Author's Note: Here's chapter two! A bit more going on... with Aerith and everything... but still, please tell me if she's too OOC.
CHAPTER TWO AERITH
Splish-splosh… splish-splosh…. Kitty groaned in exasperation, and rolled over. The covers on her bed felt damp… and oddly hard. Splish-splosh… splish-splosh… Kitty reached for her pillow— her hand met something rubbery.
Kitty opened her eyes in astonishment, and found herself gazing upon a beautiful white flower. What…? She scrambled up from her spot amongst blades of grass and white and yellow buds, where am I? Kitty looked around; she was standing in a small plot of grass that had, a long time ago, broken up the wooden floor of the church, and grown to be a yard of blooming greenery. The church must have been a very beautiful place once upon a time, only a few windows were still in place, and of what Kitty could see, the glass was stained to depict of different holy scenes in each window.
On the opposite end of the church were a few rows of wooden pews on either side; two rows had been ruined near the entrance of the church, having been turned over by some anonymous force. Above Kitty where the roof had been, was a gaping hole. Here was where the first few rain drops from the charcoal sky, were let through. Splish-splosh… splish-splosh…. Kitty back-pedaled to get out of the way of the rain, she bit her lip in order to stifle a whimper. How did I get here?
Racking her brains to remember, Kitty's eyes widened. That pill! Was she in heaven…? Kitty looked around at the capacious church— it didn't look like heaven…. "Where am I?" she whispered. Her voice echoed with the increased volume of the rain pitter-pattering down upon different segments of the church's floor. "Where am I…?" she repeated again, in an even softer voice before crumpling to the ground, and burying her head in her hands. Everything was wrong, now… everything was ruined.
A feather light touch to Kitty's shoulder startled her from her desolate state. Kitty looked up to find a gorgeous young woman standing before her, clad in a flattering pink dress that flowed about her calves. The woman was smiling a gentle but sad smile.
"Are you my angel?" Kitty asked the woman in apprehension.
The woman only shook her head lightly, a thick auburn plait swinging behind her along with the motion. "No," she laughed. Her voice was as sweet as honey, reminding Kitty— with a pang— of her aunt, Clary.
"Then who are you? And- and where am I?"
The woman kneeled down in front of Kitty, "My name is Aerith, I am the guardian of this church…" she said, "and you are in Midgar."
"Midgar?" Kitty's eyebrows furrowed, she'd never heard of such a place in her whole life… she glance over at the garden that she'd been lying in only moments before, it looked so out of place— as if it were a massive plague of dazzling weeds that had cracked through the wood long ago. "Did you plant them?" Kitty motioned to the garden, and looked over at the woman.
They locked gazes, and Kitty noted with embarrassment, that while she had been looking over at the garden, Aerith had been examining her. Aerith had emerald eyes with specks of gold glistening in them; they were benign eyes— two orbs of gentle gracefulness and age-old intelligence.
"Yes, do you like them?" Aerith smiled knowingly at Kitty.
Kitty nodded hesitantly, not sure how to react around this elegant woman.
"I'm glad…" Aerith looked over at her garden, "they were meant to make this place a safe haven… I wanted it to look welcoming…. I wanted to leave a part of me here," she turned back to smile once again at Kitty; gentle and melancholy.
"Do you live here?" Kitty asked in curiosity.
"No, far from it."
"Oh…" Kitty felt awkward under Aerith's gaze, "do you know where I might find a phone?"
Aerith looked sympathetic, "There aren't any phones around for miles," she answered.
Kitty was confused. "How can there be no phones?" Kitty stood up, "Excuse me… ummm… I really need to alert the police. My aunt's in trouble— if I don't get to her…" Kitty's lip trembled, and a thick knot formed in her throat. It hurt when she tried to swallow the knot. "If I don't get to her… she might die."
Aerith stood up too, and reached out a hand to caress Kitty's cheek, "There's no way of getting to her now, sweetheart, you swallowed a pill, remember?"
