Chapter 4- Leena and Brandon

Before this goes on I must explain the schedule. Speaking to each and every child takes a lot of time which means not a lot of sleep for our minds. So each pair of children were assigned a day of the week: Cecily and Robby- Monday, Tessa and Rose- Tuesday, Leena and Brandon- Wednesday, Perry and Grey- Thursday, and Heza and Sky Friday. That left my husband and I with Saturday and Sunday to relax. Actually Leena figured all this out on the second day, or I should say night. She's always thinking of others needs. Why, just the other day... well, I'll let her tell the story.

The other day I was sitting on the lawn at the edge of the woods wondering where the time had gone. It was now three years since we came to live with the Taylors. Brandon and I had gotten along very well with these people and we had learned a lot, but one thing still remained a mystery to me and that was Shawn. I was good friends with Jane and Ralph was just like another brother to me, but Shawn . . . he was just so quiet and drawn into himself. He was always disappearing and going off on long walks. Jane and I would discuss whether or not this was good for him, we liked to debate the merits of conversation vs. quiet time and visual contact vs. verbal contact vs. physical contact, and man was that last one a dozy because the only time we had seen Shawn touch anyone was when he would kiss his mother goodnight. When we were introduced to new people he wouldn't even shake their hand, he would only give a slight nod of his head. Because Jane and I were studying the same subjects for school we would debate these things for hours. Ralph was a painter and there for very flighty so I didn't ask him too many questions, I asked Bran what he thought because he and Shawn were taking a gardening class given by Aunt Beth. Bran told me that Shawn barely said a dozen words to him all week. I even asked Aunt Beth why Shawn was so quiet. She told me that when Shawn was seven he had gone to play in the woods with his friends but he got separated and no one could find him. Three hours later he walked out of the woods and he was never the same after that. This only gave me more questions. It was all very frustrating. Every other person around me I could help in one was or another because they communicated with me and I understood them; I could not understand Shawn and every time I asked him a question or tried to talk with him he gave me one word answers or just shook his head and turned away. So I decided then and there to go look for him and make him talk to me.

I got up and dusted my self off (that was Jane's influence) and tried to think which way to go, then I remembered watching him walk into the woods earlier. I followed the path he had taken until I came to a split. I took the less used side, for obvious reasons. This path went on for quite a ways, going deeper and deeper into the forest until I could barely see the sky over head and every thing was veiled in twilight. After a little over half a mile something happened. It wasn't until later that I realized it was for the better. My eyes had become accustomed to the twilight and I had been less careful in watching where I was going. So, of course, I tripped. The bad part was that I had twisted my ankle rather nastily and it hurt really bad. The worse part was that I was half a mile into the deep woods and no one would think to look for me here until it was dark out and I hated to admit this to myself, but I was very afraid of the forest at night.

My ankle hurt really bad and I couldn't even move it, so for the moment I gave into my girlish side and let myself have a good cry. I hadn't been crying very long when all of a sudden I felt a hand on my shoulder. I sat up quickly with a startled look on my face and accidentally moved my foot. That brought a fresh wave of pain and made me start crying again, but part of the tears were tears of relief because kneeling there in front of me was Shawn. He had a very concerned look on his face (which looked very nice because I had never seen him look like this before). And then he spoke. It was only the second time he had spoken a whole sentence to me, the first had been "Welcome to the family" when we were at the ceremony.

"Are you Ok," he asked now. He had a nice deep voice. I shook my head and my hair went into my face. I hung my head because I didn't want him to see me like this I wanted to be able to help him but now I was the one who needed help. I guess everyone needs help at one time or another, it was just so embarrassing for me.

"What's the matter? Are you hurt?"

"I . . . (sniff) I twisted my . . . (sniff) ankle . . . (sniff) and it . . . (sniff) really hurts. (sniff) I can't even move it at all, (sniff) it hurts so bad." He went around me to look at it and then came back and sat in front of me.

"Can you try to sit up at least? If you could sit up I might be able to help you stand on your good foot." I tried this but the tiniest movement made me want to scream. I bit my lip and shook my head. I closed my eyes tight so I wouldn't start crying again. Then I felt his hand stroking my head and I heard him say it would be Ok. This made me feel so much better. I lifted my head to look at him.

"Thank you. In the beginning I thought no one would ever find me then when I saw you I was so happy. I'm glad it was you that found me because it was you I was looking for. I have a confession to make. I was going to corner you and make you talk to me. I was getting kind of annoyed because I couldn't understand you. Everyone else I knew how to help because I could understand them, but I couldn't understand you so I couldn't help you and this was frustrating me. But I understand now. I wanted to help you like I helped everyone else, but it was me who needed the help, help to understand how you are. I'm sorry. Will you ever forgive me?" At first he looked astonished, but he listened carefully to everything I said and when I was done he looked very thoughtful and then concerned. Then he did something totally unexpected, he reached up and brushed the hair out of my face.

"Oh Leena. Of course I'll forgive you. I didn't realize how I was affecting you, and probably everyone else as well. I was being very selfish."

