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Hello everyone! This chapter marks the end of Book 1 in The Garden. It's also one of my first attempts at a more emotional scene. Please bear with me, this is my first time trying something like this. I'd appreciate if you gave me your opinions about it in the comments below so I can improve!
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“Tenia, come with me.” Said Benson, his voice ice. He wasn’t asking. I set down the dishes and turned the sink’s water-producing magic tool to the ‘OFF’ position.
I followed him without a word, curious about what he wanted. His spine looked rigid like steel. He seemed worried. Had something happened?
We walked together to November’s workshop where, silently, Benson indicated for me to wait just outside the door. I decided it was best to comply. There seemed to be something he wanted me to hear…
November and Benson started talking. At first, it seemed like a simple discussion. Then their conversation took a strange turn...
“Fine then. But you know Tenia’s reason for suggesting it differs from your own, Mistress,” Said Benson, his tone weeping.
I was confused. Wasn’t that obvious? Of course I had different reasons for educating the young Mistress... Because, if the worst came to be, she would be trapped in her current body. It was imperative she learned how to live as a woman. It was my duty to make sure she could adapt to a new life if all hope of going back died.
Oddly, in my heart I felt that it would be impossible for November to return. I don’t know why I felt this way, though. It was as if I had forgotten something important. A strange blank feeling assaulted my mind.
“Benson, wait!” Cried November, her voice laced with urgency. I was drawn out of my thoughts. “Tenia’s reason differs from mine? Then why has she been teaching me all these things?”
An ice storm spawned in my heart. The mistress didn’t understand my intentions. The worry in her voice… It implied she didn’t want to ask me.
Why didn’t she just ask me? Unless...
She didn’t trust me.
The pain inside my chest blossomed, spreading a numb feeling across my body. My breathing grew erratic. I couldn’t risk letting November hear me. I started to run away from the doorway, back into the house.
When I look at her, I only feel love. I only want what’s best for her. Why doesn't she see that? What am I doing wrong?
Do I confront her about this? What if that only makes things worse…
“Are you okay?” Benson’s voice, nearly a whisper, asked from behind me.
“I’m not sure,” I replied, my broken heart echoing in my weak voice.
“You’re trying to become a mother to her,” Benson said, a firm determination in his voice, “But that’s a role you can’t hope to fill. Not in her heart.”
“What do I do?” I asked, turning around to face the only friend I had in this world. My tone was filled with desperation. Tears streaked down my face. Sobs threatened to break out of my throat.
“Be her friend, not her parent.”
As if he were stating the obvious, Benson walked out of the room leaving me to wallow in my misery.
I hit the floor with my knees. Uncertainty plagued my mind. I felt a powerful terror from the depths of my soul. If November rejected me, if she feared me, then my only reason for living would vanish like a dying sun.
I thought of a galaxy without stars; it would become an abyss. Pure darkness.
What was my purpose if it were not to care for the one I love?
“Be her friend.”
Benson’s words echoed in my mind. He made it sound simple… But how was I to do that? November doesn’t trust me. She doesn’t love me the way I love her. I don’t think she ever will.
“Why?” I asked between sobs. I retched, but nothing came up. My eyes burned.
What do I do?
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POV Switch: November
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I tossed and turned in my bed. Sleep eluded me. My thoughts continued to thrash and rave. Tenia wasn’t teaching me etiquette to help me find a way home. What purpose could it serve, then? Why would she teach me such things? What benefits would she reap from me acting like a proper lady?
If it was money, I had already given her thousands of ‘G’. If it was power, she could already pass as one of the most powerful beings in this world.
What could she possibly want from me?
…
There was only one way to find out. I’d have to ask her.
I climbed out of bed upon realizing the way to move forward, and I started making preparations. If, when I confronted her, Tenia were to attack me… I’d need to be ready. She was far more powerful than I could ever hope to be, and she knew most of my tricks.
I pulled my trump-cards from [Inventory] and admired them for a short while. A robe, enchanted with Tier 10 runes, glittered in the darkness. Coursing blue lines ran up and down the cloth, sparkling with infuriating levels of incandescence; it looked like a gaudy prom dress with a hood.
“Ether’s Bane,” I said the cloak’s name aloud, in awe of its craftsmanship. It was the only Tier 10 item I ever managed to create in Xternity. Crafting it had cost me ten levels at the time.
Stolen story; please report.
Tier 10 items and spells were banned by the User Collective, the self governing body of upper-tier Guilds. They were also extraordinarily rare. The side-effects of crafting one were astronomical, and the requirements alone were just as high.
