Posted August 29th, 2014.

I can't believe this story actually exists. It's just so surreal for me. But hella exciting! Woohoo! I'm really crazy happy with this story, and I hope you'll love it half as much as I do by the end. Thanks for reading! :)

And can I just say, oh my goodness, the responses I got for this left me breathless. I'm surprised whenever I get a review, but this time, it really shocked me. It's just all so exciting that you guys like this! Thanks, everybody, for reviewing!

Note: I couldn't decide at first if I was going to capitalize 'wizard,' and in the end, when it's in reference to Gale, I have. So I went back and changed all of the 'wizard's to 'Wizard's. Not a big change anyone needs to re-read for. Also, I changed around the Wizard's house a bit. For all I love with his design and his house, I can't stand the interior decorating. Who puts their bed right at the front door? Like… why? Why?!


II


Gale was not a babysitter. He couldn't remember the last time he interacted with a human child, let alone looked after one. And for how long? His mother hadn't exactly made herself clear on the matter. For whatever reason, she had brought her son to him and entrusted the Wizard with his care. This both baffled and concerned him, but Gale was sure they would simply have to wait until dawn when Angela would no doubt come running back for the tyke.

Leaning against the banister at the bottom of his staircase, Gale just watched and waited for the child to do something. The little boy had stepped inside after the Wizard had backed into the home, and the door was shut to keep out the storm. But there he stood. Unmoving. Was he scared? Hungry? What did children do?

The boy suddenly turned to the wizard, startling the man. He had a dark, wide-eyed gaze. He tilted his head, studying him. Gale mimicked the motion. The boy smiled and toddled over, carrying a white stuffed bear as his only luggage. He wobbled and came to a stop at the Wizard's feet.

Messy brown hair, scruffy clothes, and mud on his over-sized shoes. He was definitely a farmer's son. The boy grinned wider and stretched up his arms to him. "Up!"

Gale paused. How was one supposed to greet a child? He decided it would be less intimidating if he was at eye level with the lad, so the Wizard bent onto one knee. "How old… are you?"

"Up! Up!" He whined. Water started pooling in his eyes, making Gale reel backwards. "Up! Up! Up!"

The Wizard silenced the screeching by doing as the child demanded. He picked the boy up from under the arms, holding him out and away from himself. He was quite heavy. "What… do you want now…?"

He squirmed and kicked in the uncomfortable position. "No, no!"

Gale set him down. He stopped fussing and hobbled away from him to inspect his house. The Wizard blinked.

The boy went straight for the shelf, reaching for a delicate balancing tool. Swiftly, Gale crossed the room and moved it higher away from him. He bent back down as the toddler pouted. "What is your name…?"

"Kathie!" He instantly replied, recognizing the question. He pushed his smelly bear in the Wizard's face. "Kathie! Kathie!"

Gale leaned away and pushed the toy down to get a look at the child. Kathy…? No, there was something wrong in the pronunciation. The boy hadn't learned how to speak properly yet. He put the stress on the 'a,' however. 'Kay.' So at least his name wasn't the same as the busty young waitress' in the harbor. "Your name… again?"

"Kathie," he said, less interested this time. He was more absorbed staring at the Wizard's necklaces and amulets. He reached out for them, but Gale lightly stopped his hand at the wrist.

Wizard caught the lisp that time. "You're trying to say… an 's' sound…"

The boy giggled and ran away, having been distracted again. The room was still very dark, and Gale quickly went to remedy the problem lest he lose his little guest already. Closing his fingers around the wick of the candle by the bookshelf, he released it after a moment and a flame appeared where his touch had been. Gale went about the room doing the same to other strategically placed candles, and the night was soon chased away by their glow.

The boy was by the stairs, attempting to crawl up them on all fours and still hold onto his bear. Guessing his name, Gale said: "Kasey."

He immediately turned his head, staring at the Wizard.

