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 Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 3:54 pm
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Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 9:16 pm
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Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2010 2:39 pm
Jeopardy[ solo. with John Jr.] -- It was late. Her father would be home soon. Vanessa, who wore her father's old baseball jersey and a pair of plaid pajama pants, slipped from the balcony to their little apartment and made sure the door slid closed behind her. The rusty red carpet was old and worn, but it felt soft and comforting under her bare toes. They hadn't been able to afford to redecorate since moving in (not that any of them cared enough to bother with it) and the floral wallpaper that lined the walls was stained yellow with age. The lonely lightbulb that hung from the centre of the ceiling was naked, and the intensity of its glow waned progressively as she walked across the room. Unconcerned, Vanessa slammed the palm of her hand against the wall beside the light-switch. The sound of her skin smacking against drywall resounded prominently throughout the apartment and, suddenly buzzing with renewed energy, the light shone vigorously once more. "There," Vanessa nodded, satisfied, and tossed a couple pieces of bread into the toaster. There was nothing quite as delicious as a good snack before bed. The home she shared with her brother and her father was a quaint, two bedroom arrangement with kitchen, dining room and living room all rolled into one. Since there were three of them and only two bedrooms, Mr. Rae slept on a Hide-a-Bed in the living room, which Vanessa pulled out and prepared for him every night before he returned from work. While she waited for her toast to pop, the auburn haired girl collected some blankets and pillows from the hallway closet and dutifully laid them out for her father. He was always so tired after work. She liked to do simple things like this for him, so that he didn't have to. The voice of Alex Trebek wafted through the old-fashioned television set and Vanessa, thoroughly distracted, stood in front of it with her hands on her hips and an expression on her face that suggested she was thinking very hard. Every once in awhile, she would shout out questions at his answers and then swear and slap her knee whenever she got something wrong. Which was most of the time. Game shows were a guilty pleasure of hers. A passionate soul with a competitive spirit, Vanessa watched them like her grandmother watched soap operas; and always whooped with delight whenever she happened to get an answer right. This was a rare and, thus, a ridiculously happy occasion, and one of the reasons she enjoyed watching Who Wants to be a Millionaire, because she always managed, at least, to get the $100 question. Sometimes, when Mr. Rae didn't have to work so late, the three of them would even make a family night of it and, while Vanessa enjoyed spending quality time with them, Mr. Rae and John Jr usually knocked her random guesses out of the park with the correct answers. This never failed to infuriate and frustrate her, as Vanessa failed to comprehend how, exactly, a nine year old boy could be smarter than she was. John Jr was a bit of a nerd. He read a lot for a child his age (way more than Vanessa ever had) and, while he enjoyed cool things like being loud and watching baseball and cheering his sister on at the skatepark, there were things about him that Vanessa found it difficult to understand. He liked science. He liked vegetables. He didn't like her drum set. " Tolkien for 250, please." The contestant chose her category. Vanessa bit her lip and blinked at the TV. Mr. Trebek's voice crackled through the speakers. "The Wizard of Isengard." Vanessa's brow furrowed with concentration. She had seen the hobbit movies, but couldn't remember the name- The smell of smoke and burnt toast permeated the air. Vanessa wrinkled her nose in distaste and glanced up from the TV when the smoke detector that hung above the stove started wailing. Her ears rang with the penetrative noise. "My toast!" Vanessa groaned, stomach rumbling in disagreement, and ran to flip the lever on the toaster. Long overdue, it popped; black, brittle