The Tunnels Below by Nadine Wild-Palmer (best short novels of all time .TXT) 📕

an air of sincerity and she offered him her hand to shake. Aubrey slightly raised his wings and flicked his hair away from his eyes, revealing one bright icy blue eye and the other black as night. He settled when he realised that the two of them posed no real danger; nevertheless he did not extend his hand.

“Aubrey,” he gestured with a nod.

“I’m Cecilia and this is Luke,” she said politely.

“What are you lot doing hanging about around here? This is not the best place to be right now. I heard down the line that a blackout might be coming.”

“I hope not,” remarked Luke, who suddenly returned to his senses. “We are quite far from home. But thanks for the warning, man!” Luke tried to play it cool, shoving his hands in his pockets.

“Yeah, well, apparently Polaris is showing warning signs or something.”

Cecilia and Luke fell silent and an awkwardness grew between them and Aubrey.

“So,” said Aubrey, “there’s still a patch of sigh heading down the blue line. I’m waiting for it now so if you guys want a ride to the end, you can hitch one with me. I’ve discovered if I add a bit of wing power after the competition, I can often ride the last of the sighs right out beyond the doldrums.”

“Outside the doldrums?” Luke was impressed “Right, yeah, the doldrums. I go and hang there sometimes, you know, just to chill and think, that sort of thing.”

“Oh, right. I go there to practise every day. I can use the gas pockets. I’ve never seen you there and it’d be quite a walk. How do you—”

“Anyway, we’re headed to Mrs Hoots’ Haberdashery. A lift would be unreal, dude.” Luke interrupted—he was clearly fibbing; Cecilia noticed that he seemed to have had a personality transplant in Aubrey’s presence.

“Cool.” Aubrey turned and started to walk away. Cecilia was excited to get to ride on a famous sigh rider’s carpet. She looked at Luke and saw he’d already forgotten his cooldude act; he couldn’t contain himself either. They followed behind Aubrey, throwing silent grins to each other. Aubrey flicked out his carpet and it hovered a few centimetres off the ground.

“When I say ‘jump’, you jump on, OK, guys?” Cecilia and Luke nodded obediently.

“And when I say so, you sigh, right?” They nodded again.

“‘Out of sigh, out of time’, that’s my motto, and these sighs are on their last legs. So we need to be ready, any moment now.” The skin around Aubrey’s beak curled slightly at the edges and Cecilia realised that for this particular creature that was the extent of his smile.

A bubble of blue mist came hurtling towards them and Aubrey screeched, “Jump… NOW!”

All three of them leapt onto the carpet and Aubrey knelt at the front and vigorously began flapping his wings, stirring up what was left of the cloud of blue sighs below them. “OK, here we go, big sigh everyone—breathe out NOW!”

Luke and Cecilia let out a big blue puff and the three of them were away.

It was a marvellous feeling. Cecilia felt so light and free, the air felt cooler and cleaner somehow and the two watched as Aubrey swayed his body, steering them along the tunnels, his attention completely focused. The people they passed clapped and cheered and the three of them whooped with pleasure as they passed by. All Cecilia’s fears disappeared in an instant; she was literally lost in the clouds. She didn’t want it to end but when it did, she was shocked and pleased all at once to discover that she and Luke were holding hands.

“All right, you two lovebirds, off you hop. This is your stop. Mrs Hoots’ Haberdashery isn’t far from here and I can’t wait around. This sigh is almost out.” The two of them jumped off, landing on their feet.

“One last sigh for the road?” Aubrey called, and it became obvious that Cecilia and Luke shared the same feeling as they both exhaled a mist of pink. Their new friend faded off into the dimly lit tunnel, whooping and howling with joy.

“That was pretty special. I don’t think I’ll ever forget that as long as I live,” said Luke quietly.

“Me neither,” said Cecilia. “What a stroke of luck!”

Luke let out a sigh. It had lost its colour already and only the feeling of nostalgia remained. Cecilia could feel it too but it soon passed.

“Right then… Let’s get ourselves to Mrs Hoots’ for our night on the town awaits and El Porto Fino won’t let us in looking like this!” Luke said cheerily.

“Never know, they might have a dress in your size!” she said jostling him and skipping off ahead a little.

Luke looked up. “Where are you going, you nutter? It’s this way!” He pointed down a tricolour tunnel that looked like a small rainbow. Rays of blue, lime and pink neon lights converged above the bustling noise of happy shoppers.

16Mrs Hoots’ Haberdashery

Luke and Cecilia walked though streets lined with colourful fluorescent tubes hanging overhead forming dazzling canopies that hung like drapes. There was a lamp tapper up a ladder, waking the fireflies in lanterns that hung from posts. The dwellers around this part of the tunnel seemed idler than those she’d seen before, strolling along, taking their time about things, relaxed and easy.

All around them light bounced off the mirrored windows and doors. It looked magical and quite posh with people perusing the shop windows.

Luke smoothed out the front of his hoody and tucked it into his trousers, licked his hands and tried to smooth down his tufty fur.

“Here we are,” he said nervously.

The shop door swung open. “Pfffft,” came an exaggerated hoot. “My grubby little angels! I’ve been waiting for you. Jasper told me you’d be coming but you’re late!” The voice came from a puff of white feathers, two huge black eyes and a pointy pale beak that ushered them into the shop and closed the door. She flipped the closed sign around and turned a key in