"You guys are the descendants of the constellation zodiacs. I know you won't believe me but trust me whe-"
"I believe you,"
"Yeah, me too. I also believe in unicorns and the tooth fairy. Oh, and did I forget to tell you? I'm half mermaid."
"Don't yo...
"Wha-What do you mean?" She cursed herself for stammering. He looked up and took the cigarette out of his mouth, dumping it on the floor and crushing it underneath his heel. He grinned at her, baring his menacing teeth in an attempt at a friendly gesture, but it did nothing to soothe her nerves.
"Why, because you don't look like you of course," he said, Capricorn's eyebrows shot up as she looked at her hands, she gaped. She had rough hands, her fingers were short and stubby, the nails seemed to be bitten down till they almost disappeared. A sparkle flew from them. This wasn't her. She looked at the man and he smiled again, "It looks like your superpower is shapeshifting my dear Capricorn." Capricorn squirmed uncomfortably under his gaze until she realized something,
"Wait, who are you? How do you know my name?" She said suddenly,
"Of course! Where are my manners?" He held his hand out for her to shake, "My name is Ophiuchus." With those four words, it felt like the air was being sucked out of her lungs, she stumbled backward and hit her back against a tree. Ophiuchus raised an eyebrow as his smile fell, "I see you've heard of me. Judging by your reaction, that isn't a good thing," He took a step towards her and she whimpered,
"Get away from me," she tried to sound intimidating, but it came as a scared whisper. Ophiuchus sighed disappointedly and looked at her, his friendly facade fading.
"I was hoping we could do this simply, but I guess I'll have to do it the hard way," He took another step towards her and she inched around the tree. Just as he was about to reach her she began running as fast as she could. She barely ran a few meters when he caught her upper arm and spun her around. "I felt a little bad about doing it the painful way, but now it would be my pleasure," he snarled into her ear.
She felt a sharp pain shoot through her entire body as she noticed his hand were glowing. Her veins stood out of her skin but what caught her attention was the gold that was coursing through them and toward his glowing hands. Her hands began to morph back into her own, her fingers elongating and slimming into her own. She imagined that that meant her entire body was returning. However, she couldn't feel any relief because the pain was near unbearable. She cried out, twisting her arm to get out of his grip, but he kept his iron hold.
He let go eventually and she collapsed on the ground. She couldn't find the energy to get up and fight back, her vision was blurry and she slowly slipped into unconsciousness.
• • •
Capricorn awoke to a cold cell. The stone walls were scratched and covered in what looked like blood. She didn't know how long she was asleep, but she was still exhausted. Her head throbbed as the coldness seeped into her skin. She hugged her knees to her chest, trying to find a way to escape. Her feet were chained to the wall, restricting her movement. "So, Sleeping Beauty has finally awoken," came a voice from the corner of the cell.
Capricorn swung her head and Ophiuchus stepped out of the shadows. How had I not seen him? Capricorn thought to herself. She kept her mouth shut. "Your friends must be so scared," he said again. She ignored him. "Thank goodness they'll be seeing you soon." This caught her attention. She shot up and he grinned, she knew that this was what he wanted, but she didn't care. Yet, as she studied his-- as much as she hated to say it --handsome features, something flashed through his eyes, a flash of blue, and he looked as though he was hesitating to say something else. He shook his head, he seemed to have forgotten what he was going to say, and placed his arms placidly at his sides.
"You're going to let me go?" She asked suspiciously, this was too easy,
"Oh no no no dear," He laughed as though she had said the most absurd thing, his carefree demeanor returning, "No, they will simply be seeing an illusion of you." Just as he said this, he began morphing. His black hair grew, lightening and turning into a strawberry blonde, his eyes changing color as well until he looked like a carbon copy of Capricorn.
"No!" She cried, she tried to attack him, but the chains held her back as he exited the prison. He looked back and placed an innocent look on his face, "Oh I do love my powers," He said, sounding exactly like Capricorn.
~~~~~~~~~~
A/N So for those of you wondering, this is Ophiuchus:
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I know this chapter revolved around Capricorn a lot, I am sorry about that. The next few chapters will not revolve around her as much, I swear. Thanks for reading anyways and...
