I stumble into town like a drunkard. The dream from last night still rattles me to my bones, shaking me to my very core.
The memory had surfaced with as little warning as a tornado. It had crashed through my sleep, tearing and shredding my mind as it went, leaving me an emotional wreck. The memory knocked down my walls as it escaped from that little box everything got shoved into. I was rendered powerless and hate it.
I squint as I stroll along the pavement. The sun is blinding, scorching my eyes with little mercy. I can barely see anything through the lights harsh glare as it bombards my pupils.
Why I had promised Ivy I would come and hang out with them, I'm not sure. I was very aware it was going to be during the day yet my foolish ass still said yes. We are creatures that rule the darkness and live in the shadows. We don't do daylight.
I could ditch them and not go but then I'd be cooped up in the house like a vampire avoiding all contact with sunlight.
Blind, I bump into something. What I think is a man, stumbles back, glancing up from the device in his hand. He looks no younger than forty five, slight creases forming around his eyes and on his forehead. Black hair greying at the roots.
"I'm sorry, Miss," he apologises.
The man goes to walk around me when I grab his arm. He looks at my hand with creased eyebrows. I shove him into an alley and he stumbles before catching himself.
"Is there a problem?" he sneers. He try's to sound brave but caution leaks into his words like toxic waste, giving away his false bravado.
With a smirk, the matter in my body pulls itself apart. A strangled sound spills from his mouth as his eyes pop. Cells detach and morph, becoming something else as a force rips through my insides. My body transforms into a black mist as thick as tendrils of smoke. The humans eyes go wide but before he can scream, the mist, a foreign invader, travels into his mouth, infiltrating his senses with ease.
I spread through his whole body like a disease, working my way to his brain. His body jerks and thrashes as I anchor myself into his mind.
He spasms and lurches, gagging out nothing. His form fights, trying to rid me. A bug, I squish him down and take control.
I blink. Feeling returns to my limbs, a numbness wearing off. I spread my hands in front of me, once feminine now masculine. I roll my neck and give a little shake, getting used to the new frame.
Possession is a basic skill that all demons are capable of. Invading a body, taking control, is like instinct, the same as breathing to a human. It is a handy talent to have.
I rake through the humans brain as if it's office files. I flick passed his memories and thoughts, gauging around in his head. Once I find the information I need, I exit his body.
Fog pools from the humans mouth before I solidify, changing into my own form. A thud and the man has collapsed to the ground, breathing ragged and harsh.
I pluck the phone out of his hand. With the information I took from his mind, I unlock it with success.
I smile. 'Phone' can now be ticked of my list. Ivy will be pleased.
Just because I can, I snatch the sunglasses of his face to reveal his blood shot eyes. Slipping them on I can see! The suns light now reduced to a minor inconvenience. A blurry mess now a slight haze.
The human sits up with a gasp on the dirty ground. He vacuums in air with greedy intakes as if he can't get enough of oxygens sweet reassurance that he is still alive.
He seems fine so I turn to leave when he lets out a strangled noise. The human grabs his shirt, hands clenching with pain.
Choking noises erupt from his throat like a volcano, sweat dribbling down his greying face in beads. Mouth agape, he scratches his chest, clawing at it like a wild tiger does to a cage.
My eyes widen. Is this what a heart attack looks like?
Concrete slams into my knees as I drop next to him. I place my hands on his shoulders, clueless as to how I can help. Demons don't have beating hearts so things like this aren't really a problem.
His muscles spasm. I grab out the phone. Hitting the call button, I go to ring the ambulance...
Until I realise I don't know the number.
Being human is hard.
They're such fragile creatures. A second is all it takes for something to fail and bring them to their knees, begging for air and clinging to life. Humans are like circuit boards. One faulty wire and it's all over.
My mind is telling me to leave the man. I don't care. He's not my problem and he's going to heaven anyway. Reasoning and rationality wail against the sides of my head, demanding I leave him be. I'm a demon, therefore I should not care what happens. It's natural for these things to occur.
But something grounds me here, holding me in place with a firm grip.
"Hey!"
A couple pushing a pram stop at the sound of my shout. They look down the alleyway only see me crouched over a half dead man. Like its second nature, the woman bee lines my way, ditching the pram with her husband.
"Dear God," she says.
She lashes out a phone and punctures in a number, what I'm assuming, is the emergency services. Kneeling down near me, she bombs the man with questions and lightly slaps him on the face to keep him conscious.
He looks like he's in good hands so I leave, silently edging away before she asks me anything. Still reeling from how fast things just went, I nod to the husband as I pass.
As I step out of the alley the sun beats my eyes. It feels like they are burning out of my fucking skull, and I praise the sunglasses. Without them my eyes would be shrivelled sultanas.
I huff. That little event did nothing to lighten my spirits. The dream still lingers, a smog that refuses to clear. It sticks to me, no matter how hard I try to scrape it off like an annoying piece of gum stuck to the bottom of a shoe. Every time the memory comes back, my heart seems to sink a little further.
Without his familiar presence all I can assemble is emptiness. I try to climb out of this hole I've been thrown into yet I always lose my grip, falling deeper down. I grasp my jacket tighter and not because it's cold.
The human. Why did I help that human? I should have left him. He was not my concern nor my problem. It nags at me, pulling and scratching. Assisting others has never been in my nature. Causing havoc and creating devastation is a normal trait for my species but helping? It is unheard of. As to why I did it bugs me and what scares me most is that it wasn't the first time I've done something strange.
The boy at the graveyard still chases me. It seems like so long ago when Demtorious was still alive. I shake my head rapidly, trying to distinguish these thoughts and memories.
I think there's something wrong with me.
