The wellington alternate, p.12
The Wellington Alternate, page 12
It was cheating, after all. Her aunt had insisted that drinking a Raison to achieve success was not the reason behind their family’s near-monopoly over the country. It was a shortcut. A concentrated energy drink with a sinkhole dip.
She brought her backpack between her legs to her chin. She unzipped it halfway; brought her hand inside and felt the edges of four essay pages that she had rushed in the last two hours. Josefina had better be grateful for this, Merinette thought as she deciphered an explanation for why she needed to have a Raison. Emergency? A back-up? A solution to a worse-case scenario? Each excuse was better than either saying that her hands were cold or to admit that she needed help. She thumped her head against the soft padding of the seat cushion; all the while, her view of the city was momentarily cut off when the bus entered one of the two main entrances to Karori.
The place was one of the crowded towns in the whole country.
Karori itself had to be categorised into four minor subsets making it feel like the whole place was a collection of four towns glued under a single name. Its overall population was a quarter away from reaching six figures. Its total area – that spanned from a local reservoir to the meandering countryside of the Western North Island – had outcompeted the city central. The handful of entrances in-and-out of the suburb made it feel like it was its own city.
A skyscraper or a bigger shopping district was all that it needed to take out Karori’s vibe of a mountain town. The place had its own history. It had its own culture. Yet, as the bus exited the tunnel that had sapped Merinette’s vision, she couldn’t help wondering why Fiction was a rarity in this place. The field in front of the bus tunnel was devoid of the surreal. There were neither Seagrasses, Window Yawners, nor Autopilots among the passing houses.
Her aunt explained that the suburb’s current predicament was caused by petty revenge. Prior to their family seizing control, a rival household had decided to capture and burn all existing Fiction. It was a matter of if I can’t have this place then neither should they.
Merinette agreed that the action was unreasonable. Such a total waste of what kind of surreal entities had called the region home. Fortunately, the Fiction were slowly overpopulating the place but, even after over a century, the number of jobs that stemmed from Karori was a small trickle compared to other suburbs. This rival household must have held a deep grudge over Merinette’s own family because it was only when the bus passed the local shopping district that she spotted leaves marching on the sidewalks.
Ten blocks later, she caught glimpses of them climbing streetlights.
She hopped out of the bus near a local park.
Merinette picked up a pebble and threw it towards the base of a nearby streetlight. Leaves which had glued themselves on the metal surface fell in a circular motion. A pretty sight. An excuse for her eyes to glint. She needed this after a gruelling day between bookshelves. Merinette squatted, with her backpack turned as a makeshift seat, and watched as the fallen leaves stood up on their base. Little limbs grew from their base. They dusted themselves before they marched and hobbled up the pole. They were known as Treeline but for the children gathered around the back wall of a nearby bus stop, the green spectacles were little gambits on which of their leaves would climb the fastest.
She put on a smile. She patted her shoulders before she brought her hand to the back of her neck. I wish that was me, she thought. Carefree. Without a single worry about being devoured due to lack of interaction. She stood up. She noticed that most of the streetlights were turned into makeshift trees, and it wouldn’t be long before a commission was sent on how the Treelines were dimming the lights.
At least the place is recovering, she thought as she checked both sides of the road before crossing.
19
THE GREEN MARCH
Karori Park
Arissa Carpenter was the first person to notice Merinette when she arrived at the foot of Karori Park.
The half kilometre distance between the entrance and a bench near the rear end was crossed under two minutes. Merinette had no time for a greeting before she felt Arissa’s arms wrapped around her back.
“I’m so glad you came,” Arissa said with both hands on Merinette’s shoulders. Her school blazer was gone. Pink sneakers replaced capped shoes. A few twigs dangled at the side of her head. And more importantly, Arissa’s bright polished smile stretched when she said, “I convinced Josie to give you the Raison. A big one as well. The biggest. I just wasn’t sure if you’d make it here since you were still in the library when I left.”
