John frowned. “But you hardly gave it a chance. It takes time to get good at something and a lot of practice and hard work.”
“Whatever, Dad. I don’t like anyone on the team anyway.”
“You don’t have to do anything that you don’t like, Honey,” said Frieda.
Fearing that a row was about to start, Leander excused himself from the table. To his relief, no one stopped him, and he was able to go back to his room.
As soon as he was inside the room, he headed toward his bed. He was about to throw himself on it, but something caught his eyes. Lying on his duvet was the green scaled snake with the twinkling emerald on its brow.
“How did you get in here?” he asked, passing his hand through his curls. He glanced at the windows, but they were closed. “Did you follow me here?”
His mouth opened wide as the snake slowly lowered its head.
“This is crazy but can you understand what I’m saying?”
The snake lowered its head again.
He sank into the chair beside his bed and looked at the snake. “If you really can understand what I’m saying, then you should know that it is not safe for you to be here. My cousin lives here, and both he and my aunt would rather see you dead. You should really go back to the woods where I left you. It’s dangerous to be among humans.” Standing up, he went to one of the windows and opened it. A cold draft came in, making the curtains fly like shapeless ghosts. “Go before someone sees you.”
To his astonishment, the snake did not make a move. Instead, it tossed its head from side to side.
“No? You’re saying ‘no’?” asked Leander, looking into its topaz eyes.
Sighing with exasperation, he sat back on the couch. After a while, he glanced back at the snake. “Are you hungry or something?”
The serpent made a nodding movement.
“Can you wait here for me? I’ll get something for you to eat but you must promise me not to go outside. If they catch you, they will hurt you,” warned Leander.
Leander shook his head in astonishment again as the snake responded to him. Opening the door, he went down the stairs to the main kitchen. The servants were busy clearing the place and doing the dishes. No one looked up as he headed toward the fridge. As far as he knew, snakes lived on frogs and fishes.
Unfastening the door of the fridge, he spotted a box of chicken drumsticks. Using a napkin, he covered the plastic case and headed back toward his room. If anyone asks, I’ll just say that there’s pie under it, he decided as he crossed the hall.
When he entered his room, the box of chicken almost fell out of his hands. Sitting on his bed, staring straight into his eyes was a beautiful young woman in a green silk dress. As he continued to gaze upon her, it was impossible to miss her topaz eyes and the round emerald twinkling on her forehead.
Chapter 3
Leander had no idea how long he stared at the girl in front of him. He came back to his senses only when she had spoken.
“Hello,” she said softly.
“Who are you?” he asked, putting the box of chicken on his desk. Glancing around the room, he said, “What happened to the snake? Did you steal it?”
“I am Gentille. I am the snake. And you are Leander?”
Leander nodded slowly as his eyes went on to the dress that she was wearing. It reminded him of a lady in a medieval dress that he had seen in a museum painting.
“I don’t understand,” he said, coming closer to her.
“I am a faerie. Every hundred years, I turn into a snake for seven days and have to pass the time in the realm of humans. During this time, I lose all my powers and become vulnerable. There are still two more days to go, and I’m grateful to you for saving me today.”
Leander sank on the couch. “It’s okay for you to sit,” he said.
“Thank you,” she said in a mellow voice.
“Can you change back into the snake again? It’s just that it feels like a prank that Frederick would put me through. It would be an amazing joke considering that he thought of it but it’s just hard to believe.”
She nodded. “I understand. Humans always choose to deny magic. They would rather think it was a trick of the light or some game their own mind was playing against them. This is one of the reasons that I never transform in front of them,” she said in a grave tone. “Keep your eyes open so that you do not miss it.”
As he watched, her form shimmered. Her smooth porcelain skin began to turn a pale green as scales began to appear at a rapid pace. As soon as she was completely covered, her figure changed, getting taller and more elongated. Within a matter of a minute, she had turned into a snake.
