no more running
Rio opened her eyes in a void. It took her a minute to realize what was going on.
She rolled her eyes. “Agatha! This isn’t funny!”
“It’s not meant to be.” Agatha appeared behind her in purple smoke, then walked toward her.
“Let me out!”
“No.”
“Fine,” Rio reached for her dagger. “I’ll do it myself.”
Agatha flicked her hand, making the dagger vanish.
“Give me my dagger back.”
“No.”
“Agatha.”
“No.”
“Why can’t we just go on? Ignore this?”
“Because you’re clearly not okay!”
“I’m fine!”
“I watch you, Rio. Just as closely as you watch me.”
“So?”
“You smile, but it’s not like it used to be. Yellow carnations follow you everywhere you go. You whimper and talk in your sleep.”
Rio’s spine stiffened. “And you think seeing it again will fix it?”
“No. I know it won’t.”
“Then why?” A tear streamed down Rio’s cheek. “Why can’t you just let me forget?”
“Because,” Agatha put her hand out. “You don’t forget something like this. It changes you, hurts you, scars you… But you don’t forget it. It becomes a part of you.”
Rio sniffled, and Agatha gave her a soft smile.
“So please, just let me help you, my love.”
Rio closed her eyes, letting the tears stream down her face before taking Agatha’s hand.
–
Rio didn’t want to open her eyes. She stood there, cold and alone, staring into nothing, until the warmth of Agatha’s fingers interlaced with hers.
Only then did she open her eyes.
“It’s okay,” Agatha whispered, squeezing her hand. “You’re not alone. I’m here.”
Rio squeezed her hand back, shaking as a man walked into a house. They watched him find his wife’s dead body, Rio hidden in plain sight.
“You look… different,” Agatha noted, staring at the neatly ironed shirt and tie Rio was wearing, her hair slicked back into a neat bun, hidden under her cape. She didn’t think she’d have recognized her without seeing the gold flecks in her obsidian eyes.
“I appear in whatever form makes my target more comfortable.”
Agatha watched as his wife’s soul ran to him, trying to talk. The man’s tears made their way down his cheeks. Rio looked away, a ringing in her ears.
“I don’t want to see this next part.” Rio tried to leave.
“I know you don’t.” Agatha tightened her grip on Rio’s wrist. “I still think it’s important that you do.”
The man walked into his living room and approached the kid Agatha had seen the last time she entered Rio’s mind. He picked up a knife from the kitchen before stabbing the girl over and over again.
“The kid…”
“He killed her.” Another tear made its way down Rio’s cheek, her breathing uneven. “I never— I never should’ve collected her.”
“No.” Agatha grabbed Rio’s arms. “He shouldn’t’ve done that. You had nothing to do with it.”
Past Rio appeared, this time in a short black dress and hair that reached the floor, still unrecognizable, and the girl’s soul flickered into view.
“¿Mama?” The girl’s voice reached Agatha’s ears. “¿Qué pasó? (What’s going on?)”
Past Rio hesitated.
“¿Dónde está mi mamá? (Where’s my mom?)”
“Yo– Algo pasó. Necesito que vengas conmigo, ¿vale? (I– Something happened. I need you to come with me, okay?)”
“¡Quiero a mi mamá! (I want my mom!)”
“Pronto estarás con ella. Por favor, sólo– (You’ll be with her soon. Please, just–)”
“¿Estoy muerta? (Am I dead?)”
Past Rio backed away. “Por favor, sólo es mi trabajo– (Please, it’s just my job–)”
“¡Me mataste! ¡Tú! (You killed me! You!) ¡Es culpa tuya! (It’s your fault!)”
“Yo– (I–)”
“¡Por favor, déjame vivir! (Please, let me live!)”
Past Rio shook her head, stumbling back as the kid came onto her. “¡No puedo, lo siento! ¡Por favor, necesitas comprender! (I can’t, I’m sorry! Please, you have to understand!)”
With the girl’s screaming and yelling, Agatha couldn’t make out anything else. She just watched Rio’s human form melt away, making the girl scream even louder. That just made Rio hyperventilate more, stepping further back.
“Okay, I think that’s enough–” Agatha turned to find Rio on the ground, sobbing, hands on her ears. “Rio?”
“Please get us out of here,” Rio said, barely audible. “Please.”
Agatha flicked her hand, taking them out of the vision, but they didn’t come back out. Instead, the vision flickered.
“What’s happening?” Rio stood up, her breathing still unsteady.
“I–I don’t know.”
“Agatha?” Rio hung onto Agatha’s arm as the room started spinning.
“Rio!” Agatha put her hand around Rio’s head and closed her eyes.
The room stopped spinning and they opened their eyes.
“Where are we?” Rio asked.
The whimpering behind them was familiar to Agatha, but she couldn’t place it. They turned around slowly to find a young girl, curled up on the floor, blood gushing from the knife marks on her arms.
Suddenly, it hit Agatha.
“Oh, no."
The girl clutched the knife before her and looked up, letting Rio finally see her eyes.
She’d recognize those eyes anywhere.
Those ocean-blue eyes she wished she could drown in.
The girl was Agatha.