Birthmarks and Bruises

A Moment to Remember

"Besides, you already know I've done bad things." Maxine continued. They had been there for a while- it was evident, for mud had started to seep over the top of the raincoat's seamed edges. Andrea looked confused.
"How come? I know you hide a lot of things from everyone, but I have no way of knowing if they're bad."
Maxine seemed to waver slightly- Andrea couldn't tell if all this explaining was helping the other with her problems or not. The fact that she was still talking was a good sign, though- someone like Maxine would never do something like that against her will if it made her uncomfortable. She looked scared, yes, but deep down she knew it was for the better. Andrea was the only one she could truly confide in.
"The bruises, though. I never bothered to count them but there's at least fifty." She muttered, glancing down on an array of purple marks on her exposed calf. "I told you what they're from right?"
Andrea forced her memory back to recall what Maxine had told her. It disturbed her to even think about, so she had tried to push the thought to the back of her mind until she absolutely needed to think about it.
"You did, yeah. But shouldn't that mean that you tried to save loads of people but couldn't?"
Maxine was silent.
"That's not a bad thing, Maxine. You were a good person for doing that." Andrea comforted. She could see her friend was struggling with herself in her head as she stared aimlessly down at the field below them.
The girl was about to try again when Maxine took a deep breath through parted lips.
"I was still in school when the whole thing started. The first snatchers appeared half way through the day before people started disappearing. They were very clever, though. They stuck to the shadows. I don't remember fear. Only adrenaline."

That's right. Some schools finished for the holidays later. That's... such a horribly unfortunate coincidence.

"Now that I think about it, and- now that I know the rules- that snatcher must have already killed someone, because it had a face. Maybe a blond year 9 boy. The teachers were frantic and confused, some thought it was some kind of sick prank- one teacher fainted, if I recall correctly. There were bodies everywhere when we exited the classroom, blood splattered across every window and these terrible high pitched screams echoed everywhere."
She paused, blinking and moving her fingers one by one as if making sure she was still real. "I knew that I had to get rid of it, if no one else was making the attempt- I couldn't escape. I couldn't just leave everyone there. But, I needed to survive. I think the thought that kept me alive was that my parents wouldn't know I was dead until they returned from Thailand a week later."

I'm sorry. I'm so sorry you were put through this.

"It climbed up and around the walls like some kind of hellish, four limbed spider. Every child I pulled out of the way, hid from their sight, pushed behind me... they got snatched away eventually. Every one of them. Of course, I notice the bruises and what they stand for now, but at the time I was confused. I could feel them, I had no time to inspect them, though." Maxine started to stumble on her words. Something sensitive was coming.
"Lin, my little brother- a year 7. I remember grabbing his hand, and he was shaking so hard, crying rivers from fear." She sneered hatefully at her bruised skin. "One of these is him. And I'll never know which one."

I'm so sorry.

"In the end, I decided I would blow them up, or set them on fire. Even now, it seems to be the most efficient way to kill one. I managed to herd them into a single room, a science room, I believe- turned on every gas tap and lit a Bunsen burner with the lighter in my pocket. All the windows and doors were shut, and I blocked the openings the best I could-" Maxine bit her lip, regret clouding her eyes.
"I killed them. I killed the demons. I killed the class of students taking refuge next door."
The pair fell silent, Andrea struggling to find something to say from shock.

She's been through a lot more than I thought.

"That's thirty children, Andrea. Thirty children I tried to save by taking out a threat, not knowing I would be the largest danger to them in the end." Maxine's tone was strained, as if she refused to cry- as if despite everything she still felt the need to maintain a strong character.
"I respect you." Andrea said, nodding sternly.
"What?"
"I said I respect you."
Andrea knew how it felt to lose people she never knew. But to lose almost a school's worth of young friends and apprentices, and even being convinced you murdered half of them yourself- she couldn't even begin to imagine the pain Maxine was feeling. Maybe she dealt with it a different way, but Andrea knew she wouldn't even be able to handle that thought. Maxine's blunt way of thinking and ordering people around, along with her harsh ways, now seemed a hell of a lot clearer. Why would you continue to sugar coat things if trying to be the good-hearted hero killed so many people?
Maxine shuffled, stretching out her limbs as she noticed how tense she had become.
"You respect a murderer." She mumbled, clambering to her feet clumsily. She helped Andrea up, who looked up at her with a strange expression unseen before by even her family. Maxine exhaled slowly through her nose, calming herself down back into her original, seemingly emotionless state.
"I don't understand you. All of this about me and you still look up at me in admiration."
The blonde smiled in bittersweet sympathy.
"Because you're strong. Even if you're breaking down, you've got this far. And I admire that."
Practically peeling the raincoat from the now flattened surface it was later upon, Maxine grunted in disbelief. Though, Andrea could see in her softened, half hidden expression that she was relieved.

And that's a good thing. What's what she was aiming for. That's what we wanted.

The older girl turned her body back towards the building they had come from, waiting for Andrea to walk alongside her.

She really is my bodyguard, huh?

"Ah- we shouldn't waste the whole day. We need to do something useful rather than listening to me complain." She stated, focusing once again on only survival rather than her other human needs. Andrea reluctantly obliged, keeping close to her side, their fingertips barely brushing together. "Andrea?"

Yeah?

"Thank you."