I know, I know. I've been away for ages. I'm really sorry. Here's the third chapter of Changes. I hope you like!
Chapter 3: Charissa's past.
Charissa had insisted on going to the Music store, and dragged Kanichi and Rock down. She immediately put headphones on Rock's ears. Rock never really understood why people his age liked to listen to it. His idea of fun, of course, was hunting and shooting Robots. Country music filled his mind, with soft songs that actually made sense. Songs about taking a stand, and getting away from a life you should be doing, so look for a life you wished to be doing. Country was going quite out of date these days, but to Rock, it seemed just fine. Country was to sooth the soul, and mind, and gets you thinking about things. But maybe he was just misinterpreting the songs wrong. But that's what came to his mind when he heard these. They were songs about love, and about life. No other songs he heard before were like this at all.
He glanced over at Charissa, who was showing a CD to Kanichi. She had been trying to show him the greater things in life ever since he woke up the first day in the hospital. He seemed to grow attached to people who took pity on him, as he did with Duke Red. But this time, it was a girl his age. Could he be growing a different attachment to her, then to Duke? His was a fatherly/son type of attachment, but she was slightly younger then he. So what? Sister? Something else? The next thing he knew, he saw Charissa's hand waving in front of his face.
"Hello? Earth to Rock, any intelligent life in there? I said we're going, didn't you hear me?" Rock shook his head.
"Sorry, Charissa. I was just thinking, that's all." Charissa shrugged as she headed for the door.
"Whatever, Boulder Boy. We have to go. I wanna show you guys something." She smiled as she headed for another store. "But how about some ice cream for the trip there, huh?" She smiled as she inspected the different flavors. "What do you guys want? I'll have one scoop chocolate, one peppermint and one chocolate mint, please."
"Three scoops extreme chocolate swirl, with Oreo toppings for me and Charissa's." Kanichi said. Charissa smirked.
"You know my weakness too well, Kanichi!" He laughed. "What about you, Rock?" His lips moved slightly in the first supposed real smile he had since he sneered at Tima.
"If I didn't know better, I'd say you were trying to break my father." He said. "I guess I'll have one scoop plain chocolate." Charissa shook her head, laughing.
"Naw, Man. We're trying to break you!" She playfully slapped him on the back. "Change his order to two scoops chocolate, one peppermint." She smiled at Rock. "You gotta live a little."
She licked her ice cream a few seconds later, as she headed south from the hospital.
"Oh, sorry, guys, I have to go. I promised you're brother I'd help him with his shift." Charissa practically snorted.
"That's it! Atlas IS going out with someone. I bet it's that Tasha Morgans girl. He'd never admit it in a kazillion years that he likes her, but he does. She is very rich and prissy, but has a kind heart once you get to know her. I guess." Kanichi once again laughed at the idea of Atlas having a date.
"I can't picture him going out with a girl like Tasha. I mean, how could she like him, when she has all those other guys swarming around her?" Charissa shrugged.
"Its one of those great mysteries we'll never know, I guess. Anyways, see you." She waved at Kanichi as he ran back north to the hospital. Charissa grabbed Rock's hand and led him forward. "I think it's this way, I'm sure of it!"
"Charissa, have you ever gone to this part of Metropolis before in your life?" Charissa stopped for a second.
"Well…actually no. I have never really taken this particular route. Rock sighed.
"We're lost, aren't we." She only smiled, and ran ahead of him.
"Follow me, I know where I'm going!" She just rounded the corner and out of Rock's sight and screamed. He quickened his face and stopped at the corner. It was dark, and there were lots of shadows. He couldn't be seen, but he could see whoever they were. They were a fang of older teenagers, and young adults. At least five or six. One of them held Charissa in his arms. She was frightened and was struggling to get free. Rock aimed his gun, and a dagger, he just pulled out of his pocket. He shot the first, and threw the dagger at the second, and once again, used his gun to shoot the third. The one holding Charissa held his own dagger closer to Charissa's throat. She whimpered and struggled weakly.
"Who are you?" The man shouted. "Show yourself and I won't kill her." Rock just smiled as he aimed for his stomach. He only prayed that Charissa didn't move back to the spot. He closed one eye, and took aim. The man cried out in pain, and dropped the dagger. Charissa ran and hid behind Rock, her hands tightly clenched to his shirt. He aimed again, this time at the man's heart.
"They call me Rock." When he was just about to pull the trigger, Charissa put her hand over it.
"Leave him, Rock. He's learnt his lesson. Please Rock, don't murder anymore.." He sighed, and put away his gun. "Thanks, Rock."
"What's the difference anyways? My hands are already stained with blood. So what's the difference of claiming another?" Charissa got that expression on her face. Not that of a child, but that of worry, pity and sorrow.
"Then why don't we wash that blood off? Put down your gun and never take it out again unless if you really need it. Only for self defense, Rock." She smiled. "Now, let's get going, shall we?" They headed out to the forest outside of the city, Charissa then covered his eyes with her hands.
"You'll really love this place, Rock. But I can't tell you where we're going." She smiled, as she led him blind deeper into the forest. She stopped him, and uncovered his eyes. They were standing in front of a cabin deep in the forest. She reached up to the roof, and grabbed the key in the gutter. Then, she led him inside, once she had opened the door.
The cabin was completely made out of wood, and by the look of dust, it hadn't been inhabited for a long time. The main hallway led into the living room. The stairs was on the other side of the room, going up to the bedrooms. Then, there was the room right next to the stairs, leading to the kitchen. Rock stared for a few minutes, looking at the details of the house.
"How'd you find this place, Charissa?" Charissa hesitated for a second, looking down at her feet.
"I was born here…"
"Hmm?"
