𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝘿𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙏𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙚

“I love your smile, Cora, how it curves upwards when you laugh. The way your teeth beam in the light. The way your nose scrunches when you smile. How you crack your knuckles when you’re frustrated. Everything that makes you, you. Inexplicably and perfectly yourself. I’ve been pained at having to be away from you for so long. But I’ll be able to see you in a couple days! We should be back by the end of the week! Bye, for now, Cora, until then..”

Tears brimmed my eyes as I read the letter again, for the millionth time. I furiously wipe my tears with the sleeve of my shirt, thinking of the joy I felt when I read the letter for the first time. But even then, I knew something was off. Now, looking back, I notice everything that I didn’t at that moment: the overly chipper contents of the letter, how he didn’t call me Core like he usually did, the lack of teasing or any humor at all really, how he never came.

Days turned to weeks, as weeks turned to months, and the months into countless years. Yet I retained my hope, always believing that he’d come eventually, believing that he truly loved me. “Foolish,” the voice in my head taunted for months. Cackling at my naivety. Ridiculing me for maintaining even that small sliver of hope. “Foolish,” the voice had said when I ran into him at the market months later. All smiles, out with Jude and someone else. My heart shattered as I watched him kiss her, my mind shattering moments later when they pulled apart and led each other into a gentle embrace. “Foolish,” I’d said to myself as everything began to add up. My sister never having time for me anymore. I’d assumed she was just getting older, but this was much worse. It didn’t come as much of a shock, though; it just made me feel numb.

“Foolish,” the voice had whispered as I realized nothing had happened to him. No longer mocking, instead feeling bad for me. No illness plagued him, nor was he dead. He’d just moved on, and at that moment, I decided that I needed to as well. “Foolish,” the voice cooed as I walked from the scene, never admitting that I knew what was going on. Never even giving it a second thought anymore when Jude snuck off to places unknown, knowing she was with the man I’d once loved. “Foolish,” the voice whispered to me for months, occupying my mind at every waking moment as I’d cried alone. “If you can’t even trust your sister, who can you trust?” The voice cried to me, and though it was foolish, I listened. Listened as the voice snaked its way into my heart, prompting me to build my walls strong enough that nobody could ever break them down.

I learned to ignore the voice, though; after all, who am I to control fate? Nothing ever lasts forever.

___ __ _

When the Animi showed up, I was just falling asleep. Having just finished my chores for the evening, I’d decided to take a nap as a reward. Sleep was my bliss, after all. Just as I felt myself dozing off, the door to my room burst open. Choosing to fake sleep, I ignored Jude’s incoherent, panicked cries. “Cora, get up,” she whispered, and when I didn’t oblige, she began to tap my shoulder in an attempt to wake me up. Groaning, I sat up in my bed, turning to face my younger sister with an icy glare on my face. Ready to tell her off for waking me up after I’d just started to fall asleep. But the tears streaming down her face made me hold my tongue.

“Cora, there’s Animi downstairs. They have questions for you.” Sobs wracked her body, and she struggled to begin her next sentence. “D-don’t let them take you away too. We already lost Father,” she whispers, struggling to maintain her composure. Her eyes desperately raked my body, expecting some sort of comfort. I take a deep breath. This is your responsibility. I remind myself. Sliding out of my bed, I pull Jude into my arms, whispering sweet nothings. Moments later, a man’s voice grabs my attention. Jude and I exchange glances as I sprint down the stairs– nearly tripping over my own feet. When I’m on the ground floor, I notice my Mother sitting down, trying to make our home seem as welcoming as possible to the two Animi.

Bowing my head towards Mother, I gesture towards the Animi subtly. The gesture is enough, however, and she takes the hint to begin explaining. “Good evening, Darling. The officers here want to speak to you about Lucian,” her eyes water as she excuses herself. She says the word ‘officers’ as if it leaves a bitter taste in her mouth, and I can’t help but share her lack of enthusiasm towards the two. Officers, or Animi as we call them, are members of the Queen’s Guard. You’d think that would mean that they’d be respectful and responsible, right? Wrong. They terrorize innocents all the time in an attempt to show off their power. Most of them were commoners like us. But being an Animi puts you slightly higher in the hierarchy that is our world. That’s how they earned their name, after all, Animi, corruption.

Why would the Animi come to speak about Father when they took him in the first place? Better yet, why so many years later? A low growl escapes my lips at the thought of the corrupt officers invading and ruining our lives once again. I take in a deep, shaky breath, trying to control my anger in front of the officers.

