Fun fact: This story is also inspired by Broke not Broken by SoulGlitch (Sound familiar? It's on FF!)
WARNING: Self harm, language, slight molestation
Word count: 3,039
Chapter 6
"Runaway"
The spirits still had yet to return. Ree, after listening to her last night's recording, found herself reading a journal and... missing the five men? Oh fuck me. Particularly Blackout and Megatron, they weren't so bad. The spirit in the trench coat had a bittersweet attitude, and even though he'd most likely kill her when he gets the chance, Ree felt a false yet assuring safety. The Air Force spirit held a calm demeanor, and he spoke quite softly despite his rough and tough appearance. He knew that the five of them depended on the girl to stay in reality.
They needed her to stay alive.
And Ree was perfectly fine with that. As long as her heart still beats, she'll be okay.
Her reaction to her cuts this morning had been... less than pleasant. But she knew they were purposely inflicted on herself, and remembered exactly why. Ree's memory was only slightly improving, she remembered faces, like Sam. His name popped up in her head and she recalled his appearance. Ree was grateful for the medicine, but not the schizophrenia ones.
She sighed, closing the journal after realizing she was zoning out instead of reading. The girl stared out the window, looking at each little dirty spot on the glass. The sun was shining into her room, close to blinding her.
The natural daylight brought out the two colors that made her green eyes; the yellow-green ring around her pupil, and a blue-green one on the outside. It also gave a sheen to her hair, the bronze and gold highlights popping out in response to light.
Ree grabs her mp3 player, scrolling down to the familiar Linkin Park album and choosing the sixth one by random, deciding to put her voice to good use. She sang softly, closing her eyes every so often, otherwise looking out at the blue sky with white wispy clouds
"Graffiti decorations,
"Under the sky of dust,
"A constant wave of tension,
"On top of broken trust,
"The..."
Ree paused her music.
Son of a bitch, what's going on? She stared at the two cars that pulled up to her curb, one was a fluorescent yellow ambulance with a Hummer H2 front, and the other was a 1992 Acura NSX police cruiser. The girl hummed, weird choice for a cop car...Why the two were here, she didn't know. Ree turned and gave a shout, "Sam?"
"Yeah?" Was the quiet response she got in return. A few seconds later, he appeared in her room, "What?"
"Why are there emergency vehicles at our driveway?" Ree stared at him, a silent gesture to look. She turned around and watched as two men hopped out of their cars, heading towards the house. One wore a medical lab coat, while the other was in a police uniform.
Sam backed up and walked out of the room, "I'll be right back, stay here."
The girl watched as he closed the door behind him, leaving it cracked open. Her eyes found her newest journal, wide open. As if beckoning for her to write.
That she did.
Something's going on, an ambulance and a police car pulled up and two men are coming into the house. Sam went to deal with it, I think. Whatever is going on, Sam better tell me. I don't like not being in the now.
Ree stopped, lifting her pencil before flipping it over and erasing the last word and rewriting to know. She grabbed her mp3 player and continued her paused song, singing along.
"...lessons that you taught me,
"I learned were never true.
"Never find myself in question,
"They point the finger at me again,
"Guilty by associatio-..."
A knock on her door and Ree rolled her eyes, pausing the music once again, what now?
The girl let whoever it was push open her door; it was Sam. His lips were pressed into a thin line, and he avoided eye contact. His hands fumbled with each other, looking guilty of something.
"Everything okay, Sam?" He acted like a kid who was receiving a scolding. In response, he stepped aside to reveal the two men from the emergency vehicles outside. The girl's heart skipped a beat and her breathing hitched.
"Ree, this is Dr. Chet, he goes by Ratchet, and this is Officer Rowl, or Prowl. They're here to help you."
"Sam!" She breathed out, exasperated, "I don't need help!" The girl smacked a palm against her forehead, her sleeve slipped down and momentarily revealed the twenty and a half lines cut onto her arm. She froze like a deer caught in headlights.
Shit.
Ratchet crossed his arms, "Uh-huh. Busted."
Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. Oh fuck no. Oh. Fuck. No!
Ree quickly pulled down her sleeve with a poker face and tried to occupy herself by turning off her music player that was left on, even though she knew it'd shut off automatically after about five minutes if no music is playing.
"Ree," the officer, Prowl, said slowly. He held out his hand, "May we see your wrist please?"
Her right hand subconsciously covered her left wrist despite the sleeve covering the marks.
"I don't want to ask again," he said, placing his one free hand into the pocket of his pants, still holding out his other. His face remained passive as the girl continued to resist. She shook her head, taking a subtle step back, Prowl's gaze hardened. It was unlike of Ree to disobey a police officer, even she didn't exactly know what was running through her head. She didn't trust these men.
"I don't need help," the girl said quietly, tightening her grip on her wrist. Her eyes widened a fraction as Prowl took a large step forward. She shook her head again, "I'm okay."
