I feel like there's nobody reading. If you're reading, could you plese leave a review. I want to know if this is working out well. Also, to anyone's comments on ideas for the story: please be patient, and do not expect big changes in the next couple chapters. I'll incorporate some TN characters in eventually. Likely Skye & similar people. Maybe an OTG trip with Skye & her friends, along with Adriana and some of her friends (that's all I've thought of so far). I won't be able to incorporate any of the Shannon family for a while, because they aren't due to be in Terra Nova for another 4.5 months. I am thinking about having Lucille & Elisabeth Shannon become friends, but not quite sure how that would work out. I do plan to skim over some time during their summer and stop at key events (Uncle Max's wedding, Adriana's birthday, etc). Any ideas for interactions between my charcters & TN characters? Write 'em! :)
Chapter Twelve
Henry glanced at me nervously. From the look on his face, I could tell that all he'd understood was her tone.
"Mom…?" I asked cautiously. She slowly shook her head as her grey eyes searched his face.
"Il est très beau," she finally said, looking at me. My body relaxed as she spoke the kind French words, calling him very handsome. She often did this, switching between the two languages she was fluent in. Henry was oblivious. I didn't even need to ask to know that he didn't speak any language other than English.
"What did she say?" he asked, looking at me. I laughed.
"Don't worry, it was nice." I replied, glancing at him.
"Are you sure?" he asked.
"Yes, it was very nice." My mother said, smiling as she snapped out of her little trance. She stuck her hand out to Henry. He shook her hand cautiously, like it was a trick, and she was going to harm him.
"So, mom," I began, "this is He-" I was cut off by my mother.
"I'm Lucille, but I'd prefer that you call me Mrs. Prevot…for now." She told him, her eyes glittering in the sun. Henry smiled.
"I'm Henry," he introduced himself.
"So, Henry, how old are you?" she asked.
"I just turned 16 a couple months ago," he replied. She looked at him with an exaggerated look of surprise.
"Really?" she asked him, slightly in shock.
"Yes, really…what? Did you think I was like, twenty five or something?" I could sense a slight tinge of sarcasm in his voice, making me smirk.
"Honestly, yes, I did. You look much older than you are," she replied sheepishly. I burst out in laughter. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see that Henry had cracked a smile, too.
"What's so damn funny, huh?" my mom asked, laughing at me.
"That's exactly what I told him when he told me how old he is!" I said when I got over my laughing fit. My mother rolled her eyes good naturedly. I could feel the ice had been broken, and that everyone felt more comfortable around each other. Ally poked her head out the door
"It's 9:30, Lucille," she told my mom.
"Oh, shoot…I've got to get to work!" She snapped her fingers and rushed inside. We followed her inside and watched her run around as she gathered things up. She found her jacket, grabbed her purse and brushed her hair quickly. She found Ally in the bathroom still trying to do her hair and gave her quick hug. She came over to me and gave me a quick hug.
"Jacob, I'm taking off!" she said loudly.
"Bye," my brother's response came from the closed door of his room. She smiled and waved to Henry as she headed to the door. She opened it halfway and looked back at me.
"I am working as a dentist today, but I'll be back around four…be good!" she told me. She waved again quickly as she left, closing the door quickly. After a moment, I looked at Henry.
"Do you want to meet Jacob?" I asked.
"Might as well," he replied. I walked across the room to his door, cracked open a few inches. I opened it a little farther and poked my head in. He was laying on his bed, reading an old-fashioned book, rather than an electronic book on his Plex. When he saw me, he sat up.
"Yeah?" he asked. I hesitated at first in asking him my question.
"Do you…um, want to meet my friend Henry? He's the guy I went with yesterday after orientation…" he rolled his eyes at my request.
"Fine," he replied. I smiled and pulled the door open farther, letting Jacob and Henry see each other. Jacob stood up when he saw Henry, who met him halfway across the room, extending his hand out. Jacob seemed surprised by the offer, but accepted the hand shake after a moment. They shook hands for what felt like a long time, and when they let go of each other's hand, they smiled. This is good.
