Circle Bay Beach, Or. 9 yrs ago.
She knew she was acting like a little freak. Walking home by herself instead of taking the schoolbus. But she wanted to be alone for a bit. To think. She should be happy, right? She was finally starting the fourth grade. Finally she would be the one that the others looked up to. The one that knew where the classes were. The one that knew what to wear. Not like it was last year. When she didn't know anyone but her sister, and got very odd looks from people when she decided to wear overalls and pig tails. What did they know anyhow. Originality is always unappreciated. Last week, her aunt, whom she had only met about five times that she could barely recall, had died. Her aunt had lived in New York, and didn't like visiting the left coast. Sarah cried when she heard about it, and she was still upset now. It wasn't just that she felt bad for her mom, who was taking the death of her sister hard. It was more then that. It was like a piece of her future being removed before it happened. Something like that, anyhow. Now she would never get the chance to get to know her. She would have liked her mom's kid sister. She could tell. Sarah looked at the photos her mom had shown her. She liked her aunt Lauren's tattoo. A bird with its wings spread wide holding a laurel leaf. It was beautiful. When she was older she would get a cool tattoo like that. One that was different. Not like what other girls wanted. No butterfly on her cleavage. Supposing she ever developed cleavage. No band of flowers around her ankle. That was just stupid girl stuff. But something with meaning. She wasn't sure what the meaning of the bird could be, but she was sure that it was really interesting and deep. Of course she was too young now, but as soon as she was old enough, like thirteen maybe, she would have it done. By then she would have the perfect thing that symbolized herself figured out, of course. She liked to imagine what it would be like when she was older. When she turned thirteen and fourteen. Maybe she could have visited aunt Laueren then, and she would have showed her around New York. Showed her all the places she had seen in her favorite tv shows. Sarah would have liked that. She missed this aunt she never really knew. But mostly she was scared. If she could be robbed by circumstance, by Death, of any time with her aunt from NY, she could be robbed of her time with others too. People she loved. She didn't think on that too hard, but she couldn't quite shake the fear either. So she forced herself to think about other stuff. The kind of stuff that she liked to daydream about. Soon she was in full daydream mode; Imagining the future as a scientist, or a fashion designer, working with her handsome husband as partner. By the time she was a few streets from home, she was in an OK mood. Ready to see what was up with her sister. Her twin, Jenna, often had something fun for them to do. Jenna knew lots of the other girls, and mom would always agree to anything Jenna wanted. It was crazy.
A few boys a year younger then Sarah stood around the yard in the kitty corner house. She knew one of the boys. The one whose family lived there. His name was Peter, and she thought he was nice. He used to come over and play at Sarah's house sometimes, when they were all much, much younger. She would hang out and talk to him once in a while even now. He went to her school, of course, but she would never talk to him there. She recognized the other boys as well. Justin and Xander. She didn't like them at all. Not that they bothered her, but she knew them as bullies. The fourth boy she had seen at school, but didn't know his name. They all seemed to be looking down at the grass in front of them. They pushed each other and laughed. Justin was holding a stick. Sarah didn't like their laughter. Something about it made her mad. Suspicious, she looked to see what they thought was so funny. It didn't take long to see a big black bird. A crow, she thought or a raven. It hopped away from the boys, but didn't take flight. It probably couldn't. Justin was holding the stick in a definitely not nice way now. Sarah decided to act before the bird was a goner. She couldn't fight the four of them, not that she didn't want to. But really, she just had to back them down, and make sure that they knew it would be trouble if they did anything to the creature. She surprised the miscreants by barging up the lawn, and standing squarely between them and the bird. She made a disgusted face.
"What are you doing!" She shouted "Were you just going to hit that bird? That is so SICK!" She scowled further. Across the street Mrs Amsterdam, who had been puttering with her garden, peeked over at them. Sarah knew that she could get adult attention pretty easily. The boys knew it too. She wasn't a little crybaby to go tell on them, but making a scene to get some help was ok. Peter looked extremely ashamed already. He was starting to mumble an apology. The nameless kid decided it was best to go on his way. He backed away from Sarah, his friends, and the bird, then turned, and sprinted down the street. A disappearing streak of red hoodie and jeans. Xander looked unsure. Justin however looked mutinous. He still wanted to make trouble.
"Its just a stupid bird. It was making noise. And blackbirds bring bad luck." He gave her an ugly look. Like, maybe he wanted to push her aside. Sarah made ready to hold her position between the hostiles and their target.
"Black cats are bad luck, stupid. Not birds! And youre making noise and no ones hitting you!" Justin's eyes narrowed. She was definitely getting his attention off the bird, anyhow. However, now it was on her. But Sarah was on a roll."What are you? Like a serial killer in training? They always start out with small helpless animals and stuff! I read all about it!" Actually she had heard it on tv. In cop shows, ones she wasn't even supposed to watch. Sarah had no idea what sort of book would contain such information. It just sounded better.
