Crimson Butterfly
A Fatal Frame Fanfiction
By Chendzee'a Li
www.chendzeea_li@hotmail.com
All characters belong to Tecmo.
Chapter 3
Searching…
Mio stirred, it was cold.
"Mayu…." She murmured, curling into a ball under the covers. "Why'd you turn the air on?"
Sitting up, she rubbed her eyes sleepily.
"Mayu?" She called again then looked around in a daze. Her blood froze. She'd hoped it'd all been a dream.
"No…" She whispered, then panicked. "Mayu?" She shouted, jumping to her feet. "Mayu, where are you?"
Quickly she scanned the room, Mayu was no where to be seen.
"No, no, no." She repeated rushing towards the door. Pausing, she quickly turned to recover the camera. It saved her once; perhaps it could do so again. The camera had a leather band attacked to either side of it allowing her to hang it from her neck when not in use. There was a backpack lying in the corner, and she grabbed it. Glancing a moment she noticed it bore Masumi's name. Quickly, she tossed his journal into the pack and slipped it on. Then, ready to go; she picked up the flashlight and rushed out the door.
Hurrying into the hallway she looked towards the stairs. She heard a shuffling. Nearly tripping, Mio made a mad dash down the stairs. There she found Mayu limping towards the front door.
"Mayu, for the love of… you scared me to death!" She shouted angrily.
Mayu turned and Mio knew instantly something was wrong.
"Mayu?" She called worriedly.
"I'm sorry… I have to go." Her sister answered dully, eyes glazed in a trance like state. With that she opened the door and ventured out.
"Mayu, wait!" Mio blurted in shock. Frantically, she rushed towards the door. As she neared it something appeared in her path. It was dark, darker than any night. A black fog, and at its heart stood a man, barely visibly. Skidding to a stop, Mio fell roughly onto her rear. The man turned and she gasped at the sight of his face. The man looked old, his face was terribly shriveled giving him an appearance similar to that of a mummy of old.
His clothing torn and ragged hung from his gaunt frame. It was a horrible sight but worse of all was his eyes, or the lack of them. The thing was glaring at her with black empty, sockets and its mouth hung agape as it wailed. The sound was unsettling, a wailing senseless moan, low and guttural. It reminded her of the time she'd made a delivery to an asylum. It sent shivers up her spine and she froze briefly in fright. Lumbering forward, the thing murmured incoherently with an outstretched arm. Remembering clearly what happened when Miyako touched her, Mio moved away as fast as she could. Undeterred, the apparition continued forward, fading in and out of view as it drew closer.
Jumping to her feet, Mio scurried behind a wood lattice and raised the camera. Not to surprisingly the spirit merely passed through the lattice and lunged. Fully in view, Mio took her chance. The camera flashed and the creature recoiled, flailing. Gaining some confidence, Mio stepped forward to confront the creature again. Raising the camera once more, she waited for it to reload then flashed again. This time the creature let out a dull howl then doubled over before sinking into the floor.
*****************
Mayu could only barely hear her sister calling. Standing outside the house she stood confused. Teetering slightly as if asleep, her gaze slowly turned to peer down the main path that led into the heart of the cursed village.
"Come to me…" A woman's voice whispered out of the darkness.
"I can't leave Mio…" Mayu murmured, trembling.
"Help us…" The woman whispered again.
"I'm afraid of the dark…"
"Don't be…" The voice breathed. "I'll show you the way…"
Amid the tinkling of ethereal bells a dull red glow caught her attention.
"Crimson… Butterflies…" She whispered as the insects appeared in the distance. Transfixed and unable to resist their call, she moved closer.
"No…" She whimpered weakly, turning her head towards the house. "Mio…" She called out, her voice barely audible.
"The ritual must be completed…" The voice whispered.
"It's not us…." Mayu replied, trying to resist. Looking back again she was startled to realize how far she'd moved. The house was now far behind her and a flash of light signaled Mio's approach. She tried to muster the strength to resist but failed. The call of the butterflies had taken her and she rounded the corner in a dreamlike state.
"Mio… I'm sorry." She said softly, tears flowing from her eyes.
"Do not cry…" A voice whispered gently. Mayu looked up slowly with little reaction. A woman waited for her, a woman in a white kimono.
*****************
Mio burst out of the house in a panic
"Mayu!" She called out, shining the light frantically in all directions.
"Please Mayu, come back to me!"
Only the howl of the wind answered her.
"Mayu…" She whimpered, her knees buckling. Several paths lay before her, none of which looked promising. Looking down for a sign she nearly choked.
