middle of the lake; the island wasjust a barren, sun-drenched rock once again, but the memory of what lay just on the other side of the veil made me shiver.
“I’m getting to that,” Lucas said. “First, you have to understand what a big deal it was when your parents got married. It created quite a conflict in our world.”
“Why?” I asked. “I thought only the Others didn’t like humans.”
“That’s true. But even among the Annorasi who don’t think like the Others, there is still a longstanding rule that forbids relationships between the Annorasi and humans. It’s a prohibition that goes hand in hand with the requirement of secrecy. I’m sure you see how difficult it would be for an Annorasi to get involved with a human while still keeping our world a secret from that human.”
“I guess,” I said slowly. I didn’t really understand, not completely. I mean, last I checked, Lucas was dating a human. But I didn’t want to slow down the momentum of the lecture, so I didn’t say anything.
“Our laws—the ones about secrecy and relationships with humans, plus all of the other ones—are enforced by our High Council,” Lucas continued. “All of the Annorasi, even the Others, answer to the Council. The Council is made up of Annorasi who believe in protecting humans. It always has been, and hopefully always will be. But the Others are always looking for a way to weaken them. When your parents got married, it was an opportunity for the Others to cause trouble. And the fact that your grandmother was poised to be elected the next high councilor, the highest position on the Council, made things even more complicated.”
“Oh,” I said, understanding a little bit more at last. “So, it was like a scandal?”
“Yes, exactly. Our world became divided between those who wanted to protect your parents and those who thought the Council should track them down and execute them. There was a war. One of the worst and bloodiest battles was here on this lake.”
He motioned to the island, and again I was very glad I could only see the ruin in my mind’s eye, not with my real eyes; somehow,knowing that the destruction was connected to my parents made the thought of actually seeing it again unbearable.
“Your parents had many friends in the Annorasi world and in the human world who did their best to keep them safe,” Lucas went on. “Your grandmother tried to help them too but, as you learned yesterday, she was killed by the Others. Your parents managed to stay hidden for more than six years before the Others caught up with them and . . . well, you know what happened then.”
In my head, I pictured the fire. The same one I’d pictured all of my life whenever I thought of my parents and how they had died. Except now, the flames were the same yellow-green as the bonfire at the rally and the tiny threads on the island.
“After that,” Lucas continued, “the main conflict, the war, ended.” He paused.
“But . . .” I encouraged, sensing there was more.
“But,” he went on, “there were rumors Margaret and Thomas had had a child, and the child had somehow survived. The first half human, half Annorasi. You.”
“Me? So I’m . . . only half human?”
“You can also look at it as being half Annorasi, you know.”
I pondered this for a moment, and Lucas started to look worried again. I cut him off before he could suggest my brain was overloading. “I’m just letting it sink in,” I explained. “Processing, like you said last night.”
“Process away.”
Strangely, the idea that I was half human and half something else I didn’t quite understand yet didn’t bother me as much as I would have thought. Certainly it was a much more comfortable explanation for my visions than being a crazy person.
Lucas waited patiently while I sat for a moment longer. Eventually, a pained sort of look came over his face. “I’m not sure I did the best job of explaining some of that,” he admitted. “I hope I
“I’m getting to that,” Lucas said. “First, you have to understand what a big deal it was when your parents got married. It created quite a conflict in our world.”
“Why?” I asked. “I thought only the Others didn’t like humans.”
“That’s true. But even among the Annorasi who don’t think like the Others, there is still a longstanding rule that forbids relationships between the Annorasi and humans. It’s a prohibition that goes hand in hand with the requirement of secrecy. I’m sure you see how difficult it would be for an Annorasi to get involved with a human while still keeping our world a secret from that human.”
“I guess,” I said slowly. I didn’t really understand, not completely. I mean, last I checked, Lucas was dating a human. But I didn’t want to slow down the momentum of the lecture, so I didn’t say anything.
“Our laws—the ones about secrecy and relationships with humans, plus all of the other ones—are enforced by our High Council,” Lucas continued. “All of the Annorasi, even the Others, answer to the Council. The Council is made up of Annorasi who believe in protecting humans. It always has been, and hopefully always will be. But the Others are always looking for a way to weaken them. When your parents got married, it was an opportunity for the Others to cause trouble. And the fact that your grandmother was poised to be elected the next high councilor, the highest position on the Council, made things even more complicated.”
“Oh,” I said, understanding a little bit more at last. “So, it was like a scandal?”
“Yes, exactly. Our world became divided between those who wanted to protect your parents and those who thought the Council should track them down and execute them. There was a war. One of the worst and bloodiest battles was here on this lake.”
He motioned to the island, and again I was very glad I could only see the ruin in my mind’s eye, not with my real eyes; somehow,knowing that the destruction was connected to my parents made the thought of actually seeing it again unbearable.
“Your parents had many friends in the Annorasi world and in the human world who did their best to keep them safe,” Lucas went on. “Your grandmother tried to help them too but, as you learned yesterday, she was killed by the Others. Your parents managed to stay hidden for more than six years before the Others caught up with them and . . . well, you know what happened then.”
In my head, I pictured the fire. The same one I’d pictured all of my life whenever I thought of my parents and how they had died. Except now, the flames were the same yellow-green as the bonfire at the rally and the tiny threads on the island.
“After that,” Lucas continued, “the main conflict, the war, ended.” He paused.
“But . . .” I encouraged, sensing there was more.
“But,” he went on, “there were rumors Margaret and Thomas had had a child, and the child had somehow survived. The first half human, half Annorasi. You.”
“Me? So I’m . . . only half human?”
“You can also look at it as being half Annorasi, you know.”
I pondered this for a moment, and Lucas started to look worried again. I cut him off before he could suggest my brain was overloading. “I’m just letting it sink in,” I explained. “Processing, like you said last night.”
“Process away.”
Strangely, the idea that I was half human and half something else I didn’t quite understand yet didn’t bother me as much as I would have thought. Certainly it was a much more comfortable explanation for my visions than being a crazy person.
Lucas waited patiently while I sat for a moment longer. Eventually, a pained sort of look came over his face. “I’m not sure I did the best job of explaining some of that,” he admitted. “I hope I
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