474 [86.5] Never Forgive, Never Forget

The ground at my feet lit up with an ominous red circle. When I reopened my eyes, I stood at the foot of the bed with a body that was still laid upon it, breathing evenly. 

As I stared down, my eyes were bloodshot and swollen, but no one could tell.

"...Where is he?"

I bit down on my lip, but couldn't get myself to look Felix in the eye.

He suddenly ran around the bed and grabbed my shoulders, "WHERE IS HE!?!"

My lip quivered as I slowly shook my head.

"You…" His voice was like a whisper, cutting deep into my skin, "...I… He… We trusted you…"

I bit back my tears as a weak voice seemed to come from my throat, "There… There was nothing I could do-"

"-BULLSH*T!" His nails dug into my charred skin as his body trembled, "There's nothing you can't do!!!"

"Felix-"

"-What are you two doing in here!?"

At the sound of my mother's voice, I broke into sobs. I pushed past Felix and held out my arms to her, "Mum-"

She whipped out her wand and pointed it at me. Her eyes were ferocious, "What are you trying to do with my daughter's body!?!"

My tears stung my shocked eyes. For a moment, everything slowed around me.

All I could see was that unrecognizable gaze on her face.

It was as though everything was burning around me, but it hurt much more than any flames.

As a sharp icicle went flying towards me, it melted before it ever hit anything.

A look of surprise went across my mother's face, but she turned hateful once more. She prepared to fight once more. As I watched her, everything around me quieted.

For a moment, all I could hear was the slowing of my heart.

My voice was so soft it was almost a sigh, "...Get me out of here."

As if responding to me, a large hole opened up beneath me. I grabbed Felix on instinct and together we disappeared before anyone ever blinked an eye. We flew through the nauseating space before entering a rainbow-tinted hole.

After entering, we both landed on the ground with a hard thud. My limbs were weak and I had no energy to even pick up my head.

Felix didn't care about our sudden leap through time and faced me with a desperate expression, "Tell me… Tell me what happened to Moni."

My mouth didn't move as I continued to stare up at the sky.

His desperation turned to fury, "TELL ME!"

He grabbed my shoulders and shook me as he screamed for answers. Dirt and grass were burrowed into my already damaged clothes. However, I couldn't raise my hands to push him off.

All my energy was gone.

"WHY!? WHY! WHY!?! DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG HE WAITED FOR YOU! DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG HE SUFFERED?! HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU!"

I finally broke apart and screamed, "HOW DO YOU THINK I FEEL!?"

His hands suddenly stopped shaking me.

Tears rolled freely down my cheeks, "I know it's my fault… To him, that day was a thousand years ago… But to me, It was just a few hours ago. I remember everything…"

Everything I had endured came rushing back, causing a new wave of agony in my heart.

"I lost my child AND my friend. I lost him because I was too stupid to see the truth!"

I felt his grip loosen and drop me to the ground.

In my vision, I could see the detestable charred skin and coarse black hair around me.

I'm not Reika Marlow…

I'm still Reika Kang…

"My… My own mother didn't recognize me… This entire time I thought… I thought she loved me no matter what… It wasn't just because I was inhabiting her daughter's body. I thought SHE would at least recognize me… But… But there's no hope… I don't exist anymore."

His voice was seething, "You don't deserve to exist."

I closed my eyes as my lips quivered.

"Even if you bring Moni back from the dead, I will never forgive you."

The clouds gently passed through the sky as a pair of footsteps slowly receded from me.

The silence was deafening, forcing me to open my eyes or else I would have been lost to the darkness forever.

My eyes rolled around to see my surroundings, and just the effort alone felt like I was being suffocated.

When I realized where we had landed, a chilling frost seemed to settle on the bottom of my heart.

The mansion once belonging to Duke Newman was in front of me.

However, the splendor had been lost as it now fell to disarray. The walls were cracked and vines grew wildly along them, with numerous invasive plants infiltrating the building from the broken windows.

In a daze, I stood up and walked inside.

Corpses were in the halls, but they no longer smelled.

Dirt and plants were now inside, lining the halls and silencing my steps. The only sound was from the mice scurrying to hide.

How long has it been?

Days?

Months?

Does it even matter?

My steps halted when I saw a large ripped-apart door. Pain flooded my chest as I realized I was in a forbidden wing.

I clenched my teeth and stepped inside.

There were bones on the ground, but I forced myself not to look. My eyes were stuck on a portrait where a wilted flower grew.

I pulled my gaze away and walked in deeper until I found myself drawn to a door. I could recognize the markings I had once taught Asmonious. My finger traced along those slender lines that were made to perfection.

With one burst of fire, the door opened.

Inside the room were dozens, if not thousands of paintings stacked on top of each other with dust over it.

I picked one up and mustered a smile, "Asmonious… Why did you never paint portraits?"

A stack suddenly fell over, revealing a hidden compartment. Confused, I got on my knees and reached inside. 

I pulled out bundles of canvases and opened each one carefully.

My voice cracked, "...It seems I was wrong. You did paint portraits."

This entire time, he had been painting all of us. He painted every single memory with each detail accurately depicted. It was almost as if the painting was a memory on paper.

When I got to the last canvas, I realized it was larger than the others. My hands gently rolled it out as I spread my arms to see it completely.

There were explosions of lights painted in the sky, with vibrant and exciting colors. Below, he painted every individual, even managing to capture their exact mannerisms. Although most of the people in the painting weren't present on the day of the fireworks, they were all there with the lights illuminating their smiles.

"Asmonious… I promise I will find you." I wiped at the tears still rolling down my face, "Even if it takes countless lifetimes, I will bring you home."

My hands trembled as I rolled the canvas up and brought it close to my chest.

"Rose. Asmonious. Atta. Koale. Lovi."

I won't stop until you're all back with me.

I don't know how.

But I will find a way…

More tears rushed down my charred cheeks as I cried, "My children… I will bring you home."

I sobbed uncontrollably, surrounded by the lonely room of abandoned paintings. Even after the sun lowered and the moonlight hit the top of my head, I still hadn't stopped. I punched the ground without feeling any injury.

The tears never stopped.

"...Reika? Is that you?"

My breath suddenly caught in my throat.