L I F E (Lilia Calderu x Reader)

III

"That's it. Ten points for Mrs. Hart." Alice said, smiling and nodding to the rest of us.
"Ten points for what now?" Sharon asked, turning to look at Alice.

"You were just excited about the wine, weren't you?" I teased, leaning down to whisper in her ear.
"I was." She giggled quietly, quickly reaching out to grab the bottle.

"Wait, we don't know what'll happen if we drink it." Alice protested, resulting in Sharon's movement to still.
"Sure we do. Something terrible." Agatha said, stating what she assumed to be the obvious. "But if we don't follow these obvious breadcrumbs, we can't move forward and we won't get to the big prize. So, does anybody have a corkscrew?" She asked, taking the bottle into her own hand.

"There's a built in bar." Teen said, quickly moving in that direction.
"And I will help you." Jen replied, following behind him. Something felt wrong. Everything in me was pushing me to go with them.

"I'm just gonna join them." I followed hastily behind, trying to make sure I didn't miss anything.

"Hey, a bit of advice" I heard Jen say, earning both Teen and my attention. "Watch your back with Agatha."
"I know how people feel about her." He responded, showing no concern for what she had to say.

"Did you know she traded her own child for the book of the damned?" She asked smugly.
"That is not true." I protested, coming to stand in between her and teen. "Don't go spreading things you know nothing about."

She scoffed and rolled her eyes. "And you do? Who even are you?"
"I have known Agatha a very long time. Don't go talking about things that you have no business mentioning." Instead of responding, she just rummaged through a drawer and then walked away.

"It's not true?" Teen asked from behind me.
"No." I shook my head, turning to face him. "Agatha wouldn't do that."

We made our way back to the group, watching as Agatha popped the cork and poured out a glass for the adults. Everyone stood silent, unsure of what to do next. "If you're waiting for charcuterie, I don't think it's coming." Agatha said, looking around to everyone.

Without another thought, Sharon grabbed her glass and downed the whole thing, earning a few concerned glances from the group. "I have had a very hard day. Do not judge me." As the words left her mouth, a timer began beeping. '30:00'

"I'll be right back." I smiled, leaving my glass at the table and entering the kitchen. My throat felt dry, my head was screaming at me but I couldn't figure out why. I opened the fridge, kneeling down and grabbing two pitchers of what looked to be non alcoholic beverages.
Faint footsteps caught my ear. I turned around, Lilia standing in the doorway. "The Star." She gasped, her eyes having a glazed over look for a moment.

[The Star-  hope, renewed power, and strength to carry on with life.]

I placed the pitchers on the counter, moving to grab her shoulder. "Lilia?" I fought back the images with all my strength, wanting to focus on the here and now.

"What?" She asked confused, her head turning to look at my hand placed on her shoulder. "You're touching me." She stated, turning to look me in my eyes. "You're fighting the visions." Her right hand moved to touch my face. "Why?"

I leaned into her touch, the earlier images vanishing from my mind. Closing my eyes, I smiled. My mind was empty. I was free of this hell that holds me. Even if just for a moment, Lilia had set me free.