***
Selena cautiously stepped into the darkness of the shop. Everything was the same as before: no customers, and a salesman sitting behind the counter, looking at something on his lap.
“Hello,” Silver spoke. He glanced at her and smiled vacantly:
“I knew you'll come.”
“Sure... You know I always come,” the girl winked. She was trying to act natural and cheerful, like he was actually an old pal she was happy to see. “I have trouble with something else, though. And I think you're the one who can help,” she winked again and licked her lips. “Will you help me remember?”
“Of course I will,” he didn't look surprised at all. “I didn't forget you even for a second.”
“How much time have passed?”
“A split second in comparison to eternity... But every minute without you feels like an eternity,” he gave Selena a long look. It was getting harder for her to stay cool.
“All right, let's focus on something that happened recently,” Silver spoke quickly. “When I was here last time, you asked if everything is ok with my hand. Is that what you meant?” she pointed at the cast on her arm. Suddenly the guy grabbed her, and Selena barely kept herself from jumping away.
“No, you had your right hand bandaged. But this wound... You're coming back to me, like you've never left,” he showed her his left palm that had an old scar across it.
“Umm, I see,” she pulled her hand out and stepped back. “And what did I say when I came the very first time?”
“You were talking about the things that only us know, and you promised to come back soon. You've left a key, telling me to give it back to you later. But an important thing like that could be carried only on the special keychain... Do you have it?”
“This one?” Selena produced the four-leaf clover that she got from professor.
“Exactly,” wide smile that appeared on his face made him look creepier. “Do you at least remember what it means to us?” when Silver shook her head, young man went on: “Ok, let's start from square one. This is you,” he pulled a photo in a black frame from under the counter. Selena shook her head again, now in disbelief.
The photo was made in Blue Stone garden. There was a couple hugging before the Unity statue – this guy from the shop and the girl she saw in Memory Room. The boy looked younger, and the girl's hair was already dyed black.
“Me?!” she asked, looking at the image in shock.
“Yes, you,” he calmly confirmed. “Mary Wesson. By the way, I haven't introduced myself yet – my name is Tenko.”
“Are those real names?” Selena asked warily.
“More than real... They aren't written in documents, but they are what our souls say,” Tenko gazed deeply into the photo.
“Then what do they mean?”
“You've always been gutsy,” he smiled again. “You loved the quote 'God made people weak and strong, but Smith&Wesson has evened out their odds'. Our names, everything that was before we met – none of it mattered. Upon finding each other we became stronger, but we remained nothing but pawns in the game called life. An average John Smith. And his friend, Mary... Wesson.”
“You don't seem average to me,” Selena muttered, glancing around the shop once again. “That's a beautiful story... But why do you introduce yourself as Tenko, then?”
“That's the name of a hero from an old fairy-tale. A princess detested living in the castle, felt that she doesn't belong there, and loved walking in the forest. One day she walked as far as she never had before, and met a wolf named Tenko. They had a lot in common. The wolf became her good friend, and later – her lover...”
“W-what?” the girl stuttered.
“Don't take everything literally,” Tenko said. “There are lots of allegories in our old tales... Besides, people often turn into animals there, and vice-versa.”
“Yeah, and I thought that relationships became complicated in modern age... My parents should've told me more fairy-tales. Anyway, what happened later? Did he turn into a handsome man and they lived happily ever after?”
“No, it was the princess who was sometimes turning into a wolf – she had a wild animal spirit,” he gently stroke the photo. “And it's not the way the story ended... Princess came of age, and never visited the wolf again. Maybe she was forced into marriage, or maybe she was busy with new responsibilities, and perhaps she herself decided that she's all grown up and shouldn't get involved with lower species any more... The wolf never knew what happened, but he stayed faithful to the princess till the end of his days, and never lost hope that she will come back. That's why I picked this name – I also believe that Mary is alive, and that she will be back one day.”
“Oh, now I see,” Selena exhaled. If what they have in common with that wolf is faithfulness, this isn't that bad. This guy is already pretty weird, and him turning out to be some pervert would've been too much for her. “By the way, when did your friend go missing? Was it in 1996? Somewhere in October?..”
“I see that you start remembering,” Tenko grinned.
“Tell me more about Mary,” the girl asked. “How did you meet? Where is she from? What does she like... What was she like?”
“To me, it doesn't matter who she was before we met...”
“But it matters to me,” Selena looked deeply in his eyes.
