Alene & Xandra : Their Story

Alone & Afraid

Alene sprawled herself across the damp grass, her green eyes staring up at the stars above. She let out a sigh, the breath dancing up into the sky as if it were performing a ritual. Her eyelids closed slightly, but only for her own safety. The children in the orphanage were delinquents. They would constantly pull pranks on the caretakers or steal valuable jewelry from the market. Her shoulders tensed as she thought about it, and decided it would be best to not let her guard down just yet. She scanned the sky, her hands lifting off the ground beside her stretching to the stars. It pawed at it longingly, acting as if it were painting the black sky in individual strokes, making it look more inviting than just being empty space above. Her hand drifted to the left, finding Orion, then toward the horizontal stars, Rigel And Betelgeuse. A smile crawled across her lips, seeing the big dipper not far away from the hunter. For a moment, she felt a peace... like she wasn't alone for once in her life. The beat of her heart slowed, skipping a few beats due to excitement.

"I'm not alone... I feel happy for once." She mummered under her breath. The wind blew through her hair, encouraging her spirit even more, but then it abruptly stopped. Clouds flew across the sky, covering the moon along with many stars that she resided in for comfort. Her eyes widen as she flew off her back, looking around frantically for anyone. 

The dark had often scared her, especially when then sky wasn't there to be her friend. Her heart sank, feeling as if her only friend had left her once again. She sighed, stumbling to her feet. Soil and plant residue covered her clothing, making her look unpresentable to the caretakers. With a quick swipe of her hand, she brushed it off, making her look somewhat distinguished. Her hands ran through her auburn hair, securing it into a neat ponytail. With a sigh, she strode back toward the dorms, to where she would be bombarded with questions on where she was, what she was doing, and why was she doing it. They would most likely tell her everything is alright, that she was just over reacting. The sad thing was, though, she wasn't. They were never there when the kids pushed her into the back walls, or purposefully trying to drown her in the river out back. All of this... it was torture for no reason what so ever. She shook the thoughts of them out of her head, picking up her pace. Her breath began to stagger, sweat beading up on her brow. A tingling feeling rushed throughout her body, like she was being watched and possibly followed. Her head snapped around only to be met by a cold, hard fist in her face. She fell down to the grass in shock, her eyes looking up at the mysterious shadow in fear. The shadow leaned forward, grabbing her by the collar of her shirt. A gasp escaped her mouth as it lifted her off the ground. Her legs kicked around, trying to wriggle out of it's grasp. With a sudden swipe though, the figure drove his fist deep into her colan. She choked blood, the shadow throwing her harshly to the ground. It kicked at her side, a chuckle of laughter emitting from it's twisted mouth. The thing stared at her, its eyes gleaming slightly now since the moon was peeking out from behind the clouds. 

"Alene," it said.  Apparently the apparition was a male due to it's voice."We need you to go to the market tomorrow to steal medicine for a sick child." She looked up at the figure, wincing in pain from the punch she had previously received. Her hand wipes the blood dripping from her mouth, flicking it away. Alene felt her eyes widen in sheer fear. 

"W-Why Mmme?" She stuttered over her words, her body shaking wildly. Unfortunately though, the male didn't respond verbally. He shoved a carefully folded piece of paper into her hands before running back to orphanage. She looked at it as if it were a new concept, a object foreign to her. Her fingers fumbled trying to open it up, scanning over the paper. It wasn't just one item, it was many. Rare artifacts were listed among medicines, food, and other various items she couldn't name. Her eyes teared up, scared of what was going to happen. She closed her eyes, trying to let the darkness consume her. 

Tears flowed down her cheeks for a solid twenty minutes before she opened them again, but she was shocked by what she saw. The paper, singed on where her fingers lay on it's soft edges. Flames were sprouting from her fingertips. She jumped back slightly, staring at her hands in appalled. The wind kicked up, whipping her hair against her face rapidly. Her heart accelerated, kicking up her breathing also. She scrambled toward the paper, carefully shoving it in her pocket. After it was secure, she scrambled to her feet, running toward the orphanage. Within a few minutes she slammed against the brick wall out back, looking for an alternate way in besides the front door. Her eyes spotted a rusty door with a broken lock & chain dangling from its handle. She scurried to it, opening it slowly. The doors hinges creaked from the lack of lubricant, making her cringe within her body. 

After a few moments she crept into the crevice she made for herself. The room was dark,stale with a few fireflies swarming around in the corners on the room. She made her way through the room, making sure not to trip on any fallen boxes. Once she reached the end of the room her head turned slightly to see if she had been caught. Seeing that she was still in the clear she made her way down into the main rooms. 

Light flooded into her eyes, and laughter from the caretakers rang throughout the halls. Small children ran past her, screaming though their game of tag. Alene smiled slightly, trying to relate to the children,but found she couldn't. She had never had friends, only people who took advantage of her "Perks." The red headed female shook her head in despair, rushing towards the old,wooden stairs. She climbed up the quickly, her feet slamming onto the wooden planks, making them screech in agony. Once up the stairs she abruptly took a left, heading down a corridor towards her bedroom. She strode up to the door, her hand laying itself on the knob. Her hand began to shake again, being reminded of the experience before. She turned the knob, peeking in to see if anyone had came to pay her a visit. Nobody. With a sigh of relief she stepped inside. She was immediately welcomed by a waft of cinnamon & Vanilla, A soft carpet floor, and her neatly organized room. After feeling at home, she kicked off her shoes, her toes deciding to seek refugee in the plush carpet beneath her. She rushed to her bed, plopping down on it with her legs dangling off the side.  Her hands pulled out the band holding her hair up, letting it cascade down her back like a waterfall of *blood*. 

Looking around anxiously after a few moments of silence, she begins to feel the loneliness begin to emerge once more. Tears weal up in the corner of her eyes. She quickly turns on her side, grabbing her pillow already soaked with tears & makeup. They began to fall rapidly,  her cries muffled so nobody could hear her despair. Her body curled up, her hair beginning to plaster itself to her face from the sudden dampness. After a solid hour, she passed out from exhaustion and dehydration.  All that was left was the silence... The darkness.... and her fears.