CHAPTER#145

"Yeah, I can imagine." He gave her hand a squeeze, then retracted his hand. "Continue."

"I don't know why or how, but I came to, and she was holding that emerald. I didn't know it until now, but the emerald was a part of my soul, and she had just built some kind of magical artifact. When you used the gem to make me whole again, it destroyed itself to give back what had been taken from me. You can't just make a new soul, no matter how hard you wish it, but you can give back what was stolen." Yuki took a deep breath, then wiped a tear off her cheek. "And then she left. A few years later, I turned three hundred. For a kitsune, it's when we grow our next tail and choose the magic we wish to master. I was so hurt and angry that I deepened my knowledge of the frost that had grown in my heart, which resulted in this." She touched the white fur of her ears. "Kitsune can change their shapes, but we can't just whimsically change our nature. I've been missing a piece of myself for so long, it's very hard to describe how it feels to have it back."

"She took a piece of your soul?" Mike asked. "Is that... I mean, is that common, or..."

"No. It is powerful, dark magic to do something like this. In fact, I would even say it's lost magic. It's one of the few things abhorred by literally everybody. I would wager that even these Society people would rather destroy someone like that than accept them into their ranks."

"I wouldn't go that far," Mike muttered.

"Giving up your soul or selling it is one thing. Your mind stays behind and, in a way, you are still you. But ripping out a chunk of someone's soul is dangerous magic. It can give you control over someone, can dictate their actions. It can be used as currency, or even as a means of immortality. When Death comes for you, he expects a soul. Handing over your collection is sometimes enough to balance the scales."

"Interesting. Do you suppose she was hoping to control you?"

"I don't know. The last thing she ever said to me was that she wished she could forget about me."

"Mmm hmm." He sat back, rocking the swing. "You do realize that the emerald was capable of granting wishes, yes? Well, one wish per person. It wasn't all-powerful, but it could make your desires real enough."

"I do now, but not at the time."

"When Emily said those words, that's what happened. Whatever her plans for the emerald were, they were dashed the moment she said that. You wouldn't know this, but the moment she left, she handed over the emerald to the rats and then promptly forgot about them. Emily's memories are tied into the house and the geas itself. I can't say this with any certainty, but I know the geas does weird things to our heads. It's why nobody remembers anyone else until I meet them. When Emily forgot about you, it was as if she had never met you in the first place. But what if somebody asked where you went? I suspect the emerald itself took care of that to ensure her wish was properly granted. When the house reset... you were simply gone."

"I don't get it. Why go through all that trouble to hurt me if she was just going to erase me from her memory?" Yuki wiped a tear away from her eye. "It doesn't make sense."

"Did Emily ever mention a shadow? Or a secret staircase in the tower?"

Yuki's ear twitched. "Only once. She thought she saw a secret door in her room, but I was never able to find it again. That was months before she disappeared though."

"I see." His face darkened. "I have a theory, but it's only a small one. When I was in the tower, I came across a shadow man who knew that I was the Caretaker. He offered me advice and power but wanted a piece of my soul as payment."

"Did you tell him no?"

"I did. But I keep thinking back to what he told me. He said this place would burn, and offered to fast track me on my quest, which I'm still unsure of."

"Emily mentioned a quest several times. She thought she needed to fill the house with magical creatures or something."

"A quest? A quest for what?" He suddenly sounded eager. "What was she trying to find?"

"Nothing, really. She was deliberately vague about it all the time, but it's because she didn't know. Said it was a weird feeling that she got, like she needed to fill the house with magic. More creatures, more rooms. Talked about some weird dreams a couple of times, but that was it. Wish I could say more, but..." Yuki sighed.

"Oh." Mike shook his head in disappointment. "Was really hoping you would tell me where I could find the user manual for this house. Guess I'll just have to wing it like I always do." He offered her a weak smile.

"Winging it is a nice way of putting it." Yuki looked out at the yard. "According to Tink, this isn't even the first time the yard has been wrecked this badly."

He coughed. "Anyway, I have a theory that I want you to think on. If Emily made a deal with this guy, do you think she could have been forced to do things? Things she didn't want to do? She hired Ratu to dismantle magic items beneath the house with nobody knowing about it, and Zel has hinted more than once that she may not have been all smiles and sunshine. I think she even banished the fairies to the Labyrinth, and then obviously the whole thing with the rats was a secret. Her behavior before she died was erratic, and the others didn't know what to make of it since none of them had the full story. She was trying to achieve immortality or godhood, according to Ratu, but even Naia didn't know about that."