Chapter 3
All Cathy could do was stare.
A soft, piano melody had begun playing gently in the background.
“So you finally woke up?” The girl with buns snapped. “It’s about time, Inmate!”
The girl with a braid tilted her head, regarding Cathy carefully. “The you in reality is fast asleep. You are only experiencing this as a dream.”
Cathy glanced at her and was about to ask a question when the girl with buns snapped again. “You’re in the presence of our master! Stand up straight!”
Cathy flinched at the volume, but didn’t reply. Instead, she looked past them to the man.
“Welcome!” The man began speaking, the grin still on his face. “I am delighted to make your acquaintance!”
“What is this place?” Cathy finally asked, voice hardly above a whisper.
The man nodded his head, clearly expecting the question. “This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is a room only those bound by a contract may enter.”
“Contract?” Cathy whispered.
“Be quiet and listen, Inmate!” The angry girl declared, the silver rod slamming into the bars, startling Cathy.
“Now, now.” The man hummed. “It is only fair that she has questions.” Then, he proceeded to introduce himself. “I am Igor, the master of this place. Remember it well.”
Igor watched Cathy, who was still staring, closely as he continued.“I summoned you to speak of important matters. Involving your life as well.” He then glanced around the room, a curious look in his eyes. “Still… this is a surprise. The state of this room reflects the state of your own heart. To think a prison would appear as such…”
“So I… see my life as a prison?” Cathy asked, also looking around the room.
Igor chuckled. “Perhaps. But it is your heart, not mine. You would know this better than I do. But I suppose it means that you truly are a ‘prisoner’ of fate… In the future, I can see that ruin awaits you.”
Cathy paled. “Ruin? What are you talking about?” She couldn’t calm herself. “I don’t understand!”
“You will soon enough… but for your first question, the ruin I speak of is the end to everything.” Igor fixed his gaze on her, hands still clasped.
For a moment, Cathy felt overwhelmed. Velvet room… reflection of her heart… the end to everything. It was all being thrown so quickly that Cathy could hardly comprehend it.
“Can it be stopped?” She asked. One thing at a time.
Igor hummed, nodding his head. “There is a means to oppose such a fate. Rehabilitation.”
Cathy blinked in surprise. Rehabilitation?
Igor was quick to elaborate. “You must be rehabilitated. Rehabilitated towards freedom. That is your only means to stop the ruin.” Igor’s grin seemed to get wider and he looked very intrigued by Cathy. “Do you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of the world?”
“Distortion… of the world?” Cathy mumbled, eyes wide.
“You didn’t decline? Hmm, very well, that is enough.”
“What?! But I didn’t—!”
Igor cut her off. “Allow me to observe the path of your rehabilitation.” It seemed there was no room for Cathy to protest.
The two girls, who had turned to face Igor earlier, turned on their heels to face Cathy now.
“Ah, it seems I never introduced the others! Pardon me.” First, he pointed out the one with hair buns. “To your right is Caroline.” Then the one with the braid. “To your left, Justine. They serve as wardens here.”
“Kids?” Cathy questioned, tilting her head as she looked down to the two.
Caroline seemed angered by the question. “Be quiet inmate! We are no kids! We’ll be helping in your rehabilitation, I suggest that you respect us!”
“Ah… sorry.” Cathy apologized.
Caroline fixed her with a glare, continuing where she intended to start. “Try and struggle as you like!”
Then, Justine spoke up, voice just as calm as before. “A warden’s duty is to protect inmates. We are also your collaborators… That is, if you remain obedient.”
Cathy had to admit. These two were fairly intimidating.
Introductions done, Igor spoke again. “I shall explain the roles of these two at another occasion.” Igor rapped his fingers against the desk. “But for now, it seems the night is waning… it is almost time. Take your time to slowly understand this place. We will surely meet again, trickster.”
Cathy still had hundreds of questions. But before she could even open her mouth to speak, Igor pointed to the ceiling. An alarm rang out. Cathy backed away from the bars, looking upwards in surprise.
