Envision

Chapter 10- Violet

I crash through the ever-familiar trees to get away from the Shadow-man, sending his misty claws after me. I let fear take a hold of me as I watch the shadows race along beside me and slowly start to cut me off. I desperately think about being back at home and build the most soothing place in my mind, the comfort of my own room. I feel my dream twists around me and watch as my room springs up around me.

Did that actually work? Did I finally get away?

I laugh from pure joy and plop onto my bed. A slight knock sounds at my door, which Logan pushes open. He takes a few steps past the doorframe, before stopping and flashing me a smile. He opens his mouth to say something, but freezes before any sound comes from his lips. His eyes gloss over into a dull gray and his body starts to ripple in place. Suddenly, the commotion stops and a young boy with gaunt cheeks, wiry bones that barely are able to keep the skin on, and ragged clothes stands in his place. It's the same boy from my very first nightmare. I stumble back, confused as to what just happened.

He boy takes a sharp shuddering breath and whispers, "Help us."

Before I can reply, the darkness surges into my bedroom from behind the boy. It quickly fills the room, bubbling over itself to take all available room. I feel it0000000 creep along my body, constricting my movements, as it seeps down my throat and filling my lungs like tar.

I snap awake and choke on my spit, sending me into a coughing fit. After mangling my throat with coughs, I manage to get control of it and sit up in bed. I swing my legs to the floor and stand on shaky legs. I shuffle into the bathroom, briefly stopping next to Lily's bed to make sure I didn't wake her. Thankfully, she was still lying peacefully in a tangle of blankets, a rare sight considering her schedule. She was always up and moving doing whatever she could to be efficient and not waste time. To her, sleep came second to her studies, training, and other activities. It was nice to see her finally relax a little.

Soon I'm running a brush through my hair and splashing cool sink water onto my face. I quickly toss on a pair of jeans, t-shirt, and a hoodie and then I'm out the door. I walk at a brisk pace through the early morning mist and relish in its silence. I walk through the middle of the courtyard, briefly watching the sun break past the horizon in a splash of gold and orange. Birds dance through the air chirping out morning songs. I close my eyes briefly to bask in the peace of the morning. Sighing, I open them and continue on my way. Logan would be mad if I was late. He was finally released from the infirmary this morning, and we both got clearance to visit home. Nevertheless, we still were on a time limit and didn't have to much time to spend back at our house.

I run up the stairs to Professor Wright's office and fall into step next to Logan, who's pacing outside the doors waiting for me. Together we walk in and receive a brief lecture from Professor Wright on how we have to keep everything that we've learned a secret and to be ready to come back at noon, giving us roughly five hours to talk with our mom.

We sit through a quick drive then pull up to our driveway. We both climb out of the car and walk to our front door. We ring the doorbell and wait several minutes. After no one answers, Logan unlocks the door with the spare key under the mat and lets us all in. I moved into the living room followed by Logan, to find our mom sitting in an armchair without a care in the world. When she finally sees us, she frowns slightly as if we were interrupting her favorite show.

"What are you doing here?" she questions us.

Logan replies, "We wanted to come and see you for a day."

"Why? You both left and went to your new private school. You're big kids now, all grown up," she says.

And that's when I realized, she was lost in her world, and now that there was the opportunity, we weren't important enough to be included in it. She had been slowly drifting away and now that she didn't have to worry about us, she erased anything that didn't convenience her, including us, her children.

This all flashes through my mind as Logan struggle to talk our mom into more coherent thinking. Shaking my head, I spin on my heel and head for the door, pulling Logan by the sleeve behind me. The door swings open before I get to it and a man walks in. He has short black hair and sharp eyes watching from behind wire-rimmed glasses. He appeared both relaxed and confused as he stood looking between Logan and me, with a briefcase and lab coat hanging limply in his hand.

"Who are you?" Logan asks, backing up.

The man smiles, "I'm that woman's husband, Doctor Hayes."

"No, that's not possible. That's our mother and our father left when we were five. And our last is Hill not Hayes," Logan retorts.

"Hill is your mother's maiden name and I'm sorry about leaving, but I am your father and I'm back." He walks toward Logan, pulls him into a hug, and then turns to look at me. I step away from him, smacking his hands away as he tries to get a hug. He abandoned us to fend for ourselves. He didn't deserve a hug. He didn't deserve to be here. He missed out on our lives and we don't know him. I had found a life without him and wasn't ready for him to waltz in and ruin it.

"Sorry Mr. Hayes but Logan and I really should get going back to our academy." I snap at him. Logan shoots a look at me; he always was more emotional about family.

"Oh I'm sure we can stay a little bit," Logan says.

I shoot him my own look and silently wage a war against him. He glares back, but finally gives up and follows me out the door. I rush down the porch steps with Logan quick on my heels. The wind pushes the door into a swinging frenzy behind us, matching my stormy mood. Silently, I slide into the backseat of the Academy car, twisting to face away from Logan. As the car pulls away, I cast one final glace back. I watch as our old life melts away into the background and our father steps into our new one.