LIGHTNOVELONLINE 112. Comparing Notes (Tess)
"I guess you're pretty happy things are more or less back to normal now?" Emma asked as she gave me a sympathetic smile.
"You don't know the half of it," I responded with a grimace, while I waited by the microwave for my lunch to finish warming up.
It was just past noon on Tuesday, and even though my morning had gone pretty well I was still a little distracted by the conversation I had with Amy and Raven last night after work.
Once I told my girlfriend about that strange 'man in black' visitor I had yesterday she summoned her angel and had me repeat the whole thing so Ravenna could hear it too. The only part of the encounter I didn't mention was Mr. Sinclair's interest in my other client, Cass Underwood. I couldn't talk about that without mentioning her name, and as far as I was concerned client names were still confidential information.
It didn't seem relevant anyways, both Amy and Raven were fairly positive they knew what my Man in Black was based on the information I shared with them. According to them he was probably a representative of the mysterious 'council', an organization that was apparently dedicated to keeping the existence of magic and the supernatural out of the public eye.
According to Raven, Adrian Sinclair was probably a fake name and his ID would have been forged, so odds were there'd be no trace of the guy if I tried to look him up. Or if I checked with the Ministry of Health, they probably never heard of him either.
The good news was the council were powerless against gods or angels, so neither Amy or Raven had anything to worry about. The bad news was they were a very real threat to mortals like me, and everyone I worked with. Because of that Amy was adamant that if Mr. Sinclair ever came back, or if anyone else like him came along and gave me similar vibes, she wanted me to pray to her immediately.
She said she might not show up for a divine visit right away, but she'd definitely be watching. And if she saw anything she didn't like she'd take whatever steps were necessary. Which was kind of a nice thought, knowing I could rely on some divine intervention if I was ever in that kind of situation again.
The microwave finally beeped, bringing me out of my thoughts. I got my reheated meal out then joined my coworker at the little lunch table and started to eat.
"Tess I'm sorry I was so distant last week," Emma commented after another minute or so. "I was kind of alarmed, maybe even a bit scared, after I heard about everything that happened that Friday?"
"And you know I had a very bad experience with the supernatural," she added quietly. "I needed some time to process things, to remind myself that your situation is nothing like what I went through a few years ago."
I nodded, "I get it Emma, and I'm sorry you got freaked out by that stuff. I think Rosa's still a little scared of me? And Bev certainly wasn't very happy either."
Emma watched me for a few moments as she had another bite of her sandwich. Then she asked, "So if you don't mind sharing, can I ask why you did it? You had to know how much it was going to disrupt things for yourself, along with the rest of the clinic."
After swallowing a mouthful of my chicken parmesan I replied, "I did it because my client needed it. Because she felt trapped and stuck, and because her parents were unsupportive. Because she was depressed and maybe a little desperate, and her future was uncertain."
My coworker continued to watch me for another second or two before asking, "So you were ready to potentially throw away your job and maybe even your whole career, for a client you only knew for about a month? You only saw her four times right?"
"Yeah," I nodded slowly. I had a gulp of my drink then sighed, "I told you a while back that I was close to a trans girl back in high school? I ended grade eleven by attending her funeral. I lost her because she didn't get the support she deserved, because her family was transmisic and did everything they could to keep her in the closet. I couldn't let that happen to another trans teen. Not when I had the power to change things for her, to help her out."
Emma gave me a sad look, "Theresa I'm so sorry. I remember you said that story had an unhappy ending, but I had no idea it was like that."
I shrugged again as I focused on my lunch. I knew if I spent too much time thinking about that I'd end up crying, and I didn't want to do that at work. Fortunately my colleague seemed to realize that so she let the subject go. We both ate quietly for a few moments, then she came up with another question.
"So how'd you end up being engaged to a goddess?" she asked quietly. "And what's that even like?"
I grimaced, "What makes you think I'm engaged to the goddess?"
"Oh come on Tess," Emma scoffed quietly as she rolled her eyes. "I might not have been here to meet the goddess, but I have met your fiancée. Rosa told me your goddess is a petite young woman with long silver hair and purple eyes. That's hardly a common look. Even the names are practically the same. Amy's just short-hand for Amethyst."
By the time she was done I was blushing and maybe even cringing slightly.
I sighed, "It's another long story, and I can't really share it without betraying some secrets that aren't mine to tell. All I can say is she goes by the name Amethyst when she's doing goddess stuff, but most of the time she's just my normal girlfriend named Amy. She's a typical college coed, she'll be back at school next month continuing her training as an EMT."
Emma frowned as she stared at me again for another second or two. She lowered her voice again as she asked, "Is that why you were so curious about plurality? Especially non-traditional presentations? You suspect Amy and Amethyst are a plural system?"
My blush grew brighter as I realized I'd probably said too much. I knew it would only seem even more suspicious if I tried to deny it though.
"Yes," I sighed. "I've asked her about it a few times, even before you and I first met? When she's being Amethyst she seems so different from the person I know as Amy. There might even be a third identity involved, but I haven't really met that one. I've heard of her and possibly seen her briefly once or twice?"
