Hark

YA Urban Fantasy Short Story - October 2025 - A. E. Costello

Hark

“Ghosts are not real,” said my therapist, slow and clear, as if to drill it into my head.

“Uh, yeah we are,” said the ghost of my cousin in my ear. “Tell her, Endor. Tell her I’m real.”

I can’t see my cousin, Zemira Graves, anymore. She took her own life last year. But I hear her every day. She speaks in a ghastly voice, like someone whispering creepily from behind a veil. That’s just how ghosts talk.

I said, “Ghosts are not real.”

Madison Scott sat back, writing down something in her clipboard.

“Good,” she said, “We’re making progress.”

I could hardly hear that, over Zemira throwing a fit.

“How could you say that!” Zemira yelled. “I am real! You know I’m real!”

Madison’s clipboard dropped from her hands like it had gotten smacked out.

“Whoops,” said Madison, bending down. “Hands kind of let go there.”

No they didn’t.

I whispered, “Zemira, calm down.”

Madison sat up straight with her clipboard, and looked at me.

“What was that? I didn’t hear you.”

I said, “Nothing. Ah, are we almost done?”

Zemira said, “Blah, blah, blah! This is boring! Can we go now? I hate therapy! She doesn’t even believe I exist!”

Madison said, “Endor? Endor? Endor!”

I jerked and looked at her.

“Um, right,” I said, waving my hand at the side of my head. I can’t see Zemira, so I don’t know if she was really there or not, but the signal should tell her to buzz off for a minute.

Madison was staring at me, and I swallowed.

She sat back, and wrote on her clipboard.

Then she began to flip back in the chart, way back.

“You know, Endor,” she said. “When we began to see each other, and for a long time, you reported you could hear voices. Have you been hearing them again lately?”

“She’s always heard them,” said Zemira, in a matter-of-fact ghastly voice, and answering the question like Madison could hear her. “Since Endor was a baby, she could hear ghosts! And I could see them. So we were best of friends, I’d tell her what I saw, she’d tell me what they were saying. We were inseparable, weren’t we, Endor?”

“Yea, we were,” I said, my voice choked. “Until you crossed the veil, Zemi. You went a place I couldn’t follow.”

Zemira’s voice from behind the veil whispered against my ear, “I couldn’t take seeing them anymore…when I saw…that thing…and you heard it…!”

I covered my face, and ended up bursting into tears.

Madison calmed me down, gave me tissues and a bottle of water.

Then she said, “Zemi…that is your nickname for Zemira, Zemira Graves your cousin, am I right? She took her own life last year. Are you pretending she’s still with you?”

I slowly lowered my tissues from my face, and stared at the face of my therapist. She had no clue. Just no clue at all. I focused on her, because I had to let her know.

I began to hear it. The whispers of the ghosts of her past.

A voice spoke out from Madison’s shoulder.

So I began to repeat what the voice was saying.

“Maddy, I’m sorry,” I said, and watched the blood drain from her face. “Maddy, I didn’t mean to lock you in the closet. I was a bad mother, I really was, but I’m sorry.”

“Stop it,” ordered my therapist, standing up from kneeling next to me.

I concentrated harder on her, and focused on a different voice from the ghosts of her past.

“Maddigirl,” I said, and she made a terrified face. “I miss you so much. I’m waiting for you, I’m waiting for you.”

Madison screamed. “Get out!”

I stood up and grabbed my bag.

Madison yelled after me, “And don’t ever come back!”

Zemira cackled gleefully as I walked out of the therapist office.

“That was legit! Got her back for saying I don’t exist!”

Outside, surrounded by people…everyone’s ghosts of their pasts began to blare. Ghastly creepy voices whispering from behind veils from everyone. They can’t hear the dead trying to communicate to them but I can.

“I’m sorry-”

“Listen to me-”

“Forgive me-”

“I hate you!”

“Talk to me-”

“Can’t you hear me-”

I put on my big noise-cancelling headphones.

I said softly, “I’m putting on music now, Zemira.”

“Ah man,” she whined.

