30-Day Writing Exercise: Paranormal Love Story
I'll post one word a day (completely random, using a computer program). Please send me your ONE sentence using that word or what it evokes (the word does not actually have to be in the sentence). You can post it in the comments section, or privately message if you'd rather not have it public. Read what happens below.
September 21, 2014
Benefit (Noun) an advantage or profit gained from something; a payment or gift made by an employer, the state, or an insurance company.
(Verb) receive an advantage; profit; gain.They were at a benefit when it happened. River had earbuds in like she often did when there were too many people around. She used music to drown out the chatter. People were very sick, disgusting really. Who they want you to think they are and who they really are were two completely different things. One benefit of never showing your true emotion was that you never have to worry if people were judging you because they don't know the real you. River, unfortunately, had the misfortune of knowing every true emotion of every person on the planet, and she judged everyone. She was a telepath, empath, and mind-reader all wrapped in one pretty, disturbing package. She worked for The Foundation, a society of warriors whose sole purpose was to protect the Orbs, an ancient race of timekeepers. The Foundation consisted of intelligence gatherers, like River, and combatants, like her partner, Liam.
- They should not benefit from this.
- One benefit of never showing your true emotion is that you never have to worry if people are judging you because they don't know the real you.
- A benefit of being scared half senseless is a surge of adrenaline and the belief that nothing is impossible, given a running start.
- He benefited too much from watching her squirm.
- The benefit ran for much too long and seemed like it would never end.
The benefit ran for much too long and seemed like it would never end. It was for some cause or another, maybe a disease or an ailment. It brought the city's richest philanthropists into one place. But it was not the benefit that brought River and Liam, or any other member of The Foundation there that night. They were there for the meeting of the newest Orb. She, yes, she was being introduced to The Foundation after the benefit. A female Orb had not been born in over half a century. There were only a few of them among the dozens of Orbs alive today. It was going to be an historical event. River had not been so excited about anything in a very long time. This, thought River, made the last five perilous years finally bearable.
River could see Liam across the room talking to a female diplomat. She was laughing at something he said. She was laughing a little too hard. River felt the diplomat's body temperature escalate, her heart flutter, and then blood rush to her face. River looked away and turned up the volume to her music. Women loved talking to Liam. They found him charismatic but in an unthreatening way. He reminded them of all the good guys in their lives, all the ones they foolishly let get away. On assignments, Liam used it to a great advantage. For the most part, though, Liam despised his natural gift as much as River despised her own. They made quite a pair the two of them. They both saw their gifts as albatrosses for a greater fate. They should not benefit from this.
River signaled for Liam to meet her in the foyer. In The Foundation, partners were not just partnered by name and loyalty, but they became psychically connected too. For the most part, it was for their own safety; in other parts, it was to make sure that betrayal would always be found out from within. Reading Liam's mind and his emotions, though, was forbidden to River. There was such a thing as knowing too much about your partner, and The Foundation did not allow it. The only thing River could do was send him telepathic messages. When Liam made it to the foyer, River was removing her heels. Her feet were killing her. She was about to dip them in the fountain.
"I can't leave you alone for one minute, can I?" Liam asked, a little bit jokingly and a lot serious.
"Honestly," River deplored, "if this new Orb wanted us to die from boredom in order to prove that we can protect her, I'm pretty sure I'm gonna ace this test."
Liam smiled his shy smile, stuffed his hands into his pants pockets, and looked away. He made fun of her, but River knew that he fully enjoyed her dramatic disposition. If anything ever made her happy, she never showed it. But the moment there was any discomfort to her well-being, she openly shared it. Sometimes, she felt, he benefited too much from watching her squirm. Her quirks, he called them, made her endearing.
They stood there quietly, staring off into the distant night for what seemed like an eternal minute. "Ok, old man," River finally quipped, "Where are you and what have you done with my partner?"
River often called Liam "Old Man" as her own term of endearment. What made Liam very special to River was that he was not only her partner, but he was also an immortal. She knew that he would always be there for her, never die on her. After everything that she had lost, River needed to know that she would never lose anyone special to her again. He was first her trainer, then her confidante, eventually her partner, and now her truest friend.
