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There are two types of reality in this world. The first being the perceived reality, that which is the norm. The second being that of the intangible, the reality which exists in the mind but may not truly be experienced by the rest of society. But in certain situations these realities can collide. And in these situations the intangible may become tangible while only existing to certain individuals. But these circumstances rarely ever occur. They are something of an illusive quality and tend to show themselves only on occasion. So the tangible and intangible remain separated; the perceived reality taking president over the intangible. But there are the few unexplained occurrences in the world, which point to the connection between the two realities. But whether or not society can see beyond the perceived is that of an unknown state.
There are two types of reality in this world. The first being the perceived reality, that which is the norm. The second being that of the intangible, the reality which exists in the mind but may not truly be experienced by the rest of society. But in certain situations these realities can collide. And in these situations the intangible may become tangible while only existing to certain individuals. But these circumstances rarely ever occur. They are something of an illusive quality and tend to show themselves only on occasion. So the tangible and intangible remain separated; the perceived reality taking president over the intangible. But there are the few unexplained occurrences in the world, which point to the connection between the two realities. But whether or not society can see beyond the perceived is that of an unknown state.
ƆĦΔƤƬЄЯ ѲNЄ
Light. It seemed to be the bane of her existence. Those first amber streaked rays of sunlight that found their way inside of her bedroom each morning seemed to enjoy taunting her. The ambient rays of light seeped into the room from behind thin, sheer curtains. Long dark shadows were cast about the room and danced about different objects; the dark outlines intertwined to form intricate works of art throughout the enclosed space. The room itself, was a mess. Some may not have expected it from the girl who lived in it, but to others, it seemed to make sense. Clothes were strewn everywhere, some catching the light of the amber sun and throwing shadows and spectrum's of color about the room. And sheet music almost seemed to explode around the weighted keyboard, which sat in the farthest, darkest corner of the room. Almost as if the piano could not hold so many notes and chords at once. And although it wasn't exactly contributing to the mess, the many pictures pinned about the walls certainly did make the room seem more cluttered. Many of the pictures were drawings, drawings of different people, scenes, and some indistinguishable pictures of anything from, or pertaining to, reality.
And in the middle of the colossal upheaval of clutter groaned the figure of its owner. The girl happened to be sprawled out across the length of the queen-sized, wrought iron bed that sat in the corner opposite the keyboard. A massive pile of blonde hair lay splayed out across the pillow. The face of the girl remained buried in the white depths of the cushy pillow. But that alone was not enough to block out the sunlight, which now seemed to pour into the small space. Arietta Lyric Carlisle was not a morning person. She had never liked the concept of it, she didn't even enjoy breakfast. But her parents seemed determined to make sure that she was a morning person. And if that meant replacing her heavy burgundy curtains with sheer cream-colored ones, they would do it. And they had.
Arietta also wasn't one who enjoyed attending school. And because her parents were all about her going to college, skipping the first few periods was not exactly an option, hence, the curtains. Her annoyance seemed only to double as the grating blaring of her alarm sounded. And it was right next to her ear. Slowly the massive rat's nest of blonde hair lifted, if only slightly, to glare at the alarm clock. And if that weren't enough to fill her day with joy, only seconds later her mother's head popped through the door. Camerata was a rather petite woman, and fairly thin as well. She was just barley five-foot-three, her frame not helping her height either. She was all bones, mostly cheekbones, and her skinniness only accentuated this feature in her. Unlike her daughter, Camerata's hair fell in wispy chestnut strands, just past her shoulders. Although, it was always styled up.
"Arietta. Why are you not out of bed already? School will be starting soon!" her mother's high-pitched voice sounded almost as grating to her as the alarm that was continuing to blare in her ear. Arietta ran a long-fingered hand through the knots of hair that encircled her face, knowing full well that a shower was most definitely needed.
"School doesn't start for two hours Mom."
"Well, you can never be to cautious. What if there's traffic? Or what if-"
"Alright Mom, I'm getting up. See?" she pushed herself up into a sitting position, giving her mother a look. Camerata merely waved an irritated hand and left the room, her small ponytail bouncing behind her as her pajama pants dragged along the floor. Arietta rolled her eyes and pushed herself into a standing position. After fiddling with the alarm for over three minutes, she finally gave up and just unplugged the damn thing. If it wasn't going to play nice, neither was she. As her feet padded along the hardwood floor and out into the hallway a small shiver ran through her body. Before she walked into the bathroom, she squinted over the stair railing to see her father munching on cereal in the kitchen downstairs. His thick blonde hair was graying rapidly, though it still kept its depth. Small, square glasses rested low on his nose as he stared transfixed at the morning paper.
Arietta shook her head and closed the door behind her as she entered the bathroom. Of course, because of her mother's decorating, the room was a proper powder blue. And all the accents, white. Arietta turned on the shower and waited for the water to turn hot before stepping in. As the stinging water rolled over her muscles she let herself relax a bit. The one thing she did like about mornings were showers. They were fantastic. But as she thought about the day ahead, her lips slowly formed into a frown. The thought of sitting in class after class of boring subjects was dragging down her mood greatly.
It didn't take long to dry her hair. It seemed to be a mixture of her parent's, for although her hair wasn't as wispy and thin as her mother's, it wasn't as thick and coarse like her father's. It seemed to be placed somewhere in the middle. Though she did inherit her father's blonde locks. Although her hair was naturally a bit wavy, she still went through the trouble of curling it slightly. She had gotten into the habit after middle school, with her mother pestering her about looks. After a quick application of makeup, Arietta headed back to her room. When she glanced over the banister she could still see her father intently reading the paper, her mother was perched on the couch watching something on the television, although Arietta couldn't quite see what.
Finally, she averted her smokey eyes and walked back into her room. Again, Arietta wasn't one to truly care about the mess which was her room. But she did find it a bit frustrating and difficult to find clothes that were clean in the massive throng of shirts, pants, and such. She did finally manage to settle on something. She looked in the single mirror of her room and shrugged. It's not like anyone was really going to care what she wore anyway.
She bounced down the stairs as slowly as she could, drawing out each movement. Her mother sent her an irritated look but said nothing more. Arietta walked over to the counter and grabbed her keys. Her father didn't so much as even glance in her direction as she pulled the dangly, clattering keys away from the spot next to his cereal. He truly was engrossed in whatever he was reading. She supposed something interesting must have happened.
"Alright. I'm leaving.... walking out the door.... going to school...." she said, backing away towards the front door. Her mother turned around, resting her arm on the back of the couch.
"Okay honey, see you after school."
"Alright... bye..." she finished as she eased the front door to a close. As soon as it clicked shut she bounded towards her car. Yes she drove a bug, and yes it was her baby. She loved that car. The navy blue paint stared back at her as she slid into the front seat. It wasn't long before she was puttering down the road and towards the main town. The Carlisle's lived in a nice little neighborhood, with charming houses and little drama. But when you drove into downtown of the secluded mountain city, the more interesting things became. The old rundown houses began to emerge here and there, some interesting looking people walked along the streets, and the whole quality of the place dropped. As her car slowly crawled through the downtown traffic, she glanced out at the old buildings and shops, which lined the main road. They all looked rundown and washed out to her. But soon the traffic was moving again and she turned her attention back to the road.
As she drove up to the high school, she could help but let the frown from earlier return to her face. She truly did loathe the place. And as she parked she suddenly remembered why. Unlike like some high school's, cheer leading did not rule Emerson High. So that one popular b**** was not some ditsy blonde with an attitude jumping around in a little pleated skirt. No, that b**** had long black hair, dark green eyes, and was named Cassandra. She played volleyball; that was her only claim to fame. But she had a temper that could whip any head cheerleader into submission. And she absolutely detested Arietta. She could never figure out why, but Cassy, as she was called, had made it her life's mission to make Arietta's life a living hell.
