its back as it looked up at him, paying no attention to the paracord leash tied loosely around its neck.
"Go with Flynn. He'll get you settled." It lipped the end of Yuri's sleeve. "I don't have any more cream for you. Or CDs." He stood up and took a step back.
"All set?"
"Yeah. What do I owe you?"
"Nothing. We're a public service."
"You're messing with me."
"No, really. Think of us as a very specialized subcontractor for the city's animal control office."
In its own way, that was just as weird as the unicorn itself. Yuri shook his head and let it go. "If you say so. Thanks for the help."
"You're welcome. It was nice to meet you." He smiled and Yuri realized that he meant it, even though their very first conversation hadn't exactly ended on a high note.
"Yeah, you too."
He waved as Flynn started back around the corner. The unicorn trotted after him, not at all bothered by the rope, though it did glance back to Yuri a couple of times as if expecting him to follow. Once they were out of sight, Yuri went back inside to return to his normal life.
The duty of Yuri's alarm clock was usurped by a car horn screaming a complaint in the traffic four stories below. It cut off abruptly and was replaced by a soft rumble of thunder. The steady sound of rain washing down over the city filtered slowly into Yuri's awareness. He could feel the cold damp of the day seeping through the window, settling over top of him where he lay curled up beneath the blanket. It was a phantom chill that couldn't quite touch him, but sent shivers racing over his skin merely by its palpable weight. He sat up with a wordless grumble and rubbed the sleep from his eyes to look out his window. Clouds the color of wet concrete hid the sky, and misty rain obscured the city beyond the window, rendering it little more than a blur of grays all running into one another. After a warm autumn, it seemed a dreary reminder of the winter to come.
He stared, only half awake and easily mesmerized, until his alarm went off and broke the dozy spell. The reminder that he needed to get up only made him more aware of the warmth of his blankets, of how cozy and inviting his bed was. It was a day made for sleeping in, the sort of day where just getting out of bed merited a medal.
Yuri threw his blankets aside, tossing them in the face of the urge to go back to sleep. He got out of bed before second thoughts even had a chance to form. The air was just shy of being chilly against his bare arms. The carpet was cool beneath his toes. He stretched as Repede came in to congratulate him on his efforts and remind him that food was expected before their morning walk. Yuri scratched between his ears and yawned as he started for the kitchen.
"Yeah, I know. I'm coming. Is it just me, or have you been more impatient since Flynn took away your playmate?"
It had been three days since he had watched the little unicorn walk away, and nothing out of the ordinary had happened since. He couldn't help but wonder if he had done something foolish by sending that bit of magic out of his life, but Flynn had been right. Unicorns didn't belong in big cities. Not really. Not real ones.
Although, the one that had attached itself to Yuri had seemed pretty at home. Could it be that real unicorns didn't resemble the lore? Or had his unicorn been changed by the city? It seemed obvious that it would appear differently away from all the glass and neon, asphalt and cars, but would that be its true appearance, or merely a different facet?
"This is ridiculous," Yuri muttered. He fed Repede and went to get dressed, hoping to shed all his unanswered questions like so much dirty laundry.
Outside, the city hissed and sloshed and splattered. Yuri had brought an umbrella and the rain pattered angrily off of it, as if annoyed that it couldn't reach him. Repede padded along beside him, too long for the umbrella, but never one to say no to their daily walk in the park. His tail was a dripping silk banner within a block.
"You okay, pal?"
Repede barked softly and took a couple quick steps ahead. Tongue lolling, he looked back along his leash as if to say 'Hurry up!' Yuri smiled and picked up the pace a bit.
Rain gave the city a peculiar dingy look. It was supposed to be fresh and cleansing, and maybe out in the countryside it was, but in the middle of the city, it was just gray. It muted colors, turned unlit windows into black and white film, pooled in dirty puddles edged by cigarette butts, bottle caps, and twinkling stones of broken glass. It made rust run, picked at already flaking paint, sped discarded newspapers to moldy oblivion, and turned commuter moods sour. Everyone on the sidewalk was in a hurry, and those without umbrellas ducked and shoved their way through the crowd in a darting, hunched dash for shelter.
The wet slap!-slap!-slap! of his sneakers, the clicking of Repede's claws, scrunch of wet gravel, slosh of tires through shallow puddles, rat-a-tat-tap-tap-tap of rain falling from sunken awnings and cracks in the gutters, splattering against umbrellas, drumming over cars, the squeak of windshield wipers, screech of brakes, honking, muffled shouting from within, gurgling away down drains, rushing beneath the street in a subterranean river, and above, around, through it all, hissing as it fell steadily from the heavy-bellied clouds above.
The downpour breathed; a chill, damp, clinging breath that seeped through Yuri's hoodie and t-shirt and sent shivers up his back. He moved a bit faster, hoping to generate some heat to warm himself up. Repede didn't seem to mind just yet, but he was a big dog living in an apartment that, really, was too small for him. He'd been a stray when Yuri had found and adopted him. Life could have been much worse than a too-small apartment and walks in the rain. Yuri held onto that thought and told himself to stop worrying. It was only the rain and the cold dragging him down. Repede was happy. He had ways of making it perfectly clear when he wasn't.
They came to a crosswalk just as it was safe to continue. The little man shaped of white lights shone bright despite the weather, as bright as the stars in the unicorn's eyes. Remembering gave Yuri a burst of speed. No more unicorn. As far as he was concerned, unicorns were back to being fantasy. No more whinnies that echoed the sounds of the city, no more light coalescing to frolic around his apartment, no more of those strange eyes staring right through him. He didn't need anything looking beneath his surface, anyway.
The park was wreathed in the misty spray of raindrops splashing and rebounding off of every surface they struck. Benches were shrouded, trees seemed haloed. It was dreary, chilly, a place for specters. Few others hurried along its paths. Those that did were merely passing through on their way to drier places. With the sidewalks nearly empty, Yuri broke into a run. Repede was all too happy to stretch his legs, and loped along easily beside him. His footfalls slapped and splashed, soaking his jeans a handspan above the hems. The cold nipped at him. It burned his nose with every in-drawn breath, trickled down his throat and tried to fill him up, held at bay by the speeding beat of his heart as he ran and burned off the jittery energy that had settled in his joints over the course of the morning.
Repede had run as far ahead as his leash would allow, but he stopped suddenly, staring intently at something. His ears were perked forward, his sodden tail stood straight up, waving slightly. Drawing even with him, Yuri stopped and touched a hand to the wet fur of his back.
"What is it, Repede?"
The dog huffed and Yuri peered through the rain. Up ahead was a small stand of trees, their dying leaves pounded by the storm and sapped of their color. As he squinted through the gloom, Yuri could see that something was wrong. Near the ground, the rain wasn't falling quite right. There was an empty space delineated by the haze of splashing droplets.
A sound reached Yuri's ears that almost could have been a sudden gust of wind, fat raindrops smacking against leaves. There was a sense of excitement in the sound that kept it from being mere mindless background noise. It rose and fell like a whiny. The emptiness in the rain was suddenly rushing—no, galloping—toward them, guided by a small spear of light. Tail wagging, Repede barked a welcome. The unicorn had returned.
Yuri had never seen it in the rain before. It was the glare of light on rainy car windows, the oil slick shine of drenched city streets. Its horn was a streak of frozen lightning. Its eyes glowed electric blue.
Playfully, the unicorn reared and brought its hooves down in a small puddle with a splash. Watching as it and Repede darted back and forth, chasing each other around his feet, Yuri pulled out his phoned and searched his recent calls until he found the number he wanted.
'Thank you for calling Knights' Animal Control. This is Flynn how can I—?'
"The unicorn is back."
There was a slight pause, then: 'Yuri?'
"Unless you've got another customer with a stray unicorn. Hey, how common is this, anyway?"
'Not very. You're the first case I've dealt with since I started working here. Where are you?'
"Quarter Park, not far from the main entrance."
'Can you wait there?' Flynn's voice became slightly muffled. Yuri heard sounds in the background and pictured Flynn cradling the phone between shoulder and ear as he moved around. 'I can meet you in about ten minutes.'
"Long as you're quick about it. It isn't exactly warm out here."
'I'm on my way now. See you shortly.'
