Chapter 4: An Unraveling Truth
Pretty soon the next day came about; it was morning as Aiden woke up from his bed in a rather hesitant manner. He had nearly slept in today as it was about 10:45 AM. It was a rare occurrence for him to sleep till that time as he hardly ever slept in during the mornings; he was always the first one up because of his life that lacked any freedom to begin with. For him waking up early was one of those facets about him that was hard to change.
Upon climbing out of his bed, he looked into the dresser mirror, facing his reflection. His appearance was disheveled beyond recognition with his normally combed hair pointing in several angles at once. His appearance was relatively hideous in the mornings.
Turning back to his bed, he straightened its bed sheets, folded its blankets and fluffed its pillows accordingly. He might have been taught relatively little manners as a kid, but he was always reliable when it came to keeping his stuff tidy. After finishing with the bed, he headed towards his closet, where he pulled out clothing that had the same theme as yesterday. He was fond of the same theme: Black, white and gray, especially the dark ones. He loved to wear dark colors as it was a symbol that represented formality to him.
Placing the clothes he pulled out of the closet and his repaired coat and scarf on his bed, Aiden headed towards the shower. He immersed himself in the shower a full fifteen minutes where he exited soon afterwards, rubbing his gray eyes and drying his black hair as he thought, "Well, today is the promised day. The day I'll confront that witch, and hopefully get all these questions that have been clawing at the inside of my skull, one way or another. It's best not to directly verify anything through directly confronting the girl though, not the most ideal approach at all in my book. That reminds me, I wonder what they are doing; most likely they're eating breakfast."
Aiden's body was beyond fit for his age, his upper body was well toned to the point where somebody would call impossible to obtain. His chest was very lean and his biceps were bulging; this was all a result from the years of training he had been devoting himself to at a young age. The training he had endured back then to achieve this build literally prepared him for pretty much anything the normal world had to throw at him. Most skills he possesses are a result of this conditioning.
As he looked at the time, he quickly got himself dressed, buttoning his shirt, strapping his belt, wrapping his scarf and donning his coat at a rather quick change of pace. After fully dressing himself, he combed his hair the usual way: parted to the right while deliberately obscuring part of his right eye.
Now fully dressed, he dashed out the hallway following the smell from the kitchen. As he ran he made sure he had his locket on, because he did not want the girl he saved to suffer more because of him.
Eventually reaching the kitchen, Aiden entered the room, noticing Reece and Viola sitting down on the table as they ate their pancakes with delight while engaging in friendly conversation. He smiled, glad to see the mutilated, sick girl he found last night was now in a much better state then he found her in.
Viola sat on the wheelchair Reece provided her with. She seemed to be in much better health apart from him prolonging her sickness. She was entirely clean now as opposed to last night; her bullet and knife wounds were fully healed as if they were never present in the first place. Her eyes were present underneath those bandages but it needed time to take effect that is why she still had them on. She was still legless though, but it did not seem to bother her that much considering had a wheel chair which she would not have to get used to because she would get her legs back anyway.
As she made indistinguishable conversation with Reece, she forked another bite of her pancakes into her mouth, making sure her hand-to-face coordination was correct despite being in her blind state. They were so engaged in their discussion that they didn't notice he was there yet.
Cutting off the smile he had on entirely, thereby changing his face back to its natural expressionless look, he walked into the kitchen grabbing the newspaper Reece left on table for him. Still happy about the fact he had actually managed to save someone from a horrible fate, he smiled at her briefly as he embed himself with the newspaper. While he was glad, he was also somewhat worried as his action served as a constant reminder of why he did it. He himself didn't know the answer to that question.
"Well, well, well", Reece said playfully, "Looks like you finally worked up the nerve to get up, hero. If you expect me to make you breakfast, you'll gonna have to beg me for it." She was teasing Aiden, fully aware of the fact that he would retaliate by saying something derogatory or if not be a smart aleck.
"The hero always waits to show up last, isn't that supposed to be the case", Aiden said sarcastically without the slightest change in his expression. Getting annoyed, he continued, "Can you please just get on with it? I have to visit someone soon, I have no time for your…", upon noticing Viola's state and expression, he rephrased his words, "Alright, alright please" Though he was trying his hardest to sound nice, he hints of annoyance in his face and voice were still discernible.
"Well… you did say please", Reece said gleefully as she walked back to her oven, hiding a slight smile because of the fact that Aiden was acting soft on her, something she found cute. He worked on the next batch of pancakes while she noticed Aiden turning his attention to Viola.
As he adjusted to his seat, Aiden tried talking to Viola as he began to ask her questions, "So, if it is not too much trouble, mind telling me what your name is." As he spoke, his seriousness slightly broke in the middle of the question, but he quickly covered it up, simply looking at Viola gave him flashbacks.
"Viola… its Viola", she said shyly as she sat still in her wheelchair, eventually becoming all-silent. She was still bothered by the fact that she had no disease to begin with; at least that's what Reece claimed. She felt that as opposed to returning to her father, she should just give her life to Ellen as she would be better off here as opposed to starting an unnecessary conflict.
"Are you feeling alright?", Aiden said. The way he addressed the question seemed like a mixture of concern, assertiveness and desperation. She noticed this in his voice, but chose to remain silent on noticing it.
