Dear Mr. Crow

Please let my corn grow

I need my corn to stay alive

I need my corn for my farm to thrive

Without my corn I have nothing left

That is why you must stop your theft

Dear Mr. Crow

I need you to know

The farm is my world and the corn is my heart

When you take my corn away, you tare me apart

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Crows. That was all Jules could register in her head as the sky went from blue to black within seconds. The sun and its light was engulfed. 

Living on the countryside, Jules had seen many crows in her life but the ones that filled the sky were different. Their eyes were the same color as Dixon's dark red ones. A red so intense that it seemed as if the color would start dripping out.

Jules tried rubbing at her own eyes. Maybe she was hallucinating. Maybe she'd be lucky enough that what everyone said was true: all of this was in her head. Dixon wasn't real. The crows weren't real. This nightmare wasn't real. 

Unfortunately, reality is not merciful to anyone, not even little girls. 

Jules tried looking for Lily and her other classmates. Terror ran through her veins and her little body began to tremble. Though Jules couldn't hear anything other than the piercing squawking of the crows, she knew that the other kids were screaming. Their mouths were wide open and their arms thrashed around wildly. The crows were eating their flesh. 

Jules' classmates were covered in bloody cuts dripping scarlet drops as crows continuously dived from the sky and attacked them. With all the confusion and dreadful emotions swarming in her head, all Jules could do was watch frozen in fear as everyone was screaming, crying, and thrashing on the ground in pain.

When Jules was finally able to get out of her shock, she turned to Dixon and saw him smiling with amusement and satisfaction.

"Dixon, please make it stop. I'm scared." Jules voice was barely a whisper but Dixon heard it clearly. 

When he saw his mate's terrified eyes, his smile disappeared. His eyes turned back to it's normal brown and the crows began flying away. They disappeared in a blink of an eye. Within seconds, everything looked normal with no trace of the devilish birds.

The children that were attacked were passed out on the ground. It didn't take long for Jules to join them. What the child witnessed was much more than even an adult could handle. The last thing the trembling child saw was her new friend placing a soft kiss on her forehead before everything turned dark.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jules woke up to the sound of crying. When she opened her eyes, she saw her mom kneeling beside her holding her hand tightly.

"Mom?"

Her mother jumped at her voice.

"Jules, my poor baby. Are you okay?" Her mother caressed her cheek. 

"What happened?" The dazed child asked.

"The doctor will explain everything honey," her mother replied before kissing her cheek and leaving the room.

Jules tried to recover her memories. Was that all a dream? Why was she at a hospital? What had happened?

The door reopened revealing a middle aged man wearing a white coat. 

"Hello Jules. I am Dr. Smith and I will be taking care of you today. Do you feel any pain right now?"

"No."

"Do you remember anything that happened to you today? Anything at all?"

Jules pondered on whether or not to tell the doctor the truth. Would he make fun of her like all her classmates had done? Would he send her to a mental hospital--the place her mother would always say her father belonged at? 

"You might not believe me even if I told you." Jules answered tentatively.

"Try me," He answered with his calculating eyes staring down at her.

"My classmate were bullying me so I think my friend Dixon made all these scary crows come out of nowhere to attack them. I don't know how he did it but I saw it with my own eyes."

"Interesting." The doctor furrowed his eyebrows and wrote on his clipboard. "Was your teacher there?"

Jules tried to recall. "I don't know. There were too many birds so I didn't see."

Dr. Smith continued to write vigorously. 

"Strange...very strange indeed. Your teacher said the same thing. Said a whole bunch of crows attacked her children. However, the children that were found injured told me a different story. They all said you got angry and started throwing rocks at them." 

"No! That's not true. There really were crows. I would never hurt anyone!"

"Now now dear, I'm not accusing you. Look, if you tell me the truth you won't get in trouble."

"I am telling the truth mister!"

The doctor sighed, took off his glasses, and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Look, I'm going to give you one more chance. If you lie again, you're going to cause a lot of problems for your mom. You don't want to give your mom a harder time do you?"

Jules quickly shook her head no.

"I'll ask you one more time. What happened?" The doctor was no longer being friendly.

Ever since Jules was very young, her mother taught her that no matter what pressure someone put on her she should always tell the truth. Lies were bad. Her father was a liar. Even though the doctor wouldn't believe her, it didn't change what she saw.

"You can ask me as many times as you want. My answer won't change. I'm telling the truth. I don't lie."

The doctor let out a long dragged out sigh. He tapped his stethoscope in frustration as he was deep in thought. He had never handled a case as complicated and strange as this one before.

"Alright dear. I want you to know that everything we are about to put you through is for your own good."

Jules played with her fingers nervously as she watched the doctor get up to retrieve her mother. Her mother rushed in as soon as the door opened. Jules was instantly comforted as her mother's hand connected with hers and she was given a warm embrace.

However, the shortly lived reunion was interrupted when the the doctor came back in with documents in his hands.

"Mrs. Moore, if you don't mind, I am going to get straight to business."

"Yes, please do. I am worried sick right now. I need to know my little girl is okay."

"Well, you needn't worry about injuries. Your child is the only one without a single scratch on her. However, I am concerned about her mental health. I talked to Jules and she claimed that... crows attacked her classmates. I am afraid that because the majority of the constituents involved with this event claim that your daughter attacked them, we have to assume that is the truth. Furthermore, the idea that birds who always mind their own business would randomly decide to attack children and disappear from thin air is essentially silly and imaginary. We could bring this to court if you want Mrs. Moore, but a sensible woman like you should know that your daughter has no chance of winning."

Jules looked at her mother and knew that her defensive mode was about to turn on. When her mother clenched her teeth and had a squint in her right eye, that meant mama bear was gonna protect her cub.

"Look, I know what my daughter said sounds crazy, but if her teacher claimed the same thing, don't you think the other children could be lying? My daughter doesn't lie. I have raised her for 8 years and she has never told me lie before. And if she had attacked her classmates, how could she injure so many without getting a scratch on herself. That doesn't make sense to me."

"Mrs. Moore, I know it's hard to accept that your daughter isn't the perfect angel you think she is, but I can't do anything in my power to change how the law works. First of all, Mrs. Rally, the teacher who also claimed that there were crows attacking her kids, has a rough medical record. She has had mental problems in the past. Therefore, her claim cannot be taken into account. Second of all, if you are going to try to convince me that a swarm of birds would try to eat children and then disappear, then I am afraid you are wasting your time and frankly, my time. The best I can do for you as a doctor is recommend a mental rehabilitation center. Now, if you excuse me, I will go get the school counselor."

When the doctor left, there was an unbearable silence. Jules didn't like how stressful her mother looked. 

"Mom, I'm really sorry. I told him the truth but no one will-"

"Jules, please, not right now." Her mother paced the room while rubbing her face constantly. 

The child looked down in shame. How could a day that started so perfectly end in the worst way possible?

The door then opened revealing a professionally dressed women balancing files in her hands.

"Hello. I am Rachel, the school counselor, and I will be assisting you in the whole process as Jules' education takes a new path."

Jules saw her mother stiffen up. "What do you mean 'a new path'?"

"Well Mrs. Moore, what Jules did is a major offense. She is not qualified to attend school with other children until she is properly treated. But please do not stress about this too much Mrs. Moore. It is common for children to act out when there is no longer a father figure in their life."

Guilt gnawed harshly into Jules when she saw her mom repeatedly pull her hair back and rub her temples.

"If she can't go to school, then how am I supposed to give my daughter an education."

"That's where I come in. I know many great teachers who do home schooling," Rachel replied with a sad smile.

------------------------------------------------------------------------