Part Six
"You know Aera, there are many things in this world, a lot more in others."
Confusion, tiny little six-year-old mentality trying to grasp the words being spoken to her. She turned her eyes upwards, seeing the face of her grandmother, utterly serious even though they were discussing fantastical things. But then again, Grams always treated the fantastic with respect, like it existed.
"What do you mean Grams?"
Her grandmother sighed, pulling the six-year-old Erin onto her lap. She tried to explain it again.
"The world around us, it's not all that there is. There are thousands of other peoples and stories out there. No one person could learn all of them, but it's everyone's duty to learn some."
Still confused. She knitted her eyebrows together, trying to force her brain to comprehend the big things Grams was talking about. But she couldn't, she was still too young. She needed help with it.
"Grams?"
Grams sighed again, pulling the book towards her. That book, full of pages of great fairy tales that she always loved to hear. She missed that book. Mom burned it in a fit of rage after Dad died. Grams couldn't even stop her. Grams waved that book at her right now.
"Think of this book. Inside, all kinds of stories. About Elves and fairies and dwarves and much more. It's called a fantasy, but then where did it come from?"
She thought she knew that answer.
"Someone made it up?"
Grams laughed, kissing the top of her head.
"Darling, you honestly think there is someone out there who could create this much on their own? One person, able to think up of an entire universe with no inspiration from what they've seen in their life?"
She frowned, feeling a bit surly. She thought she had been right. Because, what other choice was there?
"But Grams, they couldn't have seen this kind of stuff."
Grams looked her in the eye.
"And why not?"
She gave a sigh, feeling very adult being given the ability to explain this to her grandmother.
"Because it's not real. Mommy says so."
Grams sighed again. Erin frowned, Grams was doing an awful lot of sighing.
"You're Mommy isn't as wise as she would like to think. She tries to fit everything into what other people say is normal. She forgets that not everything can fit into categories of normal."
But Mom knew lots of stuff, she never forgot anything. And what was wrong with normal? Mom said normal was good.
"Grams, I don't understand."
"I know you don't my pet. But think on this, not every thing people tell you is real."
"Why would they lie Grams?"
"They don't lie honey. They just don't know any better. Humans like living in a glass house. They can see everything outside, but they're so busy giggling at their reflections that the outside goes by unnoticed for the most part. Only those capable of looking beyond themselves can ever get out of that house."
Again with the confusion. Her grandmother was going far over her head.
"Grams, I'm confused."
"I'm sorry baby. I guess this is all too confusing. But just try to remember this one thing."
"What Grams?"
"The world is far more mysterious than you think. Remember Aera, just because you see something, doesn't mean that's the end of the story. The world is a mystery. The ending is nothing more than the beginning."
She was starting to get a bit irritated.
"Grams, that doesn't explain anything."
"Well, maybe it's not supposed to. Aera, don't you want to be out there, finding answers all on your own?"
"I'm only six Grams. I'm not allowed to go to the playground by myself."
"That's not what I meant honey."
"I don't know what you mean Grams."
"It's . . . nothing dear. You're still too young. But one day, it'll be time."
"Time for what Grams?
"Time for you, my darling Aera. Time for you."
*****
The slightest caress across her brow caused her to flinch in her sleep. It was the softest of touches, kind of ticklish. The hair was being pushed off her forehead. She frowned, scrunching up her nose as a few strands went rebel, tickling the under of her nose. She sneezed, hand rubbing her upper lip as her eyes began to open.
The words of her grandmother left her suddenly, but she didn't want them to. Something was in those words, something very important. Her grandmother had something to say to her, something Erin lost a long time ago. The words, they were the answers. But it was the questions that eluded Erin even more than the answers.
But the words were gone, fading fast. Sleep left, taking the dream and its answers with it. She felt very disappointed in herself. She should have caught on with what Grams was trying to say. After all, she had been saying it for such a long time. But it was gone, sleep was gone, and Erin was awake.
The sight of sad green eyes welcomed her. Erin blinked, staring at her sister in confusion for a second. She remembered in a second. She had climbed into bed with Jenn while her sister slept. Jenn had awoken before she had.
"Jenn?" Erin murmured, frowning as her sister continued to play with a strand of her hair.
"It all happened didn't it?" Jenn asked softly, a underlying tinge of pain in her voice. "Hunter really-"
Erin sighed, rising up to a sitting position. Jenn followed, eyes intent of her sister.
"It happened didn't it?" Jenn demanded again, voise raising slightly as her panic swelled.
