Jim and Claire had gone to the Lake House with Blinky that night, hoping to catch Barbara awake to take her with them to trollmarket. The teens had wanted her to experience The beauty that was the market properly this time, to appreciate the magical world right under their feet.
The moment the teens were through the back door, Barbara leaped up from her position at the couch before heading over and encasing them in a tight hug. "Oh, thank goodness you're alright… anything hurt?" She asked, already visibly scanning the teens over for any signs of an injury.
Finding none, the doctor nodded before turning to the troll that had followed her son and his girlfriend in concern. "Blinky? Is something wrong?" She asked, a hand on the teens' shoulders.
"Oh, I am not here for something that is bad, Lady Barbara. In fact, I am here under the insistence of the children to bring you along." The troll said, a wide smile plastered on his gentle face.
"Bring me along?" The doctor asked, her gaze falling down to her son who smiled up at her.
"We're getting to see trollmarket tonight!" Jim exclaimed, his smile slowly turning into a wide, excited grin at the thought of heading into the market. Barbara gasped, her eyes wide in surprise before immediately pulling in her son for a hug, knowing that he had spent all fifteen of his years in this universe longing for a glimpse of the mysterious trollmarket.
Barbara couldn't believe that after all that time, after all those nights her son would return from a mission, exhausted and covered in bruises, he had finally gotten his reward. She could only imagine the beauty of the place Jim had explained to her, beautiful glowing gems, neon lights and signs, the busy streets of the peaceful market.
A wide smile split her son's face almost in half, his shoulders shaking ever so slightly with his small relieved exhale before she pulled away to face them again. "Mom…" he started, holding onto her hand. "Do you want to come with us to trollmarket?" he asked, hoping to show his mom the amazing and misunderstood world hidden beneath their feet.
"I would love to…" the doctor smiled, giving her son's hand a gentle squeeze.
To say she was scared would have been an understatement, she was terrified. The four of them had walked through the forest to a clearing where a giant mass of black stood, mostly hidden within the shadows. From what she had seen from TV and from what her son had described him as, the Dark Prince was definitely much more intimidating in real life than from the safety of her home.
He was huge and easily towered over Blinky who was already much taller than Barbara- and she was taller than most! She took note of the many skulls of creatures that decorated the troll prince's belt, of the two enormous swords on his back, of his bright glowing red eyes that burned with obvious distrust of the woman. And to think, once upon a time, in another universe, in another timeline, her son had faced this nightmare of a troll that could easily crush a human with one hand at the age of fifteen and took him down.
She stiffened the moment Bular had lumbered closer, her son giving her hand a reassuring squeeze, his gaze never leaving the troll prince.
"Ah! Bular!" Blinky exclaimed, walking closer, Claire not too far behind the teal troll. "It was very kind of you to allow Master Jim's mother to come along."
"I do not approve of this. One human is already too much…" the dark Prince rumbled, holding back a growl.
"Oh come on, big guy. The kid's been helping us trolls out for years, he at least deserves this much." A female voice spoke, stopping the forming protest from Blinky and gaining the attention of the doctor as a green gutter troll walked out from behind Bular, a grin on her face. "Hey, name's Deya. You already know Bular I suppose. He does like to show up on human TV a lot." She greeted, stepping closer to the humans.
Barbara took note of how her son stiffened at the sight of the female troll. From what she remembered from her son's tale, Deya was someone he truly looked up to, she was one of his predecessors after all.
Catching her breath, Barbara stepped forward hesitantly extending her hand out for a greeting, her eyes gleaming with determination. "Barbara, Barbara Lake. It's an honour to meet you, miss Deya."
The troll's grin widened as she took hold of the Doctor's hand before pulling her close and slinging an arm around her shoulders. "Please, formalities were never my style, just call me Deya."
Jim smiled at the sight in front of them, glad that the trolls were kind of accepting his mother. The walk to the canals was short but filled with conversations between the group, and surprisingly, when he wasn't trying to kill people or yelling threats, Bular was someone quite pleasant to converse with and the once trollhunter found out when their topic of discussion turned to food.