“Time’s up!” Caroline announced. “Now hurry up and go back to sleep!”
And suddenly, Cathy awoke.
She would go through the day thinking how strange the dream had been. But she chalked it up to just that. A dream. She had been going through stress recently.
But the Velvet Room was no dream.
~~||~~||~~
The morning after the strange dream, Ferdinand took Cathy over to her new school. That was where she met Principal Cromwell, an older man with silver hair. She also met her homeroom teacher, who stood by silently the entire time.
Ferdinand had forced her to put her fidget cube away, so Cathy held onto one of her arms instead, nails digging into skin. She kept her head down under the judgmental stares.
For several minutes, Cromwell and Ferdinand talked and Cathy only paid half attention. Something about keeping Cathy in check outside of school.
“Miss Parr.” Cathy’s head jolted up at the sound of her name and her grip on her arm tightened.
Cromwell was staring at her. “We were the only school willing to take you. I do hope you’ll remember this.”
Cathy didn’t respond for a moment. But the silence and a tap to her arm from Ferdinand forced her to speak. “Yes, sir. I’ll remember.”
Cromwell nodded approvingly. “Your godsister is a Senior and top of her class! I hope you’ll use her as an example.” Cromwell lifted an eyebrow.
Cathy tensed. She had always been top of her class at her old school. But now it was like everyone believed she was dumb and violent due to one false charge.
“Yes sir.” She managed to get out.
And that was that. For another moment, Cromwell and Ferdinand talked, the teacher joining every so often. Until finally, the meeting was over.
Cromwell gave her one last, judging look. “Please, do turn up to class tomorrow.” Then, he nodded his head to Ferdinand. “Have a good day, Mr. Aragon.”
With that, they left. And on the way back to the Aragon’s, Cathy heard reports of a crash on the subway. Ferdinand began complaining about the recent crashes, be it car or subway, and the drivers ‘not remembering what happened.’
What neither of them, or the public, saw was a terrifying sight. A man hunched over the controls of the train, people in the cars behind him screaming as the train sped to a blur. The man’s eyes were entirely white, with a black substance dripping from his eyes, nose, and mouth.
A mental shutdown.
~~||~~||~~
The morning after the visit to school was the actual first day. Cathy woke up and soon forced herself downstairs for coffee and breakfast.
The first thing she noticed was the absence of Ferdinand and Isabella. It looked like Catalina was right. The two were nowhere to be found.
So Cathy simply poured herself a mug of coffee from the warmed coffee pot and poured herself a bowl of cereal, without the milk. Soggy cereal always tasted gross to her, and she almost threw up on one or two occasions before stopping with milk completely.
As Cathy ate, Catalina made her way downstairs. She was already dressed and ready to go. She made her way over to the kitchen doorway, watching Cathy.
“I need to talk to a teacher about an assignment.” Catalina explained. “Will you be alright on your own? The subway will be a little delayed due to yesterday’s crash.”
“I think I know the path.” Cathy said simply, glancing up from her cereal. “I’ll see you later.”
Catalina hummed. “Alright. If you need anything, class wise or not, don’t hesitate to come find me, okay?”
Cathy nodded. “Noted.” Then she looked fully at Catalina. “Thank you.”
Catalina’s gaze softened. “Of course, Cathy. I hope your first day goes well.”
Cathy shrugged, swirling her spoon. “We’ll just have to see.”
And with one last goodbye, Catalina was out the door. Cathy finished her breakfast and soon finished getting ready to go. She had dressed in her school uniform, but instead of the uniform shirt, she wore a blue hoodie underneath.
It was probably half an hour after Catalina left that Cathy left the house, locking the door with the key Ferdinand had given her.
The ride on public transport wasn’t particularly interesting, it was even more crowded than the last time Cathy had been on it. Everyone was heading to school and work. This time, Cathy was forced to stand, bag on her shoulder and headphones dropping the volume around her.
