Fantasy Faire

Author's Note:  This chapter will include some words from other languages besides English.  If you click on those words and there is a translation available, the translation will appear in a popup window.

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When we got to the Keane's trailer, I saw there was a sheriff's patrol car parked nearby.  Suddenly very nervous, I was about to run back to the woods when I felt Robin let go of my hand.  I wasn't even aware I was shaking until the hand that had been holding mine pulled me into a tight hug.

"You're all right, my Frodo," he whispered in my ear.  "I'm here with you and I am not letting you go.  You won't be alone ever again as long as I live.  I'm not getting separated from you without a fight and I'm willing to bet my mom and dad will both join me in that fight.  Tania might too, and you know how deadly she is with a fistful of glitter," he added with a soft giggle.  The humor finally got through to me and I stopped shaking with fear and started twitching with laughter.

"Robin Goodfellow, my angel fairy boy, champion in my hour of need," I whispered back to him.  Then I pulled back and looked at him.  "Yes, a fourteen-year-old boy in a gold lamé loincloth will be so much help against an armed deputy from the sheriff's office."

"I may be young and gay, but I'm not helpless," he pouted.  "I'm stronger than I look, and I'll have you know I'm very fast."

"Oh, I already know you work fast," I teased him.  "You met me this morning and within two hours you had me naked in your spooge stained bed."

He blushed intensely and I was more turned on than I have ever been before.  "You didn’t seem to mind at the time."

"You're right, I didn’t," I confirmed.  "I also won't mind when I sneak back into it tonight when everyone is asleep except the two of us."

"You... wow... you want us... want us to... umm."

"I want us to sleep next to one another," I explained directly.  "I need the home your parents are providing me, and I respect your parents too much to take advantage of them, and you, like that."

"Meaning you're afraid of my dad?" he teased coyly.

"No, your mom," I replied honestly.

"No doubt," he agreed seriously.  "Section one, paragraph one of the little boy's rulebook states that you should never piss off the mommy."

"Little boy's rulebook?" I questioned.

"Yeah, my parents have been telling me about rules from the little boy's rulebook as far back as I can remember.  I think I was eight when I finally realized that there was no such actual book."

"It got you to behave yourself and learn proper manners, though," his mom said as she walked up to us.

"Well played, my queen," I told her with a flourished bow and a grin.

"I like you more all the time, you little silver-tongued rogue," she laughed.  She then got serious and took my hand in hers.  "Sweetie, the sheriff is here to ask you some questions about your father.  Marshall and I, as well as Raymond, will all be with you while you talk to him.  Robin can stay as well if you want, but for now, I would caution you both not to be obvious about your relationship with him just yet.  We don't know how he feels about the subject, and we don't want that to influence his investigation or his opinions on the matter."

"Robin and I are just very good friends, Mrs. Keane," I said with my best innocent smile.

"You aren't planning to be a used car salesman when you grow up, are you?" she teased.

"No, I honestly don't know what I will be any more," I said honestly.  "Up until today, I was supposed to grow up to take over the church from my father someday.  I never wanted to do that, though.  I don't want anything to do with church ever again."

"Young man, I hope you will not let your father turn your heart from God," a deep voice announced.  I looked up to see the sheriff standing nearby.  I quickly took a step away from Robin and let go of his hand, blushing all over.  So much for not being obvious.  "Your father's version of religion bears very little resemblance to the true Christian faith, Elijah.  I knew that from the first time I met your father, and I would like to apologize to you for not ever having thought to check into how you were being treated by him, even when I suspected that he was not all he should be as a minister, or even as a man, for that matter."

"I was taught to hide things very well, sir," I told him.  "I tried very hard to make sure that no one knew what my family was like in private, because in private it would get much worse if I slipped up."

"I've seen the pictures, Elijah," he told me, "and I am happy to say that it will never happen again to you on my watch.  Your father is currently in custody on a number of charges, but I need to hear more from you about your suspicions of his activities outside the church.  I want to be able to throw everything we can at this man, even though he will never see freedom again at this point anyway."

"You mean you want me to talk about the times he would come home smelling like a campfire, and the next day some non WASP family would have a burned cross in their yard?"

"Wasp?" Robin questioned.

"It's short for White Anglo-Saxon Protestant," the sheriff answered.

