BLACK and WHITE
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In all her life, Natsuki had never felt like this, the feeling of drowning in the atmosphere of the room as those hypnotizing eyes bore into hers. It was not only the colour, it was the missing emotion that made her skin prickle in a very uncomfortable way. People often say that you can cut tension with a knife, but this felt so very different - it was tougher, colder. And it was so damn stagnant, that seemingly nothing could cut through it.
Natsuki swallowed nervously, her eyes still fixed onto the red ones across the room. One would expect them to feel warm, like a comfortable fire but they were not, they were somehow blazing in a cold way, freezing so cold that it burnt your very skin and turned you brittle.
The beauty did not react to her, it seemed as if she ignored her even though they were staring at each other, it was as if Natsuki was an object of some sort. She simply continued to play that haunting melody, albeit now softer and quieter. Natsuki let her eyes shift for a second to look at the creators of that piece, the fingers. Cliché as it may sound, but those really were piano-fingers, long and thin but not in an unhealthy way… more delicate, like porcelain maybe, it seemed as if they could break easily if handled in a wrong way.
The pale girl either did not mind her wandering eyes… or she just ignored them and stared at something beyond Natsuki, which did not help her calm her nerves at all. The distant look the girl had in her eyes seemed to lock Natsuki in place, like a firm grip demanding her to stay; and Natsuki - unable to turn away from that hypnotizing gaze - stood floundering in her deep eyes, stuck to her spot like a fly on sticky paper.
That was when she remembered the other two people in the room, and decided that the ogling had to end, at least for now. She made a mental note to herself to try and avoid the girl; like the plague, at all costs, at least the manor was huge; the likeability of them running into each other was low. She turned her head to look at her great-aunt who had not seemed to have noticed their interactions at all. Maybe this had been one of those moments, when you just stare at somebody and time seems to freeze up and your thoughts seem to be going 7miles per second, while in reality only 3seconds have passed.
Was she really so captivated by that pianist, or was her mind slowly turning to mush, from all that information she had received in the last hour. It was probably just that and nothing more.
Finally, the girl looked away from Natsuki turning back to her piano. Her eyes slid shut as if going into a deep slumber shutting out all others. Natsuki saw all her arm muscles relax, and then a short sigh escaped from the girl's pale lips.
It was like a little bird escaping from a cage, a tiny breath of life to let Natsuki know that the girl before her was not just a doll but a real person.
Natsuki heard a crack and felt a sudden pain on her legs. She looked down to see the old woman's cane resting on her shins.
"Do not stare so much, it is rude and terribly distracting."
Crap. Turns out people had noticed her staring- looking at the girl for too long. She blushed a little at being caught. The old woman cackled a little under her breath. She was made to step back a little realizing that she had shuffled into the room a little too far.
"This..." The old woman stepped in front of Natsuki, separating her from the girl, suddenly she didn't feel so tense but the chill creeping up her spine accelerated at a rapid rate. ".. is Kuga Shizuru, your second cousin."
"My what?", her voice had been a tad higher than she would have liked, but she hoped no one had noticed it. Then it occurred to her, "How does that second cousin thing work anyway?".
Her great-aunt sighed and made as if to reply, but the seemingly forgotten man in the suit beat her to it after clearing his throat. "If I may, I believe it means that Madam Kuga's son is her father, and since she is your grandfather's sister, thus your father's aunt, that would make her son your father's cousin which results in the two of you being second cousins."
"...uh-huh.", was the dull reply, "Could anyone make sense out of that?"
Madam Kuga shook her head slightly. "How very eloquent, you could have not explained it any easier, now could you?" There seemed to even be a little of sarcasm in her voice, even though it definitely did not fit to her image. "Basically, your fathers are cousins, thus making you second cousins."
"..Couldn't he have just said so?" Natsuki could not help but glare at the man. Why did people always have to make everything so damn complicated?
The man chuckled nervously at the cold glares that stared him down; he even backed out of the room a little.
"Any other secret relatives that I should know about?"
A laugh rumbled from the old woman. "Not that I know of…" For some reason, it didn't seem quite right.. The way she was saying it…, it was…vague. Not quite there. A lie?
