Fox Ball

When I landed, I was in a field, a large sigil burned into the ground, though it disappeared in a few moments. This was my returning point. I must have been slightly off, because I didn’t recognize the area surrounding me. I looked around, trying to find Rose, but she was nowhere to be found. I was in the middle of what seemed to be an abandoned soccer field, the goals grown over and rusted, the grass riddled with weeds.

I sighed. I can’t believe I let my focus get misguided like that I berated myself. I had been trained better than that. There was something I didn’t understand though. Teleportation requires absolute focus on the place you wanted to go or the person you wanted to be with. However, there was no way I could have focused on this place considering I had never been here before.

In the distance, I noticed a large building, it’s parking lot empty. Either it’s a weekend or that was abandoned too. To the other side, there was a large clutch of trees, aspen it looked like, with a small path in the middle. The path looked deserted as it was overgrown with the shrubbery surrounding it, appearing not to have anyone walk through for quite awhile it seemed.

I sighed again, a small puff of mist appearing in front of my face. It was cold; freezing cold. I bundled myself deeper into my handmade leather jacket, shoving my hands in the pockets. I had no idea where I was going to go; either the building or the path in the trees. I decided to go for the building. I haven’t had the best of luck going through an unknown patch of trees. I have learned that terrifying things like the woods and I wasn’t about to subject myself to that.

The field seemed to stretch on for miles as the more I walked, the farther the building seemed to be. I kept glancing over my shoulder; the trees weren’t getting any further back either. It was like I was walking for no reason at all.

I stopped, frustrated and sore, looking around myself once again. I was in the exact same spot where I started. Frowning, I attempted walking in the direction of the trees. They were closer to me so maybe that would work.

After walking for about awhile, 20 minutes to be exact if the time on my watch was anything to go by, I was still no closer to the tree line. “What the hell?” I questioned out loud to no one in particular. This made zero sense. How could I be moving, yet not moving at the same time? I sighed in anger, plopping down in the weed ridden grass, placing my head in my hands and trying to take a deep breath.

After a couple seconds of just breathing, I thought of a possible solution. What if I just teleported to the house now? I still had the layout in my mind and since I was on Earth, I should be able to get there now, as long as I keep my focus. I decided to try it.

I closed my eyes, raising my arms toward the sky. I thought about Derek and my desire to save him, the layout and plans of the home, the neighborhood the house was in. Just when I was about to close my hands and force the power through me, I heard it again. “Olivia…help me…”

My focus shifted once more and the power fizzled out. I sighed in frustration. “Come on!” I shouted to absolutely no one. Does whoever’s on the other side of this voice just not want me to save Derek? Maybe Peter was screwing with me again, making me hear things that aren’t there. Using my brother’s voice to haunt me.

“Olivia…save me…” the voice beckoned. I was so frustrated with this that I almost didn’t hear the low growl coming from behind me. Once I did though, I spun around and came face to face with glowing green eyes and a large fox-like body. Oh shit was all I could think before the creature lunged at me. I barely was able to scoot myself backward enough to not get a body full of claws and teeth. I continued backing away, scuttling against the earth as the mud soaked into my cream colored skirt. Once I deemed I was far enough away, I risked getting up. I was on my feet within the second, taking off in the direction of the building.

This time, as I ran toward it, it started becoming larger and, thank the heavens, closer. I could hear the heavy foot falls of my assailant following closely behind me.

“Olivia…hurry…” I almost screamed out loud in my frustration with the voice, but decided to expend my energy in a way where I wouldn’t end up being this thing’s dinner. I pushed myself harder, willing my legs to move faster, willing the soreness that was building in my calves to dissipate. The building was still too far away, the creature beginning to catch up with me.

By the time that I felt fur tickling my ankles, I knew that it was too late. I stopped in my tracks, causing the beast to run straight into me, both of us stumbling and falling to the ground. Luck was in my favor it seemed because while I just fell forward into the grass, the creature flew over me and rolled several feet away. Yes!

I stood, turned on my heel, and took off in the direction of where the sigil had disappeared. I couldn’t remember the exact location, but I hoped that the magic of this wasn’t too picky.

A howl resonated through the sky, causing my body to shudder in absolute fear. I stumbled a couple of steps, feeling the howl in my bones before beginning to run again. I only had a small amount of time to do this in. Once I spotted the trees, I closed my eyes, praying there wasn’t anything to trip me up. I imagined the house, everything I possibly could. My focus was shot for a moment as I felt a swipe at my back connect, pain threading up my spine and throughout my entire body. I felt power ignite within me, my arms raising on their own. I knew when I had reached the right spot because electricity zapped through me almost painfully. I closed my fists and willed myself to the right spot.

