Stories

Fair - Chapter 25 Aloud

In the agitation created by the events that surrounded the search for Mary the Circle almost forgot about the cursed poppy experiment, and was only reminded of it when the second generation of plants emerged and bloomed even bluer than the first. Mrs. Eberhart shrugged at the sight of the field donning the color of the sky, irritated that the Council had wasted her time again with superstitious nonsense. 
“When are we going to be rid of this curse already?” Rosemary clamored, displeased that the plan she was contemplating in her mind, the one where even the memory of the Que’d was stripped from the Village record and life went on, with industry and righteousness, like it did for her generation, and her mother’s generation, and her grandmother’s, and her great-grandmother’s. 

Fair - Chapter 24 A Night in the Desert

Later that day Lucille prepared a basket of food, like she did every evening, not forgetting Mary’s favorite cookies, fresh out of the oven, waited for the night to fall and stepped out into the desert quietly, careful not to attract attention.
She walked without noise through the soft, powdery sand, under the stars that shone so bright they cast shadows around the dunes and brightened the desert night enough to light her path. She stopped at times, to put the basket down, sighed in response to her thoughts and then continued on her way. She walked for a couple of hours, too deep in thought to pay attention to her surroundings, the way a person who walks the same familiar path is suddenly surprised to find herself much farther along it than she thought she was. At the end of the journey she slowed down and looked around swiftly, and then, reassured, turned at a sharp bend around a dune and stopped in front of a mound of rocks which looked like it had been placed there intentionally, as if to mark the spot. 

Fair - Chapter 23 Himalayan Poppies

The cleansing ceremony in the desert came and went with no consequences, which was a little disappointing for Rosemary, who was hoping for some sort of vindication of her beliefs. Weeks passed, then months. The girls were as tired as always, but finally figured out ways to keep out of sight and thus managed to rest at least long enough to prevent themselves from falling asleep in company.
Life in the village continued virtually the same, and if one wasn’t intimately familiar with its daily intricacies, one wouldn’t have felt the subtle shifts in attitude or in the ways of doing things, but the elders were, and so they did. 

Fair - Chapter 22 Workshop

“May I have your attention, please?” Lucille cast her voice over the audience, and the murmurs and shuffles subsided. “Is everybody here?” she scanned the cave to make sure all the girls had made it inside, safe and unnoticed. When she was reassured that they were all there, she continued.
“Before class starts, I don’t think I need to reiterate the importance of keeping this knowledge to ourselves, at least for the time being. I’m sure the reasons why don’t require explaining.” A soft wave of discomfort weaved through the gathering and quickly subsided, as they recalled the unfolding of events in the Council Hall. “Back to more interesting subjects, if memory serves, Blanche was going to present her study on gene splicing and the effects of introducing snapdragon DNA into tomato breeds. So, without further ado,” she waved her hand, inviting Blanche to the podium, to present her slides to the class.

Fair - Chapter 21 Ancestral Wisdom and Cholesterol

It’s been said that nothing happens on this earth without leaving traces of its passing. Sometimes those come in material form, through the testimony of even the most mundane objects, other times through the subtle changes in behavior, and taking upon a different way to see the world.
The lessons in the cave didn’t get lost on the girls’ hearts and minds, how can one discover an entirely new world and stay the same? They were more confident in their strange compliance, and completely unafraid. If there was one thing in the world that incensed Rosemary was people not knowing their place. She had held to her position in society and obeyed its every restraint, and she wanted to make sure every member of the generation after her did exactly the same. The fact that her place in society had been quite cozy and comfortable, due for the most part to fortunate birth circumstances and helpful people to guide her way was beside the point, she firmly believed that her life in and of itself validated her right to be were she was, and those who didn’t fare as well did so by the faults of their own conscience.