Natsuki cleared her throat, she wasn't one for talking but this was supposedly a family member. "Well… It is… Uh…Nice to meet you.. Shizuru?" she was unsure she would get the name right. It was one of her weak points.
The sound of the piano stopped as once again empty burgundy eyes set their hollow gaze upon Natsuki. This time, she could tell that she was not the only one looking at the paler girl. Eyes glued to her face as she stared at Natsuki, not a word was spoken from her lips. The piano stool scrapped against the cold, black floor as the girl stood.
Her shoe-less feet hit the ground, and Natsuki could swear that it seem to ripple as if she was walking on water, with every step Shizuru took. It made her feel nauseated, because it just wasn't right - floors aren't supposed to do that! It definitely did not help matters that every ripple that reached her own feet washed over her whole body, causing her to broaden her stance for she feared of getting carried away with it, like waves crashing onto the sandy beach, carrying little things with them into the ocean.
Shizuru continued onward toward the three of them, though from Natsuki's perspective it seemed as though the girl was heading straight towards her. The others did not seem to notice what was going on, simply waiting for the girl to reach them in complete silence.
As she stood before them, she seemed to drain the air of its oxygen for Natsuki thought she'd suffocate simply in her presence. Did it only seem like that to her? The others couldn't just ignore all these strange things... could they? Her stomach, that had un-knotted itself some minutes ago returned to its painfully knotted state once again, but she tried to not let it show. Shizuru had her skin crawling enough as it was, she did not want to know how that girl would react if she noticed what she caused to her.
Whatever Natsuki had expected, it did not come close to what she was witnessing just now.
The other girl took another step forward, turned slightly to the side and hugged her Grandmother softly. She nearly wanted to kick herself, for not even thinking of something like that - it was after all still family, and Shizuru apparently had been in this manor longer than she, so of course she would be comfortable with the old hag - the old woman, not hag.
Natsuki watched in rapture, shocked rapture, as the old woman's arms wrapped around the girl, patting her atop the head, before resting on it for a few moments. Eyes wide Natsuki could only stare.
They let go of each other, the old woman's hand slipped to Shizuru's elbow, shaking her with a light smile on her face, yet for some reason Natsuki could not help but feel uneasy, that acidy taste was back, the one were Natsuki felt as if her mouth had detached from her body. Only this time it was not just her mouth, her fingers felt as though all energy to move them had been sucked out, clenching and unclenching them for the first time she felt how truly cold her fingers were.
"Shizuru-chan. I would like you to meet someone." Natsuki's great-aunt turned to her, placing a hand on the silent girl's shoulder.
"This is your second cousin, Natsuki." She spoke as if to a child, but the girl could not have been much younger than Natsuki. After all, she was able to spot a certain kind of intelligence in her eyes. The girl stared up at Natsuki with big, blank eyes. She just stared back with wide opened eyes, her body stiff as a board.
Then the girl was right in front of her, arms wrapped around Natsuki, tight, very tight. It almost hurt.
She did not know if she should hug her as well, or pat her back or her shoulder… or whatever else one does when hugging a complete stranger whom they have met minutes ago. She was not one for body contact, so she always tried to avoid it as best as she could. She definitely did not expect to get such a crushing hug from Shizuru and she would have preferred to not have received one as well for obvious reasons mentioned, as well as it just crept the shit out of her, to be blunt.
Natsuki did not know if it was the aura that surrounded the paler girl, or simply the unsettling eyes, or the fact that she could stand to walk upon the unbelievably cold marble with bare feet, but even though Shizuru seemed to be a nice girl - judging from that hug she gave the old hag - she just made her feel very uncomfortable. If it was possible, her stomach knotted itself together even tighter and made knots into the already existing knots - at least it felt like it.
After some seconds - were it really just seconds that have ticked by? It seemed as if she was crushed against Shizuru for hours without being allowed to breathe! - she was finally released and drew a deep breath while somehow managing to stay upright, her feet nearly gave out for lack of oxygen and because it all just scared her so much, that her knees nearly buckled.
Shizuru just sent a tiny, almost unnoticeable ghost of a smile her way, and then she stepped beside the old woman again - this time, the ground did not ripple with her every step which confused Natsuki and had her question her sanity.