"I am not!" Justin roared. He ran at her, stick aloft. But before Sarah could even wonder what it was that Justin was 'not', someone was hauling him back. Several adults had come over to check out the problem. Peter's mom, Mrs Amsterdam, and a older teenage boy Sarah didn't know. The teenager was holding Justin by the shoulder. Sarah almost gave a double take. She generally didn't think of boys. She did like a certain singer with dimples and bangs. But not real boys so much. The ones her age were usually stupid and really immature. The ones a bit older rarely noticed her. OK. They never noticed her. They looked at her sister sometimes. But this guy was cute. Hazel eyes and dark lashes. Surfer boy highlights in brown hair. Tall. A little gangly under his worn Holister t, but his shoulders were broad. Best of all was his expression. He was looking at her with respect and a bit of concern. "Im Samuel. Justin's my little brother" The cute guy told her. "My dumb little brother. Ive seen you around before. You live there?" he gestured at Sarah's house with his free hand. The other was still firmly around his kid brothers shoulder. Sarah nodded, but didn't speak. Samuel continued. "That's a Carrion Crow. I think its hurt. Maybe I can take a look at it. I know a bit about broken bones, Our Mom is an emergency room doc, and I hope to do the same, so we talk"
"Yeah" Justin added making a face "They do it over dinner mostly." He had completely calmed down by now. Boys, Sarah thought. What was in their heads? They are far too weird to get involved with. She looked back to Samuel crouching by the bird and examining it carefully without touching it, and a weird sort of excitement swept over her. Maybe some boys were not so bad. Mrs Amsterdam had brought out a large bowl filled with cold water, and some cat food. She explained how crows were carrion feeders, so typical bird seed wasn't the best for them. They needed meat protein like a cat. But mixing a bit of bird seed and cat food would be perfect. And it seemed to work. The bird put its whole head and neck in the water and shook itself vigorously. Then it hopped over to the food and ate. Mrs Amsterdam looked intrigued at that.
"Perhaps its tame. Accepting food like that. Most birds would die of shock from all the clamor. But this one seems calm enough." The old lady said thoughtfully. Sarah wondered how she knew all that stuff. Mrs Amsterdam turned to Samuel "How is the wing young man?"
"Seems fine. Barely a scratch. Im going to call a vet and see what they know" He was on the phone for a while, getting transfered from the vet to a wildlife preserve worker. Finally when all the information was tallied, Sarah had a patient. Samuel carefully dotted a tiny amount of ointment on the birds wing with a q tip. When Sarah knelt down, it landed on her shoulder. She was to feed and care for it until it wanted to go. She thanked Mrs Amsterdam and Samuel, accepted apologies from Justin and Peter, and Peter's mom. Xander had fled in the confusion. When she got home, her mother and sister helped her settle the little patient inside the porch, so it had access to shelter away from cats and dogs, but could fly when it was ready. The crow seemed strangely comfortable around people, which helped. They bought cat food, bird seed, and the girls made sure that the wounded creature had what it needed. They named the crow Nicky, after Sarah's favorite mad scientist, Nikola Tesla. Niky would caw loudly when the girls came home, and took to siting on Sarah's head when she did her homework or fooled around on her computer. In a month it was able to fly, but still came back to eat the food, drink and bathe in the bowl and generally hang out. In another two months it stopped coming back. After a while they stopped setting out food and drink.
Sarah found out that Samuel, the cute older boy, didn't live with Justin and their dad in the neighborhood, but with his mom in Baltimore. Jenna, realizing that her twin had a crush, decided to keep her ears open for the next time he would visit, but that didn't happen for a long time. Sometimes Sarah thought about Nicky, especially when she came home from school and saw the empty porch. She hoped it was safe and happy. Fourth grade was definitely a lot better then third. Sarah was finally finding out what she liked, and what she was good at. After a while she she had mostly forgot about the whole incident.
Thats when she had the weirdest dream. In her dream she was coming home from school, and like always a tiny part of her expected the the crow would be on the porch waiting. But there was a lovely young woman with shiny black hair, dark as the wings of the crow, waiting instead. The woman had pale skin, much paler then Sarah, who was a bit on the pasty side. But it was beautiful, and flawlessly smooth. Her eyes were a dark red, and darted like the eyes of a bird.
"Who are you" Sarah asked, a little frightened. Even in a dream she felt this woman was someone who could do whatever she wanted. The lovely stranger tilted her head and observed her a bit smugly.
" I am no one you need to fear." the woman answered. Then she appeared to think about the statement and added "True, I do not always love the children of Eve, and I am not without power. I have many names. Some call me the Carrion Crow. Some call me Anu. Most often I am called the Morrigan. To many of your kind I am death." her smile brightened at that, savoring the thought. " But I am also a mother. A mother whose child you have saved. Do you understand?" At this the lady looked at Sarah, and as their eyes met Sarah understood. The bird she had saved and nursed to health must somehow be the child. And this its mother.
