The little guy stopped by this morning

It was a nice surprise, as the solstice had totally slipped my mind what with being out of work and all. I was embarrassed, though, when I couldn’t even scrape up a bit of bread and honey for him, but he smacked his lips over the Wonder Bread and strawberry Smuckers like it was straight from Alanna’s table. That’s the Eldest for you, gracious through and through. He did demur at the 2% milk and I couldn’t blame him. We shared a ginger ale, which gave him the burps for a minute and we both giggled like nestlings when the African violet on the sill above the sink started popping out blooms like Indian corn on a griddle.

He could only stay for a bit, he was on his way to handle a new situation up in the Northwest. A couple of filmmakers had gotten a hold of first-gen copies of the Patterson-Gimlin film and had used some sophisticated graphics software to enhance it better than anyone in the Courts had ever imagined possible. Apparently they can even make out LeeLee’s ponytail.

I got online for him to check it out and what I found alarmed him a little, I think. The enhanced footage had already been released on a DVD so it was no longer a matter of just making sure the original film was accidentally left on a car dashboard some hot day. And from their website it doesn’t appear these two men were going to be stopped by a simple “point-and-laugh” campaign, either. The little guy got a bit bristly for a moment and made it clear he had more than a couple of mocking jigs in his repertoire. I was reminded that he had been troubleshooting for Alanna when my kind was still trying to figure out fire. So I wisely shut my mouth, didn’t mention that any mortal could have warned the Courts about the progress of technology, and poured him another thimble of ginger ale.

After another round of burps and blossoms I did ask him if it wasn’t simply time for LeeLee to just suck it up and bring her family out of the woods. There aren’t many places left for them, and the number of humans roaming around with cell phone cameras is making it almost impossible for them to live the way they were used to anyway. He said that had actually been discussed in the Courts but LeeLee was nearly hysterically fearful of mortals dissecting her family. I pointed that if Michael Jackson hadn’t been dissected yet then LeeLee was probably safe. In fact, PETA and the ACLU would wet their collective selves getting to the TV cameras to demand special status and protection for the family. Movie stars would flock to their aide and Bono would hold benefit concerts for them. By that point I had even horrified myself so I shut up.

We ate our bread and jam in silence for a moment until the little guy gloomily made the point that even if LeeLee did come out it would just make things even harder for the others, like Nessie and the mothmen. And there’s just no arguing with that.

He stayed a little while longer and we talked about normal stuff like the latest gossip in the Courts and my job hunt. I again turned down the offer of a pox on the serpent queen. Even I don’t want justice bad enough to loose a fae pox in a hospital.

Then it was time for him to go. He asked if he could take some of the violets and I loaded him up with them, trying hard to remember what use his sort would have with violets. Something about preventing drunkenness, I think. I guess he plans to kick his heels up a little after dealing with the filmmakers. He promised to stop by again at the winter solstice and I promised to have proper bread and honey for him. Then the Kiss of Parting and he was off. Bless his heart. He’s the most faithful of all of them. But that’s the Eldest for you.