The Gift
Edward's Storyline, Chapter 3.5
copyright comidacomida 2018
Rather than answer my question, the Serpent's head tilted as he asked one of his own. "Have you ever been in love before, Edward?"
I remember thinking it was a stupid question; of course I had. I started answering it as if it were a stupid question until I caught myself wondering if I didn't understand it correctly. "I love my grandmother and grandfather. I loved my mom. Of course I've been in love-- oh-- or did you mean like, a girlfriend or something?"
Ch'upikaq's eerie smile returned and his tongue flicked out. "Mother, Father, Brother, Sister, Lover, Girlfriend, Boyfriend, Wife, Husband, Cousin, Friend-- there are so many kinds of love a Human can experience, but Spirits are limited; we do not have a family and we do not form bonds beyond that which we can have with a Human who is able to see us. We can only love without limit or assignment, so the Human to whom we are bound becomes everything to us."
While it didn't make a whole lot of sense, I thought I could at least partially understand what he was getting at. Looking between the two Dragons, who had finally disengaged and were staring at one another while panting, I glanced back to Ch'upikaq and I remembered back to when we first met. "Okay, so I'm 'everything' to you, but about what you called me when we first met? You called me your 'Seeker'."
Green was immediately right there, looming over the coiled Serpent. "What have you been telling him, Ch'upikaq? Why should he CARE about any of that?"
I interposed myself between the green Dragon and the winged Snake. "Relax, Green... I just figured if I'm supposed to be making decisions the least I could do is get as much info as I can so I make a good one."
The Dragon wasn't convinced. "Your job is not to learn; your job is to decide."
A sinewy, red-furred tail curled around Green's ankle and pulled him back. Red, at the same time, pulled himself closer. "Actually, Green, it may be worthwhile having Edward properly educated."
Green scowled. "Why? How would that make any difference?"
Red got straight to the point. "When we sought help from Sofia we directed her in how to help us."
The scaled Dragon gave a decisive nod. "Yes. She was a Human and she did not know how Spirits function. We had to guide her. The same is true of the little one."
One of Red's wriggly dangling whisker things brushed beneath his chin in thought. "It is very possible that she had something to teach us, yet we never took the time to learn."
Ch'upikaq slid closer to me; I could tell by his appraising glance that he was up to something as he addressed the others "But how can we learn if we're busy teaching a Human?"
Red was obviously too astute to not realize what the Serpent was doing; in fact, as far as I could tell, the fuzzy Dragon was playing along. "Ah, Ch'upikaq, in that you are wrong. It has been said that when one teaches, one is also very much a student. It is very possible that teaching Edward about us may, in return, teach us something about ourself."
I paused for a minute when Red said 'ourself' rather than 'ourselves' but that realization finally reminded me that I was with all three of them separately because we were in a dream; they really WERE a singular entity even though they were three distinct Spirits. Even as I considered that I'd missed another set of exchanges but I was pulled back to the discussion when Green's tail slammed against the non-existent floor. "FINE! If it makes that much of a difference we can have Red teach him."
Ch'upikaq wasn't willing to settle for that. "We all have things we can teach Edward, Green... even you."
The scaled Dragon huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. "Bah... I could not teach that little thing to hunt-- his teeth are not sharp and he has no claws."
Red didn't give up either. "Then perhaps there may be something that he will be able to teach you."
Green didn't seem to like that idea any more than the first one. "I will let you two spend our time playing Spirit Guide. The best thing I can do is to not get in the way. When he learns what he needs to then he can make the choice."
A truce of sorts created a silence between the three and, only once I was sure they were done with their bickering did I bother speaking again. "Okay... now that we've solved that, can someone tell me what the whole 'Seeker' thing means?"
Red answered simply and to-the-point. "A Seeker is similar to a Weaver, only they focus solely on a singular Spirit rather than the entirety of us."
