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The Crying Fox - Part 3

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Part 1 - abnom.deviantart.com/art/The-C…

Part 2 - abnom.deviantart.com/art/The-C…

Part 3

He was missed at church.  Jessica explained that he was feeling poorly, but not affected herself.  Although she received condolences and offers to visit or help, she managed to decline them without putting anyone ill at ease – no small task in the tight-knit community.

She was coming home from church when she saw the old lady for the first time, walking along the road.  The small black woman was humming to herself, and Jessica offered her a ride at least as far as the next road where she would turn for home, unless she was going that way herself.

“That’s very kind of you to offer, miss.”  The woman’s voice was strong but sounded different from anyone she had heard speak before, a faint African accent Jessica did not recognize.  The woman looked at her more closely.  “What have you been doing, child?” she asked.   Jessica was startled by the question, and looked at her.  “What do you mean? I’ve just come from the church.”

“Not church, a very different kind of power.  Oh no.  You’ve touched something powerful strong, and it’s affected you somehow.”  The old woman climbed up into the cart next to Jessica, still looking at her.  “Not you directly, but you know what I’m talking about, don’t you?”

“What?... How do you… What do you mean?”  Jessica’s eyes grew large.

“Let me see this power.  I know something about these things.”

“What do you know?”  Jessica had a glimmer of hope in her heart.

“This and that, and a little of some other, but show me what you have and we’ll see if my experience can return your favor.”

Jessica wasn’t sure what to say, but clucked to the horse and rode on with the woman sitting next to her, humming again to herself.

When they arrived at the farmhouse, the lady said, “It’s in two, no three places here.  In the barn,” she pointed to the left of the barn door, where the chest sat inside on Jacob’s workbench, “in the house,” she pointed to the kitchen side of the house where the vellum sat, “and just beyond that rock.”

“The rock?”  Jessica looked in the direction she was pointing.  She realized it was where Jacob must be hiding.  “How do you know this?”

“I feel it, child, just like I felt it from you.  It can’t hide from old Missy here.  But will you show me?”

“If you can help us, yes, of course!”  Helping her off the wagon, Jessica led her to the barn first.  The woman made a slight gasp when she saw the chest, the fox a distinct feature on one side.  “The changing chest of Othmar,” she whispered, “lost for millennia. Dozens affected... and now your husband?  He now appears like the fox in this picture, does he not?”

“Yes, yes, but how can we change him back?”

“I am not sure – yet.” She saw Jessica’s face fall then rise again with hope.  “Show me the second object.”

In the kitchen, she pointed out the piece of vellum on the table.  The old lady looked at it but did not touch it, walking around the table to view it at different angles.  “A stored spell,” she murmured. “Tell me how it happened.”

Jessica told her of the pinholes and the light from the candle had cast a pattern on Jacob’s face, glowing, then blazing bright, changing him quickly into a fox.

“He must recognize you still, since he has not gone far.” 

“Oh yes, we looked at the box afterwards and talked about the changes”

“You mean you talked to him, and he listened.”

“Well yes, and he told me what it had felt like when changing,” Jessica drifted off as the lady was now staring at her.

“This is not part of the legend.  He realizes who he is?  And talks?  Bring him to me – he is just outside the door now, listening.”

Jessica rose and opened the door.  Jacob was sitting there looking at her.  “So you’ve told her everything?” he asked.  “Who is this lady?”

Jessica turned to her.  “I’m very sorry, ma’am, my manners! I’m just not myself right now.  We haven’t been introduced.”

“That’s all right child.  Your manners came through when you offered an old woman a ride. Names or no, that shows a lot right there.  Now let me see you closely, husband of my friend.”

Jacob looked up at Jessica and slowly walked over to the woman sitting at his table.  She held out a hand to him like one would for a dog to sniff and he pulled his head back, staring at her.

“Ma’am, Miss, uh Miss…” Jessica trailed off.

“Missy is fine, child.”

“Miss Missy, this is Jacob, my husband.  And I’m Jessica.”

“I can see the bond you both have is a good one.  Now Jacob, let me touch you.”

“Where, Miss Missy?”

“Just plain Missy, please.  On your head, young Jacob.”

