Eye of the Storm

[Felicity Mason]

She was blushing. She wasn't old enough to get married. Not yet. Owain understood that, at least, she thought he did. Some day though, she'd really like that. To have everyone there. Mom, Dad, Celeste, all her friends... Owain. At this stage in her life, she was really hoping that Owain would be the one waiting for her at the end of the aisle.

"If it ever happens, Daddy, you'll be the first person I tell. I promise. Now, do you want to hold her, or not?"

She held the sleeping baby up just slightly to make it easier for him to take. If he wanted to, of course. Felicity never got the impression from her Father that he would want nothing to do with the child unless it was blood related to him, but who could say?

[member="Keter"]

 

[Keter]

"I'll hold you to that," he chuckled, reaching out to cup his daughter's face. "You've grown so much..." he said again. Time...time always flew. Keter glanced at the child in her arms and shook his head. "Let's not wake the little one up. Besides, it's been too long since your old man held a babe in his arms," he laughed quietly. "I'm sure you'll prove a loving family," the man reassured his daughter.

[member="Felicity Mason"]

 

[Felicity Mason]

She was smiling, but there was sadness behind her big blue eyes. So he wouldn't even hold her. Maybe she was wrong after all. Maybe blood really was more important to him. Did that mean Zelda would never really get her grandfathers love? That... really did depress her. But she didn't say anything more about it.

"Maybe. We're working on that 'family' part," she said, glancing behind her at the closed bed room door. If Owain was awake on the other side of that door, she had no idea. She could sense when people were nearby, but that was about it.
"Hey, Daddy.... What did Aunt Celeste look like? Was she blonde too?"

She kept her eyes on the baby in her arms, not really wanting to see the look of surprise on his face. She's meant to bring this up before...

[member="Keter"]

 

[Keter]

Felicity would prove a good mother. Keter knew that. He hoped. He hadn't been ready either when Felicity was born. And look at her now.

Then he recoild as if struck. That question. Celeste. Little Celeste. His sister. Dead now for decades. So many decades. The blond looked away, feeling long buried rage fill him. He took a deep breath and let it out before answering. "Yeah...yeah she was," he replied quietly. "You resemble her somewhat," Keter admitted.

An awkward silence descended before he coughed nervously. "W-well, I must say, you know how to keep life interesting!" he said conversationally, glancing at the sleeping child in her arms. Her child. Force, that was going to take a while to get used to.

[member="Felicity Mason"]

 

[Felicity Mason]

Bringing up Aunt Celeste did seem to bother him somewhat. Felicity had to wonder if just asking what she looked like bothered him, how did he deal with having a daughter share a name with her? Maybe that was why Daddy didn't seem quite as close with Celeste.

"She was prettier than me though," Felicity mumbled, "At least, prettier than I was at that age..."

She bit her lip, wondering how to explain. It was always hard to explain the pictures she saw in her head when she closed her eyes. People always looked at her like she was crazy when she brought it up, or tried to get details that she just couldn't give. She couldn't control any of it. It just came. Sometimes, when people knew of her ability, they tried to force her to tell their future. Who they'd marry, how many kids they'd have. Stupid mundane stuff that didn't ever matter. And she couldn't just look at someones palm and see the future. The future was not a book to be read. There were always so many paths. So many ways things could turn out.
But why didn't she ever see glimpses of her own future? Why didn't this stupid ability tell her when things were about to change for her? Why wasn't she able to just look ahead and know? All the other great seers could. It was like a switch for them. They could just turn it on and know. At least, that was how they made it sound. So easy. So simple.
And why was she seeing dead people now? That had never happened before. Not before a few months ago when people started disappearing. Now she was seeing them too sometimes when she closed her eyes.

"I think I saw her, dad," she explained slowly, "In my... head. It's not normal to see dead people, is it?"

[member="Keter"]

 

[Keter]

Keter shook his head. HIs duaghter had a bad habit of always comparing herself to others. "Felicity. Stop, You are you. She was herself. That is all there is to it," he reprimanded his daughter gently. He smiled to lessen any sting his words could cause. "She'd have loved you." He was sure of that.

Her next words made him stare at her. Then he sighed and rubbed his forehead. Of course. HIs family. Never simple. "It is not normal yes, but hardly unheard of. They saw powerful Force users can converse with those who have become one with the Force," Keter answered, hoenstly at a loss. His daughter could...see the dead? The regular dead? With no insanity to aid her?

Suspicious.

[member="Felicity Mason"]

 

[Felicity Mason]

He was right. She really needed to stop comparing herself to other people. It was just... difficult. Her sister was so perfect, so pretty and smart and powerful. And Felicity was supposed to be the big sister. She was supposed to be the one to set the example. She stared down at the baby to bring her mind off of it. She had more important things to worry about.

"But... I'm not a powerful force user. Hell, I'm barely passable," she mumbled, "And your sister wasn't one either. How is it possible then? She's not the only one I've seen either. Am I going crazy?"

She honestly wondered. Most of her visions came true. When she saw something, there was usually a reason for it. But what reason could she have for seeing the dead? The regular dead at that. Not just those who had become one with the Force. Maybe she really was going crazy.

