Chapter 8
Zalli stepped out of the council room with a proud smirk on her face. She brushed down the front of her shift dress and walked forward with her black go-go boots and clutch in hand.
Zalli stepped out of the council room with a proud smirk on her face. She brushed down the front of her shift dress and walked forward with her black go-go boots and clutch in hand. Feeling hungry, she thought she should eat lunch at the nearby cafe around the corner.
Just then, a masculine voice called out to her.
“Council Member Tlahuizcal! Just a moment, please.”
She turned around to see her colleague, Necalli Ozoma, was trying to catch up with her. She stopped and greeted him out of courtesy, even though all she wanted to do was punch his groomed mustache off his face.
“Council Member Ozoma.” She gave him a plastic smile. “What can I do for you?”
He stood in front of her with both hands resting on the brass knob of his cane. It was an accessory he recently added to his style; something he picked up from visiting America on his vacation from a couple of months ago.
“Can you walk with me around the plaza? It seems my driver is not here yet, and I would like to spend my time with you while I wait.”
Zalli bit out her response from behind her smile.
“Sure, Council Member.” Her gloved hands gripped her purse as she rested them on her front. Necalli took the lead in their stroll, but Zalli was the first to start the actual conversation. “I take it you want to continue the discussion on the bill from earlier? It’s already been dismissed.”
“Yes, thanks to your hard efforts.” The clacking of his cane distracted Zalli as it hit the ground at the end of his sentence. It seemed particularly louder than the other times it made contact with the sidewalk. “But I was hoping I could change your mind on the matter when I re-introduce my revised bill.”
They arrived at the central plaza and were walking around its outer edge, where the trees gave the most shade. The water fountain in the center sparkled in the light from the midday sun. Zalli looked straight ahead as their conversation continued.
“Sorry, but that’s not likely. Your bill may seem to be progressive, but its true intentions hide behind fancy words.”
Necalli brought his hand up to comb his side part into place.
“Nonsense! I only wish to bring economic growth to our little town.”
“I am not against creating new opportunities with foreign business, but the business model you have presented does not seem in favor of the local labor force.”
Zalli shook her half up-do from one side to the other in disbelief at what her fellow council member was trying to twist. From the few years she has been on the council, she has noticed that everything Necalli tries to do in his policy making results in his favor. Sometimes that meant it benefited the locals, but other times it did not.
“From my position, I see nothing wrong with the measures.”
“Don’t be mental, Council Member Ozoma. In what world where a worker is only ever hired on as part time, thus the ‘high wage’”, Zalli used two fingers on each hand to mimic quotation marks while holding her clutch with her pinky and ring finger, “still barely meets the standard, on top of no full-time benefits, seem right to you? And I mean it. Look me straight in the face and tell me that what your propositioning is morally right.”
Both elected representatives halted their promenade to stare at each other. Necalli only looked bored, with nothing to say to his work associate. A couple of finely dressed women passed by them before Necalli uttered his response.
“You know, I’m getting real tired of your high and mighty attitude.”
“Wha—”
Zalli was so confounded, she didn’t have enough time to avoid Necalli as he rushed towards her. He grasped her arm in one hand and moved her backwards until her back hit a wall. To his benefit, a large bush in a pot concealed his belligerent behavior; an oncoming pedestrian might even confuse the two of them to be lovers stealing a kiss.
“For once, can’t you obey me like everyone else? My administration is better than yours when it comes to policy making. I don’t know why my persuasion doesn’t work on you, but if you don’t comply soon, I will find a more ... compelling way to get you to listen.”
Necalli’s eyes held nothing but pure malice within them. She knew he was a rich elite who was used to getting his way, but Zalli did not think he would go so far as to physically threaten someone who didn’t acquiesce him.
Using a portion of her enchanted strength, the council member used her free hand to push Necalli off of her. The man lost his balance immediately and fell down to the edge of the sidewalk. He looked up at Zalli in confusion.
