Changeling

It’s strange how such an event in a person’s life can affect them the next morning. Lexi wasn’t entirely sure if she’d been blinking all night or sleeping in small increments when the sun rose. As the light peeked in through the blinds, she turned herself slowly and placed her feet on the ground, absently noting that she had remembered to kick her shoes off the night before.

Her hair was a mess. The spiking wax she used caused her hair to stand on ends all over her head. She was still wearing yesterday’s clothes, but what did it matter? She wasn’t going to school. Or to her new job. She’d be at home all day anyways.

Slowly she turned around back towards the bed. After a moment’s thought, she began pulling off the sheets and piling them into the floor. Once the mattress was bare she picked up the pile of linens and headed down the hall.

“Where are you going?”

The sound of his voice, though calm, made her jump. She didn’t turn to face him as she replied. “To wash these. Before we pack them.”

Lexi assumed as he walked away towards the kitchen that her answer sufficed. After she’d stuffed her sheets into the wash, she pulled out her phone. The battery was almost dead because she’d forgotten to plug it in the night before, but she had enough to send a text. Some stuff happened at Warren’s job. We have to move tonight. Farewell dinner at 6 at my place. She sent the message to the girls without looking back. If she read over it she’d have started thinking too hard again.

She’d just slipped her phone back into her pocket when it buzzed with a response. Moving? Now? Why? What happened? It was Celia. She knew before checking the name. The message following was Allie just as she’d finished reading. What do you mean moving? You aren’t going anywhere! The message ended with a few obscenities but Lexi knew what she meant by them.

Lexi sent the two of them the same message. I can’t really get into why. But I really want to see you tonight. She sat on her bare mattress and plugged the cord into her phone just as she got a message from each of them again. They’d be there. No doubt about it.

“Lexi.” Warren leaned in the doorway. “I made breakfast. You should eat.” He was acting as if nothing had happened. His eyes were the same green they’d always been. His smile was warm again. He was the same Warren she’d known for thirteen years.

“Okay.” Her voice was still soft, slightly scared that anything she did would bring back the man from last night.

He laughed lightly as he walked over to her and ruffled her already messy hair. “That bed head is something else.” She couldn’t help but flinch slightly under his hand. “Hey I’m not going to do anything. Calm down.” His hand moved to the bruise along her cheek. “I shouldn’t have hit you so hard.” His palm was like a soothing icepack against her wound. Slowly her face warmed up under his hand until he smiled brightly down at her. “There. All better, right?”

Lexi reached up slowly and touched her cheek. It was as smooth as it was the morning before. Her lip was healed as well. “Thank you.”

“No problem, kid.” The smile on his face never faded. He just held out his arms to her and waved her toward him. “Do I get a hug in return?”

It was like a habitual reaction but she fell into his arms. Despite the fact that the taller man was the reason for all of her pain the night before, she couldn’t get past the idea that he was her first comfort in life. His arms were still as welcoming as when she was four-years-old.

He rubbed her back softly. “We aren’t leaving tonight after all.”

She looked up at him suddenly, blue eyes studying him for some sign of a lie. “We aren’t? We’re staying here?”

He laughed deep in his chest and pushed her bangs out of her eyes. “For tonight, yes. I decided it’d be better to leave in the morning instead. Give us a bit more time to get packed up.” Her heart sank so far into her chest she didn’t know if she could pull it back out. “I trust you to hold up the fort for a couple hours. I’m going to go get some boxes and rent a truck for us.”

Lexi nodded slowly. “Alright.” She let go of him. “I’m going to go eat.” She turned her back to him and walked to the kitchen. A few bites into her eggs and she heard the door shut firmly behind him. She knew that since he was gone she had a perfect opportunity to run away, but for the life of her she couldn’t think of where she’d go. Surely if he was able to tell how many people she talked to in a day he’d be able to find her if she tried to escape. Also, there was still a large part of her that didn’t want to leave him. He really was the only parent she could remember.

She pushed the rest of her eggs and her toast around on the plate until it became cold and inedible before standing up to scrape it all off into the trash can. There was a note and a pill on the counter. Take your medicine, Warren. Just as she reached for it, however, it rolled off the counter.

Lexi bent down to reach for the pill again before it rolled away out of her reach once more. She started to become frustrated. She was already have a terrible day, the last thing she needed was for a stupid medicine to run away from her.

A chuckling behind her caused her to fall forward, almost landing face forward onto the tile had she not caught herself on her hands. Her eyes narrowed as she turned to the culprit.

“Woah woah. If glaring could cause murders.” Sven stood, leaning against the kitchen counter, laughing at his friend in the floor. In his hand, he held the pill she’d been chasing.

