"You're going alone?"
A slim frame leaned loosely on the door frame, wearing nothing but his underwear. His Chestnut hair stood wildly at all angles and fresh red nail scratches traced down his back.
"You weren't supposed to wake up…" She admitted, aggressively shoving a bulky jacket into a small brown bag.
Mitch sighed running his hand through his hair, trying to detangle what he could.
"Suddenly got really cold. Would be nice to go back to bed and warm up."
Buttercup shook her head, turning to face the man.
"Mitch. Let's not do this." She gestured between them. "You know this is what has to be done. Please don't make it harder."
Mitch slowly closed the space between them, pinning Buttercup against the table between his arms.
"You could have taken me with you. Thought this over or asked someone else…" he locked eyes with her vibrant green ones, his mouth inches from hers. "You could have said goodbye at least…" his breath warm on her cheek.
Buttercup curled her arms around his neck tracing the raised red lines down his back.
"I thought I already did."
He pushed away from her, clutching his fists. "Does anything I say or do matter to you? You said it yourself. We don't know what to expect out there."
"And that's exactly why I can't let anyone else go…"
"And you can't go alone."
"Mitch. I not some weak little girl…" Buttercup started before Mitch grabbed her and pulled her against him.
"You're not just some girl. You're someone so fucken important to me and the fact you don't understand that baffles me beyond words. I didn't volunteer so I could escape this place. I did it so you didn't have to put yourself out there."
Buttercup blinked at him before letting out a soft chuckle.
"I can handle myself just fine out there."
"I know that. But I don't want to sit around wondering if maybe you couldn't."
She returned to a straight face and stepped back from him. "What we have is fun. But it's nothing serious. Mitch.." she turned back grabbing the overflowing bag and tossing it over her shoulder.
She took a deep breath, her voice sounding more as if she were giving an order than talking to him personally. "I am older than most choose to believe. I've had more time to practice and train for nearly anything that can be thrown my way. You are a mortal human boy. You're strong, fast and smart and that is exactly why I need you to stay. They need you."
Mitch scuffed grabbing ahold of the bag strap. "I'm expendable. You're stronger and smarter and faster. If anything they need you more here."
She swatted his hand away and pushed him to the side in a swift movement, marching to the door. "Die fighting for this place. They can't have you die out there. If you die out there…" She rolled her shoulders back and snapped her attention back to him. "We will all die. I can't send someone who I don't believe can do it." She snapped, storming out of the door.
She let out a shaky breath once she couldn't hear footsteps after her. She hadn't realized she was holding her breath until now.
The village around her was silent, not even the sound of chirping crickets or the flutter of a bird's wing. The forest had been listening. And from the sudden movement from the neighboring hut so was Floyd and Lloyd.
Without a second look back Buttercup disappeared through the thorny bushes and into the never ending dark wood around her.
Butch wrinkled his nose, watching the thin man scarfing back rock beetles.
"You can't be serious…" Butch gagged, unable to tear his vision away from the green legged goo oozing through the man's teeth.
The man swallowed with a hard gulp, reaching a handful of squirming legs out to the boy.
"Only way to survive. They ain't as bad as you'd think. Kinda like chicken…. I haven't had chicken in a long time… so I may be wrong. Point is it ain't bad." He shrugged, stuffing his hand into his mouth and sucking the beetles from his fingers.
"I'm going to pass." Butch put his hands up as if the old man would take any other movement as a sign he wanted some.
Butch turned his attention back to the stone wall. It continued to tease him every passing hour with flashes of blinding light peeking out of the hole. It felt like he had been trapped down here for years with this crazed old man, it was starting to drive him insane.
No matter what turn he made back through the tunnels he always returned to this small opening. Back to the smelly old man. Back to the unattainable exit.
Butch huffed, flopping back onto the cold floor of the cave. "If I'm lucky I'll die." He grumbled, curling himself into a ball. He squeezed his eyes shut trying to tune out the loud open mouth chewing and fall asleep.
"Pathetic…" A hollow voice whispered.
A cold chill ran up his spine but his body wouldn't let him move to see who spoke. He could hear sharp clicks on the stone around him as if someone where walking.
