Earth's Children
Summary: The parents of Harper tell their tale of life and love in Post-Commonwealth Earth.
Author: Luna Sealeaf
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Again, I do not own any Andromeda characters, so don't sue me, etc. etc...
'With the decrease in life expectancy, so common on Nietzschean slave worlds, Homo Sapiens often experienced a sense of 'living in the moment' as the natives of Earth called it. This 'rush', which is believed to be the result of chemical imbalances due to extremely stressful situations, could last from one year to ten, depending on the individual...'
'I believe some would refer to this as desperation, Master Historian.'
'Well yes, that is the unscientific term for it.'
-Excerpt from The Memoirs of a Perseid Librarian -AFC 56
Episode Six
Isn't it strange how one relatively small action can change the world around you?
Somehow, Devin and I had been assimilated into this strange foreign family. How could I have let this happen? After my parents had been killed, I decided to make sure that I would never again experience something so painful. While Devin made friends with the other villagers, I went out of my way to be politely distant. If Devin wanted to grow up and get married and have a family, that was his choice; as for me, having one person to worry about was more than enough.
Never, in a million years, did I imagine myself getting married.
Yet here I was, being hugged fiercely by a man whom I had just agreed to wed. Strange didn't begin to cover the emotions I was dealing with. Then again, music has always been my weakness. When I was little Dad would sometimes steal recordings from the Nietzschean houses or factories, just so I could hear all the ancient songs. And yet, if music is my weakness, how come I suddenly felt so strong?
Was it possible that I was actually in love with Evan Harper? This question brought me back to reality and I pushed back from our hug to study his smiling face and bright blue eyes. No; I didn't love him, not fully, not yet. But there was something else, a feeling of... relief? No, that wasn't the right word. I don't know if there was a word to describe what I felt, but I believe it was something between hope and optimism, two feelings that had rarely entered my life.
With joy radiating from his face Evan, grasping my hand, was about to announce our news when Lughna came up to thank him for the music. As they spoke I let my mind wander, feeling a little lightheaded from the many sensations the day had brought. Evan made a joke to her about wanting a nephew named after him, and to my surprise, it was funny enough to make me laugh. Or perhaps I was becoming a little hysterical at that point; I can't be sure. But don't think I was having second thoughts; strange as the idea was for me, the idea of marrying Evan made me feel happy...nervous, terrified, and very unsure of myself, but still happy.
Then Evan raised his voice to tell the others that another wedding would have to be planned, and Devin was at my side, hugging me and saying how happy he was for Evan and me. I responded by laughing and asking when he would ask Orla. Devin blushed and muttered something too quiet to hear, prompting even more laughter.
So the day wore on, we ate and danced a little more while Evan played more songs, until the moon had risen in the sky and Liam announced the wedding celebrations to be over. After bidding the newly wed couple good night, good luck, etc. I found myself beside Evan.
"We can get married any time you like...the sooner the better, as far as I'm concerned," he spoke softly so the others wouldn't overhear.
"You know, I'm almost sorry I said yes. It was fun watching you constantly trying to impress me," I wasn't changing the subject, honestly.
"Oh yeah, tons of fun." We laughed a little nervously before he returned to his question,
"Well? Next week? Next month? Tomorrow?" the last was said teasingly, but I knew he wasn't completely joking.
"Just give me enough time to make a dress. I want a new dress to get married in." I could see he wanted to object; after all, it had taken Lughna practically the whole year to make her dress, but instead he simply nodded. This endeared him to me better than he could have planned. I smiled and gave him a brief kiss on the mouth. His eyes were round with shock.
"Payback for our fist meeting," was my only reply. With a wink I turned, beckoned to Devin, and headed back home, leaving my betrothed speechless.
I decided that while it wouldn't take me a year to sew a new dress, neither did I feel any reason to rush. It took me a week to even choose the color: blue. After that it was just a matter of finding time to gather the materials. Orla came over one day to help me rip up an old gown that had been my mothers.
"So Josephine, whatever happened to your parents?" the question was asked curiously, but also softly, in case it offended me. She shouldn't have worried; besides, she was my future sister-in-law, though maybe not officially, and I didn't want to keep secrets from her. Or at least, not too many.
"My mother killed herself after my father was beaten to death by Nietzscheans. I was ten." On the other side of the gown, Orla had stopped ripping seams, gaping at me in pity. I calmly continued my work and glanced pointedly at her side until she quickly began again.
"What about your parents Orla? Are they still in Ireland?"
"My mother is, or at least, she was last time we saw her. If she's still alive. They killed our father the night we were taken." No need to ask who 'they' were. This time it was my turn to look at her with pity.
"I'm so sorry Orla, that's terrible,"
"Not as bad as yours Josephine, at least my parents survived until I was an adult." We had both paused in our work, but neither really noticed.
