1944 occupied France
I made my way home after running an errand for Mother. I made my way past grandmamma's room and to the small room we had for entertaining. I edged toward the corner as I heard voices of my mother and two men, what surprised me was that they spoke German. "Of course I will be more than happy to treat you gentlemen and any of your men, but I insist I must stay here." My head poking around the corner I was busted. "My little Vivienne, come to Mama." She smiled as she opened her arms for me. I bound past the men in their straight and pristine uniforms and into my mother's arms; sitting on her lap as she ran her soft fingers through my soft and wavy brown locks. "As you see gentlemen, I cannot leave. Who would take care of my little Vivienne and my poor sick mama?" Taking a moment the she kissed my head.
The men stared seriously at me and my mother. "You come highly recommended; they say you can bring men back almost from the dead. How can that be you have no training?"
Mamma laughed. "I have not trained in the wonders of medicine by man however I have not forgotten how we survived before them, unlike many who call themselves doctor. But you need not worry; I am after all helping you."
"Would you just as willing give your help to the other side?" One said snidely.
She nodded. "Of course I would, I don't want anyone to die regardless of who or what they fight for. Death is an inevitability which we shouldn't rush to force onto others."
Shocked at the honesty of the answer the men stood to leave. "We shall be in touch madam, mademoiselle?"
"Let us not be so formal, my name is Michelle." She said extending her hand to quickly shake both of theirs before they left. Switching to French she muttered "An ugly language for an ugly people" Mamma turned to address me. "Shall we make mamma feel better?" I nodded taking my mother's hand and quietly making our way into the room where grandmamma stayed.
"My darling daughter," Grandmamma whispered from her bed. "Why do you work with those men? They bombed our country and by the time your Vivienne is grown they have us all speaking German, with our French wasting away a trivia no one bothers with."
Mamma smiled looking down at her own mother. "Because our government lost the country, neither the British or the American's appear to be coming to save us and I plan on surviving this war. They've been here nearly four years surely it's almost over." Looking over to me she smiled. "Now you take one hand and I'll take the other."
I did as I was told while mother and I pulled the hurt out of grandmother. I watched the skin I held firm erasing the wrinkles and looking like that of a young woman as my wrinkled in the process before returning to normal shape. I looked up to see Mamma smiling. It was our secret, I knew that I wasn't allowed to tell anyone about what I could do and I had to avoid hurting myself around others because my healing ability extended beyond my mother's. If my skin was cut it would mend itself in front of your eyes. As we finished up Grandmamma sat up smiling her face was bright and happy she always felt that way after we made her feel better. "Michelle, my darling I do believe your little one will be better than even you." She grinned taking Vivienne's little hand in hers.
"Mamma, she's eight." She rolled her eyes.
"No reason her potential can't be recognised at a young age."
Mamma took me by the hand and we went about our usual routine. It was that night as I was tucked up in my bed with Mamma reciting me some beautiful poetry that a loud banging came to our door. Mamma bolted from the room, telling me to stay put. To my usual temperament I followed, hiding around the corner and watching on. A man hobbled in covered in blood swearing profusely in French. "Michelle, help me." He called as she came running in her evening clothes.
"You should not be here and not so obviously." She chastised, attending to his wounds. "Let me get my balms and I'll fix you right up."
The man snorted. "No need to play that game with me girl. I know you don't really use them. Save it I'm sure the herbs are not easy to come by what with these German pigs everywhere."
Mama shook her head. "I have no idea what you mean." She said placing her hands along his chest where he was bleeding. "My balms are very effective otherwise, why would you come here every time you get shot?"
He huffed. "Lie all you want girly, I know you got a gift far beyond that of the norm and I not condemning you for it. It's saved my life more than a few times." His head turned and his lips pulled into a smile. "Little Vivienne, come here." He cheered, beckoning to me. I walked out, getting a serious look from Mamma but nothing else. The man who'd been here many times extended his hands to me. Pulling me in, he planted a kiss on my cheek his bushy moustache scratchy. "Now you my darling let us see those pretty eyes." His big hands circled my face staring at the deep purple, which everyone found so fascinating. "The eyes of a goddess." He praised letting me go.
