Later that evening, Scarlet sat in her living room, bored out of her mind. The Weasley twins had parted ways with Scar not long after they had spied on Dom, and now she was alone and bored.
After an hour of attempting various activities; drawing, coloring, reading, jewelry making, even knitting. Nothing kept her entertained for long.
Sighing in boredom, Scarlet set down the bracelet she was working on, and got up to find Dominique.
Walking out back, she found him playing kickball against the side of the house.
"Hey Dom, wanna play hide and seek?"
"Nah, I just wanna play some kickball. Go color with some chalk or something." Dominique replied, getting his soccer ball and trotting off to go play by the garden wall.
Huffing, Scar crossed her arms and glared at Dom. Watching him kick his ball around. After a minute or so, Scarlet walked up to him.
"Please Dom? Can you at least play one round with me?" She begged, giving her brother puppy dog eyes.
"No! I don't want to play. You always win because you cheat. I don't play games with cheaters."
At that, he turned and continued to kick the ball against the garden wall.
Crossing her arms, Scar glared at the ball, wishing it would fly away into the trees so Dom would have to play with her then.
No sooner had she thought this, Dominique kicked the ball a little to hard, and it went sailing away into the woods and out of sight.
Laughing, Scarlet ran up to her brother.
"Will you play with me now Dom?"
"No. I'm going to go get my ball back." He stated, as he started to head into the woods.
"But mum says we can't go into the woods now. The bears and snakes and bobcats will be coming out now that is spring. If you don't come play with me, I'll go tell mum and dad."
But Dom didn't listen to her. He continued on into the woods, and soon disappeared.
Sighing in exasperation, Scar ran in after him, and was soon covered in shadows.
Forging ahead through the newly grown underbrush, she called out for her brother. Stopping and listening intently, she heard a faint shout in the distance.
Heading in that direction, she came upon an old, gnarled tree. It's trunk wide and filled with knots. Its roots long and twisting. She recognized it as the beginning of the old forest, where her and the twins had built their treehouse- now long forgotten.
Looking around, she called again to her brother, and looked up when she heard him shout from above her.
Gazing down at her from the topmost branches was Dominique.
"I saw my ball up here. It's over there, stuck on that big branch."
He pointed to a spot just over Scarlet.
"No Dom, don't do it! It's too far. You'll fall and hurt yourself!" Scar yelled, but to no avail. Dominique started to reach out for the ball, the branch quivering as he scooted forward inch by inch.
CRACK!
Scarlet screamed as the branch broke and Dominique fell some forty feet, landing with a sickening thud at her feet.
Sobbing uncontrollably, Scar dropped to the ground and picked up her brother, who wasn't breathing.
"No, please Dom, please wake up! Please don't leave me."
Holding her dead brother in her arms, she sat there and cried over his body.
Holding him close to her, something sharp dug into her arm.
Setting her brother down gently, she noticed the bracelet she had made him for Christmas.
She recalled what had happened that day.
It's Christmas morning and Scarlet couldn't wait to get downstairs and open presents.
Jumping out of bed, she ran to Dominique's room and jumped on his bed.
"Dom wake up wake up! It's Christmas!"
Sitting up, Dom rubbed the sleep from his eyes and grinned at Scarlet.
"Come on Dom lets go downstairs!"
Grabbing her brothers hand, Scar pulled him out of bed and downstairs into the drawing room.
Their Christmas tree was in the corner of the room, bursting with glowing lights and twinkling ornaments. The underneath of the tree was teeming with presents big and small.
Squealing with delight, Scarlet ran to the tree and started to sort out the gifts.
After several moments her parents walked in, coffees in hand and smiles on their faces.
"Looks like Santa was generous this year. I guess you two have been extra good." Their mother laughed.
Grinning, Scarlet looked up at her parents, waiting for the sign that she could open her gifts. After her father nodded, her and Dominique started to tear into their presents.
After a few happy hours of opening presents and exchanging gifts, her parents got up and went into the kitchen to start on breakfast. Once they were gone, Scarlet turned to her brother and pulled out a small wrapped gift from behind her back.
"Here Dom," she said, as she handed him the gift, "I made you something."
"Thanks Scar." He ripped open the present and scowled.
"What's this?" He demanded, as he pulled out a handmade bracelet, one of the stones painted a royal blue; his favorite color.
"I made you a bracelet... I even used your favorite color. Dark blue... I only painted the one, because the paint didn't want to stay on the beads... You don't like it do you?"
Scarlets lip started to quiver.
"Now don't you go crying Scar. Boys don't wear bracelets and you know it. Now come on, breakfast will be done soon."
He stood up pocketing the bracelet and holding out his hand.
Scowling at her brother, Scar pushed his hand away and stood up, heading into the kitchen to eat breakfast.
Scarlet shook her head.
These weren't her real memories. She'd only had the stones for a few days, and made Dom's bracelet yesterday evening.
It was true about the paint and stones. As hard as she had tried to paint them, it wasn't working. So only the one had been painted.
And as for Dom disliking the gift. Well.. That was true as well.
She thought that Dom had hated the bracelet, and yet here he was wearing it.
So why then, was she remembering something that didn't happen, so vividly as if it had?
Scar shuddered as goose flesh crawled up and down her arms.
She had made the bracelet yesterday, and painted it blue yesterday morning. That she knew for fact.
Except, the bracelet was no longer blue, but black and burnt looking.
Puzzled, Scar reached down to touch the bracelet, but stopped short when Dominique drew in a rattling breath and sat up gasping for a moment, looking around wildly before his eyes focused on Scarlet.
Crying out in joy and relief, Scarlet lunged forward and hugged Dominique hard. Clinging to him for dear life.
She pulled back and looked at her brother, tears streaming down her face.
"What happened? Why am I on the ground?" He paused as he looked up at the tree, a look of horror dawning on his face as he realized what had happened, "Did I fall from the top?" He asked, in a horrified whisper, eyes wide and scared.
Scarlet nodded. "You were trying to get your ball, when the branch broke and you fell. You weren't breathing and I thought for sure you were dead."
She hugged him again.
"Come on, let's go home. We can do a puzzle or something inside." Scarlet said, as she helped Dominique stand up.
"That sounds good Scar. Let's go home... And let's not tell mum and dad okay? I'm okay, so there's no need to worry them alright?"
"Alright Dom."
They walk in silence for a moment, hand in hand, before Scarlet spoke up, uncertainty laced her voice.
"Hey Dom.. I thought... Well I thought that you hated the bracelet?"
He looked at her puzzled, before comprehension dawned on his face.
"Oh that... Well.. I only pretended that I didn't like it."
"But why would you do that?"
"I don't know Scar. But I did like it, still do." He said, as he held up his hand to look at the bracelet, "Hey! What happened to it?! Why's it all black?"
"I don't know. But that's okay. I can make you another one if you like?"
She looked up at her brother, and he smiled down warmly at her, before enveloping her in a hug.
"I'd love that Scar. Thank you."
And with that, they walk out of the woods and inside.
Hey guys! Here's the next chapter! This one I had from my previous story, before I decided to redo the whole thing. I really like what I had going here, but the Christmas flashback didn't work with the timeline of when Scar got the beads she uses, (and I want to keep the timeline as consistent as possible) so I spur of the moment changed it up. I hope it works well, and that ya'll like it! If it doesn't make sense, please let me know! Thank you and enjoy!
P.S.
There was something important that I had to tell you guys, but for the life of me, I can't remember. Lol oh well!
Please please please let me know how you like it, if it makes sense, ect. Nobody is giving me any feedback and I'm kind of worried. Constructive criticism is welcomed!