Apocryphal Family Tree: The Rough Draft

Lenny Meets The Drama Queens

Lenny was so tired. She'd stayed up for nearly thirty-six hours and the last four were spent in Heaven with dead relatives. Hopper said she'd still be here when Lenny started making sense again and stopped crying. Hopper sent Lenny to bed.
Lenny's dreams were weird and surreal and involved a cat, a snake, and Winnie. Lenny couldn't remember most of her dreams, just that there had been a cat, a snake, and Winnie. Maybe her predecessors were visiting her nightly visions that were happening at ten in the morning. When Lenny woke back up, the sun was setting again. She felt much better. Lenny was embarrassed about her lack of emotional fortitude from earlier but she was pretty sure Hopper would understand. She'd been to college. She'd definitely done that thing where you stay up so long that your brain probably starts cannibalizing all the logic centers in order to keep you sane but unfortunately that makes you come off as very unstable. Lenny didn't know if kids who didn't go to college, who made sounder financial decisions than her and didn't capitulate to peer pressure did dumb crap like that. Probably. Takes all types. Lenny waddled down the hall in a onesie and slippers. It was almost too hot for a onesie, so Lenny had most of the unzipped and it was like a thin weird legged robe. She shambled to the kitchen to make herself some tea. Even when it was too hot for tea, it wasn't. Lenny would be scantily clad and sweeting before she gave up her various kinds of loose leaf black tea with swirling clouds of coconut milk adding a little bit of sweetness, a little bit of body, and a really good mouthfeel to it.
While Lenny waited for the water to boil, she walked around hoping to run into Hopper. She felt her phone buzz in her pocket. It was Harlan. She was asking if Len had found the doorway yet. Len. The nickname now felt weird. Lenny fought the urge to text back you don't know me, because on truth it was Lenny who didn't know Harlan. But that could change. Lenny wondered if everyone at Bookshop knew Harlan was in bed with an untrustworthy character or if everyone at Bookshop was also equally unsavory. Lenny put the phone back in her pocket while she thought about her response. She had found the thing Key wanted but of giving it to her meant opening up Winnie's home, she wasn't sure at all if she should give up what felt like safety of being unfindable. Or at least having a home where supernatural beings weren't invited in. Not sure if the invitation thing is only vampires, but sometimes it's about what makes your feel safe if you can't actually be safe.
Lenny texted Harlan back, "found it." And that sent her phone buzzing and buzzing. Harlan has questions, apparently. Lenny didn't bother looking at her phone. She heard the whistle in the kitchen and went back to pour the boiling water over the dried leaves. Lenny choose a clear mug so she could watch the water turn to tea. She smiled at the beautiful mug and carried it to the table. Hopper was already sitting there. That helped. Lenny wanted to talk to Hopper and her being there made it easier than going to find her.
"A'ight, spill, lady," Hopper said.
"It is Heaven. Or at least it's what I'd think of as Heaven. All the former apprentices and generations of relatives. It's amazing. It'd be great to know where our relatives before slavery went. I'm excited to go back. Are you sure you have no one there?"
"Yep. And it's actually another universe. I think I can hop there with my powers, so I won't need the door. I've been trying to figure out how I've never ended up in Heaven with all of my jobs connecting the living with the no longer living."
Lenny shrugged. "A mystery for the ages," she said.
"Oh, this is going to bug me until I figure it out," Hopper said.
"On these jobs, how do you find the dead relative?"
"That's it. I don't look for the dead relative. I look for a living replacement relative. What use is it taking to the dead?"
"As someone who has been able to communicate with the dead for as long as I can remember, it's very useful. The person still exists, just in a different form. The harms they incurred are still their, the harms they inflicted still haunt them, everyone still needs closure."
"Huh. Never thought of it that way." Hopper said. Then she looked at my phone, annoyed. "Are you going to respond to whoever is blowing up your phone or at least put. It in silent?"
Lenny picked up her phone. "Nah. Imma answer them."
Lenny illuminated her screen. It wasn't just Harlan. It was all three of the other women that regularly hung out and occasionally gave Lenny clothes. The group chat had 45 unread messages. Lenny unlocked the screen and looked at her phone.