“Wow,” breathed Leander. With a sudden surge of excitement, he asked, “Can you become a girl again?”
To answer his question, she transformed back into her human form.
“You are really telling the truth, then.”
“Yes.”
“If you can become a girl, why do you have to change into a snake? People would treat you nicer if you’re a girl,” he said with a smile.
A blush appeared on her cheeks. “I know, but I have to be in a serpentine form for at least five hours each day. I mostly hide in the woods when I come to the human world, but there are hardly any left around here. It was raining this afternoon, and I was cold. The room where you found me was quite warm and steamy, and no one was there, making it a perfect sanctuary for me. Of course, I was wrong.”
As he looked at her, he could not help but feel her helplessness. Suddenly he felt like he could understand her loneliness and desperation. “You have any friends here?”
She shook her head. “I am all alone here. Fairies are powerful creatures, almost invincible compared to humans but we are all born with a certain weakness that makes us vulnerable. Even though we may live for centuries, we can only be killed during our hour of debility. This is mine.” Her topaz eyes glittered as she tried hard not to choke on her own tears.
Walking up to her, he placed a hand on her shoulder. Squeezing it gently, he said, “You’re not alone anymore. I’ll help you get through it.”
“Why? What do you hope to gain by helping me?” she asked through narrowed eyes.
He shrugged. “I don’t want anything from you. My parents have left me with more money than I’ll need to use during my lifetime. I just know what it is to feel all alone in this world and that’s why I would like to help you, that is if you’d let me.”
She remained silent for a while. From her creased brow, it was clear that she was going through an internal struggle. “It is rare for humans to help someone when it does not benefit them,” she said. “But I would be grateful for your help.”
Leander smiled at her encouragingly. Picking up the box of chicken, he showed it to her. “I went downstairs to get you something to eat. See? But you were a snake back then, and I thought you would appreciate this.”
A small smile played around her soft pink lips. “I do prefer cooked food.”
“How about some chocolate?” he said, going toward this mini fridge.
“What is chocolate?” she asked.
“It is the best thing you’d have ever tasted,” he said, choosing from a rich variety of chocolate bars in gold wrappers on one of the shelves.
“I doubt that very much,” she said. “We have things in the fairy realms that are beyond your wildest imagination.”
“That may be so. But I’m proud to present the best thing in mine,” he said, handing her a thick slab of chocolate.
He smiled at her dubious look. Peeling the gold wrapper slowly, she stared at the squared blocks. Breaking one off, she put it in her mouth. After a moment, her eyes widened as her lips began to move. Without another word, she broke two more pieces and ate them. Her golden eyes glanced at Leander in shocked surprise.
“This truly is delicious. So sweet with a hint of bitterness that melts on my tongue. It almost makes me happy to consume chocolate.”
Leander laughed. “I will get you s
ome chocolate cake tomorrow or maybe some brownies with hot chocolate fudge. They will blow your mind.”
An excited look came over her. Popping a few more pieces into her mouth, she said, “I have never heard of these delicacies before, but I would very much like to try them.”
“You finish off that chocolate bar. I’ll go downstairs and make you a sandwich. You need more than chocolate to fill you up after the kind of day you’ve had.”
He brought her a plate of sandwiches with slices of deli meat and asked her to try it. She looked at them in amazement as he handed it to her.
“I didn’t know that humans have changed the way they eat. Your ancestors would either eat raw meat or burn it over their campfires.
Leander was amused by her descriptions and watched her stunned expression as she devoured the sandwiches. After she was done, she patted her stomach and watched the bed longingly.
Taking the queue, he asked, “Would you like to sleep?”
“Yes. I’m exhausted but where shall I sleep? There is only one bed here.”
“You take the bed. The couch is fine for me.”
“That is very kind of you. I’m quite grateful to you for sheltering me in this warm, clean place.”
He shook his head. “It’s no big deal. This is actually my uncle’s house. The only thing is that I would sneak you out tomorrow morning and bring you back and introduce you as my friend from Edinburgh or some faraway place.”
