The Melancholy of A Teenage Witch

[Elyon(Miranda)]

(*The Melancholy of A Teenage Witch*)

*-<Chapter 1 >-*

Snow

Tristie! Tristie, her alarm clock rang. Tristie, your mother will kill us both if you don't wake up!

To most people, an alarm is an alarm. It's an annoying beeping thing that wakes you up in the morning. To Tristie Stokes, an alarm is something you can talk to when no one's around. Tristie discovered this strange ability when she was only six years of age. In fact, every electrical appliance could talk to her. It's just that no one has noticed.

"Tristie!!!" A loud scream traveled from down the stairs. The owner of the voice was Tristie's mother. As she shouted from below, her short, crimson hair shook and brushed against her neck, for the very tips of it only went as far as the top of her shoulders. Her voice had no problem reaching Tristie's room thanks to the women's incredulous height.

"Right, right!!!" Triste immediately sat upright. Her long, dark-caramel hair popped up behind her, and her dark, lime green-blue eyes summoned themselves open. Her hands pressed against her comforter and she was off her bed.

She immediately rushed and rummaged through her closet. All of the clothes that it held were very dressy compaired to most teenagers. Nearly all of them were dresses, if not then they were skirts, and most of them had twirly ends or they were coiled. She also had an assortment of bows, each one for the day of the month with all kinds of different designs and forms.

She picked out a light, white fluttery dress and put a flisty pink coat over it then slipped into dressy brown clogs. Brushing her hair throughly, she looked at each bow she had, all of them were different colors. She picked out a tamarisk, ribbon-like bow and tied only half of her hair in a ponytail, leaving the rest the of it loose.

Quickly running downstairs, clogs clogging all the down, Tristie saw a chocolate bread snack and made a grab for it in order to get to school on time. That wasn't too much trouble being that she could walk to school.

"Bye," she said on her way out the door. Her mother did not respond.

= = = == = = =

It had been a long day, but finally the bell schedule reached lunch, where Talia awaited Tristie.

"Tristie!" She exclaimed. "You've been so busy lately, I haven't been able to talk to you."

"Sorry," she shrugged. "It's not my fault exams have come up."

Talia and Tristie had become friends only a year ago. They met when Talia was lost and nearly missed her bus when Tristie told her where it was. Since then they got along quite well.

Talia was a very thin girl who was much more taller than Tristie. Her short hair was died a shade of nadeshiko with a few strands of amaranth that only reached her neck. It flipped up, touching her cheeks. Her bangs were short enough just to go above her eyebrows, which arched over sparkling, azure eyes. She, unlike her friend, wasn't the least bit dressy. She wore denim jeans with a red T-shirt over a black long-sleeved one.

Tristie had brought a crossiant for lunch. It twisted and coiled till both ends and glimmered with sugar, dainty but filled with vanilla creme. She looked at her friends' cookies with envy.

They were many different colors in a random pattern, like a box of rainbows. The sprinkles were only added around the circular edges of the pastry. There were some cookies that had chocolate sprinkles over a flower-shaped cookie, some sprinkled with white sprinkles over a coffee-colored cookie. Some were pink with yellow sprinkles, and others the exact opposite.

"Trade?" Tristie suggested, handing over her crossiant.

Talia nodded. "Definitely. Crossiants are better."

Drrrriiiinnggg!!!!

After a long history class the day had finally reached the end of seventh period. All of the students in the room eyed the clock, waiting for it to signal that school was over.

"It's only Tuesday and I already wish it was the weekend," Tristie complained.

"Same here," Talia sighed in agreement. "It's going to be fun this weekend, right?"

Tristie had almost forgot. A four-day weekend was coming up. "Right," she replied, smiling.

Five...four...three...two...one...

Drrrrrrrrrriiiiinnnggg!!!

She and Talia stepped out of the door onto the sidewalk. Searching around, they found what they were looking for. Talia's bus drummed about a few feet away. "I'll see you over the weekend," Talia said with her hands on the doors of the bus.

"Alright," Tristie nodded and walked towards her house when a boy standing next the trunk of a tree caught her eye.

He looked quite bizarre--long blonde hair that almost went past his waist, strange, nearly serpent-like maroon eyes. The only thing that looked normal was his outfit. He didn't seem to be going anywhere. Wasn't he planning on going home?

How weird, Tristie thought. She looked around to see if anyone else noticed but they only carried on with their usual routine.

"Hey, are you new here? Aren't you going home?" She asked as she walked toward him. He looked serious, like he didn't want to be bothered by anything. There was a hating look in his eye.

"...home? I have nowhere to go then..." He seemed a little sad.

"What do you mean?" Tristie frowned. I wonder what's wrong?

"Nothing." His gaze would have terrified most people. There was a shadow that emphasized it's glow coming from the leaves of the tree. It was like looking straight at a boa constructor. Although Tristie was not afraid. "Why do you ask?"

"Just wondering. What's your name?" She smiled, hoping to cheer him up.

"I call myself Snow." He had a look on his face that told her he was half-lying.

"Why won't you tell me your real name?"

"Because I hate it. So what's yours?"

What a strange introduction!

