Hello my faithful reviewers! As promised, this chapter is a bit more fast paced, and not as dry as the first. It's gone through many, many, many, edits, but its finally ready to be out there now! Please please please don't forget to review!
"Oh! O-Of course!" Ariel stumbled over her words, and managed, with some difficulty, to control herself.
"I was just…just…" she cleared her throat, trying to take firm control over her nerves. "I'm sorry, but have…have we met before?"
The struggle she endured to keep her voice from rising about four octaves was almost unmanageable. The girl…there was something there that just didn't sit well. The resemblance to her dark-haired daughter was more than startling; there was something here that she couldn't quite put her finger on.
"No ma'am, I don't think we've ever met," Marcie shook her head, frowning in consternation, because she would have known if she'd met someone who looked like this. "Actually…I don't even think I've ever been here before. Do you know what this place is?"
"N-No…this is…you're at…" Ariel winced tightly at a sudden migraine overcoming her mind. Her pulse quickened, and heart pounded hard.
"Ma'am?" Marcie's asked uneasily, worrying for her own safety. "Look, I'm just gonna go, 'k?"
Taking a step back slowly, the teen concluded the woman in front of her must be insane. How else could she explain the way the woman had acted completely normal, and then went all cuckoo?
"No…wait!" Ariel cried out, grabbing the girl. In the still rational part of her mind, she realized that the teen had to go get help.
Instead of blurting this out, however, her mouth suddenly dried of any words. Her blue eyes connected with those of the teenager's. Her senses became astonishingly acute, zoning in on a light brown birthmark decorating the tip of Marcie's nose. It suddenly became too hard to breath.
And then it happened.
It seemed like the world collapsed under Ariel's feet. It felt like all the pressure on her skull was suddenly lifted off, and her eyes were opening for the first time. It was like everything disappeared around her, and all the woman could see was an old memory unfolding before her very eyes.
A memory she'd tried to repress since…since…
"Dear Neptune," she swore softly, her one free hand going to cover her mouth.
She stared, not able to release her just yet. Her blue eyes stared at her, tracing every part of the teen. Yet, in her shock, she failed to notice the way the girl's lips opened with words of alarm.
Every mother knows her child.
What?
Every mother knows her child.
Her entire body shaking now, Ariel felt her legs give out from under her, though she hardly registered the pain from doing so. Tears suddenly clouded her vision, and in a fluid moment she grabbed the girl and pressed her close to her heart.
Every mother knows her child.
"Let-me-go!" Marcie screamed, so loud that she could have shattered glass.
Grabbing the woman's wrist with all the strength she possessed, Marcie yanked it upwards until she heard a crack. The woman shrieked, and reached out with her other hand. Thinking fast, Marcie delivered a stinging kick to the woman's ribs.
The redheaded woman doubled over, gasping in pain. The sound of heavy footsteps could be heard coming towards them from a distance. Heart pounding, the girl looked around, right to left, left to right, before determining the only way she could get out of here was to turn around and run in the direction she'd come.
So she did.
Marcie had run before. She'd run in heart stopping fear, she'd run in determination, and she'd run just to run. Never before though, in her short fourteen years, had she run for her life. She was terrified, desperate, and everything in between.
She came to a hallway intersection, where there were three potential places that one could go. Adrenaline pounding, she allowed for her instincts to take over as she ran straight. But zooming ahead, the girl suddenly felt an ache somewhere deep in her stomach.
None of this seemed right.
She didn't recognize any of the expensive wallpaper, the portraits that were five times her size, the marble floors, the chandeliers, the flowers, the people…
Yes, people. Women and men, some carrying things, others gossiping, none of them dressed up in business clothes...all of them shot strange looks towards the teen. Many called out to her, but their words were lost in the trail of air that she left behind.
Unsatisfied that she'd gone far enough, Marcie didn't decline in her running. Although her body complained for her to no longer move, she refused. She couldn't stop, not until she could get some help from normal people. Maybe if she started to speed up a bit more…
"Whoa! What do we have here?"
A booming voice suddenly sounded in front of Marcie. The girl frowned, slowing down when she saw two big feet in her way. She decided to stop in her tracks, and slowly craned her head back until she'd saw a man who was twice her size in muscles alone.
The growling from her stomach caused the girl to jerk out of her open mouthed state. Fear spurned her body into action, and she tried to start running again. Pathetically, she didn't even make it two steps before the man reached out an arm and firmly held her in place.
"Where are you headed off too?" The man asked, in a no-nonsense voice.
