When they were back at Ender's house he made lunch while Willow and Stormy looked at their new clothes and sorted them. Willow was happy with hers, but slightly embarrassed to find underwear in her pile. She realized Ender must have said something about it to Hilda yesterday, otherwise she couldn't have known, but decided not to say anything. She pushed them under her new shirts and ignored it, knowing she needed them.
Ender went to his room after heating up the rest of the chicken noodle soup he had made for Willow the day before. He opened the trunk next to his bed and pulled out two medium sized backpacks that he never really used. They were still in good condition. Then he went to one of his bookshelves and pulled out of a wooden box two necklaces with a small crystal pendant on each. He took them and the backpacks to the girls.
Stormy looked up when she heard Ender approaching. She'd already finished her food, having eaten at a breakneck pace that had Willow looking away.
" Put your clothes in these." Ender said giving them each a backpack. " These," he held up the necklaces, " will allow me to find you if you ever get into a dangerous situation, and I'll know if you do."
He gave the first one to Stormy and the second to Willow. Willow stared at the necklace on the table in front of her. She had the distinct feeling that Ender was expecting them to leave soon.
" Ender, do you want us to leave?" she asked.
Ender looked at her. She seemed more curious than concerned.
" I think you will want to, at least." he stated, causing Stormy to look at him in confusion.
Willow thought she knew why he thought that. She liked it here. It was almost home. Almost. If she knew Ender and Stormy better it probably would feel like it. But, as it was, she already had a family and she knew she didn't belong here, in this weird world that no longer had a square sun or short days. Willow needed answers and she knew Ender couldn't tell her everything. Besides, it was possible she was putting them in danger just by being near them, considering recent events.
Stormy was about to ask why when she caught Willow's serious expression.
" Willow?" she asked.
Willow looked her and smiled. " I'll have to." she said, then turned serious again. " It's obvious isn't it. I need answers and they can't all be in the same place."
Stormy sighed and looked at her necklace thoughtfully. Ender knew her well, even after her absence.
" I'll go with you." she said, putting the necklace on. Willow looked surprised.
" No, um, no. You… you shouldn't." she stuttered.
Stormy gave her a look, then she smirked. " Ok. Fine. But you can't stop me from coincidentally going in the same direction as you."
" What if I'm attacked again?" she glared.
" What if you are attacked again? Would you have been ok on that tower if you had been alone?" Stormy shot back.
Willow looked away and scowled. " I would have been fine. I was fine."
" You didn't look fine." Ender said, watching the two with some amusement.
Willow huffed. " Yeah well," she paused to take a bite of her soup, " I was." she finished lamely.
Stormy smiled, feeling she had won. Willow didn't really have a choice in where Stormy went anyway.
" You two should rest." Ender said after Willow finished eating. " You're still recovering."
Stormy made a face, knowing he was right. Willow got up and collected the dishes, intending to wash them.
" Just put them in the sink. I'll wash them." Ender said.
Willow did and went back to putting her clothes in her backpack. When she was done she remembered her old clothes she left to dry.
" Hey Ender, are my old clothes still drying on the bathroom door?" she asked.
The corner of Ender's mouth twitched in annoyance. " Yes. I wasn't sure what you wanted to do with them. And from now on leave your clothes outside to dry if you're here."
" Sorry about that." Willow said, scratching the back of her head.
Ender had his back to her and was washing dishes. " Don't worry about it."
Willow went to the bathroom and pulled her clothes off the door. The shirt was torn and stained red in several places. The jeans were ripped and had less stains. Out of the whole outfit, the shoes were in the best condition, but they weren't dry on the inside yet. She took the clothes and folded them as she walked back to the kitchen.
Ender wasn't there. The dishes were put away.
Willow put the clothes in the backpack and carried them into the living room. Stormy was sleeping on the couch, wrapped in a thin, woven blanket. Willow put the backpack down on the table and went back to the bathroom to get her shoes. She yawned as she took the shoes outside and set them on the wooden floorboards of the porch.
She didn't want to leave. She didn't know where to go or even what to look for. She wanted answers now. She wanted to go home. She sighed. She didn't know what she wanted, other than to not be so confused. She guessed she was now starting to accept the seriousness of the situation she was in. And to think, it took, like, 10 to 11 chapters. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. She had no idea where that last one came from.