"My dad is against anything and everything that isn't white, Baptist, and straight," I explained.  "I think he has made that pretty clear publicly, so I am guessing I don't need to talk about that part."  I then went on to tell my memories of his actions and behaviors which led to my suspicions of his involvement in the hate group.  I made sure to tell the sheriff how to get into the hidden room in my dad's office at home.  It was where he disciplined me, but I knew it also held filing cabinets that he didn't keep his church or personal financial records in, although I couldn't really guess what was in them.  At that point, the sheriff, stopped me and radioed that information to his deputies, who I hadn't known were searching my house at that moment.  We all heard them report back that what they found was proof in both pictures and documents that my father was indeed the Grand Dragon of the local Ku Klux Klan Neo-Nazi hate group responsible for not only the cross burnings, but if the pictures and documents found were to be believed, also torture and lynching of more than a few people.  The deputy then asked the sheriff to get in his car for more news not for public ears.

"Based on new developments, I am going to have to go to your house myself in a few minutes, Elijah," the sheriff told me.  "I'm afraid I have some very bad news for you as well.  Elijah, apparently your mother was aware of something personal about you, and had hidden that knowledge from your father.  He was told something this morning by a young lady of your acquaintance, at the urging of her parents."

"My ex-girlfriend told my father that she thought I was gay, didn't she?" I asked hollowly.  There was a growing sense of impending doom inside my gut.  Something really bad was going on and I just didn't know what yet.

"Yes, son, I have been told that is what happened," the man confirmed.  "The girl in question came to your house and rather than talk to your father as her parents had ordered, she decided to talk with your mother.  She and your mother were having that discussion when your father walked in on them.  According to this girl, your parents got into an argument over the information.  Your mother was defending you; I feel you should know that.  She wanted your father to back off his beliefs and let you be who you are."

"Mom did that for me?" I squeaked as a tear came to my eyes.  "Mom has never stood up to Father for me before."

"Well, she did today according to this girl who witnessed their fight," the man told me sadly.

"Mom and Father fought?" I questioned.  "Is Mom alright?" I asked already dreading the answer.

At this point, Mrs. Keane pulled me into her arms as she was crying hard, but still managed to tell me what I never thought I would hear.  "Frodo, sweetie, your father killed your mother this morning, and very nearly killed the girl who was with her."

"I'm afraid at this point it has become a double homicide, Mrs. Keane," the sheriff told us all.  I don’t remember anything after that.  I heard Robin yelling, and then everything went black.

What had happened at my house was that the sheriff's deputies arrived to arrest my father on charges of child abuse of me, but when they got out of their car, they heard screams from inside the house.  They broke in as my father was standing over my mother's dead body in the process of killing the girl who had witnessed the killing.  He was taken into custody and Lisa was taken to the hospital where she lived long enough to give the police a statement of what had happened, before she too died.

I woke up in the apothecary's cabin of the fair, lying on the exam table.  Robin was holding my hand and was bent over my chest crying and pleading with me not to leave him.  I put my other hand on his head and ran my fingers through his hair.  He gasped and jumped up to look into my eyes.

"He's awake!" Robin yelled.  I grabbed my head and moaned, and he instantly apologized for making so much noise.

"Robin, I know you want to keep your boyfriend in your arms forever, but I need to borrow him for just a moment, so I can let the ambulance know if they are still needed or not.  Since he is awake you no longer have an excuse not to run back to your trailer and get dressed fairy boy, or you can't go with him," I heard Todd saying from somewhere in the room, then his face came into view over me.  "All right, mister, you and I are going to take a trip to the hospital.  Whether we do that in an ambulance is up to you.  Are you feeling stable enough to ride there in a regular car at normal speed with a properly dressed boyfriend holding you all the way?"

"I don't need a hospital," I told him.

"You don't make that decision, I do, and I already did," Todd said firmly.  "Now, I am going to ask you some really silly questions and I want you to concentrate on the answers for me.  What day of the week is it?"  He asked several more questions which were to determine if I was thinking clearly or not.  "Ok, sheriff, the ambulance is not needed," he finally announced.

"Thank God," the big man in uniform said seriously and made a gesture on his forehead and chest.

"You're Catholic?" I asked him.

"No, I'm Episcopalian," he answered.  "I would love for you to visit one of the churches in our diocese and learn that Christianity is not what your father spouted from his pulpit."

"I'll think about it," I told him.  "What's going to happen to me now?  What about my parents?"

