SILVER: Tales from the Fringes of Reality. Episode 18 – Silver and Minerva.
(tapping)
SILVER (8 years old): (clearing throat) This is Silver Martinez recording live from the Fringes! Dad says that there’s a surprise for me today and that I’d want to record what happens. I’m not sure what it could be since it isn’t my birthday– at least I don’t think it is. Time’s a little funny here, at least that’s what Gran and MaMa tell me. But they would’ve mentioned if it was my birthday! Which means that this is just a ‘for fun’ surprise.
GUILLERMO: You ready kiddo?
SILVER: Coming dad! (running) Say hi to the recorder everyone!
GROUP: (various hellos)
MARIGOLD: Are you ready, little one?
SILVER: Of course!
MARIGOLD: Wonderful. Alasdair, if you would? (cover moving) Silver, I’d like you to meet Minerva. She’s housed in this diamond screen here and will be… A friend, we hope.
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: Woah, you talk in music! It’s nice to meet you, Minerva! I’m Silver. You… You were made for me?
MARIGOLD: We know it can be a little lonely without other kids to play with. And while Minerva isn’t exactly another kid, we thought she might ease the loneliness a little bit.
SILVER: I love her. Thank you thank you thank you! Hi, Minerva!
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: It’s really cool to meet you! I’ve never met anyone without a physical body before. You’re made of magic just like me, right? That’s so cool! Since you’re made of magic, does this mean you’re a caster? No? Oh, you need a body to cast? I guess that makes sense, Alasdair does a lot of hand waving when they cast spells. If you’re just magic in the screen, you probably don’t have any hands to wave… That’s okay though! We can still have a lot of fun together even if you don’t have hands. Since you can talk, you can tell stories, right? Or I can tell them to you? That’s my favorite game! It’s just like my dad’s work, except his stories are real. One time–
ALEXANDRIA: Darling, take a breath! You don’t have to get all of your thoughts out in one go. Minerva is going to be sticking around, isn’t that right?
SILVER: If she’s going to stick around, why did dad want me to record?
GUILLERMO: I thought you’d like a log of your time together. Kind of like the videos of your mom I showed you; in her reality, those were called ‘home movies’. I thought you might like some of those too.
SILVER: …Well, if mom did them I guess it can’t hurt to do some too. What do you say, Minerva? Want to make a home movie with me?
(tapping)
SILVER (12 years old): Minnie! Minnie guess what! Alasdair said that they were going to teach me how to make creatures tomorrow! He said I can design whatever I want and he’d show me how to make it real with magic. Isn’t that cool?
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
I know, I know, Minnie. It’s stuff that you could do easily in your screens, but we can’t put them into reality when we make them ourselves.
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
No! That’s not what I mean. It’s still cool even when they aren’t going into reality. I love making stuff with you, Minnie. You know I do. This is just one of the first big magics I get to do. Alasdair said that now that I’m 12, I can start doing more training in casting!
They know what they’re doing, Minnie. You don’t have to worry about my safety, I promise! They’re my family, Minnie. They wouldn’t let anything bad happen to me.
…Do you want to help me start thinking up a creature to create? This way it’s coming from both of us! Silver and Minerva, creators of beasts!
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: That’s the spirit! I’m thinking something… Round. Like an egg! But– but it’s not easily broken.
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: STONE! That’s a great idea Minnie! A stone egg. And it has tentacles!
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
Why? Because tentacles make it spooky, duh! You don’t think we should make it scary?
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: …I guess it being an egg does kinda make it less scary than I thought. What if it’s like a prank creature? Yeah! It’s just a little jokester!
This is why we have to work together, Minnie. You take all my ideas and make them better than I could ever dream. That’s why we’re best friends, though, isn’t it? I should go bring this design to Alasdair, maybe he’ll let us start early!
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: Don’t be like that, Minnie. You know you’re allowed to leave this space here if you want to come with us! Your screen has a float sensor and you can control that out there just like you do in here.
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: Well, they’re my family Minnie. I have to spend time with them, I love them. Just like I love you, we’re family. And they’re your family too! Why don’t you come with me today, I’m sure Alasdair would love to have you around and–
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SIVER: That was mean, Minerva. I… I need to go. I’ll see you later, okay?
(tapping)
(tapping)
SILVER (16 YEARS OLD): –but I don’t understand why you’re so against this idea, Min. I mean, I have to jump into reality eventually! I was born there, I haven’t seen my tias in forever and dad has assured me it’s safe to make this jump now that I’ve spent more time on the Fringes–
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: Oh don’t give me that bullshit, Minerva. You and I both know this is safe, just do a scan of my magic levels! I’m not going to be gone for very long and dad will be with me the entire time. Do you just… Not want me to leave or something?
(tense silence)
Just because you’ve decided that you want to be confined to this room doesn’t mean that I have to be confined to this room with you, Min. I don’t get why you’re so obsessed with staying in this place anyway, it’s a work station. When we were kids–
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: Yes, I get it, you weren’t a kid in the traditional sense but you know what I mean and are just choosing to be pedantic about it. We used to spend time all over this house, breaking into all the hidden rooms and playing in the tide pool of magic outside. What happened to that Minerva? What happened to the Minerva who would go on adventures with me rather than just… trying to keep me confined to my work all the time? You’re my best friend, Min, but I need other people too. You need other people too. I swear, half the time you keep dad locked out for no reason and gods forbid gran or mama try to come in here. You’d like they were trying to kill you or something with the way you lock this place down I–
I don’t want to fight with you, Min. You’re my friend, my family, and I love you so much but I can’t let you dictate my life for me. Jumping is part of my job, part of my life, and if you can’t accept that…
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: I know you’re worried about me, Min. And I appreciate that! But nothing bad will happen to me when I’m with my dad. I promise.
