Red Phoenix

here.’
    ‘Oh God,’ I moaned. I put my head in my hands, then looked up at my father desperately. ‘I’m Emma.’
    ‘Get away from us.’
    Ms Kwan glided around me and carefully approached my father as if he were a frightened animal. He stayed completely still and glowered at her.
    ‘Give me your hand,’ she said, holding her hand out.
    He glared at her without moving. Then he relented and took her hand. His eyes widened and his face went slack. He stared at Ms Kwan in wonder.
    ‘Emma,’ Ms Kwan said as if from a great distance, ‘come and hold my other hand.’
    I did as she said. Her power moved through me and I felt both her and my father. We were joined.
    ‘Brendan Donahoe,’ Ms Kwan said gently, ‘this is your daughter, Emma. She is unique. She has loved and shared with a creature that is unlike any creature in existence. It has changed her.’
    I could sense my father’s wonder and Ms Kwan’s gentle assurance.
    ‘She is still your daughter,’ Ms Kwan said. ‘Look.’ She showed him how much I loved him and my mother. She showed him my true feelings for my family. ‘Now. See.’ She showed him my feelings for Xuan Wu and Simone. Then she showed me to him: all the way through.
    ‘Oh my god,’ my father said softly. I felt his comprehension.
    ‘Thank you,’ I whispered.
    Ms Kwan nodded, smiled sadly, and released us. My father looked at me with awe. ‘Emma.’
    I fell into his arms and gave him a huge hug. He squeezed me tight and pressed his face into my hair.
    ‘We will have to ask this lady to do the same thing for your mum when she comes around,’ my father said. ‘That was incredible.’
    ‘This lady is Kwan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy,’ I said. ‘She is the most wonderful person I have ever met.’ I turned to thank Ms Kwan but she had already gone.
    Come back to the living room, Emma, we want to have a look at you, Ms Kwan said into my ear.
    ‘Let me know when my mother comes around, Gold,’ I said without releasing my father. ‘I’ll ask Ms Kwan to come back.’
    ‘My Lady,’ Gold said.
    I pulled away from my father. ‘I have to go, Dad, they want to look inside me. None of us has ever seen that snake,’ I winced, ‘thing before, and they want to do some tests on me.’
    ‘Why were you a snake, Emma?’ he said.
    ‘I don’t know, Dad. All I know is that I’ll never hurt any of you.’ I ran my hands through my hair. ‘Xuan Wu is part snake. That may be why it’s coming out in me.’
    ‘ Part snake?’
    ‘I’ll tell you all about it later. Like Ms Kwan said, he’s unlike anything else in existence.’
    My mother’s face was still blank. ‘Let me know when she comes out of it,’ I said, and left.
    In the living room, John was giving Leo orders. ‘A bowl of water. A table knife. A cigarette lighter. If we don’t have one in the apartment, then run down to the Seven Eleven and buy one. I’ll need a piece of wood with some leaves still on it—go down the drive and find me a small branch. Must be from a large tree. I’ll also need a rock. Not concrete, a natural rock. About the size of a fist would be good.’ He paused. ‘A ceramic bowl, a large one. And some newspaper. That’s all.’
    Leo nodded. I sat down next to the Tiger. He took my hand and squeezed it affectionately. Leo glared at me, then spun and left.
    ‘I think we should move to the dining room. We can put the elements on the table,’ John said.
    ‘Good idea.’ The Tiger raised my hand and guided me up. He put his arm around my shoulders and led me into the dining room. ‘You’ll be fine,’ he said into my ear.
    ‘What are you going to do to me?’ I said. ‘Water? A knife?’
    ‘We will just test your compatibility,’ Ms Kwan said gently as we sat. ‘We will not hurt you, don’t worry. The knife is just for the metal.’
    ‘First the Tiger will have a look inside you,’ John said. He leaned his elbows on the table and gestured towards the Tiger without looking at him. ‘Bai Hu.’
    ‘No way ! You didn’t tell me you wanted me to look inside her! You said we were just testing her compatibility!’
    ‘What’s the problem?’ John said. ‘Just have a look inside her, see if you can find the snake, have a look at it, tell us what it looks like. You may even be able to get it to talk to you.’
    The Tiger glowered. ‘I am not looking inside Emma.’ He gestured. ‘Mercy, you do it.’
    ‘You know I cannot,’ Ms Kwan said. ‘It is not in my nature.’
    ‘I am too