"I'm Tristie," she said, "if you're lonely, I can walk you home."

"I already told you, I have nowhere to go," he snapped, "but if you like, I'll walk home, ok?"

"Oh...sure!" She nodded and continued to smile. She turned on her heel and he did the same. She waited two seconds for him to catch up.

Coming from under the shadow of the tree, he looked less creepy. His eyes still held a serpentine gaze, but he seemed to be a lot less tense than before, which could only make Tristie smile even more.

"Just don't ask me any questions on the way, got it?" He said more softly than how he had been speaking.

She nodded and they were on they're way. The farther they went along the tree-bound path, the more frequent the snapping sound of breaking branches became. A cool gust of wind blew at them, as well as taking up some of the leaves on the way.

"Here we are! Are you sure you don't want me to walk you home?" Tristie asked with a tone of concern.

"I don't have anywhere to go," he repeated, almost afraid to look at her.

"Okay," she said with another nod and walked up to her door. Before she opened it, she took one last glance at where he was standing. He went off to the other direction.

Up in her room, as she lazily plopped herself on her bed, she thought about Snow.

What a strange kid, was the first thought that entered her mind. He seemed a little...sad. And those eyes...that thing...

She was referring to the mark she'd spotted before she even spoke to him. It certainly didn't look a tattoo, but had a scary semblance of a birth mark.

As if it were branded on him, a snake coilied around his neck, it's head starting somewhere from under his shirt and the tip of it's tail poking half an inch from his cheek. A paw print, like a dog or maybe even a cat's was right on the middle of his throat.

...Could it mean something?

[Christy-K]

lol,cute! ;D like the title,it fits the fic perfectly. ^^

[Elyon(Miranda)]

Lolz, thanx.^^ I'm going to post the next chapter soon.

[Christy-K]

can't wait. ;D ^^ i love teenage witches. and what's up with the boy?

[Elyon(Miranda)]

Lolz, you just wait.^^ The second chapter is a quater done!! I don't know if I should be scared about this next chapter not taking as long as the first, after all it takes others a long time. But I guess my way of writing is pretty off compared to others...

[Christy-K]

lol,probably. and oooohhhhh,suspence. ;D

[Elyon(Miranda)]

Lolz, I know this has to be gramatically fixed but right I'm just dropping it off.^^

*-<Chapter 2>-*

Trauma

The next day, Tristie couldn't help herself. She had been talking about Snow all lunch. Only Talia did not give her the tired reaction she had expected, quite on the contrary.

"Wow, he sounds like a freakshow to me, Tristie. I say you stay away from that guy," Talia warned.

"But there's...there's just something about him. Something weird, yes, but in a strangely good way."

"How is having a snake and a paw print any good? Do you know how crazy that sounds?! And what if it's not a birthmark, what if he's insane and actually branded himself!?"

"He wouldn't brand himself," she retorted. Neither of them had taken even a bite of their lunch ever since the beginning of the conversation. Talia had given up on her's and threw it away while her friend continued to ignore it. Crossing her arms, she said, "There's just something telling me not to give up on him so easily."

"Yea, well, suit yourself. All I know is I'm not taking two steps near that guy."

= = = == = = =

Again and again the mysterious Snow showed up. Everywhere. In the halls. Past the doors of the classrooms. On the fields during break. In fact, Tristie was sure there was nowhere he wouldn't be. He even did something in spite of himself--he waved and smiled at Tristie.

Could the boy be opening up to me?

It was once again seventh period, and once again time to stare the clock down. Talia and most other students were planning on going home, or possibly participating on an after-school activity. But Tristie had other plans ahead of her. She was going to go to after Snow.

After her departure with Talia, she soon found out she didn't need to go after him. He was already after her.

"Tristie," he called from afar, but he wasn't smiling this time. He was still his irritable and irate self. He didn't open up to Tristie after all. So be it.

"I'm...coming," she replied ackwardly. He's really approaching me this time?

"Do you...want me to...walk you home, today?" He was looking away from her the whole time saying this, as well as shuffling his feet against the concrete sidewalk. There were a few twitches and flinches here and there. So that was it. He was a naturally shy guy who hid behind a stone sheild.

"Sure, why not?"

Down along the same leave scuffled ground they walked. Branches were snapping against the soles of their shoes and the wind blew a little more slowly than it did yesterday. Ripples spun around in a neat circle at the bottom of Tristie's dress, a rapid beige sea.

They stopped at her house nearly the same time they did yesterday. Leaves bound the gutter and roof had a blanket of the autumn's effect. Finally the girl waved to her new friend.

"I'll see you tomarrow?"

He silently nodded, but the end of his lip twitched. Tristie could tell he was trying not to smile. It lit her up.

She inserted the key into the lock as he stepped away from her house. Finally opening the door, glancing back, she could no longer see him.

"I really can't stand the little brat."

"But aren't you happy we took their precious daughter? To top that off, we did something even worse the day before."

"How could I have ever forgotten?"

Tristie heard two awfully familiar voices coming from the living. She swallowed something in her throat as she sneaked over behind the piller to listen. When she took a peek into the room, she found two of the most scariest and unbelievable sights she'd seen in her life.

