The Rift

Chapter 6 Part 2

Elsa and Marie exited Marie's car and began a walk into a wooded area a few miles out of Small Falls. Marie exhaled to watch her breath climb into the cold air. Her chest was heavy with anxiety; could she handle having magic? Whenever she used it, it felt so heavy. She followed Elsa into the brush as the snow crunched underneath their boots. Elsa was so effortless with magic. It was a part of her and could not be separated, whereas Marie had only recently gotten her powers and felt green. Marie stopped in the middle of the brush and sighed. The two small explosions had left her discouraged and with a migraine. Elsa turned around when she no longer heard Marie's footsteps. Marie fiddled with the inside of her winter gloves. "Hopefully no one is out here," Marie said, feeling the need to deter from her own thoughts. "The last thing we need is for someone to see us."

Elsa raised her eyebrow. "Would that be a bad thing?"

"Yes," Marie said, her voice etched with surprise. "Everyone is carrying a camera on them nowadays. Millions of people could know who we are in seconds."

Elsa straightened her shoulders. "I'm not hiding who I am, Marie. I spent most of my life that way."

"I know," Marie argued as she felt desperation creeping into her. "I'm not asking you to hide who you are, just your identity." When Elsa frowned, Marie forced a small smile onto her face. "Maybe a mask or armor of some kind? I'll be doing it. You can join me if you want."

Elsa sighed, and for a moment, Marie thought she had upset her, but Elsa walked up to her and set her hand on Marie's shoulder. "We're safe out here." They looked around as a bitter winter wind blew through them. "You picked a good spot, so I don't think we have to worry about that out here."

Marie looked to the side. "We can talk about it later," she mumbled. They walked a little further into the brush as the foliage slowly turned from bushes to tall trees with no low hanging branches. Marie had picked a spot close to a river that often flooded in the springtime, wiping out any branches that hung less than six feet from the ground. It was a dismal yet beautiful sight. Marie stopped to listen for other sounds, but all that met her ears was some distant birds chirping in the trees above. "Okay, here should do," Marie said. Elsa faced her and nodded. Marie took a deep breath in and made a circle with her hands. Darkness crept from her fingers and snaked around her skin as she focused.

"Don't be a worthless bum like our father."

Marie sucked in a breath as her older brother's voice rang in her head. The darkness convulsed before dissipating altogether. She huffed and tried again.

"I thought you were supposed to be smart!"

Marie shook her head to clear her mother's voice from her mind. She spread her fingers and tried yet again.

"If you do this, you will never see my kids again."

A snarl of pure frustration escaped Marie, and she swung her left hand towards a dead tree. A sword formed from her hand and sliced the tree in two with a perfect cut. Marie stabbed the sword into the ground and took a step back, her eyes averting in shame. She had not tried to form a sword; it had just happened.

Elsa slowly walked up to Marie. She held out her hands. "May I?" she asked. Marie handed her the sword. Elsa observed the magical blade, her fingers running down it. "It's heavy...Anna always said that she couldn't wield it for long because of that. It's like your pain becomes the darkness itself."

Marie crossed her arms and frowned. "My pain isn't greater than anyone else's," she replied, her voice etched with a seethe aimed more towards herself than Elsa.

"Perhaps not." Elsa shivered as her fingers caressed the darkness. "You've been through a lot, and it may seem like too much sometimes, but there's hope even in the blackest darkness." She shifted the blade. "See? A sliver of light, a sliver of hope and love." Elsa smiled, her eyes shimmering in a way that made Marie shiver. "There's always been hope within you, Marie. It's one of the many reasons that I lo-" Elsa stopped and blushed. She cleared her throat and motioned for Marie to take the blade. "If darkness is pain, then perhaps light is hope and love."