Tricks of the Light
Patrick was taking a stroll through the woods when, suddenly, she appeared within a strange mesh of rainbow light. Baffled with it all, he immediately asked:
“Who are you? Or better yet, what are you?”
The five feet eight blonde girl was dressed in dark shades of green, save for the white stockings and varnished shoes. She was as pretty as mysterious, especially with the aura of swirling light enveloping her body.
“Why, isn’t it obvious with the outfit and all. I’m a leprechaun, silly!”
“Yeah, right!” He scoffed. “First of all, there’s no such thing as actual leprechauns let alone female ones! I know enough of the lore so don’t think for a second you can fool me. Nice special effects though” He said, eyes piercing the beautiful incandescence. “Which one of my friends put you up to this, Miss? It was Jack, right? No, wait! Seamus! That prankster never gives up!”
“No one put me up to this.” She pouted. “I’m telling you: I’m the real deal. You seemed like a nice guy, so I decided to show myself to you. I don’t do that a lot, you know?”
“Oh, come on! Seriously? You’re way too tall to be a leprechaun and isn’t your hair supposed to be red. I’m really not in the mood for silly game so if you’ll be so kind to turn off the laser show or whatever and let me be on my way, I’d be most grateful, thank you!” He retorted, looking even deeper into the vibrant spectacle of colors. It was warm, and quite inviting. He ambled forward.
“You really shouldn’t believe everything in the lore. We come in all shapes and sizes. And regarding the fact that I’m not a redhead, surely you know there’s such a thing as hair dying! We’re in the 21st century after all and a girl needs some variety in her life at the risk of everything getting stale, otherwise!”
She sure wasn’t dropping the act to easily so he decided to play along with an ironic question. At the same time, the lights surrounding her grew stronger.
“Okay, fine! You’re a leprechaun! Do you at least have a crock of gold hidden somewhere nearby? I could use some to pay off my debts...”
“Nope, sorry. Some of us still honor that tradition, but not me. I have a collection of my own, a very special one...”
“What’s so special about it?”
“I’m the only one in my family that collects human as toys and trains them as slaves. Congratulations on taking your first steps into becoming a part of my world.”
The rainbow flickered as she blew a puff of smoke. Specks of bittersweet ash fell on his hair, shoulders, and eyelids. A solitary rebel made its way to the tip of his tongue.
“Wh...at’s that sup...posed to m-mean?” He blurted, voice beginning to crack.
“Keep looking at the pretty lights, sweetie, and all answers will come to you, shortly.”
She was right.