Peculiar Pasts, Presents, and Prospectives

Enoch's Peculiar Past

Warning: This story includes violence such as burning people at the stake, some hollows and wights, and can be depressing at times. You have been warned. If you thought the last one was sad, oh you are in for a treat. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------    

     It was the year 1883. Enoch and his family were absolute perfection. His parents had quirky jobs, running a funeral parlor, but everyone knew their names and regarded them well. Enoch was a kind and fun to be around person. Everyone loved him. His sister, Ania, was also loved by all. She was two years older than Enoch was, and although she was shy, she was caring and helpful. The parents of the O'Connor family were fully supportive of both of their children. And not only these things that made them perfect in the village, but Enoch had something else. Something that some others could only dream of. He had a passion. It was for biology. Enoch loved to study the anatomy of animals. So whenever any creature died, animal or human, it went straight to the O'Connors. He told everyone that he was going to be the most famous biologist of all time. His parents supported him, not even caring that he didn't want to take over the family business, knowing that Ania would. But Enoch would never be able to do such a thing. And Ania knew it. Neither would she.

     Enoch first discovered his peculiarity at the age of thirteen. It was at in the back room of the funeral parlor. The Fergesons' grandfather had recently passed away, and he was lying in the back, casket open. Enoch was unmoved by these things. He and his parents dealt with dead things every day. He was walking through to get to his own room, carrying a horse heart in a jar that he had dissected, preserved, and was about to study. But while he was walking across, fate stepped in and tripped him. The jar shattered, and the heart happened to land in a slit in Anthony Fergesons' chest. Enoch rushed to get supplies to clean the broken glass, but when he came back, it was a sight to see. Anthony was sitting straight up, and looking straight into Enoch's eyes, he whispered, "it was you!" He gasped and stepped back. This man had been without a pulse for over a week! "I was perfectly content with where I was! I was peaceful! Relaxed! And you woke me up you ignorant little boy! Why would you do such a thing? I was very busy!" Enoch realized that the man had regained life. The giant horse heart was inside him. The slit in his chest was gone, and the heart bulged out. Shaking, Enoch took a knife and ripped out the heart. Anthony's body went limp again.

     He started to hyperventilate. Running to Ania's room, in which she was in, he flopped on the bed and started crying. Shocked, Ania tried to comfort him until his sobs reduced to shudders and he could speak again. Still gasping for breath, he took her hand. "Enoch, Enoch. Tell me what's going on. You have to tell me or I can't help you! Enoch!" He stared at Ania until he could speak again. "It was Joey." Ania looked puzzled. "Joey? Your friend? What happened with Joey? Did he snap at you? Was he mean to you? Remember, his grandfather just died, he's grieving." Enoch shook his head. "No. No. It was Anthony. Some-something happened." Still puzzled, she replied. "Did the body scare you? Why? These things never scare you. You see them every day!" Enoch, still shaking, managed to answer her question. "It wasn't that. I-I brought him back to life. With my horse heart. It was an accident!" He started to cry again. Ania's jaw dropped. "What? How? That's impossible! Is this a trick?" Enoch shook his head. Taking a deep breath, Ania asked, "Can you show me?"

     The next day, after Enoch had somewhat regained his composure, he took Ania back to where it had happened. He brought the same heart that he had done it with the previous time. Ania, watching intently, asked, "Enoch? Are you sure that this is real? It isn't just your mind playing with you?" Shakily, he responded. "No. I'm sure of this." With that, he shoved the heart into his chest. They waited 5 seconds. Nothing happened. "Look, Enoch, I know that-" She was stopped by a deep breath intake from Mr. Fergesons. "Ugh! It's you again! Why you idiotic child! I told not to wake me up again!" Once again, Enoch ripped out the heart and started to cry again. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Ania's mouth was agape. "I-I just feel so guilty! He was so ang-angry at me! And I feel lightheaded and tired and terrible Ania!" She embraced him, trying to calm him, but failed miserably. After a while, she asked, "do you think you can to it with, like, objects?" Enoch sniffled a yes. She took one of her old dolls and a mouse heart from Enoch's room to him. Just as he was about to try, she interrupted him. "Wait. Maybe I should try to see if anyone can do it. You might not be the only one." Enoch nodded slowly. Carefully, Ania took a knife and ripped the back of the doll, placing the mouse heart in it. 5 seconds. Nothing. 10. 1 minute. She took it out. "I don't think it works for me. You can give it a try." Enoch put it into the back of the doll. Immediately after, it stood up and looked at him, with blank eyes. He said, "sit." it sat. Any command that he would give the doll, it would oblige. Nothing happened when Ania did something like this. For a while, the two of them kept practicing, for Enoch to build up his strength. Some time after, they decided to tell his parents.