"Mama." "How does this story begin?" "It begins like so many stories" "With a boy... too old to be a kid... too young to be a man." "And a nightmare." "It has two fundamental constants:" "E, the base of the natural logarithm system." "It is a number." "It is a number that emerges from our scheme." "What is the mathematical function or thing which describes things..." "By the rate which they change is proportional to their magnitude?" "If you do that mathematically, it will give you this fundamental constant." "Conor?" "You all right there, Conor?" "You look tired." "Are you getting enough rest?" "Yeah, I'm fine." "Because you know if you ever want to talk..." "I'm fine." "Okay." "Everyone, eyes front." "Pi is the ratio of the conference, and when it all..." "Careful, O'Malley." "You might fall." "Are you drunk or something?" "Get his ass slapped so his mummy can kiss it for him." "You're always off in your own little dream world." "And what's there?" "So interesting?" "Get up." "You've been a good boy." "Remember, O'Malley." "Good boys don't talk." " Hey, Con." " Hey, mum." " What is that?" " It's a surprise." " So this is a VCR?" " This is much better than a VCR." "It's your grandpa's old film projector." " There we go." " I wish you could have known him." "Who?" "Grandpa." "Even grandma was softened up around him." "Yeah, all right." "Here we go." "What a bunch of assholes." "Why are they trying to kill King Kong?" "People don't like what they do not understand." "They get scared." "King Kong could've just smashed them all... break them into a million pieces." "Conor." "Mum?" "I have come to get you, Conor O'Malley." "Why don't you run, Conor O'Malley?" "Why don't you run for your mother?" "You leave her alone." "I'm not afraid of you." "I will visit you again on further nights, Conor O'Malley... and I will shake your walls until you wake." "And then I will tell you three stories." "You're going to tell me stories?" "I am." "I will tell you three stories." "And when I've finished my stories, you will tell me a fourth." "I don't know anything about stories." "You will tell me a fourth and it will be the truth." " What are you talking about?" " This truth that you hide." "The truth you dream." " You will tell me your nightmare." " No." "Yes." "That will be your truth." "And if I don't?" "Oh, Con, I was asleep." "You should be in your own bed, Con." "Five minutes." " That is not true." " Yes it is." " Come on, Con." " Just five minutes." "I promise." "Five minutes." "Night night." "I respect that, Lizzie, I do." "But the last thing your father would want would be for him to go to America... to live with some strange woman and her strange child." "We have to discuss this now." " Hey, Con." " Ah, there's the little man." " Where did you say you got these?" " From a very nice old people's home." "They're clearing it out to make flats and I will be the agent." "Your mother needs a cup of tea." "Green, no sugar." "I take mine black." "What do you think, Con?" "He loves it." " Go on." " Okay." "Go on." "Try something else." " I'm only doing this for you." " I do not have this conversation now." "I understand that, but you can not go on like this, Lizzie." " You have to take some decisions." " I'm not doing that." "Go help Conor with the tea, or I'm literally going insane." " You and I need to have a talk." " I'm making tea." " I said I'm making tea." " We need to..." "I'm not the enemy, Conor." "I'm here to help your mother." " I know why you're here." " I'm here because... 12 year old boys shouldn't be wiping down counters without being asked to first." " You want to do it?" " Less of your cheek." "She is always sick after her treatments." "She'll be better tomorrow, and then you can go home." "She'll seem better tomorrow." "She needs to talk about this with you." "Talk to me about what?" " About you're coming to live with me." " I will never come to live with you..." " Listen to me, Conor, if your mother..." " There is no if." "She'll be better and then you can go." "Oh, Lizzie?" "Lizzie!" "My God." "Hold on, hold on." "Where's the medicine?" "Conor!" "Conor!" "I'm here, I'm here." "Take a deep breath." "Conor please." "Please, give me the medicine." "Hurry." "It's coming." "Here you go, here you go." "That's better." "Deep breath." "Deep breath." "Deep breath." "Deep breath." "It is okay." "Just don't touch anything." "Trust me, I'll be doing my very best not to." "Our conversation isn't over, young man." "Oh yes it is." "Mum." "What took you so long?" "It is time for me to tell you the first tale." "I don't need a