Claire
"Why am I not allowed to see my own sister?"
Claire snapped as she closed the door behind her.
Her mother sat hunched over on a chair, facing away from
her.
It
took quite some time before a response came. Just when Claire was convinced
that her mother had not heard her or that she simply decided to ignore her,
Claire parted her lips to speak. However, before any sound came from Claire's
throat, her mother looked over her shoulder.
Claire
was taken aback by the wearisome look beaming from her mother's eyes.
Does she even try to sleep?
"Hey sweety, come here," Sophie reached her
hand out while giving her daughter a faint smile.
Claire sauntered up to her mother. "You still
haven't answered my question."
Sophie pushed out a long exhale as she grabbed her
daughter's hand, giving it a kiss and cuddling it with both hands. "I'm
sorry, dear. It's just… I don't know anymore. I'm sorry, honestly. I should not
have done that."
Claire couldn't bring herself to tell her mother that it
was all okay, so she merely let her hand do the communication by giving her
mother's hand a soft squeeze. Even though Claire understood her mother, it
still felt like a betrayal to deny her access to her very own sister.
With
pain in her heart, Claire glanced at the blond girl lying peacefully in bed.
Several tubes were connected to her body, and an attached screen showed her
heart rate, body temperature, and blood pressure information. The girl was
luckily able to breathe by herself – despite her comatose state – so a ventilator
wasn't needed.
Claire
caressed Madison's cheek and plucked away a strand of hair that dangled over
one of her closed eyes.
"Shall I reposition her?" Claire was already
walking to the side of the bed.
Sophie shook her head while keeping her gaze focused on
her youngest daughter. "We have staff for that, dear. They just flipped
her over not longer than an hour ago."
"But I don't want strangers to take care of
her!" Claire fumed. "I want to do that!"
Sophie gave her daughter a dry look. "Are you
medically skilled? Are you available 24/7?"
Claire sighed and averted her eyes. After a long silence,
Claire said. "I blame you,"
It remained silent for another moment, then Sophie said.
"Me too, dear. Me too…"
"You should check out the news, by the way,"
Claire said, looking at her mother. "The RUG movement is busy organizing a
protest again. The biggest yet. Expectations are that things will get pretty
hairy. They are planning to march over here."
Sophie snorted, shifting her position while crossing one
leg over the other. "Pitiful buggers. The authorities will take care of
it."
Sophie's radical actions by shrinking whole neighborhoods
and even entire cities down to a pathetically small size tore whole families
apart.
At
first, you only saw some cluttered groups teeming about hither and thither,
demanding attention. Gradually, more and more normal-sized Brobdingnagians were
demanding to be reunited with their shrunken, abducted loved ones. They called
themselves the RUG movement, meaning: Reunite Use Goddamnit.
However, as this group grew – along with Sophie's
unceasing shrink spree – likewise grew the strength of their voice.
More and more influential people got shafted when
Sophie's unquenchable thirst for shrinking people and property by tearing whole
families apart.
Lawyers,
lawmakers, musicians, and even some high-profile TV personalities all joined
ranks with the RUG movement when members of their families were shrunk down and
snatched away from life by Sophie's greedy hands. When the movement's voice
became too strong to ignore and even the President – practically not more than
a puppet ruler – started to beg Sophie to make certain concessions, things were
put in motion.
Sophie ensured that the group's goal of reuniting with
their loved ones was realized. However, not in the manner they had hoped.
They were told to gather on a grand plaza in a nearby
historical town where they would reunite with lost family members and friends.
Desperate to seize this opportunity, the vast majority of its members gave heed
to these instructions and showed up in the early morning. A small portion,
however, the careful types, decided to stay on the sideline. And their instinct
was right.
Contrary to the expectations of many – who thought that
Sophie would actually restore those shrunken Brobdingnagians back to their
original form – the whole historical town was targeted by Sophie's frightful
powers that morning and dwindled down in size until its full surface wasn't
even able to cover the picture of the Queen's picture from a deck of playing
cards.
The
last thing that was seen of these unfortunate Brobdingnagians was that they
were carried in Sophie's hand as she stepped inside her expensive sportscar to
drive off. It calmed down after that, just like Sophie had hoped. But things
were stirring up now, inflaming even brighter than before.
People were sick of it and wanted to know what had
happened to their loved ones.
"Where are you going?" Sophie jerked up when
Claire simply walked off without saying anything.
Claire shrugged. "Who knows. Perhaps scoring a gin
tonic with that hobbit you'd stationed in front of my door?" She said with
a sarcastic tone.
"What about Haisley?"