"I saw someone tonight," Liam shared, "someone I once knew a very long time ago."
His voice was different than River had heard before. It was full of pain and regret; there was no snake-charmed charisma, only honesty. For the very first time ever, River felt jealous. It seethed from beneath her masked heart. It scared her. A benefit of being scared half senseless is a surge of adrenaline and the belief that nothing is impossible, given a running start.
September 22, 2014
Acquaintance (Noun) a person's knowledge or experience of something; a person one knows slightly, but who is not a close friend.
When the benefit was over and everyone else had cleared out, the elders of The Foundation made their way to the center of the pavilion. They began the ritual of cleansing the room. Doors and windows were checked. Combatants guarded each entryway. Intelligence gatherers scanned the room to make sure spirits and shifters were not among them. No one but Foundation members and Orbs were allowed in.
- It's nice to meet your acquaintance.
- He felt he had, as do all human beings, a fleeting acquaintance with death - an unacknowledged sense that it was an un-met friend, one's last friend, who waited at the end of the line.
- We were never friends, just acquaintances, and I wanted more.
- He was just an acquaintance.
River could read every mind in that room, except for the Orbs. She was still too young to read them. If she did, she had been warned, she may go mad. As timekeepers, Orbs received the responsibility of keeping track of every timeline of every dimension in the universe. Each Orb saw the timeline go as far back as to the day their specific dimension was created; some timelines were very old, others were in their infancy. Orbs were not immortal, so when one died another would take his or her place, gaining all of the predecessors' memories. If an Orb was killed before his or her time, that Orb's dimension would collapse and cease to exist. Because of their heavy burden, Orbs could not withstand distractions. So when an individual became an Orb, she or he became blind and all remnants of the individual's previous life would perish from their memory. The sole purpose of The Foundation's existence is to guard and protect each Orb's life.
River leaned against the railing on the second level of the pavilion. She preferred to scan the room from a higher vantage point. She needed to be able to see every body in the room in order to differentiate between all of the voices she heard. She hated that she had to do that. It revealed her inexperience. Older, more experienced telempaths could walk among the crowd, and even engage in a conversation while scanning the room. If the room was smaller and only contained a few bodies, River would be able to maintain her concentration. But in a room of this magnitude and with this many bodies, her control was already wavering even as she stood high above them.
As she scanned, River looked for Liam. Tonight she was allowed to read his mind. In fact, it was her Foundation duty, and she had been looking forward to it for weeks. She was as close to Liam as anyone could ever be, they were like conjoined twins almost, except for the fact that even though she spent every day with him, she never knew what he was thinking or feeling. He was exceptional at hiding his visual queues and cunning at choosing his words deliberately. Of course, he had a very long time to practice. She spotted him at the bottom entry at the beginning of the stairway. She concentrated on him and began to probe. Even his mind was well hidden, that or he wasn't thinking at all. Combatants were taught the technique of non-thought but few ever mastered it. It took her entire concentration to delve into all of his layers. An image began to appear. It was of a woman with dark hair and fair skin. She had green eyes and freckles. He knew her a very long time ago, before he joined The Foundation. He still thought about her from time to time: We were never friends, just acquaintances, and I wanted more. Just as the image was about to form entirely, River felt an emotion. She sighed. Emotions always got in the way. She felt a deep longing about his stalled existence. He felt he had, as do all human beings, a fleeting acquaintance with death - an unacknowledged sense that it was an un-met friend, one's last friend, who waited at the end of the line. He was hopeful that he may still one day meet death.
River pulled her mind away from him. She was so confused. She didn't know what was more troubling to her, that Liam longed for a woman from such a long time ago or that he longed for the end of his immortal life. Whatever she thought she knew of her partner's stoic resolve began to crumble. For as old and experienced as he was, Liam was just as vulnerable as the rest of them. The jealousy that sparked a longing inside of her from earlier in the evening began to spread, and suddenly her feelings toward her partner and her friend began to transpire into something much more than just amicable well-being. She was lost in thought when someone touched her on the shoulder. It was another Foundation member, one of River's former classmate. He was just an acquaintance.