"Yeah," Yuri said, lowering the phone to hit the end call button. "See you."
He considered the unicorn frolicking at his feet. It wasn't supposed to be there. It didn't belong in the real world. Besides, he'd already had it sent back where it came from.
"It's because you think I fed you, isn't it?" he muttered. "That CD was not a treat."
The unicorn paid him no mind. It was having too much fun with Repede.
Yuri let them play for a few minutes longer before starting back the way they'd come. The unicorn trotted along with them. Apparently, there were no hard feelings for having sent it off with Flynn. It splashed in puddles, tilted at Repede, and ran circles around them, not bothered in the least by the cold, steady rainfall.
There was a bus stop not far from the park gate, and that was where Yuri led them. It was sheltered from the rain, so the bench was still dry, though only the quick application of his umbrella as a shield kept it that way when Repede shook the water out of his coat. Yuri ducked behind his umbrella, making himself as small a target as possible to avoid getting drenched, and then had to duck again as the unicorn copied Repede. When it was safe, he peered up over the edge to see Repede sitting on the sidewalk, grinning a canine grin at him.
As soon as Yuri had closed his umbrella and taken a seat on the bench, the unicorn hopped up beside him. It wasted no time in making itself comfortable halfway into his lap, even going so far as to nuzzle beneath one of his hands to be petted. Its fur was only just barely damp, thick and soft between Yuri's fingers as the unicorn grew more solid than it had ever been outside his apartment. He wondered if anyone walking by would see it if they happened to glance over. No one did, though. No one even slowed down as they hurried on their way. At least, no one did until...
"He really does seem to like you." Yuri looked up upon hearing Flynn's soft voice, expecting the small smile that lit his face. "If we needed a unicorn tamer, I'd offer you a job." He was wearing the leather jacket again, this time with a sky blue hoodie beneath. He was haloed by his navy umbrella for a moment before he turned aside to shut it.
"How do you get started working for a company like that, anyway? Doesn't seem like the type of thing you can just run an ad for."
"You'd be surprised." There was that smile, again. It really was a nice smile. Yuri tried to push that thought aside.
"So, what happened? I seem to recall you being pretty sure you knew what you were doing when it came to unicorn removal."
Pulling his hank of gold paracord out of his pocket, Flynn shrugged. "Maybe it got turned around. I'll take it in a bit further this time."
As Flynn stepped closer, the unicorn glanced back over its shoulder at him. It didn't try to run or hide, merely sighed with a sound like the hiss of pneumatic brakes and flicked its tail at him. A few droplets of water splattered across Flynn's jacket, and Yuri snickered.
"He likes me better." His hand stilled on the unicorn's neck. "Hey...does he have to go back?"
"It's for the best. He'll be more at home back in Faerie, and less likely to cause trouble. You don't want him eating the rest of your CDs, do you?"
"I can keep those out of reach." He kept his eyes on the unicorn, not sure why he was even considering letting it stay. He didn't like complications.
"...Usually, unicorns can choose which humans will see them. Sometimes, though, there are people with just a little something in their blood, maybe just a trace, but it'll be enough for them to see things that no one else can."
A strange feeling twisted in the pit of Yuri's stomach. He'd never known his parents. Could this be a clue? If it was, did he even want to know? They'd certainly never shown any interest in him.
"Which am I?" He was careful to sound casual, to pick up stroking the unicorn's fur as if it didn't make any sort of difference.
"Oh, the unicorn definitely chose to show itself to you. About that—"
"Can we not? I'd rather you explain why it's bad that people with magic blood can see magic animals."
"Well, it isn't bad in and of itself, but it's risky. Say you're normal—so far as you know—and you're driving down the road one day and see a unicorn or a griffin or even a dragon. That kind of shock has caused accidents. Or, say someone notices a unicorn following them around and starts talking about it and insisting it's real to people who can't see anything. The next thing you know, they're labeled as insane and stuck with that for the rest of their life. It just isn't a good idea for magic to mix with the rest of the world. It doesn't tend to end well."
He bent and tied the cord around the unicorn's neck just like he had before. He checked to be sure it was loose and comfortable, then straightened up.
"Surprise me," Yuri said.
"What?" Wide with sudden confusion, Flynn's eyes were sunny sky blue even when the rest of the city was gray with rain.
"When I joked about you guys running help wanted ads, you said I'd be surprised. So, surprise me."
For a moment, Flynn hesitated. Then he sat down next to Yuri, letting the gold paracord hang loose in his fingers.
"We do actually have ads. There are publications exclusively for those aware of what's lurking around the corner from normal. Sometimes it's just...other ways of seeing." He fiddled with the paracord, smiling sheepishly. "I guess that sounds a little odd."
"Not as odd as it would have a week ago," Yuri said, remembering Judith looking through an upside-down phone book, remembering the way the ad she'd pointed out had fluttered beneath her fingernail as if trying to escape. "Go on," he said, when it seemed like Flynn was waiting for clarification.
"Well, anyway, we can advertise, but that isn't how I learned about all this. My, um...my father worked for Knights'. He used to tell me stories. Some of them were made up—I'm sure most of them were embellished—but there were some hidden in the mix that were true. There was a junk yard owner who kept chickens until a cockatrice was hatched from one of the eggs. A family of gnomes once tried to expand the subway system. A Leanan Sidhe—I don't suppose you've ever heard of those? Sort of like a vampiric muse.—started taking classes at the community college and feeding off the students." He stopped, his smile fluctuating between expressions more complex than Yuri could catch. "Not all of them were stories fit for a child, I suppose.
"The thing is, it's all still pretty rare. Knights' only competition is one other group—not that it's a traditional sort of competition. We'd much rather get there before the Hunting Blades, mostly in order to avoid bloodshed." He looked up suddenly to meet Yuri's eyes. "Whatever you do, don't ever call them to help you with something magical. They won't care if it's benevolent, harmless, or malicious—they will kill it."
Faced with Flynn's intensity, Yuri nodded. "Right. Hunting Blades are a no-go."
"Where was I? Right, there really isn't much call for my line of work, because these things mostly avoid humans. I didn't see anything for myself until...well, until years later. When that happened, I contacted Knights' and was eventually hired on."
Everyone had their secrets. Yuri ignored the holes in his story. "You like working for them?"
He considered his answer for a moment before nodding. "It can be strange and dangerous and, sometimes, doing our job right means that nobody knows we were there at all, but it's necessary. And," he reached out to stroke the unicorn's flank, "you see some really amazing things."
They sat quietly for a few seconds, petting the unicorn that rested between them, until their fingers knocked together. Flynn jerked his hand back and stood up.
"Your hand is freezing! I'm sorry, I shouldn't be keeping you out here. I'll be sure to get him further away from the border this time. Sorry for the trouble."
"No trouble," Yuri said. He felt colder than ever after Flynn had pointed it out, and slipped out from beneath the dozing unicorn. It looked up at him in reproach and faded back to the silvery glare of a rain-washed windshield. Goodbyes were brief in the face of his chilled skin and damp clothes and thoughts of the walk back to his apartment. Hot baths and blow driers were definitely in order.
He glanced back only once to see Flynn leading the unicorn into the park. He hadn't realized that among the paths there were trails leading to Faerie, but then, he was just a barista. What the hell did he know about magic?
It was still raining the next night when Yuri was woken in the wee hours of the morning by noises in the alley below his bedroom window. He sat up with a grumble, rubbing sleep out of his eyes and wondering what was going on. He'd heard alley cats before, heard raccoons, stray dogs, wandering drunks and homeless people seeking shelter, cars backfiring, people dropping things into the dumpsters and slamming the lids at all hours. Something about the noises that were rising from the alley wasn't right. They made his hair stand on end and chased away thoughts of sleep. He peered out the window, but couldn't make out details behind the rain-streaked glass and dull, orange glare of the streetlights. There was a sharp bang! as something hit the dumpsters, and Yuri thought he heard a groan. He flipped the latch and shoved the window open.
The wind took that for an invitation and blew right in, sprinkling Yuri and his bed with icy rain. Down in the alley below, he could just make out two figures. One was human, and familiar enough through two short meetings that he recognized Flynn after only a few seconds' uncertainty. He was staggering, one arm pressed over his ribs. His hair was plastered to his skull, and Yuri thought he could see a dark trickle down his cheek. It was the sword that had really thrown him off, though. Flynn—soft-spoken, sky-eyed Flynn—was wielding a massive broadsword, holding it up between himself and...and something in the shadows at the end of the alley, something that might have been a horse if Yuri had been willing to suspend his disbelief.