Staring at the floor was not the best option, for the old hag - woman! - the old woman tapped on the floor with her cane sharply, to get her attention.
"Do not stare at the floor, girl!", her voice sounded a little annoyed.
Natsuki almost leapt out of her skin in shock of the shrill voice. "Alright, alright! I get it.. jeez.", she said the last part under her breath, nothing more than a soft whisper so that the woman would not hear her and reprimand her for it.
"Now child, join us for dinner." This was not a question, although to be honest, Natsuki wished it was. The desire to get away from her strange company was almost mind warping. Her senses were going off in every direction, urging her to get away. She needed to get away, but this was her family - the only family she had left.
She sighed, the thought of swallowing food was almost sickening to her, her throat clenching as she grimaced at it.
"Uh… Actually I was going to... go... unpack..?" She voiced it as a question; for now two unnerving stares were sent in her direction and the suited man also looked at her as if she had just turned down a ton of gold.
"Do not be so rude child. You will join us for dinner. Come now."
Begrudgingly, Natsuki followed them as they turned and made their way into another part of the manor. Her feet were dragging, her mind preoccupied with other things. Shizuru was walking behind the old Kuga who chatted with the suited man.
She studied the back of the red-eyed girl; delicate, soft and so very pale skin stretched across the muscles. And that soft caramel coloured hair that ran down her back in short waves. It had her wonder how her mother must have looked like, if they resembled each other as much as she resembled her own mother.
Her eyes followed the bone structure too, every bit seeming soft and smooth - not a sharp angle nor a bend in her posture.
But Natsuki could not stare for long, there was always this odd way to Shizuru. She just did not seem normal, to put it lightly.
She was so lost in her thoughts, trying to figure Shizuru out somehow, that she did not notice their arrival in a large dining room somewhere in the manor. If she would be thrust out into the hall and told, to go to the main door - she would not be able to find it, having absolutely no clue where they were now; she looked around the room with interest and confusion. Was she really this distracted the whole walk?
Natsuki shook her head softly, trying to get her mind together and also trying not to think too much about the beauty with the strange aura… and the bare feet.
"Do not stand there and stare off into your mind, you are not five, sit down child." Once again she was reprimanded for doing something... or rather, not doing something. That old hag was really going to get on her nerves all the times, wasn't she?
She sighed and just sat down at some random stool, not bothering to admire the fine carvings in the wood, or the beautiful satin in which the pollsters were covered.
Her eyes were instead drawn to the bouquet of flowers sitting in the middle of the tablecloth that covered the dark, wooden table. She had not really expected anything of the dining room - but still, a pure white tablecloth seemed out of place in this manor, just like Shizuru in her white dress. The flowers also did not seem to belong in here, never mind the mismatch of tablecloth and flower, the flowers where a soft, cobalt blue. She had no clue as to what kind of flowers they were, but they seemed pretty, so why not have them decorate a room.
They created a sense of life in the room, to be honest it seemed like the only form of it. Their cobalt blue stood as the stark eye catcher, as it contained the only colour in the room. There were only about five sprigs of the flowers, trapped together in this lonely and cold atmosphere. And funnily enough, Natsuki felt jealous of them.
They were forced here just as she, but they had companionship.
Natsuki sighed; truly the atmosphere must be getting to her - jealous of flowers- she almost sniggered at herself.
She had not noticed the others all take chairs; Shizuru's being almost adjacent to hers. The elder woman took her place at the head of the table that was in Natsuki's opinion, miles too big for a family such as theirs; small, almost non-existent.
The man sat almost right next to the head, having his undivided attention. She almost slumped forwards, stopping herself at the last second. The amount of crap she'd get for it, so not worth it. A few minutes later and the small, weepy eyed man rattled into the dining room.
He was dressed much the same, black suite, cane; only this time he had with him a serving trolley. Various sliver plates and dishes were shakily, rattling towards the table, first, the head of the table, then Shizuru, then the reluctant Natsuki and finally the man. It was then Natsuki realized what her standing was in the pecking order of the house..