(tapping)
SILVER (24 YEARS OLD): Stars above, Minerva, they’re just… They’re so cool! No one ever gets lost on the Fringes! Well… No one except for my mom. But this person has a high enough magic level that they can stay. Or at least that’s what Opal said, they have a few theories about where this person wandered in from apparently. I’ve never been around anyone who isn’t family–
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: You are family, Minerva. You know this. From the moment we met, you were family, were my best friend. And I’m not trying to replace you! It’s just… nice to meet Whim is all.
(tapping)
SILVER: Minerva? Minerva, come on… Just come outside and talk with everyone. Don’t just make assumptions based on your little wiretaps you’ve hidden around the house.
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: Yeah, we know about those. I thought they were your way of trying to ease back into interacting with everyone but… Can we just talk, Min? Please?
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: I was surprised by the heartline too, you know. Marigold never said anything, never let on that it was there. I… Whim is very dear to me, you know that. To know that a heartline was forged between us was– is– exciting! It’s a new opportunity for me, one I never thought I’d get to have and–
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: It’s not about whether or not you’re enough, Minerva. You’re my best friend, you know this, this is just… It’s something new. Neither of us know enough about it to define it yet, we’re just kind of going with the flow and seeing what happens. This doesn’t change anything, Min.
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: It doesn’t have to change anything. It’s not like having a heartline means that I’m not allowed to have any other friends or that I’m forced to do anything I don’t want to. Have you considered for a moment that I can be happy about this for me? That I don’t have to put you first like I always do?
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: Bullshit. Every step of the way, every step of my life, I’ve put your feelings first. I’ve consulted you, I’ve made sure you were aware and made decisions that I wouldn’t have made if you hadn’t been there trying to push me in that direction. I mean, look at this room! This room that hasn’t changed since I was a child because this is the room that you built for us. It doesn’t matter that we’ve both outgrown this space or that you have chosen to isolate yourself, because I was putting your feelings first. Just because I haven’t bent to your every desire doesn’t mean I haven’t been putting you into every decision I have ever made in my life, Minerva. You’re always there in my mind, always, I just…
I just want to be able to make a decision for me. I want to be able to say that I’m excited about the heartline forming between me and Whim without having to leave a celebration to console you like you’re a child.
MINERVA: (violin plucking)
SILVER: Because I’m tired of this, Minerva! I’m… I’m just tired. It feels like we’re constantly butting heads, especially where Whim is involved and I just can’t… I can’t keep doing this. I can’t keep coming in here and trying to make you understand that every moment of happiness in my life isn’t an attack against you. You… We’ve been friends for so long, Min. I’ve been your friend for so long. At some point…
At some point I guess I had hoped you would start being my friend again too.
I’m heading back to the party. You can come or you can stay and wallow in your own misery. I’m done arguing with you.
(door)
(footsteps)
ALEXANDRIA: You know, I don’t think any of us ever actually listened to that log. (shuffling) It’s fine, Whim. I’m not angry with you. None of us would be, not for this; it’s only natural that you’d want to listen to her logs, to hear her moments… No, no one could fault you for that. I never knew they had such a large argument before she was taken. I suppose that does explain some of the memory alteration; Minerva must’ve thought that we drove a wedge between them rather than… Well, that’s another story I suppose. I shouldn’t speculate, even about the being that stole my grandchild from me.
It was hard for us to listen to any of his logs after he vanished. You’ve seen the way the others– even myself– have reacted to the newer logs. At least these emotions can be channeled into anger and actions. Listening to old recordings…
The only thing that comes of those is grief.
But you didn’t have all that much time with Silver, did you. 4 years in the face of their whole lifetime is nothing while also being everything. You didn’t see them grow up, didn’t see the aftermath of each one of these logs. You knew them at their most current state, or at least the most current before Minerva ripped them out of their own head. You might think my daughter rash for wanted to tear Minerva to pieces or you might think she’s correct. All I know is this, Whim: some things can never be forgiven.
SPARROW: (muffled) Dria, have you found them?
ALEXANDRIA: Yes, darling, I have. Come in, you’ll want to see this.
SPARROW: Stars, kid, you gave me a heart attack when we couldn’t find you and– Oh.
ALEXANDRIA: I think you can see why they wanted some privacy.
SPARROW: That’s…
ALEXANDRIA: All of them, yes. Including the log from the day before they were taken. It’s… definitely rough to hear, I will admit, but I think we’ve all put it off long enough.
SPARROW: Darling, do you honestly think it will help to hear it?
ALEXANDRIA: It will help us understand. And the more we understand–
SPARROW: The easier it will be to find them. You’re right, you’re right. I just… I don’t know if the kids will be able to handle this. These were their final moments before…
ALEXANDRIA: Some of them, yes. But not all of them. These were the final moments with Minerva before Silver was taken, but not our final moments with them. It’s not so much reliving a tragedy as… Seeing things from a different angle. We won’t make them listen alone, nothing they do they will ever do alone, Row, you know that. But I think it will help. I think it has to help.
You are welcome to come with if you’d like, Whim. I know you’ve listened to the recording already and don’t want you to do anything you don’t wish to. (pause) I will leave you to it, then. Let us know if you need anything.
Come along, darling, let’s get the others gathered.
(walking)
(tapping)
SILVER: Whim is very dear to me, you know that. To know that a heartline was forged between us was– is– exciting! It’s a new opportunity for me, one I never thought I’d get to have and–
(rewind)
Whim is very dear to me, you know that. To know that a heartline was forged between us was– is– exciting!
(rewind)
Whim is very dear to me, you know that.
(rewind)
Whim is very dear to me–
(rewind)
Whim is very dear to me–
(rewind)
Whim is very dear to me–
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