Disbelief won. Horses didn't move like that, didn't make the sort of hissing, gurgling noise of a badly clogged drain, didn't reek so strongly of stagnant water and rot that Yuri could smell it through the rain from four floors up. Horses didn't require the services of a sword-wielding magical animal control specialist if they got loose in the city. Yuri's tired brain logged all of this in the span of a few, hurrying heartbeats and informed him that, whatever Flynn was down there fighting, it wasn't a fucking horse.
Yuri flung himself away from the window. Weapon! He needed a weapon! Where the fuck was that bat from his last apartment? He dove into his closet, throwing clothes out of the way until he unearthed an old, wooden bat, a remnant of having lived in a bad part of town not all that long ago. Weapon in hand, he was back on the bed and out the window in a heartbeat.
He was halfway down when Flynn spotted him.
"Yuri? What are you—? Get back inside!"
"What, and miss your little party?"
"This isn't a game!"
He heard a grunt below him, and a choking sound from the monster. Risking a look down, Yuri saw the thing dancing away from Flynn's blade. It reared up and struck out with hooves like giant, rotting teeth, forcing Flynn back. He resumed his hurried climb.
"Do I look like I'm coming down to play?" The width of the bat in his hand took up too much of his grip and he nearly fell as his fingers slipped free of the rail. "Don't answer that," he muttered, trying to concentrate on climbing in the rain, keeping a grip on the bat, and ignoring the sounds of the fight from below. Shoes would have been a really good idea, he thought as he nearly lost his footing. Too late for that. Almost there.
"Yuri, don't put your foot down!"
The urgency in Flynn's voice had him pulling his leg back up almost before he comprehended the command. The horse-thing had placed itself right beneath him, close enough that Yuri could feel the chill that rolled off its greenish-black flesh tickling the bottom of his foot.
"Whatever you do, don't touch it! You'll stick to its skin, and it'll drag you under! Get back inside and let me handle this!"
"Drag me under where?" He eased up one more step as the creature tried to keep an eye on Flynn and him at the same time. Adjusting his grip on the bat, Yuri wondered if he could swing it down hard enough to stun the thing without falling off the ladder.
"The puddles!" Flynn lunged. The creature shied back, then snapped at him. Its neck seemed to stretch impossibly long and Flynn only barely manage to dodge. "I'll explain later! Get back inside!"
"And let you fight this thing alone? No way!"
"Yuri! These things eat people! If it catches you, all that's going to be left is your liver!"
He looked up, straight into Yuri's eyes. Whether he was trying to drive in the importance of his warning or just too angry to care didn't matter. What mattered was that the creature saw his distraction and charged. Instinct took over. Yuri swung the bat.
Yuri channeled all the strength he could into that one-handed swing, and the impact nearly knocked him off the ladder. He heard a squelch, as if he'd struck thick mud, felt the bat sink and stick, and was in trouble before he knew what was happening.
In a flash, the beast whirled. The bat was stuck fast in its flesh, and Yuri's grip on the bat was far more sure than his grip on the ladder. He was yanked off the fire escape and sent flying across the alley. The building opposite stopped him, dropped him to the ground to lie stunned and unable to see past the ink black will o' the wisps that filled his vision. He heard shouting, thought maybe it was his name being called. Pain, momentarily delayed, exploded across his back, exacerbated by his reflexive gasp as his lungs screamed for air, and then by the coughing fit that followed. He curled up, rolled onto his knees and arms. His forehead was pressed into a puddle of cold water and grit. He felt like he was going to vomit.
...away! Yuri!
Someone was still shouting his name. He leaned against the wall, practically crawled up it to get to his feet. He was surprised to find that he could stand, though he staggered when he tried to step away from the wall.
"Yuri! Answer me!"
He heard sounds: thuds, splashing footsteps, a grunt of effort, a growl like the gasp of a drowning man. He heard a sound like a cleaver striking flesh.
Flynn. Flynn was fighting a horse-monster. A man-eating horse-monster. A man-eating horse-monster that had Yuri's bat.
"Fuck." He spoke the word with feeling and immediately fell to coughing again. The black spots that had just cleared from his vision returned.
"Yuri, get clear! You can't let it touch you!"
A weapon. He needed something to fight back with, something he could use as a shield, at least. Anything!
A little further down the alley, set into the same wall that was currently holding most of his weight, was a door. Next to it, almost lost in the shadows, was a round, metal garbage can with its round, metal lid. Yuri went for it as fast as he could hobble, remembering how to hold himself up as he went.
"Yuri!"
He didn't look back, not until he had reached his goal and had the lid in hand. He swung it around in front of himself like a shield.
The creature was advancing on him, bleeding in gouts of blood like dark swamp water. It hissed, lips pulled back over piranha's teeth. Its eyes were like boiled eggs. Yuri waited until it was almost on him, then leapt aside. He staggered and almost missed his timing, but managed to get his bearings in time to throw himself shield first at the monster's head. He slammed it against the brick and braced himself against its thrashing.
"See how you like it! Flynn! Hurry up and shish-kebab this thing!"
The point of Flynn's sword struck the creature's side and kept going. Where Yuri's bat had gotten stuck, the gleaming blade pierced deep, drawing more of the monster's unsettling groans. Yuri's bare feet skidded across the pavement, slipping over dirty rainwater and bits of trash. He put all the strength he could into keeping the creature pinned, but he couldn't keep his feet planted for more than a second at a time between its thrashing and the dirt and detritus underfoot. He could feel himself slipping, knew that he would be kissing concrete in the next moment if Flynn didn't hurry up and—
"Get back! Don't let it touch you when it falls!"
A hand grabbed the back of his tank top, warm and human, reassuring despite the rough way he was yanked back. The trash can lid stuck fast to the monster, and Yuri scraped his fingers painfully as his grip was torn free. He was spun aside, went stumbling across the alley until the other wall caught him and he really needed to put a stop to that sort of thing. Panting, aching, he looked up from under the dripping fall of his hair to see Flynn standing between him and the monster as it struggled to get to its feet. Even Yuri, unfamiliar with whatever it was they had faced together, could tell that the thing wasn't going to be attacking again. It looked like it was having trouble even holding itself together. As he watched, its skin seemed to run like thick ooze. The trash can lid clattered to the ground. Yuri's bat fell free and rolled away. Just before the monster fell completely apart and dissolved into one more dirty puddle, Yuri thought he saw something in its shape change, thought he saw something almost human reach out an arm towards him. It was gone too quick for him to react. One more question for Flynn.
"Are you all right?"
Flynn's concern, the warmth rolling off him from where he stood so close, pulled Yuri's attention away from the spot where the monster had melted away. Standing up straight hurt, but he managed it and grinned.
"A little bruised. Not bad for my first monster fight."
"Let's hope it was your last. What the hell were you thinking?"
Yuri shrugged. "Kill the beast?"
He hadn't been thinking, really. He'd seen Flynn and seen the monster and he'd just reacted. There hadn't been time to plan anything out. He hadn't even paused to pull on his sneakers, for heaven's sake! Plucking at his tank top, he took stock of his injuries and the damage done to his clothes as Flynn started lecturing him.
"Do you have any idea how incredibly dangerous that was? If you had touched so much as a finger to its skin, it could have dragged you down into one of those puddles and eaten you while you drowned! Your liver would have been all that was left. I would have had to bring that back to your dog and tell him how sorry I was that his owner was such an idiot that he got himself eaten rather than stay out of the way!"
Yuri laughed. "You'd have done that?"
"What?"
"Brought Repede the news and given him your condolences. You'd have done that if I'd gotten myself killed?" He was smiling so wide that his cheeks were hurting now, too. Flynn had run out of steam and wasn't having an easy time getting back on track.
"Well, I mean, I couldn't just leave him in the apartment wondering, right? He's— It isn't his fault you've got an impulsive streak and no sense of self-preservation."
He was indignant and earnest. Yuri couldn't help but laugh. "You're a pretty good guy, you know that?" He waved a hand at the place where the monster had died. "What was that thing, anyway?"