"I'm fine", Viola said in a soft voice, "I'm just shocked about something." Voila stuttered on her words, while she was telling him the truth, she couldn't bring herself to trust this guy in spite of the fact he saved her. Maybe what the black cat said was true and he was a monster, she would have to ask Reece for details later.
"I see you finally got your voice back, Viola", Aiden said kindly and patiently. He was glad that she was capable of speech so she can maybe answer his questions. The kind of questions that Viola did not feel comfortable with answering because of her unfavorable circumstances.
"Yeah, I did", she said with a shy smile, "But that's not the only thing I got back." She felt stupid stating it that way, but nevertheless it couldn't be said in any other way.
Reece intervened in the conversation, "I managed to restore her eyes, Aiden and heal the minor wounds as well; the ones she received from the bullet and the knife respectively." She brought Aiden the fresh batch of pancakes she was working on as well as his coffee. They're relationship was that of an on-and-off couple, Viola could piece together that much.
You managed to restore her eyes?" Aiden said, rolling his eyes at Reece, while looking at the newspaper and not her. He held the newspaper in his face again.
"Yeah, I did", Reece said with a smile as she placed the fresh batch of pancakes and coffee on the table right in front of Aiden, "I did it this morning while you were sleeping like a rock." She then twirled the braided part of her hair timidly.
Suddenly, Viola spoke up, letting her voice be heard, "She had to wake me up early, don't blame her Aiden, I asked her to if you were about to insult her or anything," as she banged the table indignantly, "Also, while she did restore my eyes, I still have to wear these bandages for a few more hours though in order for the medicine she made to properly heal me." She was being furious for no reason, mainly because she didn't like his attitude at all.
"Whoa, hey Viola relax and who's insulting who here?", Aiden said coolly, "I wasn't insulting her, I was merely saying that I'm impressed that she managed to heal you despite the state you were in. Then again, if you'd like me to shut up then so be it."
"Why? Do you doubt me?" Reece said with a slight attitude. She felt like hitting Aiden in the head with the frying pan right now, but considering he would expect it anyway, he would take the surprise out of it as he most of the time is conscientious of what is going to happen.
"Hah… not at all", Aiden scoffed as he started eating his pancakes, "You said it yourself that healing her could take some time." Aiden was speaking the truth, Reece had said that, but he didn't have to point it out to her. Being the sarcastic and stern person he was of course she wouldn't expect something less from him.
Reece began to unravel her braid, indicating her nervousness, "Heh, heh, I guess I was devastated to the point where I began to underestimate my abilities. But then again, that has happened many times and I still do it." After completely undoing her braid, she redid it with little-to-no effort.
"That reminds me… Viola", Aiden's voice became slightly stern; upon hearing it Viola stiffened, "What happened to you anyway? How did you end up in that state in the forest? I know you're a witch but that's bold, even for a witch your age." He was really hitting the hammer on the nail with those questions, but he wasn't about to get an answer.
Viola froze, she had still was having trouble accepting what happened and what she had just learned, "What can I tell these people? That I am not actually a witch but really an unfortunate girl who has been friends with a witch who stabbed me in the back and stole my life from me. No I cannot tell him, not yet. He's nice and all, but I feel that telling him will spark a riot." She suddenly got her act together before she bluntly stated, "I...I rather not talk about it. It's one thing to be put through it; it's another to be reminded of it. Please, I'd rather not discuss this."
After listening to what she said, with careful consideration, Aiden could not help but feel disappoint from not able to deduce anything right now. He had finished the remaining pancakes, standing up to take his leave soon afterwards. He walked past Viola, placing his hand on her shoulder as he said, "I guess you'll need some time; I honestly don't blame you for unwilling to speak after what you've been through. I'll let you relax for a few days, maybe then you might build up your courage to answer to me."
"Please, Aiden", Reece said defensively, "She is very emotionally broken right now, please just leave her alone. She'll tell you when she feels ready."
Aiden began to walk away towards the door, grabbing his scarf and coat the way out.
Before he could leave with an attitude, Reece approached him from behind, "Try to understand Aiden, I know you want answers to why she got there but I beg you to trust me, she will tell you in due time."
"Pfft, whether she brings herself to tell me or not", Aiden said sternly, wrapping his scarf around his neck in an aristocratic manner, "I'm bound to find out the truth Reece, one way or another." He donned his black coat, buttoning it after he was done swathing his scarf.
"Maybe", Reece said as a tear was making its way down her cheek, "In any case, good luck with your hunt Aiden." She wiped off the tear that was running done her cheek afterwards, "Just please, please just make it back alive in one piece, I don't want to lose you." She discreetly hugged Aiden from behind, causing his normally impassive face to blush and his equally austere disposition to loosen out briefly.
Aiden's face became all read before it became somewhat stalwart again. Reece was still hugging him, he asked her to desist, politely demanding her stop prating with him. After a few minutes, she let go obediently as she noticed how cold and focused his gray eyes were again. He began walking away as he said, "Listen carefully, I won't be back for a couple of days, perhaps even longer than that. Whether I make it back or not, do me this favor, make sure she stays put, safe from any harm."
"I will", Reece said with a mixture of determination and optimism. She didn't know what Aiden might have been referring to.
