The Nightscape

Blame, Guilt, And Resignation

It felt good to finally tell him everything. I recounted every detail, not leaving anything out because if I was finally coming clean, it would be for good. When I was finally done, my father was quiet for a very long time. I began to panic, wondering if he thought I was lying or going crazy or if he just wouldn't want anything to do with me now-

"Oh, Lyra. I'm so sorry that you couldn't tell me this before." He choked out, moving to pull me into a fierce hug. "It's alright, everything is going to be okay now. We're going to figure out how to deal with this together." He promised, holding me tightly. 

"It wasn't your fault, I just never knew how to tell you. But, dad, I don't think there is a happy ending here. They won't leave me alone, I'm the only purple I've heard of other than mum, and she's disappeared again." 

"Then we'll leave. Go somewhere far away where no one knows us and just stay in hiding. We can't stick around here, anyway, and I'll be quitting my job. I will not work for Hayden, not after what you've just told me." He decided vehemently, but Lyra wasn't convinced. 

"He's really dangerous, dad, he's already threatened to come after you before. Talking of which, I need to text Anya. She'll be worried sick, and I have to tell Guy what happened to his sister." Lyra groaned, pulling away and dropping her head into her hands. "Hayden still has my phone. Can I borrow yours?" Her father hesitated. 

"I don't think that letting you get back involved with them is a good idea. No, we just need to leave. We can go and live somewhere else and this whole thing will just blow over." He decided, standing up and going to the draw that their passports were kept. 

"Dad, this isn't something we can run from-"

"The passports are gone." He said hoarsely, rummaging through the papers in near desperation. 

"It must have been Hayden." Her father groaned, cradling his head in his hands. 

"I let him into our home. I left him alone in here. Alone in here with you, no less! God, how was I so blind?" He muttered. Lyra went and hugged him. 

"You weren't to know. I liked him too, at first. People like me... they're everywhere, and they're really good at hiding it. It's why we can't run from this." She murmured to him, holding onto him. She just wanted everything to go back to the way it was, before Guy and Anya and Ettie and Hayden had entered her life and ruined everything. 

"What else can we do, Lyra? We can't fight them. I'm just... just a normal person. I can barely aim the bloody gun that I do have, and I doubt that would be any good anyway. It's too dangerous for you to fight them alone, and this hardly seems like something we can go to the police about." Lyra swallowed, trying to clear the lump in her throat. 

"We can't run and we can't fight. The fusion is going to happen sooner rather than later, and chances are, I'll be the purple who does it. I think... I think I need to stick with Guy. So at least I can have some control over it. So I can at least say goodbye." A broken sob ripped itself loose from her chest and she hugged her father tightly. He was shaking his head. 

"No, no. I won't let that happen, I won't loose you, Lyra. We'll figure something out, I promise." He insisted, hugging her tight and shaking his head. Lyra wanted to believe him, she really did. She wished she was a little girl again, she wished she could believe him so simply and finally relax, but she couldn't turn back the clock. She couldn't believe so easily that everything would turn out fine. 

There came a knock on the front door and they both jumped, pulling apart and staring at it as though they expected it to be kicked down and Hayden to come storming in. 

"Lyra, open the bloody door!" Anya's voice came through as she brayed at the door. Lyra sighed with relief, padding over and peeking through the spy hole. It was just Anya, looking more disheveled than she had ever seen her, bags under her eyes and messy hair. She unlocked the door and let her in, Anya pulling her into a fierce hug before pulling away to speak.