Marcie, not processing his question, tried to fight her way out of this. "Leave me alone! I hurt that redhead lady, and I can hurt you too!"
The large man seemed to study her for a moment. Something passed across his face, like recognition, only to be clouded over by confusion. Finally, he gave her an appraising look.
"You were the one who hurt the redheaded woman?"
The teenager swiped at his nose, missing by barely an inch. She tried a second time, but he quickly leaned far away from her dangerous fists. He decided that her violent display was most likely her answer.
"Well, you're in a heap of trouble now. I wouldn't suggest struggling." The man said nonchalantly, noticing the girl's vain attempts to break free.
"Leave me alone or I'll scream!" Marcie retorted, still trying to fight back against the behemoth. "I can kick your butt too! I'm not afraid to beat you up!"
"Whatever you say, girl." The man shrugged, seemingly unconvinced by the girl's antics. "Now c'mon; someone is going to want to speak to you."
"Eric, you're being—ow!"
Ariel broke off suddenly, wincing in pain as she felt the doctor pinch at her swollen wrist. She was currently seated in one of the comfortable chairs the study had to offer. Her left hand was holding an ice pack against her smarting ribs, while her right was being carefully wrapped up.
"I'm being reasonable." Eric answered, standing by his wife with a firm expression.
The woman gave a sigh, blowing her bangs away from her face. She slumped deeper into the circular backing of the chair, her features easily twisting in frustration. She wasn't in the mood argue over how "rational" her husband was.
"Carrying me all the way here is hardly reasonable. I could have walked." Ariel snorted, wincing again and shooting the doctor a dirty look.
Dr. Bergh chuckled lightly, but refrained from saying a thing to the woman. It was obvious that the queen was not exactly in a happy place right now. Eric, however, had no qualms about challenging his wife's assertions.
"You had just gotten kicked." He replied, as a way to defend himself from his her implied accusation.
"I've had worse."
"And you had just gotten your wrist broken."
Ariel gave an indignant gasp. "It's only a bad sprain!"
"Caused by someone else purposely." Eric finished up, his eyes unsettled and his mouth frowning in worry. He didn't like anyone hurting his Ariel, most especially someone who was coward enough to run away. "What were you even doing there? I thought you said you were going to go for a swim?"
"I was," Ariel started, grimacing in pain, "But I got sidetracked and ended up in the nursery. Then I realized you were probably still stuck in here with that trade report, and I felt bad, so I was on my way back."
Eric raised a brow. "Why were you in the nursery?"
"I was hoping for some inspiration on what to get the new baby." Ariel said obvious frustration.
"Still no luck?" Eric sympathized, and had she been capable of it at the moment, he was sure his wife would have thrown her arms up in defeat.
"None! I have no idea what Alana would want!" She said, with a moan of contempt. "This is her third as it is; what do people even want when it's their third baby?"
"You're asking me that question? The only child? Who's raising an only child?"
"Point taken," Ariel answered sourly, still upset about the whole issue. Then, she perked up. "But I did find the old baby books; did you know I actually put little baby handprints in them?"
"I remember," Eric grinned, "You came down here asking for ink, and Melody's finger's were stained for a week."
Ariel smiled at the memory. "If she wouldn't have squirmed so much, I would've been able to wash off her hand right after."
"She was, what, a month old?"
"Month and a half, according to what I wrote in underneath." Ariel laughed lightly, and then cut it short with a groan at the pain in her ribs.
Eric took notice, and his good mood vanished. A frown settled onto his features. "I still don't understand why you're not more upset about the fact that someone hurt you like this."
"Oh, she was just upset." Ariel answered back airily, defending the very person who was giving her pain at the moment.
"She? It was a woman?" Eric wondered aloud, his black brows furrowing in confusion. Ariel was no ditzy little girl; if anyone wanted to harm her, they better be twice as large, because she would put up a good fight.
"Sort of." Ariel answered, carefully balancing the icepack on the armrest when she felt a chill start to settle in her.
"How can it 'sort of' be a woman?" Eric inquired, his eyes trailing off to the splint the doctor was setting around Ariel's wrist.
"Because our daughter's only a teenager, Eric." Ariel tried to clear up, wincing yet again as Dr. Bergh managed to prod her swollen wrist slightly.
"Our daughter? Are you trying to say that…Melody did this?" Confusion now alighted every part of Eric.
"Melody?" Ariel questioned with the same confused tone. She looked up at her husband as though he was crazy. "Where in the world did you get the idea that Melody could do something like this?"
"But you just said—!"
"I meant," Ariel cut him off effectively, exasperation in her tone, "our daughter, Harmony."