tale." "I need a bus ticket for my grandma." "It is time for me to tell you..." "Where do you think you are going?" "I will be listened to." "I am as old as this land, and I will..." "What do you know about anything?" "I know everything about you, Conor O'Malley." "No you don't." "If you did..." "You know I don't have time to listen to stupid stories from a stupid tree... that is just a dream." "A dream?" "What is a dream, Conor O'Malley?" "And who is to say that it is not everything else that is a dream?" "Never mind." "I came to see you today, because I thought..." "You thought I might have come to topple your enemies, slay your dragons." "Or at least help me with my grandmother." "All you want to do is tell me stories." "Stories about how I toppled my enemies." "Stories of how I slew dragons." "Let me tell you a tale of when I came walking." "Let me tell you of the end of a wicked queen... and how I made sure she was never seen again." "Go on then." "Good." "What do you see?" "Nothing." "There are leafs in the way." "Use your imagination, Conor O'Malley." "Now, what do you see?" " I see a spark." " Yes." "And?" "No, it's water." "It is watercolor." "Keep looking." " Wow." " Wow, indeed." "Long ago, before this was a town with roads and trains and cars..." " this was a kingdom." " Here?" "We don't even have a Tesco." "It was a prosperous kingdom with a wise king..." "With one peace for his people... but peace had come at a price." "The king had lost all three of his sons in battle... to giants... to dragons... to armies of men led by great wizards." "This all sounds pretty fairytalish." "You wouldn't say that if you heard the screams of a man through by a spear." "The queen wasn't able to bear the loss of all their three sons..." "Leaving the king alone in despair, with the company of his only remaining heir... his orphaned grandson." "The child was raised as a prince... winning the love of the kingdom with his scaventry and good heart." "His people loved him." "Our future king." "He was nearly a man when his grandfather took a new wife." "The king felt ill and rumor began to spread... that she was an evil witch..." "That she was bent on taking the throne by herself by poisoning the king." "A few weeks later the king died." "The prince was too young to take the king's place..." "So, by law, the queen would rule for another year." "The future was uncertain." "The prince meanwhile had given away his heart." "She was beautiful and smart, and though only a farmer's daughter... the kingdom smiled on the match." "The queen however, was rather enjoying being queen." "And what better way to remain so, than to marry the prince herself?" "What?" "That's disgusting." " She was his grandmother." " Stepgrandmother... and still a young, beautiful woman herself, don't forget." "The prince, however, didn't like the idea." "He took the famer's daughter, and they rode away into the night." "They stopped to rest under the branches of a yew tree." "That's you." "The next morning the Prince awoke." ""Arise, my beloved" he said." "But the farmer's daughter did not steer..." "Which was when the prince noticed the blood." "Blood?" "Someone had killed his beloved in the night." "What?" ""The Queen" he cried." ""The queen has murdered my bride."" "The villagers, full of fury and vengeance, rose up at the crime." "It was then that I came walking." "The queen was never seen again." "Good." "She deserved it." "Now, I don't suppose you can help me with my grandma." "The story is not yet finished." "I took the queen and carried her far enough away so that the townspeople would never find her... to a village by the sea, where she began a new life." "But she killed the farmer's daughter." "How can you save a murderer?" "You really are a monster." "I never said she killed famer's daughter." "I only said that the prince said it was so." "The prince never fell asleep that night... but waited for the farmer's daughter to be lost in her dreams... and then began his real plan." "What?" "He knew her death would start a fire that would consume the queen entire." "That's a terrible story." "And a cheat." "It's a true story." "Many things that are true feel like a cheat." "Kingdoms get their princes they deserve." "Farmers' daughters die for no reason." "And sometimes witches merit saving." "Quite often, actually." "You'd be surprised." "So the good prince was a murderer and the evil queen was no witch after all?" "No, the queen was most certainly a witch... and could well have been on her way to great evil." "Who can say?" "Then why did you save her then?" "Because