Chapter 8

Tuesday afternoon, Mazzie sat on the bench under the tree in her front yard. It was early August. Heat and humidity had finally arrived. The shade of the tree did little to alleviate the oppressive heat. She hoped Mark would show up soon. Peter said he would have forgotten his time in Hephrix’ prison. She wondered if he forgot why they actually went to the library in the first place. Peter warned her and MacKenzie not to try to restore his memories. When pressed he would only say it would be detrimental. 

She glanced at her phone and sighed. It had only been five minutes since she messaged Mark, but it felt like an hour in the heat. She considered going back in the house where the air conditioning was full blast, when Mark finally appeared.

“Hey Maz!” he called out cheerfully. 

She looked for any sign of trauma, but he was his usual exuberant self. “You feel ok?” she asked anyway.

“I feel great! Woke up at noon today. Mom said I better not get used to it with football practice starting next week.”

“Ugh, in this heat? Sounds hideous.” Mazzie made a disgusted face.

Mark laughed, “There’ll be lots of water breaks and we’ll be done before the heat of the day really gets going.”

“Gross. Come on, Kinz is waiting for us at the park.” She started walking, but stopped when she realized Mark hadn’t moved. “Are you coming or not?”

He shook his head as if to clear it rather than say no. He appeared momentarily confused.

“You ok? The heat getting to you or something?” asked Mazzie.

“What day is it?” he asked.

“Eh? It’s Tuesday.” She wondered if this was a symptom of what Peter had called the “Lethe effect.” He had tried to explain the lethe effect to her and Kinzie yesterday, but it had seemed so unreal, so he introduced them to Aletha. Mazzie was still awed by the encounter. Aletha had appeared to be a rather large sparkly dragonfly as she lit upon Peter’s hand. When she and Kinzie had realized she was actually a tiny woman with wings, Mazzie squealed “Tinker Bell!” Insulted, the miniature woman hissed, baring lethal looking fangs. “Vamper Bell” more like, noted Mazzie under her breath. Peter said Aletha had administered a dose of Lethe to Mark. It would help him forget his time in Hephrix prison. He would also forget meeting Carl and Yebi Dira. Aletha assured them the dose was small and would wear off so Mark would assume he’d been dreaming.

Now as she witnessed his confusion, she wondered if there was something the little vamp hadn’t told them. “Mark, you feel ok?” 

“What?” he jerked his head up, from staring intently at his hands. The momentary confusion fled his gaze. “Mazzie, Why are you just standing there? Let’s go!” he grinned.

Mazzie followed, “That’s just weird,” she whispered to herself as she caught up with him.

*****************************************************************

“So explain again,” said Mackenzie. “How is it possible?”

Peter sat on the bench and kicked his feet. He looked ten. He acted ten. How was she to wrap her head around the fact he was Yggdrasil, the mythical tree of life, that wasn’t so mythical afterall? It made no sense to her.

A deep breath and in a deep mans voice Peter said, “Sister, you will remember everything when you find the book.”

“What am I supposed to remember?” she challenged.

“Everything.” He laughed as if his answer was a clear explanation.

MacKenzie strode back and forth. She stopped, looked at Peter, shook her head and went back to pacing, muttering to herself.

Peter’s laughter deepened as if it emanated from the park. It wasn’t unkind, but a deep abiding joy of life that bubbled from the earth. “Kinz! Stop fretting, until you have the book. It is like trying to solve a riddle without knowing the question!”

“What if I don’t want this?” she cried angrily. “What if I don’t want to know the question or the answer? What if I just want to be a normal girl?”

Peter’s smile fell. Softly, he said, “You have never been normal Kinz. You are extraordinary. I’ve always thought so, even before I remembered who I was.”

She fell to her knees before him, tears glistened on her cheeks, “But the Mums. What will happen to them? They won’t understand.”

Peter slid off the bench and crouched in front of her, “Kinz, nothing is going to change until we are ready. Look, I am still a boy!” He stood, arms outstretched and twirled before her. “The mums still get to raise their babies, and then we will take care of them! We can do both.”

“I don’t know.” MacKenzie shook her head slowly. Misery etched on her face.

Peter put a gentle hand on her shoulder. Whatever he was going to say was lost as Mazzie called out to them. MacKenzie quickly wiped her eyes and stood. She forced a smile on her face and called out, “Hey Maz! Hey Mark!” she waved to her approaching friends. 

Mazzie had dropped back behind Mark and was signalling to MacKenzie he was not normal.

 She looked at Mark, but couldn’t see what Mazzie was trying to tell her.

“Hey Pete, I think I had a dream about you.” grinned Mark.

Peter laughed, this time with just his familiar boyish voice, “Hopefully it was fun!”