"The crow I saved. It was your child." Sarah answered with certainty. And then impulsively she asked; " Is he well?" The woman smiled again. This time with warmth.
"My son is well. He thinks often of you." She continued in a more serious tone " For your service, I would like to give you a fitting gift. What would you like to have that I can give you?" Sarah gave it a lot of thought. Certainly not money. That could be earned. She thought hard.
"Immortality would be nice. I wouldn't like to get old" Sarah decided. The woman's eyes opened in surprise and she laughed loudly and long.
"Not one to think small, are you child! That can be attained by mortals. But not given. Something like that you have to pay a price for. You might not like the price. Even if I were to give you the means it could not be done now. You are but a youngling and not ready to stop aging. Not for a few years yet. You would not wish to be this age for ever. Now would you?" Sarah swallowed hard and shook her head until her ponytail bounced back and forth. Heck, this was a dream! How was she supposed to think of everything. Whew. That could have been awkward. To stay looking a fourth grader as her sister matured? No thanks. The woman, still looking very amused, started talking again.
" I won't do that to you, my child. I will for now grant you a long life, and healthy constitution. Just for surprising me. That does not happen often. Now think hard. What would you like?"
" My aunt died. I know death is final, and I know you don't bring back the dead. It never works. I read a lot, you see" Sarah said solemnly. She loved reading horror stories, as much as her sister loved reading romances. She knew that was a bad, bad idea. The woman nodded agreeing as Sarah continued " But if theres a way to talk to her, you know if ghosts like to talk? I think it would be nice. And in case it happened to anyone else I know, Id like to be able to talk to their ghost too." Sarah had read about that skill too. It sounded very cool. She looked at the woman to see what she would say.
"The gift of sight is a gift I can grant. But be warned that it is more then talking to a ghost of your choice. Much more. You will be able to communicate to ghosts because you will clearly see the reality most mortals do not. Is that your wish?" The lady looked at Sarah, and Sarah nodded. Anu the Morrigan continued "Very well. But I do not wish to hurt you. You are not ready. The skill will awaken in you as you get older and stronger. It will start when you reach womanhood and it will start out weak. We will talk again child. When you are grown, and we will see how you fare with your gift." She saw the dismay on Sarah's face and added gently " I see you are brave. And you have earned this, but fairy gifts often hurt mortals, and I do not want to see that happen to you. I have enjoyed myself. You are everything my son has said, and more. Farewell, human youngling." She reached forward and touched Sarah on the forehead. Her fingers felt soft as a birds feathers. As Sarah slowly fell into darkness of sleep she heard the flapping of great wings. She woke up startled in her bed, the alarm clock buzzing. The whole dream was clearly etched in her memory. Oh man, she thought, moms are all alike. Even fairy ones. Then she realized the whole thing was just a dream, and started to laugh. She never told anyone about it, not even Jenna. Especially because Jenna would never believe her.
Circle Bay Beach, Oregon. Present time.
Sarah and Jenna Grey were getting ready to leave home for college. The tearful goodbyes were hard for both sisters. Jenna and her best friend, Skyler, promised to text each other every evening for twenty minutes. They promised for twenty minutes that is. In a litany. Just like in church. "Text me every evening." "OK." "And if anything interesting happens." "I will." "Or if you see any hot upper classmen you think Id like" "Amen"...and so on. Sarah knew it was twenty minutes. Because she timed it. Then Jenna's other best friend Lauren exchanged stringy bracelets with her, and they promised to text each other every evening. Then there was Jenna's best friend Talon, and her best friend Cassey. Sarah couldn't quite recall who came after that, but the whole thing made her want to barf. So it was a tragic for both sisters. Even if for very different reasons. Typical. The Grey sisters were twins, but very far from identical twins in most ways. The last of the Jenna brigade was Roo. Roo, whose real name was Raquel, was wearing typical brigade uniform. Low slung flared jeans, Haviana flip flops, topped off by a flowy tank top that left a swatch of tan skin showing. Sarah would have gone over to say 'hey'. She liked the brigade girls. Except that she was thinking hard about Annlyn Cho. And the fact that Annlyn hadn't called her or Jenna in the last several days. Annlyn was almost like the third Grey sister. She had been best friends with Sarah and Jenna from kindergarden. She and Sarah in particular were inseparable. Unlike her sister, Sarah didn't really need a clique. She was pretty happy with one