“Ah Qiao. What’re you doing here?”
“Looking for you. I knew I’d find you in the library. You’re in here a lot these days!” Ah Qiao chomped down on his Choco Pie. Crumbs spilled onto the table.
“I’m researching something.” Since realizing Ba had lost his memories, I’d done my best to try to find a cure. I’d gone through every memory-related book in the library at least three times but still hadn’t found a satisfactory answer. The weathered book I’d fallen asleep reading—Restorative Potions—seemed the most promising. Only problem was, the chapter titled “Memory-Restoring Elixirs” was mysteriously blank.
“Researching? But you’re always sleeping here. Don’t you have your own bed?”
“I am not always sleeping here,” I said defensively.
Ah Qiao pulled his phone out of his pocket. “I have pictures. Wanna see?”
“No! Hey, don’t you have homework, or training, or someone else to bug—?”
“Faryn!”
I jolted, sure that this time I’d heard Alex’s voice. But no. The person who’d arrived at the door was Ren. Not my brother, who’d betrayed us and was plotting gods-knew-what with Xi Wangmu. Ren, my friend, who could sometimes turn into a fifteen-foot-tall dragon. You know, just normal puberty stuff for an average thirteen-year-old kid.
The hope of seeing Alex had briefly bloomed, but now it disappeared. I swallowed my disappointment.
Get a grip. Alex is gone. He chose to leave you. Just like Ba. Just like how everyone else in your life has left you.
Every day, I thought about Alex and how he was a top contender for the Worst Little Brother Ever award. Six months ago, during the Lunar New Year, when little brothers were supposed to give their older sisters compliments and nice presents, my little brother had decided to give me the gift of utter betrayal. While I saved the world from the wrath of the fearsome nián demon, Alex decided to become an evil turd. Guess who didn’t get a hóng bāo, a red packet of money, for good behavior.
“I heard you in the hallway,” Ren said. “You were yelling pretty loudly. Something about a demon-Alex. I thought maybe the library was under attack or something.” He raised his hand so I could see he’d drawn his sword.
“Of course the library wasn’t under attack.” I frowned. “The demons have been gone for six months now, remember?”
The combined forces of warriors and deities had helped to beat back the demons in Manhattan’s Chinatown—for now, at least. We’d heard hardly a peep of any demon activity since the end of the Lunar New Year. The warriors had different theories. Some believed the demons were gone for a good while. Some believed the demons were regrouping for an even bigger attack in the future.
“You’re lucky you weren’t under attack,” Ren said. “I would’ve been the only one around to help you.”
“Why? Where’d everyone else go?” It was rare for the New Order apartments to be empty. The warriors took up all the rooms in a six-story apartment complex right outside Chinatown. As the Elders had explained when we’d first arrived, the building was guarded with ancient magic that made it look like a doctor’s office to any outsiders. This meant the warriors were very safe, because nobody ever wanted to go inside a doctor’s office.
The New Order was the Jade Society 2.0. Clearly, the New Order warriors had gotten a much bigger chunk of the budget the gods had allotted warriors for building their societies. The apartment complex was way bigger on the inside than it appeared from the outside. It had everything a warrior could possibly need: a training ground in the basement, apartments on the first and second floors, a dining hall on the third floor, a library on the fourth floor, a game room on the fifth floor, and even a spa on the sixth floor.
“Everyone’s gone to the temple, of course,” Ah Qiao said loudly. “Don’t tell me you forgot what day it is.”
In the aftermath of my dream about Alex, it had slipped my mind. “July 31st. It’s the day before the Hungry Ghost Festival.”
One of the biggest celebrations of the year, the Hungry Ghost Festival was a time for the living to reunite with their dead ancestors and friends. It was more of a formality now, since the warriors were no longer powerful enough to actually summon the dead. Still, the holiday always reminded me of the family I’d never known—Mama, my mother; Nai Nai, my grandmother; Gu Gu, my aunt; Jiu Jiu, my uncle. They had all passed away before I was born. This year, my grandfather was also on my mind. Ye Ye had passed away during the last Lunar New Year and now lived as a deity in Heaven. The thought brought a pang to my chest.
Every warrior needed to be alert for demon activity during the Hungry Ghost Festival, just like on every holiday, when the demons grew stronger—and especially this year, the wake of the demons’ attack during the Lunar New Year. And I’d almost slept through the prefestival ceremony. The worst part was, Xiong, the master of the New Order, was just about the strictest guy on the planet. He once made me run ten laps around Chinatown because I forgot it was my turn to sweep the dining hall floors. I guess a guy named Xiong, which literally means “fierce,” is bound to be one tough cookie.
“Xiong’s speech starts soon. Ah Qiao, you should get going. I need to speak with Faryn.”
“No! I don’t wanna go to the dumb—”
One hard, penetrating stare from Ren was enough to silence Ah Qiao. The little boy gave me a sullen look, as though asking for backup. I