Two creatures stood talking to each other in the house's living room. Their skin was a midnight shade of blue with scratches that told her they had endured a lot danger, but were definitely not pitiful. Their gaze was hateful and demonic, coming from sharp, golden eyes. Their hair strung down in thick, tangerine wisps.

Her breath was taken from her. What are these creatures? Why were they here, in her house? And just who was little girl they were talking--

Her thoughts had been interupted by too hateful stares shooting straight at her.

"So...you've discovered us," the first creature smirked. There was just something familiar about that voice...

"Dad?!"

"'Dad' is what you usually call me," the creature was now smiling, "but I'm actually called Revile."

"And I am Esther," the second creature, one with a more female voice spoke. "But you know as 'mom'"

Both monsters stared down on her with devilish grins and determined eyes, looking as they were ready to pounce on her. Tristie could say or do nothing; she was simply horror-struck. Her parents were acutally...monsters?!

[Christy-K]

whoa,what a twist!

[Elyon(Miranda)]

*-<Chapter 3>-*

The Chase

Tristie took in as much of the scene as she possibly could. Two midnight creatures stood in her rooms, both revealing to her that they her parents, and now realizing that they held weapons upon them...

"Oh, let's just the kill the brat already!!" Esther hissed as she charged toward her "daughter" with a giant mallet-like tool with sharp, deep-cutting studs. Lifting it in the air, she was ready to crack Tristie's skull open.

"Wha..?!" Now that the truth was confirmed, Tristie decided she had no choice another than to become a runaway. It was risky, with so many consequences that could affect her. But staying there and waiting to be killed was just as(if not more) risky.

"As you wish," Revile sneered, also raising his own studded mallet and set himself to kill Tristie. His now bulky legs took him farther than they would have in his human form; his new strength put him at a complete advantage.

With both of her so-called parents running after her, Tristie busted the door open and could think of only one person to run to, one person who wouldn't find this scene too bizarre(for he himself was quite bizarre). Snow. The only issue with this solution, though, is that Triste had no idea where her new friend lived. Although, he did claim to not have a home...

Tristie desparately searched for her friend, scanning every house down the road she was going. He was nowhere to be sight, as Tristie had guessed. Crack after crack sounded as abandoned parts of a tree split in half due to the hard base of her boots. The leaves flew and obeyed the wind that she had created with her running. She looked both sides of the forest. No one around.

She took a glance back. They had gone even closer to her!!! What was she to do? Clearly she'd be insane to scream out Snow's name in the middle of a forest. That would draw more attention, which is definitely last thing she wanted, even though she was sure someone was bound to see a teenage girl being chased by two dark blue creatures.

Miles and miles it seemed she had run before tripping over a giant root growing out of an old oak tree, like a vein pushing above the ground. A pair of shadows grew behind her with risen weapons. She quickly pushed her self up and feinted the attacks. Even if the situation was hopeless, she couldn't make herself give up.

She began run again when something--or, better yet, someone--pulled her to safety. She could feel a hand grabbing her's, pulling her into the cluster of trees, as away from the enemies she could get at the moment. It was none other than the very one she had been looking for. Snow.

"Snow!" She whispered excitedly, "Am I glad to see you! Those creatures--they said they were my parents! I know that sounds insane, but--"

"No, it's all too real," he replied stiffly, turning his head to the outside direction to see if the hunters disappeared, which they had, for now. "Those two 'creatures' are Metamoorians, they come from Meridian! And to make matters worse, they're criminals, the worst one in there, I heard."

Tristie said nothing, she could only stare at him with unbelievable eyes. Meridian? Metamoor? Criminals? What was this guy talking about? It was all nonsense! And yet, Tristie continued to trust him. Continued to trust someone who was crazy...

"M...Metamoor? Meridian..? What are you talking about?"

Snow hung his head and(Tristie could tell) had an irate expression on his face. "Metamoor...that's the city in which I was born. Meridian...Meridian is my home."

So this was it! This is the mysterious place that Snow refused to admit was his home!

"Then why did you insist you didn't have one?"

"Because Meridian isn't a place you can go to just by walking down the street."

"Then how do you get there?"

Snow smirked and looked up at her with an excited gaze. "Want to see something amazing?"

[Elyon(Miranda)]

*-<Chapter 4>-*

Meridian

Even though she wasn't saying anything, Tristie couldn't have been more surprised at that moment! What she saw astonished her...

A blue-silver, rapping circle stood in the air, blowing away leaves scratching the ground. The strikes of electric current coming from it were spasmodic, both Snow and Tristie dodged every little lightining strike that came their way. Snow stared at it nostalgically while Tristie only stared at it with no meaning. After all, she had no idea what the thing was. Before she could ask, Snow told her.

"It's a portal," he said, "a magical gateway to Meridian."

"Magical...?"

Did he just say magic???

Snow grinned even more. "Do I sound so crazy to you? After all, you aren't blind and two monsters that were formerly known as your parents just chased you with weapons."

"That's true," Tristie nodded and shivered. "And so, those two monsters are from wherever's behind the portal, right?"