Mark stood momentarily confused, “I don’t remember it very well. I just know you were there.” Mark chuckled, “Dreams are weird.”

Peter smiled back, “They sure are.” He winked at MacKenzie. “I’m going to find Kelso.” He waved and ran off toward the swings.

MacKenzie watched him for a moment. How quickly he could jump between the sage old being to the young innocent boy. He wouldn’t tell her who she was, only that she would need to remember soon. His only hint was to get the same book Carl told her to get. After yesterdays disaster at the library, she hadn’t asked either of the mums to sign out the book for her. As much as she didn’t want her life to change, she felt a compulsion to know. She sighed.

“You ok Kinz?” asked Mazzie breaking in to her thoughts.

“Yeah, I’m fine. How’s he doing?” She pointed at the goofily grinning Mark who at the moment studied a tree.

“I think Vamper Bell messed with his head. He’s not been right since I met up with him.” said Mazzie.

“Peter did say it would take some time wear off. Maybe he’ll be alright tomorrow?”

“Hopefully. Did Peter tell you anymore about who you’re supposed to be?”

“No,” said MacKenzie curtly. “I’m not sure I want to know, either.”

Mazzie frowned, wondering why MacKenzie was so upset. “Kinz,” she started to say, but stopped when Carl rose from the grass.

“Carl!” Both girls ran to him, grinning. Mazzie heard Mark’s startled gasp.

“Whoa! So cool!” said Mark.

MacKenzie rolled her eyes and Mazzie gave Mark a concerned look. 

Carl was agitated, “I don’t have much time. MacKenzie, have you gotten the book yet?” When she shook her head no, he wrung his taloned hands, “Oh dear. I’m afraid Hephrix is trying to get a hold of it. You must retrieve it before she does!” 

Mazzie snorted, “Yeah we know all about Hephrix trying to get the book.” She pointed a thumb over her shoulder at Mark, “His brains are a bit scrambled because of it. Vamper Bell bit him and now he has swiss cheese for memory.”

“Who?” asked Carl confused, “Come here boy,” he beckoned to Mark. 

Eyes wide with awe, Mark cautiously approached Carl.

Carl bent down and searched Marks eyes. “Hmmm,” he muttered, “this looks like the work of a fairy

“Like I said!,” Mazzie snorted, “Vamper Bell bit him and now he’s not right.”

“Vamper Bell? I don’t know that fairy.” said Carl concerned, “Are you sure that’s the name?”

MacKenzie rolled her eyes, “It was Aletha.” She shook her head at Mazzie.

 He turned to MacKenzie, “Are you sure it was Aletha? Why do you call her Vamper Bell? Nevermind I don’t have time” he said as Mazzie opened her mouth to explain.

MacKenzie snorted, “Considering I have only met one fairy in my life, I think I would remember her name.”

“Right, right,” muttered Carl. “You need that book. We all need you to know who you are.” he said plaintively.

“And it seems no one plans to tell me.” snarled MacKenzie, frustration welling up.

Carl smiled weakly and shrugged. He turned to Mazzie, “Why do you call Aletha, Vamper Bell?”

Mazzie chortled, “Yeah, because she looks like the vampiric version of Tinker Bell.”

“Tinker Bell? What a ludicrous name! What kind of self respecting fairy …”

Mazzie doubled over with laughter gasped, “Clearly you’ve never heard of Peter Pan or Disney.”

“Oh come now! You’re just spouting nonsense!” cried Carl. “You can explain yourself later. I really must go. Peter should be able to help Mark. Perhaps Aletha got the dose wrong? If so, a whiff of Durian should set him right. Now, I must be off.” Just like that he melted back into the ground, leaving only a divot.

“What’s Durian?” asked Mazzie.

“Dunno.” said MacKenzie, staring absently at the place where Carl disappeared.

“Maz,” said Mark, “I don’t think I’m feeling well, I swear there was some enormous beast standing here. Ridiculous, huh?” He looked sick to his stomach.

“You’ll be ok Mark,” comforted Mazzie, with an arm around his shoulder. “Hey, you don’t know what Durian is, do you?”

Mark shook his head. “No, what is it?”

“No idea.” shrugged Mazzie.

“I think it’s a plant of some sort,” said MacKenzie, joining the conversation.

Mazzie pulled out her phone, “I’ll google it. OK Wikipedia say’s ‘The durian is the edible fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio.’ Good job Kinz! It is a plant.” she held out her phone so they could look at the image.

“That’s a prickly looking fruit.” remarked MacKenzie.

“Weird,” said Mark, “Why do you want to know about Durian?”

Mazzie ignored him and laughed, “Listen to this! ‘The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage.’ Why would anyone want to put something in their mouth that smells like raw sewage?”

“It doesn’t say that!” challenged MacKenzie.

“It does!” said Mazzie showing MacKenzie the article.