and glowing orange. A loud crash resonated from within John Jr's room. The little boy burst into the hallway, wearing nothing but a simple pair of oversized navy boxers and white socks, and raced to the kitchen. There was a healthy sized fire extinguisher tucked under his arm. "Where's the fire?" he asked his sister, brown eyes wide and dancing in his skinny head. "There's no fire," Vanessa sighed and, collecting a tea towel from a drawer, waved it underneath the smoke detector, "The toaster didn't pop when it was supposed to." "Oh," John Jr said, dropping the fire extinguisher, as well as his guard, and going to open the balcony doors, "Didn't dad tell you the left side's broken?" "Uh," Vanessa thought about it for a minute, "He might have. I probably wasn't listening." John Jr laughed and watched as his sister attempted to silence the obnoxious smoke detector. After a moment, he snapped his fingers, as though he'd just been struck by a brilliant idea, and disappeared down the hall. He returned seconds later holding a small fan and, after plugging it in, set it on the counter and pushed the power button. It hummed to life, and effectively blew the smoke (although, the stink of it stayed behind) across the room. The smoke detector ceased its irritating wail. "Dad'll be home soon," John Jr observed quietly. He glanced from Vanessa to the TV. "Are you watching Jeopardy?" She smiled at him, "Yeah." "Do you…" John Jr started slowly and then, when she started giggle at him, continued with a defiant confidence, "Do you think it would be okay if I stayed up and watched it? Til dad gets home. Then he can send me to bed if he wants." "Oh, I dunno," Vanessa sighed heavily, as though she were going to deny him, even though she had every intention of saying yes. "Its not a school night!" John Jr. protested hopefully. Vanessa stood there, staring down at him with as hard of an expression on her face as she could manage. Her lips twitched and she punched his scrawny arm good-naturedly, "Oh, alright." "Hey, that hurt!" John Jr scowled, even though it hadn't hurt at all. Bouncing on the spot in the same way he'd watched some boxers on TV, John Jr raised his fists and swung his arms exaggeratedly in his sister's direction. Vanessa laughed and skittered out of the way, towards the television, where Alex Trebek had long since revealed the identity of Saruman the White.
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Posted: Wed Feb 24, 2010 8:44 am
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Posted: Wed Feb 24, 2010 10:05 pm
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Posted: Thu Feb 25, 2010 7:31 pm
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Posted: Fri Feb 26, 2010 12:55 am
#1 Dad[ solo. with Mr. Rae and John Jr] -- "Hey," Mr Rae looked up from his newspaper and took a sip from his favourite coffee cup, a gift Vanessa had presented to him on Father's Day when she was seven. The motto "#1 Dad" was scrolled across the yellow ceramic in chipping crayola script. The glasses perched on the edge of his nose made him look wiser. "where've you been?" Vanessa, who was sore and still bleeding a little from her very recent disagreement with the rail at the skatepark, tried not to wince as she slipped into the kitchen and propped her skateboard (a gift, of sorts, from Steven) against the wall. Her father, golden eyes narrowed, looked from the skateboard to Vanessa and took in every inch of her appearance. His lips were pursed. "New skateboard, I see." "Yeah," Vanessa confirmed with a stiff nod of her head. It hurt to move it. The place where her skull had connected with the railing throbbed painfully. "Steven gave it to me." "Did he now?" Mr. Rae folded his newspaper. Vanessa swore inwardly. Of course he knew better than that. If there was ever a person that could intimidate Vanessa enough into keeping her mouth shut, it was her father. Growing up within the confines of his watchful and ever present, though occasionally overbearing and controlling, love had made her into a well rounded girl. She was well-adjusted, but temperamental, and had thoroughly learned and absorbed all three of her father's most basic rules. "1. Family is important; respect me, respect your brother, and respect yourself."
"2. Be good to people, but don't go anywhere with a stranger."
