Disclaimer: I still don't own 'The Village' and I'm waiting for MNS to show up at my door and give it to me in a nice box -

A/N: Finally, an update! I'm sorry it took me so long, I just started my sophomore year at high school and I have a very hectic schedule. From now on expect an update every weekend at least. Well, last chapter's title was from "No Rain" by Blind Melon, one of my favorite 90s songs.

Chapter 4: Over the Rainbow

Lucius had cleared the table for them and Ivy had placed the dishes in a basket to be washed. Kevin in the meanwhile idly walked around the house, noting the small oddities. There were no signs of any modern devices. There was no television, no lights other then candles. The first thought that crossed his mind was that they were Amish. It still didn't explain why he had never been told, but it was the simplest explanation available. He continued down a hall to the bedrooms. He walked into the first bedroom he saw, which he noticed had a window that had a view of the porch.

"Ivy?" Kevin called from the bedroom. It looked like a girl's room, but he wasn't sure if Ivy had a sister or not.

"Yes, Kevin?" Ivy responded and Kevin could hear her cane idly tapping the floorboards. He walked into the hall and met her there.

"Ivy, I have a question. Why don't you have any electricity?" he asked. Ivy's head tilted slightly and her brows furrowed in confusion.

"Electricity? I have never heard of that word before, Kevin." she responded slowly. It was Kevin's turn to look confused.

"Have you ever heard of television?" Ivy shook her head in response. "Cars? Airplanes?" To each Ivy only looked more confused.

"You have never heard of an airplane? But planes fly over…" His voice faded as he remembered what the boss had told him. Someone had paid off the government to not fly over the reserve.

"How about television? McDonald's?" Kevin said in disbelief and his confusion only increased with Ivy's response.

"None of those words are familiar to me, Kevin. Are they in the towns? We have not been told a lot about the towns except that they are filled with wicked people," Ivy explained. Kevin nodded but then remembered she could not see him.

"Are you taking me to see those people you talked about now?" he asked.

"Yes, they should still be in meeting since my father has not returned yet. We should go now." Ivy led Kevin to a hall closet as she spoke. She took a coat out and pulled it on her. Once she had fastened it securely, she took another coat out and handed it to Kevin.

"Where's your friend? Lucius, right?" Kevin asked as he put on the coat. Ivy tapped her cane lightly as she figured out her direction and walked to the door.

"Yes. His name is Lucius Hunt. He went ahead to notify the elders and make sure the other villagers are not out," Ivy opened the door and waited for Kevin to step out before closing it behind her. She stepped off the porch and resolutely stepped onto the grass and began walking. The rain had calmed and was now mere sprinkles.

It was amazing how well Ivy managed through the slick, wet grass. She hardly used the cane and seemed to know where every slightly dangerous hole was and stepped over them with ease. Despite her skill, Kevin felt the need to keep close to her in case she stumbled. It was the gentleman in him.

They passed the quiet houses whose curtains were drawn and windows were closed in effort to keep out the cold. Most houses had chimneys going and the smell of lunch being eaten and dinner already beginning to get prepared passed over the village. Some of the houses had picket white fences surrounding their gardens of several varieties of vegetables. He could not see a convenient store or some sort of market in site. Just houses filled with families, he assumed. And around the clearing at some distance, were the woods. They were outlined with poles marked with yellow lines and yellow flags and lanterns. There was the watch tower he had seen. It was all to keep those creatures out. The thought of having spent a night in woods filled with apparently vicious sounding creatures gave him the chills.

"We are here," Ivy said as they stopped at a white building. He could hear voices inside and one of them sounded like Lucius's, but he wasn't sure. Ivy went up the steps and Kevin followed behind. Ivy knocked once before opening the doors. They entered to a hush silence. There was a group of people in a circle, the elders, and Lucius was standing near them. They were all starring at Kevin, a look on each of their faces that he couldn't read. Ivy began walking forward towards the elders, and when Kevin did not follow, she beckoned him with her hand.

"Father, elders, as I am sure Lucius has told you, this is Kevin," Ivy paused. "What did you say your surname was, Kevin?" she asked.

Kevin cleared his throat, "Lupinski. Kevin Lupinski," he said quietly.

"He is from the towns," Ivy finished once he answered. "He is the one that retrieved Lucius's medicine for me. He is the one I spoke of." A breathless silence met her explanation as all eyes shifted from Ivy to Kevin once again. Lucius was the only one whose eyes remained on Ivy before settling on a spot on the floor. Finally, Edward Walker, Ivy's father, cleared his throat.

