Four boys waited impatiently for a very unusual ship to land in the place made for her, her home. She would suddenly appear before them, probably as a small wood, scarf draped, fortune telling booth. It was her favorite shape.
The oldest remembered both that shape and the sound they'd hear just before she landed. He had been four when she'd had gone the last time. The other three had been conceived that day. Since one of them had inherited the ability to 'remember' the future and one was a telepath, all would recognize the sound.
"How soon, Pericles?"
"A few minutes, Roberrin. Lucky you. We've got five more years. Going to be hard without you. It'll be nice to catch up though."
"You'll never catch up. I'll always be bigger."
"You're an ox. And I wouldn't be too sure. We've got five years to catch up on that too."
"Dream on, Mick. Pericles, do you ever get as big as I am?"
"We get close. You'll always outmass us, but we get close in height. Mick gets close in size. You'll be heavier, but won't look it. We end up looking like two sets of twins. Pair of redheads in two shades. Pair of blondes in two shades."
"We're about to meet our dad's for the first time and all you want to talk about is how big we get. Let's get on with what's important."
"Calm down, Apollo. It's just a way of handling jitters. Besides, you and Pericles are the only ones meeting your dads for the first time. In my case, it's granddad and great-uncles and Roberrin had his dad around when he was little."
"Mick, you're a tease and just as excited as I am. Here come your mom and dad. Your family too, Pericles."
"Yeah. Overwhelm them when they walk through the door. Poor Dad. My two sisters and all three of our moms. They're going to swamp him. Well, I get him to myself later. They deserve a few days."
"A few days?!"
"Yes, Roberrin. You wouldn't deny Lan some time with his dad would you?"
"No. Guess I'm just pushing to get my life started. Here they come! Melissa's landing!"
"Away from the door, Roberrin. Give them room to get out."
"All right, Lan."
He tried. They all did. It just wasn't to be. When the three men walked through the door, they were mobbed. They'd been gone nearly thirteen years. Sons and daughters, nieces and nephews, moms, everyone wanted to hold them. They laughed in delight and sorted out their families.
Pericles grinned and followed his family. His dad had given him a hug and a wink. They both 'remembered' when they'd have time together. He'd never seen his mom so excited, Laura or Mindy either. He was seeing the reality of what he'd always known. They'd had more proposals than they could count, but none had ever been accepted. His dad was the only man they wanted, had ever wanted. No one else had ever really interested them, except for a bit of fun and that didn't last long. His dad would give them and his sisters most of his time this trip, but the next time he came he would take Pericles with him. In five very long years.
Lan hugged his dad and watched his face when he met the boy he and Shaena had raised, his little brother, the son his dad had never seen. The expression was all he'd hoped. He realized Mick was feeling a bit left out, as was his daughter. He gathered one in each arm and followed his dad and brother. Chervan and Mick would each have their time with their granddad. He grinned at his wife. She was tucked under her uncle's arm, his son on the other side.
Roberrin was in heaven. His daddy had an arm around him and would take him with him when he left. The closeness they'd had in his first four years was still there. He knew it hadn't been over twelve years for his dad. It had actually been less than one, but he'd wondered if he would still be as he remembered.
"You two are driving me crazy. I feel like my whole head is shaking. Clete, he's just like you. You both purr and you both rattle my teeth."
"You know, Shaena, I've never known why Dutch and Lane give me so much trouble about it. I can feel Roberrin doing it and I don't mind at all."
"Like father, like son. I've missed you, Clete, and I'm going to miss Roberrin when he's gone. You weren't supposed to stay away this long."
"I know, Shaena. It hasn't been long at all for us, but we couldn't come back until now. We'd have brought real trouble to Adith. The boys wouldn't have had a safe childhood if we'd been around. It's been rough on me knowing how much I'd miss. Can you imagine Dutch and Lane deliberately missing the memories I have of Roberrin's first step and first word? Holding him as a baby? Feeling happy and warm? They chose this way for the safety of all the children. Ours, yours, all the children of this world."
"You mean Lane presented the possibles and Dutch chose."
"It was my choice and Lane's as well. Dutch wouldn't make a decision like that without us."
"I know, Clete. I'm sorry. But all those things you talked about, I hurt when Dutch and Lane didn't see them."
"Do you remember them well, Shaena?"
"Yes, but not as well as Arpeth. She's had Apollo in her arms since he was a newborn. He's her boy. Carol never gave her to anyone else to watch. When she left him with us, it was really with Arpeth."