I pressed play on my phone. Mistress by the post-grunge and hard rock band The Vanguard blasted into my ears, drowning out all the ghostly whispers with the drums and the bass rocking out.

The lead singer crooned in a deep husky voice, “Terrifying villain. Enraged and in pain. She’s half woman and half demon. Mistress I’m pulling up in your lair. Twisting your hair and smashing your dreams.”

I got on the bus, scanned the app on my phone and walked straight to the back of the bus, getting a window seat and turning to face the window. The headphones banged drums and bass and beat in my ears, I couldn’t hear Zemira, I couldn’t hear anyone else’s ghosts, just music.

The leader singer did his classic hoarse yell, “Blinded by me, you can’t see!”

The Vanguard dropped the beat and rocked out.

“Just call my NAME, ‘cause I’ll hear you SCREAM! Faithless! Mistress!

The band rocked out.

“Just call my NAME, ‘cause I’ll hear you SCREAM! Faithless! Mistress!”

I rode the subway back home listening to The Vanguard rock music still blasting in my ears.

Photo by Marcin Kempa on Unsplash

I reached my apartment building, rode the elevator up to the tenth floor, and used my key to unlock the door. I turned off my music as I came inside the small two-bedroom apartment. I slipped out of my shoes and hung up my coat, pushing my headphones to hang around my neck.

“I’m home,” I called.

My mother looked up from the kitchen table. The spread of papers and books on the table told me she’d brought work home with her. She worked on a number of committees and did grants for city council.

“How was therapy today, Endor?” she asked.

I threw myself down on the chair across from her and debated what to tell her. Go into a full-blown rant about how horrible the appointment all was? The truth was that I terrified my therapist and she threw me out of her office and told me to never come back. My mom is busy, she has so much work to do. Burden her with my problems…no. I’d give her the rated G for General version.

I said, “Same, typical. She asked how class was, how I’m doing, yada, yada. It’s fine. That’s about it.”

“Mm hmm,” said Mom, adjusting her glasses on her nose, and looking down at a series of grant paperwork. “Well…that’s not what the call I received said.”

I froze.

Mom looked up at me, and took off her glasses and looked at me directly in the eyes, like an owl sighting down a mouse in the grass.

She said, “You know that your attendance in Roxbury High is contingent on you staying in therapy, Endor. The moment the principal and superintendent hear you’ve been kicked out of therapy, they’ll give you a week to find a new therapist, or you’re expelled. At this point, we’ll run out of schools who can accept you. So why, tell me why you scared Ms. Scott so badly, and are ruining this?”

Zemira said in my ear, “She deserved it, that’s why. She tried to say I wasn’t real, but I am real. Tell her, Endy. Tell her Zemira is still here, I’m always here.”

I sighed, and crossed my arms over my knees, and hung my head.

“I’m sorry,” I said, closing my eyes tight as they burned hot. “I got upset.”

Mom said, “Being upset isn’t an excuse,” the same time Zemira said, “So what? She deserved it.”

Hearing voices overlay like that was very annoying and distracting, but I was used to it.

Zemira said, “Why do you even want to go to school? Stay home with me instead.”

Ignoring her, I said, “I do want to go to school, Mom.”

“Then stay in therapy, and pay attention in class,” instructed Mom.

“It’s hard to pay attention,” I said softly. “Zemira keeps distracting me. And everyone else’s ghosts too.”

Zemira began laughing as Mom sent me a sharp glance.

“Your cousin Zemira is gone,” Mom said. “She passed away last year. And stop saying about ghosts Endor. We’ve been over this. Ghosts aren’t what’s causing you hearing voices. Did you take your medicine today?”

I stood up.

“I’m going to my room,” I said softly. “I’m sorry, Mom, that I’m like this. I’m sorry Dad left. But Zemira is still here. She’s talking to me, always. And other people’s ghosts talk to me. Your ghosts talk to me. The only thing I can do is drown them out with music…and pray someone helps me.”

I turned to leave, giving her my back.

Mom said, “Wait, Endor.”

I looked back.

Mom got up and sighed heavily. Then she hugged me. I cringed, because this close and physical contact, the ghosts around her came closer to me too, and I could hear them. Their ghastly voices crowded into my ears, speaking over one another.