“Mary used to recall some 'Lavender House'. I don't know what it is, but she spoke about it with grudge. She lived there before we got to know each other, but shortly after moved in with me. We met when she came into my shop once, and the attraction sparked in the very first minute. We were soulmates... We've made those scars – those marks will remain forever, just like our feelings,” Tenko showed his left palm again.
The girl nervously picked at the scratch on her own palm, and suddenly, a small piece of the scab fell off. The skin under it wasn't even red – it looked like it healed long ago. Surprised, Selena scratched the strip of coagulated blood, painlessly tearing away another piece.
“We've spend as much time together as we could. We loved looking at Moon, especially when walking in Blue Stone park... I've made a tattoo as a sign of my attachment,” Tenko started pulling off his shirt.
“Wait, what are you doing?!” gasped Selena. “What if someone comes in?”
“Nobody usually comes during the day,” salesman replied calmly. On the left side of his chest, there was a heart chained with two crossed chains. Selena already saw this image in the book.
“My body is free, but my soul is chained. For some, it's a battle, for some, it's a game...” she said, recalling the poem.
“It went a bit different,” corrected Tenko. “I've dedicated those lines to Mary:
My body is free, but my soul is chained,
For love is a battle, it isn't a game.
Fear of losing you is my greatest foe,
Though I may get weak,
All my bonds are as strong as before.”
“No, that's not what I've read,” Silver shook her head. She didn't say it out loud, but Tenko's version was more trite, though way less ambiguous. It didn't explain anything. Now that Selena gave it a second though, it seemed like the poem from the book wasn't about love in the first place...
“I can read another poem – it must refresh your memory... We wrote it together, it was our anthem,” Tenko fixed his gaze at her face and began reciting:
I see myself in you,
My pain, my angst, my fears,
But when we are together
They almost disappear.
No matter what you do,
Whether you fly or fall,
I will surely follow you
And I will share it all.
Though I hate you so much,
Just like I hate myself,
I want to always be with you,
It's something I can't help.
With the very first lines, some vague images started flooding Selena's mind – vague reflections of memories she cou
ldn't possibly have. She runs somewhere... Here is a woman Silver saw on the screen – it's probably her that she's trying to get away from... Tenko appears, they talk, laugh, he presents her something... Something dangerous... Even though the pictures themselves were pretty hazy, accompanying emotions turned out to be surprisingly bright. Anger, tension, happiness, wild joy – all of them were peaking. Selena saw herself standing on the edge of a roof or a deep pit, and steps forward. For a moment, it really seemed like she falls into an abyss. Is this actually the effect of the poem?.. Silver clutched at the counter to remain on her feet, but didn't say anything to Tenko. The feeling of flying was addictive. She should get to the bottom and see what's there... But the poem ended, breaking the fall and putting her on the solid ground again. The girl looked at the salesman and quietly said:
“Just give me the key, ok?”
With a grin, Tenko took the key from under the counter and put it on the keychain.
“Four-leaf clover brings luck, they say. And this one is red like a heart. We've exchanged those trinkets to always be with each other, bringing luck. Yours disappeared with you, but I never lost hope to see both of you again,” he put the keychain into the girl's hand, but didn't let go. “You will visit me again, won't you?”
“I guess so,” she pulled her hand out of his and backed away. She actually had no desire to come back. This guy may reveal some more details, but it seems like he's gone nuts on his love to this girl. It doesn't even bother him that they are completely different people, and he's not even curious where she got the trinket from. Who knows what one could expect from him... As if hearing her thoughts, Tenko spoke:
“I don't care what you look like, Mary – shapes won't deceive me. I know it's you. And you have this keychain for a reason... I'm sure you will remember and understand everything with time.”
“I hope... You know, when someone scolds you for something you've never even done it makes you three times angrier. Later!” Selena waved her hand and quickly left the shop.
Kevin was waiting outside.
“I thought it'll take longer,” he said when Silver approached.
“I've spent half an eternity there,” the girl rolled up her eyes. “This guy is weird... But I've got something from him. I was right – my twin visited him, and even left a gift for me,” she showed the key.
“But where does it fit?” Kevin frowned. “Could it be...”
“Yes, this might be a key to just about anything,” Selena looked him in the eye. “Any Key. Did you read about it?”
“Yes. And I remember what fine there is for using it. We should think hard whether we've exhausted all other options.”
“There is one place where we could probably learn something,” Silver said. “Have you heard about 'Lavender House'? No? That's what I thought... Let's just hope taxi drivers know about it.”