I pulled my armors off and slipped Ether’s Bane on. It felt like silk on my skin.
I took three potions out of my [Inventory] next. The air in my room became charged with mana, and bolts of static electricity sparked around the potion’s lids.
Two months ago I sacrificed several storerooms worth of my Guild’s highest ranked ingredients to craft these Tier 9 potions. I only had three of them. I didn’t know if I’d ever be able to find the BlistCaps or RedBark needed to craft them again in this world.
The first, the red-colored concoction, was a [Mana-Drain] potion. One drop on Tenia’s skin would seal her mana for a full day without the proper antidote.
The second, the purple-hued ambrosia, was a [Reflect Magic] potion. By drinking it, my body would become immune to all effects of mana or spells for five minutes, reflecting any casts back at the one who sent them.
The final potion, a brown vile vial, was [Plague]. A terrible disease that could kill a player in ten minutes without the antidote for it. It was also horribly contagious. Any physical contact would spread [Plague]. It was often used by Archers in siege battles. I charged over 700,000 ‘G’ for a single dose of it.
With these four things at hand, I could protect myself from Tenia and Benson. First, though, I needed to establish an escape route.
I climbed out my window. I used what little magic I did know to keep my movements silent. While I ran into the woods, I pulled out my [Key] for Journey’s End and began fiddling with it. It was hard to alter it on the move, but they didn’t call me the best crafter on the American Servers for nothing.
I found a secluded spot, about five miles South of the house. There, I pulled out the [Gate] I had crafted during the day. I hid it with branches and dirt, and then I tuned the [Key] to synch with it.
I made sure to test the [Gate] and [Key]. Both worked flawlessly. Now I needed a new [Key] for Journey’s End, though.
For a brief moment, I found myself looking up at the pitch-black sky. The wind smelled earthy. A charge flittered on the air. The soft rumbling of thunder echoed on the horizon. A storm was coming.
I ran back towards Journey’s End, ready to confront Tenia and find out the truth. I wasn’t religious, but I whispered a prayer under my breath.
I entered the front door, no longer hiding and completely ready for an ambush...
Something was wrong. I could hear sobbing coming from the kitchen. Carefully, I walked through the living area into the dark backroom. I couldn’t see anything, but I could hear a woman crying. Lightning flashed, illuminating the room. I saw Tenia; she was on the floor crying. Our eyes met. Her brown eyes were red from grief.
“Tenia?” I asked before the booming thunder deafened me. The room seemed to shake from the force.
“N-November?” She asked back after the thunder stopped, her sobs and running nose making it hard to understand her.
“What’s wrong, Tenia? Why are you crying alone in the kitchen?” I asked in a gentle voice, almost forgetting my original reason for coming here.
In the dark, I watched Tenia’s figure stand up. Then, suddenly, she rushed towards me. I started to pull out one of my potions, but was cut off as I was wrapped into a hug.
“I’m,” She paused to sniffle, “Sorry!”
“Tenia?” I asked as I started to pat her back. I could feel her tears on my neck.
“I was trying to be a mother to you,” she cried, her voice growing more firm. “I know now that was wrong. I love you, November. I just wanted to teach you how to live as a woman. If we can’t find a way for you to go home… You’d be stuck this way.”
With shaking hands, I put the potion back into my [Inventory]. I grabbed Tenia’s shoulders and moved her so I could see her eyes.
“That’s what all this was about?” I asked, my voice hoarse.
“Yes. I’m sorry. I could never take the place of your mother. I know how much you love her and I’m sorr-”
“Tenia,” I interrupted her, “I’m the one who should be apologizing.”
It all made sense. I finally understood everything. The reason I had been feeling uneasy about Tenia… It was because subconsciously I was rejecting her. She was trying to fill in the role of my mother. I felt uneasy because of that.
I loved my Mom. Nobody could ever replace her in my heart. She’s the only person who I knew for certain would never hurt me…
I wrapped Tenia in my arms and hugged her tightly. I could tell she was confused because her own hands were in the air, as if she wasn’t sure what to do with them.
“I’m sorry, Tenia,” I said in a soft voice with a smile. “Instead of trying to be my mom, will you be my friend instead?”
In that moment I genuinely thought that, perhaps, I could trust someone else for the first time since Dad left. Her tears poured harder than the rain outside as she took a moment to collect herself. I felt her arms gently wrap around me.
In a soft voice -as lightning flashed across the sky- Tenia replied, “Yes.”
End of Book 1