Never Leave The Window Open

Disclaimers: sisterwine75@hotmail.com. The X-Men do not belong to me. They are the sole property of Marvel Comics and 20th Century Fox. The idea is mine but, I do not sell, lend or trade ideas for money or paperclips. Just for fun.


I had heard stories of half-finished old wives tales about why you should never leave your window open at night. I laughed them off as I did any children's fairy tales dealing with elves or fairies or flitty things like that. I certainly scoffed at the tale of an elf prince who came into people open windows and played tricks on them while they slept. So one night, I decided to test the theory myself. I figured, I slept light enough to hear something in the room with me.

Puling up on the window, and pushing out the screen, letting it fall the 2 storeys down, I stared up at the hugely bright full moon and sighed. Sighing to myself and half laughing, I turned back to the bed, across from the window and made myself comfy, laying on my back ontop of the covers. I closed my eyes and waited, listening for any sound. It being only 8 o'clock gave me plenty of time to rest and get my breathing down enough to make it sound like I was sleeping.

Around midnight, I heard the chirping of a bird and then the hoot of an owl before the flutter of wings from something I'd never heard before. The flutter grew louder and stopped abruptly as the creature sat crouched on my windowsill. It peered inside but didn't move. It was waiting and listening to me as I was to it.

Staring at something from under my eyelashes, I could see a figure of a frail animal or possibly an owl. It was staring at me but didn't see my looking at it. A silver outline of someone- yes, it was a human form- twitched and waited there.

A sigh as I rolled over onto my right side and waited for it's next move.

Sure enough, it moved to perch on the footboard of the bed. Crouched in the same position as on the sill, it watched me. It giggled softly and carefully climbed down onto the floor, hiding behind the end of the bed. It waited there as a jerk from me caused the mattress to bounce.

Lifting my head up off the bed, I snorted. "Musta been the wind." Grumbling and rolling back onto my back, I waited. I began thinking it was a simple game of chess and that we were merely toying with our pawns before getting into the real match. I heard the soft chuckle and could feel it peering at me from the corner of the bed. Yawning and clearing my throat, I started to babble in my fake sleep about nothing imparticular.

The thing moved closer and came to sit on the floor beside me, staring at me. It sighed and stood up. Leaning over me and reaching out to touch me, a noise spooked it and made it look from me to the open window. It's scent was a soft powder and lilac scent, pleasant and just soft enough to be in a dream. It inhaled and froze position as I inhaled the scent.

It crouched again, on the sill, this time looking out at the darkened yard. Long dark hair cascaded down it's back, between two of the most glittery and translucent butterfly wings I've ever seen.

"Wings?!" I sat up and opened my eyes. The words seem to spill out before I could stop them. "I don't have wings."

The figure half-turned around and looked at me from over it's shoulder. "Course not, you're a human." His eyes glowed a faint red and his voice was soft and smoothe like a warm Spring day. There was a hint of an accent but it was so soft that I barely heard his voice. "Yer dreamin, cher. Go back t' sleep." He winked at me and with another flutter, was gone.

{ Ä }

The next morning, I woke up and jumped up to stare at the window. It was still open and empty of the figure that sat so calmly in it the night before. I slid out of bed and walked over to close the window. Pausing as I locked the window, I turned around and took a good look at my bed. I hadn't remembered taking off my jeans and laying them on the side of the bed, nor did I remember slipping under the covers as last night had been a bit cooler than previous ones. "A practical joker, huh? Yea, right." I laughed to myself and shook my head as I tried to think of why a joker would tuck a man in but not play a trick on him.

The image of him perched on the sill, staring at me, came back to my mind. A sprig of a thing, with long hair and fairy-like wings. And his eyes that glowed as he turned around and casually spoke to me in a sultry voice. He had been dressed in little less than a loin cloth that barely fit his thin form, and hung on his hips, covering his personals. The ears, I hadn't really noticed all that much aside from the hair and the wings. The face was a boyish face and fresh pink lips moved like silk as he spoke.

For the rest of the day, I devoted myself into catching this creature and seeing for myself whether or not it was a dream. By dinnertime, I had my trap all planned and set, ready for the "elfling" to try it again.

I waited for nightfall and just my luck, 3 nights of a full moon. I passed the time by watching a movie, downstairs and listening for any sound coming from my room.

The window falling shut and latching with a loud thud, woke me from my dozing. I jumped out of my lazy chair and ran upstairs. Dashing to the left and then to the right, I saw him. He was pulling on the window, trying to lift it with all his might but, not noticing that it had locked as it closed. I smirked and watched him grunt and growl and pull upwards as if he were trapped in a cage.

