The Seeds of Wrath

9

"Aeteia? Aeteia, wake up!" I groaned in pain as I felt her shaking me roughly. Wincing when I opened my eyes, I saw the familiar golden tinge around Maeve's irises as she continued to shake me. I grabbed her hands, pulling them off of my shoulders.

"I'm awake! I'm awake! Whatsgoinon?" I rubbed my face with my hands, looking up at her with weariness still in my eyes. "Another nightmare? It's going to be a-oka-" I felt a pillow slam against my head, a ringing filling my left ear. Grabbing the pillow, I glared at the 'soothsayer.' "What's your problem?!"

She looked annoyed, yet frantic as she spoke. "It's not just a nightmare, Aeteia! You need to get out of here now." I felt my head begin to throb in pain; what had been in that pillow? "Oh, for heaven's sake, wake up!" I rubbed my eyes for a little bit, feeling her grab my arms and start shaking me again.

I moved away from her, getting up from the bed and putting some space between us. "I get it's not just a nightmare, but do you have to physically assault me in order for it not to come to pass?" I looked in the mirror, my eyes rimmed with dark bags and my hair sticking every which way. I needed caffeine.

Maeve winced when I told her so matter-of-factly what she'd done. She seemed to calm down a little bit at the realization, pursing her lips at me. "I-I'm sorry that I woke you up so early, but-but-" She burst out into tears, her hands winding around themselves tightly.
"Hey, hey..." I softly whispered, finally moving back to her side. I pressed my forehead against hers, running my hands through her hair. "Take a deep breath. I can't understand you when you're crying; you know that. Breath in for me." She took in a long, drawn out breath through her nose, holding it for a moment before she slowly let it out, the tears still streaming down her cheeks. "Another one." She repeated the process, the redness in her face diminishing some. After a few seconds, I finally muttered, "Are you calmed enough to tell me what's wrong?"

She gave me a soft nod; I sat back, my legs crossed in front of me, as I listened to her speak. "I-something is following you. You're being hunted." I blinked a couple times, making sure that I'd heard right.
"Alright, that isn't really news to me. I'm going to need more information." I took her hands in mine, feeling her shaking slightly as she tightened her grasp around my hands. "Can you look at me?" She nodded, her eyes catching mine. The green had returned to her eyes; a fact that allowed me to relax a little bit more.

"It's about to catch up. Any moment now, it could be stalking the home in search of you. It won't leave anyone alive. It has a one track mind. It wants to take you-to-to-"

She stopped when she looked at my expression; her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What is with tha' look?" I felt my face heat up when I thought about the previous day. The golden eyes, the strange warning. Something...no, someone wanted me to run then. It said that many lives would be on the line.

I had no idea that it could possibly affect Maeve, though. My heart began to pick up in my chest; I pursed my lips, looking up to her worriedly. No matter what, I wasn't going to let anything hurt Maeve.

"It's nothing, hon. Nothing at all. What time is it?" I swung my legs off the bed, standing up again and moving to her bathroom, turning on a cold shower. I had the feeling that I was going to need to be as alert as I possibly could.
"It's 3:24 in the morning. What's goin' through yehr mind?" I frowned to myself; if I could get out of here before sunup, hopefully that would help to draw whatever it was away from her. I couldn't tell her what was going through my mind; I couldn't pinpoint anything down. It was all a blur of emotions and thoughts. I finally was able to get one thought.

"I need you to visit Madame Mae and let her know what you've seen. I will need her help to get out of here. If we're lucky, I can draw away whatever is after me." She hesitated for a moment, before she grabbed her robe that she'd been provided with. She turned back to me at the door, opening it and speaking to me in a voice that told me that she was worried about my mental state.
"Don' do anythin' stupid, yeh hear me?" I nodded at her, taking a deep breath and moving into the shower. At first, I was shocked by the cold of the water, but it did as it was supposed to. I was wide awake. I closed my eyes, turning around in the shower, making sure not to wet my hair. My face was pelleted with cold water; I let out my pent up breath.