Soul Chains

Possessor of the Present

How good it feels to write with hands I own

They may not be mine, but I own them

And to be free of the Fallen Angel

That sickly beast who haunts me so

Maybe now I can run from her

And be hidden from her terror

No, I must not run, I must fight

I must live, that will combat her best

She took away my world

And all that came with it

But I will remember

No matter the sacrifice

~Sammy's Diary

She blinked. The ceiling was above her, a golden brown with sweeping yellow arches. How good it felt to see, and to feel the air. A hand stroked her hair. Larry.

"Are you all right, Samantha?" A voice asked.

It sounded so familiar, like a voice from her past.

She groaned, and rolled over. Ow. The floor was cold, and hitting it hurt. Who was Samantha? Oh, that's right. She was pretending to be Samantha.

"Yeah," she muttered.

"No! That's not me," I screamed, trapped inside my own head, "Help me, Larry!"

Sadly, Larry didn't, and couldn't, hear me. I was merely a thought in my own mind, a side-presence in my own body. It really hurt. I never thought it could hurt, but it did. It hurt like acid rain sizzling on my raw skin. Gradually, though, the pain began to fade away. All that was left was a terrifying numbness. I felt nothing, but I heard and saw everything, albeit through borrowed eyes. Eyes borrowed from me, and were now being borrowed by me. I would have given anything to feel that pain again.

She sat up, holding her head.

"We have to go back," she said, "Back to my- I mean, Coraline's history. I saw something important."

"Are you sure," he said, "It had better be pretty important. That place makes me feel really sick. Anyway, I wanted to show you the museum."

"Not now," she snapped, "It was really important. I saw... Her."

She was really enjoying this, I could tell. She was enjoying me taking all the punishment she was supposed to endure. The pain, the numbness, the disposition, and the emotions. I could barely stand it, and I had already lost so much. I hoped she would leave soon.