“The phrase…” Lexi started, standing up. “Is ‘if looks could kill.’” She pivoted on her heel to face him. “Give me that. What are you doing here?”

The blonde fairy just waved off her correction as he examined the tablet between his fingers. “What do you need this for?”

“If you must know, it’s for my lungs.” She reached to grab the medicine out of his hands just as he turned gracefully out of her reach. “When I lost my parents it was in a fire. My lungs were damaged pretty badly. That keeps them from getting weak.”

“I don’t think so.” Sven blinked, ignoring the pill suddenly and looking directly at Lexi. “What happened to you?”

“I just told you. There was a fire and—“

Sven shook his head. “No no no. Your face. What happened to your face?”

Lexi put her hand on her cheek but felt nothing. “What do you mean?”

The thin blonde walked over to her and touched her face gently, when he did it stung. “Did he hit you?”

“Y-yeah.” She was ashamed to say it, but she didn’t know why. “But he fixed it. It’s all healed now.”

“He covered it. Not fixed.” His violet eyes narrowed as he inspected the wound. “Hid it from humans. From you.”

“Hid my own injury from me? Why?”

“Make you think he’s better.” The boy cursed in German under his breath. “Celia tells me you are leaving.”

Lexi looked down at her feet. “Yeah. He’s making me go with him.”

“Wo?”

“I don’t know where. If I did I’d tell you all.” When she looked up, her friend’s eyes were wide and sad.
“Don’t go.” He said simply.

Lexi laughed sadly. “I don’t think I have much choice in the matter. You said it yourself; he has a claim on me.”

Sven looked away, cursing again. “Leave with me. I can help.”

She shook her head. “Sven, no. He’s been okay today. That was a one-time thing, really. He’s never been like that before. Besides, I don’t want to get you caught up in it.”

“I want to get up…caught in...caught it…” he sighed, giving up on the phrase. “I want to help you.”

It was killing her to push him away. “I know. But I’m fine really. But I’ll miss you a lot.” Leaning forward, she wrapped her arms around his slim body.

Sven hugged back gently, his long thin arms holding her protectively. “I want to help.” He was almost pleading with her. “I don’t like this.”

“Me neither.” She relaxed in his arms a bit as they stood there. “You should get going before he gets back.”

He stepped back and nodded. “Take care of you.” He said softly, fingers lightly brushing over her cheek. “Never again.”

Lexi nodded with a small smile. “Never again. I’ll take care of myself.” As his wings expanded gently from his back, they wrapped around him almost making a cocoon. “Bye Sven.”

“Auf wiedersehen.” The cocoon tightened around him before shrinking and soon disappearing from site, not leaving a single trace of the vines that wrapped him.

Distraction. She needed a distraction or else she’d start crying again. That in mind, Lexi took a deep breath and started on the dishes in the sink.

By the time Warren returned back, carrying a pile of flattened boxes in his arms, Lexi had taken her bed frame apart, wrapped all the dishes in the newspaper and magazine pages in the house, and pulled all the pictures off the wall.

“Someone’s eager to get going.” He said, breaking her from her work as she pulled one of the last frames from the living room.

As soon as she heard his voice a sense of dread fell down her spine. Sven had been there. He was sure to feel it, just like he always had. She didn’t turn to him, afraid of the expression would be on his face. She just kept thinking to herself He was never here. I was all alone. He was never here.

“I got some boxes for your books and stuff. I’ll leave them on your bed. What time are your friends coming over?”

“Six.” He was never here. I was all alone.

She listened as he walked down to her room and back to her. “I guess I’ll start packing up the dishes.” She turned, looking from him to the kitchen. She wanted to run ahead and offer to pack them instead, but he was already in the doorway. “Lexi.”

She flinched but looked straight at him. “Yeah?”

“You forgot to wrap the bowls.” She let out a breath she’d been holding since he’d walked in the door. “Bring me some newspaper would you?”

“Yeah…”

The girls left that night with tears in their eyes. Celia was stretching the hem of her shirt with nerves. Allie had been picking at her nail polish all night. Just past the front door Lexi hugged her two closest friends goodbye. “Please dress nicely in your new town. Give them a good first impression.” Celia said, wiping her eyes.

“Meet some nice boys for me.” Allie hugged her again before heading to her car with Celia.

Watching them go was one of the worst things Lexi had experienced. She watched the car disappear around a corner before she turned to go back inside. She passed by Warren who was cleaning up the pizza and chips they’d eaten to save the dishes from being washed again. She wasn’t sure if he didn’t notice her walk by him to her room or if he was just showing her the decency of giving her some space.