Then she stopped and held her breath. There was something… there had been a presence in the back of her mind. Distorted laughter? She let her breath out and went inside. It was gone and she had probably just imagined it.
Willow woke up later the same day. She looked around the dark room warily, noticing the kitchen light on and Stormy was still asleep. She pushed the blanket off and quietly hurried to the kitchen. Ender was at the table with a book in front of him and a mug of something off the to the side a bit on the table. He looked up when she came in.
" Are you ok?" he asked, noticing her pale face.
She nodded and sat in the chair across from him.
" Do you want some tea?"
She nodded again. Sure, why not, she thought.
Ender got up and poured her a cup. " What flavor?"
" Doesn't matter." Willow yawned.
Ender grabbed the first tea bag he saw, mint, and dropped it into the mug. He put the kettle back on the stove and circled around the table to put Willow's tea in front of her before sitting down. Neither of them spoke for a while.
" Tell me about Valkyrie. Please." Willow finally broke the silence, adding the please as an afterthought.
" I don't know where she was born or who her parents where." he began after some consideration. " She grew up in the desert village you were in yesterday, but she wasn't originally from there. That was around 400 years ago. She didn't care much for her family, except her sister, who she was very protective of. Her sister disappeared one day though. I'm guessing it was around that time she must have met Cordelia."
" How do you know all this?" she interrupted, suspicious.
" My grandfather knew her. She stayed with him for a while." he replied calmly, as if he had been expecting doubt.
Willow nodded thoughtfully.
" At some point," Ender continued, "Valkyrie left the village and swam across the sea to this island." He noticed Willow's eyes widen in surprise. " Valkyrie was a steve. They are like villagers, but stronger. In the game Minecraft, from your world, players generally use steves to represent themselves." he explained.
Willow thought that sounded odd. " Wait." she said, thinking about it. " Do players actually enter worlds here? Like, if I went traveling, could I come across one?"
" Not here, probably. Not only is this Herobrine's world, but it existed before your world came in contact with our..." Ender paused, trying to think of a word. "universe. There were already many existing worlds before the game started. Original Worlds. When a player enters the game, they have to generate a new world. These are Player Worlds. Players cannot enter Original Worlds unless some outside force, meaning either Herobrine or Notch, intervene."
" So there are billions of worlds being created and deleted everyday. How… And Herobrine and Notch have the power to drag players into Original Worlds. Could they drag a human from Earth into..."
Ender started shaking his head. " No, they can only take themselves from Earth to Minecraft and back."
Willow gawked. " Herobrine actually exists on Earth?"
Ender shushed her. " Quiet down and close your mouth. Yes, he can, if he wants to, and he did once. He stays in Minecraft now though, as far as I know."
Willow was skeptical again. " I'll believe what you're saying, for now, because it's not that far of a stretch and you seem trustworthy, but how do you know all this?"
" I can't tell you that. I'm sorry, but it's strictly confidential. Endermen are secretive, even the ones who will look you in the eye and not attack you."
Willow winced and lowered her eyes. "Sorry." She wouldn't ask about what sounded to her like a secret enderman organization. For now at least.
" It's alright. Just keep in mind that most endermen hate eye contact. Aside from that, we're a very peaceful race." he said. " Anyway, you wanted to know about Valkyrie."
Willow nodded.
" Where was I?" Ender muttered. " When Valkyrie arrived on the island she started exploring and eventually found my grandfather, Cyrus. He was eccentric, for an Enderman, even more than I am. He took her in and wrote about her in his daily journals. Over that period of time she and Cordelia built up their friendship. They were like sisters. After a few years, maybe 10 or so, Valkyrie and Cordelia left to go traveling. Valkyrie had told Cyrus she wanted to find out about her family and see if her adopted sister was alive."
" How old was Valkyrie when she left?"
" 16."
" Oh." Willow was surprised. " She swam across the sea when she was 6?"
" Yes. She was very strong, and also very bright. My grandfather was fond of her, sometimes referring to her as the daughter he never had."
Willow was silent for a while. " So," she said, her face kept carefully blank. " You think I'm Valkyrie, don't you? That's why you've gone out of your way so much to help me." She felt angry, though she tried to hide. She wasn't Valkyrie and she knew it.
" I think you could be Valkyrie, but that's not why I helped you." Willow looked up from the table. " Stormy likes you and I have to admit I find you interesting." Ender confessed.
