Adelfried

By the time Adelfried and Evan returned with nachos, sodas, hot dogs and beer, the game had taken a turn, and the Astros were behind.

“Oh, Moses!” The man with the blue hat yelled, standing up to face them, grinning as they took their seats. “Looks like you are losing now. Guess it’s good Minna isn’t here after all.”

Adelfried’s jaw clenched. “Do not talk about my daughter.”

“Oh, why did she—”

“Sit down you blowhard, the game isn’t over yet,” Kyle yelled at Blue Hat. The man grinned and did a little dance before turning back around to pick up his beer for a sip. As he did the cup slipped out of his hand and it fell in his lap showering beer on him and all over the lady next to him.

“Damn it,” he barked, dabbing in vain to dry his soaked crotch and leg with a couple napkins as he stood up and headed off.

Evan murmured to Adelfried. “Did you do that?”

“No, I promised Ying no magic while we were out. Perhaps it is, oh, what was that word you used the other day?”

“Karma,” Kae coughed out loud resulting in a few chuckles from nearby fans.

Adelfried nodded. “Besides, with you sitting between us it wouldn’t work.”

Evan chortled. “Ha, so it really is karma.”

After another inning and with two men on base, the visiting team hit a homerun giving them a five-run lead. The crowd grew angrier, the boos louder. It didn’t sit well with Adelfried, mostly because of how it upset Evan. Plus, he was starting to feel a kinship with the Astros and their followers.

Blue Hat spun around. “How about that, Moses?”. He had returned dry, after a visit to the lighting-powered wind makers, Adelfried presumed. “Not looking so good for the Astros, huh?” He started to dance with a fresh beer in his hand, taking a big gulp only to end up dumping the entire beer into his face, chest, and all over the lady sitting next to him.

The woman, now also soaked in beer, yelled. “Every time! Every time we go out in public you always have to get drunk and make an ass of yourself.”

“I’m not drunk!” He frowned at her with confusion, as he sat down in defeat. “I don’t know what happened.”

“Sure...” her voice dripped with sarcasm. “The beer dumped itself.”

Kae leaned in handing the man a pile of napkins. “Maybe you should give up dancing.” She glanced at Adelfried for an instant, fighting off a laugh. The man mashed the napkins into his chest and pants, but he was drenched beyond hope.

He disappeared again only to reappear with another beer a few minutes later, but this time it had a lid and straw. Once back in his seat, he scanned the people around him suspiciously before carefully placing his beer in the cupholder with two hands.

“Hey, we are leaving next inning,” Ying announced loudly for everyone in her party to hear.

“But Mom,” Evan whined, “the game isn’t over yet.”

“I want to beat traffic and I have to work tomorrow.”

“But there are only two innings left.”

“Sorry, it’s getting late.”

A few pitches later and the crowd erupted in boos over a called strike by the umpire. This was followed by an ensuing argument which brought the manager out of the dugout only to get tossed from the game. This led to a larger uproar of boos.

Adelfried considered this and after much deliberation turned to Evan. “I don’t think the strike region is being evenly applied to both teams.”

Evan finished his booing, dropped his hands to his side, defeated. “Yeah, that was way out of the zone. This hot garbage of an ump is going to cost us the game.”

Blue Hat spun around in his seat. “That was a strike kid, don’t you know anything about baseball? You might as well go home now. This game is over.”

Evan sat down stewing in his chair. Adelfried wanted to say something but had nothing to comfort him.

On the next pitch the batter swung and clipped the ball sending it high in the air towards them. As the ball crested and started its downward trajectory, it seemed to move unnaturally, swerving midair. Adelfried considered perhaps this was what Evan had called spin, to bend the ball in its path, but it took a very sharp cut in the air and crashed into Blue Hat’s beer with tremendous force. The force of the ball exploded the cup’s foamy contents like a small tidal wave over the man. Then the ball bounced up over his head and Evan caught it with a reach of his bare hand. The crowd around them exploded with cheers. Evan held the ball in the air triumphantly, which led to another round of applause.

This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

Blue Hat didn’t move. Finally, his head shot side to side looking at everyone around him as if there was a cabal of Astros fans out to get him. “Ya’ll did this, didn't you?!” He yelled. He spun on Evan and Adelfried, beer flying off of him like a shaking dog onto everyone. This was met with loud protests.

Ying reached out with her last remaining few napkins, “That’s just karma telling you that you’re an asshole...and you drink too much.” He snatched the pity-napkins from her hand glared at her. “What? Have something else to say?” Ying narrowed her eyes.

Blue Hat recoiled from Ying’s stare. He turned around without saying anything and again started the now familiar ritual of drying himself.

Evan muttered to Adelfried, “Don’t mess with mom.”

Adelfried nodded approvingly. “I like that quality in her.”

Evan leaned back and glanced at Adelfried. “Yeah, as long as it isn’t pointed at you, it’s great.”

At the end of the inning, as planned, they headed towards the exit of the stadium. As they neared the restrooms Ying halted the group by a pretzel stand. “Last chance to use the restrooms. We meet back here.”

