They Come To Play

• Julia Moriarty, Grade 11, St Thomas Aquinas High School
• Short Story
• 2001

Finalist in the '2001/2002 Schools Short Story Competition - Magic and Mystery Theme' competition

The door shut behind the doctor. Adam leaned his head back against the wall and sighed. It had been a long day. His mind was strained—so much talking. The doctor and his monotone voice seemed to put a spell over their patient. At the end of a session Adam always felt numb and empty. The light in the room clicked off and the doctor’s footsteps retreated down the hall. Adam jerked his head up, suddenly alert. They’d be coming any minute now, he thought happily. He shuffled to the corner to wait for them. They had a routine now. As if cued by the thought, two patches of vibrant colors became visible in contrast with the stark white walls of the room. Adam began to shiver with excitement. He hovered closer, drawn to the sparkling images forming before him. Within moments the light play was finished, and in its place stood two hunched figures, neither more than a foot tall. “Hello, friend. We’ve come to play.” “I know. I was waiting. I’m very glad. Can we dance today?” “It’s as you wish, Adam. We shall teach you to move like a dryad and sing like a nymph. Then you can show it all to Dr. Blessmer in the morn.” “Oh, no. The doctor doesn’t approve of you. Gnomes or goblins or fairies—whatever you pretend to be.” “If that’s the way of things, we can leave, friend.” “No! Please!” “Then there will be no more talk.
The speaker lifter one of his tiny hands and opened it toward the sky. A black smoke materialized, weaving itself in wispy gusts around the legs of the one who invoked it, and the room seemed consumed by the supernatural. Soft strains of wooden pipes surrounded Adam, and he watched as the two small men began to move gracefully in time with the music. The spun around in and out of the fog in a foreign dance known only to themselves and their
people; Adam sat transfixed. The spectacle continued in the tiny room, with no thought to time. Melody after melody progressed, in perfect collaboration with the tireless dancers. Finally, however, the pipes faded and the men came to a quiet stop. “Wait! You can’t be finished! Please! Where are you going?” “There are other places beyond your padded walls, Adam. That’s where we go.” “Please take me! I want to come!” “Not tonight, friend, now you must sleep. The doctor will be here in the morning.”