Blood Bond
Withering Petals
When we got there we sneaked into a bush, looking around. I saw Justin and Jeremiah in the room with a TV, just sitting and watching it, nothing wrong.
"Hmm, see anything, sister?"
"Not yet, brother."
"Well, maybe she left and went home, like we should. Come on."
"Coming!"
When I looked back a last time I thought I saw someone. I was about to go back when I heard Daryl whisper to me, "over here." Kyle snuck over with me and we hid in yet another bush.
"Ouch," I cried as quiet as possible, but it wasn’t easy: I had pushed my knee onto a knife from yesterday. I pulled it out and that hurt worse. I just ripped off a sleeve and wrapped it around my leg.
Daryl didn’t even look back at me. He just kept his eye on the woods, which was surrounded by a thick darkness that was a bit mystifying. Kyle said that he saw light from the house glint off an object in the person’s hand.
I heard a voice yell out, "Justin! Jeremiah!" and immediately after a hand struck me.
That voice I had heard was my own—saying something out of pure instinctive fear for my cousins, not even thinking before I said it. Justin looked out the window for a bit before walking outside and signaling his brother to follow. He looked around for a while and Daryl gulped as Jeremiah looked around, too.
"What happened with you and Jeremiah earlier when he chased you off?" I whispered to Daryl, realizing I had never found out.
I repeated myself when he didn’t answer and he barked, "Be quiet!"
I shrugged my shoulders and continued watching. I saw a shadow in the hanging darkness move before long. It appeared to be the silhouette of a girl and she was carrying a sword of some kind; a long, slender one.
I saw Justin talking to Jeremiah, intimidated. Then she jumped out at them and they both yelped. Jeremiah sighed out of relief, but Justin did no such thing. Jeremiah told her to leave, but she just stood there. He turned his back and she put her sword in his back. He stood there for a second, and then turned around. The sword went completely through his stomach.
She looked horrified as he pulled the sword out, covered with blood. Justin just walked inside. Jeremiah disappeared and reappeared behind her. He stabbed the sword into her and just left. She stood for a few seconds and fell back. I ran over and saw that it was, of course, Saskia's twin, her blond hair reddening with blood. Her green eyes hadn’t dilated yet, though they should have. I wasn’t that sad, even though I should have been, just a little confused. Dezirae just didn’t have the brains; Saskia did.
We walked separate ways and nothing seemed that scary anymore. I left her body at the mercy of my cousins because I knew they’d be respectful. I saw that kid and told Daryl to tell him, "sorry". He did after I said, "pwetty pwease...?" and the boy just nodded and left. I decided never to go to that mansion ever again for fear of Daryl following and torturing Justin, especially since I saw that strange kid that told me his name was Tyrant walk off to the mansion before the haze went over it. It made me wonder if all of it had been real.
In fact, the next morning when I woke up to the sound of my dad coming home I scanned the room and saw the Halloween candy from last night and costume on the floor.
"Probably just a strange dream…" I said, talking to myself. I brushed my hand through my hair and looked at the ground. There was a black rose. I picked it up and felt the unreal silkiness of the petals and the sharp bolt of pain in my knee from the wound that would probably scar. I dropped the rose out of pain and it immediately withered and died.
However, when I picked it up, it sprung back to life. With a smile, I placed the rose in a vase on my dresser, but that smile faded. What parts were fake and what were real, if any? I was sure that if I called Daryl (he had actually gone home for once) and asked, he’d say he had a cut from Tyrant. I walked downstairs to get something to eat. I knew if I investigated, that mansion would be gone, but it didn’t bother me. I knew Justin and Jeremiah could visit whenever they wanted, and I'm sure I could visit them sometime. They always seemed to come and go, even when I had thought them to be human. I looked out the window, seeing a note that read, "Thanks, Tony". I smiled as I walked downstairs and whispered, "Bye, Justin, Jeremiah," thinking of the only two people that ever called me that nickname…
I stopped dead in my tracks, remembering the note I'd gotten from Justin. It seemed like so long ago that I'd seen it. I'd never answered his plead:
"Please… Do you like him? That creep I mean. He forced you to go for a walk with him. What’d he ask you? What’d you say?"
