Jinxed

Chapter eight: their walls cannot hold us

Chapter eight: their walls cannot hold us

I don't own fablehaven

Kendra was still splayed out on the floor as the group surrounded her. Bracken's heart was racing. What had happened up here? He, like everyone else, had heard the noises. Was it exertion that had made her faint or was it something else? Something...magical?

"Kendra," he said, "we need you to wake up." Kendra didn't twitch. Bracken hoped she was ok. He was also wondering what she had meant in her final words. Bracken mentally slapped himself. They weren't her final. He was being over dramatic. What would his sisters say?

Tanu brushed off his pants. "I'm going to get my salts." The potion master nearly ran out the room. The air in the attic was tense. Seth looked like he was going to cry. Stan and Ruth were quietly whispering things to each other. Bracken could've made the small effort to hear them but his attention was elsewhere.

Tanu was back only a minute later. He unscrewed the lid of the circular container and placed it under Kendra's nose.

An hour past by and Kendra didn't stir. In all his life, Bracken had never seen it take this long to awaken someone. Especially not one who had nearly fainted because of no reason. But there was a reason, he just wasn't sure what it was yet.

"Why isn't she up yet?" Seth asked. He was biting his nails.

Tanu set the container down.

"I'm not sure if there's anything we can do for her. She'll need to wake up on her own. We might as well keep searching for answers."

The group shuffled and took a last look at Kendra before they left.

"I'll be staying here. I'm going to try and reach into her mind." Bracken said. He checked for Seth's reaction but the boy's expression didn't change. Bracken may be dense but he did know that Seth wouldn't give up an opportunity to help his sister...or get out of reading. Things were certainly wrong here.

Tanu placed a hand on Bracken's shoulder. "Come get me if anything happens."

Seth reached down and enveloped his sister in a huge hug that lasted for several seconds. "Take care of her ok?" Bracken nodded.

Stan, Ruth, Seth, and Tanu left. It was sad how they were the only ones left. The numbers kept on dwindling and Bracken was worried how many more people the plague would snatch before things settled.

Bracken picked Kendra up again and laid her on her bed while seating himself at the edge. He picked up Kendra's hand in his own and gave it a small squeeze. He, being absent minded, began rubbing his thumb taking her knuckles as he dove into her mind.

The familiar sensation entered his senses as he came to the tip of her conscious. It was like standing on a cliff and overlooking the vast miles of scenery. One thing was wrong in this situation: there was a fog. A hideous black mass that obstructed the view. Only faint outlines of ideas and thoughts could be seen. Only whispers so faint, words couldn't be understood. Bracken had only seen this fog once before. The fog had been in Vanessa. Kendra was cursed.

However, her curse was different. It wasn't as strong or potent. Bracken had two theories about this. One, as it spread through each person it got thinner and thinner. Or two, because of Kendra's fairykind status. Bracken wondered if she would sleep or if she would wake up and turn mad. Out of the options, Bracken preferred the first. He didn't want her to end of hurting herself or anyone else.

The fog began to shift and tumble. It turned an almost green quality. Flashes of lighting swirled, and Bracken got glimpses of tearing winds. The soft music of Kendra's mind grew stronger as the storm battled its way. Kendra was fighting back! And then Bracken realized something: the fog wasn't as far into her head as he had originally thought. It was just at the tips. The tips of where Kendra's Forthwith Conscious was. That part of her mind was where the thoughts she currently had, the things she saw, what she smelled, and so on, resided. Everything happening there and then was in the Forthwith. In the blink of an eye it was shoveled into long and short term storage.

Dark tentacles started to worm their way to Bracken. They could sense the amount of energy inside him. Energy that he, and they if they could get in his head, could use. Kendra had more energy then him but she knew only so little of her powers. Bracken with drew. He had wanted to help but knew if he was to try and help, it would only damage her further. It might've even damaged him too. Kendra could have thought he was part of the enemy and tried to destroy him. Destroying a unicorn's mind was a task so great it had cost several powerful beings their lives. This enemy in Kendra's mind was strong. One with that much power could have only had come by being restrained. Something that bound their use of magic unless acted upon by some outside force. Bracken knew that Muriel the witch resided at Fablehaven. She was bound by knots, which if blown on, would grant the witch the power to grant a request. Several others of this type of imprisonment lived at Fablehaven. Only the ones with the most power, were the ones that had to be controlled and contained.

Right as he left, Bracken heard the fog speak. "Their walls cannot hold us." It sounded as if many voices were overlapping and each of them was deep and cold.

Bracken blinked. He was back in Kendra's room. He turned to look at her. That same passive, almost calm, look rested on her face. How could her features look like that with the raging storm inside? He realized that his grip on her hand had turned it pink, almost as if it had a sunburn. Bracken had burned her. He withdrew his hand, hoping to not do that again. The fog must have attacked right then if she hadn't been burned by his carrying of her.

Bracken also noticed something else: she wasn't breathing. Three more seconds and no inhale.

Bracken, using his above-human abilities, raced to the door and opened it to try and find Tanu. He skipped over the stairs and nearly ran over the man as he sat in the hallway moving through papers.

Tanu darted to his feet when he noticed Bracken. The two didn't exchange words as they burst into the attic. Tanu raced to Kendra's side.

Tanu didn't have to ask what happened because Bracken beat him to it. "She's stopped breathing."

Tanu reached into his pocket and his shaky hand stumbled around to find what he was looking for. He produced a pale blue pill. Tanu opened Kendra's mouth and dropped it into her throat. His other hand opened a small flask of water which he also streamed in. He closed her mouth and started rubbing the side of her neck so that it would go down.

Kendra's face was already red. Each second seemed like an antagonizing eternity and all too rushed at the same time.

Bracken had known immediately what the pill was. It would get her breathing.

Except that it didn't. Of course it didn't. Nothing was ever that easy.

Bracken placed his hands on Kendra's shoulders and shoved every ounce of magic he had into her. He forced the magic into her lungs and up her airway. Bracken had gained a fair bit of energy back since he had moved Dale, and now it was all gone. Bracken nearly collapsed from the effort but he had to keep going. He demanded that her untapped powers open. That they actually be of use to her. A flood of magic filled Kendra's body and she glowed so bright, that Bracken was sure even Tanu could see it. Kendra had found her power. Bracken hoped the darkness would back down and not make Kendra more of a victim.

Bracken stumbled backwards and ended up falling on his butt. Kendra was breathing again. It was slow and shallow, but it was there.

Tanu's eyes grew large and he started mumbling to herself. "Wait...yes, yes, yes! Kendra—" that's when the madness took him too.

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*Did you almost think I wouldn't keep you hanging? You must have jinxed yourself. Hahaha I'm so funny. Psshhhh I'd hope you knew me better. It's not because I'm evil (I still am but...) Tanu needed to happen in order to move this plot forward. Which also excites me because next chapter you're learning about Parrions! Only the coolest magical creature I've invented :P. Catch you on the flip side dudes.*