Awakening 1.4
Dad only hugged me tighter as soon as the word slipped from my mouth. I'm not sure if it was because he thought I said more than that and he just didn't hear, or because I just remembered mom at the time, but I wasn't complaining. Paula didn't pay it any mind either. Mom though... her eyes had gone wide, her hands over her mouth as if stifling a gasp.
She took a slow, hesitant step towards me, phantom tears running down her ghostly face as she stared at me. I found myself staring back, and I'm pretty sure it was just the hair in front of my eyes that kept the nurse from finding me out. A range of emotions danced across her face: shock, disbelief, doubt, resignation and, as I continued to meet her eyes, hope.
Another step closer, surer and more confident. One her hands reached towards me, shaking and halting, but never stopping completely. "Taylor...?" she asked -begged- as tears fell faster on her desperate face, "Taylor... can you... can you see me, Taylor?".
It broke my heart, to look away. But I needed to do it, and I needed to make it look like I hadn't seen her. Not while I had an audience I wasn't willing to let know about my power. So I held back the urge to bawl my eyes out completely, even as I broke the hug with my dad.
Fortunately, it didn't take much to convince the nurse to give us some time to ourselves. When I asked, Paula just smiled and walked out, but not before telling us that someone might come in to take Morris's more personal affects home in a few hours.
I didn't give it much mind and just counted the seconds until I was sure she was well out of earshot now. Then, just to make sure, I poked my head out the door to check the immediate surroundings.
There were more people there, of course, but the foot traffic wasn't that bad, surprisingly. Maybe it had something to do with Panacea's recent visit. I wasn't sure, and at this point, I didn't care. There was only one thing in my mind now, and that was made of the two people behind me. Mom and dad. My family.
I closed the door and dragged a nearby chair to wedge it shut before turning back to face the rest of the room.
Dad was, understandably, very confused about what I was doing, and probably just a little bit worried.
Mom... depressed wouldn't do it justice. She looked shattered, and I knew it was my fault. I knew it was necessary, of course. I might not be much of a Cape geek, but even I knew that just letting random people find out that you have super powers is a horrible idea. That didn't make my throat tighten any less, nor did make my silent crying any weaker. It didn't take away the guilt, or even weaken it just a bit.
"Mom, I'm sorry." It was the only thing I could say, but it was enough. It got her to look back up at me, and this time, I made it clear that I was looking back; that I could see her, that it wasn't just a coincidence that she was there where my eyes fell.
All the same, she kept crying, but it was clear that it wasn't because she was sad anymore. And if seeing her crying from sadness broke my heart, seeing her cry from happiness made it soar.
She all but floated across the room to throw her spectral arms around me (for all I knew, she might have done just that), her head sinking into the crook of my neck as she cried. I wasn't any better, my vision was completely blurred by my tears. Memory after memory assaulted me. Every time I got home from Emma's, every day when mom came home from the university, all the times when we made up from a fight, it was these same arms that wrapped around me and told me, without a single word, that everything would be alright. It was feeling that I never thought I would ever experience again.
Before I knew it, I'd returned mom's embrace, my arms finding purchase even though I knew that there physically wasn't anything there. The faint blue aura surrounding her sparked with a yellow green light, and I felt something calling me, but I ignored its siren song. I didn't want this moment to end so soon. I can figure out what my power was trying to tell me some other time. This? This was more important than anything else. For the second time today, I felt like I was truly protected, satisfied and comforted.
"Taylor? Taylor, what's going on? Are you alright?"
Dad looked worried. It was understandable, seeing as, from his perspective, I was hugging the air; crying my eyes out and hugging a mother who was no longer alive. That all of it was technically true doesn't help much. But he deserved an explanation. More than that, he deserved to know.
I wasn't originally planning on telling him about my power, admittedly. He would've just worried about me, and it's not like having super psychic powers was very useful for keeping me safe. Not my kind of psychic, at least. I still needed to ask Mother Nature about that, but that was for later. Right here, right now, I needed to tell dad. Mom was here, and even if I'd need to play messenger girl for the rest of my life, he had to know. Even if it wouldn't be perfect, it would mean that we'd be a family again.
