Snowflake — Hive

I had just moved into a town that was somewhat dilapidated, which is why the home I had purchased was large and inexpensive. After unpacking, I began to explore the town. First, I noticed the grass was unkempt and had started to grow over the square marble that had been laid as a path way throughout the town. Homes were abandoned and various colored widow shutters were peeling away from the outside of the house. There were very few people in the town, and even fewer animals. Due to this, I was dismayed to see a pure white kitten, ambling about. I began to follow the kitten, wondering where it was going.
It finally reached a farm house with a large football -sized field with hay and corn and other vegetables and fruits growing within the field. And proceeded to go through a back entrance that turned out to be a garage. Inside the garage a child about five years of age was playing. When he saw the kitten, he squealed with delight.
"Oh, Snowflake, you finally came back home, and with a guest!"
He asked me my name, "It's Rachael" I told him.
He replied, "Well, my name is Casey and I am five years old" holding up his right hand with all his fingers pointed up. Will you be my friend? I don't have any friends."
Seeing this sweet blonde-haired-blue-eyed child and imagining he had no friends, besides Snowflake, tugged at my heart, his sincerity in the question, his sparkling close to tears eyes, and while being 20 years older than him, I found myself saying "yes". He replied, "That's swell, buddy. What should we do, first?" Swell, seemed antiquated for a five year old. He decided to give me a tour, stating, "my parents are out, but I can show you around the place."
He showed me the two-story ranch style house. The layout had all the basics, four bedrooms were distributed throughout the floors. The dining room and living room were spotless. Clearly, someone worked very hard to
keep a pristine home. After the tour, he said "Let's get a snack and I will show you the field of vegetables and fruits. It's close to harvest time, so we will be clearing it soon."
He threw me an apple from the fridge, a cola, and a string cheese. We pocketed our snacks and headed towards the field. He showed me the apple trees around the field. He continued to point at the various vegetables and tell me about the corn, peas, potatoes, corn, strawberries, raspberries and watermelons. There was a spice garden at the very end of the field. After the very long tour, and sucking down the cola, eating the snacks on the tour, Casey said "My parents are coming back soon, so buddy, you gotta head home."
Casey and I played everyday for hours and I taught him math and reading and writing, because he wasn't allowed to attend school. Apparently, he had been home schooled, and thus large holes in his education. But, when the bewitching hour came. Casey would say "It's time for you to go home, dear Rachael." And as the sun began to set, the sky with its blue, peach and pink tones would remind me the beauty of life. It reminded me of the wonderful days, at this point a year, if I recall, I had spent with Casey. I felt happy that this bright, beautiful and innocent child was flourishing under my friendship.
The following day, I did what I had been doing for the past year. I dressed like a teacher, with a tea length skirt and a blouse. I slipped into the same flats I had worn when I went to Casey's house. Arriving at the home and walking behind the house as usual, I immediately was filled with a strange dark feeling. I saw Casey huddling amidst a stack of fruit and vegetable crates, holding Snowflake tightly in his lap. When he saw me, he put his forefinger to his lips making a small "shhh" sound; beckoning me over to them. I asked him what was going on, and in a whispered voice he said "I'll show you. Follow me."
Casey let go of Snowflake and we crept on hands and knees (not easy in a skirt" to the field. Standing behind to apple trees, I saw that all the vegetables and fruits had been picked, most likely filling the crates in the garage. In fact it looked like fresh rolls of grass had been lain. Four flood lights were on, encompassing the whole of the field. In the middle of the the field, on what looked like a pole, tied up like a scarecrow, was a beaten and bruised human being.
Casey, seeing the horror on my face, began to explain the story of the incident before our eyes.
He said "We are a family of cannibals, it's how we have lived for centuries. Rachael, have you not noticed the houses that are falling apart because there is no one to tend to them, they were eaten. At one point, my ancestor decided to stop eating people and tried eating all the pets. But, Snowflake is the only pet, left in this town and she is my best friend, next to you. So, we have to hunt people again."
Bewildered, I asked Casey, "If you have to hunt people again, then why is it that human is tied up in the middle of the field."

 He replied, "Because today is my first training day, today I learn to kill people."  He then said, "Rachael, we can never see each other again.  Can you please take Snowflake. Leave this town. Go somewhere far far away. Because when there is nothing left to eat here, we will have to move somewhere else, and continue killing.  These are my roots and I cannot change them.  My parents will be here to start training shortly. You have enough time to get away from this place. Run as fast as you can, Rachael."

 Snowflake had tagged along at some point, and was rubbing against Casey's legs, purring, so I quickly picked her up and ran as quickly as I could.  The following day we followed Casey's directives and left, disappearing into the mist of the morning, never to be heard from again.

 I wondered why a little cannibal would ever encourage his food to run away. I wondered how much he hated himself for the atrocious things he did. But, he did say this was how he was raised.  It is the only way of life he knew.  I suppose in the end he was no different from humans, unable to change how and why the do what they do. I kissed Snowflake who was much older now, on the nose, and blessed her for maybe allowing me to help one tortured soul. And, I blessed the little cannibal who was wise enough to know eventually he'd have to eat both Snowflake and me. I closed my eyes, and in my head I created a giant iridescent-shimmering bubble, and inside it I placed all of my thoughts and prayers into it, I hoped that Casey had the strength to change his environmental convictions, breaking from what he had been taught to believe and live in a world free from the horrors he faced, I let the bubble drift out of my head and up to the powers that be. 
 In life we are given a choice to acquiesce to what were taught, or break the cycle, and mold our own lives. So, live life to the fullest, you never know when you die, and for the love of god, don't follow white cats, or any other animal for that matter.  Who knows, maybe you'll follow an animal and become Casey's next dinner.

Hi Darren. I already covered the police, the parents would eat them. The bigger point I was trying to make is that the environment we are raised within can make or break you. But ultimately you have to be responsible for the choice you make. It's like the movie "American X". Change is hard and for a five-year-old, it has the potential to cause more psychological damage then he had already had. Additionally he had a pure soul, he understood that he wasn't ready to leave, and perhaps by letting the cat and me go, he was displaying that someday he would free himself from that lifestyle. We may not be able to change the past, but we can choose to change our future and discover our own truths. And that can only happen for each person if the follow their own journey. Casey and I were at a fork in the road, and he was unable to join me on journey.