The inside scoop on Jelly W-argh! *choke* Circulation: 174,678,845 Issue: 383 | 13th day of Running, Y11
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Poison


by iloenchen

--------

Have your parents ever told you not to listen to strangers? Have they warned you of people you don't know intercepting you after school? Listen to them! If I had considered their warnings, none of the events that lead to who I am today would have happened. Yet, I do not know if I would be more satisfied were I not the Zafara Double Agent.

"Catch." Erin's aim had never been good when throwing things, yet Zamira caught the doll with seemingly no effort. The blue Zafara grinned as she held the precious object in her paws. "Thank you," she called out to her friend, waving at the red Nimmo. "See you tomorrow."

     Erin laughed. "Bye, Zamira."

     Still grinning, the Zafara looked down at the doll in her hands as she walked away from Erin's house. Old and battered, its limbs hung down loosely. She had lost a leg just yesterday, but fortunately, Erin's mother was talented enough with needle and thread to stitch it back together. Without her, the doll would have been thrown away long ago. She had repaired it more often than Zamira could count, and even though it showed, the Zafara loved her doll.

     It was the only one she had.

     So lost in thoughts was the young girl that she did not notice the man until she bumped into them.

     "Excuse me," she mumbled, clutching her doll tightly to her chest as she looked up to see the person she had collided with. It was an orange Skeith. Instantly, Zamira lowered her eyes before him. Not just the colour spoke of wealth, but in the second she had seen his face, she had not failed to notice the gold chain around his neck, nor the heavy golden trinkets attached to his hat. People like him were not seen often in this neighbourhood and he stood out in between the run-down houses.

     "My apologies," the young Zafara repeated, side-stepping the man so she could continue on her way home.

     But the man did not want to release her yet. A smile playing on his lips, he stepped into her way. "There's no need to apologise. I could have paid more attention, too." But the tone in his voice conveyed that he clearly had not wanted to avoid the collision between the two.

     "Is this your doll?"

     Zamira nodded, lifting her eyes to him before quickly lowering them again. "Yes," she answered, quickly adding, "Sir," when her eyes fell on the heavy golden ring on his finger.

     "It looks a bit tattered."

     A blush rose to Zamira's cheeks and even though her fur covered most of it, she knew that it was faintly visible. "Yes," she breathed, not knowing what to reply and at the same time not daring not to answer.

     The Skeith must have felt that those were the wrong words to say, for he quickly added, "It's still a nice doll. Do you have others to keep her company?"

     "No, sir." Zamira kept her eyes down, her discomfort growing with every second she spent in the Skeith's presence. He was out of place here. She did not like the way he pried into her life, yet, she did not want to be impolite and avoid him either.

     "You know, I've got lots of dolls at home. Many of them that I could give to you." He let his words linger and even though Zamira tried to suppress it, she was sure that he had seen the spark of interest in her eyes. "Many dolls, just as beautiful or even more beautiful than yours." She could feel the Skeith's eyes boring into her. "A Faerie Queen Doll."

     Zamira could not hold back a gasp. Faerie Queen Dolls were ugly. She had never wanted to have one for herself. Yet, they were also expensive and the thought what she could do with all those coins she would get from selling one made her tremble.

     "A Faerie Queen Doll?" The young Zafara shook her head, wondering if she had just imagined the Skeith talking about giving such an expensive gift to her. Maybe she had misunderstood. Strangers didn't give out precious dolls to random children on the street.

     The Skeith laughed. "Yes, a Faerie Queen Doll. Would you like to own one? You would have to earn it, of course. I can't just give it out for nothing."

     Earn it. Zamira had known that there was a catch to it. "So what would I have to do to get it?"

     * * *

     "Grandpa, I'm home." The blue Zafara dropped her schoolbag in a corner of the corridor. She kept her doll, taking it with her as she strolled into the kitchen.

     Her grandfather was already waiting for her. "Hello my dear." A kiss on her cheek. "You're later than usual."

     "Mmh. Erin and I got caught up in a game on our way home. Sorry, I hope you didn't have to wait too long." The lie took less effort than it should have, yet, Zamira felt sick with guilt as it left her lips. She had never lied, and especially not to her grandfather. 'No matter how bad it is, tell me the truth,' he had always pleaded to her. But this was not just bad. This was much worse, and dangerous as well.

     "Look. Erin's mum fixed it for me," the girl said in an effort to distract not only her grandpa but also herself. She held up the doll, moving the leg that had been detached yesterday. "It's cool, isn't it?"

     The blue Gelert smiled. "Yes, it is. Now come and eat dinner."

     Zamira's smile fell as she saw the plates on the table. Omelette. Of course. What else should she have expected? It was always omelette these days, for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and sometimes jelly as dessert. "With bacon." She forced a smile as she cut out the first bite. After all, it wasn't her grandfather's fault that food was so expensive and free omelette was the only they could afford.

     The Skeith's words rang in her head as she began to eat.

     * * *

     "Do you want to come over for dinner? My mum's made this special dessert and she said you're welcome to try it."

     Zamira shook her head at her best friend's offer. "No, sorry, I can't. Not this evening."

     "Oh, please? You can't let me die alone from her newest food creation."

     Erin laughed and the blue Zafara joined her, although she felt more like crying. She hadn't counted how many times she had already lied this week. Like poison, her lies were spreading through her. With each one she told, the next one became easier. Effortlessly, words flowed from her lips that were anything but true. And even though Zamira hated each of them, she knew that they were necessary.

     "No, sorry. I promised my grandpa to be home today. He's got some kind of surprise for me, he said." Another lie, another twisted truth. She had not made any promises. Her grandfather did not have a surprise for her. But if everything went as planned, she had one for him.

     "Okay then." Disappointment tinged Erin's voice.

     "Sorry." They had reached point where they needed to separate. "Well, I see you tomorrow. If you survive your mum's cooking."

     Those words were enough to get Erin to smile. Grinning, the red Nimmo waved good bye. Zamira did not continue on her way as she usually did. Instead, she looked after her friend until she had disappeared from view.

     "Did you get it?"

     The voice so close to her ear startled the Zafara. Forcing a smile onto her face, she turned around to look at the Skeith. "Yes. But first, I want to see the Faerie Queen Doll."

     "Ah, you'll make a good agent one day." The Skeith's smile showed a row of perfectly white teeth. "Here it is."

     And there it was. The Faerie Queen Doll. Zamira stared at the toy in awe. Not even beautiful, and yet worth more than all her other possessions. She would tell her grandfather that she had won it from a writing competition. He would be surprised at the price, but she would find a way to make him believe that they had given such a valuable doll to the winner. And then, there would be real food for dinner and new clothes to wear. No more red envelopes with warnings to pay the bills.

     Zamira took a deep breath. She was so close to the doll, and she had what it took to get it. Wringing family secrets out of Erin had been easy. Without reserve, she had talked about her ancestors, about family secrets and connections. She had mentioned the parchments dating back to a time their grandparents hadn't even been alive and she had told of the magic they held.

     The Nimmo had told her best friend because she had trusted her.

     And the moment Zamira began to talk, she broke everything they had once shared.

     * * *

     The seat remained empty. No matter how many times Zamira looked at the door, the red Nimmo did not suddenly storm into the classroom.

     "Where's Erin?" the teacher asked.

     It took Zamira a great effort to utter the lie. "She moved away."

     Today, there would not be omelette for dinner.

The End

 
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