"Working or walking honey, working or walking?" she snickered as she and her cult walked pass. Arietta gave the girl a simple smirk before slamming her car door closed. She felt it better to simply ignore Cassandra. She liked to compare her to a three-year old. If you ignored them long enough, soon they would give up and leave you alone. And the theory seemed to work on the volleyball player. And Arietta couldn't help but get a small satisfaction out of that.
As people began walking up towards the old, faded building, Arietta didn't move. For some reason, she had a feeling she wouldn't be able to handle the long drum of school today. So instead of walking to her first class after the bell rang, she walked across the parking lot and towards the football field. But she didn't stop when she reached the wet morning grass, she kept walking towards the old buildings. See the school had been rebuilt after a small fire had burnt down the original buildings. But for some reason, the few buildings that survived had been kept standing. She figured there had to be something interesting in those. And if not, at least she would be alone.
As she approached the largest of the buildings she was able to make out a small plaque next to the large double doors. Gymnasium. She pushed against the right door. Nothing. Locked. Then she tried the left, and what do you know, it was open. She slowly stepped inside the dusty dark room. The lights were off, as she expected, and everything was silent. As she walked around the rather small basketball court she glanced around. It didn't seem like much was inside. When she caught sight of another door she walked over. Perhaps it would lead to something interesting. In fact, it had led to the locker rooms. She glanced down the rows of lockers, again not finding much. Though at the end of the room there was a mirror. She wasn't sure why, but something about it seemed odd. So she went to take a closer look. When she tilted her head and looked at the object, she could find anything odd about it. So she reached out to touch the reflective surface. And that's when her world was turned upside down.
And in the middle of the colossal upheaval of clutter groaned the figure of its owner. The girl happened to be sprawled out across the length of the queen-sized, wrought iron bed that sat in the corner opposite the keyboard. A massive pile of blonde hair lay splayed out across the pillow. The face of the girl remained buried in the white depths of the cushy pillow. But that alone was not enough to block out the sunlight, which now seemed to pour into the small space. Arietta Lyric Carlisle was not a morning person. She had never liked the concept of it, she didn't even enjoy breakfast. But her parents seemed determined to make sure that she was a morning person. And if that meant replacing her heavy burgundy curtains with sheer cream-colored ones, they would do it. And they had.
Arietta also wasn't one who enjoyed attending school. And because her parents were all about her going to college, skipping the first few periods was not exactly an option, hence, the curtains. Her annoyance seemed only to double as the grating blaring of her alarm sounded. And it was right next to her ear. Slowly the massive rat's nest of blonde hair lifted, if only slightly, to glare at the alarm clock. And if that weren't enough to fill her day with joy, only seconds later her mother's head popped through the door. Camerata was a rather petite woman, and fairly thin as well. She was just barley five-foot-three, her frame not helping her height either. She was all bones, mostly cheekbones, and her skinniness only accentuated this feature in her. Unlike her daughter, Camerata's hair fell in wispy chestnut strands, just past her shoulders. Although, it was always styled up.
"Arietta. Why are you not out of bed already? School will be starting soon!" her mother's high-pitched voice sounded almost as grating to her as the alarm that was continuing to blare in her ear. Arietta ran a long-fingered hand through the knots of hair that encircled her face, knowing full well that a shower was most definitely needed.
"School doesn't start for two hours Mom."
"Well, you can never be to cautious. What if there's traffic? Or what if-"
"Alright Mom, I'm getting up. See?" she pushed herself up into a sitting position, giving her mother a look. Camerata merely waved an irritated hand and left the room, her small ponytail bouncing behind her as her pajama pants dragged along the floor. Arietta rolled her eyes and pushed herself into a standing position. After fiddling with the alarm for over three minutes, she finally gave up and just unplugged the damn thing. If it wasn't going to play nice, neither was she. As her feet padded along the hardwood floor and out into the hallway a small shiver ran through her body. Before she walked into the bathroom, she squinted over the stair railing to see her father munching on cereal in the kitchen downstairs. His thick blonde hair was graying rapidly, though it still kept its depth. Small, square glasses rested low on his nose as he stared transfixed at the morning paper.
Arietta shook her head and closed the door behind her as she entered the bathroom. Of course, because of her mother's decorating, the room was a proper powder blue. And all the accents, white. Arietta turned on the shower and waited for the water to turn hot before stepping in. As the stinging water rolled over her muscles she let herself relax a bit. The one thing she did like about mornings were showers. They were fantastic. But as she thought about the day ahead, her lips slowly formed into a frown. The thought of sitting in class after class of boring subjects was dragging down her mood greatly.
It didn't take long to dry her hair. It seemed to be a mixture of her parent's, for although her hair wasn't as wispy and thin as her mother's, it wasn't as thick and coarse like her father's. It seemed to be placed somewhere in the middle. Though she did inherit her father's blonde locks. Although her hair was naturally a bit wavy, she still went through the trouble of curling it slightly. She had gotten into the habit after middle school, with her mother pestering her about looks. After a quick application of makeup, Arietta headed back to her room. When she glanced over the banister she could still see her father intently reading the paper, her mother was perched on the couch watching something on the television, although Arietta couldn't quite see what.
Finally, she averted her smokey eyes and walked back into her room. Again, Arietta wasn't one to truly care about the mess which was her room. But she did find it a bit frustrating and difficult to find clothes that were clean in the massive throng of shirts, pants, and such. She did finally manage to settle on something. She looked in the single mirror of her room and shrugged. It's not like anyone was really going to care what she wore anyway.
She bounced down the stairs as slowly as she could, drawing out each movement. Her mother sent her an irritated look but said nothing more. Arietta walked over to the counter and grabbed her keys. Her father didn't so much as even glance in her direction as she pulled the dangly, clattering keys away from the spot next to his cereal. He truly was engrossed in whatever he was reading. She supposed something interesting must have happened.
"Alright. I'm leaving.... walking out the door.... going to school...." she said, backing away towards the front door. Her mother turned around, resting her arm on the back of the couch.
"Okay honey, see you after school."
"Alright... bye..." she finished as she eased the front door to a close. As soon as it clicked shut she bounded towards her car. Yes she drove a bug, and yes it was her baby. She loved that car. The navy blue paint stared back at her as she slid into the front seat. It wasn't long before she was puttering down the road and towards the main town. The Carlisle's lived in a nice little neighborhood, with charming houses and little drama. But when you drove into downtown of the secluded mountain city, the more interesting things became. The old rundown houses began to emerge here and there, some interesting looking people walked along the streets, and the whole quality of the place dropped. As her car slowly crawled through the downtown traffic, she glanced out at the old buildings and shops, which lined the main road. They all looked rundown and washed out to her. But soon the traffic was moving again and she turned her attention back to the road.
As she drove up to the high school, she could help but let the frown from earlier return to her face. She truly did loathe the place. And as she parked she suddenly remembered why. Unlike like some high school's, cheer leading did not rule Emerson High. So that one popular b**** was not some ditsy blonde with an attitude jumping around in a little pleated skirt. No, that b**** had long black hair, dark green eyes, and was named Cassandra. She played volleyball; that was her only claim to fame. But she had a temper that could whip any head cheerleader into submission. And she absolutely detested Arietta. She could never figure out why, but Cassy, as she was called, had made it her life's mission to make Arietta's life a living hell.
"Working or walking honey, working or walking?" she snickered as she and her cult walked pass. Arietta gave the girl a simple smirk before slamming her car door closed. She felt it better to simply ignore Cassandra. She liked to compare her to a three-year old. If you ignored them long enough, soon they would give up and leave you alone. And the theory seemed to work on the volleyball player. And Arietta couldn't help but get a small satisfaction out of that.
As people began walking up towards the old, faded building, Arietta didn't move. For some reason, she had a feeling she wouldn't be able to handle the long drum of school today. So instead of walking to her first class after the bell rang, she walked across the parking lot and towards the football field. But she didn't stop when she reached the wet morning grass, she kept walking towards the old buildings. See the school had been rebuilt after a small fire had burnt down the original buildings. But for some reason, the few buildings that survived had been kept standing. She figured there had to be something interesting in those. And if not, at least she would be alone.
