A Promise in the Shadows: Pumpkin Pie
Title: A Promise in the Shadows
Main Story: Cryptomancy
Flavors: Pumpkin Pie #10: in the shadows; Olde English Mead #7: If you have tears, prepare to shed them now
Word Count: 658
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Continued from my last post, "Bug"...in which Chaill makes a promise he may or may not be able to keep.
Notes: My use of the tears prompt is in no way an indication that this is going to make anyone cry except me.
I lay down beside her cell, letting my arm drop between the bars toward her. Several long minutes passed before she finally reached out and put her hand into mine. Her skin felt cold and clammy as the stone floor under my face. I couldn’t tell if she were even still awake, and indeed I felt my own eyes starting to close.
“Don’t fall asleep,” said Bug. It startled me enough that my eyes snapped open. “The bird will come out, when you sleep.”
“Huh?”
She sighed, whether in exasperation or pain or something else I could not tell. “The bird will crawl out and fly back to her, and she’ll know we were talking. You have to find that man first, and maybe he’ll help you.”
I frowned. “But I don’t want to leave you,” I said simply.
She actually smiled then, a pained gentle look. “It’s alright,” she said. “Just stay until I am sleeping.”
“How will I know?” I blurted. Her smile didn’t fade.
“You’ll know.”
Another few long moments passed. I was so confused, and I wasn’t lying, I didn’t want to leave Bug. Partly because I wanted to make sure she was alright, and partly because I was just too afraid. I didn’t even understand why I felt so compelled to make sure she was safe. I thought about our game, when we would guess the other’s thoughts, and how she always knew everything a moment before I said it. “Bug,” I whispered, “what am I feeling?”
She paused for a moment, taking as deep a breath as her pained body would allow. “You want to take off my mask.” As soon as she said it, I realized it was true. It was what I had been wanting to do for a long time, possibly since I had met her. She nodded slightly, and I took that as permission.
I pressed my body against the bars, extending my arm as far as possible until I managed to get my hand behind her head. She gasped when I touched her, which made me jerk back, but when she didn’t otherwise move, I went back to work until I found the place where the dingy bandage had been knotted over her limp and greasy hair.
I had always been good at untying knots, and this was a simple one, easy to work with one hand. I fished the two ends free and let the strip of cloth slither across and come to rest on the stone beside her face.
It was hard to see in the shadows, but her two eyelids were sewn shut with what appeared to be sinew. The space where her eyes had been was crisscrossed with scars, and more thin lines radiated from the sockets like pale pink spider webs. I could see then that Jenny must have been right: Bug’s eyes had probably taken up half her face. I reached out and ran a fingertip over her cheekbone, just below her eye socket.
“What has she done to you?” I whispered.
“I want you to make me a promise,” said Bug, ignoring my question, somewhat to my relief.
“What?”
She reached up and grabbed hold of my hand, knotting our fingers together. “Promise me we’ll leave this place.”
I pulled her hand to my lips and kissed it, for no other reason than that it seemed the right thing to do. “I promise,” I whispered.
We lay there in silence for a long time. I don’t know exactly how long, and it really doesn’t matter. When Bug had finally fallen asleep, I disentangled my hand from hers and stood. I looked down at her, and realized for the first time that Bug was the only person I had ever known who looked less peaceful in her sleep. With her eyes sewn shut, there was really no indication that she even had fallen asleep.
She’d been right, though. I knew.
Main Story: Cryptomancy
Flavors: Pumpkin Pie #10: in the shadows; Olde English Mead #7: If you have tears, prepare to shed them now
Word Count: 658
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Continued from my last post, "Bug"...in which Chaill makes a promise he may or may not be able to keep.
Notes: My use of the tears prompt is in no way an indication that this is going to make anyone cry except me.
I lay down beside her cell, letting my arm drop between the bars toward her. Several long minutes passed before she finally reached out and put her hand into mine. Her skin felt cold and clammy as the stone floor under my face. I couldn’t tell if she were even still awake, and indeed I felt my own eyes starting to close.
“Don’t fall asleep,” said Bug. It startled me enough that my eyes snapped open. “The bird will come out, when you sleep.”
“Huh?”
She sighed, whether in exasperation or pain or something else I could not tell. “The bird will crawl out and fly back to her, and she’ll know we were talking. You have to find that man first, and maybe he’ll help you.”
I frowned. “But I don’t want to leave you,” I said simply.
She actually smiled then, a pained gentle look. “It’s alright,” she said. “Just stay until I am sleeping.”
“How will I know?” I blurted. Her smile didn’t fade.
“You’ll know.”
Another few long moments passed. I was so confused, and I wasn’t lying, I didn’t want to leave Bug. Partly because I wanted to make sure she was alright, and partly because I was just too afraid. I didn’t even understand why I felt so compelled to make sure she was safe. I thought about our game, when we would guess the other’s thoughts, and how she always knew everything a moment before I said it. “Bug,” I whispered, “what am I feeling?”
She paused for a moment, taking as deep a breath as her pained body would allow. “You want to take off my mask.” As soon as she said it, I realized it was true. It was what I had been wanting to do for a long time, possibly since I had met her. She nodded slightly, and I took that as permission.
I pressed my body against the bars, extending my arm as far as possible until I managed to get my hand behind her head. She gasped when I touched her, which made me jerk back, but when she didn’t otherwise move, I went back to work until I found the place where the dingy bandage had been knotted over her limp and greasy hair.
I had always been good at untying knots, and this was a simple one, easy to work with one hand. I fished the two ends free and let the strip of cloth slither across and come to rest on the stone beside her face.
It was hard to see in the shadows, but her two eyelids were sewn shut with what appeared to be sinew. The space where her eyes had been was crisscrossed with scars, and more thin lines radiated from the sockets like pale pink spider webs. I could see then that Jenny must have been right: Bug’s eyes had probably taken up half her face. I reached out and ran a fingertip over her cheekbone, just below her eye socket.
“What has she done to you?” I whispered.
“I want you to make me a promise,” said Bug, ignoring my question, somewhat to my relief.
“What?”
She reached up and grabbed hold of my hand, knotting our fingers together. “Promise me we’ll leave this place.”
I pulled her hand to my lips and kissed it, for no other reason than that it seemed the right thing to do. “I promise,” I whispered.
We lay there in silence for a long time. I don’t know exactly how long, and it really doesn’t matter. When Bug had finally fallen asleep, I disentangled my hand from hers and stood. I looked down at her, and realized for the first time that Bug was the only person I had ever known who looked less peaceful in her sleep. With her eyes sewn shut, there was really no indication that she even had fallen asleep.
She’d been right, though. I knew.