He nodded and stuck his hand inside to reassure her that the portal held no danger. "See? There's nothing to be afraid, just a portal. Think of it as an open door. A big, strong-winded open door."

Tristie tried it herself. She was expecting to be caught on some kind of blue fire, with small lightining bolts and sprouting blue flames and all. She still felt warm, but not to the point where it was burning, almost like a giant azure blanket.

Now she felt safe enough to walk in after Snow. Seeing the portal was one thing, but going inside was unbelievable! Every step they made caused small windstorms of steel dust to swirl at their feet. It looked like a cobalt hallway, the twirling fogs securing them from anything outside.

Tristie had never seen anything like it. Although Snow went back to his usual self; he was no longer smiling. She wondered why he always seemed so angry, giving up the slightest bit of light that came his way. What was it about this place, what was it about his own home that made him so livid?

"Snow..." Tristie was about to start, but seeing the birthmark spiraling down his neck reminded her of her friend's mistrust, and also that she should still be careful with him. After all, snakes and wild cats weren't exactly friendly...

Scanning the place, Tristie could see all of the wreckage that spread all throughout the land. It looked as a hurricane had hit it of like it went through a series of natural disasters. Even the trees and plants(as many as there were around the place) looked dead. The skies were more grey than the ground with not a ray of the sun in sight.

"This place looks depressed," She told Snow. "Why is it like that?" Finally, a small and very distance thought came to Tristie. What if this is why he hated his home so much? What if something terrible happened here that stamped itself in his memory and it's too much for him to return? There wasn't a soul in sight...

"A lot of things happened to it," he replied. "Not that I care," he glared even more at the place, hating every little aspect of it. Suddenly, he smiled. "If anything, they deserved it."

It was an almost villianess smile that made Tristie flinch. She had never seen that side of Snow. He seemed almost depraved just by looking at the place in ruins...

"Snow--" she was about to ask him if they could return to Earth again, but something told her to stay there, despite the fact that she had no idea where exactly the were. "What about the portal?"

Snow turned around and held his right hand out, all fingers stretching out in all directions like a spider floating on a limb. A strange noise, almost like veins growing too big came from out of his hand, and sharp, ivory nails rose from his fingers.

"...." Tristie was speechless.

I knew there was something wrong with that guy!!! Then why do I still trust him...? What's wrong with me?! But even with the most panicked thoughts Tristie could not bring herself to run away.

Snow poked his nail into the very top of the portal(it was just his height) and scratched it around all of the circle's edges. As his finger traveled, more of the portal disappeared. Finally, the portal was completely gone. "There."

He turned to his friend who was shivering breathlessly. A look of concern came across his face. It was bad enough that she was from the planet of the humans and had never witnessed magic before, but now she discovered that her parents are monsters and her new friend was also magic.

"Umm...I can explain..." And yet he couldn't admit the truth. His nails sunk into his hand, shrinking until they were normal and human-like. "You see...this all has to do with why I hate this place."

Tristie came of her traumatized trance and got ready to listen hard. This had been the moment she'd been waiting for.

[Elyon(Miranda)]

*-<Chapter 5>-*

Truth[/center][/u]

"Well, you see," he grunted, "my father was not 'welcome' here in Meridian. My mother defended him, but only for so long. Eventually, my mother left him with me when I was born, and she never came back. I hated her for that, and I still do," he gritted his teeth. Tristie would have told him it wasn't right to hate your own mother, but what exactly could she say? Just then, her very own mother tried to kill her...

"My father and I traveled far thanks to the monstrous Metamoorians that constantly chased after us. Day and night this would go on, and I'd questioned why it was happening. My father didn't want to simply tell why they hated us, no, he had to show me." Snow threw himself on the ground, as if he didn't even deserve to stand up.

"What did he show you?" Out of a strange sense of courtesy, she too placed herself on the ground.

Snow hesitated for a few moments, and then finally said, "one night he took me behind the castle," he pointed to a giant brick rock surrounded with debris, "that used to be it. Once upon a time ago, it belonged to a queen. Father always refused to tell me about her, no matter how many questions I'd ask. He picked that spot for a reason.

"He'd hesitated, taking a breath. Finally, sparks of green fire circled him, even ivy lightning bolts sheilded around him! Then all of these strange green elements rose into a big mass. There was scream of utter pain, and finally the green dust blew away..."

"And then?"

"Ok, this is the hard part," Snow admitted after swallowing, "What came out of that green cloud was not my father, but a giant, green snake with arms!!!"

Tristie gasped slightly, leaning back. I'm not the only with monster parents!!!

"It was the most horrible thing I'd ever seen!" Snow looked as he were about to cry. "The man who took care of me and loved me for so many years was actually a monster the whole time!"

He sighed and then calm down, rubbing the water from his eyes. "People had heard his 'call' before, and the villagers chased after him! But even though his new form allowed him to travel faster, they had caught him. As for me, they only pointed their pitchforks in my direction.

"I watched them slice him with their sharpest weapons, beat him with their hardest wood, and pummel him deep into the ground. The last time I saw him, blood coated his face as well as bruises circling his eyes. He only had the strength to turn his head and speak weakly.