"Henry," she said surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"They brought me in as the healer."
She was confused, offended really. "But...you're a kid."
He was hurt. "You're a kid too," he snipped, and began to walk away. River started after him.
"No, I mean, this is a pretty big event. Are you backup or something?"
He turned around. She could feel his anger and there was no question as to where exactly he was directing it. "I'm the healer. It's an honor, and I don't need your second-guesses."
As he walked away, with his determination quite intact, River read him. He was nervous, scared, as much as any kid should be. Henry had always been unsure of himself, but tonight he was even more so. He wondered why the hell the elders picked him for such a momentous event. River wanted to run to him, hug him, and say: You're gonna do fine. But instead she walked back into her position still reeling from her probe of Liam's mind, and began to speculate. Her own world might be unraveling, but something else was also brewing at The Foundation.
Just then, someone opened the door right in front of where River was standing. She did not expect anyone to come through there. Two of the elders walked through first and they greeted her with a nod. Closely behind them, River saw a woman wearing a hooded cloak walk through. Her cloak bared the emblem of the Orbs. She was the new Orb! River lowered her gaze. As she passed by River, she hesitated and stopped. River looked at her and was startled. It was the woman from Liam's mind. She was standing in front of River, clear as day. The woman reached out her hand.
"You're the very first Foundation member that I've met apart from the two elders." She spoke softly and confidently.
River shook the woman's hand and managed to sputter out, "Welcome. It's nice to meet your acquaintance."
September 23, 2014
Masculate (Verb) To make strong; to make masculine.
Aurora had known for most of her life that she was different. Her parents were always too strict with her while at the same time treated her with the utmost care and frailty. She wasn't allowed to do anything that was too strenuous or took her too far from her family. Her uncles and brothers were always close by. She was very sheltered, so much so that she thought perhaps she was ill. She even went as far as to get tested for all sorts of medical illnesses. When she was at university, she spent an entire year in and out of doctors offices. That was the year she met Liam. He was an x-ray technician at the hospital. On what seemed like her dozenth time getting an x-ray, he finally asked her if she was stalking him. She didn't realize he was joking, or even flirting. It was a very logical question really, given the fact that she probably surpassed obsession several appointments ago. All she could return was, "I supposed I could be stalking you." They were both surprised by her candor. "I mean," she continued, "Isn't that how obsession works? You never really know until it's too late." He probably was intrigued that she might be stalking him and that's why he chose to engage in her friendly conversations and accept her eventual invitations to meet outside the hospital.
- It would be easy to masculate the objects in the room - they all were war-like and heavy with portent.
- Masculate, what do you mean masculate?
- We need to masculate her.
- She needs to learn how to be like a man.
Aurora and Liam became fast friends, good friends. He was charming and had a bevy of friends. He could talk to anyone; he could make anyone want to talk to him. Aurora, on the other hand, was not as charming. She only had a few friends, mostly because she was always under a watchful eye, but also because she just never learned the art of conversation. It was unimportant. She preferred to listen to the trees whisper, animals talk, and the wind howl. It made her feel peaceful. She liked the softness of it, the dance. It reminded her of ballet dancers, the way their fingers parted the air and how delicately the small of their backs rose and fell to meet the music around them. She could see the entire orchestra of the world around her if she listened close enough. One night she heard her mother talking to her father. She said, "We need to masculate her."
"Masculate, what do you mean masculate?"
"She needs to learn how to be like a man." Her mother whispered back, as if she could tell Aurora was listening.
"Is that why you insist on bringing all of these weapons into the house?" asked her father. "It would be easy to masculate objects in the room - they're war-like and heavy with portent. Our daughter is neither an object nor a weapon."
But her mother insisted, "She just needs to learn how to be strong."