"It happened," Erin consented, grasping at her sister's hand. "It all happened. Hunter-he's gone Jenn."
Jenn nodded, biting her lip as she looked away from her sister.
"Those things, the blue things with the bad dental job," Jenn shook her head. "It can't be real-"
"Been there sis," Erin cut her off tiredly. "Been there and been proven wrong. They were real. They, I don't know, but they were for real."
"How?" Jenn wailed. "It's wrong! It can't-Hunter was just with us. I don't know how-Erin! This is all so wrong!"
"I don't know what to tell you," Erin sighed, resting her head on Jenn's shoulder. "I don't have an explanation. Just been putting it off for a while, trying not to think about it."
"We have to think about it," Jenn countered vehemently. "We can't ignore it Erin. Something happened, and now Hunter's gone and we're here all alone-"
"Not really alone," Erin muttered. Jenn frowned.
"We're not?"
Erin gave another sigh, climbing out of bed. She started pacing in front of Jenn's bed, hands wrining as she tried to find a way to articulate her thoughts.
"Erin . . ." there was an underlying threat to her sister's voice. Erin bit her lip, stopping in her pacing to face her sister.
"Do you remember those stories Grams used to tell us . . ?"
*****
The talk of them had not abated.
In fact, it only grew as days passed on and the strangers themselves offered no answers. People were creating their own stories for the new arrivals, some wild and some tame. All of them sounded unplausible to his ears. Not one of the spun tales were near to the truth. Or at least he imagined.
He could not know either way, but he knew in his heart they were not witches or humans with lost senses or even spies of Mordor. They didn't seem threatening to him, though he had yet to see them. He just knew it.
Elrond would not say much on them, just that they were lost. He understood that, but they had to be very lost. He wondered where they did come from. Some of the Elves were whispering rumours that they might just be mad, running away from their caretakers. But that didn't seem to fit either. Aragorn had spoken with them. He said the brunette one was sane, just scared. The redhead had yet to awaken, but the brunette said they were sisters. The man they had come with, Hunter, who died in the forest, he had been the redhead's lover. But that was all they knew of the strangers.
The Elf known as Legolas gave a sigh, heading through the palace in search of his comrade Gimli. Perhaps a talk with the dwarf would take his mind off that strangers. All this wondering was making his head hurt.
*****
"You know Aera, there are many things in this world, a lot more in others."
Confusion, tiny little six-year-old mentality trying to grasp the words being spoken to her. She turned her eyes upwards, seeing the face of her grandmother, utterly serious even though they were discussing fantastical things. But then again, Grams always treated the fantastic with respect, like it existed.
"What do you mean Grams?"
Her grandmother sighed, pulling the six-year-old Erin onto her lap. She tried to explain it again.
"The world around us, it's not all that there is. There are thousands of other peoples and stories out there. No one person could learn all of them, but it's everyone's duty to learn some."
Still confused. She knitted her eyebrows together, trying to force her brain to comprehend the big things Grams was talking about. But she couldn't, she was still too young. She needed help with it.
"Grams?"
Grams sighed again, pulling the book towards her. That book, full of pages of great fairy tales that she always loved to hear. She missed that book. Mom burned it in a fit of rage after Dad died. Grams couldn't even stop her. Grams waved that book at her right now.
"Think of this book. Inside, all kinds of stories. About Elves and fairies and dwarves and much more. It's called a fantasy, but then where did it come from?"
She thought she knew that answer.
"Someone made it up?"
Grams laughed, kissing the top of her head.
"Darling, you honestly think there is someone out there who could create this much on their own? One person, able to think up of an entire universe with no inspiration from what they've seen in their life?"
She frowned, feeling a bit surly. She thought she had been right. Because, what other choice was there?
"But Grams, they couldn't have seen this kind of stuff."
Grams looked her in the eye.
"And why not?"
She gave a sigh, feeling very adult being given the ability to explain this to her grandmother.
"Because it's not real. Mommy says so."
Grams sighed again. Erin frowned, Grams was doing an awful lot of sighing.
"You're Mommy isn't as wise as she would like to think. She tries to fit everything into what other people say is normal. She forgets that not everything can fit into categories of normal."
But Mom knew lots of stuff, she never forgot anything. And what was wrong with normal? Mom said normal was good.
"Grams, I don't understand."
"I know you don't my pet. But think on this, not every thing people tell you is real."
"Why would they lie Grams?"
"They don't lie honey. They just don't know any better. Humans like living in a glass house. They can see everything outside, but they're so busy giggling at their reflections that the outside goes by unnoticed for the most part. Only those capable of looking beyond themselves can ever get out of that house."
