The Faerie Slayer
Chapter 12

"Hi Snowball!" I kneeled to kiss the creature," I missed you so much!"

"Hey buddy," Ben seemed to finally have broken out of his trance.

I picked Snowball up and rose to meet Ben's level.

"What were you going to tell me?"

"Forget about it. It can wait."

"Are you sure?"

He was already walking away.

"I'll see you at school tomorrow?"

"Okay....see ya....sorry about your dad!"

But he was already dispersed with the darkness of tonight.

Inside, my mother was baking scones.

"Do you want to help?" she asked, her gloved hands carrying a tray of raw dough and placing it inside of the oven.

"Nope!" I grabbed a finished dessert that was set to the side to cool off," I could eat though!"

I sat on the edge of the sofa and watched my small mother as she attempted to fiddle with the pans on the shelf above her. Both of my parents were short, my mother being around five feet four inches and my father being five feet six inches. I sometimes felt as if I were hovering over both of them. They were both dark haired and eyed. I remember catching the wondering glances of strangers as a child who often wondered how these two could have possibly conceived me.

"Where's dad?"

"He's sleeping, he's got an early day tomorrow."

"Why are you up this late?"

She shrugged her shoulders," I couldn't sleep, I kept hearing this bird outside of our house but I think it's gone now I haven't heard it for a while."

"Did you see it? Was it the giant red bird?"

"I didn't see it no, but it kept making noise all night."

"I seen it fly away. Ben thinks it migrated here from somewhere else."

"Well I wouldn't be surprised. I've never heard it before."

I peeled off the corner of my scone and fed it to Snowball who was eagerly crouched at my feet.

"Ben was acting really weird tonight. I think there's something up with him."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know if it has something to do with his father. He just can't seem to be happy for me when I meet someone like I am when he meets someone."

"Maybe he's afraid he'll lose you."

"He can't worry about that forever. We spend almost everyday together. Plus, whenever he meets somebody I'm always so thrilled for him."

"Maybe he gets jealous then."

"Why would he be jealous?"

"Or protective. Guys don't like to share the people that they love."

I grabbed another piece of scone off of the tray and headed for the stairs," the bird's gone mom. Go to bed."

"Right after these are done!"

After a shower, I snuggled into bed phone in my hand. I had closed the windows after just discovering yet another red feather in fear that the bird had gotten into my room.

I read a goodnight text from Caleb and smiled to myself. I responded with a goodnight as well and drifted to slumber. The last image that had been on my mind was of the brown eyed stranger at the bar, the man I was sure I'd recognized from somewhere.

The next day, I'd gotten out of bed and snacked on the scones on my way to school. Ben was still acting strange as we made our way down the hallway and into first period.

"Can you tell me what you had to tell me before?"

"No."

"Did your father call?"

"No."

I turned my head and rolled my eyes away from his gaze. I could not justify to myself being this insensitive but on his behalf I would. There was nothing that I hated more then a lingering cliffhanger.

During lunch, I asked Ben if he'd texted Jess at all. When he said that he had, I was hit with sudden relief until he continued with," I ended things."

"Why?"

"I told you last night. She's not really my type."

"Last night you also mentioned something. You said there was someone else."

He bit into his green apple that juiced on both sides. The contents spilled onto his fingers which he then wiped on his black jeans. The sun was unusually bright for this time of fall. I remained silent as I bit into my tuna salad sandwich. We were seated outside on a bench. The one next to us sat four teenagers from the marching band club and the one further away sat Matt and some of Ben's other buddies. They strummed random tunes on their crappy guitars that would have ruined my lunch had the weather not been so perfect. The warm breeze was accompanied by a mist of fall briskness that made it pleasurable. I inhaled and wished that everyday would be this nice.

"Are you going to say something?" I finally asked.

"Yes, you're right. I should-"

Before he was able to finish, Matt had made his way over here. His presence alone was enough of an interference that made Ben halt mid sentence.

