Hydrangea

Prologue

Smoke. It's the first thing she remembers that morning. Thick black smoke. She looks over at her brother's bed. It's empty, why is it empty? She hurriedly gets out of her own bed. Scraping her knee she stumbles over something. Looking down she notices her sword. It had been pulled off the wall where it was kept safe. She pauses briefly before quickly picking it up off the floor.

The worn wooden floor she's known forever is barely see able in the smoke. She looks around the small room coughing. Once she spots the window through the suffocating thickness of the smoke she runs to it. She quickly flips the wooden lock on the window and struggles at opening the window. It has to move it has to! She thought over and over struggling with the window. Finally she flips her sword and points the handle at the window. She plunges the end of the sword into the window leaving a small crack. She tries again breaking a small hole. The smoke slowly slithers through the tiny hole she created in the window.

Coughing again she grabbed at her chest. How long had she been breathing these poisonous fumes. She lifts the collar of her nightgown to her mouth trying to slow the intake of the smoke. That's better she thought to herself. With another cough threatening to come out she takes another hit at the window. The hole was now the size of her small fist. She circles the small hole with the end of the sword. The glass now broke off much faster. When the hole was big enough she stuck her head out and took a deep refreshing breath of clean air. Bad idea, she begins violently coughing.

Retreating back into the house she covers her mouth once again as she coughs. She staggers out the last threateningly painful cough. Leaning on her brother's bed she slowly gets off the ground.

It was somewhat easier to see in the room. Although her eyes burned and begged her to shut them by flowing with tears. She still started walking toward the door over her brothers thrown sheets.

She grips the sword handle tightly with her left hand. With her free hand she wiped away the tears that seemed to stain her cheeks. The door was right in front of her when she opened her eyes once more. She reached out for the door handle.

She was stupid, as soon as she touched the door handle it burned her hand. Pulling her hand back quickly she scowls at the handle. Her hand throbbed with pain as she held it against her chest. She takes multiple steps back and charges toward the door. She uses her right shoulder to burst the door open.

Instantly regretting it she howls in pain. Not only was her shoulder instantly dislocated but she came into the living room to a nightmare that had somehow turned into reality.

Her mother looked lifeless laying on the floor in the entrance to the kitchen. Her family's living room was destroyed. All of their precious memories they shared here seemed painfully far away now. Yet she hadn't given herself the time to think of the most troubling part she walked into.

Her father, her father was attacking her brother. One of her father's arms were pitch black along with half of his face. A nightmare creature her mother would tell her about to get her to take medicine. Was now holding her father captive in his own body.

She looked at her brother who was pointing his sword at his own father. Her brother looked over at her and smiled sadly and plunged the sword straight through their father's chest.

"NOOO!" She heard someone scream. To realize it was none other than herself.

Her father smiled wryly and said weakly," Thank you."

Once more she looked at her brother terrified and he slid his sword out of his father's chest with tears streaming down his face. Her brother, her twin, her best friend had killed their own father. Sure it was for a good reason but why she thought. Couldn't there be a way to save him there had to be. Right?

She fell to her knees roughly and started coughing painfully as she cried. She felt herself being wrapped in arms. Arms that were so familiar to her. Arms that have loved her and arms that have killed. She looked up at her brothers face. It showed no emotion, it was still His sword was lying next to their father's lifeless body.

Her brother then lifted her and carried her out of the burning house. He set her on the sun warmed sand that laid as a path outside of their house. He gently laid his hand on her head and stood. When his hand left her head she put her own hand there. He then hastily reentered the house.

After a moment of staring at the dark entrance of the only house she's ever known. Her brother comes back out with their mother thrown over his left shoulder. She quickly and frighteningly looks at his right hand to see his sword. It was smothered in their father's blood. She chokes down a lump in her throat

She jumps slightly as her brother throws his sword down on the ground. Lightly he then sets their mother on the ground next to them.

When she looks down at her mother's seemingly and hopefully unconscious body. She notices the scenery around her for the first time. She shakily looks up from her mother's body. Her mouth drops open. The entire town she's grown up in is on fire. Everything she's ever know was set to flames. Some of it wasn't even there anymore but merely a black mark in the ground and ashes. Sad dark grey ashes that would soon haunt her at night.

Looking at her brother from the mess and disaster surrounding them. Her eyes begin to leak tears and fast. Her brother falls to his knees in front of her and hugs her tightly. Twitching slightly when her shoulder sends pain through that she could feel in her toes. She cries into his shoulder. Trying to get the memory of this day out of her head. Yet, his clothes had been soaked in the smell of the smoke and made her cry more.

"I love you Andrea," Her brother says shaking. Andrea looks up at her brothers face. It was twisted in pain, sadness, and anger.

She chokes out her response," I love you too." Tearing her fingernails into his back. She holds onto their hug as if he would be the next one taken from her.