Come Away, Come Away

There once was a boy named Alexander, who lived in a farmhouse beyond the city limits. Where the streets of asphalt gave way to the dusty gravel roads of country living. His family farmed a small plot of land, barely making enough money to survive to the next harvest. His father, Isaac, was a man who believed that he deserved more than his station allowed him to achieve. Isaac dealt with this problem by searching for his fortune at the bottom of a bottle of whiskey. On his better days, Isaac would be found passed out on the couch, with the warm glow of the CRT television softly dancing on the coarse stubble of his drunken face, his black hair resting over his closed bloodshot eyes. On his worst days, Isaac would be storming the house, looking for someone to take his anger at the world out on someone smaller than himself. That person was Alexander.

After some time, Alexander had learned where to hide during his father's drunken rages. Though he had many places to choose from, his favorite was the abandoned barn a short walk from his home. More than once Alexander found himself staying at this barn for a few nights as he waited for his home to be safe again. He loved the animals he would find taking shelter within the barn, just like he was. Squirrels, rats, and once even a family of deer took residence in the barn. At first, Alexander kept his distance from the animals, fearing any bites or scratches would cause his father to find his safest spot. After a while, Alexander began to find that he felt a companionship with the animals that surrounded him, even going so far as to bring them a portion of food along when he hid away.

Alexander's favorite animal in the barn was a family of barn owls that had taken residence in the upper beams of the decaying roof of the barn. On his first night's stay, he found himself terrified of the pale white faces in the moonlight, with glowing eyes that seemed to watch Alexander's every movement. In time, Alexander found himself on friendly terms with the barn owls. They always seemed to greet Alexander first, taking the prime choices of the snacks Alexander brought for the animals of the barn. Alexander found himself understanding the soft hoots and cooing of the barn owls. He knew when they were scared, when they were happy, and when they were stalking their prey. He found himself understanding the owls far more than any person he had ever met before.

One night, Isaac had lost a lot of money in a "friendly poker game" and the blame fell upon Alexander. After Isaac’s friends had left, he burst into Alexander’s room with fury.

“You distracted me from the game!”

Isaac raised his hand and brought it down hard.

“You should have told me what was in their hands! If you can’t help me bring in money, what good are you?”

Every excuse for Isaac’s loss came with a bruise. Isaac continued until every possible excuse had been made, and every strike had left its mark. Following the beating, Alexander made his way out into the rain and thunder to find comfort in the barn that had been his shelter. A mixture of rain and tears came down his face as he rested his bruised body on top of a sleeping bag he had lain upon the dirt. In between his silent sobs, Alexander heard the soft hooting of the owls, only this time, he heard the words of their comforting song:

Come away, come away,

Come and play with the fay.

Leave your world behind.

A better life you'll find.

Amidst the pale moonlight, you can stay.

As Alexander began to drift to sleep, he watched as a barn owl glided silently to him. In his barely conscious mind, he saw the owl spread its wings to an impossibly long length as they wrapped around his body. In his dreams he found himself flying amongst the barn owls. His wings shimmered in the light of the moon as he glided through the night sky. He played with the barn owls, swooping and diving amongst the clouds and the stars of the night sky. As the night came to an end he perched with them and watched the sun slowly begin to rise. It was at this time that Alexander woke up. He found himself wrapped in his sleeping bag, though he couldn't remember when he had slipped inside of it. Even stranger, Alexander found that his body was free of the bruises and beatings of the previous night.

Alexander began spending more and more time at the barn, no longer escaping to it when he needed to run from his father. It became his new home. Every night he dreamt of flying amongst the owls at night, forgetting for a time the life that awaited him when he had to return to his home. He soon fell into an obsession, forgetting his responsibilities in the world outside of the old barn. He hid away from his schoolwork, his work on the farm, even his few friendships began to suffer as he returned again and again to the barn owls. He learned their songs and sang with them every night before joining them in his sleep. Their bodies contorted in bizarre shapes as they surrounded him before he drifted to sleep.

Come away, come away,

Come and play with the fay.

The world has taken its toll.

Lend us your broken soul.

Let the owls take you far away.

Alexander would wake up in strange places after sleeping in the barn. Some nights he would find himself waking up in the fields of his father's farm. Other nights he would wake up carefully placed in his bed. Alexander never thought much about retracing his lost steps. His father, however, began to take notice of Alexander's absence in the night. One night Alexander approached the front door of the farmhouse and found it locked from the inside.

“You don’t think I haven’t noticed you going missing do you?” Isaac’s gravelly voice echoed throughout the room.

“Where have you been going? It’s dangerous for a brat like you to be going out in the fields at night.”

Alexander didn’t answer. He knew better than to give away his only place of peace. Isaac moved to tower over Alexander’s small frame.