“Just thought to give Josie something in return,” Merinette said as she scanned the field, stopping when she caught Josefina waving at her from a distance. There was something on the girl’s head. Something akin to a halo. “Are you having a break? Were you busy? I think Josefina is dealing with –”
“Pipers,” Arissa interrupted and hooked her arm around Merinette’s elbow. She squeezed her fingers before saying, “just a wee bit more to go before we finish. Took longer than we thought but nothing better than hanging with friends. I think it’s just the Fiction inside the bike trail and then we’re done.”
Merinette let out a huh. “And Josie wants me to sort it out,” she said.
“I’ll go with you. Josie will be preparing the Raison,” Arissa said.
Both girls made their way towards the bench, walking in an eight-figure pattern not only to avoid stepping over the Treelines that marched on the concrete pavement but also to stare at the Fiction that were climbing the fences on the surrounding homes. Arissa began explaining that a twenty-first house party from across the street was the reason why the sounds at the rear tip of Karori were desynchronised. Sounds were lagging by a few seconds. Not that it was a problem since it was a perfect opportunity to play a game by guessing what the other person had said.
Merinette nodded. She tried to let Arissa’s words sink in because it was the least that Merinette could do in gratitude. She had not demanded that Arissa persuade Josefina to give out a Raison. The contract involving the White Noise, as far as she was concerned, was the last time the deal was ever mentioned, and it was a pleasant surprise when Arissa brought back the subject a day after Merinette’s trip at Mount Kaukau. Yet, between listening to her friend’s words and staring at a large metal pipe poking above the trees in the nearby hills, Merinette didn’t want to say that it was getting harder for her to interact.
A shortcut? An emergency? A salve to a bruise? Either of them was as good as any but the words dried at the tip of her lips when Arissa transformed the remaining ten steps towards the bench into a quick rush.
“I thought Ari said she’ll bring someone who can help,” Josefina said with her left hand raised while her right hand held a stick that was poking a passing Treeline. She sat with two backpacks huddled on either side. A stack of journals was on her lap. A crown of daisies rested on her head.
“I’m not helping you,” Merinette said.
Josefina let out a giggle. She pointed to Merinette’s arm and asked, “is your hand cold?”
Merinette narrowed her eyes. “What does it matter to you?” she responded.
“Because I can understand why Mandy said you injured another Collector up in Khandallah.”
“That’s none of your business,”
Josefina leant her head forwards. “Really?” she said.
Arissa tugged Merinette’s sleeves. “We’re just worried about you. We don’t want you stumbling again. We need you. Someone needs to watch over the Fiction once Josefina leaves. When I heard what happened, I thought I could ask Josie if she could lend a hand.”
“Because the last thing I want to read when I reach home is about a Collector being devoured by a fish,” Josefina said.
“I won’t,” Merinette insisted.
Josefina waved a journal in front of her. “And I’m not handing out a Raison. For free? Maybe on Halloween? Maybe an hour before I leave just so I can hear Mandy give you a scolding,” Josefina said as she tipped a Treeline over.
Merinette slid her arm off Arissa. She unstrapped her backpack and pulled out her four-page essay. “Here,” she said nudging it forward. “Here’s something I can offer in return.”
“What’s that?” Josefina asked.
“It’s the essay. Ummm … it’s a rough draft of the coming assignment.”
“And why would I want that when we found our purpose? I don’t need any more searching,” Josefina asked, barely holding in her laughter.
Merinette wanted to say, because you are lazy, but she refrained her words. She nudged the pile and replied, “because you might need it. And … don’t give me that look, Josie. I worked hard to make sure that this draft doesn’t sound like you just copied off me.”
“Would have been better if you gave me the polished one? How about that? Hey. I’m giving you a Raison. A vial would cost me a whole notebook and you don’t see me complaining.”
“That would be cheating.”
Josefina let out a laugh. “There’s a bathroom nearby if you want to check the mirror.”