"I'm sorry to say your house is a crime scene, so I can't let you take much from there, but I will find a way to get some of your clothing to the Keane's for you," he told me.  "I will contact them when you are allowed to go back in and go through what is left there after we are done with our investigation."

"Elijah, sweetie, if you want us to, we will help you with everything else," Mrs. Keane told me as she stepped up and ran her fingers through my hair.  "You had already been placed in emergency foster care with us, and Raymond is working on the papers now to make that longer term, but we need to know if there are any other family members anywhere."

"No, I'm an only child, and so were both of my parents," I told her.  "My father's parents are dead, and my mother's parents are in a nursing home.  Oh... Do they know what's happened?"

"We will take care of that, son," Mr. Keane told me softly.  "Just tell us how to contact them."  I didn't know the phone number for the place, but I told the name of the home and what town it is in.  "Really?" Marshall asked.  "You know we only live two blocks from that place when we aren't living in the trailer for the fair?"

"Would I be able to go see them, sometime?" I asked.

"If you aren't over there every day, you will have to answer to me, young man, and I believe you have already stated that you don't want to do that," Mrs. Keane said with a smile.

"Yes ma'am, Mrs. Keane," I told her with a blush.

"And stop with the Mrs. Keane," she scolded.  "I am Elsa and this is Marshall."

"No ma'am," I said seriously.  "That wouldn't be respectful as you are going to be my foster parents.  But I don't really... I mean would you mind if I don't call you...."

"I'm not your mom, so of course I am not hurt that you don't want to call me that," she assured me.

"Thank you, my queen," I smiled.

"Oh, you're going to spoil me with that sweet talk," she giggled like a girl.

"Hey, I thought you were hot for my son, not my wife," Mr. Keane joked.

"I am my king," I told them both seriously.  "I just....  This really does feel like a fantasy where a powerful king and queen have taken me in after a handsome prince rescued me."

"You sure he's ok in the head, Todd?" Mr. Keane asked with a smirk.

"If I'm the handsome prince, does that make you my princess?"  We all turned to see that Robin was in the door of the cabin still pulling up his pants with one hand and sliding his other arm into his shirt.

"Robin Inigo Keane!" his mother yelled.  "I know you did not just run all the way across the fairgrounds naked as the day you were born."

"Of course not, mom," he denied.  "I had my underwear on."  At her raised eyebrow he added mumbling, "Ok, I had them on most of the way though."  He looked up at her with tears in his eyes though as he said, "I had to get back to Frodo as fast as I could.  I didn't want him to get taken to the hospital without me."

"Ok, son, we understand the urgency, but that doesn't excuse streaking through the grounds," his father said sternly.

"Nobody saw me, and besides, how much does my loincloth really cover anyway?"

"He gets this from you," both parents yelled at Todd.

"I... I... How did I get dragged into this?"

"You are a bad influence, Todd Schmuff," Mrs. Keane told him huffing like only a mother can.  She turned to me with a frown then because I started laughing hysterically.  "Just what is so funny about this, young man," she demanded, but she was already starting to smile.

"His name is Schmuff," I gasped between my laughter and pointed at Todd.  "That makes him Healer Smurf."  Everyone but Todd joined me laughing.

"OY!" Todd exclaimed.  "I think you need to stay in the hospital overnight, young man.  I will make sure you get the meanest, oldest, ugliest nurse in the hospital to give you an enema with your sponge bath, right before she gives you nine vaccination injections in your smart ass."

"I'm sorry," I told him, although I'm sure everyone could tell I really wasn't.

"I'm so unappreciated around here," he sniffled melodramatically.  "I'm just comedy relief to all of you."

"Awww, you know I love you, Todd," Robin told him.  "You're like an extra uncle to me; the fun uncle."

"I wuvs you too, Uncle Smurf," I told him with a big grin.

"You are definitely getting injections at the hospital, you little worm," Todd scolded me and then poked his tongue out at me.  "And they are going to be the ones with the big needles too."  He turned back to the others then and got serious.  "I believe we are ready to go, as soon as someone retrieves transportation for my patient.  All kidding aside, I don't want him walking until I have gotten him to the hospital and checked him over thoroughly."

"I really was just teasing," I said nervously.

