!Warning!

This chapter as well as more chapters in this story will be quite mature and will mention murder, death, and blood as well as other things relate to those words so please do not read if these things bother you.

Word Meanings

Apace- quickly

Agape- wide open

Complacency- extreme self-satisfaction or in other words smugness

Divulge- make known

Gelid- cold

Heretofore- before now, is a synonym for since.

Helter-skelter- hurried or disorganized 

Loitered- to stand or wait aimlessly or idly

Notwithstanding- despite 

Phantasmal- ghostly

Pinafore- A collarless sleeveless dress worn over a blouse or jumper.

Proprietor- owner

Spurn- reject

Swerved- to turn aside from a course sharply or suddenly

Also at the end of this chapter is another list of word meanings

...Rues' pov...

...∅№†--------------★♣★--------------†№∅...

...A cold breeze filled the smoky air, the stars start to vanish even the moon concealed itself behind a barrier of smoke, as something much more vivid was consuming and growing. Screams of agony could be heard from all around the ancient orphanage except inside a dormitory, where there was a girl trapped, a girl with mist in her eyes, a girl who lost it all. The girl's name was Rue. Red and blue lights flashed but Rue only saw orange. Her mind was occupied with everything and nothing at all....

...She didn't even move....

...She didn't scream....

...She didn't blink....

...She only stood there staring at something below her, a mist occupying her mind. The flames of the fire engulfed her but Rue didn't feel a thing....

...Nothing....

...She felt nothing,...

...both inside and out...

...The silence was loud but this was louder. Tear after tear ran down Rues' red cheeks. A continuous waterfall. A blur of watery red and white....

...Nothing...

...hit the ground....

...Rue was transparent....

...Rue was untouchable....

...Rue was dead....

...She was a ghost...

...staring at her body....

...The body she used to inhabit before she occupied nobody....

...The denial came first....

...Then came the thoughts....

...The reasons why this wasn't true....

...Why this wasn't happening....

...She knew that if her body didn't leave the fire soon then it would just be mainly bones, smoky grey, ashy bones. And that was something she didn't want to witness, yet she couldn't get herself to proceed to advance. Rue spurns the idea of her being a ghost. Would you believe it if it happened to you?...

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...This can't be real. This has to be a dream. There's no way this is actually happing. I refuse to believe it. Any minute now Minnie going to wake m- wait, Minnie, how could I forget?...

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...She would have stayed there forever,...

...she could have stayed there forever but a huge cargo ship has taken the place of the tiny sailboats. In an instant, Rue was at the shattered window where she had potentially saved her twin's life. Minnie's life. Nothing could be seen threw the thick layer of smoke. No matter how hard Rue tried. Was it selfish that a part of Rue wanted Minnie to be dead just so she could have Minnie still with her? Rue pushed that idea away as soon as it came. New thoughts came and replaced that...

...horrible,...

...selfless,...

...uncalled for,...

...thought....

...Forgotten....

...She had forgotten....

...She will be forgotten....

...She might already be forgotten....

...And then it was gone just like the rest....

...Sunken to the bottom of the sea....

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...Should I jump down from here? I don't want to harm myself. I guess that doesn't matter since I'm now dead. No, I'm not dead, I'm just having a really realistic dream. People have dreams when they think it's reality. That happens all the time and it's happening now. So since this is a dream I don't have to worry about getting hurt. Wait.....why I'm I even panicking if this is a dream? Minnie will be fine....

...Right?...

...Right....

...I mean it wouldn't hurt to be a good twin to Minnie in a dream too. I just don't want to imagine a hurt Minnie that's all....

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...Rue caught sight of herself on a piece of the window and what she saw made her freeze. She wasn't sure if Minnie would let her near her much less let her help her! Rue was having a hard time recognising herself so how could she expect Minnie not to? She thought that maybe it was only her hair but as she looked over and saw different body parts on different pieces of glass, she knew she was dead wrong....

...Her deep brown hair which at a glance could classify as black was fried and covered in blood, liable to the glass incident and what happened minutes prior to the outburst of flames. It was a lot shorter as it used to go to her waist but now it reached to her neck. Barely scraping her shoulders. She wasn't sure what she was expecting but she was glad some of it was still there....

...Even if this was a dream that doesn't mean she doesn't care about her hair....

...It's quite interesting the number of lies the human brain comes up with when the situation is beyond favourable....

...Is she even human anymore?...

...Her mind might be but her body tells a different story....

...What even classifies as human?...

...Because I'm sure one glance at Rue and you would think otherwise about calling her human. Rue's skin was a lot more pink and red to signify the burns as well as being paler. Her eyes were phantasmal. They were once as blue as a sapphire and as green as an emerald, now her eyes looked like you were looking through mist at a glass that was tinted a remarkably light green and blue....

...Dead....

...Soulless....

