Chapter 1

Fae. For such a soft word that slips out of the mouth the way it does, it carries too much weight. Carlin wished it was something cool, like Wielder or Redbone, something. But no, he got Fae. He didn't hate his race, of course not, they were strong people with many victories and talents. Disgruntled is the word that would be used for the way he felt about the word Fae, though.

It was a cold morning, the numbing bite refusing mercy on Carlin's wide-framed nose. It nipped all the way up to right before his eye, signaling he might have a runny nose soon. His early morning walk was silent, save for the crunch of dried leaves under his castoff shoes. Thoughts had begun to drift back to the notions of earlier. His skin had caused him grief in the past, but nothing he wasn't used to. Carlin was Fae, after all, and that's all people really cared about.

He was born of an Ice Dweller and of a Nightshade. In history books it's unclear what came first (he believes it was the flowers). Nightshades were resilient people, he thought. His father, skin darker than any onyx he had ever dreamed of, was something he had always found beautiful. His mother standing next to him almost appeared as silly in his mind, snow-white skin appearing as if she was the light to his shadow. They almost reminded him of Yin and Yang. The dark and the light, always moving around each other in harmony, a perfect fit. They're personalities were complimentary, almost as if the Elementals themselves had woven a special form of magic into their lives. Their love could make cupids sing.

Carlin's stroll had exceeded to a stop when he reached a house. It was slightly bigger than his, though he had never felt any jealousy towards the home or anyone that lived inside. He glanced down at the small fence, the poor rickety thing only reaching above hip level. Given enough momentum Carlin bet he could clear it in a single leap. He didn't think it was intended to keep anyone out, but more he felt for appearances, if he was being honest. One strong gust of wind and it would blow straight away. He reached over the other side and unlocked the latch to give way for him to push it open with his thigh. The gate creaked open as Carlin let himself onto the premises. He pushed it shut behind himself as the telltale ker-chak of the gate sounded out behind him. The rock path leading up to the house was well-kempt, the small, detailed rock path showing him the way to his destination.

As if on instinct, Carlin looked around the front yard, taking in the vibrantly green grass dotted with flowers and weeds of various colors and petals. He noted daisies, tulips, dandelions, ferns, and maybe some lilies. In the far corner, the point of the roof of the shed peeked out from behind the house. Its worn-down brown color seemed to shyly greet him good morning as he took in the array of color. His feet had already begun their journey to the front door of the house as he made more notes and comments to his inner monologue. He climbed the steps of the light beige porch, immediately feeling the warmth from the residence in front of him. The closer he got to the door; the smell of Mrs. Monsoon's famous Moon Pie had danced its way into his senses. He raised his hand to rap on the heavy wood in front of him, almost immediately hearing the cry of voices and barking as the attention to the door had been noticed. A beat. Then, the door handle rattled and shook as the hand behind it attempted to open the door. The wooden barrier swung open to reveal the exact person he had seen behind the glass side panels, even though they were blurry.

"Morning, Lin!" A flash of paper white teeth as his friend smiled with his rosy lips. The person standing in front of him was bent over to help push the still yelping canine behind him, posing no threat, but teeth still bared confidently. Carlin had to give that dog credit for still going. One final push of the dog, and it gave up before pacing his stumpy black legs only a few feet away.

"Still pretty feisty, huh?" Carlin commented, looking past his friend as he gave a small smile in greeting.

"Dude, you're telling me!" His friend had retorted with a chuckle.

Carlin was pulled into a small embrace. He had noted that his friend had chosen to tie back his hazelnut hair into a bun at the base of his neck, probably to keep it out of the way. Tiny splatters of white flour were scattered on his face. The ever-present smile on his friend's face widened as the embrace was initiated, the dotted spots of darker brown on his already tan face lifting.

The hug ended just as quickly as it began, both boys taking a moment to smile before the latter was finally let inside. The cozy home was just as warm as Carlin had thought, various paintings, pictures, wood carvings, clocks, and other trinkets and wall decorations. He gazed around the cluttered home as his friend behind him had begun a small playful battle with his pet.

The journey through the residence had ended in the kitchen, facing a small plump woman with her back turned. She resembled the boy behind him, except smaller and more full-figured. Carlin cleared his throat. The woman in front of him continued her actions.

The boy peered over her shoulder to see the usual devices in her ears not present. Carlin sighed as his friend came up from behind, seemingly tired from the day's activities.

"Ma left her hearing aids out today."

The pointy-eared male nodded before reaching over the counter next to him to flick the lights on and off to get the older woman's attention. She hummed as she turned towards the light switch curiously before smiling warmly. She reached over the stove to turn the heat down and began to wipe her hands on her rose-colored apron.

Mrs. Monsoon crossed the small room to hug Carlin, wrapping her arms around him in a tight embrace, almost a Deja-vu like hug he had received from her son just minutes before. She swayed him back and forth, letting out a small tone-deaf giggle before letting him go, resting both her hands on his shoulders, reminding the teen again of her son. She released his shoulders from her grasp to begin the signs 'Good morning, how are you, dear?'

