By Ariel
Rating: R
Warnings: near NCS, references to past NCS, some violence, Ariel POV
Disclaimers: From now until I feel like adding the other important borrowed people, all ideas and characters are mine. *grins* Don't take. It won't make me happy and then you won't like what will happen.
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I sat quietly on what used to be Tru’s bed, my back resting against the wall and her pillow on my lap. Three weeks have passed since a supposed loving family adopted Tru. Despite the slight depression that had hit me with her leaving, I knew I wasn’t being fair. My best friend was at a better place and despite whatever I felt, I was happy for her – no matter how much it hurt me that she had left.
~~~~ Flashback: Three Weeks Prior ~~~~
I had woken up early, about a half hour before Tru who was still clinging to me like a lifeline even in her sleep. I had remembered that it was the day she would be leaving the orphanage and quite likely, my life, forever. I watched her silently for several minutes, etching her face deep in my mind – slowly building up new memories - before I carefully tried to extract myself from her grasp. Unfortunately, she woke up when I began moving away from her. Her sleepy eyes suddenly snapped into focus and sadness overwhelmed her normally cheerful hazel orbs.
“Don’t look like that, Tru,” I heard myself whisper. “You’re going to have a family now. It’s what you’ve wanted, ne? I am so happy for you.” The last statement was completely true and it must have shown in my eyes because I found myself being hugged nearly to death by my best friend. It took a few seconds to realize that she was talking and another few more before I began to comprehend what she was rambling on about.
“Sorry… Ariel… don’t want to leave you here… miss you so much… we’ll keep in touch…”
I almost stilled my hands from running up and down her back as she continued on, repeating “we’ll keep in touch” several times. It was quite unlikely. With the luck I had been having, I would have been forgotten. Who would want a used, orphaned little runt like me, let alone remember one? Not many people I’d think. So I didn’t reply; I just continued hugging her for a few long minutes for her to settle down before she deemed it okay to let go.
The next hour all but flew by. I had helped Tru pack what little she owned and wanted to take with her before Ms. Haine came to retrieve her. I picked up the saddened look deep in her black eyes before she gathered up her emotions and hid them from us, speaking to us with her stern voice. “It is time.” Those were the only words she had spoken before she turned around and almost gracefully walked out of the room and down the hall, the clunking of her shoes on the steps as she went down faded as she spoke to what I presumed to be Tru’s new family.
I turned to look at my best friend. I had given her one of the dresses that I still owned that were packed away in my little bag at the bottom of my dresser. She would have almost looked beautiful in the blue denim jumper dress that fell down to her knees and her wavy hair cascading down her bare shoulders if it weren’t for the profound sadness radiating from her hazel eyes. My own eyes teared up a bit before we reached out, grabbing each other at the same time in a fierce, yet emotionally-driven hug. No words were exchanged – they were no longer needed.
A few more minutes passed before Ms. Haine’s voice called up the stairs for Tru. It was loud enough to be certain she was all business but soft enough as to not wake up any of the other children yet. Sighing deeply, Tru and I broke apart from our hug and together grabbed her bag that held the few possessions she owned, then making our descent down the stairwell. I stopped halfway down upon seeing her new family, receiving a questioning glance from Tru. Giving her a tender smile, I touched her cheek and at that moment she realized that it was time for her to being that new journey…to start off a new day with my love and support to send her off.
With a watery smile and bright eyes shimmering with unshed tears, my friend nodded before she turned and continued down the steps alone to join her new parents. I briefly gave them an assessing glance before my brown eyes met Ms. Haine’s black ones. There was something akin to tenderness, almost concern, when she looked at me but I didn’t dwell on it. Instead, I turned around and went back up the stairs, bypassing my room and heading over to the small balcony that overlooked the side of the City that faced away from Central Park.
I didn’t hear the door close when Tru had gone nor did I heard the sound of Ms. Haine’s footsteps coming up the stairs when she came by to check up on me. I only stiffened when she tried to hug me, relaxing slightly when she told me it was okaycry. Shaking my head, I whispered to her, “No,Ms. Haine. She’s going to be happy and that is what is okay. She deserves it.”
~~~~ End Flashback ~~~~
“She deserves it,” I repeated softly to myself three weeks after Tru had gone away. A part of me desired to have heard from her – something, anything to know she was okay. But the days passed and I heard not a single word. Even Ms. Haine didn’t mention anything to me – I guess she figured that I would realize everything worked out well for my friend.
Today was another successful adoption – another girl from my room. Soon it would only be me left since the other girl had sparked some interest in seeking parents. I had slowly distanced myself further from the rest, deciding it would be the best for me not to allow anyone to get too close again. It hurt too much to lose someone and I had already lost too many – whether I knew them or not.
