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 Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2006 1:54 pm
Stargazing Amyla gave a happy sigh, stretching her arms above her head and twisting this way and that to ease the ache in her back. It had been a long day, between keeping up with Kayce's running around outside, trying to teach Erin, lecture Kari (again), and take care of Caleb. Aiodhan was out of town for a few days, which meant that she and Nieva had to maintain the balance of the household. They had managed. Barely.
Now, the day was done, and all of the kids had been bundled off into bed. Even Nieva had gone to sleep early. The adult Monoceros was quite tired, having spent most of her day trying to teach Erin the different colors. It had been a limited success, but at least now the toddler had an idea of what the colors were. Maybe her clothes matching would be a little better now, but who knew, really.
As Amyla made her way toward her own bedroom, not really tired but planning on heading for bed anyway, she did have one concern on her mind. Since Kayce's medical evaluation, she had been a bit nervous that she wasn't doing enough to stimulate the fae's mind, get her learning and studying. It nagged at her constantly, and though Kayce understood enough to read and write, do simple math, and pick up some ideas, the young fae really didn't have an area of study to be interested in. And it bothered her mother.
Her tutors had recommended she focus more on academia. They had also suggested a study of her roots or origins, of which Amyla had no idea where to begin looking for information. Frankly, she knew next to nothing about fae, and Kayce was in the same boat. They would have to work on that somehow.
A noise above her head caught her attention, and she stopped, looking up for the source of it. The ceiling looked normal, as did all of the light fixtures, but she could have sworn she heard the sound of clicking machinery. A minute of waiting produced no sound, so she shook her head. She was imagining things.
Two steps later, she heard it again, and she still had no idea where to look. The noise came again, followed by a soft noise of interest. Amyla sighed. One of her children was awake and out of bed. A quick survey of the bedrooms told her all she needed to know.
Kayce was still awake.
She poked her head into the playroom, which should have been empty, to discover a stepladder set up beneath the skylight. Wondering how in the world the little fae had gotten the ladder up from the stables and into the playroom, Amyla walked over, peeking up through the open skylight to try to spy her daughter up there.
Nothing.
Sighing again, the woman carefully climbed up the ladder, poking her head up over the edge to see Kayce lying about three feet away from the skylight, flat on the slanted roof with Erin's toy telescope held up to one eye. Amyla pursed her lips and cleared her throat. "Shouldn't you be in bed, Kayce?"
Having heard her mother's approach, the fae barely batted an eyelash at the words, pulling the telescope away from her eye. "I wasn't tired," she said softly, turning her head to look at her mother through the darkness. "And I always wondered what the stars looked like."
Amyla was torn between a lecture and an encouragement. Stargazing? "I realize that, but it is late, and you're supposed to be in bed. Besides, that telescope won't show you much," she pointed out. "Let's go to bed for now. I'm sure your father would love to stay up late with you when he gets home tomorrow."
The fae thought for a moment and then nodded, which Amyla could barely see in the darkness. Then, she rolled over and crawled back to the skylight, slipping back down the ladder after her mother. "There are patterns up there," the fae said suddenly after Amyla closed and locked the skylight. She looked up at her mother from the floor, watching the woman climb back down. "What're they called?"
"There are a lot of them. They're called constellations, and they form pictures, if you have a good imagination," Amyla replied, folding up the step ladder and leaning it against the wall. She would have to get up early and move it back downstairs before Erin found it, or the catgirl would have a field day with it.
Kayce was silent for a moment as Amyla ushered her out of the room and down the hall toward her bed. "Do you think they have books about them?" she asked in a whisper as she reached her bedroom, turning around to gaze at her mother in the darkened hallway.
"I'm sure they do. Why don't we make a trip to the bookstore tomorrow and find one? And while we're at it, let's see if we can't find some books about the fae. I'm sure learning about your own kind wouldn't hurt," Amyla replied, now beginning to be tired herself.
The fae fell silent again for a few seconds and then agreed, shuffling into her room and to her bed to sleep.
For her part, Amyla was ready for bed as well. At least Kayce was interested in something. They definitely needed a bookstore trip the next morning.
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Posted: Thu Jun 29, 2006 4:51 pm
This is my first entry in my own journal. Mum has been helping me a lot, and I can read good well now. She still has to correct things, though; I still can't remember some of the rules for writing. They are too... complicated, I think the word is.
Mum and I went to the bookstore this morning. I bought two books. One of them is about astronomy, which is the study of the positions of planets, stars, comets, meteors, and everything else in space. It is very interesting. I learned that one of the brightest stars in the sky (called Proxima Centauri) is one of the nearest to us. The sun is the closest star, but that one is the next closest. It is still about 4.2 light years away, which means it isn't some place to go for vacation. It is far too far away.