Willow wasn't insulted. She had been called worse things than 'interesting'. She was mostly relieved he hadn't done anything for her just because he thought she was someone else.
" If you don't mind, may I ask you something now?" Ender asked, closing his book.
" Sure." Willow said. It was fair.
" Why did you ask about Valkyrie?" He had seen her when she entered the kitchen. Something told him whatever was on her mind was strongly linked to Valkyrie, which is why she had asked about her.
" ...I had a dream." Willow said after some hesitation. " I can't remember a lot of it, but I thought, at first, that I was battling a large dragon with my sister. But then I lost my awareness of the dream and called her Valkyrie. It was a long battle, but eventually the dragon rose into the sky, burst into these beams of light, and dropped experience orbs everywhere. That's how I know the dream was in minecraft. Then this portal appeared, I think it was in the ground, and Valkyrie and I looked at each other. We were very excited for some reason. She jumped in first and was gone. But when I jumped in something went… wrong. I don't know how to describe it… Like a piece of me, and I don't mean physically, like my mind, my being was being ripped apart, but not all of it. Not completely. And toward the end I heard these distorted screams in my mind. I know," Willow took a deep breath and let it out. " I know I must sound insane or something, but I still hear it. When I first got here, she talked to me. And then she stopped. But earlier today, I thought I heard it. I brushed it off as my imagination."
Willow looked at Ender, who looked troubled. Possibly the first emotion she had seen on his face. There was silence again, and this time Ender broke it.
" Well, I don't believe you're Valkyrie." he finally said. " I believe that dream was a memory of your past."
" I never have dreams that actually follow reality." Willow scoffed.
" What do you think it is then?" Ender looked at her intently.
Willow didn't have an answer.
" It's possible..." Ender thought quietly. He opened his book to a specific page and turned it towards Willow. " Does it look familiar?"
" That's..." Willow trailed off, looking at the sketch. It couldn't be her. " Valkyrie. Isn't it?"
Ender shook his head. " There was something else I didn't tell you. I just found this journal today. It seemed to have been hidden." Ender paused, uncertain.
" Who is it?" Willow asked, impatient. This sounded really important.
Instead of answering, Ender flipped the pages back, which revealed what looked like several mathematic and scientific formulas, accompanied by hand drawn illustrations, in a familiar handwriting. " This was Valkyrie's lab journal. She was cloning herself." He responded grimly.
Willow stared dumbly at the book, the page Ender stopped on containing a sketch of a young woman curled up, not unlike a baby in the womb, in a large test tube, with tubes connecting her to the top of the capsule. " You mean," Willow said faintly. She felt numb and confused. " that's me. And the girl in the other picture was me too."
Ender didn't say anything, knowing she needed to think.
Willow wanted to deny it. Who would want to be an exact copy of someone else? And if she was a clone… There was a possibility she didn't want to consider. But the dreams she had been having seemed to back up everything Ender had said, and she knew the one she just had wasn't the only one, even if she couldn't remember the others. Still, could they be a freaky coincidence? This wasn't something to be taken lightly. Obviously. Willow took a deep breath and closed the book.
" I'm not going to believe this just because I had some odd dreams. I'll need something concrete. Undeniable." she said, standing up.
Ender nodded. " That's understandable." He pushed the journal over to her. " You should keep it."
Willow studied him carefully. He clearly believed all this, but how much? Willow thought she knew why he wanted her to have the journal, and she herself was curious, but she didn't want to study it. Then again, if this didn't relate to her she had no reason to worry. The fact that she was worried was cause to be concerned.
She slowly reached out and took the journal, still watching Ender, who was as unreadable as always. Then she left, stuffing the journal in the very bottom of her backpack before going outside.
Ender didn't move until he heard the front door open and close. He hadn't wanted to tell her about that, but he knew it wasn't fair to keep it from her. He got up and collected the mugs. Willow's was still full. She hadn't even touched it. Ender poured the tea into the sink and washed both mugs before putting them away. He wasn't completely convinced Willow was a clone or Valkyrie herself. Or if it was all just a strange coincidence. But he thought it was very likely, given what he knew, that Willow was a clone, and that's why he had her keep the journal. If it was true, she was probably better off knowing sooner rather than later. He looked out the window. It was still dark outside. Hopefully Willow didn't wander off and get herself into too much trouble.
