by L A Moore
“That sounds great.” Poppy replied.
They spent the next several hours competing to win in cards, and by the time the game ended, it was dinner time. That night, she made him a special dinner of T-bone steaks with a garlic butter sauce with baked potatoes and grilled vegetables over which she used some of the garlic butter sauce, and homemade yeast rolls with honey butter and for dessert, a yellow cake with chocolate frosting from scratch. It was a dessert she remembered him saying he favored.
“This looks fabulous darling, you know a man could get used to this. You better watch out, or I’ll have you set up here for life.” Ari said, only half teasing.
“Hmm, well, maybe I wouldn’t mind that so bad.” Poppy replied with a smile.
“Oh, woman, how you tempt me.”, Ari commented.
They ate, talking among themselves about the future, and where they saw themselves going; their goals in life, and finally, children. They each wanted a similar future, with Ari wanting to continue writing for Nature magazine and Poppy wanting to become a photographer for them. They both wanted to marry one day, and have children, sooner rather than later, although Poppy wanted to finish school and get her career going first before having children. They also both wanted two children, hopefully one of each.
“How do you like it here?” Ari asked.
“Here as in the town, or here, here?” Poppy retorted.
“Here, here. As, in my home, with me?” Ari confirmed.
“Well, I love the cabin. It’s not my usual taste, but it’s definitely grown on me. I love how close to all the wilderness we are, and how quiet and remote it is. It’s definitely big enough to raise a family in, from what I have seen, with the whole upstairs being bedrooms. We like the same sorts of things and we have common future goals. I think the real question you’re asking me is if I could see myself here with you in the future and the answer to that is yes. I can envision us working together and raising a family.” Poppy answered, smiling for the first time ever about planning a future with someone. Briefly, she flashed back to her last boyfriend who had wanted to plan a future together, but Poppy just couldn’t see it and told him so, and that was that as they say. It had been a rainy day, and they had spent the day in bed calling out of work. His apartment was a loft above a coffee shop downtown and was very industrial. They had just finished having sex when he had said the three little words that normally sent Poppy on the run, and this time was not different. He had asked if she loved him too, and where did she see them going. She couldn’t deny that she had feelings for him, but not love, and then explained that she just couldn’t commit to anyone and that she was very sorry. Then had dressed as quickly as she could, while he begged her to give him a chance, and she ran out of his apartment and down the street, catching the first bus that had passed by.
Ari grinned from ear to ear. He was happy to hear things were going as well as he had thought. “I’m happy to hear that, because when you fell down the mountain I thought my heart was going to explode. I’ve never had feelings like this before for anyone else.” Ari said shyly.
It was Poppy’s turn to grin from ear to ear now. “I feel the same way, I mean not about me falling, I thought my head was going to explode, but I definitely feel a strong connection with you that I have never felt before.” Poppy replied, jokingly, but seriously.
They finished their meal with Ari singing her praises on her baking skills. “Well, that settles that, you are just going to have to move in and be my chef as well as my photographer.” Ari said jokingly.
“That’s the second time you have asked me to stay tonight, on top of refusing to let me leave earlier. I’m beginning to wonder if you are not joking.” Poppy responded, seriously but laughing.
“What if I was serious? Would you do it?” Ari asked seriously now.
“Would I move in here with you? I don’t know, it seems so fast. I mean, we have only known each other for a little more than a week.” Poppy responded, just as seriously.
“But you said yourself, we have a connection we have never had with anyone before, and you can see yourself here.” Ari countered.
“Yeah but, I mean, we haven’t even said I love you to each other yet, and you want me to move in?” Poppy asked.
“You're right, if we’re going to do this, we should absolutely say I love you first; but what if one of us feels that way but is afraid to say it?” Ari countered again.