Sitting upon my bed, I stared out of the window over the City. I could see the buildings stand tall and proud on the other side of the park. It was a beautiful day – enough for me to decide to go outside for a while. So I slid off my bed and grabbed a gray sweater from the top of the dresser before bounding down the stairs. I paused by Ms. Haine’s office on my way towards the front door. “Ms. Haine?” I called out tentatively.
When she looked up and saw me, a small smile crossed her usually cold face. “Hello Ariel. What do you need?”
“I was wondering if I could go play outside, ma’am?” I asked her quietly, my eyes watching her carefully.
If she was surprised then she knew not to show it. I hadn’t been outside – willingly – in a few weeks and I did not feel it necessary for anyone to make a big fuss over it. After giving me a lingering look, she turned her black eyes back down to her papers, answering coolly. “Yes dear. Just be sure to not wander too far away, understood?”
“Yes, ma’am.” I answered before I turned on my heel, making my hair flare out as I did so. I quickly made my way to the front door and opened, looking outside almost apprehensively before I decided to just go. Closing the door, I took a deep breath hoping to assuage my nerves and then I hopped down the steps of the porch, giggling very much like a young child my age normally would.
The sounds of the street were immediately intoxicating; so many people, cars, buses, even the faint rumbling of the underground train if you listened for it carefully. The park across the street – menacing at night but welcoming during the day called out to me. My desire to be on the other side of it flared up deep inside me and I followed where it was my feet began taking me. The thrill of possible danger ran down my spine but instead of frightening me as it normally would and probably should have, it left me with a need to follow it.
I found myself at the corner of the block, amidst a crowd of people – tourists, businessmen and women, everyday workers and of course, those who lived in the area. If any of them had noticed me, I would have been surprised. They all seemed too busy doing what they normally did to show any particular interest in me. Either that or I blended in well enough so I didn’t attract any attention to myself. I didn’t mind that at all. When the light changed, the entire mass of people, myself included, crossed the street.
Just as quickly as I joined them, they left me and I was standing there, facing one of the entrance gates to the Park. Following my feet, I entered the Park and continued down the path. People were everywhere and they were so preoccupied with their own doings that they didn’t notice a 6-year-old walking alone. I pretended to know exactly where I was going and just walked along steadily on my way. Well, I did know where I wanted to go – to the other side – that much was obvious. How to actually get there on a winding road through a park was another story.
A small pond came into my view as I continued on my way. The ducks started swimming towards me and I immediately went to sit on the little ledge, loving the attention they were giving me. I stayed with them for a while, giggling when one jumped onto the ledge and tried to climb up on my lap. Helping it, I sat back to look at my surroundings. Everything seemed perfect, peaceful, even if no one paid attention to the girl with the ducks. I closed my eyes for a few moments and upon opening them, I felt a chill run down my spine once again. This time, however, my senses went on alert and I looked around, spotting the source almost immediately. Someone… a man dressed in tattered jeans and an old T-shirt… was staring at me with an expression I had seen a few times before. This was definitely not good.
I turned my eyes away from him and back down to the ducks, his gaze almost burning right through me. I thought quickly; the path to the entrance of the Park was clear in my mind. Knowing the safest place for me was back at the orphanage, I removed the duck off of my lap and got up. The birds must have sensed my sudden fear because they started to take the long way around me back to the pond; they were placing themselves between the man and myself. As interesting as it was, I didn’t think much on why they would do such a thing because what mattered most was getting myself out of there.
Once I began my way through to the entrance, I had a very odd feeling fill me. Risking a chance, I peeked over my shoulder to see the duck that was on my lap being roughly kicked to the side. I winced, instantly feeling the poor creature’s pain at being manhandled. The sound I made caught the man’s attention and I froze in mid-step when he snapped his head up, our eyes meeting for one long moment. A manic grin crossed his face and he began moving towards me. That was the last thing I saw before I broke into a run, weaving my way around people who were too busy to care. If I wasn’t running for my life, I would have been rather upset that people took little notice for their surroundings if it didn’t concern them.
An image flashed in my mind of Ms. Haine at her angriest and I decided that running into the orphanage with a madman chasing after me wasn’t a very good idea. Hearing his footsteps closing in on me when I got through the Park gates, I took a detour. An abandoned warehouse was down the street from the orphanage – I remembered seeing it once while cleaning the attic with Tru… That train of though fled my mind when the sound of screeching tires came from behind. The man was telling off the driver and I took advantage of his momentary distraction to continue running down the street towards the building.