"Hey guys."

"What's up?" Ben and Matt did a silly handshake that I resisted the urge to make a face at. Matts thin brown hair had grown to just past his shoulders now. It was greasy enough to reflect off of the suns beams and his stained clothes were more wrinkled then anything I have ever owned, even my least cared for clothing. It made me seriously suspect how'd he get them to be so and if it were somehow done on purpose.

Maybe he balls up all his clothes every night and unfolds them when he's ready to wear them.

"Hey Matt," I simply answered. I didn't not like Mathew. He was always nice enough.

"What are you guys up to tomorrow? Do you wanna come see me and the band perform at the Snake Pit in Boerum Hill?"

At the same time I said," I've got tons of homework," whilst Ben said," we'll be there after school."

I shot him a glare. I didn't think I could last through another one of Math's 'performances.

"Come on Abs," he nudged me with a ringed fist," homework is for losers and we don't even start till 7."

"Okay," I sighed," I guess I'll have nothing better to do."

"Tell them you know the singer, they'll let you in for free at the door."

He marched back to his group of people and I did not bother to snap at Ben. I had agreed to this on my own. I continued to munch on my tuna sandwich.

"Tomorrow should be fun," mumbled Ben," so about what I was saying-"

This time, it was the ringing of my phone that silenced him. I hurried to pick up one I had caught sight of the name on the display.

"Hi Caleb."

"Hey, are you at school?"

"Yes, why?"

"Can you meet me by the dumpsters in the back?"

"Now?"

"Yes."

I didn't hesitate.

"Ok, coming."

"Where are you going," this time it was Ben.

"Caleb is here. He wants me to go see him."

"Here as in, inside of the school?"

"No he's out back behind the cafeteria," I deposited the rest of my lunch back into a container," I'll see you next period in case I'm not back in time."

He simply nodded and I rushed towards the dumpsters on the other side of the school. He was leaning against the tree nearby, hands in his pocket, peering out into the distance. When my feet ensued a sound of a crunching twig, his gaze met mines.

"Hey you."

"Hi," I pecked his lips and suddenly felt awkward. Was it alright that I done that?

"How was your lunch?"

"It was alright though I'm surprised you're here. Shouldn't you be.....?" I trailed off mainly because I was realizing that I truly had no clue as to where he would have been alternately.

"At work? I got off early so I decided to come see you."

I was filled with a sense of bliss that made me turn my head in an effort to conceal my content. It's been a long time since I had a crush like this one. I miss the simplicity of the joy that came from the little things.

"Where do you work?"

"At a music shop in Brooklyn selling vintage records."

Sounds fitting.

"Sounds...fun."

"I came here to see if you remembered what I told you last night."

'Promise me that you'll open up you're mind to the possibilities of something existing that is beyond you. And promise me that you'll be more receiving of information about your birth parents, even if it is something that you did not expect.'

"Yes. I promise," I responded," what is it?"

He lifted his palm and in his grasp was a yellow baby tulip, not yet blossomed, hardly had a chance at life before it was prickled by him. I didn't know how to react and so I didn't. Instead, my eyes fiddled between his gaze and the plant. It happened so slowly and smoothly that I thought I must be seeing things. The yellow tulip feathered outwards as if bidding the day awake. It twitched and tittered and eventually blossom into a fully fledged bright yellow tulip. The event took place, from start to end in the palm of Caleb who was now staring at me awaiting eagerly my reaction.

I let out a shaky breath.

"H-how did you do that?" I could not help but take a step back and he followed.

"I was born with the ability to do it."

"You were born with the ability to what exactly? Manipulate wildlife?"

"Something like that."

"What else can you do?"

"I can show you, but I don't want to scare you off."

You may be too late.

"You haven't scared me off it's just-not what I was expecting when you said to keep an open mind. I thought maybe you meant you're into screamo or have some weird kinks or something. Not this."

