Seer
Chapter 10

Natalie

I was so relieved to get to school this morning and see that Timothy was feeling fine. After we talked about what had happened with his experiment with Guardian, I told him what happened with Lady. He was fascinated with the new idea.

“So,” he said, “I guess that will work with anyone’s Guardian. You could always know what everybody is doing! Everybody you want to.”

I shrugged. “I guess. But I really just want to keep track of what Mom and Dad are doing tomorrow on their camping trip. We’ll be able to help with the experiment to see if Lady and Angel can keep talking no matter how far away they get.”

Timothy nodded. “Awesome. I can’t wait.”

Now, we’re just sitting down to eat lunch. I see Gabe and Jonathan over on the playground together, since they’ve already finished eating, but we don’t go to play with them. We never do. We just like to spend our lunch talking, since we don’t get to talk about our own ideas during class.

Timothy gets out his sandwich and asks me, quietly, “How is Guardian doing?”

I listen to Angel. “He says Guardian is fine,” I tell Timothy in a soft voice, “but he’s still worried about what happened last night. He’s been talking to you like he normally does, the way you can’t hear it.”

Timothy sighs. “I still can’t figure out what happened. I did feel like I was starting to feel something in my head, like, I don’t know, like when your tooth gets loose and it is just really distracting and you want to keep pressing on it, but it sort of hurts to do it? It was kind of like that. Just, inside my mind. But then I think I pressed on it too hard and it started hurting.”

Angel listens closely to Timothy’s description of what happened. “What do you think about that?” I ask him in my head.

“That is an extremely interesting analysis of what happened. Perhaps Timothy could sense Guardian’s presence, but then overexerted himself trying to focus on it. That might explain his fatigue and headache.” Angel listens to Guardian for a minute. “Guardian agrees this might be an explanation. Perhaps later Timothy can practice focusing, but in a more gentle way so as not to place stress upon his brain.”

This is very interesting. I tell this all to Timothy, and it seems to cheer him up a lot. “Yeah, maybe! I’ll think of ways to experiment with this. Maybe tomorrow when you’re spending the night we can work on it more with Guardian and Angel.”

We’re both happy that it seems like there might be something to try to continue getting Guardian and Timothy to be able to talk, but without hurting Timothy. I open up a package of cookies that Mom packed in my lunch and give some to Timothy. We eat without talking any more, because I know that Timothy’s mind is busy coming up with new ways to approach the problem.

I just love how smart he is. I look over at Angel and we smile at each other. He feels the same way.

Brenda

I’ve spent the entire day distracted with anticipation about the camping trip Ron is planning for tomorrow. I’m afraid I wasn’t as productive at work as I should have been, as my mind kept drifting off, wondering what we will be doing. He’s being slightly mysterious, although he has explained where we are going, and that there should be a good meteor shower to watch. My practical side wonders whether I should be checking to make sure that he packs up enough food and supplies for the trip, but he has assured me repeatedly that he will take care of every single detail and that all he needs me to do is pack up what I need for myself for one overnight at a desert campground. He’s told me there’s a primitive bathroom there, but nothing fancy like showers or actual flush toilets, so I don’t plan to bring much. Before I took the kids to school today, I packed a little bag with my toothbrush and a change of clothes to bring tomorrow.

When I pick the kids up from day care we head over to Ron’s, and as I pull into the driveway I see that his SUV is packed already, the back chock full of bags and chairs and other stuff. My gosh, it looks like he has enough stuff for us to stay for a week, not just one night! I’m grinning as we go into the house.

Ron greets us as we open the door, unusually exuberant. I can tell he is even more excited than I am. As the kids push past us into the house, he grabs me for a hug. “I missed you last night,” he says, wrapping his arms tight around me and leaning his head down to mine. He’s a lot taller than me, so he always has to bend down to embrace me, but he never seems to mind. I rest my head against his shoulder, happy to be in his arms again.

“Me too,” I say. “It’s crazy how I’ve gotten so used to being with you that one night apart seemed super lonely. I even had a hard time falling asleep without you there.” I snuggle into his chest like it’s my pillow.