"3. For the love of God, never play with matches."Vanessa sighed and her shoulders sagged. She loved him, really she did, but he could be so annoying sometimes. "Steven gave me his skateboard because he broke mine," Vanessa explained in that dull, irritating whine of a voice all parents have had to listen to if their child's ever felt inconvenienced. "I wish that he hadn't."" "Dad," Vanessa grumbled, voice low and full of warning, "I told you- "Told me what, Vanessa Alicia?" her father stood up from the table and, leaning with his back against the fridge, looked down at her with a cool, imposing expression on his handsome face. He crossed his arms over his chest. Vanessa blanched and immediately changed her tone of voice into a more respectful one, "Dad, I know that I look a little beat up right now, but its not my fault- I was distracted by this boy." This was not what Mr. Rae had been expecting to hear. Surprise flashed across his face. He knew how old Vanessa was, and he knew that hanging out at the skatepark meant she spent a lot of time surrounded by boys, but it still stunned him to hear that she'd actually been distracted by one. His face returned to its authoritative parental mask, but inside something inside of him squirmed uncomfortably. He hadn't yet spoken to her about the birds and the bees and, while he was certain that his baby girl had some idea about what it all, he was not looking forward to the conversation. "What do you mean you were distracted by a boy?" Mr. Rae couldn't keep his voice from sounding strained. Vanessa burst out laughing. "Not like that, dad. I just didn't see him there. So I fell." "Oh," Mr. Rae said. His posture relaxed, and the knot of panic that'd been steadily twisting in his abdomen untied itself. "Yeah," Vanessa tried to smile at him and, scooting passed, downplayed her injuries, "Its no big deal. I'll just have John Jr pour some iodine on these scrapes and I'll be good to go." "Wait," Mr. Rae stopped Vanessa with a gentle hand on her shoulder. He locked eyes with his daughter. "Why don't you just wear the helmet? I can live if you disregard the shin pads, and the elbow pads and everything else… but, Vanessa- "Dad- "Just wear the ******** helmet." Mr. Rae ordered with a protective squeeze of her shoulder. Then he let her go and Vanessa, rolling her eyes at him and laughing his concern away, disappeared down the hallway. The sound of the foul word in her father's voice played over and over again in her head. As a general rule, Mr. Rae didn't swear very often. He thought it was a sign of a stunted vocabulary, of a lack of an education. She knew these things and, so, the truth of what he'd said struck a powerful cord. Resolving to do the smart thing from there on out and just wear the stupid helmet, Vanessa opened John Jr's door with an exasperated sigh and peeked inside. The little boy was stretched out on his stomach on the floor, working on a giant puzzle. His tongue stuck of the corner of his mouth as he concentrated. "John Jr?" "Yeah?" "Feel like getting in some practice for that doctor school you'll be going to? I got some blood and guts for you to look at." Well, actually, there were no guts; just some blood and torn flesh and a couple of stones inside. It wasn't anything a pair of tweezers, some disinfectant and a couple of band-aids couldn't take care of. John Jr was just the boy for the job. He grinned at her, dark eyes twinkling, and jumped up from his puzzle. "Oh, let me see!"
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2010 1:01 pm
A Difference[ solo. with Mr. Rae and John Jr] -- A re-run of Millionaire flashed across the TV screen. Vanessa, who for some inexplicable reason preferred the episodes of the game show that were hosted by Regis Philbin, lay on her back with her dirty socks propped up against the wall and her head hanging off the end of the sofa. An empty bag of dill pickle chips lay on the floor beneath her and Vanessa, who sometimes watched TV upside down like this simply because she could, was busily licking the salt off her fingertips. "Vanessa, get your feet off the wall, and sit up. It isn't healthy to let the blood rush to your head like that." Mr. Rae scolded as he marched by on his way to the bathroom. "Yes, dad," she sighed heavily, as though he was doing her a great disservice, and rearranged herself on the sofa so that she was still lying on her back, but with her head propped up on the armrest and her feet somewhere more appropriate. "John Jr?" "Yeah, dad?" the little boy looked up from his bowl of cereal. There was a copy of the Destiny City bulletin folded open in front of him. From where she sat on the couch, Vanessa could see her dad's reflection in the bathroom mirror as he brushed his teeth and prepared for his date. "You listen to your sister while I'm gone." "I always do." John Jr insisted in that way that young children do, and twisted in his seat to peer at his big sister, "Don't I, Vanessa? Tell him I always