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A Different Path, part 9 Sharon tossed another fish into the bucket at the side of the stream. As she turned to grab another wriggling trout she spotted the return of the canoe up on the river branch. Pleased at their quick return, she waded out of the pool and began walking towards the dock the former Embassy had built. She held up her hand to shield her eyes from the sun, squinting against the light. The older woman blinked then wondered if her eyes were failing. She took out her glasses from their case and slipped them on and returned her gaze to the nearing canoe. And blinked again, doubting her own eyes. Who was that? Did Cierra have a sister she never told anyone about? Her friends on the double canoe spotted her waiting and waved but they didn't look very excited. Sharon knew that many people added to the village would be a hardship but she still wondered who the young woman was. The watercraft bumped up to the dock and Cyd quickly grabbed a rope and tied it off, keeping the canoe against the wooden pier. The cook greeted her friends but her eyes never left the stranger who resembled Cierra so much. Sharon held out her hand to help her up to the pier then gasped as she got a better look at her. The young woman's resemblance to their queen was too close to be considered dumb luck or genetics. Although she seemed paler and less muscular, they looked like the same person. How could this be? Sharon could only stare at her as the young woman removed her knit hat. The cook noticed that her hair was much shorter than Cierra's and almost looked like she hacked it off with a dull knife rather than had it cut. Cierra walked up next to her look-alike and shrugged. "This is Emily, my counterpart on Earl's world," she informed her older friend. Sharon's mouth opened several times but she had trouble forming words. JP patted her back and said one word. "Later," and grabbed her dufflebag and her spouse's. The other people from the canoe stood silently, now wondering what to do now that they were finally there. It was Jenny who took charge and told everyone to follow her. The people needed sleeping assignments and a tour and the others seemed too distracted to tend to the newcomers. * * * * * Erica's brother, Jimmy, and Rachel's brothers, Sawyer and Nick Jr, were shown to the bachelor barracks on the other side of the stream. Jenny introduced them to the young teens that happened to be inside and asked them to show the three newest members the ropes. Since Kali's brothers were considered the only 'adults' in the barracks they chose to take the duty of explaining how things ran. Nick wondered why a guy his age was considered an adult and he wasn't, feeling a bit resentful. Jenny placed a friendly hand on shoulder and briefly explained how and why of the boys' status as adults. "Oh, that reminds me. I need to get you your necklaces too." She stopped the teens from asking any questions and told them Zareb would explain while she was gone, promising to return shortly. They watched the blonde woman leave then the new arrivals looked to the tall African youth, their eyes saying go ahead and explain. "It is custom here, now. We wear necklaces to tell out personal history. See these?" Zareb said, holding his necklace out from his shirt. "We get one white bead for every ten years we live. The black one the Queen gives us when she believes we have earned adulthood. And this," The young man said with pride, pointing to his gold bead with bear prints, "is to show that I am a warrior who fought against a bear." "A real live bear?" Jimmy asked in awe. "Yes. The same bear that killed our friend, Drew. My brother also helped slay the beast so he was also given a matching story stone." The three teenagers looked towards the younger boy as he held up his necklace. Zareb continued to explain all the different colors and their meanings until Jenny returned. In her hand was three identical necklaces, each with a white bead each. Sawyer thought the lone beads looked pretty pathetic and wondered when he could earn more of them. They tied on the strings around their necks and thanked the council member politely. Jenny gave them all a smile and reminded Chike that he promised to help in the kitchens that evening before she left. From there, Jenny returned to adobe houses that she had set up the two new couples into. Rachel and Erica were only two houses away from Rachel's parents. Those two homes were the only empty dwellings other than the one the village kept available for visitors. She first knocked on the door of the older couple. After making sure they had been settling in and had been shown where everything was, she next checked on the young lesbian couple. They were putting away their possessions and settling in nicely. With a reminder to listen for the dinner bell, she left the couple to themselves, seeing the gleam in their eyes that said their new bed would be broken in quickly. Jenny looked up at the sun to gauge the time then headed for home, squashing the impulse to check up on the new single women in the barracks. She had to admit it was because she wanted to see how everyone was dealing with the arrival of not only a celebrity but Cierra's counterpart as well. But she had no good reason to interfere with them settling in with all their new roomies, other than being a busy body, so she went home to spend time with her spouse and little girl, Mel. She just wished she could be a spider on the wall and see what was going on inside the barracks. ***** Emily felt the eyes of everyone on her as she clutched her meager belongings. The women in the barracks didn't look at her with the same distrust that the