Luce ran back to her friend, Penn, whom she was almost certain had just been hit by something black, jagged and deadly, but not a mark marred her many black jumpers. Penn saw her staring, "what?" she asked looking around her eyes wide and fearful, the black bolts kept falling down around them. "Girls, what is the hold up?" Miss Sophia asked Luce looked up at her willing herself to keep calm; her short black hair flew around her face in disarray.
"Nothing?" Luce meant to sound certain but she was sure Penn should be injured or in the very least hurt. Penn looked at the two of them like they were mad, she was frumpy and hunched and even in her many jumpers blue and cold. Her stringy hair hung in rats tails around her thin fearful face, her lips were bright red from the cold and she whimpered. "Let's keep going." Luce muttered wanting to get to the safe place that Miss Sophia was taking them as quickly as possible so that Penn could be safe, but that meant that she would have to go farther away from Daniel, she felt a sharp pang in her heart at the thought and forced herself to keep walking.
The cemetery was dark and as gloomy as a morgue, the dark foggy air rolled over the cemetery sealing everything and one inside. They had just crossed the dark threshold of the cemetery and were standing on the flat ground of the school commons, she couldn't help herself. She looked back, and instantly understood why Daniel had told her not to. A twisting pillar of light swirling with gold and silver, burst forth from the centre of the cemetery. It was wide and thick, a braid of light rising into the dark wall-like clouds. The announcers/shadows picked at the light trying to find an entrance, a weakness. The sounds they made were a thousand times worse than finger nails screeching down a blackboard. Luce could only describe these noises as the feelings she felt hearing them terror, desperation and an immense longing that she knew she could never explain. The braid twisted, more silver than gold and a song rose and drowned out the screeching of the announcers, light and soft a lullaby, Mother's singing to children in their sleep. Harmonies came out in the most complicated ways twisting itself around the melody in such a way that always kept you guessing. Luce didn't know what to think, Daniel, her Daniel was in the midst of it, but she wanted to go there step into the fight and drag him out.
"Oh no you don't." Miss Sophia said, grabbing Luce by the neck of her long sleeve black shirt and dragged her across the campus, Penn followed her wary gaze fixed at the back of Miss Sophia's head. Luce reminded herself Penn knew nothing and felt immense gratitude to the girl who was risking everything to come, though she wished Penn would stop staring at Miss Sophia's head so suspiciously.
When they stopped, Penn collapsed exhausted. Luce glanced around the safe place Miss Sophia had led them to. It was cold the stone was granite and round like a tower. The roof was made of stained glass forming a flower, Luces eyes rested last on her companions, Miss Sophia stood over Penn threateningly her eyes wide and crazed hair flying in the breeze.
"No." Luce shouted as Miss Sophia collapsed with Penn's hand at her throat. Luce stared at Penn confused there was no way a human could kill another with only one hand. Especially not a human who was meant to be exhausted. Penn smiled wickedly at Luce standing up slowly enjoying Luces confusion.
"P-P-Penn…" Luce stammered, "Ah yes Pennyweather Van Sickle Lockwood." Penn said her voice cold and took a menacing step in Luce's direction, "I had to dispose of her of course so I could take her place." Her eyes were cold and indifferent. Luce sat down on the cold floor she'd though that Penn was like her but she wasn't, she wasn't even Penn. "Then who are you?" Luce asked her voice shaking slightly as she stared at the imposter walking towards her. "Me? You may call me Raegon and as to what I am…." Raegon left it hanging there, "I am a fallen angel, just like your precious Daniel, but on the other side."
Luce gaped at her, her mouth open in astonishment. "But you look like such a normal human." Luce remarked her eyes narrowed. "Oh do I?" asked Raegon her voice dripping with malice. Raegon pulled of the dripping wet wig the hair beneath was bright red and looked like an open fire, it seemed to be alive. Luce's first thought was about Victoria from the Twilight series, deadly, dangerous and marvellous at running away. Raegon smiled at Luce, by her feet the many jumpers she was forced to wear to hide her tiny body which was the size and proportions of a 13 year old.
Raegon wore a strappy green top with gold sequins her black jeans were tight and hugged her legs, her eyes, which were narrowed, were green and feral, judging Luce's every movement. Around Raegon's neck was the necklace that Cam had given to Luce the serpent seemed to symbolise something totally different on Raegon's thin pale neck than on Luce's, it was a warning- like Raegon herself.
Luce watched as Raegon straightened up smiling childishly and pulled a long knife with a green hilt out of thin air. "I will enjoy killing you." Raegon's voice was shrill and collected, Luce looked at her in dismay she knew she was going to die, and she'd never see Daniel again. "It's nothing personal Luce, actually it is." Luce stared at Raegon uncomprehendingly the words she'd just spoken spun around Luce's head. "I don't understand." Luce said slowly, she knew Daniel was a part in it-wasn't he a part in everything?