what she was not, was a murderer." "She hadn't poisoned the king." "He had merely grown old." "Did the prince ever get caught?" "No." "He became a much beloved king... who ruled happily until the end of his long days." "Oh yes." "I don't get it." "Who is the good guy here?" "There is not always a good guy, Conor O'Malley... nor is there always a bad one." "Most people are somewhere in between." "So how is this all meant to save me from grandma?" "It is not her you need saving from." "There are always two sides to a story." "Now, how many of you know the saying:" ""Stick and stones may break my bones, but words can never touch me?"" "That way the next time someone says something to you just remember..." "Good, you're home." "Your mum's upstairs." "She wants to talk to you." " What?" " Your father's flying in on Sunday." "Dad's coming?" "From America?" "Go on." "She's waiting." "And pack your bag." "You're coming to stay with me for a few days." "Go on." "That tree is amazing." "It's been here for thousands of years." "What do you think?" "I think Grandma is trying to turn me into Tina Turner." "She must be a fan." "Why am I going to stay with grandma?" "Are you goig back to the hospital?" "Come here, Con." "This lastest treatment is not doing what it's supposed to." "So they're going to adjust it... try something else." " That's all?" " That's all." "Are you sure?" "I'm sure." "Because... you can tell me, you know." "Everything will be fine, Conor." "You'll see." "Wait up, Conor." "Where are you going?" " Don't touch him." " "Don't touch him?"" " With a punch to the face?" " I said don't touch him." "O'Malley and I have an understanding." "I'm the only one who touches him." "Isn't that right?" "Now tell me." "Why is it that every time I turn around, you're there looking at me?" "Getting a bit odd, don't you think?" "Sorry, that was a bit harsh." "Life isn't really going your way today, are they." "You picked the wrong spot." "I have a house to show." "I trust you alone here till your father shows up." "I'm not five years old." "This is the correct time." "Not the one on your phone or on the computer, not even on the news." "That was my mother's, your great grandmother's." "Perfect timekeeping for over a hundred years." "Conor!" "Pack up your rucksack." "I don't want your father to think that I'm keeping you in a pigsty." " Not much of that." " No." "When you go to the hospital, your father may not notice how tired you mother's becoming." "So we have to make sure he does not overstay his welcome." "Not that that's been a historically problem." "No eggs." "You already had eggs twice this week." "If you are getting hungry, there is spinach in the fridge you can steam." "Yeah, sure." "Don't touch anything." "I will do my very best not to." "Get it." "Dad." "Oh." "How are you doing, Con?" "You look tired." "I'm fine." "Mum's on this new medicine." "And it will make her better." "She goes to the hospital every two weeks... and they pump the medicine into her bloodstream." "She's sick for the next few days, but she's better again." " Your sister is doing better." " Half sister." "Yeah." "I'd still love you to meet her." "I've been talking with your grandmother about bringing you out to LA." " You want me to come to LA?" " Yeah absolutely." " You'd like that wouldn't you?" " Yeah." "We were thinking over Christmas, that way you can be back here in time for school." "So you mean just for a visit then?" "Yeah, but it would be great." "I don't want to live with grandma." "It's an old lady's house with old ladies' things." "Can't touch anything or sit anywhere." "Can't even leave a mess for two seconds." "Conor, I know, but..." "I want to have my own room in my my own house with my own things." "Well, you wouldn't have that in America, Conor." "There is barely enough room for the three of us." " I do not care." " Conor listen..." " She's so strict." " Your family, your life, your friends..." " Her house is like a museum." " Your school, all of it is here, okay?" "It would be unfair to take you out of here." "Unfair to whom?" "Conor." "Doesn't look like your grandmother's home yet." "She sometimes goes back to the hospital after I go to bed." "The nurses let her sleep in a chair." "Hey, just because your grandmother doesn't like me, doesn't make her a bad person." "She says you're all start and no finish." "Well, she entitled to her own opinion." "How long are you here for?" "As long as I can be." "What does that mean?" "We don't have a lot of money and Americans don't get a lot of holiday." " You're not an American." " No, but