very close friend, and a few others. She had already said her goodbyes to her friend Justin, who was leaving to go to school at Cornell later in the year, and to old Mrs Amsterdam who lived across the street for them. She didn't need to say goodbye to Annlyn. It wouldn't be long before they would see her again. Annlyn had also been accepted to St Benedictus, and was going to be in the same dorm room as the Grey girls. She was also given a much needed scholarship. It was like a dream come true for Sarah to be able to attend a school she wanted with her sister and best friend. The three girls were inseparable since preschool, but her sister didn't have a stellar academic record, and Annlyn's family didn't have much money. It was Sarah's constant nagging that made them apply, and to all their amazement it worked. Thankfully. Sarah would have been lost without them. The girls were all very different. Jenna was the popular one, whom everyone knew. She was naturally athletic and sarcastic, and very pretty. She was almost Barbie doll perfect. The absolute worst things about her were her temper, and her taste in guys. Annlyn was artistic, and geeky. She was overflowing with ideas and projects, some great, and some just silly. She looked exotic and streamlined, like a runway model that got shrunk down to five foot four inches. Sarah was more basic. She was smart, polite and reasonable. She was generally good at fixing things. Anything from a car to a computer. She was good at math and she played the violin. Not bad looking or anything, she was tall and slender, with long legs, like her twin sister. But where Jenna had golden blond hair, and a near year round tan, Sarah was pale and her hair was brown. She never really stood out when with her two flamboyant companions. If their lives were a Paranormal Romance, like the "Summer Blake; Monster Hunter" books that all three girls loved as a guilty pleasure, Jenna would be the one spoon feeding a bunch of gorgeous men a bad attitude and having them come back for more. She would also be the one that suddenly found out that she was born with some super duper power that she did nothing to earn and didn't even want. Sarah, on the other hand, had to work for everything she had ever gotten, and was very appreciative of all she had.
Two weeks before, Sarah and Annlyn met to hang out one last time at their favorite beachfront restaurant, Charlie's Grotto. It was a combination coffee house and seafood dinning. Strange as the combination was, it worked well. Sarah had to wait for her friend, which was usual. Annlyn designed and sold purses and hats on her fashion blog, that she had been writing for the last two years. She was doing an online Art and Design internship, and so was always late. She passed the time by observing the other people in the place. Mostly run of the mill hipster types. Carefully shaved beards and goatees, Buddy Holly glasses, skinny jeans, granny dresses and asymmetrical 80's hair ruled the place. Annlyn swept in, getting some stares. The girl had a rather editorial, some might say crazy, dress style. There was never any confusion about what came first in her priorities; A six inch tall Balenciaga clog would come before catching the eye and approval of a cute guy on any day. That day she wore her shiny black hair in a tight ballerina bun, nude colored peeptoe platforms of substantial height, starched white shirt, and amazing purple and black patterned harem pants. More amazing; Annlyn looked lovely and natural in that outfit. She wore no make up, nor did she need it. Her olive skin was radiant, her almond eyes large and compelling. She was slender and petite. The only jewelry she ever wore was an antique looking ankh charm on a heavy silver chain around her swanlike neck. A present from her mother. When Annlyn was worried, she ran her slim, graceful fingers over the necklace, as if for reassurance. She was doing this repeatedly as they sat in a pleasant, secluded table at the edge of the sandy beach. They talked about random stuff. Boys, SAT scores, some weird new Youtube video and of course clothing. Then Annlyn reminded Sarah about the trip Annlyn had planned to visit some of her family. She made plans to visit her aunt and cousins who lived in a suburb of Chicago. It had been something she had planned nearly a year ago, so instead of driving up to school with them, she would go directly there from Illinois. She would fly to Minneapolis and get a ride to St Benedicutus in plenty of time before the start of the first quarter. Sarah and Jenna drove her to the airport the next day. They had talked on the computer regularly during her stay at her aunt's, as Annlyn's phone was always getting bad reception. Right up until two days ago. Sarah was worried. It just wasn't like Annlyn to lose contact. She had called Annlyn , and even a few times to Annlyn' aunt's landline, but got no answer at all. When Jenna was done crying about leaving her one hundred best friends, Sarah would ask her to check her computer and phone for any possible message.
Forrest Glenn, Il, a suburb of Chicago.