"Lucius, Ivy, will you please step out for a minute? It will be best if you return home. Did anyone see you?"

"No, papa, I do not believe anyone noticed us," Ivy said. Lucius crossed to Ivy's side and began leading her out. Kevin remained in his spot and watched helplessly as Lucius lead Ivy away. Once the door closed and their footsteps disappeared, he turned back to the elders.

"Kevin, please, come forward," one of the elders, a woman this time, said. Kevin obliged and stepped nearer to their circle.

"You are from the towns?" she asked gently, her face etched with worry but her voice was reassuring.

"Um, yes. I work for the Walker Animal Preserve," he answered. "It's what the woods are known as, to us. I had no idea that there was a village inside them. No one ever told me or answered my questions," he explained. He wanted to get everything off his chest now. The elders looked at each other before nodding.

"Kevin, I'm Alice Hunt, Lucius's mother," the same woman that had been speaking to him, said. "What year do you think it is?"

Kevin looked puzzled by the question and he hesitated before answering. His hands were in the pockets of the jacket and he fiddled with a lose string in them.

"It's 2004." he responded. Alice nodded but then shook her head.

"Yes, that is correct…it should be 2004 by now, shouldn't it?" she said to herself, but the other elders nodded in response.

"You see, Kevin, it is not 2004 here," Edward Walker broke in. The other elders seemed worried, but they did not protest him continuing.

"What do you mean it's not 2004 here?" Kevin asked.

"It's the year 1897."

"It's not. It's the year 2004. You can't set back time. Have you never heard of electricity either? Why are you all wearing old fashioned clothes? Why are you living in the middle of the woods? Why would anyone want to live in the middle of the woods?" Kevin blurted out. Every question he had seemed to be spilling out.

"We have all heard of electricity," Edward Walker replied, and it appeared as if he was about to smile from recalling a memory of long ago. "And we didn't set back time. We just…reset it. Neither Ivy nor Lucius have any idea that the year is 2004. They have no concept of that. None of the other villagers do. It is 1897 to them and that is all. We are living in the middle of the woods because we created this village. In the 70s, we escaped the outside world and came here," Edward explained. Kevin blinked at him.

"So that's why Ivy's never heard of planes or any modern inventions. Do you teach them anything?" Kevin asked. He was being blunt, but a strange feeling had arisen within him.

"We do have a school, yes. I teach it. But we teach them of other things," Edward responded. "And…the elders and I," he looked to the members of the circle and they all nodded for him to continue. "The elders and I think it is best that you do not mention anything of that kind that they would not know of them anyone. We do not want confusions and we have worked hard to--"

"To keep them from knowing the truth? Are you telling me that no one in this place has any idea of the outside world other then that it's 'wicked'?" Kevin interrupted. It was unlike his normally simple nature to say anything angry.

"Well…yes, but you must agree to not mentioning anything that could jeopardize what we've created, Kevin. I can't tell you that I'm thrilled to see an outsider coming in," Edward said quickly. Kevin didn't respond and instead shook his head.

"I just can't believe it," he said after a little bit.

"We will need to find a place for him to stay, Edward," August Nicholson cut in. Edward nodded in response.

"He can stay with me and share a bedroom with Lucius. I'm sure he will not mind," Alice said with a nod. The others agreed.

"Has…has Ivy mentioned those we don't speak of to you?" Edward asked. Kevin nodded.

"She said they were attracted to the color red and didn't like the color yellow. I didn't see anything in the woods last night," Kevin responded. Edward nodded.

"While you're here, it is best you do not go back into the woods. We wouldn't want those we don't speak of to get angry. And, to explain your presence, we will say that you brought medicines and are a distant cousin of Lucius, if anyone asks," Edward said finally. Kevin nodded slowly. "Also…we will wait till it stops raining heavily so you can make your journey back."

Once he finished, Kevin pivoted on his feet and began walking out before turning back.

"Wait…where am I supposed to go now?" he said, sounding very stupid as he did so.

"Well, I suppose you can find Ivy and Lucius and tell Lucius of your new living arrangements so that he can show you to our home," Alice Hunt responded.

"Thanks," Kevin said and proceeded to walk out the door. He couldn't help but notice the yellow cloaks hanging on the side of the door. His eyes scanned over them but he continued walking out the door without asking about them.

