Page 4 of Elves and Espresso

“You… You mentioned a living fancy? Silver hangs in strange places. I’m not to…crinkle my skin. There was a dress up your sleeve,” he mumbled with his hand raised to his forehead, like he was ironing out his own crinkles. “Where am I?”

“What do you mean?” I broke into his strange words. “You’re in Coven Haven, a district nestled in Wylionis.”

“In… Where?”

Realization slowly dawned on me. This man wasn’t just a traveler passing through; he must be someone who was very much lost. He had no satchel on him, and I doubted he had much of an arrow director on him. He could be well and truly missing from somewhere, for he surely didn’t belong here.

“Are you—”

“Lost,” he stated confidently. “Completely and utterly lost.”

“Where is it you’ve come from? And how have you arrived here?” I couldn’t stop myself from walking around the counter to stand in front of him. Perhaps he looked this ordinary for a reason. Perhaps, in his realm, everyone appeared like this.

“I’m not sure how I’ve arrived.” He didn’t answer my first question, but this answer would suffice, for what more could there be to know?

“Well, you’re not from here, and you haven’t said where you’re from, so that’s clearly not important. Because, even if you had said where you were from, it’s not as though it would help us when you don’t even know how you got here. It isn’t as though we can get anywhere from here, given your feet haven’t told us where they’ve been.”

There wasn’t a hint of understanding or recognition in his eyes. In fact, it was the most vacant expression I’d ever seen in my life—more vacant than the insufferable woman from the other day. “Pardon me?” he sputtered, at a loss.

“Well, you can’t cross a chasm if you don’t have a bridge, so what’s on the other side doesn’t matter until we’ve figured out the bridge. It won’t matter where you’re from if we haven’t got a bridge for how you got here.”

He looked down into my eyes, a smile lighting his face. “That’s the first thing you’ve said that makes sense.”

“You’re really more like a riddled self than a human.”

The crinkles returned. “And now I’m lost again.”

Chapter Four

“Java.”

I cringed as my father came down the steps, using my old nickname, looking past me at the human named Aleixo. His face lit up instantly, and I could see the charming smile he carried form suddenly.

“Father…”

“Why, who is this young man? Have you come passing through? It’s not often we see a human in these parts, but you’re welcome here, of course.”

Aleixo offered a slight bow. “It’s a pleasure, sir. I was just talking to your daughter. It’s an odd world you’re living in, but—”

“A world of espressos and delicious treats and endless delights!” I cut him off. Father didn’t take kindly to those who traveled outside our realm. As part of the richest realm, he felt they did not reward his dazzling customer service well enough. Father was a darling man, but he was flawed…very flawed.

Aleixo’s sharp eyes darted to meet mine, one brow raised in a questioning look. “Yes, indeed.” Turning back to Father, he continued, “I meant with the strange things that happen around here.”

“Aleixo,” I whispered to him. “No.”

But he didn’t listen. He continued as my father inched closer to him. “Well, the crinkles, and of course, when I asked your daughter about that silver ball in the window, she told me to hush!”

I clamped my hand over his mouth, but it was too late. The words had escaped, and despite not having a map, they’d found their way straight to Father’s ears.

“The silver ball, you say?” Father latched onto the words. “You wish to inquire about the silver ball?” He reached over to grasp my hand. “Oh, thank the realms, my prayers have been answered.”

“Your what?” Aleixo questioned. “What an odd thing to say…”

“You wish to acquire the silver ball in the window?”

“That’s a very generous offer, but I’m not sure about acquiring it,” Aleixo babbled on. “I mean, would I like a silver ball one day? Sure, why not? But—”

Father cut him off with a wave of his hand and rushed to the front door.