THE MOMENT
"You're a fairie?!" Richard was a tall, athletic man who stood a proud 6'4", and still had to look up to meet Minerva's eyes. She was at least a foot taller than him, and maybe even two, with a wide, muscular frame that left him unsure she could fit through the door. She wore a silky, polished suit with brown curly hair. She hadn't arrived with a smile exactly, but the expression of courtesy he answered the door to vanished with that question.
"I see you didn't bother to read much of the literature we gave you," she replied. "Chroma Corp. is owned and operated by dragons, but we employ fairies and use their methods quite extensively. I am not a dragon either, but I am here to collect your child."
"Alright, well come in, if you can," Richard nodded. In a way, he was glad someone was there, finally. The decision had been weighing on him, but there were so many other issues to deal with first that he hardly had time to worry. He stepped back and she walked in with no issue; then followed him through the living room down a hallway.
"Well, I hope you're ready," he chuckled weakly as they arrived at the nursery and he pushed open the door. "I fulfilled my part of the bargain; it's up to you whether you want to take the kid or not." He encouraged her into the room.
"That's an odd statement considering I'm here to do just that..," she replied with a stern expression. His use of 'kid' did not help her view of him, and then she saw the child's mother. The picture of exhaustion seated on a rocking chair. Her eyes were swollen and red, as Minerva might've expected from Richard.
The woman stirred slightly at their entrance, but she didn't take her eyes off her child for one second. The baby was sleeping several feet away, protected by a bubble.
"I don't know how you people work, but you might need to call in some backup or whatever, if you care about keeping him healthy. He won't last outside that bubble."
"IF we care about keeping him healthy?" Minerva looked at him with the fiercest non-expression he'd ever seen. It was cold, and flat. He felt like her entire being rejected him on a conceptual level. He was looking at a brick wall that somehow managed to insult him personally just in the way its bricks were laid.
"Yeah, I mean, I dunno what you're going to do with it."
"That was apparent as soon as you called me a fairy," Minerva replied. "And yet, without that knowledge, you convinced your wife to go along with this decision."
"It was her idea!" he said.
"It was an idea," Minerva nodded. "From what we've gathered, you're the one who forced it into reality."
"For the baby!" he answered. His voice was louder now, and his wife flinched. She was worried the baby would wake, but it didn't stir at all.
"I'd like some time to speak with your wife alone," Minerva said. It wasn't a question, and by the time Richard thought to protest, he was in the hall and the door was closed. He thought about pounding on the door... but, she had literally lifted him to put him in the hall. He hadn't even registered it; it was such a casual motion, like she was lifting a styrofoam cup. Instead, he walked to the kitchen.
Minvera moved closer, then sat down on the floor next to the rocking chair. Now both women were focused on the child.
"It was my idea...," her voice said softly after a quiet minute.
"Chroma Corp. is quite an impressive corporation," Minerva replied with warmth in her voice. "We're run by dragons, and we have branches across the multiverse. Not just business, or even fairy dealings. You'll find Chroma Convenience stores, Chroma Coffee shops, Chroma Automotive, and even Chroma Medical services offered by Chroma Hospitals," she said. Each of them kept looking forward at the sleeping child.
"Due to the 'multiverse' nature of our business, not all Chroma Hospitals are transitioned to the Chroma name yet; like the one where baby Carlton was born." Minerva knew exactly what she was saying, and she turned toward the mother in time to meet her eyes.
"You can't use that name! That's my baby's name!"
"Is it?" Minerva asked. "According to official records, you still haven't decided on a name."
"Please....," it was all she could do. She was completely exhausted mentally, and worn down emotionally. Richard only helped by pushing her forward and promising it would all be over soon. He promised that everything would be wonderful as soon as the fairies came and took away her child.
On paper, it was a horrible idea. In practice, he had months to convince her it was for the good of the baby. They weren't equipped to deal with the diagnosis; but, surely magical fairies could handle anything. And, they'd get to come out ahead. Put themselves in a better position to raise a good, healthy family.
"Okay, I think it's time to get going...," Minerva said suddenly. She stood up, and the woman panicked to her feet too. It was too fast.
"You can't just move him!"
"Sure I can, watch," Minerva smiled and winked at the woman.
"Where are we!?" the mother blinked, and suddenly the small bedroom nursery was gone. They were in a spacious room with warm hardwood floors, and an open window that revealed a pink-orange sky with a gentle breeze flowing through. She and her protected child were there and perfectly intact; the baby continued to sleep.
"Unfortunately...," Minerva sighed. "Our company is currently overwhelmed and understaffed. So, this is where we can put him 'out of the way', so to speak."
"What!?" It looked like a nice house, but it also looked empty. Looking out the window, she could see the beginnings of a subdivision taking shape, but a lot of the houses were still under construction. "You're just going to leave him here?"
"Well, obviously we'll send someone to take care of him as soon as I have an employee for the job," Minerva replied with a grin and a heavy roll of her eyes. Was she taking any of this seriously?
"I'll stay until then, and you can't tell me no!" the mother said.
"I can...," Minerva shrugged sheepishly, as if trying to remind the woman that they were in an entirely different house moments ago. "But, that's too much trouble. Hey, do you want a job working for Chroma Corp.? It would make things so much easier if you said yes. You can just keep this house where we're putting the baby, and it solves a lot of my problems."
"What about Richard...?" she asked. It was reflexive more than anything, because even as the question came out, she found herself wondering the same thing.
"Judging by the few interactions we've seen between you two in our hospital, I feel comfortable saying you're better suited to the job than he is."