Annlyn's trip was great at first. She loved the city of Chicago, and everything around it. With the expert guidance of her cousins, she explored everywhere from the little jazz clubs on the south side of the city, to the beautiful mansions and parks of the north shore. She loved the slick clubs on Rush Street, and shopping on Michigan Ave. After every adventure she would sit on her bed in the guest room, open up her MacBook Pro and share all the details with her two friends back home, Sarah and Jenna. She shared everything with them, holding up new purchases to the webcam, and standing so they could see what she wore to go out. Annlyn had shared almost every experience for years now with the twin sisters. She couldn't imagine not doing so. She wished she could stay longer, but she was also excited to get home and start packing for college. One hot muggy afternoon, a few days before she was due to come back home to Oregon, she went with her two cousins to walk around their neighborhood. A posh, sleepy suburb on the north side of Chicagoland, right by Lake Michigan. They found an overgrown, deserted looking park and playground on the shore of the lake. It was once a little beach, divided into a swimming area, and a few manual rides for the kiddies all surrounded by a grove of trees. Knee high metal pigs, paint still clinging, were set on a teeter totter. There was a miniature wooden house with a thatched roof and rope bridge, and monkey bars covered almost completely with vegetation. A little further into the trees, Annlyn spied a gazebo merry- go- round with painted wood ponies. She waded through the tall weeds and grass to get to the interesting little structure, thinking to take a few photos. As soon as she passed the shrubby barrier, the charm of the place hit her. It smelled woodsy here; Green and deep. There was the perfume of wildflowers in the air. It made her feel nostalgic. As if for memories carefree, and seductive that she just couldn't quite place. She called to her cousins thinking to have them pose for her, but they didn't answer. The light was beautiful. It was the golden hour so coveted by photographers when the sinking sun makes the world glow with warm oranges and yellows, and turns shadows a deep violet. Annlyn was just as happy to explore and take pictures on her own. She soon realized that the park was much bigger then it had looked when they entered. More like a small forrest then a suburban playground park. But she stayed on the path, and so was always able to find her way to the gazebo no matter how far she wondered, so that did not worry her. She took many photos that she thought would be good. After a while the shadows deepened, signaling the approach of twilight. It was colder, and she had no jacket. In her hurry to get back to her companions she decided to step off the footpath and cut through the wood. As soon as her foot left the path she felt a change. The trees seemed to crowd closer together and looked more ominous, like hulking giants. The wind moaned and rustled like whispered words. Soon she heard a whisper of childish laughter coming from behind the old merry-go- round. Annlyn wasn't the type to be spooked, but she felt the hair on the back of her neck creep. She felt the need for caution. She crept quietly to the side of the gazebo, and crouched down to watch. She saw four kids of around eight or nine years old, playing some rowdy game by throwing rocks at the ground. They were very involved in the game, and didn't seem to notice her. Although the kids were all dressed in typical, tidy clothing, just like any others their age in the well to do area, they all wore child sized red baseball caps that looked to be very old and worn. Perhaps passed down from their parents, or more likely great grandparents, from their childhood days. All four kids, two little boys and two girls, were brimming with health and attractiveness. They had rosy cheeks and lips, sparkling large eyes, pearly white teeth, and beautiful curly hair that fell in ringlets. The boy and girl standing nearest had identical gold blond hair and bright blue eyes, the other pair had nut brown hair and dark eyes, also exactly alike. As Annlyn continued to watch, they were joined by a dark eyed boy and girl with hair that looked pale blue in the fading light, and another pair that had hair of a shocking pink. Annlyn was so surprised she almost gave herself away. They were surely too young to be coloring their hair a punk color! Her parents would have gone to the grave before they would allow it. Next came two children with silvery white hair, then another pair with hair of green. The twelve unusual children, six boys, six girls, continued to play with joyful abandon, making a wild racket as if neither the approaching darkness, nor the lateness of the hour mattered at all. Last came a thirteenth child. This boy was a bit older then the rest. Perhaps eleven. He had bright red hair under his little cap, a few freckles, and his eyes were the glowing green of a cat. This boy was more subdued. He didn't join in the frolic, although he watched and laughed, and cheered the others on. That was enough for Annlyn. She decided it was time to make a discreet exit. Whoever, or whatever, these kids were, she wanted to leave without their notice.
Annlyn started to turn away, quiet as could be. Before she had the chance to move, the older boy, their leader, she thought, turned his blazing green eyes to look right at her. He must have known she was there the whole time, but had been ignoring her. It was seriously creepy. He smiled, and his teeth looked so white, they stood out even in the dark. His eyes glowed bright and hungry. The others all turned to her with interest too, like she was a fun new toy. Much better then the game they were playing before. She wanted to run, but found couldn't. Literally could not. Her legs wouldn't obey her. So she tried to stop being afraid. They were just kids after all, but she couldn't stop shaking. That is when they started slowly moving towards her. She closed her eyes, wanting them all to disappear. -Pull yourself together!- She tried to tell herself. It was ridiculous! Being so terrified of a gang of suburban kids! -So what if those kids take a hair fashion risk? I mean look at me! Its not like Im the preppy conservative here!- Annlyn would talk to them. Soon her cousins would come looking. Even as she thought this, it seemed unlikely. No, she had stumbled into somewhere- else. Here, she was alone. She needed to get herself out of this herself. She willed herself to open her eyes. The older boy now stood right in front of her. So near he could have touched her! The others had surrounded them. How was that possible? She hadn't moved, and she had heard no rustling of leaves, no movement from the kids. But somehow she had moved, and so had they. She now stood in the center of the clearing where the children's game had taken place, and they stood around her and their leader, holding hands. The lad smiled, looking like a friendly, normal kid. Almost.