"What about her?" Claire ceased her pace just
as she was about to open the door.
"Just… be careful. I do not trust that girl."
Sophie said.
Claire chuckled. "Funny thing that advice like that
comes precisely out of your mouth." She opened the door
and slammed it closed behind her.
After meandering through various hallways in the mansion
– whereby she took a wrong turn more than once and scolded one of the many
hobbit servants teeming about in the house – Claire stopped by a door in front
of one of the many rooms built in the cellar. Two hobbit guards stood in front
of it. And unlike last time, these gentlemen smiled reverently at her before
letting her in.
When the door was closed, Claire flipped the lights on
and started fumbling in her cleavage. A miniature figure – roughly as tall as a
cigarette – was fished out by Claire's thumb and index finger.
"Fuck, it's hot in there!" A minuscule Haisley
scrambled to her feet after being plunged down in the open palm of Claire's
hand. The latter chuckled.
"I thought you liked it in there," Claire said,
smiling while looking down upon her secret lover.
"I do! I really do, Claire. Don't
ever doubt that. The heat in there just makes me moist, that's all."
"Moisty in a good way?" Claire smiled
mischievously while seductively jerking her eyebrows.
"Moisty in various ways. I also have my
period."
Claire's smile faded in a blink, showing a glare of
revulsion. "That is so gross of you to tell me!"
Haisley shrugged. "You find me hot still anyway,
seeping blood or not."
Claire couldn't disagree with that.
"Why are you so harsh on your mother, by the
way?" Haisley took a stroll on Claire's hand, resting her arms behind her
back.
"Uhm, I don't know, Haisley. Perhaps because
she earns it!"
"Not so loud, please. Sheesh!" Haisley covered
her ears. "You want to pop my drums?"
"Sorry," Claire placed her
hand in front of her lips.
"Okay, so what's the plan?"
Haisley walked up to the edge of Claire's hand and placed her hands on her
hips.
Both girls looked out over a vast
room full of microscopic cities dotted on the floor. Most of these were
shrunken cities harvested by Claire's mother. However, Claire and Haisley
enjoyed observing what would occur if a few Lilliputian cities were merged with
the shrunken ones. To make the experience even more exciting, Claire ensured
that the mini Brobdingnagians were even a tad smaller than the
Lilliputians.
Despite the fact that Claire and Haisley both hoped so
eagerly for a full-scale act of retaliation by the Lilliputians against the now
tiny Brobdingnagians, none has been committed yet.
How hilarious would it be for them to spend their leisure
evening – enjoying popcorn and liquor – watching as omniscient Gods from above
as a horde of vengeful Lilliputians would raze through Brobdingnagian streets
like suppressed underlings seeking to settle accounts with the now vulnerable
tyrants.
Some Lillian freedom fighters might see themselves as
liberators while freeing Lilliputian cities previously occupied by the
Brobdingnagians. These cities had to be infinitesimal right now as they shrunk
down even further when Sophie attacked the Brob cities.
At
the moment, that was a vain hope. No skirmishes were taking place between the
Lillis and the Brobs.
As an all-powerful Goddess, Claire
could always trigger a war with just a simple order coming from her mouth. And
if they wouldn't listen? Well... then the underside of her boot was waiting for
them.
"Can you place me over there,
please?" Haisley pointed at one of the shrunken Brobdingnagian cities.
"Clearwater?" Claire frowned. "Why over
there?"
Haisley rubbed her hands with a big
smile. "My abusive stepfather lives there. I want to make sure that he's
worshipping you properly."
Claire smiled while shaking her head.
"You really want to submit this bunch to me, don't
you?"
"Screw these bunch!"
Haisley spun around, looking up at her gigantic friend. "They merely serve
as a simulation. I want you, my lovely Claire, to become The
Ultimate Goddess of the World!"
"Well, you better go hang out
with my mother then. She's well underway of becoming The Ultimate Goddess of
the World."
"Your mother can't hold a candle
to you, dear Claire," Haisley said.
Claire's eyes hardened as she said in a serious tone.
"I will not betray my mother."
"Hey! Hey!" Haisley brought
up her hands defensively. "That's not at all what I meant. I'm just saying
that you rock, girl! And I love it! I cannot imagine anyone else to serve but
you."
Claire gave a sheepish smile,
flattered by Haisley's words.
"Now, can you put me down,
please?" Haisley asked.
Claire nodded. She walked up to
Clearwater, crouched down and allowed Haisley to disembark her hand. She stood
back up to her full height and saw Haisley's figure vanishing in the city as
she shrunk her down even further while keeping her big enough so she would be
able to match the size of their skyscrapers.