Kitty's eyes widened, "How did you know? Were you watching that whole time? Why didn't you stop them? Why didn't you help?" Kitty's eyes filled with tears that slipped down her cheeks in iridescent trails. "Where am I, really? Tell me!" Kitty ripped away from Aerith's reach, running to a far corner of the church before turning around and glaring at the woman.
Aerith stood there, her hand falling to her side; lifeless. She didn't even turn to acknowledge Kitty's enraged glare. "You're in Midgar, Kitty, a place of destruction. You're no longer on earth… try to understand that I'm only trying to help you."
"You're lying!" Kitty started to sob, she tried to stifle the noise with her hands, but she only crumpled to the ground in weakness. How long had lain there in the garden? Her stomach rumbled of hunger.
"Kitty…" Aerith was walking tentatively over to her.
"How do you know my name? How can this not be earth?" Kitty looked up; her face was damp and red.
"Kitty…" Aerith once again kneeled by Kitty, and pulled from a pocket, in her cherry denim jacket, a handkerchief, "you need to calm down. Here wipe away your tears, first." Aerith pulled Kitty's hands away from her face, and placed the handkerchief in Kitty's right hand.
"I can't—" here Kitty hiccupped, "calm—" hiccup, "down." She brought her left hand up to stifle her hiccups in misery.
"Yes you can… just breath in and out deeply," Aerith advised in a soothing voice. Seeing that Kitty was too weak to even make a sweeping motion with her hand, Aerith took the handkerchief herself, and began to wipe Kitty's face for her.
Kitty really tried to breathe in and out deeply— she really did— but the tears wouldn't stop coming, and the sobs wouldn't stop racking her body. Aerith finished cleaning the tears away from Kitty's cheeks, and began to shush her.
"Shhh… shhh…" Aerith murmured. Then she pulled Kitty in to a soothing embrace. She wrapped her arms tightly around Kitty's fragile body, and rubbed her back in a calming motion over and over again. "Shhh…" Aerith rocked Kitty back and forth, trying to lull her out of her despair.
Kitty's sobs were becoming less and less as the minutes ticked away, until there was nothing left but sporadic hiccups mingling with the increased sound of the pouring rain.
"That's a girl!" Aerith exclaimed affectionately in a high whisper.
Kitty shook her head, "Why are you being so kind to me?" she wiped away the last of her tears, and breathed in deeply, strength had returned to her— but not all of it.
"It's my nature," Aerith pulled Kitty up by the hands, and started to walk away.
"W-where are you going?!" Kitty panicked, she didn't want to be left alone in such an unknown environment. "Wait!" Kitty ran after Aerith, ignoring her body's protest to be moving so quickly at such short notice.
Aerith stopped, and looked back at Kitty; she smiled as soon as the girl reached her. "I'm going to go get you some food— but you cannot come with me. Stay here and I'll be back soon."
"But…" Kitty looked away, and nodded. She had been about to say she didn't want to be left alone, but Kitty didn't think that Aerith would care either way. "Okay… I'll stay," Kitty retreated back into the church, watching Aerith disappear out the entrance. Looking to the right, Kitty decided to lay down on a pew, and rest. It wasn't so comfortable being made out of wood and all, but Kitty was exhausted beyond belief, so she immediately wiped out.
Pitter-patter… pitter-patter…. Kitty woke up to the sound of heavy rain. She sat up, and looked around for any sign of Aerith, but there was none. Kitty tentatively stood up, and looked over at the entrance of the church. The outside world was becoming dark, and from this, Kitty could tell that it was early evening. Where is she? Kitty stood there still as a statue, pondering on whether or not she should leave the church against Aerith's wishes. Her stomach grumbled, and Kitty placed a hand upon it.
After a few more moments, Kitty decided to risk it, to get herself some food. Clearly Aerith wasn't coming back…. The wooden floorboards creaked under Kitty's weight, as she walked away from the pews and towards the entrance, but Kitty didn't mind the noise. She was, in fact, used to it. Nearing the entrance, Kitty could see that the rain wasn't going to be stopping any time soon. By the look of the dense clouds it looked like the rain would be continuing on until late evening.
