DISCLAIMER: This story is based on characters created by Alexander Key and
owned by Walt Disney Pictures. This is fan fiction, and not endorsed by
Mr. Key, his estate, or Walt Disney. No copyright infringement is
intended, and no money is being made from this story. It is based on plot
elements used in both the book Escape to Witch Mountain as well as the
movie of the same name, although the book and the movie differ extensively.
Please direct all queries, comments, etc. to kevinpkhaynes@yahoo.com. It
is my sincere desire that you enjoy the story as the pure entertainment it
was intended to be.
LIFE ON WITCH MOUNTAIN
By Kevin Haynes
CHAPTER 3
Twenty-five years had passed since that night. Even after so much time, that night had left an indelible impression on Tony's soul. Despite the traumatic events in his life - the wreck of the lifeboat, the death of his parents, the fearful circumstances after the Malones died, the threats from Mr. Bolt and Dr. Gannon - the one thing that had most molded Tony's life, his very character, was the night he and his sister bonded like never before.
In those 25 years, the Witch Mountain community had grown as well. More survivors had been recovered (although there were still many unaccounted for), and the Homedwellers - as they chose to call themselves - had settled into a wonderful routine that closely resembled life on their home planet. They planted gardens, which provided all of their food. Since they formed close bonds with animals, they chose to not eat any meat, so all of their food had to be grown. However, since many of them had lived among humans before finding "New Home" (which is what they began calling Witch Mountain), they also brought in foods from nearby settlements, such as pasta, various vegetables which would not grow in their mountain environment, and even chocolate and other sweets.
Tony and Tia still lived with Uncle Bené and Aunt Bri. Now adults, Tony and Tia had taken over more of the household duties so that their "elders" could enjoy themselves more. While the concept of retirement was foreign to Home, the idea of respecting one's elders and allowing them to relax and enjoy the fruit of their labors in their later years was very strong.
Something else Tony had been amazed to learn was that his people's lifespan was much greater than that of humans. Since he and Tia had aged at the (apparently) same rate as their peers when they were younger, he assumed they would live as long as earth people do. He learned, however, that the key word was apparently. Physically the Homedwellers developed at the same rate as earth-dwellers, but inwardly they remained quite young. After about 50 earth years, the outward changes began to slow down, as if reaching a plateau. Uncle Bené, for example, appeared quite old by earth standards, but Tony was amazed to learn that he was actually over 100 earth years old! He appeared to be only about 60, and actually had the strength and stamina of someone half that age.
There were at least two reasons for this, Tony was told. First, the planet Home took much more time to orbit its sun since it had to go around two of them! So one year on Home was the equivalent of many years on earth. The other was the happy coincidence that earth's proximity to its sun, as well as its particular atmosphere, had what could best be described as a greenhouse effect on the Homedwellers. Because of these properties, they ended up living longer lives on earth than they would have on their own planet!
Life on Witch Mountain - or New Home - consisted of just living. Growing food, learning about the earth and its inhabitants, being together, improving one's abilities, and enjoying just being alive were the essence of their existence. They also enjoyed inventing. As earth technology improved, they had to keep their own technology growing as well. While earth scientists weren't anywhere near the ability to build something like the lifeboats that had brought them to earth, they still needed to stay ahead.
The reason for this continual advancement was because of the Mr. Bolts and Dr. Gannons of the world. Almost any Homedweller who had lived with humans before finding their way to Witch Mountain had encountered people that wanted to make use of their abilities. It was no secret to the humans that many "special" people had made their way to Witch Mountain. And while the more simple-minded humans that lived near Witch Mountain avoided it and discouraged anyone from getting too close, the Homedwellers knew that earth's technology would soon enable someone who knew about them to look closely at Witch Mountain from the air or even from space. That was something they must avoid at all costs.
This potential threat was the reason they developed the "Assignment." Each Homedweller, as he or she reached adulthood, would take on a three-year- long assignment. Each one would be trained in a different line of work. Once ready, they would be sent to different parts of the United States to blend in with humans and perform their trade. While they were on assignment, their mission was two-fold: (1) to find out what humans knew about Homedwellers and if they were in any danger, and (2) to seek out Homedwellers that did not know they were from another planet.
