I'm off to Europe. I have something to take care of there. I'll post details later because my plane leaves in 20 minutes.

Tori if you see this, I left a note in my room explaining everything, and I'm sorry.

Goodbye

I heard a yawn and the quiet noise of footsteps as Alice walked into the kitchen. I continued to watch the pan, waiting for the perfect moment to flip the pancake I was making. "Good morning...." I heard her say with a sigh. I looked over my shoulder to see Alice sitting, her head resting on the table. I flipped the pancake, and heard someone running down the stairs. I saw Tori walk into the kitchen dressed for work.

I smiled, "Tori, you're just in time for breakfast." I set a pancake on the plate and poured more batter into the skillet. I turned to see Tori sitting in one of the chairs, quickly tying her shoes.

"Sorry, Skye I don't have time to si-" She began to say before I set down a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich, wrapped in a napkin on the table. She finished tying her shoes and stood up. She gave me a peck on the cheek with a quick "thanks" before grabbing the sandwich and her car keys, she went for the door and rubbed the top of Alice's head. "See ya kiddo." and with that she left.

I set down a plate of pancakes in front of Alice who mumbled something that I assumed was thanks. I sat down and took a sip of my coffee as I watched Alice slowly begin to wake up as she ate her pancakes.

"You're leaving already?"

I saw Roy fasten the straps on his backpack. "I have to Skye, I already told Alice goodbye."

"If you're ever back in town...you know you're welcome here." He smiled sadly at me. 

"Skye, this is goodbye. I'm afraid we won't be seeing each other again." To me he sounded defeated, as if he had simply given up. I found myself growing slightly angry.

"So that's it? You've just given up? Your just going to go find somewhere to die quietly?" I look back at it now and realize that this sounded harsh. 

He chuckled, not the reaction I had expected. He grinned at me, "Of course not. I'm going to fight until I can't anymore, and when I go, I'll go swinging." 

I looked at him in disbelief. "Aren't you scared?" 

"Honestly?" I nodded, "Fuck yeah I am. But that doesn't mean I'm going to spend the rest of my life hiding. Would that increase my life span? Maybe. But that's just not my style." He had accepted it, he was accepting the fact that he was going die. Yet he kept walking, moving forward. I looked down trying to hide the tears building in my eyes.

"What about us?" It came out slightly choked. "You're just going to leave us behind? The rest of us runners?" It sounded selfish, and I knew it was, I could tell that he was tired.

He chuckled, setting a hand on my head. "Skye, it's because of runners like you, and Med, and all the others, that I can keep moving. I'm not afraid to leave this fight to all of you, because I know that you're all strong, and smart." He laughed again, "Hell of lot smarter than me." He lifted his hand and turned to walk away. I watched through blurred vision as he kept walking, he stopped for a moment. "Take good care of her alright?" 

I nodded even though he couldn't see me, "You got it." 

He lifted his hand "Goodbye." 

"...Skye?" I blinked and looked at Alice who looked concerned. I reached up and felt that my cheeks were wet. I shook my head, feeling embarrassed.

"It's nothing, sweetie." With that she went back to eating her pancakes, glancing up at me with concern every now and then. I simply stared at my coffee.

'I'll do my best Roy, I promise you that.'

Surprises are usually bad

"Skye, I hate asking you to do this." I stared at Roy who looked quite uncomfortable. It wasn't hard to see why of course, this was a rather big request. It had been a week but he had dropped by like he had said he would, seemingly unharmed to my relief. At the moment we were sitting in the living room, a cup in front of each of us. Tea for me and coffee for him.

I sighed and took a sip of my tea. "Roy, you drop by and ask me to do this, but you still haven't told me why. Roy that girl would be crushed if you just left her like that. You can see it in her eyes that she loves you. You're all she has." I was referring to Alice, the girl Roy had taken and was raising, who at that moment was in the backyard with Tori, who said she'd entertain the girl while we talked. "Roy I'm fifteen! How am I supposed to raise a child? I'm still just a child myself..." I nearly whispered the last part, not sure of my choice of words.

"Skye I know it's a lot to ask of you, trust me I know. I just didn't have anyone else to turn to...." He looked away, frowning to himself. Looking at him, he seemed just as tired as he had before, as if he hadn't slept for a long time.