Flynn sighed. "If we're going to start playing twenty questions, let's at least go inside. I'm not going to stand around chatting in the rain."
He started toward the mouth of the alley and Yuri followed him a few steps until he remembered something important.
"We'll have to climb back up." He pointed to where Repede was standing on the fire escape, watching them. "I left my keys inside."
"You—" Flynn sighed. "Right. Lead on."
Yuri had almost reached the first landing when he heard Flynn below him. "You're bleeding."
"I noticed."
He could feel the stinging scrapes and cuts on the bottoms of his feet. The rain made it hard to gauge how badly they were bleeding. His hands and arms hadn't fared much better, and most of his back felt like a giant bruise from where he'd smacked into the wall. Work was not going to be pleasant in the morning.
They said nothing more as they climbed back up to Yuri's floor and slipped in through the window. Both of them tracked blood and dirt onto the bed as Repede hovered anxiously, unhappy that he hadn't been able to join in the battle, and worried over Yuri's injuries. Yuri scratched him behind the ears and apologized for leaving him behind and tried not to wince as the mattress bounced beneath him as Flynn stepped down onto the floor.
"Where's your bathroom?" He glanced back and Yuri pointed out into the hall.
"Door on the right."
Flynn leaned his sword against the bed and made it right up to the door before looking back again. "Well? Come on. I don't mind helping you get patched up, but washing off the blood is your job."
"Huh?" He didn't move, immediately dismissing the offer of help. "It's fine. I got some band-aids and pain pills somewhere."
Flynn crossed his arms. "If the least you did was bruise your ribs, I'll be surprised. Get up and come let me take a look."
"Trying to get me out of my clothes?"
Yuri smirked, but Flynn didn't back off. Instead, his eyes narrowed.
"I am not the one that got thrown into a wall by an each-uisge. You aren't going to win this fight."
Definitely interesting. Laughing softly, Yuri gave up. He stood and trudged along obediently, trying not to wince or clutch his ribs. Repede trailed after him, tail waving slowly back and forth.
Despite being in Yuri's apartment, Flynn led the way and got to the bathroom first. He stood in front of the sink and leaned forward to examine his head in the mirror. Blood had trickled down the side of his face and been smeared over his cheek. Yuri watched him push hanks of his soaked hair out of the way to get a better look at the wound. His eyes looked glacier blue next to the blood. Yuri tore his attention away before Flynn caught him staring.
With the sink occupied, he sat down on the edge of the tub. Moving hurt, and he repressed a wince as he lifted one leg and brought his ankle to rest across his thigh. The bottom of his foot was red and filthy, embedded with dirt, bits of gravel, and a couple shards of glass. Looking at it seemed to make it sting even worse. Brushing away what he could, he bit the inside of his cheek every time his fingers brushed against something that had bitten a bit deeper into his skin. Carefully picking the glass free with his fingernails, he stretched to drop the fragments into the trash can. Spots of fresh blood were quick to well up among the shallower scrapes, and he turned on the tap to rinse his foot clean before moving on to the other one. Rivulets of pinkish water ran along the bottom of the tub as he shifted position. Taking advantage of the pause, he snuck a glance at Flynn. Head wounds of any sort made him antsy.
"You okay?"
"It looked worse than it was." He shook his hands over the sink, flinging drops of water free. Before realizing how thoroughly drenched his hoodie was, he tried to use it to dry his hands, but quickly gave up on that idea and cast about for something more effective.
"Beneath the sink."
He gestured at his head. "The blood. It's slowing, but—"
"I don't get a lot of company. No one's going to ask about the stains."
Yuri turned his attention back to his battered foot. After a moment, he caught movement out of the corner of his eye and heard Flynn open up the cabinet door. The quiet 'Thanks.' made him smile.
"So...you said that thing was a...?"
"Each-uisge." He sighed. "You're lucky to be alive. If something like that ever happens again, listen to me."
"I thought I did pretty well."
"Yuri...the each-uisge is much more dangerous than you're giving it credit for. It's rare that creatures like that make their way into large cities, but there are things even worse than what we fought tonight. If you don't take this seriously, you could very well be killed."
"You worry too much. I can take care of myself."
"You aren't trained to deal with these things."
"And yet I helped you kick ass tonight."
"Luck," Flynn insisted.
"Hey, I bet I could kick your ass with my luck." There was no immediate come back, and he looked up to see such an expression of incredulity on Flynn's face that he couldn't help but laugh. "That was a joke. I might have plenty of luck, but it's all bad." Turning his attention to the scrapes along his forearms, he added: "I could still kick your ass, though."
Flynn's expression quickly became thoughtful. When a crooked smile turned up one corner of his lips, Yuri realized with a little thrill that he was considering the idea. What would it be like to test himself against Flynn, a guy who fought monsters with a broadsword?
"I wouldn't bet on that. Do you have a first aid kit?"
"No. But if you need to wrap your head—"
Flynn waved him off. "I wasn't asking for me." He set his soiled towel aside and hiked up hoodie and leather jacket alike to reveal a utility belt. One pocket yielded band-aids and what looked like a regular, every day bottle of antiseptic spray. From another one, Flynn pulled a red blob almost the size of his palm. It was an odd sight, sitting on the counter. When Flynn picked up the spray to use on the cut just below his hairline, Yuri guided his curiosity away from the blob by picking up the thread of their conversation.
"Hey, don't think you can just say shit like 'I wouldn't bet on it' and not have to back that confidence up."
"Isn't confidence defined by knowing you can do something and not feeling the need to prove it?"
"Shut up. You can't pretend you weren't seriously interested. My gym's got a boxing ring. When's a good time?"
"Not tonight." Turning away from the mirror, he smiled indulgently.
"That isn't a no!"
"Take your shirt off. I want to get a look at your back."
"Just a couple bruises. I'm fine."
"You were thrown across an alley into a brick wall."
"It's a pretty small alley," Yuri said, fiddling with the hem of his shirt.
"Just humor me."
He moved away from the sink to stand behind Yuri. Unseen, his presence caused the skin on the back of Yuri's neck to prickle. Hesitantly, telling himself that he was only going so slowly because every movement hurt, Yuri stripped off his shirt. Flynn drew in a sharp breath as Yuri's back was exposed. The sound of it stiffened Yuri's spine even as he twisted to get a look at him.
"What?"
"There's a lot of blood. I didn't notice before." His hands hovered, not quite touching as he urged Yuri to turn back around. "Did you hit your head? Stupid," he muttered. "Sorry, that was a stupid question. Of course you did. Maybe it's like mine, then—looks worse than it is."
Suddenly, his hands were on the back of Yuri's neck.
The touch shouldn't have startled him the way it did, but Yuri jumped and leaned forward, hunching his shoulders away from Flynn.
"I'm sorry. Did I—?"
"Your fingers are cold," he lied. Yuri forced himself to relax, even pulled his hair over his shoulder and exposed more of his back. A shudder ran through him. He was cold and could feel eddies in the air as they brushed teasingly against his damp skin. He wondered how much of the wetness was water and how much was blood. It didn't help, either, the way Flynn's soaked clothes oozed chill against him. His fingertips had been like candle flames in comparison.
"I'm going to check beneath your hair," Flynn warned. "I think most of the blood probably came from a cut somewhere on the back of your head."
"Yeah, sure."
Hearing Flynn talk to him as if he had to be handled with kid gloves was worse than being tossed around by the horse-monster. His touch was tentative, and Yuri tightened his grip on his hair, twisting it further around his fingers. He felt Flynn turning aside layers of hair, nudging them gently out of the way, fingers walking through to pull it aside. In no time at all, he had found a place on the back of Yuri's head, above the level of his ears, where the dull ache sharpened to the sting of broken skin.
"You've got a pretty good gash here." His fingers prodded gently. "I think it's still bleeding a little, but it doesn't look like anything's embedded in it."
He moved away long enough to get a clean washcloth out from under the sink and wet it. There was no warning this time before his hands were on Yuri again, immediately searching out the wound. He pushed hair aside and pressed the cloth over the cut. When he had it where he wanted it, he grabbed Yuri's hand to replace his own, instructing him to hold the cloth in place. Again, he went and got a fresh washcloth and doused it beneath the faucet before reclaiming his seat on the edge of the tub. With fingertips braced lightly against Yuri's shoulder, he began gently brushing away dirt and dabbing at scraped and bruised skin with the washcloth.
