Chương 7: Falling Ill

I tried not to think about those marks moving forward. Until I could meet someone who knew what they meant; I was out of luck. They were just going to be like tattoos to me until then. Though, that was exactly what they looked like. They looked like someone gave me a tattoo and it was now just a permanent part of my body.

I Tried as hard as I could, though I couldn't forget about them. I would often just sit next to the stream that ran through the village and just stare at the water as I thought about everything that had happened in my life, both of them. Or was that all three of them? My Adelaide life, my life as Addison in my pre-Addie days, and my life as Addie. Since I had changed so much, should I be counted as living yet another life? Or was I still on life number two? It was strange thoughts like those that passed through my mind when I would sit as I watched the water.

I noticed that I was changing again. I was so caught up and obsessed with these marks that I was starting to ignore my friends. I just wanted to be alone and think. I did my best to be normal around my family, but they noticed. Even Catherine, who was now nine years old, knew that something was wrong with me. That was what was making it worse. I knew that I was worrying them, I knew that I was causing trouble and pain for them, but I couldn't stop myself. I didn't know what to do.

After a little while of my non stop obsessing, I started having these strange visions pass through my head. It was like my brain had started to make me see these movies that couldn't possibly exist in this world. I was seeing fire springing up from nowhere, and then there would be water washing in like it was coming to save the day to put the fire out before the mysterious wind that had just started to blow could make the flames spread. The wind and fire were working together against the water, and I thought that all hope was lost for the mysterious landscape in the background. Only, that was when the ground started to help the water and it opened a hole for the fire to drop into so the water could catch up to it.

In the midst of all that there was a bright shining light that seemed to be trying to replenish the earth. The trees, flowers, grass, even the dirt that had been destroyed were now being fixed with that bright white light.

I was in a sort of trance, just watching all of that happen before my eyes like I was back on Earth and watching a movie with my family. It was honestly so nostalgic, that I didn't want it to end.

I ended up sitting there watching similar images of mysterious elements warring against each other. Sometimes, the water and wind worked together against the fire and the ground. Other times it was three of them all against the fire. The only combination I never saw in the movie I was watching in my head was the water and fire teaming up together. I guess that makes sense. The water would instantly destroy the fire so they couldn't work together.

After the images of the elements warring with each other, I saw times where they were working together to make things better. This was the first time that I had seen fire work with water. I saw the fire boil water for food and bathes. I saw a steam room like there used to be in my old life. I saw ice being formed by the wind and the water. There were so many different things that were happening to help with everyday life. It was quite beautiful, no matter what was going on in the dreams. I never wanted to stop seeing them.

"Addie!" I could vaguely hear someone calling my name. "Addie!" What was it that they wanted?

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**ARTHUR'S POV**

"Addie!" I was calling my sister's name and calling her repeatedly. She was just sitting there like she couldn't hear me at all, and it was starting to scare me. "Addie!" I called her again and again but she didn't move or respond to me at all. "Addie!" I called her one last time as I shook her shoulder and this time she fell toward me.

I caught my sister against my chest before she could fall. That was when I felt how warm she was.

"Addie, you're burning up." She had a very high fever, and it was clear that she was too sick to help herself. "Catherine." I turned to my other sister who had walked out here with me. "Go get Dad. Tell him that Addie is sick."

"OK!" Catherine, with fear in her eyes, turned and ran toward the house.

It was just the start of the Harvest Season, so it was getting chilly out. Even though it was chilly, it wasn't exactly cold, that was why I hadn't been wearing a jacket. I wished I had been wearing one though. I would have wrapped my jacket around my sister if I had been wearing one.

"Come on, Addie, wake up. Please wake up."

I was fifteen, I was a man, I should have been strong enough by now to carry my sister home. I shouldn't have sent for my dad. With that thought in my mind I did my best to position my sister in my arms and lift her up from the ground.

Addie wasn't exactly heavy, but she was a little more than I could handle. Had I been born a farmer I was certain that I would have the arm strength to carry her. I was going to do this though. I wasn't going to let my sister stay out here.

I was struggling but I was making progress. I just needed to keep pushing myself harder and harder.

When I was almost home, I was almost at my limit. I was struggling and I could tell that my arms would give out before I got Addie inside the house.

"Arthur!?" Dad called out to me when he came running toward me, his eyes going wide at the sight of me carrying a limp and unconscious Addie. "What happened, Arthur?"

"I don't know, Dad. She was unconscious when I found her. She was sitting next to the stream, and I couldn't wake her up. She has a high fever, Dad. She's really sick."

"Here, give her to me, son." My dad, who was taller than me by a few inches and quite a bit stronger, took my sister from my strained arms.

"What is wrong with her, Daddy?" Catherine asked when Dad pulled Addie against his chest.

"I don't know, sweetheart. I don't know."

Dad started to hurry back home as he carried my sister with him. He was able to move a lot quicker than I had been able to. I still needed to run to keep up with him.

"Helen!" I heard my dad call out the moment he was inside. He was asking for mom's help as he ran up the stairs.

"Arthur, is Addie going to be OK?" Catherine came up to me and hugged me around the waist.

"I don't know, Catherine. I just don't know."

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