He leans away for a moment to look down at me, and his blue eyes are aglow with happiness. “I feel the same way. Sorry about that. I just had a lot to do to get ready.”

Gabe pokes his head back around the corner to find us still hugging in the entryway. “Guys! Get a room!”

Ron laughs. “I have a room! I have a whole house! And we’re in it! Come on,” he says, holding my hand and heading into the kitchen, “dinner is almost ready.”

Brenda’s

My beloved’s pleasure at being again in the arms of her husband fills me with a warm joy. I eagerly anticipate the moment when she learns that he wishes to be her husband once again, legally as well as emotionally, as he proposes to her tomorrow night.

At the same time, I continue to be astounded by the situation with Natalie’s Guardian, communicating directly with me all night. It felt incredibly peculiar, to be speaking with anyone other than my own Guarded. Not to mention having the conversation reciprocated, by both Natalie and her Guardian. With the experience gained during the experiments with Timothy’s Guardian, he taught me to be able to communicate with relative ease. Partway through the night, he had recruited the assistance of Timothy’s Guardian, next door with the Seer’s friend, and I was able to communicate directly with him as well.

I reflect on one of the unconventional aspects of the situation, the use of gender pronouns to describe each other. Guardians do not think of ourselves as having genders at all, naturally, even if we have taken a form that might reflect such a thing. Gender is a characteristic of beings who exist in the physical world, not for us. But, for ease of communication, and to facilitate Natalie and Timothy’s understanding of the events, it seems best to adopt this linguistic idiosyncrasy. As Natalie has assigned me a feminine moniker, the other Guardians have begun using corresponding pronouns to refer to me.

Then, throughout the day, while my own beloved was at work and the Seer was at school, I practiced communicating from a greater distance with her Guardian. It appears that the method of directing energy through the communication effectively increases the possible range, and it is unclear whether any distance will be a barrier. Once Brenda and Ron drop Natalie back off with Timothy tomorrow, the new experiment will commence.

I am beginning to find my usual composure returning, after the emotional and exhilarating experience of direct communication with Natalie and her Guardian. I have observed it occur with Timothy and his Guardian, but being directly involved was overwhelming at the start.

I am pleased to feel my sense of calm restored, as I wish to be fully engaged with Brenda as she embarks on the weekend’s significant events.

Ron

“Come on, guys, let’s go!” I have everything in the car already, and am standing at the foot of the stairs. I know it’s early still, but I am so eager to get this day started. Gabe and Natalie come pounding down the stairs, ready to see their friends. “Come on Gabe, I’ll walk you down to Jonathan’s house.”

I take his backpack and check in it to make sure he has a toothbrush and change of clothes. “Oh, come on Dad,” he moans dramatically, “I know how to pack a bag.”

“Yeah, I guess you do,” I say, grinning and tousling his hair. “Let’s go.”

When we get to Jonathan’s house he is raring to go. Gabe disappears immediately with him into the back of the house. Brad comes out to greet me. “Hey Ron, you all set for the camping trip?”

“Yep. I have enough stuff packed for an army. I think we’re well-equipped.”

“Well, have fun! Don’t worry a bit about Gabe, we’re always happy to have him here.”

“Ok, great. You have my cell number but I can’t guarantee the reception out there.”

“Nah, I won’t need it. Forget about us and have a good time.”

“Thanks, man,” I say. “I appreciate it.” Raising my voice, I yell goodbye to Gabe somewhere in the back, and hear him yell “Bye!”

Patting my pockets, I say, “OK then. Bye.”

When I get back, Natalie and Brenda are waiting by the car already, smiling. “See?” Natalie says, with a big smile on her face. “We didn’t make you wait at all!”

I laugh. “Perfect! Let’s go!”

It’s just a quick trip over to Brenda’s place to drop Natalie off at Timothy’s house. We get out and visit with Laura for a minute to make sure that everything is all set.