"Yes but I know what happened to them. You don't know what's become of your mother, and I think the not knowing is worse."
"And my brothers," Orla added softly, but she was staring in the distance and I don't think she said the words for my benefit.
"What about Evan and Liam?" I asked in surprise. Orla's eyes flicked towards me, but still seemed to be looking off into a great distance.
"No, my other brothers. My parents' first and second child, Alan and Hagan, we never knew what happened to them either." She suddenly came back to herself and gave a small shrug and smile.
"I like to think they went somewhere like Dunwich, perhaps even got married and have children, but you're right, the not knowing is hard." We talked little after that, concentrating instead on ripping up the gown.
In the midst of this oh-so-blissful time before the wedding, I still went to work, despite the decrease in Nietzscheans living at the compound. I hadn't really cared why they seemed to be leaving, but I didn't intend to quit until they had all left.
At least the tasks appointed to me weren't hard, and my day no longer ended after the sun had set. To be truthful, I was almost sorry to see the Nietzscheans go, if only because I had never worked anywhere else, and the unknown is always a little frightening.
A few weeks after the wedding, I was cleaning one of the hallways when a female Nietzschean turned a corner and entered the corridor. I stepped to the side, continuing my cleaning, and waited for her to keep walking. When she didn't, I glanced up to see what was wrong. I was startled to find the woman staring at me with a strange expression on her face. Not knowing what to do, I gave a slight bow. The movement seemed to confirm some thought of the Nietzschean's, because her face set as she walked towards me. I froze, not knowing what to do or what she could possibly want with me.
"Girl, how long have you worked here?" The words were said quietly, and anyone passing by would have thought she was giving me a specific order of some kind.
"About, about ten years, my Lady," I whispered back, eyes searching her face to try and understand what she wanted. Nietzscheans, from my experience, never did anything that didn't have a purpose.
"Are you aware that your employers are steadily leaving this territory?" Now I was just baffled; no one had ever stopped to talk to me like this before; it was unnerving to say the least.
"Yes, I had noticed," I replied. This seemed to please her, because she smiled, a tiny one, but it was still a smile.
"I always knew we didn't give you kludges enough credit." I could think of no safe reply to this, so I remained silent.
"And have you stopped to wonder why we are leaving?" She sounded, for all the world, like some schoolteacher prompting their student to give a memorized answer.
"Yes," I said the word slowly and drawn out, suspiciously searching her face as I said it. It has always bothered me that Nietzscheans, even female ones, are at least a head or taller than myself. No wonder they constantly referred to us as 'Girl' or 'Boy'; we must seem like permanent children to them.
"But of course you don't know why, none of you do." The words were said quickly, and clipped, as if she was in a hurry. Or trying to make some sort of point.
"My Lady, I don't understand-"
"Listen to me Girl, if you value your life, or that of your family, you will get out of here. The safest place for your kind is the Refugee Camp." These words of advice did nothing to change my bewilderment. The most likely explanation for all this was that she was playing a game with me; I decided to play along and nodded as though I understood what she was talking about. She stared at me a moment longer, then sighed and continued walking. I watched her retreating back in a kind of daze. What was that all about? Her words had disturbed me, and I went back to my work slowly.
Later that evening I was telling my brother, Evan, and Orla what had happened.
"I think she was trying to warn me," I finally said, breaking the silence that had fallen after I'd retold the Nietzscheans final words. Orla was staring at her folded hands, but she looked up and nodded slightly, eyes troubled. I waited for the others to agree with me, but Devin and Evan simply exchanged glances, with looks of 'who should tell her?' all over their faces.
"What?" I asked, annoyed at their expressions.
"Well, think about it Josephine," Evan said. "What did she tell you to do? 'Go to the Refugee Camps' obviously she's just trying to get more workers." Devin nodded in agreement to his words and I felt a surge of irritation at both of them.
"Oh please, how does that make sense? If they wanted more workers, they wouldn't go around 'suggesting' that we all move to Boston! They could force everyone in Dunwich to the camp with about ten armed guards. Maybe less." Evan still looked dubious, and Devin only shrugged.
"What do you think Orla?" I turned to her, ignoring the boys. She still looked troubled, and her voice was soft as she answered.
"I think we should be cautious. Better safe than sorry, and all that," she tried to lighten her tone by grinning, but it wasn't very convincing. I for one was glad that someone else was also taking this seriously.
"Aw come on, let's change the subject. How's that wedding dress of yours coming?" Evan asked, winking at me. I raised an eyebrow delicately and glared at him.
"Slowly." I said icily. The hurt look on Evan's face was cute, and made me feel a little guilty, but not enough to take the word back. Nor did I talk to him the rest of the evening. But as he and Orla were leaving I gave him a brief, though tight, hug, and kissed his cheek softly. Devin teased me about it the rest of the night, until I threatened to tell Orla his most embarrassing secrets. That shut him up enough for me to get a good night's sleep. I hoped that I wouldn't have any more nightmares about the upcoming wedding, and I didn't. Instead my dreams were filled with dire warnings, strange omens, and the pale corpse of Evan Harper, at which point I awoke drenched in sweat and stifling a scream.
