Henry & Jane: The Rectaliss

chap. three

Jane's eyes fluttered open, and her vision was cloudy like a windshield on a stormy evening. She looked around her and stood up slowly, confused as to where she was. Her eyes scanned the horizon and stopped on a small cabin. She felt a strange attraction to it and headed that way.

The place she was in was beautiful yet had a strange eerie feeling to it. The grass was wispy and tickled her ankles as she walked by. Small white flower petals drifted through the wind around her, dancing around each other and falling gently to the ground. The trees were tall, white oak. The oak glistened when the sun hit it, casting a radiant blanket of light across the horizon.

She noticed a pebble path leading up to the doorway of the cabin. Flowers were delicately placed along the path framing it beautifully. The cabin was made of perfectly round, dark oak logs. The windows were tall, and the roof came to a point. A white railing framed the patio with flowerbeds lining the front of the cabin. She opened the door, as the fear washed away like a bath in holy water. Inside, the walls were tan, with wooden furniture delicately placed throughout the space.

She made her way to the living room and saw a young woman sitting, dressed in a linen slip. Her skin was soft and smooth as porcelain. She had beautiful curly blonde hair, almost the same as Jane's. Her eyes were a mesmerizing shade of blue. Jane didn't feel scared of her; she felt almost as if she was a guide, or a parental figure. She knew she wouldn't hurt her.

"You need to find him." The woman spoke, gazing out the window. Her voice was calm and gentle like a purring kitten.

"Who are you?" Jane questioned, a lump growing in her throat. "Where am I?"

"Jane, you need to find him. That isn't important." She slipped to the far side of the couch, insinuating for Jane to sit next to her.

"Where am I?" Her voice grew tense and strong. The woman sighed and got up, walking towards the large window on the right side of the room.

"If I tell you that, it will compromise things." Her hands folded into each other, resting above her waist.

"Compromise what?" Jane was angry at this point. Her blood was beginning to boil, and her thoughts were mushing together, overlapping inside of her mind.

"Listen to me, Jane," the woman started, turning to walk towards her. Her face got closer to her, more in focus. She looked almost like... Jane. "You need to find him. He and you together will be the only thing to awaken the prophecy and save us."

Jane's expression faded away rather quickly at the sound of what she just heard. Her eyes blinked, as if trying to wake up from a deep sleep.

"I'm not saving anybody until you tell me who you are." Jane said, inching backward slowly. Why does she look like her?

"Let's just say I've been trying to contact you for a while. I couldn't get through because the prophecy wasn't lit yet. You're near him, Jane. He's closer than you think. Find him."

The sound of the music roared through her pounding head as she woke up, a crowd of faces staring at her. The man she seen going to the bathroom was kneeling by her side. He reached out a hand to help her up, and Jane flinched away from him.

"I can get up myself." She leaned on her hand to get up and her head pounded as if her brain were slamming into her skull.

"Clearly you can't. Let me help you—" he put a hand under her arm and that feeling of... well, she couldn't really describe it. Terror, concern. It made her feel like every cell in her body was bouncing off each other.

"I said don't touch me!" She growled. She heard Illiana and Nadia screaming at people pushing their way towards her. They came up behind her and leaned down toward her.

"Jane! What happened, are you alright? You were gone for twenty minutes we got so worried." Illiana said, placing a hand on her back. The man she met shifted in place, glancing at Illiana's hand.

"I just want to go. I'll explain later." Jane muttered. Illiana and Nadia helped her up and Jane almost fell again. The man went to reach for her, and Jane flinched once more.

"Take a hint, dude." Nadia snarled. Illiana and Nadia walked Jane to the front of the bar and sat her on the bench outside. Jane's headache began to fade slowly. She lifted her hand to her forehead and rested it in her palm.

"Dude, what happened?" Nadia sat down next to her, rubbing her back gently. Illiana stood in front of the two, her nail between her teeth.

"I don't even know if I could explain it." Jane said. "It was like a dream." She sighed and sat back, resting her head on the brick wall behind her.

"A dream?" Illiana questioned, pacing in front of the bench.

"Yeah. There was this cottage, and gorgeous flowers with a pebble path leading up to the door. And this woman—this woman inside. She looked like me."

"Exactly?" Nadia said in a whisper.

"Not exactly, she more so resembled me." Jane pondered the memory of the woman in the white slip. Her lips were nearly identical to Jane's. Full and round, slightly protruding in a sultry pout. Her nose had a slight curve on the bridge, casting a slight shadow into her deep blue eyes—exactly like Jane's. Even her hair was nearly the same.

"Like a relative? Or a cousin?" Illiana said.

"Maybe, yeah. I'm not sure." Jane sighed.

"Did she say anything?" Nadia cooed.

Jane recalled the words that were engraved in her mind. What could she have meant? Who is this person that she needs to find? Why does it have to be her

"Uh, no, just talking about some person." She sighed, scratching the back of her neck. "I don't really remember."

Illiana looked at her best friend questioningly. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah." Jane's breath hitched as she took a breath. "We should head home, it's getting late." Jane got up off the bench quicker than she had before. Her strides were laced with more confidence, her skin slowly flushed with color. As they made their way further from the bar, Jane noticed herself feeling clearer headed. Her vision slowly went back in focus and her muscles relaxed.

The further she got... from him?