Again with the confusion. Her grandmother was going far over her head.
"Grams, I'm confused."
"I'm sorry baby. I guess this is all too confusing. But just try to remember this one thing."
"What Grams?"
"The world is far more mysterious than you think. Remember Aera, just because you see something, doesn't mean that's the end of the story. The world is a mystery. The ending is nothing more than the beginning."
She was starting to get a bit irritated.
"Grams, that doesn't explain anything."
"Well, maybe it's not supposed to. Aera, don't you want to be out there, finding answers all on your own?"
"I'm only six Grams. I'm not allowed to go to the playground by myself."
"That's not what I meant honey."
"I don't know what you mean Grams."
"It's . . . nothing dear. You're still too young. But one day, it'll be time."
"Time for what Grams?
"Time for you, my darling Aera. Time for you."
*****
The slightest caress across her brow caused her to flinch in her sleep. It was the softest of touches, kind of ticklish. The hair was being pushed off her forehead. She frowned, scrunching up her nose as a few strands went rebel, tickling the under of her nose. She sneezed, hand rubbing her upper lip as her eyes began to open.
The words of her grandmother left her suddenly, but she didn't want them to. Something was in those words, something very important. Her grandmother had something to say to her, something Erin lost a long time ago. The words, they were the answers. But it was the questions that eluded Erin even more than the answers.
But the words were gone, fading fast. Sleep left, taking the dream and its answers with it. She felt very disappointed in herself. She should have caught on with what Grams was trying to say. After all, she had been saying it for such a long time. But it was gone, sleep was gone, and Erin was awake.
The sight of sad green eyes welcomed her. Erin blinked, staring at her sister in confusion for a second. She remembered in a second. She had climbed into bed with Jenn while her sister slept. Jenn had awoken before she had.
"Jenn?" Erin murmured, frowning as her sister continued to play with a strand of her hair.
"It all happened didn't it?" Jenn asked softly, a underlying tinge of pain in her voice. "Hunter really-"
Erin sighed, rising up to a sitting position. Jenn followed, eyes intent of her sister.
"It happened didn't it?" Jenn demanded again, voise raising slightly as her panic swelled.
"It happened," Erin consented, grasping at her sister's hand. "It all happened. Hunter-he's gone Jenn."
Jenn nodded, biting her lip as she looked away from her sister.
"Those things, the blue things with the bad dental job," Jenn shook her head. "It can't be real-"
"Been there sis," Erin cut her off tiredly. "Been there and been proven wrong. They were real. They, I don't know, but they were for real."
"How?" Jenn wailed. "It's wrong! It can't-Hunter was just with us. I don't know how-Erin! This is all so wrong!"
"I don't know what to tell you," Erin sighed, resting her head on Jenn's shoulder. "I don't have an explanation. Just been putting it off for a while, trying not to think about it."
"We have to think about it," Jenn countered vehemently. "We can't ignore it Erin. Something happened, and now Hunter's gone and we're here all alone-"
"Not really alone," Erin muttered. Jenn frowned.
"We're not?"
Erin gave another sigh, climbing out of bed. She started pacing in front of Jenn's bed, hands wrining as she tried to find a way to articulate her thoughts.
"Erin . . ." there was an underlying threat to her sister's voice. Erin bit her lip, stopping in her pacing to face her sister.
"Do you remember those stories Grams used to tell us . . ?"
*****
The talk of them had not abated.
In fact, it only grew as days passed on and the strangers themselves offered no answers. People were creating their own stories for the new arrivals, some wild and some tame. All of them sounded unplausible to his ears. Not one of the spun tales were near to the truth. Or at least he imagined.
He could not know either way, but he knew in his heart they were not witches or humans with lost senses or even spies of Mordor. They didn't seem threatening to him, though he had yet to see them. He just knew it.
Elrond would not say much on them, just that they were lost. He understood that, but they had to be very lost. He wondered where they did come from. Some of the Elves were whispering rumours that they might just be mad, running away from their caretakers. But that didn't seem to fit either. Aragorn had spoken with them. He said the brunette one was sane, just scared. The redhead had yet to awaken, but the brunette said they were sisters. The man they had come with, Hunter, who died in the forest, he had been the redhead's lover. But that was all they knew of the strangers.
The Elf known as Legolas gave a sigh, heading through the palace in search of his comrade Gimli. Perhaps a talk with the dwarf would take his mind off that strangers. All this wondering was making his head hurt.
*****