Alternate Realities

Few of my longtime friends live close to me; it may have something to do with the fact that the place most of us came from is no place at all, just a mass hallucination of frightened, irrelevant prejudices crystallized into a lifelike form by the tundra. Spread out as we are, however, we’ve managed to maintain a connection, and I carry them with me like little aural holograms.

There are moments when I can hear the infectious laugh of my Libra twin (Look, water — turn right!), or the erudite warmth of my lawyer-to-be friend (If a man you don’t know suddenly brings you flowers…), or the deep, commanding tones and playful reassurance of my dearest, darling Red. (Get a spine, goddammit! Punt!). So thanks for being the voices in my head...you’re much better than the alternative.

“Only Harry saved him. Calvin might resent and sometimes fear and occasionally hate his friend, but Harry’s voice, so cool in his head, so calmly on his side, reminded him to pick his battles. He simply stared at the table and reiterated his innocence as he flicked away a handful of his own blood.” ~ The Long Black Veil, Chapter 33