The second part of this upload comes now :D All the thanks I have to give for now are for the people who are reading this right now cx Hope you enjoy it. We're almost at the midway point of the rewriting xD
So let's get to the next chapter~
Chapter Seventeen
Hide and Seek
My head swam once I opened my eyes. I didn't know why but my head was about to burst, my eyes were sensitive and I swear I could hurl at any time. At shifting around I finally noticed the light, feather like pillow and bed beneath me. I was back in my room? But...how?
"Claire, are you okay?"
Turning my head with what little strength I had, I found Leo at the foot of my door. My arms seemed unwilling but when I tried to sit myself up, Leo was already there by my side helping me.
"W-What—" I grabbed my throat where a slight burning sensation came. Had I thrown up earlier? It certainly felt like it. As if acid had coursed through it. The hushed and raspy voice that had spoken one word was barely recognizable as my own.
"Try not to talk," he commented quickly and picked up a glass off from the nightstand beside my bed. Pouring water in it, he gave it too me and only at that moment did I realize just how thirsty I really was. Without thanking him, I drank the whole thing down in seconds but still wanted more. After pouring three more glasses and seeing that they weren't quenching my thirst, I decided to simply chug down the rest of the jug of water he had brought me. At least after finishing that my yearn had subsided somewhat. My throat felt less on fire, and at noticing that my hand went up to massage it. "Does it hurt?"
"It was burning a little. But it's going away, I suppose." Gazing at myself I noticed that the dress I had changed into was gone from me. The only thing on my body was a nightgown. "W-Where's...my dress?"
"Sister Fiona took it off of you. If that was your ceremonial gown, I suppose you're lucky. Only your cloak was soaked in blood."
Blood? Images rampaged through my mind as the events of that morning came rushing into me. I had been singing in the back near the cliff. It was a song that I didn't know but that I sang and danced to. Even when I felt something beginning to fill my throat as it began to burn. I remember loosing consciousness and when I was slightly regaining it, I remember the sisters calling out for help. I was already in the nursing room and they were keeping me face down as...some warm and thick liquid came out of my mouth. It tasted like...iron.
Blood. If I wasn't wrong, they had brought me here after they were sure I had heaved out all the blood that had been pouring out of my throat. Had something cut me? No, that's dumb. But if not that then...what?
"She told me you were out on the back, near the cliff. Where you practicing?" he asked in a glum tone that I recognized.
"I'm sorry I didn't wait for you. I didn't think that this would happen again?" Yes, of course he sounded sad. He hated when I went out on my own. After all...this wasn't the first time this has happened. Specially this day. "It's been a year—"
"But it still happens every time," he added making me feel all that much more bad about it. There was silence for a second before he spoke again. "Maybe...you shouldn't do it."
"What?"
"Don't perform it, the ceremony. If it were to happen again it might not be just some. You could drown in it. It's too dangerous."
"You're being irrational. I'm not sick or anything, and this has nothing to do with me singing today. Seriously, Leo—" without warning, I got out of bed and went over to the closet to find my dress, tidied. Glad about it, I took it and placed it on the bed while Leo complained. "You're starting to sound like some superstitious person. You're smarter than that."
"I'm not being superstitious!" he countered raising his voice a bit. "I'm being cautious. It's been like this the past times that you have done this for this exact date. How much more proof do you want?"
There wasn't any denying he was right. And yet... "I won't stop it. But...if it will help you relax, I promise you that I will stop if I feel any pain." That seemed to calmed him a tad bit since he knew firsthand that once made, I didn't break any promises.
"I guess—I can make do with that for now," he agreed with a heavy sigh. Coming up to him, I came and hugged him tightly. I knew he worried and that he did so for my own good. There was nothing I thanked God more than for that.
"Am I interrupting?"
At hearing that irritated voice, I let go of Leo and found Elliot standing at my doorstep with his arms crossed and a frown on his face.
"What are you so annoyed about?" I inquired standing beside Leo with a smile.