They both looked at Mark and started laughing.

“What?” he said, “Why are you laughing at me.”

“Apparently, whatever is making you feel off, requires sniffing Durian to make you feel right again,” chortled Mazzie.

He frowned, “Seriously? Why in the world would you think that?”

MacKenzie sighed, “Sorry to laugh Mark. It really isn’t funny, but you are missing some memories and we are trying to help you get them back.”

Peter and Kelso ran over from the teeter totter where they had been trying to launch each other off the high end. From the grass stains and dirt marks on their clothing, it appeared they were successful. Both boys were laughing and trading jibes. Peter’s expression went from childish innocence, to aged adult concern when he looked at the three teens. “What has happened here?” he asked with the authority that outstripped his youthfulness.

Mackenzie gave him a bemused look, Mazzie stared at him as they would an adult who discovered them being naughty. Mark was back to staring at a tree.

“Relax ‘Yggs’” said MacKenzie sarcastically, “Carl was here a minute ago questioning me about the book. He was concerned Aletha overdosed Mark. He said if her treatment doesn’t wear off we should have him sniff Durian.”

Peter frowned. “No. I trust Aletha completely.” He lowered his voice, “As to Mark, I don’t know anything about him. Until I do we will leave Aletha’s treatment in place.”

“What about him?” Mazzie pointed at Kelso, who stood silently next to Peter, grinning widely. 

“Don’t worry about Kelso.” said Peter dismissively. “He’s been with me since the beginning.”

“The beginning of what?” asked MacKenzie suspiciously.

“I know Mark! Doesn’t that count?” said Mazzie angrily. “He’s been my neighbor for three years!”

MacKenzie studied her friend, “Are you sure Maz? I just met him for the first time at Mum’s play.” She hated taking Peter’s side at the moment, but she remembered her initial reaction to Mark.

Mazzie opened her mouth, but shut it as she looked at Mark. Had it really been three years? She realized her memories of him were somewhat fuzzy. “Maybe I need to sniff some Durian.” she muttered.

“Peter,” MacKenzie turned to him with a frown, “Could someone be messing with our memories?”

Peter sighed, “Yes and no.” He held up his hands as the protests from both girls started, “Let me explain, but not here.” he sighed and looked around. “Kelso it’s time to go home, I’ll see you later.” 

The perpetually grinning Kelso waved and trotted off toward his home.

“That’s creepy.” observed Mazzie. She rounded on Peter and said, “Don’t you ever hocus pocus me like that!”

Peter chuckled, “Never. Come on, lets get Mark home and we can go talk in my room.”

An hour later they sat in Peter’s room. Peter reclined on the bay window seat, staring out at the oak tree. Mazzie lounged in a bean bag chair and MacKenzie stretched out on Peter’s bed contemplating the pattern on the quilt.

Peter broke the silence. “Kelso is a druid. He knows who he is because I led him to this knowledge.” He held up his hand as MacKenzie sat up angrily, “Kinz, I could tell you who you are, but you wouldn’t understand. The words would garble and I would sound as if I am speaking gibberish. I am forbidden by Gaia to tell you. You must gain the knowledge through your own path. The druids are my path.” 

MacKenzie sighed. Bitter tears choked her words, but she refused to let them fall. “Isn’t that always the way? Problem is, I like my life. I don’t want to be anything but MacKenzie Jones, daughter of Olivia and Charlotte Jones.” 

Peter smiled sadly, “Don’t you see Kinz? That is exactly who you are, but you are also so much more. You can be both. Trust me on this.”

“What about me?” asked Mazzie, feeling left out.

Peter grinned, “You thought you were an only child, didn’t you?”

Mazzie sat up and looked at Peter, “What are you talking about?”

“Maz,” said Peter, his smile warm and mischievous, “Go home and talk to your parents. Things are changing for all of us. And don’t worry about Mark. We’ll find out where he fits.”

Mazzie stood up, annoyed, “Peter Jones or Yggdrasil, or whatever you call yourself, you are still an annoying boy!”

Peter’s rich laugh swirled about the room.

“Stop that!” Laughed Mazzie. “It’s not fair!”

MacKenzie stood up from the bed, “I agree. Come on Maz, I’ll walk you home. I’m tired of all this nonsense.” It was clear Peter’s earthly joy would not penetrate her emotional depth.

Peter turned back to his study of the tree, his voice followed them as they hurried out the door. “Don’t forget to have the Mums check out that book for you,” 

In response, MacKenzie slammed the door.

“Everything ok?” called Olimum, from downstairs.

“Fine!” Mackenzie shouted back. “Let’s go. Apparently you have big news coming.” she snapped at Mazzie.

Mazzie nodded and followed her down the stairs, a knot of unease swirled in her gut.