Soon they stood under the arcadia bridge, leaving Barbara questioning why they had stopped when Blinky pulled out a horngazle and handed it over to Bular in order to open the entryway into the market. The doctor watched with a raised brow but her son quickly caught it and chuckled just as he explained what they were doing.
"Guess we don't have to tell you how to use the horngazle, huh skinny?" Deya called out, earning a giggle from Claire at the nickname as Jim practically deflated at it.
"My legs aren't that skinny… are they?" Jim grumbled before looking to his mom and girlfriend for confirmation, to which they left his query unanswered as the gateway opened up to allow them entry.
The tunnel was dark with a soft hue of blue from within. Barbara, yet again, felt terrified as she stared down the mouth of the tunnel. Noticing her hesitance, Jim took hold of his mother's right hand, giving it a firm and comforting squeeze with a gentle smile on his face that told her that everything would be alright.
Claire had gone in after Bular and Deya while Jim eased his mother through the gateway where Blinky stood waiting for the mother son duo. Barbara shut her eyes and held her breath the moment she stepped through the portal, causing Jim to chuckle at his mother's antics.
Her cheeks puffed up with the air she needed to exhale as she hesitantly opened her eyes to the sound of her son's soothing words of comfort that were also laced with amusement. She let out a breath the moment she realised she was safe, Jim never once letting go of her hand.
"See? It's not that bad, mom." Jim said with a chuckle as he started to slowly lead her to the staircase, Blinky not far behind them.
"The tunnel is indeed intimidating, but I assure you, Lady Barbara, you'll be wonderfully surprised by the market." The teal troll said with a smile as he took a step down the staircase, lighting up their path. Slowly but surely, they managed to catch up to the other three of their group, stopping at the base of the stairs to stare at the magnificence and beauty of trollmarket.
Jim stopped in his tracks, allowing the familiar buzzing energy of the heartstone to fill him with warmth and comfort. Tears started to flow from the teen's eyes as he watched the market below, trolls and other magical creatures roamed around the streets, just as peacefully as he remembered it to be.
Claire walked over to her boyfriend, reaching out to grab a hold of his hand as she leaned into his side, tears also flowing from her eyes as they watched the market in silence that confused the trolls who looked to Barbara, the woman being too occupied by the sights to notice their questioning stares.
"It's just as beautiful as I remember it…" the shadowmancer whispered quietly enough for the trolls not to hear as she wiped away some tears.
"No… it's much more beautiful than before…" Jim said almost too soft for his girlfriend to hear, unable to stop the flow of his own tears as Claire reached up to wipe them away with her thumb. "Look at them all, Claire… the magic diversity… the union and peace… this is what I want to bring to the surface…"
"And you will, Jim." Claire said sternly, as they took a couple of minutes more to calm down, watching the world of magic and trolls they swore to protect.
"Master Jim? Lady Claire?" Blinky spoke up after a while, observing how the two were taking in the sights. "We must take you all to meet with Vendel." The teal troll said the moment their gazes fell on him.
"Vendel?" Barbara spoke up as she took note of the two other trolls, or rather, the lack thereof.
"Ah, Vendel is the elder of the market." The troll exclaimed with a small smile. "He keeps track of everything that happens around here, Bular and Deya have gone ahead to inform him of your arrival."
As they made their way down the steps, Barbara continued to look in awe at everything while the teens just smiled and stayed close to the two adults.
"Now stay close, Lady Barbara. Human feet have never stepped foot onto the ground of trollmarket before." Blinky informed, pulling Barbara closer the moment she started to wander off.
Barbara just looked at the teal troll in confusion and she motioned to two humans talking to each other outside of the pub. "But they're human aren't they?" She asked after a while, earning a chuckle from the troll.
"One is a faye, the other is a wizard." Blinky clarified, earning a confused look from the woman next to him. "You see… the market is filled with all sorts of magical creatures, that also includes wizards. At this very moment, you, Lady Barbara, are the only true human to ever step foot into the market."
Hearing his father figure explain, Jim couldn't help but give him a small questioning look as he stepped up next to his mom. "What about me?"