"Aunt Beth told me you got lost in the woods when you were seven. What happened? What shocked you so much that you could not speak about it to anyone? May I know or would your rather not tell me?"

"We should try to role you onto your back first. Then it will be easier for you to sit up. You don't look very comfortable at the moment and this could take a little while. Would you like to try?"

"Ok. That sounds good. " So Shawn moved next to my swollen ankle and steadied it with his hands while I turned over. It hurt a lot, but not as much as last time I was now on my back.

"Your ankle looks really swollen. There is a stream a little further down the path with cool running water. If you can bear standing on your good foot I could help you down to the stream and you could soak your foot. It would help a lot with the swelling and the pain."

"Oh yes! Let's try that." First he helped me sit up. the muscle in my leg twitched and my foot moved and I cried out in pain. I would have fallen back if Shawn hadn't been behind me holding me up.

"Don't worry. Take a deep breath. Calm down. That was only the blood rushing to your leg. It'll be Ok. Just take a deep breath. It's Ok." I think I was falling in love. This felt so good. Not having a badly bruised ankle, that did not feel good at all. But being held and comforted, that felt really good.

"Leena, (love the way he says my name) I think I may have to carry you. Do you mind? Shall I try it?" My mind was stuck for a moment on the words 'carry you'. Shawn, carry me? What would that feel like? Then I thought about my foot. Would it hurt? Probably not as much as hopping would. I had my answer.

"No, I would not mind. Yes please, let's try. The sooner I get my foot soaking the sooner it will feel better."

"Ok. Now, I've never done this before so, bear with me." He came from behind to the side of me Putting one arm under my knees and the other arm around my back he gently and carefully as possible, slowly picked me up. At the first moment my foot moved I gasped but I quickly bit my lip because I didn't want him to stop. I'd rather get moving while it hurts than wait for it to stop and let the night come. Once he stood he asked if I was Ok. I told him what I had just thought. He looked at me and smiled. He actually smiled at me! He had a really nice smile.

"Are you afraid of the night, Leena," he asked very kindly. I looked at my hands. Now he would think I was still a little kid.

"I don't think you're a little kid."

"Did I just say that out loud?" He nodded. I looked at my hands again.

"Leena." His voice compelled me to look up. "I will protect you from the night." He looked so serious. I believed him.

"Thank you, Shawn." I answered just as serious. Then we were at the stream. He knelt down and gently as possible, set me on the grassy bank. It didn't hurt as much as before. It was almost as bad at the beginning when he took off my sandal, though. It was the kind that laced up the leg. Thank the Father that the laces were soft ribbons, but he still had to peel them gently off my leg. It felt so good to put my foot in the cool water. I just sat there for a minute with my eyes closed, enjoying the cool relief. Then I herd Shawn move.

"Lean back," I heard him say into my ear. So I leaned back, resting my head in his lap. I looked up at him and he looked down at me with a strange look on his face.

"Are you comfortable?"

"Yes, thank you."

"Do you still want to hear what happened when I was seven?"

"Yes. If you don't mind telling me."

"I need to tell you," he said very earnestly.

"Then tell me, " I replied.

"Ok then. It started when I was seven. I went to play tag with some of my friends in the woods, but I was thinking about what I had seen and heard that day. Mom and Dad had taken us (Ralph was only two and Jane was three) to the Palace to see about becoming one of the five families. While the grownups were talking I went onto the balcony connected to the room and I saw you and your brothers and sisters playing. You all were so happy and I wondered how happy you all would be when you were split up. It made me sad to think how you would miss your siblings and parents. So I was thinking about this and I went down the wrong path, this same path we are on now. I decided that I would explore it. After a long while of walking I came to a clearing bare except for a thick carpeting of grass and one little plant in the exact center. As I came closer to the plant I saw that it was like no other plant I had ever seen in my life, and I had seen a lot of plants, even then. It looked unreal; it was translucent and it sparkled in the sunlight. There was a presence about it, the presence of the Father of All. When I stood before it I suddenly had a vision, of you and your brother, Brandon, coming to live with us, you both playing and growing with us, you trying to talk with me, you . . . falling in love with me, (here he looked down) me . . . kissing you, it was all so strange and overwhelming that I could not speak of my own free will for the first three days even. Then I didn't want to talk, I wanted to think on what I had seen. Three days after that I went back to find if I could see anymore. I did not see, but I laid in the grass and the Helper spoke to me in his still small voice. He told me I would need to take care of the ones I love and He said you would need help in learning a lesson."

"I know what that lesson was," I interrupted.

"Tell me. What did you learn?"

"That even though it is good to help people, sometimes I am the one who needs help. That I should not push my help on people, but let them ask for it."

"Very good." He looked pleased. "You have learned your lesson well."

"I have also learned something else. I think I am falling in love with you." I saw a strange look come on his face.

"It is as I saw," he whispered in an awed voice. His look turned inward as if looking at a memory.