A moment passed, but Zalli saw in his gaze that he figured out she had more than just human strength. Being enchanted by a fairy wasn’t a necessary secret to hold, but it wasn’t exactly common either.
She was not sure if he would hold it against her, or how he even could, but it was all he got to know. He didn’t need to know that Zalli was actually given an enchantment from three fairies each.
Necalli stood up rapidly and waved a hand in the air as he dusted himself off. In less than a minute, his driver pulled up in a Rolls-Royce. He waited for his driver to open his door, but just before he got in, he turned to Zalli to give her his departure.
“I’ll see you at the next meeting, Council Member Tlahuizcal. Hopefully, by then, you’ll make the right vote.”
His face held no expression, and he spoke in a deadpan tone.
Zalli didn’t move from her spot until the luxury car left.
Her heartbeat finally slowed down to its normal rhythm. The council member adjusted her cropped, double-breasted coat and took a step forward. Zalli turned her head to look at the cafe she wanted to eat lunch at. She let a disappointing sigh escape her.
The cafe was on the other side of the plaza. It would not be too far of a walk for her in a normal occurrence, but it seemed like her appetite had left her. She turned around and headed for home instead.
. . •⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅ . .
Zalli’s eye shot wide open. She was in her bed and had gained a layer of sweat on her body.
Looks like the heat wave has already started, she thought. The farmer turned her head to the side to check the time. It showed she had woken about two hours earlier before her alarm would have set off.
Zalli released a groan and wondered if she should try to stay in bed. She closed her eyes to give it a shot, but as time passed, her dream came back to her. The rose farmer’s stomach clenched and her head felt a slight ache.
Why did I dream that? I didn’t think Necalli’s words would have bothered me that much. She tried to process her vision out, but the more she thought about it, the more her head hurt.
“It’s fine. It’s just a dream, anyway.”
Zalli spoke to herself and went to pet Huizi, as she always did in her usual morning routine. She slowly opened her door and tiptoed her way to the washroom. She was up before her abuela and tía this time, so she was trying to not wake them.
As Zalli was passing Tepi’s bedroom door, she heard a voice emitting from inside. The door was ajar, which allowed the elder sister to hear the voice better as she brought her ear close. The noise she heard sounded feminine—and familiar.
The farmer’s shoulders tensed up as she contemplated if she should open the door or not. She knew she wasn’t hallucinating since she could still hear the muffled voice speak, but Tepi’s bedroom held no light—Zalli didn’t know what she was going to encounter in the dark space.
Even though she could hear her heart beat pulsating between her ears, she paused all of her thinking and swung the door open swiftly. Zalli took a step in and left her hand on the doorknob. With a hasty examination of the room, her throat closed up at the sight before her.
At the foot of her sister’s bed was a figure that looked like Tepi, yet it was not her. The entity’s face would revert from a blurred distortion of facial features to a sudden, clear image of what looked like Zalli’s little sister. At diverging times, the body of the entity would vibrate at a high frequency. It’s what Zalli would imagine a radio interference would like if it had to be depicted visually.
The overall figure seemed to be of a green color—from its skin, to its clothes, to its hair—everything about it was green. It even emitted a green glow, which made it seem slightly ethereal, yet eerie. And its voice—though obviously feminine in form—was suppressed by something. It sounded like someone who was trying to talk underwater.
It felt like an hour had passed for Zalli, but she only stood there for a full minute before the entity turned its head in her direction. It let out a sound that sounded similar to shriek, which caused the elder sister to squeak out a reaction.
“Oh, crap!”
Before the entity could even step towards Zalli, she pulled the door closed and sprinted back to her bedroom. Huizi brought her head up to see her owner had her back to the closed entrance and was sitting on the ground, panting heavily. The Xoloitzcuintle went over to her owner and sat by her side to offer some comfort.
The nightgown she wore moved delicately as Zalli dropped her knees down and placed a hand on Huizi; it then stayed motionless, the farmer feeling like she was stuck in time.