"A good evening to you, Miss" He said in a soft, differential voice with a trace of accent she couldn't place. " 'Tis not often one of your kind interrupts our sport." His voice was lovely and lilting. That was weird, Annlyn thought. What did he mean 'their sport'? What kind of 'sport'? Then it dawned on her that the boy meant 'their entertainment'. He was not only speaking like an adult, but like a seriously old fashioned adult. And what did he mean by his kind and her kind? But she sort of knew the answer to that too. He wasn't her kind. He wasn't human. She should have laughed at the silliness of the whole thing. It should have seemed fake. This was just their little joke, trying to freak her out like this. But it didn't feel like a joke. If this was an attempt to freak her out, it was great. She started to answer when she heard movement. One of the circling kids, the little brown haired girl, darted down to the ground in an amazingly quick crouch, and when she slowly rose, she held a furiously struggling, newly captured rabbit in her hand. Annlyn watched, as the little girl lifted the wriggling, squealing animal up over her head. She looked straight back at Annlyn and smiled a big, happy, little girl smile. Then she licked her lips, and started to opened her mouth. Her mouth opened wide, then wider, then impossibly wide, like her jaws were the lid of a box. Rows of pointed, gleaming, shark -like teeth lined the inside of her mouth. The little girl lowered the rabbit into her mouth, and it disappeared in a few wet sounding chomps and a gulp. Its cries silenced. Blood ran down the side of the small face, and a red blood mustache stained her upper lip. Then the child politely wiped her face clean with a napkin that appeared in her hand out of nowhere. Annlyn let out a small squeak, much like the rabbit, her knees going weak. She would have fallen but the boy leader steadied her. He was strong. Easily supporting her weight with one hand. When she could stand on her own, Annlyn looked at the circle of children more closely. They stood quietly watching the conversation in the middle of the circle. Such rapt attention uncanny for ones their age. No fidgeting at all. Even their expressions were completely devoid of childishness now. Their clothing was just as regular as she first thought, but many of them wore unusual looking jewelry. It looked organic. One boy had a necklace of uneven white beads. One girl had a longer pendant of dried up cylindrical shapes circled with gold and silver. She looked at the unusual necklace closer, and when she did its owner gave her a knowing wink. One of the cylinders had a human fingernail, still painted with black nail polish. The silver and gold bands were rings. Annlyn paled, but didn't shriek again.
How should she handle this? What would someone else do? She knew what Jenna Grey would do in her place. She would be arrogant. Jenna would never believe in the supernatural, and nothing would make her do so. Certainly not being surrounded by a group of thirteen clearly non human but very sentient little monsters. Jenna would probably die fighting. When Jenna was afraid she always got angry and demanding. It worked well for her far too often. When it did not, Jenna just put it down to peoples inability to handle a strong woman. Annlyn, however, didn't want to die, or fight for that matter, and she believed in the obvious. She didn't know exactly what these things were, but she was starting to have suspicions. Things that she had not thought of since she was younger and read fairytales.
" This is seriously bizarre! What are you talking about? What ARE you?" Annlyn asked the kid, her voice sounding shrill even to her own ears. She stared defiantly. The kid stared back for a while, like he thought she was a complete idiot. After thinking a bit, Annlyn tended to agree with him. After all, she was likely at a disadvantage, but they had done nothing to hurt her. Her friend Sarah Grey would have been polite. That made more sense the more she pondered. She wasn't entirely sure what she had to bargain with in this case, other then her left arm for their lunch, which she would not do if she could help it. But the leader had spoken with courtesy. And the girl who had bunny tartar did use the napkin.
"I did not meant to interrupt you. I would be happy to leave and not come back." She tried again, in a more polite voice, with just a hint of her fear showing. The lad was clearly impressed. Obviously he was expecting her to go wild eyed and screaming ab-dabs
"I believe you meant no harm. But in the past, visits like yours have ended badly for us. Still, maybe there need be no trouble. Tell me, Miss; Do you enjoy games? A friendly test of wits? We set out to do you no harm. I promise. "
"These visits didn't end all that great for those like me, either" Annlyn nodded her head towards the pink haired girl and her awful neclace. " Did you set out to harm them?" She hadn't missed the fact that setting out to do harm, and actually doing harm were two different things. Still, they were bargaining and establishing rules. She had some hope of getting out of this. They didn't want to let her go, she was sure, yet for some reason they seemed honor bound to not kill her where she stood. She understood the first part. Most people would talk of what they saw, embellish it even. Then others would come looking. A promise from a human being to stay quiet wasn't worth spit. No doubt on that. Humans didn't like different. First came curiosity, then a pitchfork. She wasn't a white girl, and even that got her enough animosity. Even these days when so many people were from every kind of ethnic background. Stranger yet, whatever kind of asian national someone had a grudge against, they decided that all asians fit as their target. She had been yelled at for being Vietnamese, Laotian, even Mexican. She was Chinese! How is that even close? Because of that she could easily understand these creatures' fear. Being discovered couldn't end well for them. Of course they would want to defend their turf. So why the talking? She would assume that the negotiation was somehow binding. It was really all she had to work with.