"Mom, dad, and Atlas used to live here. My mom, Atlas and even I were born here in this very house. But when mom died, my dad didn't have the heart to stay. It hosted too many memories of her, so we moved."
"That must be rough." Rock said. Charissa shook her head.
"Naw, I was only a baby when we moved. But I would like to know more about my mother." She looked around the old cottage. "This place is a mess…" She turned to the closet next to the door, and opened it. She screamed as a bunch of moths and a couple of bats came flying out. The bats landed on her shoulders.
"They were domesticated." Rock mused, as he looked at a piece of old paper inside a pocket. "Dear Charissa, I knew you'd find this place one day. And I know how much of a clean freak you are, so I stuffed my pet bats, Screeher and Fang in the closet, if you hadn't already found them. I won't be able to take care of them very much anymore, now that the Ziggurat is almost finished. Anyways, I know that you will be the one to find our family's secret somewhere. But it won't be that easy to find. So, I'll make it easy on you and give you a hint: Mirrors and pictures reflect your face. I alone have no reflection for you to trace. Yet I alone hold the key, to reflect things that you no longer see. What am I? When you figure it out, your next clue will be waiting, and you'll be one step closer. Good luck, Atlas."
"So, I guess we should follow his advice and look for whatever it is we're supposed to." Rock kept reading the riddle over and over again to himself.
"Mirrors and pictures reflect your face?" He pocketed the note and paced for a while, thinking.
"I think I know what he's talking about. A mirror or pictures. There are some here, but I can't really remember where. Oh, I remember now, in my parents' old room." The two ran up stairs and into the master bedroom. All the while, Charissa's heart pounded in her chest. She was going to find out more about her mother. There was a photo album on the desk. But as she ran for the desk, she tripped. There, under the bed, lay a jewelry box. It was made of pure gold, jewels outlining the frame. Vine designs were carved into the box. A flash came into her head.
A young woman with the same hair color and eyes as Charissa's looked down at her with a loving smile. Softly, she called Charissa's name. Another flash and it was gone. Charissa's dream from when she was little, the only one she had of her mother.
"That's it!" Charissa sat up, hauling the box up from under the bed and polishing it from any dust. "Atlas didn't mean pictures or mirrors reflecting your face, he meant your memories! Sad told me he bought mom a jewelry box for their wedding gifts. He said it was mom's most treasured item next to Atlas and me." Charissa took the photo album off of the desk, flipping through; a gold key fell from its pages. She grabbed the key and shoved it into the lock, and opened it. Charissa almost cried in delight as she saw some of her mother's most precious items inside. And then, she found a little note at the bottom. Rock took the note and read it.
"So you solved my riddled did you? I hope it wasn't too hard for you. Now, you are one step closer to your goal. But you have a long way to go yet. Can you solve this one?
Bright as day, dark as night. Another reflection riddle you have to fight. Clear as glass, and cold as ice. Solving this next clue will be very nice." Screecher screeched and both of them jumped. Fang landed on Rock's shoulder.
"Let's go get a drink. Running up and down these stairs is making my mouth dry." He nodded in agreement, and they walked back downstairs. Charissa poured a glass for Rock, and then for herself. Looking over her cup, she noted that Rock kept waving a hand over his drink. Slowly, and then quickly.
"What' wrong, Rock?" She asked, setting her cup down on the counter.
"The riddle." He paused for a second. "Fang waved a wing over the water. Have you noticed? The light from outside makes the water bright. Put a hand over it and … "He looked up. Charissa smiled.
"Fang, good boy. Rock, you are a genius!" She ran out the door, and once again, Rock could barely keep her in sight. She stopped at the edge of the dock at the lake near the cabin. The sun was reflecting off of the water. It was almost blinding to look at as the glare hit their eyes. Then, as if by magic, a cloud floated over the lake, blocking the glare. The water almost looked like the sky at night.
"Bright as day, dark as night." She looked out further into the lake, dipping her fingers into the water. She shivered. "Clear as glass, cold as ice, ROCK!" She looked back at him, excidedly. He nodded with a small grin. "Oh no…"
"Oh yes. After you Milady." Rock pushed her off the dock into the freezing cold water.
"Cold! C-C-CO-OLD!" Charissa whimpered, shivering. "Alright. Two can play that game." Charissa dived under the water and then sprang up, grabbing Rock's ankles and pulling him in. Screecher and Fang had taken refuge on some branches in the forest. Rock glared at her, but had to follow Charissa as she once again dived under the water. Almost immediately, Charissa noticed something in the murky water. She tapped Rock's shoulder and motioned for the surface.
"I noticed something down there, let's go take a look." Charissa said once she had broken the surface. Charissa took a deep breath and went under once more. Rock was just behind her. She grabbed the shimmering thing at the bottom of the lake. It was an open compact. The sunlight had reflected off of the mirrors. Rock pointed to a cave that was right behind it. Ad they entered it they could immediately see a light at the end. Charissa's lung began to burn, and she felt light headed. She needed air! The light was bright now, and it seemed just out of reach. Charissa felt Rock's grip around her waist and she blushed slightly. Then, she felt the burst of cold air stinging her cheeks as they broke surface. She looked up at Rock, both breathing heavily.
"Y-You looked like you were drowning. You had almost completely stopped paddling and your eyes were closing." Rock said, looking down at her worriedly.
"My lungs did start to burn…" She said once she caught her breath. "And I had felt light headed…" She looked up at him. "Thanks, Rock..." He smiled and took out something.
"Look Charissa. It was right on a ledge just below the water." It was an old and rusted tin can with a plastic lid. He opened it and inside had two notes.
Well! That's the end of my third chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I really do look forward to reading your reviews. Thanks!