"Look I'm sure Tori wouldn't mind you staying for awhile bu-" His eyes widened and he looked slightly panicked.

"No! Just....her...." I raised an eyebrow at the outburst. He looked at the ground, his eyes no longer visible, hidden beneath his hair. He continued to stare at the ground as he spoke. "Skye, please...." I stared at him for another few moments, the room silent as I thought.

"I'm not agreeing to anything, but if I'm even to think about this, I need to know one thing." He looked at me hopefully. "Why? Why can't you take care of her anymore?" He smiled sadly.

"Skye, the path I walk, is not one I chose. But it is one I must continue to walk. This path though, it's coming to an end. I'm not going to be around for much longer, and I refuse to drag her down with me, I care for her too much to do so." My eyes widened for a split second, trying to take in what I had heard. He was saying...he was going to die soon. But....

“You had been visiting Wolf right? How was that?” His smile became slightly strained at the question.

“It was nice, really nice. But there were things I wish I would have said. To each of them... I just...” He sighed.

I smiled at him. “Hey don't worry you can tell them next time.”

It's why he had seemed so sad.....there wouldn't be a next time. "Roy how can you be sure, I me-"

He chuckled. "Skye, you saw him didn't you? He's been following me for weeks now, I can't go more then an hour without seeing him. Honestly, I'm surprised you haven't noticed." At that moment, he appeared, standing right behind Roy, his faceless head tilting as he observed me. Everything had froze, Roy was still smiling and I felt all of the color drain from my face. As fast as he had appeared though, he had vanished. 

I let go of a breath I hadn't realized I was holding. I regarded Roy. He still smiled and yet, in his eyes I could see how desperate he was. I took another sip of tea and shut my eyes. How could I deny a dying man, his last request? I didn't open my eyes as I responded "Fine." Was all I said. I would of course talk to Tori about this later and hope she understood. 

I guess I was right, things had gotten a lot more complicated.

Surprise, surprise!

As I cracked open my book I realized with a sigh that it would be another boring night at work. I felt like I wasn't pulling my own weight, with Tori working now, and also her going on missions, I finally decided that I needed something to occupy my time. I had been hired at the library, I worked the late shift, anywhere from five or six until closing at midnight. It was usually after ten that I wouldn't really see anyone come in. So I would spend my time studying my book until closing.

I glanced up at the clock and sighed, ten thirty. Another hour and a half to go. I glanced up at the ceiling my mind wandering away from my book. I wondered how Tori was doing, she had been busy, busier than usual. I was worried but whenever I'd asked about it she had simply smiled that disarming smile of her's and told me that she would be fine, but she appreciated my worrying. I would trust her, but make sure that I was keeping the house clean and always had a nice dinner ready when she got home, that is if I wasn't working.

I chuckled as I remembered what she said the night before during dinner. She had smirked at me and commented that I would make the perfect housewife one day. I hadn't trusted myself not to stutter so I had simply continued to eat silently, my face aflame. The thought went through my head that she would make a great wife one day. Though having a wife that could kick my ass would be troublesome.....I blinked and shook my head. My mind was moving way too fast. As it usually tended to.

Just as I went back to read my book, I heard someone clear there throat. I had been so absorbed in my thoughts that I hadn't seen a man walk up to the counter, a large book in his hand, strangely enough the cover was bare of any words or even colors other than black. He had a hooded cloak on, his face barely visible. His green eyes, looked tired as if he hadn't slept for days, but as tired as they looked they were bright and piercing. But the smile I could see was kind, it put me at ease. The strangest thing was his posture, while seemingly laxed, was anything but. If one were to look closely enough they would notice that his muscles were tensed, like a coil snake ready to spring.

“Uh, did you want to check that out?” I asked hesitantly. I already had mixed feelings about the man. His smile was kind, but he stared at me intently, studying me, like he was sizing me up.

“Yes.” Was his simple reply, his voice calm and quiet. I simply nodded and took the book from him, not even glancing at it.

“Do you have a library card?” He shook his head, indicating that he didn't, I sat down at my computer and brought up the registration page. “Name?”