As she approached the largest of the buildings she was able to make out a small plaque next to the large double doors. Gymnasium. She pushed against the right door. Nothing. Locked. Then she tried the left, and what do you know, it was open. She slowly stepped inside the dusty dark room. The lights were off, as she expected, and everything was silent. As she walked around the rather small basketball court she glanced around. It didn't seem like much was inside. When she caught sight of another door she walked over. Perhaps it would lead to something interesting. In fact, it had led to the locker rooms. She glanced down the rows of lockers, again not finding much. Though at the end of the room there was a mirror. She wasn't sure why, but something about it seemed odd. So she went to take a closer look. When she tilted her head and looked at the object, she could find anything odd about it. So she reached out to touch the reflective surface. And that's when her world was turned upside down.
ƆĦΔƤƬЄЯ ƬWѲ
No, this shifting of realities did not occur quickly, snapping into place like a rubber-band might if it were closing around something. For although this change and shift did pass within seconds, time seemed to slow and drag out the process as if it were taking hours. The moment Arietta's fingers grazed the smooth reflective glass surface of the old mirror, her world almost seemed to explode in a way. The light that she so loathed seemed to burst out around her, long tendrils of gold, amber and even burgundy ran through the air, some twisting around her frozen body. A few even wound their way through the faint curls of her blonde locks. Arietta herself was frozen in place, unable to move a single limb. Although, her hair seemed to billow out around her as if she were sinking into the dark black depths of water. For a few more moments the light encompassed her being, holding her hostage to it's bright blaze. The only other thing that she could see, was the mirror. But the bizarre thing about the object, was that her reflection could no longer be seen within the caverns of the glass. Nothing could bee seen in it at all. Only the light which erupted from the surface was all that could be made out.
But after seeming to be stand in her unmoving state for a long time, the light almost seemed to shatter. But not in the way glass or clay might if it were dropped on the ground. The wisps of light seemed to break into small fragments, softly almost as if they were melting, as they gave way to inky onyx-like waves. The midnight colored tendrils seemed to blot the air with their inky substance. And soon the tendrils blotted together until no longer could she see the world around her. Even the faint glimmer of the mirror was lost to the black surroundings. It seemed that everything was devoid of light, nothing was tangible in this state. Nothing that was, aside from the mirror. For although she could not see the glass, she could still feel the cool, smooth plane of it's being. Suddenly all was quiet. She had not noticed it until that very moment, but a loud roaring had sounded throughout the length of this shift. But now, not a single noise could be heard. There was nothing but the darkness, and the silence.
But soon not even that remained. The great roaring returned to her ears and this time it was loud enough for the magnitude of the noise to draw pain from her eardrums. She couldn’t imagine how she had missed it before. But as the roaring quickened and grew more loud with each passing second, the inky onyx began to break away and give way to the bright amber and gold she had experienced earlier. And now her eyes could not stand to gaze upon the brightness that the light presented her with. And now all she could see was the blinding white of light. Her entire body, soul and being seemed to be alive and buzzing with pain. But it was not an intolerable amount of pain, only a small amount. She couldn’t even process what thoughts were rolling through her mind, but many they were in number. Not her life but all her thoughts and ideas seemed to flash across her psyche, even though she could not comprehend what they were, she could feel the significance of each.
And then she fell. It was quite a shock after being held in a frozen state for so long, and it took a moment for her to determine what was happening. But when she came to the conclusion of what had happened, she wasn’t sure how to react. The mirror that had stood before her for so long was nowhere in sight. In fact, neither was the old locker room. And it was not Emerson High that greeted her smoky grey eyes when she looked around. She wasn’t even sure she was still in the small mountain town of Elwood. No, the buildings around her did not resemble the washed out shops and buildings she was familiar with. Everything around her seemed to be bathed in a darker shade of sepia. Even the heavily clouded sky seemed to hold this dark tone. There were spurts of orange flame that licked at the air from randomly placed garbage cans, and even the people that huddled around them seemed content to match their clothing with the uneven tones of sepia. But separating Arietta from the rundown brick buildings was a chain-link fence topped with rolling curves of barbed wire.
Arietta puzzled over this for a bit, until she heard the sirens sound. They almost seemed to be the amplified sound of her alarm. But they were not the sirens of an ambulance, no. They were sirens alerting her presence. At the time Arietta had no knowledge of this, but the sound was enough to make her move. She had no clear idea of the meaning behind the blaring alarms, but a sense of trepidation lurked behind the noise and pushed her feet into a run. It took her a few moments to push her shaky legs up into a standing position, but once she was up she was off. She didn’t know what she was looking for, but she knew she had to look for something. For not long after the sirens began, she could hear the pounding of feet, other than her own, off in the distance.
This only made Arietta pick up her pace as she raced along the outside of the fence. Only a few sullen faces from within the fencing turned to look at her, and most found little interest, as if this were a regular thing. She was suddenly thankful for the years of track that she had endured, if she hadn’t have kept in shape she surely wouldn’t have been able to evade the other pounding footsteps behind her for so long. The sky continued to show no signs of change as the clouds masked whatever sun shone on the fenced in city. Arietta was sure that there was a sun, for what else could cast the sepia color across everything? Arietta could hear the footsteps behind her grow ever closer, she didn’t bother turning to look, it would only slow her down.
As she continued to run she spotted a spot in the fencing, just the slightest upturning at the bottom of the chain link. She dashed forward and threw herself to her knees, pulling at the fence. It took a few moments, and anxiety weighed down on her as she heard the pounding of footsteps behind her, but she finally managed to squeeze through the bottom of the links. She glanced back slightly to see a group of men chasing after her, dressed in some sort of uniform. But she didn’t gaze on for long, and soon she was running towards the brick buildings.
She had managed to lose her bag somewhere in her dash. Actually, she may have lost it before she even ended up in… well wherever she was. Perhaps it was still sitting on the ground by that damn mirror in the old, abandoned gymnasium. The streets were paved. She didn’t know if that was something important to note, but she thought it really was. At least she hadn’t traveled back in time or anything. But that brought up another question, what had happened to her? She didn’t have time to think about this though, as she was pushing through a group of people huddled around a fire burning away at the trash in a rusty metal garbage can. They didn’t move out of her way, but they let her shove pass them, not seeming to care either way if the men in uniform caught her or not. She did notice that they were all dressed in ragged clothes, and some seemed to be in their early twenties, others in their late eighties. It was an odd mixture of people.
But again, she didn’t have time to dwell on this, as she was still running. She wasn’t quite sure what it was she was running from, but she had a feeling that if those men did happen to catch up with her, the end result wouldn’t be a good one. So she let her tired feet pound along the small sidewalk as she pushed through another huddled group. The sirens continued to sound at varied volumes depending on where she was running. She had taken a couple of wild turns while she was running and she couldn’t hear the feet hammering behind her. So she turned down a side alley in hopes of eluding the men. She turned her head slightly just to make sure she wasn’t being followed… well followed closely, when she ran into a pair of hands. Before she could try t fight out of them she saw the face of their owner. It was an old woman, perhaps in her nineties. She couldn’t help but think that that was an achievement for this place. The woman nodded her head towards a small worn out wooden door leading into a building. And for some reason, Arietta couldn’t help but feel that the woman was trustworthy. She had grey hair that held a shimmer of it’s former color, and bright eyes that hadn’t lost their spark like she had seen in some of the people.
So she went through the door. The woman didn’t speak, she simply lead her up a flight of stairs and to a back room, opening the door for Arietta. There was really nothing inside. Some old furniture covered with a sheet and a few discarded boards of wood were the only objects that filled the small space. And a tiny boarded up window centered on the far wall let small trickles of sepia light seep into the dusty old room. Arietta looked at the woman.
