Chapter One
Once upon a time―because all important stories begin with the words “once upon a time”―there was a boy named Zach. He went to school and did his homework and played baseball. He liked video games and building castles and occasionally his toy pirates would attack his superhero action figures. These things happen in the life of a normal child and Zach appeared for all intents and purposes to be perfectly normal.
But he wasn’t.
Every time it rained, Zach would run outside and splash in the puddles. When he came inside wet and splattered with mud his mother would sigh.
“Why must you play in every puddle you find?” she would ask.
With a shrug and knowing smile, Zach would dry off and head to his room to change clothes. He knew precisely why he had to splash in the puddles but as far as he was concerned, it was no one else’s business.
* * *
Zach sat in class, staring out the window watching the wind blow flower petals around the school yard. When would this day end? The weatherman called for afternoon thunderstorms. Rain. Finally.
It had been awfully dry for April. What was that saying? April showers…May flowers… something like that. His mom said it often enough as if rainy days bothered him. Anyway, at this rate there would be no May flowers.
“Zachary.” His teacher’s pinched voice intruded on this thoughts. “Are you paying attention?”
No, I’m not. Why would I be? I’m bored out of my mind, he longed to say, but―raised to be more respectful than that―he replied, “Yes, Mrs. Walker.”
“Then maybe you’d like to read the next passage?”
With a sigh, he struggled to focus on the reading assignment. He had a vague idea of where Jeffrey had left off and Zach droned on until Mrs. Walker told him he could stop. None of the story had sunk in. Nothing about third grade seemed all that important. Not when you knew what Zach knew.
Finally the school day ended and Zach rushed down the hall and to the bus. He could smell the moisture in the air, feel the crackle of electricity in the air. Yes, a storm was coming. Excitement churned in his stomach. It had been so long since he had seen the Tirnans―Dagdan, Margaux and their children, especially Abelo. He couldn’t wait for the rain to begin.
Forlorn and disappointed, Zach watched the roiling sky outside his bedroom window. Oh sure. There was plenty of thunder and lightning but no rain. Not a drop. There would be no visiting his friends today.
“Are you all right?” his mother asked.
With a shrug, he nodded.
“Have you finished your homework?”
Zach shook his head.
“Get to it.” She kissed the top of his head. “I’m making spaghetti and meatballs for dinner, your favorite.”
At this, he smiled. At least the day wasn’t a total wash.
School day after school day dragged by but finally the weekend arrived and with it lots of spring showers. Zach wolfed down a couple toaster waffles, gave his teeth a perfunctory brushing and flew down the hall for the front door.
“Where are you going?” his mother called.
“Outside,” he yelled.
“But it’s raining.”
Slamming of the front door his only reply, he ran across the lawn, water from the grass soaking his bare feet and the hem of his jeans. There in the sidewalk, in all its glory, collected a small pool of water. A small dip in the concrete made it the perfect place to look when scouting out puddles and Zach was doing just that.
He walked over to it and peered down. His reflection stared back at him, rippling a bit with every raindrop. His long-ish, dark hair had formed waves in the downpour, his brown eyes sparkled, a smile lit up his face. The wait was over, he would finally get to visit the Tirnans again.
Inching his foot nearer, he touched the edge of the puddle with the tip of his big toe and then, just as it had for the last two years, reality turned into a swirl of color and light. His body felt as though it dissolved into billions of tiny particles. A few second of blackness but then everything came into focus again. However, he no longer stood on the sidewalk in front of his home. He stood in a golden field, three suns lit up the rosy sky―two red, one orange―trees with silver and pale blue leaves stood off in the distance. Tirna. He’d been away too long.
The clear quality of the light and the puff-seeds blowing on a gentle wind told him it was early summer. It had been fall when he had last been here. Just how long had passed he couldn’t say. Except for the seasons, not much changed in Tirna. Not the landscape, not the villages and not the people―
“Zachary!” A boy’s voice cried out.
“Abelo.” Zach turned with a smile to see his friend running toward him.
Abelo skipped through the fields, carrying a large stick. Once he had dropped the stick, Abelo tackled Zach and the boys wrestled a bit until Zach finally pinned Abelo.
“No fair. You’re bigger than me.”
“Bigger than I.” Zach heard Abelo’s mother, Margaux, before he saw her. Scanning around, he caught of a glimpse of her standing a few feet behind him.
Scrambling off of Abelo, Zach stood and smiled at the Queen of Tirna, not that one could tell her rank by the way she was dressed. She wore a pair of rough fabric slacks, a simple tunic and her hair hung in a long reddish braid; she carried a ceramic jug. Her silver eyes twinkled as she returned a grin.
“Zachary, I do believe you have gotten bigger since last we saw you. It’s something I can’t quite get used to.” She walked over and rumpled Zach’s hair.
“You didn’t used to be bigger than me.” Abelo squinted and scrunched up his nose, affecting a air of annoyance.
“Bigger than I,” his mother repeated.
“Whatever. He didn’t used to be bigger.”
“No, he didn’t. Not the first time he came. When was that?”
“About two years ago. I was six and a half then,” Zach said.
“And now you are…?”
“Eight and a half. Well, eight and three-quarters. My birthday is next month.”
“Yes, this Otherworld tradition you call a birthday. Seems a charming ritual.” The queen nodded as if she understood the passing of time and how much people in Zach’s world cherished the aging of their children, but Zach knew she didn’t. She couldn’t.
The queen’s children never aged nor did she for that matter. It was something about Tirna Zach found most curious and a little unsettling. Abelo had been his equal Zach had first been transported here. Now, Abelo seemed a little too babyish, but Zach was fond of him nonetheless.
But if they didn’t have birthdays, how were they born? How did they come into being? It was a question Zach had asked the Tirnans before. They’d shrug and shake their heads in reply. No one quite knew. It’d been so long ago apparently the entire population had forgotten. Very strange.
“We were on our way to the apiary to collect some honey. Would you like to come along, Zach?” asked the queen.
“Yeah, come with us.” Abelo pulled at Zach’s arm.
The bees in this realm were quite large―almost the size of a toaster―and spoke perfect Tirnan while flapping their wings and shaking their bloated backsides. In fact there was a whole ritual and several mouthfuls of royal jelly involved in acquiring a batch of honey from them. To put it plainly, the apiary gave Zach the creeps. Respectfully, he declined the invitation.
“I’m sure they’d love to see you at the castle. Tell Dagdan and the others we’ll be along shortly.” Queen Margaux gave a curt nod and shooed Abelo in the direction of the apiary.
With a wave, Zach headed toward the forest. The castle was only a short ways away and it was such a beautiful morning, he didn’t mind the walk. Then again, it was always a beautiful day in Tirna…or so Zach throught.
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Want to contribute to WIP Wednesday and let the world know what you're working on? Send me a post to ravestudios2000@gmail.com. Mysteries, YA, thrillers, and horror prefered.
Cheers,
Cindy
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