The Mirrored Souls

8.

Darce's eyes focus on Neriah's well-being, having that older brother's instinct kick in even if it's been ages since they last saw each other. Neriah dusts his hands off then wipes the trickle of sweat dripping down his forehead, "How are you even in this realm?" he asks informally. Darce raises his hands looking at him saying, "I'll leave if you like Riah," but then looks at me, "But I just saved her from almost plummeting to her death, so I think I earned a little stay time." Neriah looks at me with a stone cold expression, enough for me to get the hint and go inside leaving the two alone.

"Did you really have to send her away? I mean she's so damn beautiful to look at, no? It's almost as if we're looking at someone else."

Neriah scoffs, "Is that why you're attaching yourself to her? Because she looks like Odette? Pitiful."

Darce grimming on the comment his brother just said has Neriah almost feeling guilty for even saying anything.

"At least I'm not playing the help, that's for damn sure."

"What do you call saving her?" Neriah asks, offended.

"Her savior, what else would you call it Riah?"

Neriah flinches at his brother calling him his old nickname as if he just got burned by the sun.

"Stop calling me that."

Darce shoves his hands in his pockets tilting his head at his little brother, "It didn't bother you when we were alone in this world, just the two of us, remember that?"

Neriah's jaw twitches with annoyance at his brother saying, "That was before you stole Odette away from me, remember that?"

Almost like getting an epiphany, Darce nods smiling pointing towards his brother, "There it is," he starts to clap applauding Neriah's outburst. Both brother's are now face to face, toe to toe, ready to rip into each other. Hearing everything, I'm ready to go out there and stop the showdown that's about to happen until a chill runs up my spine. Turning on my heels slowly I see the little boy holding a dead rose while holding it for me to grab. I slowly reach for it gulping in fear, not sure what it means but still grabbing hold of it. Once it's in my hand the thorns prick my palm and there's flooding images of the boy's last words. Blood drips down onto my clothes from my nose while I get a clearer image as I touch his forehead. "The forest..." I keep trying to see the boys' memories and see the blue eyes and orb from my trip earlier. More blood comes down making my head hurt with a migraine. Neriah touches my shoulder having the boy fizzle out, the warmth returns and stops my head from splitting in two from the pain that's grinding against my skull.

"Here," he hands me a tissue while Darce stands at the door watching our interaction.

"Thanks..." I wiped the blood away looking over to both brothers, "Did you two make up?" Both Neriah and Darce stay quiet, not answering telling me they haven't. "Well whatever it is, the both of you are brothers, you can't stay mad at each other for another century." I pour myself a glass of water then get a strange feeling to ask them about the forest I saw. "Have either of you been to the wintered forest? A man with blue eyes had put me in this dungeon and had these pow-" Darce chuckles cutting what I was saying off.

"What?" I ask while crossing my arms now.

"Nothing, it just sounds like a twisted Narnia."

Neriah shoots his older brother a look telling him to actually be serious for once, having Darce sigh pretending to care.

"If you could give me more details I might be able to sketch it out and look in one of the books your mom left," Neriah says, grabbing a pencil and paper.

"He had this fur hooded coat. I couldn't actually see his full face."

Darce raises his eyebrow, "But you know his eyes are blue?"

I sighed holding my head, "The sarcasm can hold off until I actually figure this all out, alright? So if you're not going to help you can go back to being a rat hiding in that vampire infested club you have." Neriah tries to stifle the laugh he has to what I said but Darce just nods, "At least I can manage my surroundings and not get caught in different realms then end up on a tall ass roof ready to become vulture food." My eyes narrow in on him as I get closer to where he is as I say, "Then why do you show up every time I am in that kind of trouble?" Neriah looks at him waiting for him to go against my statement but he doesn't. "Exactly," I sat, having a small wave of lightheadedness looking to the countertop.

"I'll make you some ginger tea," Neriah says while seeing me turn pale.

Darce looks to his brother in the kitchen then to a pale sickly me.

"How bad does it get?" He asks as the air grows colder.

I shrug, "With you here? I'll say ten times what we're feeling now."

A huge surge of winds hit the windows opening the shutters and causing sticks and leaves to enter dangerously. Being too weak to move as a larger stick comes flying my way, Neriah blocks it getting cut on his forearm. Darce turns as a scream is heard from my room letting everyone know the Specter has entirely opened inside the house and realm we're in. Neriah looks as blood starts streaming down my nose onto the countertop. "You can't stay. You have to go." He urgently tells Darce trying to plug up my nose. Looking around he nods then leaves having things slowly die down. "Go lay down, I'll bring the tea to your room." As soon as I got up I dropped to the floor fainting, unaware that my body had momentarily shut down.