Silver Hair

Chapter 2

His daughters meant a lot to him, a time like this when they were preparing for a banquet that was so significant in their lives, made him think back to the times the girls spent with their grandmother, Terese-White. The girls had not been allowed to attend former celebrations of the Elixir of Life because they had been considered young and not ready for what came with such celebrations. Their fascination about one particular tale that their grandmother had told them had convinced Pink-White that this time around he would let them attend the celebrations.

At times he would listen in on the tales Terese used to tell the girls. His mind drove back to one time he had eavesdropped at the door while she narrated this aforementioned tale to his daughters. He had not stayed for long but he enjoyed the engagement from the little ones as she started.

~*~

Flashback

An aeon not far from now...

Four little bundles huddled close to each other, fidgeting under the plush beddings.

"Scoot Shimi," Shimki squeaked.

"No, I am good here." Shimi shot back using her small fingers to whisk away the wispy strands of hair that had fallen in her face.

"But your hair, it's in my fac..." Shimki did not complete her complaint.

Shinja interrupted their banter. She was the youngest of them all and the most eager to listen to the tale that their grandmother was about to tell them.

"Shush you two! Grandma wants to start." She stepped over her sisters who had covered themselves up earning herself muffled groans from each one of them. She would excuse herself to the loo before joining the rest for story time. She never wanted anything or anyone to get in the way of her enjoyment of the tales, that included peeing. She grimaced her apologies to them but kept on her mission until she dropped like a pile on the side closest to the lampstand. That was her favorite spot during story time because she was close to her grandmother and every word fell directly into her eager ears before it was interrupted by banter or snores from her sisters.

Her grandmother, Terese-White sat on a wooden rocking chair, rocking away gently as she waited for the little ones to settle before she started her tale. A tale that the girls never grew tired of. They wanted it read to them every night, every day. They would give her an earful if ever she slightly changed the tiniest bit of the story. Better yet, if she ever began a story other than that, they would dismiss her. The other four sisters would walk out of Shinja's room as though their grandmother had not started anything of importance. They blocked her out as if she was invisible.

"Grandma, grandma, tell us the story, the boy with silver hair," Shimpi eager with anticipation pestered.

"No, it was silver eyes." Shimi chided in insistently.

"No, it was not," Shinja squeaked.

"Girls..." Terese crooned gently, "May I begin?"

"Of course, grandma, do start." Shinja pleaded.

"Yes, yes, yes please," Shimpi, ever in a good mood bounced on the springy mattress.

Terese laughed silently, her form shaking with mirth at their eagerness. She hoped they would remember this tale. For it was a tale never to be forgotten. Enthralled by their curiosity, she thought, 'they will make wise queens someday'.

"Grandma..." Shimki nagged, "Would you start already?! Pleaseee..."

"Please grandma," Shinka chimed, "Or we might fall asleep and then, and then... we will never know how the story ends."

"As always..." Shimpi added matter-of-factly.

"Okay my dears, let’s get on with it then." Terese said smiling throughout.

The other girls did not know that Terese had always completed the story even when they had fallen asleep, however, she did not know that Shinja had always stayed awake to the end. Always eagerly listening to the end of the story and she liked how it ended.

"In the dim and distant past, there lived a prince. He was young, brave and handsome. He had the purest eyes and fairest hair. He believed in magic..." she was interrupted by a grumbling Shinka.

"But grandma, you said he believed in love..." Shinka mumbled grudgingly with a groggy voice.

"Yes honey, love. He believed in love..." she seemed to rethink her comment then she hastily added, "And magic too."

"Of course, Shinka you can believe in love and magic. Not so grandma?" Shimi asked pointedly.

"I see you are all very attentive. Now I will finish the story, if you promise to be quiet."

The girls became silent immediately. She read the story from a charm book that their mother had left behind. A chapter in there brought things into existence; it did not change the events but could relay them as they would be and maybe provide insight to things that are to be. She knew this and that is why she told the tale of the Silver prince with the charm book in hand.

Terese had decided long time ago that Shinja would take it up after she was gone, for that time was nigh. She had used up her time with them but gladness flooded at the deepest depth of her heart because the time with her grandchildren had not gone to waste.

“So soon?!" Shimpi pleaded, "Grandma a little more, please. We promise not to fall asleep."