I live there now." "I'll come back whenever I need to." "And you're going to come to LA for Christmas." "God no, not in your cramped house where there is no room for me." "Why did you come?" "Conor wait." "Conor, I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?" "There's still loads of time." "As destruction goes, that was remarkably pitiful." "Now, I've come to tell you the second tale." "Is it as bad as the last one?" "It ends with proper destruction, if that's what you mean." "It's about a man who thought only of himself... a man who wasn't as generous as he should have been." "A man who gets punished very badly indeed." "Stories aren't real though." "They don't help anything." "Stories are wild creatures, Conor O'Malley." "When you let them lose, who knows what havoc they might reek?" "Oh yes." "Okay." "Go on then." "Good." "150 years ago..." "The future came." "Factories grew like weeds." "trees fell, rivers blackened... and the sky choked on smoke and ash." "But there was still green if you knew where to look." "On the edge of this town lived a stubborn man." "Who refused to change." "He daunted on the old ways of medicine... herbs and barks and concoctions brewed from berries and leafs." "Villagers ever only called him the apothecary." " The what?" " The apothecary." "An old-fashioned name for 'pharmacist'." "Why didn't you just say?" "There was also a young parson in this village, an enligthned man and a kind one... who just wanted the very best for his congregation." "He preached against the apothecary's use of the old ways... and the apothecary's foul temper and greed... made certain some of these sermons fell on eager ears." "Much as he tried to keep on helping the community... his business sank which only made him grow bitter" "On the parsonage's ground there also lived a yew tree." "That's the hill where you live." "The yew tree is the most important of the healing trees." "Why?" "Its berries, its bark, they brum and burn and twist with life." "That can cure almost any ailment." "Really?" "Anything?" "Anything that can be cured if mixed by the right apothecary." "The apothecary wanted the yew tree very badly." "But in order to harvest these things, he would have to cut it down." "And this, the parson would not allow." "The parson had two daughters who were the light of his life." "He was a caring, loving father who would've done anything for their sake." "But one day both little girls were struck by a terrible sickness... and nothing the parson did helped." "No cure from the more modern doctors, no prayer, nothing." "There was no choice but to approach the apothecary." ""Will you not help my daughters?"." "The parson begged." ""Will you not save two innocent girls?"" ""Why should I?"." "Said the apothecary." ""You have driven away my business with your preachings... and you have refused me the yew tree, my best source of healing"." ""You may have the yew tree," said the parson." ""I will preach sermons in your favour." "I will do anything only you will save my daughters."" ""Would you give up everything you believe in?"." "Said the apothecary." ""If it would save them, I would give up everything."" ""Then there's nothing I can do to help you."" "The very next day both of the parson's daughters died." " What?" " And that night I came walking." "Good." "He deserves all the punishment he gets." "Indeed." "It was shortly after midnight..." "That I tore the house of the parson from its very foundations." "The parson?" "What are you talking about?" "The apothecary is the evil one." "He was greedy and rude, but he was still a healer." "The parson, what was he?" "A man of faith without faith." "Belief is half of all healing." "Belief in the cure, belief in the future that awaits." "Your belief is precious... so you must be careful where you put it and in whom." "Tell me, Conor O'Malley, what shall I destroy next?" " What?" " It is most satisfying, I can assure you." "Tell me." "What should I destroy?" "Smack the chimney?" "The chimney." "Next?" "Throw away their beds." "Smash the furniture." "Break the windows." "Windows." "Break them yourself." "Come one." "Harder, Conor O'Malley." "Come on." "Harder." "That's it." "Yes." "Feels good doesn't it?" "Yeah." "Grandma." "Grandma." "Grandma, please..." "Grandma." "I heard you like them sunny side up." " What are you doing here?" " What do you think?" "Your grandmother called very early this morning." "She's gone to the hospital to see your mum." "Your mum's had a bad turn, Con." "I need to see her." "We'll see what happens today, and maybe you can visit for