Chapter Three
“Sister…” I knew I was dreaming. I knew this wasn’t real. I found myself in front of my house. It was virtually the same, except the ground, and roof was covered in a blanket of snow. I love snow. The sun seemed to beam down on this forgotten earth, creating a sparkling crystal effect on the fallen snow, although the cold did manage to snap at my fingers. I whirled round, and in in front of the house, I saw my sister. She didn’t look ill like she had before she died. She seemed young and sweet. Innocent and pure. And still…completely identical to me. A smile spread across her face as she gazed into my crystal eyes, her pale skin seeming to glow somewhat in the light of the sun. “Hey…I’m sorry I left you”
“No…” I countered “I’m sorry you had to leave me. It was my fault that you died.”
“No” She took a step towards me, the snow gently falling onto her golden hair “It wasn’t your fault. Listen to me, we’ll be together again soon. I promise. I’ll wait for you, as long as need be”
“Sister...what do you mean ‘something to push you’?”
“I know you’ve been thinking of giving up” she reverted her eye’s from my gaze slightly “if you find nothing else to live for, then live for me…ok? I love you.”
“Sis…” I felt so stupid now. Not only for the thoughts, but the fact that I was so happy by seeing her I was crying. I could feel the cold string of the tears stream down my face. “I love you too”. Suddenly, I felt her warm hand take my own. And we both looked into each other’s eyes once more.
“Keep going” she said “you’re my amazing sister. You still have something to do before you join me”
“What’s that?”
“You’ll have to find out for yourself”
“Oh I see” I giggled a little “you can’t give me any spoilers?”. With my words, my sister laughed. Just like she used to…without a care in the world.
“Nope. No spoiler’s allowed. But hey…you need to go back now. Someone is waiting for you to wake up” I paused for a while. She must have meant the man who had taken me…
“Alright…but hey…sister, you will wait for Clover won’t you? I think she may be coming your way”
“Of course. Clover will come to heaven with me, don’t worry. I’ll wait for her, and my spirit will remain on this earth until you come too.”
“Thank you…I love you. And I’ll miss you”. I saw my sister smile comforting at me, trying to reassure me everything would be ok.
“I’m always with you. Now go. You still have much to live for…”
Slowly, I felt myself slip back into consciousness. I saw the dazzling colours dance above my eyelids. Groaning quietly, I started to open my eyes, my breath a little heavy. I felt a warm rush all over my body…consuming my soul in a comforting blaze. Despite this, my forehead was cold. As I gazed upwards, I was instantly able to notice I was in a cave of some sort. The ceiling was rough and rocky, and the dull grey colour was lit ablaze by fire torches lining the walls. My head moved to the side a little, and I saw a man sitting beside me. He held a cool cloth on my forehead. His bright, blue eyes looking down at me, and his midnight black hair seemed to glow somewhat in the candlelight. His pale skin was soft at the touch, and his small smile was comforting. In a way…at first glance, he reminded me of my sister, except for the hair. “Shhh…” he whispered softly.
“C-Clover…” I tried to sit up, yet instantly I regretted the move as a sharp pain shot through my body. The man held me gently in is arms, and pulled me close, allowing me to rest against him. His embrace was warm and comforting…and for some reason, it felt like I belonged there.
“I’m sorry girl…” he spoke to me, his voice was strong, yet soft. He was also English, yet not as posh as my own. I knew at this moment he meant no harm. “I’m sorry…about your dog”. He rocked me back and forth in comfort, and once more I could feel the tears welling up behind my eyes.
“It’s fine” I said, biting back my tears, trying to put on a brave face.
“No...It isn’t. I know what it’s like to lose people you love. You’re not alone now girl.”
“Who are you?” I asked looking up at him, wondering who he was and why he had helped me
“Well…let us introduce each other”. I narrowed my eyes a bit in confusion as he helped me to my feet. I was now able to see the whole cave. It wasn’t much, it was pretty small with only a small exit. I quickly turned my attention back to the man now, who kneeled in front of me, and took my hand. A rather…strange gesture so to speak. Gently, he kissed my hand before standing once more, and instantly bowing to me “My lady. My name is Standle”. As Standle said his name, he went back into his standing position. I flustered, not really sure on how to react…so…I kinda did the first thing that came to my head, and instantly felt like a bit of an idiot. I bowed. Why the hell did I do that?! I doubt I’ll ever know. That aside, I stood straight rapidly in embarrassment. I think Standle knew I was nervous, and he allowed a light chuckle to pass his lips before speaking again “and you are?”
I grabbed a hold of myself, and smiled weakly as I told him my name.
“My name…I am Alex. Alexandra Crowe”
“Alexandra Crowe…hmm…an interesting name!” Standle exclaimed, as we walked through a forest. This place was somewhat different…it seemed more lively. The leaves on the trees were as green as the fresh morning grass, and the air here had a sweet, natural taste. The ground beneath my boots was soft and moist, and through the gaps in the trees above small rays of sunlight were allowed to break through, creating small spotlights dotted throughout the forest.