Fair - Chapter 20 A History of Bits and Pieces

The cave was sealed at dawn, with a very tired Lucille gazing at the endeavor in a sour mood, irritated by the fact that now she had to walk another fifteen minutes around the hill to the next entrance.
Rosemary directed the activities with almost ceremonial gestures, pleased to have won this epic battle over the Que’d and unaware of the fact that she’d already lost the war. When the Circle was finished dumping large boulders at the entrance of the cave and the large cloud of dust started to settle, the place looked so barren and desolate that even the most acerbic opponents of scholarly knowledge felt a tinge of guilt.
There was something inspiring, something larger than life in that cave with the ancient carvings adorning the walls, and many secretly wondered if they didn’t throw away irreplaceable treasure just to quell their fears.

Fair - Chapter 19 Spider Silk World

“Aah, Lucille!” Rosemary pinned her under an icy stare. “How nice of you to finally join us, dear! We were starting to worry that you might have gotten lost on the way here,” she commented, her sarcastic comment well padded by a sweetness that almost made Lucille gag. Since Lucille lived two blocks down from the Council Hall, the insinuation that she might not be all there didn’t escape anyone in the Circle.
“Don’t you worry about me, darling,” Lucille retorted, in an even colder tone of voice. “If I need advice on how tie my shoes, I’ll be sure to ask you. You’re the best resource, all things considered,” she smiled at Rosemary. The latter turned beet red and threw a bitter stare in her direction, sharp as a dagger. Everybody remembered the incident from decades ago, when a young and enthusiastic Rosemary, who was in the running to become the Maiden of the Harvest and lead the produce parade through the main streets of the village, stumbled on her shoelaces, that had come undone, and fell off the wagon, face first in the dirt. Nobody, not even her best friends, managed to banish this incident to oblivion, as they were all reminded of it annually.

Fair - Chapter 18 A Painting in the Clouds

Lucille returned after dark, and to her shock, she found the new cave completely transformed: a console had been installed, as promised, but also furniture, personal accommodations and storage modules. She saw what looked like a kitchen towards the back of the cave and set down the basket of food on the table.
Mary wasn't there, and Lucille started to panic, prompting the one in the mirror to provide an explanation.
“There is an underground stream two caves down, Mary got bored and went to get some fresh water. We thought she would be more comfortable if the place looked more like home, do you think you could bring her favorite things from her room? We tried to offer her food, but she seems reluctant to eat it. Maybe it would be best if you brought her home cooked meals for a while, at least until she gets used to our fare.” He stopped for a second, to give Lucille a chance to reply, then, upon noticing the latter seemed at a loss for words, he asked. “How did things go with the Council?”

Fair - Chapter 17 The One in the Mirror

“Answer him, girl!” Mrs. Gentry prodded a very confused Mary, whose young heart oscillated between shame and terror. “Mary! Her name is Mary!” the lady clarified.
“Who are you?” the grumpy guy retorted bluntly, making Mrs. Gentry recoil with indignation.
“I believe it's untoward for you to address me, given that we're not related, nor have we been properly introduced,” she protested, ready to leave.
“Suit yourself!” the man cut her off. “I only care about the girl anyway.”
“Jim!” the other man protested. “Would it kill you to be nice?”
“She wasn't supposed to be involved in this to begin with!” Jim replied.
“Why don't you go finish what you were working on, I'll take it from here,” his friend recommended.
“Real nice! After all the time I spent slaving over this monitor,” Jim protested, but left.
“Hi, Mary,” the one in the mirror looked at the girl again. “I know how scary all of this must be for you, but I need you to stay with me for a while, so I can explain. You have no idea how excited we all are to have found you, we almost lost hope, we thought someone faked the rumors of your existence. Are there any more people like you in the village?”

Fair - Chapter 16 Blood Spell

“Now what!?” Mary thought.
“Oh, I knew it! I just knew it! It had to be!” Lucille couldn't contain her excitement, and all of a sudden she looked much younger, an echo from the care free days of her girlhood, when, much like her niece, she was willing to take on the world, no holds barred.
“Do you think we can order the mirror to do things?” Mary asked.
“Probably,” Lucille said thoughtfully, “if we knew how... Did you make any progress with understanding the language?” she turned towards her niece.
“Not really,” the girl confessed.
“No matter, we have time to figure out what we can, later, I'm late for the meeting, we'll talk when I come back.”