To say Penelope Poe was peculiar was a bit of an understatement. She never wore a pair of matching stockings, and only used an umbrella on the sunniest of days. On Friday's she ate dessert for dinner, and she always wore her favorite color, maroon, somewhere on her person. Perhaps the most peculiar thing about her, though, was the ability to heal others at the touch of her hand. Of course, this peculiarity came at a cost. Whatever injury or illness she would heal would reflect itself in lesser form within herself.
For example, once she healed a bird of a broken left wing and immediately her left shoulder blade bruised badly. It did not heal for two and a half weeks. Another time, a girl down the street came down with small pox; once she touched the girl the pox healed instantly while poor Penelope developed chicken pox.
Despite the downsides of her peculiarity, Penelope was delighted that she could help so many from illness and injury. She became the talk of her small town rather quickly. Sometimes people would grab at her hands without her permission in hopes to be healed from everything from a small paper cut to cancer. Thankfully, Penelope's peculiarity allowed her own body to have some degree of healing property so no deadly disease could bring her down. However, she was more often than not sick, bruised, and cut up from her endeavors which caused her parents a great deal of worry and stress. Now that the townspeople have started to take what would be freely given, Penelope was never fully well and it hardly seemed fair. Her parents were at a loss of what to do. They loved their daughter dearly, but they couldn't afford to move; and no matter how well they would hide her either Penelope found her way out to help others or people found their way to her healing hands.
For years her parents searched for anything that would help: cures, gloves, places to send her; and for years they came up empty. All seemed lost, until one day a young man of 21 happened upon their small town. His name was Abe, and he was on furlough with a fellow army friend who was from their town. Once he had heard of the girl with the peculiar power for healing, he had to come. At first, this made the Poe family very apprehensive to invite this stranger into their home. How did they know he wouldn't take their daughter and exploit her across the country - the world even?!
Penelope, who was the type of person that would open their arms to a viper, welcomed the young man warmly. Thankfully, albeit surprisingly, Penelope's positive outlook on humanity was justified this time. Abe, once alone with the Poe family, explained that she was not the only Peculiar in the world; and what's more there are places where peculiar are safe!
The Poe's were overjoyed, until they realized that should she go, they would never see their daughter again. With heavy hearts, they packed their daughters things and relished every moment of what would be their last day together. Abe took it upon himself to announce to the town that he had fallen deeply in love with Penelope, and she with him. He was to cut his furlough in the town short to take her to his home and marry her. The townspeople were heartbroken, how would they survive without their little miracle. Why, in the past 18 years no one had even bothered to go to medical school. Who needed a doctor with Penelope around?
Before the townsfolk sadness and confusion turned to rage, Abe regretfully broke up the Poe family to take Penelope away.
It is here, on the journey to a loop in Cairnholm, that our story begins...