When You Were Young

Wendell raised his arms to find his arms took up only half the sleeves. Reverend Crane stood over him like a giant and even Molly now looked down on him. Wendell toddled towards the cave entrance on his tiny legs, but Reverend Crane yanked him back. "I'm afraid you can't leave yet, my child. Not until Mr. Pryde and I have completed our task. Molly, watch our little stowaway and make sure he does not escape."

"Can't I go with you, Reverend? I promise I won't get in the way. I want to help you cleanse this place of the heathens and savages. Please," Molly said.

He knelt down to look Molly in the eyes and brushed hair away from her face. "I need you to stay here and make sure no one else finds the fountain. It's a very important job and that's why I'm leaving it to you, my love."

"If it's that important, I'll stay here."

"Very good. We will return soon and then we will be able to be together forever." The reverend kissed Molly on the lips, a brief, dry kiss that nonetheless had her on the verge of fainting. Then the reverend and Pryde took their buckets of water and left the cave.

"Molly, you can't let them do this," Wendell said. "They're going to kill Mr. Gooddell and the others. Do you want that on your conscience?"

"I feel bad for Mr. Gooddell because he is a nice man, but what Reverend Crane is doing is important. He's going to make a heaven right here where no one will ever grow old or sick and everyone will worship God and no one will be able to keep us apart ever again."

"He doesn't love you," Wendell said. "He's using you for his own purposes."

"He does so love me. He told me himself. He said I'm the prettiest girl on this whole island and the one he wants to spend eternity with."

"He only said that to get you to help him. He's going to use your love to keep you in his power for the next three hundred years and when you finally do rise against him, he erases your memory and makes you a girl again."

"He wouldn't do that to me. How could you know?"

"I've come here from the future. I know what he's going to do. Please, Molly, we have to stop him now or he'll keep us all as his slaves for over three hundred years."

"Let's do something about those clothes," Molly said. She took Wendell by the arm. He tried to shake her off, but couldn't in his weakened state. From a pocket of her dress she produced a pair of scissors. "I thought I would use these to alter my dress, but I suppose we ought to do yours first so you aren't tripping all over your pant legs."