The water tickled where it dripped down Yuri's back. His heart was beating just a bit too fast, and he was absurdly aware of his breathing, of how his back and shoulders rose and fell beneath Flynn's touch. Pressing the balls of his feet into the floor set off little twinges of pain and helped ground him.
Client. Monster hunter and unicorn removal specialist, he reminded himself. He's just trying to make sure I'm okay after I stuck my nose in.
Such thoughts weren't much help. He'd always had a weakness for earnest types like Flynn.
"I'm surprised you aren't inundating me with questions."
Fuck. He'd gotten preoccupied and now Flynn knew he was acting weird. "I'm gathering my thoughts."
There was a huff of breath behind him which sounded suspiciously like a laugh. He did his best to ignore it. Having Flynn in his bathroom touching his unclothed back was throwing him for a loop. Or maybe he was off-balance because of the monster. That explanation made sense, didn't it? He hadn't been scared of the horse-creature, though. Hadn't had a chance to be. To his embarrassment, he realized that Flynn was the sole source of his nervousness. Yuri liked him already, after only three meetings. He could tell that Flynn was a good guy. Even if nothing would come of their paths crossing, even if they never saw each other again, Yuri found that he absolutely did not want Flynn to have a poor opinion of him. It was infuriating. Normally, he couldn't care less about something like that.
"You know," he found himself saying, "I can probably take care of that on my own." The sooner Flynn left, the better. There was nothing to tie them together and, once he was gone, Yuri would be able to forget how important it felt that Flynn think well of him.
"I want to be sure there's nothing embedded in the scrapes. That gel will heal you up, but I don't think you want a bunch of dirt under your skin." He kept at his task, his fingers points of warmth on Yuri's skin as he gently cleaned the wounds. Yuri couldn't stand to have silence settle in over those careful touches.
"You patch up a lot of your customers, or is this a special service for repeat business?" He tried not to fidget as Flynn paused.
"You're the first. Most people run away when they're told that the monster they're seeing is going to eat them."
Was that amusement peeking through the clouds of disapproval? "You almost sound impressed."
"I am, in a way. I didn't think anyone could be that reckless."
"Ouch. I see you bleeding and come down—barefoot—to help you fight off a monster—no questions asked—and I don't even earn credit for bravery?"
Flynn's fingers stilled momentarily. "I didn't realize— I wasn't that badly hurt. You should have kept back and let me do my job."
Yuri rolled his eyes. As if that had actually been an option. "So, I get why no one else came to help, but how come no one called the cops? We were making enough noise."
Something about the question gave Flynn pause, though there was nothing in his soft voice to tip Yuri off to what it was when he answered.
"That's because, as far as most people are concerned, I'm just tilting at windmills."
"Huh?"
"Do you know how much of a relief it is to be able to talk to someone who just got pulled out of a normal life into this?"
"No...?"
"You thought you were crazy."
The assertion was made with such certainty that Yuri immediately turned to face him. Flynn was waiting to meet his eyes, serious, earnest, close enough that Yuri could feel the chill still rolling off his clothes. Yuri's gaze flickered down over the leather jacket, thin hoodie, jeans that clung to Flynn's thighs. His imagination had no trouble making a few inappropriate suggestions that Yuri ignored.
"You thought you were going crazy, didn't you?" His tone had softened, and it called Yuri's gaze back up to his. "Then you called me, and it was a relief when I took you seriously, when I came out and could actually see the unicorn. You can't tell me it wasn't a weight off your shoulders when suddenly someone could validate what you'd been seeing."
"Well, sure, but—"
"My mother can't see any of these things. She never could. She doesn't believe they exist. When my father—" He faltered, eyes flickering off to the side. It was the first trace of uncertainty Yuri had seen in him. "When my father didn't come home one night, we had no idea what had happened. She didn't believe me when I told her that the monsters had gotten him. Eventually, she convinced me that it had all been nonsense—all the stories he'd told me, and what I knew about why he never came home."
Sitting on the edge of the hole in Flynn's story from the day they'd met outside the park, Yuri kept quiet. He wouldn't have chosen to be someone Flynn confided in, not when they barely knew each other, but there was something in the story that Flynn needed to covey to him, so he was willing to listen.
"The first time I saw something—just a little piskie—I thought I was losing my mind. I didn't think it was real. It wasn't until I got in touch with someone from Knights' that had worked with my father that I had any proof that I wasn't going crazy.
"It gets to you, though, the fact that most people can't see these things. Or, if they do, they run screaming and want to pretend later that nothing happened. You can't tell anybody what goes on at work, because they'd think you were crazy. The only people you can talk to are your coworkers. I mean, I work with great people, don't get me wrong, but sometimes I'd like to be able to go out with a friend and be able to relax and, if I end up talking about work, they won't think I'm crazy and won't have already heard the story."
Sighing, he let his shoulders slump. He was practically pouting, and Yuri had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing.
"That's...a unique problem. But my question was: 'Why didn't anyone call the cops?'"
"Oh. Right." A hint of pink crept over Flynn's cheeks. "I'm sorry. I did intend to answer that, I just...got sidetracked.
"Most people don't see the world the way I—we," he amended, giving Yuri a measuring look, "—do. Anyone who heard us probably looked down and saw a couple of drunks arguing. No one wants to report that sort of thing because everybody figures the next person will. And no one shouted at us to keep it down because, whether they could consciously perceive it or not, they knew there was something bad in the shadows. Somewhere, deep down, they knew better than to draw attention to themselves."
"Uh-huh." He wasn't quite sure he understood, but chalked it up to magic and moved on. "Tell me about the horse-monster."
"Each-uisge." He tapped Yuri's arm. "Turn around. I was almost done washing your back. That's another reason you should have listened to me," he said as Yuri shifted on the edge of the tub. "My coat is pretty heavily reinforced to give me some extra protection. Your shirt is in tatters." He got up to re-wet the washcloth and Yuri shrugged.
"I've got more."
"Not my point, but never mind."
"Hey, if your shining armor is a leather jacket, what do you knights do in summer?"
"Sweat."
Flynn stayed for another three hours. After cleaning the grit out of Yuri's scratches and convincing him to eat the viscous gel in its thick, chewy skin, they'd left the bathroom to find dry clothes and a more comfortable place to talk. Yuri had loaned Flynn a t-shirt that was nearly too tight for him and a pair of sweatpants. He'd turned up the thermostat and hung Flynn's clothes over the backs of chairs and grouped them around the radiator in hopes of getting them dry. For himself, he'd slipped into a worn pair of jeans and an old sweater. The gel had worked wonders on all his cuts and bruises, and he made two mugs of hot tea and settled happily against the opposite arm of the couch from Flynn, warming his toes under Repede when the dog took up the middle cushion.
They talked about flesh-eating water horses and where in the city to get a good burger. They complained about traffic and crazy drivers and packed sidewalks and agreed unconditionally that there was no place else they'd rather live. Their talk drifted from the city at large to their own small slices of it, and the people they met therein. Flynn talked about how he'd had a professor in college who could read students' futures in their Scantron forms. Yuri told him about a new hire who believed she knew better than the customers what drink they actually wanted.
"There's a woman who works at the aquarium who is part elf," Flynn said. "She's got these ears—" He held his hands out to the sides of his head, molding the air with his fingers to give Yuri an idea of the size and shape. "Every time I see her, I can't believe no one notices. I don't think she even uses a glamor, really. I think she's just so sure of herself that everybody else doubts their own senses."
Something about that description struck a chord. "You aren't—? Are you talking about Judy?" He knew she worked at the aquarium thanks to their chats at the cafe. Until she'd seen the unicorn, however, he'd never thought there was anything unusual about her.
There was an eagerness in Flynn's grin over this new, if tenuous, connection between them. "You know her?" Curiosity—uncertainty?—dimmed his delight. "She's a...friend?"
"Regular at the cafe." Tired as he was, Yuri still caught the flash of relief. "I'm not your competition as far as that goes."