The sea of bodies made Cathy uncomfortable as she tried to distract herself with her fidget cube. She took slow, deep breaths as other people’s bodies pressed against her own.
Cathy decidedly hated public transport.
After getting off, Cathy quickly made her way from the station. She had to walk the rest of the path to school.
About halfway through Cathy’s walk, it started raining. She quickly pressed herself under an overhang to wait and see if it would calm. She watched other students rush past, books and bags held overhead.
It seemed no one else expected the rain either.
A sudden presence next to Cathy had her glancing up. The first thing to catch her eye was pink.
The girl next to her wore a pink jacket over the white school shirt adorned with the school’s emblem. Her hair was long and up in a ponytail, the end dyed a hot pink. A black choker was around her neck, a ‘K’ hanging from it.
Cathy had to admit, the girl looked very beautiful.
But Cathy also noticed bruises. Bruises the girl was clearly trying to hide. Peeking out from her wrist, one on her collarbone.
The girl seemed to notice her curious stare. She turned slightly to face Cathy and her mouth formed a smile. “Hi.” The girl’s voice was rather quiet.
Cathy blinked. She didn’t notice that she had stopped clicking, her full attention now on the girl. “Hello.” She greeted back, just as softly, if not more so.
The girl opened her mouth to speak again, but before she could, there was an interruption.
A car pulled up next to them, and the window rolled down.
It was a man. He wore a tanned suit and had black hair pulled into a low ponytail. He wore an easy smile. But something about his smile made Cathy nervous almost immediately.
“Good morning, Katherine!” The man called. Something about him in general felt off.
“Oh… good morning Mr. Mannox.” The girl, Katherine, spoke back, her voice tinged with anxiety. Cathy glanced at her. The real smile was gone, replaced with a noticeably fake one. This only made Cathy even more suspicious of the man.
Cathy could readily admit she wasn’t good with emotions. She heard people tell her that many times before. Cathy also quickly learned that she saw things differently from other people, including emotions. (Her traitor of a mind once again thought of how weird it was, just like Henry and Thomas said) But Cathy knew that Mannox was being fake with his friendliness and that Katherine was nervous, scared even, around Mannox.
Most importantly, Cathy knew that Mannox was not to be trusted. She took a deep breath, anxiously pressing another button on her cube.
“Do you need a ride?” Mannox asked, that smile still on his face. “This rain came out of nowhere!”
There was a hesitation from Katherine. Cathy was about to give them both an excuse. But before she could, Katherine spoke up. “Yes, thank you.”
Cathy could only watch as Katherine entered the car. Mannox glanced up again to Cathy. “What about you?”
“I’m fine.” Cathy answered quickly. “Thank you for the offer.”
“Suit yourself.” Mannox said simply, shrugging. Then he rolled up the window and drove off.
Cathy got one last look at Katherine, who was staring at the dashboard. There was a look on her face that Cathy couldn’t place.
Before Cathy could think any further on the issue, she heard the sound of running footsteps directly behind her.
Cathy had barely turned around before a green blur came to a stop next to her.
She was shorter than Cathy and wore a green skirt and green t-shirt with the school’s uniform jacket. Her dark hair was pulled up into two buns, the rest trailing down her back. She also had a choker around her neck, this one with a ‘B’ charm.
“Dammit! Merde! I’m gonna kill him!” The newcomer ranted, breathing heavily. One of her hands lashed out, as if hitting some unseen opponent.
Cathy flinched at the volume of the green girl’s voice. But carefully managed to speak up. “Are you alright?”
The girl’s head whipped around to stare at Cathy. She glared. “No, I’m not fine! What, are you gonna rat me out for talking shit about him?”
Cathy cringed back at the unwanted confrontation. The girl seemed to notice something in Cathy’s posture and relaxed slightly.
“Shit, sorry… I’m just really pissed.” Then the girl narrowed her eyes, looking Cathy over. “I can’t say I recognize you.”