"Alright, you've lost me." Eric sighed in frustration, feeling like this was going nowhere. "Who's Harmony?"
Ariel gave him a look that held more meaning then her words could ever describe. Realization slowly started to creep into his mind, pushing away the fog until he was suddenly pressing a hand to his forehead. Slowly, his features turned from outright clueless to an expression of pain.
Oh.
That daughter.
Eric shut his eyes, letting a tightly controlled breath of air be released from his lips. "Right. Her."
"It seems more like she was a dream, doesn't it?" Ariel asked softly, her eyes turning down to stare at the carpet. Her throat was starting to tighten.
Eric shook his head, muttering, "More like a nightmare that's been dragged out for years."
Ariel knew what he meant. They had both watched a part of their world — the future plans they had made, the dreams they'd whispered — crumple away in one moment. It was hard not to feel a sense of bone-crushing pain at the idea that their family was always missing one.
And then, suddenly, she jerked out of it.
"Eric, she's back." Ariel whispered, looking upwards with a fiercely determined expression. "She's not our baby anymore, but she's back. She's here, with us, just like how it was before. "
Tears stung at Ariel's eyes, tears she was sure came from an overwhelming sense of happiness. She expected Eric to jump ten feet in the air and whoop in joy. After all, this was what they had always hoped, always wanted. All she got in return, however, was her husband wearily sighing.
"Darling, please." Eric said softly, capturing his wife's good hand in his. "I thought we promised to stop doing this to ourselves years ago."
Ariel sighed softly, her gaze falling down to her lap. "But she is back. She is here. Harmony is home."
The way she said that sentence, so easily incorporating that name made Eric flinch in surprise. They never used her name whenever the rare subject of their once other daughter was brought up. It just allowed for anguish to flow freely, something neither of them wanted.
Or at least, they hadn't wanted too until now. It would seem like Ariel, for some reason, had finally cracked. She was speaking about things that were impossible. Oddly, it did not worry him because knew that he'd find the person who had hurt her, and caused this. Then he would proceed to break every bone in their body.
"Dr. Bergh, my wife's delusional." Eric said finally aloud, dispelling the heavy air that had suddenly settled in the room. The doctor warily turned an eye towards his king, letting his eyebrows rise up.
"I am not delusional!" Ariel gasped in an affronted manner, trying to jump to her feet. She was pressed back into her seat by her husband, who gave her an imploring look.
"And she's trying to injure herself further." Eric continued on to the doctor, ignoring his wife's protest once again. "Can we sedate her?"
It was clear by his light tone that he wasn't taking this option very seriously. In fact, it seemed like he was downright teasing, as though trying to forcibly lighten the atmosphere. Ariel, however, was a different story.
"Frederic Stephen Markus Benson II, if you even try to sedate me, I'll put you in a coma for the next twenty years! Don't think I won't!" Ariel shrieked, trying to stand again, but a firm hand from her husband kept her down.
He gave a short laugh, but immediately sobered upon seeing Ariel's glowering, almost murderous expression. Perhaps she was serious after all. He held up his hands in surrender.
"It was only a suggestion for your own benefit, no need to resort to full names and threats." Eric tried extremely hard to keep the smile off of his face as he saw his wife shoot him an annoyed look.
"I'll show you a suggestion for my own benefit." Ariel muttered, trying again to stand up, but this time, it was the doctor that kept her sitting.
"Your majesty, please. If you keep moving you're going to end up actually fracturing your wrist." Dr. Bergh firmly reminded, trying to finish up the wrapping on Ariel's wrist.
Although it was just a sprain, it was still bad enough that her hand needed to be immobilized with a light wrapping for a few days. Unfortunately, with her inability to sit still, something that should have taken five minutes had taken the better part of fifteen. Ariel gave a loud, overdramatic sigh, her blue eyes turning towards the doctor with an imploring look.
"How long do I have to wear it this time?" She wondered, slumping slightly in her chair.
"A good two weeks. And then, your highness, because your ribs are still pretty bruised, you'll have to take it easy." Dr. Bergh answered, and Ariel gave another sigh in response.
"Two weeks." She repeated to herself, frowning slightly. "There go my plans." Ariel mumbled unhappily under her breath, wincing again as her swollen wrist was prodded.
"It'll fly by darling." Eric reminded gently, though he only received another glare from his wife for his words. He gave a shorter laugh, coming up beside her again to place a well-deserved kiss against her cheek.
"And I promise not to tease you…much." A mischievous twinkle filled Eric's ice blue eyes, and even a sullen Ariel had to smile despite herself.
