Inside the mysterious, seemingly ordinary black box is a set of rings. At a glance, the little golden bands of metal don't seem like anything special, but Maria is about ready to swoon over them due to how cute they seem to her. "They're ADORABLE! But...what do these little rings have to do with our dreams of becoming huge, caring giantesses? Where did you even get these things in the first place?" she asks.
"Remember when we were digging through all the crap in my mom's basement the other day? When you found that old doll I let you keep because I'd throw it out? I found this box just...sitting there. Don't ask me how it got there, but there was barely any dust on it so it had to have been placed there recently. Oddly, when I showed my dad this, he couldn't open it. And he's a firefighter! He can carry an unconscious person in his suit with all of its heavy equipment no problem! And then yesterday, after you left I opened it without even breaking a sweat." Cloe explains, hoping that Maria gets the potential significance of it.
"So you're saying...that these rings are meant for us and us alone? Like Excalibur, King Arthur's sword? But who would want us to have a set of rings in the first place?" Maria asks, her eyes wide with awe. It's then that the 13 year old brunette's green eyes fall upon a small piece of paper, tucked in a corner of the box with great care. Gently, her Caucasian fingers tug the note free. Tears well up in her eyes slightly as she recognizes her father's handwriting, even before she begins reading it.
"You...okay there, Maria? You seem as though you've seen a ghost or something..." Cloe asks her friend with concern.
"I-I'm fine. It's just that this note was written by my dad before he died. It's been over a year, I should be over it by now, I know Cloe... But then this comes along and brings back some of the good times." Maria responds, trying to wipe the tears from her eyes.
"When the hell would I ever tell you such a stupid thing? 'Get over it'... Maria, if you 'got over' your dad's passing so easily that something like this wouldn't stir up memories and emotions, I would never ever let you become a giantess. Someone so cold and heartless is undeserving of such a thing!" Cloe shouts back passionately. Maria knows her friend is quite opinionated, and gets like this on the topics she believes in. It's one of the reasons the two became such strong friends in the first place, even if in the beginning they could hardly stand each other. "Now then, what did he write? Clearly there's more to him than even you knew."
Maria nods and says, "Thanks. I needed that from my friend. Let's see here... 'Dear Maria,
'If you're reading this, then I have long since moved on from this world. I know not what awaits me beyond the veil of death, but it has been a good life with few regrets. The least of which is you, for even in the final days of my losing struggle against cancer, you have been the light that encouraged me to fight on to the bitter end. I hope that you and your mother Molly forgive me for being unable to physically be with you any longer, and that you never forget that I loved both of you very much.'"
At this point, Maria breaks down and cries. Cloe does the best thing she can do for her friend's current emotional train wreck and offers a supportive shoulder just as she did over a year ago. She takes the note from her friend's shaky grasp and proceeds to read the rest of it, fearing Maria to be unable to get past that without continually crying herself dry.
"I'll finish reading this for you, Maria. You just take it easy and let it all out. 'However, there are a few things I feel you are ready to know that I do regret being unable to tell you personally. Molly...was not my first wife. In my defense, nearly all of my friends and family were long dead by the time I was awakened. You see, your lineage traces back to the lost civilization of Atlantis. We were a prosperous civilization, and with advances far greater than even those seen in the modern world today. However, disaster struck our civilization and sent it to the depths of the sea. A few of us were placed in suspended animation, but not nearly enough.
'It would be an unknown number of centuries later that we would awaken, when the rest of the world would be at least tolerable to live in for us. The designers were arrogant fools, but in hindsight if they weren't we would have been awakened much earlier and I wouldn't be able to write this to you. My closest friend, Cassandra, and I made new lives for ourselves in this strangely primitive but beautiful world. We fell in love and we partook in this new culture's custom of marriage, attending each others' wedding. As it so happened, we ended up as next door neighbors, and eventually were both blessed with a child. She named her child Cloe, and it delighted me to see both of you become such close friends.
'Which is precisely why I had asked Cassandra to hold on to this box for both of you until she believed you ready for what would be contained within. I'm well aware of your interests, as well as the motivations behind them. Only those of our ancient lineage would be able to open the box and use these rings to fulfill nearly anything their heart desires. We gave one each to our beloved partners, but sadly they have been able to only make minimal use of them. I ask only that you and Cloe remain true to yourselves, and do not let anyone else steer you otherwise.
'Your loving father,
'Johan
'P.S. Cloe, if you're reading this, I wish to say how proud I am to have seen you become such a shining example of what girls should be, and unwilling to let society tell you how you should be.'" Cloe takes a moment to gather her thoughts. She and Maria were descendants of a lost civilization, and have been given the power to make their dreams come true. She smiles with regard to the last part, as she's always found the supposed girl magazines to be good for a laugh. Someday she may meet a special someone and fall in love, but they'll have to accept her as she is. "Wow... This is incredible news!" she finally says.
Maria has since finished crying, but she's been following every word read out loud. She picks up and tries on one of the rings, and feels a pleasant coursing of power through her veins. Maria then...   indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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