A Darkness Strange and Lovely

The interior of Gare Saint Lazare was disappointingly foul—especially after the glamour of the city’s streets. We pulled into the triangular-roofed station built of exposed metal and wood and were soon filing off the train— only to be greeted by row after row of locomotives. With so much smoke billowing from each, it was a wonder the high skylights of the depot weren’t any blacker.

Oliver, my carpetbag in his hand, strode toward red archways marked SORTIE. I scurried after, and in moments we reached a set of steps heading down to tall-windowed exits.

“Where do you want to go?” Oliver yelled to be heard over the noise of the trains and people. An old couple swerved around us, glaring at our sudden stop, and a gust of perfume ran up my nose.

I coughed into gloved hands. “So many people!”

“Welcome to Paris, El.” Oliver smiled. “Do you want to find the Spirit-Hunters’ hotel now?”

“Only if you agree to meet them.”

“Absolutely not.”

“You must see them at some point,” I insisted, though secretly I was relieved. I wasn’t sure I was ready to face the Spirit-Hunters with my new necromancy, much less with a demon in tow. Joseph had made it plain enough how he felt about necromancy, so until I could find a way to prove I wasn’t doing anything wicked, it seemed best to simply pretend it had never happened. Why darken my easy friendship with the Spirit-Hunters with something over which I had no control?

Oliver closed his eyes, his head cocking to one side. When he opened them again, they flashed blue.

I started. “Wh-what was that? I thought you couldn’t do magic without my command.”

“I can’t.” He shook his head. “I was merely testing our bond. In case . . . well, in case we get separated. You can find our bond too. You simply . . . feel for it.”

I mimicked the movement he had made, closing my eyes and angling my head. Sure enough, now that I searched, I could sense the slightest thread winding its way around my heart.

I opened my eyes. “I feel it, but what do you mean by ‘get separated’?”

He flashed his eyebrows. “Your friend is here.”

“Eleanor!” shrieked a high voice.

My heart swelled, and I spun toward the sound. There was Jie, bounding over a bench, skidding around a pile of luggage, and then throwing her arms around me. “You’re here!”

“I am!” My voice came out as a squeal; and after squeezing me so hard I choked, Jie pushed me back for inspection.

“You look tired—it doesn’t suit you.” She poked me in the belly. “Though you’re lace-free, yeah?

I’m proud.”

I scanned her right back, from bald forehead to booted toes. “Well, you haven’t changed a bit—

though I daresay, these are fine clothes.” I fingered the tan wool of her suit jacket.

“You think this is nice? Wait’ll you see Joseph and Daniel. You won’t even recognize ’em. They are”—she twirled one hand in the air—“a la mode. Our host buys them so many hats and gloves and ties.” She rolled her eyes. “It’s ridiculous. He tried to get me to start dressing like the Parisian ladies, but then I threatened to punch his face in. We finally compromised on a few new suits instead.” She tugged at her lapels, teeth bared in a smile.

I scrunched up my forehead. “The boys sound foppish.”

“Don’t tell them that, yeah? Daniel will bite your head off, and Joseph will just frown until you feel like a rotten lowlife for speaking your mind.”

I laughed tightly. “And here I thought joining you all meant I needn’t worry about clothes or society anymore!”

“You don’t with me, Eleanor.” She pointed to my carpetbag. “This all you brought?”

“Uh . . .” I twirled around. Where was Oliver? Get separated—ha.

I turned back to Jie and beamed. “Yes, that’s mine. Now tell me everything!”

“You first!” She swooped my bag up over her shoulder, and we joined in the flow of people leaving the station.

“I’d rather wait,” I said, choosing my words carefully. It was all going so well, and I wanted to cling to that a bit longer. Later—I could always talk about Oliver, Marcus, and the Hell Hounds later.

“I’m tired,” I continued. “It’s been a long day. You tell me about Paris first.”

“Fair enough.” She smiled. “But let’s get a cab, yeah?”

Several seconds later, I took my first steps into Paris, and my heart grew so big, I had to shuffle to a stop and simply soak it all in.

In some ways Paris was as familiar to me as Philadelphia—the carriages rattling on the cobblestones, the people hurrying home, the smell of horses and mud and city—and yet in most ways it was so, so different.

The same beige-faced buildings and gray roofs I’d seen when entering the city now peered down at me from every direction, and I couldn’t help but imagine all the people behind each tall window and down each winding street.

And with the sun setting beyond the rooftops, the streetlights seemed to glow even more brightly, casting all those lives and smiles and heartbreaks in an unearthly warmth.

I grinned until my cheeks ached. I had done it! I’d left Philadelphia far behind, and my troubles were long lost in the dust. Or . . . they were at least somewhat behind me.

Oh, don’t think of all that, I ordered myself. I was in Paris and with my dearest friend. I ought to give myself at least a few hours to revel in it.

Jie let me gape for several minutes, but then her usual impatience kicked in, and she hauled me down to the busy street. After waving over a hansom cab, she rattled off the hotel name and a few

French words. The driver helped us inside the coach.

“Learning the language?” I asked, impressed, as we settled onto the bench seat beside each other.

Jie twirled the end of her braid. “I don’t like relying on Joseph to talk to everyone, and I hate not knowing what people say about me.” She sighed and stared out the window as we clattered to a start.

“But we’ve only been here a month. I haven’t learned much.”

Some of my excitement melted, and for a moment I pressed my hands to my lips and watched her.

She was the same girl from the summer—fierce, quick to smile, and unafraid—but there was a new dullness in her eye.

“You don’t like it here,” I stated.

“Is it that obvious?” Her eyes slid to mine. “It’s not the city’s fault, or even the Parisians’. Truth is, I’ve just been lonely.”

“Me too.” I sighed and hooked her arm in mine. “But now we’re together.”

She chuckled. “And I’m glad for it, yeah?” Suddenly her breath caught, and she wrenched free.

“Eleanor, you have two hands! How?”

“Uh, w-well,” I stammered. It was all fine to avoid mentioning Oliver, but this would certainly need an explanation. Stupid Eleanor! Why hadn’t I prepared an answer for this?

“I used . . . magic,” I finally said.

“How?”

I shrugged one shoulder. “I simply figured it out, I suppose.”

Her eyebrows shot up. “Simply . . . figured it out?”

I nodded, relieved when she didn’t question me further and only said, “Joseph did say you had power.”

Taking my new hand in her own, she slipped off the glove. She spread out my fingers and held them to the light. “It’s just like your old hand!”

“It is my old hand.” I pulled it back, embarrassed. “I . . . I managed to call it through the curtain and bind it here.” That was mostly the truth.

She whistled. “That sounds like dangerous stuff. You should’ve waited for Joseph.”

I only grunted in response, and Jie seemed to notice my discomfort. She dropped my hand. “You don’t wanna talk now—sorry. You should look at the city, yeah?”