Wings
She looked at me with those eyes. The eyes that said 'I pity you' and 'poor girl'; they made want to turn away and never look at another human being again. Everyone looks at me like that now; to them I'm no longer human but a monster…
I'm falling.
I don't know how or why but I'm falling. I'm plunging into a deep black hole that has no end to its dark cold chamber. My body has gone limp and I've lost all feeling. Faster and faster I plummet into darkness but I hear a faint whisper. It gets louder and louder as I fall until it's a shrill scream that won't stop. I clap my hands over my ears but it's no good, the scream keeps coming. Just when I think my ear drums are about to burst I feel my body jerk as it pulls to a stop. The screaming has stopped as well but now I have a new problem. It's like a quick jolt of pain that comes in waves throughout my body and I feel as if I'm paralyzed.
In my throat I feel a small tickle that eventually turns into a cough. By the time the coughing stops my throat starts making these awful sounds, I'm choking. The thing in my throat comes up in my mouth and when I spit it out I see a solid black feather float down into the darkness of the black hole. Soon after the feather has disappeared I feel all the pain that went through my body come together in both of my shoulder blades. I let out a yelp of pain as I feel my skin on my shoulder blades split and allow something poke through them. I try to look over my shoulder to find what's poking out of my back but I'm still paralyzed. All I can see is the thin fabric of my shirt in shreds float down into the black hole.
I'm panicking now, in my mind I just want it to all stop; the pain, being paralyzed, the unnatural silence, and this new feeling of dread that's spreading like a plague throughout my mind and heart. Right when I think I can't take it any longer, the walls of the black hole flip like panels and on the other side are mirrors. The black hole is now a long tube of mirrors that still seem to have no end to them. I cast a glance towards one of the mirrors to see my reflection, when I look I can't recognize myself and the image knocks the breath straight out of me. In my reflection I see a paper white pale girl with raven black hair that comes down to her ankles and pitch black wings that shadow over her. She's wearing a torn black dress that only comes down four inches above her knees. Her eyes are like a demon's, crimson red and she has talons for fingers and toe nails.
In my mind I still can't register how this could possibly be me but that doesn't matter, what matters to me right now is the fact that I'm feeling light headed. I'm not paralyzed anymore, I know that because my bodies allowing me to bob my head back and forth. Feeling a sudden headache I grip my head with the pale talon things I guess I could call hands. I let out a scream but it's not like any normal scream. It's shrill and banshee-like. I don't know whether it's the scream or the headache but I can't hear anything anymore except my pounding heart and my vision is fading. Eventually my sight goes down to a small slit then it's gone and all I can hear to know I'm alive is my heart beat.
A sudden rush goes through my mind like a rollercoaster before my eyes snap open. I sit straight up in my bed with sweat pouring down my face and I'm panting. I was dreaming or should I say I had a nightmare. The same one I've had for months now. When I go back to steady breathing I feel my ankle burning like it's on fire under my sheets. I tear my sheets off and roll up my left pant leg. What I find is not human; I see a vine with thorns on it being branded on my ankle spiraling up it; the brands like a scar and its lead by nothing but a small spark of fire. When the design is finished the spark disappears like it was never there.
Though the scar is fresh I feel no pain, to me it looks like a tattoo. Then a thought hits me, what am I going to say to Nana? Nana's my aunt that took me in after my parents died. We live alone and just moved to this country. I think it's called Pania? It's a country that boarders France and Germany. I've never heard of it and I don't know how Nana did but she says that I'm lucky to be able to experience new countries.
I drop my pant leg and let it cover the scar again. Turning my body towards the edge of my bed I let my feet touch the wooden floor and stand up stretching my arms while yawning. Looking around my room a pair of jeans that I hardly wear catches my eye. I pick the pair of jeans up from the floor and put them up against my legs. They barely cover the scar but it works. I slip on the pair of jeans and then put on a plain brown shirt and jean jacket along with a pair of black sneakers.