"Amy claims it's all just her though," I added. "She says neither Amethyst or the other one communicate with her, and she's positive there aren't other voices in her head or anything like that. I guess as far as she's concerned it's just her acting different when she's doing her divine work?"
My colleague gave me a sympathetic look, "That must be confusing for you Tess, maybe a little worrying too? I know what it's like, witnessing a loved one suddenly acting different from what you're accustomed to. Especially when you know there's something unnatural going on behind the scenes. You have good reason to suspect she might be a system, even if that isn't actually the case."
I nodded slowly, then had another gulp of my soda. I knew I should mind my own business but my curiosity got the better of me. I asked, "I take it you've experienced that yourself? Seeing a loved one act different. Or act possessed?"
Emma winced slightly. She didn't answer right away, instead she had a couple gulps of her water. Then she finally nodded, "I have. I already knew something of the situation well in advance, she told me herself what was going on. It was about six months after the fact when I finally met the other party. My family had already been through a lot by then, and I thought I could handle it."
"I couldn't," she added with a sigh. "But I managed to keep my feelings to myself. I think it would have made things even worse, if she knew just how much it disturbed me."
There was another pause as she took a deep breath, then she shrugged "That was a few years ago, and I got over it. Carol helped, a lot. Less than a year later both Carol and I were friends with the other party, so everything worked out in the end. I'll never forget how it felt though, the first time I saw another entity take over her body."
"I'm sorry Emma," I sighed. "That must have been really rough. I'm glad you got through it though, and that things are better now."
She smiled, "Thanks Tess."
Unfortunately I was still really curious and couldn't help asking, "I know it's none of my business, but was this one of your daughters?"
Emma hesitated again. Then she nodded, "Yes. I'm sure I haven't done as good a job of keeping that secret as I'd like to think."
She kept her voice down as she told me, "It was about three years ago now, but my daughter Mara was for want of a better word, possessed by a non-human supernatural entity. There was a lot more to it than that, but I can't go into any more details. I found out relatively quickly, within a week or two? That's what inspired me to start learning about plurality and possession, and ultimately what led me to study psychology when I went back to university."
"Wow," I mumbled as my eyes widened. "And I take it that possession became a permanent situation?"
"That's right," Emma nodded slowly. "Like I said, it was about six months later when I finally met the other entity. I'm sure you can imagine how upsetting it was to see my child's body being controlled by something very different."
"Yeah," I grimaced. "I'm glad things worked out though. You and Carol seem really happy together, and it looked like things worked out alright for Mara and Mira. I take it the other entity is still around too?"
"They are," she confirmed. "But I've probably said too much as it is. Sorry Tess."
I shook my head, "That's fine, I understand. I shouldn't have let my curiosity get the better of me in the first place."
"So um," I continued a moment later, "What do you think I should do about Amy and Amethyst?"
"My advice is the same now as it was before," Emma replied in a soft voice. "Don't push her, or them. Don't make assumptions. Observe, listen, and be there for her. If she's part of a plural system, I'm sure they'll tell you when they're ready. If not, you don't want to make matters worse by pushing, or trying to treat her for problems she doesn't have."
It wasn't the sort of advice what I was hoping to hear, but at the same time I wasn't too surprised or disappointed.
"Thanks Emma," I replied. "I'll keep that in mind."
Not long after that our lunch break came to an end and we both got back to work. I'd already updated my page on the clinic's website to indicate I was taking new clients again, and I was happy to see a couple new appointment requests had already come in.
I didn't have any sessions booked for the afternoon, so I had plenty of time to reach out to the new contacts to make arrangements and set up appointments with them. It was still administrative work, but it felt a lot more positive than the stuff I'd been doing most of last week.
By the end of the day I had three new clients booked for their first sessions later this week, and my mood was back up again. I even had a smile on my face as I packed up for the day and bid Beverly and Rosa a good evening. Emma was done for the day too so the two of us headed out together.
"Have a good evening Tess," she said as we made our way to the staff parking area. "Tell Amy I said hello!"
I grimaced slightly, "I will if I see her."
"She's off meeting some divine friends for dinner tonight," I added quietly. "In England, if you can believe it."
Emma looked surprised as she took that in. Then she moved closer and asked, "I take it she can get there with magic? Otherwise it's an awful long way to go just for dinner."
"Yeah," I grinned. "She can teleport, so popping overseas like that just takes her a second."
She smiled, "Must be nice."
"Wait, did she teleport you both for that vacation you told me and Carol about?" Emma asked as her eyes widened. "You said Amy took care of the travel arrangements."
My grin got a little wider as I nodded, "Yep. I was a little anxious at first, but it was fine. Almost underwhelming? There's no sensations or anything. I closed my eyes in our apartment and a couple seconds later opened my eyes in downtown Dublin."
"That's amazing," she responded with a laugh. "Anyways I won't keep you any longer. Even if your fiancée isn't waiting for you, I know you've got a cat to keep you company. And I'd better get home and look after my little menagerie as well."
I smiled, "Ok Emma. Take care, see you tomorrow."