“Neriah, please, I’m sorry.”

“Are you listening to me? Neriah, are you listening?”

“I want to come back, I shouldn’t have left. I want us to be together.”

“Wait for me! I’m waiting for you, I’m here, I’m here!”

“GET BACK HERE YOU!”

I shoved my mom away with both hands, and the voices shuttered, those ghosts were the ghosts of Mom’s past, the skeletons of her closet. They were talking to her not me.

My heart pounded, and sickness rolled in my stomach.

Zemira whispered, “What was that thing? What is that thing in Auntie Neriah’s past?”

Mom said, “Endor! What did you do that for?”

I stared at her. Mom had such a kind sweet face. I didn’t look like her. Whatever it was that was demanding her attention so fiercely like that, she was keeping that to herself. I didn’t want to know.

I said, “I…I don’t want hugs okay? I don’t need hugs or kisses. I need the voices to stop. If you don’t have anything that will help that, then…I’m just going to my room.”

Mom bit her lower lip, and looked guilty and sad.

Then she sighed.

“I wanted to…” she pushed her fingers together and squeezed them. “I wanted to try and raise you as…normal as possible, Endor.”

I didn’t say anything. I’m used to being told I’m not normal. It doesn’t even hurt.

Mom said, “I had hoped that if I kept you in public or even private schools with other normal children, maybe you’d turn out like them. I guess it was silly, a mom’s pipe dream. You turned out just like your father after all.”

Now that one did hurt.

I smiled, tears rimming my eyes.

“So that’s it then, isn’t it?” I said with a shaky laugh. “Then I should pack up and leave. I’ll be exactly like him.”

“That’s not what I meant,” said Mom. “I mean you have his power, Endor.”

I wobbled, stumbled then made my way back to sit down before I fell down. Mom sat back down too.

She put her elbows on the table, and held up her forehead with both hands and stared at the table.

She said, “Everyone told me Javan was crazy but he showed me the world of the paranormals. I thought it was fantastic, and I wanted to be a paranormal too.”

I said, “Mom, what are you talking about?”

“But it got him killed,” she said, like I hadn’t spoken.

“What!” I yelled. “My father was killed?”

Mom kept going, ignoring me, “So I took you, and ran, and pretended you are a normal, like me, a normal child.”

My jaw was likely on the floor. I gaped at her, unable to even speak at all.

Mom put her hand out to me, but didn’t touch me.

“I swear I never meant to hurt you by keeping all of this from you,” she said. “I wanted to protect you.”

My eyes watered again.

“You knew,” I whispered. “You knew all along it wasn’t schizophrenia or bipolar or anything like that. But you had me on meds and in mental hospitals and going to therapy anyway.”

Mom whispered, “It was all a needed cover for you to be in the normal world. And I, I thought that maybe those things would help damper your power, that the power of thought would suppress it. But then Zemira messed it up.”

I gasped, and so did Zemira in my ear.

“Mom!” I yelled the same time Zemira yelled, “Auntie!”

Mom clasped her face for a second then put her hand down.

She said, “You may have been able to be convinced that you were a normal girl with psychosis, if Zemira wasn’t talking in your ear all the time. With Zemira always there you are fully convinced you have powers, which you do. So my plans failed. And now you are so powerful that ghosts are constantly around you.”

I croaked as Zemira howled wordlessly, and I did my best to ignore her, but she was right. The utter and complete betrayal.

Then I stood up and wroth spewed from my mouth, heat and fire and boiled words from deep within me.

Mom slapped me across the face.

She stared me down.

“I don’t care how upset you get child,” she whispered. “But don’t think you can haul off and talk to me any which way you want to. I’m not booboo the fool from down the street, understand?”

I touched the little bubble of my swelling upper lip. Zemira threw the chair from the kitchen table I had been sitting in, crashing it against the wall.

Mom stepped back from me, and whispered, “Stop it, Endy. Stop acting out like this.”

