he doorbell rang. But it didn't, because she couldn't hear it.
The doorbell rang again. This time she thought she might have heard it, but even if it did, what difference would it make?
The doorbell rang a third time. One could tell from the reverberation at the end of the chime that the person outside was getting impatient. She pretended not to hear it.
Then came three loud knocks on the door. She wished they would just go away already. But no, they wouldn't unless she answered them. They never do go away. Kathryn dragged herself to the door.
Through the peephole she could see a woman. A blond woman. A very beautiful blond woman with a flawless facial structure and perfect figure, unlike her own. What more could the woman want? With fumbling fingers Kathryn unlocked the door.
The first thing Leo and Clarisa heard upon arrival on Kathryn's doorstep was a clap of thunder that did not come from the sky. They knew at once that they were in for a challenge.
"So I'll be incorporeal to her?" Leo suggested. "That way I can cover you without appearing strange."
"Good idea," Clarisa agreed. They rang the bell and knocked a few times, waiting with bated breath. The moment the front door swung open, they were greeted by the crashing of heavy rain upon the floor. Dense, dark clouds were drifting at the ceiling and spilling ink-like liquid down all over. A gust of wind swept in their direction, making them shiver. Standing in the middle of the thunderstorm was a teenage girl. Her coppery hair was dripping with black rainwater, her drenched clothes clinging to her body untidily, and her face bore an apathetic expression.
"Hello, you must be Kathryn," Clarisa said warmly.
The girl frowned, not bothering to reply.
"My name is Clarisa, and I am your counsellor. I'm here to help you."
"No one called for a counsellor," Kathryn stated.
"I understand that. But I'm not just any counsellor. There are some things we need to discuss."
"That's what they always say. I'm special. I'm here to help. I'm not just any counsellor," Kathryn imitated bitterly. "But they're all the same. They don't help."
Clarisa smiled, realising that this was going to be a lot harder than she expected. "I am different in a totally different sense, and I'm afraid the reason is rather complicated. I know that this meeting is completely unarranged, but I request that you take some time to hear my explanation. This is quite serious."
Kathryn stared at her blankly. She really had no time for this. She wasn't in the mood for this either. But the lady did seem polite. Kathryn cast her a reluctant glance before heading to the sitting room. Clarisa signaled to Leo, who unleashed a foldable umbrella from beneath his suit. He opened it and held it over them before they stepped into the storm. The ink splattered noisily onto the umbrella, spilling like mercury over the sides. Slowly, Clarisa reached a hand out from under the umbrella to touch the rain. She needed to know, needed to find out the extent of Kathryn's powers. She gasped as the first drop on her finger pricked like a needle. Reflexively she withdrew her hand and informed Leo, [She is a perceiver. A powerful one. Her emotions are much stronger than the average person, and not only because of her mental disorder.]
[Surely you can overpower her?] he asked hopefully.
[I'm sure of it,] she said with confidence. [Though it would take effort.]
[I'll help you.]
Kathryn took a seat in a soaking wet armchair and continued to stare at them with hostile eyes. Clarisa and Leo sat down on the sofa opposite her. At that very moment, the damp patches of the sofa began to clear away, and with their combined mental effort, warmth and dryness spread across the room. The storm turned to a drizzle and eventually stopped, though the dark clouds remained. Puddles on the floors grew shallower and shallower till they disappeared. The rest of the furniture dried in an instant. Kathryn seemed to notice a difference, as she shifted in her seat and glanced around uncomfortably.
[Does she know?] Leo observed her as he folded the umbrella.
[No, but she can sense the effect we have on her.]
"Kathryn," Clarisa began pleasantly, "First of all, I want you to know that I am here for the sole purpose of helping you, and nothing else. I don't mean you harm in any way, and you need not be wary of me. Whether or not I can help you and in what way I can help are both valid questions. But you must first know that in trying to help you, I will do my best. Do you understand?"
"What makes you think I need help? And how do you even know me?" Kathryn asked guardedly.
"This is where you must hear my explanation," said Clarisa. "I need you to listen, no matter how bizarre this might sound. Is that alright, Kathryn?"
Kathryn wondered what sort of madness she was in for. She nodded grudgingly.
"In this world, there are two kinds of people," Clarisa explained slowly. "There are… the 'normal' people that you've always known of, and there are the perceivers, which you don't yet know of. Can you grasp that?"
"Yes…"
From the half-hearted reply she could tell that Kathryn had already lost interest. She went on,
"The difference between them, is that normal people are limited by physical barriers, while perceivers are limited by mental barriers made physical."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Kathryn frowned.
"Physical means the things that you can see and touch. Material things. Physical barriers are the reason you can't walk through a wall, or hear what another person is thinking."
"Okay."
"Mental is everything in your mind. Mental barriers are things like anxiety, hopelessness, and fear. Perceivers are able to see these negative emotions manifested in physical forms. They are visible, touchable, and very, very real."
"Okay…"
"I am a perceiver. I can teleport, communicate telepathically, become incorporeal to humans, and most importantly, see these physical manifestations of negative emotions. We refer to them as the Darkness. It is my job to fight against the Darkness, so that people aren't held back by mental barriers that lead them to do evil."
Seeing that Kathryn was speechless for a long time, she offered, "Do you need me to prove it to you?"
Kathryn looked at her disbelievingly and mumbled, "Yes please."
Immediately, Clarisa vanished with a flash of blue light. Kathryn sat there agape, then heard Clarisa's voice in her head, [I have just turned incorporeal and I'm now communicating with you telepathically. If you reach your hand out to where I've been sitting, you will realise that you cannot feel me.]
Kathryn stood up and rested her hand on the sofa. Clarisa was right. Her head began to throb.
[Is that proof enough for you?]