I also learned that some of the lights in the night sky are not stars. They're planets. I hope I can see Venus tonight. If not, I'll look again tomorrow. I'm also hoping to see a comet soon, and maybe I will try to identify some of the constellations tonight. Orion isn't usually very visible in summer, but perhaps I can see some of the others, like Ursa Major. That means 'Great Bear', and part of it makes up the Big Dipper.
My other book is about the fae, but I will write about that later. I have to read it first.
~Kayce
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Posted: Fri Jun 30, 2006 11:42 am
I did not see Venus last night, but I did manage to identify the constellation Cancer. It is the 'Crab', and it is one of the twelve astrological signs. Reading a lot makes it easier to spell things, I have noticed. I should read more.
Erin was making a lot of noise, so I brought my journal and book about fae outside, to the treehouse. I have read part of the book; it's very good. It says that we fae are creatures of 'imagination', and we depend on human creative energy for our existence. The rise of logic and rationality is what can kill us. That is strange. I am logical and rational. Is that killing me? I don't like that idea.
Many of the legends about the fae come from the people called the Irish. They lived in a very green and rocky land called Ireland. They still live there, but Mum says they don't believe in myths anymore. I want to visit there someday. The pictures in my book show it to be very beautiful.
I can hear Mum on the porch talking to Dad. I don't think they know I can hear. Mum wants to set up a playdate with another fae. I wonder if that means that I have to play with someone. I don't want to. I don't like playing except with Caleb. Kari is too bossy, and Erin fights. I don't want to play with another fae. They'll probably be bossy too.
~Kayce
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Posted: Sat Jul 01, 2006 11:16 pm
An Odd Dream Kayce gazed about, blue eyes wide with a mixture of wonder and wariness. She knew she was dreaming. She had this peculiar feeling of contentment mixed with a dash of 'Where the heck am I??' That meant a dream, since the last thing she remembered before this place was lying in her bed.
In any case, Kayce liked this dream so far. It was not like any of her others. All of the others had trees and forests and mountains. No animals. No people. Just quiet places for her to run around in happiness. But this, this was very different.
The land all around her was made up of gentle, rolling, small hills. It was very green, with plenty of moss-covered rocks scattered about. And it was peaceful. Very peaceful. She liked it very much. It even smelled green and fresh.
Striding along through this happily peaceful green land, Kayce soon found herself in a strange sort of place. This place had stones (moss-free) arranged in a circle around one central stone that looked rather like a table. Closer examination of the table revealed carvings around it. They looked almost like letters, and while they rang some bell deep in the fae's brain, they made no immediate sense.
What did get her attention, though, was one of the carved pictures. It looked like a cat, except fiercer and slightly more human-ish. It wasn't frightening. Just interesting.
Familiar as it all seemed, the fae just couldn't grasp what the significance of it all was. That is, the significance of it to her. She understood what she was dreaming about. This was the place called Ireland, the green land where the people used to believe in faes. She should never have read that book before bed.
Something nagged at the back of her mind. Something... unfamiliar. What was she doing here? Why was it important? What was the carved cat on the side of the stone table.
She heard the faint whisper of voices, and when she looked up, she was shocked to see ghostly forms of... humans... gathered around the table. One ghost-man was lying on the table, not moving. They were all dressed strangely, in no sort of garb that Kayce had ever seen. The voices kept getting louder and louder, and it sounded like chanting. When she looked back at the stone cat, she could have sworn it moved and its eyes glowed.
Then the world went mercifully black.
When Kayce awoke the next morning, she found herself still thinking about the dream. Taking out her journal, she scribbled down as much as she could remember (which was most all of it. It stood out very vividly, more so than her other dreams). Then she went to get dressed, determined to not mention it to her mother... yet.
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Posted: Sun Jul 02, 2006 3:15 pm
A Bargain Is Struck It was mid-afternoon in the Raikes-Layden household. Due to the heat, all of the family was gathered inside, and most were occupied with one quiet task or another. Kari, locked up in her bedroom, was working her newfound telekinetic gift. Erin was in the playroom with Amyla and Caleb, and all three were playing with colored blocks. Most of the equine, canine, and feline residents were napping.
And Kayce was seated alone at the kitchen table, puzzling through some rather difficult-looking multiplication problems. She understood single digits multiplied by double digits, such as the 8 x 14 problem she had just correctly solved to 112. What was difficult was double digits multiplied by double digits, such as 11 x 12. The fae girl was more than a little fed-up with math at the moment, but she managed to hold back her temper, settling her pencil down carefully before she launched it across the kitchen.
That was when she heard her father arrive home.