“Thank you.” the woman merely nodded and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her. Arietta walked over to the farthest corner and leaned her back against the wall. How had she ended up like this? She let her body slowly slide to the floor, letting out a small sigh as she finally hit the ground. The faint sound of the sirens had finally subsided, giving way to the small crackles of fire and few yells of conversation, though she couldn’t make out the words. She heard a few deep chuckles of laughter but then silence yet again. She couldn’t help but wonder about what would become of her. This wasn’t Narnia, there was no magic lamp that would lead her back to reality. She was stuck here. She heard the faint sound of footsteps on the stairs and inched back further into the shadows of the corner. The sound seemed to loud to belong to the woman who offered her shelter.
And she was correct. When the old door opened, it was a man in uniform who stood in its frame. He had dark, golden blonde hair, and dark onyx eyes. His eyes reminded her of the inky black tendrils that had brought her here. He was tall and well built, though not overly muscular. And he looked to be in his early twenties. He seemed a bit young to be in this situation. But he was staring right at her, and a knife glinted coldly as it dangled from his hand. As he stepped forward slowly Arietta couldn’t help but cower and tremble at his feet. He bent down at his knees and looked straight into her smoky grey eyes.
“If you want to live, don’t leave Lalita’s house. You understand?” his voice was warm, more so than she had expected, and it was all she could do to nod her head. “Good.” he responded, standing up and tucked the knife into his boot. He threw her one more glance before walking out the door, down the stairs, and into the street. Arietta let a small tear slide down her face, she had come so close to dying, she couldn’t really comprehend it. The woman, Lalita, walked in and handed her a blanket and a piece of bread.
“Don’t worry, Gabriel isn’t like the others. He won’t tell them where you are.” the woman rasped, a bit of saliva flew from the few empty gaps where teeth should have been. Arietta nodded and the woman smiled at her before leaving yet again. She looked down at the bread and eagerly tore into it. She ate it down to the last crumb, wondering once more what she had gotten herself into.
But after seeming to be stand in her unmoving state for a long time, the light almost seemed to shatter. But not in the way glass or clay might if it were dropped on the ground. The wisps of light seemed to break into small fragments, softly almost as if they were melting, as they gave way to inky onyx-like waves. The midnight colored tendrils seemed to blot the air with their inky substance. And soon the tendrils blotted together until no longer could she see the world around her. Even the faint glimmer of the mirror was lost to the black surroundings. It seemed that everything was devoid of light, nothing was tangible in this state. Nothing that was, aside from the mirror. For although she could not see the glass, she could still feel the cool, smooth plane of it's being. Suddenly all was quiet. She had not noticed it until that very moment, but a loud roaring had sounded throughout the length of this shift. But now, not a single noise could be heard. There was nothing but the darkness, and the silence.
But soon not even that remained. The great roaring returned to her ears and this time it was loud enough for the magnitude of the noise to draw pain from her eardrums. She couldn’t imagine how she had missed it before. But as the roaring quickened and grew more loud with each passing second, the inky onyx began to break away and give way to the bright amber and gold she had experienced earlier. And now her eyes could not stand to gaze upon the brightness that the light presented her with. And now all she could see was the blinding white of light. Her entire body, soul and being seemed to be alive and buzzing with pain. But it was not an intolerable amount of pain, only a small amount. She couldn’t even process what thoughts were rolling through her mind, but many they were in number. Not her life but all her thoughts and ideas seemed to flash across her psyche, even though she could not comprehend what they were, she could feel the significance of each.
And then she fell. It was quite a shock after being held in a frozen state for so long, and it took a moment for her to determine what was happening. But when she came to the conclusion of what had happened, she wasn’t sure how to react. The mirror that had stood before her for so long was nowhere in sight. In fact, neither was the old locker room. And it was not Emerson High that greeted her smoky grey eyes when she looked around. She wasn’t even sure she was still in the small mountain town of Elwood. No, the buildings around her did not resemble the washed out shops and buildings she was familiar with. Everything around her seemed to be bathed in a darker shade of sepia. Even the heavily clouded sky seemed to hold this dark tone. There were spurts of orange flame that licked at the air from randomly placed garbage cans, and even the people that huddled around them seemed content to match their clothing with the uneven tones of sepia. But separating Arietta from the rundown brick buildings was a chain-link fence topped with rolling curves of barbed wire.
Arietta puzzled over this for a bit, until she heard the sirens sound. They almost seemed to be the amplified sound of her alarm. But they were not the sirens of an ambulance, no. They were sirens alerting her presence. At the time Arietta had no knowledge of this, but the sound was enough to make her move. She had no clear idea of the meaning behind the blaring alarms, but a sense of trepidation lurked behind the noise and pushed her feet into a run. It took her a few moments to push her shaky legs up into a standing position, but once she was up she was off. She didn’t know what she was looking for, but she knew she had to look for something. For not long after the sirens began, she could hear the pounding of feet, other than her own, off in the distance.
This only made Arietta pick up her pace as she raced along the outside of the fence. Only a few sullen faces from within the fencing turned to look at her, and most found little interest, as if this were a regular thing. She was suddenly thankful for the years of track that she had endured, if she hadn’t have kept in shape she surely wouldn’t have been able to evade the other pounding footsteps behind her for so long. The sky continued to show no signs of change as the clouds masked whatever sun shone on the fenced in city. Arietta was sure that there was a sun, for what else could cast the sepia color across everything? Arietta could hear the footsteps behind her grow ever closer, she didn’t bother turning to look, it would only slow her down.
As she continued to run she spotted a spot in the fencing, just the slightest upturning at the bottom of the chain link. She dashed forward and threw herself to her knees, pulling at the fence. It took a few moments, and anxiety weighed down on her as she heard the pounding of footsteps behind her, but she finally managed to squeeze through the bottom of the links. She glanced back slightly to see a group of men chasing after her, dressed in some sort of uniform. But she didn’t gaze on for long, and soon she was running towards the brick buildings.
She had managed to lose her bag somewhere in her dash. Actually, she may have lost it before she even ended up in… well wherever she was. Perhaps it was still sitting on the ground by that damn mirror in the old, abandoned gymnasium. The streets were paved. She didn’t know if that was something important to note, but she thought it really was. At least she hadn’t traveled back in time or anything. But that brought up another question, what had happened to her? She didn’t have time to think about this though, as she was pushing through a group of people huddled around a fire burning away at the trash in a rusty metal garbage can. They didn’t move out of her way, but they let her shove pass them, not seeming to care either way if the men in uniform caught her or not. She did notice that they were all dressed in ragged clothes, and some seemed to be in their early twenties, others in their late eighties. It was an odd mixture of people.
But again, she didn’t have time to dwell on this, as she was still running. She wasn’t quite sure what it was she was running from, but she had a feeling that if those men did happen to catch up with her, the end result wouldn’t be a good one. So she let her tired feet pound along the small sidewalk as she pushed through another huddled group. The sirens continued to sound at varied volumes depending on where she was running. She had taken a couple of wild turns while she was running and she couldn’t hear the feet hammering behind her. So she turned down a side alley in hopes of eluding the men. She turned her head slightly just to make sure she wasn’t being followed… well followed closely, when she ran into a pair of hands. Before she could try t fight out of them she saw the face of their owner. It was an old woman, perhaps in her nineties. She couldn’t help but think that that was an achievement for this place. The woman nodded her head towards a small worn out wooden door leading into a building. And for some reason, Arietta couldn’t help but feel that the woman was trustworthy. She had grey hair that held a shimmer of it’s former color, and bright eyes that hadn’t lost their spark like she had seen in some of the people.
So she went through the door. The woman didn’t speak, she simply lead her up a flight of stairs and to a back room, opening the door for Arietta. There was really nothing inside. Some old furniture covered with a sheet and a few discarded boards of wood were the only objects that filled the small space. And a tiny boarded up window centered on the far wall let small trickles of sepia light seep into the dusty old room. Arietta looked at the woman.
“Thank you.” the woman merely nodded and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her. Arietta walked over to the farthest corner and leaned her back against the wall. How had she ended up like this? She let her body slowly slide to the floor, letting out a small sigh as she finally hit the ground. The faint sound of the sirens had finally subsided, giving way to the small crackles of fire and few yells of conversation, though she couldn’t make out the words. She heard a few deep chuckles of laughter but then silence yet again. She couldn’t help but wonder about what would become of her. This wasn’t Narnia, there was no magic lamp that would lead her back to reality. She was stuck here. She heard the faint sound of footsteps on the stairs and inched back further into the shadows of the corner. The sound seemed to loud to belong to the woman who offered her shelter.
