Paranormal Summer (Indigo Moon Rising)

by Sherry Guyberson

  Ryan turned the camera on and, walking around the entire perimeter, shot pictures around the outside of the cabin. He showed Jillian where the shutter release and the viewfinder were and handed it to her. Turning on the audio recorder, he said the date, time, and location and the name of the three investigators. He then showed Sonya where the record and stop buttons were. Picking up the emf/temp gauge and holding it out in front of him, he looked at Sonya and said, "You can start recording now." He walked onto the front porch with the two girls closely behind him.

  "63 degrees on the front porch. 61..........61..........62 degrees in the big room. 59......59...58 degrees in the small room" he said as he walked back into the big room. "Sonya, do you want to ask the questions?"

  Sonya nodded, "Hi, it's us again. We have come back to talk to you. This thing I have in my hand will make a copy of your voice in case we can't hear you with our ears. Jillian has a camera to make a picture of what we can or can't see of you. What Ryan has in his hand can measure your energy and temperature. So we are here to help you. Sometimes I can make things move or disappear. Can you do that? Can you make noises that we can hear? Can you just talk to us and tell us what happened and what we can do?" Sonya stood dead still trying to listen to any sound Emmy might make.

  Slowly the energy of the room began to change. "60, 59, 57,55,50,44. 44 degrees. The emf is starting to move. Thank you Emmy, is that you? You're doing it. Please stay close to me," Ryan said as he slowly walked around the room and stooped to where the hole in the wall was. Jillian was standing there, staring at the blackness outside. She started snapping pictures into what had been the gardens, and each time the flash illumined the overgrown brush Ryan saw Emmy standing in the sunlight amongst her plants.

  Jillian stopped shooting. "Everything was fine," a voice said from Jillian's lips. "The spring rains were over and the sun was warming the soil for the plants to grow. Elizabeth was playing."

  Ryan was transfixed on her, again seeing Emmy. "And then you had a visitor," he said as he watched Jillian. "You took the woman into the house and made something for her. She paid you. When you came out you didn't see Elizabeth. You started looking around, thinking she was playing hide and go seek. But she was nowhere to be found. You saw something moving in the woods. It was a man. The woman saw him too and ran. You looked everywhere for your baby. She was gone. You kept looking and looking, everywhere. And darkness began to fall...a mob of townspeople came here asking where Elizabeth was. What did it matter to them? They did not want your kind in their town. They weren't there to help you find her, either. They said you killed her. They tried to take you back by force, but you ran and hid. No one knew the woods like you did. They chased after you. All but the husband that followed his wife here. He threw the lantern onto the roof to burn the house down. Emmy, he did not take Elizabeth. That's what you were thinking. He had just followed his wife here. He wanted to get rid of you. He told the people in town that he saw you murder her."

  "But his wife was here to receive my help. They wanted a baby. They couldn't do it on their own. I gave her herbs to help them conceive. And he tried to kill me?" She started yelling, "Elizabeth.....Mommies here looking for you. Please, where are you?” The sobbing became so severe that they could not understand what was said after that.

  Ryan and Sonya both grabbed Jillian and held her until she stopped crying. "Thank you Emmy. I think that is all we can do tonight," Sonya said.

  Ryan took the camera from Jillian and began snapping pictures towards the front door. "Did you hear that?" Ryan asked, eyes wide. The girls shook their head. "I heard laughing, a child's laugh from there." He pointed towards the front door. "Elizabeth, is that you?" He saw something move on the porch, was it Elizabeth? It moved out toward the pond. The camera showed something blurry, but it didn't look like a child.

  As they walked back through the woods to the dirt road, they were all wondering the same thing. What were they getting themselves into? It felt like the three of them were connected. Really connected, like they had been together before and what they were doing somehow just 'felt right'. Jillian thought what had happened was incredible. But she couldn't tell anyone that she had channeled a distressed spirit who was looking for its missing child.

  Again they went their own direction when they got to "Wicked Way" and the girls, deep in thought, in their own minds were wondering how this was going to play out. Were they going to be able to help Emmy, or would something get in their way and stop them? The girls said their goodbyes at the Bed and Breakfast; Jillian was on her own.

  When she walked into the yard of her aunt's house, it was after midnight, and she wondered if she was going to get in trouble. They had never talked about curfew, and the cell phones never worked anyway, so she was apprehensive as to what she was facing. There was a strange car in the driveway, and when she got into the kitchen she could hear the television in the living room.

  She quietly walked into the hallway that passed the living room and peeked in. A woman with long, curly, ginger-red hair, who wasn't Aunt Jana, turned around and smiled. Jillian smiled back. Aunt Jana turned and held up a bowl of popcorn and waved Jillian into the room. Jillian shook her head, yawned and waved goodnight. Aunt Jana blew her a kiss, and Jillian felt relieved. No cause and no effect.