Sliding off her chair, she scurried silently to the entryway to meet him, surprised to see that he was carrying many brown paper-wrapped packages. He had received an 'urgent' phone call an hour before and had left to tend to it, after exchanging a somehow 'meaningful' glance with Amyla. The two parents were scheming; she just knew it.
Aiodhan grinned down at her. "Sick of studies?" he chuckled, before dropping the smaller two packages in her arms, keeping the long thin one as he wandered back toward the kitchen she had just abandoned. "Can't blame you. What're you working on... ewwww, math," he said, wrinkling up his nose at the sight of her work. "How did your mother get you to sit down and do this?"
Kayce smirked just a little. Amyla had bartered quite a bit for this study time. "I get to look for more constellations tonight," she replied, hopping back up into her chair and setting the packages down on her homework. The smaller package was very light, but the larger, squarish one made a loud, solid noise when she set it down. What was in them? "What are these?"
Aiodhan settled himself down into a chair, wrapping his tail around the back. "Open them and see. They're... gifts from your mother and I," he said cryptically, nodding at the packages. "Go ahead."
Bemused by this turn of events, Kayce gave her father a suspicious look for a moment before curiosity overcame wariness. She opened up the smaller package to discover a small box inside. Inside was a bracelet of some dark blue stones.
"Lapis. They're power beads. Not to mention, they'll match all of your favorite outfits," the dragon-man laughed as he watched her surprised expression.
Kayce spent a moment admiring these beads and then slipped the bracelet on her wrist. It fit and was of a securing sort of weight, not too much as to weigh down her wrist but enough to remind her that the bracelet was there.
"And the other one," her father said, gesturing at the larger package.
The fae carefully removed the paper on this second package, eager now to see what was inside. What she found was a set of three books, two of dark shades of blue and one of bright yellow, each with a silver symbol stamped on it: one sun, one moon, one star. Upon opening them, she discovered that they were blank, but the pages fairly radiated power.
"Blank magic books. Your mother and I wanted to reward you for the increase in work you've put into your studies. You know that Shy mentioned you would be exhibiting some sort of power in the future. You can use these--"
Aiodhan gestured at the books.
"--to record your progress... or as diaries, if you like. It's up to you."
Kayce, fairly overcome with joy at these new presents, turned a glowing face to her father. "Thank you," she said as politely as she could manage, not really sure of a better or more appropriate way to convey her gratitude. Yes, she could use these books as power-recording tools. Actually, she could use them to track her funny dreams as well. She had had another of those lately, and they were beginning to bother her. She would write her dreams in one of these books; that would do splendidly.
Watching her expression, the dragon-man smiled for a moment before his expression became deadly serious. "That's not all that I wanted to talk to you about."
His tone caught her attention, and Kayce became fully alert, watching him intently as he began to unwrap whatever was in the long thin package. Aiodhan was never serious. Well, he was sometimes, but it was quite rare. Him being serious meant that she should listen; that she knew. And frankly, after having been given these gifts, she would likely have stayed inside and studied for a straight week had her parents asked that of her.
"You're strong and graceful, a problem-solver. However, your reflexes need a little work, and your temper needs a better outlet than fighting with Erin," her father began bluntly, idly rustling his large, dark wings.
Yes, Kayce agreed with that wholeheartedly. Fighting with Erin just wasn't a suitable use of energy, unless necessary to get the catgirl to leave. She much preferred her tree-climbing, her dance lessons, her...
Whatever conscious thought she had was promptly thrown at the window as Aiodhan unrolled the last bit of paper to reveal what had been in the package: a pair of twin short swords with blades just short of two feet long. Weapons? Weapons training? She was to get weapons training?!
"I received a lot of tutelage when I was young. It helped me, and it can help you, if you're willing. We'll put those instincts to good use," Aiodhan chuckled, extending the swords to allow her to hold them.
Kayce reverently took the black leather-sheathed weapons, gazing down on them with somethin akin to reverence. They were gorgeous, one with a hilt of black and gold and the other with a hilt of blue and silver. She pulled one out of its hilt just an inch or so to admire the shining and sharp blade. Weapons... swords. Swords for her to use, though they seemed a bit big for her at her present size.
"Your mother agreed to this on two conditions. One, you may not use these blades until your training is farther along and you are more mature," Aiodhan began, holding out his hands for the fae to place the swords back in them, which she did rather reluctantly. "Two, your work on your studies has to continue. Two hours a day with the math and reading and writing and whatever she thinks is necessary, at an absolute minimum, for one hour of swordmanship. Deal?"
Kayce held back a sigh, torn as to what to do. She wanted to learn how to use those shining weapons. She wanted to learn very badly. At the same time, though, two hours a day was nearly twice what she was doing now. That meant less time for television. Oh well. She rarely got to pick what was on the TV much anyway. Not with Erin hogging the remote control all of the time.