Neither Tony nor Tia had been on their assignment yet, even though they both were approaching 40 earth years of age. Since they had spent so much time with humans, even though they were quite young, they were needed to train those who would be going out into the world. Although they had not lived with humans for almost 30 years, Tony had used radio, television, and, of late, the internet, to follow American fads and trends. He was often able to relate new things he heard about to what he had experienced years before, and Tia would often remind him of things he had forgotten. Then they would pass this information on the Homedwellers who were preparing for their assignments. Tony would even have them role-play different scenarios to help them prepare to react as earth-dwellers and without giving away their unique abilities.
But after years of teaching and training, Tony was itching to go on an assignment himself. When he was younger and the idea was first discussed among the Homedwellers, he had almost become sick thinking about contact with humans again. But as his people went and then returned, he loved listening to their stories and experiences. He began to hunger for some contact with humans again as he remembered that there were kind ones like Granny Malone and the Earthquake Gang. There was also a part of him that, after running for his life at such a young age, wanted to be a "spy" and play a role. When he was nine he didn't know how to pretend he was someone different than who he was, and he resented having to hide his true abilities. Now, as an adult, he was ready to try it out - he could handle it much better now!
Uncle Bené agreed with Tony. As elder statesman for the Homedwellers, it had originally been Uncle Bené's idea to send people on the assignment. He was concerned, at first, that three years might be too long, but humans seemed to not trust someone who was only around for a year or two, and trust was essential for what they were trying to accomplish. Also, with their extremely long lifespan, three years really wasn't that much time. They could keep in touch mentally or via their version of the internet with their members on assignment, so it was as if they weren't even gone.
Uncle Bené had considered Tony for one of the first assignments, but he needed to know for sure that the young man was ready. Tony had developed into a wonderful, confident young man, but his uncle knew that scars of the past heal slowly. When, after years of helping with the training, Tony finally approached him about going on an assignment himself, he knew that Tony was ready.
And so was Tia. She had wanted for so long to be sent on an assignment, but her bond with Tony was so precious that she didn't want to leave until he was ready. She couldn't suppress a smile when he told her that he was going to begin preparing for an assignment. Now she could, too. Both could hardly wait for this new adventure.
LIFE ON WITCH MOUNTAIN
By Kevin Haynes
CHAPTER 3
Twenty-five years had passed since that night. Even after so much time, that night had left an indelible impression on Tony's soul. Despite the traumatic events in his life - the wreck of the lifeboat, the death of his parents, the fearful circumstances after the Malones died, the threats from Mr. Bolt and Dr. Gannon - the one thing that had most molded Tony's life, his very character, was the night he and his sister bonded like never before.
In those 25 years, the Witch Mountain community had grown as well. More survivors had been recovered (although there were still many unaccounted for), and the Homedwellers - as they chose to call themselves - had settled into a wonderful routine that closely resembled life on their home planet. They planted gardens, which provided all of their food. Since they formed close bonds with animals, they chose to not eat any meat, so all of their food had to be grown. However, since many of them had lived among humans before finding "New Home" (which is what they began calling Witch Mountain), they also brought in foods from nearby settlements, such as pasta, various vegetables which would not grow in their mountain environment, and even chocolate and other sweets.
Tony and Tia still lived with Uncle Bené and Aunt Bri. Now adults, Tony and Tia had taken over more of the household duties so that their "elders" could enjoy themselves more. While the concept of retirement was foreign to Home, the idea of respecting one's elders and allowing them to relax and enjoy the fruit of their labors in their later years was very strong.
Something else Tony had been amazed to learn was that his people's lifespan was much greater than that of humans. Since he and Tia had aged at the (apparently) same rate as their peers when they were younger, he assumed they would live as long as earth people do. He learned, however, that the key word was apparently. Physically the Homedwellers developed at the same rate as earth-dwellers, but inwardly they remained quite young. After about 50 earth years, the outward changes began to slow down, as if reaching a plateau. Uncle Bené, for example, appeared quite old by earth standards, but Tony was amazed to learn that he was actually over 100 earth years old! He appeared to be only about 60, and actually had the strength and stamina of someone half that age.