With that, Aiden walked further away from the house and headed for the bounded field, unlocking it as he looked back at the house. He began to think, "Hmm, guess this will have to be done the hard way. Like it or not, I will get my answers Reece. Directly, indirectly, I will have them." Little did Reece know was that he already had an idea of what was going on. She underestimated him, finding out more than he was capable. He was a liar, yes, but he lied for the greater good. Suddenly, he changed the topic he was thinking about, "That stuff aside, I wonder how my friend Travis and his little girl…ergh, what was her name again, I cannot remember wow."
As the bounded field that encompassed Reece's house faded away, Aiden stared at the house intently. He was imagining where that he and Reece might have a family someday despite his denial towards it earlier. That someday might take some time even after he fulfills this final mission. Closing his eyes as he turned away, Aiden closed the barrier, reestablishing its boundaries before he began to walk deep within the forest.
With Aiden's departure, Reece shut the door quietly and turned around, making her way back to the kitchen. Her thoughts now focused back on Viola, "I better go to the kitchen to make sure she is alright." Strolling down the hallway, her thoughts were conflicted; it was like she had to choose between Aiden and Viola. Ultimately reaching the kitchen, Reece had found Viola out of her wheel chair and lay there on the floor.
"VIOLA!". Reece cried off the top of her lungs as she rushed to her aside, "Viola, are you okay? You're not hurt are you? You knew very well that you shouldn't get out of that wheelchair for obvious reasons, especially since you have no legs. What happened?" She lifted Viola the same way one would lift a newborn, placing her back in the chair before noticing how Viola's leg stumps were bleeding out due to her carelessness. "Viola your legs, their bleeding out again", Reece gasped, "Wait here I'll be right back." She ran out the kitchen door, gone for a few minutes before returning with some antiseptic and gauze. She sat in front of Viola, tending to peeled scabs on her feet.
"I was just desperate to walk again Reece. I guess I forgot about my mutilation because of all the care you gave me. You treat me like one of your own." Viola said shyly, looking away from Reece, with the familiar feeling that she might have angered her. This was familiar to her somehow; it must have been something from Ellen's biased memories.
Reece meticulously changed Viola's bandages. She applied antiseptic to prevent germ infection, pressing them against those stumps before she rewrapped Viola's legs into clean bandages. She relaxed as she deeply sank into Reece's arms; smiling as she embraced her, she felt jubilant and crass at the same time because someone went through all the trouble to help her out of state yet she was stupid enough to make herself fall out. Viola remembered how she cared about people and other beings just as much as Reece did now.
Suddenly, Viola began seeing one of Ellen's memories. It flashed by so fast as if it were never there, the incident in that memory mirrored what Reece was doing. The memory was of a sickly Ellen with her loving mother, who changed her bandages every single day. The memory seemed very old considering the clothing and layout of Ellen's room. Viola couldn't' help but tear up at what Ellen did to her; she knew why she did but refused to accept it because she felt that the memories were being not being impartial and true to her. Soon she snapped herself back to reality.
Reece smiled, "I know it's tempting", as she moved on to the other leg stump after she finished wrapping up the first on, "But at the rate you're healing, it will at least take another, given proper dedication on both of our parts, to heal your legs Viola. Also, don't you want to get used to being able to see again before you start walking again?"
"I suppose you're right", Viola sighed with slight ungratefulness, "Speaking of that, how much longer do I have to continue wearing these bandages obscuring my eyes, Reece?"
"About another hour or so, Viola", Reece said as she finished bandaging Viola's leg stumps, following it by brief smile as she looked at the poor girl directly. Suddenly the thought of that reminded her, "I just remember this…umm. You still have to tell me how you got there in the forest, all mangled and grotesque, I mean."
Reece's words made whatever Viola was about to say stop short of itself. Viola tightened her fists as she bit her lip. She thought, "How am I supposed to break this to them and what will they do if they find out the truth. NOO… I can't tell Aiden. He might use any means to kill Ellen and cause a riot, I can't have that." It was unreasonable, even for her to think this, but she had the brain of a seven year old, the possibility of that not happening wouldn't break to her easy. She was shaking uncontrollably; the events that had transpired the last day still haunted her.
"Listen, it's alright", Reece said with reassurance as she gently placed her hand on Viola's shoulder with a motherly touch, "You can tell me everything right from the beginning and I assure you, I won't tell Aiden a soul."
"Promise?" Viola said as she still felt goose bumps against her skin. She though deeply; the truth was she herself couldn't explain why Reece claimed she had no sickness when she clearly remembered seeing glimpses of it in Ellen's memories and feeling it on her skins. The gross, scaly parts of her skin were so vivid to her that simply not having the disease seemed too good to be true. "How? Just how and why now?", she thought.
Reece gave her a blank stare before she stated petulantly, "Pinky promise." With that Reece grabbed Viola's wheelchair by the handles, rolling it down the hallway as the duo continued their conversation.
Changing the topic at hand, Viola took the initiative to speak again, "Reece, you're pretty powerful for a witch." She stuttered, "I mean, you're part-demon which, according to you, allows you to generate your own magic and you don't have to require a contract from a demon to get it in the first place." She looked at her with amazement, as she still couldn't swallow the notion of someone being a demon and a witch at the same time. It seemed impossible.
"Well, I wouldn't call myself powerful Viola", Reece said as she nervously messed with her braid. Pretty soon her nervousness transformed to shock as she absorbed the rest of Viola's statement, "Wait, you're one of those witches?"
"No, no…", Viola cried defensively, "I'm not one of them, at least not directly, Reece. That's what I'd like to say. And what kind of witch were you referring to."