He slowly leaned forward and she reached over and placed her hand on his head.  It tingled, like a faint memory of what he had felt when the change occurred.  She brushed her hand over his head, lightly petting him once.

“The magic was strong, but it did not touch your mind or your soul.”    She smiled slightly.  “You will live out your full natural life. However, most likely it will be in this form.”

Jessica gasped and grabbed the back of the chair.  “Isn’t there anything you can do?”

“While I can see it, I do not have that kind of power.  It would take me many years to achieve that, and I could not do it here.  I am on my way to where I might be able to gain such abilities, but I cannot know when or even if I will be able to reverse such a spell.  I can tell you, however, there is another spell still here,” she waved her hand over the vellum.

“Not a reversal?” Jacob spoke quietly, as Jessica seemed to be standing quite still, her hand gripping the chair so hard her fingers were pressed flat against the wood. He walked over to her, looking up.

“I’m sorry, no.  It is another spell exactly like yours.”

“No!” Jacob practically barked.  “She cannot become like this.  I’m so low to the ground, this fur picks up burdocks and dirt, I can’t grip a thing with these paws… And who ever heard of a talking fox?  I’m more likely to be shot by someone thinking I might raid their chicken coop! No!  No one should ever have to become like this.”

Jessica was looking at the vellum.  “Jessica!  You wouldn’t be able to paint anymore!  We’d lose the farm!  Our hopes… would be gone.  I’ll learn how to be more useful this way, or leave.  You can say I disappeared, find someone else.”

“NO!”  Jessica stood back from the chair, looking down at Jacob.  “It’s you I married, and not once have I even considered someone else.”  She knelt down by him, and hugged him close.  Jacob felt abashed; he couldn’t even return a hug this way.

"Children.  It is an option, not a requirement.”  The old lady stood up as if to leave.

“You mustn’t go Missy.” Jessica stood back up.  “Who else can we turn to?  Is there anyone else who could help us?”

“I’m sorry.  No one here, no, child.  And I really must be going.  I have a boat to catch and many miles to go to get there.”

“Well you certainly cannot leave at this time of day.  Have dinner with us and spend the night before you are on your way.  We’ll provide breakfast and a sack lunch and if you must leave tomorrow, I will take you with the wagon to make up the time.”

Jacob sat there looking up at her, then up to Missy, and nodded.  “Even though you have brought us only bad news, the messenger should be rewarded for the information given.  Please, stay.”

The old lady sighed.  “Your generosity is too much.  For the one night only I will stay.  Then I must be going.  With your offer of the wagon ride, noon is the latest I can possibly stay.”

Jessica set about the kitchen, putting together the dinner. She worked to put together a full Sunday dinner, more than she and Jacob had shared for one meal in over a month.

Jacob took Missy out to his workshop, where he told her all he could about the chest, showing Jessica’s sketches of it, the lock, how it was pieced together, then taking her in the small parlour to proudly show her Jessica’s paintings.  She stopped by his nearly finished portrait.

“This really should be completed,” she said quietly as Jessica came in to tell them the meal was ready.

“It sounds like Jessica should have plenty of time.” Jacob said as they walked back to the kitchen, “if I am going to be stuck this way.”

“Maybe.”  Missy seemed to be staring off at nothing.

“Do you mind if Jacob joins us at table?” Jessica asked.  “He’s stayed off of the furniture since the change.”

Catching herself, Missy replied, “Oh, it is your house, the both of you, he does not have to stay from table on my account.”   

“I can’t use a knife and spoon, you know,” Jacob seemed downcast again.

“I’ll cut the food up for you, dear,” Jessica looked at her husband on the floor.  “You can have a seat up here with us.”  She brought another plate to the table and pulled back the chair for him to jump up on.

After grace, they ate quietly, talking about the weather and how the crops were doing and the general happenings in town.

“This is a good place to be,” said Missy.  “Plenty of reason to stay here.  Let me have your hand again child.”

Jessica held out her hand to her, and Missy took hold of it with both of hers.  “I see a long life for you as well,” she said quietly, “Regardless.  But I’m sorry, you will never have any children.  It would not have mattered,” she said firmly, looking at Jacob and back to Jessica.  “There are many paths, but I do not see children in any of them for you.”

