06 The Pledge

When we entered the large ramshackle house, the front room stood quiet as a gentle breeze drifted through open windows. Old furniture appeared scattered haphazardly, distinguishable only by a light emanating from a doorway opposite from us. Mary had told me that they shared the house with several others, and though difficult to see, I could tell that none of the inhalants liked to clean.

"Hello?" called out Mary.

A woman's voice calmly answered from the lit room. "It's just me."

Mary waved me to follow, and as we entered the room, I found myself in a kitchen lit by a pair of brass oil lamps, one resting on a counter near the sink with the second set upon a cluttered kitchen table.

Dressed in a loose fitting one-piece mini skirt, a tall woman with long blonde hair stirred a pitcher of red liquid. Without looking at who had entered, she said, "I just made some strawberry ambrosia. Do you want...some?" The woman froze for a moment before spinning around, her eyes—yellow like a cat—locked on me. When she spoke, her words rolled off her tongue. "I see. We have new blood."

"I'd love some juice," replied Mary as reached into a cabinet for clean glasses. "And let me introduce you to Frederick. Frederick, this is Ekko."

As Mary filled a glass, my attention remained fixated on Ekko's face. "Are those your real eyes?"

"Of course they are, silly man." The tall woman turned to her friend. "That's a first."

Mary simply smiled.

"What?" I asked, my gaze shifting between the two women.

Ekko took the pitcher and began filling a second glass with light red liquid. "Most new arrivals normally stare at my tits."

My eyes instantly drifted down to her bosom, which her loose fitting clothes barely covered.

"Like that." Smiling, Ekko took a sip from her drink with a justified look.

"Would you like to try our special strawberry juice?" asked Mary.

Feeling the heat radiating off my flushed face, I diverted my eyes and replied, "Yes, please."

Mary took a third glass, but only filled it a quarter of the way before passing it to me. "Since this is your experience with this, you should only drink a little on your first day."

Sniffing the sweet smelling liquid, I found the aroma subtle and pleasing, but hesitated to taste it. "Thank you, Mary."

"Mary?" Ekko looked to her friend. "Laila, did you change your name again?"

I too turned to my friend. "Laila?"

The woman smiled at me before replying to Ekko, "It's just temporary. He has trouble remembering names."

The blonde woman's brow rose. "One of those, is he? Has he already forgotten my name?" she asked, smiling at me wryly.

"No, Ekko," I replied. "I'm not that bad." To distract myself from my growing embarrassment, I sipped my drink and found the taste delightful. A mere second later, I felt as if I had stepped outside nude on a warm summer's day, my skin showered by warm sunlight.

Mary touched my arm. "Are you okay? The drink should make you feel relaxed, more comfortable."

"Yes, I'm fine. It's just a new sensation that I'm not accustomed to." Overcome by the feeling, I tugged on my shirt while focusing on the flame of the oil lamp. "I suspect that this won't be my only surprise during my visit."

Ekko swallowed a recent sip from her glass. "Visit? Laila, is he not staying?"

"He has ten days," replied Laila.

Subtly shaking her head, Ekko sloshed the final bit of ambrosia around in her glass. "I told you that it was a bad idea to give him a choice."

"I want him to have the opportunity to decide for himself."

Feeling the warmth of the strawberry ambrosia spread through my body, my attention returned to my friend. "I like Laila for a name, but I wouldn't have thought that to be commonly used back in settler days. Do I call you Laila or Mary?"

Drinking from her glass, Laila paused as the beverage seemed to wash quickly over her, adding color to her cheeks. With a growing smile, she said, "Laila was one of many names I picked when I decided to make this place my home."

"You have many names?"

"Yes," replied Laila.

"What's your true name?" I asked before sipping from my drink. As Laila told me her name in her native Sioux language, the warmth felt from the drink began to spread inward, spilling into my head.

Ekko tossed back the rest of her drink and grimaced approvingly. "That's her old world name. Her real name is a secret."

"What do you mean?" I asked, leaning against the table just to be safe.

"If you decide to stay," replied Ekko, "you will eventually learn your real name, but you only share that name with someone special."