"Those kinds of witches who are promised something from a demon, who start off as human beings.", Reece sighed as she explained, "These witches are more common these days. What sets them apart from natural-born witches, those born with power, is that their magic is a lot more malicious, not to mention limited. Not all witches are evil; they're inherently selfish but that does equate to them begin evil necessarily. Another thing that sets these witches apart is the apparent longevity; they remain the same age as to when they had first made the contract to the demon that promised them in return. Often times, it's either a self-fulfilled promise or a lie to begin with."
Viola was astonished by Reece's words, she initially thought of her as the same kind of witch as Ellen but she was wrong. This was a hard thing for her to swallow. With that, she knew she could trust her with anything, hopefully with the intention of understanding her pain, "It's as I said, I'll come clean with you after I can see you with my own two eyes. I want to be able to talk face-to-face with you otherwise I don't know how I can get you to believe me."
"Fair enough, Vi", Reece said casually as she smiled, "And again, I'm not that great. It's true that I'm naturally more powerful than a normal witch. Even though I can generate my own magic and inherited much more from my demon father, I still have my limits. In order for me to perform more advanced forms of magic, I need to be in close proximity to an energy source, something that endless supply of magic flows out. Witches can't have their own energy source, as all magic is shared by it. In my case, I need to have Aiden nearby when I need to perform something on that level. But if he isn't nearby, I need to store my own magic in items."
"Aiden, an endless source to all demon magic?", Viola gasped, "He's an energy source and you use him? Isn't that going to kill him?"
"Well you see, yes…and no", Reece said, unsure of her wording, "It's a bit more complicated than that. While it is true he provides me additional magic for my work, he doesn't mind it, regardless of the amount I take. You would be surprised by the amount of power he has. Even if I take a lot out of him, the supply would instantly regenerate in a matter of seconds."
"I know that asking stuff about him is somewhat out of the question…" Viola said anxiously, "But please let me ask you this Reece. Your friend Aiden, what IS he exactly? I apologize if its personal but I want to know because yesterday night when he found me, I found it nearly insurmountable to trust him." She began to breath heavily, "I couldn't help but feel very angry and jittery when I really shouldn't have been in the first place." Soon Viola found herself hyperventilating, "What is he Reece? I have to know otherwise I find it completely difficult to trust you or him. How can I put my faith in anyone I don't know anything about? And lastly, who are you people?"
Disquieted as to how confused and scared Viola was coming off as, Reece stopped in the middle of the hallway, firmly gripping the handles on her wheelchair as she stood their intently. Noticing the fear that ran through the girl's skin, Reece had decided to come clean with her. "Alright… just to be fair though, I'll tell you everything about us first, but I'll be giving you all the more reason to tell me everything about what happened to you later on.", she said without a trace of her kind nature.
"F-f-fair enough", Viola said with hesitation. She noticed Reece's tone as she said that; this was what was underneath her normally sweet nature, being blunt and to the point. Reece detested revealing this side to Viola to begin with, but now Viola was simply asking for it side to surface. She wasn't necessarily intimidating, just serious to the point where she didn't want to tolerate any demands.
Reece regained her composure as she continued to push the wheelchair. She began to organize her thoughts, making sure she was accurate with what she was about to say. After a few minutes of walking down the hallway, Reece finally spoke, "Alright, here is how it goes. Aiden is, or should I say, was a normal human being just like you are. When he was 7 years old, his hometown was bombarded into complete ruin. Feeling hopeless and abandoned, some people took him in and trained him. They did something to him in his early teens; after the training was complete, the elders in the department initiated a ritual that bestowed something known as the XX of XX an infinite magic source which few could handle.. Upon receiving it, his body was ravaged to the point he was close to death but he survived. Few years later, he ran away from the those people that took him in, slaughtering all of them in the process because he had found out their true motives. He's been a freelancer ever since. He may seem like a monster to you, but those cold and empty eyes were once full of life; he's still not someone you should worry about."
Viola, taking this all in one at a time, forcefully brought herself to ask Reece, "That's disturbing, but if he is a good person, then why is he such a jerk, Reece? And why do I feel anger and fear out of every human emotion possible."
Reece continued, "You would be surprised to what he has lost during the course of his lifetime, because of that he constantly puts himself through Hell because he feels he has nothing left to live for. That aside, the crest, along with other contributing factors, somewhat demoralized the way he thinks. The reason why many like you, humans, witches, demons etc., feel uneasy by him just simply existing is because his body contains Wrath. Unless you're used to it like me, you will feel it. His body projects a malicious aura that causes everyone to get angry and/or terrified to a drastic level."
"How great is that power, Reece?" Viola asked, curious to know what something like that was capable of, "And where did something like that originate from?"
"Hell, remember the seven sins? Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Envy and Pride", Reece curtly replied, "It's terrifying actually, but it's normal if you react to it violently, every living thing does. It's scope is to the point where it emits a continuous shockwave that will provoke you not only to be angry, but fearful as well. Also, because anger, in its primary sense is a fear, you will feel fear."
"H-hell?", Viola said, not liking the sound of anything that Reece explained to her now. Nevertheless she felt safe at the same time, because something like that helped her escape from her death.
"Yes", Reece said sternly, "And because of the all of that. Aiden usually wears a locket that doubles as a catalyst to suppress that energy, allowing him to pass off as a normal human being."