I whirled around and stormed to the front door. Zemira opened it, and slammed it behind me. Outside I barreled down the hallway and threw myself into the stairwell, running down the stairs and skipping steps as fast and hard as I could. I burst out into the lobby and ran out into the city.

As soon as I did, like foghorns, people and ghosts began talking, making the nightlife of the city streets twice as loud. A couple walking by talked to each other, but so did the ghosts of their deceased parents, right next to them, trying to get their attention. The homeless man on the street, he was surrounded with the ghosts of previous homeless, all yelling at him. He couldn’t hear them, but I could. The man standing at the corner with a street prophesying the end of the world, he had a crowd of ghosts with them, all screaming into the void. All the voices all banged and collided into my ears. I couldn’t see any of the ghosts, I could only hear everything.

I ran anyway, trying to escape, but there was nowhere to go, the ghosts were everywhere. Everyone had ghosts, everyone had someone from beyond the veil trying to talk to them, begging for attention, for forgiveness, to listen, to see them, to answer them.

I collapsed in the corner of an alleyway, pressing my hands against my ears. I had dropped my earphones somewhere. I curled into a ball, digging my knees into my forehead, and ducking my head down against my thighs. Voices crowded around me.

“Hey, she can hear us!”

“Please, tell my son that I love him.”

“Back off, that’s my cousin! She only listens to me! Endy, tell them you only talk to me.”

“I need him to hear me, to know I’m sorry!”

“Listen to me. I have a story to tell, just listen to my story. Please, if you listen to me, I can pass without regrets.”

“No, stop, leave Endy alone! That’s my cousin, she only listens to me!”

Tears poured down my face. All of the voices were ghastly, ghoulish, like horrible whispering behind a curtain. Not normal talking. They sounded like the dead who shouldn’t be talking.

I groaned, “Leave me alone, leave me alone, leave me alone.”

Then suddenly there was a loud gross sound like someone vomiting, but somehow backwards. Just a throaty visceral gulping consumption noise. And all the ghosts began screaming, protesting, shrill noises of abject fear. I heard Zemira make a noise of pure desperation. The screams of the petrified ghosts had me rocking back and forth sobbing.

Then there was silence.

Then a hand touched my shoulder, gently. “Are you alright?”

I shakily opened my eyes, but they were so covered with tears I couldn’t see anything. Someone wiped my eyes with their sleeve, and I was looking into a sweet brown face. She looked chubby and warm and kind.

“You alright there?” she said again. “You were all screaming and crying.”

I sat up, and looked around.

“Zemira?” I asked, but no answer.

The woman hunkered next to me looked concerned.

“Zemira?” she said softly. “There’s no one with you, honey. You’re all alone. Are you okay?”

I wiped the tears off my face. All the ghosts that had been bombarding me. They were all gone. One moment they had been surrounding me, begging me…the next they were the ones screaming for help. Now they’re gone. Zemira is gone too.

I looked at her, this kind savior.

“Who are you?” I asked.

“My name is Kakoi Keres,” she said with a soft smile. “And you are?”

All of a sudden, I got this stern feeling to not give this person my real name. I’ve heard of gut instincts and intuition and little voices that tell people things. Well, this felt like a huge voice.

I said, “Madison Scott.”

“Ah,” said Kakoi Keres, and she had a definite expression of disappointment.

Not who you were looking for…holy moly. I think I dodged a massive bullet.

“Well then,” said Keres, standing up, and I did too. “You should be getting home, Miss Scott. It’s dangerous to wander around by yourself. Who knows what’s out here that could scoop up little girls, right?”

Yeah, like you? I gotta get out here.

I forced a smile, and nodded.

“Yes ma’am,” I said, with another fake smile. “I’ll head home then. Thank you.”

“Have a good evening,” said Keres, and she turned away, but not before I saw her kind smile totally shatter. She looked cold and calculating, and was looking around.

Is she looking for…Endor Harken. What would have happened if I gave my real name?

I turned and ran back home.

I burst in the door, and looking up from the living room was my mother, and a woman I had never seen before.

“Ah,” said my Mom, getting up quickly. “Endor! I’m so glad you’re back. This is Lorene Rinn.”