He'd thrown another term at me that I didn't understand so his explanation didn't really help. "Okay... so what's a Weaver then?"
Without missing a beat, Red continued his relatively unhelpful explanation. "A Weaver is similar to a Seer but instead of just seeing the Spirit world they help change it."
The continued chain of questions was getting old. "And what is a Seer then?"
Red offered what I thought to him may have been the attempt at an encouraging smile. "You are, Edward."
My exclamation of frustration was met with curiosity by Red. Surprisingly, help actually came from a direction I hadn't expected. Green ran a clawed talon from between his horns to the end of his muzzle, then stepped forward. "A Seer is a Human who has been endowed with 'The Gift', and is able to see, hear, and interact with Spirits. A Weaver is a Seer who chooses to help guide the world of Spirits, and a Seeker is a Weaver who chooses to help find an answer for a specific Spirit."
Ch'upikaq nodded then added "Or, in our case, our mutual problem."
Red elaborated freely, the exact opposite of his close- mouthed policy of simple answers just moments before. "When your mother passed our Bond to you we were able to provide you 'The Gift', which makes you a Seer. What you do with 'The Gift' is up to you, but as part of our Bond we can require your service in the same way you can require ours... and we require that you act as our Seeker and find an answer for our problem."
Red pretty much rehashed what Green had said but he filled in a few of the blanks. Unfortunately, one thing he said raised another question. "Wait... you said that I can require your service?"
Ch'upikaq nodded, his head raising and falling. "Yes, Edward, but you need not ask as we will aid you to the best of our abilities for the length of our Bond."
"But I can ask for specific help?"
Green gave a grunt of agreement, but, folding his arms, followed up with a gruff "You can ask, yeah... but it isn't our Duty to follow orders so don't be stupid about it."
Something about that made me curious and I felt like I had to test it. "I could ask you to help me get a promotion at work?"
Ch'upikaq nodded. "You could, yes."
Red floated in the air for a moment, eyes lost in thought. He ultimately came up with a plan. "If you ask, we could instigate a confrontation between two senior employees so they will get fired and a position will come open for you."
Green snorted. "It would be easier and faster to create an accident.
The feathered Serpent flicked his tongue out in frustration. The first part of his statement was relaxed and addressed to me but the second part was obviously meant for the other Spirits and held the hint of annoyance to it. "Or inspire the manager to take an interest in your career... not all advancements must come at the expense of another."
While I could see the humor in the discussion it had also turned a little morbid. "How about just making me rich?"
Red ushered the other two Spirits back with a curl of his coils and moved to the forefront. "Very simple."
Before I knew it a large wooden table had appeared out of nowhere and a huge sheet of drafting paper was splayed across it; I was looking at blueprints. "What's this?"
Red went into immediate details. "It is the branch of Cascade National Bank on Elm. Tomorrow night we will help you increase your wealth by nearly $200,000."
Recoiling from the paper I'm still not sure how but somehow I managed to banish it and the table. "I don't want to STEAL... I just want--"
Green grumbled. "The problem is that you don't know what you want, silly Human. And Red makes things too difficult. When your grandparents die you will inherit everything. If you are impatient then we can--"
Ch'upikaq interjected "We will not kill his grandparents. That is not an acceptable option among most Humans."
Something about the way the Serpent used the word 'most' sent a little chill up my spine, but I pushed that feeling down. "Well... whatever you can do for me is great and all, but right now I'd just like to--"
I sat up in bed, speaking the final words aloud. "Wake up."
I heard Green's chuckle inside my head, followed by his voice. "This may be more entertaining than I first thought."
Edward has The Ancient One, Treboada, Medved, and Tom
Great chapter as always, Comida. It's alarming actually, I'll be out running errands or what-not, then I'll suddenly remember what day it is and start getting all angsty to get home and read what you've posted! I think I have an addiction forming, lol.
As for Green being a softie... well... that might be going a little TOO far, but he very well COULD be warming to Edward, sure!