It was a little more than jarring for Aurora to hear her mother say that. She never thought of herself as weak, but to hear her mother make a plea like that was both hurtful and degrading. Aurora began to retreat, and as she retreated she became more and more dependent on her blossoming friendship with Liam. He was her closest friend outside of her family. She shared her dreams and hopes with him, and every once in a while a secret or two. As it often did, Liam began to care more for Aurora than he had intended to. Eventually he revealed his feelings to her. When you're charming like Liam, you don't ever really get intimate with rejection. It was like a colleague that visited everyone else except for you. Aurora tried to be gentle about the rejection and they promised to remain friends, but a man of Liam's nature could hardly recover from something like that.
At first, Liam was cordial. Then he became resentful. And finally, he resolved to exhaust her of her rejections and win her over; and he did. Because of her inexperience, Aurora was incredibly unprepared for the emotions that would overwhelm her. She fell madly in love with Liam, and she thought he felt the same way toward her too. He did, after all, chase her beyond comparison, even at times with words full of raw honesty that hurt her to the very core of her soul. Who better to love you than your very best friend? And who knew best how to crumble you, to replace all of your hope and dreams with disparity, disdain, and heartbreak, than your very best friend? And that's exactly what he did. One day, Liam was just gone.
That day came not too far from when Aurora discovered that she was an Orb. Her training--a training that would prepare her for a life that would no longer be her own, a life that would absolve her of her broken heart--it would save her.
Liar! Liam was a liar. River couldn't believe it. She knew she shouldn't have read Aurora's mind, but she couldn't stop herself. How could Liam lie to her like that? She knew he was cunning, but she didn't know he was that cunning. To hide something so callous, to hide it so deep inside himself that he would create a lie to deter it from...from who? From her? No, she thought, a lie that took that much determination could only be meant for one person. Liam himself. River was completely and utterly beside herself. She was fuming, and even a bit sad. She stared at Aurora descending the stairs on her way to meet her destiny, on her way to absolve herself. Liam stood at the bottom of the stairs with his back to Aurora.
Before she knew it, River was pouncing down the stairs. She stopped in front of Aurora just as she stepped off of the last step. She could hear a commotion around her. Footsteps raced toward her. It was too late. Aurora and Liam were facing each other with River caught right in between them. The three of them surrounded by elders and combatants.
September 24, 2017
Vow (Noun) a solemn promise.
(Verb) solemnly promise to do a specified thing; dedicate to someone or something, especially a deity.
River tried to say something to Liam, but one of the combatants pulled her away and locked her down with an equalizer around her wrists. It made her immobile and she couldn't move or speak. If Liam recognized Aurora, he managed to keep it well hidden. His face revealed nothing at all. Aurora on the other hand looked like she had seen a ghost. River tried to read her again, but she couldn't. The equalizer was blocking her now.
- She vowed she would find out what happened.
- His vow to remain impartial overrode his impulse.
- Let's take a vow, right here, right now.
- She vowed never to do it again.
Suddenly, she heard a groan and then a thud. She looked over to Liam and Aurora. Liam was on the ground holding Aurora. She must have fainted. There was a struggle and then the combatants dispersed, chasing after something. River couldn't see who or what it was.
"Liam!" River yelled, but no one could hear her.
One of the elders opened a portal. Liam stood up with Aurora in his arms and followed the elders quickly through it. Other portals were opening as Foundation members and the remaining Orbs quickly exited as well. River still couldn't see who the combatants were chasing, but she could tell it was fast. Then she spotted Henry. She waved her arms at him and tried to jump to get his attention. He was about to leave through one of the portals. She couldn't get his attention. She couldn't send him a message. She felt helpless. Then she saw it. The shifter. It was shifting in and out of the space within the room. Just as one combatant was close enough to grab it, it shifted and disappeared, appearing a few paces in front or behind the combatant. It was making its way directly toward River. How did shifters get through? River watched as it shifted again and this time appeared only a few feet in of her. It could tell that she was locked down with an equalizer. River hated getting into the head of shifters. She had only probed a couple of them before now and their minds were always dark and hungry. She vowed never to do it ever again. If it grabbed her, she knew she only had minutes to stop it. It's spindly fingers wrapped around River's arms and shifted.
