Jade and the Old Woman

(Photo by Dan Felstead of Wood and Pixel Narratives)

JADE AND THE OLD WOMAN



Jade walked down the old brick sidewalk, stepping gently over a few cracks and loose bricks. Even though she was over six feet tall, the glamour didn't keep her from tripping if she wasn't looking where she was going. The occasional person she met on the sidewalk paid no attention to the plain young woman walking down the sidewalk. She laughed to herself thinking of the green skin and long thin legs that no one could see but herself.

She was looking for a new place to live and she'd had a friend recommend a boarding house on Daisy Street. As she carefully watched the house numbers increase in size, she finally stopped at 1132 Daisy and looked at the sight before her. Before here was a metal gate with an arbor covered in thick green morning glory vines. The glories had not started to bloom yet, but they promised a delightful array of colors in the coming weeks.

Two clay urns marked the entrance on each side of the sidewalk and Jade stood looking over the gate at the two-story house. She knew from her friend that there was also an attic room and this was the room that was for rent. Cheap, which was exactly Jade's price range. Because she came from the planet of Jadocon, she was used to the hot dry air that would be present in the attic room during the summer.

Four white round post held up the front portico and they each had several layers of red paint, reminding Jade of a candy cane. She had been introduced to candy canes during her first winter on Earth, but her best friend Devan. She felt a wave of sadness come over her at the thought of losing Devan. Life on Earth had been so much better when she had a friend she could share her secrets with.

Now, she was on the run again and trying to stay ahead of the people who wanted to capture her and use her as a science rate. This quirky, eccentric house should throw the scientist off for a few months, allowing Jade to regain her strength and decide what her next plan of action would be. She still had four more years to spend on Earth before she could go home to Jadocon and if she couldn't escape these people, she would not learn everything she needed to learn.

The inviting red door beckoned to her to her and she opened the squeaky gate and stepped onto the red brick sidewalk, similar to the one on the street side, only a lighter shade of red. There were lush green gardens on each side of the sidewalk and several Boston ferns sitting and hanging from the front porch.

There was no door bell to ring, only an old-fashioned door knocker in the shape of lion's head. Jade hesitated but a moment, then grasped the knocker and rapped three times on the door. She waited several minutes before she knocked again, and this time she was answered by a quiver voice, "Hold your horses - I'm moving as fast as I can."

When the door opened, the woman on the inside of the door and the girl on the outside of the door both stared at each other in shock. The older woman looked to be older than any human Jade had encountered on Earth, she had never seen so many wrinkles and character in one face. The older woman looked at the girl and saw - not the illusion of glamour - but the tall green girl with large black, almond-shaped eyes. They both gasped in surprised.