"You're not helping." She grumbled, but with a smile so her husband knew that she was only joking.
Eric tugged a lock of her hair playfully, grinning her favorite dimpled smile. "I'm making you smile. That's considered helping in my—"
The playful grin disappeared from Eric's features entirely as a loud knock sounded on the door to the study. He swiveled around, perplexed written all across his features. Shooting a confused look back towards his wife, who gave a shrug in return, Eric crossed the room and opened the door.
"Sorry to interrupt you, sir, but I thought you might like to talk to the person who hurt the Queen."
The large man's voice deadpanned those words in a serious tone. Marcie continued to squirm, despite her hands having been tied behind her back with rope. This was not how she had planned to spend her after-school time.
"You caught them?" The girl looked upwards in alarm at the sound of another man's voice, but she found that from the angle she was being yanked along at, it was nearly impossible to see his face.
"Yes, sir. It wasn't too difficult," the giant answered, tightening his grip around her.
"Alright, have some of your men look after him for now," the second man started, his voice firm. "I'll deal with him in an hour."
"Actually," here the sasquatch with the grip on her hesitated, enough for the teenager to take notice, "I think it would be best if you handled this right now."
"Now?" The other man seemed visibly surprised at the notion. "She's inside, though. I don't want her to get hurt…again."
"I don't think that will be an issue," here the man who rivaled big-foot sent a sideways glance in the girl's direction.
"And you're sure I can't deal with this later?" The other man seemed hesitant now, worried even.
"Positive, sir." The large man turned to look at the other person, his grip tightening on the back of the teen's shirt. "Trust me. You'll be glad you did this."
The second man sighed. "Alright, fine. Bring them in."
Marcie was dragged into the room, and then thrown not-so-gently on a couch. Her school bag was tossed onto the ground near her feet, thankfully not spilling out again. She turned to shoot a glare towards the giant, when she noticed something else.
This room looked…big.
The expensive kind of big.
Bookshelves holding volumes thicker than her head stood against the far wall, covering it from floor, to very high ceiling. Couches and chairs were spread sporadically around the large room, and each one looked inviting. A window took up another wall, with a fair amount of natural light spilling into the room. There was even a large desk, with papers and a globe.
She was so engrossed in looking around this room that Marcie didn't realize that there was more than one person staring right at her.
Eric kept staring at the teen with wide eyes. Wearing a gray shirt, blue trousers, and a pair of black-and-white shoes, he would have kept the assumption that this was a young man, had it not been for the faded pink, long sleeved, zippered...garment. Her bright red hair, identical to that of Ariel's, was cut short, coming up only to her collarbone. Her blue eyes were almost hidden away behind thick glasses.
Eric shook his head. This was impossible. He was simply letting his wife get inside his mind with all her crazy talk. This girl just must have an eerie alikeness to his daughter. There were people like that, right? There had to be.
"What's your name?" He finally wondered aloud, his voice sounding hoarse. His eyes did not leave the teenager's face.
Marcie's head shot up like a bullet, her ice-blue eyes connecting with his. She saw how he shuddered lightly, taking an automatic step back. The girl frowned. Was she truly that frightening to someone older than her?
Most likely in his mid-twenties, he looked strong, but not like the buff man that had dragged her here. He had dark hair, and kind looking light blue eyes that were similar to the coloring of the irises she owned. Although, at the moment, he seemed rather upset.
"If I tell you, will you let me go?" Marcie bargained, almost hopeful.
"Don't be disrespectful, girl." The buff man that had dragged her here growled, jerking her shoulder to keep her in line.
Marcie looked up at him, glaring once again, before staring at the expensive marble flooring of this room. Well, if she was going to be hurt for speaking, then she wasn't going to speak at all.
"Captain, really. That's hardly necessar-ar-ar-ouch!" A woman's voice, a familiar woman's voice, cried out.
Marcie's head shot in the direction of it, and she realized with a start that the woman was the crazy lady from earlier. There was an older man standing to the right of her, trying to make her stay still, as he was doing something to her wrist. The man wore stethoscope, so she instantly labeled him as a doctor, even though he was missing the white coat.
"Sorry, your majesty." The Captain said ruefully, acknowledging that he'd been called out. "Go on girl, tell them your name."
In response to what 'Captain' told her to do, Marcie shook her head fiercely and. She could hear the man grinding his teeth together. The teenager gave a soft gulp in fear.
Yes, it was best if she kept her mouth shut.
"You're not going to speak at all?" The dark-haired man asked in confusion. Marcie shook her head again. "Why not?"
