Author's Note:
Thank you for the reviews everyone! Here's the third chapter (finally)
She didn't know how she managed to get a hold of it, but after the encounter with the demon and the Seville brothers she was left alone, staring at the red cap sitting forlorn in the grass.
She just picked up and kept it, expecting the russet furred munk to just appear out of thin air to retrieve it and disappear again without even a simple 'thanks', but it's been nearly an entire week and the accessory is still sitting tucked away in her top drawer.
Brittany stares at it now, having taken it from it's hiding place out of boredom, she runs her fingers over the slightly worn fabric, her thumb catching momentarily over the raised stitched yellow A on the front, it wasn't complete, half of it was missing and she was struggling against the urge to finish it.
It didn't take much for her to break under the urge however because next thing she knows she's riffling through her old sewing kit for yellow thread, "Probably shouldn't do this..." She mumbles quietly, glancing across the room to her sister's beds before flicking on the old lamp, the bulb flickers for a moment before casting a dull yellow glow across the room.
Her sisters continue to sleep on, unaware of the light as she settles upon her mattress and sets to work.
Protectors were a myth, people created early on during the evasion of monsters and demons to help soothe the frightened minds of children as the world outside their windows burned to the ground. The Protectors were strong warriors born from the mayhem to fight against the hungry lurking souls that would devour those who ventured out into the night, they were said to have abilities only their counterparts would have.
They would have the glowing eyes of a Nightwalker, able to see the heat signatures of any living thing, they'd have the ability to hear and smell a single thing they chose from miles away, much like a vampire, their strength would be inhuman and their skin would be hard as stone.
But it was a myth...all of it...till now.
Brittany flinches as the needle pricks her thumb, she hisses slightly and sucks at the spot for a moment before finishing up the stitching, she leans closer to the lamp and eyes the thread, taking note that the new threading she used was a shade lighter than the old.
It made her a bit irked, maybe she should see if there's a darker shade in Eleanor's knitting kit...
A plate shatters in the kitchen, jerking her attention away from the small detail upon the hat as her entire frame tenses, eyes wide as her sisters slowly stir beneath their blankets.
Another plate or maybe a cup, hits the floor, the sound echoing like a gun shot throughout the small house, she was already up and out the bedroom door before her sisters fully woke up.
Brittany moves slowly down the hallway, clutching an old t-ball bat in her paws, the red cap pulled over her head as she edges her way closer to the kitchen, the sound of grunting and whispering reaches her ears and she slows her pace.
"What is it?" She flinches slightly as Eleanor grips her night gown, rubbing at her hazel eyes as Jeanette fiddles with a pocket knife, "I don't know...stay here" Brittany gently pushes at her sister's shoulder as she moves forward quickly, ignoring the quiet sounds of protest coming from her siblings.
She rushes into the kitchen, the only thing running through her mind is bashing in the skull of whatever was in her home, she barely got a glimpse of the thing as she brings the bat down, the monster screeches as she smashes the metal object against it's skull repeatedly.
It would've gone smoothly, she could've killed the large reptilian beast if there was only one of them, but there were four.
Pain explodes through her back as a set of claws racks down her spine, the tips catching her skin and leaving fairly deep scratches, luckily for her though, her gown was thick enough that it cushioned some of the impact and the creature cut through most of the fabric and not her.
Brittany spots her sisters as they charge forward, set on defending their home as well but they were out numbered and out matched, Jeanette manages to sink the small blade into a reptile's throat as it's hand smacks her straight in the chest, sending her flying back into the wall.
"Jeanette!" Brittany surges forward as her younger sister slumps against the wall, knocked out cold as Eleanor defends off a creature with an old broom handle. The edges of her vision begins to blur as she feels the tip of the bat smash against something, it's flesh gives way under the blunt force as the blurring sensation takes over.
Suddenly a firm arm circles around her waist, yanking her out of the way as one of the lizard things lunges at her, smacking it's head against the counter top, "Geez what the hell," Brittany struggles against Alvin's grip as he dumps her onto the couch.
"Jeanette, Eleanor they're-"
"Fine," Simon steps forward out of the kitchen, the house silent once again, "The Lizards are dead and they're being tended to, Alvin she's got a wound on her back, check that," The bespectacled munk disappears back into the room, flicking on the lights to reveal the crumpled bodies littering the floor.
"How...what..." Brittany stammers, staring at their ruined kitchen in shock, she was just fighting those wasn't she? How are they suddenly dead? Are her sisters ok?
"You can let go of that now," Alvin tugs at the stained bat, the rodent perched on the couch arm, his eyes watching her face as she looks to the object in her grasp, her arms shake as she finally releases her death grip on the t-ball bat, letting it roll onto the floor with a dull 'thump'.
"What were those things?" Her voice sounds small, and she can feel her heartbeat begin to slow, all the adrenaline seeping out of her bones as the sting of a the scratches on her back returns.
"They're just giant mutant lizards really, scavengers, they must've smelled your food through the open window," Alvin had moved, his voice is coming from behind her now, and she can feel his fingers picking lightly at the torn back of her night gown.
"Dammit...I told Ellie to leave it closed," Brittany's fingers tremble as she fiddles with a throw pillow, trying to ignore the burning sensation of his fingers against her skin, the throb of pain now echoing through her body as the adrenaline rush finally fades away, leaving her in a weak jelly like state.
"You should've just let them rummage around, they would've been gone by morning," Alvin picks pieces of wood from the open wounds upon her back, something was happening before they got there, Brittany had taken down two of the lizards already, and was crushing the ribcage of a third lizard when they arrived.
She doesn't seem to remember though.
"We don't have enough food for that, our stamps cover only a month of supplies and Eleanor starts getting sick during this weather, she needs medicine so we don't usually have the full amount for food like we normally do, plus Jeanette has grown out of her old clothes, she's reached her full height now but everything she's wearing now is too small. She's uncomfortable," Alvin lets her rattle on, half listening to her as he finishes cleaning her wounds.
He knew that normal people were limited to these 'stamps' per month and that they were given a certain amount of money per stamp, but he didn't realize just how hard it is to stay in that limit.
He frowns as her voice grows small until she stops talking all together, he glances at the back of her head, noticing his cap stationed upon her locks of auburn hair, he was wondering where that went. "I hate this world," Alvin blinks, leaning sideways until the side of her face comes into view, the bright blue hue of her eyes has grown dull, but a fierce fire burns at the center as she stares at the baseball bat on the floor.
"The world is a harsh place, even before all this there were monsters roaming the earth," He sits back, focusing intently on her wounds now, but he was also half listening, waiting.
Brittany continues to stare at the blood stained bat, the world was always full of monsters?
She could believe that.
Her back hurts, so damn much.
Brittany groans and opens her eyes, annoyed and in pain as she sits up slowly, feeling the texture of rough bandages tugging at her fur.
That was the first thing she noticed, the second was that she wasn't in her own bed, her own home actually, and that she could hear her sisters laughing.
"Good morning sleeping beauty," Brittany flinches in surprise as Alvin pokes his head into the room, "Breakfast is getting cold, hurry up," he closes the door, leaving her confused and alone in a strange room.
Well...this is going to be interesting.
It's going to be a heck of a lot harder for her to keep her mouth shut now that they're all hanging out at the Sevilles' house xD
Good luck Brittany!
Also what was up with her during the lizard attack? Was it just the adrenaline rush making her vision blurry and her mind-skip, or is it something else?
Hmmm...