A/N: Forgive me for the late update.
I wasn't sure why I was crying. I was finally leaving them behind. Leaving behind the pain and the hurt. The good memories, the bad. The witch hunters who had fucked my life up.
But they weren't the only things I was abandoning. My pride. My answers. My closure. My best friend. The missing children. The mayor.
All these things trailed in my wake as I hightailed it out of town. Maybe Hansel was right. Maybe I am weak. Maybe I am fragile. Because I gave up and that meant they were winning. Again.
My head bowed in shame snuggling closer to Kain in comfort; hands buried deep in his long mane as the tears flowed from my eyes. And with every tear, I felt a little of my soul break, yet I still ran. Towards no one. Away from everyone.
The gunshots snapped me out of it. Any remnants of tears were wiped away, and my body stood ramrod straight. Listening. Watching. Noting. Preparing. Yet still I wasn't ready for it.
The witch came out of nowhere, slamming into me so hard she knocked me to the ground. I landed flat on my back gasping for breath. Her sickly yellow eyes pushed the sadness and shame deep inside of me and rage jumped to the surface.
My eyes narrowed, and I brought my head back smashing it into hers. She fell, hands holding her sore head, scrambled to her feet, and sprinted away.
"Come back here bitch." I growled following close behind her. The trees blurred around me and with each breath of air I grew closer and closer to the witch, tackling her harshly to the forest floor.
Just as soon as her back hit the ground, she had thrown me off. My foot shot out, swinging around so that her body dropped down again. Her wand flew away in the process and I rose to my feet to do more damage.
When I looked though, the hag was already pinned to the ground and I scanned my new ally with impressed interest. Her dark brown eyes stared severely down at the witch without fear, holding more knowledge than their years. Her chestnut-colored hair was pulled back in a no-nonsense, messy french braid and she wore trousers, something frowned upon in this era, but I was almost positive the woman cared nothing about being proper as I witnessed her swing her fist back and connect it to the witch's face.
A smirk found its way to my lips and I sprang into action, fighting alongside the stranger. Fists went flying and were dodged. Feet kicked out and were evaded. We danced this complicated dance for some time until a shot rang out, and I ducked down just narrowly dodging a bullet that instead drove into the tree behind me, exploding the bark around it.
"What the hell?" My head snapped to our second unwelcome guest and I froze.
He was beautiful, sexy as hell, and impossibly attractive. Messy bronze hair cropped short. Thin, pink lips shaped into an angry frown. Stern and serious eyes that seemed to change color every time I blinked. Green. Grey. Hazel. And the most alluring shade of blue I'd ever seen.
He held the gun expertly in his hands standing tall with confidence, shoulders back, head straight, legs spread evenly apart, decked out in all leather despite the sun beating down on us through the trees.
He didn't spare me a glance just stared straight at the witch, but for some reason I couldn't take my eyes off of him. He reminded me of Hansel, but there was something stronger pulling me toward this stranger than I'd ever felt with him.
This was not a mere boy; he was a man, who knew what he wanted and how to get.
I quaked in my boots, stunned by his presence and I wanted to move, this was after all a fight, but I was attracted by his sensuality like a bee to honey. I was screwed and distracted in the middle of the battle.
The witch used the chance I gave her, snaking her arm around my neck and squeezing tight. I reluctantly turned my attention back to combat, feeling her ghastly breath on my neck as her mouth stretched into an evil smile. "Wouldn't want to hurt the dear girl now would you?" She taunted to the two who had paused in their pursuit, pulling on my neck for extra measure. "Drop the guns."
To my surprise, both lifted their hands in surrender without hesitation, bending down slowly to do as she said. I scowled.
"You must not know who I am witch." I struggled out holding tight to her arm. "I'm no one's prisoner." I threw myself backwards landing hard on top of her. Once I'd caught my breath, I sent an elbow towards her face and dived away.
I stood to my feet with power and added, "Not anymore."
The witch got to her feet a few moments after and we turned to face each other, both snarling. Black blood was streaming out of her nose and I smiled cheekily at my work. The others flanked my sides, weapons trained steadily on their threat.
Her eyes flashed back and forth between the three of us calculatingly. Should I go or should I stay, they seemed to say. Her answer was obvious when she spun on her heel and made a dash for it.
And just as I prepared to chase after her...
"Gretel!" The world around me stopped at the name; my heart beating triple time in my chest and my feet finding it hard to move.
I watched detached as the girl shot the runaway witch straight through the ankle. She was strung up in the tree flailing about in anger; my enemies laughed. They laughed while I was in turmoil. My eyes filled with water even after I told myself long ago that I wouldn't shed another tear for Hansel and Gretel.
I was in front of them without realizing how I'd gotten there, standing precariously close to the witch unfocused with tears in my eyes. I stared at them shouting hateful words in my mind but not even a squeak escaped my mouth.
Hansel noticed first. Funny because he never seemed to notice most things when we were together. "What's wrong with you?"
"Gretel…" my voice cracked. "You called her Gretel." I'd been fighting with them without even realizing how natural it'd felt. And how much I'd missed it.
His face screwed up in confusion and he shared a look with his sister. "Yeah...? That's her name."
I looked to Gretel seeing the supposed stranger through new eyes. This was that little girl that I talked hours with, dreaming up stories of make-believe parents that loved us and would have never thrown us away. Fantasizing about a beautiful mother and protective father. Planning my wedding with her brother as groom and her as my only bridesmaid. Playing princess and visualizing ourselves in elegant ball gowns.
That Gretel was no more. That little girl was gone and a woman stood in her place. I'd missed the transformation she'd undergone where the innocence had disappeared and the maturity had set in. Where she turned men's heads and gained women's scorn. I wasn't there to teach her, to guide her, to witness it. I'd missed my little sister growing up.
I turned away struggling to keep it together though I knew that just looking at them was tearing me apart. The tears were already flooding my cheeks. "And you're...You're Hansel?"
Hurt drowned my words but he didn't understand. After all this time, he still didn't understand. "Ah, I see. You're a fan."
A sob rose from my belly, and he rolled his eyes like I was inconveniencing him. Like this was ruining his entire day. Well I'm sorry Hansel. I'm sorry we ever had to meet again.
I clutched my fist to my chest to alleviate the pain. Did he not care? Did he not care that he was turning my world upside down again?
"Listen, I know you must love us and all but you really can't go out getting in fights with witches like this. It's dangerous and quite frankly we don't need the help. We're professionals. So you should run on home. We've got it from here."
Gretel slapped her brother's arm scolding him. She whispered hoping to spare my feelings, but I heard her loud and clear and wondered why she even cared because she'd hurt me just as much as her brother. But not more. No one could ever hurt me as much as Hansel had. "Don't be so rude, Hansel. She's crying."
"So?" His voice was so harsh and I told myself I should hate him, tell him off, leave, do anything, but the memories of us flashed before my eyes and I could do nothing but stare and cry. I felt stupid and I guess I was for letting him hurt me again.
Hansel was still my weakness as he had always been. He'd stabbed my heart over and over again, and no matter the amount of bandages and time I gave them to heal, the scars still stayed and they burned like hell. But no matter how much pain he put me through, it would always be him. Hansel was it for me, and I think that was the worse part.
"Watch out!" Gretel's warning didn't register through my thoughts, and it wouldn't have mattered anyway. The witch was already barreling towards me and I'd sunk to the floor consumed by darkness with Hansel's "Son of a bitch!" resounding in my wake.