Another month, and then two, crawled by slowly. June came, and with it, the first intense heat of the summer. The last of the Nietzscheans left, and their abandoned buildings were quickly scrapped for raw materials. We took our share, since another hut would needed to be built for Evan and I, and discussions about the wedding commenced again as I put the finishing touches on my dress.
"Ye gods Josephine! It's beautiful!" Lughna exclaimed. She and Orla had come over to help me make adjustments as I tried it on for the first time. I'd have given anything for a mirror, but those were about as rare around here as gold or diamonds.
"Oh I hope I look that good when I get married," Orla sighed. I looked over the dress,and was marking certain places with pins, as I said, rather cynically,
"I wouldn't worry too much; Devin will think you're a dream of perfection no matter what you wear," Lughna laughed as she helped me place a pin in a difficult area.
"Who says I'll be marrying Devin?" pins in my mouth, I turned and glanced at Orla curiously. She was blushing and staring at the ground. Carefully placing the pins in my hand, I then asked,
"What do you mean Orla? Did my idiotic brother do anything stupid?" It was hard to imagine Devin being anything other than a perfect gentleman, but then again, he was a man, and no matter how hard I had tried to teach him to behave, I couldn't fight genetics.
"No, it's what he hasn't done that's bothering me." She didn't continue and Lughna looked up from sewing in the hem of my dress to ask,
"For goodness sakes, spit it out Orla! What's the matter?"
"He hasn't asked me to marry him yet." I was about to shrug and ask if that was all, but then I saw Orla's eyes filled with tears and sighed.
"Just give him some time Orla; he's only eighteen after all. Maybe he's feeling a little scared. Or maybe he's not sure what you're answer will be." Orla nodded but didn't otherwise comment, and the subject soon passed to other things.
Another week went by; time spent in finishing the extra house as well as trying to make the land nearby suitable for growing food. And then...it was the day before my wedding. I hadn't seen Evan for days, but Liam had come over to talk with me. Devin was out, so I made some tea for just the two of us.
"I have to say, Josephine, that if anyone had told me that my little brother would be marrying so soon after me, I would never have believed them." He smiled as I handed him a cup of the steaming liquid.
"I'm surprised to be getting married at all." I blurted out, taking a seat opposite him.
"Well you shouldn't be. You're an amazing woman Josephine. You raised yourself and your young brother in less then perfect conditions, and you've done a wonderful job. My brother is lucky." The words were soothing, and when I looked up I saw that he was still smiling at me. There was something about his presence; maybe it was the way his eyes were so calm and assured, I don't know, but I've never felt so safe or so comfortable around anyone before.
"I'm a little scared," I admitted, setting my tea down nervously. "It's not what I imagined my future to be like."
"How did you picture your life, then?" Liam asked. I thought about it, and then finally looked back up into those eyes, so like Evans, only wiser, for all that Liam was only three years older than him.
"Alone." Was all I could say. It was true; I had expected Devin to eventually grow up and leave me here, where I'd spend the rest of my days in solitude and peaceful seclusion.
"I see." He took a sip of tea thoughtfully before continuing, "I think you'll find this future preferable. If nothing else, you're less likely to get lonely."
"I hope you're right," I answered. We talked over practical matters for a few minutes before he stood up to leave. As we said goodbye, he leaned over and gave me a brisk kiss on the forehead.
"Welcome to the family," He smiled and left. And for the first time in three months, I felt nothing but happiness when I thought about being married to Evan.
I didn't sleep well that night, and the morning passed by in a blur. Lughna and Orla came over to help me get the dress on, as well as to talk one last time over the food and such. I can't really recall everything that was said; just that they were smiling and kept telling me how wonderful I looked. The wedding would be outside, as Lughna and Liam's was, but this time I chose a different spot. It took longer to get to, but I felt it was worth the extra effort. In the woods, far away from the rest of the village, there was an area where a stream ran through the ground. It fed into the lake in front of the Nietzschean household, but you couldn't see any of that from here. When I was younger I would often come to this place and pretend I was the only person in the whole world. There was a sense of peace around the trees and stream that I carried within me for the rest of my life, even when it had been years since I'd been there.
The girls and I walked to this spot in one direction, helping me to carefully keep the material, or the makeshift veil I'd added, from getting caught on the ground or in the tree branches. Orla had made a small garland of blue and yellow flowers, which she placed on my head to hold the veil. It was a nice touch, and I thanked her warmly. We moved slowly as a result of my outfit, and the men were already there when we arrived, having gone from the opposite direction. I must say that when I finally dared to look up at Evan, the expression on his face made all the hard work put into the gown worth it. As I stood in front of him, he carefully took hold of my hands, as though afraid to touch any other part of me, and simply stared as the others formed a circle around us and began to recite their speeches.