listen to you." "He always listens to me, dad." "Good," Mr. Rae said with a nod of his head as he exited the bathroom and, after checking his reflection and straightening his tie in the balcony windows, smiled at them both. "Wish me luck." "Good luck," Vanessa and John Jr, whose mouth was full of cheerios, chimed simultaneously. A little nervous, but generally excited, Mr. Rae exhaled heavily and ruffled John Jr's dark hair on his way out the door. It clicked shut behind him and for a moment the only sound that filled the apartment was the ominous jingle that wafted through the television screen as Regis waited for the contestant to give an answer. Vanessa, who had never liked any of the women her father brought home, made a face and pressed the power button on the remote. "I hope this one doesn't break his heart too." Having just finished his cereal, a make-shift supper he'd proudly assembled himself, John Jr sat in silent agreement. This was a topic that neither of them liked to dwell on very long. With a mind to change the subject, John Jr picked up the copy of the bulletin that lay on the table in front of him. He read it. No longer interested in watching TV, Vanessa simply stared at the blank screen for a moment or two before crawling off the couch and choosing a seat beside her little brother. He didn't look up as she sat down, but cleared his throat and said; "We're not supposed to go near the park." "Huh?" "It says here," John Jr pointed at an article in the bulletin, "A bunch of people have been sent to the hospital. They were found near the park. It says we are supposed to stay away." "Really?" Vanessa leaned forwards and attempted to read it over his shoulder, "It doesn't say what happened to them, hey?" "No," John Jr shook his head, "just that they were hurt. There's been a lot of stuff like that happening lately. A lot of deaths." "I know." So far, the pair of them had been lucky. No one they knew personally had perished yet. "I wish there was something we could do," John Jr mused and, almost instantly, a little spark of inspiration sputtered to life in Vanessa's head. It struggled to survive there for a moment. The auburn haired girl chewed thoughtfully on her bottom lip as it fought for its right to live. "Its too bad I'm so small," John Jr sighed, "or else I'd try to do something about it myself." A slow smile started on Vanessa's face as her brother's words fanned the spark in her brain and finally lit the imaginary bulb that floated over her head. "John Jr!" That's IT!" she declared jovially, grabbing him by the shoulders and twirling him so that he faced her. The little boy looked very confused. "What are you talking about?" "You're too small," Vanessa let go of him, and poked him in the chest. "But I'm not!" "You're not making any sense." "Of course I'm making sense!" she hissed at him, golden eyes twinkling. Vanessa's sanity seemed to have disappeared in the face of her own brilliance. "John Jr, I can help! I can make a difference!" John Jr frowned and chewed on the inside of his cheek as he considered his big sister's words. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?" He knew the answer even before he finished the question. "Yes!" she beamed at him. "Like batman?" he asked, an inquisitive eyebrow cocked upwards. "Yes. Exactly like batman." It wouldn't be hard. All she needed was the costume, and a weapon, and a super-hero name. Vanessa already had all the courage and determination and good will required for such a worthy under-taking. John Jr sat there, dark eyes locked onto his sister's shining ones, and he knew instantly that she absolutely meant to go through with this. There would be no stopping her. It terrified him.
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Posted: Mon Mar 08, 2010 1:08 pm
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Posted: Sat Mar 13, 2010 12:37 pm
The Fire[ solo. a dream with Edward, Jacob, Fallon, Mr. Rae and John Jr] -- Vanessa didn't know who to choose. Edwards was so mysterious and strong and shiny. He was her everything. Jacob made her laugh. She didn't need a parka to cuddle up with him, and he wasn't worried about snapping her in two every time they got a little too friendly. He was her best friend. They were both so protective, and so bossy. "Vanessa," Edward sounded so earnest, so sincere. He did not grab her by the shoulders and force her to look up into his eyes, but he didn't need to. The vampire stood directly in front of her, and their golden eyes were mirrors of their individual souls- if he even had one. Vanessa believed that he did. "I can't live without you, and I will love you with my vampire heart for the rest of eternity. You know that, but the only thing that matters to me is that you are happy. I will support any decision you make, so long as you make it because it is what you want." Vanessa thought that was rather silly of him. She wanted to be like he was, and she yearned to be with him