So she was the third in order, or practically the last for the suited man surely would not be staying with them. At least she hoped he would not, she was not very fond of him for reasons she could not really tell. He just seemed like an incompetent fool to her, although he had not really done much to have her think so, well, apart from being incredibly jittery since they have gotten here, but so was she. But she had every reason to be! She had been feeling and seeing things, she had not thought to ever experience within a very short time. It did not help that apparently it all was tied to her new… wonderful family.
She snapped herself out of her thoughts, else she would be hearing that old hag scold her once again - how often did she do that already, she wondered. Natsuki regarded the others on the table, but no one seemed to interest her nearly as much as Shizuru. She did not know if it was for the obvious reason of her being a bit...strange - from the way she dressed to her very unique eye colour - or because she scared her... Maybe even her…beauty? Could fear make you question even that?
She shook her head softly once again, oh how she would be mocked by her old friends, if they were to see her now - scared of a girl acting like a child, clinging to the family's trust fund and otherwise not regarding anything.
Shizuru did not even seem to mind her staring, or if she did, she did not let it show. She always wore the same expression on her face, an almost nonexistent smile that was apparently only shown when the hag was present. Her eyes still were dull and missed emotion.
Her breath hitched as she finally noticed that blank look directed right at her - how could she not have noticed? She really was getting too lost in thoughts too often today.
Natsuki let her eyes wander, thus breaking the staring match that had unknowingly begun and regarded her aunt, who was silently eating her meal and did not seem to notice their interactions, or their staring, if you will call it just as it is.
"Is the food not to your satisfaction?"
Natsuki's eyes snapped to the elderly woman. "N-no, no. It's not that… I just.. I'm not all that hungry…" she looked down dejected at her plate, it was the truth she didn't have appetite, in fact she had not had one since her mother died. But today it was worse, even the smell was making her queasy.
The elderly woman stared at Natsuki for a while. Surprisingly she seemed to have taken pity on her. There was a sharp clap and the elderly man appeared in the doorway.
"Kado, bring the girl something softer on her stomach."
"Yes, mistress." And the old man, now christened, Kado shuffled off; probably to the kitchens.
"Uh... Thanks?" Natsuki bowed slightly in her chair, but it only brought her face closer to the food. She grimaced and pushed it away from her. Right now not even mayo could make food edible.
"You are welcome. In the future, please, tell us if you are unwell."
"Y-yeah. I will, promise."
"Good."
A short while later, Kado wondered back out into the dining room, he gently placed the food in front of her, it truly wasn't much but she wouldn't want it if it was. Thanking the man awkwardly, she turned and managed to nibble on some breadsticks that were in front of her.
Meanwhile, she had noticed that even if she had stopped looking at the girl, Shizuru continued to stare at her, much to her displeasure. She made a point of keeping her eyes low on the table, or the flowers, even half-heartedly studying the patterns on the cold walls.
Didn't the old woman say it was 'Rude to stare', then, why was she allowing Shizuru to do the exact same thing? Natsuki shuffled around in her chair, at this point she would have given anything to be back home… or even in her yet to be determined room.
She started to cough on some stray crumbs; covering her mouth up she reached for a cup, gulping back some water and pounding on her chest a few times clearing her voice. She looked towards the head of the table who sat, staring at her.
"E-excuse… me…" She gently coughed; dinner for her great aunt continued. Chatting with the greasy haired man in the suit; who no matter how hard she tried Natsuki could not remember the name of. But it didn't really matter considering the fact that he wouldn't be here for that much longer.
After all, he had to get back to his office or where he worked, Natsuki figured, once the day ended. At least she hoped so, she didn't really like the guy, he had neither been overly friendly, nor angry or cold to her; but still sometimes one just does not like a person for unknown reasons. So Natsuki put it down to his butt kissing.
Natsuki just continued with her very fancy dinner until the rest of the table had their plates cleared, even though she had to wait some time for them to do so, since her breadsticks were obviously faster to finish than the full-blown meal the others had before them. Shizuru stuck to staring at her throughout the whole ordeal, which did not help in the least bit to make her feel welcome, not even a bit.
