The Devil Calls Me Daddy

Chapter 1

It wasn't a particularly windy day. The sun was shining down as it always did, bathing everyone in a sticky and uncomfortable light, and doing the most it could while onlookers paid their respects to the dead. 5 year old Fort wasn't really interested in kneeling like his parents had. He was tired and bored and he just wanted a chance to walk around and stretch his legs. He's young, they said. He doesn't know any better, they excused. They were right. At four years old Fort had no real idea what was going on, all he knew was that everyone was sad and his beloved grandma that always snuck him candy was gone and people were crying and bowing at her picture. He also knew that she had passed on, though he didn't really understand the meaning at the time. But after multiple hours of being stuck in a stuffy room surrounded by weeping adults and having to sit still, Fort had had enough. He acted out, throwing a fit until one of his aunties took him outside to get some fresh air. 

Fort walked along the paths darting around different rows of stones carved out to catalog the dead's resting place. He could see flowers everywhere and had to be told multiple times not to touch them as he passed. At the end of each row was a small sitting place for people to rest while they waited or after they paid their respects. Fort liked the marble bench that melded into an alcove because he felt like he could hide away there for a moment, away from the prying eyes of the world and just be sad. He found a small stone on the ground next to the bench and picked it up to play with, tossing it in the air and catching it with his hands. He did this a few times before he missed and the rock bounced away towards a patch of grass near a headstone that hadn't been cleaned in a while. Fort rushed after it, trying to save his newly found makeshift toy. He was rooting around the brush when he came upon what looked like a locket. Fort, being the curious sort, reached out and plucked it from its hiding place. It looked rather old, but it didn't have any rust on it. He wondered if anyone had lost it? He looked around but the only person near him was his temporary babysitter and she wasn't really paying attention. She couldn't have dropped it. Fort shrugged his shoulders and decided to open it, maybe there was a picture inside? Or maybe it held secrets! His tiny fingers fought with the clasp for a moment before it clicked open and he was able to peak inside. Huh… it was a music box… Well that was kinda cool. Fort examined the outside mechanism, it seemed to be just an easy wind up part so he grabbed the button and twisted it with his fingers. The melody started playing instantly and he closed his eyes to the tinkling melody that blared out from it. It was beautiful, slow and haunting and somehow sad, though he didn't really understand any of it. To him it was a pretty piece that played music. 

“Hello kid.” A voice called out from in front of him, startling the poor boy and causing him to drop the locket. He opened his eyes to find himself in a dark clearing that looked nothing like the cemetery he was in before. Was this a trick or something? Was it magic? Fort looked around then back at the man clad in dark red before him. He wasn't afraid of the guy, because he didn't give off the feeling of being bad. 

“Hello… are you here for a funeral too?” Fort asked, thinking the guy must be here for that. Why else would he be in a cemetery? The man didn't reply, he simply walked forward and squatted down, picking up the now silent music box and staring at it calmly. 

“Is that yours? I found it on the ground. I'm sorry that I played with it though. Mama told me that I shouldn't play with things that didn't belong to me. It's really pretty though, the music is nice.” Fort smiled a toothy grin at the man and the stranger couldn't help but smile back. 

“Mm you could say that it's mine. Though not entirely you see, this little guy here is a tool. It helps me meet people who are in need. It's a Wish Box you see. It seeks out people who have a very strong wish and when it finds them and the person plays the tune it summons me here to grant their deepest wish. You must have a very big wish in your heart to be able to summon me here kid.” Fort’s eyes went wide at the man's words. A wish granter. Wow…