a little while this afternoon." "I can see how upset you are." "I didn't mean to." "I don't know what happened." " Worse things happen at sea." " What do you mean?" "Aren't you going to punish me?" "What could possibly be the point in that?" "I got to say champ, this is really just amazingly thorough." "Oh, a buried treasure." "These must be those home movies that your mother used to send when I first moved away." "Why did you move away?" "We were young." "Too young, you know?" "We had big dreams, and..." " What kind of dreams?" " Your mother wanted to go to art college." " Really?" " Yeah." "She didn't go, but she wanted to." "What happened?" "Because mum got pregnant with me." "Mum never regretted having you." "You were only ever good news." "And I know that for a fact, because the one thing she regretted was marrying me." " Why did she marry you then?" " Because I'm handsome." "Your mum was amazing." "And she still is." "And we were in love." "I mean, I still love her." "But you will see that... love isn't enough." "It doesn't carry you through." "So you didn't get happily ever after." "No, but that's life, you know?" "Most of it just get messier after." "And that's alright." "Even I'm happy you turned out like her." "You're telling what to do now?" "I can pull him in any direction." "You can take him out of school then..." "Thank you." "I'm looking for something to eat." "You want something, kid?" "Stop calling me 'kid'." "Fair enough." "I'm sorry, Lizzie." "Who was that man in a suit?" "Just..." "Nothing." " What happened this morning?" " Nothing." "It's fine." "I had a bit of a bad reaction." "There's one more thing they're going to try, and it's a medicine that's had some really good results." "Why didn't they try it in the first place?" "Because this is something you take when the other stuff hasn't worked the way they wanted it to." "Does that mean it's too late?" "No of course it doesn't mean it's too late." "Are you sure?" "I believe every word I say." "Belief is half of all healing." "Belief in the cure, belief in the future that awaits." "Yeah." "And you know that tree I'm always going on about?" "Yeah." "Well, this drug is made from trees like that." " It is?" " Yeah." "Seriously?" "All this time we could have gone out there and just chopped it down." "But not that one." "That one's our friend." "Where are you?" "I'm here." "Can you do it?" "Can you make my mum better?" "If your mother can be healed, the yew tree will do it." " So that's a yes?" " You still don't know why you called me." "I didn't call you." "And even if I did, it was obviously for mum." " Was it?" " What else?" "To listen to idiotic stories that make no sense." "It is not yet time for the third tale." "But soon." "And after that... you will tell me your story, Conor O'Malley." "No." "No, not this." "That's just a nightmare." "No, please." "That's not my truth." "That's just a nightmare." "Nevertheless, this will happen after the third tale." "I want to know what's going to happen with my mum." "Do not waste the precious time that is given you." "Wait." "Where are you going?" "If you are a tree of healing, then I need you to heal." "And so I shall." "Conor, I'll come back." "I promise, alright." "And you'll come to LA for Christmas." "I wont leave mum alone for Christmas." " Conor this medicine your mum's taking..." " Is going to make her well." "No, Conor, it probably isn't." " Yes it is." " No, it's a last stage effort, son." "It will heal her." "I know it." "It is the reason it came." "It has to." " Reason what came?" " The monster." " Conor, what?" " It comes to 12h07." "At first I thought it was a dream, but there is always..." "Stop." "It is a dream." "That's all it is." "I'm sorry you have to face this... but you have to be brave." "Do you understand?" "Come on." "Come on." "I'll be back as soon as I can." "What if it's not fast enough?" "Conor, listen..." " It's okay." " What is okay?" "Just..." "You don't have to." "Look." "Do you see it?" "Do you see it?" "Can you wave?" "Can you see him?" "And then we wave to grandma." "Hello grandma." "Con, you can say hello to grandma and mum?" "Hello Grandma." "Here we go." "Mum has heard this many times." "Are you ready?" "Con, come sit here." "Con, look." " Hello grandma." " Mama..." " one..." " Mama." "There we go." "We are doing your picture, grandma." "And then mix it together." "What color is that?" "Brown." " It is a nice lodgy brown." " Brown." " But we have brown here." " That's true." "What can you see?" "What is that?" "What are those?" "What do you..." "What are