The maiden did not want to return to her sister’s bedroom—she barely wanted to even leave her own room. But she saw what was disturbing Tepi, and it was something very tangible.
If she confronted it, she would not know how to get it to leave. If she did nothing now, only to research about it later, then Tepi would have to endure more suffering. Zalli did not even know where to begin in her investigation. The library didn’t exactly have a section dedicated to the paranormal, much less about green entities. She could ask Cocoli, but her knowledge of the supernatural might be limited. Zalli only knew her to be a green witch who provided herbal remedies and maybe a love hechizo here and there.
Maybe confronting it to ask it what it wants is enough to get started. She could even ask it what it is.
These thoughts continued to cycle in Zalli’s head as she sat on her bedroom floor. She was stuck in torturous indecision until she heard a creak from outside her door.
Is someone else awake? The noise was enough to snap the maiden out of her anxiety ridden trance. She opened her door slowly and stuck her head out to see who was outside. Finding no one there, she closed her door again and went to check for the time.
Only an hour had passed. More of her family would be up soon.
Zalli decided. She would at least talk to the thing and find out its intention. She was betting she would receive no physical harm from the interaction, considering Tepi had no physical damage to her body, other than sleep deprivation.
So, the farmer found herself in front of her younger sister’s bedroom again. She moved to grab the doorknob, but paused after having it in her grasp. After a consideration, Zalli brought her ear to the door to see if she could hear anything on the other side.
When she heard nothing, she turned the knob at an agonizingly slow pace and pushed the door all the way open at the same speed.
Nothing but darkness could be seen. Releasing a breath, Zalli stepped in, purposefully leaving the door open, should she need a quick escape.
She found herself at the end of her sister’s bed, exactly where she saw the entity standing earlier. She circled around in her spot with arms raised up, perplexed she couldn’t find anything. It wasn’t until the fourth spin that the green corporeal figure appeared suddenly in front of her face.
“Ah, I'm screwed.”
Zalli exclaimed. She hopped back in her reaction and stared at the green doppelgänger of her little sister. It seemed like Green Tepi had a lot to say as it burbled rapidly. The thing didn’t seem angry, but it spoke like what it was saying was urgent. Too bad Zalli couldn’t understand a word it was saying.
Once it stopped speaking and stared at the farmer quizzically, Zalli realized it was waiting for a response from her.
“Uh, hi.” She brought her hand up to wave to it, but dropped it immediately. She felt silly trying to be polite to the entity. It could be malignant as far as she knew. “I don’t really understand what you’re saying ... Can you understand me?”
It nodded its head eagerly, making its distorted face more horrifying.
“Okay, uh ... Are you here to hurt Tepi, my little sister?”
It quirked its head to the side before shaking it in quick succession.
“Are you here to hurt my family?”
Another rapid shake.
“What do you want?”
It spoke out a garbled mess of words, reminding Zalli it couldn’t do more than answer by moving its head.
“Ah, sorry. Only yes-and-no questions ...” Green Tepi stopped making her noise upon hearing what Zalli said. She took some time to think about her next question, trying to find a way to articulate it in a constructive way. “Can you leave?”
Another shake.
“Are you here ... to fulfill some type of purpose?”
A nod came from it this time.
“Does it have to do with Tepi?”
Zalli took a step towards her sister as she slept on her bed. She placed a hand on the covers affectionately.
It shook its head, which confused Zalli greatly. If she isn’t here for Tepi, why does she keep haunting her? As she thought this, the unknown entity moved toward Zalli, its gait slow and tepid. As it ominously raised its hand up to reach towards the farmer, Zalli turned to lean on the end of the bed frame, grasping onto the edge tightly.
She tried to pull her chest away from Green Tepi, but she didn’t want to fall on her sister either. This allowed the entity to get its hand closer and closer to the rose farmer until its fingertips hovered just above her mid-sternum, where her heart was located.