“Roy Carson.” My eyes widened and I looked up. I stared at the man, a wide grin now gracing his face. “Hey, Skye. How have you been?” Roy and me had been talking for a while. Even though I'd never met him in person we became fast friends. We had been shooting emails back and forth and chatting. But I hadn't heard from him in months.....

I smiled at him. “I've been okay. But what about you? I haven't heard from you in months! Where have you been?!” I had been worried. I didn't have many friends, and thinking he had died had not been a pleasant experience.

His grin turned mischievous. “You've been more than okay, if what I read on Tori's blog is true.” Cue my embarrassing blush. He chuckled, “and from the color on your face, it must be.” He frowned for a moment, a very tiny moment that if I hadn't been paying close attention I wouldn't have noticed it. But his smile was back on his face before I could say anything. “I was visiting a friend was all.”

“You had been visiting Wolf right? How was that?” His smile became slightly strained at the question.

“It was nice, really nice. But there were things I wish I would have said. To each of them... I just...” He sighed.

I smiled at him. “Hey don't worry you can tell them next time.”

His eyes suddenly had a far away look to them when he replied. “Yeah.....next time.” and he was all smiles again. Like he was slipping on a mask.

“So what are you doing here?”

“Just thought I'd come through time and visit you. There's also something I wished to speak to you about. Just not here.”

I frowned at the response, I went to say something and a shiver went down my spine. That feeling....he was here...but...where? Glancing at the window I saw him. Even without eyes, or a face for that matter, I could tell that he was staring at Roy. “Roy-”

The smile never left his face. “Yeah, I know. He's been following me for awhile now.” He glanced out at Slendy and then made his way towards the door. I went to say something but he raised his hand. “I'll come and visit you sometime soon.”

“But Ro-”

“Don't worry about me, I'll be fine.” He walked out the door after that. I saw him walk past Slender who remained for a moment before vanishing. I sighed and fell back in my chair. I had a feeling that things were about to get a lot more complicated.

Christmas prep.

I looked around me at the vast store that was Hobby Lobby and I sighed. Where to start? I had never decorated a house for Christmas before, with Tori at work the duty was left to me.

"Can I help you, uh...sir?" I blinked and looked over at the woman who had spoken. I realized then that I had been staring at the mistletoe for a good few minutes. I could feel my face light up slightly, embarrassed from how dumb I must look. I saw her sight drift down my right arm for a moment, her eyebrow rose at the bandages that covered my entire arm, stopping just shy of my fingers.

After Tori had learned of what the rune did to my life span she had been furious with me. Asking me how I could be "so smart, but do something so stupid?!" I merely remained silent and had let her rant at me. It wasn't like I could argue against her anyway. She decided that we should try to remove it, with that in mind we removed the top layer of skin from my hand, the rune with it. While painful, it had worked, or so we had thought. After the skin had healed, I was irritated to find that the rune came back with the new patch of skin. So until I could find a way to remove the rune permanently I would keep it hidden and try not to use it.

I was brought back to the present, as I felt the woman staring at me expectantly. I told the woman what I was there for and she led me around the store, bringing me to anything she thought may be what I was looking for. The woman was surprisingly patient. After about an hour and a large chunk of my personal savings, I was leaving Hobby Lobby with large bags tucked under my arms. Twenty minutes later I was back at the house. When I entered the house I heard music coming from the living room. A rather familiar tune.

"Meet me under the mistletoe"

I was surprised, not that I hadn't heard the song before. It was just that no one was supposed to be home at the moment and unless the dog had learned to operate a radio.....

"Baby don't try and tell me more"

I set my bags down on the kitchen counter as quietly as possible and walked towards the living room quietly. I peaked in and was surprised to see Tori standing next to a Christmas tree, stringing up the lights. I thought she was at work today.

"Baby I'll be by your side"

A smile came to my face when I heard her singing along to the song, a happy smile on her face as she continued to place the lights on the tree. It had been a slow process to be sure, but she had slowly revert back to how she was before her ordeal.

"Kiss me under the mistletoe"

This was actually the happiest I had seen her in awhile. I decided to make my presence known and knocked on the wall next to me. She looked over at me, her eyes widening, a small blush lighting her face. I stifled a laugh as she scrambled over the radio and turned it off. I was slightly disappointed, she actually had a pretty nice voice. She looked from the radio to me. "H-hey, Skye ...when did you get home?"