"I-I'm not annoyed." Not coming into the room, he simply faced Leo. "I came to check on you and to tell Leo what Fiona told me. It seems like some of the kids went out again without permission. Asked us if we could go out and search for them."
Reluctantly, Leo glanced my way, concern still etched on his face. Giving him a smile of reassurance and a nod, I push him towards Elliot. "Go on, you two. I'll be here waiting. And no more practice, I promise." With that they both left the room and the house, leaving me behind there. Changing back into my dress, I used another cloak to cover myself up. Also, I tied a nice ribbon to my neck like a choker and on it placed my broche.
As I had promised, I didn't go out to practice anymore and instead stayed inside the house helping out the children and sisters as they decorated for the White Flora. It seemed that they were even more enthusiastic than any year, perhaps because they hadn't seen me since I left. Many had grown, few had been adopted as I was told, the small number that weren't there and hadn't been adopted, well—I knew what had become of them.
It had been a good hour since the two went out looking for the missing kids. Worried, I approached Sister Fiona and asked her about the ones that they had gone searching for.
"Well, besides Rachel and Ben, I noticed Phillipe missing too."
"Phillipe? Is he new here?"
"Yes, he came in a few months past. His name is Phillipe West, I believe."
That name...it was the boy from back at Reveille. The one whose father was Grim's contractor. With a grimace on my face I nodded to her as thanks and continued helping the kids. It must have been rough finding out that his dad was gone and having to come live here. Such a radical change. After another half an hour without a sign of them, I went outside to wait for them.
I practically waited the rest of that hour until I saw two silhouettes in the distance plus the one short other that I supposed was one of the children. But the instant I saw three that I recognized I couldn't help but grin.
"I feel overwhelmed with your constant stalking," I joked when Oz, Gilbert, and Alice came close enough to hear me.
"Claire!" Oz exclaimed with a grand smile on his face. "And here I was wondering where you have gone to."
"Here I am," I called with a snort while extending my arms invitingly.
Intending to greet the other two, I was rudely interrupted when Elliot simply opened the door and went in himself. Once Leo reached me, I sighed, "Let me guess. The Young Master's mad because he met with Mr. Vessalius here."
"Yep," he answered with a slight giggle. Going inside, we headed into a small living room where we were given some privacy to speak. Leo had taken Phillipe in and had joined us for the talk. Well, if you can say that of Elliot yelling at every little thing that Oz said.
Soon enough, Oz came to ask about Phillipe. Then he began to apologize to him about not keeping his promise. Like I had thought before, promises like those were easier said than done.
"What's that?" Phillipe called out, his voice plenty confused from what Oz had said. "Nevermind that, listen Big Brother. I got another call from father the other day!"
His...father?! But he was dead! Before I knew it, Leo left with Phillipe out with the other kids.
"What's going on?" Oz couldn't have sounded anymore confused. "Phillipe's father is—"
"Dead." Elliot's sudden input took me by surprise. "William West was killed as an Illegal Contrator. But it seems that he doesn't want to believe it."
"Poor thing," I mumbled to myself. "He must be in shock from it all to think so."
Just after that, Oz began explaining what happened that night when William West was killed. It must have been hard doing so with the boy just outside.
But, out of the blue, Elliot came out with something that I hadn't heard about since almost a year ago. "DId you hear anything from Phillipe...about 'head-hunting'?"
"Elliot! Oz has no connection to that!" Gilbert exclaimed grabbing everybody's attention. Frankly, I would have yelled too had my throat not been hurt before.
"If you don't know anything then—get out!" Elliot's sudden outburst made me get up from my sit. He began manhandling Oz and Gilbert and eventually kicked them out of the House of the White Angel. Before closing the door, though, he called out towards Oz. "Had I known you were a Vessalius...I would have never saved you back then!"
"That's not true!" Oz's response came out loud and clear. "Even if you had known my name then you would still have helped me escape from the Baskerville's, Elliot!" But without hearing anything else from him, he closed the doors.