"Please, please, please..." they all sang in singsong except for Shinka who had already dosed off.

"Okay if you will all be quiet and let grandma complete the story."

She drawled on about the Silver Kingdom whose heir's hair was all but fair. She did not bother to reach the time of his growth for the girls were lost in sleep with a contented countenance on each of their little faces speckled with little pebbles of sweat as they breathed in deeply. Their little forms moved with the action—up, down, up, down—like a see-saw. Shimpi was the only one that snored lightly.

Terese blew out the lamp after placing the charm book in one of the drawers in Shinja's dressing table. Then she headed to the window that was letting in azure moonbeams like that of a calm clear ocean whose waves swayed effortlessly, she began mumbling to herself in deep thought and concentration.

"I hate to do this to them but Pink will teach them all that I have not tackled in this short time that I have been with them. The memories we share will hold them through the tough times. I will find a way. I will guide them whichever way I can but for now, I have to go."

Tears rolled down her pale cheeks as she turned to watch the sleeping forms of her granddaughters for, she knew leaving them behind was better than stubbornly staying only to die later of an eternal death. It was risky to go but staying with them would be riskier.

Their survival depended on her disappearance even though it broke her heart into little pieces. To not be affected by the Gipus Curse, she had to leave them and head into the land of immortals—while there she could move a few things, not too many but a few things to help the situation. At least that is what she hoped would be the case. Staying behind to watch them grow was going to be disastrous as it would not be in honor of the agreement, they had made with the witches of Gipus kingdom.

She padded softly to the bed and kissed each one of them on the forehead lingering a second longer.

'"I will miss you," she whispered, her voice torn. "Your father knows I must go. I love you. I will always love you.'"

With that she walked out of the bedroom leaving the girls in Shinja's room snoring lightly, their delicate forms rising with the action. She heard footfalls as she headed out of Shinja's room but she dismissed the thought as paranoia concerning what she was about to do.

She moved towards the stairs and seemed to abruptly change her mind for what she was about to do, there was nothing in her room that was required for it to take place. Without taking a single step to go into her room, she dashed over to the sitting room where the plush furniture faded out with the effect from the glow of the cackling fire place as it died out.

Reaching for the poker from its vase that stood in the left corner of the the fireplace, she poked at the dying coals with it. A silent fire rekindled as she put out her hand on the shelf and felt for a match on its marble top casing. She got it and lit the candle that stood firmly on its candlestick sitting on the fireplace. Tears were cascading off her cheeks making her sniffle as she wiped away the salty drops that were flowing from her eyes.

"I am calling out to you Bingy-White. I need you. I do not want to go. Not yet. I know my time is nigh but I do not want to go, not when they are so young."

Her outburst was so sudden you could think that she was talking to herself in a soliloquy or maybe to some invisible person. But in response to her, a form appeared at the far side of the wooden shelf on its top left mirror door, a reflection formed.

"There you are. I thought you were never going to come." Terese gazed up at the image with adoration shining in her eyes.

It was a man old in age but the lines around his mouth revealed an ever-smiling man and not necessarily wrinkles. Fitted in the frame were his face, shoulders midway to his stomach. He had a stroke of pink hair above his right brow. He lifted his left brow and smirked at her. Despite the time and space that existed between the two of them, the fire sizzled still.

"Oh Terese! You have not changed a bit." His eyes skimming over Terese's form.

"Bingy, I miss you." She voiced quite weakly with a little color forming at the crinkles of her cheekbones. Gorgeous. Bingy thought.

"You are coming to me today, no need to worry about that anymore." He knew it hurt. It had hurt like hell when he had to leave everything behind for her sake. He missed her most of all.

At the mention of that she looked away into the cackling flame. This is why she had summoned him. She just did not know if he was ready to listen to what she had to say. A negotiation perhaps?

I know," she said with a wavering voice.

"What's the matter, my Tee?" She smiled at the use of his pet name for her. The smile fell almost immediately as she resumed. The hesitance in her voice told him all he needed to know. She was having second thoughts about their initial agreement. He did not worry however of her changing her mind. He was aware that she would make the right decision no matter the cost.

"The girls, Bingy, they are still so young," she added as if to justify her reason for having second thoughts.