She stayed silent, casting her eyes downwards so that she wouldn't have to have the temptation of speaking. Even if she could, how would she say that she was afraid of what would happen to her? Or that she needed a phone? Obviously these people trusted him, a lot more than they trusted her at the moment.
"Girl, he asked you a question." The 'Captain' growled again, but this time, Marcie flinched and was able to avoid him jerking her shoulder once more. She was starting to catch on.
"I see." Crazy Lady's sudden voice made every head in the room swivel towards her, but she only locked eyes with Marcie. "You're not speaking because you're afraid the Captain is going to hurt you."
Marcie bit back her tongue, which, if let loose, would have said 'the Captain isn't going to hurt me; he will hurt me'. Instead though, the girl gave a careful nod, making sure that she did not keep complete eye contact with Crazy Lady. She still remembered the last time she did that with this woman.
"If he promises not to, will you speak up again?" Crazy Lady asked, her voice kind and caring. The girl gave a hesitant nod.
"Captain Raleigh," Crazy Lady started, in a slow, understanding voice "Can you promise that you won't hurt the girl?" Behind her, Marcie could practically hear the Captain stiffen, before he gave a disparaging sighed.
"I promise, your majesty." He mumbled faintly, as though he was a child saying an apology.
"Good." The dark haired man said. "Now that that's settled, can you please tell us what your name is?"
"How about this? I'll tell you my name, but first, you gotta untie me." Managing, with some struggle, the girl wiggled around to show her tightly bound wrists to these people.
"You tied her up, Captain?" The dark-haired man questioned, raising a black brow.
"Standard protocol, your majesty." The Captain responded, though his voice edged on a smug tone. "And she's a feisty one; tried to take a few swipes before I tied her down."
"So she's violent." Eric mused, standing by his wife, who gave him an annoyed look.
Marcie shot him her own annoyed look. "I am not violent."
"You broke my wife's wrist." The dark haired man reminded, placing a protective hand on the Crazy Lady's shoulder.
Marcie blanched. So he was married to Crazy Lady. Granted she didn't look to crazy at the moment, but one could never be sure with these whackos. And she had actually broken the woman's wrist? That didn't bode well for her.
"Eric, it's a sprain." Crazy Lady reminded her apparent husband in an exasperated tone.
"Look, I didn't want to hurt her, and I'm sorry I did," The girl's careful voice conceded. 'Eric' turned to her with a skeptical look. The teenager sighed.
"I'm serious. It was…it was like, self defense!" Marcie said, biting her bottom lip in worry. "One minute she was all nice, and the next she was actin' like she's totally drunk." Gaining momentum, the girl continued on, oblivious to whatever else was happening.
"And have you seen the news lately? I'm a teenage girl, I've got to be especially careful because you never know if someone is your friend, or if they'll beat the livin' daylights out of you, or—or—!"
A sense of hysteria took over, the stress of the day finally catching up. Her chest started to heave, in and out, and before she knew it her eyes were blinded with tears. She crumpled into a fit of sobs not a moment later.
"I…I just wanna go home. I h-had a rough day…I just wanna g-go home!"
Tears fell in rapid succession down her face, but Marcie could do nothing but hang her head. She just wanted to forget all about today. She wanted to go to her house, try to scrounge up something to eat, and then curl up in her cozy bed. Actually, scratch that, she'd do anything but stay here.
"Here," 'Eric' sighed, stepping forward, although with some unease. His arm was outstretched with a square cloth, a handkerchief. Marcie looked at him as though he'd grown another head.
"M-My hands, remember?"
Eric blinked, as though suddenly remembering that tiny detail. He nodded, although his mouth was set in a frown. "Right, sorry."
"Captain, can you please untie her? This has gone far enough." At Crazy Lady's words, Marcie looked up, surprised that the woman was sticking up for her. Maybe there was some good in her insanity after all.
"What?!" Two of the men in the room spluttered, breaking the girl out of her musings.
"Ma'am, I have to protest! That is not a good idea!" The 'Captain' started, hesitancy deeply rooted in his voice.
"He's right," 'Eric' continued, his tone firm in the belief. "What if she gets the idea to attack you again? After all, she is violent."
"I'm n-not violent!" The teenage protested through her hiccups, a fresh wave of tears springing to her eyes.
Ariel gave the girl an empathetic look. "She's right. I was the one who grabbed her. She was just trying to defend herself; no harm done."
"Right. Except, she broke your wrist," Eric said flatly, giving his wife an imploring look. She returned it with an exasperated one of her own.