"If that is how his life was", Viola asked with suspicion, "Then how do you know him?"
"Well, to be completely honest. I've known him pretty much his whole life", Reece said nervously, "We met during his organization days. He group often targeted witches, and I was the target of his group at one point. He was forced the capture and torture me. Despite his love for me, he had to hide it well enough superiors that he was doing his job."
"I understand that", Viola said with disgust, "But how could you not be angry with him. He, in your eyes betrayed you, how could you not hold a huge grudge against him."
"To put it simply", said Reece in a casual manner, "I initially was very confused and upset about it, but later on I forgave him. Why because, I know he's better than that, and he wouldn't do anything extreme unless it was for a reason, albeit a crude and pathetic one as that."
"Why did you guys break up after all these years?", Viola wondered. It was odd to her that lovers can break up after knowing each other for so long."
"Job complications" Reece said, "He said he would end his job and continue being with me after he does this last task. Other times, he claimed he was sick and tired of me"
"What task?" Viola said uneasily, feeling she knew the answer to that question better than anyone else. She had a bad feeling in her gut what Aiden was going to do.
"Well, according to legend, you may have heard stories about a witch who lived in the forest for centuries, right?" Reece said hesitantly, "The one that kidnaps children who get lost in the forest and they never see their parents again? Ring a bell?"
"The witch of the forest?" Viola said as she recalled what the people in her rural village used to say, the legend that had been going on for many centuries now. "Who could that be?", she said as she feigned ignorance; she clearly knew that this witch that was being discussed was Ellen and giving that what Reece explained earlier to her, Ellen fits the bill perfectly.
"I honestly don't know Vi…", Reece said in disappointment, "Aiden has only told me a handful of things about this one. What he told me was that she lives in this exact forest and the fact that many others before him attempted to kill her and either died or got severely injured in the process. I doubt he himself knows what she looks like or even her identity. The department of paranormal security was never really good with giving out names and faces of their targets. They themselves are not that bold enough to go there."
"Others before him…", Viola stated timidly before she started to project her thoughts, "As in others tried to kill Ellen?", she scrolled through the memories of this body, the memories of the many killers that ended up getting killed instead, most importantly, she remembered the one that made Ellen's life as a witch unbearable. How that sword propelled her out her window, how her life was supposed to end with the assassin's sword severing her head. Only for her to come back to life with the demon's contract as he further manipulated her.
"Yes… others, Vi." Reece said, noting Viola's face turning pale, "Apparently, the first one who did it was sure she was dead, only for others to find out in the end he had failed."
"Oh, al-alright" Viola said with mixed feelings. She was scared more than ever now of Aiden due to the fact that what if he would brutally murder her given the circumstance when he does find out. "What will he do to me?", she thought, "He'll kill me, I can't have Reece tell him anything about me, not yet. That doesn't mean I can keep this from her though, he's so kind, so loving, so trusting. If Ellen were here in my place, she would add foolish but no I trust her with my life at this point, just have to give it time."
"That suddenly reminds me, Vi", Reece said, instantly changing the subject without warning. Seriousness gone, she was back to her humane self, "Let me take you outside to my garden; It'll get you some fresh air." With that, the conversation they were having reached a closing point as the duo made their way to the sliding door on the far end of the hallway, embarking to the outside world.
It was a lovely summer day outside as Reece pushed Viola's wheelchair outside through the door. The morning breeze gently flew through Viola's flawless skin. Viola was amazed by how amazing the wind felt against her, feeling that it was been forever since she has been outside, or so it seemed to her. Ellen never went outside with her own body without breaking down in the process, Viola thought, "But why are things so different for me?"
Viola found it still traumatizing after she had learned about Reece and Aiden's origins. She was disturbed by the fact that Aiden was seeking Ellen, indirectly seeking her. Shaking the thought out of her head, she tried reassuring herself that on wasn't doing so; that he was looking for someone else. But who was she kidding other than herself. To her, Aiden finding out will result in chaos and destruction.
"Here we are" Reece said with a singsong tone, "My, what a beautiful day outside today", admiring the elegance of her garden, the greenery around her, the clear blue sky, the radiant sun and the puffy clouds. "You have to get a look at this firsthand", she continued.
Still feeling the light breeze tickling against her skin, Viola agreed to Reece's statement, "Umm… if that's the case, does that mean I can take off these bandages now", pointing to her face.
Reece gave a stare before she said, "Oh alright, go ahead if you wish." She turned around back into the house, "You wait here, I'll get a mirror for you so you can see."
As Reece turned to take her leave, it was time for the moment of truth. Viola began picking on the bandages on her face slowly, remembering that this was Ellen's body and not her own. She became increasingly dubious when it came to her seeing her, no Ellen's eyes. The same eyes Ellen used to deceive her were now her own. The thought of it upset her greatly. She would be able to see the world again though her own perspective, while at the same time it was not the same looking through someone who never experienced the light of day at all in centuries firsthand. Little by little, she continued to unravel the remaining bandages.
After a few minutes, Reece reappeared with a hand mirror in her hand. She braced herself to see her Viola's eyes firsthand. The last of the bandages were off, Viola initially kept her eyelids closed, scared of facing the inevitable.
"Be careful, you don't want the sun to hurt your newly-restored eyes", Reece said in concern, "Remember baby steps."
