Written in Life

(Chapter 20)

I leaned over the fountains edge and splashed the cool water in my face, scrubbing away my tears. Renae helped by telling me where ink was still smudged and waiting patiently. I noticed that tis was the first time she ever saw me cry... ever. I really don't know if I want to be Renae's sister like we had been, but decided to start off as just friends. Renae sat on the edge of the fountain next to me and hissed through her teeth.

"This marble is cold," she said, giggling. She brought her fin around the edge and placed her tail on the ground, drying herself off. She started to wheeze and as soon as she was finished, she took large, raspy breaths until her tail slowly transformed back to her feet. She smiled and stood up. I dried my face off and when I brought the cloth away, Renae was standing next to Cody, smiling. Renae had major trust issuses with anyone she didn't know, even if her parents knew them. I was surprised she was so comfortable with Cody. I pushed myself up on th the edge of the fountain, as far away from the water as possible.

My feet felt brand new, almost prosthetic. I stood up carefully, holding on to Cody's arm to steady me.

"Am I gonna need to carry you?" he teased. I looked at him and smiled.

"Maybe in your dreams, Inky," I sneered playfully. He laughed and I looked around. There were stray decorations strone on the floor and broken idols, besides the one I broke myself. I pushed my hair back and sighed. I looked to Cody." You still have the aura?" I asked. He nodded and reached into a small pocket. His face turned white. I shook my head." Don't tell me you lost it."

"Wait, you covered it in ink, right?" Renae asked. We both looked to her. She must have been somewhat concious while she was possesed by that... whatever it was. All I knew was that it was powerful.

"Yeah," Cody replied.

"Maybe it got sent to the council then?" I suggested hopefully. Cody nodded." But, if it got to the council, then why are we still here?"

"Maybe it's just delayed?" Cody said. Renae gasped and almost jumped out of her skin.

"I have something to show you guys," she said quickly, gabbing my hand and pulling me towards the door. She led us around the building and to the edge of the forest. She stopped and walked along the edge until we came to a rock with an unusual symbol on it. She whispered something in a foreign language. The symbol lit up and there was a sound of stone sliding against stone. A sort of tomb-looking building rose out of the ground and Renae smiled. She looked back at us." Come on," she urged, walking through the doorway. We followed and Renae stopped in the middle of her tracks.

"You have to keep your voices down, or something very bad will happen. And whatever you do, don't let the oracle see you. She has eyes in the walls and on the cieling. They're like security cameras, but they can't move. Just don't have direct eye contact. And just in case she does see you, don't scream. Just run to a lighter area," she explained, her voice a low whisper." Follow me."

She walked down the hallway, ducking and stepping over hidden objects carefully. I followed, telling Cody to do the same. Renae and I were close to ech other and Cody was a little bit farther behind, giving us some privacy. I smiled and looked back at him over my shoulder, mouthing the words, " Thank you." He smiled back and nodded.

"You like him, don't you?" Renae whispered. I looked at her in shock.

"No!" I whispered back, throwing my head back so an eye wouldn't see me.

"Oh my god! You totally do!" she teased. I felt my face grow hot.

"I'm getting married soon," I whispered.

"That shouldn't turn you away from someone else in your life in the Page," she replied. I took a deep breath.

"Would it sound crazy if I said I don't want to be a part of the Page?" I said sheepishly. She stopped and looked at me.

"No. Of course not," she said. She kept moving." So all of those times you were really pissed, was it something about...?"

"Being Inked? Almost always," I said, finishing her question. She sighed.

"I really am sorry. Truly am. I don't know how you can forgive me..." she whispered, her voice trailing off.

"I don't know if I will," I said. She looked at me with shock and I couldn't blame her. Nothing had ever come between us before. She held up her arm and stopped me in my tracks.

"Damn, I forgot about this part," she hissed." Stay here." The walls were damp and mossy with different colored eyes bulging out of corners and creases. Cody walked up beside me and I held my hand out to stop him.

"Why are we stopping?" he whispered.

"Renae's taking care of the eyes," I said, pointing to the eyes in the walls. He nodded slowly. Renae stood in front of us and took a deep breath. She seemed to spin and glide, dancing her way through the hall. She suddenly stepped in a puddle and collapsed. Nothing happened and she scooped up a handful of water, throwing it against the wall. All the eyes closed and she looked at us and smiled proudly. I sped up to her and helped her up. She willed her feet back beneath her and sighed.

"How many times have you been here exactly?" Cody asked Renae. She shrugged.

"I used to sneak in here when I was younger," she said. She walked to the end of the hall to what looked like a dead end. She hooked her fingers under a rock and pulled. The stone slid out of place and opened to a room filled with more than just a couple cobwebs. She looked back and smiled." Here we are."