"I'm Jacob, Adriana's older brother," Jacob introduced himself first. I tried to stifle my laugh when he emphasized 'older'.
"I'm Henry. I've heard you enjoy soccer," he replied. Jacob smiled back.
"Oh really? Who told you that?" he asked rhetorically, his eyes flitting to meet for a brief second.
"A little birdie…you know, there's some games and stuff for anyone to go to on Sunday. It's just going to a relaxed afternoon of fun games. You should come by; we're actually looking for some new players." he told Jacob. I could tell by the look on my brother's face that he was liking Henry more and more.
"Sounds good. I'll see you there, then." He slipped out of his room. We turned around to watch him.
"Where are you going?" I asked.
"If there's going to be some games this Sunday, then I better start conditioning…I'm gonna go run." He was looking around for shoes. I shrugged.
"You ready to go?" I asked, looking at Henry as we left my brother's room.
"Yeah, sure."
"Ok…Ally!" I yelled.
"What?" my cousin yelled back from the bathroom. She was standing in front of the mirror, still trying to make her pony tail perfect.
"Do you want to come with us?"
"No, I'm still working on my goddamn hair and then I'm going to go hang out with Ryan." She replied, making me smile.
"Okay. Henry and I are leaving." I told her.
"Bye!" she yelled. I shrugged and followed Henry out the front door. Henry led the way towards the fields. I didn't know where they were, except they were in the middle of the colony.
"So, what is there to do around here other than go to the market and play soccer?" I asked after we had been walking in silence for a few minutes, enjoying the dewy morning sun.
"Depends…" he replied, looking at me, "there's stuff for everyone, almost. You can take language classes…there's sewing clubs, sports groups, cooking classes, book clubs…oh, what else? Fishing, rope tying, archery, swimming, work detail, internships, wood shop...there's also a lot of art classes. But those are just a few of the things that you can do." I was impressed.
"Who runs and organizes all that?" I asked curiously.
"The more dangerous things, like fishing, work detail, and archery, are run and monitored by the colony's security team." He told me. I looked at him funny.
"How is fishing dangerous?" I asked, trying not to laugh at my ridiculous question. He smiled.
"The skill itself isn't dangerous- it's getting to the fishing locations. The nearest sources of water that are fishable are outside the colony. When you hike up to the crest of that mountain over there," he stopped and pointed behind us up into the hills, "you can see the entire colony."
"Is it that little brown patch?" I asked, referring to a small brown spot of land that appeared to be well worn down. Whether by nature or human, I had no clue.
"Exactly," he replied, putting his hand down.
"Have you been there?" I asked him.
"Actually, yeah, I have. My dad took my brother and me up there with a few of army dogs about two months ago." He told me. I could sense a tinge of pride in his voice, like it was something almost nobody has seen.
"How long of a hike is it?" I asked.
"It feels like forever, but I think it's somewhere around ten minutes." He told me, continuing to walk. I followed him.
"Ten minutes?" I asked, wondering if I'd heard wrong.
"Yeah, ten minutes." He confirmed.
"How is that even possible? It's, like, a bazillion feet up the mountain!" I replied. He laughed.
"It's a five-hundred-foot climb, but there's a dirt road that goes up to it. Taylor usually has people up there watching over the colony." He told me very matter-of-factly. He seemed like he was very proud that he knew all this, like it was top secret information.
"Did your dad tell you this?" I asked, giving him an 'I-know-you're-spewing-a-load-of-BS' look. He smiled sheepishly.
"Yeah…" he replied, laughing in embarrassment, "Though I actually have been there before," he added quickly. I rolled my eyes and laughed. We walked without talking for a while longer, before we approached a fence that looked nearly the same as the one surrounding the colony, except that this one did not have large, menacing spikes along the top or guard towers with large guns. The gate was raised open, letting people and vehicles pass in and out. Henry led me through the entrance and we stood on the edge of the fields.