"Dr. Bergh," she said, turning her head in the man's direction. He looked up at the woman with a raised brows. "Can you please tell my husband that, for the last time, it's a sprain?"
"Dr. Bergh," Eric answered the indirect question, rolling his eyes, "can you please tell my wife that she's utterly delusional and I'm not releasing the person who hurt her?"
"I never said to release her," Ariel said quickly, almost hotly. "I just said to unbind her hands."
Eric started to speak, but his wife, realizing this would not be good, cut him off before he started. "Oh, honestly, she's a teenager. Are you two actually saying that a little girl like that can actually be considered a threat?"
The man opened his mouth to retort, but found nothing coming out. Frustrated, he snapped his jaw shut, and swiveled around to size up the girl. She was watching the exchange with wide, unblinking eyes, concern marking every part of her features.
He sighed, finally muttering. "Please untie her, Captain."
"But sir, she's—" The man stopped his protest upon seeing the glare levied onto him by the king. With a disgusted grimace, he complied. "Fine."
The pressure on her wrists was suddenly gone. Marcie blinked, surprised it had taken so little to free her. Although "free" was a touchy subject, considering this Captain had grabbed onto the back of her jacket with the force of a python.
She rubbed at her wrists quickly, trying to get the feeling back into them. Then she pulled her too-big sleeve across her nose, ignoring as it fell slightly and revealed enough of her arm to show a meager bracelet.
What she didn't realize, however, was that all eyes in the room were suddenly focused on dull gold charms on her jewelry.
"Where did you get that bracelet, girl?" The 'Captain' asked aloud, his voice accusing.
Immediately, Marcie gasped in indignant shock. Never had someone pointed a finger at her for being a burglar. He didn't even say it outright; it was just obvious from his voice that that's what he was thinking of her.
"I didn't steal anything; I swear!" The teenager said aloud, her voice sounding more terrified than before.
"Likely story." The Captain's words practically blamed her in full force. "I'll wager that you're hiding the real truth."
A feeling between offense and fright took over Marcie, and it was all she could do to keep her head held high. "This is my bracelet. I made it. I've never stolen anything, ever. I'm not a thief."
Pleadingly, she looked over at the other people, Crazy lady and 'Eric', hoping that they might help her out here. She tried to make the innocence show clear on her face. Maybe her sincerity would drive them to believe her.
"No one said you were a thief." Crazy Lady said smoothly. "I'm sure the Captain," here she fixed him with a narrowed-eyed look, "has a very good reason for what he's saying. Don't you, Captain Raleigh?"
"Your majesty," The Captain began hastily, "I've seen her type before. There's another story to those charms on that string she considers a bracelet. Mark my words, I'm sure if you check, you'll find the princess has very similar ones that have suddenly gone 'missing'."
"So what if someone else has a similar charm?" Marcie suddenly questioned, feeling herself growing cornered. "Lots of people probably have the same ones that they bought at a store too!"
"Don't be impertinent." The Captain growled, jerking her shoulder again. Marcie gave a soft cry of surprise, before miserably slumping back against the couch.
"Why don't we just clear this up quickly?" Ariel suggested, trying to act as a diplomat. "Apparently, I'm not allowed to move," here the queen shot an annoyed look at the doctor, who chuckled lightly, "so honey, why don't you come over here so I can see your bracelet and make sure it's nothing like our daughter has?"
"Ariel, I don't think—"
"Your highness, I'm not so sure—"
"Gentlemen," Ariel cut off both her husband and the Captain of the Guard with a fierce edge to her voice. "I am a grown woman, perfectly capable of handling my own battles. And since we've already established that the girl isn't violent, I don't believe she'll go on the offensive unless threatened. Right?"
Marcie's head spun as she tried to recover (along with the men) from the woman's sudden prowess of the English language. She nodded dimly. "Um…right?"
"Good." Crazy Lady smiled, but it was sort of sly and directed towards Marcie. "Can you come here, sweetie?"
The teen blinked, wary of her surroundings once more. She knew what Crazy Lady was about. But everyone was on her side. So if she went all crazy again, and the girl had to hurt her to run away, these men might just pounce.
Then again, Marcie thought to herself, she's stuck up for me a few times, and she hasn't been really acting crazy...
Making up her mind quickly, she ripped herself away from the man's tight grasp, and stood up. She half expected the monster to hurt her, but nothing happened. She felt both his eyes, and those of Eric, following her shuffling steps, and tried hard to ignore them.
She awkwardly stopped about half a foot away from the woman, swallowing with nerves she didn't know she had. Crazy Lady didn't falter in her gentle smile, although her winces were frequent as the doctor beside her did things to her arm.