"No, that isn't— I mean, she's only a casual acquaintance." He looked down at Repede who had rested his traitorous head in Flynn's lap and turned his back on Yuri. His tail smacked lightly against Yuri's stomach, wagging as he got scratches between the ears. Flynn was blushing faintly. Feeling generous, Yuri let it go. For the moment.
"She was the one who gave me your number. Could have told me that she knew you," he grumbled.
"I've never mentioned that I work for Knights'. In fact, I think the only reason she took notice of me at all was because I was so shocked when I first saw her that I couldn't stop staring. She caught on right away that I knew she wasn't entirely human. We talk sometimes when I visit the aquarium."
He stroked Repede's fur, staring down at the dozing dog. For a moment, he opened his mouth to say something, then decided against whatever it was. Yuri let his head fall to the side to rest against the back of the couch as he watched Flynn.
"Is the whole 'seeing weird stuff'' thing something that you can learn? You told me that the unicorn chose to show itself to me—spare me the laughter, this time, all right?"
"I never laughed at you!"
"—but I don't think that horse-monster cared if I saw it or not."
"Yeah, I'd been wondering about that, myself. It's...extremely rare for a full-blooded human to be able to see creatures from Faerie. Not unheard of, but...it's actually more likely that you've got some of the old blood in you. What are your parents like? Anything odd about them? Strange quirks?"
"Wouldn't know." He'd turned his face away, but he still saw Flynn's head snap up, still felt the weight of his attention as he realized. "Never had parents. It's ancient history." He brushed the matter off and even smiled at Flynn to let him know that it didn't matter. It did bother him a bit, however, more than it had done in years. Wasn't it sort of important to know if you had magic in your blood?
Flynn nodded in understanding. He didn't offer an apology for bringing it up, for which Yuri was grateful. Instead, he merely continued on with what he had been saying.
"Sometimes, people can see from the moment they're born—whether they have the old blood or not. Mostly, that talent is quashed in regular people because we're always told that faeries and monsters aren't real. We're trained not to see. When that happens, there's still a chance that the talent can resurface or even be awakened if it had never presented before. That might be what the unicorn did for you."
"Awakened, huh? Like you?"
Flynn smiled crookedly. "Like me."
"If you could go back to sleep, would you?"
He didn't hesitate at all. "No. Why would I want to close my eyes to so many amazing things?"
"Amazing and dangerous, apparently." Yuri laughed slightly and sagged into the corner of the couch, letting his eyes slide shut. "Knew I liked you. You hiring?"
Flynn was quiet for a moment, long enough that Yuri cracked an eye open to peek at him. He was making a show of checking his watch.
"I hadn't meant to keep you up so—"
"You could at least give me an answer." Yuri swung his legs off the couch and slumped against the back of it, staring straight ahead. Disappointment had soured his mood. It wasn't just the implied rejection, but the fact that Flynn was trying to avoid the question entirely. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Flynn trading out the borrowed t-shirt for his hoodie and jacket. Yuri hoped they were still cold and damp.
"I don't think you're cut out for this job. You're reckless. You can't just rush in when dealing with some of the creatures we encounter."
"I can learn."
"Maybe. And maybe you'd get yourself killed."
"Sure you aren't only saying that to keep me from becoming just another boring coworker?"
He actually did Yuri the courtesy of considering that. "No. But my point is still valid."
"But you admit you're biased."
He picked up his jeans, folding them over one arm, and turned to face Yuri. "If I agree to think about it, can we part ways amicably tonight as friends?"
There was hope in his expression, and Yuri couldn't find it in himself to argue against the offer.
"Yeah, sure. Go get changed and get out, though. I'm supposed to open up shop tomorrow." He pulled out his phone, checked the time, and winced. "Today," he amended.
Judith showed up at the cafe. She walked up to the counter, smiling all the wider despite the fact that Yuri was exhausted, fed up, and completely aware that his face betrayed every minute of sleep he'd lost and every stupid question and unnecessary complaint he'd dealt with that day. Judith walked up like it was nothing. If Flynn was a knight in reinforced leather, she was a dragon slayer.
"Good afternoon, Sunshine. What's got you in such a mood?"
"Did you know that horse-monsters could come up out of puddles in the streets?"
"I knew the clever ones could." Her smile was impish. "Did you make a new friend last night?"
A lopsided smile broke through the heaviness of his exhaustion. "Actually, I kind of did. Not the horse-monster, though. We kicked its ass."
She folded her arms on top of the counter and leaned forward. "Ooh. Do tell."
"Want me to fix you something first?"
"Hazelnut soy latte. So, was this a thrilling first date, or enchanting happenstance?" She straightened up and followed along the counter as he poured soy milk into a tumbler and set it in place on the espresso machine to be steamed and frothed.
"That animal control guy you pointed me to showed up outside my apartment last night with a sword. He was fighting an—" He stumbled over the pronunciation, looking to her for confirmation. "—each-uisge?"
She laid a hand against her cheek. "Oh my. Those are quite vicious. I'm surprised someone would draw you into a fight like that."
"That isn't quite how it happened." He turned away, grabbing coffee to add to the soy milk.
"No?"
"No. I kinda...grabbed a bat and hauled ass down the fire escape."
Stir in a quick squirt of hazelnut flavoring and the drink was done. He was expecting the smile Judith fixed him with, the way it hinted at barely contained laughter. She was getting a real kick out of the thought of him setting out to do battle like an idiot.
"Just to be sure I understand properly, you attacked an each-uisge with a baseball bat?"
"There wasn't exactly time to come up with a plan."
"Of course."
She swiped her card to pay for her drink and left cash in the tip jar. Yuri had read accounts online about faeries paying with what looked like regular money but later turned out to be leaves and stones. He couldn't remember anything like that happening whenever Judith had left a tip.
The bell over the door chimed as more customers came in and headed for the counter.
"Looks like we'll have to chat later. Try to get some sleep tonight."
She smiled at him and turned away. As she stepped through a ray of sunshine from one of the skylights on her way to the door, Yuri was almost sure he could see long, pointed ears sticking out to either side of her head. He blinked, and they were gone, leaving Judith looking like any of the other customers, albeit with a more eye-catching hair color. As he mixed up a fresh round of drinks, he wondered if she had let him see or if he had noticed on his own.
Later that afternoon, Yuri was in the break room hanging up his apron and getting ready to clock out when he heard what he thought was the chime of the bell over the front door. Something in the sound was not quite right, however, and he turned to see the unicorn come trotting in.
"My tax dollars at work." He rolled his eyes and pulled his phone out of his pocket. "Come on. I was just leaving. I'll give Flynn a call on the way home. Maybe he can meet me while I'm waiting for the train."
The unicorn frolicked around his feet as he left the cafe. It was kind of a shame to have to send it back to Faerie again when it wasn't doing any harm, but then Flynn was kind of a know-it-all and it would be an even bigger shame to pass up this opportunity to point out that he seemed to be having a lot of trouble with this particular job. Feeling more alert than he had all day, Yuri called Flynn's number, ready to give him grief over his twice-botched job.
A woman answered. 'Knights' Animal Control.' Her tone was businesslike, lacking warmth or irritation. This was a woman who knew callers were seeking a specialized service and wasn't concerned with their customer service being nicer than whatever slim competition might exist.
"Hey, is Flynn around?"
'No. Do you need a member of our staff to handle an intrusion?'
"Intrusion? Is that the technical term for when monsters and things get loose in the city?"
'Sir, if you need assistance with something—'
"Kind of, but Flynn was handling my case. Is it his day off or something?"
'If this is work related and not an emergency, I can take your name and have him call you back.'
"Yuri Lowell."
There was a pause, presumably while she wrote down his name. Then: 'What's the nature of the problem?'
Yuri glanced down at the unicorn. It looked up at him with its eyes that sparkled with daylight stars, and he sighed.
"Actually, never mind. Don't worry about it."
'No message?'
"Nah. But can you tell me if you guys are hiring?"
The unicorn didn't seem to be holding a grudge for having been sent away twice. As far as Yuri knew, it might have considered it nothing but a game. It had walked alongside Yuri on his way home, occasionally pressing up against his leg and feeling about as solid as a strong breeze. Still wary of subway trains, it had watched him board and been waiting to meet him at his stop. Yuri had wondered if the unicorn had run to beat the train or teleported or if it could create portals between certain places the way Flynn had explained that the each-uisge had learned to do.