And she was correct. When the old door opened, it was a man in uniform who stood in its frame. He had dark, golden blonde hair, and dark onyx eyes. His eyes reminded her of the inky black tendrils that had brought her here. He was tall and well built, though not overly muscular. And he looked to be in his early twenties. He seemed a bit young to be in this situation. But he was staring right at her, and a knife glinted coldly as it dangled from his hand. As he stepped forward slowly Arietta couldn’t help but cower and tremble at his feet. He bent down at his knees and looked straight into her smoky grey eyes.
“If you want to live, don’t leave Lalita’s house. You understand?” his voice was warm, more so than she had expected, and it was all she could do to nod her head. “Good.” he responded, standing up and tucked the knife into his boot. He threw her one more glance before walking out the door, down the stairs, and into the street. Arietta let a small tear slide down her face, she had come so close to dying, she couldn’t really comprehend it. The woman, Lalita, walked in and handed her a blanket and a piece of bread.
“Don’t worry, Gabriel isn’t like the others. He won’t tell them where you are.” the woman rasped, a bit of saliva flew from the few empty gaps where teeth should have been. Arietta nodded and the woman smiled at her before leaving yet again. She looked down at the bread and eagerly tore into it. She ate it down to the last crumb, wondering once more what she had gotten herself into.
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The sirens continued to resound. After the few days of living with Lalita, she found that the sirens sounded almost every few days. Now she knew why none of the city's inhabitants had seemed to take much interest in her when she ran along the perimeter of the fence. But unlike the time she came into the city, the siren's calls did not last nearly as long. Because the guards eventually caught up with the person who was trying to escape them. Arietta took another small bite of bread. That was all she had been able to eat for the past few days of living with Lalita. It was all the old woman could afford to give her. But Arietta wasn't about to complain, she was just thankful that the woman was providing her with shelter. But she did find herself missing her home. She missed her mother, father, bedroom, even her annoying alarm clock. She missed Elwood, Emerson, even Cassandra.... no, scratch that, she wasn't that depressed. But she did miss her reality. She left the small piece of bread roll onto the floor as her head thumped against the wall. She had been trapped up in that back room for much to long, nothing to do, nobody to talk to. That was until that one day, when Lalita had found time in her day to come up and speak with her.
She had been living in the back room for about three days when Lalita came to speak with her. Arietta liked the old woman, she truly did, but she could be a bit hard to understand at times. She was missing more teeth than the ones she still possessed, and it took it's toll on her speech. But eventually Arietta had grown accustomed to Lalita's warped style of speech, and could uderstand a few things the woman said to her. But usually, Lalita didn't say much. She merely handed her bread, gave her a small smile, and walked out the door. But on that third day she stayed put in the room. Arietta had begun to bite into her bread, when she realized that the woman was still standing before her. She gently set down the food and looked up at the woman's old, wrinkled face.
"Do you wish to know why you are here child?" she said, spittle flying from her mouth but only landing on the floor. Arietta's head perked up at these words, it was something she had been puzzling over for a long time. "Well do you?" Lalita demanded, a bit impatiently.
"Yes of course."
"Very well." before she began her story, she went over to the pile of covered furniture and pulled out an old chair, which looked like it could have fallen apart if a feather landed on it. But somehow, the petite chair was able to hold the old woman's weight. Arietta couldn't help the baffled expression that flickered across her face, though Lalita seemed to have missed it. But her attention was turned back to the woman and away from the chair as the raspy voice began to speak once more. "You have heard the sirens blast, and felt the pounding footsteps of the guards. There are others like you dear."
"But how di-"
"No interrupting!" Arietta quickly clamped her mouth shut. Lalita smirked a bit and relaxed back into the chair, the old wood creaking as she moved. Arietta hadn't taken notice of it before, but the small piece of furniture was covered in a black floral fabric. "Now... what was I saying... oh yes, there are others like you." she woman pointed a shaky, boney finger at Arietta. "They come from beyond this world, and fall into our city. And they are chased down. Do you know why this is?" she asked, looking at Arietta as if she expected an answer. The blonde merely shook her head. "No, of course you don't. You come from the outside, from the reality beyond this life." It was about then that Arietta was beginning to wonder just what Lalita was getting at, the woman was seeming to babble off nonsense. "Those that cross over never leave. But you dear, you're the first to escape the guards, perhaps you'll change history." Lalita paused to blow her nose into a handkerchief, Arietta recoiled just slightly. But Lalita leaned forward with a peculiar smirk on her face. "They are killed because they know, but what they know cannot be killed. The life of a secret is not within it's telling, but within it's keeping."
Airetta looked on at the woman with a distraught expression of confusion. She had just been told complete and utter nonsense, and she didn't know what to make of it. Lalita simply stood and left the room, her chair still sitting in the middle of the hard wood floor. Arietta gazed at it for a while, her grey eyes tracing over the patterns of pink flowers on a black background. The fabric had been torn here and there, and some flowers split apart because of this, but it was still a beautiful piece. Arietta looked back up at the empty door frame, wondering if Lalita knew that what she said had held no meaning in her mind.
She flashed back to the present day and looked at the half-eaten piece of bread that lay next to her hand. She couldn't bare the thought of it going to waste, so she gingerly picked it up, and finished it with shaking hands. She had lost a bit of weight while she was in the sepia city(as she liked to call it). Eating nothing but two slices of bread a day took it's toll on her body, she needed protein, and the thought of steak made her stomach growl painfully. Arietta squinted her face up in discomfort and laid herself down on the ground, curling her arms around her torso. Perhaps if she could just fall asleep...
She dreamed of her mother. And no, it was not a dream where her mother showered her with love. She dreamed the Camerata she had known all her life. The small woman with hands planted firmly on her hips, the tips of her heels tapping at the ground impatiently as she waited for Arietta. Her father grumbled to himself in the background as he paced behind Camerata. He wouldn't want to get involved in whatever she was about to start. He just wanted to leave and be done with it. Arietta wasn't even sure where they were going, she only knew that she didn't want to go. Soon though, the yells of her mother to "hurry up" faded away and melted into blackness. And soon the sirens replaced her yelling, and Arietta was outside the fence again, running to save herself. Only this time, there was no upturned chain links, she was stuck outside the perimeter. A figure stepped in her path, grabbing her arms and pinning them against her body. No it was not Lalita, it was Gabriel, the guard that she met her first day in the sepia city. Only this time, he didn't drop the silver knife in his hand.
Arietta's eyes flashed open, and she sat up with a start. Even in her dream, she was running from death. She grabbed the blanket that sat folded in the corner and wrapped it around herself, the coarse fabric scratching against her skin as it partly folded itself around her. She pulled her legs up and let her arms tighten around them as she rested her chin on her knees. The sirens boomed in the background. The grating noise had invaded her mind as she slept and wove its way into her dreams. But this fact did not comfort her, the nightmare was still fresh in her mind.
She let a few tears roll down her dirty face. She truly missed her home. She missed everything about it. She wondered what had happened while she was away. How did her mother react? Was her father ordering around police officers as they walked around his house? Was Cassandra snickering to herself and mumbling misgivings about her to the group of girls that worshiped the ground she walked on? Was her bag still slumped against that wretched mirror? Was there even an Elwood to go home to? These questions, along with many more, swarmed around her head. And the worst one of all, if there was an Elwood to go back to, would she manage to make it there before getting herself killed? She let out a breath, the sound seeming to shudder in the air as she tried to keep the tears from falling as she lowered herself back to the floor. But she ultimately failed, and the saline water was all that kept her company as she drifted off to sleep.