Noticing someone in the doorway, he stopped and ducked out of sight and into a dark corner by the window. His eyes glowed and a small growl surrounded him.

"I knew I wasn't dreamin." A smug smile came across my face. I reached to my left and flipped the switch on to get a better look at him.

He huddled behind a rocking chair that an ex of mine had left. Peering at me from just over the back like a cat about to pounce on a ball of yarn, he watched me closely. The growl continued and started sounding like the growl of a tiger cub. His eyes darted from me to the window and back again as if he were being threatened by a wild animal.

"No use pullin on the window, it's locked." I smiled.

"So, unlock it." He whispered.

I shook my head a few times and answered. "No, but I would like to see you. It's not every night that I trap a fabled myth in my bedroom." Leaning against the frame, I casually waited for him to move. "You- uh- hungry? Or, can I get you something? You comfortable?"

He hadn't moved but continued to watch me. "Non. Just open de window."

"Ya know, I heard alot of bullshit stories about things like this, and I never could figure it out why people told me to keep the window closed. Now, I guess I know. So, I closed the window, just hadn't thought I'd catch you, in here. That was pretty sneaky, you telling me I was dreamin but yet here you are. And, the wings.....? How is it you have wings? I thought elves or whatever you are- didn't have wings. Then again, you don't really exist, do you?" I pushed off of the door and came into the room, sitting on the side of the bed and stared at him.

Slowly, he stood up and glared at me as if taking offense to me explaining that he was considered a mythical fantasy. "People only call us dat cause dey don't remember de times when we were allies."

"That's why you play tricks on people." I summed.

He nodded.

"Why my window? I'm guessin you knew I wasn't asleep. Why'd you stay?" I looked at him more closely now that he was standing up.

Long auburn bangs draped over his eyes as the rest of the hair covered his shoulders and down his back. The wings had been lain down so that it resembled that of a cape. He was still naked, save the loin cloth around his waist. He was scrawny but not undernourished. "Ya weren't like de others. Dey're dreams were too loud and de noise from dey're mouths was unbearable. Hur' Remy's ears." Covering his elfin ears and mocking the pain of a shrill sound.

"Remy, huh. That's yer name?" I asked and watched him jump to attention as he hadn't realised I heard his name. "I'm Logan." I smiled.

He bowed but never let his eyes leave me. "En chante. Now, if you would please open de window, my fat'er expectin me back to pick a wife." Rolling his eyes at the word, he glanced at the window that was still closed and very much locked.

"You don't sound too thrilled at that. Why the hurry?" I glanced to where his eyes now sat, at the window, and then back to him and saw his slender shoulders shrug in answer.

Lowering his head and examining the chair, he pushed it out of the way as if it were a feather, and came closer to me. "Fat'er say, if I find someone else ta rule wit' me, I won' have ta marry de sprite princess like we were promised. She's de jealous type an' Remy's not one ta be okay wit' dat. He's not excited dat Remy's in love wit' humans but, Remy's happy with bein himself, no?" He eased himself to sit beside me on the bed and watched me as if I was going to do something.

"You like humans, huh? What's daddy gonna say if you fall in love with one and choose to marry them?" Turning to face him, he smelled just like the night before.

He shrugged. "Den, Remy's on his own."

"Found anyone yet?" I asked, trying to lift his melancoliness.

He shook his head and tilted it to the left. "Only have til de end of de last full moon 'fore I have to marry her."

One more night to choose. That's a crunch. "No offense but, you don't look like yer old enough to pick a wife just yet."

He smiled and laughed softly. "Remy's over 500 years old, cher. Jus' how long d' I gotta wait 'fore I can choose?"

"Virgin?"

He nodded.

"Anyone look interestin?"

"Mm... hmm."

"Okay. There's a start. Certain preference? Wings? No wings?" I slipped, and he noticed. Staring at me and blinking his gorgeous eyes into mine. "I mean, no offense but, they are a kinda big giveaway that you aren't really.... from around here. Also, the eyes and the ears are a slight hint that you aren't human. If that's who yer goin for."

Remy looked at me, thinking. "Dere's been humans in de woods near where I live. Dey been comin dere fer lotsa a years, and Remy's been watchin dem havin deir play." He blushed and flinched away as I caught on to the kind of play he meant. "Dey make love in de woods and listen ta how beautiful de song of de wind is t'rough de trees. Men an' women, women an' women, men an'....." He cleared his throat and stood up. "Please open de window. Don' have much time an' Remy's not lookin ta marry de sprite girl." He went for guys. An elf prince that went for guys. Human guys, at that, and he was attracted to...... me?

I stood up and sighed. I waited until he turned his head from staring at the window, to me, and then I kissed him boldly on the lips.

