Reflections of Light

Internal Balance

Reclining on the bed, was himself; but not him. Here, before him was a vision of his darkest self, watching him with dark eyes. The apparition smirked at his counterpart's shock.

"Hello."

"Go away."

The apparition sneered. "You're pathetic. A pathetic little boy, playing house."

"You're not invited here."

"I am always here." He purred. "I always will be, whatever you do. What you're trying won't work."

Now that was interesting. As much as this presence had haunted him, the fact it had chosen to appear directly before him now said something.

Without another word, he turned on his heel and walked out, closing the door behind him.

Snagging a blanket from a cupboard, he crossed the landing and walked downstairs, heading back to the the living room and Nyx.

As he stepped through the door, his heart dropped.

He was there, on the sofa; sitting next to Nyx who remained oblivious. The victoriously smug expression on his face was clear. 'You try to hurt me, and I'll do something to hurt you.'

"Get away from her!"

Nyx jumped at the ferocity of his tone; looking around with wide, frightened eyes. "What? Who? Is someone here?"

Seeing where his eyes were fixed, she leapt up, scurrying over to stand besides him. With his unblinking gaze fixed unwaveringly on the same spot, he growled. "Leave."

"... I don't see anything." Nyx whispered, concerned. "What is it?"

He said nothing, eyes still fixed on the spot.

"You're scaring me now. What do we do?"

A shudder ran through his body; Nyx felt the vibrations beside her. He grunted like he'd been hit; turning his face away as he breathed hard.

"... Are you alright?"

"Never better." Came the reply, as he turned back to face her, eyes black as the night. From his belt, he'd drawn a knife.

Nyx recognised it instantly.

***

Upstairs, Jocelyn was rearranging some items in the guest bedroom she was occupying when she heard the shriek.

Without even pausing to question, she raced to the door, sprinting across the landing and down the steps; pulling open the living room door just as a dark haired girl in a filthy white nightgown forced her way through , tumbling out into the hall. "I don't know what happened! Something's gone wrong!"

Jocelyn pushed the girl behind her, racing into the living room. "Jonathan! Jonathan! What are you doing?!" She snapped furiously, witnessing her son wielding a Morgenstern blade; his eyes shifting from green to black and back again, again and again.

"Get off my back, Mother!" Sebastian spat.

"No, no," The green-eyed man tried. "I- I didn't mean-"

"Jonathan," Jocelyn said firmly. "Drop the knife. Now."

"MAKE ME, BITCH!"

"Oh, I will."

She attacked him first; leaping at him. Being weaponless, her aim was to remove his from his grasp; which she did so moments later, twisting it out of his grasp as they grappled. Being unable to reach it, she kicked it away so he couldn't go for it either; sending it skittering away across the floor. It shot through the door, sliding across the polished wood of the hallway, before stopping at the foot of the stairs.

Nyx eyed the weapon from her position further down the hall. Carefully, on the soft-padded foot she'd come to be so skilled at in recent days as so not to be noticed, she crept towards it; reaching down to pick it up-

There was a shout as they both came through the door, biding her to freeze in fright as they spilled into the hallway, locked in combat. Nyx met Jocelyn's eyes for the briefest second; when the red-head confirmed she'd gotten her attention, she gestured swiftly with her head, Nyx following the direction with her eyes. She saw what the woman was going for; there, under the stairs, was a cupboard.

Darting around, Nyx yanked the door open; just in time, as Jocelyn unbalanced him, taking advantage of the moment to force him into the opening, slamming the door shut and sealing it with a rune.

Breathing hard, she leant against the door; ignoring the hammering and yelling coming from inside.

"... And now we wait. Well done on your part. You alright- not hurt at all?"

"I'm fine." Nyx said in a hoarse voice.

Jocelyn groaned tiredly, rubbing her face; then she held her hand out in greeting. "Jocelyn. I'm guessing you're Nyx?"

"Yeah. Hi." She looked down at herself, still dressed in her filthy nightdress, and winced. "... This is so not the best first impression..."

Jocelyn chuckled sympathetically. "I won't ask why your wearing that, but do you have anything here to change into? If not, I can probably find you something."

"Yes, please." Nyx said, rubbing her goose-pimpled arms.

Jocelyn nodded, then turned her attention to the door; the sounds coming from behind it had fallen eerily silent. "Jonathan?"

There was a loud, angry Bang! "That's not my name!"

"... Sebastian?"

"That's not my name either! None of those things are my name!"

Jocelyn shot Nyx a questioning look; who shrugged, for she was equally as clueless.

"Then what do you want to be called?"

"I... Don't know." He suddenly seemed to loose energy at the realisation, going quiet again.

After a brief space of time, Jocelyn pulled a puzzled face; putting her ear up against the door. "You know, I think he's actually talking to himself. I be he's sat down, as well."

She followed him down, crouching at the foot of the door. Nyx scrambled up next to her, also crouching.

Jocelyn quirked an eyebrow quizzically. "He's talking about burning down a bar..."

"Has he?" Nyx whispered back.

Jocelyn squinted, listening intently. "... I think he's planning to ..."

A resounding bang from his side made them leap back; he seemed to have kicked the door.

"He can hear us." Jocelyn whispered.

"You can call me King." He yelled decidedly. "Or Lord. Or Emperor."

Jocelyn groaned quietly, putting her head against the door. This looked like it could go on for a while.

"Hey, did you see where that knife went?" Jocelyn asked in a quiet voice, completely ignoring her sons crazy, contradictory ramblings once more. "I wanted to have a better look at it."

"Uh... No..." Nyx lied. "We can find it later." She wasn't letting anyone else have that thing, not now, no matter who they were. She sighed, tiredly. "It's been one of those weeks, you know?"

Jocelyn chuckled kindly. "You'll have to tell me about it. I want to hear all about you, after we've got this sorted."

The soft sound of someone clearing their throat alerted them to the presence of someone else; both of them turning their heads simultaneously to look down the hall at the source.

"I may have something that could work." Evelyn said, stepping forwards into the light.

Thought I'd hate this, actually super proud of it. Hope you enjoy :)