by A. M. Miller
Lecive pulled back. “More like a wild animal than any real princess.”
“Stop antagonizing her, Lecive,” Leo said.
“Let me go,” Lu said still struggling against her brother’s hold. Lecive wanted a fight and she had no problem giving him one. Lu wasn’t afraid of getting hurt. Nothing he did to her could compare to what she’d experience in training. Meshi would be upset when she found out Lu was fighting outside of the arena but she didn’t care. She’d take the beating.
“You better listen to her, Leo. Soon she’ll be our queen and we’ll all have to follow her orders.” Lecive glared down at Lu. She could see the jealous hatred in his eyes. She glared back at him refusing to be intimidated.
“Stop, Lecive. Lu had nothing to do with it. Leave now before someone finds out you’re here,” Leo said.
“Do you mean father? You know why he doesn’t want us in here, don’t you Leo? You know what he’s afraid of. Imagine what he’ll think when he finds both of us here.” Lecive looked down at Lu. “Maybe then they’ll call you whore too.” Lecive took a step forward.
Lu kept her eyes on him. There was something electric in the air.
“Poor, Lulu. Even if you do become queen, what they’ve got planned for you is much worse than anything they could do to us. They’re going to hollow you out until there’s nothing left.” Lecive leaned down until they were face to face. She smelt something fowl on his breath.
Leo pushed his brother back. “Stop it Lecive. She doesn’t need-“
Lecive screamed.
Without both hands, Leo had been unable to hold his sister back. Her teeth sank into something fleshy and she tasted blood. Lecive shoved at his sister. Lu fell hard to the ground, her elbow slamming against the hardwood. When she looked up again he was stalking toward her.
Leo grabbed hold of Lecive stopping him. The two fought. Each struggled to overpower the other. Lecive was older and taller but Leo had more muscle. Their feet shuffled closer to the fire.
Leo’s foot tripped over the leg of the chair. It happened too fast for Lu to react. Leo fell down taking Lecive with him. The metal guarder around the fireplace clattered to the ground. The fire reached out toward them. Embers floating warm past Lu’s face.
Another scream, this time from Leo. Lu looked and saw how the fire licked his face. Leo struggled to get up but with his brother on top of him, it was impossible.
Lu listened to the horrific sounds of her brother screams. She stood up and ran over to her two brothers. Leo’s hair was on fire and his skin burnt and blistered. Lu shoved frantically at her oldest brother.
“Get off of him,” she yelled. Fear twisted her voice. Leo was dying and she was helpless to stop it. All signs of the brave little girl vanished. Lecive remained unmoving, staring down at his brother.
Lu tried to push him again, her hands beating against his side. “Get off. Get off. Lecive, please!” Tears streamed down Lu’s face.
The desperate plea was enough to shock Lecive out of his trance. He scrambled off Leo just as Lu’s door opened. Leo rolled away from the fire still screaming. Eleaa rushed into the room followed by guards.
Lu sat by Leo trying to fan the flames away until one of the guards came to pull her away. The horrid scent of burnt flesh filled the air.
Lu fought against her captor. “Leo! Leo!”
The guards surrounded Leo while Eleaa called for help. Two of the guards picked up Leo to pull him out of the room. Lu continued to struggle against her captor. Her nails scratched against his metal arm.
Eleaa stepped in front of Lu. She took Lu from the guard and held her in her arms. Lu kept fighting to be free, her eyes on the door they’d taken Leo out of. She screamed her brother’s name.
“It’s alright princess. They’re taking him to the medic. He’ll be alright. He’ll be alright. Shhh, hush now. Everything’s okay,” Eleaa said trying to calm the child down.
Lu cried on her shoulder. Leo had almost died. She had watched Leo almost die. He was her only companion, the only member of her family that she knew actually loved her and he had almost been taken away. It was not until that moment that Lu truly began to understand fear. Her fist clenched Eleea’s robes holding her tighter as she cried.