She wanted to curse her aunt for not interrupting that stare from the other girl somehow; it would have even helped, had she only cleared her throat so that she could maybe send an uncomfortable look at her, trying to convert her message through it. But alas, no such luck. She had to deal with that stare until it was time to go to bed, apparently. The old hag sent them immediately into their rooms, disappearing back to whatever hole she crawled out of. Just as Natsuki wanted to speak up and ask where the hell her room was supposed to be, the old butler - Kado was his name, wasn't it? - sent her a look and a little, almost unnoticeable bow and gestured for her to follow his lead.
Huffing, she did as he wanted and followed his slow pace. She was led once again through the maze of corridors and halls, created from black marble just like everything else in the manor apart from the various doors and the random coffee tables placed against the walls from time to time. Looking up to the ceiling, she spotted old chandeliers, full of candles to spend the little light that was typical for these halls. She wondered, why they didn't just simply install electric lighting, it would be way easier than lighting up every single candle every day, or however often it was needed.
Then she shrugged, thinking it was probably because the manor was so old, that it would not withstand the process of installing everything and placing the wires and whatnots.
She nearly stumbled into the butler as he abruptly stopped in front of a door - just the very same door as every other in the house, black painted and simple. She nearly blushed, but refrained from doing so and instead opted to scratch the back of her neck softly while whispering an apology.
"This," the butler rasped, "Will be your room. You may not disturb the peace of the house after the clock has struck the tenth hour after midday, for Madam Kuga sleeps very lightly and does not want to be woken up."
Natsuki raised an eyebrow at his odd manner of speech. Honestly, couldn't people just simply say things bluntly? They all wanted to confuse her as much as possible, it seemed. Not only that but why the old fashioned way of talking, couldn't of he just said curfew is ten; don't make noise.
The man raised his cane and tapped the door directly across from hers, "This is the bathroom. It should not pose a problem to reach it, if you should be in need of reliving yourself."…Well that's one way to put it. "It is lockable from the inside, if you wish to not be disturbed." He placed his cane back onto the floor and leaned onto it. "I believe this is all that must be shown and mentioned. I bid you goodnight, Natsuki-Sama. May your rest be peaceful."
And with that, he disappeared around a corner into another corridor.
For a short moment Natsuki stood staring after the man. She was just a little confused at how fast this had transpired. And she was alone.
Alone.
Alone.
In a big, big manor.
She took out her mobile to look at her texts; there were several, from her friend Mai and one or two from Aoi, her old roommate.
They pretty much, said the same thing.
Is it nice there?
How's your aunt?
Call me, when you get there. Ok?
To be honest she didn't want to reply, but if she didn't Mai would quite realistically, walk all the way here.
So she just sent back.
I'm fine. Got here safe. I had dinner, I'm going to bed.
Then shut off her phone and stuck it back in her pocket.
She looked around the deserted hallway, and almost whimpered at the lack of… heat.
She didn't feel quite alone.
It wasn't right.
She backed up towards the door; she spun and ripped the door open, slamming it behind her.
Her fingers lingered on the door, before she opened her eyes.
Her room was… It wasn't small but it wasn't huge. The floor like the rest of the mansion was black; but there were a rug of red silk laid across the floor. The room wasn't any warmer than the rest of the house but she looked at the fire that was smoldering in the fireplace. At least it wasn't as cold as it could have been.
Her bed was a regular sized, wooden bed with deep red blankets of cotton and silk. She wasn't going to live a life of luxury in this place, but she wasn't going to be uncomfortable. Pillows filled with feathers sat at the head end of the bed.
And it seemed as though all her clothes; and other items, had been delivered into her room and now waited patiently for her to unpack them.
There wasn't too much else in the room. A desk and a chair made of rich mahogany, a wardrobe and dresser, of a deep black wood and finally a large pair of doors leading out to an overgrown balcony; that looked over the woods that stretched as far as the cliffs.
Natsuki walked a little further in, and slumped down on her bed. Her hand went inside her pocket for her phone, her last means of connecting to civilization.
She sighed heavily, muttering curses under her breath as the thought of charging her phone invaded her mind. The battery wouldn't last forever, after all, so she'd have to find some way to do so, maybe she should just ask the butler about it, he seemed to be one of the... not so scary people in this house, which did not really mean all that much, considering what a lovely aunt she had. Not to mention her favourite second cousin and the only second cousin at that.