“Then they shouldn’t be afraid to say it or anything else, because if the other person is the right one for them, then there should be anything between them.” Poppy responded nervously. She did and didn’t want him to say I love you. Did because she was coming to realize that she did, in fact, love him, and didn’t because she didn’t want to lose him. In her life she had learned not to love because if you did, you would only lose it, like in the foster homes growing up. But in her adult life, she had learned that loving and losing was just a part of life. She didn’t know if she could handle loosing Ari, he was her perfect match and that scared the hell out of her. She had another flash back, this time of being a little girl, standing before a two story white house with the picket fence and little dog, who had just attached to her fifth foster family, but they had decided that she was just too much to handle and had sent her back to child services. It had broken her heart. All she wanted was unconditional love, and a family, and they refused her that. She had decided then she would never go to another home again, and she didn’t. She wondered if she were brave enough to love again when Ari interrupted her thoughts.
“Poppy I…” Ari began, looking deep into Poppy’s eyes.
“Let’s go for a walk. I’m itching to get out of the house for a bit.” Poppy interrupted him, standing and going to the front door to put on her shoes she had left there.
“Ok then, we will go for a walk” Ari said, standing, knowing now his Father’s way was probably the only way to tell the love of your life that you’re a shape shifting sasquatch. He wondered briefly if he was rushing things a bit for her, but knew she had to know the truth soon, and the only way to do that was to be honest about his feelings. She might not be ready to hear it but he was going to tell her that he loved her.
They walked hand in hand past the garden and through the field to the woods. He led her easily up the mountain trail to a hidden clearing below the first one he had taken her to. It was a place he had never taken anyone else before, not even his Mother. It was just an opening in the woods at the base of the stream where it formed a pool, that he would swim in in the summers, but at night, with the stars above and the moonlight reflecting off the water casting a warm glow to the small clearing lit up with lightening bugs, it looked almost magical. He led her over to a large rock just on the water’s edge and she sat down looking around in awe.
“This place is astounding. I would have never have guessed it was here. How did you find it?” Poppy asked in wonder.
“If you explore an area long enough, you find lots of hidden things.” Ari replied. “Poppy, there’s something I need to tell you, but the thing is, I need to say something first, and I don’t know if you’re ready to hear it.” Ari began. “But the thing is, I don’t know if anyone is ever really ready, so I’m just going to say it. Poppy Wilde, I love you with my whole being. I knew from the first moment I saw you that you were the one for me and, after spending time with you, I know that I was right.” Ari finished, his nerves taking over and he shook inside; his insides felt like they would fly right out of his body any moment.
Poppy sat listening to Ari, and, as he spoke, her nerves rose to high alert. She felt sick, but happy, she had butterflies in her stomach, while her heart soared, her mind warred between don’t say it, and please say it. She was a total contradiction and, when he finally said it, a calm came over her, a peace unlike any she had ever felt, and her heart soared. Before she realized she was speaking, she said “I love you too, Aurion Mooreland.” Smiling from ear to ear, she realized she meant what she said and couldn’t be h
appier, she was brave enough to love again. She moved to stand, but he stopped her.
“I have something to show you now. Something I hope won’t scare you away from me.” Ari said, and took a step and transformed into his true form. He stood, not moving at first, and then slowly turned about so she could see him fully, and then turned into the chipmunk she had first seen, and then into the snake that had scared her off, and then into a beautiful blooming dogwood, and finally, back into his human form.
Poppy sat and watched, stunned. She had had a feeling he might be a Sasquatch, as to how, she wasn’t sure, but she had no idea he could shift to so many shapes. As he turned, she recognized the little chipmunk from the state park and the snake that had nearly made her pee her pants, and when he turned into a tree, she couldn’t help but drop her mouth open, and then he was human again. “How? What are you?” she stammered.
