Chapter Text
I hear many popping sounds occur out of my window. I slowly open my eyes; rays of light had illuminated my room. At first, I thought it might have been the Nilan field about 5 miles away but was soon to see multiple sparks fly in the corner of my eye.
I throw my legs over the side of my bed and rest my feet on the white fluffy carpet beneath me. Stretching my neck, I try to see what was going on outside. As I should have presumed it was the sound of bomb flies smashing against my window.
Bombflys were cute little creatures, explosive but cute. They tend to blow up whenever they come in contact with any hard surface; worst thing is, the longer the live the bigger the explosion. I’m glad these ones are only babies, otherwise I’d have a new window in by now.
I look over to my left checking for Tybalt, my pet dog, but he’s gone from his usual spot. I mean this has happened once or twice before, but not for a good 2 years. The again the maids may have taken him for a walk. It seems like it’s a bit late. Even so… he normally waits for me.
After spending a small thought about it, I decide to get up and head toward the bathroom, throwing off my bonnet in the meantime. In the mirror, I undo half of my twists before realising I should have showered first before taking out my hair to prevent it from shrinking later.
Normally I would have been more organised but last night I was busy preparing for my speech. My father requested my audience for the next day.
Wait… the next day was today. I check my watch. The time is….9:57. That means the meeting started 27 minutes ago. No, I’m going to be late! I can’t afford to be late. Not this time.
I rush around rummaging through everything. I did a quick shower, brushed my teeth, wore the outfit the maid set out the night before and put my hair into a massive puff. This made my chambray hair look like the sky was falling from my scalp.
To accelerate my speed, I hover down the stairs to make it to the south side of the house. Honestly, I never understood why we even had stairs in the first place, it’s not like we have any guests come up here anyway. Also, we could just use our telekinesis to get anywhere we need to. It’s not like we can’t make ourselves fly.
After 2 minutes, I finally make it through the final dark oak doors. All 8 eyes are set on me. The glaring ones of my mother and father, and the stern ones of the visitors.
“Miss Amormalus, it would have been a pleasure to see you during the meeting, however it is time for us to depart.” Both begin to get up on all four of each of their legs to reveal their beautiful coat. “See you soon Mr Amormalus.” They trot away through the doors I just entered.
Their coat was a beautiful white colour yet was black near their hooves. As they had horns on their heads, I’d say they were unicentaurs. Unicentaurs are extremely rare, basically royalty, and are known to hide out in the treetops of Diraini away from society. I’m actually surprised I saw one in my lifetime, let alone two.
My father stands up from his mahogany chair and glares at me.
His eyes are slanted upwards like mine however his are a deeper shade of blue. Sometimes people don’t see the resemblance when we’re together since he’s less approachable than me, but I get that from my mother.
My mother was sat behind my father, her lips were slightly parted as she stared blankly at my father. She looks at me making her brows go down, her glare is like psychological torture making my skin crawl.
‘Cia, where were you. You knew this was an important meeting and I would expect the heiress of the most prestigious trading company to be punctual’ he told me. Well not with his mouth. A rule in the house is that we’re not allowed to communicate with each other unless we use telepathy. He says it’s to protect us from spies, but I believe it’s to limit those who choose to lie or are a threat to the family.
‘Father I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. I really tried this time-’ I stumbled over my words.
‘Silence. I don’t think you truly understand what we do here.’ He then turns to look at my mother ‘I think it’s time to take her back to the Amiss.’
My mother nods and quickly stands up. The hem of her dress is gently lifted from the floor as she rushes towards me. I take a step back, but it does little to stop her. My mothers’ cold hands gently caress my face as she looks lovingly into my eyes. The feeling only lasts a little while before those same hands find themselves wrapped around my wrist is a firm manner.
I’m dragged to the other end of the table and through a little door on the side. My mother’s swift movements make it hard to keep the same pace as her, you’d think after repeating this same motion again and again would give some sort of familiarity and adaptation in my own speed. Father, on the other hand, had no trouble at all, trailing behind us following the same bends as we did.
Deeper and deeper, we went down the stairs, the temperature slowly rising. The same dark corridor repeats itself once thought to be a poor design choice but is really a way to keep you guessing and confusing yourself until you either die from dehydration or go mad trying to find an exit.
Suddenly, mother stopped in front of another door, only this one was different than the ones upstairs. This door was a blood red with a golden handle. The handle had many different swirls engraved into it forming a pattern that resembled the letter ‘A’.
Mother turns the handle and gently opens the door. It makes a high-pitched squeaking sound, one loud enough to puncture the ears of a normal person.
