The Gift(s)

THE GIFT(S)

“Happy Housewarming!" squealed Kara. "Your home is so beautiful!” she said, looking around as she stepped into the foyer of the house. “You’re so lucky!”

She handed a lovely ficus tree that she had just bought to Marnie, her best friend, who then turned to her husband, Colin, and handed it to him so that she could give Kara a big hug.

“Thanks, girlfriend! And I’m so glad you made it!” She stepped back. “Benny’s already here. Come in! Everyone’s in the family room.”

Kara draped her coat over the newel post, and turned back to her hosts.

“It’s a ficus benjamina,” she said, pointing to the three foot high tree in Colin’s arms.  “Also known as a weeping fig. Super easy to take care of. It should last for years!” She smiled, waving her hand to encompass the immediate area. “Just a little something for your fantastic new abode.”

“Thanks, sweetie!” said Marnie. “You can’t have too many house plants. At least until I kill them.”

Both women laughed.  

“It’s great!” said Colin, leaning over to give Kara an awkward one-armed hug while still holding the plant. “Thanks!’

Kara stood there beaming at her friends. “I have one, and I haven’t killed it yet, so you should be fine!”

The two women walked to the back of the house to the family room. There were three people already there, talking and drinking, and enjoying the finger food Marnie had carefully planned. She knew all of her friends preferences, and tried to make sure that they all had food they liked.

Instead of following the women to the back of the house, Colin veered off into the kitchen, and placed the ficus on the counter. He removed the plastic bag that had been protecting it from the elements. The ficus itself was in a plain black plastic pot, but it had been put inside a lovely decorative terracotta planter. It matched the decor perfectly.  

Colin stuck his finger in the soil, and finding it a bit dry. He filled up a jug with water and poured it into the plant.  He didn’t want it to die before they found the perfect home for it.

A cool breeze vibrates the fine trichobotria hairs that cover my body. I am instantly aware. There is a change in my surroundings. It has been dark, and the air limited for a long while, forcing me to remain still, conserving my energy. But that has now changed, and I am ready to attack any predator that threatens me, or better yet trap any prey foolish enough to venture too close.

The earth around me suddenly erupts. I lunge toward the predator, barely missing it. Human. My mortal enemy.

Without thunder or a change in the air around me, my world floods. I am no longer a hunter. Now I must survive the onslaught of water inundating my lair. Survival! Survival!

Colin walked out of the kitchen carrying the ficus. He put it on the end of the raised hearth, closest to sliding patio doors that opened unto their new back yard.

“There, unwrapped, watered, and ready to soak up the sunlight.”

“That looks perfect!” says Linna, Colin’s sister. “You couldn’t have chosen a better spot!” She turned towards Kara. “And the pot matches perfectly! Good choice!”

“It does match!” said Marnie, “And it really does look great there,” she said, looking at Colin. “Good choice Babe!”

My world is tilting, moving up and down. Water is pouring over me. I must escape to survive! I use the hooks on my legs to propel myself slowly upwards, away from the water. But I am knocked to the bottom of my lair repeatedly from the jolting movements. Into the water I go. I try to climb out, only to be shaken down again. A final earth shattering thump, sends me to the bottom one last time. When I believe that I will not be able to survive the quake, my world is still. I am able to make my deliberate progress towards the light above me. I must flee this lair, and find another.

Marnie surveyed the room, making sure her guests had everything they needed.

“Anyone need another drink?” she asked.

“I could go for another brew!” said Benny, Kara’s boyfriend.

“I’d like some more wine,” chimed in Kara, holding her glass out to Marnie.

As Marnie walked over to where they are sitting on the fireplace hearth, she bumped the ficus pot, jostling it.

“Oops!” she said. “Too much wine for Marnie!”

Everyone laughed because at seven months pregnant, everyone knew that Marnie drank nothing stronger than a mango lassi.

My world erupts violently, again. I am again thrown to the bottom of my lair, the water growing deeper. I must ecape while I still have the strength to make the treacherous climb.

After everyone’s drinks had been refreshed, it was time for dinner. This was Marnie and Colin’s first dinner party in their new house. Marnie was particularly excited. She and Colin were the first in their group to have a child, so she knew that the prospect of any future late-night dinner parties and get togethers would probably be nearing an end. Well, if not an end, at least they would be greatly curtailed. So, she was determined to make tonight perfect.

“Okay, everyone, let’s eat. Sit wherever you want around the table.”

Everyone got up to move into the dining room. Barry, who had had a few beers, stumbled and jostled the ficus.

“Watch it Barry,” said Marnie, laughing. “We want the plant to make it until we at least leave!”  

Again, my world is shaken. I am disgusted at my predicament. I am a Sydney Funnel Web spider — the most deadly spider the world. I am an apex predator! I have survived the perilous trip from Australia to this northern land. I have thrived in the greenhouse, gorging on insects. I have survived being bound in plastic for days and nights before being freed. I will not die in a watery grave! I slowly climb out of my lair. When I reach the surface, I see that I am no longer in the greenhouse. Instead I am in another type of building. A home for humans. And their pets.  

Marnie was pleased with how the dinner was going. Everyone seemed to be enjoying the food, including Scoots, the Wonder Dog. Marnie and Colin had adopted Scoots as a puppy from the SPCA when they had gotten married, about two years ago. He was a Jack Russell terrier cross — they weren’t really sure what the cross was, but he was definitely a Jack Russell! He was energetic, loyal, and very, very clever. He was also Marnie’s shadow. Wherever she went, Scoots was right behind her. She hoped he loved the baby as much as he loved her.

