Chapter 24 – Perpetual
Darkness had never been so light.
It had always been terrifying and unnerving to Fakir. It rid him of his vision and reminded him of his past. The shadows that had reached for him in times of weakness, shadows that caressed him sadistically into submission – those demons… that demon which tormented him. Until now… darkness had never been so light.
Hairline cracks in the ceiling he had never noticed before leapt out at him. The uneven colouring in the paintwork swirled within his clarifying vision. His chest heaved as beads of sweat glittered like stars under the soft moonbeams. Light. It was everywhere.
Spilling from the window between the cotton snow-flakes, diffusing through warm sheets; emanating an ethereal glow. It’s luminosity reflects off her pale skin, like an angel. Her skin like white silk; soft and smooth. He pulled her closer to his chest; feeling her gentle breath of his skin, warm and tender… like a feather. Feeling her so incredibly close to him as she was, made Fakir feel content; as if nothing could tear them apart. Their hearts had become one. Fakir was sure of it.
He cast a glance at the layers of clothing strewn across the bedroom floor. From jacket to trousers; there was not an item of clothing unshed. Except one. He turned to his own ‘Sleeping Beauty’ resting under his castle-like arms, snuggled up to his scarred chest. A red jewel hung around her neck on a silver chain. That jewel was what kept her human. Without it he never would have fallen so desperately in love with her. It was cool against his skin. Taking the pendant between his finger and his thumb he inspected it closely, looking at Duck through the tinted crystal. ^That’s right… this is what she uses to turn into a girl again…after she returns to being a duck^ He lowered the crystal. ^What will happen if I get chosen for Forza? Well… what would happen if I get chosen for Forza and lose this battle is the real question… I would look like a right idiot getting killed onstage dancing^ he rested it into Duck’s collar bone and caressed her hair gently. He smiled. ^Well. I know what I’ll do if I don’t get into Forza and survive^ he reclined back into Duck’s pillows.
This was all so strange to Fakir. This concept of being loved. All he had known was bane and hatred. Fakir who seethed, Fakir who unheeded, Fakir who toiled, he who had hurt for crimes committed by others. All he received was worked for by him and him alone; ever since his parents were brutally murdered… by him. This secret burdened Fakir, the scar that would never fade. Forgiven but not forgotten. If Duck knew he killed his parents using this power no one but Mytho knew of… no he didn’t care anymore. The girl sleeping at his side would stick by him. That was the good thing about Duck; she was perseverant… sometimes grudgingly so. But she didn’t leave when Carabosse possessed his body and dictated his every move. She didn’t leave. She stayed despite the bruises. Fakir exhaled sharply at this thought. The bruises. The tears. The rude remarks. How on earth did she put up with him? Then he remembered…she didn’t.
“I bet he’s gone to get Rue. I bet he’s dancing with Rue again right now! I knew he was two-faced! I knew he was I liar!” Collapsing her head in her hands poor Duck began to cry uncontrollably, coughing and spluttering, “what in the world was I thinking coming to this school in the first place? I knew there would be so many people so much better than me… especially those two. They’re so good together – especially dancing, the way she stares into his eyes and creates that connection…”
She stood up from the toilet and frowned into the mirror directly ahead of her blurred vision. She stood sideways and looked up and down her thin body *Too thin…* Duck met eyes with herself and was shocked suddenly; swaying slightly she stepped closer but not before yelling at the mirror, “I hate you!” she chewed on her tongue and began to scratch at her forearm skin.