Everyone left for the rest rooms except for Kae and Adelfried. Again, he noticed the slight change in the air around him now that there was some distance between him and Evan. He took in the expansive views of the stadium one last time when Kae elbowed him slightly. She whispered, “Don’t look now but I think those two are staring at you.”

He swung around and spotted a man with long blond hair and a woman with short black hair, both wearing grey sport coats trimmed in red. He could almost feel the weight of their sullen grey, washed-out eyes.

Kae pulled him back around. “I said don’t look. Did you see their eyes?”

“Yes, they are a little disturbing.” He stole another casual glance in their direction, but they were gone.

A minute later the group was back together and off they went out of the stadium and towards the car. At this point in the evening, with the game still going, the streets surrounding the ballpark had few people ambling about. The dark of night was coming, but with the numerous streetlights and passing cars it was still very bright. Even behind the stone and metal walls of the stadium, the sound of the crowd cheering from inside could clearly be heard. They passed a man playing music on a long metal tube with two bends in it. The rich tunes entranced Adelfried to stop. This foreign melody filled him with a unique sense of melancholy and joy so different than anything he had heard before. “That is so beautiful, what is it?” he asked, watching the man play.

“That’s the blues.” Kae nudged his arm. “He’s good, too.”

“Amazing, I would like to hear this again some time.”

“Fine, but not tonight, I have to work tomorrow,” Ying grumped, now shooing him along like a lost duckling from her flock.

As they wound through the streets towards the car, the number of people thinned. Now a block from their car, turning down a smaller street, an older man with short white hair, round stubby nose and wrinkly pink skin lay up against the wall of a building, asleep. There was a piece of cardboard leaning against the wall next to him that read ’Anything helps’. Just in front of it was a plastic cup with some coins in it. Kyle dug into his pocket as he passed by and tossed some change into it.

“Bless you,” the man mumbled under his breath with his eyes still shut.

Ying frowned. “You’ll just encourage them to beg.”

Kyle shrugged as they kept walking. “Well, the way I see it, if he is having a hard-enough life where he has to beg, he needs all the help he can get.”

Kae grabbed Kyle’s arm and gave him a big kiss on the lips. “That’s why I like you so much.”

Evan shook his head. “Ugh, get a room.”

“Good evening,” came a cold monotone voice. A man dressed in the same uniform Jim had, a police officer, stood between them and their car in the parking lot across the street. His long blonde hair, pale skin, and dull grey eyes faintly illuminated by the blue tinted streetlights giving him an almost ghoulish glow.

“Evening,” Ying said, startled at first like the rest of the group. But she regained her composure quickly and stepped to the side to go around him.

He put his hand out. “Ma'am! I need to ask you some questions.”

“Questions?” Ying shifted instantly into her Thai accent, which Adelfried had learned meant she was getting irritated. “What questions?”

“Why are you in such a hurry?” A silky voice purred. Another officer, a woman with short black hair and dark reddish skin circled behind, boxing them in. She had the same lifeless grey eyes.

“Don’t be ridiculous.” Ying snapped, with a heavy dose of attitude. “The game is about to let out. I’m trying to beat the traffic.”

The blonde-haired officer’s face slackened, and he stared off aimlessly for a few uncomfortable seconds, as if he went into a mental stupor. Adelfried wasn’t sure how interactions with law enforcement typically went, but something was off. And those eyes, they both had those same grey eyes. Where had he seen those before?

The blonde officer snapped out of his trance and pointed an accusing finger at Ying. “Where were you on May eight?”

“What?” Ying’s voice rose at the end with incredulity.

“Where were you on May eight?” The black-haired officer repeated.

“At home,” Ying snapped. “Now can we go?”

“What is your address?” The blonde-haired officer replied.

Adelfried knew he wasn’t supposed to use magic, but he started to rub his hands together, ready for something, anything.

“It’s fourteen fifty-two, fuck you.” Ying said, now getting properly angry. “I know my rights, now either arrest us or get the hell out of my way.” She stepped to the left of the blonde-haired officer and marched towards the car. “Come on everyone, we’re going.” Everyone fell in line behind her without question.

As they neared their car, Kyle started to chortle. “Damn, Mrs. Harper, if I talked to a cop like that I’d get thrown in jail.”

“Don’t ever talk to an officer like that, Kyle.” Ying pulled her keys out of her pocket. “But those aren’t real officers. They weren’t wearing name plates and police can’t have long hair like that.”

Kae grabbed Ying’s shoulder. She spoke quickly, “Mom, while Adelfried and I were waiting for you in the bathroom, we saw those two staring at us. It was creepy. Only they weren’t dressed like police officers.”

Anxiety gripped Adelfried’s neck and shoulder as he hurried after everyone. “Yes! Yes, that’s where I’ve seen those dull eyes.”

“I don’t know what’s going on here.” Ying’s eyes caught Adelfried for an instant as the doors to the car clicked open. “And I don’t want to find out. Let’s get out of here.”

Evan opened the back door and hopped in, but when Adelfried went to follow him in, he realized he could no longer move, as if encased in an invisible block of stone. Only his eyes could move. Breathing was hard as his chest couldn’t flex. Everyone around him also stood motionless. He struggled to move his limbs but the magic that ensnared him refused to give.