"He told me that night to run and hide. Run and hide for the longest time, be sure to never be caught. But what for? With nothing left, why did I continue to live on?" He shrugged. "Because my father told me to...

"After years of hiding those heartless Metamoorians found and attacked me. I was so afraid of the attack, being that it was a complete surprise, that I transformed. That night was the night I found that I too was a monster. A snake, just like my father--"

That would explain his serpent-like eyes and that snake mark from before!!! Tristie exclaimed to herself.

"and a cat, from--I guess--my mother. That could only explain it. Of course I wouldn't know, I've never met the woman."

The paw print...

Tristie said nothing, she only summarized what had happened the in past two days. She had met a strange boy named Snow and then discovered that her parents were monsters from a place called Meridian, which Snow revealed he was from. Then Snow takes her into Meridian through a portal and tells her that his father was snake and that mother might've been a cat, which led to him being part snake and part cat.

"This is all so very confusing to you, I know. If you want, you can go back to Earth and forget any of this ever happened. It doesn't take much for me to open a portal..."

She kept silent. She would have been more than happy to do just that, to forget all of this and go home. But what would happen to Snow? Would he stay in Meridian to be caught? And what would happen if the Metamoorians caught him? Would he be killed just like his father? The last thought made Tristie shiver.

"No," she replied. Snow gave her a questioning look.

"Doesn't the fact that I'm a monster make you want to run away?"

All of a sudden, she smiled. "But you're not a monster. If you were, you would have killed me a long time ago."

Snow was taken aback by this comment. He hadn't expected that! Her reaction was so kind...so understanding...

[Elyon(Miranda)]

*-<Chapter 6>-*

The Voice

"Thank you," Snow said with a bow. Tristie hadn't expected that.

"Oh..." her smile disappeared and she pulled him up by the shoulders. "What do we do now?"

"I...I don't really know," Snow admitted with shrug. "Maybe we should just...walk around, I guess."

Would walking around really fix anything?

They started towards the ruined castle. Just like the cracking of the branches from when they were walking home, the decaying blocks crumbled beneath their feet. Dust popped up from under and created small blankets of fog. Now that Tristie had noticed, the sky was grey with only tints of white in it. The clouds covered the sun and the water's reflection upon the sky. Was there even any water left for the sky to reflect upon? Tristie wondered.

Rocks of grey brick tumbled downward on the hill as their feet pushed them away. They were coming closer and closer to what was the inside of the castle. As they neared the palace, Tristie began to feel strange. The place was in fact dead, but there was something that was...alive.

Now they had reached what used to the be the door of the castle, of course now it was only a stubby wooden platform surrouded by thick chunks of wood. Snow started to walk around, but Tristie, despite her trust in Snow and lack of knowledege of this place, went "inside" the castle by stepping over door. The strange living aura that she felt earlier felt all the more living now...

Tristie.

She hopped back. Snow? No. It wasn't his voice. But who else could have called her name just now? There was no one else in sight...

Tristie. It was a strong and experienced voice. The voice of women, of a nameless someone that Tristie was sure she'd never met before. Tristie...

Help.

This voice was asking for help? Somehow the girl felt that this cry for help would come with a list of instructions. She was right:

Tristie, you and Snow must help me. The life of Meridian depends on it. Please, I trust you, my trust in him still remains incomplete. But I know no one else whom I could depend on to help you. I ask you this one favor. Only you can save Meridian...

The voice whispered the last word. Meridian...

The living essence was gone; Tristie no longer felt anything around her. Who's voice could that have been just now? Why was it untrusting of Snow?

She saw him walking around in circles, as if he were searching for bits and pieces of his father. He kicked the rocks around and his gaze stared down the stone floor. This time, instead of looking angry as usual, he looked sad. Tristie could not blame him.

Maybe he really is looking for his father, she thought sympathetically, maybe he's hoping deep within himself that he'll find him...

She decided to follow him; she was now becoming curious if he was searching or not. She found herself kicking rocks left and right as well.

There was nothing but the sound of flying rocks and cool breezes for a long time. Not one of them spoke, as if to listen for a voice to call their names(ironically, Tristie really was waiting for a certain voice to call her name again). It seemed to remain like this for hours.

"Snow," Tristie broke the silence in fear that it would continue any longer. It was ackward not to hear anyone speak.

He slowly turned himself around, giving Tristie a dead look, trying to fight his melancholy that so determinedly fought back. His snake-like eyes didn't hold the glow that they had before; now they were more the eyes of an unwanted kitten in the rain.

"Snow...I heard a voice..."

"I heard nothing."

"It was there! There was something alive; it was like someone was really speaking to me."

"What did it say?"

"It told me that I have to save it, and you have to help me. But that's all I know, it didn't say who it belonged to or where it came from. It was just a call for help..."

Snow looked up at the darkened sky, taking in as many of its depressing features as he could. "A call for help," he echoed.

"Can you take a guess as to who it was?"

"No, I just know it belong to a woman."

"And that's it?"

"That's it."

"Well, then, what are you going to do?"

Footsteps crushed the rocks into the ground, a sound that was so hard it drove Tristie and Snow to turn around. This sound had been made by Esther and Revile. The two dark blue ghouls stared into Tristie with piercing, golden eyes. The eyes of a predator.