"Oh, I see." Distracted by the ambrosia, I stared into my glass. "Is there alcohol in this drink? I normally detest alcohol; it makes my depression worse."

Laila took my unfinished glass from me. "You should stop. Your reaction is stronger than I thought it would be."

"Okay." I returned to admiring Ekko's cat like eyes. "I like your eyes. Do many here have different eyes?"

"Some," replied Ekko. "We all have something that makes us unique."

My smile grew. "Do you have a tail?"

Laila laughed as one of Ekko's brows slowly arched, revealing her annoyance. "No. I do not have a tail."

"Sorry," I said. "But that would be cool if you did. My mind seems to have already accepted that this place has infinite possibilities...and that anything is possible."

Laila finished her drink and set the glass on the counter. "You're much more open minded than I was when I first arrived."

Ekko began pouring herself a second drink. "But Laila, you were still blinded by vengeance. Remember?"

"Yes," replied Laila, sighing. "I do remember."

As Ekko sipped from her glass, I took notice of their loose fitting clothing that appeared homemade, yet apropos. "I hope I don't wake up tomorrow in a hippie commune only to find out that you slipped me some LSD."

Swallowing her latest sip, Ekko sloppily pointed a finger at me with her glass in hand. "You don't have to worry about that. We don't like hippies. We would never invite one here."

"Why not?"

"The smell."

"I see." Chuckling, I oddly began to feel Ekko's stare as her eyes narrowed below a furled brow.

"What?" I asked, taking a small step back.

"I'm game," replied Ekko. "Here or on the beach?"

"What?"

The corner of Ekko's mouth curled up. "Where do you want to have sex?"

My eyes widened as I turned to Laila.

"Frederick, Ekko is just playing with you." Laila glared at her friend. "That's all."

"No I'm not," retorted Ekko. "He wants to have sex with me."

"No I don't."

Ekko turned to her friend and smiled. "He's cute, but a terrible liar."

"He just got here," said Laila. "Leave him be."

Ekko's focus returned to me as she continued to stare intently, and though I refused to meet her gaze, I somehow felt her stare, physically. Time seemed to stop, making me more uncomfortable. My breath became heavy, forcing me to grip the edges of the table with both hands. With my heart racing, my phallus swelled with blood as sweat beaded across my forehead.

Laila reached out and touched her friend's arm. "Ekko, stop. Please."

As quick as the intense feeling had taken hold of me, the sensation lifted—just in time to prevent further embarrassment.

Laila too sighed with relief. "You can play with him later once he has a better understanding of our world."

With a look of disappointment, Ekko sighed as she turned away to collect the pitcher of strawberry liquid. "Very well, but I was only going to give him an orgasm."

"I know, but that could be unsettling to a new arrival."

Stunned by the inexplicable event, I readjusted my trousers. "Did you do that telepathically?"

"Yes," replied Ekko. "An easy trick that most of the woman here have mastered."

"What about the guys? Can they do that to a woman?"

"No." Ekko began collecting various tumbler glasses, tucking them under one arm. "Some things never change." With the ambrosia in hand and a collection of glasses, Ekko turned to exit when she stopped under the doorway. "Come down to the beach. We're having a party. Everyone who lives on this side of the lake will be there. Good time to meet everyone."

I looked to Laila and received an approving nod. "Okay. I'd like that."

Without further word, Ekko slipped from the room.

Laila came around the table, her concern for me evident.

"I'm okay," I said, adjusting my trousers a second time. "It was just unexpected, that's all. Unexpected seems to describe this place."

"Not exactly, but I'm glad you're not deterred."

"I'm not. And I didn't want to have sex with her. I was just admiring how fit she is. How stylish her clothes—"

"I know. You don't have to defend yourself. Don't feel ashamed of your natural feelings. It's okay here." Laila gestured to the door. "Are you ready to meet my friends?"

I nodded and waited as Laila extinguish the oil lanterns by turning a small dial on their sides. As the lights diminished, I noticed the lack of a refrigerator. "I take it that there is no electricity."

"Correct." Laila reached for my hand and began guiding me through the dark house. "We have no electronic technology of any kind."

"No music?"

"Oh, we have music. Proper music." When we stepped outside onto the porch, my friend stopped me. "Listen."

