by M.E. Timmons
Chapter 10
It was pouring rain the next morning. Selene awoke to the sound of it banging against the sides of the house, and she could hear the sounds of water droplets from upstairs, where the rain leaked through the roof. Velkan fixed it every year, and yet it always seemed to spring a leak after the first rain since it was fixed.
The sun was barely up yet, so Selene knew she couldn’t have slept more than three hours, but she sat up anyway. The room was bathed in the pale light of a cloudy dawn that was coming in through the open window. Despite a small shelter over the window, the wind managed to blow some rain in, which dampened the floor. The couch was too far away to get wet.
No one else had gotten up yet, and Selene didn’t expect that they would get up for another couple of hours because of the late night they all had. She changed into the old black dress she had brought down the night before, and then she headed out into the rain.
It wasn’t very warm outside, and the wind whipped the rain into her face, making it hard for her to see. She held a hand up to shield her eyes and she kept going, even though she was already soaked by the time she was only a couple of feet from the front door.
Once Selene was under the cover of trees, she lowered her hand. Larger drops that accumulated and rolled off the leaves above hit her as she walked along her path, but she didn’t mind. At least the forest protected her from the wind. It was also darker, but she knew the way well enough to not have to see well.
Even though it was still dawn and raining, Tornado was already in the clearing. He had his bow with him as usual, and he was sitting on his log, sharpening one of his arrows. The heavy rain masked the sound of Selene’s approach, so she startled him when she walked into his line of sight.
“You’re up early,” he observed. He almost had to shout over the racket the rain was making in order for Selene to hear. It was almost deafening as it pounded against the canopy of leaves above.
“It seemed like the best time to come here, since no one else was up,” Selene explained. She sat on her rock and leaned in so that she could hear what Tornado was saying.
“I’m glad you’re here, actually,” Tornado said. “I wanted to talk to you. I talked to a couple of people about our idea for a rebellion, and then word spread fast. Many people were interested, and they were far more eager than I was expecting. Everyone came to the general consensus that they want to do it very soon, since they’re all tired of waiting. Before I could even protest, they decided to do it two days from now.”
Selene was surprised. “Two days from now? That’s far sooner than I was expecting. It’s good though. I want it to be soon as much as they do.”
Tornado nodded. He still wasn’t as eager, even though it had originally been his idea. He wasn’t overly comfortable with the risks, but he didn’t say anything to Selene. He didn’t want her to think less of him for hesitating. “You’re okay with that, then?”
Selene thought about it. She knew it probably wasn’t the best time, since her sister had just gotten married and her family was still working hard to earn some extra money, and she didn’t want to impede their progress in any way. Still, she thought about Jenson and her brothers and Tornado, and about how they were forced to live in exile. Her heart swelled at the thought of having her brothers at home, marrying Jenson, and spending as much time with Tornado as she wanted. More than anything else, she was filled with joy at the thought of them just having a chance to be free.
“I’m okay with that,” she said after a minute, and she meant it.
They discussed the particulars of the plan. Tornado decided that it would be best if they moved out of the forest early in the morning, while it was still dark. They would head down to the square in front of the village hall and wait for people to start getting up. Selene didn’t think it would take anyone long to notice the crowd in the square, and they would undoubtedly investigate.
By the time Selene left the forest, the rain had slowed down to a drizzle. The sun was peeking over the mountains, and it was visible through a break in the clouds. Selene hoped that meant the weather would improve.
Everyone was awake when she got back home. Her mother asked her what she was doing out in the rain, and she mumbled something about going for a walk before going upstairs to change. When she was sufficiently dry and in a clean dress, she went back downstairs to help her mother. She already had a new potion started, and it was in the cauldron outside, which had a roof over it. It wasn’t generally a good idea to have one inside because the fumes from potions could be almost as powerful as the potion itself if made in an enclosed space.
By early afternoon the sun was out again, and the ground was starting to dry off. Selene was outside by the cauldron, stirring it and adding some thyme, when Amber started walking up the hill to their house. She looked around as she approached, and then she smiled at Selene.
