When Helaine next woke, she was instantly aware of the intense stare of a dark little stranger. Score was not standing watch over her, and Pixel had gone too. Helaine could tell by the light that trickled in through the window that it was morning.
"Who are you?" She asked tiredly. The little cretin's nose twitched, and it started lifting up the coverlet on the bed and sticking her head underneath. "Knock it off!" Helaine snapped, snatching the sheets away from the girl's grubby fingers. "I'll cut your throat, I swear" she snarled, trying to be menacing, despite her exhaustion. The girl posed no threat, she knew, but it was irritating.
At Helaine's warning, the girl leapt backwards and climbed onto the chair Score had been sleeping in earlier, peering at Helaine.
"Where's it?" The girl asked, exasperated.
"Where is what?" Helaine returned, "And will you get out of my bedroom? Where are Score and Pixel? Who let you in here? Where did you come from?"
"Your sword! Scur sayed that you had a really big un."
Helaine stopped. Where was her sword? She hoped it wasn't back on Ekeln-An. Pixel should have had the presence of mind to pick it up for her. But that still didn't explain the appearance of this strange little girl.
*Score? Pixel?* She stretched out with her mind. *Why the hell is there a girl with blue hair in my room?* There was a buzz in her mind, signifying that they had both heard her, but were stalling an answer.
*You tell her* *It was your idea* *She won't get mad at you* *Yes, she will*
Helaine sighed. Score and Pixel peeked around the door a minute later, each looking slightly guilty. Pixel stretched out a hand to the girl.
"Come away from her, Crow. It's not polite to sneak in on people when they're sleeping."
"I was jes lookin for hers sword," Crow protested, but dismounted from the chair and scampered over to stand between Score and Pixel. She smiled at Helaine ever so slightly.
"Um, Helaine, this is Crow, from the rim world Myrd. Crow, this is our very good friend Helaine who also lives in the castle with us." Pixel smiled brightly during his introduction.
Helaine started to sit up, but discovered that her tunic had not been replaced. She colored slightly, then summoned a robe to wrap around herself. "I see." She said, as she took her time tying the belt with her good hand. With what strength she had, Helaine slid gracefully out of bed and arose. For a second, she towered majestically over Crow, but then her legs buckled and she had to lean on the chair. She felt weak.
"We brought Crow to live with us here, because she doesn't have a home on her world. She's very bright, and a quick learner" Pixel explained carefully.
Helaine ignored this and stared at Score, as though waiting to hear what he had to say. When he was silent, she stalked across her room, unimpeded, towards the bathroom. "I'm going to take a shower," she heard herself say.
The bathroom door clicked shut.
Outside, Score and Pixel exchanged worried glances. Inside, Helaine stood before the mirror and gazed at her reflection. Her eyes were flat, and her whole face looked hollow. She didn't want to talk to either of them again. What she really wanted to do was throw up, or die. Better death than remember her frailty, her stupidity. God.
Score whispered, so Crow couldn't hear, "something isn't right", and motioned with his head for Pixel to escort the girl out. Pixel nodded, and left the room, talking of painting, and Score strode up to the bathroom door. The sounds of a shower didn't reach his ear, so he began his hortatory.
"She's not a bad kid you know." He said through the door. There was a silence, and he almost thought she didn't hear him, but then her voice came back, muffled.
"Please leave."
"No. I won't. I'm not leaving until you give Crow a chance. She's-"
"Oh shut up about your little runt" Helaine snapped, interrupting Score.
"Just because you're hurt doesn't mean you can bitch at the rest of us" He shot back.
"I can act just how I please."
"Pixel and I care about you, Helaine, and we-"
"If you care about me so much," Helaine snarled sarcastically, "then you'd go away."
"-and I don't want you to rot the rest of your life away just because-"
"Leave me ALONE!" She screamed shrilly, her voice echoing against the tiled walls and floor of the bathroom.
"FINE!" he roared back, slamming his fist against the door. He didn't leave, but stood there instead, seething. His hand hurt. But his countenance softened at the sound of Helaine sobbing in the bathroom. Score put a hand on the doorknob and unlocked it with a whispered spell. The knob turned, the door slipped open, and Score found Helaine, her face buried in a towel. Awkwardly, Score looked at the floor and then "I'm sorry."
Helaine turned around and glared at him for two seconds before her glare melted into a pained expression. Her eyes were red. "You never apologize." She accused him.
"Well, I am now. Sorry." He offered his hand for a shake, and she accepted with her unscathed left hand. She held it for a while in silence.
"That was stupid of me." She sighed finally, sniffing. "To leave everything so perfect here and snare myself in trouble."
"No. No, the only stupid thing you did was wander off with that creep."
"He didn't look like that when I met him"
"What exactly were you doing with him? Did it start off....fine..." Score choked on the word, "...and then get out of control?"
Helaine stared at him, uncomprehending. Then, startled understanding. "No!" she protested. But she remembered her immediate attraction to Dorian and amended her statement reluctantly "Not really."
Score stared at Helaine. "I see." He said tightly. "Maybe they don't teach you these things on Ordin, but you shouldn't lead someone to believe that they can...have...take...what they want."
"No. Nothing like that. No." She shook her head and thought of Dorian's greedy, lecherous smile and started shaking again. "I could never... no."
Score chided himself mentally. Of course Helaine didn't run around seducing strange men. She didn't have an alluring bone in her body.
"It's just..." she began. "It's just that I was so helpless!" Her last word unlocked another dam of tears, putting Score in the awkward position his sex had come to hate. He bit his lip and gingerly reached out to pat her on the shoulder with his left hand, as she still gripped his right. Helaine had other ideas, and wormed her head into his shoulder and heaved with sobs. Score's heart did a little blip, and he waved his liberated hands in the air uselessly for a few seconds before resting them on her shoulders.
He clumsily smoothed her hair and looked around the bathroom in a panic. Pissed-off Helaine, dejected Helaine, uppity Helaine, all these he could deal with. But weeping, distraught Helaine? She had always been stronger than this.
The day was dark.
*****
This chapter is entirely for Ihire. Happy birthday :)
Short, a little dark, yeah, I know. But these things happen.
Aroo!
Chapter 1. Morning
Chapter 2. Changes
Chapter 3. Last Night
Chapter 4. White Monkey
Chapter 5. Searching
Chapter 6. Child
Chapter 7. One Candle
Chapter 8. Crow
Chapter 9. Dorian
Chapter 10. Ordin
Chapter 11. Votrins
Chapter 12. Gone
Chapter 13. Mother
Chapter 14. Mardren
Chapter 15. Scars
Chapter 16. Tears
Chapter 17. Mend
Chapter 18. Summons
Chapter 19. Council