[member="Keter"]

 

[Keter]

"Maybe you are. But in a way we just haven't discovered yet. I mean, think about all those Force abilities you ehar about - someone had to discover them, learn to use them on their own, and teach others," Keter pointed out. Technically, he had been abducted by a strange force and dumped in a parallel dimension along with half the galaxy. Who knew what was normal anymore. Maybe Felicity was unlocking a new Force power? That would be something typical of his family too. Always breaking new ground. Or trying to.

[member="Felicity Mason"]

 

[Felicity Mason]

She looked... terrified. What if she was losing her mind? What if all the things she'd seen had finally broken her. What if those headaches had finally driven her to insanity? And what if, worst of all, her Father thought she was lying about all of it? She wished she was lying. Nobody liked to see dead people when they were just trying to sleep, or make dinner, or feed a baby, or... anything else. Zelda squirmed. Felicity held her closer.

"I don't want it," she murmured, "It bothers me. It hurts. It's inconvenient. It makes me feel crazy. What if Owain finds out and just..."

Leaves.
She was pathetic. Worrying so much about what some boy thought of her. But he was important to her. She couldn't do this alone. It was bad enough when she was getting glimpses of the future.

[member="Keter"]

 

[Keter]

"I know how that feels," Keter nodded, his robotic eyes focusing on her, taking note of her increased heartrate. She was worried. Near panicking. "But you will always have someone. You have that better than me. Feena...me...we will always help if you need it." And he meant it. He hoped the girl would finally get it through her head that he could help. Actually...she was too emotional. Keter reached out, resting a hand on her shoulder. And he began to take away that what was clouding her mind. Worry. Fear. Doubt. It filled his mind as he left simple reason and logic in his daughter. She needed this. To see. To understand.

[member="Felicity Mason"]

 

[Felicity Mason]

She wanted to cry. She was always crying when things got to be too much. It was stupid. Celeste never cried. Mom never cried. She'd never seen Owain cry either. She was a tough girl physically, but she could be such a baby sometimes. She was nearly seventeen and she couldn't even control her emotions. Why did she think she could do any of this? The baby, the marriage-

And all that doubt, all that fear seemed to drain out of her at once. She glanced to the side of her. Daddy. Mom could heal people physically, but she knew that when it came to healing emotionally, her father had her covered.

"If Owain ditches me over this, you totally have my permission to hurt him... after I get finished with him, of course."

She meant it as a joke, but there was a tiny hint of a threat in her words. After all they'd been through, if he left her now, Felicity would have some words for him... and fists.

[member="Keter"]

 

[Keter]

Choking back a sob from the overwhelming wave he had drained from his duaghter, Keter nodded. Celeste. He had left herleftherleftherleftherlefthershewasn'tsafealone-

"If there's anyhting left of him, sure," he joked shakily, removing his hand. Felicity would be fine now.

[member="Felicity Mason"]

 

[Felicity Mason]

Felicity hadn't noticed. Not right away. She was not nearly as sensitive to the emotions of those around her as mom or even dad. Even Celeste knew. But for Felicity, it took a lot. This was a lot. She blinked at her father. She never really understood her fathers abilities. She always just thought he could wave his hand and make things better. She was starting to see what it actually did to him. In order to take hurt away, it had to go somewhere else. It went into him.
Felicity held the baby to her chest and reached over to give her father a gentle hug. Even if he could steal her worry, he couldn't steal her guilt.

"Sorry, Daddy. I shouldn't have brought her up at all. I shouldn't have told you any of it."

[member="Keter"]

 

[Keter]

"Don't say that. Always bring it up. Never let your fears and doubts weigh you down," he retorted. "I am your father. It is my duty to help." Such was the duty of all parents. Something he never failed to remind himself. It kept him going through the pain.

[member="Felicity Mason"]

 

[Felicity Mason]

The girl pulled away after a moment and watched her father with a smile.

"I'll come home soon," she promised, "I'll talk to Owain and... um... Should I maybe not... expect to share a room with him when we visit?"

Valid question, at least, she thought so.

[member="Keter"]

 

[Keter]

Keter grimaced at that. "So you're sharing now?" RIght, this wasn't a charade. It was her first love. Before things went to hell. Because that's how first loves worked. He stared at the girl before sighing. "Who you have in your room is...your business. We are not redecorating though." That was a fair compromise right?

[member="Felicity Mason"]

 

[Felicity Mason]

Why did he act surprised? Of course she was sharing a room with him. They were living together, weren't they? She figured it was fairly obvious.

"Of course," she answered, "Um... I'm glad you're not mad."

Was she ever. Her father was terrifying when he was angry.

[member="Keter"]

 

[Keter]

"Hmm. I will be soon though. You could have told me all this. Explained it to me. Now, I owe a pirate a favor," he moaned, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "So I won't be at home for a while. Please don't tell your mother."

[member="Felicity Mason"]

 

[Felicity Mason]

The young woman looked surprised. A pirate? That sounded like more fun than Felicity had ever experienced in her entire life! Her Father had so many adventures. Felicity was truly jealous.

"Are you kidding!? That sounds great! Can't I come too? Oh..." she looked down at the sleeping baby in her arms and frowned again, "I guess I can't..."

[member="Keter"]

 

[Keter]

A smile tugged at his lips. Still his little Felicity after all it seemed. "Not this time princess. Get yourself home and call your mother. She should know about this."

[member="Felicity Mason"]