Picking my backpack off the floor I sling it over my shoulder and walk out of my room into the kitchen. I lean over and quickly swipe a piece of toast off the kitchen table as I make my way to the front door. Right when I'm about to turn the knob on the door I hear Nana behind me.
"Stop right there missy, let me have a look at you on your first day" She said as she was rounding the corner that lead from the hallway to the kitchen.
I stopped and turned around with the piece of toast I took hanging out of my mouth. In my mind I thought I looked like a little kid that was caught stealing cookies out of the cookie jar. She scanned me up and down like a computer looking for some kind of flaw.
"You look decent" She said.
Nana started taking a few steps towards me until she was just an inch or two away. She bent forward slightly too where she could whisper in my ear.
"One problem"
My heart started beating like a drum when she said those words. Could she see the mark? It was enough that she had eyes at the back of her head. Does she have X-ray vision now too? I could've sworn that she could hear my heart beating which made me even more nervous.
"Your front barn doors open" Nana said pointing down at my jeans.
Almost immediately I feel my cheeks flush red. How embarrassing! I don't even want to think about what would have happened if I went to school like that! However, at the same time I felt a small wave of relief wash over me. I quickly turn around facing the door and fix my jeans.
"I'm leaving now" I said opening the front door with a somewhat amount of dignity in my voice.
"Don't forget to call me when you get home, I'll be working late tonight again. The second day and already I hate my job" She complained.
"Okay"
I'm a little curious as to how my new school will be, all my friends back in France across the border said they heard this was the best school in the country. But the more I look around the more I believe them. As far as I could see there were fancy, European, two-story houses all along the street. My house is pretty normal in looks but compared to these houses, my house looks like a shed. I'm starting to see the school up ahead and it completely catches me off guard. At the very front of the building I see a large black barred gate about twelve feet tall and above it I see a stone archway with the words carved into it neatly in cursive, 'Fallen Angel's Academy.'
I walk through the gate hearing my shoes with every step against the marble pathway. Halfway to the school building I feel a sudden strong wind that knocks me to my knees. I catch myself and you can hear the loud slap my hands make as they collide with the marble. I look up, reflexively, and see a figure run into the school building. When I stand, I question whether I'm sane or not. Maybe all this kooky stuff is just a prank. Maybe there's a camera somewhere and I'm on that TV show where they play pranks on other people for views. Yeah, that's it! None of this crap is real! I keep telling myself this all along the way to my first class.
My first class is history class and from what I can see it looks like a normal class room; the teachers pretty nice but a little too cheerful for my taste. She's an elderly woman with snow white hair and is wearing a pair of antique looking librarian glasses that have a chain connecting them at the ends. Her names Mrs. Brown and I notice a British accent when she talks. I guess that's why I love to hear her talk. She starts class by having everyone introduce their selves. I'm at the back of the room so I'll be close to last. Everyone stands up out of their seats and introduces themselves one by one; I don't seem to pay much attention until it was the person in front of me that stood up. He was handsome boy with sandy blonde hair and deep sky blue eyes that seemed to be vacant 24/7.
"My name is Jack Swan, I enjoy sports and playing instruments" He says taking his seat again.
I don't know why he caught my attention but he did, and right on time too. I wasn't paying attention enough to know that we were going in rows. It's my turn next. I stand up out of my seat and introduced myself as well.
"My name is Cordelia West, I'm from France and I love to read and paint."
Almost the minute I say I'm from France they all stare at me like I'm some kind of teen idol; everyone that is except Jack. He doesn't even look like he heard me let alone looked at me. Unlike the class, he's looking out the window without a care in the world. I don't know why but it kind of ticks me off. If you're going to be at school you may as well pay attention! I silence myself then when I know I shouldn't be the one talking.
I take my seat but as I do a sea of questions wash over my like a tsunami. One after another asked me question after question until Mrs. Brown silences them with a slap of her ruler on her desk.
"Thats enough! If you have questions for miss West please ask them out side of class!"
That wave of questions was gone now like it never even happened and when I looked around, everyone was just as frightened as I was. I haven't been here very long but I could tell right away that Mrs. Brown was the type of teacher that would make any kid cry.