Two Birds, One Feather: The Lives and Times of Lorewyn & Rhianyn in America

by C. J. Pearson

  The voice shifted to that of one of CBS radio’s announcers, his tone markedly different from the monotonous hum of Godfrey’s interview with his guests.

  “… here’s further detail on the news alert bulletin broadcast just a few moments ago on KNX radio. This is Dick Wall reporting. President Kennedy has been gunned down by an assassin’s bullets. The Chief Executive apparently was struck by two bullets; Texas Governor John Connally also was hit by at least one bullet. Both the President and the Governor are confined now to Parkland Hospital in Dallas…”

  Lorewyn froze, her hand not moving in the slightest on the knob. She slowly sat down again, continuing to listen as the report unfolded with further information on what had just happened in Dallas, Texas.

  She listened for a few more minutes, in shock, gathering what she could from reports coming in through correspondents in Dallas and Washington, updates by Dan Rather and others. She listened as the reporters confirmed that the President was still alive, but in serious condition, and that a priest had been called to his side as he was being treated in the emergency room.

  Lorewyn was finally able to pull herself away from the radio long enough to reach for the phone on her desk. She dialed the ranger station at Will Rogers State Park. The park dispatcher answered.

  “I need to speak to Julia Bancroft right away, please,” Lorewyn said, trying to keep her own voice steady.

  “I’m sorry, she’s on a call out in Sullivan Canyon this morning,” the dispatcher explained. “We’re expecting her back soon. Can I take a message?”

  “Yes, please have her call Theresa at the office as soon as she returns,” Lorewyn replied. “Tell her it’s urgent! And turn on your radio!”

  She hung up and continued listening to the broadcast. Rhianyn called back about 30 minutes later.

  “Yellowfeather, I got the message… what’s wrong?”

  “Blackbird…” Lorewyn’s voice was choked, trying to enunciate the words. “The President’s been shot! Oh my God… the President’s been shot!”

  Rhianyn didn’t seem to react over the phone for a moment. Just silence. Then her voice came through the line, soft and a bit stilted.

  “Did you just say… the President… President Kennedy… has been…?”

  Lorewyn was about to respond, but at that moment the conversation between correspondents on KNX regarding what information was being made available suddenly cut out and Dick Wall’s voice came back on, addressing the audience in a sober tone.

  “… Ladies and Gentlemen… the President of the United States is dead. John F. Kennedy… has died of the wounds… received in an assassination in Dallas… less than an hour ago. We repeat… it has just been announced… that President Kennedy… is dead…”

  Lorewyn’s hand slowly lowered the receiver from her ear, placing it on the desk. She could hear Rhianyn’s voice coming faintly through.

  “Yellowfeather? Can you hear me? Yellowfeather?!”

  Lorewyn couldn’t seem to answer. Her arms rested on the desk a moment later, and her head dropped into them. She was only barely aware of the continuing reports coming in through the radio on the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and of the barely audible click from the phone indicating that Rhianyn had ended the call on her end.

  ***

  Rhianyn left the park immediately following the call and drove straight to Madison-McKinley. She found Lorewyn still in the office. They went home together that very afternoon. The trip to Cabo was forgotten.

  They watched the news on TV for the rest of the day and over the following next couple days as well. They watched the funeral televised on November 25th, then Lyndon Johnson, who had been sworn in as President, deliver his address to Congress two days after that. Both Lorewyn and Rhianyn felt numb.

  “I was beginning to truly believe what Edie had said.”

  Lorewyn was talking to Rhianyn about it as they were walking together down by the pier a week after the President’s death.

  “I was really starting to believe in the hope she preached… about striving for those better days. I was really becoming convinced that Humanity, this realm, was reaching for that hope, coming into those better days, after so many centuries of war, hate, bigotry, and death. I wanted to believe it, Blackbird… and I was starting to, I really was. Things were changing. Project Mercury at NASA… Dr. Martin Luther King’s speech in Washington just three months ago… we were making progress. These people were making progress! And now…”

  She fell silent. They were standing at the end of the pier together, looking out at the Pacific Ocean. Rhianyn offered her thoughts.