The other woman stood up. She had white hair in a French braid and dark eyes and wore all white. She lightly inclined her head to me.

Mom said, “She used to work with your father. She came right away when I told her you’d run away from home.”

I breathed heavily.

I said, “I just ran into someone named Kakoi Keres. Is that a name I should be worried about?”

The way Mom and Rinn looked directly at each other with fierce faces told me that yes, I was.

Rinn turned back to me.

“Let’s talk.”

I sat down in the living room on the loveseat, Rinn took the armchair to the right and my Mom sat on the couch.

We all tried to talk at once.

Mom said, “Running away from home was so dangerous and irresponsible.”

I said, “Okay, I need everything explained to me, right now.”

Rinn said, “What exactly did Keres say? Did she talk to you, touch you? What happened?”

We all stopped talking at the same time since all of our words clanged into each other.

Rinn gestured to Mom, and put her hand up at me.

Mom thanked her and stared at me.

“I understand we had a bad argument,” she said first. “And I’m sorry I’ve hurt you, both emotionally and physically. But please understand how dangerous running away was. Especially the moment you did, you ran into Kakoi Keres!”

I yelled, “I don’t even know who that is!”

Mom yelled back, “She killed your father!”

I stood up, my fists clenched at my sides and bellowed, “I didn’t know that! You didn’t explain anything my entire life! You lied to me about being mentally ill and kept me on pills! So why should I believe anything you say now!”

“Let’s calm down,” said Rinn, and gestured to me to sit down, but I didn’t. “Please sit down, please. I said let’s talk, so let’s talk.”

I slowly sat down, but realized I couldn’t. Because the sofa was levitating.

“Zemira, stop it,” I said, but Zemira didn’t reply.

Rinn was staring at me.

“It’s not Zemira,” she said softly, “It was never Zemira.”

“What?” I said, my heart beginning to skip beats, and a hot feeling burning underneath my skin. “What are you talking about?”

Rinn said, “Slamming doors, throwing chairs, now levitating the sofa. That was never Zemira. That was always your power, Endor. Now open your palms, turn them flat towards the ground, and lower your fists. Slowly.”

I followed her directions, and the sofa lowered to the ground, and thumped on the hardwood floor. I slumped onto the sofa, and exhaled, and so did Mom, she was holding her breath too.

Rinn said, “You are a cross compound paranormal, Endor.”

“What?” I said shakily, staring into her cocoa colored eyes.

Rinn said, “A paranormal who has powers that cross designations. In your case, you have the powers of Ghoul and Psychokinetic designations. You can Hear beyond and the Veil and have the psychokinetic ability of telekinesis. That is the ability to control and move objects with your mind. That is a cross designation ability and it is incredibly rare.”

I nodded slowly, trying to process this. Earlier today I was told that ghosts aren’t real and I need to take my meds. Now I’m being told I’m an incredibly rare cross compound paranormal.

“Okay great,” I said. “Now what the hell is up Kakoi Keres?”

Rinn leaned in. “Did anything happen when you meet her?”

She stared at me intently.

I nodded.

“Yeah,” I said.

I explained about the ghosts bombarding me, driving me to tears and in the fetal position. Then it was the ghosts who were screaming for help, sounding petrified. There was this disgusting vomiting sound, but weird, more like a gross swallowing sound. And all the ghosts went silent all at once.

Rinn looked very upset, and Mom highly concerned.

“What?” I asked, sitting up straight. “What the heck?”

Rinn said, “Keres lives up to her last name, death spirit. She is a Consumer.”

“A consumer?” I repeated.

“She can eat or consume dead spirits,” said Rinn in a grave tone. “She’s a literal Ghost Eater. When she does, she takes in all of their knowledge and abilities and becomes more youthful. She will kill other paranormals, then once they become ghosts, eat their spirits, thusly gaining all of their knowledge and abilities. She is the most vicious and dangerous paranormal alive.”

I stared at Rinn in shock.

I whispered, “So it was a good thing I gave her a fake name.”

“Absolutely,” the two women said together.