Gesturing for the Animi to move closer to a small bench in our kitchen, I note the thin layer of sweat that seems to cover both of their faces. Whether from the heat of our home or something else, I don’t know. As the two awkwardly squish onto the couch, they share a glance before the female officer begins to speak. I squint my eyes in the dark of the room to read their name tags ’Lizette’ and ‘Cooper.’ As the woman opens her mouth, I notice the two glancing around our home, and I suddenly begin to feel conscious. Conscious of how there’s hardly any space from the kitchen to the living room. Conscious of the clothes basket standing outside the laundry room. Conscious of the cramped, clashing decorations that Mom put up before Dad was gone. The decorations that none of us had the strength to take down. Conscious of the way my curly hair is clumping from sweat. Pushing myself to get out of my head, a voice in the back of my mind begins to whisper. But just as quickly as it starts, I begin to stop spacing out.

“Cora-” the female officer begins before I cut her off. “Coraline,” my voice comes out sharply. Her face flushes more than it already has at the correction. She turns towards Cooper, seemingly perturbed, as they seem to have a silent conversation. After moments of silence, the woman turns back towards me, staring at me in unease. I notice the man ‘Cooper’ shuffling his feet awkwardly.

“Coraline,” the woman coos softly. “We’re here to talk to you about Lucian Vesperina, your father,” I feel my vision fading in and out as I begin to feel dizzy. Memories flooded into my brain from before my father was gone. I quickly shut the thoughts down, not wanting to break down in front of these two. Lizette looks at me expectantly as I realize that she said something. Swallowing thickly, my eyes dart around the room. It takes me a moment, but I quickly regain my cool. “Sorry, repeat that, please,” I mumble. As she begins to speak, Cooper growls, narrowing his eyes at me. “Oh, for the Queen’s sake, Liz, get to the point.” Lizette stares at the man for a moment, seemingly at a loss for words, before blinking her focus back to me.

As I squint closely towards the two, I notice how Cooper’s overcoat seems to be glitching? Much like the holograms I’d make as a young child when Father showed me how to create them. Staring even closer, I notice how, underneath the overcoat, there seems to be a second set of clothes. Becoming suspicious of what’s truly going on, I can feel my eyebrows furrowing. Cooper is picking his fingernails mindlessly, while Lizette seems to hardly be keeping herself together as she struggles to speak. “Sorry, I never asked your names,” I say, trying to make conversation so the room isn’t so deathly silent. “Maya and Christian,” Lizette sputters out as Cooper kicks her in the shins. He pinches her elbow tightly, whether he thinks I can’t see it or whether he just doesn’t care. Clearing his throat, he begins to speak, “Our names are Cooper and Lizette.” He shoots Lizette a glare as she desperately tries to apologize.

“You’re both a part of the Guard, obviously,” I say, choosing my words carefully. “What are your ranks?” I don’t think anything of the question. It’s common for Animi to want to show off their ranks, after all. The two stare at each other, at a loss for words. I press my mouth into a tight smile, feigning innocence at the anomalies in Cooper’s clothing. As I look closely, I notice that Lizette’s clothes are doing the same thing. Moments later, Cooper seems to find his voice and speaks for both of them. “I don’t see why it would be necessary for a miresa like you to know that.” He snarls, fixing his outer coat. Lizette’s eyes widen while I stand up abruptly at his choice of the slur. “What did you just say?” I challenge, already noting how I’m at a disadvantage. He takes a step towards me. “I said... I don’t see why a miresa like you-” Anger clouds my vision. To disrespect me in my own home? Calling someone a miresa is basically the same as calling them worthless.

The next few moments go by quickly.

Instead of letting him continue, I punch him in the nose, hearing a satisfying crack. He doesn’t even retaliate for a moment; he grunts in shock. A moment later, though, he attempts to punch me in my mouth, but I move an inch to the left. However, this allows him to push me, and my vision blurs in pain as my body slams into the wall. I force the pain down and push myself off the wall. But my disorientation causes me to move a moment too late, and Cooper is able to hold a dagger up to my neck. He begins to apply pressure, and I feel a drop of blood sliding down my throat. “Apologize. You’re a miresa after all, worthless in all ways but one,” He taunts, knowing there’s nothing I can do. I snarl in response to the dagger being held to my neck and try to struggle out of his grip. I begin to think of a way out of this situation, and I notice that Lizette is missing. Before I can think about it, though, I hear Jude scream.