"Oh no…" She gasped, leaning down. It was a little thing, a simple stone charm. It was Mayu's, and Mio remembered the day she'd given it to her. It'd been six months since the death of their parents and Mayu was still deep in the throes of grief. Mio didn't have that luxury; she'd too busy keeping what remained of their household together. So Mayu grieved for the both of them and it nearly destroyed her. Mio, desperate to bring some light into her sister's life she took her to the fair. It'd been the first time they'd had any real time together and it made all the difference in the world. It took some time and a lot of love but Mio finally her pulled back from the shadows.
In fact, by the end of the day Mayu was downright giddy. On their way out an old shyster approached selling dinky little baubles and trinkets. A sucker for such things Mayu pleaded for something special. After some browsing they found twin charm necklaces. Mayu, always a romantic had said that whenever they were apart the stone would keep them company.
"Mayu…" Mio whispered, her eyes burning. Clutching the charm tightly she tried to regain her strength, it'd serve no one if she lost control now. As if having sensed her need. Mio felt a presence as she held the small charm, something familiar, comforting. Closing her eyes she tried to concentrate on it the feeling.
It was Mayu; she could feel her, her thoughts, and her emotions.
"Mio…." She heard Mayu whisper in her mind. She sounded so far away as if lost in a dream. Mio clutched her hand over her heart and gasped.
"Mayu…"
"I'm afraid…"
Mio panicked as a feeling of helplessness washed over her.
"Mayu!" She shouted, picking a path and running blindly up it.
"I hope you find it…"
"I did Mayu, hold on, I'll find you!" Mio cried in desperation. Mayu didn't reply and Mio knew it was impossible. The link was one way leaving her powerless to communicate with sibling.
Trusting in her sixth sense more fully than anytime in her life, she hurried along, praying beyond hope that they'd be reunited.
******************
After a few moments of wandering, Mio stumbling across a gathering of the strange glowing butterflies. Frowning, she moved towards them, the things were trouble and she knew it.
"Where's my sister!?" She called out angrily.
To her surprise the insects circled around her lazily then slowly floated away towards a small storehouse. Mio allowed herself to hope that they'd somehow lead her to Mayu she quickly followed. Upon reaching the storehouse the butterflies scattered into the shadows. Mio didn't care and tried the door. It was locked securely and she cursed under her breath.
"Mayu!" She called out, banging on the door. The noise echoed loudly throughout the whole of the rotten village.
The door held firm and Mio wanted to scream in frustration. Hoping to find another way in she searched around the building only to find a stone wall barring her path. Luckily she also spotted a small gate in the wall. It was short, and she'd be forced to crouch to make it through. The thought didn't sit well with her. She clearly remembered history lessons explaining that in old times, such gates were used so uninvited guests would be left in a vulnerable position when passing through.
Undeterred, she opened the latch and crouched through. Flinching when she reached the other side she was thankful not to encounter a screaming fiend wielding a blade or any other macabre being. In fact it was rather quiet in the back lot. That is until a voice called out from the small storehouse.
"Yae! What are you still doing here! The ceremony is about to start! A young man shouted then trailed off as if in shock.
Spinning around to face the back of the building Mio saw a small barred window and peering out was the face of a young man. He was an odd looking youth with stark white hair and sad worried eyes and though it was hard to be sure, he appeared to be wearing a traditional style Kimono.
"Who…?" She started to ask but was cut off.
"You have to get Sae out of here!" He shouted. "She's at the Ceremony Master's house at the center of the village! She's going to do it but there's still time to catch her!" He raved, clenching the bars in frustration. Mio was startled, she didn't know whom he was talking about, but something deep down told her it had to with Mayu. "Hurry!" He pleaded once more. Mio took his advice and ran toward the small gate.
"The ritual is about to being and if that happens, she is lost!" He called to her as she clamored through the gate as fast as she could. Once on the other side she ran up the street as fast as should could.
"Mayu!" She called out, her heart hammering wildly in her ears.
Turning a corner, saw a downward sloping ramp, the buildings here were double storied and strongly built. Obviously this section of the village is where the head families lived. Sensing that she was on the right path she hurried down the slope and entered into an open plaza lined with trees and statues. A recognizable feeling washed over her and she looked towards the end of the plaza. It was Mayu, she stood before a large metal gateway.
"Mayu!" Mio shouted, running towards her.
Fully entranced, Mayu didn't even look back, instead she pushed open the gate and passed through without a word.
"No!" Mio screamed as the gate shut behind her. Her legs pumping she rushed forward only to be struck in the stomach from out of no where.
The pain dazzled her and she fell to her knees nearly retching.