I had an amused smile on my face. "Just now. I'm surprised you're home, I thought you worked today."

The blush faded from her face. "Well I did, but I didn't want you to have to decorate the house by yourself so I switched with somebody." She walked in to the kitchen, looking at the various bags on the table. "Do you need any help with those?" I paled when I remembered what one of the bags contained, but covered my panic quickly.

"That's alright, I got them." I quickly grabbed the bags and rushed upstairs, setting them in my room. In one of the bags was Tori's present.... which since she may read this, I won't say what it is. After I had properly hid her present, I looked in the bags containing decorations. It was time to get started.

Three hours later and I was going over the mental checklist.

Holly? Check.

Christmas tree decorated? Check.

Christmas lights outside? Check.

The halls were properly decked. It was at that moment that my insane other decided to speak up. 'I notice you hung mistletoe as well. Hoping to get a kiss?' I could feel my eye twitch. 'It's for decorative purposes!' I heard my other let out an amused snort.

'Sure, sure....' He went silent at that moment and I sighed. I stared at the tree. Yep, it felt like Christmas.

Wake up call

6 a.m. in the morning....My alarm goes off, as usual I slam my hand on the snooze button, half-tempted to destroy the dang thing with my new rune. I sit up and stretch, a yawn escapes my mouth as I wait for my eyes to adjust to the darkness of my room. I roll out of bed and throw on some clothes before heading to the basement. No better way to wake up than with physical training. Stretch a little and then go right into my usual routine. This takes around an hour. 

Afterwards I go upstairs and take a shower. After all of this I make my way to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. I find Alaska looking up at me expectantly and I feed her. I check the fridge and find that were almost out of eggs. I guess I'll make a trip to the store later today. I think as I grab what remains of the carton. I turn on the stove and go about preparing some eggs(scrambled and fluffy of course) as well as bacon, and a couple pieces of toast. I put this all on a plate and set it on the table where Tori usually sits.

I turn around to make my breakfast and I hear someone enter the room. "Good morning." I call out not bothering to turn around. No response, only silence. "I hope you slept well." I try, still no response. I sigh and turn around. "C'mon Tor-" No one else is in the room. I also notice that the plate I set out is gone. I sighed and sat down at the table. I picked at the food on my plate, having lost my appetite for some reason.

It had been like this ever since she got back, she avoided me. The only time I really saw her during the day was at dinner. The comfortable silence was gone, replaced with a tense silence. I saw so little of her during the day, that if I didn't know any better I would say she was using the path to get around the house; just so that she could avoid me. It was beginning to irritate me and I didn't know what to do.

'Let me talk to her. I'll fix her up in no time.'

I scoffed at the idea. 'I don't exactly trust you, ya know.'

'Come now I won't hurt her...much.' I could practically hear the wicked smirk on his face.

'No, I'll figure this out on my own.'

I heard a sigh in my head 'Sadly, it wasn't a request.' I felt a slight tugging sensation at the back of my mind. Before I knew what was going on I had lost control of my body. It wasn't like the other times though. Usually when my other decided to take control I had no idea what was going on. I basically passed out when he took control. It wasn't like that this time, I could still see everything from my own eyes. I looked down at my hands and flexed my fingers, only it wasn't me.

I made way towards Tori's room. My hand grasped the knob and I opened her door. Tori was sitting on her bed, an empty plate on her nightstand. She was staring at her laptop. She looked up at me and I caught a glimpse of her eyes the same dull blue as when I met her, void of any emotion other than sorrow and guilt. She gave me a questioning glance, obviously wondering why I had barged into her room. I went to mutter an apology and realized that like my body I had no control of my voice.

"We need to talk." I asked, it wasn't the loud booming voice my other usually used.

She frowned and shook her head. 

"Not right now Skye, I'm not really in the mood to talk." I grinned and walked over to her bed. I took the laptop from her and set it next to her on the bed. I watched as I picked her up bridal style and her eyes widened in surprise. "W-What the hell Skye?!" She struggled to no avail. She could not escape the tight hold I had on her. I walked into the backyard and proceeded to unceremoniously dropped her on to the ground. She glared up at me and stood up slowly. "The fuck Skye?! I said I did-" I raised a hand and cut her off.