forever. "Edward, I- "Vanessa," suddenly the bronze haired figure of Edward had transformed into the achingly familiar form of her dearest friend. Jacob positively smouldered as he searched her golden eyes with his chocolate ones, and Vanessa felt her heart constrict painfully. They were making this so difficult. "You know what it will mean if you let that disgusting bloodsucker…" He trailed off and inhaled sharply before continuing. "You know what it will mean for my brothers and sisters, and for them. It will be war." "Jake," Vanessa tried not to cry and reached out to him. A dark scowl marked his face, but the werewolf did not flinch away from her touch. "I want to be like him." "I can give you a good life! You could be happy with me! You wouldn't have to lie to your father about us, and you're brother loves me. Any child we have won't try to eat its way out of you!" Her heart felt like it was breaking. Why couldn't he understand? "But, Jake, I- "I won't let him take you away from me." Jake's voice was fierce, threatening. Something about it irritated Vanessa. She took a deep breath and stepped back, away from his magnificently muscular body and glowered at him, with her arms folded across her chest. "That's enough," she hissed angrily at him, and glared through narrowed eyes as the dazzlingly beautiful form of Edward stepped out of Jacob's body and took up the space beside the young werewolf. They both watched her, faces set into identical expressions of tolerant impatience. "I am tired of you both making my decisions for me," Vanessa declared passionately, and shook a finger at the pair of them, "In case you haven't noticed, I am my own person- "Vanessa- "Shut up, Edward. I'm talking now." Edward shut up. Jacob pursed his lips. "You both think you know what's best for me," she squawked at them, "but I can think for myself, and I've decided that I'm not going to throw myself off of a cliff just because you don't call me, Edward. GOD. I don't care if you're being noble. If you can't even take the time out of your day to call me and tell me you aren't dead I am just going to find something better to do with my time. I have a life, you know." Jacob snickered. Edward glowered at him. "As for you," Vanessa whirled on her friend, and he was instantly cowed. "I'm sorry I'm so selfish and I used you to fill the ache that Edward left in my soul when he disappeared, but its gone now. The ache, I mean. Not my soul. You have been a good friend to me, but I do not appreciate having my decisions made for me. You guys are driving me insane." Another body stepped out of Edward's frame, and the three of them turned to stare at the newcomer. "What are you doing here?" Vanessa frowned at the familiar form of the cinnamon-haired girl as she dusted off her skirt with one hand. In the other, Fallon held a cherry pie. The younger girl had visited Big Willy's store the other day, and Vanessa had helped her pick out some gifts for a friend that she'd lost. While Vanessa didn't think she had ever actually learned the girl's name, they hadn't not gotten along. She was surprised to see her. "Friends like pie," Fallon told them all. Edward and Jacob sniggered and elbowed each other. "Friends like pie," Fallon repeated stubbornly, "but if you try to eyeball it, they might like vodka better." To be nice Edward and Jacob and Vanessa all smiled and nodded simultaneously, as though they understood what Fallon said to be true. There was a loud crash, accompanied by the ear-splitting shrieks of sirens and a fire alarm system. The obnoxious noises resounded around the room where the small party of people gathered. All four of them groaned in pain and clutched at their ears, desperately trying to drowned out the noise. "VANESSA," the tall, strong frame of her father burst into the room from a door that hadn't been there before. He was covered from head to toe in what looked like soot and charcoal. In his arms he carried a small, limp little body. It was a moment or to before Vanessa realized who it was. "JOHN JR!" She screamed in terror, fingers flying to tug disbelievingly at the edges of her mouth. Sobbing with sorrow, sure that something awful had happened, Vanessa flung herself at her family and attempted to take her little brother from her father's shaking arms. Mr. Rae refused to let go, and they fought over John Jr's cold body for what felt like hours. "What happened?" asked Edward. "There was a fire," Jacob said, though it didn't make any sense for him to know that. "A fire?" Fallon gasped. "Yes," Mr. Rae howled in agony, and fat tears smeared filthy trails of grime down his cheeks. It was bizarre to see such a strong man look so vulnerable, and Vanessa knew that the world was coming to an end. Her heart gave out, and she collapsed onto the ground at her father's feet, sobbing into his knees. "There was a fire," Mr. Rae intoned, and Vanessa thought that he sounded like he had died too, "There was a fire and Vanessa wasn't there to stop it."
