I'm not sure if what I am about to tell really happened or if it was a dream. A work of my childish imagination. Still it is in my mind, creating roots and giving me nightmares from time to time, tough I am no longer the little girl I was. When I told my parents they did not believe me. The imagination of a girl that would like to be a mermaid, like Ariel, was not to be trusted, right? Plus, my story was insane. The kind of thing that happens in a horror movie and our life was idyllic. I did not tell what happened to nobody else, because I could not see the point. All I could do, I decided, was to forget.
But I cannot. It shall stay in my mind until the die of my death.
My grandparents house was a very big place. They were quite rich. Everything in the house was pretty to my eyes and I felt a princess in it. By that time, when I was eight, my parents and I visited them at least once a week and I loved it. After all, I was their only grandchild, which made it their work to spoil me. And so they did, giving me all sort of gifts and letting me do whatever I wanted. My mother liked to see me so well loved, but my father was worried about it making me a future brat. I already had all attentions on me.
The house next to my grandparents was even bigger, but abandoned. I did not see in it the same magic I saw on my grandparents small mansion. Still, it had something that interested me. I did not find it anywhere else and I do not wish to see it ever again.
It had a maze.
The maze was an enormous thing on the back of the house. The builiding was smaller because of it, actually. The place had become abandoned, but my grandfather, who really liked gardening, took care of it even if that could get him into big trouble. So, the maze was very beautiful, being well taken care of and exuded a feeling of magic and wonder. My grandfather always told me not to go there without him, because I could get lost. My parents did not liked the idea of me going there either. I was an eight year old curious girl. Obviously I did not obey.
One day, I told my family I was going to play on the garden, while they were having a game of cards in the dining room. But I did not stay on my grandparents garden for long. After just a little time I was on the other garden, having climbed the fence, which was way to high for me to have done something safe. Now that I look back, I could have broken my neck. At least I would not have seen the things I saw.
Looking at the maze, I believed without a doubt that I would not get lost in it and I would be able to get out without breaking a sweat. I was smart, but as every child, sometimes I thought way to high of myself and that made me a dumb girl. I stood at one of the entrances, without knowing what I was getting myself into.
I got inside the maze. Stupid girl.
I saw myself surronded by big walls of bush that did not let me see the outside. Especially since I was a child, small. It was overwhelming. But I did not leave, despite the fact that getting out would just take a dozen steps. I thought of Alice in Wonderland. I was Alice and I was not a coward. I was Ariel and I was not afraid. I was doing what I had decided and fear would not get on my way. So I started to walk deeper into the maze.
Right, left and left again, I think that's the way I went once I entered. Walking slowly and carefully, thinking how my grandfather kept things pretty, I was happy being in a different world. I knew the way I was going and I knew I would leave the maze as if I had done nothing wrong. All was going to be just fine. Still, the more I walked the more I faltered. I was surronded by such big walks and everything was so much alike. There was nothing that could tell me that I had even advanced. Where could I be? And how far could I be from the center. I knew there was a small fountain that was turned off. I would not hear any water.
But I was going to get out. I was determined to do so and maybe I could even tell my family of my feat, despite the fact that I would probably get into very big trouble.
Then it happened. What I always call in my mind of the "event", for I thoroughly believe that's how it all started. Stupid, curious girl. Way to much of an adventurer. This is what I have said to myself ever since then.
Like I said, everything was the same. Green, green, green. You could go mad just because of it. But then I saw it. A red rose. The plant was standing in the middle of one of the walls of bush, big and beautiful. The color was so strong that you could just not ignore it. I got closer and I believe that even my eyes shone with its beauty. I decided: I have to give this to my mother. She loved flowers and she would be extremely happy with that one. There would be a kiss for me, for sure. I knew I had to be careful with the thorns and so I was. It took some time for me to break the stem and it was even harder to avoid hurting my fingers. Now I find it funny that I did not realized the plant was right within my reach.
I held the flower in my hand. It was so big in my child hands and I was marvelled. I felt like Alice when she finds the white roses being painted red, though mine definitely did not need to be painted. Then it occurred. The flower dissolved itself and became a red liquid of the flower's color, the color of blood, which started falling and covering my hands, and dripping on the grass. The flower turned into what seriously seemed blood. And it was all on the floor and on my hands.
I was absolutely worrified. Suddenly I did not know what to do, because I did not know what to do on a situation like that, which was not normal. I was scared. So scared. And I could not even speak to ask for help. My voice was stuck on my throat. And I doubt that anyone would hear me if I screamed. There was only one thing I could do: get out. So I started to run.
Left, right, left. As fast as possible. I had to leave. I wanted my mom and dad. But as if things were not scary enough, all of the sudden a couple of branches of the bush got one my way. They just reached out like scary arms. I let out a huge scream. I could not go forward, it was only possible to go back. So I ran back, but I did not go back to where I had come from. I ran another way and found what was just impossible.
"You should not have come to the maze, Beatrice."
"Who are you?"
"Ain't it obvious? I am you."
And she was. The girl in front of me was just like me. In every way. It was me. The same face, the same hair and the same clothes I was wearing at the time. At that point I thought I had lost my mind and I would die.
"What is going on? I'm scared and I want to get out."
"I won't help you. Why should I?"
"I just want to leave this place."
My twin smiled. Her smile was not like mine at all. It was cold and twisted, purely mean. Suddenly she started running and I did not know if I should follow her or nor. I was stupid again. I ran after her, deeper into the maze, but soon I lost her.
"Please, wait!"