Two hours of math and writing paragraphs, learning about history... that was quite a lot. But it was worth it for the swords, wasn't it?
Giving the swords a longing glance, the fae finally nodded. "Yes. I'll do it," she said resolutely. She would make it through all of that studying and learning. Besides, some of the history stuff was semi-interesting, and Amyla sometimes allowed her to write in her journal in lieu of writing a paragraph or two for practice. Yes, this was feasible.
"Good!" Aiodhan said, setting the swords aside and looking very relieved that she had agreed. "Now, what about this math did you need help with?"
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Posted: Sun Jul 02, 2006 7:31 pm
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Posted: Mon Jul 10, 2006 9:35 am
Thought I have some reservations about letting her have training with weapons, I must admit that those blasted things have done more good than I could have ever imagined. Now that she has something to strive for, her drive has become even stronger. I've finished with her reading and writing lessons. She develops those on her own now, with writing in her journal and whatnot. We're still working with a bit of mathematics, even though division is not her favorite topic. Still, it is better to know a little in many categories than everything in only one.
She enjoys reading about the stars and planets. I actually caught her drawing the other day. Then I realized she had a compass, ruler, and protractor and was drawing a scaled diagram of the constellation 'Cancer.' I didn't even know she knew how to use a protractor. In any case, the diagram is done very well. I might ask her to paste it in her journal later. Kayce isn't one for art, but her obsession with straight lines and geometric designs make diagrams easier. I guess she might like her geometry lessons a bit better than these current basic math ones, then.
I think of all of her subjects, her history lessons are the most interesting to her. Don't get me wrong; she loves to read. But she has found the history of the fae interesting. From what she has concluded, the fae started to die out because of the advent of logic and rationality. People could not rationalize the existence of fae, so they began to not believe in them. That is Kayce's conclusion, anyway. She has also been doing some research into the ancient peoples of Ireland. I told her about the gift I had given the jar, and she is trying to research it in depth. It is rather frightening. She is almost single-minded in her pursuit. I have to nag her to remind her to eat and sleep, which she does most reluctantly.
I think the most bothersome thing to me, though, is her lack of emotion. She just doesn't seem to show much feeling, even negative feelings. It was bad before, but it has gotten worse. Coming up soon, I'm going to force her out of the house and away from lessons for a day for a playdate with another fae. I just need to get her to socialize. I don't want her drifting completely away from living contact.
I can see her outside, practicing with Aiodhan. They use wooden swords for practice, and they may not look it, but they're heavy. Kayce has been running around and climbing and practicing more and more. As I said before, she barely squeezes in time for eating and sleeping around her learning and eating. She is going to burn out soon. I need to plan that playdate quickly.
~Amyla
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Posted: Wed Jul 12, 2006 8:27 am
Mum has stopped writing in this journal for the most part. She wants me to handle the writing and recording on my own since I can do it alone. But she also says that if I'm not writing down everything important, she will start writing in things again. I will make sure to not leave anything out.
I have been studying much harder. I want to get math finished as soon as I can. It is a very frustrating subject at times, though Mum promises that I will like geometry. Anything will be better than multiplication and division. It is very dull, sitting there and working with numbers for an hour at a time.
I like my history lessons because Mum doesn't actually teach those. We went to the library and bookstore and bought a few books about the mythology (any word with -ology on the end means 'the study of something') of groups of people like the ancient Celts (not Celtics; they're Celts). The Celts believed in the fae. They had a group of fae that they considered gods, but beyond that, the book gets rather confusing. I read just a few pages a day when I'm up in the treehouse so I am alone and can focus on it. It is interesting, but it is a bit complicated sometimes.
My reading has improved, and so has my writing. I let Mum read the first two paragraphs of this entry, and she was very impressed. The more I read, the more words I learn. More words means that I can express myself better. 'Express' is my word for the day. It means 'to display or convey meaning or feeling.' I express myself. She expresses her feelings. He expressed a great deal of anger at the subject. Now, I have used it a lot and will remember it.
I had more of my odd dreams. They are all very similar: the land with lots of green grass and trees, stone, carvings, and the weird carved cat-thing. Mum said she put a stone carving in the jar, and it was a Celtic cat-carving. I'm trying to figure out what exactly the cat-thing is, but I haven't found it yet in the book. Just in my dreams.
Dad is outside now, and he promised me extra time with the swords. It is much harder than I thought. The wooden swords are heavier than the actual ones. Dad says he wants to strengthen my arms before I get the real ones. I can do simple things now, like three- and six-step practice moves. I parry (that is a strange word) and lunge. I am only using one sword now, but when I use two, I will not have the use of a shield, so I will have to be fast in order to win a fight. I haven't won one yet. Dad is too good, and I need more practice. I use sticks to practice the lunges and parries and swings and stances when Dad is not home. It is slow, but I am better than I was before. He does not win as easily anymore.