Inside the room is many bookshelves. As tall as the ceiling. The smell of dust and death clogged up my nose, my eyes pricking with tears. Perhaps it’s the rotting corpse of the rat that laid in the corner of the room, or perhaps it’s the accumulation of the souls that are forever trying to claw their way out of the damned room. Old memories start to flood into my brain, the Amiss, it’s been here for generations, for various different tasks from studying to torture.
“Cienna,” Mother’s voice is frail, after what seems to be the first time in a few months she has used it at all. “Get inside. I’d hate for this to get messy again.”
Another heavy door rest less than a metre away from my side, it’s tinted blue and bolted. I’m still not sure what metal was used to create it, but the colours are the least of my worries. My father takes out a skeleton key and gracefully hands it to my mother before she opens the door. It’s funny, sometimes the way that they behave is so in sync they probably rehearsed it.
Don’t hesitate it’ll only get worse. I step inside. One foot at a time. One step at a time. It will only get worse from here. I can’t do this again. It’s…
The door slams shut *click* It’s locked, bolted, but it’s okay. It’s fine. Not a single word is spoken, and I can hear my parents’ footsteps slip away, the clicking of heels become distant and I’m left here alone again.
The darkness is familiar, comforting even. It’s sort of nostalgic in a way, the dripping ceiling has the same rhythm *drip* *drip* *drip* doesn’t stop. Good thing it never stops, or I would have succumbed to dehydration years ago. *drip* I take three steps forward before meeting the round, wooden table. *drip* My hands gently glide over the surface, and I feel textured bumps rested on top of a metal disk. *drip* They still haven’t replaced the candle, that’s what I deserve for letting it run out when I was 8. *drip* I should have been more conservative, if only I knew. *drip* It’s fine. I quite like the darkness.
I move my hand away from the table and onto the wall, old scratches run underneath my fingertips. *drip* Wait it could just be the engravements in the bricks. *drip* No definitely not. This is the drawing I caved out at the age of 12. *drip* It was a good thing I had some old bones in my pocket, so I was pretty well occupied.
*drip*
*drip*
*drip*
I should sleep. I’m not tired but at this point I’ll do anything to pass the time. I’d rather eat but saving the small bread packet in my pocket would be wiser. Mother might take a week to find me, just like last time. No, she wasn’t as angry today. Maybe 3 days. I’ll sleep now and start counting. Wait how many seconds is thirty minutes… 3 times 6… oh 1800. I’ll count to 1800 eat my bread. Oh, and I can’t forget to stretch, stretching is very important. I can’t have my legs failing me when I come out, I need them to make the trek back upstairs. If I get left behind, I may get lost again…
I can hear it, the sounds are starting. I drop to the floor and cover my ears. It can’t start yet, It’s too soon. The humming is getting louder can’t you hear it?
Sleep. I can’t face them again. Sleep. It’s the best thing I can do, the monsters are going to come again. I’ not prepared this time. I can’t fight them off this time. Please sleep. My hands aren’t enough. They know how to seep their sounds into my brain. Oh gods. Sleep. Sleep. Sleep. Sleep.
It's staring at me. I can feel it. Its eyes are ever haunting, and its heartbeat is getting louder. I can feel it. “WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME!” I shout but it never answers. When does it ever answer. It’s smiling I can tell. I hate that it looks at me but I am unable to return the favour. What can I do? The only way I can escape is through my slumber, yet I stay awake. Why am I still awake.
It's growling at me. I can hear it. It’s going to swallow me whole and there’s nothing I can do about it. I’d hover way but it never works. My powers don’t work in here. I try but it never does.
I can feel my eyes getting heavier, maybe I wore myself out. The monsters can’t get me when I’m asleep. Perhaps they just live to torment me. That is why they leave when I sleep. That is why I’m still able to wake up every time. I stretch my body as far as I can. I’ve definitely gotten bigger I can reach both ends of the wall without trying. I feel myself yawning and it’s not a moment sooner that I feel myself falling asleep.
I’m awake. My mouth feels dry. I crawl towards the sound of the dripping water. The monsters are gone again, for now and I use this time to calm down. I stick out my tongue and let the water drip into my mouth. It may be slow but it’s effective for what it’s worth. I have to ignore the churning of my stomach if I’m going to keep my sanity. I can’t afford to go mad in here. Actually, that’s not possible because I’m used to this already. I wish mother would add a clock in here; not that I can see it anyways, but it would help me get some sense on how long I’ve been in here already. I think I’m starting to smell as well. And I need to go to the toilet, I can’t remember where I put the bucket.
I shuffle around on the floor for a while until I accidentally hit something made of metal. Oh. It wasn’t me that was starting to smell. I remember emptying this thing out before I left last time… strange. And disgusting. Very disgusting. I don’t want to touch that thing. And I have to, don’t I?