The red haired sprite tilted his head up with a flash of defiance " The terms were fair. We will stay by the rules of the game. Without that we can not bind you to silence. If you are bound from talking, then my corby and I will be safe from discovery."
Annlyn sighed. And playing a children's game would help? She just wanted to go back to her aunt's home, not play any stupid game. She wanted to be irritated, but she wasn't stupid like that. It was pretty clear that there were rules and realities here that she did not know. This boy, if that's what he was, knew a lot more then she did. Obviously he believed that they needed to do this for the little band and their territory to stay hidden. Annlyn's instinct told her he knew what he was talking about. So, she had best choose a game. "Ok, I think hide and seek. Lets flip a coin to see who hides, and who seeks" That gave her two chances to get away. If she won, and if she managed to get out while playing. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a quarter, offering it to the boy.
The reaction was explosive. He growled and shrank away from her, even as his hand shot out to hit her hand so that the coin flew out of it and was lost in the grass. His teeth extended, and his hands now ended in wicked looking curved claws. The others looked nervous, but did not break the circle. What was that about? Were they scared of the big scary quarter? They wore body parts as jewelry for cripes sake. Maybe the silver flash had looked like a weapon to them.
"Eh, sorry. Just a coin, nothing dangerous. Calm down." She drew in a breath and continued quickly." So, when and how do we start? I don't suppose you want to look for the quarter? So who goes first?"
The boy leader looked calmer. His eyes still glowed, but less. And his teeth retracted enough so he could speak, though his voice was octaves deeper and resonated with some kind of dark energy. "You run. When the night is half over, we will come looking for you. If we do not find you by this time the following night you may leave freely, but never come back, and let no one come here due to any word of yours. Understood? If we do find you, then you owe us a trophy to save your life. One finger of our choice." He held out his now normal looking hand. Annlyn shook it firmly.
"Done" She said, and ran out of the circle not looking back. The circling children let go of each others hands, and let her pass.
Once she was clear of the gathering, Annlyn stopped. She looked carefully through her clothing and bag for change. She found eleven quarters, ten dimes, and a few dozen pennies. This would make it a lot harder to do her laundry in the dorm, or to park her car, if she had a car. Once she learned to drive with four fingers on one hand. She shuddered. Supposing she survived, of course and didn't die of blood loss from a missing finger.
St. Benedictus College, Manhasso Minnesota.
Jenna and Sarah had arrived at their destination pretty uneventfully. They had been driving through rural Minnesota for two hours when St Ben's appeared like a small castle in the distance. The campus was posh. Very secluded, with winding cobblestone lanes and tree lined courts. The main buildings were stately marble, overgrown with lots of well tended ivy. The central area boasted a huge rose garden. It was shaped like a maze, shrubbery tall and dense so that you could not see beyond the next turn. The shoulder high rose bushes were trimmed into perfect rectangles, and spaced evenly apart, golden name plates designated both the common and the scientific latin names of the flowers. In the center was a bronze fountain with a graceful sculpture of a serious young man in a toga. One hand holding a scroll, the other hand pointing down. His expression was thoughtful and conflicted. Something about the mans face made Sarah want to stay and look longer. It was all very organized, and tidy. Sarah loved it. Later she would want to wonder around and sit on the pretty benches here, she thought. The dorm itself was very nice too. The dark wood floors were polished to a rich shine, the walls were lined with beautiful old tapestries and bookshelves of awards, photos and leather bound books. It was almost too much for a dorm of new students.
As soon as Sarah's tired behind touched her chosen bed however, the phone rang. It was their mom, obviously checking up on them, Sarah thought, but mom's first words almost made her drop the phone in amazement and alarm.
" Your Dad has been cheating! Again!" Her mom confided in a matter of fact way. Sarah sputtered. Their father was hardly the cheating type. He wasn't even the flirting type. She couldn't even imagine their dad doing anything remotely involving sex. Ever. In fact Sarah was pretty sure that their parents really did find her and her sister in a cabbage patch. It made more sense then the alternative.
" Mom! Are you certain?" Sarah's raised voice got a reaction from Jenna, who frowned and raised her eyebrows.
" Oh, I can always tell. Who can blame him? Those blondies are divine. I love them too." Mrs Grey continued. Sarah shook her head to make sure she was hearing correctly. Her mom wanted to do it too? She was understanding about dads adulterous attraction to blondes? Was this a joke?
" There is no excuse for cheating mom. No matter what. But what makes you sure? I don't believe dad would ever lie to you like that. He loves you too much" Sarah couldn't believe her mom was Ok with this. Jenna was now staring open mouthed.