“How would that help me?”
“That way, you won’t have to hide in my room. I can introduce you to my family and then, we can get you a room of your own while you stay here. We just have to make it through the night.”
Going to the wardrobe, he took out a blanket from it. Taking his place on the couch, he threw it over his body. Glancing at her, he said, “Sleep tight.”
“And how does one sleep tight?” she asked with a curious look in her eyes.
Laughing at her, he said, “It’s just a new way for us to say ‘good night.'”
She chortled. “There is much for me to learn about your race in the present times.”
Leander left the lights on in the room. He watched her through half-open eyelids. As the shock of her real nature started wearing off, he noticed how beautiful she was. Along with flawless porcelain skin, she had a thick plait of dark hair. Even though she claimed to be over a hundred years old, she looked barely older than the girls in his class. She even sounded like a teen who was having fun trying out a new cuisine. At school, he was known to be friendly among his female peers, but he rarely went on dates with anyone. He had never come across someone who wanted to look at him beyond being a rich kid and a popular soccer player. For him, high school was a place where everyone was struggling to fit in without having the slightest idea as to what they were trying to achieve.
For a moment he was distracted by the emerald on her forehead that glittered while she snoozed. I must ask her if there’s a way to hide that, he thought as his eyes became heavy and sleep took over him as well.
<<<>>>
In one of the rooms on the floor above Leander’s, Frieda and Frederick sat together, talking. Frieda held a glass of scotch in her bejeweled fingers as she listened to her dear son ranting about the boys in his soccer team.
In the absence of his father, Frederick complained about Leander without any restraint. Even though his cousin had played no part in the prank or joined his friends in making fun of him, it somehow felt good to blame him and have his mother curse him.
“I should have taken care of him when I took care of his parents,” said Frieda.
“What are you talking about? He’s living with us, isn’t he?”
Frieda’s cold blue eyes glinted. “You don’t understand, Freddie. I’m the one who caused the accident that killed Jonah and Scott.”
Frederick’s eyes widened. “Does Dad know?”
“Of course, not. Make sure you keep your mouth closed about this. If you can, I can take care of Leander for you. He can never hurt you at school again.”
A chill ran through him at his mother’s words. At the same time, he felt a sliver of excitement. “It’s okay for now, Mom. I’ll keep it in mind, though.”
Frieda laid her hand on her son’s shoulder. Looking into his eyes, she said, “You just let me know, and I’ll take care of you. You know how much I love you, right? I can do anything for you.”
“Thanks, Mom,” he said, pecking her bony cheek.
Chapter 4
The next morning Leander woke up with a crick in his neck. Blinking his eyes against the sunlight filtering into his room, his gaze fell upon the figure on his bed. The sight of her had him sit up straight. So it wasn’t a dream, he thought as he ran his fingers through his disheveled curls. She is real.
Rubbing his eyes, he stood up and went to his wardrobe to look for a fresh pair of jeans, a shirt, and a hoodie. For what he had in mind that day, he needed to be as inconspicuous as possible. The sound of his movements must have woken Gentille, because she began to stir, the jewel on her forehead throwing silver spots of light on the walls.
“Morning, Gentille. Did you sleep well?” asked Leander.
Stifling a yawn, she smiled. “It’s the best night I’ve had in a while. Thank you for sheltering me.”
“It’s no big deal. Here’s what we’ll be doing today. You can go take a shower while I grab us some breakfast. After that, you change back into the snake and sneak into my car. We will hit the mall, get you some human clothes and then bring you back home and introduce you as my pen-friend who came to visit me from Scotland.”
Gentille laughed. “That is quite a plot! I am in!”
“Great! I’ll see in a bit.”
In the kitchen, Leander picked up a tray. He piled it with fruit, cheese, bread, and an assortment of pastries that had just been taken out of the oven.