"Show Dutch Arpeth's memories of Apollo. Show him yours of Mick and Chervan. Give Lane Mindy, Laura and Meredith's memories of his children."
"Yes, Clete. And I'll show you mine of that big hulk on your other side. Like the time he nearly set fire to the kitchen. And the time he decided to SWIM out and see what Ban was fishing for. And when he broke his arm and near scared poor Athena to death when she found him in a healing trance. Oh, Alban was so mad a him."
"Broke his arm?! How?"
"Uh, Dad, that's not really important."
"Quiet, Roberrin. How did he break his arm, Shaena?"
"He decided to see if he could walk the cliff wall with his eyes closed. He was six. We managed to keep him from trying it again until he was eight."
"It's not hard, Dad. I don't know why I fell the first time. I never have since. Dad?"
"Not only that, but he taught all his cousins and my two kids to do it. Mick's, Alban's and Orin's too."
"Roberrin, you and I are going to have a talk."
"Dad, we can all fight and run in the dark. I was real careful none of them got hurt. I made sure none of the other kids tried it. They had to walk around an obstacle course in the dark without bumping into anything before I'd let them try. Only the high-psi kids could. Pericles says someday they'll need to. No one ever fell. I was right there."
"Clete, can you imagine what it was like, seeing three four year old boys trotting down the cliff wall with their eyes closed and nine year old Roberrin running along on the cliff OUTSIDE the wall to make sure they didn't go over?"
"Dad, that was years ago. There's no reason to get mad now. Thanks, Shaena."
"You're welcome, Roberrin. I've been waiting seven years to tell your dad that one."
"Couldn't you have at least waited a day or two more?"
Lane gave up. He couldn't get a word in edgewise. He'd known how it would be, but reality was always more intense. He grinned at Pericles over the heads of the three women and two girls. It was no wonder his son spent so much time at Lan's where boys outnumbered girls. His girls were beautiful. Both dark-haired like their mothers, intelligent and witty, all the things a father wanted in daughters. They were also both rather well developed. THAT made him nervous, especially on this world. Adith had a rather different idea of maturity than the Earth culture he'd absorbed while young.
He was still a bit embarrassed about the ages their mothers had been when they'd, basically, caught him helpless in the throes of the psychically shared passion of Shaena and Lan on the night they'd completed their bonding. He was definitely going to have a talk with their mothers. He remembered doing it. He also remembered they'd laugh and tease him about it. He was looking forward to the way the talk ended. He smiled at little Meredith. It would always be a source of wonder to him that she was the mother of the son who would be a centimeter taller than him.
"We'll be warriors when you come next time, Daddy. They won't let us in until we're fifteen. We're better than anybody but Shaena and the boys now, but fifteen is the age limit. Mom wasn't fifteen."
"No, Carol, but I helped set the minimum age for the amazons. We worked very hard so girls could choose what to do with their lives. I was an unnamed girl destined to be a slave until your uncle Dutch and your dad took apart the slave market and named me Laura."
Lane shook his head. He'd been there, but it had been Dutch who freed the girls and named them. He thought about mentioning it, but gave up the idea. He knew he wouldn't get to say more than six words in the next six hours.
"Daddy, Roberrin taught us to see in the dark with our minds. Pericles says we'll need it when we're warriors. We make sure to remember to tell him things, so he can tell us about them before they happen. Lan says that's how it works with you too. You do it for Uncles Dutch and Clete. Pericles does it mostly for Roberrin. And he teases. He'll sit and laugh and not tell us what's funny."
"Jean, he shouldn't have to tell you everything. Surprises are part of life. As for the teasing, I imagine your dad teased his sisters too. Right, Lane?"
"Right, Mindy."
That was two words. He'd get four more.
Dutch couldn't get over how much his son looked like him. He got warm all over when he looked at him. He was incredibly happy. He'd adopted Lan and never expected to have another child. His friend Carol had given him this wonderful gift.
"Dad, let's go see Arpeth. She's been my special Granny since I was born. She doesn't get around as well as she... What's wrong? What did I say?"
"Arpeth. Oh, how I've missed that woman. She and I have a very special relationship. We'll go see her. She took care of you, huh?"
"Yeah. Says I'm the son... Well, it sounds silly except when she says it."
"It won't sound silly to me. What does she say?"
"I'm the son of a dream from the sea and it was high time she had me. She'd waited damn long enough. You know, I've asked her what she means, but she just grins and tells me to ask you when I'm ol... Dad, you look... You look just like she does when she says it! Tell me what it means, please."