The air around her became thick and black. River could see the vertical lines piercing the darkness, dividing the space within the room. All she had to do was step through one space to get away from the shifter, but it was holding her tight. She concentrated on its mind. She tried to find the creature. She tried to look for something to communicate with. She needed to convince it to let her go, but she couldn't find anything. She pulled back layer after layer and found nothing. Time was running out. Suddenly she felt its fingers release and she fell. She hit the floor hard. She was back in the pavilion. A few feet behind her, she saw Liam pull out his sword from the shifter's body and it fell down lifeless. Liam looked right at River. His eyes were angry. They were angry at her. Before either of them could say anything, another shifter appeared and grabbed Liam. Aurora tried to scream but the equalizer was still tight around her wrists. Then a portal manifested in front of her. Henry came through and pulled her into it.
They stepped out of the portal into a light cool room. They were back at The Foundation headquarters. Henry grabbed her wrists and unlocked the equalizer. "Liam," was the first thing out of River's mouth. She tried to grab Henry's portal generator, but he walked swiftly away her.
"I think Liam can manage to take care of himself." He told her, "You on the other hand, you are in a hell of a lot of trouble."
"Why did you come back for me?"
"The elders think that the Shifters are making a move to try to take Aurora during the ritual."
"You mean kill her?"
"No," he explained, "kidnap her."
"Why would they kidnap her? They've always just murdered them."
"You know as much as I do now." He turned to face her, "What happened back there?"
"Nothing. It's nothing."
"Said the girl who I just had to pull through the portal with an equalizer locked around her wrist."
"It's personal." River stated, trying to steer him away from it.
River could tell that only peaked his interest even more. His vow to remain impartial overrode his impulse. "Personal? Like you and Liam personal?"
"What? No!"
"Well, it looked pretty personal between Liam and the new Orb."
"Aurora," River said, "Where is she?"
"They have her upstairs. She was stabbed."
"Stabbed. By the shifter?"
"Yes, but it was only enough to wound her and that's why the elders think that the shifters are going to try to kidnap her."
"I need to go see her."
Just then, a portal appeared and Liam stepped through. He raised his sword and pointed it at River, "Let's take a vow right here, right now. You read me again, and I'll take your life." Before she could answer him, Liam walked away. She didn't have to say anything because they both knew she would never read him again. She vowed, though, that she would find out what happened to him.
September 25, 2014
Potential (Noun): latent qualities or abilities that may be developed and lead to future success or usefulness;
(Adjective): having or showing the capacity to become or develop into something in the future.
Henry grabbed River by the hand and pulled her along the hallway. "Come on. We should get upstairs."
- The potential of loving someone that close to her scared her immensely.
- The potential horror of the situation slowly dawned on him.
- Don't fall in love with potential.
- The potential demise of their friendship had not occurred to her.
- I guess I can see the potential in that.
River's head was spinning. The potential demise of their friendship had not occurred to her. She counted on the fact that Liam would always be there. She took comfort in knowing that he would never die. It never dawned on her that their friendship would ever be in jeopardy. Now, in the space of one night, she could lose her closest friend; a friend that she also just discovered she could also be in love with. The potential of loving someone that close to her scared her immensely.
Henry was practically dragging her down the hallway now because River was too lost in thought to comprehend her surroundings or the scope of the situation. He stopped and turned to face her.
"River," he implored, "You need to focus. Do you understand me?"
"I am focused," she replied halfheartedly.
"Whatever is going on in your head, you need to get out of it. It's going to get very dangerous out here very fast. We've never had shifters get this close before. I think they've infiltrated one of us."
River always suspected Henry knew more than he revealed, and now he just confirmed it. "How does a healer know something like that?"
"I don't. I just suspect. Don't you?"
That's a probing question. That was one of the first things that River learned when she joined the Foundation. She grabbed Henry by the wrist and threw him against the wall. "As a matter of fact, I do. You're acting very suspect right now."
"Seriously, River," Henry said, challenging her, "Get a grip. Back when we were in training, your concentration never wavered. What's going on with you?"