“I’m a Sasquatch, a big foot and we have the ability to turn into any living thing. It’s how we have avoided capture for so long, and how we seemingly disappear from the few videos and encounters we have had with humans. Before there were so many humans on this planet, it was easy for us to exist in our true forms, but since there are so many now, we had to assume more human forms to live and survive, only taking our true form when we are deep in the woods further than humans normally go. But on occasion, one of us will get too cocky and go into towns and other places that are forbidden to go. When that happens, they are forbidden to take their true form ever again and, if they do, they are put down by the high counsel.” Ari explained slowly.
“Wow I just… wow, I have no words… so you’re not human?” Poppy asked, suddenly feeling sick.
“No I am human… that is, I am part human, just as I am part every living thing. Like a big melting pot of all living things.” Ari explained further. He thought things would go better, like they had for his parents, but he had a feeling things were going wrong, very wrong.
“I think I need some time to digest all this. Can we go back to the house now?” Poppy asked, shocked.
“Of course.” Ari said, and took her hand which, at first, she jerked away before she realized she would need his in order to get off the mountain safely.
Ari led her slowly down the mountain, taking the long way on purpose. He hoped giving her the extra time would help her to come to realize he was still the same person she had fallen in love with. When they got back to the house, Poppy let go of his hand and walked back through the field and past the garden into his house. She sat heavily on the couch and waited for him to walk through the door, but he didn’t; he stayed outside giving her some space.
She couldn’t believe what she had seen tonight. It had been fantastical and magical, but scary, and downright creepy. She had been sleeping and falling in love with a shape shifting big foot! She put her head in her hands and willed herself to wake up from the dream, but she never did. She was so confused, and freaked out, and wished for the world she had someone she could talk to about it all. What she felt like doing was crying herself to sleep, because she had known better than to love; she always lost when she loved and now she had lost her Ari. She curled up on the couch and covered up as a pseudo layer of protection and began to cry, and kept crying until she fell into a deep sleep.
Ari sat outside, waiting, and hoping Poppy would come to him, but then he heard her crying and knew all hope of that was gone. He had lost her. He stomped off into the mountains to pour out his rage and hurt, taking his true form. Once he had done all he could, crying to the moon and stars and throwing and hitting and kicking rocks and trees he had come back down the mountain in his human form and sneaked back into the house to crash on his bed, leaving Poppy alone.
Chapter 27
The next morning, Poppy awoke to the smell and sounds of frying bacon, coffee, eggs, and pancakes and someone humming a song slightly out of tune. She sat up and looked around to see Avianna in the kitchen, happily cooking and humming to herself.
“Good morning, sleepy head! You’re the last one up, except me, of course. Want some coffee?” Avianna asked.
“Yes, I’d love some. I had the strangest dream. I dreamt that Ari was a shape shifting Sasquatch. What are you doing here? I thought you were going to some quilting thing?” Poppy said, rubbing her face with her hands.
“Well, he is, but he is still the same Ari you have come to know. I had a feeling I was needed here more and came back; it looks just in the nick of time.” Avianna said matter of factly and placed a steamy cup of coffee in her hand.
“But how can that be?” Poppy asked, confused and utterly depleted, completely ignoring Avianna’s last statement. It just simply didn’t make sense. People just couldn’t turn into things like that, it just didn’t happen. This wasn’t a movie, it was real life, and everyone knew that doesn’t happen except in the movies. Poppy reasoned with herself.
“Darling, I can’t explain it any more than you can, and neither can he. What I do know, is that for some special families, this has been happening since time began. It’s a long lineage that goes back from the time of cavemen. Scientist thinks they were bred out, but they weren’t, they were simply in hiding, and have remained as such since then, evolving, as everything else did around them for survival. They adapted to transform into more and more things until they have finally peaked to what they are now. They can literally take any form of any living thing, plant or animal or human. Not to say he can transform into another human, but he has a dedicated human form as he does for each animal. But no matter what form he takes, he is always the same entity. He is always, and will always, still be Ari.” Avianna gently explained, while flipping pancakes and removing the sizzling bacon from the pan, along with the fried eggs.
“So they began as human then?” Poppy asked, her interest piqued.