"I will, but not now. Lan, we're going to see Arpeth. Won't be long. She still have the same rooms, Apollo?"
"No. When Granny Min died, we moved her into the rooms next to the kitchen. With Min gone, she was out there on the end of the house alone. I guess I moved her. Told Lan I didn't like it. Mick agreed with me. We spent about ten days reworking those rooms."
"You and Mick are pretty close, aren't you?"
"We all are, but Mick's special. He's the eyes and ears in the back of my head. Closer than any of the brothers I know. Roberrin and Pericles are kind of that way. We all share a bond. Know where the other ones are, if they're all right, stuff like that, but Mick and I sort of live in each other's heads. He's my nephew and my other half. We're a matched set. I can't really explain it."
"You don't have to. I understand. Hello, Arpeth."
"Damn. I was hopin' for sailor's gear, white pants, hoop and all. Filled a bucket special. How 'bout that? Can't get out of this chair fast enough to grab you for a hug, but I can still make you blush."
"You always could. Apollo says he's your boy."
"Who else's? Took long enough to get him. Fifty-some years. Not many have to wait like that for a son. He was worth the wait. Now, if you don't get over here and hug me, I'll get up out of this chair and prove I can still get fresh."
"Arpeth, I've missed you."
"Yeah, I know, but you always miss for a short time. I get the long end."
"I'll never stop. I'll make up for it. I love you."
"Dutch, you're going to make me cry. Not to mention making Apollo so curious he can't stand still. Tell him the story someday. Just like I told it to you."
"Just like I remember it. How have you been?"
"Old and getting older. Dutch, I won't see you after this time. I won't be here. You know that, don't you? Lane's bound to have told you. Oh, I'm sorry, Apollo. Come here. I know you hate me talking like that, but I'm old, Sweetie. I'm gettin' tired of just bein' tired. Father and son. What a pair. Tears for a happy old woman. You've filled my life with love. You, Dutch, and OUR boy. Carol's gift to both of us."
"She gave us something impossible, Arpeth, a son to share. You're right. OUR boy. Never quite got the time right, did we?"
"Only in a dream, Dutch. Only in a dream. Farewell, my beautiful dream."
"Arpeth, I'll love you and miss you forever. My dream too."
"Remember the dream, Dutch, and smile. I always do."
"I will."
"Hello, Shaena. I'm going to need a bigger place soon, I keep having all this company. What you need, Dearie?"
"Arpeth, may I share your memories of Apollo's childhood with Dutch?"
"Oh, bless you child! Dutch, I want you to see. To share him with me."
"Uh, I'm going to find Mick. He's a little down."
"Apollo, you come give me a hug and a kiss before you go, then you and Mick come see me before sunset. Promise?"
"I promise, Arpeth. Before sunset. Later, Dad."
"I'm going to bring you two as close as I can. I wish there was some way I could do this for you without being in the middle, but I can't. This was Clete's idea. I probably wouldn't have thought of it. All right, hold hands and close your eyes. Arpeth, remember being there when Apollo was born. Carol and you were the two happiest women alive. Yes, remember how you felt and how he felt in your arms. Hold that thought while I bring Dutch in. See him, Dutch? Feel him? Arpeth, remember."
Arpeth remembered them all for him, all the children he'd missed seeing grow up. The three girls, the four boys and all their friends, but the center of her memories was Apollo, always with Mick. They held hands and shared the childhood of the boy Dutch would, forever afterward, think of as 'their' son, the dream child Carol had given them.
"Hi, it's almost sunset. We can come back."
"No, Apollo, we're just basking in the glow. Actually, they were basking and I was just eavesdropping on the climate."
"Mom, that metaphor was mixed. I think."
"Probably, Mick, but this has always been a mixed up situation. Lan, Chervan, Clete and Roberrin are coming soon, Arpeth. Pericles is on his way with Lane, Carol and Jean. You'll have lots of company this evening. Dutch, come with me a minute."
"What's up, Shaena?"
"Dutch, has Lane talked to you?"
"NO!"
"Easy, Dutch. You're all she's been waiting for, just to see you again. Sit by her tonight and hold her hand. She knows. It's why she insisted Apollo and Mick come see her. Pericles has hurt for days. Cried on my shoulder because he couldn't find a way to tell Apollo and Mick. I couldn't either. She's going to try. She wants you. Go back in."
"Damn. All three of you. Crying like... Smile for me, Dutch. That's better. Don't you cry for me. I'm happy. Got you all here."
