Chapter 9

Numb

May

Brooklyn's POV

"Hudson?" I asked.

"What is it, lad?" He asked.

"I don't think Talia's doing too well." I looked over at the table where she was staring blankly.

"She suffered too many blows at once. A double dose of heartbreak and losing Goliath and Elisa was too much. I'm just glad she came to visit." He smiled sadly.

"Keep her safe. We'll be back before morning." I said and I flew out to patrol the city.

Brooklyn's POV End

Talia's POV

Brooklyn left and Hudson looked at me before watching TV. Cagney curled up on my lap and tried to make me feel better. It didn't work. I sneezed suddenly and sniffed.

"Bless ye." Hudson said.

Cagney settled back down and I rested my hand on her back. She seemed happy about that. My eyes went in and out of focus many times before someone returned. It was Broadway.

"Hey, Talia. I got you a snack, you know, if you feel like it." He set the hot dog down in front of me.

I stared at the hot dog and its scent filled my nose. The ache in my stomach flared up again, but I ignored it until I couldn't anymore and ate the hot dog.

"You ate it…" Broadway smiled. "She ate!"

"I made a mistake." I groaned.

"You just ate too fast, lass. You'll be fine." Hudson told me.

I rested my head on the table and felt a little sick. When had I last eaten? I didn't remember. Everyone returned and Broadway told them that I ate a whole hot dog. They were proud. They shouldn't have been, but I couldn't bring myself to eat most of the time since Goliath and Elisa went missing. Since I started getting my memories back…

Matt came to pick me up after sunrise and then he took me home. He told Owen I had something to eat and I bet he and David tracked what I ate so he was going to tell his boss. Then Owen took me upstairs and I went to bed.

I woke up and went to breakfast. I couldn't eat. I just couldn't. David and Fox looked at each other before Fox spoke, "Talia, we're having a baby."

"I know." I said.

David's eyebrow raised.

"This is all you wanted me for, right? A placeholder to the real heir? I'll be out of your hair in a couple months. Hopefully dead. Who knows?" I sighed.

"Talia, you are a part of this family. I-" David started his speech.

"Do you really want a suicidal kid to take over your company?" I asked. "Cause that's what I'll always be. I can't be anything else. But I don't regret being this way. You want immortality, I want death. This is why I'm not a Xanatos." I laughed and laughed and laughed.

"Talia?" Fox asked.

"Why is everything I love taken from me?" I whispered before the long suppressed sobs wracked my body.

It was Fox who hugged me. "It's ok. It's ok."

I didn't move as she tried to comfort me. David just watched awkwardly. I regained control of my breathing. Fox wiped my nose. "I'm not hungry."

"You didn't even eat." David said.

"I'm not hungry." I repeated.

"Talia, please." Fox asked.

I looked in her eyes and sighed as I shoveled spoonful of yogurt in my mouth. She smiled then frowned as I said, "I ate."

"That's not enough and you know it's not." David frowned.

"Are you going to spoon feed me?! Y-" I was cut off by Owen sticking another spoonful of yogurt in my mouth.

"Please don't spit it out." He told me as he removed the spoon.

I glared at him as I swallowed. "I wasn't being serious."

"Talia, starving yourself won't make it better." He said.

"…" I fumed.

"Are you going to eat or do I have to continue?" He asked.

I took the spoon from him and ate the rest of the yogurt. I was allowed to go to my cage and I read one of the books Puck gave me. It was cool. But I was still fuming at Owen.

"Hiya, Tai. What's wrong now?" Puck asked.

"This is your fault. I wouldn't be here if weren't for you." I frowned.

"I know that. That's why I did it." He said.

"I lost two of my friends and I don't know if they're alive or not!" I shouted.

"You want to see them?" He asked.

"Yes, I want to see them! But I don't ho-" Puck grinned as he used his magic and suddenly we were floating above the ocean and through the fog, I saw Goliath and Elisa and Bronx on a boat.

"Goliath! Elisa!" I waved to them.

They didn't react.

"Sorry, kiddo. I can't let them think they've gone insane. They've at Avalon's will for months." Puck said, shrugging.

"Avalon? What's that mean?" I asked.

"That's my home. We've been banished from it for 1,001 years. Avalon is sending them where they need to be." He explained.

"Where they need to be?" I frowned.

"They need to fix a problem somewhere." Puck said.

"That's bullshit." I huffed.

"That's how Avalon is, Tai." He said flippantly.

"Is that another gargoyle?" I noticed a lavender female sitting down.

"Would you look at that, it is." He smirked.

I moved closer and tried to pet Bronx. He sensed me and barked happily. "Talia, no! Don't touch them. You won't be able to go home if you do!" He dragged me away. Bronx growled at him.

"Let me go! Let me go." I elbowed him.

"Avalon's magic will claim you and you'll be stuck with Goliath and Elisa." He explained.

"I can just… I can..." I thought.

"Avalon is much more powerful than I am, Talia." He warned.

"It is?" I looked at him.

"Yes, Avalon is Oberon's domain. You shouldn't go there." Puck told me.

"What's wrong with Avalon?" I asked.

"We should go back." He said.

"WHAT'S WRONG WITH AVALON?" I yelled at him.

"There's nothing wrong with it! You just shouldn't go there." He shouted at me.

"Why?!" I growled at him.

"Time works differently there. An hour there is a day on Earth." He half lied.

"That's not the reason you don't want me there." I hissed.

"You don't want to spend the rest of your life on Avalon. Lord Oberon doesn't let his children out of his sight often. Earth is so much better for ha-humans." Puck took me back to my room.

"Children? I'm not related to him." I sat on my bed.

"Of course not! No, that's what me and all the faeries, his subjects, are called. He has a bit of a paternal streak in him." Puck floated in the air.

"Puck?" I asked.

"Yeah, Tai?" He looked at me.

"Why'd you save me? You must see people die all the time." I asked.

"Because you're a girl after my own heart, Tai. You're a mischief maker and a trickster. You probably don't remember, but you pulled some impressive tricks. It'd be a shame to lose someone like you." He smiled.

"I remember one. It was the last date night Adriana and I had. I sent all of our parents on goose chases so we could have the night alone. I may have done some illegal things to make sure they didn't come home before morning too." I frowned as I realized how far I went.

"That was a good one. Pretty impressive for a high schooler." Puck grinned.

"That was really complicated now that I think about it." I said aloud.

"I know, it was great!" His grin grew.

"We're getting off topic!" I clawed at the air to disrupt the conversation.

"We are?" Puck asked.

"I have another question." I told him.

"Shoot." He said.

"Why would Oberon consider me his subject if I'm a normal human?" I asked.