Henry was right. She was always spot on in her concentration. "I don't know," she told him, "I just found out some things that were unnerving to me."
"Something about Liam?" Henry inquired further.
She remained quiet, and so he continued, "Let me give you a piece of advice that my mother once gave me."
River loosened her grip and let him go, "What advice can you possibly give me?"
He started walking away, and then said with his back to her, "Don't fall in love with potential."
River didn't know what to say. She never thought that healers could be anything but logical, and definitely not poetic. She raced after him.
When River and Henry finally reached the room upstairs, Liam was leaning over Aurura trying to stop the bleeding. Neither of them said a word to each other. The two elders that were charged to protect her were taking up arms.
"Healer!" Liam demanded, "She needs your help."
Henry ran over to Aurura. He inspected the wound and did nothing but only looked up at Liam. The potential horror of the situation slowly dawned on him. Henry returned to his feet and walked back to River.
"What are you doing?" River asked.
"It's too late. There's nothing I can do for her."
"It can't be too late." River pondered. "She's still alive right? You can't just let her die."
"She'll be dead very shortly."
"I thought healers were supposed to heal," she snapped.
Henry turned to her, "There's only a specific amount of time in order to save someone," he said, looking directly into River's eyes. "That time has passed for her."
Of course, River knew the scope of the situation; of course, she felt she was to blame. She looked over to Liam and Aurora. His face remained expressionless, but River could feel that her partner was working very hard to maintain his calm demeanor; she could feel that his carefully crafted seams were beginning to come apart.
"The Orb," she managed to say aloud to Henry, "the Orb that was dying. Where is he?"
"I don't know. Somewhere safe."
River started to make her way over to the elders but Henry stopped her, "I guess I can see the potential in that."
Somehow she knew he was referring to her silent plan. If they could bring the Orb here, they may still be able to complete the ritual and the Orb could move on into Aurura's body. "But you should let me talk to them," Henry continued, looking toward the elders and confirming what River already knew, "They won't listen to you."
Henry approached the elders and spoke with them calmly. The elders listened to Henry and then looked over to River before speaking to him again. They nodded their heads and handed their portal over to Henry. He walked over to Liam and handed him the portal. Liam didn't even hesitate. He just opened the portal and disappeared.
Henry kneeled down beside Aurora and pressed his hands on her wound. River could see a distant light forming underneath her skin. She walked over the them.
"I just need to keep her alive long enough for Liam to return with the Orb." He looked up at River. She could see the wound forming on his own body exactly where Aurora was struck with the blade. Healers could heal anyone, human or animal, but the affliction of their patient always inflicted them as well, unless there was a conduit. River looked around the room, and there was no conduit in sight.
September 26, 2014
Deplete (Verb): use up the supply or resources of; diminish in number or quantity.
"Henry," River said quietly, "What can I do to help?"
- My options are depleted.
- That depleted all of my energy.
- After a long week of nothing in particular out-of-the-ordinary work, she was depleted of any energy or hope.
- She could see that he was diminishing by the minute.
She could see that he was diminishing by the minute. Where is Liam? It seemed like he had been gone too long. Then she felt a hand on her own hand. It startled her. It was Aurura's hand, reaching up to her.
"I could feel you," Aurora whispered, "probing around in my head."
River felt the blood rushing to her face. "I'm sorry about that. It was never my intention to..."
Aurora shook her head weakly, "I never wanted to see him again. Yet, it was nice to see him again."
River didn't know what to say, but she felt she didn't need to say anything.
"It doesn't matter what happens now," Aurura continued, "My options are depleted. I'll be gone soon. Can you give him a message for me?"
River began, "I don't really think that's my place."
But it was like she never heard River. "Can you tell him that I forgive him?"
"Forgive him?" River asked, "Why should you forgive him?"
Before Aurora could answer, River heard a thud and saw that Henry had fallen on the floor.
"That depleted all of my energy," Henry finally said."She should be fine for a little bit longer."