psychiatrists usually had about her but she felt just as vulnerable. The warmth of Elinor's hand at the small of her back and being guided forward brought her attention back to her movements. With Elinor's urging she went to the set of bunk beds that had been assigned to them. One of the women nearby cleared her throat and informed them of the wicker trunks beneath the lower bed and the small closet built into the wall. Their personal spaces would be tiny but neither possessed much. Cierra had promised to scrounge up more clothing for the pair as well as small grooming items. Erica's mother was assigned to an empty bed across the barracks but she felt just as lost. As a single older woman, she had no choice but to live with the single women. Martha had to admit she wouldn't feel comfortable sharing a tiny home with her daughter and her lover. The young couple needed their privacy. Martha sighed, missing her son, Jimmy, and wondered how he would like living in the bachelor quarters. She pulled the small wicker trunk from under her bed and carefully folded her under garments into it. The clothing she intended to hang was placed onto crude bamboo and wire hangers that had been provided. Suddenly a metallic clanging could be heard. "Supper is ready," one of the women told the new arrivals. Alix joined the crowd heading for the communal building. She pulled on a knit sweater as they walked, feeling the coming chill of Fall in the air. The woman closest to her looked over her shoulder at the singer and guiltily looked away, her face flushing. The singer knew that look and wondered how long it would take before her new community got over her being famous on Old Earth. Besides, her old life was gone now. There were no more active record companies or Broadway. People spent their time just trying to survive and the entertainment industry was not very important to them any more. She was lucky that Cierra even allowed her to come to Mother Earth. The shaman could have easily turned her away, taking only the lesbian couple back with her. The singer was grateful though. Her crew was brought here and had a chance at building a new life aboard the WaveDancer. Now all she could do was wonder what her life would be like in this place. She followed the others into the crowded building and just copied what the others did. She took eating utensils and such from the shelving and waited in line. Alix noticed Erica and Rachel entering the building and waved at the friendly couple. Maybe she could sit with them. Eating with all strangers would be too awkward. She neared the food tables and looked over the available food for the evening. A large crock of soup sat at the head of the table, resting on a slate slab so it didn't burn the wood. She sniffed the contents but wasn't sure exactly what it contained. Shrugging, she filled her bowl and moved along. Next in line was a large tray of fresh bread. The scent of the bread had her nearly drooling. It had been a long time since she last had bread. She grabbed several thick slices and stacked them on her plate. Next she took steamed corn, fresh from the fields, that had been buttered and salted. The final tray contained dredged trout fillets that had been pan-fried. The fish were golden brown and crispy and Alix suspected that the cooks had used butter and bacon fat to fry the fish. She filled her cup with hot tea and waited for Erica and Rachel until they filled their plates. She asked to join them and the three of them found a table away from worst of the crowd. It wasn't long before the girls' parents joined them as well as Jenny and Cyd then Elinor and Emily. Alix noticed that the butch's plate was piled high and she grinned in amusement. She had noticed on their trip north that Cyd was a big eater yet remained trim. The fact that Jenny rarely mentioned the portion sizes of Cyd's meals told Alix that this was normal for the tall woman. The singer wondered if her all her appetites were just as large. "So," Jenny began, buttering her bread from the table crock of sweet churned butter, "what do you think so far? Anything like you imagined?" None of the newcomers had a clue what to say yet. They had only been there a few hours. It was Rachel's mother, Lucy, who spoke first. "It reminds me of summer camp when I was a girl. Modern and primitive at the same time." Cyd chuckled and told her spouse to ask them again in a few weeks. Everyone needed time to adjust to the new lifestyles. "I'm only curious," the blonde pouted. "Although I have to admit, my biggest question is what Emily thinks." Jenny locked her eyes on Cierra's double, who was looking uncomfortable. "I don't know what to think. A month ago I was locked up in a mental hospital and now I'm on another world. All I want to do is hide and cry," Emily admitted. She felt tears welling in her eyes but a warm hand touched hers under the table and squeezed gently. Emily looked at her friend who's eyes were kind and understanding. Instantly the panic inside receded for the moment and became more manageable. "It'll get better, I promise," Jenny assured Emily. "I'm still scared that I'm as crazy as they all said. What if this is some fantasy in my head and not real?" A voice spoke from behind her. Emily spun as the woman spoke. "Then you accept your fantasy as a haven to seek shelter in until you can deal with reality. Nothing can hurt you in your dreams," Sharon told her kindly. As strange as the words were, Emily took comfort in them. She was safe here. That's all she needed to know. Tomorrow would solve itself and until then, she'd just accept all she experienced. Yes, that was what she would do. The end, to be continued in another story back to Fiction Page Email Me |