"Run." And that's just what the two of them did. They ran. Miles and miles away, not caring where in Meridian they were.

The two chasing monsters had no problems with catching up. After all, they were the worst criminals to stomp upon Meridian, and their sole mission was to catch two small children. How hard could it be? The chase had begun yet again.

"They're already catching up!!" Tristie huffed, not having to look back to make this statement. "We can't run back and forth to Earth and Meridian forever!!"

Up the hills, down the hills, across bare plains, and now reaching a trench that was clearly out of place, the two victims were nearing their fate. What would be their solution?

Without even a thought, Tristie held her hand before her and slowed down. Before Snow could ask what she was doing, a strike of lighting that looked like it was made out of stars shot out of her and drilled itself into both monsters at the same time. They screamed in shear pain for only a minute and were finally thrown into the ground. They were completely unconscious.

Now Snow's question of Tristie's actions hung in the air, because this left them all speechless.

[Christy-K]

i allready read it at the other RPG,and like i said back then,i like where this is going. ^^

[Elyon(Miranda)]

*-<Chapter 7>-*

Remember

Gashes of torn flesh and exposed bone lie in the snow. The body was heavily covered in winter frost. Frozen blood no longer continued to run. Snow fell upon the dead, hiding all evidence of the murder that had taken place...

Talia slipped into a black hoodie and a white T-shirt. It was another bright and sunny day in the fall. Leaves that fell upon the window sill blocked only few of the sun's brave rays.

Wednesday morning. Only two more days of the week to go and she and Tristie would take a mini-vacation together. They had become the best of friends so quickly...

Talia ate lunch alone, for Tristie was nowhere in sight. This was strange, because was the one who always had perfect attendance, she even won a metal for it every year. She only missed two days of school the whole year round, and that was only because of her parents. And when her parents did something, Tristie usually told her.

So then, why isn't she here right now? Only Talia noticed that she was gone.

When the day finally ended, Talia decided to look around. It's not at all like Tristie to disappear...

There was a rustle coming from coloful flying leaves. It was silent. Talia had finally reached Tristie's house.

It seemed bare and lonely, as if it wasn't visited for years. There didn't seem to be anyone home. The gutters and the porch weren't cleaned off, and the door banged in and out; no one had closed it since...since whatever had taken place here...

A thought struck Talia as sudden as the hopping of a grasshopper: the snake guy!

That new kid that entered the school two days ago!! Tallia thought, gritted her teeth. Him! I knew he was strange; something was wrong with him! What did he do to Tristie?

Talia stomped up the wooden steps and slammed the swinging door against the wall, creating a loud SLAM!. She immediately ran inside screaming Tristie's name and glaring left and right to find the culprit. She growled under her breath.

I knew there was something familiar about that guy!!

She clenched her fists together so tightly her nails digged into palm, driving the blood from her knucles them and giving them a bone-like appearance.

The house was wrecked. A vase near the living room was shattered all over the floor, the books on the living room shelf scattered on the carpet. The entire living room looked as if it experienced a mini-earthquake not too long ago. This made Talia even more angry. Thoughts of the vile boy slamming the poor girl against the wall cooked up in her mind.

If he even laid a hand on her...

Those serpentine eyes, that flowing, long hair, and such an angry expression...it could only be one person. How could I ever forget such a monster?

"Him, I should've known..." Talia growled. "Oh, but Tristie had no idea...if only I had been there to protect her..."

[Christy-K]

only one chapter this time,eh?

[Elyon(Miranda)]

I know I know, I was stuck.^^ Some editing and then one more chapter before I finally post again.^^

[Christy-K]

cool,can't wait. ^^

[Elyon(Miranda)]

*-<Chapter 8>-*

Last Request

Instead of waiting hopelessly, Talia decided to was time to put her "bounty search" into action. Looking back at the many broken glass pictures of Tristie, Talia sadly stepped away and closed the door behind her. She faced the outside, witnessing the night sky and the trees that waved just below it. They were almost mourning with her...

"I will not stand around and cry this time," Talia said and looked up sternly, "Not this time." She immediately ran down the road leading to her house. Despite that it was dark, Talia could see her way clearly. The lights were on. Her mom must've been home by now.

"Mom," the first thing she called bursting through the door.

"What are you doing here so late?" Her mom asked with her arms crossed. "Do you know what time it is?"

"Yes, time to leave this place. He's here, he's found a way to come here. And he took her, he took Tristie," Talia slammed her fist on the wall and clenched her teeth, "he took my friend!!!" She nearly screamed.

Her mom was silent and expressionless for a moment. Finally she nodded, and the painful time had finally come. Today was a day that Emeralda regretted living in. A day that determined the fate for both of them. Mother and daughter, never to see each other after this day. That's what today meant. Gaiko had told them that today, Wednesday, August 29, would be an expiring date for Emeralda and the start of destiny for Talia.

"Talia," Emeralda looked into her daughter's innocent eyes one last time and grabbed her by the shoulders, "be strong and promise me you will not let that monster hurt you or Tristie."

