The Sanity Thief (Under Major Editing)

05.

Harry's POV

"Oh, yeah. Of course I cleaned it. I just must've forgotten," Ruby speaks quickly. She looked bewildered and wide eyed, and really didn't look like she knew what was going on. She kept looking around, her eyes kept darting back and forth very fast, looking like she didn't trust anyone. Although, I was the only one there.

"I'm going to go into town. Do you need anything?" she asks, now seeming more calm.

"Yeah, here," I say scribbling down random items on a scrap of paper, that's probably been in my pocket since I bought the pants, and handed it to her.

"Ok, but can I take your car?" she asked, without much hope in her voice. She already supposed I would say no, but I did need her out of the house...

I got  up and stood in front of her.

"You look like a walking corpse, man," she laughs.

"Thanks, tell me something I don't know," I reply.

"The bags under your eyes are quite a delectable shade of purple. What brand is that?"

"Insomnia,"

"Nice. Gotta try that some time,"

"Do I honestly look that bad?" She just giggles.

"The keys are on the counter" I inform. A smile grew on her face as she ran to the kitchen and out the door. Shit. Did she even have her license? Oh, well. Hope for the best, I guess.

I'd been wanting to explore more of the house, since I got here. This was the perfect chance. I hadn't seen any of the rooms downstairs, except for the living room and kitchen.

I went through a small, dark door that matched every other thing in the house. It was a small bathroom. I looked into the duplicate world on the other side of the broken mirror. I did look like a walking corpse.

I notice the repulsive features on my body. It seemed that the only thing I didn't hate about myself were the things I had a choice in having: piercings and tattoos.  Staring at my reflection always made me self-conscious. I could stare at it for hours and never even think a single thought. After what seemed like years of staring, I focused on my shadow, mimicking me. 

But this time, there was something different. After nineteen years of staring at my shadow, I knew this wasn't ordinary. There were two shadows. If this wasn't strange enough, one of them wasn't mimicking me. It was standing. 

Either I needed sleep or I was going insane. And I wasn't going to agree with either of those ideas. I'm one of the most sane people I know. Right?

Ruby's POV

Harry thought I didn't know what he was doing. He let me take the car to "explore" the house. Unfortunately for him, I locked every room he couldn't go in.

Honestly, leaving him alone at that house couldn't be that bad. Right?

I looked over the list Harry made. We already had half of the stuff he wrote down, and the other half was complete stupidity. 

Now just one problem. I have no idea how to drive a car. I think now would be a good time to hope for the best.

*Two hours later*

The woman stood in front of me, asking me what felt like an eternity of questions. I paid no attention to most of them for I couldn't. I was too busy staring at the broken car droven into a pole. I turned to the concerned, elderly woman. Or at least I thought she was concerned. 

I think the last thing she was is concerned. The woman had a sinister smile plastered onto her face. 

Her face reads like a road map of time. Every wrinkle, every line has a memory in it. Her eyes, once sparkling bright, are now dulled with age. Hair that was raven black now faded into grey. I ran.

She couldn't be here. It was impossible. It was my mind, playing games with me. Horrid games.

I called Harry. He picked up quicker than I expected.

"Don't come home, Ruby. Run," he yelled through the phone.

"What do you mean?" I asked, my head drowning with the horrible things he could have discovered. 

"There's a man. Well, not a man a- Just don't come here. Take the car and leave. Anywhere," he practically cried out.

"I can't. I crashed your car, Harry," I told him, already on the half-hour path to my house.

"Then hide, Ruby. Hide anywhere,"

"Why? Harry, what's wrong?"

"He wants you, Ruby. He's looking for you,"