AN ~ Hey again, people! So I meant to update about a week ago, but I've been terribly sick ever since Christmas, so I decided to post two chapters today to make up for that :(

Anywho, I'd like to thank Lauren Kassidy and kaaayyytteee for the reviews, they were greatly appreciated! It's nice to know that people are actually reading this crap. XD

Moar reviews, plz! Kthnxbai.

XXXXX

Chapter 3

I sorted through a hundred different ideas on what the hell was happening, none of them seeming plausible. And nothing my frenzied brain could conjure up explained who these people were. I shut my eyes a little tighter, trying to ignore the people standing just a few feet in front of me. Okay, what's the last thing I remember? I remember we were on our way to Mexico. We had stopped at a gas station where dad had been told about a new route that would save us some time. We were driving along this shortcut, aaaand...blank.

I'm missing something. How did I get from the car to here? Does my family know where I am? Are they looking for me right now?

Wait...

I seemed to remember the distinct smell of blood. There was a lot of blood and broken glass. Oh lord, we had crashed, hadn't we? I remember now, everyone was in need of medical assistance; I was no exception. The pain in my arm flared up as I remember seeing my blood slowly leak out of it. My whole body winced at the thought. I had no aversion to blood, but I had a thing about raw flesh and open wounds. It just made me feel queasy.

I swallowed hard and choked back the tears as I remembered what shape the rest of my family was in. What had happened to them? Were they here, too? What the hell was going on here...

A pair of arms slid under me and picked me up effortlessly, as though I were a child. Sure, I was small; at the age of 20, being 5'7 and 115 lbs. got a lot of jokes thrown my way. But this person carried me like I was a doll.

It took everything in me not to scream, but my eyes shot open of their own accord. I had taken Karate classes for quite a few years when I was younger. Although I had forgotten most of it, the skills and the tenacity had stuck. The fighter in me needed all my senses present and accounted for. I can't react appropriately when I can't see.

And finally, that scream that I had suppressed so well finally broke free.

The bulgy, fleshy face I had glimpsed earlier was inches from mine. I instinctively flinched away from the gargantuan being carrying me up the stair case of a dingy, decrepit house. The huge, lumbering man took me into a bedroom and gently laid me down on one of the two beds in the room. I panicked and screamed again, trying to punch and kick him.

I realized that my ankles were bound and I reached down frantically to untie them. The giant next to the bed quickly grabbed my wrists and pinned them down on the bed on either side of my head.

"Yo' wait...fo' Ruby," the giant formed the words slowly, with a lot of effort. He flashed me a nearly toothless smile. I struggled, but he may as well have been made of stone. I glanced around the room, looking for something to use as a weapon as soon as I got free, but the room was entirely bare other than the two beds, a small window with pale green curtains, and a bed side desk with a lamp on it.

In an effort to distract him, I asked, "W-who's Ruby?" He beamed again, almost fondly. "Fam'ly," he stated simply.

Ruby must have been one of the ones I saw earlier; perhaps the young girl? I hoped it was, she was the only friendly looking one.

Then, both the females I saw earlier walked into the room, with the gruff looking man in the black trench coat tailing them. He had something in his arms.

A body.

I recognized that silly Invader Zim tee shirt. "Lex!" I screamed, struggling against the man hovering above me with all my strength. It was useless. The man carrying my brother placed him on the other bed and after watching closely for any movement, I began to cry. He wasn't moving; why wasn't he moving?

"Don' worry, little un. He jus' out. He'll wake up inna few hours," the woman calmly explained.

"Who the fuck are you people? What do you want with us?" the words exploded from my lips, bitterly.

"Now calm down, we ain't tryin' to hurtcha," The woman responded. That wasn't an answer. "What the hell's going on?" I screamed again. The woman glanced at the young girl standing next to her in the doorway. The girl took a small step forward.

"I..I wantcha to be...my friend," the girl said, not making eye contact.
I stopped struggling for a moment, sure I had heard wrong. "What?" I asked dumbly. The girl smiled softly. "Ya been hurt. Let me help?"
Completely caught off guard, I stupidly blurted out the words, "Uhm...yeah. Yeah, sure."

I must be dreaming. There was no other explanation for this madness.

The girl beamed at me and ran over by my side. The giant let go of my wrists and swept me up in his arms again, while the girl held my hand, walking next to the man carrying me. "I'm...my name is Lillian. Lily," I said quietly.

The girl smiled up at me. "Ruby," She said softly. So she was Ruby. The lumbering man slowly set me down on the bathroom counter. I looked up at him. "And who are you?"

"Pluto!" the man bellowed as though he were proud of himself for answering a difficult question. I nodded numbly.

"And the others?" I asked Ruby as she pulled antiseptic and bandages out of a cabinet. "The man's Papa Jupiter an' the lady's Big Mama. My ma an' pa." The girl explained while dabbing the antiseptic on my arm. I hissed and clenched my hands into fists. I turned just enough to see my reflection in the mirror.

My long brown hair was matted with blood and desert sand and there were a few scratches on my face, right above my right eyebrow. "Yer lucky," Ruby said. "No broke bones." I silently nodded again.

"What about my brother?" I said after a moment's silence, tears starting to trickle down my face.

"He fine. Two broke fingers, bu' we fix," She smiled reassuringly. I closed my eyes tightly. "And...my parents?"

Ruby didn't respond.

I felt like I was going to be sick.

"Ruby, I need to know. Please, where are they?" I heard her sigh while Pluto just groaned. I opened my eyes again, letting loose a fresh wave of tears. Ruby lifted her hand to wipe the tears off my cheeks. "Nothin' I coul' do," She whispered. "Could only help you an' brother."

I stared at her, the words taking their time to sink in. She finished wrapping my arm as Pluto continued to stand in the doorway silently. I began to shake and choke on my sobs. Ruby looked devastated.

"Please, Lily! Yeh safe, yeh have brother. 'S okay!" She smiled hopefully.

I shook my head and continued to sob. My parents were gone. Taken away so quickly. So violently. We didn't always get along, but when we did, life was great. I really did love them and I knew they loved me. I never really made an effort to let them know that, though. Something I only now realized I would always regret.

I couldn't stop shaking, Ruby threw a worried glance at Pluto and then looked back at me. "We leave yeh..." she whispered and left the room with Pluto and closed the door to give me privacy. I knew that Pluto stood just outside the door, but I was glad they were human enough to leave me to mourn the death of my parents. I slid off the counter and slumped over on the floor.