There were at least two reasons for this, Tony was told. First, the planet Home took much more time to orbit its sun since it had to go around two of them! So one year on Home was the equivalent of many years on earth. The other was the happy coincidence that earth's proximity to its sun, as well as its particular atmosphere, had what could best be described as a greenhouse effect on the Homedwellers. Because of these properties, they ended up living longer lives on earth than they would have on their own planet!
Life on Witch Mountain - or New Home - consisted of just living. Growing food, learning about the earth and its inhabitants, being together, improving one's abilities, and enjoying just being alive were the essence of their existence. They also enjoyed inventing. As earth technology improved, they had to keep their own technology growing as well. While earth scientists weren't anywhere near the ability to build something like the lifeboats that had brought them to earth, they still needed to stay ahead.
The reason for this continual advancement was because of the Mr. Bolts and Dr. Gannons of the world. Almost any Homedweller who had lived with humans before finding their way to Witch Mountain had encountered people that wanted to make use of their abilities. It was no secret to the humans that many "special" people had made their way to Witch Mountain. And while the more simple-minded humans that lived near Witch Mountain avoided it and discouraged anyone from getting too close, the Homedwellers knew that earth's technology would soon enable someone who knew about them to look closely at Witch Mountain from the air or even from space. That was something they must avoid at all costs.
This potential threat was the reason they developed the "Assignment." Each Homedweller, as he or she reached adulthood, would take on a three-year- long assignment. Each one would be trained in a different line of work. Once ready, they would be sent to different parts of the United States to blend in with humans and perform their trade. While they were on assignment, their mission was two-fold: (1) to find out what humans knew about Homedwellers and if they were in any danger, and (2) to seek out Homedwellers that did not know they were from another planet.
Neither Tony nor Tia had been on their assignment yet, even though they both were approaching 40 earth years of age. Since they had spent so much time with humans, even though they were quite young, they were needed to train those who would be going out into the world. Although they had not lived with humans for almost 30 years, Tony had used radio, television, and, of late, the internet, to follow American fads and trends. He was often able to relate new things he heard about to what he had experienced years before, and Tia would often remind him of things he had forgotten. Then they would pass this information on the Homedwellers who were preparing for their assignments. Tony would even have them role-play different scenarios to help them prepare to react as earth-dwellers and without giving away their unique abilities.
But after years of teaching and training, Tony was itching to go on an assignment himself. When he was younger and the idea was first discussed among the Homedwellers, he had almost become sick thinking about contact with humans again. But as his people went and then returned, he loved listening to their stories and experiences. He began to hunger for some contact with humans again as he remembered that there were kind ones like Granny Malone and the Earthquake Gang. There was also a part of him that, after running for his life at such a young age, wanted to be a "spy" and play a role. When he was nine he didn't know how to pretend he was someone different than who he was, and he resented having to hide his true abilities. Now, as an adult, he was ready to try it out - he could handle it much better now!
Uncle Bené agreed with Tony. As elder statesman for the Homedwellers, it had originally been Uncle Bené's idea to send people on the assignment. He was concerned, at first, that three years might be too long, but humans seemed to not trust someone who was only around for a year or two, and trust was essential for what they were trying to accomplish. Also, with their extremely long lifespan, three years really wasn't that much time. They could keep in touch mentally or via their version of the internet with their members on assignment, so it was as if they weren't even gone.
Uncle Bené had considered Tony for one of the first assignments, but he needed to know for sure that the young man was ready. Tony had developed into a wonderful, confident young man, but his uncle knew that scars of the past heal slowly. When, after years of helping with the training, Tony finally approached him about going on an assignment himself, he knew that Tony was ready.
And so was Tia. She had wanted for so long to be sent on an assignment, but her bond with Tony was so precious that she didn't want to leave until he was ready. She couldn't suppress a smile when he told her that he was going to begin preparing for an assignment. Now she could, too. Both could hardly wait for this new adventure.