" Oh he does it alright. And he knows that I would get angry if he told me. But mostly he just doesn't want me to worry. No one tells the truth all the time. Not even your father."
" Well I should hope you would be angry! I can't believe that your not threatening to throw all his stuff out on the front porch!" Sarah shouted
" Oh, goodness! Theres no reason to shout! Of course I might have to throw his stuff out if he keeps doing it. His pants barely fit him now! But it is your fathers life. I can't really make him do the right thing if he doesn't want to."
"No. You can't make him do the right thing." Sarah was almost in tears now, Jenna was looking pale, but stayed silent. Sarah was paying no attention to her anyhow. She had one last hope "How do you know? Why are you so sure, mom?" She asked again, quietly.
" I can tell because he isn't eating his whole grain crackers, and his garden burgers. Also, he is getting quite a belly. But the biggest clue was a whole bunch of white bakery bags that he hid in his car. There were blondie bar crumbs inside them."
Sarah breathed a sigh of relief. Dad was cheating on his diet. Blondie bars. Thank God.
" Yeah mom. Dad does love baked goodies. I still remember the brownies you baked for our summer camp that one time. I just can't believe a lone man could eat so much. I just don't think you can stop a love like that. No matter what you do" Jenna understood and laughed.
" I know sweetheart. Your daddy won't give up his sweets, not even for me." her tone changed " Is Annlyn there yet? I know you girls worried"
" Not yet." Sarah's vice became tight. Her mom stayed uncharacteristically silent for a while before answering.
" Don't worry. She will." But she didn't sound sure. They talked a little more about nothing before Mrs Grey, assured that her daughters were fine, hung up. Sarah dialed Annlyn's number again, knowing it was useless. She let it ring until the answering message started and hung up. She sighed. Jenna watched her quietly, then hopped up off the bed.
"Come on, Sarah. Lets look around. She'll call." Jenna couldn't stand the way her sister always worried. Here they were, miles away from everyone they knew. In a campus that was way too weird for comfort, and all Sarah could think about was a missed call? It was unreal. And why was their mom bugging them, anyhow? They weren't kids. She wouldn't be surprised if dad was cheating on more then his diet. She could never understand her parents. Mom was always so NICE to her husband. It was sick. It was so fake, Jenna was sure. Why couldn't mom be like that with her kids? She never let them get away with anything. Weren't you supposed to love your children more then anything in the world? One thing is for sure, Jenna would never be like that. She would always be independent. No way she would ever change herself for a guy, or even fall in love with a guy again. The last time she did that she just got walked on. Zack seemed perfect. Smart, handsome, a crooked smile that she still couldn't forget. Jenna remembered the way he had looked at her at first. Like he could never get enough of her. But that changed. In the end, he had enough of her, alright. In the end he had ended up dating the school slut, Delphina. Jenna hated Delphi. What was there to like? She was stuck up. Her hair was a pretty blond, but upon inspection of her eyebrows, it was obvious she was about as natural blond as Michael Jackson had a natural skin condition. And she had this awful saccharine sweet voice. Ugh. Men just couldn't handle a woman who knew what she wanted. And Jenna wanted something at all times. Got plenty irritable when she didn't get it, too. Right now she wanted to be back in a normal school, with like normal kids. Not out in this wilderness knowing no one. Shed bet all there was going to be were freaks here. Why didn't she just go to University of California like she wanted? Then she remembered that she could barely get in anywhere with her grades and sighed. She was smart, Jenna was sure. It was just that the school system didn't understand people like her. She needed to be active. To be free. Not cooped up learning useless things like math proofs. How would that help her? Of course when she tried, she always understood that stuff. It just wasn't fair. Now she was here alone and scared. She tried to cover it up by seeming annoyed, which she was as well. She realized her sister was looking at her.
" You know everyone here is going to feel the same way. Everyone new, anyway." Sarah was saying in a calming voice." it won't be hard to meet people as long as we are open to it. Aren't you at least kind of glad for a new place? I know you really liked our old school, but..." Sarah saw that Jenna was frowning, so she tried a different tactic "At least you won't ever have to see Dephi again."
"Yeah. At least the next time we see her, she will probably be showing signs of all those STDs catching up with her. That girl liked every guy she saw!" Jenna agreed. Sarah sighed, saying nothing. She had heard Srarah say things like that often. Delphi certainly wasn't into all guys. In fact she only dated one; Her sisters ex-boyfriend Zack. Zack had been totally into Jenna, but Jenna had taken so long deciding between him, and another guy she had feelings for, that Zack had wisely given up. It wasn't that Jenna had liked Zack all that much. Jenna really only liked herself. But she miscalculated. Jenna did that a lot. By the time Jenna decided that she wanted him, Zack had totally seen through her, and realized that what Jenna really craved was drama. When Zack chose Delphi, she could never forgive him. She repeated the comments calling Delphi a slut so often, that half the school believed her. But Zack never changed his mind.