And that was the lie told by many. Many of which who needed help.
"Ree, please," Sam begged, "You're hurting yourself."
"It's not healthy," the doctor said, crossing his arms.
The girl whispered, "It's helping..."
"In what way?" Prowl pursed his lips, pausing his advancement on the sixteen-year-old.
Ree shook her head, refusing to elaborate. Explaining was the last thing she ever wanted to do, it'll make her seem crazy. But it's already too late, for whatever her reason may be, they'll surely send her to some mental hospital. And she'll have to wake up to no pre-recorded message... to no memory medicine... to no one she recognizes...
The girl shuddered, shaking the thoughts from her blank mind. It wasn't right. She should be able to do what she wants.
"Ree," Dr. Chet began calmly, "We just want to help. You might need stitches."
Sam eyed the medical officer, "They're just cat scratches."
No. He's lying. I cut much deeper into my skin than that, she opened her mouth to say something, to correct her cousin, but realized he had said that purposely to make her confess her actions. Sam set her up into a trap she could not get out of.
Ree's mouth was still open, she had to say something, "U-Uhh..." Her eyes began stinging, and she hoped they couldn't see the oncoming tears or the red creeping up. She couldn't escape this.
"Just make it easier for yourself. We can help you, whatever is going on," Prowl softened his voice, he took a tentative step forward, "You just have to let us. If you want us to leave, we'll respect that decision, even if it isn't the wisest."
Ree didn't register those words, she was listening, but not hearing. The girl closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before shoving her wrist into the officer's hand.
Prowl slowly pulled up her sleeve, revealing the cuts one by one. All twenty and a half of them. No evident expression was displayed by either of the men, but Ree could see the disturbed look in their eyes.
Ratchet stepped out; taking a cloth out of his pocket. The running sink could be heard, then shut off and a few steps later, the doctor reappeared. He began cleaning the cuts on the girl's wrist.
Ree took this moment to take in the two men's appearances. Prowl was a Caucasian man entering his thirties, he had short dirty blonde hair with a red streak on the strands rooting from his hairline. He wore a navy blue police uniform, but wore no hat. Maybe he took it off?
Ratchet was also light-skinned but dressed in dark grey slacks with a fluorescent yellow polo shirt under a white medical lab coat. He too had blue eyes, but all his hair was peppered with signs of age, and he wore glasses. He looked to be mid to late forties.
The girl felt like she's seen those blue eyes somewhere, but she can't put her finger on whatever it is, she'll remember it later. Her eyes momentarily glanced around the room, no signs of the five spirits. Wasn't there a sixth one before?
Ree shook her head, focusing on her wrist, which was now being wrapped up in bandages. How much time had passed?
Ratchet cleared his throat, successfully gaining the attention of the girl, "What medications do you take?"
"One for my short-term memory loss and another for," she scowled, "schizophrenia."
"How was your memory loss caused?" He glanced to Sam, who shrugged.
The teenage boy answered for his cousin, "Well, head injury led to amnesia... Then she came up with a cerebral aneurysm, had a stroke and now loses her memory repetitively," This was something Ree always forgot. She didn't even know she had a stroke!
"So... The pills," he looked to the girl, "May you show them to me?" He stepped aside to allow Ree through the door. She led them downstairs to the kitchen cabinet, which she opened and revealed multiple prescription bottles, one of which was for Mojo, long ago. Ree almost grabbed her old pills, which was at a lower dose, and instead grabbed the two new ones, the ten mg, setting both on the counter to let Ratchet examine them. He hummed, "Are they working?"
The girl rolled her eyes, "The memory ones are, for sure. But I don't even know why I have the schizophrenia pills."
The medical officer nodded, placing both pill bottles back in their respective places in the cabinet. He didn't say a word as he stepped away, just nodded to Ree and turned to Prowl and Sam, muttering a few words before walking out of the house and returning to his vehicle.
All three watched him go. Once he was gone in his ambulance, the police officer turned to Ree, "Can you explain why you do this," he flicked his eyes towards her wrist as he spoke, "to yourself?"
The girl sighed, they weren't even supposed to know about this. She sharply glanced at Sam, who flinched before holding both hands up, "Hey, I promised not to tell Ma or Dad. They still don't know."
"They should," Prowl crossed his arms.
The front door opened, everyone tensed and stayed still as whoever entered came to the kitchen, where the three were. A blonde boy walked in, his curious blue eyes hopping around on their gazes, "Sam? Prowl? What's going on?"
"Ree here was just beginning to explain why she cuts herself," Prowl eyed the girl, who shied away.
The boy, who Ree found slightly familiar, formed his mouth into an "oh," before speaking, "She explained a little while ago."
"I did?" Ree furrowed her eyebrows. She resisted flinching when a shadow swept past the boy, another ran across her peripheral vision and it sent a shiver up her spine. A dark figure stood on the other side of her sight, she turned her head slightly to see it and figured it was Megatron messing with her. That it was.
