*"Never limit yourself because of others' limited imagination; never limit others because of your own limited imagination." – Mae Jemison*
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Maye and Jo lead me inside an industrial apartment, each moving about the room with ease. Glancing around, I take in the giant windows, white-on-white furniture, and various plants acting as the only colour in the place. Even the brick walls were painted white. Stairs led up to a loft where I assume the bedrooms are, and everything was clean. The apartment feels more like a showroom than a place where two young women live.
"Yeah, don't mind the lack of character. Our sister, Josey took care of the decorating," Maye calls from the kitchen. I notice a heavy Chicago accent in her voice, and I can only tell because of Shameless.
"Right," I draw out, still looking around. "Exactly how many of you are there?"
"There's three of us." A new voice rings through the room, and my attention is pulled to the loft, where another girl is standing, glaring at me. She has chestnut brown hair, what looks like dark blue eyes, and sharp features. "Who are you?" She almost sneers as she descends.
"Relax, Josey; we brought her here. She's the girl from last night." Jo cuts in, voice authoritative. Josey's face relaxes, switching quickly from annoyed to feigned interest.
"Last night? We only saw each other in the morning," My eyebrows pull together as I glance from Maye to Jo and then back again. Maye's chocolate brown eyes light up while Jo rolls hers.
"We were in the forest when you disappeared."
"And you're lucky you got out of there; that thing could have killed you," Maye interjects, approaching the three of us.
"Don't worry though, we took care of him," Jo adds, lifting her fist to Maye, who shakes her head.
"Speaking of, how did you manage to get out?" Maye asks, all three turning their focus on me. I bite at my labret once more, not quite liking the attention or the way Josey remained silent.
Finally, I open up about that night: the castle-like structure, the man from my dreams, and even Syr. Maye and Jo seem to be pleased, even in awe of what had happened, while Josey's aura gives off the impression that she does not share her "sister's" feelings. Unable to stop myself, I tell them about everything else; the colourful dreams, the siren's whisper, the yearning for something I'm not even sure exists. I end the monologue by sharing my notes from the cafe earlier about my supposed power.
Josey pulls the two girls away to speak, and I'm left to my own devices. I take the time to look around thoroughly. There are few pictures on the shelves, mainly of Josey in tropical places. There's a photo of Maye wearing a graduation gown and one of Jo and Maye looking happy. The book collection is sparse; medical textbooks, pretty books on witchcraft, and some on Atlantis. The shelves themselves are barren of decoration. Just like the rest of the apartment, they lack character and personalization. I find that odd. These girls claim to be sisters, and yet the star of the show seems to be Josey. After a few moments, the three girls return, surrounding me.
"When you were little, did you want to save the world?" Josey asks, a slight edge to her voice. I stare at her for a moment before responding.
"Oh um...yeah? I mean, don't most kids want to be superheroes when they grow up?"
"Do you notice large gatherings of ravens that seem to be following you?" Maye follows up. I can feel my eyebrows pull together, glancing between the three of them. 'What exactly are they getting at?'
"I'm not the most observant person, so…" I trail off, unsure what the significance of the bird is or why they'd ask me that.
"Do you feel like you have a destiny that you can't quite put your finger on?" This question comes from Jo.
"Um...yeah, I guess?" My answer comes out as more of a question, not knowing where they were going with this.
"Aside from last night, have you ever been attacked? Woke up with bruises you can't explain, or maybe even a psychic attack?" Josey seems bored, as if she doesn't even want to be here.
"I wake up with bruises all the time, but I just attributed that to me being clumsy." Jo snorts at my response while Maye nods along.
The questions continued; do you feel connected to the elements of water or air? Did you ever feel like you didn't fit in with what was considered normal? Do you feel a connection to us? Do you feel connected to the name 'Sophia'? Can you do tarot? Can you do witchcraft and divination? What about past life regressions? The more they spoke, the more confused I became.
"Why? What's going on?"
"We think that you're our sister, Morana." Jo smiles warmly at me, hazel eyes shining, while Josey remains stoic.
"We think you're a reincarnated Princess, just like us," Maye adds with a gentle smile. I shake my head, my brain having a hard time wrapping around everything.
"Say I believe you, what does that even mean?"
"It means that we have a destiny to fulfill. We're not quite sure what it is, but we do know that we have to find the missing ones," Jo pipes up.
"And how many are there?"
"Including the four of us, there are 12 in total," Josey responds, crossing her arms in front of her chest.
"Uh-huh...and who told you that?" I can't help the sarcasm from leaking through, coating my words in disbelief. 'And I thought I was crazy.'
"A few years ago, I was at college, and there was a psychic fair. Long story short, one of the mediums told me, and I've been looking ever since. I found Jo and Josey easily enough, but the rest have been elusive until you." Maye's deep brown eyes bore into my own, and I can see how much she believes this to be the truth.
Strange how such a smart girl can believe something so out of pocket. Then again, I was visited by an animal spirit and attacked, so perhaps it wasn't so insane? I saw different versions of the two, and that man told me to awaken.
"I want to believe you, I really, truly do. I...this is insane; I'm sorry but reincarnated princesses? A destiny that you have no clue about? No, I'm sorry, but I'm not the one," I push through the three girls and gather my stuff. Maye and Jo protest behind me while Josey is telling them to let me leave.
"Our real sister wouldn't be leaving. A real princess wouldn't call us crazy," Josey's voice rings out through the apartment, leaving the other two speechless.
With one last look, I race through the door and into the streets.
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