"And so was I," he answered.  "But I wasn't teasing about having you checked out.  You have hit your head a few times today from what I have heard and then there is the whole shock to your system that the rest of the day has brought.  You will also be talking to the psychologist on call for an evaluation as well.  There is no way out of that one," he told us all as several people were about to protest.  "I lose my license if I don't report that you admitted in my presence a recent suicidal intent with plan of action.  I will recommend that you not be kept inpatient, but I don't make that decision.  What you were planning to do today is extremely serious and things suddenly going better for you in the romance area do not cancel that out immediately.  Even if you weren't suicidal, I would recommend counseling just on the basis of the abuse and the trauma of today regarding your parents."

"I understand, Todd," I told him sincerely.  "I think maybe talking to someone about everything would be a good idea.  This really has been both the best and worst day of my life."

"I'm part of the best part right?" Robin asked nervously.

"No, you are all of the best part," I corrected.  "Everything else good that happened today has happened because I met you this morning in the woods just when I needed an angel to come running into my life and save me."

"That is so sweet and romantic," Mrs. Keane said with a sniffle as she wiped a tear from her eye.

"I think your taste in boys has definitely improved, son," Mr. Keane added.  "Now step out of the way so I can carry my son-in-law to the truck.  I would like to make it to the hospital and back again with a little time to sleep before the fair opens again tomorrow."

"I'm really sorry for being so much trouble," I told them all.

"You are not being trouble," Mrs. Keane corrected me.  "If you had run across the fairgrounds naked, you would be trouble; in fact, you would be IN trouble and a lot of it."

"But Mom," Robin started.

"No buts from you mister," his father cut him off.  "You have shown yours off enough already."

"You, my little streaker, are grounded," Mrs. Keane told him.  "Since you don't really have any privileges to speak of while we are staying in the trailer, you won't be staying in the trailer the rest of this week.  You will spend the nights with your grandmother in her camper."

"Mom!" Robin exclaimed.  "The last time I stayed in Baka's camper, I kept getting poked by pins and needles all night.  Her sewing stuff is all over the place."

"It was one pin, and it was your own fault since she asked you to clear the sewing stuff off the spare bed before you climbed in and you thought you could just shove it over," his father announced as he carried me out of the apothecary's cottage and back through the fairgrounds.

"Chikno,Chikno, ("Son (Romany)") what's happened to the chavo?"chavo?" (" Boy (Romany)") Robin's grandma called out as she hurried up to us. 

"There have been a lot of new developments, Dai,Dai, (" Mother (Romany)")" Mrs. Keane told her.  "If you can give me a ride into town following the sheriff, I will tell you all about it."  To me, she said, "We will go with the sheriff to your house and collect some of your things and bring them back here for you, sweetie.  Is there anything in particular you want?"

"I have some books hidden behind some boxes in my closet," I began.

"I'm not bringing you anything naughty, young man," she told me.

"Oh, no ma'am," I said quickly.  "They're books on medieval clothing.  Father doesn't allow me to have any books other than my school books and the Bible, so I have to hide them.  I would like to have them so I can be a better salesman for Mrs. Keane."

"Baka'sBaka's ("Grandmother (Serbian)") name isn't Keane," Robin informed me.  "Dad changed his last name to Keane because he was tired of people not being able to pronounce his real one."

"You can call me Baka, or Grandma, either one, cutie," the elder Mrs. Keane told me.  "You don't have to worry about trying to say Knežević."

I looked over at Todd and whispered, "I think we might better hurry to the hospital."

"What's wrong? Talk to me, Elijah," he replied with concern.

"People are talking but I keep hearing words that don't sound right in my head," I answered as I shook my head a bit, which was a mistake because I got dizzy again.

"First of all, they are speaking different languages," Todd told me, obviously relieved.  "That's why the words sound different to you.  Mrs. K is from Serbia, and is Romany, what some people call gypsies."  My eyes widened with understanding and surprise both.  "Second, don't shake your head like that right now.  What all did you eat today?"

"My mom...." My voice broke off and I had to swallow hard to keep from crying right then.  "Mom always feeds me a big breakfast."

"Breakfast was a long time ago, sweetie," Mrs. Keane scolded gently.  "Have you not eaten anything since then?"  I shook my head shyly, knowing I was about to get into trouble with a mom.  "You should have told us you were hungry," she said softly, to my surprise.

"I have been so busy and so excited I didn't really think about eating," I told her honestly.