"Damn it all." she huffed, and kicked against the wooden post of the bed. It didn't hurt quite as much as she thought it would, but she still cursed herself for doing so, since now a light throb inhabited her big toe.
She let herself fall backwards onto the bed, it was quite soft and would make for a nice rest tonight, that much was assured. So she got up again while blowing a stray hair away from her face - why did she let herself fall onto it, if she would just get up again, she wondered - and grabbed her nightclothes. Then she daringly put her hand on the door handle and opened the door a crack, spying out into the hallway. She still got that feeling, that she somehow was alone but not quite so. Like some invisible force was watching her.
"What the... I'm really getting crazy.", she said to herself and with another shake of the head she pulled open the door completely and stepped outside into the cold hallway, the flames dancing across the floor and creating a little shadow play on the door to the bathroom. It disappeared as quickly as it has appeared as Natsuki closed the door and reached for the handle in front of her, she had to get ready for bed after all.
The bathroom was nothing exceptional, just your typical bathroom - it seemed to be one of the only rooms that were not as old as the manor, for it was quite modern with a shower and a separate bathtub.
Natsuki took a quick warm shower with revulsion and afterwards brushed her teeth; she finally felt the last of the acidy taste leave her mouth. As soon as she was finished, she took another of those red towels - what was it with that colour scheme, she wondered - and began to dry her hair, it wasn't that comfortable to go to sleep with dripping hair in this damn cold. She walked over into her room while still drying it, cursing the lack of electricity for her hairdryer, and stopped in front of the balcony doors, gazing outside the cold glass panes into the deep night, her breath misted the glass, and she wiped it away.
Has it really gotten dark this fast? It seemed as if her sense for time had gone off somewhere and not returned. Natsuki bunched the towel together and threw it onto the chair, too lazy to put it back into the bathroom. Besides, she had no plan to go out into that freezing hallway again tonight; at least her room was somewhat warm.
She put her phone onto the desk and decided to just go to sleep since there really was nothing else to do at this time in the manor and, even though she did not want to admit it, she did not want her aunt to scold her again, she'd had enough scolding for today.
Natsuki slipped under the covers and tried to get in a comfortable position in her bed, which ended with her sleeping on her stomach, her head turned to the side so that she may still breathe; arm underneath her pillow holding her head up. She fell asleep soon, despite the unnerving things that had happened today and the unfamiliar surroundings.
She would have to get to know these halls soon; this was after all going to be her home from now on.
OXOXOXOXO
Beautiful music was heard, sweeping over everything it could reach with its melody and its notes, putting all that came in contact with it in a slight trance that nobody wanted to neither disturb nor break. It was not clearly piano music, no, it was something similar, though all the same different, its wonderful melody repeating itself steadily, the tempo never wavering - always the same speed. It seemed inhumane.
Natsuki lay still in the bed - she must've turned and tossed about, for her feet were laid bare to the crisp air, just little warmth left in them, and that only thanks to the socks she decided to wear to bed. She listened to the music and searched in her head for the name of the instrument. She knew that she knew the word, it just did not want to leave her lips and she doubted that she would be able to fall asleep without finally knowing its name. In a way, the music fit right then and there, for the name of its creator haunted her mind, she just really was not able to grasp at it and be done with it for the night.
So she stared at the ceiling and let her mind wander a little in hopes of randomly stumbling across the word that she was not able to recall. To her dismay, her thoughts decided to stray to the melody Shizuru had played this afternoon at the piano. There were some similarities to the currently echoing one, but it still seemed to be a different song, both incredibly beautiful, but at the same time frightening and making your skin crawl unpleasantly.
Suddenly she shot up, her face being graced by a grin while she pumped a fist in the air in 'Victory!' fashion. A harpsichord, that's what it was called!
With that thought the melody was gone, replaced by dead silence. Natsuki gulped quite loudly and looked around her room - the moonlight had replaced the warm light of the fire that now was long gone and drew long shadows of branches across the floor. It was nothing out of the ordinary, yet she could not shake the feeling off, that she was being watched by something.
