But you guys — well, maybe one of you should explain a few things to me. Maybe I’m the one who deserves some answers Here? Huh? Did anyone ever stop and think of that?” I stopped, panting and agitated, and it’s not like I needed a mirror to know that my face was beet red.
I concentrated on my shoes again, shaking my head as I pledged a strict vow of silence from that point on. Pledging that no matter what happened next, I wouldn’t say another word — wouldn’t try to defend a single thing that I’d done. My life as I knew it was over, and there was no taking it back. No do-overs allowed. Which meant there was really no point to any of this. It was tortuous, and mean, and completely unfair, and no way was I giving them any more ammo to use against me than they already had.
I continued to sit there, firmly committed to maintaining my silence and waiting it out for as long as it took, when Aurora finally looked at me and said, “I know you may not understand it just yet, but in time you will. It’ll all make perfect sense, I promise you that. But for now, just know that everything works out in the way it’s supposed to. There is no punishment, no harsh judgment, and no accidents of any kind. All is as it should be. We’re just trying to understand things from your point of view, to study your life with compassion, not discrimination. All of us realize just how hard it is to find one’s way in the earth plane — there are so many distractions, so many directions in which to turn. We don’t condemn a single one of your acts, Riley, so there’s no reason to be fearful or angry. We’re merely attempting to understand you better, that’s all.”
My gaze met hers, and yes she was kind, and nice, and oh so glowy and angelic, but I needed something more. I refused to be brushed off so easily.
“And so, it’s my destiny to be dead?” I said, immediately breaking my vow of silence and wondering if my tendency toward mouthiness, as my mom calls it, would get me in as much trouble Here as it did there.
But Aurora just smiled as the rest of the group took a moment to chuckle among themselves, which, truth be told, did not make me feel even the slightest bit better since it’s not like I was trying to be funny.
“It’ll all make sense in due time,” Claude with the long, scraggly beard piped in, propping his bare feet on the seat just before him as he added, “but for now, do you have anything to say on your behalf? Any comments about what you just saw up on the screen?”
My shoulders drooped.All of me drooped. I was done with words and out of excuses. I just wanted it to end. To learn my place, and move on.
They gazed at each other, communicating in a way that was completely blocked from me, finally coming to some sort of mutual agreement when they nodded toward Celia, who turned to me and said, “Based on your accumulated history and your strong attachment to the earth plane, you will train as a Catcher.
Any questions?”
Train as a — what?A question that was soon followed by a gazillion others just like it.
“A Soul Catcher,” Samson said, pushing his long silver hair off his face and settling his violet eyes right on mine. Adding, “A catcher of souls.” As if that made any more sense.
And I was just about to ask the obvious, when Aurora cut in with her soft, soothing voice that made every word sound like the most perfectly chosen lyric to a beautiful song, and said, “Riley, your situation is not as unique as you think. There are plenty of souls who resist the call to come Here. Many of whom are still wandering the earth plane, unwilling to cross the bridge and move on. Some resist for centuries, ignoring any and all attempts to lure them Here, while some only linger for a short time. And while each individual soul is granted free will, every now and then we find they require a little extra. . .push, if you will. A little reminder that they have choices, better choices, than those that they’ve chosen. And that’s where you come in.”
My eyes darted between them, and even though I was brimming with questions, lots and lots of questions, it’s like I had so many I had no idea where to begin. All I knew for sure is that I was going back.
Back to the earth plane.
The glorious earth plane!
And as far as I was concerned, I couldn’t leave soon enough.
“We’ve no doubt that carefully guided and given the proper training, you’ll be a very successful Soul Catcher for us,” Royce said, granting me a smile that was made for spotlights, movie screens, and magazine covers as the others nodded their agreement.
“So, when do I leave?” I jumped to my feet, suddenly brimming with an abundance of energy that was lacking just a few moments earlier. “When do I get my old life back?” I asked, picturing myself moving right back into the old neighborhood and enrolling in my old school, not quite sure how all the logistics would work. You know, how they would go about fixing the fact of my being dead one day, and, well, pretty muchundead the next. Then dismissing it just as quickly, figuring that to be their problem, not mine.
Me, I was fulfilling a mission.
Avery exciting mission.
But my excitement barely had a chance to take hold when Aurora looked at me, her brown/red/black/silver/blond hair swirling around her in a whirl of waves and rivulets as she said, “You will return in spirit form only. Invisible to all but your fellow spirits, and the gifted few who are able to sense us.”
My eyelids grew heavy, my shoulders sank, and I sighed. Deflated, disappointed, disillusioned — not one of those words even begins to describe how I felt. And yet, I was still going back. There was no changing that. If the Council saw fit to send me packing, well, who was I to fight it, no matter what form I’d be in?
And from what I’d seen so far of this school, with the assembly and the singing and the glowing, and all the other accumulated weirdness, well, I figured I wouldn’t really miss it.
“When do I leave?” I asked, instantly ashamed when I realized I hadn’t given a second thought to what I would tell my parents and grandparents until the words were already out.
“No reason to delay,” Celia said, checking with the others who nodded their agreement.
“The sooner the better,” Samson chimed in.
“Now would be good,” agreed Royce.
And even though I was excited, I still had to ask, “But, what about my family? What’ll I tell them?”
Turning as Claude motioned toward the screen that was now split down the middle — one side showing my dad enjoying some kind of jam session with a bunch of other musicians, while the other side showed my mom painting in some brightly lit studio, her smock splattered with virtually every color in the rainbow as a smile lit up her face. And even though I had no idea what it meant, my insides started to do that weird clenching/curling thing again.
I pressed my lips together, trying to make sense of what I was seeing. Wondering why they weren’t where they said they would be, why they’d choose to lie and play hooky from what they’d told me. But then, before I could blink, the screen split again, and I saw each set of grandparents engaged in some pretty surprising activities of their own, especially once their age was factored in. Enjoying stuff like: surfing, and hiking, and ranching, and symphony composing, as well as overseeing a nursery full of brand-spanking newborns.
“They’ve already been placed,” Aurora said. “They’re enjoying their soul work now. There’s no need to worry about them.”
Soul work?I blinked. Things were getting weirder by the second. I mean, initially, I was worried about them worrying about me. But from what I could see, I’d be surprised if they even noticed I was gone.
“Your family already understands what’s just now becoming clear to you. Sometimes, back on the earth plane, real life gets in the way of who we are truly meant to be, but Here you can do what you’ve always dreamed of, you can fulfill your destiny.” She smiled.
And even though she clearly thought this was a Really Great Thing, and clearly expected for me to agree — I didn’t.
I couldn’t.
Knowing all of that just made me feel even more alone, completely unnecessary, and more than a little unwanted.
“So — you’re saying that back home, back on the earth plane, me, and Ever, and Buttercup — got in the way?” Instantly ashamed by the way my voice suddenly cracked, but still, the whole idea of it made my insides go all weird again.
But Aurora just smiled, as did everyone else, nodding toward Celia who said, “Of course not.”
“Your parents and grandparents love you, and they wouldn’t change a thing!” Samson nodded.
“But Here, you have your own guide, which frees your family up to live out their destinies. It doesn’t all end with death, you know. We have tasks, things to accomplish, learning to do. Your parents have found their place, and