Kathryn backed away before Clarisa reappeared on the sofa with her legs crossed on the side. She was dizzy with disbelief.
"I… I don't think I'm feeling very well," Kathryn confessed. Clarisa noticed that the dark grey clouds hanging at the ceiling were beginning to stir with Kathryn's anxiety. She concentrated hard, and another wave of warmth swept across the room. The clouds settled, and the colour returned to Kathryn's face.
"What did you just do? I felt something," she observed sharply.
"I was controlling some of the Darkness in this room."
"There's Darkness in my house?"
"There's Darkness everywhere," Clarisa said calmly. "But they only manifest where powerful negative emotions are present."
"Wait, why… why are you here? Why make yourself known to me?" Kathryn asked in sudden suspicion. It was all beginning to make sense.
"You already seem to have an idea."
"Because I'm depressed?" Kathryn deduced. "Because… the Darkness is going to attack me? That's why you're here to help me?"
"I don't make myself known to everyone who suffers from depression."
"Then why?"
Clarisa took a deep breath. This was hard. She had the counselling experience, she had studied mental disorders, and she had inducted new perceivers a few times before. But she never had all these situations come into play in one job. Finally she decided there always had to be a first time for everything, and told Kathryn,
"You are a perceiver as well. Your abilities will surface anytime soon, and that's why I am here to guide you on how to use and control them."
Kathryn's stared at her blankly. "I don't understand."
"That means that it is also your job to fight the Darkness, after I have taught you to."
Kathryn frowned and protested,
"But… I can't!"
"I know how hard this is for you," Clarisa looked her in the eye with utmost sincerity. "And I know how unfair it is to you as well. But you have to accept that you're different. The very fact that you can feel the effect I have on this room proves that you are a perceiver."
Kathryn shook her head vigorously. "No, no, you don't understand. I'm not ready. I mean look at me. I can't control negative emotions! How am I supposed to fight physical versions of them?"
It started to rain again. As Leo had kept the umbrella, it felt like stinging burns upon their skin. They winced as they concentrated on the clouds once more, and the rain subsided.
"Oh my god what am I… What am I doing? Am I affecting the Darkness?" Kathryn panicked, noticing Clarisa's distractedness. "What am I doing to you?"
"It's alright, Kathryn. I can control it," Clarisa soothed.
"Now what am I going to do? The longer you stay here-"
"I need you to trust me," she reassured. "Whatever the Darkness stirs up, I can subdue. It's going to be alright."
"Clarisa I am so sorry! I-"
"Kathryn."
Clarisa had gone over to the teen, bent down and held onto her shoulders in support. She said gently, "I should be the one to apologise. As I said, this is not fair to you, and whatever is happening is not your fault. Since your abilities have not yet surfaced, you don't have to worry about the Darkness. All you have to do for now is trust me. Leave the rest to me."
"But what happens when my abilities surface?"
"If you don't know how to control them, I must admit it's not going to be a good thing. But control– emotional control- is something we can work on together."
"You don't understand!" Kathryn pulled Clarisa's hands off her shoulders. "I am a lost cause! I have seen so many therapists, and I still cannot control my emotions!"
A rumble of thunder resounded through the house, and it looked like it was about to pour again. Only Clarisa and Leo's mental strength prevented it from doing so. Leo in his incorporeal form was beginning to cringe from the weight of the storm.
"Kathryn," she said softly. "I know that depression can be difficult to overcome. It is normal to struggle, it is normal to make mistakes, and it is normal to take a long time. But recovery is possible, and you are not a lost cause. Yes, it takes time and effort to become open to new perspectives and change our ways of thinking. But you have seen a new perspective today. You now know about perceivers. You now believe in them."
"I'm not sure if I'll still believe in you tomorrow…"
"I'll visit you every week. That way I can guarantee you'll always believe in me," Clarisa smiled weakly. "But my point is this. If you can believe in perceivers, it's possible for you to believe in anything."
"I suppose…"
Clarisa's smile broadened at the first hopeful statement she had heard thus far. She held Kathryn's hand in a gentle clasp and asked, "So will you accept me as your counsellor, Kathryn?"
Kathryn looked down at the floor, wishing she had never existed.
"Can I choose not to?"
Clarisa shook her head and sighed apologetically. "No, I'm afraid. But I'll do everything I can to make this experience comfortable for you, and I'll make sure that no one knows about me seeing you. I'll come this time next Tuesday, if that's okay."
She took Kathryn's prolonged silence as consent, and added, "Once again I am very sorry about all of this. You've been very brave. See you soon, Kathryn."
She signalled to Leo before making her departure from the sitting room.
"This must all be a dream…" Kathryn mumbled to herself, her eyes dazed. "Or some sort of hallucination…"
They reappeared on the lawn outside. The air was warm and the sky clear. They walked down the lane with no destination in mind. Leo squinted from the evening sun in his eyes as he remarked,
"What are we having for dinner?"
Clarisa cocked her head in mild surprise.
"You're hungry? It's only five."
"Well… I meant later, when you're hungry," Leo said in a quick attempt to conceal his embarrassment.
Clarisa smiled at the offer, but for a brief moment there was a look of confliction in her eyes before she turned to face him.
"That sounds nice, but I have other plans."
"Oh," Leo responded.
What was I thinking.
For another minute as they walked, Clarisa admired the scenery while Leo pretended to. He decided to change the subject.
"We stopped the rain, why couldn't you get rid of the clouds?"
Clarisa answered thoughtfully, "The clouds will always be there. That's depression."
Leo shook his head in exasperation. "It's a wonder how you handled her. All that talk about recovery… You sounded like you spoke from experience."
Clarisa replied with a half-sigh and a wistful smile.
Not now, she told herself. Not anytime soon.