Rin said, “If you had told Keres your name was Endor Harken, she would have killed you immediately, more than likely. She is your enemy. She killed your father Javan, and killing Javan’s Daughter likely makes her stomach growl.”

“Stop it,” snapped my mother as I gagged. “Are you trying to frighten her half to death!”

“Only make the seriousness of the situation clear,” said Rinn, leaning forward. “So here’s what we’ll do. I’ll be your “therapist” Endor, so you can continue attending Roxbury High. However during your therapy sessions I’ll train you on how to use your powers.”

My eyes widened and then my teeth gritted.

Powers.

Not “ghosts aren’t real” that’s been shoved down my throat all my life. Ghosts are real. I’m a rare paranormal. My father didn’t abandon the family, he was murdered and now his murderer wants to kill me too.

“Zemira,” I suddenly said. “What happened to Zemira?”

Rinn said, “Your cousin, am I right? A ghost who spends her afterlife around you?”

“That’s right,” I said, “I heard her with me in the alleyway but when Kakoi Keres showed up she stopped saying anything.”

Rinn looked saddened.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “However Keres consumes ghosts. I’m afraid Zemira was also consumed or eaten by Keres. She’s gone now.”

I breathed shakily and stared at the floor, my eyes burning. Zemira. My talkative possessive cousin who’s clung to me since she’s died, and was my best friend while she’s alive…is gone.

“Okay,” I whispered tightly. “Keres is officially on my shit list…she’s going down.”

Rinn said firmly, “That’s not something you can hope to accomplish. Not even close at the skill level you are now.”

Mom stood up.

“It’s late,” she said, right as I cut a jaw-splitting yawn. “Endor had a long day, and I think there’s been a lot of talk. Endy, get some sleep. You still have school tomorrow.”

“Therapy session with me after,” said Rinn firmly.

I nodded with another sleepy yawn.

“Got it,” I said with a soft wheeze. “See you then.”

“I’ll walk you out,” said Mom. “Endor, bed.”

“Yes Mom,” I said.

Don’t have to tell me twice. I’m exhausted.

Showered and in nightclothes, I laid down in bed, and realized how quiet it was. No Zemira.

Tears burned in my eyes then followed by a hot flushed feeling in my skin.

Kakoi Keres.

She killed my father, she’s consumed my cousin. And now she’s after me too? Why is she so bloodthirsty? Why is she killing everyone she comes into contact with? Well I won’t let her kill me. I don’t care how many “therapy” sessions it takes. I’ll up my skill levels, and take down Keres!

***

Back at Roxbury High the next day like everything was normal, and not like I had meet my father’s killer face to face last night is wild. But I kept my cool and headed into History with Mr. Feras. Once I walked in a rush of whispers and gasps went through the room, people who were slumped over sat up straight, and everyone was staring at me with hate, with disgust. I flushed on my dark cheeks.

“Quiet down,” said Mr. Feras in an Arabic-accented voice.

I took my normal seat in the back and heard the colliding whispers. Classmates talking to each other, and their ghosts talking to them, trying to get their attention, all clashing into my ears. The voices yelled, pushed, combated, fought over each other.

“He never answers me.”

“Why won’t she look at me?”

“Can anyone hear me?”

“I’m sorry, so sorry.”

“I shouldn’t have done it.”

“Forgive me. I keep saying forgive me.”

“I hate everyone. That’s why I did it. I hate all of you.”

“Look at me. Look me in the face, and say you’re sorry.”

I touched at my ears. Right. I lost my earphones last night. Today I’ll have to deal with the noise of ghosts until Mom comes home with new headphones after work. I pulled my hoodie over my head, and slouched down in my seat, staring at the middle of my desk with my eyes braced wide as I struggled to ignore it all.

Mr. Feras said, “Pay attention to the history lesson. Not knowing your history makes you doomed to repeat it. Here we go now, continuing.”

Mr. Feras resumed the history lecture. I hadn’t even noticed when he started class. I pulled my hoodie tightly against my ears with both hands, and stared up at the ceiling. Everyone’s ghosts crowded against me, all yelling and talking over each other. Like too many mixtapes blaring at the same time.