"I hear you", Viola said as she started to open her eyes in a leisurely manner, rubbing them carefully as she blinked. She used her restored eyes to face the world. Blurry at first, her eyes cleared everything in her line of sight. For the first time in what seemed like forever, Viola seemed to remember how beautiful the world was around her. Her yellow eyes, Ellen's eyes, faced the world. They glistened in the sun's light just as the moon did. "Reece, your garden is beautiful with all the flowers you have. I'm, I'm surprised about this indeed.", she said, forgetting her fear that she felt briefly.
"Umm… thanks Vi, but honestly this is nothing". Reece said defensively, "This is all a product of manual labor, I didn't use magic on this."
"Reece! You have a natural talent for this-a green thumb one would say. Magic or not, this is impressive", Viola exclaimed, "You underestimate yourself a lot, don't do that. I couldn't do something like this back at home." She caught herself tongue; the thought of recalling her home devastated her. The homes that she was raised in, born in, now harbored a witch in her place. She tried to take her mind off it as she turned her attention to Reece.
"Th-thanks Viola at the bottom of my heart?", Reece said with petulant embarrassment, "Oh, your eyes, can I see them. What do they look like? I did they spell in such a way so it could regenerate your natural eye color"
"Alright" Viola said as she smiled, tilting her head into Reece's direction; she stared at Reece's with her golden eyes.
At the sight of such a beautiful thing, Reece gave out a small glee, "Viola you're eyes. They're so beautiful; they resemble a pair of moons or cats eyes. I've never seen such color, must be rare."
"She's right, Ellen's eyes are beautiful it's a shame she gouged them out, I wonder how she and dad are doing.", Viola thought, redirecting her stare from Reece as the smile on her face faded away, "Please Reece, if anything you're honestly one of the most beautiful women I've ever met in my entire life; I'd even say I'm jealous of you."
Feeling embarrassed by her compliment, Reece replied by saying, "Lets us agree to stop saying stuff that might embarrass us, understand", as she let out her hand.
Viola raised her hand, shaking Reece's, "Alright, agreed", Viola said with her smile slowly turning upside down as she remembered what she promised and what Reece enforced, "Reece. Remember that I…"
Cutting her off mid-sentence, Reece said, "It's okay Vi, relax yourself first, you can tell me everything in the evening. After dinner sound good enough. You need to do some adjusting and time to give yourself some time to enjoy yourself.", placing her finger on Viola's small nose, ensuring her to not to speak any further.
"If you say so", Viola said as she twiddled her thumbs. They way Reece smiled at her gave her flashbacks to how Ellen's mother smiled, in fact every single thing Reece had done for her directly reminded her of Ellen's mother and how she hated her.
"You want to take a stroll in the garden?" Reece asked her with the intention of showing her the place, all the flowers and plants that were present there from the paisleys to the azaleas.
"Yes, yes I would love that." Viola said strongly, "Absolutely."
Reece, happy with her response, grasped her wheelchair by its handles, moving gently through the garden. They examined the flowers there.
Viola loved every flower that was present there, including the ones she was named after. But she felt a strongly drawn to roses as well, just as Ellen did before her. The roses to her were her limbs and her weapons of mass destruction. To Viola roses meant a lot more depending on the color. They symbolized life in so many ways that Ellen couldn't understand.
Sometime later, the two had tea with biscuits as they sat on the porch. After they finished with their snack, they engaged themselves in cordial discourse about their lives.
"Reece, how long have you lived here?", Viola asked, all agog. She was trying to clear any confusion she may have had.
"Not long, I've only lived here for a couple years or so, prior to that I traveled a lot.", Reece said, staring at the sky.
"Why?" Viola asked, "Why migrate a lot, why not remain sedentary? "
"My family and I were on the run a lot", Reece responded, voicing her displeasure, "There were other executors like Aiden just after my family because it is rare for a demon and a witch to have hybrid offspring. They wanted us for lab-rats; that is what Aiden told me at least."
"That's just sad", Viola said as she looked back at everything, "I never thought of witches being that way. Then again, I didn't know that much till you tell me."
"It's as I said before Viola," Reece said upfront, "Not all witches are what you hear from folktales and not all of them are malicious. Not all of us are out to cause havoc, some of us are running because the executors made it their duty to slaughter all trace of witchcraft. I mean you can't necessarily blame them, they still stick to those thoughts without taking chance."
"Is Aiden like that", Viola, asked still unsure about him in general, "I mean does he k-k-kill with-without hesitation, Reece?"
"Umm… I cannot say for certain because that is questions I outright don't know the answer to myself. I tend to stay out of what he does", Reece said, chagrined on how secretive he had been during their time together, "But I can tell you this, if he were like that I would be dead right now. I feel that he has some idea not all witches are bad, as he told me he's determined not to be like other executioner's. He claims he doesn't kill just anyone, but in terms of his attitude on duty, he is quite merciless. Don't get the job wrong Viola, executioners don't necessarily save you, most of them are simply dogs that are paid to kill."
"Yikes… that's scary" Viola said, astounded by what kind of ridiculous job was being discussed, "You told me he plans to retire though and then you two can have a happy life together, something like that."
Looking up at the setting sun, Reece stared into the distance, unsure of her words at this point, "He said there is a possibility. No, he gave me his word, he promised me. Trust me, he'll come back for me." Who was Reece kidding, Aiden was a very convoluted; he is pretty difficult to read.
