Thanks to Xbakiyalo, Darklight Shadow, and Lynn K. Hollander for reviewing.

Chapter 2: “Holy” Water

Inara

Okay, so I have to admit that it was out of the ordinary for me to suggest going to the shrine, but considering the bomb that had been dropped on my life, I thought it sounded like a good idea. In the past, whenever my mom brought me to the shrine, I had always found it peaceful.

There were many paths in the woods and mostly it was quiet. This was especially true as the weather grew cold. The few times I had gone in winter it had been almost completely deserted, with the exception of a few monks. Now wasn’t any different as it was still rather chilly.

Charisma pulled off the road to the driveway leading back towards the shrine and then drove into the parking lot. The car stopped and Charisma put it in park and turned off the engine. “Would you like some company?”

I shook my head. “Not just yet, but if you meet me back at the spring in a half-hour I should be fine.” I got out of the car and headed down the path, passing by the Open Air Church and going into the wooded area. Along the paths in the woods were scenes of Biblical stories and small shrines to various saints. Though the shrine itself was Catholic they also allowed non-denominational services to be held there as well, which is why my mom went.

I always thought that Fairhaven Shrine had a unique feel to it, like the divinity of being in a church had enveloped the woods as well. Then again, it could all simply be because of my inherent love of the outdoors. The snow of winter had thawed and grass was beginning to grow. Soon the spring showers would arrive and those rains would release that earthy smell that I couldn’t get enough of.

Taking in a deep breath I automatically began to feel more relaxed. Charisma was right; we would stay in touch, no matter how far apart we were. In all actuality I was the luckier of the two of us. I would still have the boys to spend time with while she would be starting over again in a whole new state. The best thing to do now was to make the most of my time left with Charisma.

With that matter settled I slowed my pace and enjoyed a leisurely walk through the shrine. For the most part I ignored the religious areas. I never came here for religious guidance because my faith in the earth was more powerful. The shrine was a perfect combination of the religion my mom wished me to have and the outdoors that I had grown to love and thought of as a home.

“Miss Cooper?” asked a voice from behind me.

I turned around and saw one of the many monks I had encountered many times over the years. Unlike most of the others, he had never to my knowledge left the shrine. “Father Cal,” I answered. “It is nice to see you again.”

He nodded. “And you as well. What brings you here today?”

“I needed to think about a few things and this felt like the right place to go.” I looked over at him, now noticing that he looked different this time. His robes were a different fabric, cut, and color from everyone else. Hanging off one shoulder was a long leather strap that was connected to a skein of water. I had always thought it strange that Cal was the youngest monk I had ever met; if I had to guess his age I wouldn’t peg him for anything over thirty. “Have they changed your robes?”

At that he looked down at himself, as if he had just noticed that he was not in his usual attire. “No, no they haven’t. I am from a different order than they are and now is a very troubling time for all of us.” Cal seemed sad to me and it made me wonder exactly what was going on because I honestly did not keep up to date on everything that happened at Fairhaven Shrine.

“Oh, I am sorry to hear that.”

“It is not my place to speak of such things to you, though,” he continued. I found it strange that he brushed the topic off so quickly. Though I had never really been completely devout or anything, I had gotten to know a few of those that stayed at the shrine, and Cal was one that I had spoken to the most. Of course, no one would ever guess that because he still insisted on calling me “Miss Cooper,” instead of using just my first name. “Is there anything you would like to discuss with me?”

I shook my head. “No, I’ve thought through what I needed to and I’m good right now.” Looking around the woods I noticed that things seemed to be shifting around, almost as if I were looking at a hologram of woods that was beginning to fail. I saw large trees in full bloom that I had never seen in Ohio before. Knowing that we were nearing my favorite part of the shrine, the spring, I hastened my pace slightly but when we arrived it too was different. In fact, there wasn’t the usual spring at all; it was an ornate fountain. “Did you guys remodel and not tell anyone?”

Cal looked over at me and in that moment it was as if I knew my life was about to change. There was something in his eyes, a hint of a question that he seemed to want to ask. In truth I was slightly concerned about this, but I wasn’t frightened. I had always felt safe here. “What do you mean?”

“The spring, it’s different, more like a fountain straight from Greece or Italy,” I answered. “And, some of those trees back there, I don’t remember them and you couldn’t have just planted them because they look like they’re hundreds of years old.”

His sea green eyes looked straight at me as if they were trying to bore a hole through my body to discover some deep dark secret looming deep within. “Miss Cooper, I am going to ask you a question and I want you to be completely honest with me. It is very important.”

“Um…okay?”

“Have you, at any point in your life, had a drink from the holy water?”

I stared at him. Why would he have asked me that question? It didn’t seem like something a person would normally do or ask about. “Why do you want to know?” I asked. “Does it really matter if I have? I won’t do it ever again.”

That was certainly the truth. Holy water was absolutely disgusting and I understood why they had the sign on it. But since when do five year olds read those signs? Because I was only five when it happened and I couldn’t help the fact that I was thirsty and the station for filling bottles with holy water was closer than either of the water fountains. It didn’t matter twelve years later, did it?

He closed his eyes and shook his head. “It does not matter. It has already begun.”