"Here," Marcie finally mumbled, pushing back her sleeve to expose her bracelet, and shoved her arm towards the woman.
"Thank you," Crazy Lady said in an automatic response.
Her warm fingers probed Marcie's wrist, gently twisting the bracelet around until she saw the first charm. While she did this, the teenager tried hard not to let a cold sweat break out on her forehead. She didn't like being this near people.
"#1 Sister?" Ariel questioned about the charm, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. The girl gave a pensive shrug.
"It was a birthday present from my brother, back when I was a kid." Marcie tried to say with an even voice, really not liking the way Crazy Lady's blue eyes seemed so far away at that statement.
"I see." The woman said quietly, her voice straining. "What's this one?" She questioned quickly, letting the second charm fall in the palm of her hand.
"I've had that since I was a baby." Marcie said, noticing the way the woman's eyes seemed to light up at the word. "See? It's a heart. That side has a cool design, but if you flip it, the other side has my birthday and some other scratched out stuff."
"A cool design," Ariel muttered to herself, turning her eyes down to focus on the charm. Her heartbeat quickened at just the sight of it. No…it couldn't be… "And if you flip it…your birthday and something scratched out."
"Your majesty, I don't think it's wise to get so riled up, not with your newly bruised ribs…" The third man, the Doctor, forewarned, noticing, just like Marcie, that the redheaded woman was on the tipping point of losing it.
"Ariel?" The Doctor's words pulled Eric out of his hushed conversation with the Captain. Suddenly he was much more alert and reached his wife in half a stride. "Ariel? What's wrong? What's going on?"
"I didn't do anything!" Marcie declared, wide-eyed with panic.
"Eric, one side has a cool design, and the other has her birthday and something scratched out. A cool design and something scratched out!" Ariel, starting to grow hysterical, cupped the charm in her hand.
"I don't know what she's talking about! She's, like, crazy!" The girl stated quickly, her eyes pleading for this man not to blame her.
"She is not crazy," he stated firmly, leveling the teenager with an almost searing look. The girl turned her face away from him, a hot rush of blood coming to her cheeks. Eric looked at the third man. "Doctor?"
"Her wrist is bandaged and her ribs should heal quickly, but…" Doctor Bergh sighed, shaking his head. "I can't explain her emotional state, other than she was looking at the girl's charm, and then…"
He trailed off, his eyes going from the queen, who kept mumbling that same phrase over and over again, to finally resting on the teenager. Eric followed his gaze, and then looked away, unable to see the teen without his stomach doing somersaults. Ariel was still holding onto the charm.
"Let me see that, darling," Eric said gently, finally deciding to lean down and peer at the bracelet. He only wanted to know what was causing his wife so much anxiety, but what he found was quite the opposite.
The charm itself was a gold heart, and although dull, it still retained an air of expense. As Ariel had said, something was scratched out, almost impossible to distinguish. As it stood, he could just barely make out the first letter; it was either a half missing M, or possibly, an R…maybe a K? There was also an engraved date underneath, the numbers cloudy and half rubbed off, but still legible.
"What the…" Suddenly rushed with energy he hadn't had before, Eric turned the heart over. He tried to swallow hard, but found his mouth too dry.
No one seemed to notice Marcie stiffen, biting her lower lip in worry. Concerned that saying anything might upset these people more, she kept quiet. When Eric's hand retracted from her wrist, as though it was on fire, she looked up and found him staring at her.
"After all these years, you kept it," Crazy Lady spoke up again, making the teen break away from Eric's gaze, and look at the woman. "You kept it because one side had a cool design, and the other has your birthday and some scratched out stuff!"
"Lady, for the last time, I don't know what you're talking about!" Her voice rising to a strangled yell, Marcie searched all around the room with her eyes, until she found Eric. "Tell her she's crazy! Please, tell her to leave me alone!"
For all her hoping though, Eric was useless at this point. He just stared at her, his mouth opening and closing, but no sound ever coming out. From what Marcie could tell, he had gone just as crazy as that lady.
It was that last thought that spurred the girl into action. She yanked her extended arm away, but she hadn't realized that the woman had grasped onto her charm again, holding onto it for dear life. With Marcie's harsh pull, it broke off the string that served as her bracelet and slipped out of the woman's hand.
With a startled cry, Marcie started to spread her hands out like a mad woman across the carpet. In a panic, sweat mounted on her like a hurricane while she searched through the long fibers. She could feel her heart start to beat in her ears, and dimly, she realized she was speaking.
