Theology in August

Theology in August is the working title of the first book written about Theo Perkins. It is told from the perspective of his older brother, August Perkins, and takes place between 1906 and 1923 in the fictional town of TOWN, located on the east coast of the United States.

The story follows August as he faces the challenges of having a little brother who is completely atypical and seen as unusual and dangerous by the people around him. The idea of the fairies is meant as a physical stand-in for mental illness: invisible to most, potentially frightening, isolating, but possible to live with given the proper support and understanding. Some of Theo's behaviors mimic those exhibited by people with anxiety, depression, OCD, and Aspergers, among others.

In addition to mental illness, the story also touches upon religion and religious guilt. John Perkins, Theo and August's father, is the pastor of their town, and is firmly rooted in his beliefs to the point he is unwilling to see Theo's behavior as anything besides an evil malady caused by the demonic. After Theo and August explain everything to their parents, John is apprehensive to accept that Elphame exists and that all souls must pass through it before moving on to Heaven. With help, he is eventually able to understand and accept his son as he is, and is even willing to listen to Theo when he states many of the stories from the Bible are actually stories of interactions with the Fae, and that Saints such as Joan of Arc and Francis of Assisi were people like him, who could freely interact with the Fae. This is meant to show that different beliefs are not necessarily mutually exclusive--that teachings from one religion can coexist with others, and that we're really all worshiping and striving for the same thing.

### Plot

The story begins the morning after Theo's birth, when August meets his brother for the first time.

Because of his state of being, Theo behaves unusually. As an infant, he would smile at nothing and giggle as if interacting with someone, but nobody was there. From the moment he could crawl, he had an insatiable need to be outside, and would do everything in his power to escape the house.

The oddities only seemed to multiply as he became older. By two, he was attracting wild animals and the farm animals followed him around the yard. By five, his family realized some metals--iron and silver--would burn his skin, iron more so than silver. He refuses to use utensils at the table and eats with his hands. When forced to use a spoon with breakfast on his fifth birthday, his hand is burned by the iron. John makes him wooden utensils he uses from then on.

Theo's emotions begin to produce surprising, sometimes frightening occurrences, typically involving plants. On his fifth birthday, Theo went missing for quite some time, and August found him in the ring of stones in a rarely traveled area of the woods. That evening, after a small party with their grandparents, August told him he was 'strange', sending Theo into a spiral. The next morning, the family finds Theo asleep on the sofa, the room covered in flowering vines that seem to originate from him. His grandparents then decide he is some sort of witch or demon, and cut contact with the family. John then attempts to re-baptize Theo, but upon hearing his father say there's 'something evil in you', he becomes frightened and tries to leave the church. In the commotion, Theo falls into the baptismal font and grabs the iron spigot on the way down, severely burning his hand, leaving a scar that he carries for the rest of his life.

Theo continues to seemingly disappear throughout his childhood, but is always found in the ring of stones. At around 6, after being found floating in the stone circle and brought home unconscious, Theo has a fit of screaming and crying, fighting his father with strength he should not have. He scratches August's face enough to cause bleeding and later a minor scar. Theo finally exhausts himself, and is horribly guilty for hurting August when he comes back to himself the next morning. He promises he will never hurt August again.

Later, Theo's oddities become more public, and townspeople began to talk. Some thought him 'simple', as he was so terribly shy and rarely spoke. Others called him a witch. When he started school, he made a wooden pencil sprout leaves and created a field of flowers after being called a freak and running away. When Nora Oaken calls him names later, he seems to faint and the trees surrounding the group grab Nora and break her wrist. At this point, the townspeople agree Theo is a threat and that he must be kept at home or sent away. His family decides to keep him at home, and Theo does not leave their farm for nearly 10 years, with only his sheepdog, Hazel, for company.

Shortly after Hazel's death when Theo is 17, Theo's behavior at August and Annie's engagement dinner causes an explosive fight between the brothers. The fight culminates in Theo accidentally hurting August, then attempting suicide by pressing an iron hay hook to his neck in the rafters of the barn, burning himself badly before fainting and falling from the beam. Dr. Tupper is called, and Theo pleads for death, prompting the doctor to suggest Theo be admitted to an asylum in the nearest city, Augusta. He is given a room with a window and a bookshelf upon his parents' request.

Theo is at the asylum for approximately a month when his family comes to visit. His room has been changed to one without a window, and all furnishings except for a bed and thin blanket have been stripped from the room. Theo's long red hair, which he had ever cut, had been chopped haphazardly to above his shoulders. He is heavily medicated to the point of delirium, and is unable to stand on his own without falling, and seems very confused. August is appalled, and shouts at the doctor. While saying goodbye to Theo, August promises him he'll get him out. August leaves with his parents, and becomes angry at them as well. He asks why they didn't take Theo with them, as he was obviously being mistreated. John explains to him that they have little choice: Theo either stays at the asylum and alive, or kills himself at home. August states he's sure Theo would rather be dead.

About a week later, August packs supplies and loads everything onto Maeve, the family's horse, and leaves for Augusta in the middle of the night. He impersonates a doctor, but they are intercepted and barely escape, as Theo is still struggling to run. The brothers escape and camp out in the countryside and forests. Theo asks the fairies where it's safe to camp, and they bring the brothers to a clearing with a fairy ring. They create a large tent of wisteria flowers with a mossy carpet for them to sleep in. Though it is the middle of the day, Theo states he feels unwell and that he wants to go to sleep. He wakes up shortly after and vomits. His condition deteriorates quickly, and August tells him to rest, but it soon becomes obvious Theo is not getting better, and is in considerable distress. Though August had planned on staying in the countryside until things calmed down and Theo was allowed back home, he decides Theo's condition is too severe for him to handle out in the wilderness and starts for home. Theo's condition continues to deteriorate, and just as they reach the woods at the edge of their town, Theo falls unconscious and August cannot feel him breathing. August pleads for help, imploring the help of the Fairies, believing Theo to be dead, and realizes that he is in a ring of stones. It works, and August and Theo wake up in the fairy world, Elphame, where Theo appears healthy and sound of mind. Theo shows August Elphame, showing him the Wisps and Feeches, as well as the turtle-like Moss Sperts, and introduces him to Cúram. He explains Theo's condition, explaining that he was stillborn, and that his spirit was split. Theo had, in fact, died with August in the woods, but because half of his soul was in Elphame for his entire life, that portion of his soul could go back to the Human World and continue to live. August wakes in the fairy ring back in the Human World severely disoriented, and does his best to carry a still-unconscious, but alive, Theo back into town. He just makes it back to the path in the woods before collapsing, where Nora Oaken finds them and calls for help.

Theo and August make full recoveries, and Theo is slowly allowed back into town and everyday life. He attends August and Annie's wedding as best man, and gets a job working at the grocery store for a few hours a day.

Theo's 'death' in the woods with August caused both pieces of his soul to meld back together in Elphame, where all spirits pass through before they move on to the afterlife. With Theo's soul back in one piece, he will no longer appear unconscious in fairy rings while visiting Elphame. Instead, like 'regular' humans, he will truly 'hop between' worlds and not be visible on the human side while he visits.