  Heading down the hall, she stopped for a second and was silent. She listened. She thought she heard the sound of a piano playing. As she approached the library, the door was ajar, so she knocked. No one answered, so she swung the door open slowly and looked inside. The room was dark except for the moonlight streaming through the window, across the room to the piano seat. Jillian swallowed hard and took a deep breath. It must have been the movie in the living room she told herself. As she walked the rest of the way down the hall to her bedroom door she studied the pictures on the walls. There was one she hadn't noticed before (of course) of a young girl in front of a waterfall. She looked Shirley Templ-ish. Its label said 'Amanda 13 Yrs. old.' Thinking there was something oddly familiar about it, she decided to look at it again tomorrow. Quietly she opened her bedroom door and snuck in. Just as she got her face near Tiffany's, she opened her eyes and said "Meow.” Jillian giggled and rushed to get ready for bed so she could tell Tiffany all about her day. That was something absolutely purr-fect about Tiffany. She never criticized Jillian or told her she was weird or crazy. She just wanted to be held and would purr whenever Jillian needed it.

  As she was winding down, telling Tiffany about another crazy experience, she asked her how her day was as she laid down in bed and put Tiffany Marie on her chest. She replied with a yawn and stretched out as far as she could go, stretching all the way down to her toes. She closed her eyes and started to purr to Jillian. How blessed I am, Jillian thought.

  Jillian opened her eyes. “Oh, how beautiful,” she said. To the left was a field filled with flowers. In the horizon above the flowers, there were butterflies and bees dancing in the gentle breeze. To the right was a sandy shoreline edged by an endless aqua ocean. The waves crashed on the beach and retreated, painting whimsical portraits in the sand.

  Illianna was there, bobbing her head, like saying YES! YES! She reared up onto her hind legs and dashed off into the sand, running with her long white mane and tail flowing in the wind. Jillian started laughing and began to chase after her, unable to even get close! Finally Illianna stopped.

  “Would you like to ride instead of run?”

  “I have never ridden a horse before,” Jillian said.

  “Please climb on,” Illianna said as she lowered her front half and powerful neck, close to Jillian. “Grab my mane, and pull yourself up.”

  Jillian did just that. Illianna stood tall and proud. She started walking slowly to feel how Jillian responded to the movement of her body underneath. She started to gallop and when she felt that Jillian was ready, she broke into a run. Faster and faster she went, until it seemed like she was effortlessly soaring above the sand. Jillian couldn't imagine anything feeling better than th
is. It was as if her heart was wide open. She felt like she was one with Illianna and the sand and the wind. There were no limits, and no boundaries to her spirit.

  They must have covered miles before Illianna slowed down to stop. She reared on her hind legs again, kicking her hooves in midair. The majestic white horse stepped forward and backward a few times and then landed gently on all fours.

  “Wow,” Jillian said, brushing the hair from her face. “That was awesome!"

  Illianna snorted and then smiled, “That did feel good!”

  The two sat on the beach, basking in the warm sun. They watched the fluffy white clouds floating overhead. “That one looks like a cupid, and that one looks like a tulip. I think that one over there looks like a rabbit and a baby hedgehog.” Jillian said.

  “Well, where are all of the kits hiding?” a voice said from the edge of the meadow. Jillian looked, and there was a rabbit looking up to the clouds. “That one looks like a heart,” the rabbit said, pointing to a cloud, and then realizing that Jillian was staring at her. Jillian didn't look at the clouds. She couldn't stop looking at the rabbit. What was it about her?

  “It isn't polite to stare, dear,” she said softly and set back down on all fours. “I just came to see what all of the commotion was. I had better get back,” she said, and started to hop away.

  “Oh, I'm sorry,” Jillian yelled after her.

  “It's time for my youngins' class,” the rabbit said, turning to Jillian. Her forehead wrinkled with expression, as if in thought. “Would you like to join us?” she said to Jillian and Illianna.

  “Yes, that would be very nice. Thank you!” Jillian said with a smile.

  “That certainly is a beautiful necklace you possess,” the bunny said as they walked.

  “Oh, I am Jillian, and this is Illianna. That is why I am here,” Jillian said. The bunny stopped hopping, and she and Illianna bowed to each other, smiling. She motioned to Illianna, who bent down so she could climb onto her back.

  “I am Mirabella. Please, may I see it?” The bunny asked.

  “Sure,” Jillian said as she took the pouch off.

  The bunny looked at it, sniffed it, wiggled her whiskers and said, “What is in the bag is extraordinarily special. It will bring you much joy throughout your life.”

  “How do you know that?” Jillian said.

  “It is yours, isn’t it? There are others. I know you will use it wisely,” the bunny began combing the fur behind her ears with her paw.

  “Craccckkkkk!” The sound of thunder made Jillian jump. They looked to the meadow, and hanging low in the air was a black cloud. Rain was pouring down, right below it. Mirabella giggled. Jillian was puzzled. It was a strange cloud, and so was Mirabella’s response.

  “The poor bees,” Mirabella sighed.

  “What’s so funny?” Jillian said looking at the one lonely, black cloud.

  “Well, the bees and butterflies can’t fly in the rain. The butterflies don’t seem to care. They just go with the flow; they will hang out on branches and bushes until the storm is over. But oh those bees! They are so busy, and when they can’t do what they want, like collect for the hive, they get so mad.”

