waiting.
Everyone turned to Garrison. I wanted to see him take the first sip. He smelled the liquid and recoiled, but then shrugged, plugged his noise, and drank everything from the little shell.
I thought briefly about how we had come so far and escaped so much danger just to be poisoned by a little old woman in the jungle.
Garrison seemed to be okay, so Seth and Moira followed, with me being the last to drink out of my small cup. Though I had plugged my nose, the disgusting taste stayed in my mouth. It was like a mixture of earth, grime, and some kind of oil. My heart sped up, waiting for something magical to happen. The woman made herself busy, weaving a basket together from her low stool, humming to herself as if forgetting we were there.
A few minutes passed. We all sat around waiting, nervous and expectant. I slowly began to feel very silly for actually thinking any of this would work. A witch doctor surrounded by predictable paraphernalia in a jungle filled with tourists could not help us with our magic. And who knew what she thought we were there for? We hadnât even said anything about it. Maybe she thought we were lost. Or had a case of travellerâs diarrhea. Communication was a problem.
I stood. âThis isnât working.â
The witch doctor didnât even look up at me. Her humming was starting to annoy me. It seemed louder than before. The humidity was itchy, and being so hot was making me cranky.
I looked to my friends. It had been ten minutes since the woman was yelling at Moira and stabbing her in the chest. Now Moira didnât look so great. She was still sitting, waiting for something to happen, but her long, dark hair was soaked with sweat and she looked considerably paler. In fact, so did Seth and Garrison.
I needed air.
Though the hut was small, by the time I reached the doorway the womanâs humming was all I could hear. An impulse I couldnât identify pushed me to get out, urged me to move even if my limbs were getting heavier. I took two steps out from the hut when I heard my name.
âGwen, wait.â Seth was coming after me, but he was struggling. The same thing was happening to him. He reached out for my hand and managed to take it, just as we both fell backward and everything went dark â but only for an instant.
A bright light burned through my eyelashes. Daylight and a bright blue sky made me squint. We werenât in a jungle anymore. I lay on cool grass with Seth resting his head on my stomach. He looked up at me just as I stared at him â this wasnât like any other time I had seen a memory. Though I knew this was a different place, I still felt like myself. I listened for my past life, but she remained dormant.
We were younger than in any of our other memories, closer to teenagers. Dressed in many stiff layers, I knew the body was not my own, but still, I felt more in control than I had ever been. Garrison and Moira were nowhere in sight.
I tried to ask where the others were, but no words escaped my mouth. I could only stare. I couldnât tell if Seth was having the same problem. He slowly stood and I followed. We huddled together as we surveyed the small clearing where two horses grazed under cover of the trees. He wrapped an arm around me and I felt more at peace than I had in months. Unfortunately, that only lasted for an instant.
I noticed I held something in the hand that wasnât entwined with Sethâs and opened my fingers to find an intricate wooden carving of an eagle biting into my palm. Seth turned to me. It was the first time I had seen him so young in the past. While I was still modern Gwen, I began to feel my past life in my chest. She loved him, and all of the negativity, fear, and insecurity that would come later didnât exist yet.
He gripped my hand tighter.
âThrough all of it,â he said, âwe stay together.â
I nodded. The world around us melted away. I had to plant my feet and grip
Everyone turned to Garrison. I wanted to see him take the first sip. He smelled the liquid and recoiled, but then shrugged, plugged his noise, and drank everything from the little shell.
I thought briefly about how we had come so far and escaped so much danger just to be poisoned by a little old woman in the jungle.
Garrison seemed to be okay, so Seth and Moira followed, with me being the last to drink out of my small cup. Though I had plugged my nose, the disgusting taste stayed in my mouth. It was like a mixture of earth, grime, and some kind of oil. My heart sped up, waiting for something magical to happen. The woman made herself busy, weaving a basket together from her low stool, humming to herself as if forgetting we were there.
A few minutes passed. We all sat around waiting, nervous and expectant. I slowly began to feel very silly for actually thinking any of this would work. A witch doctor surrounded by predictable paraphernalia in a jungle filled with tourists could not help us with our magic. And who knew what she thought we were there for? We hadnât even said anything about it. Maybe she thought we were lost. Or had a case of travellerâs diarrhea. Communication was a problem.
I stood. âThis isnât working.â
The witch doctor didnât even look up at me. Her humming was starting to annoy me. It seemed louder than before. The humidity was itchy, and being so hot was making me cranky.
I looked to my friends. It had been ten minutes since the woman was yelling at Moira and stabbing her in the chest. Now Moira didnât look so great. She was still sitting, waiting for something to happen, but her long, dark hair was soaked with sweat and she looked considerably paler. In fact, so did Seth and Garrison.
I needed air.
Though the hut was small, by the time I reached the doorway the womanâs humming was all I could hear. An impulse I couldnât identify pushed me to get out, urged me to move even if my limbs were getting heavier. I took two steps out from the hut when I heard my name.
âGwen, wait.â Seth was coming after me, but he was struggling. The same thing was happening to him. He reached out for my hand and managed to take it, just as we both fell backward and everything went dark â but only for an instant.
A bright light burned through my eyelashes. Daylight and a bright blue sky made me squint. We werenât in a jungle anymore. I lay on cool grass with Seth resting his head on my stomach. He looked up at me just as I stared at him â this wasnât like any other time I had seen a memory. Though I knew this was a different place, I still felt like myself. I listened for my past life, but she remained dormant.
We were younger than in any of our other memories, closer to teenagers. Dressed in many stiff layers, I knew the body was not my own, but still, I felt more in control than I had ever been. Garrison and Moira were nowhere in sight.
I tried to ask where the others were, but no words escaped my mouth. I could only stare. I couldnât tell if Seth was having the same problem. He slowly stood and I followed. We huddled together as we surveyed the small clearing where two horses grazed under cover of the trees. He wrapped an arm around me and I felt more at peace than I had in months. Unfortunately, that only lasted for an instant.
I noticed I held something in the hand that wasnât entwined with Sethâs and opened my fingers to find an intricate wooden carving of an eagle biting into my palm. Seth turned to me. It was the first time I had seen him so young in the past. While I was still modern Gwen, I began to feel my past life in my chest. She loved him, and all of the negativity, fear, and insecurity that would come later didnât exist yet.
He gripped my hand tighter.
âThrough all of it,â he said, âwe stay together.â
I nodded. The world around us melted away. I had to plant my feet and grip
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