“I’m new…” Cathy managed to get out, keeping her head down.
“So that’s why I don’t recognize you… you’re the transfer student.” The girl tilted her head, watching Cathy closely. Then, she nodded, seemingly deciding something as she stuck out her hand for a handshake. “Anne Boleyn, Senior!”
Cathy simply stared at the hand. “Catherine Parr… Junior.”
There was an awkward second before Anne pulled her hand back. But she didn’t seem put off. She simply began to fidget with the charm hanging from her choker, giving Cathy a smirk.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Cathy. It looks like the last queen has shown up!”
Cathy looked very confused. She knew Catalina and now Anne. But there were another three named after the Tudor queens? “The last Queen?”
“Yep, all six of us go to this wonderful school now!” Anne snorted, ‘wonderful school’ being stated very mockingly.
“Bizarre.” Cathy couldn't help but comment.
“I know, five of us were the favorite school gossip. But the final queen too? The rumors are gonna spiral.” Anne chuckled, shaking her head. “There’s a whole lot of drama surrounding us already.”
Cathy winced. She would rather not get involved in the school drama. She just wanted to keep her head down for the year. And being the center of some sort of drama would ruin that wish.
“I’d rather… avoid gossip.” Cathy said in a whisper.
A look crossed Anne’s face but it vanished before Cathy could even hope to decipher it. “Yeah, I can get that. You should be fine. And hey, if you need someone to talk to, I’ll be around.”
Cathy blinked quizzically at Anne. “Really?”
“Yeah!” Anne beamed. “You seem nice, if a bit quiet. But I don’t blame you for that! And uh, sorry if I get too loud. I’ve been told I have a temper too…” Anne rubbed the back of her head giving Cathy a reassuring smile.
Huh, no one had ever really apologized for being too loud before... Faintly, Cathy wondered how long this would last. If Anne learned of her record, how fast would she be gone?
“I… thank you.” Cathy managed to get out. “You were a little loud… but I’m fine.”
“Yeah, sorry.” Anne gave Cathy a regretful looked before she went on to explain. “Mannox just… really pissed me off.” Anne’s face twisted into a scowl. “Everyone already thinks I have a temper and talk a lot… well wait until they hear everything I can say about that asshole!”
Cathy glanced over to where the car had once been. “Can I ask who those two were earlier? You mentioned a Mannox.”
Anne hesitated for a moment before answering. “The girl was my cousin, Katherine Howard.” Anne’s smile at her cousin's name quickly shifted back into a glare. “The asshole who picked her up was Henry Mannox.”
Cathy didn’t notice a familiar black and red app lighting up on her phone, having redownloaded, and almost seeming to open itself. Neither noticed the beep that followed the name.
“Henry Mannox?”
“Yeah, our pervert of a music teacher.” Anne practically snarled, staring at where the car vanished. “If he even thinks about hurting Kat I’m gonna kick his ass in return.”
Oh. Suddenly, a lot of things made sense to Cathy. Why Kat was so nervous. What felt so off about Mannox. Why Anne was so furious.
“She didn’t want to go with him.” Cathy said slowly, carefully surveying Anne.
“She never does.” Anne growled, clenching her fists. “She’s scared of him and is also stuck in his stupid music lessons.”
Cathy didn’t say anything as Anne continued. “That bloody coward runs his own music hall before becoming a teacher and suddenly, everyone is bowing to his will!”
There was another unnoticed beep at the words ‘music hall.’
“Something… was off about him.” Cathy explained carefully. “I just wasn’t sure what.”
“Thank god!” Anne gave Cathy a wide, pleased grin. “Someone else around here gets it! I already like you, new girl!”
Cathy shuffled at the praise, keeping her head down and gaze locked on the fidget cube she still held in hand.
“Hey, why don’t we head onto school?” Anne asked after a moment of surveying Cathy. “We’ll be late if we don’t. We can talk later and I can show you around.”
Cathy’s gaze went back up to Anne. “Yes please… I don’t want to be late.”