"Thought we would stay away, huh?" He smirked and Ree looked down, trying to ignore the spirit and to hide her paling face.
"-ee? Ree?" Sam was slightly crouched to enter her vision, "Are you alright?"
Megatron smirked, his red eyes becoming brighter.
The girl placed a hand on her forehead, a dull pain was throbbing against her skull. She stumbled backwards to give herself some breathing room, I need space... "U-uhh... Yeah..." Ree closed her eyes, vision becoming fuzzy, "Jus..."
Then gravity pulled her down.
It became dark and quiet real fast after that...
...
~ o Castle of Shards o ~
...
It was still silent...
First thing Ree came back to... was a sharp pain in her head. It felt like someone had put a jackhammer inside.
She voiced it. Loudly.
The girl released a harsh groan, before turning over in whatever bed she was in and slamming her head into the soft pillow. The blankets dragged after her body and left her back exposed to the cold air, she curled up in response, not having enough energy to fix it.
Something, or someone, pulled the blanket off and out from under her, she shivered in response and furrowed her eyebrows, immediately hating whoever this was.
And just as Ree began mentally cursing the person to hell, the blanket returned. Had they simply done that to fix it for her?
"She'll have to be off her pills for a little while..." A muffled voice said, Ree could barely make out any of it. It was a deep voice talking to someone beyond the door. Whoever it was continued, the girl strained her ears to listen, "They're messing with her head."
"The memory ones are working," another one said, she could hear the dismay in his voice.
The conversation came to an end after a bit of more incoherent words and Ree settled into her blankets, shifting herself to be in the warmed up parts of her bed instead of the colder areas.
Minutes passed, or hours? She didn't care nor had the energy to. It was comfy in her bed and that's all mattered.
The girl curled her head into her blankets after a cold draft hit her face. Did someone leave the window open?
Nevermind that... Sam told everyone. He didn't keep his promise. But did Ree really tell him not to tell only Ron and Judy? Someone must've told them instead of her cousin.
It bothered Ree how she can remember this. Why hadn't sleep taken her worries away? Or was that not sleep...?
A chill slowly, agonizingly crept up her spine. Ree picked up her head and stared at the wall, waiting for the source of her shiver. It definitely wasn't because it was cold in the room.
No.
This was something else. Something... dark.
The girl closed her eyes, and opened them upon hearing... breathing. It was husky and close, scaring the living daylights out of her.
She reeled back, now face-to-face with none other than Lord Megatron. He looked as solid as ever, no longer looking transparent and Ree was doubting that he was a spirit. That he was really there.
His red eyes flashed and he smirked, "Good afternoon, miss Ree. To what pleasure do I owe you?" She scoffed at his bluff. He's just teasing you, Ree. Don't listen to him, the girl thought to herself. Megatron chuckled at her, continuing his jeers, "Oh, but you know I can't help it."
The bastard, she glared at him, you know that right? That you're a bastard?
"To an extent," he shot back with ease. Whatever he meant, Ree didn't care. At all. She just wanted to sleep... was that too much to ask for? Apparently so.
Where are the others? Ree reluctantly questioned the spirit crouching in front of her, he was watching with a curious and intent gaze.
"Oh, here and there. Lingering about," he replied, red eyes following her green ones. His face remained passive.
Ree didn't take the conversation any further. Instead, she let him watch as she slowly fell asleep.
...
~ o Castle of Shards o ~
...
A jerk followed darkness, and whatever surface Ree previously was on, disappeared out from under her. She was floating, not being able to move and having no gravity to do so in the first place.
Chilly wind blew at her, and Ree realized she wasn't wearing any clothes. Her body had a visible differences in skin tone. Her face, arms, collarbone and legs were tanner than her torso, which was usually covered by clothes...
The girl floated aimlessly in the vast space, letting her dream take her wherever.
Cold red eyes appeared in front of her and she shrieked, trying to move away but continued to move towards whatever the hell this thing was. She could see the faintest of details of the face. What Ree gathered from her observation... was that whoever this was, was metal
A claw hooked around her skinny waist, stopping her slow and steady flight. The girl could just barely see his lips, whatever they were, pull away in a malicious smile to reveal jagged, sharp metal teeth.
"Hello, Ree," he said.
That voice...
...It was Megatron.
Megatron.
Ree stared blankly at him as he continued to speak, "How are you?"
And that was that.
He fucking asks how she's doing - nonchalantly - as if he wasn't some giant evil alien robot
Fuck you, she mentally spat at him. A chuckle was her response.
"A little feisty, eh? I always wonder how a tiny insect such as you," he moved his claw, which rotated her naked body, "Can possess such dark thoughts."
His metal tongue made contact with her bare stomach, slowly moving downwards...
"No!" Ree shrieked, trying desperately to move, to make it stop.
His tongue slid down her abdomen...
Ree jerked up, almost clashing heads with the smirking spirit in front of her.
