The Looking Glass

We all stood there for what felt like many seconds, but could've only been one. I didn''t know what to do, I was paralyzed in fear. What was wrong with their eyes? Did they ALL have... fangs? I swallowed, closing my barely gaping mouth. Then, as if it broke the still, everyone took in a breath, and the black haired girl stood up from the table. Without turning their heads, every one of them acknowledged that she'd stood. If in a light flicker of their brow, or a deep frown, they all made some sort of movement. But they stood where they were, as did I. My pulse battered against the hollow of my throat, as if it alone was enough motivation to break my spell of fear. But I stood, frozen, still, as she walked towards me with the prowess of a hunter. Her eyes, molten silver, oozed liquid in the firelight. She smiled her horrid smile as she closed the distance further. All I could do was swallow thickly. My well of tears had been depleted from my earlier panic, but if I could have, I would have let loose tears of terror. She was only two feet away now, beginning to raise her black gloved hand.

I was jerked backwards, a rush of air shoved from my lungs at the impact of an arm across my ribs. I backpedaled, broken from previously inert state. As soon as I was far enough away, my captor let go, spun me around, and shoved me away.

"It doesn't matter where you go, don't look back, just run! Don't trust your senses, here. Go!" Robbie's voice whispered roughly, loudly. I wondered why he was still speaking so softly, especially now, in a time of duress. What did he think of the silver-eyed monsters? Did he know, is that why he said what he did? Was he one of them, too?

I stumbled at that, realizing I'd been running since he shoved me, but I'd been too absorbed in my head to think about it. My feet have been a saving grace all day today, I mused dully. My foot caught on something and I pitched forward, scrambling to catch myself. Once I was righted, I didn't bother to look back, but whatever I'd fell over was soft, like... I tried not to think about it too hard. Paying more attention to my surroundings than my thoughts, I ran with my eyes as far open as I could force them, I could barely see. It'd been this level of darkness since I'd entered the woods, which struck me as odd as well. But the panic that coursed through my veins was too much to ignore, I couldn't pause to ponder anything. I couldn't pause to ponder how long I'd live, either, because I had no doubt in my heart that something would have happened to me, had I stayed. Had Robbie not come in when he did, I would have stayed, too. It was odd, the way I couldn't move. The way, deep in my mind, I was screaming at myself to try to run, but it was muffled, snuffed out. All I could see were her eyes, her wicked smile. I was hypnotized with the fierce horror, and beauty that beheld in her milky features.

I fumbled, again, and grit my teeth, blocking out my thoughts once more. Tried listening to anything around me, try to see if I was being followed, but over the thudding of my feet on the thickly leaved ground, I could hear nothing else. That, and the rushing of the wind in my ears, and my heavy raspy breathing. As I thought about the last part, I wavered in my steps, again. My inhaler was another thing I'd left behind. I hardly ever needed it, not even when I was crying, but in a time like now, I had no doubt my asthma would take the panic as a time to rear its hideous head.

My inner self was shouting in frustration. I was doing my best to flee, but if I had to stop, in order to avoid an asthma attack, they'd catch me in no time. Assuming they were after me, of course.

My thirst for knowing if they were choked me up on the inside. If I could just see if they were behind me... I turned my head to look, and all I saw was blackness. They could have been no more than ten feet behind me, and I wouldn't have known.

"Oof!" I ran smack into a tree, my head bouncing off like I'd been punched away. My arms went straight out on either side of the tree as if I were in a cartoon. Had it been in any other time, I would have laughed. With the blow to my temple, I fell backwards, stunned. As if I'd been hit in the stomach, I could hardly force myself to take a breath, my chest felt caved in. I was in trouble. I was over my head in it, hell.

I heard crunching of leaves, and knew I was done for. "Don't look back..." rung over and over in my head as if a skipping CD. Oh, Robbie. Where are you, now? I moaned at the throbbing of my head, and as I felt coolness in my hair, I knew I'd gotten cut in the tree. How could I not have, I hit it full-on.