I take off my shirt and wrap it around my hands before reaching for the edge of the bucket. It’s definitely full and it’s incredibly heavy. I drag it towards the part of the cage room where the sound of water is coming from. I slowly pour the contents of the bucket into the corner and the smell starts to intensify exponentially. I gag into my free arm and turn my face away from the scene entirely. If I pour it out any faster, it might over spill and touch me. Oh, gods this is definitely the worst thing I’ve ever had to do in my life.
After a few more hours (?) I can start to see the monsters coming out again. I don’t know how they’re able to come and go so easily yet there isn’t any way for me to leave without my parents’ assistance. It’s staring at me again but it’s quiet. I’ve finished all of my rations and I’m getting hungry again.
I’m so tired, but I can’t sleep. All I can do is stare back at the monster and hope that it leaves me alone this time. It never blinks. Or maybe it does but only when I do. That would be a mind fuck, right? Blinking only when the other person does for the illusion of being stared at. I might take notes in case I need it. How would that work though, blinking is pretty random, so I’d have to study the person for quite a while. That’s probably what this creature did.
I bring my hand to my face and feel my cheek for a while, the touch is nice and calming. It only distracts me for a little while before I turn my attention back to the monster. What if I touch it? What would happen to me? I sit up and face it it’s stare is unwavering even as I start to stand. The closer I walk towards it the further away it gets. I keep walking and end up hitting the wall face first. I turn around and see it again. Still standing there. It’s mocking me I can tell.
I run toward it again, I try to grab it but again I hot the wall. Every attempt I take to grasp it, it’s always a few steps ahead. The number of times I collided with the wall is quite embarrassing, yet it just stays there staring at me. I’m getting sick of this now.
“Seriously, what are you? Why can’t I touch you?” I don’t except it to answer, obviously, but my words definitely did something. Its eyes began to narrow and before I could even blink, it made its way only centimetres away from me. Instinctively, I swing my arm, but it doesn’t even connect. I feel as if something is grabbing my wrist and panic starts to set in and it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have provoked it.
The grip on my arm gets tighter every breath I take. Trying to free myself is pointless even as I thrash and struggle. My wrist is breaking, my hand is numb. This is my fault. I should have made sure I woke up on my own. I can’t rely on the maids for everything. This is all my fault.
A small sob escapes my throat, and tears threaten to drop down my face.
“Please…” It’s smiling. I can feel it. It’s a monster and I don’t know what I expected from it. Of course it’s enjoying my pain. I try to tug at my arm one last time, but instead of the monster squeezing my already sprained wrist the door opens.
Light from the Amiss slowly seeps through and the monster is completely gone. My arm is still suspended in the air, but the tightening feeling is gone. The light is extremely bright, and I have to shield my face away from the door. It’s absolutely blinding.
“What’s wrong with you?” My father’s booming voice ricochets off of the walls and my ears, after being in the quiet for so long, feel as if they’re about to explode. My hands shoot up to my ears next, so when my father’s presence comes closer, I almost screamed from surprise.
“Come now princess.” He removes my hands but keeps the same volume making me wince. “Let’s go back.” He quickly turns on his heels and I have no choice to follow behind.
As we walk through the long corridors, we both remain silent. I hold my wrist and it’s already starting to feel better, still sore but better. I think whether I should say something.
“Father…” I look down to the floor and keep my hands firm to my side. “I’m sorry.” I look up and see him looking at me with a straight face. A faint smile dances on his lips before he speaks.
“Your mother and I know that you’ve learned your lesson. Three days is a new record for you. Glad you’re getting faster at this.” He rests a hand on my shoulder. “When we get upstairs, take a shower. You smell awful.”
Once we make it back to the meeting room, he continues to walk with me until we reach my bedroom.
“Cia, we have something important to discuss with you at dinner later today.” He places a small kiss on my forehead, his locks gently brush past my face. “I love you.” He walks towards the stairs before disappearing quickly.
I open my door and slip inside my room. On my bed I see a small gift box with a note on top of it. As I pick it up, the words make my heart drop. It says:
This is what it truly means
to be responsible. At least
it didn’t struggle as much as
The last one.
- M&D
I drop the note and open the box as fast as possible. Inside is a head. Tybalt’s head. My Tybalt’s head. My hands start to shake as I reach inside and hold his head. He’s smiling. His last moments were happy. He saw someone he loved, and they killed him. This one hurts more because none of them smiled before. Tears fall down my face as I continue to stare at his face.
I pet his head one last time before heading towards the bottom of my bed. I pull out a fairly big box and open it.
This is where I’ve kept my other decapitated pets, I can’t bare to throw them out. I know it’s wrong and sick, but I love them so much. I kiss Tybalt’s forehead and gently place his skull with the rest of his predecessors. At least they look at peace.
I head to the bathroom and get ready for the rest of my day.