“Talk to me, please!”

“Can you hear me?”

“Tell him I’m sorry.”

“I’ll do it again if I could!”

“Just wait until it’s your turn, I’ll be waiting!”

When the bell rang, I bolted out of class. But rather than running to find someplace quiet to decompress, someone was waiting for me.

“Hi, Endor right?”

She waved. She had rusted red hair down past her shoulders, and jade green eyes. Her skin was pale white with a smattering of red freckles of her cheeks and nose.

“I’m Fionúir Delvin,” she said cheerfully. “And you are Endor, right?”

She had a little Irish brogue that made her words should even more happy. I’ve never had anyone speak to me like that, like they actually wanted to talk to me.

I paused then said lowly, “Yeah. Endor. Endor Harken. You know me?”

“Dr. Rinn’s been telling us all about the new girl,” said Fionúir with another cheerful smile. “Besides, I saw all the ghosts bothering you, so I could figure out who you were.”

My eyes widened. “You did what?”

“Ah I see, literally, I see,” said Fionúir, pointing at her eyes then pointing at me. “I’m a Seer. A paranormal who can See beyond the Veil.”

I whispered. “The Veil. That’s the curtain that separates the dead and the living.”

“That’s right,” said Fionúir. “And I saw all the ghosts that were hounding around you. They sure were begging for attention!”

She said that like ghosts were dogs wanting treats and not like audio monsters ruining my life.

The warning bell rang, so we said goodbye, with Fionúir chirping, “See you at therapy, Endor!”

I headed to the science lab with Mrs. Beltrán. The room had a large window into the room, inside was a bunch of science equipment, black tables and stools. I normally sat alone in the back, but this time a Japanese boy was sitting next to my assigned seat. He waved eagerly at me.

I inhaled slowly. I’ve never had this before. I slowly walked over. He smiled at me, and I lost that inhaled breath, he was so pretty, he could be a member of a J-pop band.

“Hey, the newcomer that Dr. Rinn told us about,” said the Japanese boy, nodding at me. “Oh, I’m Reinosuke Sato, by the way.”

I said, “I’m Endor Harken. Ah so um you can hear or see ghosts too, I guess?”

He patted the seat next to him, and I sat down.

Then he shook his head and said, “I’m a Sensate. I’m a paranormal who “senses” the Veil by feeling through the senses. I can have a physical sensation but I don’t see or hear or talk to anything beyond the veil.”

I sat leaned a little in the lab stool and my brain scrambled to comprehend what was going on right now.

Mrs. Beltrán called the science class to start, and I had to stop talking. But my brain was going haywire.

After class, Reinosuke waved. “See you at therapy!”

He winked, and trotted away.

Right. Therapy.

Now though I had Mr. Thiago Guzmán for Geography. The room’s walls were covered with different maps. I took an empty seat at the far end by a large window.

A black kid next to me leaned into me, whispering under his breath, “You’re the new girl, right? A cross compound paranormal, really?”

I nodded, and said softly, “Um yeah.”

He stuck his hand out. “Imamu Zawadi. Call me Ima.”

I winced and waved my hand from side to side.

“I don’t really shake hands, Ima,” I whispered. “I’m Endor Harken. Endor is good.”

Mr. Guzmán loomed over us. We quickly faced front, and went quiet.

Mr. Guzmán nodded, and continued lecturing.

About forty minutes later, a bell rang and everyone got up.

“4^th Class,” said Ima. “What do you have?”

“Miss Harris, Philosophy,” I said, staring as Ima was giving me a handsome grin.

Ima is tall, broad-shouldered, his complexion smooth sepia brown, his ears pierced with obsidian studs in both lobes and a silver chain looped over his neck. I’m used to boys giving me disgusted looks and telling me I’m weird, overlayed with their ghosts yelling and begging over them. Not smiling at me.

I blurted, “You know I can hear ghosts, right?”

“Sure. A Hearken and a telekinetic.” said Ima, looking at me with dazzling ebony eyes. “A Ghoul and Psychokinetic compound paranormal is insanely rare.”

“T-thanks,” I said, and lowered my head, heat burning my cheeks.