"The ritual shall continue…" An otherworldly voice sounded. Looking up through tear blurred eyes, Mio saw a figure looming over her. The spirit was dressed in peasant clothing and wielded a ghostly staff. Its features were blurred and shifted hazily like a washed out water painting. Opening its mouth it raised the staff over its head. Mio's eye's widened and he meant to crack her skull open. Quickly she lunged towards him. He motion sent her passing clear through the apparition as it swung downward. The staff was solid enough though and hit the ground with a loud crack. Mio took advantage of her position behind the ghost and raised the camera.
Turning with a snarl the ghost whipped the staff towards her. To late, the camera flashed and the spirit fell back in a fury of harmless swings and ancient curses. Mio didn't dwell on the fading creature; instead, she clamored to her feet and rushed towards the towering gate. Slowly she pushed the heavy gates open.
"There she is…." A sea of voices whispered. Daring to glance over her shoulder she saw a small mob of angry apparitions slowly lumbering towards her. They were peasants, simple farmers turned into tortured souls seemingly bent on her destruction. Some wielded staves like the one before, while others wielded wicked looking farming sickles. Some even carried torches that burned white without giving any illumination.
Not having the time or inclination to test her luck, she hurried through the gate and shut it behind her. She quickly moved away from the gate and turned to survey her surroundings. It was the bank of mist shrouded river.
Blacker than the depths of the deepest cave, the water was still as death and just a cold. Clearly something supernatural hung over these troubled water.
A bridge spanned the murky waters; it was solidly built, even ornate, with engraved stone supports and shaped wooden beams. Mio was thankful for it and began her trek across. Behind her the angry wails of the phantom mob was heard. Looking back she spotted the group, they stood on the banks of the water waving their weapons and shouting ghostly curses.
It was strange; none tried to follow her onto the bridge. Surmising they either couldn't or wouldn't cross the water, Mio continued on without a second thought.
"Cold…so…cold" A woman whispered in the darkness.
Mio spun around looking for the speaker. Glancing back towards the mob she realized they'd vanished back to wherever they'd came.
"You too…" The voice said murkily amid the sound of lapping water, something was in the river.
Mio rushed forward, not wishing to see whatever was coming. Ahead of her she saw a small hole in the wooden beams. Something sinister washed over her and she paused fearfully. Something was near, something full of anger and pain.
Water dripped onto her shoulder and for a moment she thought it had started raining. Looking up, she immediately flung herself forward with shout in surprise. The spirit wasn't in the water was in the air above her. The ghost hung face down in the air, her limbs hanging limply. Head lowered, the ghost looked more like a drowned corpse, and that's exactly what it was. Looking up, the ghosts was expressionless, it's eyes dull and milky stared at her blankly.
"No!" Mio blurted, turning to run, hoping to make it across the bridge.
Unfazed, the ghost gave chase, its body sliding through the air like a waterborne snake. Mio could feel the chill of its approach behind her. Turning, she meant to catch it by surprise, in an instant she brought the camera to bear and hit the flash. There was nothing there. With a start, Mio scanned the area fearing that perhaps it'd turned invisible.
A hand locked tightly around her ankle causing her to scream.
"You…too…" The ghost repeated, it's head rising through the bottom of the bridge. Its grip was beyond cold, and the pain was such that it nearly caused her to faint. Worst of all she couldn't breathe, her lungs felt heavy, as if full of ice water, the thing was drowning her through sheer force of will. Gasping and choking, she kicked at the thing praying for the camera to reload in time. Her attacks were futile, passing through its expressionless face harmlessly. Precious seconds past and the ghost's attack took its toll. Collapsing, Mio fell backwards onto the bridge, her chest afire. The ghost hauled itself fully into view and hovered over her. Its pale face floated inches from hers as if trying to inhale her last breath. Sensing Mio's heart slowing, the ghostly woman's bluish lips parted to reveal a smile corroded with mud and bile.
"So cold…" It whispered.
A telltale whir and click from the camera gave Mio the burst of energy she needed. All but shoving the camera in the phantom's face Mio pressed the flash. The blinding light was welcome in the darkness and the effect on the ghost was instant. Flung back into the air, the spirit flailed wildly then began sinking towards the waters that spawned it. Clutching feebly at its throat it tried in vain to keep from sinking into the dark depths. Within moments it was gone and the only sound heard was the gentle lapping of the water. Mio gasped weakly. The entity had nearly killed her. Sitting up, she shivered. She was cold, so cold that she feared she'd never be warm again. It would have been too easy to succumb to chill, it made her want to curl up somewhere and die. But thoughts of Mayu spurned her onward, forcing her to rise shakily to her feet.
Slowly she regained a little of her strength and made her shakily across the bridge. On the other side stood a great gate, ornate and inlaid with brass. Steeling herself she pushed the gate open and stepped inside.
End Chapter 3
To be continued