these?" " Eyes." " Eyes." "That's it." "Life is always in the eyes." "If you get that... you will be a proper artist." "Yes." "Look." "This is how we draw the eyes in... because this is where the eyes catch the reflection." "There we see the life in the eyes." "See that?" "Do it again." "It's life." "Maybe if we take a pencil... and you can draw on that..." "Do you want to try it?" "Show me how you do it." "Look, Con." "That's his hair and this is his eyebrow." "There's the eyes." "Oh look, there's his mouth." "There's his mouth." "He is very angry." "Can you see?" "Look at that." "And then we start to make a face." "And then... there's our monster." "There's the monster." "Look at the monster." "Very slowly." "That's it." "That's it, okay." "Okay, so 30 minutes exam this morning... and this is all the stuff we've been doing for the last two weeks." "So if you've done your revision, there will be no surprises." "So in a moment I'm going to ask you to turn your pages over." "There will be no talking for the next 30 minutes." "I want total silence... because you are going to use your brains, not your mouths." "So 30 minutes..." "Starting now." "Good luck." "I think I've finally figures you out." "After all this time." "All you're looking for is someone kick your head in." "But you know what?" "I'm not that guy anymore." "Goodbye, O'Malley." "I no longer see you." "Now you're invisible to me too." "I hope your mum gets better." "What took you so long?" "It's time for the third tale." "There was once an invisible man... who was grown tired of being unseen." "It was not that he was actually invisible." "It was just the people had become used to not seeing him." "One day, the invisible man couldn't stand it anymore." "He kept wondering, if no one sees you..." "Are you really there at all?" "What did the invisible man do?" "He called for a monster." "I don't even know what to say to you, O'Malley." "You sent him to hospital." "His parents are threatening to sue." " It wasn't me." " What was that?" "Wasn't me." "I'm not invisible." "I'm not invisible." "If you want to be seen, O'Malley, this is not the best way." "I'm not invisible." "Did you hear me?" "I'm not invisible." "School rules dictate immediately exclusion." "But how could I do that and consider myself any kind of a teacher?" "Go back to class." "We will talk about this one day, but not today." "You're not punishing me?" "What could possibly be the point?" "Well, let me give you an example of emotional wellness." "You know how difficult it is sometimes to say no." "And how good it feels..." "When you finally find the courage to say it anyway." "Why is that?" "Do you have a moment?" "Hoi, wat is is?" "We just got a call from the hospital." "I am afraid that Conor's mother is not going to make it." "They want him to come there." "Aren't you coming?" "I'll be right here." "What did you do to your hands?" "It's the talk isn't it?" "Everybody wants to have a talk lately." "Con..." "Look at me." "I spoke to the doctor this morning." "The new treatment, it's... it's not working." "The one from the yew tree?" "Yeah." "How can it not be working?" "Things just happen fast." "Faster than they thought." " How can it not be working?" " I don't know." "It has to." "So what happens now?" "What's going to be the next treatment?" "I'm so sorry." "I've never been more sorry about anything in my life." "It's okay that you're angry, Con." "It really is." "I'm pretty angry too, to tell you the truth." "But Con..." "Con, are you listening?" "One day... if you look back and you feel bad for being so angry... you couldn't even speak to me, you have to know that was okay..." "That I knew." "Because I know everything you need to tell me without you having to say it out loud." "And if you need to break things..." "By God you break them." "Break them good and hard." "And I'll be right there, Con." "I wish I had a hundred years." "A hundred years I could give to you." "Wake up." "Wake up." "Wake up." "I don't care what time it is." "You lied." "Wake up." "Wake up." "I need you now." " You are doing yourself more pain." " It did not work." "You said the yew tree would make her better, but it did not." "Make her better." "You're the one who called me, Conor O'Malley." "If I called you, it was to save her." "It was to heal her." " I did not come to heal her." " Yes you did." "I came to heal you." "Me?" "I'm not the one who needs healing." "How many times do I have to tell you?" "My mum's the one who..." "Help me." "It is time for the fourth tale." "No, no please." "Get me out of here." " It is time for your