"We're crying for ourselves, Arpeth."
"I know, Dutch. Tell them the dream. They're old enough. Tell them our dream so I can listen."
"I went searching through time for a dream. I dressed in white sailor's pants and wore a gold lule hoop in my ear. I waded out of the sea in the cove where my dream worked on a net. She was the loveliest woman..."
Dutch told them the dream, the three days he and Arpeth had spent together when she was young. It was all they had. Three days stolen out of the years that separated two who were meant for each other, the dream they shared. It wasn't really a sad story. Love is never truly sad.
The others came. Ban, the fisherman who had fed his family since a boy of nine and, at fifteen, had led a blinded Arpeth, fourteen children of less than five and carried his sister eleven days through the forest to the safety of the community, after pirates had tortured him and killed all the rest. Lane and Clete, who loved the only woman their brother had ever truly loved. Lan, Shaena and their daughter Chervan, whom she had called her family for seventeen years. Roberrin, who'd sat on her lap and played in the nets she'd made and still called her the Apa he'd said as his sixth word. Pericles, who had remembered this day since he was old enough to understand what he was seeing. Carol and Jean, Mick and Elan, their children and many more.
Dutch sat beside her and held her hand through it all. Apollo, Mick, Roberrin and Pericles sat at her feet. Eventually, she said farewell and sent them to their beds, all but Dutch and the four boys.
"The only thing bad about bein' in this family is it's hard to do anything private. Boys, you come kiss me now. I want to be alone awhile with Dutch. Now, now, I love you all. Apollo, take care of your dad for me. Mick, you help. Roberrin and Pericles, take care of yours. This has been a long good-by and I just hate 'em. I love you all and my life's been good with you in it. Go along and let me spend just a while longer with my dream. Dutch, those are special boys, like their daddies. Take care of our son for us."
"I will. Thank you for taking such good care of him for us while I wasn't here. Arpeth, I love you."
"Hush. Don't be sad. Dutch, I have always loved you. You're the only man I ever loved and the only one I ever knew. Didn't know that, did you? True. Three days have carried me happily through my whole long life. Tell me the dream again. All of it this time. Remind me how I felt as a young woman lying in your arms. The coldness of the stream we bathed in and the sweetness of the fruit from the trees. Your memory is fresher than mine. Tell me again."
"I remember the taste of our first kiss..."
Somewhere in the midst of the memories, she left him. He told it all. The story of the three days he had slipped back fifty years in time and spent in her arms. Lane and Clete came to get him an hour later. He was still sitting on the floor by her chair, holding her hand. Apollo and Mick came to him for comfort and he was comforted by their need.
She had waited to see her dream once more. The dream had been hers for more than sixty years. It would be his forever.
They stayed several days. Dutch recovered his laughter, but spent long hours staring out to sea, every so often touching the place where he had once worn a gold hoop in his ear.
Lane had his talk with the mothers of his children and sent the rest of the psychically bonded family scurrying for a swim in the cold water of the pool. Dutch spent time with his chosen son Lan and with Apollo, Mick and his granddaughter Chervan. Lane spent time with his best friend, Mick, for whom Dutch's grandson had been named. He and Pericles found their time together and he laughed with and teased his daughters. Shaena shared her and Lan's memories of Roberrin with Clete, then shared the memories of the mothers of Lane's children with him. The time came for them to leave.
Roberrin went with them. They went on a short fishing trip and returned five years later. Everyone knew it had only been a few days for them and tried not to overwhelm them. They didn't succeed. They understood and gave the love and attention that was needed. When they left, they took the other three boys with them. They were now the same age as Roberrin, nearing seventeen.
"Training and school start today. We'll begin the training with you. We're out of shape."
Clete grinned as his two brothers and the four boys groaned. Pericles had told Roberrin and Mick they'd develop the same 'odd' attitude about working out that Clete had. Neither really believed it. Yet.
They spent thirty days just traveling. They showed the boys some of the sights and wonders of the universe through time. Shaena had trained them well and Mick had taught them well. After the thirty days, they were trained to the point only their fathers surpassed and had begun to learn the technology only their fathers possessed. They'd lived in a strange trading community with one foot on the deck of a ship that sailed the seas and the other on the deck of a ship that sailed the stars. Somewhere in the midst of it all, Dutch stopped thinking of Apollo and Mick as son and grandson and they just became his two boys. They were ready to teach the boys the family business. Dutch decided to make one more stop.
"We're taking you to meet your grandfather."
