"Ari!"
I cried outreaching my hand and arm as far as possible into the man sized gap where the floor had split.
She reached out from below trying desperately to grab on.
"Reach!" I shouted, struggling to get closer to the edge without falling in.
The heat licked at my skin causing sweat to run down my hair line into my eye. I closed the eye and wiped my face on to my PJ top.
"Mira!" She sobbed straining on her tip toes. "I'm too short!"
My five year old sister looked up at me. Her violet eyes were wide with fear. Tears streaked down her round face, washing away some of the soot. Small patches of her curly raven black hair was singed off leaving her pig tails a mess.
She went to reach again when the floor boards underneath me started to creak. I felt myself slide forward.
Oh God. Oh God Oh God.
The floor thankfully stopped tilting before I did fall. I exhaled slowly.
The smoke in the room thickened as the flames grew bigger, engulfing more and more of the house.
"Ari please! Try harder!" I coughed when I accidently inhaled ash.
Ari moved to the far side of the basement. She wiped her hand furiously on her purple Power Puff Girls night gown. Then she bolted as fast as she could towards my hand and jumped.
Our finger tips brushed. I grabbed onto what I could.
Our fingers were hooked. I wanted to cry but with relief.
There was a snarl behind me. I looked over a shoulder to see another sucker stalking towards me.
It lunged.
Something large kicked the vampire in mid-air. The vampire was thrown through a burning wall leaving a large hole. The figure landed with grace looking over at the hole in the wall. The shifted its attention towards us.
"Ari! You're heavy!"
I tried to get to my feet to pull her up but the floor started to tilt again. I let out a cry. Ari was silent. The stranger called out.
"I'm here to help. Crawl towards me."
It was a male voice. He was crouched a few feet away holding out his hand.
I shook my head.
"Ari." I croaked.
Unexpectedly a grotesque hand appeared out of the darkness below, grabbed onto the edge.
"Food."
Its beady red eyes stared hungrily at mine then it hissed, looking passed me. The bloodsucker in haste pulled Ari from my hands then let go of the edge quickly wrapping its cold hand around my arm trying to pull me down too.
I was yanked backwards out of the dead man's grasp into the embrace of the stranger. The stranger then rolled us off of the unstable platform seconds before it collapsed.
"ARI!" I yelled trying to get free. No answer. "ARIANNAH!" Nothing.
"I got one." The stranger said.
"What about the other?" A voice replied out of nowhere.
"Didn't make it." He replied quietly.
I closed my eyes.
"ARI!"
I woke up covered in sweat in my bed. I fumbled with the lamp next to my bed before I got it turned on. I was in my room. Not a burning house. My heart rate eventually settled as I took big breathes trying to calm down. It had been awhile since I last dreamed about that night.
The clock read 12:20. It was time to go.
I stood up and walked to my closet were I pulled out form fitting jeans and my black high tops. Then I went to my dresser, discarding my damp night shirt, and pulled out a sports bra and a dark blue tank top. I quickly dressed before returning to the closet.
Peeking out from behind my windbreaker was my shoulder holster. I pulled that off the hanger and put it on. Then I checked the gun to make sure that the safety was on. Something shiny caught my attention. I reached into the closet and brought out the scythe. It has retreated to its non-threatening form. I held it, debating the odds of me needing it.
There was a creak from behind my door.
I hand the gun in my hands aiming for the torso. Hey bigger target means a better chance of hitting something important.
"Going out are we?" Aries assumed leaning from the door frame.
"What's it to you?" I holstered the gun.
He flipped on the overhead lights.
I squinted, the lights burned my eyes.
"You're my sister, what you do involves me too."
I rubbed at my eyes until the pain faded. "Not always."
He snorted.
"So when are we heading out?"
My turn to snort.
"We?"
I grabbed my leather jacket, with the detachable cloth hood, and put that on.
He eyed me putting the rod/scythe into the pocket.
"Yes, you're packing so it has to be dangerous. So I'm going."
He stepped into the room. The behemoth took up the entire door space.
"I'm always doing dangerous stuff Aries." I mutter zipping up my jacket
I now notice he's dressed similar to me, dark pants, jacket, and t-shirt with running shoes.
I don't have time for this.
"Fine come with me! I don't have all night to bicker with ya!"
I turned off my bedside lamp and closed my closet. Aries gave me a grin as I walked past him out the room.
"Annoying bastard." I muttered. He chuckled behind me as he turns off the light.
"Just think about it this way."
He says as we make our way down the stairs.
I take two at a time then jump, skipping the last three steps, and land on my feet in front of the door.
"You have back up for whatever stupid plan you have and –"
I unlocked the dead bolt and opened the door walking out.
"You get to use the door."
"Shut up."