“Great wedding last night,” she said. “It was a lot of fun. I feel like I hardly saw you at all though, since you spent so much time with that guy. Is he still around?”
So that was what she was looking for, Selene thought. “No, he left last night. He wasn’t planning to stay long. He probably went back to Blue Falls or something.”
Amber nodded. She turned away from Selene to admire the view from the hill, though she continued speaking. “He was pretty handsome, and a widower. I was hoping he’d be around for longer. I know he said he wasn’t ready for a relationship, but I was kind of hoping I could change his mind. Men do usually seem to find me attractive.”
“Amber, he just lost his wife. You can’t expect people to be able to love again so easily. It doesn’t always work like that.” That was a lie, but since Amber had already been told it she should have respected it more. Selene was really starting to get mad at her, though she kept her anger well hidden. She wasn’t the type of person who shouted or stormed about.
Amber just shrugged, since she still didn’t care. She turned back to Selene, staring at her with eyes narrowed in a way that was almost accusing. “The two of you seemed to be pretty close last night. What was up with that?”
“I don’t know. He didn’t know anyone there, and yet he had come all that way from home, so I didn’t want him to be alone. We started talking and got along pretty well, so I kept him company. He’s a nice guy.”
Amber smirked, as if she thought that was funny. “Uh huh,” she said. “Well, I should probably be going. My aunt wants me to have tea with her before supper. Just thought I’d drop by.”
“Sure, have fun,” Selene said, even though she was seething. Amber had only gone to see if Jenson was there. Selene felt like she was being used, and she didn’t like it at all. She didn’t bother to wave goodbye, and Amber didn’t turn around to wave either. Selene could feel their friendship starting to crumble on both sides, and she was almost happy about it, though she wasn’t happy about how Amber was acting. She just didn’t want to have to deal with it.
To Selene, it was just evidence that the problems blamed on men in the past were really characteristics of humanity in general. Women could be every bit as bad as men were described as being, whether in the same ways or not.
Selene continued to help her mother until after supper, by which time the potion she had been making was finished, and she didn’t want to start another one until the next morning. Frieda left to do some spells for people instead, and Velkan went out to work some more as well. Henry and Dahlia stayed in, but they were too absorbed with each other to notice Selene slip away.
She went back to the forest, even though she had been there in the morning. She had more time, so she decided to go see her brothers. She stopped at the clearing, but when Tornado didn’t appear she continued walking, hoping she was going the right way.
When she passed through the main camp she was surprised by how friendly the beasts were to her. Some of them waved, and some even went up to talk to her about the upcoming
rebellion. One even thanked her for supporting them.
She continued on until she got to the little hut by the stream. Andy was outside again, and he waved enthusiastically when he saw his sister approach. Max was with him, and he appeared to be trying to carve a long piece of wood. Domino and Rocky were out of sight, though Selene suspected they were nearby since she could hear people arguing.
“Hey Selene! Want to fish with me?” Andy asked. He was holding a stick with a piece of string tied to it and a hook on the end. He stuck a worm on the hook.
Selene looked at the stream, which was hardly more than a trickle of water. “Um, are you sure there are fish in there? Have you caught any before?”
“Not yet, but I’m bound to catch one sooner or later. Tommy told me he caught one the other day.”
Max shook his head, grinning. “I told you not to listen to Tommy. He likes making up stories.” He turned to Selene. “There aren’t any fish in that stream. There isn’t enough water for them to swim in. That hasn’t stopped Andy from trying to catch them.”
“I’ll prove you wrong,” Andy said. He marched over to the stream and cast his line into a small pool of water. He sat on a low curved branch that was sticking out of a tree. He turned to Selene. “You coming or what?”
Selene suppressed a laugh and shook her head. “I think I’ll pass,” she said.
Rocky and Domino had heard them talking, so they came out of the hut to see what was going on.
“Hey Selene,” Rocky said. He sat on a stool next to Max while Domino just stood there. He smiled briefly at Selene as a greeting and leaned against a tree trunk.