...They looked dead and soulless. Nothing and I mean nothing about Rue made her look like a human or even look alive. Her bright, plain, pastel yellow pinafore was now covered in smoke and had no smooth edges, the edges were all rough and burned. There were small bits of fabric peeling off and it had patches that were sprayed with blood. To top it all off, it was tinted white but that was barely noticeable. At least you could see remnants of the yellow, unlike the blouse she was wearing, which used to be white. Her socks had holes in them and so did her plain white shoes that have some essence of a pale yellow. Rue couldn't believe it, it look like someone took the blueprints of her design and added some minor tweaks to it, like taking someone else's homework and changing it slightly so the teacher doesn't notice. But this was so very different to changing someone else's homework for your own benefit because this was changing a whole human being. Rue may not be considered human anymore and may be shorter than most 8 years olds but that doesn't change the matter....

...Then it hit her....

...This isn't the time to be looking at her reflection,...

...this isn't the time to be pondering....

...What would the sisters say?...

...What would Minnie say?...

...What would I say?...

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...It shouldn't have taken that long to figure out....

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...There was decidedly too much happening for Rue's mind to comprehend at once. Without even realising it she was out of the building and in the air. It seems her mind decided without her realising it. Though if given the opportunity and time she would have definitely made the same choice. Her eyes immediately fasten even though it didn't matter anymore. Suddenly there was a rustle presumably from the trees. It was a pretty windy day, it didn't help that it was a pretty windy day on the same day a bloodthirsty fire broke out! Rue's eyes stayed shut and didn't open until a couple of minutes after she hit the ground, she then finally opened her eyes when she grew too impatient and decided to have a peek to see how far she was from the ground. What she didn't expect was to see another body that resembled her sister....

...The sister she was trying to find,...

...to see if she is still alive....

...A harsh gelid breeze came by and the dead body's hair swayed to the breeze, almost as if it had a mind of its own....

...She almost had a heart attack....

...Can ghosts even have a heart attack?...

...Do they even have hearts?...

...Well, the closest thing a ghost can have to a heart attack....

...Thu...thump...thu...thump...thu...thump,...

...Rues' heartbeat was practically all she could hear until she realised that the very person she was looking at wasn't her sister....

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...I can't believe it. I need to be more observant, I didn't even realise that I landed....

...How could I have mistaken my twin sister?...

...How?...

...This is so pathetic....

...Stop....

...I'm here to find Minnie. Not to contemplate my worth. Minnie would be disappointed if she heard....

...No....

...No, she wouldn't....

...She'd be scared....

...I'm the extravert....

...I'm the one to take chances....

...I'm the one who isn't scared and basks in complacency....

...Ok, maybe I went too overboard on that but still....

...If I act scared if I hide away...

...if I don't face my fears,...

...who will make Minnie come out of her bubble?...

...Who will show Minnie that sometimes a little risk can be good?...

...Who will help her have fun and see the world in a different light?...

...How.....can...I......help....if...I'm.....dead?...

...Silent tears trickled down Rues' cheeks. They were wiped away quickly....

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...Getting used to being a ghost will take a while for Rue, that's a certainty. Maybe she will never get used to it. Who could easily accept the fact they're now a ghost and simply move on, at the age of 8?...

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...Calm down this is just a dream....

...Just a dream....yep that's right....

...Rue forced a smile on her face to further convince herself but her teary eyes betrayed her false persona. I don't want to scream and wake the sisters up. I don't want to face their punishment again that's for sure, I haven't even finished this punishment yet....

...Okay....

...Just like sis would say mission one is complete. Mission 2 work in progress....

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...And just like that, she was off to find Minnie. Dark, miserable thoughts kept trying to invade Rues' mind but she shut them all out, she focused on her sister who could be hurt or worse dead. Momentarily forgetting that she believed that this was a dream but she justified herself by saying it would hurt her if Minnie was hurt even in a dream and went back to trying to focus on finding Minnie. Who could be anywhere here. Notwithstanding being a ghost, Rue still had to take several breaks, you'd think running around with her sister all day, would help build stamina. But to be fair she was stuck in a room for roughly a week. Rue did have another good reason, that I will not divulge to you....

...Rue was running around for about ten minutes, she was going through the reddish brown brick wall of her ancient orphanage. Now the orphanage might not have been ancient but it looked it. It looked so horrid. One glance at it and it might have seemed like a lovely, cosy building but looks can be deceiving and for once it looked on the outside just like how it felt on the inside at least for some or perhaps......one....

...Rue was still stomping on dirt and occasionally grass, passing threw people and bumping into ghosts that she realised too late weren't humans. No apologies came out of her mouth which is unusual conceding this is Rue but who has time for that when your sister might be dead, even though Rue kept denying it, the logical side of her brain still made her do things you wouldn't need to do if this situation was, in fact, a dream. Besides the ghosts had already sadly passed away, and Rue couldn't let that happen to her sister, she was sure they would have understood if she explained her situation. Although she didn't know if she could indeed help since she isn't exactly what you call human anymore....

...Rue was contemplating when something caught her eye....

...She came to a halt,...