"It's a long story." Raegon frowned her childish voice upset her chin tilted downward as her green eyes filled up with tears. Luce scowled she felt pity for Raegon and the sound of her anguish made her mad. Luce curled her hands into fists and turned to face Raegon. "Ohh scary." Raegon's laugh resonated around the small tower her eyes were dry now and were filled with amusement. "Do you want to hear the story or not?" Luce narrowed her eyes still keeping her hands balled into fists at her side. "I wasn't aware you were giving me a choice."
Raegon smiled at Luce's angry words. "Let's begin then," she indicated to the floor and then sat her smile slipping and her emerald green eyes seeking into Luce seeing into her. Luce sat intimidated by Raegon's gaze. "I'm listening." Luce said high and clearly, Raegon's smile came back and she said, "Where do I start? I think it should start at the beginning, Daniel and I were falling together, I chose to keep the identity of a teenager where he chose a seventeen year old."
"I didn't know you could choose what to look like." Luce interrupted her curiosity too much for her to continue ignoring Raegon. "I would rather you wouldn't interrupt." Luce was trapped under Raegon's gaze, a bird in the gaze of a snake-helpless and in Raegon's grip. "As I was saying we fell and landed in England in an extremely rainy day. Arriane and Gabbe were right behind us, we landed in a busy market place, you know all the trading the animals and all. That's when Daniel first saw you…" She trailed up bitting her bright red lips, helpless came to Luce's mind but she shook it off. How could a snake be innocent?
"Any way Arriane had been hurt in the fires of hell it had already healed but we were weak and innocent in the world where we had no idea what to do." Raegon glanced at Luce, Luce was captivated in the story she waited for Raegon to continue. Raegon's tears over flowed they were flecked with gold and were beautiful Luce caught one of them on the tip of her finger. The coldness of them caught her by surprise the flecks of gold were like glitter.
Luce looked up to see Raegon staring at her more tears over flowing her big green eyes. "I can't even cry like a normal person." Raegon said "Any way Daniel made his choice then but he didn't realise I was secretly in love with him he wouldn't even give me a chance to be with him. He was always captivated with you. This year is the first time I pretended to be your friend and told you the information about Daniel hoping you would explode but this time you are vulnerable and I will kill you."
She looked up at Luce her tearstained face pulled back into a snarl and held up the knife threateningly. That's when Luce's world turned upside down the flower stain glassed roof broke into a thousand shards and a dusty figure came down and landed between her and Raegon he was masculine, his short brown hair was windswept and his freckles were gone.
Todd smiled at Luce in greeting. Luce couldn't get past his wings silver and very angular they glittered and seemed to have sequins all over them. Raegon shrieked at him the sound making Luce block her ears in terror Todd laughed joylessly and Raegon leaned around him and hissed in Luce's ear "I WILL find you." And then she was gone flying through the ruined ceiling into the dark clouds, her wings small like a fairy's but sharp around the edges.
Luce glanced back to Todd he was checking to see if Miss Sophia had a pulse, he caught Luce looking and asked "What?" Luce watched as he crossed his arms self-consciously and waited for an answer. "Aren't you meant to be dead?" Luce gasped remembering holding his hand as the smoke clogged up the hallway they ran down and him being wrenched out of her grasp. "Yeah about that…I'm not." Todd murmured running a hand over his hair and turned away from here.
"I have to go…." Luce stammered avoiding his gaze, "Ok, be careful Luce," he spoke calmly but there was an edge to his voice, almost dangerous. Luce hurried out of the wrecked tower pausing to glance back as Todd flew gracefully to the battle still raging in the cemetery. She paused at the edge of the forest watching the announcers crawl out of the shadows, took a deep breath of the thick, chocking, smoggy air and ran into the shadows shivering as the rain started pouring down cold and fresh.
The rain washed away all the grime Luce had been collecting, she tripped over the rough uneven ground, strewn with tree branches and only stopped running when she reached the lake. Luce sat on the bolder and stared across the lake watching the raindrops fall into the water, thinking of Daniel. The rain made everything look fresh and new, when from nowhere came an origami water lily; it floated towards Luce its bright red petals folded perfectly and crisply.
Luce felt hysteria overcoming her she took a deep breath and reached out her hand. The bright red flower fell into her open palm; Luce unfolded it carefully and read the words written in perfect calligraphy across the paper. Her head spun and the letter fell out of her hand onto the bright green moss. Luce stood slowly and glanced around terrified, her hands shook and she turned and fled seeking her Daniel. On the water lily the black words were getting soaked by the rain they read:
To my dear Luce,
I will find you, someday
-after all, I have eternity, do you?
R
AN. Please review, this is Goldi-Sox, I wrote this alternate ending to Fallen for a school project, hope you like it!