This gives me the adrenaline I need to push Cooper to the side. I elbow him in the nose, stunning him for a moment. As quickly as he is apprehended, though, he gets back up. My breath is ragged as I fight the man; I can feel myself tiring as he counters blow after blow. My focus clears, though, as I remember Jude is upstairs. ”Do it,” a voice in my head whispers. Causing me to lose focus as I slip in a small puddle of blood. Mine’s or Cooper’s, I don’t know. Cooper attempts to stab me with the dagger repeatedly, never able to fully plunge the knife into my flesh. We seem to dance around the room as we fight. Launching blows at each other at every moment, I notice Cooper’s sluggish movements as he seems to slow down. A small smirk entrails my lips as I realize he’s getting sloppy, moving too slowly to hit me, breathing heavily. The dance slows into a more rhythmic pace as blows rain on the man.

Suddenly, I hear something being dragged down the stairs. I turn, barely dodging a blow from Cooper as I knee him in the stomach. My eyes widen as I see Lizette dragging my sister down the stairs. “Cora-” Jude screams as the female officer pulls her into the living room. As my focus lessens, Cooper is able to drive the knife into my flesh ever so slightly. But those small cuts are enough to wound me as I begin to slow down. “Do it,” the voice whispers again. Memories flash of my father in my mind, the protector of our family. I’m doing what he should’ve been here to do. As I focus, I notice my mind feels sharper, less full, more clear. A low blue light encases the room. I don’t even have to look down, already knowing the light is coming from my necklace.

My face flushes as I begin to feel numb, unable to feel the blows landing on my skin. Suddenly, I feel relaxed as the cuts and bruises on my skin begin to mend themselves. I snatch Cooper’s dagger, plunging it deep into his thigh. He shrieks in pain as he falls to the ground; Lizette’s eyes widen as her grip on Jude lessens slightly. However, she quickly snaps out of her trance and presses the dagger up to Jude’s throat. I see a crimson drop fall from Jude’s neck, and suddenly something changes. The blue light becomes brighter as I feel my strength replenishing. I rush over to the woman, kicking her backward. She flies into a wall behind her, doubled over in pain. I grab her dagger from her shaking hands and try to plunge it into her chest. But she pushes my hands away with her remaining strength. Instead, I plunge the dagger into her eye socket as she wails in pain. Her eye leaks blood as I notice her vision clouding over. “ Jude”. The voice iterates in my head. My eyes scour the room for my little sister as I see Cooper holding another dagger to her neck. I sprint over, kicking him in his wounded thigh before pushing Jude to the side. I gesture towards the stairs, indicating for her to run upstairs. She does so without question. Shifting my focus back to the room behind me, I see that the two officers are gone. Nothing but the mess to signify that they were ever here.

All I’m left with are puddles of blood where I left them and Cooper’s cloak, boots, and trousers. I seem to snap out of the trance when the light fades down, and I run upstairs to Jude. Scanning her body for cuts or bruises, I see no injury other than a small cut on her neck where Lizette held the dagger moments ago. I pull her into my embrace as my chest heaves heavily. My breath comes out shaky as I try to speak ’Mother… where’s mother?” I question, my throat raspy. Jude looks towards the closet, and I rush over before noticing Mother slumped on the closet floor. Blood pooled from her lips. Jude screams as I try to lift the woman, but more blood seeps from her lips. My vision fades in and out as I struggle to breathe. I suddenly gain some stability in my voice as I realize I have to be the strong one. “Jude,” my voice slurs. “Call the ambulance,” she stumbles, faint, but before she can fall, I’m standing over her, lifting her back up. “The ambulance, Jude, or she might not make it.” This snaps Jude out of her fear, and she runs downstairs, calling 911.

I also rush downstairs, sifting through Cooper’s clothing for a clue—something to signify why they came for us. I find a letter and stuff it into my pocket with the daggers. As I continue searching Cooper’s pockets, I find a note, and my breath slows as I stagger. I could recognize that handwriting from anywhere, “It’s…. Father’s,” a voice in the back of my head denotes. As I read the letter, I feel myself slipping in and out of consciousness. I hear Jude shriek as I stumble, but there’s nothing I can do. My vision fades out as the hazy black encases me entirely.