Dancing With Death

Chapter 2 - "Red doesn't suit you"

She smirked at me from under a curtain of red hair; her black lacquered nails a stark contrast against her pale skin.

"Don't be afraid little one, think of your training..." Eyebrows raised she turned her back on me and began to rummage through a black duffel bag I'd only just noticed was placed at her feet.

My eyes widened further, my training? She couldn't possibly know about Hiro? Was he safe? If they had laid a finger on him I was going to be kicking some serious ass, I thought with anger bubbling in my veins.

Before I had time to react and hopefully claw her pretty brown eyes out, scary red headed lady turned back. Unexpectedly and looking so out of place in her spindly fingers - one hand she was carrying a hold- all with zips along the sides and pouches that seemed full of objects and in the other, which I couldn't seem to comprehend - she carried the most towering pair of stiletto heels I had ever seen. Such a deep dark shade of red I couldn't tell in this light whether they might have actually been black.

As black as her soul, I thought with a snigger.

"Surprised?" She questioned with another smirk

"I don't- I don't know what -what you're talking about..." She kept getting past my defences and I didn't like it as I stumbled over my words.

"It's time we get started, don't you agree?...hm?"

"erm...with what exactly?" confusion didn't even begin to cut it. For the past 12 days I had been treated as a prisoner, pushed around by the guards, given minimal food supplies and now...well now it looked as though the scary red haired lady wanted to give me some sort of makeover!

I began to laugh, quietly at first as my brain came to that conclusion and then turning into full blown hysterics where I couldn't really tell if I was laughing or crying.

Wiping tears from my eyes I cried out in disbelief "You can't be serious! You treat me like a prisoner for almost two weeks and then just think 'Oh she's had enough of that, let's make her insane and pamper her'?! Are you actually serious? You must be mad lady!"

She came towards me quick as a flash, her face merely millimetres from my face, making my eyes go cross eyed as I sat frozen in shock trying to watch for her next move. She was deathly serious it seemed.

My eyes travelled down to her blood red lips and she grinned, showing teeth that seemed sharp enough to pierce skin.

Ugh, I thought as I jerked backwards. Almost toppling off the edge of the bed if it hadn't been for her arm shooting out as quick as a viper and gripping my shoulder in a painful grip.

She dragged me back up and then began to unload the hold-all.

"You see dear girl" She began as she placed a mirror on the bed and leant it against one of the posts so I could catch glimpses of my worn out reflection through her mane of hair "the reason you are here, the reason why anyone is here...is because..." She paused to take out a small zip up bag "it's because we all have one thing in common"

More objects were coming out of the bag and being placed on the bed, small vials of colour and tubes of glittery liquid. I was mesmerised so much that I missed what she said last.

"Sorry what was that?"

"You heard me...Killers. We all spend our lives vanquishing this earth of evil."

The way that she said it so easily, my brain couldn't seem to come to grips with it.

"Killers?" I said in a whisper

"You see child, beyond that door there is a whole world you have never known and we are its protectors."

I sat there, my mouth hanging open and a look of disbelief on my young face.