Arietta woke up to her shoulder being shook. Her alarm sounded in the background, louder than usual. She couldn't imagine why her mother was shaking her so lightly, that was until she opened her eyes and found herself looking at the wrinkled face of an old woman. She jumped a bit, alarmed. That was until she remembered, remembered that she was trapped in the sepia city and living under the roof of Miss Lalita.
"Wake up child, wake up!" the woman urged, giving her one more good shake as Arietta's eyes opened fully. She took in her surroundings slowly. The alarms and sirens were blaring louder than usual, and it was hard to hear what Lalita was saying. The coarse green blanket was drapped over her legs, looking tired and worn out. The old chair still sat in the middle of the room. The only real change was the figure standing in the doorway. Her heart began to pound quickly when she caught sight of Gabriel. Her nightmare still rang through her mind. Also, she hadn't seen him since the first day she had arrived, so this encounter couldn't mean anything good. "Get up dear, up! That's it get up!" Lalita rasped as she pulled Arietta to her feet. She pushed her towards the doorway, and towards Gabriel. "It's time for us to part dear, I do hope you make it." the woman gave her a sad, but warm look before kissing her forehead and ushering her and the guard out into the hallway.
"But what is-"
"Shh! You must go with Gabriel. And trust him dear, he's your only chance now." Lalita said as she pushed the both of them down the stairs. Before they walked out the front door Lalita handed something to the guard. Gabriel tugged the shawl on over Arietta quickly before the two left the rundown house. They wove through back alleys, Arietta keeping the hood of the shawl tightly held against her head. She looked back towards the direction of Lalita's house, not knowing what was going on.
She looked up at Gabriel, who had a tight hold of her arm and was dragging her through the alleys, pass trash cans, abandoned junk, and the few random people huddled against the rundown brick walls. He looked determined, like he knew exactly what he was doing. But in truth, Arietta wasn't sure if he really was. Her feet seemed to move of their own accord, stepping over discarded rubbish and such. "What's going on?" she asked, continuing to look at the guard. He didn't seem to hear her so she spoke up a bit. "What is going on?" Gabriel seemed a bit flustered by her question as if he didn't expect it.
"We're saving your life." and that was all he had to say on the matter.
She had been living in the back room for about three days when Lalita came to speak with her. Arietta liked the old woman, she truly did, but she could be a bit hard to understand at times. She was missing more teeth than the ones she still possessed, and it took it's toll on her speech. But eventually Arietta had grown accustomed to Lalita's warped style of speech, and could uderstand a few things the woman said to her. But usually, Lalita didn't say much. She merely handed her bread, gave her a small smile, and walked out the door. But on that third day she stayed put in the room. Arietta had begun to bite into her bread, when she realized that the woman was still standing before her. She gently set down the food and looked up at the woman's old, wrinkled face.
"Do you wish to know why you are here child?" she said, spittle flying from her mouth but only landing on the floor. Arietta's head perked up at these words, it was something she had been puzzling over for a long time. "Well do you?" Lalita demanded, a bit impatiently.
"Yes of course."
"Very well." before she began her story, she went over to the pile of covered furniture and pulled out an old chair, which looked like it could have fallen apart if a feather landed on it. But somehow, the petite chair was able to hold the old woman's weight. Arietta couldn't help the baffled expression that flickered across her face, though Lalita seemed to have missed it. But her attention was turned back to the woman and away from the chair as the raspy voice began to speak once more. "You have heard the sirens blast, and felt the pounding footsteps of the guards. There are others like you dear."
"But how di-"
"No interrupting!" Arietta quickly clamped her mouth shut. Lalita smirked a bit and relaxed back into the chair, the old wood creaking as she moved. Arietta hadn't taken notice of it before, but the small piece of furniture was covered in a black floral fabric. "Now... what was I saying... oh yes, there are others like you." she woman pointed a shaky, boney finger at Arietta. "They come from beyond this world, and fall into our city. And they are chased down. Do you know why this is?" she asked, looking at Arietta as if she expected an answer. The blonde merely shook her head. "No, of course you don't. You come from the outside, from the reality beyond this life." It was about then that Arietta was beginning to wonder just what Lalita was getting at, the woman was seeming to babble off nonsense. "Those that cross over never leave. But you dear, you're the first to escape the guards, perhaps you'll change history." Lalita paused to blow her nose into a handkerchief, Arietta recoiled just slightly. But Lalita leaned forward with a peculiar smirk on her face. "They are killed because they know, but what they know cannot be killed. The life of a secret is not within it's telling, but within it's keeping."
Airetta looked on at the woman with a distraught expression of confusion. She had just been told complete and utter nonsense, and she didn't know what to make of it. Lalita simply stood and left the room, her chair still sitting in the middle of the hard wood floor. Arietta gazed at it for a while, her grey eyes tracing over the patterns of pink flowers on a black background. The fabric had been torn here and there, and some flowers split apart because of this, but it was still a beautiful piece. Arietta looked back up at the empty door frame, wondering if Lalita knew that what she said had held no meaning in her mind.
She flashed back to the present day and looked at the half-eaten piece of bread that lay next to her hand. She couldn't bare the thought of it going to waste, so she gingerly picked it up, and finished it with shaking hands. She had lost a bit of weight while she was in the sepia city(as she liked to call it). Eating nothing but two slices of bread a day took it's toll on her body, she needed protein, and the thought of steak made her stomach growl painfully. Arietta squinted her face up in discomfort and laid herself down on the ground, curling her arms around her torso. Perhaps if she could just fall asleep...
She dreamed of her mother. And no, it was not a dream where her mother showered her with love. She dreamed the Camerata she had known all her life. The small woman with hands planted firmly on her hips, the tips of her heels tapping at the ground impatiently as she waited for Arietta. Her father grumbled to himself in the background as he paced behind Camerata. He wouldn't want to get involved in whatever she was about to start. He just wanted to leave and be done with it. Arietta wasn't even sure where they were going, she only knew that she didn't want to go. Soon though, the yells of her mother to "hurry up" faded away and melted into blackness. And soon the sirens replaced her yelling, and Arietta was outside the fence again, running to save herself. Only this time, there was no upturned chain links, she was stuck outside the perimeter. A figure stepped in her path, grabbing her arms and pinning them against her body. No it was not Lalita, it was Gabriel, the guard that she met her first day in the sepia city. Only this time, he didn't drop the silver knife in his hand.
Arietta's eyes flashed open, and she sat up with a start. Even in her dream, she was running from death. She grabbed the blanket that sat folded in the corner and wrapped it around herself, the coarse fabric scratching against her skin as it partly folded itself around her. She pulled her legs up and let her arms tighten around them as she rested her chin on her knees. The sirens boomed in the background. The grating noise had invaded her mind as she slept and wove its way into her dreams. But this fact did not comfort her, the nightmare was still fresh in her mind.
She let a few tears roll down her dirty face. She truly missed her home. She missed everything about it. She wondered what had happened while she was away. How did her mother react? Was her father ordering around police officers as they walked around his house? Was Cassandra snickering to herself and mumbling misgivings about her to the group of girls that worshiped the ground she walked on? Was her bag still slumped against that wretched mirror? Was there even an Elwood to go home to? These questions, along with many more, swarmed around her head. And the worst one of all, if there was an Elwood to go back to, would she manage to make it there before getting herself killed? She let out a breath, the sound seeming to shudder in the air as she tried to keep the tears from falling as she lowered herself back to the floor. But she ultimately failed, and the saline water was all that kept her company as she drifted off to sleep.
Arietta woke up to her shoulder being shook. Her alarm sounded in the background, louder than usual. She couldn't imagine why her mother was shaking her so lightly, that was until she opened her eyes and found herself looking at the wrinkled face of an old woman. She jumped a bit, alarmed. That was until she remembered, remembered that she was trapped in the sepia city and living under the roof of Miss Lalita.