“What were you two arguing about?” Max asked. He was still carving, and Selene realized he was making a wooden spoon.
“Domino isn’t sure a rebellion is a good idea,” Rocky told him.
“He doesn’t have to take part if he doesn’t want to,” Selene said. “No one is being forced to do anything.”
Max put down his carving. “That’s not true. We’re all being forced to stay here, away from the rest of our families. That’s why we’re doing this in the first place. We want a change.”
“I want a change as much as everyone else,” Domino said. “I’m just not ready to die for it. We don’t really know what’s going to happen. Things have been the same for a thousand years, so I doubt we’ll be able to make a difference overnight. No one else ever has.”
“Well, I’m going, and I’m proud of it,” Rocky said.
“Are there many people who aren’t?” Selene wanted to know.
“I think most are going,” Max said. “I’m rather excited about it myself. I’m glad Tornado decided to change the date so it would happen sooner, though I’m not surprised that he did. A lot of people are eager.”
“I’m going too!” Andy said, coming over. He set his fishing rod down, and didn’t bother to take the worm off. “Max tried to talk me out of it because he thought it was too dangerous, but I want to go. I want to see my parents, and I want to see the open land and the mountains. I bet it looks awesome.”
“I’ll be sure to introduce you to our parents if I get the chance,” Selene said, smiling at his enthusiasm even though she worried for his safety.
“How was Dahlia’s wedding?” Max asked.
“It was beautiful. She and Henry are very happy together. It was a fun night, and I think half the village showed up. Even Jenson came, though he told everyone he was someone else. I’m not sure everyone really believed his story, but no one said anything. He even gained a few female admirers, much to my annoyance.”
Domino scowled somewhat. “I wish we had that option.”
“I have to agree with you there,” Max said. “If we crashed a wedding people would probably run away screaming. Even our own parents would look at us with disgust. I doubt that’ll change even if they ever manage to live with us. We are quite hideous.”
“What you look like on the outside doesn’t matter,” Selene said. She hated it when Tornado called himself ugly, and she didn’t like it any more when her brother did. By the standards of the village they were, but she didn’t even see them that way anymore. She had almost grown to like the way they all looked so different. “You know, when Jenson was at the wedding he said he was surprised by how similar all the normal people looked. It’s true that we don’t have quite as much individuality as you beasts. You should consider that to be a good thing.”
Max just shrugged, and no one commented. Even they were raised to hate what they were, which Selene thought was the saddest thing of all. If they couldn’t accept themselves, how could they truly expect others to accept them?
Selene stayed with her brothers until it was almost dark. She didn’t want to get lost, so she had to leave by then, though she was as sad to leave as she was last time she was there. Even though she still hardly knew her brothers, she loved them. They were already family to her, and she enjoyed getting to know their differences and their strengths.
It was getting very dark by the time she reached the top of the hill her home sat on. It was so dark, in fact, that she almost didn’t notice Henry, who was sitting on a stool in the yard, looking out at the rest of the village. He looked over at Selene when she stopped, and he smiled, though the expression didn’t quite reach his eyes. He looked like he was feeling sad about something, so Selene pulled up another stool that was over by the cauldron and sat next to him.
“It’s a nice night,” she observed, breathing in the fresh air. It was cooling down now that the sun had fallen beneath the mountains.
Henry nodded and made another attempt at a smile. “That it is.”
“You and Dahlia didn’t have a fight already, did you?” Selene asked.
Henry made a small snort of laughter. “No, we didn’t. Why do you ask?”
“You look like something’s bothering you. I’m here to listen if you want to talk about it.”
“I’m fine,” Henry said. He looked back out at the valley. There were some lights moving around in the distance where people were walking around with lanterns. The sounds of laughter carried on the wind from neighbouring houses; as did the sounds of arguing.
“I can see that you aren’t,” Selene said. Normally she wouldn’t press since she didn’t like to intrude in other people’s business, but she wanted to know what was bothering her new brother already, when he had only been around for a couple of days.
