Pandemonium

Chapter 11

I didn't leave my room for the entire day. All I could think about was Sierra. Stopping my pacing for a moment, I closed my eyes, trying to remember her. Unlike my brown eyes, she had a unique pair; one brown and the other green. While some freckles covered my face, she had clear dark skin making her look marvelous. Like always, I failed to remember anything other than her face. Frustrated, I groaned and threw myself on the bed.

Hours flew by as I waited for Raina to arrive. It was midnight when she finally showed up. Without delaying for a second, I slipped out of my room. "We'll sneak out from my room's window." She whispered and proceeded to lead me to her room.

Sneaking past the guards, we reached her room. It was similar to mine except for the window that could be opened. "Come on, hurry up." She said as she unlatched the window.

I leaned out to see an almost 3 feet drop. I perched myself on the ledge and jumped out; Raina did the same. We dropped down on our fours and crawled along the building's wall till we reached the garden. According to Raina, the grave was hidden behind the thick trees that surrounded the garden. Creeping through the bushes, we were halfway across when we heard approaching footsteps.

Fuck! A guard was coming our way. I stilled and closed my eyes, praying that we don't get caught. I didn't dare to breathe until the footsteps faded away. Taking a deep breath, I looked at Raina who was sweating profusely.

"We're almost there," she said and we continued on our way. Soon we were standing under the canopy of trees away from the prying eyes of the guards. As we were walking through the trees, a thought struck me, "Hey Raina?" I asked catching up to her, "You said you gave me a list. What happened to it?"

"You must've hidden it somewhere and now you don't remember where." Seeing the frown on my face she continued, "It was only a list of medicines; they help in suppressing your dreams." She came to a sudden halt and turned left. I took a few quick steps to keep up with her.

"They also put the patient in a slight haze, to prevent their violent tendencies." She said nonchalantly. "Doesn't that bother you?" I murmured but she seemed to not hear me as we approached a small clearing.

"We're here," she said making her way through the graves. I didn't wish to go any further. What if Sierra is dead? Seeing that I wasn't following her anymore, Raina turned around and asked, "Are you coming or what?"

"Yeah" I shook my head, getting rid of negative thoughts and went after her. She stopped in front of a gravestone and said, "This is it."

I glanced at it to find it was blank. A flicker of hope rose in my chest. Maybe she was ali-...

"Look from the other side," Raina instructed and the hope died as quickly as it arrived, leaving a heaviness in my chest that threatened to smother me whole. My legs felt like iron as I slowly made my way around the stone, my eyes cast downwards. Gathering my wits, I slowly raised my eyes to see the engraving on the stone.

Sierra Wales

December 12, 1995-August 8, 2018

"It matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be."

-Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

I read the epitaph repeatedly, willing it to change. I didn't want to see her name there. She was dead, never going to come back. Barely keeping it together, I dropped down on my knees. I felt Raina squeezing my shoulder, "I'm so sorry." That was enough to break the dam. I turned around and buried my face against her, muffling my cries. I felt her hand caress my head as she stood there in silence.

I don't know when the tears stopped and numbness followed. I sat there, staring at her grave blankly. She was gone, leaving me alone in this world. Raina nudged my shoulder, "It'll soon be light, we must return while it's still dark."

Wordlessly, I nodded and got up. Everything seemed to fade away. In a haze, I followed Raina back to her room. She cleaned up the mud on our things and then led me to my room. "I have to be somewhere in five minutes, I'll check up on you soon. Don't do anything stupid," she said as she hurriedly locked my room and rushed off.