"Oh well," Kitty sighed, and took one step out of the church, then two, and after two she ran down some sweeping stairs into a vacant street. Rain pelted Kitty's face, reminding Kitty of her bike ride… and of her aunt. But Kitty's despondent thoughts were immediately stifled, when she saw the city that awaited her. Like the church, the city was in tatters. Midgar was nothing more than broken buildings, gray streets, and debris. What had happened? If Kitty really wasn't on earth anymore, then how had she gotten here? Had the pill transported her to Midgar; to a new vacant world? Kitty felt nauseous, and small, compared to the huge broken buildings that loomed over her.
"Aerith!" Kitty called into the gloom, "Where are you, Aerith?!" There was something about Midgar that made Kitty feel like she was being watched… that made her feel unsafe. For surely Kitty did not want to spend the night by herself wandering the streets aimlessly until dawn. No that just wouldn't do.
"Aerith!" Kitty called again, she clutched at the collar of her— now— soggy jacket. Sighing, Kitty decided that she would look for some food and head back to the church before it got too dark. With a twinge of realization, Kitty noted that there were no lights turning on in the streets— so did that mean that Kitty would be sleeping in pitch darkness? Focus on one thing for now, Kitty thought to herself trying to calm down. But I don't know how to start a fire— focus!
Kitty walked down the street, picking her way over some jumbled hills of debris in some spots, and then looking down alleys here and there for any sign of Aerith. But she found no one and nothing for miles. About to turn back around to head back to the church, Kitty detected a flicker of movement in an alleyway to her left.
Uncertainly, Kitty began to walk her way over to the alley. In the gloom, Kitty could just barely make out a shape lying on the ground— a human… She walked towards the shape and bent down next to it….
"Hello…?" Kitty reached out a tentative hand and touched the human's cheek. As soon as she did, Kitty pulled her hand back; the skin had been cold, cold as metal. Kitty squinted, and could make out long silvery-white hair in the darkness. Was the human a she?
Pitter-patter… pitter-patter….There was another flicker of movement in the air in front of Kitty, and something fell to the ground— something heavy. Kitty's heart skipped a beat, and she stood up wicked fast. "W-who's there?" she stammered.
Nothing. Pitter-patter… pitter-patter…. Another movement, this time it was the human that Kitty had been kneeling next to, who moved. Something flashed in the darkness… Kitty's eyes located the flash in a second. It was a chocolate bar wrapped in a white wrapper that had fallen from the human's pocket. Kitty's hunger got the better of her, and she stooped to pick it up. But before she stood, there came another loud sound in the darkness— Kitty jumped, and then turned and ran. Adrenaline pumped in her veins, and moved her fast, even in her weakened state. But she hadn't left the alley fast enough to go unnoticed by one pair of narrowed icy blue eyes.
Has she met them yet?
Yes… I made sure that she would be curious of the outside world, before I left….
Do you really think that they will believe you once you tell them?
They'll have to… she is the key to the planet's survival...
Kitty was running so fast on adrenaline that she didn't even stop until after she reached the steps of the church. She had made it in mere minutes, before the night's murk had completely crept over the sky and city. Stumbling weakly into the church, clutching the chocolate bar to her chest, Kitty slid in between two pews so as she would be hidden from some deviant person's view.
Unwrapping the chocolate bar in haste, Kitty took a huge bite out of it. She was rewarded with a rich and bitter taste; dark chocolate— Kitty's favorite kind. Within seconds, Kitty had finished the six inch bar, and had then curled up on her side upon the hard wooden floor. She fell asleep almost instantly.
Pitter-patter… pitter-patter….
Then an enraged scream sounded through the night.
Thank you for reading!! I will hopefully get the third chapter up by tomorrow, or later in the evening.