I forgot to mention the magic books, but I will write more later.
~Kayce
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Posted: Sat Jul 15, 2006 10:19 am
Renovation Status: Complete "Well, I think that's it," Aiodhan declared, eyeing the new rooms with fairly proud eyes. They had done it. It had taken them half a week, with some outside (not to mention magic) help, to complete the upstairs renovations, but they had done it.
And it was well worth the time. The upstairs of the house was now a bit more suited to the large family. Each of the five offspring had his or her own room, though if more kids arrived, they would have to rearrange room assignments again. Granted, all of the rooms were smaller than before, but all of the kids had agreed that they would rather have smaller rooms with more privacy rather than having to share the large ones.
"Awesome! Can we move in now?" Kari asked eagerly, for once not arguing with her siblings since they were all in the face of a common gain.
Aiodhan chuckled and made shooing motions with his hands. "Yep, you guys can move in your stuff. You three-" he said, gesturing at Nieva, Kayce, and Kari. "Remember, big stuff first."
With that, he left to go put Erin and Caleb's rooms back together, leaving the three oldest offspring to their own devices. He wasn't worried; they were capable.
Nieva smiled broadly and led the two younger females downstairs. "I can help you with the lifting if you need it," the adult monoceros said softly, picking up the head and footboards of her bed to carry them upstairs.
"No, thanks. Got it covered," Kari said gleefully about half a second before she suspended her desk in the air, courtesy of her developing telekinetic gift.
Watching them head upstairs, Kayce took her time in lifting up the headboard of her bed and carefully carrying it towards the stairs. She did not need the help. She could manage on her own well enough, even without Nnieva's strength or Kari's telekinesis (which Kayce personally found rather creepy).
Half an hour later, Kayce had managed to move most of her belongings upstairs. Kari had begged to be of assistance, wanting to move more things with her gift, so Kayce had allowed her to 'carry' up the heavy dresser whilst Kayce brought up the disassembled desk. Now, the only things remaining where the small items.
On one trip, she brought up her schoolbooks: mythology, history of the Celts, basic astronomy, and mathematics (ick!). These she set down near the still disassembled desk, and they were accompanied by her magic books on the next trip.
Her hair combs, brushes, and hair ties all went near her dresser, while her compass, protractor, and ruler all went near her desk. That left the pencils... near the desk as well. A few stray articles of clothing-- when had she gotten that shirt??-- were placed near the dresser as well. The final thing to be carried up was her fancy dress, her only dress, which she promply hung up in the closet.
Turning around, the fae girl took one look at her thoroughly messy room and sighed. It was going to be a long afternoon.
~~~
Must all screws be this complicated?! Kayce thought furiously, working with a drill and screws to put her desk back together. She was following the instruction manual, and it looked easy enough. For some reason, though, her fingers, which were strong enough to lift her into the trees, were not skilled enough to hold onto the little screws. Perhaps that was why her handwriting wasn't as neat as she would like. Her fingers weren't as adept at the small things. It all made sense, now!
The momentary revelation, however, did nothing to assist her cause. She was still stuck with fingers that could not get the screws to stay on the marked spots long enough for her to drill them in. It was getting beyond frustrating and into the realm of maddening. She had spent the better part of an hour fussing with this, and her patience was wearing dangerously thin.
"Need a little help?"
Kayce looked up to see Aiodhan standing in her bedroom doorway, pursing her lips in thought. Yes, she did want help, shameful as it was to not be able to follow such a simple diagram. Need outweighed shame for she needed this desk put together.
Her expression must have told all, for Aiodhan chuckled and stepped into the room, kneeling down across from her. "Fingers not very good with small stuff, eh?" he asked, obviously having watched her struggles. "That was mentioned in your medical evaluation. Maybe we need to work on that?" he asked rhetorically before taking the drill and screws from her hands. "Let me."
With Kayce holding the pieces together and Aiodhan drilling, it took them less than fifteen minutes to assemble the entire desk. While Kayce put her belongings in their proper place both in and on it, her father sat, clearly deep in thought.
"Well, I know we've been working on control and your reflexes with the swords. And you're getting better," he conceded, watching her carefully organize her desk. "You've definitely still got room to improve there, but you look a bit more coordinated than before. For this little stuff, maybe you should take up knitting. I'm kidding, I'm kidding!" he said as she turned and gave him a revolted look. "I don't blame you there; knitting is awful. Ummm... what else can you work with..."