"Marcus, don't give her a big head, I don't want my daughter to turn into one of those girls who thinks of nothing but her looks." Mamma gave him a small slap on the arm to emphasise the point.
He laughed "No, not this one, we'll make a spy out of her." His hand drifted down to my hair wrapping it around his fingers. "She doesn't look much like you Michelle. She must have gotten her pretty hair and eyes from your husband."
Mamma's fists tightened a little before she spoke. "Yes, she did. But she's gotten my facial structure, change the hair colour and eyes then you'd barely be able to tell us apart. Give or take a few years." She joked at the end.
"Yes that's true you did have her young didn't you? Barely at the end of your teen years with a beautiful little girl." He said suspiciously.
Mamma grimaced. "Yes I was very young, we both were." Her voice was so sad.
"I never remember hearing about you marrying."
"It wasn't grand and it didn't last long." She almost sounded angry.
"What was he like; you did after all give your daughter your last name. Not that Vivienne Dane doesn't sound pretty, but surely it's not what she should be called."
Mamma's voice was straining to stay pleasant. "There's no use talking about the dead. I think you should go now. Stay away because those German pigs will probably be around a lot more." She patted her own arms.
"Have you changed sides? What about the resistance?" He contained his volume but his tone made it very clear that he should be yelling.
"I work with the resistance; I never have and don't work for them either." She said quietly. "You have chosen your sides, but this isn't my war." He left without another word while Mamma's hands pulled me off to bed.
The weeks past and the men came and went. The disruptions to our lives were minimal, Mamma and I got angry looks in the streets and the occasional comment but other than that we were fine. The men who came seemed nice enough, they tried to give Mamma things for the good work she did but she always shrugged it off claiming that she couldn't accept them. It wasn't until one of their doctors came to visit that threw our lives into turmoil. He was a man in his early fifties and took a quick interest in both Mamma and me. The doctor never gave his name but I remember so clearly the first time he came to house. He spoke to Mamma softly about impossible things which he'd heard of individuals doing, Mamma nodded and told him how she was sure things such as that did not exist. He was about to leave when I walked in and the minute he saw my eyes, a giant smile spread across his face. "A true miracle, to see in the flesh." He said as he stared at me in amazement, before kneeling down to my level. "Come here child." He beckoned me closer as I looked to Mamma who nodded; he took my face in his hands and examined my eyes. The interaction didn't last long but afterwards even at my young age I could tell that something was wrong.
Once the doctor had left we were alone again. Mamma bundled me up in her arms weeping as she clutched me to her chest. It was later that night when I found my way out of bed to see Mamma and Grandmother sitting together in Grandmother's room. I stood outside the doorway out of sight and listened. "If they find out what can we do Mamma?" Mamma sobbed.
Grandmother always a tough old woman, tsked her daughter. "You run child these men are not good news for you nor will they do my granddaughter any favours."
"Mamma you can't run."
"I will not be running my dear." She shook her head. "It is better to have a bullet in the head then face whatever is left of my life knowing that those Nazis have my daughter and granddaughter. I think it is best that you take Vivienne and you go tonight."
"I don't want you to die Mamma and they won't take us away yet."
Grandmother raised her voice. "You're either being very stupid or very caring my dear. I should have been dead years ago if not for you and your daughter and why would you be so silly as to say they won't take you yet. They've decided they want you and my Vivienne for only god knows what, they're planning always planning how to get you. It is better if you go while they don't know that you will. It will give you a better chance at running."
"No Mamma, I won't leave until I have to."
"Michelle, be reasonable at the very least and have your things packed for when you run. Nothing fancy, just clothes that will last and some food." I walked back to my bed scared of what would happen to us.