nightmare." " I need to get back to my mum." "She is already here." "No." "Mum, get out of there." "It is alright." "There is nothing to worry about." "Mum, run." "Please, run." "Mum." "Mum." "Conor." "Mum." "No." "Conor." "Mum." "Conor." "Mum." " Don't let go." " I won't." " Conor." " Mama." " Mum." " Conor." "Mum." "Mum, no." " Mum, no." " Conor." "Mum." "Mum." "No." "Conor." " Here is the fourth tale." " Get help." "Here is the truth of Conor O'Malley." "Mum." "No." " Mum." " Here is your nightmare." " Mum." " Conor." "Mum." "Save me." " Conor." " Mama." "Mama." "Mama." "This is when I wake up." "This is when I always wake up." "The tale is not yet told." "Get me out of here." "I need to see my mum." "She is no longer here, Conor." "She fell." "I could not hold onto her anymore." "Conor." " Speak the truth." " No." "You will speak the truth or you will never leave this place." "What truth?" "I do not know what you mean." "You must tell me the fourth tale, Conor O'Malley." "You must tell me your nightmare before it is too late." "Yes." "Tell me, Conor." "Tell me the truth." " It will kill me if I do." " It will kill you if you do not." "Speak the truth." " No." " The truth, Conor O'Malley." " Tell me the truth, boy." " No." " Speak the truth." " No." "Speak the truth, boy." "I want it to be over." "I can't stand knowing she will go." "I want it to be finished." "I let her fall." "I let her die." "That was brave, Conor." "You finally said it." "Why didn't it kill me?" "I deserve punishment." "I deserve the worst." "Do you?" "I've known forever that she wasn't going to make it." "She keep telling me she was getting better all the time... because that's what I wanted to hear." "And I believed her." "Except I didn't." "And I started to think how much I wanted it to be over." "I couldn't..." "I couldn't stand how alone that would make me feel." "Part of you wished it would end even if it meant losing her..." "I let her go." "I couldn't hold on for longer... but I always let her go." "And that is your truth, Conor O'Malley." "I don't want it to be though." "Now it's for real." "Now she's going to die and it's my fault." "Now, that is not the truth at all." "You were merely wishing for an end of pain." "Your own pain." "It is the most human wish there is." "I didn't mean it though." "You did, but you also did not." "How can both be true?" "How can a prince be a murderer and beloved by his people?" "How can an apothecary be evil tempted but right thinking?" "How can invisible men make themselves lonelier by being seen?" "I don't know." "Your stories never made sense to me." "Because humans are complicated beasts." "You believe comforting lies, while knowing full well... the painful truth that makes those lies necessary." "In the end, Conor, it is not important what you think." "It is only important what you do." "So what do I do?" "What you did just now." "You speak the truth." "That's all?" "You think it's easy?" "You were willing to die rather than speak it." "I'm so tired." "So tired of all this." "Then sleep." "There is time." "Are you sure?" "I need to see my mum." " We will both see her tonight." " Will you be there?" "Yes." "It will be the final steps of my walking." "How does the fourth story end?" "Sleep." "Sleep." "Sleep." "Thank God." "Conor!" "Conor!" "I've been out of my mind trying to find you." " There was something I had to do." " No time." "We have to go now." "Damn it." "Grandma." "I'm sorry." "About the living room and the everything." "It doesn't matter." "It doesn't matter." "You know, Conor." "You and me... we're not the most natural fit, are we?" "No." "I guess not." "I guess not either." "But we're going to have to learn." " I know." " You do know, don't you." "Of course you do." "But there is one thing we have in common." "Your mum." "That's what we have in common." "It's okay." "I see you found him." "Thank you." "Hello my darling." " Mum?" " Yes, I'm here." "I'm here." "Can you feel my hand?" "Conor's here too." " Is he?" " Yes." "Conor." "Here is the end of the tale." "I'm afraid." "Of course you're afraid." "It will be hard." "It will be more than hard." "But you will make it through, Conor O'Malley." "You'll stay?" "I will be right here." "What do I do?" "Now all that is left is for you to speak the simplest truth of all." "I don't want you to go." "I know, sweetheart." "I don't want you to go." "How does the fourth story end?" "It ends with a boy holding on tight to his mother." "And by doing so... he can finally let her go." "Conor." "This is your room now." "I'm making it ready." "Thank you."