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Posted: Tue Apr 06, 2010 12:40 pm
A Family Portrait[ solo. with Mr. Rae, John Jr and, in spirit, Mrs Rae] -- Her eighteenth birthday had come and gone like the wind. They couldn't afford to throw any kind of elaborate party and, since Vanessa paid about as much attention to the date as she did her english class, the happy event would have gone formally uncelebrated if it wasn't for the smiling faces of her family and closest friends. John Jr was the first to greet her on the morning of the 4th; bounding into her bedroom like a rabbit on steroids and tackling the heap of blankets he knew to be hiding his older sister's skinny frame. She'd woken up with the air knocked out of her, gasping hungrily, as John Jr screeched; "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" There was a smile the size of the sun on his face. It was a moment or two before Vanessa could breathe. When she did manage to find her voice she returned her brother's brilliant grin with one of her own, though hers was much sleepier. "Thanks, kid." He'd hugged her then, and Vanessa's heart swelled with gratitude as her father joined them. He was a very tall man, having to duck under the doorframe for fear of hitting his forehead, with broad shoulders and a wide stance- Vanessa loved him very much, but she could understand why, growing up, her classmates had frequently informed her exactly how intimidating the generally silent Mr. Rae could be. He took up a lot of room without meaning to. "Happy Birthday, sweetheart," Mr. Rae's eyes twinkled at his daughter. In his arms he carried two fair-sized parcels that had been carefully wrapped in some kind of newspaper. He sat on the edge of her bed, and handed them both to Vanessa. "That one's from me," John Jr pointed at the bigger package, that toothy grin never leaving his face, and leaned comfortably against his father's shoulder as they both settled down to celebrate this special day with their favourite lady. There were never many presents under their roof, but it was always a treat to receive them. Vanessa beamed as she tore into the first present, the bigger one, and headlines from the Destiny City Bulletin floated, unheeded, to the floor. "Oh, wow!" she squeaked with glee as she pried open the box and retrieved her new baseball bat, "John Jr, its so shiny! How could you afford this?" John Jr looked a little sheepish. Mr. Rae cleared his throat and answered for his son. "Your brother's been doing a lot of work around the house for me lately. He paid for that," Mr. Rae gestured at the steel bat with his chin, "with his weekly allowance." "That must have taken you forever!" Vanessa's jaw dropped open. "Yeah, well," John Jr shrugged, light brown cheeks tinged slightly pink, "I'm just glad you like it." "Of course I do, squirt," she said softly and, a smirk playing on her lips, gripped John Jr's skull in her hands and pulled him towards her so that she could peck him on the cheek. John Jr stuck out his tongue and made a disgusted face, attempting to push Vanessa away with his arms. His fingers squished into her cheeks and she burst into a fit of giggles, butt managed to leave a slobbery kiss on his temple anyways. Mr. Rae watched fondly as his children fought. John Jr, who saw Vanessa as both his sister and a mother of sorts, was secretly pleased by this display of obvious affection, but pretended, like all boys his age, to be horrified. " Gross," he groaned and wiped her girl cooties off of himself. "God, Vanessa, now I need to shower." Mr. Rae laughed. It was a low, rumbling sound. "And we all know how much you hate those, Junior." "I only need to take baths when I smell," John Jr informed them all coolly and crossed his arms over his scrawny little chest, but the twitches of laughter and the corners of his mouth gave him away. ' Mr. Rae ruffled his sons hair, which was already messed from sleep, and turned his attention back to Vanessa. "Open the next one." The second present was much smaller than the first, but still about the size of John Jr's head, and a flat rectangle. It felt delicate and Vanessa treated it with a surprising amount of consideration as she pulled at the tape and pealed back the wrappings. Her heart stilled, and the back of her eyes stung with tears. " Oh. Wow." "That was your mother's favourite picture." Mr Rae murmured, and wrapped his arms around John Jr as the little boy crawled onto his lap. "She loved pictures and scrap-booking, but never got an opportunity to put this one into an album. I had it blown up for you." In her hands Vanessa gripped a wooden frame. Inside the frame was a photo of their family as it should have been; They stood in front of a tree at the park. Mrs. Rae, who had always been tall and beautiful, wore a striking yellow summer dress. Her belly was swollen with child, and she had one hand wrapped protectively underneath it; cradling the life of the unborn child. Her husband stood beside her, tall and imposing, with one arm around his wife's shoulders. On his shoulders sat an eight year old Vanessa. Her auburn hair was long and tied back in a braid. She was missing some teeth, but that did nothing to dissuade the child's happiness. She grinned at the camera, clinging to her father's ears so that she wouldn't fall to the ground, and her mouth was covered in what must have been strawberry ice cream. "That's me," John Jr pointed at his mother's round belly. "Its beautiful dad," Vanessa struggled to keep the frog out of her throat as she embraced her father and her brother, "Thank you."