"Wake up child, wake up!" the woman urged, giving her one more good shake as Arietta's eyes opened fully. She took in her surroundings slowly. The alarms and sirens were blaring louder than usual, and it was hard to hear what Lalita was saying. The coarse green blanket was drapped over her legs, looking tired and worn out. The old chair still sat in the middle of the room. The only real change was the figure standing in the doorway. Her heart began to pound quickly when she caught sight of Gabriel. Her nightmare still rang through her mind. Also, she hadn't seen him since the first day she had arrived, so this encounter couldn't mean anything good. "Get up dear, up! That's it get up!" Lalita rasped as she pulled Arietta to her feet. She pushed her towards the doorway, and towards Gabriel. "It's time for us to part dear, I do hope you make it." the woman gave her a sad, but warm look before kissing her forehead and ushering her and the guard out into the hallway.
"But what is-"
"Shh! You must go with Gabriel. And trust him dear, he's your only chance now." Lalita said as she pushed the both of them down the stairs. Before they walked out the front door Lalita handed something to the guard. Gabriel tugged the shawl on over Arietta quickly before the two left the rundown house. They wove through back alleys, Arietta keeping the hood of the shawl tightly held against her head. She looked back towards the direction of Lalita's house, not knowing what was going on.
She looked up at Gabriel, who had a tight hold of her arm and was dragging her through the alleys, pass trash cans, abandoned junk, and the few random people huddled against the rundown brick walls. He looked determined, like he knew exactly what he was doing. But in truth, Arietta wasn't sure if he really was. Her feet seemed to move of their own accord, stepping over discarded rubbish and such. "What's going on?" she asked, continuing to look at the guard. He didn't seem to hear her so she spoke up a bit. "What is going on?" Gabriel seemed a bit flustered by her question as if he didn't expect it.
"We're saving your life." and that was all he had to say on the matter.
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Arietta gave Gabriel a somewhat puzzled look, as if she didn't quite understand what he was saying. She opened her mouth to respond, but this plan was deterred when she tripped over an extended piece of cloth. Luckily Gabriel was able to catch her before she landed flat on her face. Although she was a bit embarrassed by her inability to control her feet, she didn't have time to dwell on this. For soon after he had righted her, the guard was off again and pulling her arm right along with him. As Arietta glanced around the alley they just so happened to be running down, a toothless man met her eyes. He showed no expression other than dismay and quietly returned to looking at his empty, wrinkled hands that lay limp in his lap. She couldn't help but wonder what had happened to the sepia city, and to it's people, to throw it into such a state of contempt and disorder. Surely the city had not always been the way she'd been seeing it. But looking into the solemn face of the old man, she knew that it had remained in this state far to long. After one more glance at the man, Arietta was forced to turn her head as Gabriel tugged her around yet another corner. But the image of the man's sunken eyes and distraught face would be staying with her for days to come.
"Who's we?" she asked, turning her grey gaze back on the dark haired guard. Gabriel looked down at her, seeming to be unsure on how to answer her question. So he merely shook his head and turned another corner. Arietta let an agitated frown cross her face as they continued on their run. It seemed that the farther they ran, the less rubbage they came across. Arietta also noticed that the rundown, about-to-fall-over, faded out buildings were beginning to change. Brick was beginning to replace rotting wood, paint was taking the place of exposed boards, and the size of houses were starting to grow, if only slightly. It seemed that they were moving into a nicer part of the city, something Arietta was sure never existed. "Where are we?"
"We're moving towards the center of the city." he said, looking down at her with his intense onyx stare. "We're going to have to be more careful about being seen."
"Alright..." Arietta responded as they ducked down another alley. Only now, their pace had slowed to what seemed to be a snail's pace compared to the rate at which they were moving earlier. Every house or so they would have to stop and hide themselves in the shadows so as not to be seen. Arietta was beginning to think that Lalita's shawl was making her seem more an outcast now than ever. But she was thankful for the extra layer as a mixture of snow, and what seemed to be ash, began to lightly rain down from the sky. But even with the bright whiteness of snow the city continued to look as though it were painted sepia. Arietta was truly beginning to wonder why exactly this oddity seemed to occur.
"Get down!" Gabriel's voice seemed to drill down into her mind, although it was spoken in urgent, hush tones. She didn't quite know how to react, so Gabriel reacted for her. He shoved her down behind the shaded back stairs of a building, a few bits of debris flying up around her as he did so. At first, she didn't realize why he had done this, much less why he was diving down next to her. But when she heard the marching of boot-covered feet, her breathing almost came to a complete halt. At that moment, the only thought that her mind could process was staying alive. Her entire being seemed to crumple as she inched her way behind Gabriel. The guard in question reached behind him to push her even farther into the depths of the shadows. All she could see was his outline, a bit of snow-dusted street, and nothing else. Puffs of condensation floated into the air around them as the temperature dropped. It seemed to take all of Gabriel's effort to stay still as Arietta breathed down the back of his neck. She tried to reposition herself so that she was breathing out into the air and not on his bare skin, but she could hardly move without giving them away.
But this issue didn't seemed to draw on further as boots walked into her line of sight. Both the guard and the girl stopped breathing, not making a sound. For a while the boots moved around, voices grumbling and chuckling as they walked. But they never did stumble across the pair hiding under the steps. At one point a pair of boots strayed to close to the stairs for comfort, and Gabriel leaned back into Arietta. She placed her hands on his back and tried with much effort not to dig her nails into his skin. The apprehension in the surrounding air was so thick it almost seemed to choke her as the arms of trepidation wound their way around her.
Finally, the boots moved away, as did the voices. But Gabriel and Arietta seemed to be frozen in place. The only movement that came from their small bubble under the stairs, was the light bits of snow that were falling down to lightly dust the ground. After a few minutes, Gabriel shifted his muscles, slowly making his way out into the open.
"We should really keep moving." he said, reaching a hand down into the shadows of the steps. Hesitantly, Arietta took the hand offering itself to her, and was pulled out into the sepia light. Reality began to sink down on her as she and Gabriel ducked through dark shadows. There was a great, if not enormous, possibility that she was going to die. But her thoughts were interrupted as Gabriel came to a complete and utter stop. "We're here." he said quietly. Arietta looked away from the uniformed guard and up at the house. It was small, perhaps a bit bigger than Lalita's. But compared to the old woman's, it seemed like a mansion. Brick foundation, cream colored wood, and curtains fluttering around the windows. She couldn't imagine why the people who lived there would allow her to enter into their home.
But sure enough, Gabriel was already holding the black, polished back door open. Before she could hesitate Gabriel ushered her inside and closed the door. The sound of giggling could be heard off in a separate room, followed by a different, deeper chuckling. This only confused her further, did the people living here even know that they would be housing a fugitive? The patter of feet sounded down the hallway, and a little girl came rushing into the the room. She had long, slightly curled, dark blonde hair, and eyes the same onyx color as Gabriel's. She seemed to be three, perhaps four. And jogging down the hall after her, seemed to be a boy of Arietta's own age. Another dark blonde, but this one with blue eyes. She raised an eyebrow.
"Gabriel!!!" the little girl squealed, launching herself at the guard and wrapping her arms around his legs. The other boy just seemed to look at Gabriel and stare, as if he couldn't believe the man was standing before him. His eyes then flickered to Arietta, and his brow furrowed, obviously confused. Gabriel eyed the other boy before picking up the little girl.
"What are you doing here, and who's the girl?" the boy didn't seem to waste any time getting to the point.
"She needs to stay here Jason."
"So you just waltz in here, after two years, and expect me to jut do whatever you say?" the boy, Jason, seemed to be fuming. The giggling mess of the little girl quieted and looked worriedly at Gabriel. "Did you even know about Mom?"
"Yes I knew about..." and on it went. Arietta silently excused herself from the space and backed into the sitting room. The little girl wriggled out of Gabriel's arm and followed after her, hiding behind a chair and peeking her head out to smile at Arietta. She tried to smile back, but she was a bit worried and preoccupied, so she supposed her smile wasn't really that great. This thought was proven true when the girl came out from behind the chair and walked over to her.
"What's your name?" she asked, clutching the end of her dress in her tiny little hands.
"Arietta, what about you?"
