The Rise and Fall

She could remember it all too well, the heat, the pain, the screaming. Her memory was solid in these points. It had burned like nothing she had ever known. Impossible as it was, she couldn't help but remember every detail in agonizing clarity. The way it felt as the fire burned above her crying form, the way her body ached from heat, the tears that streamed down her face. It had been painful, and yet she had no scars to show for the brutality. Not so much as a picture to prove it had happened.

Then again, it was so long ago it was a wonder she could remember it at all. She couldn't even remember her parents' faces, and yet every second of that pain had been felt and committed to memory in ways she never expected to stick. She could feel the way the ground had heated up beneath her, she could remember the screams that left her lungs. The putrid smoke the burned her every breath. And then it was all gone. As though it had never happened. Without so much as a trace to remember it by.

It was after that, that she had woken up in a place she didn't recognize. She could still remember calling for her father, and when that failed, she dared to try and call her mother. A crashing sound nearby sent her hurtling towards the nearest exit out of fear. This place was not like home. She was lost, confused, and sore. Stumbling her way across the sidewalk, she came to a halt as a massive metal monster sped past her. A scream tore free of the child's lungs, as someone yelled at her to get out of the streets. Anger and fear threw her forward until someone reached out and grabbed her hand.

The man was in a blue uniform, and a quick, panic filled look around told her there was no one else nearby to help. He asked her for her name, and why she wasn't with her parents. When she tried to explain, she was told not to tell lies. She tried again and the man's grip nearly crushed her wrist as he gave her a shake. "I told you no more lies, now tell the truth or I am going to put you in jail until your parents file missing persons." Jail? She thought to herself. Whatever it was, it didn't sound good.

As the man gave her another shake her anger and fear got the better of her. Her body heated to dangerous levels and she began to cry, though her tears were drowned out by the man in front of her, screaming while he writhed in agony at her feet. His hand was burned to the bone and had left a black bruise on her wrist. The skin of his arm had mostly been burned off up to his shoulder. His clothing had caught fire and he was twisting about saying something about a demon. As he began to delve further into disfiguration, Rosalie burst up in her bed, gasping for air and clutching her chest.