"…no! Crap, crap, crap!" Her voice was cracking as she scrambled around, no longer concerned for her safety, but desperately intent on finding her charm. "No, please, no. I can't lose this! It's all I got!"
"Girl, I think you've caused enough trouble already." There was a deep, unsure voice that reached Marcie's ears at the same time as she was yanked upwards by her shirt.
Twisting around with wild eyes, the girl saw that it was the Captain doing this. Any other time, she would have been shaking her in shoes, so scared that he may hurt her. Now, however, the girl used all of her adrenaline to wrench herself away from his surprisingly loose grip.
"Leave me the hell alone!" Marcie roared, shocking the Captain, and even herself, at this display of anger. She didn't hesitate in turning back around and starting to search through the carpet again, muttering to herself, "I've gotta find it!"
"I don't think this is the right time to go searching for that thing, girl." The Captain returned, his voice hesitant as he flicked his eyes up at the two monarchs.
Without warning, he leaned down and grabbed the girl again. As she was being lifted back onto her feet, Marcie felt her hand press against something cold. She dug her fingers into the carpet and captured what she'd been looking for, clinging onto it like a life preserver.
"Doctor Bergh?" The Captain called out, as though asking for an update on his rulers situations. The physician shook his head, motioning towards a nearly hysterical Ariel, and a very stiff Eric.
"There isn't much I can do!" The man yelled, trying to be heard over his queen's hysterics. "Maybe you should take the girl away!"
"Right!" The Captain answered back loudly. "Come on girl; we're going to—" The man broke off in disdain to see her fiddling with that damn charm in her hands.
It was that charm that had lead to whatever was going on with his monarchs. At the moment, both seemed incapable of doing anything, brought down by a silly little gold thing. The Captain knew these people, had been with them for years now. Something about that thing, whatever it was, was causing their inner strength to crumble.
Suspicion and a hint of anger were in the man's narrowed eyes. He made a swift determination, and started to mutter to himself. "I'll be taking that."
Reaching over, the Captain rudely snatched the thing away from the girl. She gave a shocked cry, but it was no match for the man's large fingers forcing hers apart. He looked at it for a moment, trying to figure out what was so special about the thing, before shrugging and starting to put it in his pocket.
Marcie watched this in horror. "Give it back!" She swatted at the man until he stopped midway to his pocket, annoyance creeping into his eyes. "That's mine!"
"I think," the Captain said coolly, blocking off the girl's hands with ease, "it'd be best if you stopped talking, before you dig yourself into a deeper hole."
"But you don't get it! That's mine!" The girl pushed, desperately trying to regain her charm. "Please! It's the only thing I still got from my parents!"
Somewhere in the room, there was a soft, hiccoughing laugh. "Sweetie…we're your parents."
For the briefest of seconds, Marcie felt like time stood stock still. She swiveled around to where that voice had come from, and her eyes connected with those of Crazy Lady. She knew that there was no way for her to say she hadn't heard those words perfectly.
She blinked, and the world came roaring back to life. Within seconds, anger started to seep into her veins. Yes, there was a fury coming over her, something that had not happened since she was teased in grade school.
"You're crazy." She spat out, with as much venom as she could procure.
"You're all insane, and…and…I'm going home!"
Frustrated tears stung at the girl's eyes. She was so angered, so full of hate towards these people. Turning fast, the girl reared up and kicked the Captain as hard as she possibly could.
The sudden motion startled the man, although it wasn't much of a hit. His mind in a complete whorl, he jerked instinctively and dropped the charm still in his hand. Not missing a beat, Marcie swooped downwards and caught the thing before it fell back into the rug.
With her heart pumping in her ears, she ducked under the Captain's large hands. She shot towards the door like a bullet, her heart pounding faster as she heard footsteps behind her.
White-hot energy seared through the girl. No longer working with her conscious mind, but going on instinct, Marcie closed her hand on the knob…
…and that's when all of the adrenaline inside of the girl suddenly came to a crashing halt.
A person stood right in front of the teen, eyes wide with surprise. They were big blue eyes, the same ones Marcie had seen every morning when she looked in the mirror. The girl's long dark hair shifted slightly as she took a step back, her lily-white hands coming up apologetically.
But the redheaded teen wasn't alarmed with the other girl's hands or hair. Oh no. What caused Marcie to jerk back in surprise was the other girl's face. Though she had it twisted in embarrassment and shock, there was something oddly familiar about her features.
Then realization hit her like a ton of bricks: the other girl's face was the same as hers.
Suddenly, the world went very dark.
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