“Then come on, this alley is a short cut!” Anne said, stepping into the alley they had been standing next to. Cathy hesitates for only a second before following. Anne seemed nice enough, and Cathy would rather not be late for class.
About halfway through, Cathy suddenly felt dizzy. And clearly, Anne did too.
“Qu'est-ce que…?” Anne mumbled, straightening after the dizzy spell wore off.
Cathy shook her dizziness away. “We should keep going.” She practically whispered, quickly stepping forward. Anne nodded before smoothly leading the way again.
But upon emerging on the other side of the alley… it wasn’t the school they found.
The building in front of them was huge, intimidating. And Cathy recognized it as a music hall. It was bricked, and had several windows. The sky had turned an ominous color and the atmosphere felt darker.
Anne squinted at the music hall. “I know for a fact that there was never a music hall next to the school.”
“The sky…” Cathy pointed out. “I really don’t like this…”
“Yeah… something’s not right here…” Anne muttered. For a moment, both girls stood there. The only sound was Anne’s foot tapping anxiously against the ground.
“What do we do? Turn back?” Cathy asked, the question directed at both herself and Anne. She messed worriedly with the cube in both hands, never taking her eyes off the building.
“I guess…” Anne hesitated. “We go in and hope to god that we didn’t walk into a fucking horror movie.”
Both of them hesitate for another moment before carefully going up the steps. They both knew something was very wrong. They just weren't sure what.
The entrance hall was grand, red carpet and rich furniture.
But the actual hall was even more so. Rows upon rows of seats lit up up by lights. A stage with several instruments and open spaces for more. A podium for a director to stand as well.
“Woah! Look at these!” Anne had made her way over to the instruments. They seemed to be made out of pure gold and shimmered brightly. Cathy trailed after her, watching curiously.
Anne carefully picked up a flute, looking it over with intrigue. “Isn’t this cool?” She asked Cathy, holding it out to the blue clad teen.
“Very cool.” Cathy agreed. She glanced around nervously. “But maybe we should put it back.”
“Yeah, Yeah. Guess you’re right.” Anne agreed easily, moving to put it back.
“Back away form the conductor’s instruments!”
Cathy and Anne both spun around at the new voice. There were two guards. Only, they didn’t look very human. Bulky and hunched over with masks hiding their faces. Bright yellow shone from the eye sockets.
For a moment, Cathy considered that they could be dressed up. But why would guards dress up like that? And why did their showing skin look like shadows…?
“Hey Cathy… remember what I said about a horror movie?” Anne mumbled, paling. She reached the same conclusion as Cathy.
“We have to go!” Cathy said, tugging at Anne’s sleeve to move. Anne was quick to join her, dropping the flute, but they were quickly cut off.
The guards managed to grab them. Cathy and Anne both let out cries of panic and began to struggle. But the guards were strong. Cathy’s bag and cube were lost in the fray, dropped onto the stage.
They were carried down several halls before the guards came to a stop. The entire way, Anne was beating against the guard, trying to get him to let her go. Cathy also struggled to break free of the grip. Both girls demanded to be put down, although Anne was far more vocal about it than Cathy.
Then, they were thrown into a room before the guards quickly left. It looked to be some sort of storage room, boxes scattered and pressed against walls.
“Hey!” Anne was up and sprinting towards the door. It closed the second she reached it and she began banging at it. She began yelling furiously, temper rising.
Cathy curled in on herself, fear and the loud banging making a horrible mixture in her mind. She began rocking herself, eyes squeezed shut.
It took several minutes for Anne’s banging to cease, but Cathy hardly even noticed for a minute after. What she did notice was a gentle touch to her knee. Cathy’s head jolted up to find Anne kneeling in front of her.
