A Pile of Ashes

Chapter 2

I awoke with my face being poked by sharp little things. I pushed myself up and looked at it. It was a peculiar colour; one I had never seen before. I pulled it out the ground and smelled it. It smelt so good after the horrible fumes of the potion. I breathed in the air around me ravenously. It was so fresh. We'd never had anything of the sort back at home.

I was then reminded of my purpose of being here and buried my face back in the ground again. How was I meant to find something I knew nothing of, from someone I knew nothing of? I sighed inwardly. This would be a long, long search.

My ears picked up a sound to my right and I turned my head toward it. There was a small, brown, fluffy creature with its tongue hanging out. Was this the inhabitant of this dimension? It somewhat resembled the Hounds of Hell. "Are you a woman?" I asked it, as it bounded towards me.

There was a weird high-pitched sound behind it. I leaned my head up to see where it was originating from. There was something standing there, looking down directly at me. Not something, someone. I pulled myself up to my feet, only then noticing the brightness and the oddness of the sky. It too, like the ground, was a peculiar colour.

I looked back at the creature standing before me and stared. "You have a face, like me. Limbs and head too. But your body is not. Your shoulders are not broad. Your body is dipping down and rising up in weird places." I stated. "And why is it so bright here? What is this colour on the ground? What is this strange colour of the sky?"

The creature started to shake and make weird high-pitched sounds again. I narrowed my eyes, "What is wrong with you? Why do you keep doing that? What is it that you are doing?"

It pointed at the fluffy creature on the ground and said, "That, is a dog. Not a woman. Why would you even think that?" Then started again, with weird noises erupting from its mouth.

I glared at it sharply, "Why do you keep doing that?" I asked again.

The gaze in its eyes held confusion. "Doing what?" she asked innocently. "Laughing?"

I continued to glare at her. "That is not laughter," I said, "That is an annoying high-pitched noise that will result in the bleeding of my ears." It stared back at me, looking offended (for some odd reason), as I continued. "Now tell me. What is a woman? Why do you look so weird? And what are these peculiar colours?"

It gave me a strange look before replying. "I am a woman. That should answer your second question too. The sky is blue and the grass is green."

I looked at the woman for a long time. Five minutes in this dimension and I've already found one of the two things I need!

I stared at it for even longer. Green? Blue? This is what they look like? I'd only ever heard of them before. And grass? Why have I never seen such a thing?

"I guess you'll be asking what you are next. You're a man. A very pale man. Where are you from? Why are you asking me such weird things?" Its hand flew to its mouth, "Have you escaped the mental institute or something?"

I was a man. I was a what? A man. What a strange word. Man. Half of woman. Why? Whatever. What did it just say? A MENTAL INSTITUTE? It thinks I'm crazy. "You think I'm crazy." I said bluntly. "I'm not crazy."

It nodded slowly. Sarcastically. "Why did you run away from the institute?" It whispered softly. "Did they treat you badly?"

I stared at it thinking back to what was said before. "What does it mean when you say I am pale?" I asked. It reached over and lifted my hand and tapped the back of it. "Your skin. It's a really light shade. It's pale. Mines is called tanned," it explained. I stared down at our hands and realised how much darker its was compared to mine, and nodded slowly. It looked up at my comprehending face and started 'laughing' again.

I sharply grabbed its arm tightly. "I have two words for you," I said through gritted teeth. "Love me." I whispered. It widened its eyes and raised its eyebrows in surprise, "Well, that was unexpected." I let go of its arm and looked away, embarrassed. I guess it's not something I can get from just any woman.

I looked back to find myself being stared down. I broke the gaze and crouched down to stroke the dog instead. "I think it will tell someone my secret now," I whispered.

"Excuse me? Did you just call me an 'it'?" it asked, clearly offended. I nodded slowly. "I am a she. And do you mean the secret of your escape? Don't worry. I won't turn you in." she added.

I looked up at her exasperatedly. How did she not understand I wasn't mental? "I'm not mental. And that was not the secret I spoke of. I was speaking of my search for 'Love'."

She looked at me comically, "That's not really much of a secret, but sure, I won't tell." The ends of her lips lifted upwards, and I jumped back in surprise. "What is happening to your lips? Why are they curving up? Is it because you are a woman?" I asked alarmed.

She sighed softly, "It's called smiling. Have you never seen it before?"

"No... I don't think so," I faltered. "I'm still not mental."

She nodded slowly. "Yeah, maybe you're not. I doubt they'd allow those clothes in an institute."

We looked down at my hard, metal clothes, then at her soft ones. "What are yours made of? I've never seen clothes like that before."

"It's called cotton. Where do you even come from?"

"It doesn't matter, you don't need to know." I'd decided she didn't need to know anything about my origins. I would be starting a new life here and I would never return.

She shook her head in amusement. "What are you finding so funny?" I demanded.

"I just realised that I don't even know your name," she smiled.

"It's Arius," I replied.

"I've never heard that name before. I am Bellarose, but most people call me Bella."

"My name means 'Immortal'."

"Mines means 'Beautiful Rose'."

"Pleased to meet you, Bellarose." I extended my hand.

"Pleased to meet you too, Arius." She shook it.