Willow stayed on the porch. She felt kind of uncomfortable being outside at night. The memories of being attacked by mobs still fresh in her mind. Telling Ender about the voice had been a recent change of mind. Willow looked up at the stars, trying to make sense of everything. The sky was so much clearer here. She had never seen so many stars, not even when she was little and lived on the countryside. Earth was so different. Not even the air was as fresh. Willow shook her head. She didn't belong here, and the sooner she got back to her world the better.
The next morning Ender found Willow and Stormy asleep on the couch, Willow having come back inside when she got tired. He woke them up easily by telling them breakfast was ready. Stormy was more energetic than she had been yesterday. That was both good and bad.
" Sooooo..." she started.
" So?" Ender put the food in front of them.
" So..."
" What is it Stormy?" Ender asked, sitting down.
" So..." By now it was obvious Stormy was messing with them. She glanced at Willow, who hadn't reacted yet. When she got no answer she started again. " Soooo..." she said loudly.
" Stormy." Ender looked at her.
" What are we doing today?" Stormy smiled innocently.
" We're going to the desert village this afternoon to meet with Cordelia and Eve."
" What? Why?" Stormy didn't sound pleased with the idea.
" Because we need to explain some things."
Stormy complained for the rest of the morning.
When they finished eating Willow volunteered to wash the dishes while Ender dried them and put them away. As soon as they were done Stormy insisted on teaching Willow crafting recipes. Ender gave Willow a plain notebook to write in when he felt her getting frustrated over not being able to practice the recipes. From then on she wrote down the ones she was shown. Ender was also dragged into it when Stormy forgot how to craft a few things.
In what felt like a short amount of time the sun was nearing the middle of the sky and they had to stop. Willow dropped the notebook in her backpack and slung it over her shoulder. Stormy and Ender followed her into the living room.
" Why are you taking that?" Stormy asked.
" I'm leaving after the conversation." she said quietly, looking at Ender. Those were the first words she had said all day.
Ender disappeared back into the kitchen.
" That's really soon." Stormy was surprised.
" Yeah, well." Willow looked away.
" That's fine. My backpack's in my inventory."
Willow blinked. She should have thought of that.
Ender came back out of the kitchen and handed them both small bags of food. " You'll need that. And this." He handed them a folded piece of paper.
Stormy opened it, revealing a large map. She laid it on the table and studied it for a few minutes before folding it back up.
" Thanks." Willow whispered.
" Yeah. Thanks Ender." Stormy grinned and put it in her inventory.
Ender teleported them to the desert village's beach and they waited. Eve showed up first. She looked miserable. Cordelia appeared not much later. She looked different somehow. They all looked at Ender expectantly.
" Perhaps we should go inside one of the houses for this?" he suggested.
Most of them agreed, and none disagreed. Once they were inside Ender started.
" The first thing we should go over is what happened after Valkyrie left." he said, looking at Cordelia. She glared back. Over to the side Willow tensed. " She reached the End and went through the portal. That brings into question the claim that Valkyrie is back."
Cordelia scowled at him. " It is possible for a mob to return after crossing over," she said, than admitted reluctantly, " even if it's rare. But how else do you explain her similarity to Val." She gestured to Willow at 'her'. " Valkyrie never had a twin."
" It is possible, but it's rare, like you said, and no one knows what happens when a mob jumps through the portal. The only ones who would are Notch and Herobrine, neither of which are an option. Even if Valkyrie came back, there's no guaranteeing she would be the same or even have the same memories." Ender explained.
" So why does she look exactly like her." Cordelia pointed at Willow again.
" We don't know. All we can do is guess." Ender said.
It was nearly a lie. Willow closed her eyes, glad he hadn't told Cordelia he believed Willow was a clone. Cordelia saw Willow's reaction and knew something was being left out.
" You do know, don't you. You at least have a good idea." she said, trying to stare Ender down.
" I don't know anything, and even if I did it wouldn't be my place to tell you." he replied, unaffected.
Cordelia glared at him and looked at Willow.
" No." Willow didn't give her a chance to say anything. " All I can tell you is that I'm not Valkyrie, and I'm not saying anything else to you if I can help it." she said coldly.