Arissa tugged Merinette’s sleeves again. “How about we go to the bike trail and sort out the remaining Pipers. That’s a start, right? I’m sure the essay will be helpful. I’ll help as well but you can help Josie by dealing with the Fiction. It’s been a long day for her. Five blocks back and forth.”
“How about you give me your hand? That’s a start,” Josefina suggested. “I’m just surprised you managed to last this long without being devoured. Come on, don’t be a princess and let me look,” Josefina insisted. There was a slight pause before Josefina yanked Merinette’s arm towards her. “Look, I may be a bitch but that doesn’t mean I don’t care. I don’t want trouble from your aunt just because you drank liquid gold to get rid of this stain.”
“It’s healing.” Merinette tried to pull her arm back.
Josefina tugged. She pushed the sleeves of Merinette’s school uniform to reveal a near fully ink-painted skin that stretched past the elbow. “You call this healing?”
Merinette pulled her arm back. “My aunt hasn’t found out about it. She won’t. Not when she’s been too busy sorting out those Cloud Cruisers at the docks.”
“And she is going to be devastated if I let you drink it, and shit happens.”
“What does it matter to you? You’ll be leaving this country anyway.”
“Because I love your aunt. I know you love her too. She doesn’t deserve an emotional attack by simply giving you a Raison,” Josefina said.
Arissa shook Merinette’s arm. “We don’t want you to be in trouble,” she said.
Merinette persisted. “I am not in trouble. I am sorting myself. Okay. I am just starting small. It may be Rainfires, but I am interacting with Fiction. I promise to go higher and work with more challenging creatures. I just need something to help me. I won’t drink it. It’s only for – it’s for emergencies.”
Josefina rolled her eyes. She slumped back on her chair, setting her daisy crown on top of a backpack. “Yeah. Of course. Sure. Sure. Emergencies is the exact reason I told my legitimate relatives back home before me and my mother were sent here in exile.”
“I’m not that kind of person. I can control myself,” Merinette said.
Arissa wrapped her hands around Merinette’s arm. “You don’t have to,” she said, raising her blue eyes before continuing. “You don’t have to do it all by yourself. We can help you. We can’t spend our last year fighting each other.”
“And you can start by giving me something better. An assignment is hardly a trade-off. Doubt I’ll be needing grades when I’ll present myself for the first time to my family.”
“I can vouch for you to my aunt,” Merinette suggested.
“Already done,” Josefina shrugged.
“I can watch over Arissa after you leave,” Merinette urged.
Josefina smirked. “She will be fine,” she answered.
“I can –” Merinette stopped when Arissa said, “how about you make Josefina jealous? I – I … what I mean is that you can be a good rival to her. You can help sway your aunt’s attention off Josie and she can try to compete to get it back. Show that you are competent enough for your aunt to notice.”
“Good luck,” Josefina winked.
“We can work together,” Arissa managed to say before Merinette uttered a word. “I know you want to focus on your studies, and I can help. I’m not the best writer but I can do rough drafts while you can polish it. Then while Josie is giving you the Raison, you can concentrate on winning your aunt’s attention? How about that?”
“When will I get the glass vial?”
Josefina grabbed the essay off Merinette’s hands before she pointed to the elevated ground at the rear end of the park. “Once you sort out the Pipers. I’ll stick to my end of the bargain. You can count on me. I already sorted out the Pipers in the surrounding area and Arissa has a map on where the Fiction are. See? Not too hard. Can I trust you?”
“I know she can,” Arissa answered for Merinette.
20
PIPERS
The crunch of a leaf was a few seconds late.
Merinette slowed her steps, partially in order for the sound to catch up but also to find where the noise had come from. She had a hunch that she would have ended up like this when she hopped inside the number three bus. Merinette should have been at home rather than trudging up another uphill climb; having her shoes covered in grime and her legs aching. Dealing with a giant metal pipe that exhaled musical notes was not part of her timetable and Merinette wondered why she bothered finishing a contract that wasn’t hers.
