Chapter Twelve - Identicality

 After a short time getting over the fact that she had a clone, Annabelle went into her room and changed out of her soaked clothes. Keera, as asked, calmly waited in the living room as Annabelle did this. A few moments passed and Annabelle came out of her bedroom, her long hair pulled back into a ponytail, sitting down next to Keera. 

 "I guess the first thing I am going to ask is, do you remember anything from MY life? I read that clones remember some certain things from their hosts lives, from the time they were born to their current age." Annabelle said. "Of course that was a science fiction book, talking about the possibilities of cloning..."

 "...I didn't think they could actually do it, but I guess you proved them wrong. I suppose in that case you are going to grow naturally for the rest of your life?"

"Yep."

 

 "And yeah, I remember a lot of things, like how you dumped water on Tom that one time..." Keera then smiled, "...actually I remember you doing that a lot of times. Hmmm... anyway, yes I do have your memories, but as you said only until I so-called 'turned ten', the age I am supposed to be at now. I do not remember anything past that age, however, but I'm sure that will come back to me. Strangely, I also remember something about a detective movie, but you weren't there, it was someone else."

 "So what about yourself?" Keera asked, "What has happened to you since you turned eleven?"

"Um... stuff."

"What kind of stuff? Please tell me! I want to know about your life, considering you are technically my mother, I would like to know a few things about you." 

 "Well... the story of my life after eleven isn't a happy tale, well mostly anyway. On my eleventh birthday I thought I was old enough to see a movie called 'Night of the Killer Unicorn', one supposedly based on a real event that took place in the sixties in Sunset Valley.  I've been terrified of those things ever since. A few months after my birthday I was witness to a meteor shower that destroyed much of this town. A lot of people didn't make it. We were forced to move out of town, to Bridgeport...."

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Meanwhile, Tom, Kelly, Scarlett, and John were down at the arcades, the former playing Foosball and the latter two playing arcade games. Scarlett, a hot-headed girl, was visibly getting upset at the game for killing her character too much. 

 "How's your game going?" Scarlett asked.

"Pretty good, yours?" John replied.

  
"It's really starting to anger me."

"What else is new?"

"I'm down to three lives! Why did I pick this stupid game?!" Scarlett smacked the arcade.

"Because the machine is red, perhaps?"

"...good point."

 Meanwhile, Kelly and Tom were nearby playing a game of Foosball, one that Tom was losing at.

"I don't know, cous'." Kelly said, "Do you think we should have left Annabelle by herself at home? I mean, she did just have a horrific experience a few months ago. Being kidnapped and all."

 "Annabelle's a strong young woman, she can handle herself. I'm sure if there's trouble she can stop it. Besides, she was the one that saved my life at Plasma 501. Trust me Kelly, she's tough."

 "Well, what about you?"

"What about me?"

"Well, you underwent the same thing, even more so because you were in two different fist fights in the same night, that and the whole thing about you seeing your father's spirit after falling down those stairs-"

"What are you saying, that I hit my head, imagined my father's voice, and magically healed myself? I know what I saw, heard, and felt Kelly. Besides, before that I didn't even believe in magic. Everything that I believed was possible or impossible changed that night. Hell, for all I know UNICORNS could exist! Annabelle believes they do, so.... WHO knows?!"

"GAME OVER" Scarlett's game said. She slammed her hands on the controls and walked away angrily. 

"Stupid game. It didn't jump when I told it to, there was no reason for killing me!" Scarlett said. "Screw this, I'm going to get a gumball, you want one?"

"What? Nah, I'm good." 

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  "...Then there was this British Millionaire and his adopted father, both of them were corrupted, snobby pieces of sh... well, that's a word not for youthful ears. Jack Tooms was the father's name, and he was known as the Benefactor, a man who funded criminals to perform research for creating devastating weapons, like one that caused the Meteor Shower. We met the Benefactor once, in Bridgeport's library..."

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"So since we've been back to Sunset Valley, how many times have you spent the night at the Graveyard hoping to see your parents' spirits? I've noticed you sneaking out of the house all the time, Tom." 

 

  "Work. WORK DAMN YOU!!!! Don't make me kick you!" 

 "I am only going there to see if I'm not crazy and my parents really are there." Tom replied. "I kind of hope to see them one day, when I really need them, like when I did in Bridgeport. Who knows when that will happen."

 

  "Damn gumball machine, give me my red gumball! NOW!" Scarlett reached her leg over and kicked the machine, unfortunately this caused gumballs to spill out, making her lose traction in her boots. 

 

   "Whoa!!!"    

"If you want, Tom, we can go right now, to the graveyard. I know it's broad daylight so there's next to no chance of seeing them, but I haven't really seen where my aunt and uncle are buried."

 

 "

"Well, I suppose you're right." Tom replied after a short time thinking about it. "After we finish this game we go to the graveyard, deal?"

"Deal." Kelly said.

  "Ow."

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 "... and we just barely escaped the Plasma 501 before it violently exploded, I used some sort of teleportation ability that I learned from what I believed to be my parents from a distant planet, my birth parents anyway. Unfortunately I haven't been able to use it since then. I dunno. So that's pretty much been the gist of what's happened since I turned eleven." 

"........"

"Well you asked."