That's a start… Gale motioned for the boy to come over. "Step down from there…"

Obedient but finally appearing nervous to be in a stranger's house, Kasey hugged his bear close and walked tentatively across the room. He stopped by the center table, only meeting Gale halfway.

Gale did not bend down again, deciding that was an exhausting and pointless procedure. "How old are you… Kasey?"

"Four," he held up all of the fingers on one hand minus the thumb.

How incredible. Just four years old. Four years ago felt like a breath away for the Wizard, but it was a lifetime for this child. He leaned against this desk, crossing his arms. "I did not know… Angela had a son…"

Kasey remained silent, turning his head and looking for something else to get into. A crash of lightning and thunder outside had no frightful effect on him, but Kasey whirled around to the window in wonderment. He ran to the Wizard's desk, pulling out the chair and trying to climb up.

Gale pulled him up by the arms again, making Kasey howl until he realized he was helping him up to see. To the Wizard's surprise, Kasey latched onto him, one arm going around his neck and the other holding his teddy's arm by ritual. His mother must have often carried him this way…

The Wizard awkwardly supported him, uncomfortable with the close contact. Kasey pointed at the window, leaning forward.

"Storm…" Gale provided.

Kasey stared out in fascination at the rain pounding against the glass. He laughed.

Slowly, Gale lowered the boy onto the desk, propping him up so he could sit there and watch the weather. He waited a moment to make sure Kasey wasn't going anywhere before he turned away with a sigh. He quickly went into the alcove off his staircase and opened the chest at the foot of his bed. Amongst tools and knick-knacks of various sorts, was a quilt he used on especially cold winter nights. He didn't have an extra pillow, so he took the one off his own bed.

The Wizard looked around, wondering where he was going to put him. It was very late, and the boy should get at least some sleep before dawn. He spread the blanket out on the ground and placed the pillow down. He stared at it. No, that didn't seem right…

Gale looked at his bed and sighed. He wasn't going to get any sleep anyways.

"Mama?" Kasey called. The Wizard frowned. So he had finally caught on she wasn't here. He became more frantic. "Mama! Mama!"

Gale hurried to the boy before he could jump down from the desk and hurt himself. He kept his distance as he tried to comfort the boy as he snot-cried. "Your mother… will be back soon…"

"Mama…!" Kasey rubbed his eyes and wouldn't look at the Wizard.

"She wants you to sleep… come," the Wizard held out his hand, commanding.

Kasey eyed the hand in fear. He looked at the strange man, wondering who he was.

"Come," Gale repeated as he adjusted his tone to be more gentle and persuading. Humans were suspicious creatures, even the young ones. "She'll be back… when you wake up…"

That seemed to do the trick, and Kasey yawned. He stretched out his arms expectantly. Wizard grabbed him by his under arms and carried him across his house like hazardous material. He plopped him on his bed, and Kasey laid down and waited.

With the pillow fluffed under his head and the quilt wrapped around him, Kasey stared up at the Wizard curiously. "Story?"

The Wizard balked. There were many stories he could tell, but what would interest a child? What was a suitable bedtime tale? Gale rubbed his chin and pulled up a chair. He spread his hands out on his knees. "Perhaps the mythos of Orion? A giant hunter who was put into the stars… Of course… it's really only a simple constellation, but the stories hold some interest…"

Kasey's eyes were wide and uncomprehending. The Wizard didn't notice the blank look, and he took it as motivation to continue.

"Orion was… a man of many travels…" Gale began in his slow, drawling way. "He was blinded, but he had regained his sight. Greek mythos often have high stakes… and shortcomings… He hunted with the mighty goddess Artemis, but he wanted to kill all of the animals… all across the world… so her mother sent Scorpio to kill him… Perhaps he isn't the best role… model…"

When the Wizard looked down, Kasey's lips were parted, and he was sound asleep from boredom.

"Oh… dear…" Gale mumbled. He needed to work on his storytelling skills.