It was an incredible sight. All I could see was a flat expanse of plant life that seemed to never end. People buzzed around us, carrying large wicker baskets of produce, while others were hunched over in the sea of green, tending to plants. Some were watering plants with large hoses that sprayed a heavy mist, while others drove plows over land off in the distance. Wooden signs poked above the plants, saying things like carrots or cucumber squash or potatoes or Step carefully! Beetles are protecting these plants! Each one was handwritten with paint.
"Wow," I managed to say. My brain was trying to process and take in all this incredible information.
"That's what everyone says," he told me. I didn't have to look to know he was grinning from ear to ear.
"Who…who owns all this land?" I asked, bewildered. I looked at Henry for an answer.
"Anyone can, technically. Though you have to be pretty committed to growing produce and stuff, 'cause once you apply to buy land, you are committed to the land for one growing season… basically, a year." He told me.
"Why one year?" I asked.
"Because," he began, "every square inch of land is precious to the colony; especially the agricultural department. Since basically everything we eat comes from these fields, we need as much room to grow the food as possible. Even if someone purchases something as small as a ten foot by ten foot plot of land, they are partially responsible for feeding the colony. If that land just sits there as a pile of dirt waiting to be farmed and isn't put to good use, it makes it hard on the whole colony because it means less food for everyone."
"My dad must be pretty damn committed then, if he bought some land out here." He laughed at my reply.
"If you ask me, these guys are the hardest working, most ambitious people in the colony. Some people have little vegetable gardens at their house that they tend to, but they don't have to be committed to the plants then, since it's on their property, not that of the colony." He told me. I nodded.
"Are these the owners who are out here taking care of the land?" I asked, referring to all the people busily working around us. He shrugged.
"Some of them probably are, but most of them are people who work in agricultural duty. They usually rotate work tasks…so one day, you might be watering crops, and the next day, you might be pruning trees in the orchard…or you could be weeding the fence." He replied.
"Weeding the fence?" I asked looking at him. I searched his face for any sign he wasn't telling the truth.
"Yeah, weeding the fence…lemme show you!" he walked away towards the fence surrounding the fields. We walked along the perimeter for five or ten minutes, Henry searching along the fence intently. All I knew of weeds was that they were things like dandelions, little clumps of ugly-looking leaves with hideous yellow flowers. I had my head towards the ground, looking for dandelions.
"Ah, here we go…Adriana, come see these!" Henry beckoned me over. He stood about ten feet from the fence, looking up at it.
"What?" I asked, standing next to him. He motioned to the fence. Thick tendrils of brown plant life climbed up the fence, weaving their way up the fence. At the base of each brown plant was a thick stump half a foot thick. It had a thin layer of light brown bark like a tree. A few feet up the weed, on one of the numerous branches that fanned out from the base, was a sharp cut where someone had evidently began chopping down the plant, leaving the root to end in a flat stump. The root was about two inches thick, but I could see it had rings like a tree.
"Do the rings tell you how old it is?" I asked, looking at Henry, who was examining the weeds up close. He looked at me.
"No, I don't think so." He replied, turning back to the plant.
"The botanists who catalogue all the plant life say it's some kind of weed, even though it looks like a tree." A lithe woman wearing an airy romper and a wide-brimmed hat said, approaching us. In one hand, she carried a mean-looking machete, and in the other, a large water bottle filled full of crystal-clear water with a long string a half inch thick wound through a hook on the side of the bottle. Her golden brown hair was braided into a long fishtail braid that went to the middle of her back. She wore flexible cleat-like shoes. Even under the shady brim of her hat, I could see she had skin tanned by the sun and sky-blue eyes.
"Um, hello." Henry greeted her. She smiled in response.
"Hello to you, too. I was just getting back from refilling my water bottle to get back to work on this one here." She said, referring to the weed.
"How do you get rid of it?" I asked.
"Like this," she said, climbing up the fence like a monkey to the very top beams. She slipped the string of her water bottle around the highest horizontal beam and looped the bottle through the string, so that the bottle hung far above our heads. She climbed down a few beams and began chopping away at the roots.