"Sounds like that man has a heart of golden underneath his cold-hearted ruthlessness", Viola said mockingly, "I still don't believe that though, until otherwise, I consider him to be blatantly rude without any sort of justification."
"Oh trust me, and he has a heart. He wasn't always like this, remember what I told you", Reece said as she blushed, now being all flattery, "While his eyes do lack the radiance they used to emit, I know there is some part of him that isn't how you expect him to be. That aside, he's a pain in the butt with an explosive temper. Good thing he rarely gets mad."
"If you say so", Viola said, reflecting back on her possibility of death and comeuppance. Her fear turned to reassurance as she put faith in Reece's words. If Aiden would come for her, Reece would tell him what she told her.
"It's running late, I should probably take you inside and prepare some dinner." Reece said, noticing the sun was setting at an ever-increasing rate. She picked up Viola, placing her back in the wheelchair that she took back inside. They rolled the chair down the surprisingly bright hallway.
Within in a few minutes they reached the kitchen where Viola's wheelchair was placed in front of the table. Reece walked to her stove, reached her hand into and pulled out a fresh batch of lasagna. She placed it one table as she used her magic to levitate the plates and silverware directly on the table.
"Why don't you use magic to make food, Reece?", Viola asked, acting ignorant to the obvious answer.
"I prefer doing things the old fashioned way, plus I need to save up on mana to heal your legs tomorrow silly." Reece said, "Magic is not a toy per say, it's more of a tool that responsible witches used judiciously."
"Oh, I forgot about that part", Viola said slyly. She hadn't forgotten that part at all. She had the common sense to answer that question, she just wanted to keep talking to Reece.
"Anyway, let's dig in", Reece cried with joy. She was a real glutton for food despite her figure; her voracious appetite was not lady-like for Aiden's standards. A factor that annoyed him to no end, but he wasn't here to dictate her actions, now that they were 'broken-up.'
"Let's", Viola repeated, grabbing the first helping of lasagna. Reece took her helping and began to eat as well.
For half an hour, both girls were fairly content as the continued talking nonchalantly about miscellaneous things. The whole lasagna was nearly finished with only two people managed to do just that.
"You're such a glutton Viola", Reece said playfully.
"Pfft and you're not, Reece, you should have seen the look on your face during the meal.", Viola teased.
"Hmm, fair point, but I'm part-demon, we naturally have somewhat a somewhat ravenous appetite." Reece said defensively, "You on the other hand are something else, what's your excuse glutton?"
"Alright, you got me there", Viola said with a sly smile, "But, using you're demonic heritage isn't a valid excuse. Excuses, excuses, what's to say you're not the real glutton."
Reece quickly washed the dishes in the sink and saved the last piece of lasagna for Aiden. She took Viola to the living room to bring about the moment of truth.
"Anyway Vi", Reece said, gently placing Viola on the her sofa, "I know you might have realized that I'd given you plenty of time for you to get your thoughts in line. You've held onto those thoughts for so long it's time to come clean" She stroked her light purple hair and looked her in the eyes, establishing aplomb in Viola, "Just tell me everything from the beginning and as promised I won't tell Aiden, regardless of the severity."
"Where should it feel safe to start?" Viola wondered as she organized her thoughts.
"It's best you start from the very beginning", Reece suggested, "Just tell me everything that led up to your pitiful condition."
"Okay, promise leave your concerns at the end", Viola said fretfully, "It all first started during some time earlier this summer. I got lost in the woods one day, till I found a black cat that led me to this huge manor. Over there, lived a lonely, sick seven-year-old girl named Ellen, all by herself with no sight of her parents. She claimed that she had lived there all by herself after her parents passed away, servants aside."
"What was she like?", Reece nodded in retaliation to what Viola was speaking. She was being considerate and serious again as to oppose to her frolic nature Aiden always accused her of having.
"She looked younger than me. She was, at least I thought she was, very assertive, somewhat stubborn and seemed bedridden all the time.", Viola stated as her expression darkened, "Pitying her from the very first time I saw her, I visited her every day with all the time I had to spare doing something else, unless the situation prevented me from doing so."
"I see", Reece said, absorbing the content that Viola poured out of her system like a sponge, "What did you guys usually do when you came to visit?"
"I would sit on a chair next to her, talk to her about stuff about how my life was. I even attempted to take her outside to play, but she blatantly refused every single time I'd consider it, likely because of her disease. We had tea and even ate together at times. I sensed in her eyes she felt alone, but I was clearly wrong.", Viola said, distraught at bringing this all back up, "I pitied her so much, that I even suggested if only I could trade places with her."
"What happened then?", Reece said, letting her concern be known.
"One faithful day, my father and I had an argument because he was concerned for my safety. He was always overly protective of me, but I never knew why", Viola said as tears rolled down her eyes, "He'd often bring up that there was a witch who lived in the forest that kidnapped children who get lost there. Because of that, he seemed to have a problem with me going to Ellen's one day as it was very near the forest and that is where it all went downhill. Little did he or I know she was the witch the legend everyone referred to. Yes, the same witch we discussed earlier."
"Continue", Reece said, stressing the features on face even more as it darkened her demeanor. She braced herself for what Viola had to say next.
"I went to Ellen's place; that day she claimed that she was feeling a lot more sick than usual. She was sure that she was going to die, I couldn't just let her sit there and suffer. So sure, she gouged out her eyes and cut off her own legs. Being the trusting and considerate person I was, I surprised it came to that." Viola said as her voice started to crack.