I closed my eyes and rolled over, choking back an involuntary groan. My hands were claws as I strained to stand. Using the same tree I hit to help me up, I stood on shaky legs for a few moments, more than I could spare. With the small break, and relieved pressure on my lungs, I was able to regulate my breathing, to a degree. I knew the tell-tale signs of an oncoming asthma attack, and I was well under way. I couldn't run, or I'd suffocate myself, just as well as if I'd hung myself. As if the fear of having to give up were the reason, the dam broke, and I found my tears again. The raw fright was still rattling my cage, and I'd hardly forgotten about my previous endeavors today. Seeing my Dad, seeing the silver-eyed monsters, everything was shear pandemonium. I leaned my good temple against the tree and felt my heart break as I realized I couldn't go anywhere. I might as well have just stayed in the clearing.

A sudden realization hit me like cold water to the face. Standing up straight, I could barely make out the shapes of the low-hanging branches around me. My arms were quivering with fear, but I grit my teeth to try to steady them. I hoisted myself up, the exertion tapping the last wells of my energy dry. Since I could still make out the sounds of someone coming closer, I tried my best to stay silent as I climbed the tree, to the highest point possible. Twigs clawed at me, and the needles of the tree were no help, either. Once I couldn't go any further up due to the bowing branches, I took shuddering breaths to try and get the oxygen I needed. My lungs were on fire. My heart was exploding. All I wanted was to go undetected, but I couldn't help my raspy breaths. I covered my mouth with my hands, as tightly as I could manage. The pine needles around me poked and scratched any exposed skin, but that was nothing compared to the discomfort of my labored breathing, having to be silenced forcefully.

The footsteps were hurried, like they were jogging after me, and I prayed with every hope I could manage, that they'd keep going. But as they neared my tree, they slowed. I snuffed my whimper, and squeezed my eyes shut in fright. Every limb I had was trembling, but luckily I wasn't making the tree rustle. The person walked up to the tree and it jolted lightly, making me jump, but as there was no more movement, I assumed they'd leaned against it roughly.

"Mary. I know you can hear me, you're around here somewhere. They're not after us, I made sure of it." It was Robbie! I would have collapsed, if I'd have been on the ground. I sobbed aloud, squatting to climb down. This time, my legs and arms were not only trembling from exhaustion, but from immense relief. I had to stop multiple times to try to breathe through the tears, but I was so happy, I was safe. For some reason, even though we were two against a hundred or so of them, he made me feel protected. My earlier thoughts on how he might be one of them subsided. He was here to save me, and I wasn't going to die. It was all going to be okay.

When I reached the last branch, I turned over so my stomach was on the branch and slid down, catching myself on the truck so that I wouldn't fall. He wasn't in front of me, so I spun around, a shaky smile on my face. But there was no one there. My face was fear, all over again, as I whirled, looking anywhere for a sign of him. But I was all alone.

And I was back on the ground.

I tried pulling myself up, again, but I didn't have the energy, any more. I was ready to pass out. Any feeling of safety I'd felt seconds ago, had all vanished. I fell back against the tree, again, this time crumpling into a ball at the base of it. I didn't know what I was shaking from, any more. I was too afraid to cry, to afraid to scream, to afraid to do anything but lie there, and wait. Wait for whatever was going to happen, because I couldn't do anything about it.

I heard the crunching leaves again, and tried to close my eyes so that I wouldn't have to see it coming, but my mind wouldn't listen, and I stared openly into the direction of the sound.

As if I were watching a horror flick, everything panned out in obvious scenes. I saw the fog blanket the ground all around me. They walked towards me with the mist, slowly, and not making any noise as they prowled. Odd, that I should hear them before they got here, then not.

As they closed in I blinked slowly, as if trying to fall asleep. The black-haired girl walked through a part they made for her, every one of them looking down with me, their faces in shadow. I could sense that they were still monsters, regardless of not being able to see their glowing eyes. The image of that couldn't be erased from my thoughts.

She stepped closer, then knelt in front of me. All I could do was stare at her with a blank expression. It wasn't like before, like I was paralytic, but like I'd given up. She was going to get me, anyway, why try to make it more traumatic for myself? She could have me. I didn't care, any more.

Slowly, she leaned in, brushing my hair away from my neck as if in a caress. When she leaned in, I saw her eyes, all silver, no white. she kissed my temple, leaning back a few inches to lick the blood off her lips. As if because of that, her mouth parted more to make way for her elongating fangs. I closed my eyes to let her kill me. I felt her cool breath on my pulsing neck. Then her lips, kissing, then the sharp prick of the fangs piercing my skin.

As she sucked my life away, I felt myself go limp and then I felt myself drift off.

I felt myself die.