“You ain’t going anywhere anymore. Can’t have you running away from your dear old dad, can we?”

Isaac picked up Alexander and carried him back to Alexander’s bedroom. Alexander kicked and screamed, but he couldn’t break out of his father’s grasp. The harder he tried, the more his father squeezed his arms into his chest. As Alexander was thrown into his bedroom, he knew he had to be clever to return to the barn, back to his owls. Alexander began circumventing his father's attempts to restrain him to his home. When Isaac began locking Alexander's bedroom door, Alexander would jump from the bedroom window. As Isaac put bars on the bedroom window, Alexander began leaving decoys made of pillows in his bedroom as he hid in the closet. They danced around each other as a trapper and their quarry.

Isaac questioned Alexander relentlessly about his nightly adventures. Alexander did his best to offer no hint or evidence of the barn, taking careful measures to not lead Isaac to it when he felt eyes watching him in the night. The frustration of Isaac only grew the brutality of his drunken rages aimed towards Alexander. Where before the aim was to bruise, Alexander began to feel the crack of bone with each beating. Alexander didn't care. He went through his life in a daze, only looking towards the next nightly visit to the barn. The pain of a broken body didn't matter to him. It was always healed by the time he awoke in the morning, his body was always healed once again. All he wanted was more time to soar in the moonlight amongst the barn owls.

One afternoon, Alexander was planning his latest escape from his father. Isaac had been away for most of the day. Alexander didn't care, the more time he had alone, the more time he could spend preparing for his escape. The door to his bedroom burst open. Isaac walked through the door. Alexander felt a chill run up his spine. It wasn't normal for Isaac to be happy, but at this moment he wore a wide toothy grin. For the first time in a long time, Alexander felt scared.

"You think I wouldn't find out?" Isaac said, letting out a malicious chuckle.

"Come 'ere ya brat. I've got something special to show ya."

Isaac pulled hard on Alexander's arm, leading him out of the house. Alexander knew the direction they were headed. He also saw the steady plume of smoke rising in the distance. Alexander began to pull against his father's arm, trying to believe that if he didn't see what his father had to show him it wouldn't be true. Biting, clawing, and scratching against the arm seemed to offer no release from Isaac's iron grip. Isaac pulled Alexander along with a devilish determination. He threw Alexander to the ground to behold his works.

The barn, or what was left of it, was a blaze of fire. Alexander's shelter was slowly burning to the ground in front of him. He knelt in the grass, head downcast, tears soaking the ground, unable to watch his home be destroyed.

"I thought this barn might be too dangerous." Isaac folded his arms over his proud chest.

"A boy might find himself getting hurt playing around a rundown place like that."

Isaac stood and watched for a few minutes, breathing in the smokey air in satisfaction. He spat on the ground and muttered a curse before turning around and chuckling as he walked back to the farmhouse. Alexander didn't move. He remained motionless as the barn caved in on itself as the fire weakened the structure.

The sun began to set, and Alexander still sat as the fires of the barn began to subside. He listened for any sound of life coming from the barn, but there was nothing beyond the wind blowing through the grass. There were no songs to be sung as the moon began its turn in the sky. No calls as the stars began to appear in the sky. A few hours into the night, Alexander got up and began to make his way back to the farmhouse in silence. His father did not disturb him that night, satisfied that Alexander would no longer leave the house. As Alexander drifted off into a restless slumber, a soft call came through his window, though faint he heard his owls sing:

Come away, come away,

Come and play with the fay.

Though we may be gone,

Our song still goes on.

Come join us forever and stay.

Alexander looked up at the source of the song. The owls circled overhead and began to slowly descend upon him. They surrounded him in a circle, their feathers were covered by a thin layer of soot and ash, but their faces were as white and clear as the moon in the sky. Alexander watched as the owls’ bodies began to stretch and grow in the fading glow of the dying fire. Their wings grew and surrounded Alexander, leaving only a small hole where the moon shone down upon Alexander’s head. Their necks stretched out and began to preen against Alexander’s shirt, while one owl’s face remained motionless, meeting Alexander’s gaze. Its eyes were black and wide, filled with only the light of the moon and stars. The contorted owls began to sway and sing once more. Their song was wordless and secretive, yet Alexander knew what they were asking him to do. He knew what he had to do to join them forever.

The following morning, Isaac was found dead with a knife in his chest. Alexander was nowhere to be found. After months of searching he still never appeared. Over time, the farmhouse was left abandoned, forgotten to time. In local legends, it's said that those who stay the night in the area on a clear moonlit night can still hear the song of the owls in the distance:

Come away, come away,

Come and play with the fay

Leave your world behind.

A better life you'll find.

Amidst the pale moonlight, you can stay.