I quickly made it to the warehouse and ran around the side, hoping to find a place to hide from the man I, once again, felt nearing. Unfortunately, it was an alley with no exit. If I couldn’t find a way out, I would have been in big trouble once again. Climbing on top of a wooden crate, I looked up and saw a broken window. I reached up and tried to see if there was a latch to open it and prevent cutting myself but I couldn’t find one. My heart pounded in my chest from fear and I felt the blood pulsing through my veins. I glanced around to see if there was a slight chance I could get out of the alleyway before being seen but that idea flew right out the window when the man spotted me and began stalking towards me.
I kept myself in check, barely, knowing that if I began panicking more than I already was, it would have been much worse for me. Taking a deep breath, I reached up towards the window with both hands and used the wall to help me up. I could feel the shards of glass piercing through my skin but I only bit my lip to keep from crying out. I shifted a bit and leaned over the edge, trying to see in but the darkness of the warehouse and the pain I felt that made the edges of my vision darken made it all much more difficult. I heard his running footsteps coming closer and I leaned over completely – glass ripping through my sweater and slashing at my stomach and legs – before I tumbled gracelessly inside, landing on a pile of broken wood and making the collected dust fly up in the air.
When I heard the man curse outside, I knew I had made it somewhat safely. I scrambled to my feet as best as I could, wincing from pain. My right knee buckled beneath me and that’s when the panic in me began to grow once again. If I couldn’t move quickly, I’d be doomed. I groaned in pain but forced myself to my feet and began wobbling through the dark warehouse. I didn’t know where I was going but I knew I had to hide someplace.
Several moments passed before the man’s swearing and attempts to fit through the window had ceased. I walked through a spider’s web, whimpering from the sticky feel of it on me. I carefully wobbled my way around, feeling shelves in search of a hiding place. When I reached the end of one row, I looked up and screamed. The man was right in front of me and despite the darkness, I could see his face clearly – the manic grin, the flaring nostrils, and the odd yellow gleam in his eyes.
I didn’t have time to try to run because he grabbed me by my arm and tossed me into the air like a rag doll, sending me crashing into an old shelf. Wincing in pain, I saw him coming towards me and he dragged me by my foot to a spot on the old cement floor, ignoring my cries and kicks against him. Tears streamed down my face as he dropped to his knees to straddle above me, pinning both of my wrists above my head with one of his hands.
He chuckled darkly, restraining my body from further squirming with his hips, digging himself into me. “It isn’t nice to run away from me, little girl.” He caressed my face with his free hand before slapping me, knocking the breath out of me as my face flew to the side. I begged quietly, my voice a mere whisper through my tears. He only laughed more and started unbuckling his belt, enjoying the fear and panic on my face.
I prayed that I could wake up and this would have been a nightmare. I found myself wishing for death – right then and there - so I didn’t have to live and remember this hell once again. “Please stop” was my mantra and it only made this horrid man chuckle more. My eyes were clenched shut and when I felt him shift against me, I heard a gentle voice in my head whispering, “It is time… Now Ariel.” I didn’t understand what it meant but my eyes flew open as if I had no control of my body anymore. I felt this unknown strength fill me and I pushed the man off, making him crash against the wall. His eyes were wide with surprise and I realized that a bluish glow surrounded me. I got up and stared down at my hands, feeling a strange sensation running through them and through the rest of my body as a silver light flickered around my fingers. I stood there in shock, forgetting about the man as I continued to stare down and wonder what had just happened.
I heard he gentle voice from my head once again, but this time it held a powerful, commanding tone to it now. “Leave this place. Let her be.” I blinked, turning my gaze up to the man as he seemed to stare at me, but in fact, it was behind me. My breath hitched when I saw the fear on his face and then he ran, leaving me alone. Curious to know what had frightened him and yet scared to find out, I slowly turned around, unconsciously rubbing my wrists from the odd sensation that there were still restrained. The light intensified around me, making me squint and throw my hands up to shield my eyes from the brightness.
Once it seemed to dim, I lowered my hands, blinking my eyes back into focus. I gasped in surprise at what I saw: a beautiful black-winged unicorn with a glittering silver horn and eyes the color of sapphire was staring right back at me.
I stood there frozen, awed by this magnificent-looking beast for a long moment before it spoke; his voice remained smooth and soft. “Ariel…I have waited so long to see you again, my little princess.”
Whatever the talking creature continued saying went right over my head because from the moment he spoke, visions came flooding into my mind before they vanished just as quickly as they had appeared. The blood drained from my body and I managed to catch sight of him walking towards me before my eyes rolled back and I fainted dead away on the cold cement floor.
TBC...
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