______________________________________________________________________

When I dared to open my eyes, I was in the living room of a house I didn’t recognize and I was alone. I could hear the sound of a struggle up the stairs and muffled voices shouting at each other. I took another look around and was able to place the layout; this was Rose and Derek’s home. I did a little happy dance, pumping my fists into the air. Finally.

The movement caused pain to shoot through my entire body, forcing me to drop my arms. I looked at the ground, a small puddle of blood growing. That thing must have scratched me good.

Once my thoughts caught up with me, I realized that the voices upstairs must be Rose and Derek. I sighed in relief, moseying my way up the stairs.

What I didn’t expect to see was Rose on the ground, an icicle pointed at one of the arteries in her throat, and her brother attached to the piece of ice. Derek was on top of her, digging the point of it into her neck, causing a small drop of blood to pool onto the ground. I immediately kicked into action. The sight had filled me with such blind rage that I could feel fire dancing at my fingertips. The temperature of the room beginning to grow. Luckily, that meant the icicle had begun melting, dripping water onto Rose’s face and soaking her clothing. Rose glanced over at where I was standing, pleading with me with her eyes not to hurt her brother.

I took a couple deep, calming breaths, the fire dissipating from my soul, but kept the temperature of the room a little too hot to be comfortable. I was not going to let that…that boy hurt my love. It just wasn’t going to happen.

“Derek?” I spoke in a low, dangerous tone, just begging him to attack me so I could put him down. I knew there was a reason I didn’t like this kid.

His eyes snapped to mine, the pupils taking over the entire iris, making his gaze dark. I tried not to let it bother me, but a chill went down my spine at his black eyes. He moved the icicle off of Rose’s throat a little bit, either in shock of seeing me or in trying to reform it. I kicked the temperature up a little hotter.

“Why are you here?” He growled in my direction before putting his eyes back on his sister, placing the melting icicle against her throat once more. “Stop doing that.”

“Not a chance.” I took a step forward, receiving that black glare once again. “And we are here to take you to safety. Peter is growing in power and is planning on coming here and hurting you.”

“I don’t believe you. What if you are him?” Doubt flashed across his face, some of the chestnut coming out from behind the pupils.

I turned around, showing him the bloodied slashes across my back. Both brother and sister gasped in shock. “One of his minions did this to me. A giant fox.” When I looked back over at him, he had dropped the icicle and was holding his head in his hands, muttering apologies under his breath.

Rose looked over at me, raising her brows in a way of saying ‘you have a lot to explain after this’, then moved to hold her brother against her. “It’s okay,” she kept repeating, rocking him slightly back and forth.

It was only after the danger had passed that I lowered the temperature of the room. A thick layer of sweat covered all of us from the heat. “You guys ready? We should probably get back.”

They both nodded in agreement, standing together, still holding onto one another. I smiled at the scene, though a pang of pain entered my heart that refused to ebb. I wish I could hold my own brother like that again.

We entered the living room, which had been empty when I had arrived, to find Peter sitting on the couch, inspecting his fingernails. We all froze, partially in fear, but mostly in anger. “Well, well, well. I suppose you beat me to it.” He snapped his fingers, the giant fox appearing at his side. He looked from me to the bloodied claws on the beast’s left paw, back to me. “Well, maybe you didn’t.”

I took a step forward. I would have kept advancing had Rose not held a hand out to stop me. “You killed him!!” I screamed at him, growling in frustration at the pressure against my shoulder. I wanted to rip him apart with my bare hands. The anger was clouding my judgment. I just didn’t understand why she wouldn’t let me hurt this man.

At my step forward, the beast growled, moving into a protective stance in front of Peter. I grimaced at it. For all I cared, I would rip that thing to shreds as well. I tried to take another step, a low growl emitting from someone in the room, though I couldn’t quite place it until I noticed both Derek and Rose looking at me in concern. Apparently that sound was coming from me.

“And who was that?”, came his reply.

I cried out in frustration, gripping my hair tightly at the roots and pulling. “You know who asshole. My brother.” I spoke through my teeth, daring him to say something to negate that.

“Did I?”, was Peter’s smug answer. It only furthered my rage.

His aloofness finally broke the camels back and I lunged forward, throwing Rose off her balance and almost careening towards the floorboards. I screamed in his face, raising my fist, and connecting it with his jaw. I expected something; a cry of pain, more bullshit, even a smirk. What I didn’t expect was him to disappear in a billion tiny snowflakes.

The beast though seemed real enough as it snarled at me, snapping it’s jaws where my head had just been had Derek not pulled me out of the way. I looked over and nodded in thanks before completely facing the creature. It took up over half of the room, it’s tail slowly swishing mundane pictures off the walls, its body displacing and crushing the furniture beneath it. We had very little space to escape.

We moved as a group toward the center of the room, holding onto each other like our lives depended on it, which, they kind of did. Rose spoke slowly under her breath, opening and closing her hands until, finally, we were encased in darkness and there were no more glowing eyes.