Promise To Meet Me Home

Fickle

PS. Chapter Word Count: 1100

There's always something you'd think you'd react to differently than you do. You get arrested for a murder you didn't commit? What do you do? One might suggest they would cooperate with authorities and do the right thing but in the heat of the moment they would freak out.

That was the boat Sam Finch-Decker was in and it was sinking fast. What do you do when you find yourself kidnapped by a non-legal or biological brother you assumed dead and in an odd town named Fickleburg? Sam honestly surprised herself as she just went along with everything as if it were normal. Walking through town as Sammy and Illy pointed out odd beings and places.

"And over there is Morganella and the bakery! He's a baker," Sammy exclaimed, pointing to an orange being supposedly made of bread. Behind him was a broccoli shaped building made of assorted pastries.

Sam just nodded, eternally freaking out yet inable to express it.

"Yeah!" Illy agreed. "He makes our vegetables! They taste like croissants but they're all healthy! It's delicious!"

Their slow walk through town continued, Sam once again trying to convince herself it was all a dream.

"And that's the pet shop!" Sam pointed out, motioning towards a house covered in googly eyes. It was rather unnerving as all (probably 10,000) of them seemed to follow Sam.

"Yeah!" Illy agreed, "That's where Woody Jack makes pets like rocks and balls of yarn and brings them to life!"

Of course it was. "And that's the potion shop! Y'know, for potion ingredients," Sammy shrugged. The building in question looked like a witches hut. That was it.

Sam's head nodded on it's own. Everyone was staring at her, not a single person wasn't. The worst part was, most of the town's inhabitants were (looked) human. Though, there were a few odd beings such as Morganella here and there. Still.

A little ways down the line, the town stopped looking near identical the one in GreenWorks Trools. Instead it looked more like if you put everything in a Narnes and Bobles art shop, stuffed it in a blender, turned that into a town, and added more crap.

All Sam could really do was stare. She wasn't having an epiphany or feeling she was always meant to come and be here like other stories like this. The fictional ones. In fact, she felt the opposite. It was all a mistake or a streak of 'luck'. It could have been anyone who befriended Sammy years ago. That was all.

So, as Sammy and Illy continued to point out the library and the zoo, and the citizens continued to stare at her, Sam just stared. And nodded. And muttered, "Uh-huh." All the while she was heavily dazed.

Rounding the corner, Sam was aware enough to realize they were back where they began with the hanging huts and all. "And that's the whole, actually part of, town!" Sammy exclaimed as the group entered the square.

"Uh huh," Sam nodded, still dazed.

"Yeah, Fickleburg is pretty amazing," Illy boasted before adding, "Especially compared to what Sammy tells me about the world you two are from."

"Earth?" The eldest mumbled, slowly processing what she was asking.

The two youngest glanced at each other for several seconds before simultaneously they both burst into laughter. Through his giggles, the boy managed, "We didn't leave Earth, sis."

"Just human society," Illy agreed, her laughter dieing down before picking back up. Leaning back a little she lost her balance and landed on the concrete (?) still laughing a laugh that almost felt forced.

Sammy, done laughing himself, deadpanned, "You can stop now."

As if she were automated, The little girl just... stopped. She then stood up and smiled like nothing out of the ordinary happened. "Anyway... are we going to mark her now?"

"Mark? We-Were not going back to donating my-"

Still ignoring the eldest, Sammy continued, "Oh yeah! She has to get marked!"

Sam was confused. While sometimes things such as odd words with unknown meanings won't be explained and it turns out okay. A little annoying at first, but it will be explained. I should know, learning this story is harder than telling it. Still, when in a life or death situation, it isn't okay.

And, while as far as Sam knew she wasn't in a life or death situation, the current happenings were just as scary.

So, while the preteen girl and boy gushed about "Marking" Sam, she interrupted asking, "What in the world does "Marking" me mean?"

"Oh, of course," The boy began, glancing at the older with excited eyes. "Getting marked is when you donate your soul to the Fickle in exchange for a world away from human society. Because it sucks!" He seemed all to cheerful as he rolled up his perfectly normal looked jacket sleeve and shown the black mark.

It was... a black shaped that nearly resembled a square but it wasn't straight. The lines seemed to wobble but also seemed in place. Like every mistake wasn't a mistake and every curve was full of purpose. Illy rolled up the sleeve of her dress and showed an identical one.

Following that explanation, Sam had so many questions. I'm sure you do to and, luckily, the adult asked the first one that came to her mind, "The Fickle? Like Fickleburg?"

"Well, duh," Illy, chuckled.

"Yeah, When I found the orb the Fickle helped me make our home!" The one brunette agreed.

Why do answers always develop more questions?

"The orb?"

"The orb!" Illy cheered, not catching the question.

"No I mean- Never mind, what's so bad about human society?" The new, possible resident asked.

The boy stifled a laugh, "Well, duh, it separated us and forced me into a family I never was apart of so I ran and found us our place! Then you came today and finally made it home!"

"Yeah... okay."

The three stood in an honestly easy silence apart from the jingle from Illy's pigtails. Breaking the silence, the world creator cheered, "And now my whole family's together! Me, Sam, and Illy!"

"Yeah!" The youngest agreed, jumping a tad off the ground.

"Y-Yeah. Crazy day," Sam agreed slightly. Then, she just stopped.

Sam wasn't a confident person. While outgoing as a young child, she grew out of it all in her early teen years. Most of this day, most of this tour, most of this singular conversation she'd been on auto-pilot. But, as she mentioned the words, 'Crazy day', reality hit. It was real and she was just accepting it.

And, promptly, she fainted.

"Sam!"

PS. You probably know the drill: sandals or comments! :D