The Magic Shop, Part two…

“So, you’re telling me that I’m not human.  I’m actually a fairy, that I can go back to my regular life, or  what?  Join fairy life?  And you believe that you saw the Stones in the thirties.  And this is a bookstore for beings from other places and none of this is a joke?  If I leave here, and never come back will I…”

“…still be a fairy.  You will always be a fairy, since that’s what you are.”

“None of this makes any sense.  What about my parents?  Do they know I’m not their real son?”

“They do not.  But raising you has been difficult for them, I can guarantee that.  Fairy children don’t act like human children.”

The young man thought for a few minutes, then said, “I wasn’t difficult on purpose.”

“I know,” said the old man.  “They still love you, but they’ll never understand.”

“Should I tell them, so they know it wasn’t their fault?”

“They wouldn’t believe you.  It’s best if you just let it go.”

“Who is Jade?  Do you know her?”

“I do not know her, but I have a feeling she never stopped watching over you.  I can ask around, if you like.”

He nodded.  “I’d like to know the truth.”

“Fairies can’t lie outright,  but they can twist things to mean something different than what they are really saying.  Knowing what you are doesn’t mean you have to give up the life you have been living.  It will just change what you’re able to see and you can come here to meet others like yourself, when you have questions.   There are other places that cater to the others, I can give you a list of where they are located, if you like.  Not all of them are in this country, of course.”

“Did you really see The Stones?”

“I did.  You need to realize that there’s more than one reality taking place at the same time.”

“What does that mean?”

Another package of books disappeared and money took it’s place.

“It means that the reality you think you live in is NOT the only one there is.”

“Great explanation,”  he said, banging his head lightly on the counter.

“You’ll get used to it.”

“Are there others like me?”

“The old man laughed.  “There are a LOT of changelings.  Those fairies like switching their kids with humans.  It’s not good for the human babies, however.  They are treated poorly, since most fairies don’t like humans that much.  It’s also not easy for the adoptive parents, who think the child is their own.”

“Why do fairies do it?  Don’t they care about their children?”

“Tricky question.  Some do it so their kids have all the benefits that come with human life.  Others do it as a prank, still others do it because they want a human slave and that’s what a lot of the stolen human children become.  The Fairies are a nefarious bunch.  They can be colder than an ice cube and their political in fighting is legendary. Always jockeying for position, always wanting more power.”

“None of that makes them different than us.  I mean than humans.”

” I guess that’s true,” chuckled the old man.

“Do you know who I am?”

“I do not.”

“Are you Sam Elliot?”

The old man grinned.  “What do you think?”

“He’s pretty cool, you know,” said the young man.

“I know.”

“Am I hallucinating?”

“You are not.”

The bell on the desk rang and the old man said, “Hold on a second,” and disappeared.  When he returned, he said, “Special order. Sorry about that.  Now where were we?”

“So you could make me forget all of this happened and I could just go back to the life I had before I walked in here, right?  Isn’t that what you said?”

“Mostly.”

“Mostly?”

“There could possibly be some…breakthrough remembering, but you’d more than likely think you were just remembering a dream, or something.”

“You didn’t mention that before.”

“No.  I guess I didn’t.”

“What are you?  Are you a fairy?”

“Hardly.”

“So, what are you, if you aren’t a fairy?”

“I won’t tell you, so drop it.”

“Excuse me?”

“I said, drop it.”

“Hardly seems fair,” said the young man.

“Fair?  Nothing in life is fair.  It just IS.”

“Oh, please.  That old thing?  It’s just is?”

The old man glared at him.

“Fine.  Don’t tell me, see if I care.  I thought maybe you were my grandfather, or something.”

The old man burst into laughter.

“I don’t get it.  What’s so funny?”

“Nothing.  Never mind  Now, I doubt whether you’d want to live in fairy full time, but you might want to get a place, so you’ll have somewhere to stay when you want to visit.”

“Why would I want to visit? I have a condo and….hi Baby,”  he said, petting the white cat that jumped onto the counter.  “Wait, is the cat’s name Baby?”

“It is.”

“How do I know that?  I’ve never seen this cat before.”

The cat stood on her back legs and put her front legs on the young man’s shoulder.  Then she meowed and rubbed her face against his.

“She sure seems to know you.  She doesn’t really like folks that much.”

The cat returned to all four paws, then threw herself down on the desk and started purring, reaching for the young man, with her paw.”

“This is freaking me out.”

“This is what’s freaking you out?  The cat?  Seriously?  Not the fact that your entire life has been a lie and everything you thought was real, wasn’t?”

“I see your point but yes, it’s the cat,” he said, playing with her paw.

“Hi Jack.  I’m Jade, remember me?” asked the beautiful woman, suddenly standing beside him.