"The world you live in, Aubrette, isn't black and white. There's grey parts that I could introduce you to-"

"How did you know my name was Aubrette?"

"You told me-"

"Caleb, no I didn't. I never tell anyone my full name," mentally, I was scavenging my thoughts, rallying back to the night before and I wondered if sometime amongst the thin shadow of mere tipsiness I had let it slip out.

"Then maybe it was Ben. I don't remember but your name is beautiful. It's nothing that you should be ashamed of."

"I'm not ashamed of my name," forget it, thought to myself," whatever. Back to you controlling this flower-"

He was quick when he moved his hands to cup then around mines.

"If you're open to it, I could show you more. About what I can do, and what you can to-"

"Me?"

"Yes. But you have to keep an open mind. I wouldn't have shown you if I didn't think that you can handle it."

He let go of my palms and in my grasp was the tulip. He reached into his back pocket and retrieved a small book. The cover was seemingly of an enchanted forest littered with little fairies who posed on strange fruit emerging from trees. I grabbed the book from his grip and read the title out loud.

"The Book of the Fey," by Robert Schmidt.

To my surprise, the book was not typed, but handwritten. Almost like it was a journal of some kind.

"What's this?"

"Something to help you understand just a little bit more about who I am and what I can do. The grey fog between the black and the white. It sets things in a perspective that I can't rely."

I let out a sarcastic chuckle and held the book up," Fey? Like faeries, like tinker-bell?"

"Not quite," he seemed offended.

"Alright Caleb. I'll start read this, but eventually I'd like to know the full truth."

"I want to tell you all of it now, more then you think. It would certainly make a lot of things easier and move things along quicker.

"Move what along?" Could he be referring to us. Were we even an us?

"You and I," he concluded although it did seem as if he had to think about it. I made my own sudden conclusion that I needed some time away from him. Time to let whatever had just happened sit in and settle, time to be more open minded as he had so simply put it. I needed to come with whatever was going on, on my own and on my own terms without the pressure and influence of a weighted crush on my shoulders.

"I have to get back to Ben. Can I text you tonight?"

He nodded," of course."

He kissed my cheek and turned around. In the parking lot nearest to the dumpster was a green and black motorcycle that he hopped on. He spared me a reassuring look and drove off.

Back at the bench I found that Ben was still seated. I must have appeared to be shaken up because he wasn't as angry with me, more concerned.

"Are you alright? What happened?"

Do I tell my best friend that my new boyfriend can make flowers blossom? Or do I hold out?

Ben already thought of Caleb as a freak as is. I couldn't afford to add more to his assumptions. Plus, his opinion would factor into mines and all of the sudden id find myself doing things just as he'd like it. I shrugged my shoulder at an invested Ben.

"He got off work early, he came to say hi."

He grabbed the book from fingers.

"The Book of Fey? Since when are you into teen fiction?

"Caleb gave it to me. He says it's a good recommendation," I snatched it back before a Ben could have unveiled into the hand written pages and figured out that it wasn't quite a published work of writing.

"Who would have thought that he was," he snorted," did you ask him if he read twilight too?"

I rolled by eyes but did not respond. Whilst Ben was munching away at the rest of his lunch, I loaded a browser and typed a couple of things into the search bar.

I tried;

Man controls flowers.

What does it mean if you can make flowers blossom?

Can you mentally control plants?

My research concluded only one explanation; Chlorokinesis. As defined by authors, psychologists, philosophers and conspiracy theorists:

Chlorokinesis is to bear the mental and/ or physical abilities to aid in the manipulation of plants and vegetation. A person with this ability may also be able to communicate with plant-life and control all that is fruit, flower, root and moss. It is often rumoured that a person with these abilities can also entrap a soul within a plan at their will if they so please it.

I cleared my browser history and tossed the tulip that Caleb had given me.

I hadn't realized the force behind it because Ben mumbled," dang. What did the flower ever do to you?"

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