Faintly from the direction of the beach, I heard singing with accompanying drumming. "Live music?"

"Yes. Is there any other kind?"

Normally fearful of meeting new people, I smiled as Laila led me to the beach where the others had gathered, many of which shared the house. Everyone appeared merry and festive, some dancing around a fire while others sat around in small groups, sharing the tumblers of strawberry juice. One man played guitar while a woman delicately fingered an exquisitely carved flute. Sometimes, one person would sing to a tune, and at other times, all would sing. Their merriment only grew as the glass tumblers of ambrosia continued to be passed amongst the crowd.

Laila, or Mary if you prefer, shared a tumbler of ambrosia with me as we happily sat off to the side and watched the merriment unfold around us. This allowed introductions and eventually, I met everyone. Though I have forgotten most of their names, I would remember each with mental snapshot since they were unique in their own special way.

When one particular song began, Laila scrambled to her feet and asked me to dance. I had never danced in my life, never wanted to, but I happily climbed to my feet and tried my best, free of embarrassment and self-consciousness, the ambrosia—I presumed—suppressing those hindering emotions.

I never did detect any alcohol in the strawberry flavored drink, but the liquid treat had a potency, for my memories of the remainder of the night are not so clear. Perhaps I danced with someone else; perhaps I tried to sing. What I can remember is that I lay upon the sand at one point and stared up at the clearest night sky that I had ever seen. The stars shown so bright and clear that I thought I could reach up and touch them. For the first time in my life, on this beach, I experienced the feeling of belonging.

When I awoke later, I found myself lying on a mattress in the middle of the living room floor of the ramshackle house, surrounded by many of the others from the beach. Sitting up, I found Laila on the mattress next to me, sound asleep and fully clothed. Looking about the room, I found some of the people clothed while others were only covered partially. Ekko slept near the wall fully naked with her slender back facing me.

My eyes struggled with the morning light seeping through thin makeshift curtains constructed out of old fabric draped over rods. Shielding my eyes from the sunlight, I noticed the brilliance of colors throughout the room, even the worn wood furniture appeared rich in tone with the wood grains fine and detailed—liked the heavily edited photographs on the internet. The white cotton sheet that covered my mattress needed a washing, but the white was nothing I had seen before, for the fabric almost shown like porcelain.

With a bladder needing attention, I looked for a way through the maze of mattresses when sound from the kitchen told me that I was not the first to wake, that someone could guide me to a bathroom.

In the kitchen, a man with a lightly weathered face and long curly hair stood before the counter. Atop an oil lantern's exposed flame, a small kettle sat with steam rising from the spout. The man had clearly heard me enter the kitchen and turned to smile at me. "Good morning, Frederick. Did I wake you?"

"No. The light woke me."

"Ah, I see. New arrivals always seem to wake to the morning light." The man gestured to old chair by the kitchen table. "Take a seat. Would you like some honey tea?"

My mouth feeling somewhat dry, I accepted. Squinting at the brilliant landscape outside the kitchen window, I asked, "This may sound stupid, but does the light in your world come from the same sun as mine?"

"Yes. You could say the light is simply more pure than what you are used to."

"Like a clean river versus a murky one?"

"Yes. Something like that." The man seemed to hold back his amusement.

"You can laugh at me if I ask a stupid question. I don't mind."

"I'm not laughing." The man began to pour hot tea into two old mugs, each chipped about the edges. "I'm admiring you. I told Laila that you were different than the others, that you'd come to understand our world quicker than most."

As the man added honey to each mug, I desperately tried to remember his name.

"It's Hiero," said the man.

"What?"

"My name is Hiero." The man slid a mug of tea in front of me.

"Is it?"

"I know my own name." The man smiled as he lifted his mug for a sip, shrugging as he swallowed. "Well, I have over a hundred, but I've been using Hiero for a while."

"No," I said, "I thought Laila used a different name when she introduced you to me last night."

"Oh." The tapped his finger against his mug. "Maybe she used the name her tribe used to call me: Iktomi."

"That's it." Finding my tea too hot to sip, I blew across the surface. "So all the folklore from Native Americans regarding fairi—, regarding mysterious people of the forest is true?"