But right now, Marnie wasn’t loving on Scoots so much. In fact, she wasn’t sure who she was more annoyed with — Colin’s best friend Fredrico, who was surreptitiously feeding Scoots under the table, or Scoots himself for begging. Scoots knew that he wasn’t supposed to beg, and Fredrico knew that he wasn’t supposed to feed him — she’d had to tell him every time he came over.  

But before she could signal Colin to intervene, Scoots stopped begging for food from Frederico, turned his head away from the dining room, then abruptly ran into the family room.

Fredrico looked up at Marnie, knowing that he had been caught.

“Was it something I said?”

I ascend from my lair, and stand on the surface of the plant, surveying the room. I feel the vibration before I see the creature enter the room. I know it is looking for me. I repel down from my perch and scuttle behind the pot. I know that I am not safe here, but I must assess the danger this creature presents.  

“BARK! BARK! BARK!”

Marnie looked up from the dinner table, where she had been listening to story regarding a Zoom date Fredrico’d had last week.  

“BARK! BARK! BARK!”

She looked at Colin who was totally engrossed in the story. And apparently deaf. Getting up, she walked into the family room where Scoots was aggressively barking.

“Scoots! Cool it!” she admonished.

“BARK! BARK! BARK!”

“Hey!” she said walking towards him. “Knock it off!”

“BARK! BARK! BARK!”

Marnie looked around the room 

“What do you want?”

Scoots’s body was rigid, his ears laid back, and he was quietly growling.

“What the heck, buddy? What’s got you so pissed off?”

She looked around. All she could see was his slightly deflated soccer ball — the the better to bite it that way. She walked towards it, and was bending to pick it up, when Scoots launched himself towards it. He moved so fast that Marnie barely saw him throw himself between her and the ball. Then he did the weirdest thing — he flung his head, hitting the ball with his snout, sending the ball flying into the wall by the sliding patio doors.  

Marnie laughed. “Heading the ball now, Scoots? Teeth aren’t doing it for you?”

The creature has come into the room. It sees me, but it is wary. It knows that I present a danger. I start moving towards the creature, scuttling quickly forward. It starts barking, warning the humans of my presence, but it does not back down. A human enters the room. The creature continues to bark. I retreat out of sight from the human, hiding in shadow. The creature continues to bark. The human makes its way toward me. In an instant it will be within striking distance. I ready for the attack. I am a predator. My fangs will pierce the soft skin of the human.

But the creature lunges before I can strike, sending me airborne. I slam against the wall, momentarily stunned. I scurry back into the shelter of a shadow.

“Okay, Mister,” said Marnie, “Time to go out.”  

Marnie opened the sliding patio door, and gently lead Scoots outside, throwing the soccer ball out after him before shutting the door, and returning to her dinner guests.

“BARK! BARK! BARK!”

Marnie lended over, and watched Scoots throw himself against the door, wanting back into the house.

“BARK! BARK! BARK! BARK! BARK! BARK!”

She looked at Colin.

“Can you let him back in, please?” She looked at her guests. “I don’t know what’s the matter, but hopefully he’ll get it out of his system, soon.”

Most of the people at the table had pets, and the conversation turned towards the weirdness of pets. Everyone agreed that it would be so much better if their pets could talk. It would solve a lot of communication problems.

“BARK! BARK! BARK! BARK! BARK! BARK!”

“Please, Hon, can you let him in?”

“Sorry.” Colin cocked his head toward the barks emanating from the backyard. “I can speak dog! He says let me in so that Fredrico can feed me more dinner scraps!”

Everyone laughed, and Fredrico had the good grace to look a tiny bit embarrassed.

Colin walked to the door, and opened it. Scoots ran in, frantically searching the family room. Leaving the door open, Colin walked back into the dining room.

“Hey, hon, where’s Scoots’s squeaky alligator? I’m going to throw it a few times. Maybe he’ll settle.”

“In his toy basket,” she replied.

But before Colin could return to the family room and retrieve the ball, Scoots trotted into the dining room, and sat in front of Fredrico, gently whining, raising his front left paw.

Colin and Marnie looked at him, confused.

“Well whatever it was, he’s fine now,” said Marnie, shrugging her shoulders.

“Weirdo!” said Colin, shaking his head. “He’s never been that strange before.”

Everyone at the table returned to their conversation. What had they been talking about?

The creature is outside, but I could not escape without being seen. I remain hidden in the shadows, waiting for my opportunity for freedom.

The creature continues to bark, throwing itself at the door. I believe that it is senses that I still pose a danger to those in the house.

Another human enters the room, opening the door. Breeze from the outdoors vibrates across my body. It has been too long since I have been in the outdoors. The pull is too great. I cannot control myself. I dash to the door, and I am outside. I am free! I am free!

Marnie lended over and asked, “Colin, why is there a breeze?” 

Colin looked a bit confused, then it dawned on him.

“Oh, shoot! I forgot to shut the door when I let Scoots in!”

“Colin! Anything could have wandered in!”

He got up and walked over to the door, and slid it shut.

I’m free. But I must find shelter. It is not safe out—

“Holy crap! Did you guys see that owl? It was huge! It swooped in and grabbed something off the lawn, and flew away.” Colin followed the owl with his eyes, now barely a speck on the horizon. “I wonder what it was.”