All of the sudden one of the bush arms grabbed my hair, entangling it in the twigs. I screamed like crazy, trying to loosen myself from that terrifing grip. I could not and I was in pain. A laugh echoed through the maze. It was my evil twin. Then I could hear her sing. The bush released me, I fell on the floor crying and then, I could understand the song. It was about taking something and getting something else back. Revenge, revenge, revenge.
The voice was so chill that I shivered. I was afraid of even leaving the place where I was sitting. I started calling for my mom, crying her name though I knew she would not listen to my screams.
I felt something touch my feet and the skin of my legs, for I was wearing a skirt and I got up immediately, screaming louder and louder. A snake was passing by me. It had tried to go up my body and that was the horrifying thing. The animal was long and it had a redish color with some black in the mixture. I was unable to breathe while I heard the snake hiss. The girl came back and she grabbed the snake. She was still smiling.
"I want to get out! Let me get out!"
"The old man is nicer. He only destroys what needs to be destroyed and not the beautiful. You are a bad girl."
" I don't understand."
"Follow me and I might help you get a clue about what is happening. Maybe."
She did not ran this time. Instead she walked slowly, but always in front of me. Her head was always held high.
"Why do you look like me?"
"Because it's funny. Do you want to see something even more amazing?"
I did not say yes or no. She did not care. She turned to me and all I could do was scream and cover my face with my hands.
"Look at me. Are you scared? Look at me and maybe I will help you get out."
It was awful to see. I was then afraid of myself and questioning if I was still me. The girl in front of me still resembled myself but...she had no teeth, her mouth was a giant black hole. Her eyes were also bloodshot and the skin had earned black veins. The sight was scary. I was trembling all over just by looking at her. After a short time the girl was again my mirror.
"See, it was not that bad. Now no more questions."
We resumed the walk. I did not speak to her again. All I was able to do was cry silently. I could not take my eyes of the ground, the fresh grass. Soon I realized that we were on an open place and I almost believed I was out. But when I looked up, I saw myself on the center of he maze. We were in front of the fountain, or better yet, we were on different sides of the fountain. I could see the horrible girl on the other side, looking at me with the same eyes as mine.
"Don't look at me. Look at the inside of the fountain."
The fountain was supposed to be empty, since there was no water running, but it was not. And I wish it had been water inside it.
The beautiful stone fountain that I had seen so many times with my grandfather was full with what seemed blood. I could not see my reflection in it. If that was blood, to whom did it belong to?
"It is thick if you wish to know. Because yes, it is blood."
"Whose?"
"Does it matter?"
"Of course."
"Then why did you killed the rose you found?"
"What?"
"You killed her. This is her blood and the blood of all the flowers that along the years have been cut by greedy people and died prematurely."
I was dumbstruck. I had never thought of taking a flower as killing her, though when I thought better, it was true.
"Plants do not bleed. This can't be their blood."
"I had to show you the result of your actions in a way you could understand. In a way that could cause you a huge impression. The maze is mad. That's why it's attacking you."
The precise moment she said it one more bunch of twigs and leafs appeared next to me like an arm, scaring me. But it did not touch me. It was more of a demonstration of power.
"Like I said, the old man that comes here kills what is damaging to the maze, what it's like a cancer to it. He does not kill what is beautiful. That rose belonged to our maze. It was the first one to appear this year and they are not born often in here."
"I am sorry. I did not thought of it that way. I am truly sorry."
"I believe you, but this way I can be surer. You will never forget what you saw here and you will never kill anothere flower in your life."
"But who are you?"
"Well, I am the maze, obviously."
Then she looked at the fountain again. My eyes followed her and I saw rose petals appearing on the surface of the red liquid. It was horrible and beautiful at the same time. I had tears running through my face again.
"I will never hurt a flower again. In fact I will plant them and take care of them. Of all the plants. I will never hurt them again as long as I live. And I will make sure that those around me do the same."
"I believe you and now I will take you out."
A laugh was heard again, the laughter of a child, but my twin, the maze, was just smiling. She turned around and she did lead me to one of the exits of the maze. I did not speak to her and was very careful about where I placed my feet and constantly afraid of the walls of bush. At some point the snake joined us and I stayed far from her. The girl, the maze, she was not looking at me, but I had a feeling that she was seeing me. When we came to the exit she turned to me.
"Remember what you saw and be a good girl."
Before I could reply, one of the walls of the maze swalloed her. The big twigs and their leafs grabbed her, taking hold of her feet, her arms and even her neck and took her away to the inside of the wall. It all happened very fast, but I saw that she had not been afraid of what was happening to her. She was expecting it. She had asked for it. Only the snake remained. Her eyes seemed to be on me.
I ran away. I ran from the maze and looking back the snake was still there, telling me I had not been dreaming. I ran until I got home and I told everyone what had occurred. Like I said, no one believed me and I do not know if I even believe myself.
Still, I kept the promise. I never cut a flower that was thriving. As a matter of fact, I planted them in my house when I grew up and got one. I have them everywhere, in pretty much every division of my house and I take care of them as if they are my children, my babies. Sometimes I dream of the girl with the black hole mouth and the bloodshot eyes. Sometimes I feel that she is near me, making sure I keep my promises. I am probably crazy. That's what I was made to believe.
But am I? One thing is for sure: I never went back to that maze or any other and I never forgot the red rose I killed.
When a man does something wrong, he gives is other half flowers. If someone is sick and in the hospital, we do the same. Sometimes we are on a walk, see a pretty flower and we cut it for ourselves. And we never think we are killing them, taking from them time they would have if they stayed in their place and not in a vase with water.
Ain't it sad? So I make you, reader, a dare. Every single time you see a flower you would not mind picking, take some time and think: would I like to get my legs cut and years of my life taken from me?
You can get a visit from the maze girl.