Avalon Isn't What It Used To Be

Chapter 4: What are 'Shoes'

"Seriously, Shae, I wish I could bring you with me", I said as I finished slipping into my green silk overalls.

Shae was quiet.

"But", I said lightheartedly, "I'll tell you all about it when I get back"!

And Shae vibrated in response. The star was already up but Shae was right, clouds were coming from a distance. I'd need to pay attention to that. I could fly in the rain... Wings were magic so water doesn't affect them like it does the wings on insects, but depending on the rain... It would be very painful. I knew a Fae who once got knocked out by a raindrop in Avalon. I wasn't going to sign up for that.

I flew over to the brick house to see that Owen was working inside. I could hear the loud banging and a loud metallic sound. I flew over to the nearest window to peek inside while keeping myself hidden. When I looked inside the window next to the door, I saw the floor was nearly brand new and more than halfway covered.

The kitchen looked almost new but the counter was gone. And even the shelves with doors above the lack of counter looked fresh. I stepped out to see if I could get a better view, and there he was banging pieces of polished wood together on the floor. I watched him for a minute and got bored. So I sat down on the window ledge with my back against the brick just watching him hammer boards on the ground. And every 30 minutes or so he'd get up and used the sharp metal noisemaker to cut up some of the boards, and I'd have to cover my ears from the piercing racket. 

He never noticed me, which I was okay with. The Sky was growing darker at midday and I knew it was time to leave. I flew back to Shae with little to report. But I sat outside on my perch as the rain fell, and lost myself to the sound of the rain prancing on the surface of the pond. Nothing compares to the tranquility of rain... nothing.

As it grew darker, I moved inside, and was pleased to find my rain catching system was working beautifully. When my basin was filled up I plugged the tunnel with a cherry pit that I had wrapped with spider silk. I had braided a spider silk rope and attached it to the pit in case I needed assistance pulling it out. The wind that swayed Shae and Shae's branches rocked me to sleep with a lullaby of rain.

It rained the next two days and I was unable to leave my nest. In a short amount of time Shae became one of my closest friends. I even told Shae that, in Avalon, there is not one tree that compares. Trees hardly ever speak to you in Avalon; They need to give you permission and once they do they don't care to talk to you. And I made sure Shae knew that.

What would Marv think knowing a tree had grown as close to me as he, I thought with a chuckle. The thought of Marv made my heart ache. I told Shae what Marv was like, and my mom and brother as well. I missed them, but more than anything, I wish I could tell them I was safe and incredibly happy. Shae was great, but I missed the Fae interaction . The races, the jokes, the games... the food.

I would love to visit, but I couldn't bring myself to leave. It was selfish, but I couldn't leave this freedom. No rules, No regulations to break, no one to tell me what to do or where to go. And Shae was my new home, I couldn't leave. I didn't want to. No matter how much I missed my family and Marv. The next two days passed quickly thanks two endless talking to Shae about Avalon and my hopes and dreams. Shae even let me warp myself a small terrace balcony similar to the one in Avalon, so that I could feel even more at home and to allow me to hear the rain better.

I didn't leave my room until the day I woke up with the starshine beaming in from the terrace. "Good morning Shae", I yawned and patted the floor. Shae greeted me with a small vibration.

This had become our routine: a 'good morning Shae' and a 'good morning vibration'. Subtle though they were, any Fae could feel them. I crawled out of bed and put my silver dress on, splashed my face with the rain water I had put in my bowl and cut up the rest of the cherry for breakfast.