Fractured Fairy Tale
The day it happened was the same as any other day under the roof I found myself. The air was wet and cool. I could hear the dull dripping of rain outside the window. The animals created a cacophony of hoof beats and groans outside. The whole world was still around me and it created an eerie peace.
I'd been alone for almost 2 days at that point. I wouldn't have had it any other way. My manners had failed me from the moment I came into the little cottage. It was the first time in my life that I was so afraid of making a misstep. It was the first time in my life that I was completely unsure of what to do or say. Then again, it was the first time in my life I'd ever been in such a situation. Being alone actually became something I prayed for most ardently during that second day. And there was no one around to complain.
Having been alone quite a lot during my childhood, I wasn't even completely aware I was alone for those 2 days. Even so, I don't remember ever being all that lonely. I was always happy to see people and happy when they left. Being away from home found me in the same way. But as I said, I wasn't completely aware of being alone...until I wasn't alone anymore.
He came back a dripping mess. His hair was almost pleasantly dark from rain water and he wore his usual grin on his face. Something in his face made me afraid he'd expect me to say something but was extremely relieved when he went to warm himself by the fire. In fact, neither of us had spoken to each other since before coming to the cottage. I was knee-deep in pondering that fact when he stood and approached me.
I had no idea how to react to him when he was 6 feet from me, how was I to know how to react with him mere inches from my face? I gasped loudly when I finally realized how close he was. He gave me an evil look, one that didn't at all suit his oblivious-looking face. It didn't exactly strike fear in me. In fact, I had to try very hard not to laugh. After a moment of glaring at me he gave up and his eyes softened. He turned away from me without a word. I was so relieved that I relaxed my breathing. Unfortunately, that let my laugh out whether I liked it or not. It was the rudest thing I'd ever done up to that point.
My laughing didn't seem to upset him at all. He just rung out his hair onto the floor and placed his usual grin back on his oblivious face. He'd always been rather easy-going but laughing in someone's face isn't something anyone did back then no matter who they were. Even a saint would've been cross with me for being so terribly rude. But, he just went about his business without ever saying a word.
Shame immediately entered my brain after laughing at the poor man. He'd been nothing but kind to me and my people yet all I could do to thank him was laugh in his face. I could tell I was blushing by the burning in my face so I looked down and away from him. As I did I heard footsteps and felt cool air breeze across me. I knew he was approaching me again but I didn't dare look up. I was too busy finding the strength to apologize and accept my punishment.
Seconds, maybe minutes might have passed before I got the courage to look up. I was more than a little puzzled to see the room completely empty. I was sure he'd been standing over me and waiting for a response. Assuming I just hadn't heard the door slam through my own thoughts, my body relaxed a little and I began observing the cottage just like before. The fire was now louder than the animals or the rain. Its glow matched the darkening of the world perfectly as I gazed out the window. I could tell night was coming by the chill in the air. I slowly rose to my feet and let the blood work its way through. I'd been sitting in the chair for hours, my legs had fallen asleep. Once I was stable enough to walk, I made my way to the tiny bedroom in the back of the cottage.
I entered the bedroom quite casually. I was exhausted and cold, more than ready to sleep. The rickety old bed seemed so inviting that I didn't even try to stop myself from yawning proudly. I decided to take one last look at the doorway to the bedroom. When I turned my head I caught a glimpse of orange and brown. There was a sharp pain on the back of my head. Then I slept.
I don't remember feeling or hearing much after that. I remember dreaming that I was back with my own kind, with my own family. We sat by the fire in the castle keep and laughed at each other's stories. It was so vivid that I could actually hear my father's voice and feel the fire's burning heat. The past 3 days had never happened. It was a tenderness I never wanted to end.
The fire's burning heat receded from most of my body and intensified between my legs. My father's voice faded into the overbearing sound of creaking wood. The tenderness of the dream ebbed away and the cool air wrapped around me like a shroud. In moments, the smells and sounds didn't feel like mere shadows of themselves anymore. I felt like I was falling off the edge of warmth into ice.
My vision went from dark to dim lighting and I started to feel my hands before any other part of me. I remember groaning and tossing my head to and fro. Then I remember a throbbing pain coming from my head. Then, the burning heat between my legs became a searing, agonizing pain. I cried out as my vision cleared completely.
He was on top of me. It was the heaviest weight I'd ever had on me before and I let out a disconcerted yell. He merely grunted at me with burning eyes and a different, evil grin. This time, it did manage to frighten me. I tried to move my arms but they wouldn't budge more than an inch or two. I looked up to see that with his left hand, the weaker hand, he was holding both my arms in place above my head. It tried to move my legs but he was too heavy on top of them.
Being a stupid girl, I had no earthly clue what was happening. All I knew was that I was being hurt by someone. In fact, I thought for sure that the pain between my legs was him stabbing me with a knife. Why he was on top of me and moving wildly was a mystery but he was definitely stabbing me with a knife. Has anyone else ever been that stupid?
The reason why this man was hurting me was also a mystery to me. I was no stranger to others inflicting pain on me but it was very strange that this man would be doing it. He had no earthly reason to hate me that much, no reason to think of me the way most people thought of me. Yet, he was inflicting a pain on me worse than anything I'd ever felt.
It may have only lasted minutes but the pain made it feel like hours. Strangely warm tears fell across my face as I couldn't keep my head still. His breath was hot and raspy against the tops of my ears. It sounded like he was saying something, but it was in a language I haven't ever heard. Stupidly, a tiny part of me felt like responding to his gibberish so as not to be impolite. I don't remember if I said anything or not, I just remember feeling like I should have.
His movements got more frantic and his breathing became uneven. He made a noise that almost sounded like a laugh. After a few more seconds, he tried a few times to look me in the eye but failed because my head kept moving around. He took his right hand and firmly held my chin still so he could look directly into my face. He groaned loudly and his eyes rolled back. Then everything was still again.
It took a couple of minutes for him to regain his composure and move. Luckily, his first movement was to move off of me. Because he was so moist from rain water and possibly sweat he stuck to me a little and it made a disgusting sound when he pulled off of me. Again, he didn't say a word. He composed himself quickly and walked as casually out of the bedroom as I had walked into it.
Weak, confused, frightened and in pain I lay on the bed alone. Unfortunately, him leaving me did nothing to ease my pain. My head and crotch alternated; my head throbbing dully and my crotch emitting a burning pain that made my thighs feel hot. It was so much pain that even if I'd had the will to move I probably couldn't have done so. I was nothing but a pathetic, rumpled mess. And my emotions became a torrential storm with me.