However it had managed to get there first, the unicorn certainly wasn't telling. It trotted along happily, sometimes keeping pace, sometimes galloping ahead. Yuri might lose sight of it for minutes at a time, see it only as a flash of silver like sunlight on glass, or a billowing coat when there was no wind. The unicorn inspected shop windows, drinking down the reflections until the glare of the sun no longer hid what was inside. It played with leaves that fell from the spindly maples planted along the sidewalk, leaping to spear them out of the air. Yuri smiled as he watched it vigorously try to shake loose a leaf that had gotten stuck too far down on its horn.
Brakes screeched suddenly right behind him. Yuri jumped and turned in time to see one car rear end another with a crunch. It wasn't a bad accident. The collision hadn't even been enough to set off the air bags. What bothered Yuri was that he could see the driver who had been at fault peering through his windshield not at the car he'd just hit, but at the place where the unicorn was playing with the leaves.
Yuri started walking faster. "Time to go," he muttered as he passed the unicorn. He was careful not to so much as glance down at it, though he did look back to be sure the drivers were all right. The man who'd been hit was getting out of his car, complaining to whoever he'd been speaking with over the phone. The other man looked dazed. Finally, he shook his head and stopped staring at the base of the tree. The unicorn had moved on, anyway. It followed Yuri as he hurried home.
What had happened back there? Had the driver seen the actual unicorn, or just the leaf being shaken around by something that wasn't there? Had the unicorn allowed him to see it? Was it a mix of natural talent, good lighting, and bad timing? Yuri snuck glances at the unicorn and tried to watch the people on the sidewalk and those behind the wheels of the cars on the road. How many of them might be able to see the unicorn? How many of them would write it off as a trick of the light?
The unicorn showed no concern over the accident, whether or not it had been to blame for the driver's distraction. Yuri wondered if Flynn would be able to shed any light on things, and resolved to try him again the next day. For the time being, he just wanted to get the unicorn home where, at least if if caused any problems, he would be the only one affected.
Repede greeted him at the door, glad he was home. Yuri could have sworn, though, that the dog shot him a look over the unicorn's reappearance, as if Yuri'd had something to do with it. The two of them were chasing each other around the small apartment in no time, however, and if Repede had any objections, they didn't show. Yuri let them have fun until Repede fetched his leash, announcing that it was time to go out for a walk.
There were no further fender benders on the way to or from the park. Yuri kept a sharp eye on the other people but, just like when it had first showed up, no one paid the slightest bit of attention to the unicorn. It might as well have not even been there. Slowly, he relaxed. What had happened on the way home from work had probably been a fluke. The unicorn was not an accident waiting to happen.
He picked up chili dogs from a street vendor on the way home. The unicorn sniffed curiously at the bag, but didn't seem interested once they were back and Yuri offered it a taste. It hopped up onto the couch next to him as he turned on the TV, and settled in at his side. Repede curled up on the floor, muzzle resting across Yuri's feet. Home wrapped itself around him, a concept more than a place, but the echoes of his wandering conversation with Flynn the night before—or, really, early that same morning—left him feeling obscurely lonely. Repede was the smartest dog Yuri had ever known, and the unicorn had its own eerie intelligence, but Yuri couldn't help wanting to have someone around that he could talk, joke, argue with. It had been a long time since he'd had a roommate and, although he had thought he'd adjusted, it seemed he missed that companionship more than he would have believed. Staying up to talk with Flynn when he ought to have been sleeping had brought that fact to his attention and underscored it.
Comfort had weighed down the unicorn's form until there was an actual creature on the couch with him, rather than a persistent shimmer of refracted light. Yuri stared down at it, curious and struck with a little bit of the wonder that he figured a regular person ought to have felt the whole time. There was a unicorn stretched out over his lap. An honest-to-goodness, real, live unicorn. Magic was real. Monsters were real. The normal world was an opalescent soap bubble ready to pop as it sat over top of legends and children's stories and tried to pretend they weren't there.
It was all a little much to think about.
A sudden curiosity inspired Yuri to grab the remote and flip to a channel that was nothing but static. He watched as the unicorn's hide began to twitch in irritation as the light of its coat simmered. When it looked up at him, Yuri had to turn his head away. He could only stand feeling the weight of its stare for so long, however, and changed the channel back after a few seconds. Almost immediately, the unicorn's hide smoothed out. It laid its head back down on his lap and went right back to sleep. Yuri wasn't sure whether to be frustrated or admire its nerve.
"Why me?" he asked it. "I mean, I'm not exactly traditional unicorn bait." Not that the unicorn that had adopted him was a traditional unicorn.
Hesitantly, he reached out to stroke its flank. It felt strange, almost insubstantial, as if he was petting the pressure of sunlight on skin rather than a flesh and blood animal. For all he knew, the unicorn wasn't actually flesh and blood, after all. Real animals weren't invisible to most people. Real animals couldn't walk through glass or let dust motes drift right through them.
"You know this is crazy, right? You shouldn't exist." The unicorn didn't care about little details like that. It sighed, a soft sound like bare feet over carpet, and shifted to make itself more comfortable. Yuri shook his head and tried to focus on the TV. All the while, his hand stroked gently over soft fur, thick ruff of mane, velvety ears, a horn as delicate as the thinnest glass...
Someone was knocking at the door. A few raps, a pause, a few more raps. The sound was polite, but insistent, and Yuri groaned into his pillow as he pulled the covers closer.
"Chase 'em off, Repede," he mumbled. He felt the shift of sheets and mattress as Repede got up to go bark and hopefully warn off whoever had thought it would be a good idea to wake him up before his alarm. It took him several long moments to realize that Repede wasn't barking. He heaved a sigh and pressed his face deeper into the pillow. There weren't many explanations for that.
"Just paid the rent. Hope they're not spraying for bugs. Don't suppose you'd have to worry about that," he joked tiredly. Reaching back, he tried to pet the unicorn that had insisted on sleeping in the bed with him. He realized that feeling around blindly for an animal with a razor sharp horn was a bad idea when he jammed his palm onto the tip.
"Shit!" He yanked his hand back, opening up a cut across his palm as he did so. The unicorn was on its feet immediately, shying away as Yuri tried to throw back the covers and sit up without using his bleeding hand.
"Shit. Shit, that hurts like hell." He peered at the wound, holding it under the wan daylight that had found its way in through his window. Blood was flowing freely, quickly filling his palm. He needed to get his hand wrapped.
Repede had rushed back in at that first shout. He whined softly as Yuri got up and hurried past him into the bathroom.
"Yeah, I know, pal. Looks like all this magical stuff isn't good for my health. Maybe I'm cursed."
He wadded up toilet paper and pressed it over the gash. Seeing all the layers of it go red within seconds wasn't reassuring. He was reaching under the sink for a towel when the unicorn came in, its hooves clopping softly over the linoleum.
"Didn't mean to startle you," Yuri muttered.
The knocking finally subsided with a single tap that sounded sadly aware of its futility. Yuri had a moment of hope that whoever it was would go away, but then he heard a familiar, soft voice call his name through the door.
"Shit." What the hell was Flynn doing at his apartment first thing in the morning? He looked from the unicorn to his hand and back again. "I can't rub it in his face that he hasn't done his job if he gets to come in here and tell me 'I told you so!'"
With a quick hop, the unicorn was up on the edge of the tub. It stepped forward carefully, tossing its head until Yuri realized that it was trying to indicate his hand.
"What, you want to take a look? Was that gel stuff Flynn had me eat made with unicorn spit or something?" He heard Flynn call his name again and wished the guy would take a hint.
The unicorn sniffed his hand. Bowing its head, it arched its neck and drew its horn slowly and carefully across Yuri's palm. Yuri held very, very still. Faintly, he could hear his phone start ringing in the bedroom. Not hard to guess who that could be. He ignored it, barely daring to breathe until the unicorn was done for fear of startling it. When it lifted its head to stare at him, the pain was gone. The bleeding seemed to have stopped, as well. In his room, his phone went silent.
Leaning out into the hall, he shouted at the door. "Just a minute!" Flynn could wait a bit longer. Ducking back into the bathroom, he stared in astonishment at his hand. He flexed his fingers, made a fist. There was no pain, not even the warm, tight feeling of a recently healed wound. He grinned at the unicorn.