He responded with his own signs, letting his voice dance along with his fingers to include his friend in the conversation. "I'm doing great Mrs. Monsoon. Cerberus and Sam are as loud as ever!" The brown-haired male let out a chuckle behind him, while Mrs. Monsoon had given a small laugh of her own.

"What are you making?" He asked, already knowing the answer to the question.

Mrs. Monsoon got excited suddenly, her hands becoming a flurry of excitement and theatrics. 'Oh, I'm trying a new recipe for my moon pie! Last year was a success, so I want to try to see if I can alter it to make it better, so to speak. Samson has been helping me all morning. We're almost done if you want to be the first one to try it!'

"I'm sure it'll taste great either way, ma'am!" Carlin spoke.

The mother gave a small smile and tapped the younger boy on the shoulder playfully. 'Alright, I'll stop bothering you boys and let you hang out. 10 minutes on that pie.'

Carlin gave her another side hug before letting Samson lead him back to his room, even though he had already known where to go.

Both boys had plopped themselves on the neatly done bed, Samson taking the liberty of laying back, getting the powder previously forgotten on the sheets. He paid no mind to it, however, coming to the conclusion he had to wash his sheets that day eventually as well. Once Carlin left, of course. Kind of rude to ignore your guests when they come over. Especially someone like Carlin.

Speaking of, he was the first one to break the silence. "Everything alright over there, Spots?"

Samson nodded. "Yeah, man, just chilling."

Carlin nodded as well. He let himself fall back onto the bed, mirroring his friend.

"How's your mom doing?"

The teal-haired boy gave a credulous look. "Is that a genuine question or are you making fun of my mom?"

"I'm being serious."

"Uh, she's fine, I guess?"

"Just fine?"

"Yeah?"

"Okay."

"What?" Carlin sat up to see his friend better.

Sam glanced up to look at his friend. "What?"

"Why are you acting so weird?"

"Why are you acting so weird?"

"I'm not?"

The brunette snorted. "Sure, okay."

Carlin plopped himself back on the bed. Silence. The boys stared up at the ceiling, the white noise of the standing fan in the corner spreading cool air, the only thing permeating the silence of the two. It wasn't a bad silence; Carlin had begun to conclude. Usually their hangouts consisted of laughter, but both seemed not in the mood for it. Samson still seemed tired from (what he assumed) was running around all day, and Carlin just didn't want to do anything recently. Most of the time he just wanted to lay in bed all day and not do anything. But obviously he was just being lazy. Nothing else to it, he guessed.

"I burned your house in UsCraft yesterday."

Carlin suddenly didn't feel lazy anymore. He had grabbed a stuffed animal that was resting under his waist and hit his friend in the middle of the nose. His friend then retaliated with his own stuffed animal, both beginning a small battle littered with giggles and small curses.

15 minutes later, Mrs. Monsoon came into the doorway to announce that the pie was ready for the boys to eat. The two boys leapt up from their place on the bed and scrambled up into the hallway to take their places at the wooden table.

'Careful, it might still be warm.' she warned before picking up the plates and handing them to the two.

The boys signed their thank yous and began eating, expressing their love for the pie through expressive, almost theatrical moans of delight. Most of them weren't fake though, as they both thoroughly believed in showing their appreciation for the little things in life. Mrs. Monsoon smiled happily to herself as the boys gave their excited feedback, helping the lovely woman figure out what to do better or add more of.

After the quick break, both Samson and Carlin had helped clean up the table, rinsing off dishes and helping put the ingredients away. During the clean-up, Mrs. Monsoon, the poor woman, had forgotten to turn off the oven so Carlin had done it for her, not wanting to make a comment since he knew she would be very embarrassed by the small mistake. She was an easily flustered woman.

'So,' she started, once they were done and had sat down to talk about the pie. 'How did you two enjoy it? Was there something you didn't like?'

Carlin went first, repeating the same way of speaking he had done before. "It was really good, Mrs. Monsoon! I don't have any complaints."

Samson joined in, then. He signed along with his words, copying his friend behind him. "Yeah, it was great, Ma. I personally don't have any problems with it."

The plump woman seemed pleased at this, an almost relieved sigh escaping her pink lips. 'Thank you, boys. Is there anything else I should make for the festival? I was thinking of doing some side dishes as well, not just my pie.' She signed.

Samson's face lit up, as an idea formed in his head. "You could make those tarts you used to make for us when we were younger. You know, the ones with the lemon and the crust?"

Mrs. Monsoon smiled. 'Oh, I haven't made those in ages, love! That sounds like a lovely idea.' She turned toward Carlin. 'What about you, dear? Do you have any suggestions for me?'

He paused. "Um. You could maybe turn your pie recipe into little cakes." He supplied. The mother smiled at him.

'That's an excellent idea, dear.'

The three continued their meal, filling the day full of laughter before sending Carlin off a few hours later.