Reece patted her back, "You made it this far, please finish this and let it all out." She wanted to verify if this was all leading to the same conclusion she had long jumped to mid-way into the conversation.
"Ellen revealed to me that she was a witch, she told me that she learned a body switching spell. She told me that she wanted to know what it felt like to be healthy, what it felt like to be able to walk and not be bedridden all the time", Viola wheezed.
Reece brought the girl closer to her as she leaned on her shoulder for support.
"She wanted me to trade bodies with her just for that reason, just for a day she said. So I honored her wishes as she asked me to wait in her room.", Viola said, as her despair changed to rage, "Little did I know, before the switch happened Ellen had gouged out her own eyes and cut off her own legs to make sure I would suffer. After it was finished, I screamed and shouted, begging Ellen to help make the pain go away. The next thing she did was gave me what I though was medicine and asked me to drink it. It was not actually medicine, but some sort of throat-burning liquid I had forced down my destroyed my vocal cords, rendering me incapable of speaking."
Reece gasped, "Viola, that's horrible", she sat down, moving Viola closer, placing her head on her lap.
"Want to know the worse part?", Viola said, "As I suffered she laughed; the one who I thought was my friend deceived me. She laughed at me as if it were a funny joke then she stormed off with my body."
"Oh my goodness, then how did you end up in the middle of the woods where Aiden found you.", Reece said, trying to contain her anger.
Viola snapped, "After Ellen's cruel deception, I had attempted to use whatever little magic she had left to trap her inside her own house and hopefully get my body back. She managed to evade every obstacle I placed in her way, and I managed to use the remaining magic I had to chase her down despite my horrible state. I chased her all the way outside of her house, coercing her to give my body back. She ended up stabbing me in the stomach, causing me already deteriorating condition to worsen. What made things worse was when daddy came and shot me, believing Ellen to be me. I tried speaking to him, getting him to understand, but I could not speak at all, my voice was completely destroyed.", tears flowed from her eyes as she continued, "I managed to survive that though. With the last of the magic that inhabited Ellen's body, I managed to save myself by deflecting one of the two bullets he shot at me while the other one got me in the shoulder. "
"You poor soul, what happened after that?", Reece said, giving Viola a warm hug a warm hug. The touch was like the mother Viola never new she had.
"They left me for dead after that, but unfortunately I was not alone.", Viola said, continuing her story as Reece rubbed the tears out of her eyes in the process, "The black cat I mentioned earlier, was a demon in disguise. He was the demon Ellen made a contract with for the magic she received. With the contract about to end, he was about to swallow my soul and that would be it." She began to shiver uncontrollably as she kept speaking, "The demon possessed the cat's body to move around. Just as I thought I about cursing my existence and seeing that this will be the end, Aiden managed to scare the demon off. Next thing I remember is waking up in your clinic in my horrible state."
"You've had it rough, I won't deny that Vi", Reece said, giving Viola a box of tissues to blow her nose with as she continued to pat her back.
"As you can see Reece", Viola concluded, "This isn't my body, it's Ellen's body. Ellen, the witch of the forest. As for your question from this morning, no I'm not the malicious kind of witch you talked about. I'm just a human girl who lived in a rural village known as XXX. That is why hearing her voice coming from me makes me very uncomfortable, all it does is remind me of what she did. Why did this happen to me Reece? What should I do? Ellen stole my body and my life away from me." She moaned as she finally let it all out.
"I don't think I'll be able to do anything about it without causing a riot", Reece stated in all seriousness, "And calm down. Tell you what, until anything else is possible, you can stay here as long as you want to, since you cannot go back to your father."
"Th-thank you", Viola said, "Thank you so much". Initially when she first arrived here, she thought she would be consumed by hatred like Ellen had already been, but she knew she was better than that. These people, Reece and Aiden brought her back to good health. They were good people; she considered them family at this point. She saw Reece as a surrogate mother to her while now opening up to Aiden.
"You're braver than you give yourself credit for", Reece said smiling, "I assure you Aiden, until the time is right, will not hear a word about this and good thing you told me this after he left, he would've caused lots of destruction if he heard this right away."
"Reece, after you restore my legs, can you promise to take me to my town tomorrow if time permits. I'd like to know if daddy is alright." Viola asked, longing to see the life that she had regret leaving behind, to see if Ellen got what she wanted.
"If time permits, in that case we will have to wake up early again tomorrow", Reece stated, "At the rate you're healing, I could fix you by tomorrow evening. I'll let you sleep in my room on my bed tonight while I sleep on the sofa tonight to make sure you don't feel alone."
"Thanks, but no thanks", Viola said, "I can handle myself"
"No I insist", Reece asserted, "You're sleeping in my room whether you like it or not." She grabbed Viola's wheelchair and took her to her room where they spent the night sleeping.
Little did the two of them know, a lot of secrets were in store for them. They would soon reveal themselves, amalgamating into a form of twisted despair, malice and cruelty.
Note: Dang this chapter was long, even for me. As usual guys, leave your questions/comments/concerns in your reviews and I'll be happy to respond to them. I insist guys, any questions feel free to ask. I noticed that you guys enjoy this fanfic and that helps me a lot. Thank You, I didn't expect to see this become this popular.
