Shrek patted the spout he'd just installed near his house, smiling to himself. It was the last of the renovations he planned to put on his new swamp house. Finally. Now I'll never have to see anyone ever again. The thought pleased him even as he hated it. Every time he saw people, they made him feel like a freak, a monster, and now he wouldn't have to see anyone, ever. He'd never have to feel like a beast again.
At the same time…he was lonely. He missed his mother, and his second mother, Aileen…and…and Sorcha.
Shrek hated her, but he missed her. He hated what she'd said, hated how she'd humiliated him, hated how she'd forsaken him. Hated that he'd loved her.
It hadn't been a mature love, obviously. Just the love heartbroken little boys have for anyone who is nice to them, anyone who shows them a little compassion, but it could have been something more. Maybe it should have been something more. Of course, it wasn't, and there was no use dwelling on what couldn't be.
A few minutes later, he was trying unsuccessfully to light a fire when the cauldron he hung over it fell. He grumbled and looked at it in disdain, rubbing his head where the cast iron had struck him. Examining it after a moment, he found that it needed a new handle.
He cursed under his breath and stood, rummaging around to find what little coins he had left. It was hard to build up money, especially when no one wanted anything to do with you, but all the outland farmers seemed to care about was that he could work hard. He'd gotten just enough to finish his house and buy supplies until he could start growing and making his own. Quietly cursing his luck, he gathered a few coins and stormed out to town.
Shrek felt his face droop as the first of the villagers spotted him. It was a teenage girl, perhaps a year or two younger than he. She stared at him in horror for a moment, nearly dropping the basket of potatoes that she held, and then took off towards the house, completely silent. Her skirts billowed behind her as she ran, her hair trailing through the air like a ribbon of fire warning him to come no closer. It was not a new sight to him, though he'd never seen the girl before.
Everyone ran from him.
He saw that most people were simply gathering their things and going inside quietly, trying not to draw attention to themselves. The usual group of boys that threw rocks was congregating near the end of the main street, giggling madly about what fun it was to torment him. He ignored them and strode quickly towards a nearby store.
Entering, he saw the owner was concentrating on something and had not seen him. The bells on the entrance jangled, signaling that he had a customer.
"Good evening, sir, how ma- Oh. Oh my."
"An' an 'oh my' righ' back at ye," he said, smiling sadly. "Look, I jus' need a cauldron handle, an' I'll be on mah way."
"A…a cauldron handle? Yes, of course. Of course. They're right over there." He pointed a shaking finger behind Shrek, who turned and saw that there were indeed many cauldron handles. He bought the first one he could, figuring that if it was too long, he could easily bend it.
Starting back outside, he saw that the group of boys had been disbanded by their parents. He walked back in the direction he had come from, trying not to notice the eyes that watched him from darkened windows.
There was a flash and a thud in front of him, and he looked down to see a little girl. She had fallen while running, and now she sat dumbfoundedly before him on the dusty ground.
He reached down and picked her up, righting her. "Are ye all righ' there, Lass?"
She smiled slightly. "I'm fine, sir. Thank you very much."
"You be a li'l more careful next time, all right'?"
"Yes sir, I-"
"Echna!!"
The two of them looked up, and saw a woman running towards them. "Don't talk to strangers, girl!" She swung the child up into her arms and, with a look of fear into Shrek's face, quickly walked away.
He looked down and continued to walk out of the town, cauldron handle in hand. Suddenly, he found himself surrounded by the men of the village, all bearing some weapon ranging anywhere from a sword to a hoe or shovel. He looked around at them in confusion. "Can I help ye?"
"Look, Ogre, we don't want you in our town."
He scowled, trying not to let the hurt show on his face. "That's fine by me, 'cause I won't be comin' back!"
"That's what you said last time, and now look! You came back, didn't you?" One of the men near him reached out and put a sword to his throat. "We aim to make it so you can never come back again!!"
"Now look here, I'm not hurtin' anythin', and I jus' needed ta grab this handle." He tried to not let his fear show. He may have been able to take care of a few of the villagers, but this many would almost certainly overpower him, especially since he was only an adolescent ogre. "I'll just be on my way home, and I won't come back."
"I don't think so."
Shrek reached out and knocked over the man who was holding a sword to his neck and backed quickly away, wondering silently how in the world he was going to get out of this.
Suddenly there was a woman in a black cloak in front of him, facing the advancing crowd of men. Shrek, looking confused, stared at her, as did the men.
"Get out of the way, woman," shouted the leader, gesturing with his torch.
"What do you think you're doing?" she asked quietly, her face devoid of emotion.
"Taking care of a problem that should have been dealt with years ago!" a short man in the back yelled. This sentiment was backed up by shouts of agreement from others.
"I don't think you really want to hurt Shrek, do you?" Her soft, low voice floated out over the group like a wave of calm, and some of them actually dropped their weapons. There was a musicality to it that seemed to make everything slow down. "He's done nothing to you," she continued, "and now he's leaving. In fact, it's a waste of your valuable time to detain him any longer. Why don't you all just return to your houses and eat a well-deserved dinner? You have had a long day, I assume. Just enjoy the evening and don't worry about anything."
There was a murmur of assent, and the group moved away as one, those who had dropped their weapons simply leaving them there. Shrek found himself almost going with them before he realized what he was doing. That must have been a… an enchantment…
Shrek stared after them for a moment, disbelieving, then turned to confront the woman who had saved him, but she was gone. He looked frantically around, and saw something white flashing near the trees, but nothing else.
He quickly hurried out of town and to the swamp before the harassers changed their mind.
Shrek quietly sat down at his dinner table, looking over all his food one more time. It was a nightly ritual that he'd begun when he'd first moved to the swamp. After having less than all the other children at his foster parents, he'd come to appreciate food differently than most. His new state of having plenty was different from the old, and he tended to overeat on a constant basis, causing him to gain weight substantially. He really didn't care. It wasn't like anyone would be around to see him anyway.
He finished and stared into the fire for a few moments. It was times like these, quiet times when he had nothing else to do, that he missed his old life the most. Certainly he'd been unhappy, but he'd never been as lonely as he was now. He laid his head down on the table, feeling one tear slide down his nose and softly plop onto the wood. Things would be better eventually. They had to be.
He didn't notice the flash of light outside his window.
Author's note: So, what do you think? This isn't the end, there's more coming. Aren't you all wondering about Fiona? *evil laughter* Anyway, to be continued. ^^