Star Bright

Twenty Five: Amend

   Dani walked to school that same morning. After Jean's breakdown, Nelson arrived to check up on them. He had offered to have their table fixed and they'd agreed. Jean had said she wanted to replace the broken glasses and plates but Ian said it was probably too dangerous to leave their house. It was then Nelson had shared that if she took a crystal with her, Anon wouldn't be able to touch or Brighten her. Crystals ward Stars off but that didn't stop Stars from touching them. All Jean had to know was that she had to have confidence that the crystal could keep Anon away and it would. Just like how Anon had confidence that the crystal circle would keep Ian bound and it did. So in all, Dani learnt that crystals functioned on confidence.

   Nobody could guess where Anon could possibly be in Hawks. Nelson and Ian had decided that they would go looking for him later in the day. The two of them kept trying to convince her not to go to school, saying that Anon could do something unexpected. It was for this same reason that Dani left for school. She remembered the horrible feeling that overwhelmed her when she had thought Gabe or Jeremy was at the door when Anon still had them captive. She didn't want to feel like that again, not ever, so she was going to do what she could to prevent it.

  In her bag were five crystals that Nelson had supplied them with. According to him, he had gotten them from the bottom of the Moon Lake. Having a big pile of crystals in his house had caused him serious migraines. He'd said that a Star could sense a crystal because its presence alone causes a very small headache, which can be ignored if the Star is energized. Knowing all this made Dani feel the slightest bit of hope that everything might actually turn out alright. Nelson was on their side. Though he no longer had his abilities, he was still a great asset. Dani vividly remembered their conversation before Nelson had knocked on their door;

   •••

  "So Nelson was once a Star, but now he's human?" Jean asked. She looked and sounded stable again.

  "Yes." Ian answered.

  "How'd that happen?"

  "According to him, he wanted to come down on his own. Said that he had fallen in love with another Star; a BirthStar to be exact."

  "Wait," Dani said, "what category did he belong to himself?"

  "He said he was a ChargeStar, the ones who are born when someone takes responsibility for someone or something for the first time, the first step to maturity. Anyways, he fell for another Star and they wanted to have babies, to be human."

  "And let me guess," Jean said, folding her arms, "mummy dearest wasn't too happy about that."
 
  Ian sighed, shaking his head. "No. She tried to talk them out of the idea but their spirits couldn't be diminished. So to avoid others from following their ways, she not only took their powers away but she put them at different ends of the world. Though he may not be a Star anymore, Nelson ages rather slowly. He has been looking for her for seventy-six years now. It was only last year he gave up."

  "Wow..." Dani said.

  "Yeah..." Ian breathed and leaned back.

  "I think your mother's a bitch, no offense, Ian." Jean remarked and sipped her coffee.

  Ian didn't reply; he appeared to be too deep in thought. "Before they were cast out, he said she picked a new name for herself; Edith. He too changed his name from Frederick to Nelson. It was the only way they'd hoped to find each other on earth without their powers."

  "Okay, this is getting too depressing." Jean said, getting up. "Thank heavens the Moon's all the way up there because god knows what I would do to her if she had a human body!" Jean crossed the floor to the kitchen and opened the fridge.