The Fernwood House

The Fernwood house is a well kept secret by the locals. It is a place where things are reverse, a place where the other side leaks out. It is not forbidden to visit, some events even take place there. Still it is not recommended to go there unless necessary. Angelica has been feeling drawn to the house. Odd dreams by night and whispers in her ear by day. Calling her to it.

The leaves crunch under her feet as she walks below the naked branches of the forest. Two birds tweet to each other as they fly in the blue sky above. Her fingers trail against the white and black bark of a bitch. The backpack on her back holds matches, kindling and a battery driven torch.  She shudders as she passes the border. The air around her has odd black tendrils, shadows in the air. The whispers get louder with each step. Somewhere ahead is the house. The shadows grow thicker. With a step out into the clearing the whispers stop. There is the house. She is surrounded by black shadows. That which should be light, the air around her, the house walls are instead shadows. In the nooks where shadows should be found is light. A flower field surrounds the house. Angelica bends down to look, the underside of the flower petals are glowing with sunlight.

She unbuttons her jacket and covers down into it, pulling the flaps over her head. Instead of the dark, everything around her shines with light. She laughs and twirls around. Her nerves are frayed to a point where her hands are no longer shaking. It is scary and beautiful at the same time. She can’t make up her mind. It is wonderful. With bouncing steps she goes up to the house’s front door. With a pull of the handle the door rattles, but doesn’t open.

“Locked.” Angelica said, stating the obvious to herself. She tugs the handle one more time then sighs. A breeze flows by and plays with her hair.

“Welcome…” A voice says. Angelica jumps as a silver key, outlined by light appears in the glowing keyhole. It rattles and turns without her touch.

“… sage of the in-between.” The voice gives Angelica goosebumps. She pushes the door open and for a moment is blinded by the lightshadows. Then the shadows enter with her. She blinks and looks around the hall. There are hooks on the walls to hang jackets and the like. Under her feet is a carpet to protect from the cold stone floor. She takes out her torch to try and see better, but what should be a beam of light instead casts a cone of shadows wherever she aims it. The torch goes back into the backpack. Ahead is a glass door that leads into a large living room. Angelica glances up at the crystal chandelier, it reflects the darkness and casts shadows on the walls. A memory of voices plays in her head, she had been here once as a kid but with a blindfold. The voices are not understandable and she shakes it off.

Looking around she sees a portrait clouded with shadow, with small dots of lights where the oil paint has been layered. It is a portrait of a woman, but she can’t tell more then that. It was odd, she felt electric and nervous at the same time. The place is amazing. Two large couches lay against the walls, with a table each. Her feet drew her forward to a set of double doors. There was again a moment of light before the shadows filed in. In the middle of the marble floored room is a fountain. It has three levels and is topped with a fairy statue. In the roof hangs thousands of crystals at different levels. It looks like a starry sky as they all have a dull glow inside.

“This is it, the place in my dreams.” She leans over the edge of the fountain and below the surface is a whirlpool of green and blue lights, spinning and spinning. She feels dizzy and takes a few steps back while steadying her head with a hand.

“Sage.” The voice comes from behind. Angelica turns and watches a body of light dash across the room to the fountain. It dances around the fairy statue.

“Are you a fairy?” Angelica asks and the light laughs, a sound like tinkling bells and rustling leaves.

“I am what your kind calls a fairy, but it is not what we call ourselves.”

“Then, what are you called?” The reply comes as the sound of raindrops and a breaking branch.

“Something you do not understand, yet.”

“Tell me! I’ve had dreams, you call me sage, what do you want?”

“Truth. Truth that only you can tell.” The fairy goes up to the roof and flies among the crystals. “You were chosen as a child. Marked, turning your blonde hair to black.” Angelica unconsciously tugs at her hair.

“I had blonde hair like my siblings?”

“You are the sage. It is time you fulfil your role.” A new voice says. Another fairy appears in front of Angelica, this one a shadow and almost impossible to see. The light fairy flies down and gives Angelica a push that sends her sprawling forward, landing at the edge of the fountain.

“Ow! What was that for?” She asks as she rubs her aching hands.

The light fairy lands on top of her head. “No dawdling, get into the fountain.”

“I…” Angelica starts and looks at the whirlpool of lights down in the water. “… Okay.”

“Take off your backpack.” Angelica does as instructed and then carefully takes a step into the fountain. To her surprise she feels a bottom, the water reaching just over her ankles. She puts her other foot in. “This was not so bad now wha-“ She plummeted under water.

It was cold, then warm and then cold again, continuously changing as she fell deeper and deeper. Her eyes are clamped close, worried what she would see if she opened them. Her lungs start to burn as she falls. She opens one eye, blue and green lights flash by. With lungs cramping the falling stops. Her long black hair floats around her in the water. Panic sets in, air. She needs air. The lights swirl around her. There is something in there with her. Something large. It swims around her, unseen.

“Breath.” A voice says. Angelica is about to pass out, but there was no way she could breath under water. “Do not worry, take a breath.” Involuntarily Angelica finally takes one. Air fills her lungs. She takes short panicked breaths until she calms down. “Good, welcome to the in-between my sage.” Angelica sees a scaled tail in the water. Then something comes up from down below, a dragon. It is massive, its body coils in the water around Angelica. Two eyes, one green and one blue meets Angelicas gaze. “You will help me and others will help us. Our warriors have yet to arrive, but they will in time.”

“Who are you?”

“I’m Chiaroscuro, that which binds light and darkness together.”

“Warriors?”

“Yes, they will be our blades to uphold the balance. Your grandfather was one and your great-grandmother was a sage just like you. You hold something special.” Angelica looked down in her hand. There was an amulet there, in the shape of a flower. One side was white, the other black and in between them were two petals of silver.

“What do we fight?”

“The darkness…” Chiaroscuro moves one lap around Angelica. “… and the light. Neither can grow too strong, a balance must be maintained.”

“Why fight the light, is it not good?”

“Light does not equal good or right, sage. It is simply one side and we all need both. I will call on you again when it is time.” Chiaroscuro moves, coil upon coil circling Angelic at increasing speed. Vertigo hits her and she closes her eyes. When she opens them again she is outside the house, door locked behind her.