Ashes and Stone

Chapter 9

Wyatt and Aleecia arrived at Wyatt's home less then four hours later. His house is less than a half a day walk to Eronia. Wyatt arrived, and to no surprise, his house had been ransacked. He wasn't even phased, he just told Aleecia to stay outside for a while. Wyatt went inside, and he cleaned up his things as quickly as possible. He swept the glass, put the bed frame back together, and picked up what little of his possessions that were left.

His home was relatively small, he had three rooms: a bathroom, bedroom, and a food preparation/ dining area. It was an old church from one of the old towns that had once lived in that area, but when Wy arrived, it was anything but holy.

Wyatt gathered his things, slowly packed for the next day, but decided he would sleep at his home for the night. He made a small, warm dinner, and just the heat made him feel good. He and Aleecia went to bed before sundown. When Wy laid down in his bed, all of his body seemed to fit into place. It was the one thing that never changed, his bed. Wyatt drifted off to sleep soon due to his comfortable (to him) bed.

Wyatt woke the next morning well after sunrise. (So much for leaving early.) He woke Aleecia up who was snoring on the floor, and he started walking towards Eronia. He got there a little while after sundown. The local inn didn't allow animals or vermin as the inn keeper called them. The inn keeper wouldn't even tell him where Anita was. Saying, "She's the voodoo master. You don't wanna talk to her."

Wy politely insisted he did, but he still wouldn't tell him. Wy decided he would just try and find it himself. As he left the inn he heard someone say his name, "Wyatt, come here," The voice was eerily melodic. He saw the woman who was saying it, and immediately assumed it was Anita based upon what Mel had said.

"Are you Anita?"

"Well I don't know of anyone else named Anita, so if its not me then I'm not sure who it would be."

"I need to talk to you, somewhere private somewhere less in the open."

"Yeah, you're getting stared at, stone boy." Wyatt's eyes went wide immediately, he forgot he had turned to stone.

"Oh dear god," he mumbled.

"You forgot didnt you? You're used to it, I'm used to it, these people are not," Anita was kind but at the same time rude.

"How are you used to it?"

"Eh... Well... What's normal for you isn't nessicarily normal for me, and vice versa."

"Oh, well, yes," Wyatt said.

"Lets see what we can do about getting you all healed up and back to your usual self," Anita led Wyatt into her hut and sat him down at a table. She started gathering her herbs and her things and started smashing them in a small wooden bowl that fit in the crook of her arm. "Drink this."

Wyatt took it in from her hands, and he smelled it. It smelt sickeningly sweet "Wha--"

"Don't ask questions, damnit, just drink," Anita commanded.

"Fine," Wyatt smelt it again, and quickly just drank it all. It tasted foul. Anita had a hand over his mouth before he vomit it up like he wished he could.

"Don't you spit that out," Anita scolded. "Come, you're going to sleep and let that medicine take effect."

Wyatt followed her lazily stumbling all the way. He was out right after his head hit the pillow. He slept for three days; the only time he woke up was when he was taking more medicine. As he awoke, he wasn't stone any longer. He was normal... well, a little pale, and his skin was sensitive and new. His very finger tips were the last part not made of stone. "That won't go away, dear, it'll be just a little reminder of your mishaps," Anita said as she cam  into the room with a tray of fruit.

"Where is Melody?" Anita asked even though she already felt as though she knew the answer. Hearing Melody's name sent a twinge of pain in his chest.

"She was attacked in the forest and uh..... didn't make it..." It took everything Wyatt had not to cry.

"Ah, yes, what about the roses?"

"Here are your stupid roses," Wyatt was suddenly bubbling with rage and threw them at her. He felt like she should have been sad, or taken aback not just saying okay and going on her marry way.

Anita took the roses and put them in a large wooden bowl.  She got out a large hammer and with one quick motion smashed them to a powder. Wyatt didn't even care, he just turned to leave. "Where are you going?"

"Home with Aleecia. You have your roses I'm leaving," Wyatt stated. He was angry and just wanted to go home.

"No, show me where she is," Anita said.

"Why?" Wyatt demanded.

"Why do you think?" Anita said.

Wyatt didn't ask any more questions. They left with Aleecia on their heals. When they arrived at the cave where Wyatt and Melody had stayed, Wyatt felt a twinge of regret and pain. He quickly found the infinity flower. "This is where she is," Wyatt mumbled.

"Dig her up."

"No."

"Fine where was her head."

"Just below where the infinity flower is."

"Okay," Wyatt watched Anita set to her work. She grabbed various things from her bag; including a clear liquid and a red one, and  the crushed flowers. When she was done mixing them, she poured the mixtures onto Melody's grave area.

"No--"

"We wait," Anita interrupted.

"Fine," Wyatt left to go to the cave where she last took her final breaths. It was just as they left it plus or minus some moss. The last of her things were left just as he had left them. he gathered them up, and was prepared to take them home with him, so maybe... Just maybe he could remember her.  He walked back to Anita who was sitting.

"How do you know she can't be revived?" Wyatt asked fearing to hear the answer.

"She's still here. Her soul was trapped why or by what, I don't know, but she is still here in spirit. The flowers are repairing her body to normal natural state when she is fully healed she will come up from the ground. All of your plants will die because the roots are getting poisoned and killed. They're seen as a threat by the roses.

Just then, the plants started noticeably wilting. Within a few hours, the only flower left was the infinity flower. Anita started clearing the decayed pants and dirt away. Soon, Melodies face was showing them her body. She was naked and pale. Anita covered her with a blanket so she  felt less exposed.

I small twitch in her chest happened as she started to shallower breathe. Quicker and Quicker, her breaths became deeper and deeper. Wyatt gasped as her eyes slowly started to flutter open. She open her eyes and was extremely confused. When she tried to speak, it just came out in muffled whispers.

"Just sleep, dear," Anita soothingly said. She gave her a drink of something and she her eyes quickly fluttered closed. "I'm going to dress her, so when she awakes, we'll be able to start moving soon."

"Okay," Wyatt turned away while she dressed her. They set up a small camp surrounding her 'bed'. In the morning, they woke and explained it all to Melody. Wyatt and Melody became joined when they got back. Melody forced Wyatt to move Eronia, but all in all, Wyatt decided it wasn't too bad. They lived happily ever after except a few bumps in the road; a couple storms a couple kids, a couple hardships but one thing never changed, Wyatt and Mel's love for each other and their family.