Getting to Know You

It was late afternoon when the new guests wandered down from their rooms. Having settled quietly into their rooms and now ready to explore where they would stay for a while.  

The first appearance was the mystery man, Eric Devlin.  

He wore his hair in a shaggy cut and so his eyes weren’t easily seen.

He looked like a strong man pretending to be weak. He either didn’t need his glasses or needed a fresh pair because Jody watched him squint at a brochure on the local doll hospital. 

When Eric realized he had Jody’s attention, he commented to her, “Really, a hospital for dolls? Why not buy a new doll?” He chuckled at the concept of a shop that fixed old toys. It seemed a waste of time.

“The wrong type of doll, actually. Hailey is an artist with making antique porcelain dolls look new. She works with antique dolls. You know, the creepy porcelain ones from the Victorian Era? She stitches, hides cracks, repaints and re-stuffs them. She even makes new clothing too. It all depends on what that specific doll needs. I believe she even works with teddy bears when they come in.”

“There’s really a market for that?” He scoffed in surprise, and his opinion changed. “So, she gets to play dolls all day. Nice job.”

“Seems there’s a business in it, and she’s known by name among doll collectors and museums that display these things.” Jody wasn’t sure if he was admiring, judging Hailey harshly or jealous of her success.

“A whole industry of maintaining old and unwanted toys existed. Who would have thought?” 

“Oh, I don’t know baseball cards?” Jody’s eyes twinkled as she leaned against the front desk. She was watching Eric browse the various brochures.

He laughed. “I guess you’re right. I guess I’ve missed out on a lot of things.” Jody thought it was a rather odd thing for him to say.

“You might like the train station exhibit. They have the train still running, and you can have lunch on the train as it shows you the local area.”

“Really? I was going to wander around today, maybe tomorrow.” Since the town was small, they kept the sidewalks clear, mostly. He’d be able to enjoy a slice of small-town life.

Jody smiled at him and handed him the historic train station. “If you are going to walk around town, make sure you stop at Sophie Johnston’s Coffee Shop. I recommend the bear claws and coffee, the house blend. It’s not

fancy, but it is a good cup of coffee. If you want something fancy, she sells local peppermint candy canes and stirring your coffee makes for a whole new Christmas tradition.” 

“Hm... I never thought of peppermint coffee. Maybe I’ll stop by to try it.” Eric smiled while he pocketed a couple of brochures. This man wasn’t the type of person to stay out long. Nor would he wander around with a candy cane sticking out of his cup. But you never knew. Many would try things here that were out of character for them.

A sudden crash came from down the hallway toward the kitchen and then a string of Gaelic. “What is that?” 

With a sigh, Jody gave Eric an amused and reassuring smile. With a pat on the tabletop, Jody responded to his inquiry. “That I’m sorry to say is Eddie and his ongoing battle with something he calls a boggart.” 

“A what? Is that from Harry Potter or something?” 

“It’s like a goblin, and they appeared in one or two of those movies. Eddie and the Owners come from Scotland.  Eddie swears from here to High Water a boggart hates him and followed them here years ago to make his life hard. Right now, he believes it lives in the pantry and is messing up the pantry door every time he fixes it.”

Laughing, Eric looked to Jody, “How old is he?” 

“Let’s just say he often gets mistaken for Santa at this time of year.” Eric nodded as if that explained any insanity as they heard Donny saying something to Eddie in Gaelic. “And they are off and in excellent form for the morning. The two men act as if they were brothers or some sort of family. All will be over in a minute or two.”

“Some places you tell the time by a coo-coo clock, and here it’s by the supposed boggart pranks.” 

“Not dull then?” Now Eric’s eyes twinkled with amusement. Which meant Jody had done her job.

“Never. I hope you enjoy your walk. I’ll see you around later.” Jody waved as she slipped into the dining room to find Greta poking about with a device in her hand at the fireplace. 

Once Greta realized Jody was in the room, she turned her frowning face from the fireplace to Jody. “Would you know if there is any electrical wiring here in the fireplace?” 

“I would assume not since that is an original fireplace to the building, and the building is over a hundred years old. We have a hard time with electrical devices inside the Inn. We even do our accounting at a second location. That’s why you had to sign in earlier.”

“So, no reason for strange readings and electronics don’t work well indoors.” Greta frowned at the device as it beeped and lights flashed.

“They made the original structure from local quartz rocks. I think they interfere somehow with the signals and such.” Jody knew enough from past visits by previous supernatural hunters that quartz rocks were meant to hold spirit energy like a tape recording. She assumed Greta would run with it, and she did. Stepping over to a notebook on a table, she made notes quickly in it.

“Do you believe in the ghost?” Greta was gauging her reaction to her question.

“I don’t know about the ghost, but there’s always a lot of unexplained activity.” Jody puttered around, wiping down the dining area and arranging things for the coming dinner hour. 

“Unexplained activity? Like what exactly?” Greta looked like an over-eager secretary prepared to take all the notes she could.

With a sigh, Jody looked to the ceiling as she selected what she was going to say. “Let’s see. Often when someone needs something, it magically appears when it’s needed most. For instance, a guest is eating ribs and runs out of napkins. They go to stand and find some more, but when they look back at the table, there’s a fresh stack there, but no staff or guests have passed to leave them. Hmm, we will later find doors that are open closed and sometimes even locked, as if some watchman had done their rounds.” 

“What about knocking or banging? Have you seen the ghost? Shadow people?” Jody shook her head. She was not going down on paper sounding like a nutcase, even if they accepted it in this town.

“Oh, go talk to Eddie. I believe he’s battling something he calls a boggart in the kitchen right now, and he swears up and down that it causes everything to break.” 

“A boggart...” More scribbling and a thoughtful frown at the page. “I think I will talk to him. So, you have not seen the ghost or know any story about it?”

“Her. The ghost is always female, and we often see her in the hallway upstairs. She either travels down the hallway or stands

at the window that looks out over the street. That’s why the owner placed a chair there so she can be comfortable. We often hear a woman singing an old Scottish lullaby. Guest often think it’s the owner singing. But she sleeps in a house separate from the Inn at night. She’s not here when the singing happens.” 

“Really, so she believes in the ghost?” 

“Yes, very much. So please investigate all you want, but keep in mind that we want their presence.” Jody might not fully believe in the Ghost of the Blue Moon, but she didn’t like the idea of a friendly ghost of someone’s relative being kicked out by a stranger when their living relatives found their presence comforting.

“Noted. The people here feel a kinship to the ghost.” 

“Yes, that’s it exactly. So,

when something goes missing and appears in another spot. We don’t freak out. We explain it as the ghost, boggart, or what-have-you have moved it. There’s usually a reason for it, and it’s usually to help someone with a problem or issue they are having. So, keep an eye out for the guests commenting on missing items and such.”

“It happens often, and you don’t think it’s theft?” 

“Items always seem to find their owner after they have overcome or fixed what they are suffering from. It’s part of the magic here at the Blue Moon.”

Greta nodded as she scribbled her notes.