"But it's a nice cake, don't you think?" Alexis pleaded.I nodded and sucked my teeth. "I'll give this one to you, Alexis. But I get to choose the Christmas tree, and we are going to have snow on this part of the beach."He nodded and swooped in to kiss me happily.Alexis did not look the same as he had when we had first arrived. He wore jeans because they weren't as easily destroyed when he was working the farm. His hair was longer, falling over his shoulders. He would have chopped it all off had I not threatened to do the same. He kept it tied up and out of his way. A scarf protected his head instead of a hat, because he complained hats made his head itch. He was more brown than tan, and his curly hair was more gold than brown. His arms were harder and thicker as were his legs. He was a much thicker individual than the svelte Elder that had first attracted my attention. I loved the freckles that dotted his nose and his amber colored eyes that grew dark and light depending on his m

"Yeah, well, that's what I'm afraid of.""Oni is loyal to me, to all of us. What would life on this beach be without her?"He became thoughtful. "We could use some more help on the farm…"I smiled. "Let's talk to Oni about it."We dropped by Oni and Ran's house after dinner. While we watched King play with the baby chicks, we discussed the idea. Oni liked the idea and said she would help the spirits we called to understand and not be as confused as she had been.That night after putting King to bed, we tried it. I felt for the faint indicators that said there once had been something more…I can't put it into words. Inside of me felt like hollowed spots that should have been filled. I had been familiar with Oni when she had been nothing more than my Succubus, but I wasn't familiar with any of the other spirits that had animated me.I chose one of those empty spaces and called it awake, pulling it to me, cajoling it forward when it was reluctant and unsure. Finally, a black wispy su

"You're a big boy now," I said. "You're old enough to understand more than you did when you were a three-year old, so we can tell you more things.""You know that I created a small portion of the Underworld," Alexis said, "and I made this place in the way I make Pop Tarts and dinner when Mama's too tired."King nodded."Where we live everyone is good," Alexis said. "But it's not like that in the Above. Some people want to fight each other."King frowned."Mama and I wanted to stop it from happening, but other people didn't agree with us," Alexis said. "So, they sent us here. And now we have to wait until they call us back.""Like a punishment?" King asked.I nodded. "Yes, like a punishment. But we weren't bad.""And they still punished you?" King asked."They sent us away so that we wouldn't stop them from what they want to do," Alexis said."What do they want to do, Papa?" King asked.Alexis' eyebrows gathered. "Now that's a longer story. You wanted to know why you couldn't

"No." I smiled. "In this small piece of the Underworld Papa and I look like human beings. But we're not human beings."King nodded. "Because human beings are living and you and Papa are un-living.""Right." I nodded. "Well, you know the stories that I asked you to tell Papa and Uncle Ran?"King slowly nodded."Don't worry," Alexis said. "You don't have to tell them anymore. But you spoke about the Neratomay and the Chosen." Alexis explained briefly about the difference and that we were Chosen and Uncle Ran was Neratomay."Vampires," I said simply.King nodded. "Okay." He had heard most of this years before."Okay, well, a Vampire doesn't eat food the way we do down here," I said. "Like Aunt Oni doesn't need food but she eats it anyway.""Yes," King said. "She eats other things."Alexis' eyebrows dipped. "Other things? What do you mean?"King shrugged. "I asked Uncle Ran why Aunt Oni doesn't eat, and he said she eats other things and then he ran away."I hid a smirk. Chicken.

I turned to the powerful being cloaked in a child's body, remembering why I had always hated clowns. I stood over his prone body with my fists balled and ready to beat the shit out of something that looked like a seven-year-old kid. "What did you do to my baby?"I only meant to share information with him...Is he hurt?Bassma sounded as if he wanted to cry."What in the hell did you show him?" I shouted. "He's just seven years old!""My life," Bassma said softly using words that were as frail and gentle as a child's."We have to get out of here," Alexis said, trying to wake King, but King stared blankly with his thumb jammed into his mouth.Oni was so pale that she barely looked brown. Tears filled her eyes, and she was shaking like a leaf. Ran put his arm around her."We can't leave until King guides us out," Oni said.~*~King lay on a wood cot covered in colorful cushions and silks. I knelt beside him, holding his hand. Oni was on the other side of the cot stroking his