"I'm Molly.... how do you know my brother?" so that was how Gabriel knew them, they were his family. And now she was worried. What had he gotten her into? She looked at Molly, with her large onyx doe eyes, unable to answer her. Jason and Gabriel walked in to find her looking at the little girl with her mouth open, unable to formulate a sentence.
"I must leave now, but, I'll be back in a day or two." Gabriel said before rushing out the door. Molly tried to catch up with him, but was only met with a closed door. She sniffled and walked back to hug her other brother. Arietta looked at the girl with a slight frown, before looking towards the door. What was going to happen now?
"Molly, why don't you go show Arietta where the bathroom is, so she can wash up before bed?"
"Okay!" the girl smiled, instantly perking up as she dragged Arietta towards the stairs, Jason looking after her with a frown, slightly shaking his head. Once she had finally gotten the girl to bounce back down the stairs, she turned on the tub. As the hot water slowly began to trickle down out of the faucet, Arietta looked at herself in the mirror. She was a complete and utter mess. Her clothes were rumpled, her hair stringy and dull. Her face and skin was laced with dirt and grime, and her cheeks were beginning to look a bit hollow. She sighed and ran a shaking hand through the knots in her hair before turning off the faucet. As she climbed into the tub and let the warm water take effect, she couldn't help but feel a sense of peace come over her. That was until reality set back in, and the sirens called out into the night.
"Who's we?" she asked, turning her grey gaze back on the dark haired guard. Gabriel looked down at her, seeming to be unsure on how to answer her question. So he merely shook his head and turned another corner. Arietta let an agitated frown cross her face as they continued on their run. It seemed that the farther they ran, the less rubbage they came across. Arietta also noticed that the rundown, about-to-fall-over, faded out buildings were beginning to change. Brick was beginning to replace rotting wood, paint was taking the place of exposed boards, and the size of houses were starting to grow, if only slightly. It seemed that they were moving into a nicer part of the city, something Arietta was sure never existed. "Where are we?"
"We're moving towards the center of the city." he said, looking down at her with his intense onyx stare. "We're going to have to be more careful about being seen."
"Alright..." Arietta responded as they ducked down another alley. Only now, their pace had slowed to what seemed to be a snail's pace compared to the rate at which they were moving earlier. Every house or so they would have to stop and hide themselves in the shadows so as not to be seen. Arietta was beginning to think that Lalita's shawl was making her seem more an outcast now than ever. But she was thankful for the extra layer as a mixture of snow, and what seemed to be ash, began to lightly rain down from the sky. But even with the bright whiteness of snow the city continued to look as though it were painted sepia. Arietta was truly beginning to wonder why exactly this oddity seemed to occur.
"Get down!" Gabriel's voice seemed to drill down into her mind, although it was spoken in urgent, hush tones. She didn't quite know how to react, so Gabriel reacted for her. He shoved her down behind the shaded back stairs of a building, a few bits of debris flying up around her as he did so. At first, she didn't realize why he had done this, much less why he was diving down next to her. But when she heard the marching of boot-covered feet, her breathing almost came to a complete halt. At that moment, the only thought that her mind could process was staying alive. Her entire being seemed to crumple as she inched her way behind Gabriel. The guard in question reached behind him to push her even farther into the depths of the shadows. All she could see was his outline, a bit of snow-dusted street, and nothing else. Puffs of condensation floated into the air around them as the temperature dropped. It seemed to take all of Gabriel's effort to stay still as Arietta breathed down the back of his neck. She tried to reposition herself so that she was breathing out into the air and not on his bare skin, but she could hardly move without giving them away.
But this issue didn't seemed to draw on further as boots walked into her line of sight. Both the guard and the girl stopped breathing, not making a sound. For a while the boots moved around, voices grumbling and chuckling as they walked. But they never did stumble across the pair hiding under the steps. At one point a pair of boots strayed to close to the stairs for comfort, and Gabriel leaned back into Arietta. She placed her hands on his back and tried with much effort not to dig her nails into his skin. The apprehension in the surrounding air was so thick it almost seemed to choke her as the arms of trepidation wound their way around her.
Finally, the boots moved away, as did the voices. But Gabriel and Arietta seemed to be frozen in place. The only movement that came from their small bubble under the stairs, was the light bits of snow that were falling down to lightly dust the ground. After a few minutes, Gabriel shifted his muscles, slowly making his way out into the open.
"We should really keep moving." he said, reaching a hand down into the shadows of the steps. Hesitantly, Arietta took the hand offering itself to her, and was pulled out into the sepia light. Reality began to sink down on her as she and Gabriel ducked through dark shadows. There was a great, if not enormous, possibility that she was going to die. But her thoughts were interrupted as Gabriel came to a complete and utter stop. "We're here." he said quietly. Arietta looked away from the uniformed guard and up at the house. It was small, perhaps a bit bigger than Lalita's. But compared to the old woman's, it seemed like a mansion. Brick foundation, cream colored wood, and curtains fluttering around the windows. She couldn't imagine why the people who lived there would allow her to enter into their home.
But sure enough, Gabriel was already holding the black, polished back door open. Before she could hesitate Gabriel ushered her inside and closed the door. The sound of giggling could be heard off in a separate room, followed by a different, deeper chuckling. This only confused her further, did the people living here even know that they would be housing a fugitive? The patter of feet sounded down the hallway, and a little girl came rushing into the the room. She had long, slightly curled, dark blonde hair, and eyes the same onyx color as Gabriel's. She seemed to be three, perhaps four. And jogging down the hall after her, seemed to be a boy of Arietta's own age. Another dark blonde, but this one with blue eyes. She raised an eyebrow.
"Gabriel!!!" the little girl squealed, launching herself at the guard and wrapping her arms around his legs. The other boy just seemed to look at Gabriel and stare, as if he couldn't believe the man was standing before him. His eyes then flickered to Arietta, and his brow furrowed, obviously confused. Gabriel eyed the other boy before picking up the little girl.
"What are you doing here, and who's the girl?" the boy didn't seem to waste any time getting to the point.
"She needs to stay here Jason."
"So you just waltz in here, after two years, and expect me to jut do whatever you say?" the boy, Jason, seemed to be fuming. The giggling mess of the little girl quieted and looked worriedly at Gabriel. "Did you even know about Mom?"
"Yes I knew about..." and on it went. Arietta silently excused herself from the space and backed into the sitting room. The little girl wriggled out of Gabriel's arm and followed after her, hiding behind a chair and peeking her head out to smile at Arietta. She tried to smile back, but she was a bit worried and preoccupied, so she supposed her smile wasn't really that great. This thought was proven true when the girl came out from behind the chair and walked over to her.
"What's your name?" she asked, clutching the end of her dress in her tiny little hands.
"Arietta, what about you?"
"I'm Molly.... how do you know my brother?" so that was how Gabriel knew them, they were his family. And now she was worried. What had he gotten her into? She looked at Molly, with her large onyx doe eyes, unable to answer her. Jason and Gabriel walked in to find her looking at the little girl with her mouth open, unable to formulate a sentence.
"I must leave now, but, I'll be back in a day or two." Gabriel said before rushing out the door. Molly tried to catch up with him, but was only met with a closed door. She sniffled and walked back to hug her other brother. Arietta looked at the girl with a slight frown, before looking towards the door. What was going to happen now?
"Molly, why don't you go show Arietta where the bathroom is, so she can wash up before bed?"
"Okay!" the girl smiled, instantly perking up as she dragged Arietta towards the stairs, Jason looking after her with a frown, slightly shaking his head. Once she had finally gotten the girl to bounce back down the stairs, she turned on the tub. As the hot water slowly began to trickle down out of the faucet, Arietta looked at herself in the mirror. She was a complete and utter mess. Her clothes were rumpled, her hair stringy and dull. Her face and skin was laced with dirt and grime, and her cheeks were beginning to look a bit hollow. She sighed and ran a shaking hand through the knots in her hair before turning off the faucet. As she climbed into the tub and let the warm water take effect, she couldn't help but feel a sense of peace come over her. That was until reality set back in, and the sirens called out into the night.
)