"Here, you take a piece of this baklava I was taking to Sybil the drabarni," Baka told me as she unwrapped the plate she was holding and shoved a piece of some kind of bread stuff at me.  I didn't want to be rude and I was really hungry so I took a bite.  It was the best food I ever tasted.  It was sweet and crunchy and flaky and just all around yummy. I quickly scarfed the rest of the treat and licked my fingers.

"Wow, that was the best food I think I've ever had," I gushed.  "Thank you, Baka."

"Here, you take another piece with you," Baka smiled as she handed me a second piece.  "Sybil should watch her figure closer than her tarot cards anyway," she added with a laugh.  I practically inhaled the sweet wonderful treasure, almost purring with happiness at the taste.  "I will be sure to make a batch just for you as soon as I can, chav.chav. (" Term of endearment; Child ")"

"Do I get some too, Baka?" Robin asked sweetly.

"I don't think so," she said firmly.  "I look out the window of my vardovardo (" Caravan or Wagon (Romany)") just a bit ago and see you running across the fairgrounds nongo nongo ("Naked (Romany)"), your little bul bul ("Bottom or Behind (Romany)")shining for the world to see."

"I was in a hurry to get back to Frodo," he blushed.

"You were pulling your holew holew (" underwear (Romany)")up instead of down," Baka said with a mischievous grin. "What'll that accomplish with your Frodo?"

"Dai, don't encourage the boy," Mr. Keane fussed.  "He is going to stay with you this week instead of at our trailer with his boyfriend because of that little streaking spree."

"Chikno, why are you punishing me when he is the one running around nongo?" Baka asked.  "He'll eat all the food I have in the vardo."

"BAKA!" Robin whined as he blushed really red.  "I am so unappreciated around here," he mumbled.

"See?  What did I tell you?" Mrs. Keane snapped at Todd.  "Too much time around you."

"How come you always have to drag me into it when you get into trouble, brat?" Todd pouted at Robin.

"Misery loves company?" Robin supplied with a grin.

By that time we had gotten to the truck.  As Mrs. Keane told the sheriff that she and Baka would meet him at the entrance to the parking lot for the fair in just a moment and follow him to my house, Baka pinched my cheeks and kissed me three times on the forehead and said, "Kushti bak. "Kushti bak. (" Good Luck (Romany)")"  Just as Mr. Keane put me in the truck, we heard a little voice yelling for us to wait.  Tania rushed up and climbed up into the truck, crying and hugging me so tight it almost hurt.

"I'm sorry, Lijah," she sobbed.   "I didn't mean to break your head when I threw glitter at you.  Please don't be mad at me.  I'm sorry."  Well, my heart just about broke into a thousand pieces.

"Tania, sweetie, you didn't break my head," I told her as I hugged her back.  "You just gave me an extra bath, and I needed it too, because I was really hot."

"I didn't hurt you?" she sniffled, pulling back to look me in the face.

"No, little princess, you didn't hurt me," I assured her.  "I'm the one that hurt me.  See, after I got my bath in the woods and bumped my head, I bumped it again in your trailer, and then I did it again."  I put melodramatic emphasis on the second 'again', making her giggle a little.  "Then something really bad happened at my house, so I can't go home and live there anymore, and I fell down and bumped it again."  Once more I really exaggerated the last word, earning another giggle.

"You're silly," she told me.  "You shouldn't bump your head all the time; that can hurt."  All of a sudden she started bouncing on my lap excitedly and squealing.  "I KNOW! I KNOW!  You can live with us.  Mommy and Daddy have let other kids stay with us sometimes when they couldn't go home.  And you can have your own room and everything, but maybe sometimes you could stay the night in my room on my other bed and we could play?  Please Lijah?"  She turned her best puppy dog eyes on her father and begged him next.  "Can Lijah please, please, please come live with us?  I promise I won't throw any more glitter on him, and I'll pick up all my toys every night if Lijah helps me?"

"That sounds like a great idea to me, chikni,chikni, (" Daughter (Romany) ")" Mr. Keane smiled and winked at me.

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Author's Note:  Ok, you should all know me well enough by now to know that I can't do 20 plus page chapters very often, so the first chapter of this story was an anomaly for me of epic proportions.  I hope that it didn't spoil you too much, and that you will be ok with this chapter being more my normal range.  Next, this chapter introduced a bit of background to the Keane family that will impact the story a bit, so there  will be occasional words in either Serbian or Romany from time to time.