"I know my dear. But we have pushed so far. If we push anymore, we will put their lives in danger." It would be beyond breaking stress of the string she had held for quite a while. He knew this. She knew this. But still...

"I understand. Is not there any other way of doing this?" She managed to pull her sad eyes away from the little furnace and looked directly into his eyes. Her gaze pleading with him silently for what she knew he had no power over. He felt her pain. He had sacrificed his time on earth so that she remained behind for their son and grandchildren.

"This is as far as you go. Pink-White must take on now. Half-immortality for them comes at a price that we must pay. You know that my love. You do, don't you?"

"Yes, yes, I do. Bu-but... they are just so... so young Bingy. How will our son handle them? God only knows that he is only but a man." A stubborn tear found its way down her right cheek. She quickly wiped it away with the back of her hand. Fear. Doubt. Pain. Frustration. Too much of everything. Always bad.

"Pink-White is stronger than you know. He will make it. It is sad that his wife had to die before seeing the girls grow." He shook his head as he reminisced on Evalene's life. Everything had gone south since that good for nothing Curse.

"They will need a mother Bingy. Can I stay? Evalene is not here anymore, it is not fair that they are left with no mother. They need a mother-figure in their--" her intonation was rising with each sentence. It would rise someone from sleep.

She needed to keep it down but somehow her voice was having none of that. She knew she sounded desperate and maybe it had actually come to that. She was desperate. Desperate for what would become of her granddaughters without her in their lives. Desperate for what was to come and what would become of what they had worked so hard for. Things they had sacrificed, were to sacrifice... Was it all worth it?

"They will be fine," he cut in to stop her down spiral of self-reasoning and admonishing. He could sense her inner turmoil.

"I sometimes wish the future did not have to cost us so much," she lamented.

"For them it is worth it. Now go ahead and say your last goodbyes to our son. At least you will not come this side to no one like I did. You will have me waiting for you on the other side. You will have me for eternity," he winked and disappeared with a pop.

It was nothing that Terese had not seen before. Over the years, she had called Bingy-White, her husband, for talks as this one when she was having second-thoughts about the choices they had for their loved ones. She missed him terribly for his love, counsel and charm. He had been a caring husband who considered her needs before his own. Her strength.

She had badly wanted to see her granddaughters grow at least to teen age before she left into the unknown world of the Immortality. It had been Bingy's idea to sacrifice over ten years of his life to add them to hers in order to grant her heart's desire, that was how much he loved her. She missed him ever since and even now when her love for him burned with a fervency so great it could not be quenched. His gift to her had served its time now she had to give it up.

Walking with tardy steps, Terese reached over to her son's door and halted her movement. Stretching her hand out to the door knob, she thought against it instead and spoke to him through the door. It would come back to him as a dream. She could not bear seeing his face while she said goodbye. Drawing close to the door, she tapped it twice, a slight rap that could not rouse her son. She talked.

"You will do well Pink. Your father believes in you. I believe in you. You will do well. I cannot stay. My life here is done but I will be with you. I love you." That was all she said—she could not think of anything else, if she said anymore, it would change her mind into not going—before she vanished before his eyes. He had seen it as a dream.

'This is all because of that nonsensical curse. If it were not for it, maybe, just maybe, things would be di...' She halted her thoughts and vanished into thin air.

Let it be known then that it had been the custom of the Greens to give up years of their existence to the Green Lake--because of the Gipus Curse--in exchange for immortality for their children. Bingy-White gave his ten years to his wife Terese-White for she had wanted to stay around and help her widowed son raise her grandchildren.

~*~

The next day, Pink-White woke with a start getting up from his bed. What a weird dream that had been! But his knowledge of the Green Kingdom about how things worked made him think otherwise of dismissing the dream as any other dream. It had to mean something. As if to answer his thought, Pink-White was welcomed by a sloppy footman when he stepped out of his room. He had tears in his eyes, his voice trembled with fear as he announced to the king.

"Her-her Majesty, the Queen Mother, Terese-White is gone. She cannot be found anywhere in the palace," he said panting while on bended knee, face down.

The anonymity of this happening was to the rest of the kingdom a surprise but not to Pink-White for he knew where his mother had gone--it had something to do with that odd dream he had had the previous night. It was only for him to know.

He wept.

...ends flashback.