Vern
“I’m sorry I was out in the field last night.
I didn’t mean to come across the outer-worlder.
And I would have brought him sooner, but he fell asleep so I stayed with him until he woke.
” As much as I was glad another had come to the Enchanted Forest, I hadn’t expected to be the first one to meet him.
And I expected to be chastised by my brothers for being at Holden’s instead of working.
“It’s okay.” Holden sat on the log by the pond and patted the space beside him. “I’m glad you were there. Neither Chauncey nor I were able to get there when the arrival happened, so I’m thankful you happened upon Falco. Bringing him here as soon as he awoke was the right thing to do.”
I breathed out a heavy sigh, relieved I wasn’t in trouble. “So, what’s going to happen to him now? Who do you think will be his mate?”
Holden chuckled. “I remember being as nervous as you when Nelson first arrived.” He waved to one of his sons as they breached the surface of the water. “First, Falco needs a tour of the village and then he needs to be assigned a home. I would like you to do that for me, if you’re not busy.”
“Me?” I lost my balance, nearly falling off the log. “Why me? Surely there is someone more important to show the outer-worlder around.”
Holden gripped my shoulder to steady me. “What do you think of him? The outer-worlder?”
I didn’t like that he avoided my question, instead forcing me to answer his. “He’s nice. Cute.” My cheeks warmed with the admission. “But what I think doesn’t matter. I’m the youngest beaver in my family. There are many others in the forest. I don’t stand a chance.”
Reaching behind me, Holden squeezed my shoulder. “I wasn’t very high ranking in our community, either. Yet Nelson chose me. Maybe there was a reason you were there when Falco crossed into our world.”
My heart squeezed at the idea, but I shook my head, refusing to believe Holden’s words. I couldn’t. If I believed and Falco didn’t pick me, I would shatter. What did I have to offer him anyway?
Another of the three boys, Ellis, came to the edge of the pond half shifted. “Uncle Vern, come swim with us.”
I looked to Holden, and when he nodded, I removed my cap and tool belt before letting the magic drain out of me and into the ground.
Back in my beaver form, I hurried to the edge of the pond and dove in.
Swimming with the young turtles was fun, though not something I regularly got the chance to do.
They loved to play hide-and-seek, and sometimes, I felt more welcomed by them than I did others in the forest. None of the children of the outer-worlders looked down on me the way some members of the community did, so I didn’t mind spending time with them when they wanted.
I was too big to find a spot to hide in the pond, so when it was my turn, I headed back on land, tucking myself in between some reeds. Oswald found me first, hiding with me until his brothers found our spot.
“I’m hungry,” Ashwin declared, starting to shift into his human form. “And I don’t want pond plants today. Let’s go back to the house now.”
His brothers joined him and I followed behind, anxious about the favor Holden had asked of me. Of all the beings in the forest, how was I the right person to show Falco around? I found my hat and tool belt then headed toward the house.
The boys rushed inside, but Nelson met me at the door. “Falco had a bite to eat, and he’s lying down now. While he’s resting, you can eat, and we can discuss where to take him when he wakes.”
Nelson’s confidence in me to give Falco a tour gave me more courage than Holden asking me for the favor.
As a former outer-worlder, he knew the places that were important for a newcomer to be made aware of, and he believed I would know the best house for Falco to live in since I helped build them.
So when the sleepy outer-worlder awoke, I knew where to take him.
We started at the community garden. It was quite a distance from Holden and Nelson’s place, but Falco didn’t have any problem keeping up with me, even as the sun began to set for the second time since he’d arrived.
“This is where we get most of our food. Lee, a satyr, plans how everything grows and makes sure others harvest the crops when they’re ready. ”
Falco took everything in with wide eyes and his mouth slightly open. “Wow, this is amazing. We had a community garden for a bit, but it was nothing this expansive. How much does it cost to use it?”
“Cost? What do you mean?” I wasn’t familiar with the outer-worlder term.
“Cost. As in money.” He rubbed his fingers together. “What do you have to do or pay to be able to get food from here?”
I shook my head. “We don’t have money.” I did remember Lonnie using that term before. “Everyone in the community helps out somehow. We all have assigned roles and we all share the food.”
He slowed down and shuffled his feet. “What will my role be? The only thing I did in my world was clean up after everyone and take out the garbage.”
I stared at him, surprised he didn’t already know what his role would be. I assumed Nelson would have explained that to him. “You will choose a mate and have babies.”
“That’s it?” He scrunched up his face as if confused.
I gasped. “That’s the most important role in our community.” How did he not understand how pivotal he was? “All of you coming from the outer-world allow our kind to survive. Without you, we would die off. That is a lot, so we don’t ask anything else of you.”
He wrinkled his nose. “I remember thinking it would be nice to have kids one day back in my world, but I never expected it to be possible. This is…this is hard to get used to. But I woke up here again, so I’m beginning to believe this isn’t a dream.”
I didn’t expect to ever have my own kids, either, let alone be guiding around a new outer-worlder. Though his yearning had a much higher chance of happening than mine.
He didn’t have many questions at any of our other stops, even as my brothers glared at me as we passed the various projects they worked on.
In fact, he remained silent until it came time to pick his home.
“You helped build each of these houses?” Falco ran his hand along a banister in one home and across a table in another, pieces I’d specifically worked on. “The craftsmanship is amazing.”
I tried not to let his compliments set my heart racing. He was just admiring my work, which had nothing to do with how he felt about me. “Have you seen one you would like to live in?” Nighttime had fallen upon us, which meant, it was time again for all the forest beings to rest.
He shrugged and scuffed the ground with his shoe. “I’m not used to having a choice of where I live. I usually get stuck with the cheapest place because that’s all I can afford.”
“I can fix up any house for you. If there’s something you don’t like or want changed to suit you and where you want to raise a family, I can do that. That’s my role. Just let me know.” If he didn’t pick a place soon, I would find myself in trouble for keeping an outer-worlder out all night.
He circled around, eyeing the most recently built homes. Then he pointed to the one at the far end that backed into the woods. It was my favorite, too. “That one. But I do want changes made. Can you guarantee that it would be you working on it?”
I nodded, thankful he’d finally chosen one. “Yes, I will spend my days refitting your home until it is to your liking.”
“Wonderful.” He leaned closer and pressed his lips to my cheek. “Thank you, Vern. You have been so kind to me since I arrived, and I look forward to spending more time together.”
While I wouldn’t mind spending more time with the outer-worlder, I worried I would find some way to mess things up and make him decide to leave the Enchanted Forest. Yet, if fixing his house to suit his needs made him stay, I had to ensure that was done as soon as possible.