"Out of the three I had the most expectations of you my son. Strong, brave, and apparently a failure." The voice grew aggressive at the end.
"By now I had hoped Mojo would have taught you what great potential I have gifted you."
It felt as if sharpen nails lightly traced over his skin, just light enough to give him goosebumps and make him squirm.
"Butch my boy, you were crafted from the strongest stone in this land. Birthed by the blood of the land. You cannot be trapped by what you control…" the voice purred in his ear.
"Do not disappoint me again." It ordered, shoving Butchs face into the ground, digging it's nails into his scalp.
Suddenly the weight was lifted from a top Butch, pulling him up as it went away. He looked around for the source of the voice. The old man lay silently snoozing beside him and the light behind the wall was no longer lit.
"That was a dream? Right?" He questioned, holding his head. He didn't feel any different than he had before, and nothing had changed.
He dusted his pants off and ventured off into the tunnels once again. But just as they had before they brought him right back to the small opening and crazy old man.
He was going crazy in here. Trapped like an animal left to die. He didn't want to turn out like the old man struggling to survive. What was the point of surviving if you couldn't live. Everything he sought after in life was once again stripped away from him.
"Fuck." He punched the wall, cutting his knuckles on the uneven stone.
"This." He slammed his fist into the wall again, harder than before. Speckles of blood left behind from the impact.
"Shit!" His fist met the rock with a hard thump. His breath hitched and his heart fell to his stomach. A strange tingling feeling shot through his body to his finger tips leaving him feeling numb. As he pulled his hand away the wall crumbled in a pile of dust and pebbles.
"I guess you wore the rock out!" The old man chuckled, clasping a hand on Butchs shoulder taking him by surprise.
With a large smile the man waved Butch on, "Come on… ah?" The man stuttered.
"Butch." Butch filled him in.
The old man nodded, jabbing his thumb into his chest, "Names Franklin Lumpkins, but my family use to call me Fuzzy."
"Ok… Fuzzy? Shall we go?" Butch asked, pointing to the untouched freedom before them.
With a skip in their step the two steps over the rubble.
Buttercup curled her toes in the warm sand, sinking lower into the land. Sweat beaded down her face. She could feel her skin cracking and turning red the longer she stood there.
The thick stand of trees surrounding her home kept the forest at a comfortable temperature, she never realized just how much those cluster of leaves shielded them from the sun's scorching heat until now.
Looking forward the sand never ended, no homes, no travelers, no people not even a plant. Just the waves of heat in the air and more brown sand.
"Why did I do this…?" She shook her head, adjusting her bag strap and sulking farther into the desert.
"It's been way too long since I've felt the wet moist mud beneath my toes and tickling grass on ma feet!" Fuzzy cheered, twirling around in the sunlight. "At that sun! That wonderful glowing ball of warmth!" He rubbed the sun light into his arms as if it would vanish like a dream.
Butch chuckled, looking over his hands. The cuts that once grazed his knuckles were no longer there, just dry blood and dust from the ruins of rock.
He wasn't entirely sure what had just happened, but he was thankful nonetheless.
Fuzzy punched him lightly on the shoulder and flashed him a not so perfect smile. "Guess after all those years the rock started to melt!" Fuzzy held his chin in thought. "Ya know, from that dripping water! Makes the rocks smooth and break!"
Butch shook his head and smiled back at the man. "Yeah. 'melted'." He chuckled, hands in pockets wandering through the open meadow.
From the inside the trees seemed more open, the blue sky rained in and the sun danced with the wind. The birds sang beautiful songs and deer prance through the bushes without a care in the world. Every petal bled vibrant colours of the rainbow and the air almost smelt sweet like fresh honey from a bees home.
Butch looked over to the happy man and snapped his fingers trying to get his attention. "So Fuzzy… You seem to know… everything. Where to?" Butch asked, his eyes flashing from one tree to another.
Fuzzy shrugged. "Village people will kill us on sight and the witch will do worse. Best we make a small home far from it all or try to get back to the outside."
Butch shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest. "No way! We are not going back into that cave. We fought to get out here. We deserve to be out here!" His lips curled into a smile as a devilish thought crept into his mind.
He cracked his knuckles, "I say we take what's ours…" He smirked cracking his neck.