"Let's cut to the chase Tori. I'm sick of your attitude and I'm sick of you avoiding me." Her eyes widened slightly.

"I haven't be-" I cut her off again.

"Bull shit! You've been moping around the house and avoiding me all week!" A growl escaped my lips. "It's time to face the facts. What you did was horrible. They thought you were their friend. You stabbed them all in the back. Killed every last one of them." I could see her eyes watering slightly and I fought desperately for control. "You killed people Tori and I get that it was hard. But you need to move on. Stop being a pathetic little bitch." I could tell she was close to tears.

"S-Skye...they trus-" She started to say, before I cut her off.

"What? Trusted you? Look where that got them! They deserved to die for their own stupidity. Trust is for fools who don't know how the universe works." I could feel the vicious smirk that formed on my face.

"I b-betrayed them...I'm a fucking m-monster..." She said, sounding choked.

"This isn't about your pathetic morals anymore! This is about sur-" I blinked. A grin made it's way onto my face as I regained control. Tori was still looking at the ground, I took a step forward and did the only thing that I could think to do. I wrapped my arms around her and I felt her stiffen. "You're not a monster..." I spoke softly. "You did what you had to, so that we could survive." I felt her relax. "I'm sorry, It's my fault that you had to kill. I feel like I've only caused you trouble and for that I'm truly sorry."

"No, its not your fault," she sighed and leaned into me slightly. "It was my choice Skye..." She shivered when some wind blew by, it was unseasonably chilly out and there was still dew on the grass. I pulled her closer to me and she pressed herself into me in an attempt to keep warm.

"I don't think you're any less of a person for what you did Tori," I told her.

"Why?" She mumbled into my chest.

"Because you did what you had to. I know it's hard, but you need to accept that and move on. You can't hide away forever." I chuckled and rubbed small circles into her back, keeping her warm.

She shifted around so she could look at me. Her eyes nearly made my stomach drop out of me, they were like a glass window that someone had broken and taped back together, but they did a terrible job and they missed some pieces. She opened her mouth and I expected her to argue my last sentence.

"Can we have a Lord of the Rings marathon?" Her voice was small and nearly child-like. She was far from accepting what she did, but at least she was willing to work towards it.

"Yeah, of course," I smiled down at her before picking her up again, bridal-style. She gave a small laugh and just leaned into me, trying to stay warm.

As I carried her in to the house I had a smile on my face, mostly to mask my worry. It trouble me just how easily my other had taken over. But as I looked down at Tori, a small smile still on her face, I realized that I could worry about it later. I chose to ignore the faint sound of insane laughter in my head. I would worry about it tomorrow.

What a lovely smile

"Tori I-" and she was gone. Dang it....whatever I would just tell her when she got back. Sighing I made my way to the kitchen. I grabbed a cup from the cabinet and poured myself a glass of water. I leaned against the counter and took a sip. My eyes wandered the room and eventually fell upon the bouquet of black roses. I stared at them, a frown forming on my face.

"I just don't get it!" What don't you get?"A threat?!" A threat to who?"You're nothing but weak children!" Ouch. So we're threat? But to who? Smiley? Was a fear afraid of us? No....no...that wouldn't make any sense. There had to be another explanation...

I was so deep in thought that when Alaska started barking I payed it no mind. Until she bit me. I winced and dived out of the way as a knife flew through the air where my head had just been. I quickly crawled behind the kitchen counter when I heard a sigh.

"You just HAD to dodge didn't you?" A woman's voice spoke. I heard her huff "couldn't of just made it easy." Another sigh. I reached up and quickly grabbed a knife from the knife rack. I gripped it tightly. 

The woman's voice rang out again. "Fine looks like we'll just have to do this the hard way." I heard her slow foot steps as she made her way to the counter. Alright I'll jus-My eyes widened when I reached into my pocket to grasp at my runes. They weren't there....Fuck! I left them upstairs. My eyes darted back and forth trying to think of what I could do. My eyes fell upon the knife still gripped tightly in my hands.

