The little girl held her father's hand as the two walked down the main street in their little town. They kept walking down the street and it felt like they had been walking on the winding path forever. This was not unnoticed by the child. She was terribly uncomfortable with her aching feet and her cheeks rosy from the New England chill and wanted nothing more than to go home.
"Daddy, I'm tired." Complained the little girl "Can we go home soon?"
The father smiled at his daughter. "In a while, Jane" he said affectionately "It's a beautiful day for a stroll."
Jane was persistent. "Daddy, please?"
But her pleading had no effect on him. The two kept walking down the stone path, farther and farther away from their house. Eventually, it was almost twilight and Jane's father seemed to have no intention of going home.
Jane looked at her father and pouted. "Daddy, can we please go home? I miss Mommy, Mimi, and the twins." Her soft brown eyes gazed into her father's. The moment she did, she was filled with confusion. Her father's eyes and how they were always identical to her's, had changed. Her father's pupils showed a reflection of the grandfather clock in the Taylor's parlor room, the one that sounded when the new hour started. The hands moved along the face of the clock at their normal pace but backwards. Jane sat there frozen, unable to understand what was happening to her father. The minute hand struck the 12 and there was a loud noise roaring through the village and she covered her ears. Her hands tightly clutching her ears, Jane looked around to find the area deserted and fear began to consume the little girl whole.
And in the blink of an eye, Jane's father collapsed, his body transformed in a tower of ash. Jane's scream was the only human noise, her father said nothing as he fell, not even "I love you" or simply "Jane". He fell to the earth without as much as a word, his flesh turned to ashes and the horrible smell of burning flesh filled the air. The instant he fell, Jane transformed, too. Her soul nor body was young and innocent anymore and just like that, she was all grown up, any trace of youth vanishing with her father. Jane ran as the wind scattered her father's ashes, her heart not even being able to grieve. All she could do was run and never stop.
And she kept running and running, her legs never tiring. The small houses with their wood stoves and chimneys were gone, replaced with open air. Grey became white and Jane stood on a frozen pond in the middle of the wilderness. She couldn't breathe nor cry, she was so tired she could barely stand, much less walk. She fell to her knees on the marble like surface, fighting for air to reach her lungs. She collapsed completely on the ice, pulling her coat over her face. She knew her time was coming and closed her eyes, ready to sleep forever.
"Jane!"
The 19 year old opened her eyes as much as she could, shivering violently. On the ice were two figures that Jane knew well. She couldn't believe the miracle before her eyes. She put all her effort towards moving, stumbling toward the two bodies thirty feet away. She got closer and closer, moving slowly.
Thirty feet
Twenty five
Fifteen
CRACK!
Jane heard the sickening noise right before landing in the water. The frigid temperature felt like being pricked a thousand times and Jane thrashed violently. Despite her best efforts, she still sank into the water before rising to the surface.
"PLEASE, HELP ME, PLE-" she shrieked before sinking once again. She sank deeper and deeper with the light fading from sight, the pain subsiding. Jane Taylor was gone.