Lecive shifted in the shadow catching Lu’s attention. In the chaos, no one seemed to notice that he was there. His widened eyes locked with Lu’s. She glared at Lecive with a dark intensity she’d never felt before.
It’s your fault.
“You die,” Lu spat. Her words not even a coherent sentence but she felt them from deep within her. She glared at her brother, but he did not say anything. His eyes fell to his hands. He stared at them with an opened bewilderment.
Lu turned away from the fireplace. It had happened years ago but she’d never forgotten. She didn’t have to wonder if Lecive had regretted his action. He’d never apologized for what happened that night, but she’d seen it on his face. He was shocked by what he’d done. Even if he hated Lu he still cared about his younger brother. Lu could care less either way.
That night she’d been introduced to an emotion she’d never felt before. Hate.
It was a ball of darkness in her other wise pure soul. She’d kept it hidden inside her over the years but it never faded. At any point in time, she could have cleansed herself of it. The problem was she didn’t want to forgive him.
Lecive would suffer for what he’d done. Leo’s scars would never fade; his whole life he would be marked by what their brother had done and she would never forget.
40
Dion sat on the end of the bed next to his two motionless friends. After talking to the wall, Raven had touched Tiffany. He’d watched as her body went rigid before completely collapsing on the bed. Tiffany had frozen mid mumble. Her mouth was parted and her vacant eyes stared into the distance.
For a moment Dion had just stared at his friends.
“If you guys are playing some kind of joke it’s not funny,” He’d said.
They remained unresponsive.
Dion grabbed Raven’s leg, shaking it and then squeezing. She was still breathing and so was Tiffany, but they didn’t move. Desperate, Dion pulled out his phone debating whom he should call. He shifted through his contacts.
Tiffany and Raven gasped, springing up into sitting positions.
Dion yelled, dropping the phone from his hand. His heart thundered in his chest as he stared at the two girls.
Raven sucked in a gasp of air. Her body ached and her head pounded. She blinked a few times as her room started to come into focus. The first thing she saw was Dion staring back at her with wide eyes.
Dion placed his hand over his chest. “What the hell guys? Are you trying to give a guy a heart attack?”
“Rae?” Tiffany asked.
Raven turned to look at her friend. Tiffany’s eyes were full of questions but Raven was just happy to see that she was all right. She leaned over and pulled Tiffany into a hug. “I almost lost you.” She tightened her arms around Tiffany, crushing against her.
Tiffany hesitated before hugging Raven back. Her arms were slow to wrap around Raven but when she did, she rested her head on Raven’s shoulder.
“Ummm, I’d hate to interrupt this heart warming moment but would someone care to explain what’s going on?” Dion asked.
Raven let go of Tiffany and turned toward Dion. He looked at them waiting for an answer. She tried to think of one.
“Raven?” Tiffany’s eyes were on her. Raven could see the question in her eyes. Tiffany wanted answers too.
Raven licked her lips and exhaled. “Tiffany, what exactly do you remember?”
“You. You were freaking out in the bathroom. You seemed really messed up and I wanted to help you. I remember us sitting on the bath room floor and your hands bleeding.”
Raven looked down at her hand and saw the band-aids wrapped around her fingers. She closed her hand and looked back at Tiffany.
“I reached over to touch you and then…” Tiffany t
railed off, remembering what happened next.
“And then what, Tiffany?” Raven asked. She needed Tiffany to say it. She needed to know that she hadn’t imagined it.
“And then it was like suddenly everything went dark. Not just the absence of light, but as if it was pouring out of me, filling the room until there was nothing left. Like it was being pulled out of me.”
“She’s talking about you, you know,” a familiar voice said. Raven turned to see the girl leaning against the bed. “That’s what happens when you go into people's heads. You pull the darkness into the light. You were supposed to destroy it but, since you didn’t, it festered. You nearly cost your friend her sanity.”
“I couldn’t escape it,“ Tiffany said.
Raven looked back at her. Tiffany shivered at the memory.
“Do you remember seeing anything?” Raven asked.