Lane and Pericles groaned and held their heads. Dutch had made a change and their memories of the future were changing. Lane was used to it. Pericles was not. Roberrin picked him up and carried him to a couch in the large living room of the ship. She was a dimensional matrix with a defined interface, a few feet square on the outside and infinity within. Of course, infinity is rather overwhelming, so it too had been defined.
The boys had spent time in the main body of the ship behind their fathers' apartments exploring, carefully. That part of the ship was a duplicate of their grandfather's and even he hadn't fully explored it. They were pretty sure Melissa would help if they really got lost, but it would be embarrassing. Each had chosen one of the multitude of rooms as his own. All had chosen one near the doors from the gymnasium complex to the main part of the ship.
They passed through the small doorway between the universes and found the man they searched for, fishing, as usual. This time he recognized their ship and didn't run for cover. It had been longer for them than for him, but not much.
"WHY do I have to keep saying GOOD-BY to you?! You KNOW I hate it. Hello, it's good to see you. Now, EXACTLY why are you here?!"
"To hear you yell at us. We've missed you too, Dad."
"Dutch, you have a grin like a cat with a mouth full of feathers. You're about to spring something on me."
"Yeah, Dad, we are. But first, we get a hug."
"Oh, how I've missed you all. Lane, you look dizzy. Making changes again, Dutch?"
"Yeah, but he's a lot better at riding them out."
"I really am. Got some help from Chervan's granddaughter with sorting them. She's Athena's great-granddaughter and wife of Dutch's adopted son. Athena misses you, Dad."
"I miss her too, Lane. Always will. That's why I don't go back. I don't want to ever have to say good-by to her again."
"I learned that lesson, Dad. The hard way."
"Dutch, that pain is fresh. Enough. Come here, Clete. Giving you a hug is a bit like squeezing a mountain. Now, adopted son?"
"Yeah, he was almost fifteen when I found him and about to have his throat cut. The most powerful telepath in our universe, but we didn't know it then. He and Chervan's granddaughter are building a world, changing a sick, barbaric society and taking it to the stars. Are you ready for your surprise? You're going to need to fry more fish."
"Then I'll have to catch more. Are you waiting for me to sit down?"
"Boys, come on out! Dad, I want you to meet your grandsons. Oh! Mick's your great-grandson. Roberrin Apollo, Clete's boy; Pericles Roberrin, Lane's; Apollo Pericles, my son; Michael Patrick, my grandson. Boys, your grandfather Gallant."
"Good grief! You HAVE been busy. A bit short of names weren't you?"
"Actually, Dad named me Roberrin Apollo and since Dutch and Lane weren't around, Apollo and Pericles' moms followed precedent. I used to be five years older than my cousins. I've got three more. Girls. Lane's got two and Mick's got a big sister. They're still at home."
"Three, Lane?"
"Um, well, it wasn't exactly my idea. They sort of ganged up on me. Kept me caught in change. By the time I wasn't dizzy, I was too busy to pay attention. The kid's mothers are a pretty interesting trio."
"Trio?! Lane!"
"Honest, Dad. It really was a gangup. I wasn't expecting to get caught in it. Clete and I helped set him up. I just didn't realize Shaena was setting me up too. I'm not sorry she did. Neither's Lane."
"If you recall, you and Clete were the result of my being 'set up' by a pair of enterprising ladies. Not all at once though, Lane. Now, three grandsons and a great-grandson. Your living room, I think. You three fish while I get acquainted with my grandchildren. Come on, boys. Tell me about yourselves. Mick, you and Roberrin have Athena's red hair, but you all look like me. I noticed it's a genetic dominant group, but I think I'll look at it a bit more closely."
Lane, Clete and Dutch watched their father leading the boys off. They grinned at each other and picked up fishing gear. Their dad hadn't changed. He'd grabbed the two fish he'd been frying, wrapped them in a napkin he'd pulled from the air, and taken them with him. When they'd caught enough fish, they built up the campfire and called their dad and the boys. They could feel the warmth between them. The boys had fallen in love with their grandfather. Their dads had known they would.
They spent several days talking and fishing with him. Evenings were spent round a campfire or in one ship or the other. One morning they awoke and he was gone. It was his way. He hated saying good-by and knew that they understood. They had learned why. They set course for the doorway he'd created between the universes and returned to their own.
* * * *
Paradox Equation Page
Contents / Intro / Adult Women / General Audience / Style and Content
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Copyright © 1999 Sharon L 'Spinner' Reddy
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