River sat down next to him. "You're not such a kid after all," she told him, trying to smile and remain hopeful. She edged herself in between both Aurora and Henry, trying to help both of them and succeeding at helping neither of them.
River had a nightmare once. It started like so: After a long week of nothing in particular out-of-the-ordinary work, she was depleted of any energy or hope. She lived like that for a very long time until The Foundation found her, until they gave her a mission, and then they introduced her to Liam. He was a kindred spirit. It's funny, thought River, how everything can change in one night.
She removed Henry's hand from Aurora's wound and took hold of it. She continued to hold Aurora's hand. She could feel Henry's energy move amongst the three of them.
"No. No." Henry whispered, "You can't do that. You can't break the connection."
"But I'm the connection now." River answered.
"You must understand," Henry exclaimed, "if she dies while you are holding on...you can't be the conduit."
"I can save her," River said aloud, trying to convince herself.
Just then a portal opened and Liam stepped through with the Orb and elders behind him. As they rushed to Aurora's side, River could feel a light pull of her body like she was being shoved aside. She could see the entire room. She saw the elder healer lean down next to Aurora, check her pulse and signal for the Orb to stand beside him. She could see the healer take hold of both Aurora's hand and the Orb's hand; she could see the Orb's energy pass between them. Just before she passed out, River saw shifters enter the room.
September 27, 2014
Tripartible (Adjective): Divisible into three parts.
River tried to open her eyes, but it was taking her a long to time to achieve it. Her eyelids felt heavy. Henry must have given her a potent drug because it was taking all of her effort to accomplish a menial task. When she finally succeeded, the light was too bright. She squinted and tried to look around. She was back in her room. She sat up, but the upward motion made her dizzy and disoriented. The room began to spin, and she felt sick. She leaned forward and threw up.
- You can live a tripartible life.
- It's tripartible? It doesn't really look like it's divisible into three parts!
- It was as if his heart was tripartible - torn between his love for her, his desire for freedom from any attachment, and the yearning for something else that he could not even begin to name.
It took her a while to get situated but she felt much better after her little incident. River made her way to the bathroom. She washed her hands and then her face. She looked at herself in the mirror. To her surprise she didn't look as awful as she felt. But what did they do to her hair? Did they have to cut it off? Honestly. Healers and doctors will do just about anything to try to save your lives. She sighed heavily. She shuffled back to the bedroom. She felt different and her room looked different too. It was clean. No, not clean. It was tidy. Different. And the bed, when did she get a larger bed? She was feeling sick again, so she grabbed the edge of a table and leaned over. Then she spotted the photo. It was photo of Liam and her. They were both smiling. When do either of them pose for pictures, and smiling nonetheless? And when did they take that picture? Surely, she would remember something like that.
River heard a click and then the door to her room opened. Liam walked in.
"Hey. What are you still doing up?" He walked over to River and kissed her lightly on the lips. She froze. What is going on? Before she could stop herself, she pulled him closer and kissed him right back, a wetter and much less lightly kiss. It surprised the both of them. River felt like her heart was about to cave in. She pushed him away.
"Where's Henry?" she stammered, breathing heavily.
"Henry?"
"Yes. Henry. You know, the man who saved my life?"
"Right." He looked at her oddly, "Henry is at the Grey Council."
"What? Why's he there?"
"He works there."
"Wow." River looked around the room for her jacket and shoes and began to get dressed. "I guess when you save an Orb's life you move up the ladder pretty fast."
"What are you doing?"
"I need to go see Henry about something." She told Liam. She herself wasn't quite sure what she was doing. "I don't feel well that's all."
"Henry doesn't see patients anymore."
"I think he'll make an exception for me." River said as she opened the door and stepped outside. "Don't stay up too late, Old Man." She closed the door before he could respond.
The air in the hallway was cool and fresh. She breathed in several breaths before she walked quickly down the hall and out of the building.
The Grey Council was where all the researchers and scientists worked. Their primary responsibility was to watch over the Orbs, to witness the Orbs' progress as they prolonged their dimensions' timeline. A Foundation member had to be pretty advanced in his or her career to be invited into the Council. When she got to the Grey Council building, it was pretty late, but she took a chance that Henry may still be there. She found him on the tenth floor. As she approached him, she noticed that Henry looked different, slimmer, and older, it seemed. As a matter of fact, she thought she looked older as well.
