A/N: I do not own Residetn Evil! Don't sue me....
Once again, another fantasy/storybook like story. This won't be as childish as my other storybook story and not as funny. But there will be some Jill/Chris in this one, like the other one. Please enjoy the story!
Shadow Hearts
Chapter One: The Black and White Picture Book
'Do I take a left or a right? One of them is a dead end; the other is a way out.'
Jill looked at the hallway. Cold sweat beamed on her hands, arms and face as she thought desperately which way to go. Suddenly, something roared, sending a chill up her spine. She turned her head behind to see if whatever was chasing her was closing in on her. Surely, she saw the eight-legged shadow on the wall, moving quickly. Her blue eyes widened in fear. The monster was coming, coming for her.
Jill turned to face the cross-division again, thinking frantically which way to go. One led to escape and possibly rescue. The other led to certain death.
The monster roared again, louder this time. Jill didn't even have to turn this time to see that the monster was in the hallway coming for her. It was time to act, now.
Without a second thought, Jill turned and ran down the right hallway. The hallway twisted and turned in almost in every direction. Maybe she took the right way, because she could see the light growing brighter with each turn she made. A small smile appeared on her face. She survived the maze from hell! She was going to be okay, until-
She came to a wall. It was the dead end. She took the wrong way.
The monster roared. It had followed her. It was over now…she was as good as dead. Then, from the corner, Jill saw the long, skinny almost robotic like leg. The face turned to look at her. Hateful, cold, robotic eyes of a mechanical spider showed after, its metal fangs shining in the light. Peeling, almost flesh-like substance fell off of the mechanical skeleton with each of its steps. It echoed another mechanical roar before charging at Jill.
On instinct, Jill held up her hands and screamed. Then-
She sprung out of bed, frightening her sleeping cat almost out of the bed. She gasped for breath, her eyes wide in fear. Sweat dripped off of her face onto the pale colored sheets. She looked around the room. No scary looking spider…no creepy maze. She was home now, trying to sleep in her bed with her favorite pet cat Boots glaring angrily at her.
Jill looked down at her cat and smiled apologetically at him. "I'm sorry; I just had a bad nightmare."
Boots let out a low growl and curled up back into a black ball, resting his head on his tail before closing his eyes. Jill sighed and patted her cat gently on the head. She glanced over at the alarm clock. It was only six thirty in the morning. It was really no point for her going to sleep now. She got out of her bed slowly, so she didn't wake up her sleeping gigantic fur ball.
Even for being a cat, Boots was big enough to intimidate a medium sized dog and could take out a small dog with one of his massive paws. Everyone who has met the cat seemed to give him the name "dog killer" because of his large and intimidating presence. He was black, with two white boots on his hind legs, hence the name "Boots". Jill looked down at the cat, remembering when she rescued him when she was still with the R.P.D. S.T.A.R.S., before Raccoon City was blown off the face of the earth. Back then, he was an average sized kitten, but when he grew up, he became huge and seemed to protect Jill like he was a guard dog. Chris came over once and when he tried to touch Jill, Boots attacked him. Since then, Chris was afraid to come and visit Jill.
Jill chuckled at the memory. This was back when everything was fine. No T-Virus. No monsters or zombies. No corrupt organizations filled with madmen…But, the smile quickly faded. Times have changed since then; four years have blown by since the disastrous day that destroyed Raccoon City.
But she was still alive. Alive enough to take out the evil industry that created this.
Jill took out some clean clothes and headed to the tiny bathroom of the two bedroom apartment. Since the incident and after meeting up with Chris, the two rented an apartment together. They joined a private biohazard containment unit and have been doing pretty good so far. Despite Chris not getting along with Boots, the two of them were doing just fine, besides the occasional sexual tension from dealing with a roommate of the opposite sex…
Right now, Chris was away on business, taking care of a few things with colleagues and Jill stayed home to watch the place. Jill joked around with him by telling him to quit treating her like a housewife. He laughed at her and when he was leaving, made the comment of "I won't be gone long now, sweetheart. Just make sure the child doesn't tear the place apart." Jill blew a kiss and answered, "Don't worry darling. The kid and I will be just fine. Have a safe business trip."
Jill got dressed, after drying off from the shower, brushed her teeth and walked to the front door. She wasn't in the mood to eat after her crazy dream with the robot spider. The weird thing was…the dream felt so real.
Jill shook her head mentally. Pull it together Valentine…it was a nightmare and nothing more.
Jill grasped the handle and turned it. She walked out of the apartment and locked the door behind her. She walked down the hall, hoping that a small walk around the block would calm her down.