"Neat trick. Does it work on anything, or is it just sort of an undo button for that skewer of yours?"
The unicorn hopped onto the back of the toilet and, from there, to the counter where it began drinking the reflection out of the mirror.
"That just came back the other day," Yuri said. He didn't bother to stop it. Flynn was still waiting outside and, although his hand was healed, it was still covered in blood. He washed up quickly and went to open the door.
"Hey, Flynn, what's—"
"What took you so long?" Flynn took a good look at him and went from irritated to concerned in no time. "Are you all right?"
Right at that moment, Yuri's alarm clock went off, shrieking its shrill beep through the apartment. Yuri fixed Flynn with the most deadpan stare he could manage, lifted a hand—his magically healed hand—to push back the tangled mess of his hair, and waited for him to draw his own conclusions.
"Oh. Sorry to wake you."
"Forget it." The alarm cut off suddenly, probably thanks to Repede stepping on the button. Yuri moved back, sweeping a hand out in welcome. "Come on in. I'll make breakfast."
"I hadn't intended to stay long."
"All right." He turned away, heading for the tiny kitchen and forcing Flynn to come in if he wanted to continue the conversation. "More French toast for me."
"That's— You cook?"
"Why does that always surprise people? By the way, the unicorn's back."
It nickered from the bathroom, sounding like water sloshing down old pipes.
"Again?" Flynn glanced down the hall, but followed Yuri into the kitchen.
"Guess he really likes me. I need a name for him. What do you think about 'Spike?'" Opening the fridge, he pulled out milk, eggs, and butter.
"You aren't really thinking of keeping it." He had to back out of the way for Yuri to get to the cabinet where he kept bowls.
"Well, since someone hasn't been able to relocate him—"
"I took him all the way into Faerie the second time!"
"Maybe he doesn't like to commute." He cracked a few eggs into the bowl, added a splash of milk, and whisked it all together with a fork. "Hand me the cinnamon and sugar out of that cabinet behind you. The girl I spoke with yesterday said you guys were hiring."
Flynn passed him the cinnamon and set the sugar bowl on the counter within reach. "That's actually what I came over to discuss with you. I told you I would think about it, so why—?"
"Are you in charge of hiring?"
"No, but—"
"Keep thinking about it, then. Let me know if you decide I can use you as a reference." He poured a bit of sugar into the bowl, added an enormous amount of cinnamon, and mixed it all in. Then, on the firm belief that there is no such thing as too much cinnamon, he added a couple shakes more.
"Can you please trust me when I tell you that keeping to your normal life is in your own best interest?"
"That's pretty hypocritical of you. Now that I know magic and monsters are real, I don't want to turn away from them, either."
"I'm not asking you to ignore these things, I'm telling you that if you rush in you're going to get yourself hurt. I'm asking you not to apply for a job."
"Hey, if Knights' won't hire me, I can always try those Hunting Blade guys."
"You wouldn't join them."
Yuri hadn't expected Flynn to call his bluff so quickly, or so confidently. He slung a frying pan onto the stove and cut a couple slices of butter into it to melt as it heated.
"How would you know?" He asked quietly.
"Because I warned you about them, and because you aren't the type of person that would do the sort of things they do."
"You don't know me well enough to say that." How could he?
"I've got a better idea than you think. Talking to you has filled in a few details, but unicorns only—"
Yuri slammed down the spatula he'd just pulled out of the drawer and rounded on Flynn. "Okay, even assuming that any part of its weird, virgin girl radar is functioning properly, how the hell would that tell you what kind of person I am?"
"It wouldn't." Flynn's smile was way too damn amused. "I tried to tell you before—that part of the unicorn lore is nonsense. They're attracted to people with pure hearts."
"...oh."
"Yes, 'oh.'"
Well, damn.
"I still have that bat, so don't you dare laugh at me."
Humor thickened Flynn's voice. "I wouldn't dream of it."
In the end, Flynn convinced Yuri to let him take the unicorn one more time.
"The law of threes is magically significant," he'd said. "The third time might actually be the charm."
Yuri had agreed, reluctantly, but only because the unicorn still didn't have any qualms about Flynn—although Spike refused to let him loop the gold paracord around his neck unless Yuri was holding him. Aside from the fact that the unicorn wasn't afraid of Flynn or where he would be taken, there was still the matter of the accident. Yuri hadn't mentioned it to Flynn, but it wasn't far from his thoughts and it drew some of the heat from his arguments. Eventually, he decided to leave it up to chance. If that rule of threes or whatever it was really did work and keep the unicorn where it belonged, then so be it. If the unicorn didn't give a shit about that sort of thing—and Yuri secretly believed this would turn out to be the case—then Repede would have a new playmate and the city would have to get used to a resident unicorn.
He saw Flynn and Spike off with a wave and went to get ready to leave for work.
The cafe was busy from the moment the doors opened. Yuri barely had a moment to think between orders. Judith came by again, and he figured she was probably there to talk, since he'd never seen her two days in a row before. He wondered if he would be seeing more of her now. Elf or not, she definitely had some knowledge about the sorts of things he'd been running into lately, and she'd been ready enough to help. Maybe she was like Flynn and looking for someone she could be friends with who wouldn't think she was crazy. Maybe she just thought it would be amusing to hear about Yuri diving headfirst into a world where he was out of his depth. Either way, busy as the cafe was, they didn't get a chance to swap stories. Yuri fixed her drink as she teased him about looking much less intimidating than he had the day before. She took her drink and wished him a good day. As she left, Yuri watched carefully and realized with no small satisfaction that he could see the long points of her ears. He smiled. He was definitely getting better at all this faerie stuff.
There were a couple of lulls, times when the gap between customers was wide enough to allow him to get the counters and machines wiped down and still have a few moments to pause and take a breath. In those spaces, his hand strayed to his pocket, to the feel of his phone resting there, turned off while he was at work, but now housing not only the number for Knights' Animal Control, but Flynn's personal cell phone number, as well. He'd given it to Yuri that morning before leaving with Spike. He'd smiled softly and said it was in case Yuri ever wanted to give him a call. It was a connection, now that the matter of the unicorn would be decided one way or the other. Yuri touched his phone and tried to remember the last time he'd had a chance to cook for someone aside from himself. Maybe dinners at home wouldn't always be quite so quiet any more.
The day flew by. Yuri was smiling as he clocked out, a tiny quirk of his lips that he couldn't banish for more than a few seconds. He was in an uncommonly good mood. Funny how having something to look forward to could do that for a guy.
On his way out, he heard a customer up at the counter complain to the flustered barista that she had ordered whipped cream on her drink. Looking back, he saw the unicorn standing calmly on the counter between staff and customer, unobserved. He looked up at Yuri and licked traces of whipped cream off his muzzle before leaping down to the floor, ready to follow him home.
Yuri's smile blossomed into a full-blown grin. It looked like he needed to stock up on unicorn treats. He wondered what would be the cheapest place to by a spindle of blank CDs.
It was two days later that Yuri gave Flynn a call.
'Thank you for calling Knights' Animal Control. This is Flynn. How can I help you?'
"You ever gonna start checking your caller ID?"
'Yuri?' The way he could hear the smile in Flynn's voice warmed something inside him. 'I was wondering how long it would take you to call. How are you?'
"All right so far, but this isn't entirely a social call. Notice I used your work number."
'Ah. What's the trouble? Or is the unicorn back again?'
"Spike wasn't even gone a day. He's good, though. Repede and I like having him around. Thing is...I think my apartment's haunted."
'That isn't really my specialty, but what led you to believe that?'
"The laundry did itself while I was at work yesterday, and I just woke up to find the kitchen mopped and the bathroom cleaned."
'It sounds more like you have a brownie than a ghost. You haven't thanked it, have you?'
"Should I?"
'Not if you want to keep it happy. Listen, I've got a few jobs lined up today, but I can come over this evening. If you've got work, put out a bowl of fresh cream before you go.'
"Can do. Dinner after the exorcism?"
Flynn was silent for a moment. Then: 'There won't be an exorcism. And...dinner would be great. I'll see you at seven?'
Yuri grinned. "It's a date."