Henry sighed and looked at Selene. “It’s not really something I’m supposed to talk about, I guess. I don’t want to bother you anyway.”
Selene didn’t respond, since she didn’t know how. She just sat in silence, listening to the chirping of a nearby cricket.
Henry decided to continue, even though it was against his better judgement. “It’s just that this life isn’t everything I expected it to be. I thought it would be so different and so much better than life in the forest, but now I see that life there wasn’t really that bad. I’m glad I’m here, and I wouldn’t change it for anything, but I miss things. I miss the way everyone looked so different, and I miss all the people I knew. I even miss looking forward to the change, especially since it’s not all I thought it would be. The people here really aren’t much different than the beasts. In fact, there are some people here who I like much less.”
Henry stopped and looked at Selene as if he realized that he really shouldn’t being saying such things. He looked like he felt guilty about even thinking them.
Selene smiled serenely at him, which surprised him. “I’m kind of glad you feel that way,” she said. “Well, I’m not glad that you aren’t as happy as you should be, but it’s nice to know that you care about where you’re from as much as where you are now. Don’t you think it would be best if we could combine the two worlds?”
Now Henry was really shocked. She was saying something that was not only never talked about, but was also against the law. Plus, he had been under t
he impression that all normal people liked the segregation and wanted things to be kept that way. Then he thought that maybe she was joking or teasing him, even though she had sounded perfectly serious.
“What do you mean?” he asked cautiously.
Selene rolled her eyes. “You know exactly what I mean. We shouldn’t be separated. It isn’t fair, and it isn’t helping anyone.”
“Is that a widely held opinion?”
“Not at this point,” Selene admitted. “In fact, it’s best if you don’t mention this conversation to anyone. Even Dahlia doesn’t like the beasts, though I think that’s just because of the way she was raised. Really, it was the way we were all raised. We aren’t supposed to like the beasts any more than we’re supposed to go into the forest.”
“But you do?”
“Yes. I like the beasts and I’ve been in the forest.” Selene felt like she could trust Henry enough to tell him that.
“What?! You’ve been in the forest?”
“Shhh, not so loud,” Selene said quietly. “Yes, I have been in there many times. I know the risks, but in the three years I’ve been going there I’ve never been caught. I was just there, actually.”
“I never saw you in there.”
“That’s because I never went to the camp; at least not until a few days ago. I only went as far as a small clearing near the edge of the woods, where I would meet Tornado. It wasn’t until the day after the ceremony ended that I actually went further. I got to meet my brothers for the first time, and I fell in love.”
Henry’s eyes went wide. “Wouldn’t that create a problem? Who did you fall in love with?”
Selene nodded. “It is a problem. I wasn’t supposed to be in the woods, and I’m underage, so we both decided that he should stay in the forest for now, though you saw him just last night. He called himself Robert, but it was really Jenson Redwing.”
Henry actually laughed, and once he started it took him almost a full minute to stop. “Wow. I didn’t recognize him at all,” he said once he had calmed down somewhat. “He was twice as big before, and he was probably one of the ugliest beasts in the forest. I’m glad to see he’s much better looking now. He was actually one of my favourite people. He was the kind of guy who would always help someone when they were in trouble.”
Selene had been offended while he was laughing since she thought he was laughing at her. When she realized that wasn’t the case she smiled. “I only saw him for a few seconds before he changed, but he certainly wasn’t easy on the eyes. I’m glad to hear that he’s a good person. I’ll admit that I still don’t know him very well, though I love him anyway.”
“It was love at first sight? I thought that never happened,” Henry said. He was back to being serious.
“Yeah, well, it does,” Selene said, shrugging. “Anyway, I should get to bed. Tomorrow’s going to be a busy day. I think Mom wants to get two potions done, and we still don’t have all the ingredients.”
“Right. Goodnight, Selene. I apologize for causing you to have to sleep on the couch.”
Selene smiled. “I’d rather have you around than sleep on a bed.”
She went inside, leaving Henry to his musings.