Mari (Soul Eater)

Part Twenty-Five

Mari: Kidd... help me... I really just need you because you're the one that i lo-

-Please stand by-

Mari jolted up and awake as her memories flashed. "M-Medusa?" she asked, the bright light above her blinding her. A hand reached down, the fingers covered in blood. It brushed a strand of hair away from Mari's face and lifted her chin.

"Almost done." Medusa's voice said.

Mari felt odd ripping feelings all over her body and something hot above her chest.

"Mari," Medusa said. "This is the most delicate part. I don't want to kill you." Medusa stroked Mari's cheek and Mari fell back on the table she was on, exhaustion filling her. Her eyes closed and Medusa went back to her work.

* * *

Mari felt something on her cheek and she moved a little, trying to feel what it was. They were soft fingertips on her skin, feeling it. "Mari." Medusa's voice said. "When you wake up, well, don't look at your back. It's what I had to do to keep you alive."

Mari felt fear jolt through her and she tried to sit up, her body protesting. She looked down at her hands, not broken anymore. She felt... different in some way. A small hospital gown covered some of her body, but she knew what would be underneath.

She lifted the edge to see her stomach and pulled the fabric down quickly as she saw the eyes. They were a darker red then when they had appeared. There had been no scars but she had sworn, one of them eyes had moved. She felt a painful pulling in her back and ran a hand down her spine, her body arching with hurt. She stood and walked to a mirror at the end of the room, lifting the hospital dress to see her back. She closed her eyes as she saw the three long black gashes that ran down the length of her spine.

"I'm sorry." Medusa's voice came and Mari believed her for some reason. She let the dress fall to hide the ugly gashes where Medusa had had to do something to save her life.

Medusa stood and walked to Mari. Her hands snaked around Mari's waist and she rested her head on the girl's shoulder. "You have black blood now." Medusa said and licked her lips, enjoying the madness that was emanating more strongly off Mari now that she had black blood.

Mari nodded and looked back at the woman. "I want to kill him." She said, thinking of the man that had ripped her memories away from her. She had the feeling that it hadn't been the first time.

"Okay." Medusa smiled. "The way you use the black blood is... well. You'll figure it out."

Mari nodded and saw a pile of clothing in the corner. "I'm going to change." She walked over to the pile, Medusa's hands falling from her. She changed quickly and pulled on the boots. She pulled her hair back over her shoulders. Medusa's quick hands braided it in a moment and Mari whispered her thanks.

Medusa led her out of the building they were in, a dark place in the middle of a forest. Mari's black eyes looked around her, drinking in all the trees and moss. She felt out of place though, her black clothing and black demon eyes. She looked up at Medusa. "Do you know where my eat mask is?" she asked.

Medusa held out her hand and it materialized in her fingers. She handed it to Mari and helped her tie it on. Mari could feel the pain of her lost memories and her shoulders began to shake. "Mari?" Medusa asked in a flat tone. "Is the black blood doing something to you? Does it hurt?"

Mari shook her head, her eyes wide with hatred. "I want to kill him." She repeated, the man's ugly scared face in her mind. Maybe she would get her memories back if she killed him. Medusa smiled.

Mari began to run through the forest, her nose stronger than it was before and she could smell Leo from here, and she knew if she could find him, she would find his father.

Finally, she broke through the trees and out into the world. It was sunset and the sky was bright with vibrant colors. Mari squinted, not liking the light. "I want to kill him. I want to kill him." She said, a crazy look in her eyes. She started running again and could feel Medusa watching her. She could feel something in her stomach, like a snake, and this time, she welcomed it.

'What have I become?' the small but of her that was still human asked.

'A monster.' A demon answered.

She was in front of a big, white house, her shoulders heaving from all the running. She put a hand on the door and pressed inward, causing the door splinter into little pieces. "Leo!" She called, her voice ragged.

There were many footsteps and Leo and some other people ran around a corner. "Mari!" Leo said, his eyes full of fear.

She walked to him, grabbing his neck with her hand, lifting him into the air. He struggled and the other people around them started calling for help. "Where... is he..." Mari said, looking Leo straight in both eyes.

Someone hit Mari's head with a bar and her skin broke open. A trickle of blood slowly ran down her forehead, black.

Leo's eyes grew wide as he saw the blood. "Mari... what..."

Mari heard Medusa step in through the door with her bare feet. The woman walked to Mari and leaned onto her from behind. "Mari," she said, running a fingertip over Mari's bottom lip. Mari only kept staring into Leo's eyes. "Mari. You didn't want to kill him, remember? Only his father?"

Mari gasped a little and dropped Leo, imprints from her hands creating red marks on his neck. "Where is he..." She growled at Leo.

He held his hands to his neck as people rushed around in a fury. He shook his head, coughing. "I'm... not telling... you..."

Mari tried to lash out at him in anger, but Medusa held her back. "Mari, you're only here for your memories, aren't you?"

Tears of hatred fell from Mari's eyes as she looked down at Leo. She could barley remember Kidd anymore. No. She had let go of him. "If I'm a demon... what does killing one more person mean?"

Medusa smiled. "Oh, Mari. You're beginning to take after me." she looked at Leo. "I would run." She grinned. "Unless, that is, you wish for your corpse to be my new play thing?"

Leo stood, shaking with fear. He coughed, taking their silence as a yes. "He's in the study..." he looked up at them. "Since I told you... will you not kill me?"

Mari's face was hidden by shadow. She looked up at him with her dark, terrifying eyes. "I don't know." She leaned her head back, Medusa grinning with pleasure at the madness in Mari's voice. She let out a small laugh. "Don't make deals with demons." She looked him straight in the eyes. "You just might get eaten."

His eyes widened and he ran out of sight. Medusa patted Mari's cheek, her hand brushing the eat mask. "You're making me more proud then Crona ever did. It's like you were my child all along." Medusa fingered the eat mask. "Why do you still wear this, Mari?" Mari's eyes stared vacantly. "Was it because..." Medusa said, right next to Mari's ear. "Kidd gave it to you?"

Mari ripped the mask off and tore it in half, letting the pieces fall to the ground. "What mask?" she asked, smiling crazily.