"That was very rude of you, Elliot." He began walking away while clicking his tongue but I wasn't having none of that. Pulling him back and down to my height, I stared at him in the eye before continuing. "You're not that cruel of a person. It wouldn't have mattered had you known who he was, it isn't in you to ignore a person in need of help. You're much kinder than that." And finally something came out of me that triggered old memories that I didn't want. "You're not your father. His sick hatred isn't yours to bear."
"Don't you talk about him like that. He's a good—"
"If you finish that sentence, I swear I'll gut you." My violent threat hit him hard and frankly it hit me too. I had never threatened Elliot before but then again we knew two different sides of the same man. "You asked me a long time ago why I was scared of your father. I'm not anymore. I realized after all this time that what I felt wasn't fear, it's hate. And if you ask Leo, he'll tell you that he earned it so. W-What he did...I'll never forgive him for it." Taking a deep breath, I relaxed and tried again. "But I won't break your stupid delusion. If you want to find out, you'll do so when you see how wrong he really is."
"Claire? Elliot?"
I let go of Elliot before Leo sees us. He comes to us with a perplexed look on his eyes, "Did you throw out Oz and the others?"
"Y-Yeah."
"Such a pity," Leo admitted. "Why where they here at Sablier?"
"Who knows...maybe they're heading to Pandora."
"Nope!" Two little siblings were besides us and had been the ones that had spoken when they overheard us talking. "We met big brother out there, and he said 'I want to go to the inner part of that hole'."
"Elliot. That can't be good."
Before they could even say anything I was already opening the door. "Where do you think you're going?" Elliot demanded from me. Yeah, after my little speech he was livid.
Glaring at him, I turned to face him before saying, "After them, of course. Oz is going to get himself killed down there." Yanking the doors open, I started heading out towards the chasm.
"Claire, wait!" What did he want now? Deciding to ignore him, I kept going until his hand yanked at my wrist and halted me.
"What?" I growled under gritted teeth.
"We're going with you."
"No."
"What?!" Elliot exclaimed out loud mad that I had rejected him.
"Neither you nor Leo posses Chains. If anything, you'll be a liability. I can't have that."
"But—" Leo interrupted getting my attention. "It's better than going alone in there right? You don't really want to either, do you?" Averting my gaze, I hated how much he knew me.
"If so, we'll go with you," Elliot added.
"Dammit, guys. It doesn't matter, I have to go—"
"Claire?"
Their voices barely reached my ears. Something else had come over them and had taken my attention completely.
In the ceaseless cradle of time
Nightmares trap and chain me in lies
Even as my senses turn cold you sing
Softly out— Gently now— A lullaby of truth
Who is this...? It sounds so familiar. Out of the blue, a high pitched cackling interfered with the singing. A sudden chill ran through my body making me hold myself.
"Claire?" Elliot's voice reached me after I recovered my hearing. Not just that...he had grabbed my shoulder to make me react. Had I gone deaf to their voices?
"I-It's—S-Something's wrong."
"What do you mean?" Leo asked me.
"I have no idea but—" The cackling came again and this time I recognized it. Along with the words it spoke.
"Hurry, hurry little one~ Or I'll catch the little rabbits before you do."
"Hurry." My voice was cold and aloof but I couldn't muster any emotion at this point other than terror.
"What?"
"We must hurry, before something gets to them."
If that thing was after them then...I needed to stop them. Something wasn't right. Something bad was going to happen. I could feel it. It would happen and we needed to stop it.
When the cycle of one hundred and eighty moons has come and gone is when a new sage shall rise. The shadows and voices of our ancestors shall awaken and thus shall a new reign come to be born.
All light shall vanquish the darkness.
All darkness is born from light.
"Ready or not—here I come."
Short. I know. But since I'm using the old version as a template to rewrite, there was bound to be a couple of chapters that were short like this one.
Again the lyrics and song were from ChuMeiStudios and their cover of Synchronicity: Requiem of the Engless Spinning World.
Hopes you liked it and stayed tuned for the next one c;