I cannot recall what the words were, though at the time I remember thinking how lovely and touching they were. Then it was my turn to make my vows, but before I could talk, Devin stepped forward and handed something to me. I turned and looked at what he held in astonishment.
"Devin, how could, where?" All the words in my head disappeared as he placed it in my hands.
"I stole it from the same Nietzschean Dad did, when I was eight, and I've been saving it for this moment." He smiled and kissed me tenderly on the cheek before stepping back into the circle. I didn't bother to try and stop the tears that ran down my face as I looked down at the flexi; it was a very old one. Something Dad had shown to me when I was little. Hands trembling, I pressed play. On the small screen, figures of humans in beautiful costumes began to dance, and music filled the small wooded area. I hugged the flexi to my chest, remembering how, when Dad had shown the recordings to me, I'd wished out loud to be able to dance like that someday.
Carefully I set the flexi down on a rock by the stream, letting the music play gently in the background, while I turned to Evan, placing my hands in his again. He was smiling now too, and he brushed a tear from my face, staring as though he'd never seen anything quite like me before. Struggling to control my voice, I began to say the words I'd spent hours practicing to say just right.
"To Evan Harper, I pledge my love and life. May both last as long as the stars. To you, I pledge my loyalty, and it shall last as long as the sun shines in the sky. To us, I pledge my happiness and health, to last as long as the Universe wills. To Evan Harper, I give my heart;" These last words were said in barely above a whisper, "to be his for all time." I finished and smiled. Somehow, as I'd spoken, my hands had gone to rest on his shoulders, while his rested around my waist. Forgetting about the other people around us, we stared into each other's eyes as he recited his vows, which were basically the same.
"To Josephine Rose Lahey..." he began. Like me, his last words were said in a whisper that only we could hear. And then we kissed. Like most human ceremonies, it was a short one, but it lasted forever in my memory. The unexpected gift of the music Devin had provided made it all the more special for me. As a new song began to play, I put one of Evan's hands on my waist, my right hand on his shoulder, and held our left hands to the side.
"What are you doing?" He asked in confusion, though still smiling.
"We're dancing," I replied. Of course, it didn't look exactly the way the people in the flexi danced, but it was similar enough. My childhood wish was fulfilled. Evan had brought his tin whistle along as well, and he played that afterwards while the rest of us danced. All in all, it was everything I could have hoped for, although it did begin to rain a few hours later. As it was only a light mist, which Evan claimed to only enhance my beauty, we didn't stop because of it.
And so, I was married. I had just turned twenty; Evan was nineteen.
We returned to the new house that had been built, which now belonged to Evan and me. I had decided to let Devin have our old home; much as I loved it, I wanted to start my life over with Evan. He showed off the hut to me in excitement; my things had already been brought over, and Liam had built us some new furniture. A new bed was also one of the gifts; and people from the village whom I had known all my life had given gifts of food. It was all too much; to my dismay, and probably to Evan's as well, I began to cry again.
"What's wrong?" He asked softly.
"Nothing; everything's fine, in fact, it's perfect," I replied, smiling through my tears. He laughed gently and hugged me, suddenly seeming older than he was.
"Can I call you Rose?" The question startled me enough to make me stop crying.
"Why do you want to call me Rose?" I asked, not quite sure what he meant by the question.
"I like the name Josephine, but I'd rather think of you as Rose, my Rose." I was quiet for a few minutes. I'd always like the name Josephine; it was a strong name, and determined. It had been in my family for generations. I had never liked Rose; it sounded weak; after all, it was the name of a flower, which now could only be found in carefully cultivated gardens belonging to the Nietzscheans.
"It's up to you. A rose by any other name would look just as good," He said softly, only mixing up the ancient proverb by a few words. It was then I remembered something else; a rose had thorns on its stem, Mom had once told me, so those who weren't careful would be cut. Suddenly I didn't mind him calling me Rose.
"It's fine with me," I replied, and he kissed me again. So I changed that day in more ways than one. I had practically become a new person; to the world I was still Josephine, if Josephine Harper rather than Lahey, as I'd chosen to take his last name, but in my private world belonging to only me and one other person, I was Rose. Life could indeed change drastically in a single moment, from a single action.
I like to think that, after everything was said and done, it had changed for the better.
Author's Note:
Ok, I'm sorry this chapter had little actually happening in it. I just felt that their wedding deserved a whole episode. After this, I'll try to make it seem less like a soap opera. But I'm also a hopeless romantic, so I can't make any promises. Well, let me know what you think, as I try and write this next episode without crying. Thanks,
Luna Sealeaf