“Interesting?” I asked as I pushed a low branch out my way, and watched as it flung back quick as lightning. I then saw Standle getting a little further away and I jogged a few steps to keep up “how so?!”. When I was next to him, I slowed my pace, walking once more, feeling warm as the sun slapped my face.
“The name ‘Alexandra’ means ‘protector of mankind’”
“Wow…really?!”
“Yup. You must be destined for great things child”
“P-Please…call me Alex. And what did you mean by ‘interesting’?” I asked. Standle stopped. I stopped to. Looking up at him like a child to its father.
“Crowe is your sir name? Crowe is the bird of death…”
“Well…that’s not my real name”. Standle raised an eyebrow, and looked at me a little confused, his blue eyes asking for answers.
“What do you mean by that Alex?”
“Well…I don’t really remember much of my real parents; I always remember having to fend for myself with my sister. I don’t remember what my name is, so my sister and I just named each other”
“You…have a sister?”
“Did…we were twins”. On the word ‘twins’, I saw Standle flinch a little. Of course, questions welled up inside me, but I decided not to push the matter.
“You must miss her terribly”
“I do.”
“I take it that’s why you left home…and that is why you are alone?”
“Yes” Pity was the last thing I was looking for, but I could tell that Standle was giving it to me. His eyes were as easy to read as a book. Also, I noticed he seemed flustered about something…was it me? Or was it something else? Maybe it was that monster that attacked me. I decided it maybe was a good idea to change the subject and ask him about that. “So, that…thing…you saved me from…what was that?”
“That was a Broken Soul. It was a human once. It is now a human…without a soul” he wouldn’t look at me as he spoke. And I felt a chill bounce around inside me…his comforting eyes were no longer visible.
“A…human?! How did it get like that?”
“You are too young to know”
“I am not!” I said determined, grabbing his arm. It was then he turned to face me once more, his eyes deep and mellow. His black hair was blowing gently in the Zephier, and it seemed somewhat familiar to me. “I’m 15! I’m not too young! Besides…if there are more of those things, don’t you think I deserve to know about them? What if I don’t know something and I end up becoming one!”
“You won’t.” he smiled weakly at me, and patted my head, his hand slowly moving a strand of my golden hair to the side with my fringe. My fringe had some hair either side of my head, it wasn’t just one side…I always styled it so it didn’t look wired though…my fringe was never stuck against my forehead. Anyways, I moved my hand to make sure my hair was still in place. I hated people messing with my hair; it was annoying. Snapping me out my ‘fashion’ thoughts, I saw Standle gazing at me, like a protector…as if he were going to look after me. Somehow, I felt safe with him. “Don’t worry, little Alex. I won’t let that happen to you.”
“Promise?”
“Promise.”
I was weak. And I hated myself for it. Standle was strong. And that was the reason I was living. The twilight had fallen over this fragile earth, and instead of the sun, moonlight beams lit up the forest. Inside the beams of light, there were tiny specs sparkling brightly. I was somewhat comforting, and the air, well, it didn’t seem that cold. Throughout the forest was a warm, muggy heat which kinda made it difficult to sleep. I sat against a tree, lost in thought, just staring at the winding trees. I looked over at Standle, who was lying on his side beside a tree opposite me. I watched as his chest rise and fall gently, his midnight hair covering his eyes. I couldn’t sleep…and…I couldn’t see those comforting eyes. Gingerly, I tried not to make a noise as I leaned forward into a crawling position. I made my way over to him silently, the soil feeling cold under my fingertips. I stopped before him, and carefully moved his hair out his eyes. They were closed. Yet they were still comforting. Once again, knew I had someone to rely on. Someone I could turn to. I wondered why he was so eager to protect me…it was like he knew something I didn’t. Either way, it was weird being awake when someone else was asleep. I’d never experienced it before, since I would always fall to sleep before my sister did. It was strange to me…how one could look so peaceful in this otherwise dangerous life. He didn’t seem too old either…judging by his looks, I’d say he was around thirty. He was strong…handsome…and shared that smile my sister had. It did make me wonder about him, I mean, it was just a smile…I guessed many people had it. I don’t know what I was thinking, I was getting a little side tracked. I knew my main focus in life now was surviving. Suddenly, I heard a faint noise. It was like someone was saying “Psst!” to try and get my attention. My head jerked towards the sound, and I saw a figure dash off into the trees. Man or woman, I couldn’t tell. I looked back towards Standle. What if this person meant us harm?! Standle had saved me…I had to protect him. Quickly, I dashed over to my satchel leaning against the tree, opening the lid in a hurry. I pulled out one of the knives, and gripped it tightly in my hand. Standing, I glanced at Standle still sleeping soundly. Quietly, I whispered to him “Don’t worry…I’ll be back soon” before dashing off into the darkness before me…
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