She pushed the door shut behind her and sat on the bare mattress next to the window, hugging her bare pillow. There were no posters on her walls, no desk in the corner, and no alarm clock or night stand. The room was bare. It was all just telling her that she truly was saying goodbye to her entire life she’d had behind those four walls. Sure she had lived other places. She and Warren moved to a few different cities before settling down there. But for the past six years she’d gotten used to that house, that room, and those friends in her life.

She’d gotten used to a normal life without fairies or elves or an angry side to warren she never wanted to know existed. Now she’d have to get used to a new town, a new Warren, and a new self. She was a changeling now, and she still wasn’t sure what all that entailed. She wanted to believe that in that new town, wherever it may be, that things between her and Warren would go back to normal, but thinking back to the stinging in her cheek she knew that they never would.

Lexi listened for a while until Warren shut the door to his room behind him. Sleep wasn’t going to come easy, she’d decided. Instead, she leaned against the window to count the stars. As she did her head gradually migrated towards the cool glass and her eyes tried to close. Just as she’d about dozed off a knock against her head brought her to her senses.

The first thing she’d seen was a big grin that sleepily reminded her of the Cheshire cat. When her eyes focused she finally recognized the owner of that smile. “Dillon?” Her voice was barely above a whisper.

Dillon waved at her and backed up a bit from the window. She opened it slowly. “What are you doing here?”

“Sven told me you were leaving.” He said simply, walking to her.

“Of course he did.” The day was getting more and more difficult. Now she’d have to say goodbye to him as well. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you but I just figured we barely know each other and—“

“Don’t go.” Before she could respond he held up his hand. “I know you got the same speech from Sven earlier but listen to me. Don’t go. With him you’ll be miserable. You’ll do whatever he tells you to do and if you don’t you’ll feel guilty for it or he’ll hurt you again. Don’t say he won’t because he will.”

“Yeah but I can’t—“

“Yes you can. You can come with me and Roger. We’ll watch out for you. Roger even said he would. And with us you’d be free to do whatever you wanted any time you wanted. You could finish high school somewhere and go on to college and the whole time we’d look out for you. Do you really think he would allow you to go to college?”

“I don’t know, Dillon, but I can’t just leave.”

“Why not?” He sounded like a child who wasn’t getting his way. The frown on his face and his crossed arms didn’t help his case, either.

“Because. I have to stay. He’s the only parent I’ve ever known.”

“Yeah and he’s probably the only one that’s slapped you in your life. Great parent.”

She was quiet for a moment. “Besides then, he’s been wonderful to me.”

“What about these?” he held up the pill Sven had left with earlier. Lexi had forgotten all about it. “Do you know what this is?”

“It’s medicine. It’s for my…”

“Lungs?” He finished. “No. This is a suppressant. They sell them on the black market for fey to give to their changelings. It keeps their changelings from getting strong enough to challenge them when they pick up some of their abilities. He’s been feeding these to you for the past thirteen years.”

“Suppressants.” She let the idea play in her head for a moment. “How do I know you aren’t lying? Quite frankly I’ve known him longer.”

“Have a little trust in me. This is a suppressant. He’s terrible for your health and so are these. But you know what isn’t terrible for you? Popcorn. All I gave you was popcorn. What did he give you? Drugs. He gave you drugs, Lexi.”

She actually had to keep from laughing at him. He sounded like a student in her speech class with a terrible improvisation. “I get it. Popcorn right. That makes so much sense. What lies have I been fed all these years?” The sarcasm dripped from her voice.

“I don’t know. You’d have to find that out.” His eyes were more serious now. “But I do know one thing. There was no fire in your hometown 13 years ago.”

Her heart stopped. “What?” Before he could continue she shook her head. “No. How would you know? You don’t know where I’m from.”

“Your job application. One of the questions was hometown. I looked it up today. There were no cases of any fires that year in your town. Zero. Nothing that would have killed your parents.”

Her mind was racing as the thoughts played through her head. Her head snapped up to look at Dillon as she heard footsteps in the house. “He’s awake.”

“Lexi come with me.” He was frantic. “Please. We’ll protect you, I promise you.”

“Dillon you have to leave. Now.” The door to his room opened and she heard him step into the hall.

“I’m not leaving without you. Come with me.”

“Dillon I can’t.” She looked back at the door, silently praying for a bit more time. “You need to go, please. I—“

“What if your parents are alive?” Her eyes locked with his. The thought hadn’t crossed her mind before. “Come with me and we’ll find out.”

She heard the footsteps stop outside her door. “Lexi?” Warren’s hand knocked gently on the door. “Are you still awake?”

She looked from the door back to Dillon as he pleaded with her, forming his lips into one word. “Please.”

Warren knocked again as he opened the door. However, as he entered, all he found was a bare mattress, bare pillow, and an open window in an empty room.