Chris Beckett - Dark Eden

‘He’s only one silly newhair,’ I told myself. ‘Don’t fret about it. Just a silly newhair trying to get himself noticed. It’s not such a big thing. It just feels that way because I’m tired.’

A Starflower oldmum called Clare came over.

‘Good Any Virsry, Caroline, thanks. Can’t have been easy handling that cheeky Redlantern boy.’

She glared over at John. He had his back turned to me now, but he was still standing there.

‘Honestly,’ she said. ‘Newhairs these wakings! He does for one leopard, and he thinks he’s more important than Council and Family Head.’

‘I know, newhairs eh? But I suppose we were all young once.’

‘Well, we weren’t like him and his sort, that’s for sure. But anyway, thanks again, Caroline. I’m off back to make sure our whingy littles get settled down nice and quick.’

As she walked off, John glanced over towards me, then looked quickly away.

However much I told myself it was just because I was tired, I had a strong strong feeling that there was trouble stirring in Family that was different from any trouble we’d had before. And more than that, I felt it was something I’d been warned about. I just couldn’t think when.

And then suddenly I did remember. It was in the Secret Story.

The True Story we remembered at Any Virsries was only part of what had been handed down to us from the beginning. There were some things that Angela told to just two of her daughters, Susie and Clare, the ones she thought most sensible and grown up, and told them to pass on only to girls that they knew they could trust. That first Clare was the one who started Brooklyn group, and she was my mum’s grandmother. Angela’s words came down from her, through my mum, to me.

And one of the secret things from Angela she told me — one of the many — was this.

‘Watch out for men who want to turn everything into a story that’s all about them. There will always be a few of them, and once one of them starts, another one of them will want to fight with him.’

My mother told me that Tommy Schneider, the father of all of us, was one of those men. And, out of the Three Companions, Dixon Thorleye was one too. ‘Dixon liked to think he did what Jesus told him,’ Angela said, ‘but Jesus always seemed to tell Dixon to do the one thing that would make him the hero of the story.’ That’s why Dixon couldn’t bear to just go back down to Earth when the President told him to, and nor could Tommy either. They had to take Defiant , and go charging off across Starry Swirl, like they knew better than whole Family of Earth.

Yes, I thought, John Redlantern was trouble in just that way. He might think he was worried about us not having enough food, or about Exit Falls getting blocked up, or whatever, but that wasn’t really what his shouting at Any Virsry was all about. What it was really about was him being the hero of the story, and no one else. I’d never had a challenge like that at Any Virsry before, never, but I could see now that, once John had started it, David Redlantern had picked it up. He was another of those men that Angela warned about. I’d need to watch him too. I’d need to find a way, somehow, of heading off this whole thing.

I sighed. Every Any Virsry brought me and Council a whole lot of new hard work but, Gela’s heart, this time it was going to be hard hard hard.

I looked across at John again. Thanks be to Mother Gela, he was finally moving. About time! Nearly everyone else had already left Clearing, and now he was going too, heading off by himself towards Stream’s Join.

I really hadn’t wanted to leave while he was still here, but now at last I felt I could go. Back to Brooklyn, and a bit of meat, and a long long sleep.

Next waking I’d have a no-work waking, and rest up, and Brooklyn group would look after me. And then, who knows, maybe things would seem more manageable again?

I kept thinking about Michael naming everything, and the children shouting back to him what to say. I’d seen that same story acted out so many times, but now I couldn’t stop it going round and round inside my head. Whole Family was busting to leave the clearing, but I just stood there and stood there, trying to take it in, and trying to decide on what I’d do next.

First Oldest were led away to sleep in their shelters on the edge of London, all grey and wobbly and worn out. Then everyone else started to go, each group gathering together its littles and clawfeet and oldies and heading off back to their own fires and shelters. And, while the clearing was emptying, Council left, one by one, all except Caroline, with Secret Ree tucking her writing-barks under her arm and rushing off to hide them in a secret place she had somewhere that no one but Council was supposed to know about.

But I stayed where I was, and over in middle of Circle, Caroline stayed where she was as well, nodding and smiling to anyone that came up to her, or looked in her direction. Sometimes, when she wasn’t dealing with anyone else, she glanced over towards me, and I thought maybe she was going to speak to me about what I’d done, but when I caught her eye she quickly looked away. She tended not to deal with troublesome newhairs in Family — that was a job for group leaders — so I guessed she was just waiting for me to go.

Well, I’d go in my own good time. I had things to think about.

When Michael named the plants and the animals, did he hear us calling back to him? Was that possible? Because if he did, then I should be able to hear voices from our future too, voices calling back to me, telling me what I needed to do, because I’d had an idea. And it was a big idea, a big big idea. It was big like Dixon refusing to obey the President, big like Tommy and Angela lying down together to bring us all into the world. And if I went through with it, it would be a story like those stories that would be remembered, and talked about, not just for a period or two, but for generations and generations.

But what was it that those future people would call out to me when the story was acted out? That was what I was trying to figure out. Were they shouting ‘Go ahead! Do it! You’ll save us from starving and drowning!’ or were they telling me ‘No, you’ll ruin everything! You’ll lose us Earth forever!’?

The clearing emptied quickly. Everyone was anxious to get away from that cramped space between the trees and Circle of Stones. Some people wanted to eat, or to settle down their littles, but most just wanted to crawl under the bark roofs of their shelters and sleep. I wouldn’t have minded sleeping myself. I was so tired and felt so battered. And I was dreading dreading the things that might soon be coming my way if I stayed awake, really awake I mean, like I was awake when I stood and faced that leopard.

‘Hey John? What you doing?’ Gerry asked.

Little Jeff stood behind him, watching me with his big clever eyes, as if he already knew what was in my mind.

I looked round for David, but he had already gone. I guessed he thought I couldn’t do much harm now Any Virsry was over. That made me smile. There was a lot of harm I could still do.

‘Go on back,’ I said to them. ‘I might go see Tina for a bit. I’ll join you later.’

Then Tina herself came over.

‘Tom’s dick, John, you don’t let go, do you?’ she said, and laughed. It seemed she’d enjoyed my boldness earlier that waking. ‘Shall we go up Deep Pool for a bit before we sleep? Swim in the water. Clear our heads of all this?’

I nodded.

‘Good idea,’ I said, ‘but I’ve got something I need to do first, though. I’ll come to Deep Pool a bit later, if you’re willing to wait for me.’