Talia nodded, and a rush of panic wavered through her at the sound of Tristie's name. So many thoughts ran by in only a second. Would she see her again? Was she already dead? What kind of things did that demon do to her already? Is he planning to do something with her? What could she have that he wants so badly?

"I promise to avenge our family at all costs." Talia quickly ran upstairs, grabbed her weapons, chained on her armor, and was back downstairs again, only this time, at the front door. "I won't fail or cry this time, I promise."

The door closed with a creak. Emeralda stood alone for a couple of seconds and immediately walked away, not wanting to take in any realization. It would only make things harder. Every once in a while a small vision of Talia dying came by, or a thought of the fact that she'd just lost her own daughter would cross her mind, but she'd do anything to occupy herself. She knew, as much as it hurt her, that she had to let her daughter go.

Chink! Chink! Chink! went the chains on her armor as Talia ran toward the forest near Tristie's house, an abandoned sight. She turned her head both sides before jumping into the bushes and standing up in the trees. Now that night had come, the true eeriness of the forest exposed itself. Even as fearless as Talia was, she was afraid of the dark. Quickly she used a piece of amethyst that was the shape of a cresent-moon to create a portal. Purple light pushed the darkness away, giving Talia a bit of confidence. Maybe she would succeed(she'd been doubting it the whole time).

All the while that Talia had ran into the forest and created a portal, Talia's mother had been strolling around the Heatherfield Park. It didn't exactly make her any less worried.

It was only a distant memory, but a picture of frozen blood beside a dead and familiar body formed in her mind. She had no control over it this time, because this was a nightmare that came to her every night.

She tried so hard to explain to Talia at the time...why this happen; the whole reason behind such a murder. But there was none. It just happened, as most deaths do. Talia did not understand, and truthfully, niether did herself.

The last time Emeralda looked up at the beautiful night sky, a spontaneous bolt of lightning struck her through the heart, and she knew for certain that she would not be lucky. She immediately plopped on the granite sidewalk, a million photos flashed through her eyes...

Meridian, a beautiful place, filled with fields that her mother always allowed her to run through...

Dead bodies everywhere, a war broke out upon Meridian and there were no survivors...

A boy with long black hair and red at the tips smiled at her. He'd survived...

Long black hair, pale blue eyes, a small girl smiled and clinged to her...

A man identical to the boy with black, red-tipped hair lie on the bloody snow, making no movement...

Purple light lit up the darkness signaled their longed-for escape from a dying world...

Finally, the one person that endured every hardship with her walked out the door with one last glance...

And now, the purple light, the ray of amethyst that had been their only hope disappeared, all that remained? Darkness...

Now a dead body laid on the floor full of unanswered questions that waited for the Heatherfield Police to ask.

[Elyon(Miranda)]

*-<Chapter 9>-*

The Ring

"How?" Snow's voice echoed within the grey air. But the question itself didn't belong to only him, but to Tristie and even the unconscious monsters as well. How?

"I don't know 'how,'" Tristie replied ackwardly. How? Who knew? A strong bolt of lightning and something-else just shot out her arm and probably killed her "parents." There was no answer to the question "how." It was just one of those things, one of those things that just happen...

This definitely wasn't a thing to take lightly or forget, but it was also not something to dwell on in their situation. Tristie turned herself the other way, facing the out-of-place trench. Through it, she could see it was on a hill, and at the bottom of that hill, looked to be a small town. Or maybe even bigger than a town...

"But I do know," she pointed toward the small "town" just below, "that that is where we need to be."

Snow looked over to where she had pointed and nodded. "It's familiar," he said and begun walking after Tristie. He gave one last glance at their enemies lying on the floor. They didn't even breathe. Looking forward, he was almost unsure if he should be following Tristie. She'd been the only who hadn't rejected him after seeing the monster he truly was, but she did carry tremendous power...

It won't go to her head, Snow reassured himself. He was afraid for a moment, but still had a lot of trust for her. This girl was the only one who did not run away from him. And besides, Tristie herself didn't even know about these "powers"...

It was a tall hill--Tristie was afraid that they would fall by walking down and get injured. Again, she went into a moment of not thinking, not feeling...suddenly she grabbed Snow's hand and the both of them jumped down. Snow thought she was crazy! Again she surprised the both of them: instead of falling to their death, Tristie, with Snow's hand in hers, floated downward and landed gently on the ground without getting harmed.

Once again "how" was at the tip of Snow's tongue, but it was held back this time. The look on Tristie's face explained that she didn't have the answer to this "how" either. Her hands trembled violently, and Snow was almost afraid of her passing out.

"Tristie," he took her by the shoulders and lightly pushed her forward. He decided it best not to say anything about the current events. Tristie obviously didn't know what was going on; she was completely lost, more lost than he was. Snow was scared for her, she must be traumatized by now after going through all of this and only just being introduced to magic.

Tristie decided to look away from the present and to the future: the town, which, in fact, turned out to be a city. There were destroyed market stands with squashed items, cracked and glass-broken buildings, and deserted granite grounds, which were marked with millions of footprints of all kinds.

Both creature and human, Tristie thought looking down, trying to replace the word "monster" in thought of Snow. People who judged because of looks and difference were the true monsters.