"Hi Henry."
He saw her, but he waited a bit before acknowledging her. There was a confused look on his face, and then he stood up and walked over to her. "Hi Aurora," he said. "What are you doing here at this hour?"
River was stunned to say the least. "I came to see..." she managed to whisper, "an old acquaintance."
"And that would be me?" He quickly challenged.
"I'm sorry," River apologized, uneasily, unsure of how she offended him, but quite sure that she did. "Friends, then?"
"Nope. Not that either," He answered. "What can I do for you, Aurora?" This time he emphasized her name.
River never really was patient with riddles and games. She preferred the straight-forward, blunt method. "It's River, Henry." That stopped him dead in his tracks. "Why are you calling me Aurora?"
It seemed like a good, long forever before Henry answered her, "It took you long enough to get back." He paused and then stated, "River."
"What happened to me?"
She could tell that he was having some difficulty responding. She thought maybe she should just read his mind. She reached out, but could only see darkness.
He put his hand on her shoulder, "It's going to take some time for you to re-establish yourself."
River was starting to piece everything together now.
Henry started, "Three years is a long time to be gone."
River found something to sit on and just stared out into the room. She looked right passed Henry as he explained the science of what happened. When River tried to save them she broke the connection between Henry and Aurora, and she herself became the conduit. Normally healers would relinquish the connection when they realized the patient was moving on. Henry would have done that, but because River didn't know what she was doing she held on too long. It was long enough for Aurora's essence to move into River's body.
"When you regained consciousness," Henry finished, "We weren't sure if it was going to be you or Aurora."
"But the Orb," that was all that River could focus on, "the Orb survived, right?"
"She did," Henry reassured her, "She's doing quite well."
River felt like she was going to get sick again. She tried to look straight ahead and that's when she saw him. It was Liam. He must have followed her. Henry saw him too and approached him. They spoke. Liam looked over at her. She saw a distant look about him, that same distant look that he had when they were talking in the foyer at the benefit, three years ago now. Henry said it would take some time for her to "re-establish" herself, but she could feel her re-established connection to Liam, or perhaps she never lost it. It was as if his heart was tripartible - torn between his love for her, his desire for freedom from any attachment, and the yearning for something else that he could not even begin to name. Or was it his love for Aurora? It couldn't have been his love for River.
Liam walked toward her. River felt like running. She wanted to bolt, but her feet wouldn't budge.
"Hi," he said.
"Hi."
He smiled his shy smile. "It's nice to be called an Old Man, again."
She did call him an old man, didn't she? Right before she closed the door on him. "Force of habit, I guess."
"I've missed you too." he stated. It seemed like he had been waiting a long time to say that.
River didn't really know how to respond. To her, it was just yesterday when she last saw him. He smiled again and then walked away. They both knew it would be a long time before she'd see him again.
Henry came over to River, "You can live a tripartible life," he told her.
"What kind of life is that?"
"Your life. Aurora's life. And even the both of you combined."
River laughed. "I have a hard enough time living one life. Now. It's tripartible? It doesn't really look like it's divisible into three parts!"
"Or you can let Aurora go." Henry suggested.
It just keeps getting better, and better thought River. "Did you tell her to let me go?"
"No," he answered, "Liam did. Actually, he asked Aurora herself to go. It seems that the both of them are indebted to you."
They sat there quietly as River pondered a tripartible life, with Aurora waiting in the wings, and Liam, and perhaps even Henry too.
"I was wrong," Henry finally said, "You can fall in love with potential." There was a longing in his voice, the same longing that River felt when she thought she was in love with Liam so very long ago.
River remembered Henry's advice--or his mother's advice--that he gave her in The Foundation hallway just yesterday, but really three years ago. It made her feel at ease. She wanted to kiss him. She leaned in. It was a light kiss, full of potential.
"How else," River asked, "would it start?"