“Well, that’s the tricky part. No one really knows anymore, but they feel their best when in what they call their true form, which is as a Sasquatch.” Avianna answered.
“Are you one too?” Poppy asked curiously.
“Me? No I am not one. I met his Father, Michael, when I was a little younger than you. It was love at first sight! We met through a friend and went on a blind date, and from that moment we were never without each other. Oh, how I fell for that man! I wish you could meet him, maybe he could help you understand all this a bit more, but Michael was killed while in his true form by hunters. Of course, once they are dead, they always take human form and so they hunters were charged with murder and sentenced to prison. Well that is one went to prison the other one went to an insane asylum having been driven crazy by the sight of Michael in his true form.” Avianna said, nostalgically at first, and then sad at the ending.
“So what made you choose to marry him?” Poppy asked, coming to the table with her coffee.
“I suppose because I loved him. I thought what he was and what he could do was astounding and I loved him so much that it didn’t matter to me that he was different; he was still the same Michael either way.” Avianna said, serving her a plate of eggs and bacon with a generous helping of pancakes.
Poppy ate in silence for a few moments, contemplating all she had learned this morning from his Mother, while Avianna made plates for herself and Ari. Poppy knew she loved Ari, or it wouldn’t have hurt so bad to feel like she had lost him last night. Plus, it was kinda awesome what he could do. She was still unsure of all of it, but she decided she would give it a try with him and see how things went. “Where is Ari?” Poppy asked curiously.
“Oh, he will be along any minute now. He just went out for a walk.” Avianna said and sat down to eat.
Poppy and Avianna were still eating when Ari came in tentatively and sat down at the table. “Good morning.” he said and began to eat.
“Good morning, Son. I was just talking to Poppy here about your unique abilities. I think she might have some things to discuss with you.” Avianna said, finishing her breakfast and standing up. “I think I’ll go weed the garden, y’all just yell if you n
eed anything.” she said, and left out the back door to weed the garden.
Poppy stopped eating and sat her fork down. “I think I understand more now.” She said sheepishly, realizing Avianna was giving her a go at a second chance with Ari.
“Do you have any more questions for me? I’d love to help you understand all this.” Ari said and took her hand in his across the table.
Poppy didn’t pull away this time, instead she allowed him to hold her hand. “I don’t at the moment, but I might think of more later on. Right now, I just want to get back to us, the way we were before all this.” Poppy said blatantly.
“You mean, you still want to be my girlfriend?” Ari asked for confirmation.
“Yes, at least for now. I am still unsure about all this, but I am willing to give it a try.” Poppy explained.
“Well hot damn! That works for me!” Ari said happily and stood up to go over, bend down and kiss her full on the lips. “Thank you so much for this! It means the world to me!” Ari added.
“Let’s just see how this goes.” Poppy said, reserved. It was going to take more than a conversation to fix their relationship.
“Baby, if you just give me this chance, I will do everything I can to show you that I am the same man you fell in love with. What can I do to show you that?” Ari asked committedly.
“I think it just going to take some time. I feel like I hardly know you all over again, so I guess I just need to get to re know you, now that I know your secret. I suppose I should also tell you that I had a feeling you were a big foot, but all the rest is a bit of a shock.” Poppy admitted.
“It’s ok, I had a feeling you knew that part, which is why I had to tell you. I wanted to tell you earlier, but I just wasn’t sure what to say. It was after talking to my Mother the other day that I finally figured out what I wanted to say and do to show you my secret. I’m sorry if it seemed a bit much, but I wanted to be honest with you. I didn’t want there to be anything between us, just like you said. And I wanted you to love me for me, not for something or someone you thought I was. I’m still that person, but there’s just a bit more to me is all. Like falling in love with someone who ends up disabled, they are still the same person, but there is just more to them. All I want is for you to love me like that, to love all of me.” Ari explained, taking her hands and kneeling down until he was eye to eye with her.