As he did at the castle, Snow wandered away from Tristie, even though he felt much more safe being around her. He looked at the ground, not to see the many-shaped footprints, but see if he could find...

"This is the place," whispered Snow's quavering voice, "this is where they killed my father..."

It was cold and deserted, very unlike the way it was the last time he was here. Then it had been alive and angry. Villagers with all sorts of weapons chased after them. Snow was not as fast as his father, and feared he was slowing him down. Slowing him down...what did it matter if his father was going to die anyway? But innocent and unknowing Snow had no idea he'd loose his father that day.

As Snow looked around, he saw something sparkle in the scarce white light that came from the sun behind the clouds. From his distance, it seemed to have no particular form or color, so he decided to walk closer. It wasn't only curiousity and the spark that was pulling him forward, but almost a famlilarization as well. He remembered something being right on that spot, but he just couldn't remember what and when.

When he came to the tiny object, he slid his feet apart and crouched down to get a better look. It was a golden ring with a golden lace that was tied to it in a strange fashion. It no longer shone because the darker clouds hid the sun's light from it. Thanks to this event, it was the first time Snow had realized that the clouds did move.

He picked up the ring and cartwheeled it with his thumb and index finger and played around with the lace. Yes, he'd seen this object before, but that's about as much as he could remember. Where did I see this?

He swung it back and forth, making the ring look like a clock that would be used by a hypnotist. When he last saw the thing, it was shining. Now it was dull. Snow had the feeling that this dullness had nothing to do the sun.

"I remember this, but why? Am I only just seeing this for the first time? Or did I really see this before?" Finally he stopped playing with it and slipped it on his finger. Then something strange happened: the ring escaped his hand; it literally flung itself away from him!

"What?!" This ring had a mind of it's own!! Snow had not thrown it, in fact he was trying it on!! How could it have possibly be there on the ground now? "That's...that's impossible!!!"

Anger filled inside of him. Why? Why did this stupid ring just fling out of my hand?! Does it think I'm a monster too?! Before he could loose control, as he always did, he calmly took the ring and dropped in his pocket, forgetting all intentions of taking it out and putting it back on.

"Tristie," he called. He'd nearly forgotten her, being caught up in his own past and all.

While Snow wandered off, Tristie had walked into an alley and found a crown. The crown was scorching hot, which made her drop it on the ground. This had been a major mistake....

[Elyon(Miranda)]

*-<Chapter 10>-*

Heart of Anger

"Tristie," the expression on his friend's face made Snow stammer. "Tr-Tristie, what's the matter you?"

He grabed her shoulders and lightly swung her body to face to him. He didn't like seeing his friend being traumatized, he'd seen enough of it already. Why did he keep letting this happen to her? "Tristie, say something! C'mon!" He shook her lightly. "Tristie, what did you see?"

Anger was brewing in him once again. But he wouldn't dare hurt Tristie, and so he held back. He shook her again, only this time with a little more force.

"I..I..."

"Yes?" He tried to sound gentle rather than harsh. Finally he had Tristie speaking.

"He...was on the floor and...I...why did she...it's so evil..."

"What did you see, Tristie?" Instead of saying another word, Tristie now put one of her hands on Snow's left shoulder and took in a lifeless breath, as if it were her last...

"You insane witch!!" A long-haired man screamed to the cat-like women. "You'll regret this, I'll never forgive you!!! You caused all of this!!!"

"You put this on yourself, you blind fool!!!" She screeched back. Hand-in-hand, both fought each other off, as if they were pushing a wall. "If he wants to, he can leave you!!!"

"He's making a mistake!!! No one betrays me twice!!! No one!!!" He looked at her with fierce eyes; her with an even more intrepid pair.

"You make this place depressed...you're the one that deprives it of life..."

"You--!!! How dare you--" but he was stopped in mid-sentence, and little did he realize just then that he was never to finish it...

Before he could speak one more word, the witch's "claws" grew sharper, and inside his chest was where she'd struck. A gust of blood shot from his mouth; her hand was inside of him--literally--grabbing a hold on his heart.

"You wouldn't dare," he looked down cowardly on his lifeline that was about to be cut, his heart was glowing madly with magic. Cold and unfeeling eyes, the mistress seared his heart with deepening nails while he screamed with unbearable pain. Inward her natural daggers went, squeezing harder and harder...

Splish!!!

Red blood exploded onto her face as the man dropped to the floor. She laughed hollow and dead with note of triumph, a tone that could've killed anyone there if they had heard it.

A cold and dark laugh echoed the dimly lit room two enemies were once standing in...

Snow had nothing more to say, he was too sick with fear and anger. There had been a marking on that sick women--

"Of a cat claw," Tristie said weakly. "A cat's claw was imprinted on her shoulder," she took two more steps back, and finally she let go of her consciousness.

"Tristie!!!!" Snow screamed and grabbed her before she could touch the ground. He trembled at the body that was locked in his arms. Would it stand up again? "Tri--"

But before Snow could say another word, metallic material struck him across the face and two feet from Tristie.

[Christy-K]

wow,this is getting more dramatic by the second. ;D