"Are you certain?" The question came so suddenly it startled me out of my contemplation of his face. "Are you sure it's not something of the moment?" I thought a moment, then nodded. "Then this belongs to you." He looked suddenly solemn and it made me feel a bit frightened. Then he leaned down, and whispering "Don't be afraid," he gently kissed me.

The First Kiss.

I had received my First Kiss.

I now felt the Color flowing through my blood. I knew who I was and who I was meant to be. The meaning of my life was clear. And I had found my Soul half. I could now see all the pieces of my life and I only had to put them together. I would spend the next five years of my life doing just that. I would learn and grow and get to know Shawn better and when five years were over I would be a complete person. The only down side was that I could not kiss Shawn again until the Ceremony. Oh well. There were always hugs. I smiled up at Shawn. He smiled back at me. And it was good.

Brandon's P.O.V.

Let me just say that it is not easy to live in the same house with a "proper young lady." Everything has to be neat and orderly, clean as a new piece of paper. Sometimes it is enough to drive a person crazy. Some of her habits are even starting to rub off on my sister and that's starting to really bother me. It's not that I like being dirty or messy, except when I'm working with plants, but I don't obsess about it. I love gardening and growing things. I love caring for the plants and watching them bloom and flourish, and getting a little dirty and messy is a big part of that. I will say that some how Aunt Beth manages to stay much cleaner than me, but I just don't know how she does it. Hasn't she ever had an itch on her face that she just had to scratch? Hasn't she ever had a sore muscle that she just had to rub? May be girls don't get those. Or may be girls are just generally neater. Although I don't really believe that because of what I've seen in some of my sisters' rooms. Even Leena has a comfortable amount of clutter in her room. As a matter of fact you could say I do too, except I like to say my room looks like a well ordered garden. Now, Jane's room is like alien Terra. She may have a good bunch of stuff but it each has its place. Everything is put in a neat and special order I couldn't find something in there if you asked me to.

And a bout Ralph's room; on one goes in Ralph's room. No one has gone into Ralph's room for about five years. Aunt Beth stood in the doorway about three years ago and she came away very dazed and wouldn't talk at all. But I'm obsessing. You see what that girl does to me. She's a bad influence. Caring about and worrying over something is one thing, but obsessing about something is very different. She does have good qualities. Organization is good. Being neat is good to. I just think sometimes she goes a little overboard. Why just the other day she was, well, see for yourself

~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~

"Aunt Beth! Look at what I found! Is it a new species of plant," I asked as I came into the house carrying a little seedling.

"Ewww! You're all dirty, " Jane exclaimed. "Go and wash before you come any closer." A wicked thought popped into my head and a roguish grin spread on my face.

I took a step closer to her, then another. She started to squeal and back up, but I kept walking toward her. I was gonna drag this out for as long as I could possibly get away with it. In a minute Jane was up against the wall opposite the door. I stopped a foot and a half away from her.

"Don't you come any closer. Or else."

"Or else what, you'll scream. I can deal with that." All the power had gone to my head. But I had to see this through. I had to win. "I'm tired of you always bossing me around and telling me to wash. I am a gardener. I work with dirt. You are just gonna have ta get used to that fact. Dirt will not kill you. It is one of the most important ingredients that help plants to grow." My grin grew even bigger as an even better thought came into my head.

"I am having a great idea." Her eyes grew even wider. "I'm going to give you a personal introduction to some nice clean dirt." Something akin to fear was in her face as I stuck my hand into the muddy pot I was holding. When she saw the mud on my hand she turned away. I smeared the mud down the side of her nose to her chin. She cringed there for a moment with her eyes tightly closed. Then, slowly, she opened them, and turned to look at me. The fear was almost gone, replaced mostly with awe. Then she said something really cute.

"I'm dirty." Still in awe of this fact. "Do I look horrible? It feels so weird. Will it dry out my skin? Will I be Ok?"

"Jane." She looked at me expectantly and totally adorable. "You'll be fine. I'll show you." Then, because she was looking so totally cute and adorable I just had to do it. I bent down to kiss her. But inches from her mouth she spoke.

"But you can't kiss me. I'm dirty," she whispered. I smiled.

"I like my kisses to taste of the earth." Finally my mouth claimed hers. Wow. It was like smelling the most heavenly flower. It was like tasting the most heavenly fruit. So this was a First Kiss. I felt the Color rushing through my veins. My whole body tingled. When we broke away she had a new look on her face, a vulnerable look. It made me want to protect her like a little seedling from a bad storm. This girl might be kind of annoying sometimes, but she was definitely something special.

"This is growth, right, Mom?" I asked.

"Yes it is dear. You are all growing and learning. And the years are going by so fast. Why, it seems like yesterday we were all saying good bye. I do miss seeing you in person, though. Maybe I will make a trip to visit you all soon. And speaking of growing, this year for your birthday we'll all get together again in here (meaning the Dreamscape). I think your brothers and sisters will have some interesting stories to tell."

"That sound fun. Have any of the others had their First Kiss yet?"

"I'll let them tell you."

"Ok. I'm tired now so I'm gonna go to sleep. 'Night Momma."

"Goodnight dear. Sweet dreams."