  “Boy, I know how they feel,” Jillian said. “Sometimes I think I’m gonna go crazy if something doesn’t happen the way I want. I just scream and shout, and then everyone else gets all upset. The feelings inside of me are so enormous. I’ve wondered if I could actually explode all over the place. And there would be no more Jillian, just a giant mess to clean up,” Jillian said as she stared at the cloud, shaking her head with a frown.

  “Sooner or later the bees learn,” Mirabella said nodding her head at Illianna.

  “Learn what?” Jillian asked as she squinted, trying to see into the rain.

  “That everything has a purpose. Without the rain, the flowers wouldn’t grow. So it certainly doesn’t make any sense to waste their energy being angry.”

  “You know there is a game you can play too, Jillian!” Illianna said with a smile.

  Jillian shrugged her shoulders. “What game?”

  “The Hmmm game,” Mirabella said, pointing at the cloud. “Everything has a purpose. When something happens that is unexpected, you start by taking a deep breath, centering yourself and as you exhale say, ‘Hmmmmm.’ Then ask yourself, ‘Why is this happening? What marvelous things are hiding in all of this?’ Then you listen to all the things that pop into your head. You created everything that happens to you, so why be mad at yourself? Just find the reason, and accept it!”

  Jillian stood there, dazed. The idea that she created everything and then had to live with it was good and bad. “Well, what if I wanted to play it right now?” Jillian asked.

  Illianna nodded her head “What disappointments have you had recently?” she asked.

  “Well my party - it wasn't what I was expecting, and my aunt, who is like the coolest, gave me this stone. It reminds me of a lump of coal Santa gives to kids on the naughty list.”

  Mirabella shook her head, “Hmmmmm. Why is this happening? What benefit will come of this? Hmmmmm. Without the gift of the stone, you wouldn’t be here. This quest and the ones that will follow. I’m sure you’ll soon agree that you wouldn’t have missed them for the world.”

  Jillian’s eyes got quite big. That’s true. Can there actually be something neat hiding in every disappointment? Illianna nodded.

  “You must learn to go with the flow,” Mirabella said.

  “How do I do that?” Jillian asked.

  “When something bothers you, you must learn to notice it. Check your tum-o-meter. If it’s feeling out of sorts, picture yourself at the edge of a river. Look to the right. Upstream it is dark, and there are grey clouds and rain. The current is fast and furious. Look to the left. There you see the water gently flowing to a bright, warm, peaceful place with birds flying overhead, and the water’s edge is lined with flowers and animals.”

  Mirabella continued, “Now walk into the warm water, turn your back to the turbulence and lift your face to the sky and relax. Say, ‘I am letting go and letting God.’ The natural flow of the divine will carry you downstream, leaving the distressing feelings behind.” Jillian’s mouth was slightly open. As Mirabella explained this, she could actually see it and feel the release of the bad feelings, as she gently flowed downstream.

  “It’s tough to be up stream without a paddle or a boat! That is your tum-o-meter telling you to let go and let God take you downstream.” Mirabella said as she hopped to the ground and headed for a tree. Jillian stood there in awe. How could she just have seen and felt everything while she was just standing there? She checked her tum-o-meter. It all felt right. Illianna and Jillian followed Mirabella to the tree where she was now waiting.

  “These are my kits,” she said bowing and extending her paw as if to display something to her side. As she held the bow, she waited... and waited. “Uh hum…” she said, clearing her throat.. From behind the tree, out hopped one little bunny that stood beside her. This little bunny looked at Jillian and smiled. “Uh hum…” she said, and then a whole bunch of bunnies came hopping and bopping out from behind the tree to stand with him. Mirabella straightened her posture, rolled her eyes again, took a deep breath, and smiled.

  “Taa-daaa,” one little bunny said and extended her arms in the air! “And we magically appear!” Mirabella shook her head.

  “Well, since you seem to be all fired up, why don't you start us off today?” she asked as she looked at the little one.

  “Okay, mom,” the little one replied.

  All of the bunnies got in a straight line. The littlest bunny looked at Jillian and Illianna, who were both getting comfortable in the grass. The little bunny stepped forward. She closed her eyes and started bobbing her head as if listening to music. She opened them and began to sing (to the Dr. Pepper jingle), “I'm a magnet, he's a magnet, she's a magnet, they're a magnet, and wouldn't you like to be a magnet, too?”

  Jillian, Illianna and Mirabella all laughed a
t the little bunny, “Very good, now what else?” Mirabella asked. The first bunny stepped forward again, “There is no reason to feel a lack, or to want anything. There is more than enough to go around, because you create it as you think on it.” She bowed her head and stepped back into line.

  The second bunny stepped forward, “It all starts from within you, on the inside. When you create it in your head, and feel it in your heart, you make it real.” She bowed quickly and stepped back. The third bunny stepped forward and in an instant was standing on his head. “Your future is within your mind right now. Who you are now is what you thought of yourself in the past.” He quickly turned himself right side up and stepped back into line.