...a very drastic halt....

...It was a tall person....

...They looked almost identical to Rue....

...They were her sister....

...Her sister was standing there. Her sister,...

...not Rachel's sister...

...or...

...Zoe's sister...

...but her sister,...

...ALIVE!...

...Minnie was crying but Rue's brain was still processing the fact that Minnie was alive furthermore Rue copied her sister in balling her eyes out but instead of sad tears, they were happy ones....

...All else was forgotten....

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...It's...her? It's....really....her....

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...Joy so much joy that it was drowning Rue....

...Only Minnie could make her happy in moments when it felt like happiness was wiped away from the world....

...Only Minnie could make all of Rues' problems disappear just by her presence....

...Only Minnie....

...Maybe others found her annoying because...

...she was too 'nice',...

...too 'good',...

...too 'helpful'....

...However, they all just believed she had some alternative motive or were jealous but Rue could see the truth in her eyes....

...The honesty....

...And right now she could see the sadness in them....

...Rue didn't think, she only moved as soon as her brain registered Minnie's tears, Rue knew she had to comfort Minnie....

...She knew....

Her arms were wide open ready for the warm embrace but the only thing she felt was air.

...Cold,...

...icy,...

...thick...

...air....

...And then Rue slipped, her hands touched the floor first and then her knees came next. If it weren't for her quick reflexes she would have hit the ground face-first....

..."Oh....I-I....I-I... di-didn't...."...

...was the only thing Rue said, the rest was left unspoken. Darkness and despair were starting to get a firm clasp on her once more....

·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·

...Why does it matter?...

^^^Why does anything matter anymore? It's fine,^^^

...this is all fine....

...A faint smile appeared on Rue's face. It's just a dream after all....

...A dream....

...Just a dream....

...No need to beat myself up all because of a dream. It's only a dream after all....

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...Rue continued to kneel there completely in a daze while a voice called out to her. Rue didn't react on account of the fact she was in too deep, at this point she was practically deaf. The proprietor of the voice advanced. Nonetheless, Rue loitered despite the fact,...

...a person was gaining ground,...

...heading in the direction she was currently at,...

...with one goal,...

...reach Rue....

...Soon enough a hand landed on Rues' shoulder. The proprietor of the voice ended up snapping Rue out of it. Rue practically jumped out of her skin when she was brought back to reality and quickly scrambled away. She turned her head so that she could see the face of the person that had just lost grasp of her, her head swerved so apace, that it looked like it might snap. As soon as she soon who it was her body relaxed more. Her shoulders instantaneous were no longer held up high and she was no longer ready to kick them if they showed any sign of harming her but she still had a worried expression on her face, and her heart was still beating speedily. Heretofore the person that Rue just locked gazes with was her best friend. Rue couldn't believe it but there was no relief in seeing her best friend, maybe there was some relief but that was quickly shoved away. The reason was that that meant she was also a ghost just like Rue. That means she was also dead. Rues' whole body was shaking and that was about all she was doing....

...Rue couldn't think,...

...couldn't talk,...

...couldn't do anything except stare....

...Once more Rue was stuck in this helter-skelter life, trapped inside a void. Then out of nowhere after a couple of minutes of silence, Rues' best friend said "sorry" and then a gust of wind came by, yellow, red and orange leaves got swept up and made a barrier around Rues' best friend. The leaves were constantly moving around, going from the top to the bottom in a circular motion, completely covering Rues' friend. Another gust of wind came by and as quickly as the mini tornado formed, it vanished along with Rues' best friend. Rues' mouth was agape. She couldn't process this....

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...Sh-...I-...go-...

...·-·-·-·--∞--∞--∞--«§♦§»--∞--∞--∞--·-·-·-·...

...In the distance, Rues' eyes saw something or someone but her mind was still trying to comprehend everything. Her eyes saw what her brain couldn't. Too much was happening at a time. Only yesterday she was trapped in a dark room and now look where she is. The person was advancing while Rue's mind was like a computer, that was updating at a snail's pace. The person was now right in Infront of Rue and she didn't even know it. Let's just say that person wasn't her best friend, some people would say they were the opposite of a best friend. A hand reached out....

...∅№†--------------★♣★--------------†№∅...

Hallo readers, I would like to thank you if you decided to read this chapter please do tell me if you enjoyed this chapter and would like me to continue also if you don't mind, tell me how I could improve my writing and give me constructive criticism.

Word Meanings

Apace- quickly

Agape- wide open

Complacency- extreme self-satisfaction or in other words smugness

Divulge- make known

Gelid- cold

Heretofore- before now, is a synonym for since.

Helter-skelter- hurried or

disorganized 

Loitered- to stand or wait aimlessly or idly

Notwithstanding- despite 

Phantasmal- ghostly

Pinafore- A collarless sleeveless dress worn over a blouse or jumper.

Proprietor- owner

Spurn- reject

Swerved- to turn aside from a course sharply or suddenly

Word count: 3095