Free

Time has passed since the incident of Damian running out of the room. There is precisely three hours to find a way out of the deal. Cassandra feels concerned about her soul being consumed, but Damian's behavior has also been worrying. She has heard him yelling at night, almost as if he is fighting someone off. She speculats that maybe it is Natalia, but she doesn't sense her energy, anymore. It seems as if she has escaped somehow, but maybe she is trapped? Julien didn't come back that night, Lucian and Shadow did. Julien had decided he was done with the secrecy and went to find someone else to stay with. She supposed that it had all been too much for him, but how was anything before not too much? According to the other two, this has been going on for years. So, why was it too much now? She shakes her head, knowing it's better without Julien. She didn't trust him from the beginning, but she knew what it felt like to have people she trusted keep things to themselves. It isn't a pleasant feeling.

"Well, I hope he's with...similar company, at least," She shivers at the thought, "A bunch of slime ball douchebags possibly with a good side."

She grimaces before turning her attention towards the living room. She senses that something is wrong.

"Damian, what is going on?" She hears Shadow yell.

There isn't a response, and she doesn't hear Lucian speak, either. Shadow is the louder one of the three, he does't care who hears. He speaks his mind then and there, and that is just that. But, he is fair about it. She uses her ability to heighten her senses, trying to hear better since she isn't in the living room.

"Am I hearing things?"

Everything goes silent, eerily silent. No one speaks a word. She slowly walks to the door, opening it to peak out. Everyone is frozen in place. Damian sits on the ground, holding his head in what seemed like agony. Shadow looks worried but also irritated. Lucian isn't in the room, or he isn't on the ground. She looks up to find that he is suspended in mid-air.

"Привет, женщина."

She looks around the room, knowing immediately who that voice belonged to. She doesn't see Natalia, though.

"Up here."

She looked up to see Lucian smiling down at her.

"You...escaped?"

"да," She notices the smile on Lucian's face is almost sinister.

"That's Natalia, alright," She thinks to herself, laughing.

"But, how did you escape and why Lucian- Why is everyone frozen?"

Natalia clicks her tongue in thought," Strangely, I found that I have the ability to freeze time, but it also freezes all 'vessels' besides you. And, the situation is a bit of a mess. Damian's mind is a mess due to his memories unwinding. He kept them so far in the back of his mind that he forgot about them. Until you two made the deal. He's not able to read your thoughts but sense your energy. Being you two have a similar background , a traumatic childhood, it made his memories unwind, and here we are."

"How did this happen?"

She hums thoughtfully, "They were talking calmly, Damian was upset. As they were talking, I slipped out and found myself in Lucian's body, instead. Damian noticed the change, I'm assuming Lucian's eyes changed, and now we are here."

"Why did you freeze time?"

"I tend to do that in stressful situations, I suppose I should unfreeze it, huh?"

Natalia gives her a shy smile, making her shake her head, "Yes, we should probably deal with this. I still have one question, though?"

"Yes?"

"Now that you've escaped...what are we going to do?"

Natalia gives her a sad look, "I am not sure. But, we don't really have time to find out, do we?"

"I mean, time is frozen now. Is there a way to sense who is compatible with your soul?"

"You are, and Lucian. I already did that when I was stuck, but I wasn't sure how to tell you."

"I see," She pauses, thinking," But, how would that work? Would you take over completely or?"

"I don't know, it's a risky move and I don't want to lose you again."

"I'm not going anywhere," She speaks gently," I'll always be with you, no matter what."

Cassandra pauses thoughtfully. There has to be a way to make this work. She can't stay in Lucian's body. She knows he would willingly offer such a solution, but he has a life outside of this. He has people who rely on him, and he's like an older brother to her. She can't let him go like that. It wouldn't sit right.

"I know you might argue with me on this, but-"

"I'm not taking your body as a vessel."

Cassandra sighs, "Look, I know you don't know Lucian, but he's like...family to me. He didn't have to save me from the woods, but he did. And, yeah, this whole thing has been really weird. But, look at where we are. If Lucian hadn't taken me in or even helped me, we might not be where we are now. You might have become another soul that Damian consumed and I'd be at home, waiting for you to come back."

Natalia gives a sad look as Cassandra speaks, "None of this is Lucian's fault. And, I know Damian's messed up for any of this. But, I can't entirely fault him. He made his own decisions, that is on him. But, look at everything he's been through. His mother abused him, his dad planned the entire thing. That's just the short version, but it's just messed up. I don't think he deserves to be consumed."

"I do."

Time unfreezes, leaving Lucian landing on the couch. Not gracefully, I must add.

"Ouch?" Lucian spoke as a question, "How did I get up there, anyway?"