And then, we’re off! She looks over at me as she buckles her seat belt, her brown eyes glowing, her long dark hair framing her face, and I cannot believe the surge of love that I feel. It is so intense to know that it is reciprocated.

I turn on the car and set the Eagles CD to play for us. Hotel California, baby.

Ron’s

My beloved is exultant as he drives the winding roads through the hills towards the Southern California desert. He glances frequently at Brenda, sitting quietly beside him in the vehicle. He does not know what to make of her silence. But he knows that she is as filled with love as he is, and he is eager to reach their campsite to begin their day outdoors together.

I am more acutely aware of the presence of her Guardian than ever before, having been assimilated last night into an extraordinary fellowship created by the Seer. A group of Guardians, all communicating directly with one another, all directed by the wishes of a human child. A unique human, yes, a marvelous creature. Yet, still just a human child. She has orchestrated an event that she refers to as an experiment, to determine whether not only can we Guardians break all bounds of normalcy in communicating with each other, but whether we can do so from a substantial distance.

This is driven by her curiosity to know what her parents are doing during their camping excursion. Her Guardian, known to her as Angel, instructed me last night in the use of energy to transmit our thoughts to one another regardless of range. I have complied with the Seer’s requests, and have continuously used this new ability to remain in contact with Angel, even as we have grown further apart during our journey. The communication appears undiminished.

The situation I find myself in is fantastical. Never before had I imagined such a development, even having watched the Seer grow and communicate with her own Guardian.

I muse over the most remarkable element of this unprecedented situation. The one thing that has astonished me more than anything else. I have a name.

Yes, a name, of all things.

After little Natalie began to address me directly last night, with her purpose quickly clarified by Angel, she soon requested my consent to assign a name to me, so that her conversations with Angel and with her friend Timothy would be made less complicated. It did seem sensible to have separate monikers for each of the Guardians involved, so, somewhat bewildered by the entire bizarre situation, I agreed.

She had named Brenda’s Guardian “Lady”, inspired by the book she has been reading about tales of medieval chivalry. And, to correspond, she suggested that my name be “Knight”.

So here we are, Knight and Lady, accompanying our beloved humans as they embark on a very meaningful event in their lives. And unbeknownst to them, their actions are being diligently reported back to their little girl.

Brenda

I don’t know why I am feeling so shy. It’s Ron for god’s sake, the love of my life, the person who knows me better than anybody else. Yet, I feel a little unsettled, not sure quite what to expect from this trip to the desert. He’s told me about the meteor shower and I know how excited he is about things like that, but I can tell that there is something else going on. And I have been trying not to let myself speculate too much about it. I don’t want to get my hopes up. There’s a part of me that is still afraid of being hurt again, and I just don’t want to let myself go there. He might not have any ulterior romantic motives. If I start imagining things that are not going to come true, I’ll find myself disappointed. And I don’t want to end up blaming him for something that is totally not his fault. He can’t be expected to fulfill any wild fantasies that I have cooked up. So I’d best not cook them up.

I’m trying to force myself to just live in each moment as it comes. So I’m enjoying the drive through the back country, the little rural communities behind San Diego. I enjoy looking at the sparse granite hillsides interspersed with the rugged trees and bushes that can grow here in our dry climate. When we are heading into Santa Ysabel, Ron pulls over. I look to see where we are - the Dudley’s Bakery parking lot.

He grins at me. “I want to pick up a pie for dessert.”

“Mmmmm!”

We get out and peruse the goods available in the delicious-smelling shop. This is a must, obviously, and I had somehow forgotten all about it. We used to come up here for day trips sometimes, when Gabe was a baby, and we always stopped by here for picnic treats. Being here again fills me with a sweet nostalgia.

Soon we are on the way again in the car, with an apple crumb pie and a loaf of fresh baked bread. “Pretty fancy fare for a camping trip,” I tell him.

He chuckles. “Yep. Only the best for you, Babe!”

I impulsively grab his right hand and bring it up to my lips. He glances at me, left hand on the wheel, delighted surprise in his eyes. I laugh and release his hand. I’m starting to relax, and really look forward to what else the day has in store.

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