There was a pause before any movement was made. Zalli breathed heavily, not wanting to move from her awkward position, but her core and lower back were straining. Green Tepi had her head shifted closer to one shoulder, and every time its face would stabilize, Zalli could see her eyebrows drawn together tightly.
Its hand remained frozen in its spot. It would pull back every so often, but its intent to move forward beyond the centimeter of separation never went more than the limit.
Zalli stared down at its hand. Her eyes widened in strain and her grip tightened, but she knew she couldn’t hold her spot for much longer. She could fall backwards, she could disturb the sleep her little sister managed to achieve within the night, but she looked over her shoulder to glance at Tepi briefly and realized she didn’t want to do any of that.
Green Tepi was showing she wanted her, anyway. What harm could happen from a small touch of a green, glowing figure? The maiden thought as she was on the literal edge of falling. Without further consideration, and using the last of her strength, Zalli pulled herself forwards with increasing speed.
She felt tension from three points as she ended up pushing the green entity back a few paces. With that tension placed over her heart, Zalli also felt a zap of energy run through her chest before it reached the bottom of her pelvis. It sent tendrils of minute electricity throughout her legs until it reached her toes. Then it shot back up to her lower abdomen and settled in her hips the same as it did her legs.
Once it was done, the energy shot back up into her heart and expanded a last time within her chest. It dissipated from her body, leaving Zalli feeling warm and comforted. It was as if all her worries left her body with the unknown energy.
Green fingers left the farmer, and the entity took a few steps back. The fingers of one hand held the fingers of the other as it held the grasp at chest level.
“Well, that was a bit unexpected.”
Zalli’s eyes snapped to the entity as she grasped what Green Tepi had said.
“I can hear you—I can understand you!”
The farmer spoke in a high pitch.
“Oh, you can! That’s so great, Zalli! I have so much to tell you. You need to know that you’ve been—”
Green Tepi spoke at a rapid pace and moved just as fast, with arms outreached to hug the maiden before her. It unfortunately caught Zalli off guard and caused her to squeal as she fell over the foot of the bed frame and onto the legs of her sister.
Her scream caused both Tepi to wake up, and Abuela Ezi to enter with a slipper in her hand, ready to throw it at an intruder’s head. Huizi followed right after, motivated more by curiosity than concern.
“Mija, are you alright?” Zalli turned her head to the door when her abuela spoke, but when she went to look back at Green Tepi, the entity had already disappeared. “Oh, Zalli, here you are. What happened, está todo bien?”
“Ah ... yeah. I just ... saw a spider, and it spooked me because it ran towards me.”
“You woke me up because of a stupid spider?”
Tepi’s voice spoke underneath the pillow she used to block out the sudden disturbances, but it was proving to not be very good at being sound proof. She sat up and gave a death glare to her older sister, who was pushing herself off her bed.
“Sorry, Tete. I only came in to check in on you, but-but I got spooked ...”
Zalli felt guilt wash over her. Not only was it her fault Tepi did not get the rest her body needed, but she was also fibbing to her family. But the maiden needed time to process what occurred between her and the green entity. Of course, her family would believe her if she said anything right now, but she wanted to understand what happened first before saying anything.
“Well, Zalli, I came looking for you because don Calip is already here.”
“Wait, what?! But it’s so early!”
“Mijita, it’s 7:45 in the morning.”
Zalli’s eyes darted from left to right multiple times as she tried to process what her abuela had just said. Just a few minutes ago, she was awake before her usual waking hour, but now suddenly two hours had passed. Baffled could barely explain what the maiden felt at that moment.
Abuela Ezi could feel the massive stress energy radiating from her nieta’s body. She went over to Zalli and gently grabbed her shoulders in both hands to guide her out of her little sister’s room.
“Don’t worry about it too much, Zalli. Go get ready. It will all work out.”
Distracted by the concern of not being able to adhere to her regular routine, Zalli nodded her head in a daze as she organized her thoughts to fix her messed up schedule for the day.
Michelle Alva
