Inheritance

Chapter 29: Lost Girl

Eory let himself be led along by his female counterpart with a listless and light-headed feeling pervading his body. For a moment, he realized that he must have been dreaming, but forgot again in a moment.

"I want to show you something important!" Taylor exclaimed.

She dragged him along through white nothingness for what felt like minutes. Their footsteps were loud and ominous and seemed to echo endlessly throughout the empty space. Their movements seemed slow; the pair seemed to float as they went.

There was no wind, no heat, nor any cold to clash with the sound of their steps.

The sound was pure and undefiled until Taylor's shrill voice cut into it. "Why is he always here!"

Eory looked around frantically and saw a patch of green grass spring into existence followed by a wrinkled waif lying on his belly on the patch. At the sight of Eory and Taylor, a mischievous smile dawned on his face and he rose to his feet.

Eory cocked his head to the side. "Who is he...? I don't know any waifs but Kori..."

"You know him—but only from your dreams and through me. You forget about him during the day because you're a fool." Taylor explained and then tried to drag her male counterpart away.

"Wait, I want to talk to him..." Eory said, trying to wrestle free from her grasp.

The waif was getting closer, but Taylor was having none of it. She dragged him away and eventually, the image of the waif evaporated.

"He's boring and annoying! I have something much better to show you!" Taylor exclaimed.

She skipped along cheerfully and Eory marveled at her confidence and openness and wanted it for himself. He felt so uncomfortable and uncertain in his own skin.

Deep down, fear festered in his stomach. Fear that Kori would betray him. He felt it overwhelm him for a moment.

Suddenly, Taylor stopped in her tracks and she whispered, "there he is..."

Eory caught up to her and stood to her side to get a view of what she was looking at.

Slowly, a clear image sprang to life in the white nothingness.

Eory was treated to his brother, Gershom, scooping out little holes in a patch of dirt he was kneeling in front of, and then gently placing pink and blue seeds in them.

Soon enough, a very young Eory materialized next to his big brother.

Eory was grinning and digging alongside him and humming loudly. "Which will this one become?"

Gershom took a moment before replying, "I don't know... It can be a male or female, it can be big or small... It can be anything at all."

Eory giggled. "You rhymed on purpose!"

Gershom nodded and wrapped an arm around his brother's shoulder. "That I did!"

The young Eory had a red seed in hand and it made him frown deeply. He hung his head and sniffled. "This one's different than the rest..."

Gershom looked at him intently for a moment. "You mustn't mind mother and father; they only scold you about how sensitive you are and how much you cry because they want you to be strong."

Eory looked forward blankly. "I don't fit in... I want to be a girl. Mom and Dad wouldn't care that I cry so much if I were a girl."

Gershom stopped digging for a moment and then looked at Eory with powerful eyes. "Do you think mother weeps when she doesn't get her way, Eory? Do you think she cries when the rabble whispers about her? No. She did not even shed a tear when the peasants attacked her in public and they cut off her hand. She is just as strong as any man and perhaps stronger because I have never seen her cry in my life."

Eory looked into his brother's eyes searchingly for a moment and then his large ears drooped with uncertainty and sadness. "Why did she make me a boy, then, is there's no difference?"

Gershom pulled him close with a smile. "No grand reason. She tells me often that she simply wished to chase after two rambunctious boys."

There was something comforting about that, and the young Eory smiled—feeling at peace with himself.

The eighteen-year-old Eory watched in confusion as the memory faded back into whiteness. He turned to Taylor who was clenching her fists in a rage. She met his eyes in a moment and said angrily, "wanted two rambunctious boys, indeed! I'm far stronger than you! Just let me out, and then I can get us out of the situation you have roped us into!"

"I don't understand... I don't remember this... Why are you showing me this?" Eory asked as, for a reason he did not know, tears streamed down his cheeks.

"I—" Taylor began—her voice shrill and loud--but it was silenced in a moment. For many moments, he watched her motion wildly in silent fury and then she tackled him—choking him about the neck.

He couldn't breathe and the only sound was blood pumping in his ears before he opened his eyes and he was blissfully brought back to reality.

He gripped the blankets on his bed and panted in the darkness of his room. In a moment, he fearfully pulled his blankets up to his chin. His heart pounded wildly.

He could have sworn that, in the darkness, he could see Taylor's ominous silhouette--just waiting in the darkness for her chance to take over.