Kayce, finally satisfied that her books were stacked in the proper order, was thinking as well. Now that her reading and writing lessons were done, she had more time to spare. She still spent much time outside and much time reading, so it couldn't be something complicated. No sewing (double ick!), no cooking (so messy!), no art (boooring. Unless it was diagrams.)... what was there left?
"Uhhh... she can play with my Legos with me," a voice suggested from the doorway, and both dragon-man and fae turned about to see Kari fidgeting in the doorway. "I mean, they're good for improving fine motor skills, and I get really bored playing by myself," the Ancient added, looking rather hopeful as she strode across the now-neat room toward her fae sibling.
Kayce gave Kari a suspicious look. "But you don't like me," she said, staring at her adoptive sister whilst Aiodhan quietly crept out of the room. Well, Kayce wasn't entirely sure that Kari hated her, but she had never really... well... liked her. She had always been fairly indifferent toward Kayce, and Kayce, in return, had treated Kari with her typical aloof attitude.
Kari fidgeted more. "I didn't, but I figured if I was nice to you, maybe we could build stuff with the Legos together. And we could keep Erin away," she pointed out, standing in front of Kayce and extending a three-fingered hand. "Maybe just a truce for now?"
Frowning a bit at the unfamiliar word, Kayce cocked her head to one side. "Truce?"
The Ancient girl nodded. "Truce. It means that we're not friends yet, but I won't pick on you and you won't pick on me. We don't fight anymore."
That did sound tempting. Much as she hadn't liked the Ancient girl before, Kayce had to acknowledge Kari's brains. She did make valid points. Playing with the Legos couldn't be that bad. And to have an ally against the evil forces of Erin... yes, it was very tempting indeed. "Yes. Truce," she agreed, extending her own hand to shake Kari's.
Kari's green face split into a grin. "Good. I'll be in my room later if you want to build," she said before spinning about and marching out of the room.
Smiling just a bit now that she had a new ally, Kayce headed for the door as well. Despite how neat her room looked (though she still needed to clean the inside of the window), she didn't want to be in it at the moment. She had had no time outside all day, and the trees were beckoning to her. Time to climb.
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Posted: Sun Jul 16, 2006 2:11 pm
Ronnie walked a few paces behind Dierdre as the fae told her she didn't want to be associated with the woman's bad fashion. Ronnie watched the house numbers as they walked by looking for the one she'd seen posted at the clinic. Finally, as Dierdre passed it, she found the right one. "Dierdre, this is their home." "Oy, I thought I told you that we aren't to be seen talking to each other in public." But the fae backtracked to walk to the front of the home with her guardian. "So why are we doin' this again? I haven't even met her!""Because, we are, you'll meet her eventually, and I hope that you are on your best behavior!" Ronnie smiled at the thought as if it were some inside joke. She carefully laid the package down on the front step and grabbed Dierdre by the hand before the fae could run away. "And we're family so you have to stick with me." "Eh... bugger!"And on the step was this package. With a note that read: Kayce, Thought this would be pretty in your room, Ronnie and Dierdre 
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Posted: Sun Jul 16, 2006 5:12 pm
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Posted: Fri Jul 21, 2006 2:03 pm
What Is Death? "Kari, what does it mean when someone has died?"
The green Ancient looked up from her Lego building, giving Kayce a surprised and somewhat cautious look. The two children had been busy building a pirate castle from Legos, carefully following the directions given in the instruction booklet. They had been working in silence for some time before Kayce's question, and Kari seemed quite put off by it.
"Died? Well, it means they're dead. It is rather difficult to explain. Why do you ask?" the preteen finally asked in reply, putting another Lego block on the half-finished castle.
Kayce pursed her lips, narrowing her eyes in thought. "I overhead Dad saying something to Mom. He was waving around a piece of paper, a letter he got today, and saying something about, 'She's been like this ever since Caleb died.' I didn't know what it meant when someone died," the fae responded, looking quite puzzled.
"Oh, that...." Kari said, looking distinctly uncomfortable. She set the Legos aside. "Well, before you start thinking this way, it isn't our brother Caleb he's talking about. Dad is talking about his own brother named Caleb. They both had this.... sickness, I guess. It's called leukemia. Dad would have died from it, but he got the bone marrow transplant, even though it was the wrong one. That's why he's a half-and-half instead of fully human. His brother Caleb couldn't get a transplant and died. Dad's parents have been really upset since Dad's wrong transplant and Caleb died, and they think that Mum is a bad influence on Dad. They want to split Mum and Dad up and get custody of our brother Caleb in order to 'fix' him and make him human."
Kayce blinked. So that was why her father was so very different. It made sense enough, except she didn't understand why her adoptive grandparents wanted to make Caleb fully human. How boring was that?! "But.... they won't, will they?" she asked tentatively.