“You have quite an appetite this morning, Master Leander,” commented one of the maids, eyeing the loaded tray.
“Got a big day ahead,” he said, trying to smile and act normal.
When he entered his room, he heard the sound of running water coming from the bathroom. He used the time to set up their meal on his study desk. From one of the drawers, he brought out a thick wad of cash and put it in his backpack. Taking his cell phone, he texted all his friends that he won’t be coming to school that day. A few of them replied back asking him for a reason. Got a friend in town, he typed back.
Leander turned around when he heard the bathroom door open. Standing there, Gentille looked comical with a towel wrapped around her head, wearing her green gown. Smothering his chuckle, he asked, “Would you like a comb and a hairdryer?”
She nodded. “I need a comb but what is a hair dryer? What sort of device is that?”
“Here, I’ll show you,” he said, walking past her into the bathroom and bringing the hairdryer. Plugging it into a socket, he switched it on. The sudden whirring sound made her jump. “This will help you,” he said, handing it to her.
Approaching it with care, she took it from his hands gingerly. She squeaked as soon as she placed one of her palms near the nozzle. “Hot, dry air! Almost like magic!”
“Just electricity,” he said. “Let’s eat first.”
“These look delicious,” she said, eyeing the sugar-dusted pastries.
“Dig in!”
Leander watched her practically inhale the fruits and the pastries, licking the sticky juices from her fingers. He caught himself several times staring at her. To keep his embarrassment down, he trained his eyes on his plate as he wolfed down his food.
After they had finished eating, she picked up the hairdryer again. However, it proved too difficult for her to use the very first time. Leander offered to help, to which she readily agreed. As he parted her long tresses, he reveled in their soft silkiness. He was relieved that she could not see him as he felt his cheeks burning.
When he was done, he said, “You have to braid it yourself. I can’t help you with th
at. I’ll just mess it up.”
“That’s all right. I can do so on my own.”
When she had finished tying her hair to her satisfaction, he asked her to shift into her serpent form. “Make sure that you stay hidden. We can’t have anyone see you,” he warned.
With a nod, she transformed. Picking up his backpack, he said, “Let’s go!”
His heart beat frantically as he traveled from his room down to the garage. He walked fast, seeing flashes of her glittering green scales through the corner of his eyes. He was able to breathe a sigh of relief only when he had sat inside his car. Within a minute, she had slithered into the seat beside him.
“We made it so far,” he exclaimed. “Stay this way until we reach the mall. I will lead you to one of the changing rooms, and you can shift back there. The place should be quite empty at this time of the day so there will be less chance of anyone spotting you there. I’ll hand you some clothes, you try them on and let me know the size that fits you best. Then I can get you some more, and you can pick your favorites. Do you understand?”
Gentille’s hood nodded, understanding evident in her golden eyes.
He drove through the suburban streets to reach the main shopping center of the New Jersey town. After last night’s rain, everything sparkled and the day’s excitement made his heart soar. He made sure to keep his head hidden within the folds of his hood. It would not be fun to explain to anyone what he was doing at the mall all by himself so early in the morning.
“Like before, make sure to follow me and stay out of sight. Be careful, all right?”
With a nod from Gentille, he got out of the car. He knew his way around the mall as all teens did and headed straight toward the stores that sold clothes for girls. However, having never entered the shop before, it took him a while to spot the changing rooms. Hurrying forward to avoid any of the saleswomen from approaching him, he got inside one of the booths. He held his breath until he saw Gentille sliding in through the large gap under the bottom of the door.
“You can shift now,” he whispered.
“We did it!” she replied excitedly.
He made a loud shushing noise. “Softly,” he said. “I’ll bring you back some dresses and jackets. Try them on and show me. I’ll know if they suit you. I think,” he said, running his fingers through his hair. “I am no expert in fashion, but most of the girls seem to be wearing the same kind of clothes. We’ll see,” he said, attempting to sound confident.
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