(OLD) Before her | Stories of The Unknown

Chapter 6 | Perfect Nothing

Elysian slowly walked down that same spiral staircase as usual, when she got to the bottom step, her heart sank as she saw who was waiting for her. Standing before her was her father, back from his travels. Elysian didn't like her father, he always treated her like his slave to push around.

"Ellie! My dear..", her father approached, arms open for a hug. She stepped away in disgust.

"Get away from me, Fritz..", She spoke her fathers first name, instead of calling him 'Father'. Her father scoffed.

"Young lady, you will call me 'father' or you will be punished for the utter disresp-"

"I'm not calling a foul creature MY father!" , Elysian shouted over him, so loudly the whole house seemed to shake. In that moment, Elysian's father slapped her across the face hard enough for her nose to bleed bright red. Her eyes watered, she refused to give her father the satisfaction of her tears. She stormed out the front door and ran into the forest, Celeste chasing close behind.

She hurried to the tree house to grab her satchel that had stored her special book, she'd climb up the ladder of the tree house after she would uncover the bag from the crack in the tree stumps roots. She sat just by the over-sized stumps edge and sobbed to herself, Celeste sitting just by her side. Rustling was heard from the nearby bushes as Freya emerged from the bramble, calling out with her hands cupped around her mouth to enhance her voice,

"Hey El! You here? I made the-", Freya cut off, noticing Elysian sat upon the top of the stump as she'd dread at the sound of her cries. Freya would approach the ladder, climbing up. As she'd reach the top, she'd stop, asking,

"Ellie..? are you okay? Can I come up?"

Elysian would slowly turn herself to look at Freya from the side, her face watered in tears as the blood still dripped from her nose.

"Oh, no..Are you hurt?! Hold on!", Freya climbed up the last step of the ladder, rushing over and sitting by her, using her dress to wipe Elysian's nose of the blood and tears, before placing a hand on her cheek.

"Its just--my dad..I'm okay.", She would pet Celeste, who had now moved to rest in her lap.

"He wasn't always the best with me and my siblings..he'd always hit me--when I--", Freya would place both of her hands on Elysian's cheeks, gently moving her face to look at her,

"I'm so sorry, Ellie..That must be really hard for you.." ,Freya muttered, caressing Elysian's face as more tears just flowed from her eyes.

"Oh...Freya--I--I'm sorry I shouldn't--talk about it--It'll just get annoying-", Freya would pull Elysian into a hug, shaking her head,

"You can tell me anything, El, I promise..I want to help you in any way I can, I want to listen.", Elysian was stunned, as she'd sob into Freya's shoulder, Freya patting her back.

Elysian would back from the hug, wiping her eyes, "You..uhm..said you--made something?", Freya would nod, reaching into her bag, pulling out a small purple cat collar with imprinted stars and moon designs on it, all pulled together with a silver bell.

"Oh..Freya, I love it!", Freya handed it to her, she'd take it and look at Celeste with a calm smile, placing the collar around the cats neck as Celeste purred softly.

"I'm glad you like it..and if that big bad Fritzgerald ever hurts you again, tell me straight away, I'll try my best to make you feel all better again, okay?",Freya would place a hand on Elysian's shoulder, smiling, Elysian smiling right back.

"I'm glad I could make you feel better, Ellie, If you want, you can come to my house anytime you'd like!", Freya offered, standing to her feet, adjusting her dress.

"..mhm. I'll have to get home, My mother would want me to start working.", Elysian would frown, joining Freya in standing up as she'd carry Celeste in her arms.

"ah, That sucks, Ellie, I'm sorry. Catch up later?", Freya would smile.

"Catch up later.", Elysian returned with a grin, walking towards the ladder and placing Celeste in her bag before climbing down the ladder. wiping her face with her sleeve, she'd walk back through the bramble towards the direction of her home.

Knocking on the door, she was greeted with a punch to the face, as she'd look down at her hand now smothered in blood from her nose, she'd then look up. Her father.

"Never run away from me again you little brat, go back to your room and do whatever, I don't care." ,Elysian gave him a side eye, walking up the spiral staircase, ignoring his incoherent screaming.

She opened the door to her bedroom, dropped Celeste gently down and close it behind her with a slam. She'd wipe the blood from her nose, looking at her hands, before clutching onto her split hair and sliding her back down against the door before burying her head in her arms. Celeste comforting her by rubbing up against her leg. In that moment, a large banging erupted on her door, she immediately shot up to stand and backing back from her door as her father burst through, shouting,

"Hey! I'm not done with you!", He spoke harshly, rolling up his sleeve, bending down and picking up Celeste with one hand and holding onto her tightly.

"WAIT! NO! Please, don't hurt her, you can do anything just please leave her alone!!", Elysian would fall to her knees, begging.

"...hmph..whatever, I guess i'll just use you instead.", He'd drop Celeste as she'd run under the bed, Fritz now grabbing Elysian by the neck and punching her in the face repeatedly.

After a few hours, he left, Elysian covered in bruises and scars. She stood up and flopped onto her bed, sobbing.

"Oh, Celeste, why can't everything just be normal?! Why can't I be normal?! Look at me! I'm ugly, hideous! Look at me!! Why do i even look the way i do!?", She'd yank at her hair, then scratching at her grey skin, as if trying to be rid of it. Celeste looked at her with her large, round purple eyes.

"I can't even with this!! He does this every time he comes home!! Its not just him either!! My siblings stress me out so much!! Its just not fair! Not to mention how i have a sister I'm not even allowed to meet, because shes SO perfect with her--brown and blue hair..and--fair pale peach skin.." Elysian sat up, thinking to herself.

"I won't let this family torture me anymore. I can't do this, Come on Celeste..were ending this, I don't care if they don't..", She got up, dusting off her clothes and grabbing her satchel, reaching for the book contained inside it. She'd open it, flipping through its pages, an evil grin, she'd close the book, placing it back in her satchel, before whistling over for Celeste to follow. She'd open her circular window with a grunt, checking if the vines falling down from it were stable. After confirming they were, she'd climb down as Celeste would follow carefully.

She'd reach the bottom, running over towards the shed. She'd open it quietly and rummaged around inside, locating a can of gasoline and a few matches, she'd smirk, nodding over at Celeste. She'd run back and began to dumb the gasoline across the garden surrounding the house, before anything, she'd think, quickly climbing back up indoors and packing some things, such as her notebook and a photo of Freya, as she held onto the photo, she'd sigh, climbing back down to greet Celeste.

She'd look at her house one last time, before lighting that match, throwing it into the garden dowsed in gasoline, followed by a few more which would set the entire garden a flame, and after awhile, catching fire to the house. She'd run a good distance away, before taking out the book once more, mumbling the words within, as a portal opened before her eyes. She'd look back at the house which was now aflame, watching approximately 9 of her siblings and her mother run out. She couldn't recall seeing her father, she was satisfied, walking through the portal as it would close.