Made a group chat because Lenny isn't answering me. -Harlan
Do you blame her? -Flor
What you did was a shitty way to do things. -Flor
Key hadn't planned to do it. -Harlan
If Lenny had listened to us and not tried to summon anything, this wouldn't be happening. -Harlan
Lenny felt anger rise up in her. This was not her fault. She uncovered treachery and of course the traitor is upset for being caught.
I just saw all your texts. I was asleep not avoiding you, asshole. Lenny texted back.
Her phone was blissfully still in her hand. It stated still. Imma eat breakfast and then imma head to Bookshop. See you in about an hour.
Lenny did not look at her watch. Lenny ate the rest of her breakfast and finished her conversation with Hopper. Lenny went upstairs and changed. Lenny walked downstairs to head out for Bookshop. She looked at her watch. She needed to be back in 90ish minutes. The walk each way was at least 20. Lenny decided to talk the key route and walked back upstairs. She put the key in the lock to her door and turned it, picturing walking into Bookshop from the front outside door.
—
It could not be considered an ambush because Lenny knew she was walking into a trap. Why that hadn't made her more cautious about using her magic key, well, saving her time is also important.
Everybody who was anybody was at Bookshop tonight. At least that's how it felt. Key, Flor, Harlan, Andi, and Pops were all sitting at the bar.
"This an intervention?" Lenny said.
"What's an intervention?" Pops said as he patted a stool next to him. "This is all Flor's fault."
"Because none of you handled yourselves right. You want help, gotta come correct."
"You all want my help?"
Everyone was silent.
"Ugh, y'all be frustrating. Yes, all them mothafuckas want your help. If y'all don't start talking, imma tell your biz."
This snapped everyone out of their haze.
Calls of rude, how dare you, and you wouldn't dare were uttered. Flor stood there, hands on hips and a look that said try me bitch.
Flor slid a stout across the bar to me. I gladly accepted and thanked her.
"No matter how many times I said you're a human and you like helping everyone was like, "but what if she's not‽" So here we are."
One by one they told their stories. Pops is actually Papa Legba and he'd like my helping getting back on Winnie's good side. Andi and Key are married to one another. Andi is the child of a fallen angel and a human man. She may be immortal or long living, they aren't super clear on that. Harlan doesn't want or need my help for a godsdamned thing, she just likes the drama. Flor is also not mortal and doesn't need my help but is stuck with all these drama queens. She gestured with a flourish that said I also like all the drama, that's why she hangs out with these queens.
I took another sip of my beer working out all that was said. All my friends down here are supernatural beings. Most wanted something from me the instant I walked into Bookshop because they knew who I was and what or who I had access to. This hurts. Not as bad as finding out my parents lied to me for decades but still. I want yo not be hurt by this, but I'm not seeing another path. I finish the beer and look at my watch. I have to go if I'm going to walk back. I no longer want to use the key in Papa Legba's bar. I don't need uninvited guests Star six nine-zing my home and showing up in my bedroom. I really hope that's not possible and my brain is just being it's usual anxious self.
I'm working myself up about more and more and as I get more worked up, I start moving faster and faster. About halfway home I'm break into a dead sprint even though I'm not in sprint for whatever distance it takes me 10 minutes to walk shape. I get home and there's nobody that wasn't already there. I catch some looks from the elders as this is the most active they've seen me in weeks and I'm super off my regular here schedule. I'm going to end up sliding back into my night owl schedule if I'm not careful, although I've noticed that me being a night owl has worked well when everyone else except Hopper is a early bird or day person.
I grab some food from the kitchen and head up to my room to drop stuff off. Still no one. Deep breath of relief. I head over to Winnie's bedroom to relieve Glenny Mae. She gives me the side eye.
"Food belongs in the dining room or kitchen. This a bedroom."
"Sorry I'm all off my schedule. I can bring it back downstairs if you want," I offer.
"If you drop a crumb, you'll sweep and mop the whole floor," Glenny Mae asserts.
That seems fair enough for an old head like Glenny.
"Deal."
This entire time my phone has been continually vibrating. I look at my phone screen- 96 unread messages. After Glenny Mae leaves, I open up my text messages app to see texts from Pops and a new group message with Andi and an unknown number.