Dragonfly Dreams, Part Eleven

The heat of the coming day was starting to become a more viable entity as Frank once again found himself following in the footsteps of Chuck. They were headed back through the village and away from the pond…the magic pond. Just moments before, Frank had seen it create an exact duplicate of a deer which had gone for a brief dip. He was still in shock that something like that could happen. He wondered if such a creature would be considered a clone. He wasn’t sure.

Just then Harry McCain, the shapeshifter, came trotting toward them. Thankfully (at least to Frank), he was in human form once more.

“Good morning!” he sounded more chipper after his rest. His British accent, however, sounded out of place in the rugged and primitive conditions found in this Brazilian village. Frank smiled grimly. He was nervous about meeting this woman…this Irza. Had she really seen the face of God? Not likely. But still…with giant dragonflies buzzing around in his dreams, magical tattoos coming to life, and people shifting into animal form at will…he guessed that anything was possible.

“Ummm,” Harry asked, “Where are you boys headed?”

“Where do you think, mate,” Chuck said.

“You mean….her?” Harry’s voice stressed the final word, “Are you sure that he is ready?”

“Hey!” Frank grunted, “You can quit talking about me like I’m not here.”

“Sorry old boy,” Harry threw a small smile toward Frank, “It’s just that….well…Irza is special. I thought that we would wait until…”

“No time!” Chuck interrupted..his Australian drawl resonating in the morning air, “And it doesn’t matter anyway. Remember what I told you about this guy….he’s a Finder. He KNOWS things already hat he shouldn’t know.”

“Like?” Harry asked, stealing a worried glance in Frank’s direction.

Chuck stopped. He turned toward Harry and gave him a long, hard stare.

“Well, for starters,” he said angrily, “Frank here asked me about dragonflies this morning….very LARGE dragonflies. And another thing…he has suddenly taken a strong interest in Oprah Winfrey. Now how do you explain that to me?”

Frank saw Harry’s face pale considerably. He was looking at him like he had three heads or something.

“Hey guys,” Frank said, “I don’t know what you all are so worked up about. It was just a dream…honestly!”

They stood there for a moment….not saying a word. Suddenly, Harry just nodded and muttered something that sounded like “So be it.”

Chuck and Harry started walking again…a little more quickly this time. Frank let out a sigh and took off after them. Perhaps when he met this Irza then everything would make sense.

Coming over a small rise in the land, Frank saw that they were headed toward a hut that was larger than the others. Quite a bit larger in fact. And you couldn’t really say that it was a hut. As they got closer, he saw that it wasn’t made out of the crude materials like the other dwellings. In fact, he saw that it was a rather large, stucco building. Painted a soft brown, the colors mingled in with the others in the village so that it didn’t stand out. However, looking at it, one would know that this was the home of someone very special.

Another thing that was different about the house (because Frank could no longer think of it as a hut) was that it had several large windows and an actual door, large and red. When they got to the door, Chuck and Harry both stopped and turned to face Frank.

“We don’t go any farther mate,” Chuck said, “It’s up to you now.”

“What?” Frank was flustered, “You mean I’ve got to go in there myself? What if I scare her? This woman…this Irza…she won’t know me.”

Harry started to chuckle, “I think that you’d be surprised at what Irza knows. She has a certain gift at….seeing…things. Don’t worry friend…it’ll be alright. Or it won’t.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Frank was now confused as well as nervous.

Chuck and Harry both looked at each other and then they just shrugged their shoulders.

“It means what it means mate,” Harry said, “But when we were sent to get you, it was to bring you here. Everyone has their own journey to make Frank….and this is your journey. We were told to send you in….alone. And that is how you have to go.”

“Go on Frank,” Chuck smiled, “Don’t keep her waiting.”

Taking a deep, shaky breath, Frank reached out and turned the door knob. It creaked open a bit. From inside, he was surprised to find that he could hear the strains of music being played. It was an old song but one that he knew. It was a Billie Holiday song….what was the title of it? Wasn’t it Stormy Blues? Yes…he was sure of it! He looked over at Chuck and then at Harry.

“Do you hear that?” he asked, amazed to hear one of his favorite artists being played in this place….it was so surreal.

“Hmmm?” Chuck wondered aloud.

“No Frank,” Harry said, “But that doesn’t mean anything. If you hear something…just go with it. Things in Irza’s house….they don’t always follow the rules that the rest of us have to live with.”

Again, Frank found himself wondering what in the world he was getting himself into. But the strains of the song kept spilling out into the air around him….beckoning him. He loved Billie Holiday. The sound of her voice calmed him down….made him feel that everything was going to be okay.

“I’ve been down so long, that down don’t worry me………I”ve been down so long, that down don’t worry me……..I just sit and wonder……..where can my good man be?”

Closing his eyes, Frank stepped into Irza’s house. He heard the door click behind him. Billie Holiday’s voice swelled and washed over him.

Opening his eyes, Frank found himself in a narrow but long hallway. There was a room at the end of it….that was where the music was coming from. He walked down the hall….feeling strangely at peace. Was the music calming him down? The hallway was strangely devoid of any pictures or furnishings. It was almost like this wasn’t someone’s home. It was like it was just a generic EveryHouse….anyone could live here. What strange place was this?

Stepping into the room at the end of the hall, he saw something…someone… who totally shocked him.

“Oh my God,” he whispered.

Until next week….class dismissed.