The man seemed to smile with pride. "Well, they may have inflated some of the tales over time, but yes."

"Where you always Iktomi or did others play the role?"

"There were others in the past. Of recent, it's mostly me"

Wanting to sample my tea, I blew harder across the surface. "Why?"

"Why not? They are a wondrous people. It was just harmless fun." The man chuckled as if remembering a particular event. "Even us spirits of a different sort need to have some fun from time to time."

"It looked as if all of you had plenty of fun last night."

The man raised his mug, pausing to say, "Ah, yes. We do have more fun than most."

When Hiero looked past me, I turned to find Laila rubbing her eyes under the doorway. "Morning," I said to her.

With eyes half shut, she mumbled, "Morning. I was afraid that you wandered off."

"Your souvenir is safe," said Hiero. "Come, my dear. Have some honey tea with us."

I turned to the man. "Souvenir?"

The man began fixing Laila a mug of tea. "Inside joke. Don't be offended."

"I'm not."

Laila leaned forward against the table, the night's festivities still weighing on her. "Iktomi has his own souvenirs." She eyed the man with a faint, playful smile. "If I'm not mistaken, the latest one is named Tara?"

Shifting my focus from Laila back to the man, I asked, "How many people have you brought over?"

"Me?" The man weakly attempted to suppress his smile. "I don't keep track of these things. The heart wants what it wants."

My attention turned to Laila as she accepted her tea. "And you?"

"Just one. You are my only friend whom I've brought over from the old world." Laila sipped her tea, unaffected by the heat. "Hence the joke." She noticed my full mug. "Don't you like the tea? We can find you something else."

"No; I'm sure I'll like it. I just need to wait for it to cool."

Laila took my mug and blew gently over the surface before sliding it back to me. "Now, try it."

Lifting the mug close to my lips, I could tell that it had cooled significantly. I sipped, finding the taste pleasing. "Thank you." Wrapping my fingers around the warm mug, I gazed with wonderment at her and asked, "Magic?"

"Simple science."

"Can I learn it?"

"Yes." Laila and Hiero exchanged looks. "If you decide to stay."

Sensing their quiet communication, I asked openly to both, "Will you really let me leave if I choose not to stay."

The man nodded. "Of course you can leave."

"Are you not afraid of me exposing this world?"

Hiero set his finished mug down on the table. "It is impossible for them to travel here without us to guide them, and what would you say? Who would you tell?"

Considering his point, my brow furled with the thought. "True. I'd only get myself admitted into the hospital...again."

Raising a finger in the air, Hiero announced, "We should make pledges." The man crossed the kitchen to open a high cabinet, from which he removed a small glass bottle, along with some small objects that easily fitted in the cup of his hand. He returned to the table to reveal three small thimble-sized glasses that he set carefully upon the table. Pulling the stopper from the bottle, he filled each tiny glass with a spit of yellow liquid.

Laila took one of the tiny glasses and waited as Hiero and I to collect ours. Lifting her glass, she said, "By this drink, I promise to return you, if you should want me to, to your home at the earliest convenience. If I should fail, may I lie down dead." She tipped back her glass, blinked repeatedly, and burped—louder than I would expect.

Hiero raised his glass. "By this drink, I promise to be of any help possible, to answer every question, to try to find the answer if I should not know, to make sure you return safely to your world if you so choose." The man tipped back his glass, blinked repeatedly, and burped with ferocity.

When I stared into the yellow liquid, I could sense that the drink was more than special: it was...binding. My gazed drifted between the other two until I raised my glass. "By this drink, I promise to be attentive of all that I will be shown, appreciative of your kindness, and," I turned to Laila, "to be the best friend possible." When I glanced at Hiero, I received an approving nod. I tossed back the liquid to find the substance sweet like honey with a peppermint aftertaste. Almost immediately, the liquid queerly forced me to belch. I set the tiny glass on the table, feeling extremely refreshed.

Also appearing satisfied, Laila passed her tiny glass back to Hiero. She lifted her mug of tea and asked before taking a sip, "So, what do you want to do on your first day? Here, no idea is too small."

Without hesitance, I asked, "Where's the bathroom?"