"I'm pretty sure you count as a magical creature, Jim." Claire said with a soft smile, standing next to Blinky, only to watch the confusion on her boyfriend's face grow. "Don't tell me you didn't notice?" She asked a brow raised as she suppressed a chuckle.
"Notice what?"
"Master Jim, you are a being of magic." Blinky stated, the boy only looking between the troll and the shadowmancer in disbelief before shaking his head.
"No, no. That can't be right! I'm not a wizard!" He exclaimed in a slight panic. "I-I'm not a wizard…" he said weaker, looking up to his mother.
"Jim…" Barbara started as she stepped closer to place her hands on her son's shoulders. "It doesn't matter what you are, kiddo. You're still my son, and I love you because you are my son." She comforted, bringing the teen in for a hug.
"That's nice, but I'm pretty sure Jim isn't a wizard." Claire said, matter of factly, earning her confused gazes from the other three of the group as she continued walking towards the heartstone.
"What do you mean, fair Claire?" Blinky asked, following after the shadowmancer, the other two not far behind, their minds also racing with questions.
Claire glanced back over her shoulder at her companions before sighing. "I can't put my finger on it but your magical signature… it's… confusing…" she admitted, cradling her arms close to herself. "It's like… a kaleidoscope. Constantly changing and pulsating with magic- do you follow?" She asked, looking at all their confused faces.
The moment they gave her a shake of their heads, she sighed and tried again. "Shadowmancy is a branch of magic that's mostly affected by the emotional state of the user, the stronger the emotion the stronger the spell cast." She explained before starting to try and paint images in the air with her magic, using a small shadow figure of herself, Jim, Blinky, and Barbara.
"When a shadowmancer connects with an emotional anchor, we usually try to find a sense of familiarity within the emotions or magic. For humans," she started, bringing the representation of Barbara closer to her own representation. "Those emotional anchors stem from a memory or close relations since there's no magic to latch onto. For magical beings, it's a different story."
With a wave of her hand, the figure of Blinky came closer, a mist of some sort surrounding both of the figures. "Since both are magical, it's much easier for the magic to recall the signal of the target and is therefore much easier to connect with. Usually, magical creatures only have one steady magical signature, sometimes two or three." She went on to explain, pointing at the purple mist.
"But you, Jim," another flick of her wrist brought the figure of Jim closer, a mist surrounding him before starting to change and pulse and was overall a sense of chaos. "Your magical signature continues to change and shift, like a kaleidoscope for a lack of a better description. Beautiful yet chaotic and confusing." She said before dispersing the magic as she looked over the three. "Make sense?"
"I… I guess it does…?" Jim was the one to speak up first. "But what does that mean?"He asked weakly, looking at his girlfriend with pleading eyes, craving for answers they didn't have.
Claire cast her gaze down to her feet. "I… don't know, Jim. All I know is that it's there and that makes you as much a magical creature as me and Blinky."
Jim took a deep breath, looking down to the ground. He couldn't wrap his head around it, he hadn't realised that he had magic, untrained magic that could have lashed out at any time and he wouldn't have had a way to control it. And that terrified him.
"Blinkous! Blinkous Galadrigal!" The booming voice of a certain elder troll sounded, bringing then group back from their earlier conversation as a pale troll lumbered forward, followed by a much smaller pink troll that the teens recognised as Nomura.
The teel troll straightened up and stepped forward defensively in front of Barbara, his four hands pressed together as he spoke to the elder. "Vendel! We were about to come meet you!"
"Bular and Deya have informed you that you brought in a human?" The elder hissed lowly, leaning forward to glare at the shorter troll.
"It is only fair! Lady Barbara has been helping us along with her son, Master Jim!" He exclaimed quietly, motioning towards the woman behind him. Jim stepping closer to his mother to make sure she stayed calm.
"Barbara? Barbara Lake?" Nomura spoke up in surprise, her features relaxing as she faced the new additions to trollmarket, recognition in her tone and eyes.
Barbara squinted at the mention of her full name, the troll's voice one she associated with a certain Asian woman in her krav maga classes that she had grown close to. As if struck by a log in the gut, the doctor's eyes widened as she took a step forward. "Zelda?" She tentatively asked, earning her amused looks from the elder troll.