Cordelia looked hurt. Willow turned away from her. Eve watched the interaction and felt herself get annoyed at Willow, even if her behavior was understandable.
" The second thing," Ender got their attention again, " is the increased amount of hostile mobs lately. Have any of you noticed that kind of thing happening lately to anyone else?"
They all shook their heads.
" You should all be more careful anyway, especially if someone's being targeted. We'll be the first ones they come to if they can't find the target." he said seriously.
" You might as well just say her name. We all know who you're talking about." Cordelia grumbled, annoyed.
" Do we?" Ender inquired. " Willow wasn't the only one who was there every time a large group of mobs appeared."
Everyone, except Willow and Stormy, looked at him confused.
" I was there. Every time." Stormy held her hand up like she was in class, which Willow found peculiar because as far as she knew Stormy never went to school.
Cordelia and Eve stared at her in surprise.
" It doesn't matter, either way, because we've all met both of them." Ender said.
There was silence for a long time. Willow yawned.
" Is that all?" she asked, wanting to leave the hot, stuffy building.
" That's everything I wanted to cover. Is there anything else?" he asked, looking around. No one said anything. " Alright. Willow, before you leave..."
Willow nodded, stopping him before he said anything else. " Walk with me."
Willow and Ender left. Eve looked at Stormy, curious. Stormy pretended not to notice and went outside.
" Even if you are a clone, I don't believe that you are exactly like her." Ender told Willow once they were far enough away from the village.
Willow smiled regretfully. " A clone is an exact copy."
Ender looked at her. " Perhaps you were once, or maybe not."
Willow stopped and looked at him, annoyed.
" I can't say I understood all the equations in the journal," he said, stopping as well, " but from the ones I did I can say that Valkyrie didn't want you to be exactly like her. You look like her, yes, but your genetics are slightly different."
Willow scoffed. " Slightly. Big difference." she said sarcastically.
" At the time." Ender continued. " But you don't even remember that. You had an entirely different life. A person's personality is affected by their experiences and the people they meet. Even if she still existed and you met her, you would be different, without a doubt."
Willow was relieved. What Ender said made sense, but…
" You really believe all this. That I was originally a clone."
" It's very possible." Ender said. He suddenly knew where she was going with that statement. " You're right. I've been going back and forth between talking like I fully believe it and talking like it's merely a possibility. I'm very close to believing it. The only thing in the way is the lack of concrete evidence, as you called it."
" Ender, they're dreams. That's all they are."
" Yet they somehow support everything I've found, and you were hearing a voice like the one in your dream."
" What if I'm just hearing things? What if I'm hallucinating?" she asked, disturbed.
That made Ender pause. He hadn't been expecting that. " You're not, Willow. Just read the journal."
" How am I even supposed to understand it? It would take me more time than I have to learn everything I'd need to know."
" Time moves much faster in minecraft than it does on Earth. I'm sure you noticed the changes that have happened since you got here."
Willow had been frustrated, but when she thought about what he just said she relaxed. " The sun was square at first, and time is moving normally now."
Ender nodded. " That's because you got here through the void. You had to enter our speed of time gradually because the void doesn't just leave you completely. It's like an ocean. You fell through it and absorbed some of it, so when you washed up here it stayed with you and either dripped off or dried. That may be why you heard the voice more often then. The void can have strange effects on people."
" Right." Willow was confused. " How do you know that?"
" Endermen are born on the very surface of the void. We have a natural connection to it."
Willow thought for a moment, trying to get back on subject. " The void is mostly gone from me now, right? I won't hear the voice anymore?" She had to ask.
" It is, and since you said you haven't been hearing it lately you probably won't hear it anymore after a while without a lot of meditating."
" Meditating. Never mind." She hesitated for a minute. " You're sure I'll have enough time?"
Ender nodded. He looked over her shoulder and saw Stormy waving at them. " I think Stormy is finally getting impatient." he said, amused.
Willow turned around then looked back at Ender. " Yeah. We should get going. Thanks, for everything." She smiled. " Hey, you can't read minds, can you?" she asked, suddenly thoughtful.
" No, but I can sense the feelings of others and accurately guess what they're thinking. I guess you could call it a strong empathy."
" Oh." Willow said, surprised. " Well, see you later. I guess." She smiled again and walked away, waving over her shoulder.
Ender teleported home and smiled when no one could see him.