Divulgence ✹ Septicgab

Nine

"Reynolds... please," I pleaded. "Just let me go. I want to be with my real family."

"Your what?" She got into my face, screaming so hard she spat a little. "I'm your real family, you bitch!" Her hand went across my face. "You piece of shit."

"My name... is Amelia..." I coughed up a bit of blood before she hit me again for the attitude. "I'm Amelia Gabrielle.... McLoughlin..... I'm not your daughter." I saw that this crazy witch had a knife in her hand, but she wasn't holding it in a position where she could use it. After all, that was probably the first knife she's ever held in a long time, so her inexperience with melee weaponry was blatantly obvious. As Reynolds got closer to my face, I spat in her eyes, making her distraught, and I was able to disarm her. She wasn't the one who had been training in martial arts since she could walk. That's me. When you're on your own at age six, you have to adapt to your most primal instincts to survive and make it on your own. I heard a familiar voice in the distance. "Mom.. I'm here-" A sudden blow knocked me to my knees, cutting off my airways momentarily and stopping my cry for help. The pain was so unbearable at that point, I couldn't bother fighting back. One kick. Two kicks. Three kicks. Four... a stomp to the chest, and suddenly a gunshot. I flinched, shutting my eyes as tight as possible as I started anticipating the pain of a bullet going through my body.

I opened my eyes after a minute when I realised it wasn't me who was shot... it was Reynolds. My eyes expanded as I saw the woman who impersonated my mother laid on the ground before me, bleeding profusely. I looked around for the reason to approach, and another bullet came at her. I cringed as I saw more blood splatter out of her body. There was nothing I knew to say at a moment like this.

What was I supposed to say? Should I be upset this happened? Relieved? Should I be traumatised at the sight of this?

I stood silently, staring at the dead woman at my feet, but I felt nothing. She was never my mother. She was a beast, and as her body remained on the pavement, it began to dissolve into thin air, leaving nothing but a beating broken heart in its place. As I continued to stare at this heart, I felt a hand on my shoulder. My survival instincts kicked in, forcing me to impulsively roundhouse kick the people that came closer to me. Both fell to the ground, and I stood there again.... staring. This time it was a stare of worry at the sight of what I had just done, and concern from my family... the family I was sure I'd never get to see again.

"Amelia..." my dad wrapped his arms around me as tight as physically possible for a man, who after being beaten vigorously by countless amounts of monsters, was taken down by his own daughter's kick. My mom was tearing up as she got closer to me, and at the end of all of this, it was their touch that brought me back to my sanity.

"Who.. who shot her?" I asked them, but noticed that neither one of them had a gun on them. My dad surveyed our surroundings, then out of nowhere, he calmly spoke.

"Run." Mom grabbed my hand and took off as fast as she could, hoping I could keep up. Dad stayed back, and that's when I heard the familiar sound.

Bang

Bang

Bang

"Mom, we have to save him," I started crying. "Mom, please.." She stopped running to look back in the direction we came from. "He's your fiancé... he's the love of your life.. You told me all of this when we met.... and I'm not just your daughter. Mom, I'm his daughter, too.."

"I don't want you to get hurt," she finally spoke after silently crying. "I'll go get him... but I need you to stay right here.." Hearing that I was being left on my own... even for a moment... broke my heart. I started to hyperventilate, so Mom hugged me, holding me tightly in her arms. "I love you, little one.."

Little one

I love you, little one.

The words whirled through my mind as I watched my own mother walk away from me to find my father. I knew I'd probably be okay if I went with her, but instead of disobeying, I complied and stayed put. If the shooter wanted to kill me, I would've been dead right alongside Reynolds... but there wasn't a single bullet that entered my body.

"Amelia!" I heard a male voice yell as I saw my father racing over to me. He wrapped his arms around my tiny frame, holding me in a warm embrace. "I was so worried... Everyone was."

"Everyone?" I questioned. "They.. your friends all knew I went here?" My mom nodded. "Wait, is Rae okay? Reynolds didn't kill her, right?"

"She's fine. We had to make sure the guys would keep her from trying to follow us here," my dad began to explain the whole story. "I made sure she wouldn't. I mean, we didn't even know how to get back here, but," my mom hugged us both. "I knew you needed your real family. So.. hi. I'd like to properly introduce myself.." I giggled.

"I already know!" I was ecstatic by the thought that I was finally going home, and this would all be over. "You're my dad," I looked at my mom. "And you're my real mom." They looked at each other and smiled as wide as humanly possible.

"Now, I really hate to have to do this, but we gotta go.." My mom pointed out that there was still a sniper somewhere in Yharnam, so if we wanted to get out as soon as possible, "We have to stay hidden.. at least until we know how to get out of here."

"You don't know how we can leave?" I started breathing heavily. "What do we do?" My anxiety increased as I saw the look on my dad's face. He was panicked as well, but tried to remain calm and alert to any sign of the gunman.

"Sweetheart, how did you come back here?" My mom asked me. "Do you know ho-" A bullet came out of nowhere, hitting her in the shoulder. "Mother fucker.... Seán?" My dad instinctively scooped her up in his arms, told me to stay close, and we ran to a hopefully safe area.

~

"Mom?" I woke up hearing a soft voice. "Mom, please be okay.. Please tell me you're okay.." Amelia started to cry as my fiancé rummaged through our bags, hoping to find enough bandages and alcohol to clean and dress my gunshot wound. I lost a substantial amount of blood, and it felt like time was slowing down around me. "Please.." Amelia winced to her father. "Please say you found something."