“Oh, Jacob,” Jessica held back her sobs.

Jacob jumped off his chair and reached a paw out to her, feeling completely inadequate to quell his wife’s tears.  She came down and hugged him.

“Is there anything we can do, Missy?”  Jacob asked as they were separating for bed after the dishes were put away.   Jessica had closed the door to the bedroom.

“You can stay here as you are, and grow old in your present forms.  You could leave her here, and take a chance that I will gain the wisdom to change you back to your true form, but I think you know what that would do to your wife.”

“Why do you say forms?”

“She can use the last spell and change her form to match yours, and you could both come with me.  Now I know,” she held up a hand to stop his protest before he started. “You do not want that.  But it would be a way to stay together with a chance of changing back.  It would not be an easy life, but you are both good people, and I would do my best for you.  Goodness knows I could use the company,” she sighed.  “But I cannot ask you for me. However, this is also a chance that the spell could accidentally come to pass like it did for you.  I do not see that, but I would be long gone if it did.”

Jessica heard everything from behind her door.

In the morning, Jessica rose and prepared breakfast.  She set her easel in its place near the rock and called Jacob to stand in his spot. 

"I thought you said the evening light was best for this,” he said.

“The early morning light works just as well, and it’s cooler now.  I want to finish this.  I have my sketches and can see the differences enough to work from them.  Come, strike your pose before the light grows too strong.”

Jacob stood there, his paws on the rock, head turned slightly as she had previously directed, looking at her from the corners of his eyes, thinking.

He thought he knew why she might want to finish the painting now.  It made him very sad to think so, but he also knew her mind was made up and there wasn’t a thing he could do to change it.  She held out a sketch to compare it to the painting as she so often did, and added some touches here and there.

She put her paint brushes down, cleaning them and set them to dry.  Picking up the vellum out from her sketches, she held it up to the sun and with a flash, dropped it from her grasp.

“No!” Jacob shouted, rushing over.

Missy stood in the doorway watching, a grim look on her face as Jessica began to shrink, the bright fur sprouting from her skin, the fox nose stretching from her own.  Jessica looked at her hands as they changed into paws, the black fur matching Jacobs but not as far up to her elbows.  Her tail bloomed out from her dress as she shrank down into it.  Jacob fretted about her as Missy came down to help her out of her clothes.

Missy put everything back up in the house, the painting left sitting on the easel in the parlour.  With their encouragement, she took the horses, wagon, the chickens, and Jessica’s purse.  She closed everything up and drove the wagon down the road away from town with the chest containing Jessica’s sketches of it inside in the back, two bright, realistic foxes painted on one side of the otherwise grey, age-worn wood.  Few who saw her on the road noticed it or the two foxes lying next to it, and those that did wondered why the old woman traveled with foxes and chickens together in the wagon.

     

“She’s right there Ms. Franklin,” the one girl pointed out Sarah staring at the painting to her teacher at the bottom of the basement steps.

“Sarah, come on, it’s time to go.”  Ms. Franklin walked over to where Sarah stood as the other girl went back up the stairs.

“I see you found a painting of a fox, haven’t you?”  Ms. Franklin touched her hand gently on the little girl’s shoulder, breaking her out of her reverie.

“Yes Ms. Franklin.  He’s a handsome one.  But he’s very sad.”

“Oh, why do you say that?”

“You can see it.  He’s almost ready to cry.  Is it time to go?”

“Yes, we have to get back to the bus.  Up the stairs now.”

“Ok.”

Ms. Franklin took a closer look at the painting.  It had to be some trick of the light, but the fox did seem like it had a large tear coming faintly from one eye.

Image size
2371x3207px 1.46 MB
Make
Apple
Model
iPhone 5s
Shutter Speed
1/30 second
Aperture
F/2.2
Focal Length
4 mm
ISO Speed
250
Date Taken
Feb 16, 2015, 10:26:01 AM
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Comments7
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juju712's avatar
It was very stirring and full of feelings, congratulations. I didn't see the point of the 'present days' part but it does bring the feelings to their apex. Perfect. I still have a heartache.

About the format, did you find the 'image preview' function since you posted this? It would be more comfortable to read. And you forgot to credit the artist for the paint (if you know who it is).