With a deep sigh she put a hand to her forehead and gently rubbed at it - a headache was forming. As soon as she put her hand back down onto the blanket, all hell broke loose.
Cracks started to form all around the room, each of them opening up slightly to let out a wade of steam - or was it smoke? - which was then immediately followed by a brightly shining blue light from within. It was an icy blue and so bright, that her eyes could not adjust fast enough - she was practically blind for the moment - as even more and more cracks formed, some creating larger cracks and crevices with each rumble that droned through the room. The room was all of a sudden blanketed in the light and she finally adjusted slightly to the now icy-blue surroundings. Her breath visible, and panicked; fast and full of adrenaline.
Her heart plummeted into her stomach, and said stomach seemed to lurch at the motion. It knotted itself tightly together, and despite the chill that commanded the illuminated room, she began to sweat.
Natsuki was suddenly pushed back onto the bed, her mind akin to a tsunami with all the things shooting through it, though most of it just seemed to charge towards one emotion.
Fear.
It shot through her whole being, alongside the confusion that tried to hold up with everything that was going on but in the end, it just brought up more questions in her head. Her eyes darted around the room, she tried desperately to get up or to reach anything to grab besides the blankets.
Panic.
Panic crawled up inside of her and started to charge through her whole body alongside the fear she already was feeling. She began to tremble. Her fingers felt so very cold.
Then all of a sudden another two cracks formed - directly above the bed on the ceiling, this time the light was a dark red, so dark it almost seemed to be black - but that was impossible, now was it? She did not know anymore, her thoughts just were a jumbled mess as she struggled against the invisible force that trapped her against the bed.
Two arms clawed their way out of the cracks - one from each. She stared in horror at those monstrous - DEMONIC - arms, they were black in colour and on each long, bony finger sat a razor-sharp claw. Its veins were glowing softly, a faint red creeping through the dark skin.
They came closer with each breath she took - so in a desperate and panic stricken attempt she held her breath. They still crept closer, so slow that every inch that disappeared between them, she let out untypical whimpers. When they were only a breath apart, she softly begged for help, but nothing could help her anymore.
The arms grabbed her - one the lower half of her body, the other the upper half - and she silently screamed as the talons pierced her skin and bit into her flesh.
….
She burst from her bed; sending pillow and blanket hurtling onto the floor. Her breath came out in quick heaving gasps; in, out, in, out. Saliva caught in her throat she chocked and gagged, clawing at the oxygen in the air. Her hair matted caught in a cold, cold sweat; nightshirt, drenched in the same sweat.
She coughed pathetically as her lungs finally caught hold of the air. Rolling onto her side eyes wide, vision spinning, the dots clearing. Her body tried to take in two breaths at once resulting in her eyes clenching in pain, and several coughs to rack her body.
Her throat raw, eyes watering, clenching the top of her drenched nightshirt.
"Oh-god." She whispered. "I-it's fine- A dream- Bad- Bad dream.. Oh god- oh god." She whispered in comfort to herself. A few more hacked coughs and she rolled onto her back. There was a crack.
Her head snapped to the source.
The balcony doors were open.
Fear.
It overtook her.
She leaped from the bed; dashing to the doors and slamming them closed.
Shuddered breath came from her; the only noise in the world.
A small giggle escaped her body. "What am I doing? It was just a bad dream? Right. Right, it was… Man it's cold in here." she chuckled once again in self-assuredness. A tunnel of air escaped her as her body relaxed. She walked over to the remaining cinders of the fire, grabbing a tong; she felt a little better with the hooked piece of metal in her hand, she poked at the fire. Throwing a log on it; sparks flew.
She leant backwards, clearing her throat, those dry bubbles appeared in her mouth and her tongue stuck to the roof of it.
"Maybe I should get a drink?" she muttered to herself. She walked over to her pile of luggage and rummaged for a pair of slippers and a jacket or something. The chill in the air was truly mind clearing, if that is the way you would put it.
She slipped on the slippers and her old dressing gown that she didn't know she had; till they had packed all her stuff, she was glad that she had took it rather than give it to Aoi.
She picked up her phone; placing it in her pocket and to be honest she looked longingly over to the metal tongs.