Kari snorted. "I highly doubt it. I bet Dad will beat them up if they ever come close again. He doesn't like them very much," she said, the disdain for them obvious in her voice.
That made the fae smirk. She would love to see her father in a fight. It would be quite interesting to watch and learn from. But, that still didn't answer her question. "I still don't understand what it means for a person to have died," Kayce added, watching Kari resume building with the Legos.
"Dying is... something permanent. You can't un-do it. Death means that your body stops working. Your heart stops beating, you stop breathing, and you go to sleep forever. Your mind-- or your soul, whichever-- leaves your body and goes to another world," Kari said, obviously enjoying playing teacher for the moment now that the sensitive material was over and done with. "Some people think that dying can be good, but we don't know. People who die don't generally come back."
Kayce pondered this, staring at the Lego castle. This.... death thing... it was a permanent change? The mind left to be in another world, but the body stayed behind. That meant the person ceased to be themselves with their mind gone. It sounded quite strange. "What happens to their body?"
At that, the Ancient child shrugged, stopping her building for a moment to stare at the castle as well. "It breaks down and turns into soil."
So... after a person died, their mind journeyed elsewhere, and their body turned to dirt. Splendid. Dying wasn't something she wanted to try anytime soon. It sounded odd. "How do you die? I understand that your body stops working, but how does it stop? Why?"
"Sometimes, when you get really, really old, it just is too tired and stops working, kind of like when something runs out of batteries, except you can't put new batteries in a body. Sometimes people get killed by things like weapons or poisons," Kari replied, tilting her head to one side to stare at Kayce. "Why?"
Kayce shrugged, drawing invisible circles on the carpet with her fingertip. "I just think it's interesting," she said, her blue eyes gazing in the direction of the Legos though it was patently obvious that she was not really seeing them. "I wonder where the mind goes."
"Nobody really can know for sure. Some people think that there are people who guide the dead spirits to where they are supposed to go. I don't think that makes much sense, though," Kari pointed out. She shook herself once and then commenced building on the castle. "I wouldn't worry about it much. If you think about it a lot, it can give ou a headache."
Kayce wasn't even beginning to be confused, but she shrugged again and agreed, picking up a few more pieces to add to the pirate castle. That was something she could think about on her own another timie. It was interesting, this issue of death.
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Posted: Sun Jul 23, 2006 8:29 pm
It is time for me to make another formal journal entry. Mum has given up trying to teach me. She isn't feeling well, and I'm sick of math. I do some geometry when I make my star charts, but that is all of the math I do. I read my mythology book a lot. I brought it up to the treehouse with my journal. I'm reading about the gods and goddesses of the Greeks. They had strange names for their gods.
Dad has begun training me with two swords. It is much harder than it looks. Using one sword in each hand means that I can't hold a shield, and it's hard to keep track of both swords at once. Dad says it gets easier over time, but I keep dropping the swords. I have to learn, though. I have to, or else I don't get the real swords that are in Mum and Dad's closet at the moment. They are beautiful. One has a black and gold hilt with a gold-colored blade. The other has a blue and silver hilt with a silvery blade. I still have to think of names for them. I haven't decided on any yet.
There is something strange going on in our house these past few days. I walk through the halls, and I hear howling, like dogs somewhere off in the distance. It is frightening, but I don't know why. Erin has been very quiet and well-behaved, and Caleb is fussing more. Mom is already not feeling well, but Dad is getting more nervous as well. Kari seems grumpy as always. I just don't know what is wrong, and it is bothering me.
~Kayce
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Posted: Mon Jul 24, 2006 9:15 pm
Hell-o There! Kayce was considerably grumpier than usual. The fae had been running around outside all day, playing with her new pony-friend, Aisling. She hadn't scraped her knees or elbows, trampled any flowers, fallen out of any trees, or even gotten that dirty. Yet Mum was still upset with her. She kept babbling something about how Kayce wasn't being properly social. She had said (and Kayce had stored the speech away in her memory for future reference), "You're becoming too devoted to your solitude and your studies and your practicing. You need to get to know more of your own kind. You need to make some friends!"
Well, Kaye had met those other fae at the beach. Didn't they count? Nereida had been rather cool. Kayce had wanted to shove a stick down Dierdre's throat, but at least she had met the other fae. Tomoko was strange and shy. That had bothered Kayce. But what had bothered the dark-haired fae most was that there were no males. Where were all of the male fae? Would they not come out and introduce themselves sometime? At least if she had to meet and put up with fae, they could be sensible male ones!
In any case, that was a worry that did little to solve her current problem. Mum was angry, and Kayce needed Mum in a good mood before she ordered the sword lessons be stopped, for Kayce did not want that to happen.