Cassandra isn't sure what to say or if she should explain. She still isn't sure what Natalia is thinking, or even where she is.. Lucian's eyes are their normal shade of green, which isn't a bad thing. But, that begged the question as to where Natalia might be. She had looked so sad moments before but didn't say anything. It's as if she returned time to it's normal flow, but is nowhere to be found. The other two are discussing what might have happened as Damian holds his head in his hands, shaking. Somehow, they don't notice. The voice that said, "I do," wasn't Lucian's or Natalia's. It was Damian's.

"Did he break through the time freeze somehow, was he listening?" She thinks to herself.

Natalia told her that he couldn't read her mind. She remembers Lucian telling her that he couldn't, either, unless she let him in.

"I spoke to you mentally," He looks up at her.

It is clear now that he has been crying, his eyes puffy and red.

"That explains why he was shaking," She thinks to herself.

The room falls silent, no one seeming to know what to say or do. The fact that Damian broke down in front of them said it all. He isn't the kind to be vulnerable around others, she senses something different about the atmosphere.

"I found a way out," He speaks almost sadly, "I know how to save you."

She can only stare as he spoke, and no one interrupts him.

"I...I know what I have to do," he pauses," These memories are...haunting. Memories of being screamed at by mother for never being enough. The memories of her drilling her mantras and beliefs into my head. And, when I didn't listen or even know how to respond, she'd beat me or degrade me. I remember that as I was growing up, I somehow found a way to look like a boy. I was born a girl, but my body formed with my soul. So, my face, and other areas, grew the way I wanted. But, it made her lash out at me. She had wanted a girl so much that...I was a mistake. As if all of her problems were my fault."

He pauses again for a moment, staring at the floor sadly, "I couldn't take it, anymore. At the age of 16, she...she saw how I looked. How my voice was, and she was disgusted. She told me that the day I was born, I was nothing but a worm. A parasite that only cared for itself. And, she reminded me that I was selfish for not wanting to spend time with her. That I wasn't...good enough. Nothing I ever did made her happy. I cleaned the house to make her happy, to hear the words,' I'm proud of you', but she never said it. She just belittled me, or found something wrong with it."

No one dares to speak as he continues. The moment feels too fragile, as if one word, one breath even, can break it. His tone sounds heartbroken, so hollow.

"I remember when she drank, she'd really take her anger out on me. And, I did the same to her. She was so messed up mentally, and I just couldn't take it. And, then my dad showed up. Man, I wish he'd have just stayed away. But, he knew. He knew I would end up becoming a monster, one that he could control and use as a puppet to continue his work. Through him, I was given the praise I had always craved. But, it didn't make me feel good."

He stares out the small window in the living room, "It actually made me feel worse. As if I was doing something so wrong..."

He stands up slowly, gently grabbing Cassandra's shoulders, "I know what I have to do and you can't stop me. Please don't stop me."

He looks at the other two, "You two, as well. I'm...sorry I treated you both like trash in the past, it's something I can never change or make up for. And, I am so sorry. I could have had two friends, people who supported me. But, I choose the other route and I regret it. I know I can't ask for your forgiveness, but I hope that one day I can make it up to you two," He looks at Cassandra," And to you. You have helped me just by being here somehow and I didn't want to admit that. I never thought a human, or another being, could ever understand. And...as much as it pains me to know that you've been through hell, I thank you. Even though I am the villain in this story, your story, you helped me and saw through my mask."

He stares at her with a sad look before turning towards his room, "Thank you, Cassandra. Do not blame any of this on yourself. This was and is my choice. You saved me...and now I will do the same for you. I hope we meet in another life...but under better circumstances."

Cassandra and the other two only watch as he reached his room and closes the door. They all seem to understand what he means and honestly aren't sure how to feel. The room remains silent, the whole house feels still. What is there to say? They had made the plan for his end, but this almost feels wrong.

"Well," Shadow starts,"This is...unexpected."

"Yeah," Lucian agrees,"It almost...hurts."

Cassandra nods,"It does. I want to stop him, but I can't help him if I'm consumed. And, maybe...he'll feel better. I wish there was a way around this."

"Me, too," Shadow agrees.

The room falls silent as they stare off, unsure of what to say. Everything feels so silent, but the air slowly starts to feel lighter. Shadow sits up, seeming to be a tad antsy.

He pauses before sitting back down on the other couch, "You know, I...don't talk about my background or myself very much, but I have siblings. I had parents. I...haven't talked to any of my siblings in what feels like forever. They don't try contacting me, but I'm not sure why. It's been that way for at least one hundred years. I'm old, I know. But, that's why," He begins to tear up," Having you two in my life is so important. You two filled the gap within my heart that just...made me feel so empty inside. It feels wrong saying this now, seeing as how this is ending. But, that would have been me, if I didn't have either of you. I've known you longer," He looks at Lucian,"But you both mean a lot to me. You're like the family I needed."