The essay she had given to Josefina was enough to persuade her. Merinette hadn’t started her own essay yet and the arguments she delivered within the pages were enough to score Josefina an excellent score. All that girl needed was a small incentive. Arissa was more than happy to assist as well. Merinette herself could lend a hand, a spare hour, or anything just to avoid turning the hours she had spent jotting down the essay into a waste.
“I told you to persuade Josie to give you the biggest glass vial,” Arissa said. Merinette looked down right as Arissa mouthed something silently. “And don’t worry about the Pipers. Me and Josie sorted out most of it already,” Arissa’s voice echoed from somewhere behind nearby bushes. A giggle followed. Arissa’s arm hooked her arm a little tighter around Merinette when a sentence rang out from behind. “I think our guessing game delayed us a bit. It’s fun. You should try. Hide and Seek but with sounds.”
Merinette pulled herself away from her friend’s grip. She unstrapped her backpack grabbing a marker and an A4 sheet of cardboard. This will be helpful, she wrote.
Arissa shook her head. Her response, “but this is more fun,” rustled through the canopy three seconds later.
Is this why you two took so long, Merinette wrote. She offered a spare cardboard to her friend. Arissa shook her head. Merinette scribbled. I need to get back. I still need to prepare dinner. Can you tell Josie that I fixed a Piper? She’s not even here to know.
“How about one? One in five,” Arissa’s voice rang out alongside a gust of wind. She glanced down making a few X-marks on the map before she drew a circle around a cylindrical symbol in the middle. Karori’s grand Piper, read the sign beside it. “It will be fun. Searching for Fiction outside of work. That’s what I would do if I became one. Enjoy the Fiction. Maybe just look at it and think, how does this work?”
It just happens, Merinette wrote.
“Yeah, but how? I’m sure someone or something must have sat down and thought, pipes and music. Pipes that produced music. Pipes that eat music.”
Merinette nodded. She trudged up the hill passing through various metal pipes that jutted out from tree trunks or off the ground. The middle section of their shafts was bloated. One musical note floated out after another. The pipers looked as if someone had used the Fiction as a last-minute rubbish bin after all the available ones were fully stocked. Must be the party, she thought. A bunch of drunks who wanted to play Collectors. Merinette counted fifteen when Arissa pulled herself away and walked towards a metal pipe that jutted from the ground.
She wrapped her fingers around a bloated clog in the centre. She slid her hand up. The sounds of the crunch from leaves, the whirl of bikes, the thump of shoes over the dirt path and the babble of multiple people speaking in unison burst. A mangled jumble of musical notes erupted out of the pipe. It covered Arissa’s head. Her legs tangled. She tripped. Her lagged words, “watch this,” arrived afterwards.
Merinette rushed forwards. “What were you doing?” she asked, the words synchronised with her lips.
“Interacting. See. It works,” Arissa answered. She got to her feet before she drew a circle on the map with her name scribbled underneath it. “I just thought that you wanted to know, you know. You’re not the only one who needs help with the Fiction.”
“How many glass vials has Josie fed you?” Merinette asked.
Arissa chewed her response on either cheek. “Enough that I can sort out one pipe,” she answered with hardly any conviction. “That’s good news for you, right? You will have me to help you with your work after Josie leaves.”
Merinette persisted. “How many?” she asked. The last syllable of the last word trailed behind once both of them continued their walk. How many, she decided to write.
“I’m not forcing myself. Just doing it how Josie wants it. One at a time,” Arissa answered with the latter half of her response lagging five seconds behind.
Merinette let out a hmmm when Arissa didn’t answer her question. She decided to press the question further but dropped it when she caught sight of a metal gleam from behind five rows of bushes. They were close. The Grand Piper was close. I’m sure it’s not much, Merinette reasoned because it was not as if interacting was solely exclusive to the Collectors. Anyone could yank the clogged off the Fiction in fact but …. she trailed her thoughts towards Arissa. The girl took her time before she fixed it. Anyone else would have taken five or six attempts.
