The Trade

 It was nearing the scheduled time, but neither Nox nor Ira had arrived in the gardens. I began second-guessing myself. Maybe I hadn’t told them the right time. What if I said two in the afternoon, not in the morning? That sounds like something I would do… But just as I was about to begin pacing, I saw a familiar redhead begin to walk towards me. I gave her a little wave, and a flood of relief shot through me. Oh, thank god.

“You’re the first one here”, I say with a smile. She returned the smile weakly and continued to walk up to me.

“I didn’t realize there was another person who was cursed around here”, she replied.

“Oh, I didn’t mention it earlier?” I laughed, “My apologies, there’s a young man who also needs his curse removed. We’ll have to wait for him before I’m able to break yours.” She looked disappointed, and who could blame her? Of course, she’d want it gone as fast as possible.

But it took a considerable amount of time before Nox showed up. The two of us stood in awkward silence before he strolled up to us, his hands resting in his pockets.

“I’m sorry I’m late!” he said, “I got lost on the way here.”

“Lost my -” Ira began before I cut her off, “That’s alright. Now that you’re here, I’ll get this done as fast as I can.” Ira shot me a look for cutting her off, but I kept my smile on my face. While Nox couldn’t see or hear Ira, I could, and I’d rather not hear the negativity. I glance up at the sky, and I’m grateful for it being clear. You could see the moon nearly full and completely clear.

“I thought there was someone else joining us”, Nox said.

“She’s here, you just can’t see her.”

“Freaky. Can she hear me?”

“Yes, she can. You’ll be able to speak with her soon enough.” I reached into my pocket and pulled out my prized possession. A slender silver key, cool to the touch. The bow is shaped like a crescent moon, inlaid with jewels that make it dazzle in the moonlight. I reach straight up towards the sky and twist the key in the air. As it twists ninety degrees, the air shimmers and hangs around the key like a wound in reality. The area ripples and then begins to pulse a variety of colors. A blinding white into a rich violet into a royal blue, the colors blending and then repeating.

“O’ Great Moon, I beg of thee to shine thy light for me once more. Please purify these individuals of their curses that they did not deserve. I offer you, in return, the normal penance.” From within me, I felt a familiar burst of powerful energy, but with it, I felt something get taken. I turn to the two people waiting for me, both of whose faces showcase a mixture of shock and amazement.

“Please come stand here in front of me”, I ask of them. They both, while still looking shocked, walked over in front of me. Once they got close enough, I pulled the key out of the rift and let the light completely overflow the area. A circle of runes forms across the ground, still the same cluster of colors from before, and the light slowly flew into Nox and Ira. Once the light began to wane, I twisted the key, closing the rift.

“There really was someone else here”, Nox said, now looking at Ira, “Your powers are amazing. Its really that simple? Twisting a key towards the sky and asking for help? Is it the key that’s powerful or you?” Usually, people are just so relieved and thankful that they don’t ask me too many questions. I wasn’t exactly used to this.

“Not anyone could use the key, but I need the key to complete my work”, I explain, “I ask that you please don’t mention that to others, though. We still don’t know who cursed you, and I’d rather they not know how I’m able to use my powers.” I could explain way more, but others don't need to know all of the conditions to use my powers. Not to mention that if I completely explain, some might not let me lift their curse. There is always a cost for getting power from the moon. The moon will pull a memory or pool of memories from me, depending on how strong the curse was. I don’t get to choose which memories or how many, and I can’t even remember what I lost. I could’ve already lost my favorite memory and not known it. But on the flip side, I could’ve lost my saddest memory. This stipulation almost led me to run away many times while training to use my powers. Coming from a long line of Cursebreakers, I have been raised for this duty my entire life. Only one Cursebreaker is born at a time; the same goes for Cursebearers, but not often are they born in the same generation. I was born and became my family’s pride and joy. Their hope of finally ending this endless cycle of pain and sorrow. To hunt down and take away the power of the Cursebearer and the fast I do it, the less memories I’ll have to give up.

“Thank you so much”, Ira says, grabbing my hand, “I wish to return the favor to you one day. First, I need to speak with my boss, though. The things he had to say behind my back… The nerve.” She nearly growled as she spoke and began to roll up her sleeves. Ira turned and began stalking off.

“But it's two in the morning….” I said after her, but to no avail. She didn’t even turn around. Nox chuckled behind me, a little closer than where I thought he was. I turned, and he was pretty close to me on my right. I turned, pulling my hands behind me back and took a step back from him. All in one motion.

“Your hands work all right?” I asked.

“Yes, I was just sticking around to ask a few more questions”, he replied, smirking, “For one, what's with all of the flowers?” He motioned beneath our feet. Right where the two were previously standing bloomed flowers. Underneath Ira were what looked like petunias, and under Nox were snapdragons. Frowning, I look at Nox a little more closely. Each time I remove a curse, flowers representing the person grow beneath their feet. Which is why I chose to remove their curses in the garden, where random flowers growing wouldn’t be too suspicious. Both of these flowers were rare for me to see, but Nox’s in particular made me wary. Deceit.