  “Edie wasn’t lying,” she said. “She was a visionary, but she was also a realist. She saw that future, yes, but she knew it would take time. She also knew there would be a lot of cost and struggle yet to come to make it come true. Do you remember when we sailed across a different ocean over 40 years ago and first arrived on these shores? Do you remember when we looked up and saw the Statue of Liberty standing there, as if welcoming us to this new land? You had hope then too… so did I. But I reminded you that we were coming to a place that had a history of failed hopes and dreams deferred for many people. The American Dream isn’t exactly a promise, Yellowfeather… I’ve come to realize that over these past few decades living here. It’s a choice, just like you and I make choices. It’s also a contract. You enter into a contract with this nation, this way of life. But not everyone upholds contracts. Not all sides. America is a contract that has been made, renegotiated, broken, remade, then renegotiated once more, time and time again. Some people hate the fact that others who enter into the contract might benefit in some way, so they try to stop them. Some people intervene by killing the leaders, the ones who try to broker a more equitable and beneficial contract. We’ve seen that happen in our home realm too, remember? The assassination attempt on Rowyna, the Viscountess of Highvale? And we’ve seen other examples here on Earth as well, for centuries past in Europe… and now here in America with the assassination of President Kennedy. I’m sure there will be many more such attempts, things that people do to disenfranchise others in some way. But you and I, Yellowfeather, we can still make the choices each and every day… just like we resolved to choose us each and every day. We can still pursue the dream, try to do what’s right, and fulfill our side of the contract best we can, together.”

  Lorewyn smiled, reaching out to take her wife’s hand that was resting on the rail on the edge of the pier. “How did you get to be so incredibly wise, and so amazingly beautiful?” she asked lovingly.

  Rhianyn gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Well, most of the wisdom I learned from you… but the beauty… that just came naturally.”

  Lorewyn laughed and leaned in, hugging Rhianyn. “I think you should run for President in your next incarnation, Blackbird. I’d vote for you.”

  “Maybe I will,” Rhianyn jested. “Although, I’d love to see a woman President of the United States for sure.”

  “Me too!” Lorewyn agreed. “That would help to propel change and progress forward, no doubt. But based on what we heard in Dr. King’s speech back in August, I wouldn’t be surprised if we had a Black President before a woman President.”

  “Now that is something I hope we’re still around to see,” Rhianyn exclaimed.

  CHAPTER 20

  Cabo never happened, but Lorewyn and Rhianyn planned an alternative… and decided to stay a bit closer to home.

  “Santa Catalina Island,” Rhianyn recommended. “We sail out there, spend a week backpacking, camping out, exploring… it’ll be fun. There’s a small harbor town, Avalon, but most of the island is uninhabited, forest and hills, very scenic from what I understand. It’ll be like traveling to the Crown Islands again… except this time no deadly plague!”

  “I think it’s a great idea,” Lorewyn agreed. “And it’s only 26 miles across the sea. Not far at all.”

  “How do you know the exact distance?” Rhianyn asked, surprised.

  “It’s in
the song, silly,” Lorewyn chuckled. “You know…” She started singing the opening lines to 26 Miles (Santa Catalina) by The Four Preps, offering her wife a flirtatious kiss on the fourth and final “romance.”

  They planned it for the first week in October, 1964. Ideal weather. Lorewyn had just received a copy of the Warren Commission, made public only days before, and had intended to peruse it but left it sitting on her desk.

  “A week with my wife first,” she reasoned. “The report can wait until we get back.” She had packed her Phase Bow… target practice. Rhianyn dusted off her Defender and brought it as well, just for fun.

  They sailed out on a Saturday morning from Long Beach, landing at Avalon shortly before noon. They had lunch, did a supply check, then set out on foot toward the interior parts of the island. Rhianyn had mapped out their trek.