The warning bell rang and Ima waved.

“Catch you later,” said Ima, flicking up two fingers. “In the therapy room.”

“Therapy room, right,” I said. “Where is that?”

But Ima was already gone, and the warning bell was ringing.

I had lunch now, but Roxbury High’s cafeteria is a hellscape of screaming ghosts, so I simply go outside in the courtyard behind the cafeteria, and sit down alone.

Photo by Leiada Krözjhen on Unsplash

I was there but a few minutes when I was approached by a teenage boy around my age. He had silky chocolate brown hair and kind hazel eyes, with even a kinder smile.

He said, “Hugh Grimm. I’m a Sonant. A paranormal who can talk with those beyond the veil.”

I blinked. He was getting straight to the point.

I said, “I’m Endor Harken.”

“Harken,” Hugh said quietly. “That is an interesting last name.”

“Why?” I said. “I mean, what’s funny about it?”

“Well,” he said. “A Hearken is what we call a paranormal who can hear those beyond the Veil.”

I swallowed hard. Right. The Veil between the living and the dead. Paranormal. Hearken. Me. Javan’s Daughter. Kakoi Keres.

I said, “See you at therapy.”

Hugh saluted me. “At therapy, Harken.”

“Endor is fine,” I said, but he was already walking away.

I had two more classes after lunch, Drama with Miss Davis and Politics with Mrs. Macleod. But finally, finally, class was over, and I headed to the therapy room. My heart pounded and I focused on my breathing. It’s fine, it’s normal. It’s a normal every day occurrence to find out your father was murdered and his murderer wants to suck you dry. and now there’s a group of kids who have powers like you do and you have to learn to control your powers so that you can survive it. Right?

I stopped in front of the white wood door. A blue construction paper with the words Therapy Room written on it in black sharpie marker had been taped to it.

“Uh wow, that’s janky,” I muttered. Still, I turned the knob and stepped inside.

The room had mirrored windows on one side, so we could see out, no one can see it. The seating was fluffy and soft, and the walls padded, the floor hard, and there were round tables, and a desk at the corner. Looking up were all the kids I had meet, Finouri, Ima, Reinosuke and Hugh.

They all smiled to see me, and chorused, “Endor!”

Tears immediately rushed to my eyes. I’ve never once seen this. People happy to see me.

Fionúir waved me down. “Come and sit with us! We were just gossiping about you.”

“Hey,” I said, even as I came over with a little skip in my step. “You’re talking behind my back?”

“Not exactly,” said Ima with another deadly grin. “We’re talking about different cross-compound designations.”

“Yeah, right,” I said, sitting down with them. “Okay hold on. How many designations are there? I’m hearing Hearken and Sensate and Sonant?”

“Well listing them all would take a while,” said Reinosuke. “But basically there’s different types of paranormals. The people at this table are Ghoul paranormals.”

I whispered, “Ghoul?”

“Yup,” said Fionúir, “We all are paranormals that deal with the dead, ghoulish powers. There is also Psychokinetic paranormals, like powers that deal with the mind, you know, telepaths and telekinetic.”

I clasped my temples because my brain was about to explode.

“All of that stuff is real,” I gasped. “I thought that was fantasy, like in sci-fi movies.”

“Well they had to get that from somewhere,” laughed Hugh. “Did you think they made it up out of mid-air? It’s real alright. Interesting, though, isn’t it? A Hearken named Harken. A coincidence?”

“Paranormals don’t believe in coincidences, Mr. Grimm,” said a clear ringing older woman’s voice.

Everyone’s chatter stopped immediately.

I looked up.

Standing in the entrance was Lorene Rinn. She had white hair in a French braid and dark eyes. She was wearing an all white power suit and tall white heeled boots. Her arms were crossed. She was holding a folder tucked underneath her hand. She walked over and nodded at all of us.

“Let’s begin.”

The End.

Hope you enjoyed, Storytellers! I’ve noticed I really don’t know how to end short stories, I’m too inclined to write novels! Should I continue this? What stories are you writing? Let me know!

Until next time,

A. E.