“Hey, hey.” Anne kept her hands only to Cathy’s knees as she tried to calm the other girl. “You’re okay. I need you to breathe with me alright? I’m just as scared as you are, but we’re gonna be okay. Can you follow my breathing, Cathy?” Then, Anne began taking deep breaths, holding, and releasing. Shakily, Cathy followed the motion. The repeated gesture and feeling of oxygen reaching her lungs slowly calmed Cathy down.
Anne kept a close eye on Cathy. If the green teen was being honest, something had drawn her to this girl. Maybe she reminded her a bit of Kat, they both had the bookworm energy. Perhaps it was how quiet and anxious Cathy seemed when Anne introduced herself. Maybe she was able to redirect her fear and anger into helping Cathy. Or… maybe it was the fact that Cathy knew nothing of the rumors that followed Anne.
Whatever the case was, Anne just knew they were stuck in this situation together. And whatever happened from here, Anne figured they should at least be on good terms.
“Is there anything else? Are you hurt?”
Cathy shook her head as she tried to sign, but quickly realized that Anne couldn’t understand. She managed to point at her ears. “Loud.” She managed to rasp.
“Merde—!” Immediately, Anne lowered her voice. “Sorry… I just… all of this…”
Cathy nodded her understanding before squeezing her eyes shut with relief. Everything was much more manageable now that the loud sounds weren’t ringing in her head. But the fear was very much still there.
The two sat there for several minutes. Anne never took her hand away from Cathy’s knee. Both of them focused on the touch. They may not know each other well, but it was a grounding point.
“Why?” Cathy finally whispered.
“Why what?” Anne asked, a little confused.
“Why help?” Cathy asked. Anne could have continued screaming. She probably could have found a way out. But instead she was here, trying to help Cathy calm down.
“Hey, I don’t know you that well… we just met about five minutes ago.” Anne gave Cathy a determined grin. “But I’m gonna keep both of us safe, okay Somnolente?”
Cathy blinked at Anne, giving her a confused stare at both the sudden nickname and the comfort.
Anne snickered playfully. “Somnolente! It’s French for sleepy. One of the first things I noticed was how sleepy you looked! If you don’t like it, I can stick with your actual name.”
Cathy felt warmth rise in her chest. Anne was right… they had only met five minutes ago and yet Anne was trying to keep her calm in such a strange and scary situation. She had been banging at the door, but upon noticing Cathy, quickly moved to help her. Cathy wanted to return the favor.
“I like it.” Cathy managed to speak. “... I’ll protect you too.”
Anne blinked. “Somnolente, I’m more worried about you.”
Cathy huffed before compromising. “You’re scared too… we’ll protect each other.”
Anne chuckled before moving to sit in front of Cathy more properly. “I guess possible life-or-death situations really do cause friendships. I never believed it.”
“We’re in a strange situation…” Then, Cathy glanced around the storage room. “There’s definitely no way out?”
Anne took a deep breath, tapping her fingers against her knee. “I already checked. We’re stuck.”
Before either could speak again, there was a noise from behind the door. A distant scream rang out, startling both girls.
“Holy shit...” Anne whispered, staring wide eyed at the door. Cathy hunched in on herself slightly.
Cathy quickly glanced at Anne. “If— when we get out of here… would you still be willing to show me around?”
Anne looked thankful for the distraction. “Of course I would! We can get to know each other past Mannox and this whole mess, too! It would be good to have a friend around…” Anne paused before adding something else, a hopeful look in her eyes. “I just hope I get to see Chaton again… I’ll have to introduce you two.”
Cathy opened her mouth to reply, but before she could speak, the door opened.
A group of four guards were the first to enter the room. Then, a man walked in behind them.
It was the same face Cathy had seen in the car earlier. A cocky grin replaced his fake smile. His hair was the same, but his clothes were very different. A navy robe that was left open, revealing a bare chest and red underwear. Another group of guards followed him.
“What the hell?” Anne muttered. “Mannox?”
“I was surprised to hear that some unwanted guests entered my music hall. The guards had to waste their time to put them in a storage room due to the lack of a better holding place.” Mannox fixed both of them with a contemplative stare. “But then I found out it was just Boleyn and some other brat. Let me guess, here to steal the instruments?”