  “There are trails that cover a lot of the island, but we’re going to stray off the path some,” she explained. “I mean… we’re both pretty good at roughing it in the wild, right?” Lorewyn just laughed at the obvious.

  “There’s a lake near the middle,” Rhianyn continued, “with a river that we can follow to the shoreline. Then, we can skirt along the coast, make our way over to the isthmus, stop at Two Harbors if we need to for replenishing supplies, and explore the other side… returning to Avalon for the boat ride home.”

  They camped the first night off the trail some distance, finding the lake and adjoining river the following day. The river flowed southwest from the lake toward the opposite shore of the island, downhill mostly. It was later in the afternoon that Lorewyn and Rhianyn came across the waterfall.

  “Perimeter check,” Rhianyn commented, setting her pack down. “Let’s make sure we’re alone out here.”

  Lorewyn nodded and set off along the river bank, finding a section of arbors with sufficient growth to cross the river using branches and limbs above. She checked the other side while Rhianyn did a survey on the side from where they had come. Lorewyn returned about an hour later.

  “No one for a couple miles,” she grinned, already beginning to undress. “We’re all alone out here.”

  Rhianyn chuckled slyly and took off her clothes as well. A few moments later, both Elven women had dived into the river and were swimming amidst the plunging water from the rocks and cliffs above.

  Lorewyn made her way up to where the falls were cascading close to the jagged sides of the formation behind the curtain of water. There were a lot of footholds, places on which to easily climb. She grabbed onto the rocks and began scaling the cliff wall, the water from the falls splashing on her back as she ascended.

  “Blackbird, follow me!” she invited. Rhianyn saw what she was doing and joined her a few seconds later, climbing as well.

  Both women, completely nude, had scaled about halfway up. Lorewyn paused at one point and looked down, calculating the drop.

  “This looks good,” she recommended. “You ready?”

  “On the count of three?” Rhianyn suggested.

  “Eh, they always say three,” Lorewyn shrugged. “Let’s make it four… something different… like the four kindreds of Cordysia!”

  Rhianyn liked the idea and nodded. “Okay, on four.” She positioned herself and began to count with Lorewyn.

  “One… two… three… four!”

  On their mark, both of them flung themselves off the side, straightening their slender bodies downward, then diving perfectly into the water below.

  A moment later, both emerged on the surface, right at the base of the falls, laughing delightfully. Rhianyn swam up next to her wife and wrapped her arms around her, treading with her.

  “I fall for you deeper every time I fall with you, Yellowfeather,” she said. “And that goes for water, air, or any other medium we plunge through together.”

  They both closed their eyes, and their lips found each other’s, as the falls continued to descend in their midst. Lorewyn finally made the suggestion after a long and lingering kiss. “Natural ears?” She moved her hand past the side of her head, removing the enchantment that concealed her ears’ true appearance.

  “Definitely!” Rhianyn laughed, doing the same.

  They camped that night by the falls and continued on their way the next morning, reaching the south shore of the island and then following it west. By the next evening they were approaching the isthmus, with Catalina Harbor in sight.

  “The village of Two Harbors is at the north end of the harbor and just across the short strip of land that divides the island,” Rhianyn commented. “From there you can see Isthmus Cove. But I think we’re good on provisions, right? We shouldn’t have to stop in the village.”

  “Nah, let’s keep going and explore the other part of Catalina,” Lorewyn agreed. “We have time before we have to return to Avalon. We’ll take the long way.”

  It was night. They were traveling along the shore of the harbor making their way north to the isthmus when Rhianyn spotted something out in the harbor.

  “It’s a boat, I’m pretty sure,” she stated.

  Lorewyn looked to where she was pointing. Sure enough, there was a small craft moving into the harbor and approaching landfall not far from where the two of them were heading. Both she and Rhianyn kept trekking, watching the boat with curiosity as it gradually made port along a narrow strip of rocky beach some distance south of the isthmus. Rhianyn was puzzled.