The rain outside had now picked up and was pouring heavily again. He wondered what time it was and instinctively reached into his pocket for the watch before realizing that he had given it back. Sighing, he stuck his hands in the pockets of the jacket and began running towards where he remembered Ivy's house being. When he saw an upcoming puddle of mud, he stopped, remembering his previous experience with running in the rain. He began walking again, this time at a normal pace, taking time to glance around the houses.

The very thought of their isolation sent chills up his spine. He had never been much of a psychologist or very intellectual but the entire thing seemed extremely weird and just not right. He wished they had not said everything so rushed and had taken time to explain this all to him. Why did he have to keep quiet anyway? Where they afraid people would leave for the towns? He knew he would. The village seemed too simple, but then again he had not seen any other people besides the elders, Ivy and Lucius. Still, everything was too normal. Or perhaps what he was thinking was that it wasn't normal at all. It was like he had disappeared into a place over the rainbow and wasn't in Kansas…or Pennsylvania anymore.

Since he had become so engrossed in his thoughts, he suddenly realized hat most of the houses looked the same and he couldn't remember exactly which one was Ivy's. Sighing, he strained to think of it and remembered it had a porch and Ivy's room had the window that looked out onto it. When he looked at the houses, he saw that the majority of them have porches and windows. With a frustrated sigh he continued walking and was relieved to see Lucius pop his head out of one the doors. It wasn't Ivy's house; he knew that much, so he figured it must be his and his mother's.

"Lucius, hey, wait," Kevin said as he jogged lightly to his door. Lucius quirked his eyebrow at him.

"Your mother, Alice…Mrs. Hunt, I guess, said that I'd be staying with you and her while I'm here until the weather clears up a bit, at least. Y'know, I still don't know why I'm here, but I have vacation off from work and maybe I could stay for a bit. Who knows when the rain'll stop long enough," Kevin said. Lucius's blank stare was not reassuring.

"Come in, then," Lucius said and stepped back, opening the door widely. "Well, this is our home," Lucius motioned with his hand around the house.

"Where's Ivy?" Kevin asked suddenly. Lucius quirked his eyebrow again before idly fidgeting with the door knob.

"She's at her own home, I believe," he said finally. Kevin nodded and idly pace in a circle near the door.

"Well. Perhaps you'd like to join me on the watch tonight?" Lucius asked, fiddling with the buttons on his coat. Even in his own home, he seemed out of place.

"Watch? At the tower? For those creatures?" Kevin asked.

"Yes, for those we do not speak of," Lucius responded and beckoned him into the living room and motioned for him to sit down. Kevin sat and ruffled his own hair in an effort to make it dry again.

"What time is it?" Kevin asked as Lucius sat himself in another chair.

"It's about two in the afternoon. My mother should be coming home soon, I'm sure they're done discussing everything," he said.

"What about your dad? I mean, your father?" Kevin asked as he looked around the room as if expecting someone else to appear out of thin air.

"My father is dead," Lucius said simply. Kevin bit his glossy lips.

"Sorry, I didn't know." To this Lucius shrugged. They lapsed into silence and the only sound that could be heard was the beating of rain on the roof.

"You did not see those we don't speak of?" Lucius asked. "In the woods, I mean."

"Well, no. I don't know what they look like. Do they stay out of the village?" Kevin asked.

"Yes. Except when we anger them by going in. It is why Ivy fears the repercussions of you being here," Lucius explained what he thought was true.

"Have they ever come in?"

"Yes. They breeched the borders not a month ago. They marked our doors with red marks because I entered the woods," Lucius explained, a note of guilt in his voice.

"Oh. What about Ivy? When she came to get the medicines?"

"One attacked her and she killed it. But them they took one of our own," Lucius said. Kevin decided not to question him further about it. Another silence elapsed.

"So…" Kevin finally said as he idly twiddled his thumbs.

"Why did you come?"

"I don't know."

"Was it for Ivy?"

"Why would you say that?"

"Who else would it be for?"

"Why does it have to be for someone? I was curious."

"Curious enough to follow a strange girl...a woman into forbidden woods?"

"I didn't know they had any sort of creatures in them and why are you so suspicious?"

"I was merely asking questions."

"Alright," Kevin finally said and an uncomfortable silence fell upon them. Lucius leaned over a nearby table and began reading a book. Kevin was left to twiddle his thumb as stare blankly into the floorboards. If he had to share a room with Lucius, it would be a very long and very silent stay.