No point beating around the bush then. I was never very good at social niceties, and I've only gotten worse in the past year and a half. Blunt approach it is then.
"Dad, I have powers."
-X-
I explained everything to dad when he had inevitably asked for clarification. I told him all about my meeting with Mother Nature and the time I spent talking to Morris the night before, and how I found out that I really was speaking to ghosts.
He wasn't taking it as easily as I'd hoped. He'd been quick to point out that 'Mother Nature' (complete with heavily implied air quotes) could just as easily have been a Cape who was mastering me through my dreams. If I hadn't refused so vehemently, he probably would have called the PRT and Protectorate already. It hurt, not being believed like that but... I understood why. Even I thought that Mother Nature acted in a way that definitely would have been suspicious to anyone. Then he'd gone on to talk me out of believing that I was seeing the spirits of the dead.
Projections, hallucinations, postcognition (he didn't use that word per se, but it was definitely what he meant) were all thrown out as possible explanations. That made me angry, right up until I saw the look on his face. He looked desperate for something, like his eyes were begging me somehow. A niggling at the back of my head pushed to mind the idea that he didn't actually want to believe himself. That he wanted to be able to believe me; believe that I wasn't just being crazy, or attributing my powers to some higher plain of existence. We'd both given up on that, I guess. Or I had, at least until very early this morning.
"I'm not crazy, and I'm not making things up dad!" I protested, loudly, but without any heat to it, to my own surprise.
"I know, you're not crazy, Taylor. Maybe it's just... it's probably just your medication. Or... if you have powers, then it's probably just how you see things."
"Taylor, honey, maybe you should calm down first. I'm sure if you give your father some time, he'll come around."
"No! Mom, I'm not going to make this wait any longer! It's been nearly two years since we lost you, and I only just got you back! I want dad to know that you're here too! That it really is you I'm seeing! And I'm not even on any medications! Panacea healed me completely! I don't even need to be here if it wasn't for all the necessary paperwork!"
"Taylor, you can't be sure about that! Everyone knows that none of that supernatural stuff actually exi-"
"You're both just arguing like children Taylor. You're not going to get your father to to listen to you li-"
"It exists, and mom's right here!" I reached out to grab hold of mom's hand. The same spark of light, and the connection that came with it returned, and this time, I couldn't think to stop it.
All of a sudden, it was like the world had gone monochrome and silent. Everything slowed down to a crawl, and the only source of color was the light from my hand. Yellow green. Only now, I realized it was the same color as the first orb of light that Mother Nature had pressed into me.
"A Phantom is in your grasp. Seek a vessel to hold it."
The voice of the great spirit was like a whisper in the wind, but as silent as everything else was, it may as well have come from a loud speaker.
I found my eyes wandering at its behest, and with each item I focused on, information about it would flood my brain. The flowers around the room would grant heightened senses and resilience to any non physical attack, but would also cause physical weakness and decreased stamina. The vase holding one set would grant the same benefits to a much lesser extent, but also increase stamina and only hamper their strength, making them just as durable. The clock on the wall felt like it might extend... something, while also granting increased speed, but decrease everything else. Even the bed wasn't exempt from my perusal, giving a sense of extremely strong boost in stamina at the cost of speed.
My clothes, the door and window, the tables, the curtains; everywhere I looked -everything I looked at gave me some kind of information, but for what, I still don't understand. It was like a piece of a puzzle was missing, but I knew I'd be able to figure it out easily. I just needed to find the right object and-
My eyes landed on dad. More specifically, on his hand. I felt a deep connection between it and the light in my hand, my mother's soul-no, her Phantom. Under normal circumstances, it would wasn't so impressive. A small increase in physical and thinking speed and large increase in resilience, while decreasing strength, vitality, and endurance; there were many things around the room that would do better. But if it was Annette Hebert. If it was MOM, it would do so much more. The same sense of extended time was there; the benefits trebled and the penalties halved. It was perfect. For what, I still didn't know, but it was perfect, and I tried to reach towards it with my power.
It didn't make it. Something around my dad kept it from working. A forest green aura that surrounded him and everything on him.
"Dad, your wedding ring, take it off." The world flickered back into color as I gave the order. A part of me felt like it should be guilty but... it was like I was running on... instinct.