“What are you going on about? And what are you wearing?!” Anne snapped, staring at Mannox with sheer confusion.
“Stupid, stupid Boleyn.” Mannox shook his head. “I run this music hall, and I can wear what I want.”
“The hell? You teach at a school! Not some grand music hall!”
Cathy could only stare, confusion and shock taking control.
“My students learn here. I teach them and they perform for me and my audience. I call the shots.” Mannox then snapped his fingers.
Two guards each grabbed both of them by the arm and hauled them up. They kept them held up between them, unable to move and forced to look at Mannox.
“Thieves and intruders like you two have no place in my music hall. I should have you killed on the spot.”
“Kill?!” Anne and Cathy both yelped, staring wide eyed at the baton wielding guards and Mannox.
“But… You’re both pretty girls.” Mannox tilted his head, watching them with a grin. “How about this? Become students and be mine, obeying me, or never see outside of this room again.”
“I refuse to be your little plaything.” Anne growled after a moment, glaring at Mannox.
Mannox didn’t seem very surprised. “If only you were more submissive like your cousin.”
Anne’s eyes widened and she lurched forward in the knights’ grasp. “What the fuck are you talking about?!”
“Hmm.” Mannox stared at her for a moment before turning to Cathy.
“Don’t turn your back on me, you son of a bitch!”
Mannox ignored her, directing his next question towards Cathy. “And what about you?”
For a moment, Cathy remembered Henry. She couldn’t do that again.
“Never.” Cathy muttered, giving him a glare. She forced the memories into the back of her mind.
“Hm, that’s a shame then. Both of you are gorgeous.” Mannox turned his back on her to fix Anne with a twisted grin. He snapped his fingers and his two guards began to pull Cathy away from Anne. “Boleyn first, then we’ll deal with her little friend. We need to make an example of what happens to thieves.”
Cathy was now over by the wall and Anne was in the middle of the room, surrounded by guards. As strong as Anne tried to seem, she couldn’t hide the fear in her eyes.
Panic clawed at Cathy’s heart. But not just for her own life. She also panicked for Anne. What was Mannox about to do?
“Do it.” Mannox ordered.
In half a second, a guard’s foot lashed out, catching Anne in the chest. The other guards joined in, batons, hands, and feet slamming into Anne.
Anne had quickly curled into herself, trying to protect her body, and mostly her head, from the brutal attacks. She was trying not to scream, but every time one of the attacks caught her off guard, she let out a cry of pain.
Mannox watched, almost gleefully as Anne was pinned to the ground under the strikes.
Cathy tried to rush forward but the two guards at her side quickly tightened their hold and held her back.
Cathy felt sheer panic. They were hurting Anne. They were going to kill her. The girl who had been trying to keep her calm through all of this while dealing with her own rage and fear. And then, they would do the same to Cathy.
“GET AWAY FROM HER!”
Everyone seemed to pause. Then, the guards shifted to glance at the speaker and Mannox slowly glanced over his shoulder. Anne was taking sharp, pained breaths as she closed her eyes.
Cathy herself seemed surprised by her words and was staring back, wide eyed at everyone. The guards that stood on either side of her tightened their grip on her arms and Cathy flinched.
“What was that?” Mannox muttered, pacing towards Cathy. “I don’t like brats who don’t know their place…”
Cathy tensed but didn’t reply. Mannox lashed out, striking her in the face. The guards held her in place, preventing her from falling.
“Don’t worry. After Boleyn, your death will follow.” Mannox mocked before making his way back over to Anne. The green clad teen opened her eyes and glared at him defiantly.
“Brûle en enfer.” Anne rasped out, before promptly spitting at Mannox’s shoes.
Mannox scowled. He clearly didn’t understand the language, something that irritated him, but the spit on his shoes seemed to anger him even further. He lashed out, delivering a forceful kick to Anne’s stomach. The green teen curled into herself, coughing harshly and for a terrifying moment, Cathy swore she saw blood exit the girl’s mouth.
