4 | Escaping and Welcoming

//Belladonna//

I don't know how long I've walked for but I eventually come across a small river, I look down and see my reflection in the water. Blood and dirt cover my face, my hair is knotted and tangled with sticks and leave in it, and my eyes are hollow.

I walk into the river, barley feeling the bitter cold water hit my skin, I submerge myself fully into the water. I stay under the water for mere seconds, but those seconds feel like hours, I stay under until my lungs burn from lack of air, then I burst to the surface, taking big gulps of air as I do. I start to scrub my body with my hands, I rub my hands over every place they touched me, where his blood still sticks to my skin, where I still feel his seed.

I scrub my skin until I no longer feel them, I take a deep breath and start to think. I was raped, I killed someone, and they will come after me and my family. As I think about the last thought, I'm brought back to reality, like a slap to the face, I'm out of my zombie like state.

I run out of the river and start to dash towards the cottage, as I run I finally feel the sharp cold, I briefly look down at my body and it has a blue hue to it, signifying the cold over my body.

My mind races as I think about Nia, I have no idea how long I've been out here, but if the man really did go to the village, and tell the villagers about what I did, they'll kill us all. The towns people have always thought our mother was a witch, and me as well, we've always been careful to not upset the people, because we know one slip up, and they'll burn is alive.

This is just the excuse they need to burn us, and it won't matter how innocent and pure Nia is, they believe our mother is a witch and us her evil spawn. I run faster, as fast as my legs will carry me through the forest. Then I hear someone calling my name, my mind eases slightly as I recognize Nia's voice, I run towards her voice, I slow when I see her.

I grab her hand and start running again, straight for the cottage.

"Belladonna, what happened, why are we running?" I hear Nia say through heavy breaths as we run.

We finally make it back to the cottage, I burst through the doors still clutching Nia's wrist, I see our mother sitting on a chair in deep thought until she sees us.

"Pack whatever you can carry, we need to leave, now!" I tell them both in laboured breaths, they both look at with shock and then there eyes lower and take in my naked body covered in bruises.

"Donna...what happened?" Nia says her voice filled with pity. I can't tell her what they did, not the all of it at least, she'll never forgive herself for leaving me if she knows, so I tell her and my mother what they need to hear to get moving.

"They tried to have they're way with me, ripped my dress and beat me a bit" Nia's eyes start to tear up as I talk but I keep talking "but I got out of their grasp before they could do anymore, and then beat in the scull of one of them, he's dead" tears still stream down Nia's face but I can see a shine of relief in her eyes when she heard that I stopped them before they could do anything to me, and relief fills me that she believes me.

I look over to our mother and her face is unreadable, her eyes revealing nothing.

"The other one is currently in the village telling the people lies about me, they will be here soon to burn us, so pack what you need then we leave." I look at them both, Nia nods her head and runs to our room to start packing, I'm about to follow her when our mother grabs my wrist.

She throws a blanket around my shoulders, covering my shivering body. She pulls my hand forward, she opens my palm and puts a small vile inside of it, I look down at the vile then look to her face. Her face is stone but understanding shines in her eyes, she says nothing to me as she lets go of my hand and walks to her room.

I don't know how she knows I wasn't telling the whole truth, but she does, and as I look down at the vile, for the first time in a long time I feel something other then hatred for my mother. I un-bottle the vile and down it in one go, the taste of it is vile and sour but I swallow it all.

I walk to our room and see that Nia already has a bag for me out, I go to our dresser, grab some under garments and a dress, and put them all on. Savouring the feel of the warmth and comfort it brings me, I put all my clothes in the bag, I grab a couple belongings and some books, then I'm done. Nia and I walk out our door and in the main room where we see our mother with all her bags, we get everything we need and then we're out the door.

Just as we get out the door we hear them, we hear the village people and their rage, we see their torches in the distance starting to come towards us. We start running in the other direction. Nia and I are having to practically drag our mother along because of how slow she is, her age being a big disadvantage to us right now, we keep running away from the mob of people, our breaths laboured and hard.

Finally we slow down into a walk when we can no longer hear or see them behind us, I close my eyes for a moment already exhausted, and when I open them there's a bright light in front of us, I blink a couple times to make sure I'm not seeing things but both Nia and our mother have stopped to stare.

The light looks like a star, and it grows and grows until a person walks out of the light and onto the ground. My mouth hangs open and I blink my eyes rapidly, standing in front of us is a women.

Her chestnut hair is short and combed back, she wears a baby blue uniform of sorts with gold trimmings, blades and dangers are strapped to her body, she wears black leather boots with a slight heal to them, and she stands tall at around 5'9. Her skin is dark and rich like soil, her face has a subtle beauty to it. Everything about her seams elegant and magical.

"Lilian" I hear my mother hiss at the woman, the woman, Lillian I suppose, turns to my mother and give her a cool expression.

"Eve" she says and looks at her as if she knows her, strange.

"Leave Lillian" my mother says with venom in her voice, but Lillian doesn't seem to be fazed by her at all, she turns her head and looks at Nia and me.

"You know why I'm here Eve, you knew this was coming" Lillian says without looking at our mother, but at us.

I hear our mother curse under her breath, she then looks at us, her gaze showing some emotion I can't recognize. She looks back at Lillian and sighs.

"Alright just give me a moment" our mother says to Lillian, she then walks over to Nia and I, and gives us a hug, I'm so stunned by her that I stand perfectly still, not backing away but not hugging her back either. Nia hugs our mother though, then I hear out mothers voice in my ear, her voice is so soft that I almost don't hear her when she speaks.

"Trust no one, protect your sister, and don't make the same mistake I did" then she lets us go and backs away from us, I'm so confused on what's happening right now, why is this woman here? Why did our mother hug us? Why did she say those things to me?

"Goodbye girls" she says to us and I swear I see a hint of sadness in her face, what is happing?

"Why are you saying goodbye mother?" Nia says confused, then I feel the woman, Lillian's, hands on Nia's and I's shoulder, we look at our mother, and in the next moment she's gone, and so is the forrest, so is the world and I see nothing but bright light.

I close my eyes tight and when I open then again, we're in a completely different world.