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The next thing you see is the familiar stars of the night sky framed by the circular stone wall of the folly tower.

You are breathing heavy, your whole body shaking, and your jumbled mind struggled to make sense of anything. You feel around you and never had cool soft earth felt so heavenly. Pulling yourself together you reach up and rub your eyes and work to settle your rapid breath. Slowly you begin to relax. Mercifully the experience you’d just gone through was so peculiar it refused to take root in your memory. Like a dream the terrible place, the “other place” your father had called it, fades from your mind until it is but a harmless wisp of a memory.

Resting your hands over your stomach you feel the soft cashmere of your mother’s shawl laid over you like a blanket. You get the impression you’d been lying here for some time. Turning your head you see the silhouette of Vespera kneeling at your side.

“Jacob.”

“Hey Ves.” You say in a dry froggy voice. “How long was I out?”

“Human…Gentle…Stay.” She caresses your cheek with one limb as she takes your hand with another. “Safe…Home...Stay.”

You wet your mouth and swallow with a nod. “I didn’t mean to follow you. I was trying to keep you here. What was that place?” You look up at her. “Is that where you go when you aren’t here? Is that where they banished you to? Is that your home?” You shake your head. “No, THIS is your home. Here with me.”

Ves looks up. The glow of the soon to be rising sun had begun to brighten the sky. She looks back down at you and you swear you see sorrow in her mask like face. “Stay.” She pushes into your chest, pinning you to the ground firmly. “Stay.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t do that again.” You hug her tentacle close. “You stay too. Don’t go back to that place ever again. You are a Devlin, this is your home too. Stay with me. Together.”

Instead of a reply you hear your frantic voice from before. “This isn’t love!”

She tugs back but you hold on tight. “Vespera. I do love you. I just met you and yet I love you. But…you’re my sister. It’s a different kind of love than that. It’s…hard to explain.” You bring her tentacle to your lips and kiss it. “You’ll understand in time. I love you Vespera. You aren’t alone anymore.”

“Love.” She strokes your hair with a loving tenderness you previously thought impossible for anything not human.

You smile. “Rest with me Vespera.”

She looks up to the gradually brightening light then back to you…before curling up at your side. Using your tummy as a pillow she gazes up at you as she holds your hand tight. You gently run your fingers through her tendrils of “hair”. Each one a seemingly independent extremity they tickle and lick between your fingers and against your hand and forearm. You let out a long sigh, close your eyes, and relax into the soft earth. At 21 years old it felt as if your life had begun anew, a fresh start knowing the real truth and having a kindred twin to love and treasure. While your spirit still shook from the experience you could now barely recall this feeling of happiness was quickly healing the trauma. You lay like that for a time, enjoying the presence of your sister and starting to appreciate that wholly unique feeling of her skin rubbing against yours. She cuddles closer, more of her limbs wrapping around yours.

“Together.”

“That’s right Ves. Together, always. I’m thinking we could probably convince Trixie to move rooms so you could have hers. Your room next to mine. Would you like that?” She doesn’t answer. Another tentacles grabs hold of your right hand and grips it tight. The tendrils of her head wrap around your other hand, clinging to you. You squeeze your fingers in response. “Are you able to leave the estate? We need to figure this stuff out. I have to introduce you to Grace. Oh man, there is so much to consider. This is going to be wonderful. Once I convince the others that you aren’t dangerous then we can start…”

You notice your voice taking on a muffled tone. Opening your eyes you see the brightening early morning sky now starting to show color, but you also see Vespera’s cloak of shadows gathering around her. Looking down you see her gazing back up at you even as her form begins to fade from sight. Pushing off of you suddenly she slithers back to the darkest shadow she can find. The gathering darkness around her now clinging to her like hot tar.

You reach out for her. “No. Stay. Don’t leave. Don’t go back to that place. Stay with me.”

Her face dims and you hear her voice, much weaker than before. “Brother...Jac…”

You blink and she is gone, the light level within the tower rises noticeably at her absence. A shiver runs through you. The space now feeling empty, lonely, cold. But you knew the place your twin had gone was far worse.