When she exited the complex, she headed towards the sidewalk. The morning sun felt good on her cold skin and made her feel more energized. No one was out right now, due to the fact that it was still early morning on a weekend day. The only noise she heard was the occasional barking dog and the chirping birds up in the trees. She walked on and looked around at the buildings.
Then, her eyes stumbled upon a tiny shop. It was a brick, square-shaped shop with a sign outside that read "Ravenwing Books". It didn't take a genius to tell her that the place was in fact a book store. The windows were tinted, so she couldn't look inside the shop.
Huh…weird. Just a few days ago, it was an abandoned old store. I didn't see anyone working on it or anything.
But her curiosity caught up with her and now she was tempted to go inside of the store. She shrugged, "Aw…what the hell? I've got nothing better to do."
She walked up to the door and took the handle. She pushed the door open. A little bell jingled as she walked in and closed the door behind her.
The inside of the store was orderly and neat. The lingering scent of dust was in the air but there was nothing very unpleasant about the tiny store. There were rows and rows of bookshelves in the tiny shop. The wooden desk was near the back of the store, a stack of papers and books resting on the surface. Jill walked in further, her shoes clumping on the hardwood floor.
"Hello?" she called out. "Is anyone here?"
There was no answer. Jill looked around the store and she saw no one.
"Is this place even open? I mean I can leave."
"Hello, child," a voice said musically, making Jill jump.
Jill turned toward the direction of the voice. There was a woman standing behind the wooden desk. She was a woman in about her early fifties, late forties at that. Her long grey hair was pulled back into a bun. Her skin was pale and her eyes were a brown, behind glasses. She had on a white blouse and a long dark skirt that went to the floor. She smiled welcomingly at Jill.
"Welcome to Ravenwing Books," she said politely. "I am Sarah Ravenwing, the owner and only worker."
"Um…hello," Jill said quietly. "I'm Jill. When did this place open?"
"About two days ago," Sarah answered, walking out from behind. She looked around her bookstore. "I have always dreamed of owning my bookstore. The power of books has always astounded me." She looked at Jill. "Do you like to read?"
Jill shook her head. "I'm usually too busy to read. But, I guess I enjoy it."
Sarah nodded. "I see. Then I know the perfect book for you."
Sarah walked down one of the aisles and scanned the shelves. Jill held up her hands and followed after the woman.
"Hold on, miss," Jill said. "I don't want a book right now. I still have some at home that I have yet to read."
"Oh, nonsense!" Sarah chuckled. She began looking through one of the shelves. "I can find a good book for you."
"But you, I don't need a-"
"Found it!" Sarah exclaimed, cutting Jill off.
The old woman pulled out a black, leather-bond book. She wiped some dust off of the book and wiped off the front cover. She thrust the book into Jill's hands.
Jill looked down at the cover. There was no title on the book's cover or spine, but there was an image on the cover. It was black and white, a drawing of a boy and girl sleeping on a hill. The two were holding each other's hands and a smile was on their faces.
"It's a lovely little book," Sarah said quietly. "It's called 'Shadow Hearts'."
"'Shadow Hearts'?" Jill repeated quietly as she traced a finger on the children's face.
She opened the book and flipped through the pages. There were no words, only pictures of the two children that were on the cover. One of them was the girl getting bit a spider. Another was of the boy and girl fighting a dragon… It was a child's picture book.
Jill looked up at the Sarah, who walking back to the desk. She followed after her.
"B-but this is a kid's book!" Jill said.
Sarah looked at her. "It is a good book. It might look like a child's picture book, but the story is amazing."
Sarah was behind the desk now. Jill stood on the other side and placed the book on the cluttered desk.
"B-but-"
"Listen…" Sarah looked at her with strong, unwavering eyes. "Even a picture book, as simple as it seems, can tell us the story of a great adventure."
Jill laughed. "Are you kidding me? I'm not reading this! I'm not reading some stupid kid's book."
Sarah smiled, not showing any sign of being offended. "Alright. But please just borrow the book, child."
"Wait, you're just going to let me borrow this book? I don't have to pay you or anything?"
"No. Just as long as you bring it back in the condition that you got it in."
Jill looked down at the book. Sure, the illustrations looked cute and attention drawing. But it was a kid's book, for chrissake!
"Alright, I'll read it," Jill mumbled. "I'll bring it back as soon as I'm done with it. Thanks."
Jill turned to the exit and walked to the door. As she grabbed the handle, Sarah Ravenwing spoke up.
"Remember, Jill! Sometimes to understand a child's book is to see it through the eyes of a child."
"Alright…thanks again." And Jill exited the store, with the children's book in hand.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed it! ^^ Please review and no flames.