Please, god, no, I begged.
I reached hesitantly for the note again and turned it over.
"Hmm, see anything, sister?"
"Not yet, brother."
"Well, maybe she left and went home, like we should. Come on."
"Coming!"
When I looked back a last time I thought I saw someone. I was about to go back when I heard Daryl whisper to me, "over here." Kyle snuck over with me and we hid in yet another bush.
"Ouch," I cried as quiet as possible, but it wasn’t easy: I had pushed my knee onto a knife from yesterday. I pulled it out and that hurt worse. I just ripped off a sleeve and wrapped it around my leg.
Daryl didn’t even look back at me. He just kept his eye on the woods, which was surrounded by a thick darkness that was a bit mystifying. Kyle said that he saw light from the house glint off an object in the person’s hand.
I heard a voice yell out, "Justin! Jeremiah!" and immediately after a hand struck me.
That voice I had heard was my own—saying something out of pure instinctive fear for my cousins, not even thinking before I said it. Justin looked out the window for a bit before walking outside and signaling his brother to follow. He looked around for a while and Daryl gulped as Jeremiah looked around, too.
"What happened with you and Jeremiah earlier when he chased you off?" I whispered to Daryl, realizing I had never found out.
I repeated myself when he didn’t answer and he barked, "Be quiet!"
I shrugged my shoulders and continued watching. I saw a shadow in the hanging darkness move before long. It appeared to be the silhouette of a girl and she was carrying a sword of some kind; a long, slender one.
I saw Justin talking to Jeremiah, intimidated. Then she jumped out at them and they both yelped. Jeremiah sighed out of relief, but Justin did no such thing. Jeremiah told her to leave, but she just stood there. He turned his back and she put her sword in his back. He stood there for a second, and then turned around. The sword went completely through his stomach.
She looked horrified as he pulled the sword out, covered with blood. Justin just walked inside. Jeremiah disappeared and reappeared behind her. He stabbed the sword into her and just left. She stood for a few seconds and fell back. I ran over and saw that it was, of course, Saskia's twin, her blond hair reddening with blood. Her green eyes hadn’t dilated yet, though they should have. I wasn’t that sad, even though I should have been, just a little confused. Dezirae just didn’t have the brains; Saskia did.
We walked separate ways and nothing seemed that scary anymore. I left her body at the mercy of my cousins because I knew they’d be respectful. I saw that kid and told Daryl to tell him, "sorry". He did after I said, "pwetty pwease...?" and the boy just nodded and left. I decided never to go to that mansion ever again for fear of Daryl following and torturing Justin, especially since I saw that strange kid that told me his name was Tyrant walk off to the mansion before the haze went over it. It made me wonder if all of it had been real.
In fact, the next morning when I woke up to the sound of my dad coming home I scanned the room and saw the Halloween candy from last night and costume on the floor.
"Probably just a strange dream…" I said, talking to myself. I brushed my hand through my hair and looked at the ground. There was a black rose. I picked it up and felt the unreal silkiness of the petals and the sharp bolt of pain in my knee from the wound that would probably scar. I dropped the rose out of pain and it immediately withered and died.
However, when I picked it up, it sprung back to life. With a smile, I placed the rose in a vase on my dresser, but that smile faded. What parts were fake and what were real, if any? I was sure that if I called Daryl (he had actually gone home for once) and asked, he’d say he had a cut from Tyrant. I walked downstairs to get something to eat. I knew if I investigated, that mansion would be gone, but it didn’t bother me. I knew Justin and Jeremiah could visit whenever they wanted, and I'm sure I could visit them sometime. They always seemed to come and go, even when I had thought them to be human. I looked out the window, seeing a note that read, "Thanks, Tony". I smiled as I walked downstairs and whispered, "Bye, Justin, Jeremiah," thinking of the only two people that ever called me that nickname…
I stopped dead in my tracks, remembering the note I'd gotten from Justin. It seemed like so long ago that I'd seen it. I'd never answered his plead:
"Please… Do you like him? That creep I mean. He forced you to go for a walk with him. What’d he ask you? What’d you say?"
Please, god, no, I begged.
I reached hesitantly for the note again and turned it over.