A fortnight passed and we were safe still, the doctor made a habit of calling on us every day. It was this time when he stayed until late in the evening which became our undoing. I was practicing my cartwheels, since there was little else to do while the rain poured and I waited for supper. I misjudged the distance and instead of landing safety in the middle of the hallway, I crashed into the side table. Automatically I cried before realising my mistake. Mamma and the doctor rounded the corner just in time for him to see the shallow cut on my arm heal itself with the skin fusing back together. After that it was all a blur, as both the doctor and Mamma leapt towards me. My Mamma cradled me in her arms as the doctor attempted to pull me away. She screamed furiously at him in German. "You can't take her." Over and over again.
My heart pounded as I felt his grip on my arm. I kicked at him and thrashed against him as the commotion brought a pair of soldiers in. They didn't ask questions as they pulled Mamma from me. My eyes watered and I let out a cry before the two men fell to the floor yelling, my arms and legs hurt badly as cry but the pain began to fade while they still screamed. Mamma ran to me, as the doctor let me go and knelt beside the men as blood started to leak out of them.
Mamma wasted no time grabbing my hand as we ran out through the kitchen and the back of the house. Mamma pulled me along through the rain and straight towards the forest. We cleared the tree line and were hurling ourselves as fast as we could through the muddy undergrowth. The ground gave way under foot many times, but each time I fell Mamma pulled me back up and on ward we went. I couldn't breathe as we pushed on; there were a couple minutes when we thought we were safe, that was until the sound of the hounds began to make their way through the dark forest.
Mamma hushed my whimpers as we continued on unable to run any further we felt the strains in our legs as we came to a large hill pushing up it. The sound of the dogs and men in the forest were constant as we trekked onwards. I had no idea where we were going and I don't think Mamma did either as we moved on. An hour passed but the noise did not, behind every tree was a potential captor. Aside from the howls which didn't ever seem to get closure just merely circle us the night grew quiet as the bright moon shone through the small break in the trees. It wasn't until the volley of shots began that we even knew we were in range.
Mamma threw us to the ground, pushing me down as I tried to get up again and pulling me close to whisper frantically in my ear. "Vivienne, we're going to crawl along the ground and be as quiet as we can. Do you understand?" I nodded my head as her shaky hand smoothed my hair down. "That's my girl." She quickly kissed my forehead before we started to pull ourselves through the mud. The leaves crackled under us as we tried to move with stealth.
Mamma's hand would find me every few seconds, until one long and shocking blast echoed through the woods. There was a soft wet sound and then nothing. I kept crawling waiting for Mamma's reassuring hand but there was nothing. For the first time that night I worked up the courage to look behind me. Mamma laid there, her long dark hair covering her pretty face and the back of her dress covered in blood as she laid face down in the mud. I wanted to turn, I wanted to go to her and I wanted to cry, but there was something in me, stronger than those that told me to run. I picked myself up off the ground and ran as fast as I could feel the burn in my muscles as I pushed on. It was as another sickening shot followed by the sound of metal ripping flesh that I finally slowed, grabbing my calf and staggering to the ground. I bit my lip until it bled as I dug my fingers into the muscle and pulled the bullet out, tossing it aside as I limped on.
I don't know by what divine luck it was that I didn't meet up with any more of them that night, but by morning I was exhausted my leg had healed itself but I was still fumbling through the forest, until I saw the full break of dawn just above the hill. I scrambled up the small rise, expecting to find freedom instead I came to a road and all around stood men in their uniforms. I turned to make a run back into the forest but as I did a set of strong arms restrained me. At that point I lost the will to fight and instead broke down, slumped against a Nazi's chest. I cried for my sorrows, my Mamma, the life I'd never live, the physical pain of that night which was gone and the emotional which would live on.
Author's Note: Hey for anyone who reads my other works I know it's been a long time since I touched them but this is what's inspired me so far, hope you like and I'll be updating soon, since I've pre-written nearly the entire story, so mainly it's all editing. I hope you enjoy. By the way all of the chapters are going to be named after Avril Lavigne songs don't know how that started it just kind of did and it fits pretty well.