"It really is you, Barbara…" the changeling trailed off before howling in laughter. "I should have guessed you had something to do with all of this." She said, wiping away a tear as she grinned and hugged her friend close, a hug that was reciprocated by the human in her hold.
"I never would have guessed you were a troll! H-how is this even…?" She trained off, looking over the pink changeling with curiosity filled eyes.
The changeling only smirked and turned her gaze back to the elder before she spoke again, her arms crossed. "She's safe, Vendel."
"And you are sure about this?"
"She has my trust. I've known her for long enough to know her intentions."
With a tired sigh, the elder nodded before bowing his head to the newcomers. "Then I, Vendel, son of Rundle, son of Kilfred, elder of trollmarket, welcome you to our home and sanctuary."
Claire and Jim both bowed back with a gracious smile, Barbara following their lead as she recalled her trollish lessons with Blinky. "I, Barbara Lake, am pleased to be here." She said, or at least attempted to which earned her a pleased hum from the elder.
"And trollmarket is pleased to have you here." The elder said before turning around to head to the heartstone. "Now come along, we have much to discuss, the tree of you." And with that they were off to the heartstone in order to discuss their plans and better equip the teens for future endeavours.
Soft gold eyes fluttered open, a nose twitched in a sniff as the small green form of a being stirred from its cat-like slumber. With a yawn, she leaned down and gently nudged her sleeping brother underneath her using her antlers.
With an exhausted groan, icy blue eyes opened and scanned their surroundings briefly before settling on the green form snuggling on his chest. "Nari? Why did you wake me up?"
"Skrael," Nari started, stifling a yawn as she adjusted the pile of black feathers that belonged to their sister between herself and her brother. "Heartstone is reacting. We must tell Douxie." She said, getting up on her feet, still clutching onto the pile of feathers as she started to hurry off and out of their small makeshift room within the heartstone.
Stifling his own yawn of exhaustion, Skrael got up and stretched with a huff, reaching over to the bedside where three staves stood, he picked up all of them before hurrying after his energetic sister. "I still do not understand how you can run around like that after having their magic drained, Nari." He said, stepping next to the smaller green being who was knocking ever so gently on a door across from their own.
On the third knock, the door lit up with a blue glow before being opened, a teen sitting at a work desk, seemingly engrossed in whatever it was he was doing, a black cat perched on the cat tree not too far from the boy as if watching his every move.
The little plant goddess stepped into the room, bounding closer to the punk rock teen as she observed what he was doing. The teen stopped for a second, giving the goddess a pat on the head with a gentle smile. "Felt it too, Nari?" He asked before turning to face Skrael who stood by the door.
"Something has started to affect the heartstone. Whatever it is, we must find it, and figure out how and why." The teen said, handing the small piece of heartstone he was working on to his fellow mages before giving his cat a scratch behind the ear. "Take a look at this"
Skrael took the rock in his hands and inspected it observing the odd shift in colors as if coated by a layer of thin paint. "What is this?" He asked, handing the piece of stone over to his sister.
Nari held the heartstone piece up to the light, her face scrunched up in confusion before she gasped and stared at the master wizard in training. "Heartstone." She voiced, earning a confirming nod from the younger wizard.
"What? Why does it look so… off?" The ice mage asked in surprise. They knew a Heartstone could come in different arrays of colors ranging from the brightest of reds to the deepest of blues, never a mix. Yet there they were, handing a blue coated orange Heartstone.
"I'm not sure, but whatever is causing this is also setting off a higher magical signature and affecting the rest of the heartstone around us…" the wizard stated, picking up his cat and petting his head who purred at the contact.
"It is strong enough to change the primordial heartstone." Nari stated, cradling both the bundle of feathers and the colorful heartstone. Something interesting was about to happen, good or bad they didn't know, but whatever it would be, they hoped it to be a good omen.
A/N: Not as long as I'd like but I hope you enjoyed this one! Slowly, we'll get into the juicy parts of this story.