Thus, the fae was tucking herself into bed in quite a sour mood. Her parents had gone to bed before, thinking Kayce already asleep. Kayce had stayed up for an additional half-hour to finish her star chart before dragging her pajama-clad body into bed. She wasn't tired, but if she lay here long enough, perhaps...
Creak.
Kayce sat upright, frowning in the general direction of her bedroom door. Squeaky floorboard? Someone else was awake at this time of night. Not Erin. She slept like a log. Not Caleb. He hadn't figured out how to escape from his new crib. Not Mum or Dad, for she couldn't hear Mum's hair movements nor Dad's wings rustling. That left...
Carefully pushing back the covers, the fae quietly swung her legs around and settled her bare feet on the floor. Standing up slowly, she tiptoed to her bedroom doorway and peeked out.
The hallway was empty, and moving down the hallway, she quickly realized the playroom was empty as well. But she had heard the floorboard, so her remaining sibling had to be up and about somewhere.
A sudden chill ran down her spine, and she shivered, despite the warm temperature in the house. As she moved toward the stairway, she heard the distant howling that had plagued her ears on occasion for the past several days. She paused for a moment at the top of the spiralling staircase, staring down into the darkness of the downstairs. Where was that creepy howling coming from??
Tiptoeing down the stairs, Kayce made her way through the downstairs, avoiding the creaky spots as best she could and trying to find her elusive sibling. Kari was up; she knew it. But where was the green Ancient child hiding?
A yellow-ish glow from the backyard caught her attention, and she crept to the window. Peeking her head up over the sill, she spied a two-legged, one-tailed, vaguely humanoid figure standing alone on the grass. Only her silhouette was visible, but Kayce knew it was Kari. And if the yellowish light surrounding the Ancient child was anything to go by, something weird was up.
Sliding over to the back door, the fae let herself outside and took a few steps off the porch, never taking her eyes off the strange figure around which the glow seemed to be brightening and changing colors, lightening to a bright white. It was frightening, but at the same time, it was too fascinating for Kayce to tear her gaze away. It drew her, like a moth to a flame.
Kari must have heard Kayce's approach, for the Ancient child turned about. Her pupil-free eyes glowed brightly through the darkness at her fae sibling, and she smiled widely. "Hello, Kayce," she said calmly, tail swishing lightly behind you. "Come to watch?"
Before Kayce could reply, the light brightened to the point where Kayce could now clearly see Kari's green skin and reddish-brown hair in the darkness. As she watched, the Ancient child was lifted a couple of feet off the ground, and then her figure seemed to go out of focus.
Kayce rubbed at her eyes. What was wrong with her vision? She blinked and squinted. Apparently, her eyes were fine, but Kari's body was becoming less and less... well-defined. She looked fuzzy around the edges, and the she seemed to be a uniformly green, Kari-shaped blob. As she watched, the blob began to change shape, becoming longer, though not thinner, as though it were being unusually stretched.
The eerie howling started up, and as the-blob-that-was-Kari continued to stretch and change shape, the howling grew in volume and intensity until even Kayce was starting to feel afraid. This was not a natural or normal occurrence. She had been right; something very strange was at work here.
Whatever it was, it worked fast. Though the fear seemed to lengthen the duration of the strangeness, it only lasted perhaps thirty seconds or so before the blob became less fuzzy around the edges, and the white light began to dim. The first easily discernable thing was the pair of bright yellow eyes that stared at her from out of the green form's head. Then the three-fingered hands seemed clearer, then the swishing tail.
The light brightened to the point where Kayce threw an arm up to cover her eyes, and then it abruptly went out, the howling ceasing along with it. When the fae removed her arm and opened her eyes to look for her sister, she saw someone she did not expect.
It was Kari; of that, Kayce was certain. But it was not the Kari she knew. This Kari must have been Mum's height and had gained the curves that came along with being female. Her hair was long, down to the middle of her green-skinned back. Her three-toed feet, dark tufts of hair adorning the back of them, rested easily on the grass, her tufted tail swishing lightly behind her. The most frightening things were the curved horns that projected upward from the sides of her head, and her face, though unmistakably Kari's, was older.
"Hello, Kayce," the teenaged Ancient said, smiling down at her little sister. Her smile revealed two rows of very sharp, very wolf-like, teeth, complete with longer and larger eyeteeth.
Though the smile looked friendly enough, Kayce was still quite wary of this large creature standing before her. "Kari?" she asked, still very shocked by this turn of events. "What happened?"
"I grew up," Kari replied, her smile widening into a wicked grin that looked positively feral. "What do you think?"
Kayce blinked, eyes wide and staring. "I think Mum's going to have a heart attack."
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