"Oi! Scarlet! Over here!"
My eyes flick up from the ground.
Ivy stands on the other side of the street, flailing her arms around. She waves them in the air in an attempt to get my attention, almost smacking Axel in the face.
I cross the street. A white van flys passed me, traffic pulling aside to give way. I watch as the red and blue lights fade away taking with it that bothersome wail.
Once I'm on the other side, Ivy squeals, "You made it!"
"Yeah I did," I wheeze, awkwardly patting her on the back till she finishes crushing my ribs.
After her, Quinn comes up and gives me a much more lighter hug. As my arms encase her, I realise that she's a lot more dainty and skinny than she looks. Unlike Ivy, Quinn is tall and lean, almost fragile. She reminds me a lot like a barbie doll with her long, blonde hair and blue eyes that Axel also shares.
"Thank God you came," Quinn says, sky eyes swarming with relief. "I did not want to be stuck with that thing."
She points to Ivy who frowns.
I don't blame her. Ivy can be as hypo as a squirrel on caffeine.
Sage pokes his head out from behind Quinn. He grins at me and I force a smile back. I hope it doesn't look as fake as it feels.
"Hey." he saunters over. The wind tosses brown strands into his eyes and he swishes his hand, shaking his head like a horse.
Like usual, Axel hangs back. I guess he only comes because he's dragged along by his twin.
"Now all we're waiting on is Rafe," Sage says.
Ivy shoves her hands on her hips, "Where is that boy, he's late."
"I'm here."
Rafe dashes around the corner in a sprint, panting. Once he gains his breath, he flings his arms out wide. "Ta-dah! Sorry, I'm late," he pants, "I was in a rush."
"'Bout time," Sage quips, bumping shoulders with Rafe who gives a sheepish grin.
Rafe's hair is tousled with the mad dash he was in, midnight strands messily arranged atop his head. It gives him a rugged look, the black complementing his deep ocean eyes. Ivy licks her lips, eyeing him off like a hawk. I have to swallow my gagging reflexes.
"Alrighty, now that we're all here," she gives Rafe a sideways glare, "Lets go!"
With a massive grin she skips down the pathway like a fairy. What I would do to lack that much self consciousness.
"Oh God," I hear Quinn murmur as she squeezes her eyes. She shakes her head with a mumbled, "Reatard."
We soon follow her on our little journey. I'm not sure what we are exactly doing, but I guess I'm going to soon find out. They all seem familiar with each other some I assume they go out together often.
Once again I'm struck by how easily they seemed to accept me.
"You made it," Rafe sidles up next to me, "We weren't sure if you were coming or not."
I shrug, "Well, I guess I did."
As I blurt those words out, I mentally wince at how harsh they sounded as if I was trying to throw daggers with my voice. I expect Rafe to snap at me and tell me what's up my ass. I brace for it. Instead he smiles, as soft as silk.
"Is something wrong?" he asks gently. Something about the way he says it, makes my teeth grind against each other and my talons beg for release.
"No. Why would it be?"
Before Rafe can say anything, a snake, Quinn hisses.
"Crap," Quinn seethes, "I broke a nail."
"Oh please," Axel says.
Sometimes I forget he's even there. He always looks as though he's here but his head is wandering somewhere else, seemingly in a daze. If I look closer, Axels eyes are slightly sunken with dark bags hanging below them like weights trying to drag his eyes closed.
It's not my business to pry. He might be caught up in his studies at his final year in high school, ditching sleep for text books. Apparently that's a concern to humans in their culture.
"Excuse me," Quinn spits, "Look!"
She holds up a hand. The skin smoother than glass and as fair as the moon. All nails are perfect, painted in a gloss with white tips. The nail on the middle finger is cracked, a small fault in otherwise flawlessness.
Axel gives his twin a dead pan look, "So."
Quinn narrows her eyes, flicking all fingers down except the cracked middle one.
I find satisfaction in knowing I'm not the only one who has sibling problems. As they argue back and forth, my eyes snag onto something that may be the best thing I've seen all week.
Through the blinding sun, is a building not too far away, clustered in what appears to be a small park across the road. It's large with colours running down the sides in a pattern. Above the doorway, in bold letters reads, 'Art Gallery'.
I haven't touched a pencil or paintbrush since before my sisters Friday the thirteenth ball. I miss the feeling of holding the thin pieces of wood in my hand. I yearn for that contact, deprived of something that I've always had.
My art room in my chamber is still locked, hidden from prying eyes. A sense of longing fills me like there's an empty space. A piece missing. I desperately wish for art supplies so I can unleash my cramped mind.
It's jammed with ideas, waiting to explode like wild fire. Even if I could see others work it may help ease my need to release my imagination.
"Would you like to go inside?"
I blink, turning to see Rafe staring at me, expectantly. I want to go inside desperately. So badly it almost hurts. It nips at me, trying to force my feet to go in that exact direction, becoming harder to ignore.
I consider his offer. I'm not sure if I want him taking me but it will be better if I had company. Rafe doesn't look like he has any bad intentions so I don't see how this can be a terrible idea.
"Yes," I say.
Rafe grins. "You guys go ahead. I want to show Scarlet the gallery," he says to the others.
The group freezes and turns to stare at us. Quinn and Axel stop their spat. I hope there is nothing wrong with me and Rafe leaving them. I found it nearly impossible to pass up the chance to go inside but now I wish I did with the strange looks I'm now receiving.
My body clenches as I try not to squirm.
Ivy whistles and Sage wiggles his eyebrows.
"Ok," Quinn smirks, "You two have fun."
I scowl only causing Ivy to laugh. Their so immature.
With an eye roll Rafe sighs, "This way."
***
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