Spoiler! :
– Chapter One –
Joel
“And I never saw him again.”
My mum always finished that story in the exact same way- with my father leaving to fight a war of some kind. I had just been born when it happened, and so I had never met the man she praised so highly yet sometimes it felt as if I knew him because she had told me that tale so many times. It was practically embedded in my brain by now and I probably knew it word for word.
She sighed heavily. “I can’t believe it’s been sixteen years since I last saw your father. It has been so long yet not a day goes by when I don’t miss him.” Then she forced her face into a smile. “My boy’s all grown up now though!”
Putting my face between her hands she gazed at me, as though she could look all day. It was kind of unnerving when she did that; she thought I was so perfect. But I knew I wasn’t.
Finally, she let me go and stepped back, turning away to look out of the window. “I’m going for a walk,” I mumbled at her back. “Is that alright?”
I saw her head nod and retreated towards the door.
“Oh, and Joel?” I turned back around to face her. She smiled slowly. “Happy birthday.”My face broke into a grin and I wandered out of the front door, shutting it behind me.
The village was quiet today, and as I made my way to my usual spot, nobody called out me or waved to me through their open door. I didn’t mind though, I was used to being on my own. That was one of the things you had to get used to when you were like me. I was just… different. I had secrets; there was no doubt about that. But if anyone in the village were ever to discover them I didn’t know what I would do.
My mum had warned me from a very early age that not everyone would understand me. I was special, she said, and there were people in this world that wouldn’t accept that. She had told me to keep my secrets hidden, and try to fit in with everybody else. Different wasn’t always a good thing to be.
And for the most part I had done as she desired. When in the company of others, I tried to control my ‘abnormalities’ and appear as though I was just an ordinary boy. I didn’t like it, but it seemed to make my mum happy.
But at the mountain I didn’t have to pretend. I would go and sit on the grassy Cliffside opposite the Great Mountain, separated from it only by a rickety old rope bridge. It was on my mum’s wishes that I didn’t cross it. She thought it was too dangerous. She was probably right, in fairness. The flimsy wood didn’t look as though it would hold much weight.
So I stayed on this side of the ravine that ran between the cliffs, staring up at the mountain. It was there that I headed to now, hoping to have some time to think. I liked this village well enough, and had made friends here but maybe it was time to move on. I wanted to be in a place where I didn’t have to watch what I said or did constantly… somewhere I could be myself and be accepted for who that person was.
I settled myself on the grass, fiddling absentmindedly with the fallen leaves. So engrossed in my thoughts was I that I didn’t even notice the footsteps behind me.
“I figured I’d find you hear,” said a soft female voice and I jumped, wheeling around. Jade laughed at the surprised expression on my face. “It’s only me.”
I smiled, I was safe around Jade. When I was about nine or ten years old, she had walked over to this spot whilst I was messing around. I hadn’t meant any harm, but I wasn’t too great at controlling myself. She had just been standing too close. I dreaded to think what would have happened if Phillip Certiores hadn’t been stood by to save her. I shuddered lightly.
He and Jade were the only other ones (aside from my mum of course) that knew about me. That knew of these powers for want of a better word.
“Happy birthday,” she laughed, tossing her red hair behind her shoulders as she sat down beside me. “How does it feel to be sixteen?”
I shrugged. “No different.”
Jade smiled, flicking her long red hair behind her shoulders. “I have a present for you.”
“You shouldn’t have!”
“But I wanted to,” she said. “Don’t argue. Just accept it.”
I nodded. “I think I can do that.”
She handed me a small bundle wrapped in plain brown paper. I took it and inspected it closely. “What is it?”
She giggled. “You have to open it and find out silly!”
I pushed her playfully before returning my attention to the mysterious package. What could she have possibly got for me? Taking one edge of the paper in between my fingers, I tore carefully at one of the corners. It was impossible to see what was inside yet, so I savoured the tension a little longer to let the excitement really get to me.
Finally, when the anticipation became too much, I tore back the paper with a violent tug and the thing that was inside spilled gently onto my lap. I picked it up and held it between my thumb and forefinger. It appeared to be a wooden circle, about the size of an orange and empty in the centre. Thin pieces of string stretched from one side to the other, crossing over each other in every direction, almost like a net. Feathers and beads hung from the outsides, and as I watched they moved softly in the breeze.
Looking up, I noticed Jade staring at me, a small smile on her pale face.
“Thank you,” I muttered. “It’s really great.”
She giggled. “You don’t even know what it is, do you?”
I smiled apologetically, she knew me too well. “No, you got me. What is it?”
Reaching over, she took the mysterious object from me delicately and then held it in front of her. I watched her closely as she swung it to and fro.
“It’s a dream catcher. It’s supposed to catch all the bad dreams and keep them away from you. There are also stories that say the one who possess the dream catcher will be kept from physical harm… it’s a very powerful object and quite rare. My mother taught me how to make them before she died.”
I blinked unsteadily. How could I accept such a precious gift from her? Keira, Jade’s mother, had died about five years ago and I had never really heard Jade speak of her before now. It must have taken a lot of strength for her to put that behind her as she made this.
“Thank you,” I said again, looking at my feet. I truly meant it this time. “It’s beautiful.”
She nodded, but said nothing more and together we watched as I placed my hand on the ground and lifted it slowly. As I did so, a small green shoot burst out of the earth and snaked slowly upwards. After reaching a few centimetres in height, the top began to blossom into long white petals, upturned to face the sky.
Jade sighed. “It’s stunning.”
I shrugged. It hardly took any effort for me to summon plants and flowers anymore; I did it practically without thinking. I wanted a bigger challenge; this wasn’t enough for me now. Glancing at Jade, I saw she was looking straight back at me. She had to know what was coming.
“I’m leaving tonight. I have to go and find my father. If he’s still alive then I have to meet him.”
Jade simply stared at me.
“I can’t stay here forever,” I continued. “I want to see the world, to walk through unknown forests, cross unknown rivers and meet new people. Maybe even people like me.”
She smiled sadly. “I knew you were going to say that. I just wish you’d given me a little more notice. I have to pack and say my goodbyes and-”
“What are you talking about?”
“Well I’m coming with you,” she announced. “Don’t think you can do this on your own!”
I shook my head. “I can’t take you with me Jade. I can be responsible for what happens to me and what I do but if anything were to harm you… I couldn’t forgive myself.”
“And what if I don’t care?”
“It doesn’t matter,” I interjected. “You're not coming with me and that’s it. The village needs you here. They don’t need me. They never had and they’ll do just fine when I'm gone.”
“That’s not true,” she whispered softly. “We do need you. I need you to be here.”
Hesitantly, I reached over and put my hand on her shoulder. “You’ll be wonderful. I know it.”Her hand rested on my own but I couldn’t bear to look at her any longer. Stretching my legs I stood up and turned to face the way I had come. “Look after my mum for me.”
I didn’t glance back as I made my way home again. I had no idea whether she was watching me, but I had the feeling she would be. There was another goodbye I had to say, and I knew that this one was going to be even worse. How does a mother accept that her only son is leaving? How could I find the words to explain, to make her understand that I needed to do this? Would she ever forgive me?
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