Tiffany looked away from Raven, her eyes falling down to her lap. “I saw you and Dion. You guys were heading off to college. I tried to reach you but I couldn’t. Then my dad was calling for me. He was sick again but I couldn’t get to him either. I was trying when she showed up.”
Raven would never admit to it but she felt relieved hearing the details of Tiffany’s story match her own. She wasn’t crazy, not yet.
“The she your friend is referring to would be the manifestation of her own darkness,” the girl said.
Raven ignored her, focusing on her friend.
Tiffany’s hands fidgeted in her lap. ”She kept saying this really awful stuff. She made it sound so convincing I almost believed it. I just wanted it to stop. I didn’t want to feel…to be in that darkness anymore.” Her voice broke and she closed her eyes.
Raven reached out and took Tiffany’s hand. “You know nothing she said was true, right?”
“Yeah, Tee, it was just a crazy dream,” Dion said.
“Of course, I know that.” Tiffany pulled her hand back, looking at Raven and Dion. “I’m not suicidal. I mean my life’s not great but nobody’s life is perfect one hundred percent of the time. It was just…in that moment, all the bad things about life shadowed over everything else until they were all I could see. I don’t even feel that way anymore. Honestly, it barely makes sense to me now that I’m awake.”
“That’s because she’s cleansed now.” The girl moved to lay down at the end of the bed. She folded her hands under her head. “Your friend should actually be feeling lighter now, like a balloon. It should last her for a little while.”
“That still doesn’t explain everything. Why did this happen?” Dion asked.
“I don’t know. It doesn’t make sense to me either. All I did was touch her. Right, Raven?”
They both turned to look at Raven wanting to see if she had any explanation. Raven opened her mouth but then closed it. She didn’t know what to say. Even when she tried to explain it to herself it didn’t make sense. Tiffany had been there with her in the dream world, but neither of them seemed to notice the girl lying on her bed.
“Tell them that your soul has been connected with a spirit from another dimension. I’d love to see the looks on their faces after that one,” the girl said with a laugh.
“Would you just shut up!” Raven glared at the girl. Her eyes were on Raven, a slow smile stretching across her face. The room grew silent as Raven realized the mistake she’d made.
“Uh, Raven?” Dion’s fearful voice was the first to break the silence.
Raven turned to her friends. They both stared at her, their expressions fearful. Her outburst had done nothing for her sanity plea.
“Who were you talking to?” Dion asked.
“I…”
The girl laughed. “This ought to be good.”
Raven fought the urge to turn back around and glare at her again. She wasn’t making this easy and her friends were waiting for her answer.
“I…um…“ Raven rubbed at her neck. Their eyes were on her.
The girl sighed and sat up. “Oh for goddess sake, just get it over with. Touch the girl's hand with your right.”
Raven looked back at the girl. “How is that supposed to help?”
“Just do what I say unless you want to end up in the cuckoo-bird's nest,” the girl said.
Raven thought there was a high probability she’d end up there either way.
“Raven, are you okay?” Tiffany asked.
Raven looked at her friend and sighed. She didn’t have anything to lose at this point. Raven grabbed on to Tiffany’s hand. The ring on her finger glowed. Red light wrapped around both of their hands.
“Hello there cupcake,” the girl said over Raven shoulder. Tiffany’s eyes widened before she screamed and jumped off the bed. Raven’s hand fell away.
“What? What happened?” Dion asked, looking between Raven and Tiffany.
Tiffany raised a trembling hand and pointed toward Raven “Ghost.”
“Ouch. Your friends a little on the rude side, Raven. You know back in the old days I’d be tempted to kill her for that type of comment,” the girl said.
Raven didn’t pay her any attention. She was still surprised by the fact that Tiffany had seen her.
“What do you mean ghost?” Dion eyed Tiffany, worrying about the mental state of both of his friends now.
“Over there. I saw her but she disappeared when I moved. She was right there.”
Dion followed Tiffany’s gaze to the empty space behind Raven. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure. I know what I saw, Dion. She was there, now she’s not.”