"This: A connection to me, deeper than any other human's. It is not much, but know that it will rarely guide you wrong."
"Wha? Taylor, what are you sayi-"
"Dad, please!" I all but begged him, in the face of both his, and mom's confusion and uncertainty.
His mouth opened and closed, more than once looking like he was trying to think of something to say in argument. In the end, he did fold and, with great hesitation, handed me his ring.
Not really knowing what it was I was doing, I set it on the floor and stepped back, keeping close to mom. Dad did the same, his eyes alternating between me and the ring with the same worried look on it as earlier.
I reached for mom's hand again, and let my power course through me. The world turned gray, and I focused down on the ring; my power reached out towards it. I felt a connection, one even stronger than before, spark to life, as though something was pulling at the bright light that was the only color I could see.
"A Phantom in your hand. A chosen vessel within your reach. All you need now is to deepen the connection. Follow your instincts. There are words on the tip of your tongue. Do not hold on to them. Let them out, and you will have your answers."
The voice was louder this time, but no less compelling. I could fight it, if I wanted to; it was nudging me, but it wasn't forcing anything. But I didn't want to. Not right now.
I didn't know what I wanted to say. What I was supposed to say. But it didn't matter, because I would say what I needed to regardless. So I took a deep breath and let the words flow from my mouth.
With every word that came out, I knew, more and more, that deep down, it came from my heart.
"Raging Spirits, Rally to My Banner! Royal Chartreuse!"
The glow where I held on to mom grew brighter, encompassing her whole being. She had just enough time to yelp before it condensed her into a small orb, and this, I knew that dad saw as well. A part of me worried for mom, but for the most part, I somehow knew that it was going to be alright. So instead, I focused on the ring again, and pushed.
"Confine!"
The orb launched into the ring, which exploded with the same light. I looked away for all of a second, and shielded my eyes. To my side, I saw dad do the same, and at once, the two of us lowered our hands and turned our heads to look at the result of what I just did.
"I... uh... what?" mom stuttered in confusion, and I sort of felt the same.
That was it? Really? What was light show for, then? I didn't know what would happen, sure, but I was expecting something a little more than-
"Annette...?"
I swear, I heard my neck snap as I turned back to look at dad.
Eyes wide, and jaw dropped so far down that it almost hit the floor, it was clear as day that he was looking at mom. That he could see her.
Actually, at a second glance, mom no longer had that blue glow about her. A single possibility popped into my head, and looked down at the floor to confirm. Three humanoid shadows were now there, where it had, just seconds ago, been two.
"Danny!"
Mom's shout was all the warning either of us got before she was on him, tears running down her eyes even as she smashed her lips onto dad's, her arms wrapping around him so tightly that I was surprised he was still able to breathe. I didn't think his eyes could get wider than they already were, but they did. It took him a full five seconds to respond, but mom didn't seem to mind. He hugged her back eventually, and returned her kiss, his wide eyes closing to savor the moment.
It was every other teenager's worst nightmare, seeing their parents engage in such an activity. To me, it was a memory I knew I'd treasure to my dying days, and likely beyond, wherever that may be.
In time, they broke apart and just looked into each other's eyes. Whatever doubt dad had about everything I said was gone completely, I was sure. The way the two of them seemed to communicate just by staring at each other like that was something I definitely wouldn't be able to replicate on my own, no matter what I did.
Goddammit, I was crying again. And mom and dad were crying too, but none of us were sad. The smiles on our faces couldn't be any wider.
With perfect synchronization, my parents turned to look at me, their locked arms opening invitingly for me. No words needed to be said as I lunged in between them, wrapping them both up in my arms.
If earlier, I felt good in just one of their embrace, I felt a hundred times better with both their arms wrapped around me.
No words needed to be said. The comfort of just being able to touch each other was enough. I wanted to savor it for as long as it could last.
The hourglass floating above mom could wait. I don't know what it meant, but it wasn't a danger. That made it less important than this moment. I could think about it some other time.
-X-
AN: And that's this chapter and prologue arc done with. Next up will be an interlude from a few people's perspectives, then we'll have a little time skip to move things along a bit faster.