"It's quite the workout!" she yelled down to us.
"Interesting," I replied, trying to sound like I cared.
"Do you want to go into the fields?" Henry asked, looking at me again.
"Like, walk out there? Henry, are you crazy? It must be a mi-" I began.
"It's three miles in diameter. But you can ride old-fashioned pedal bikes on the dirt roads that crisscross the fields. They're wide enough that usually people have no problem with staying out the way of agricultural people that are working." He interrupted.
"Oh," I breathed in reply.
"Come on, let's go pick up a couple from my house!" he said, walking on past the weeds.
"We're gonna head out, but thanks for showing us how it's done!" I yelled up to the woman as I followed after Henry.
"No problem! Nice talking!" she yelled back with a wave. Catching up to Henry, I bombarded him with questions while we walked towards his house.
"Does everyone have to work in agriculture?" I questioned.
"No," he replied.
"Where else can you work?"
"Science labs, infirmary, market, cafés, supply stores, security…uh…there's a lot."
"Can anyone work there?"
"Where, Adriana?"
"I dunno, anywhere, I guess."
"You have to be 18 for security, and most places prefer that you're 18, but sometimes you can snag a real job younger. Most teenagers who want some kind of work experience usually do internships, though."
"Do you know anyone that does an internship?" I asked, curious.
"Yeah, tons of people in our grade. There's people willing to take interns for just about everything."
"Can you intern in the infirmary?" I asked. He looked at me funny.
"Isn't your mom a doctor?" he asked.
"Yes, why?"
"Couldn't you just ask her if they take interns?" he asked.
"Oh, shut up. Just tell me if they do!" I said, swatting his arm playfully. He smiled.
"They do, don't worry… I was just messing with you."
"I figured as much. Do you know anyone doing a medical internship?" I asked. He nodded.
"They're the most difficult to get into…the medical internship program, that is, but there are two interns right now, I believe, that are in highschool."
"Do you know either of them?" He nodded again in response.
"One of them is a really good friend of mine. She's out on the medical convoy that's due back tomorrow." I could see thoughts flicking through his expressive brown eyes as he spoke.
"What's she look like?" I asked, curious. His eyes lit up. It might've been from the golden sunlight streaming into his eyes, but I wasn't sure.
"She…she's got a really nice body…great butt for a skinny, size four girl. Crazy blue eyes, long orange hair…and the best laugh you'll ever hear. She's the captain of the soccer team, too." He told me as we walked through an open gate like the one we'd entered the fields through. It was smaller than the other one, but still plenty large enough for vehicles to pass through.
"Do you like her?" I asked. I immediately regretted asking the question. Why the hell would you ask that, you idiot? He searched my eyes, like he was looking for a trick or something.
"Yeah, I do… a lot, actually." He said, coming to a halt in the middle of the gravel road. I felt like that had just ruined my whole day. I knew I wouldn't be able to get his answer out of my head.
"What's her name?" I asked tentatively.
"Her name's-" as he began, his reply was cut off by a loud yell.
"Henry!" A lithe boy a few years younger than either of us came running up. He had the same skin and eyes as Henry, but he had auburn colored hair. His face was red and shiny with sweat, and he was breathing heavily.
"What is it, Nick?" he said, approaching the boy. The boy was doubled over, holding his stomach and he took in ragged breaths.
"I've…wheeze…been looking for…wheeze…you. Mrs. Niecey…wheeze…went into…wheeze …labor. They think the baby's going to be born…wheeze...any minute." He managed to say. Henry glanced from me to the boy.
"Come on, let's go." He said, looking at me. I nodded.
"Follow…me!" the boy coughed, standing up straight. He took off running in the direction he'd just came from, not waiting for us. I took off after him, Henry close behind.
We ran for what felt like forever, even though it was probably only a minute or two. We stopped in front of another house like my own (hell, they all looked the same), and approached the door. Just as the boy turned the knob and opened the door, a woman somewhere inside the house let out a long wail of pain.
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