The awakener (bxb)✔

TA 35

Riley's POV

My eyes shot open. It took a while for me to take in my surroundings, but my eyes finally adjusted to the light. I was in my room, lying on the bed. I tried moving and realized there was foreign weight on me. Mandy was sleeping peacefully, her head on my shoulder and her hand across my stomach. I realized something else too, underneath the sheets, I was naked.

I wasn't...I hadn't... No, I couldn't have!

Surprisingly, I couldn't remember anything. That didn't matter; I had to do something urgently. I moved slowly off the bed, careful not to wake Mandy. I dressed quickly. It seemed I had slept till early morning the next day.

I tiptoed out of the room and down a few steps. I instantly transmitted myself outside the castle, on the other side, where a few meters away from me, my mother lay in her own filth. I entered the house carefully, in case she wasn't alone.

She wasn't singing this time. She was talking to herself, weirdly peacefully. She didn't see me walk in. I crouched to her level.

"Margaret" I said quietly.

She looked up and broke into a grin. "Riley! You are here!" she said. Her expression suddenly turned into sadness. "You are here".

"I need your help" I said quickly. There was no time to waste.

"What help could I possibly give you?" she asked, clearly. It was like her senses had suddenly returned to her. "What could I, daughter of Stephanie help you with? Do you remember Stephanie? Oh, I do. Bloody excuse for a mother! Remind me a few days from now, I'll show you Stephanie. Stephy, Stephy, bloody Stephanie...and then there was Anna. Did I tell you how much I hate Anna?" she rambled. I spoke too soon.

"Mom, listen!" I said sternly.

"...Mom? Mom...you said mom. Wait, who are you?" she asked. Her hand went to touch my face. I backed away. "Who are you?!"

"Riley!" I hadn't meant to shout, but I was getting frustrated. One minute she recognized me and the next she didn't.

"Don't shout! Don't shout! Don't shout!" she shouted hysterically, covering her ears.

I looked at her for some time. She had completely lost it. It seemed she got worse as the days went by. A lone drop escaped. I wiped at it, but tears came rushing in torrents. Sitting there in her own filth was a woman who had given birth to me. I had not spent much time with her, but I felt a connection. I wanted badly to tell her everything would be okay, but I couldn't. There was something I could for her, however.

"Are you crying?" she asked timidly.

"Mom, I don't want to awaken the Darkeners. I don't want to be a Darkener. Right now I can only think about Casey and I want to go back. I just...I got rejected last night and that made me realize I don't really want to be here. I want to go home; I want to see Casey again. I'm leaving and I'd like for you to leave with me," I laid it all out.

I couldn't tell if she understood what I was saying. The silence in the room was becoming unbearable.

"Mom?" I enquired.

"You aren't joking, are you?" she asked.

I shook my head.

"You chose light....you chose light!" she shrieked happily. "You don't know how happy I am".

"We have to go", I said quickly. "Dad and Miguel are gonna wake up soon and they are going to try and stop me".

"Go to the real world...? I...I...no, you go", she said.