Roses are Red

1. Forgetting.

Some people say when you have a dream about falling it means you're scared of everything you have taken away from you. Every since I can remember I've had this recurring dream, I'd close my eyes and my body would melt through the sheets in the abyss of the night sky, I'd land on the ground in the middle of a forest and hear a whisper of my name coming from in between the evergreen branches which surrounded me. I couldn't move, the trees surrounded me in a circle and I was laying on the dusty earth. I'd sometimes count the stars above me every night they were different as if there was a coded message after I'd finish drowning away the paralysing minutes I'd hear a howl in the distance, at first it was scary, but now it reminds me that my dream is almost over. I'm able to move my head at this point, I always look for the wolf saving me and they always come from the same direction. The twigs snap and they appear white and almost glowing like the stars I've been studying, red eyes which frightened me once before but now soothe. 

"Elizabeth it's time to go!" My mother shouts from her room calling me awake, with a gasp I sit up and glance at the time 9:43 am, I had overslept again. 

I groan and brush my covers off my body, stretching my arms and legs with a yawn. We were visiting my grandfather today mam says we can only visit him on his good days because it isn't safe otherwise, he has dementia. It started when my grandmother died, she was the love of his life they were married for 60 years, I couldn't imagine loving someone that much, but yet again I'm only fifteen. 

"LIZZY!" My brother high pitched scream comes with a scattered of his feet through the hallway, he prompts himself in between the door frame arms stretched out hands grabbing either side, he was out of breath. I raise my eyebrow at him, "why are you always late? You sleep too much, get ready or mams going to kill you." With his bossy request, he removes himself from the doorway and runs to the kitchen.

 Ever since he turned 9 he seems to think he's the man of the house, which I guess is true. Dad left when he was 4, he doesn't remember him much but I tell him stories sometimes before bed. He gets sad and always asks me if he will come back one day, his questions are hard to answer sometimes I feel bad as I was the same towards mam after he left, we don't talk about him with mam, but the sad look in her eyes says it all, she misses him. 

I walk through to the kitchen once I'm dressed, mams making breakfast whilst listening to the radio and James is watching her on the counter whilst eating burn bits of bacon. I roll my eyes as he growls whilst eating he's been obsessed with the wolves in the forest around our house and seems to think one of them is our dad when really he's just a coward that couldn't accept the responsibility of a family. But he's happy, so we deal with it. 

"Sleep well?" Mam asked her voice chirpy this morning I groan in response, she turns around with a pan full of scrambled eggs with a sympathetic smile, "the same dream?" I nod in agreement and she sighs, I had told mam about the dream when I was younger, she told me that used to have similar dreams of a wolf when she was my age, but like what I've realised she saw it as her friend more than anything. 

"When are we seeing grandad?" James says muffled with a mouth full of bacon, I sit down next to him and mam pours the eggs onto my plate. 

"As soon as you finish your breakfast chipmunk," she smiles and he carries on stuffing his face. 

"so it's a good day then?" I ask and her face becomes unsure, it's hard for her to think about her father, something about her facial expression told me maybe it wasn't. 

"It's good enough, but remember don't call him grandad just Mr P okay?" We both nod in unison munching on our breakfast. 

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My grandfather's cabin was about a 10-minute walk through the woods, it was an old hunting cabin that had been in our family for years, it hasn't changed since grandma died. There were still two rocking chairs outside, as we approach I can hear grandad shouting. 

"Isabelle! Where are you? Isabelle?" He was calling out for her, it always made me sad, the door handle rattled just as we stood at the door and my grandfather sunken worried face appeared behind the door. "Oh it's you," it's not exactly the best greeting to receive but he doesn't recognise us, he thinks we are his annoying neighbours that think he is some geriatric that can't look after himself. 

"Hello Mr P, how are you doing?" He groans and waves his hands for us to come in at my mothers greeting. The floor of the cabin was all muddy as if a dog had rolled around in her, he must have gone wandering in the night. The silence became awkward as he sat in his chair by the window, James and I sat down on the couch in front of him,  while mam was in the kitchen filling his fridge with home-cooked meals. His eyebrows raised at us and I begun twiddling my thumbs. 

"So what are your names?" My grandfather questions now reaching for a dusty book on the coffee table. 

"Elizabeth" 

"James" We both smiled at him and he smiled back in content. 

"Your mother seems to think I need an extra hand around here, I think she has her hands full enough with you two eh?" He giggles and I'm unsure of how to reply. 

"Do you like wolves?" James asks and I roll my eyes at his obsession. 

"Like them?" Grandfather laughs, "I live and breathe them, have you ever heard the story of the rose queen?" 

"No, can you tell us?" James' excitement burst as he fidgeted in his seat, our grandfather dramatically blew the dust off the book he held and opened it gently, 

"Legend has it she was born from a planted rose the moon goddess planted in the garden of Eden, when the world reached chaos she transformed into a beautiful woman and brought the demons into the underworld allowing the earth to live in peace. Through the war, she fought beside the animals, trees and humans who sided with her light, when it ended she fell in love-"

"Why does every story have to be about love?" James gagged at the thought and we both laughed. 

"You'll understand when you're older, lad," Grandfather grinned and James shook his head with a cringe. "He was the strongest warrior they had a blue wolf, they both shared their love of the moon and would walk side by side, their understanding on one another was shocking to the world and unheard of. So much so the villagers of their kingdom rebelled in distaste of their friendship calling bestiality, the two never spoke of their love for one and other or acted on it. But a jealous witch cast a spell on the villagers causing the rumour. Their kingdom turned to fire, with hatred and the two fled in the wood but were followed by a few. 

An arrow shot through and the wolf jumped in front of the queen saving her life. With that, the spell was undone, but the wolf was dying. The queen held him sobbing at the sight of blood, her screams sent shivers through the woods. Then a miracle happened, the moon goddess blessed all of us that night, she combined their energy of human and wolf, with a flash of white light they both changed. The wolf now carried a human body, his wolf side still inside split one side into his queen. The miracle changed the world as we knew it and they both reigned side by side bringing peace to human and animal kind." 

"Is that the end of the story Mr P?" James sounded lost, 

"No my child, that was just the beginning, the werewolf kind have many legends on how they came to be, some are true and some false," It sounded crazy but for a second I thought he recognised, 

"Are they real?" James asked excitedly, I laugh but grandad does not, instead a shocking expression runs over his face and he begin to sniff the air. 

"No, it can't be..." He mutters, suddenly I hear a smash in the kitchen and I jump at the sound, "you need to leave, Sophia!" He shouts my mother's name and I realise he remembers us, WE get up in a hurry and mother runs through from the kitchen towards us, she crouches down to meet James' height. 

"You need to run as fast as you can back to the house wait at the front someone will come and get you, Elizabeth..." she turns to me, I've never seen her like this... scared. "You need to look after your brother, be strong, I love you both," she kisses both of our foreheads and stands up. "Go, run!"