  “That’s odd… if it was heading for Two Harbors, it would dock much farther north.” Both women moved away from the water some, beginning to walk stealthily, not making a sound. They were soon within about fifty yards of the boat, well hidden.

  There were no lights on the small vessel, but Lorewyn and Rhianyn’s keen Elven lowlight vision enabled them to see well enough. There were two men on the boat, both now coming onto shore. They were hooded and masked, the only open spaces being their eyes and mouths. There was a third person with them… a young woman in her 20’s. She was petite, with shoulder-length brown hair.

  She was also gagged and her hands were bound.

  The men got her out of the boat as well and sat her down on the ground, not terribly gently. One of the men spoke to the other.

  “Okay, so we’re here. They’re gonna find the ransom demand in the morning and make their move tomorrow. We gotta be ready.”

  “Rosen’s a talent agent,” the other man stated. “He’s got money. Plus, the studio will pay, especially with filming starting again soon. They’ll meet our demands.” He turned to the woman who was now seated on the ground, looking up angrily at the two men, her mouth still gagged. “Sorry, honey, it looks like this is gonna be a bit longer than just a three-hour tour.”

  The other man laughed. Lorewyn was listening carefully. The man who had spoken first… his voice sounded familiar. She couldn’t quite place it, though.

  The woman began mumbling, as if trying to say something. The first man was about to remove her gag, but the other man stalled him, removing a pistol first from his belt and pointing it at the woman’s head.

  “Say what you gotta say,” he warned, motioning with the gun, “but no screams… you got it?” He moved the barrel a bit closer for emphasis.

  The woman nodded in agreement, and the first man loosened her gag.

  “If you return me now,” she stated, her voice surprisingly calm, “I will promise that things will go easier for you, both of you. But if you keep this up, kidnapping me, holding me here, demanding money… I’ll make sure they throw the book at you!”

  “Brave words,” the man with the gun exclaimed, putting her gag back on. “Too bad we don’t have Ginger too!”

  Lorewyn suddenly put it together. She nudged Rhianyn gently. “Blackbird, do you know who that is?”

  Rhianyn had been watching and listening, but she hadn’t made the connection yet. She just shook her head.

  “That’s Dawn Wells!” Lorewyn exclaimed. Rhianyn still looked blank. “Mary Ann from Gilligan’s Island? She’s an actress.”

  Rhianyn
nodded and gave an affirming “ahhh,” as they continued watching. The man who first spoke tethered the boat while the man with the gun got the young actress to her feet. Then, the three of them began moving into the nearby woods.

  Lorewyn made a gesture and the two women began following the trio quietly, keeping their distance. They tracked them to a small abandoned wooden shack some distance from the harbor. The man with the gun took Dawn inside. The other man went inside as well for a moment, but then emerged again, now carrying a shotgun. He began to move slowly around the shack, as if patrolling.

  “They’re separated,” Lorewyn whispered. “This should be simple. We take out the chump with the shotgun first, then…”

  “No, we have to lure him a bit further from the shack,” Rhianyn observed. “The guy inside with Wells has a gun. If he suspects that his buddy outside is in trouble, he might panic and hurt her.”

  Lorewyn understood. “Good thinking. Okay, I’ll draw him away and stun him. What about the other guy inside?”

  “I’ll take care of him,” Rhianyn answered, quietly withdrawing her blade.

  Lorewyn grinned and slipped away, preparing her Phase Bow. I so love not having to carry a quiver and ammo with this contraption, she thought gratefully.

  She maneuvered over to the other side of the shack. The man with the shotgun had circled around it, keeping watch. Lorewyn was confident that she had not been seen. She was fond of Humans and had grown quite accustomed to living and working amongst them… but the reality was that she could still run circles around them and out-stealth even the most skilled Human tracker or woodsman.