The Paradox Corridor

Chapter 41: It's Always Darkest Before the Dawn

After a while of just standing there doing nothing, Andrew and James finally picked up Amber and walked her to the keep...again. As they waited for the doors to open, Andrew asked,

"Are you feeling any sort of déjà vu right now?" James sighed.

"You know, this very situation has happened far too many times for my taste."

"Dude, I feel ya. It's my sister, after all." James thought about that for a minute while the guards called for Arthur to see if they could come in. Eventually, James asked, with some hesitation:

"I'm being completely honest right now: since when have you actually cared about Amber?" Andrew scowled at him.

"How dare you! I've always cared about Amber!" he hissed.

"No offense, but you've spent most of your life either arguing with her or ignoring her. Doesn't look like care to me." James commented. Andrew looked like he was going to attack him, but then he sighed.

"I know that you don't understand it, and it's fine if you never do, but...even through all of the fighting I cared about her, even if even I didn't realize it, so I understand why it would be confusing to an outsider."

"I'm pretty much the closest person to you, Andrew, and from here you seem pretty indifferent to her." James said. Surprisingly, Andrew actually laughed at that.

"James, James, James. You really don't get it, do you? Whether we look like it or not, me and Amber are twins. You obviously know that by now (hopefully), but you don't really understand the twin dynamic. Each twin, in the search for being different, tries to make a separate name for themselves. They try to prove to the world that they are their own unique person, and that's why often times twins don't get along. But...even still there's a connection deeper than a simple sibling-sibling relationship: whether they like it or not, their twin will always be a part of them, and, when it matters most, twins will (usually) work together. They care for the well being of the other at all times, and they are constantly pushing the other to achieve new heights (*cough cough* competitiveness). And so that's why I care for Amber: she's my sister, and more importantly my twin, and I can't lose her. If she gets hurt, or she dies, part of me dies too." That shut James up until they had brought Amber to Merlin, who simply gave her a potion that healed her.

"She will return to normal in the morning," he promised, "Now get some rest." And so they did, James still pondering over what it was about the new-and-improved Blackwoods that bothered him.

The next morning James woke up before Andrew. As he looked at Andrew's sleeping body, he had a great idea, remembering what Andrew had done to him the morning before. He walked out of the tent, the darkness of the night still hanging over the sky. He walked over to the well, and wheeled the bucket down to the bottom. While he slowly wheeled it back up, he looked around at the encampment. Not a single thing moved: even the wind was still, for now. The calm before the storm, he thought. He turned around to get the bucket off of the hook, but when he moved the bucket he saw something that had been blocked from his vision. And not just something...someone. A man was laying on the ground, looking straight at him, dressed in all black. As soon as James saw the man he dropped the bucket and drew his sword. The man jumped to his feet, and turned tail, preparing to run. Not wanting to let him get away, James threw his sword like a boomerang. It struck the man in the back, and both the man and the sword fell to the ground. James ran towards the man, yelling,