Mannox pulled his leg back with a malicious smirk, preparing to hit Anne once again. He was enjoying the torture.
Time seemed to freeze, just like it had on the subway. Only this time, there were no blue flames. Instead, it was a blue butterfly, fluttering past.
“This truly is an unjust game…” A female voice accompanied the blue butterfly and whispered into Cathy’s ear. “Your chances of winning are almost none… but if my voice is reaching you… there may yet be a possibility open…”
Cathy wanted that possibility. She wanted to stop Mannox before he killed Anne. She wanted to release the fury locked away in her heart.
And an entirely different voice heeded that will.
“You are going to simply sit and watch?”
A sudden pain spiked in Cathy’s skull. She bit back a cry of pain as the force hit her out of nowhere.
“You fought back before. What is stopping you now? Was that decision to fight a mistake?”
Cathy tried to take deep breaths as sweat rolled down her face, the stabbing pain still present. But somewhere in her mind, Cathy knew that fighting back against Henry was not a mistake. “No...”
“Good… You have great wisdom and strength, Catherine Parr. Will you put it to use or will you let the girl’s life be taken?”
Cathy pushed against the soldiers, but even frozen, their grip held her in place. A small cry of pain escaped her lips as the voice continued.
“You cannot win a war unless you fight back. Your strategy needs will and desire to set it in motion. You need to have strength to earn victory.”
Catherine thrashed as another wave of pain hit her. She bit back a scream. No one seemed to notice her flailing.
“So, shall you find your strength and wisdom to win this battle? Or will you bow to another’s will yet again? A contract with me, or a defeat?”
Something in Cathy’s mind clicked, and the pain faded away. “I refuse… to let this end here!”
“You have chosen the right path indeed.” The voice seemed pleased. “I am thou, thou art I! Thou art willing to find your true wisdom! Now, tear off your mask and reveal the true strength of your mind and soul!”
The pain faded and Cathy stopped thrashing against the guards’ grips. She took deep breaths and slowly brought her head up to stare at the scene in front of her.
The guards were moving to continue their beatings after Mannox’s interruption. Cathy wasn’t going to let it happen.
For all these years, Cathy never found the will to speak out. Something in her mind kept her from doing so. Now? Cathy refused to be quiet. Not when a life was in danger.
She let her life be thrown away by a man with too much damn power. She refused to be chained down by society anymore. Cathy was ready to take her life back, and that started with protecting Anne’s.
“I told you to stop…”
Mannox rolled his eyes as he turned back to Cathy. “So you’re willing to die first, that much? Guards! Forget Boleyn, and make sure this one dies painfully.”
“What the hell are you doing?!” Anne rasped out, coughing as she looked to Cathy.
Cathy didn’t respond, glaring at Mannox. She was quickly thrown forward to the ground. The guards surrounded her, raising batons, legs, and fists. They were fully ready to beat her to death.
Just as the first guard’s leg drew back to kick her, something happened.
A forceful gust of wind pushed all of the security guards and Mannox backwards.
“What—?”
Mannox was cut off by Cathy scrambling to her feet. She looked around, stunned before her hands drifted up to her face. Her eyes widened upon feeling a mask.
A blue mask that looked to be an owl.
Cathy felt panic well inside of her as she frantically touched the mask. Was this what the voice meant by ‘tear off your mask?’ She grabbed at it and began to tug sharply.
Several pulls and the mask ripped free. Blood and skin tore with it, leading to blood streaming down Cathy’s face. She let out a piercing scream at the pain, but didn’t fall.
Instead, she swayed for a moment before looking up, directly at Mannox. For half a second, Mannox caught Cathy’s eyes before she quickly glanced away. There wasn’t pain in her eyes. It almost looked like glee. Her eyes were a bright, startling yellow now.
Then, a torrent of bright, sapphire flames lit up the room.