But it was stupid, who brings tongs on a midnight drink wonder. Wondering over to the door she placed a trembling hand on the handle, her mind refused to notice her body reactions to the thought of going out of the room. She sighed one last time pushing the door open.
Force of habit, she tiptoed outside and shut the door behind her. The hallway was lit up with moonlight. Cold blasted her in the face and she shivered, her sweat now making her a little colder than what she would like to be.
This was stupid she thought. She didn't even know where the kitchens were, she could get lost. But her throat called out for a sip of water, or milk, or something.
Feet treading carefully, she slowly snuck down the halls. Pillars of black marble reflected the moonlight like a deep lake of light, it highlighted the carvings on the walls and lit the way for her.
Then from behind her there was a crack, like bending wood. Then the sound of the wind became clearer; curtains fluttered.
Natsuki's stomach clenched unbelievably tight, all the hairs on her neck stood on end; she turned, her hands clutching her dressing gown like a life line.
Their hair fluttering in the wind, eyes the colour of the harvest moon and skin the colour of moonstone illuminating in the moonlight, the hair a shining silver - or gold? - Natsuki could not tell.
Eyes locked.
The girl turned to her full on; her white dress fluttering like butterflies. Natsuki could count every blink those eyes were hidden from view.
Natsuki felt her phone buzz; midnight.
She straightened her back, a sheepish uneasy smile on her face.
"S-Shizuru?..-chan?.. What are you doing out of bed?"
The girl said nothing. Her body seemed to glow under the moonlight, but not as much as her eyes. They glittered like twin Jack o Lanterns.
They came towards her; she couldn't move, she couldn't breathe. Her senses went on standby.
Her heart rolled inside her, screaming; shaking her ears with frantic thuds. Once again, her head seemed to refuse the emotions, the instinct to run. She was terrifying. A whimper caught in her mouth, it tied her tongue up and broke out of her lips, carrying its self into the air.
But her body felt as though it had been caught by an invisible net; as Shizuru came closer the net tightened and so did her lung capacity. Her heartbeat slowed and sped, it paused and thudded fearfully.
Then they were a meter apart and she was still closing in.
Eyes blazing, the colour of hell.
Shizuru's hands reached out; running up Natsuki's arms and clutching around them like a python, nails biting into her skin.
The twin lamps of hell drew closer and closer.
Then…a mumble.
It was only a whisper.
"Nat-su-ki."
Then the eyes that burnt like molten blood, disappeared.
Something warm pressed against Natsuki's lips. Instantly, Natsuki was hypnotised.
Suddenly she wasn't as cold, as before.
OXOXOXOXOXOX
L: Now the end bit
S: what end? I thought that was the end… Is my brain being mush again or what?
L:... anyway this chapter is extra long.
S: Extra long? So the other chapters are not going to be so long?
L: No I mean.. shut up, if it wasn't for me this wouldn't of been updated for a year!
S: That's true. Want a cookie now? I admit, I am a lazy butt when it comes to updates.
L: COOKIE! *Jumps and catches cookie in mouth eating happily*
S: *raises eyebrow* I did not even throw a cookie.
L: Cookies appear out of thin air for me *licks fingers* mmm good cookie.
S: ...uh-huh. Right. I am just going to... go... away, or something.
L: Don't go *Clings to leg* we need to tell them we aren't going to update unless we get reviews, cause we are busy people... well I am anyway..
S: *Shakes leg* Well, if you don't let go *shakes leg some more* soon, I will not cooperate with you for some time! And damn, I am busy as well, with gaming.
L:*lets go* sure. Well, that isn't exactly urgent is it?
S: Thank you. Well, it may not be very urgent or something but still, I love gaming. Also, I am busy with other stuff, but that's not important now. Just wrap it up, we need to get this up, lest someone strangle you.
L: Ok, ok. Thank you for reading REVEIW I TELLS YA! Common Sheep. *floats off in the air.*
S: *Raises eyebrow again* Since when do Lions fly.. ? Whatever. We'll see you next update! *nods head*
L: IM FLYING JOIN ME!
S: No. *flat-out denial*
L: *grabs sheep and floats off*
S: *sighs and lets herself be dragged off.. or floated off with.. or whatever*
R&R… And you shall fly too!