The woman's foot steps seemed louder than they should have been. My vision was swimming as I began to panic. STOP IT, YOU PATHETIC LITTLE SHIT! JUST CALM DOWN! I winced as the voice boomed in my head. It was a voice I had not yet grown used to. It was my...other...I don't really have a name for him. I tried to calm down. I took a deep breath. First of all, I realized, I need a wider area to fight. Somewhere more open. I quickly jumped to my feet and ran around the counter, I ran for the back door. I risked a glance back at the woman. She just stood there as I ran, a bored expression on her face.

I heard her sigh again."God damn it. They always run...I don't know why." I could see the back door. Four or five more steps an-She appeared in front of me, a lazy smile on her face. "Because the ending is always the same." I stopped just in time to avoid the knife she swung at my throat. She quickly lunged forward and stabbed at me. I barely managed another step back, the knife stopping centimeters from my eyes. She's fast! I thought as I dodged another swipe from her knife.

I made no move to attack her with my own knife, with her speed I couldn't take the risk. I took another step back. I turned and sprinted for the front door. A knife whizzed past my head, once again barely missing me. The woman once again appeared in front of me catching the knife she had thrown and swinging at me. I hadn't expected this, and because of my surprise she was able to catch my shoulder. I jumped back holding the cut. I moved my hand, and looked at the small cut. It was only a shallow cut, nothing too bad.

She sighed again, a noise I was really getting sick of. "Can't you see that it's useless?" Her tone made it sound as if she was bored. "You're going to die." She stepped forward her knife raised. I took a step towards the back door. She tilted her head to the side seeming confused. I jumped towards the door and she made no move to stop me, her only response to my actions another sigh. I ran out the back door and into the yard. I looked around and noticed it had gotten dark out. I ran and hid behind a tree. I heard her speak from the center of the yard.

"Hiding are we? Don't worry I'll find you." I heard her footsteps as she walked to a tree on the other side of the yard. What was I supposed to do? She was clearly superior at knife play and she was faster. Not only that but I didn't have any runes on me. I had to take another deep breath, despite my urge to panic I had to stay calm.

You know what you have to do. You are simply too afraid to do so. 

But the book sai-

I don't give a fuck! Would you rather die?! You told the girl that you would be there for her from now on! That you would help her however you could! How the hell are you supposed to do that if you're DEAD?!

My eyes snapped open and I looked at the knife in my hand. I slowly brought it to the top of my hand and began to carefully carve the necessary lines into my hand. I had to grit my teeth to stop myself from screaming. Once I had finished, I looked at my handiwork. A complex rune, one that I had never tried to draw before. The book had warned against carving the runes into your own flesh. I could not remember why. The rune gave off a dull red glow and I watched in amazement as the blood hardened, making the lines thin and clean. Rather than the mess they had been before.

I gripped the knife tightly in my left hand. I peeked out from behind the tree to see where she was. My eyes widened in surprise when I found that she was no where to be seen. "Looking for me?" I heard from right behind me. I jumped to the side as she slashed the tree I had been hiding behind. I ran to the middle of the yard. I heard giggling, which sounded strange coming from the tired sounding Rose Bride.

"Such a silly boy you are. Thinking that you can fight me?" The yard was suddenly enveloped in pitch black. I couldn't see anything other than myself. The giggling continued. "We were surprised to hear that you had defeated Basilia. A child like you should never have been able to beat her." The giggling paused and another sigh was heard. I looked around, how was I supposed to fight someone I couldn't see? "I always told her that her arrogance would be her downfall. She underestimated you, I will not make the same mistake." I grinned, she thought I was helpless without my eyes. As she would soon find out this was not the truth.

"Blindfolds, really?" I asked her dubiously as she drowned her waffles in syrup. 

"Look do you wanna get your ass kicked by a Rose Bride again?" She asked me, raising her eyebrows.

"No I don't wanna get my ass kicked by you, I'm still sore from my last ass kicking..." I muttered.

"Well then you can kick my ass, or at least try to." She smirked at me as she took another bite of her waffle.