“She’s still here,” Raven said.
They both turned to look at her.
“She’s still here.” Raven repeated and then gestured toward the spot next to her. “Right here actually.”
Their gaze shifted from Raven to the empty spot next to her. The girl waved at them but Raven was the only one who could see it.
Realization lit inside Tiffany’s eyes. “She’s the one from earlier, isn’t she? The girl you said you saw.” Tiffany took a step closer to the bed. She stretched out her hand trying to feel for the girl. “Can she talk? Can you hear her?”
“Please tell me you guys are joking right now,” Dion said.
Raven sighed. She didn’t blame him for not believing. If she’d heard this from someone else she’d probably have a hard time believing it too. Ghost only existed inside of horror movies.
The girl stood from the bed. “Fine, I’ll make this easy on you. You hold hands with tweetal-dee and tweetal-dumb and I’ll do the explaining. Chances are they won’t believe it any other way.”
Raven looked at the girl and then back at her friends. She doubted the girl could be trusted but didn’t see any other way to make Tiffany and Dion believe.
“She says that we have to hold hands and then she’ll explain everything,” Raven said to her friends.
Raven stood from her bed and held out her hand to Dion and Tiffany. They both looked down at it but neither made an attempt to grab her hand.
“Maybe we shouldn’t talk to her,” Tiffany said. “All the horror movies say that talking to the dead only makes it worse. Maybe if we just ignore her she’ll just disappear and you know… move on.”
The girl snorted behind them.
Raven only shook her head. “I don’t think that’s how this works.”
“Are either of you hearing yourselves right now?” Dion took a step closer to Raven, his eyes searching hers. “Raven, you have to know this whole thing sounds-“
“Crazy. Yeah, I know. It’s been pretty insane these past few days. Even I thought I was losing my mind up until five minutes ago, but you have to believe me. She’s not going anywhere and I don’t want to have to do this alone. Please.” Raven looked at both her friends.
Tiffany sighed and placed her hand in Raven’s. “Fine, but if she turns out to be an evil demon who possesses my body you better get me a damn good priest.”
Raven smiled at Tiffany. She turned to Dion, who still stood at a distance.
/> “Please, Dion. If I’m really crazy and you don’t see anything then you can check me into the nearest psych-ward,” Raven said.
Dion hesitated for a moment before walking over to the two girls. He placed his hand on top of Tiffany’s. The moment all three of the hands were together the ring on Raven’s hand began to glow. They all stared down at it. Rays of red light wrapped around their hands, tying them together.
“Boo,” the girl whispered from behind them.
Both Tiffany and Dion jumped back and screamed. Their hands fell away from Raven’s, breaking the connection. The girl laughed, bending over and clutching her stomach.
“Oh my goddess. The look on their faces.“ The girl laughed. Raven turned around and scowled at her. The girl looked up at Raven and started to laugh harder.
“Did you hear that?” Dion asked still sitting on the ground where he’d fallen. His eyes flicked around the room trying to find out where the sound came from. Tiffany answered with a nod. They turned to look at Raven.
After a moment the girl’s laughter died down. She cleared her throat and brushed at the skirt of her dress. She looked at Raven, her face taking on a more somber expression. She seemed older. The change was so instant Raven had to wonder if the girl had a double personality.
“Forgive me, it’s different over here. Some times the impulses are too hard to control. Tell your friends to do it again,” the girl said.
Raven got the feeling the girl was used to people following her command. Every sentence felt more like an order than a question.
Raven stepped towards the girl. “Is this some kind of twisted game to you?”
“No, this is more than life and death to me. But as I said, some times it’s hard to control the impulses. If you want to know what is going on I need to explain while my mind is still mostly intact.”
Raven stared at the girl. She pondered over her words. Perhaps, the girl truly was insane. Raven wondered what it meant for her if the girl inside her mind was crazy. Could she be trusted to explain what was happening? In the end Raven decided she didn’t have an option. She turned back to her friends.