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Posted: Tue Apr 06, 2010 1:53 pm
Bloody Candles[ solo. a nightmare with Mr. Rae's voice, and Mrs. Rae's doppelganger] -- The light from the moon streamed through the open window and illuminated the sleeping figure of the auburn haired girl who festered under her hand-made blankets. Vanessa didn't generally need them all to keep warm at night, but the old stitched quilts had sentimental value. Two of them were the products of her grandmother's handiwork; neatly put together, impeccably stuffed and sewn. The third was pink, which her mother had knitted for her during her first pregnancy. John Jr had a blue one just like it, the only thing, aside from life, that their mother had ever been able to give him. The absence of her mother in her life was not something that Vanessa had ever been able to accept, or even get used to. It was simply something that, in a sense, she'd learned to live with. She'd been very young when Mrs. Rae had passed away, after delivering John Jr to the world, and the few memories she had left of the beautiful woman were hazy. But it was the indefinite nature of these memories, which were so precious despite the mist that surrounded them, that hurt the most. Vanessa was terrified of losing them, because it would mean losing her mother all over again. Her dreams tonight were not good dreams. There hadn't been any good dreams for a long time. Slowly, they were getting worse. --- A striking woman in a yellow sundress sat in front of a birthday cake. Her dark hair was tied back into a lovely braid that framed her face and made her golden eyes pop. Vanessa had a funny feeling that she knew this woman, but could not remember her name. It bothered her. There were no candles on the birthday cake. Vanessa approached the table upon which it sat, and found that moving through this air was like moving through water. Her every action was exaggerated and forceful, but it seemed that the harder she tried to reach the table and the birthday cake and the woman, the farther they were. With every step forward she took, they slid backwards; out of focus, but not out of site. Vanessa wanted to scream in frustration, but found with some alarm that her mouth had melted shut. She had no lips. No tongue. No teeth. "You have to swim," suggested her father's voice, although he was nowhere to be seen. Vanessa thought this was very strange advice. How could he expect her to swim through the air? "Swim," Mr. Rae's voice repeated. It was an order this time. "You will drown if you don't swim." Vanessa thought that this was very good advice. She had no desire to drown. Her brow furrowed with concentration and, throwing caution to the wind, Vanessa jumped into the air. It caught her before she fell and, heart soaring with joy at her success, Vanessa doggy-paddled towards the woman and her birthday cake. It was much easier going this time, as every kick of her skinny legs through the viscous air propelled her closer to her target. She tried to breathe, but her nose was missing. Her golden eyes swelled with horror at the site, and then Vanessa wondered how, exactly, she could see her face without a mirror. "Don't be afraid," said the beautiful woman at the table. "Do you know who I am?" The auburn haired girl had no mouth with which to speak, but she tried to anyways. The words got lost in her throat. They were loud and made her head ache. They were thick and made her choke. "You don't know who I am," the woman sounded sad. Vanessa felt like she was dying. She couldn't breathe. Couldn't see straight. Couldn't think. "It is your birthday," said the woman. Vanessa could only nod as she bobbed in mid-air. "But your cake is missing candles." The birthday cake blinked at the pair of them. Its pink icing looked poisonous. "Here," said the woman, "I've got some for you." Vanessa held out her hand, palm upwards, and waited expectantly for the woman to place some candles there. Instead, the woman started to hack. Vanessa watched in shock as the woman's light brown skin slowly turned white, and her shoulders shook with the force of her coughs. She longed to reach out to her, to help her, but suddenly Vanessa had no hands. A strange sort of foamy spittle oozed out of the corners of the woman's mouth, and Vanessa gave it her best Einstein expression. Something terribly fishy was going on here. Slowly, Vanessa was beginning to realize that the spittle wasn't spittle at all. Steamy tears of the same thick, waxy substance leaked from her eyes and scalded her shallow cheeks. The woman's coughs transformed into ruckus barks that made the floor tremble. Vanessa's heart thundered in her chest as she watched, certain that the woman would die and was helpless to stop her if she did. Death did not come for her, but as Vanessa watched the woman hunch over the birthday cake and throw up bloody candle after bloody candle, she hated herself for wishing that it had.
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Posted: Tue Apr 06, 2010 7:28 pm
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Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 7:40 pm
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Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 8:25 pm
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