My smile widened slightly, we had practiced everyday. Taking turns wearing the blindfold, learning how to fight without the benefit of sight. While I was no where near as good as Tori was at it, I had to hope I was good enough to take this woman by surprise. I shut my eyes, focusing only on my hearing. The giggling was growing closer and closer. It was hard trying to pinpoint where from. I opened my eyes and threw my knife into the darkness. The blackness around me disappeared and was replaced with the backyard once again. The woman had a look of surprise on her face as she deflected my knife. I rushed forward hoping to take advantage her momentary surprise. When I got within striking range the rune on my hand glowed an angry red. She seemed to snap out of her stupor and swung her knife at me. I ducked quickly and thrust my hand at her.

I lightly touched her stomach with my glowing hand. She was launched backwards with the blast of concussive force. She screamed when she hit the tree with a sickening crack. I was amazed at the power of the rune, it was only a lower tier rune. It wasn't supposed to be that powerful. She slid to the ground and laid completely still on her stomach. I gasped in pain and looked to my shoulder. My shoulder had taken damage as well, it was bent back at an unnatural angle. It was dislocated, I realized. I heard cracking bones and looked forward in disbelief to see the woman slowly standing once again. 

I knew it was dangerous but I couldn't fight with a dislocated shoulder. I had read about it before, I reached over with my good hand and a scream escaped my mouth as I put my shoulder back in place. I rotated my shoulder slowly, it was painful to move, but I could manage. I rushed the woman, picking up my knife from the ground on the way. I had to end it before she had a chance to recover. Once I had gotten in range I swung the knife at her, she reached into her back pocket and I froze when I felt cold steel touch the bottom of my chin. I heard a click as she pulled the hammer back.

"That really hurt you bastard....." She said quietly. "I don't like having to resort to using guns, I usually don't have to." This was it, I realized...There was no way out of this. She would pull the trigger and I would be dead. You know how they say that before you die....your life flashes before your eyes? I never believed that, it didn't make much sense. But it happened, I saw so many things, so fast. I was sad.....because my life, had been so pathetic....My mind froze on one image. A smiling Tori. 

I smiled sadly, and shut my eyes. "I'm sorry." I muttered. I heard the woman scream in pain and my eyes snapped open. The woman was standing a few feet away clutching what was now nothing more than a bloody stump. I looked to the ground and almost puked when I saw the woman's arm on the ground still clutching the gun. Standing in front of me with a sword held outward was a cloaked figure. A hood over the persons head.

The Rose Bride glared at the figure still clutching her bloody stump. "Who the hell are you?" she demanded.

I heard a pleasant laugh from the figure in front of me, who I now knew was a woman as well. "Why does it matter? I need not give my name to someone who is already dead." I could practically hear the smirk in the figure's voice. The Rose Bride went to say something else when something below her glowed. She looked down to see a large rune below her. She barely had time to scream as a large pillar of white hot flames erupted from the ground completely enveloping her.

When the flames died down, there was nothing more than a pile of ashes left where the Rose Bride had once been. I stared at the cloaked woman in amazement. That was a higher tier rune, one that only a master could use. She turned quickly and before I could thank her.."You idiot! Do you know what you just did?!" I stepped back surprised by the outburst. She took a step forward "Did you wonder why that rune of yours was stronger than it should have been?! Didn't you read the warning in the book?!"

"Well I did....but I-" I tried say.

"What you forgot?! When you carve runes into your skin, it doesn't use your blood as the medium anymore! It uses your own life force!" My eyes widened slightly at hearing this. "So sure it may have been a little stronger than usual, but that one little attack probably costed you weeks of your life!" I chuckled when she said this."What's so god damn funny?!"

I looked up at her with a bitter smile on my face. "So what? It's not like anyone being chased by these fears dies of natural causes anyways."

Her response was to smack me in the back of the head. "Just don't do it again you moron." She muttered as she walked away.

I rubbed my head. "Wait! Who are you?" I asked.

"Don't worry, you may find out soon enough." She called back as she continued to walk. When she had vanished I walked back to the house. I looked out the door to see...The Smiling Man in the backyard standing near the pile of ashes. I was honestly too tired to be afraid. He stared in my direction for a few minutes before vanishing with the pile of ashes. I sighed and then fed Alaska. I made my way up the stairs towards my room. I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

Sorry this took so long....There's more to talk about but I'm too tired to talk about it today......So until next time I suppose.