Well here's a oneshot I never thought I'd get round to writing. Now, I wasn't originally going to put this up, as it was going to be full of spoilers for the RP. However, I decided to change it so that it was set around the time of the original FAYZ and so that it was spoiler free :). Anni, this is for you you Orpheus fan-girl! Though he's really not that great, and this is set before he got as cynical as he is in later RP's. Sorry...

Hope you like anyway :)

xxx

Edit: Here's the link to the fanart I made for this :) Just get rif of the spaces :) poly vore .com/faerie_tales/set?id=36839362

Orpheus

Faerie Tales

Once upon a time there was a handsome prince and a wicked old witch...

That would be how this would start if this was a faerie tale. But I am no handsome prince and Melinda…well Melinda isn't old, at least.

And this definitely isn't a faerie tale.

Over the years, many people have judged my sister, claimed to have known what lay inside her heart. Many of them have claimed that she didn't have a heart. She's been called many things and a witch is one of them. Evil is another. Twisted is a third. But, they didn't know her. Not really. Not like I did. How could anyone have ever known Melinda better than I did?

She was my twin, my other half; the night to my day, the darkness to my light. Two sides of the same coin. Me, with my golden skin, shaggy brown hair streaked with blonde, chocolate eyes and easy smile; Melinda with her pale skin, silky black hair, mysterious purple eyes and scowls.

She had an image to uphold.

That's what she told me, time after time. It was all about her image. She strutted around the school like a queen, ignoring all the glances, the whispers, always getting her way. I skulked in the background, staying out of the limelight; that was Melinda's place. Centre stage. They all thought she was bad, thought that she was a utter bitch. And they were right to think that, at least when she was at school. It was what she wanted them to think. At home she was a completely different person; I can still remember those days when I used to curl up on the sofa with her with a bowl of popcorn between us, watching some old horror movie. We'd always done that, since we were young; snuggling up together under a blanket, Melinda in her old pink dressing gown, her hair untamed and her face free of make-up. The movies she liked used to scare me, and I was terrified that I would have nightmares, but Melinda used to curl up in bed with me, and tell me she'd scare them away. Mum and Dad never found out because Mum and Dad were never there.

Melinda was my protector, my only friend; she'd pretend not to know me at School, but everyone knew we were siblings, and that was enough to keep most of the bullies away. No one wanted to provoke Melinda's wrath.

I can remember the time when we looked up our name meanings for the hell of it. Melinda means 'Black Snake'. I can remember that she was pleased when she heard that by the way her eyes glittered. Orpheus means 'Best Voice', which is ironic because I can't carry a tune to save my life. I have the same name as this Greek bloke who went into the underworld to try and bring his wife back to life- and failed miserably. He ended up turning gay and getting ripped up by these women who worshipped Bacchus, God of Wine. Nice. Hopefully that'll never happen to me. We looked up our surname, Maeven as well. It suited Melinda far more than it suited me. 'Intoxicating Raven'. Intoxicating. It's a...dangerous word. A word very suited to my sister. That's the thing about Mel. There's something about her...a kind of...fire. A dark fire. Sometimes I think I can almost see it burning in her eyes. Once she's got her hooks into you then you're caught for life, consumed by the flames. And the thing is, she doesn't even realise she's doing it. She'll trap you in her web, make you do anything for her, and she won't even know. But I guess I just had to live with that. She was my sister after all; I loved her.

It was around six or seven months before our fifteenth birthday when everything changed.

I found her standing outside in the garden, her eyes wide, staring at nothing.

"Mel?"

"Sh." Her voice was sharp. "Listen"

"Listen? To what?"

"Listen…"

I listened, but all I could hear was the wind rustling the leave of the trees. "Mel…"

She jerked sharply. "What?" She looked confused.

"Come inside, Mel." I took her hand gently and lead her towards the backdoor. She followed, unresisting, but her eyes were still searching for someone….or something.

That was just the start of the nightmare. I'd hear her screaming almost every night; find her standing outside on others. When I looked into her eyes I could see something almost alien inside, staring back at me, cold, unfeeling. Not my sister. The fire in her eyes was cold; and that just made her scarier.

I didn't find out about what she'd done to our parents for a while. I saw them so little that I didn't notice that they weren't around. In fact, it actually wasn't until the FAYZ when I found that she'd killed them, burying their bodies in the back garden, in the rose bed. Those roses bloomed beautifully that year.

The nightmares got worse, as did the sleepwalking. I remember one night when I found her at her bedroom window; leaning out so far I feared she'd fall.

"Where are you?" she was whispering in a voice that sent chills down my spine. "Where are you?"

She was worse at school. Whereas before she'd been sullen and bitchy, she became violent and vicious. She sent several people to the school nurse and more than one to hospital. They were all too scared to testify, but I knew it was her. She even got me to help on a couple of occasions, though it made me feel sick to my core, especially what she did to that brown haired girl, Andi or whatever her name was.

The events of that last night, that last night of whatever innocence we had left are still seared into my mind, as if by her fire. It was late; I was just going to get ready for bed when she grabbed my wrist. I leapt, startled; I didn't know she was there.

"Orpheus." she said softly, "Do you trust me?"

"'Course I do Mel. What is it?"

"I can't tell you, not yet. She told me not to tell you."

"Who told you not to tell me what?"

"Never mind. You'll find out soon."

She began to lead me down the stairs. "Something's happening, Orpheus. Something big. Something massive. You have to help me."

"Of course I'll help you. What is it?" we stopped in the kitchen and she turned to face me. The fire in her eyes was burning brighter than ever.

"Swear you'll help me."

I nodded. "I promise." I reached out a hand, to do our special handshake, the handshake we'd done since we were little. She shook her head.

"No. Promising isn't good enough. Swear it."

I frowned. "Swe-"

"Make me a vow." She opened a draw and pulled out a knife.

"Mel-"

Before I could stop her she'd slashed across her hand. Blood trickled from the wound, staining the pristine kitchen floor.

"A blood vow." She passed me the knife.

I hesitated, looking down at the knife before glancing up at her. I was immediately caught by her piercing gaze, the fire in her eyes burning more fiercely than I'd ever seen it burn before.

"I, Orpheus Maeven will help you with whatever you ask me to. This I vow." I slashed my palm with the same knife, and my blood joined hers on the floor. She took my hand and squeezed it tightly, her face alight with glee. I smiled back as my blood mingled with hers, joining us forever, in an unbreakable bond.

Or so I thought.

On the eve of the FAYZ, we were alive with hope.

We didn't know there would be no happy ending for us.

This isn't a faerie tale, after all.

Please review :)

xxx