The 'tiger cub' growl seeped bewteen us and eventually separated us from the kiss. He stared at me as if I were a criminal, letting the growl fade as his wings emerged and fluttered behind him. "What was dat?"

"A kiss."

"Kiss." He repeated. "Nice." He leaned in as if to kiss me but stopped as the fluttering at the closed window drew his attention away. "Have to go. Open de window, please." Turning back to me, he said in a solemn tone.

I nodded and casually unlocked the window and opened it for him to leave. "Hey, come back and let me know the answer, will ya?" I had no clue why I was asking him to come back and tell me. It was none of my business why and whom fables spend the rest of their whatevers with but, I had to know his. I watched him leave and stood there untill I couldn't see the glow of his shimmering wings moving in the darkness, before I closed the window and locked it.

{ Ä }

Since moving to the swamplands of Louisiana, I had been spending more and more time in the woods and wading through the swamps, enjoying the nature of things. I've seen just about every tree, and mossed over stump or shrub in this watered-down wasteland but, never really took the time to think about what kind of creature might be living there. Every stump now held a new adventure for me to peer into, or tree now housed a different species to identify. I wasn't a scientist or anything but, it intrigued me to examine things more closely in hopes of finding that childlike elf, Remy.

I waited for the sun to go down before I started to head for home. I silently hoped and prayed I would come across his "village" and find him heading out to wherever he went off to. No such luck came to me, though.

The woods behind the house wasn't a very big group of trees. From the middle of the wood, I could see the top of the old tattered plantation house I had purchased. Making my way through the thin of the edges, I looked up ay my bedroom window and thought I saw someone standing there. I had left the hall light on in case I didn't make it back in time to turn any lights on so, the glow concealed the face of the figure.

Did my ex finally come back to take that gawd awful rocker out of my room?

I kept glancing back up at the window as I made my way to the house. The shapeless figure was starting to baffle me. I am not the kind to scare easy, and I could careless if someone thought they could rob me, and get away with it. But, who was standing there? There were no wings so, it couldn't have been Remy. And, I didn't give a key to anyone else.

Shrugging off the curiosity until I opened the front door and turned on the switch to the downstairs entryway, my eyes glanced up to the top of the stairs where the shapeless figure now stood. I blinked, and in that moment that I blinked, the figure vanished.

"What the Hell--?" The words tumbled from my mouth as I ran up the stairs to chase after it. I ran into my room and flipped on the light to stare at the open window. "Remy?" I called out to the light breeze that filled the room with cool air. Standing at the window, I sighed. Just an illusion.

Who believes in fairy tales, anymore?

Getting ready for bed, I pushed away all of the nonsense that had filled my head for the past two nights. I had shut off the lights, both up and downstairs, and crawled into bed, making sure to leave the window open. Laying on my back and exhaling out words of utter dismissal, I closed my eyes and yawned.

A flutter stirred from the windowsill. The crouching figure stared at me with faint ruby red eyes. A movement and they were standing at the foot of my bed, nudging my foot.

I opened my eyes and sat up, a bit alarmed at the shapeless figure now staring at me from under a hood and concealed by a long gray cape. "Remy?"

Reaching up, he lowered the hood to rest behind him. A shakey hand went to the lace that held the cape on his shoulders. With a pull of the lace, the cape fell to the floor, revealing the young boyish elf in leggings and a puffy white tunic with long sleeves that tied at his thin wrists. His hair was neatly combed back behind his shoulders, revealing his....... human ears? "De wings are gone, too." He spoke in his soft voice. "Remy's made his choice." He paused and looked slightly embarrassed. "Fat'er say, if de choice don' want Remy, den Remy have ta marry de sprite as a common elf. He also say dat if de choice choose Remy, Remy's allowed to stay human. Be human."

Not entirely about myself, I looked around for anyone in the room. "Me?"

He nodded and came to sit on the side of the bed. Staring at me with those ruby eyes, he calmly waited for my opinion. "Remy's lived so long. Been too long since Remy's felt dis way for someone, even a human. Never had a kiss b'fore." He paused again. "Ya want Remy, Logan?"

I smirked and looked him over. "I was kinda hopin you were gonna keep the wings. But, I just get you, huh?"

"Oui. Just Remy." He smiled as he sensed my answer. "You show Remy how humans make love, no?" He asked in almost a boyish curiosity.

A smile came to my lips again as I watched him undress and crawl into bed beside me. Watching him lay down, I leaned over him and started lightly kissing him on the lips, and neck and chest, inching my way down to his "elf"hood. It might have taken all night for us, but I showed him how the humans make love and enjoy the embrace of others, no matter what they came equipped with.

So, the moral is..... never leave your window open at night. You never know what you'll catch.


The End.