He stops speaking, staring at the floor as Damian had, "When I was still young and learning what it really means to be a 'skin walker', I felt lost. As Damian said, it just didn't feel right to me. To take other's forms and walk around in them, harassing others. It didn't sit right with me. My parents disappeared around then, so it was my grandparents raising us. And, they didn't care about anything. They just wanted us to stop bugging them, and I guess I understand that. My siblings aren't like me. They had no problem stealing other's forms or harassing anyone. I was the 'crybaby', the sensitive one, out of the three of us. The day I ran away, I remember their words."

He pauses almost laughing as tears falling from his face, "Run away, crybaby, run away. You'll never make it out there, no one will help you," He pauses, "They thought it was funny, my pain was their pleasure. Which, is as disgusting as it sounds. I mean, their own brother...how does someone do that?"

"So, how do you...feed if you're supposed to torment others?"

"I sense other's pain and just feed off of that, not that I try to."

"Did you...do that to me?"

"When you first entered the house, I sensed your agony. But, you hid it from us. You protected yourself. I thought I had been feeding off of your pain, but I hadn't been. I never noticed, but whenever Damian came around, I didn't have to go out to 'feed'. It was like constant energy that just...was easy to feed off of. And, then when he left, I had to go back out. I just didn't make the connection until now."

They sit in solemn silence as the minutes and hours slip away. They all understand what Damian's plan means. But, Cassandra is right, maybe. Does he have the chance to redeem himself while he's alive or does being a demon mean it's better to start over? She notices the time running out and worry envelops her. He isn't planning to take her soul, is he? She runs to the door, the other two following her.

"What's wrong?"

"Is there a key to this door?"

"No, this is an old house. It locks from the inside."

"D-Does anyone have a lock pick or even a card to slide the door open?"

They all search their pockets, but nothing turns up. Cassandra feels panic settling in as she loses time. Fifteen minutes left.

"What are you doing?"

"We have to get in there, we have to go break the door."

"You want me to break my own door down?"

Shadow gives a raised brow at Cassandra, but sighs, "I know this is right, but you owe me a new a door."

She nods and the struggle begins. The door is tough, old wood. Ten minutes. There isn't a sound coming from the room. No laughter, no crying. Silence. This makes her panic even more as they shove their weight against the door.The door doesn't budge, but it is damaged. Seven minutes. Panic builds. Not only within Cassandra, but seemingly within the others, as well. More of the same shoving against the door, but this time they use more of their strength. Five minutes. She feels tears build in her eyes. She wants him to be able to live, but she also wants to survive. She can't help if she's dead, and she knows he wouldn't live with himself if he did go through with it. What if it was all an act though? Is he lying. Two minutes. The door is cracked in several spots. It looks so close to breaking. One minute left, and the door breaks down.

He looks over at three, smiling, "I told you not to stop me...and you didn't. I hope...that none of you hate me for any of this, but...I don't blame you...if you do. Thank you...for everything..."

Damian is lying on the bed. His skin cracks with what looks like lava underneath. Some of his body begins to decinigrate as he smiles. The atmosphere feels so fragile and mixed with different emotions. Cassandra notices the eyes from that night in the woods. They hover over Damian, looking down. A voice seems to try to speak, but falls short as Damian's body falls apart and evaporates into air.

"No more, dad. I'm not your puppet, I never was."

The other two don't seem to hear Damian's last words, but she does. She smiles sadly, knowing that now he might find a way to be happy.

The silence in the room is still as they all sit in the living room. They all remain still with sorrow, yet the atmosphere feels calm. Cassandra is seated on the other end of the couch, with the other two at the opposite ends. She notices this, and they seem to, as well. Even though it's something so...trivial, stupid even, it makes them smile. The way they're sitting forms a triangle. But, it makes them smile. As if it's some small inside joke they share.

Shadow breaks the silence, "Should we...do something? Like celebrate his death or have a ceremony here and now?"

"That's not a bad idea, but I have a feeling that Damian wouldn't want us to mourn him. He'd want us to...celebrate..."

Cassandra nods, "To celebrate his chance at a new life."

They all nod solemnly, celebrating in a small way. Just the three of them.

"Hey, woman," She hears a rough Russian accent speak, "I'm here, too."

"It worked?" She thinks to herself.

Natalia laughs, "It worked...we're finally together, as one."

Cassandra smiles, feeling a small tear running down her face. Their plan didn't happen, but everything did work out. Her and Natalia will always be together and Damian has a better chance to be happy. She smiles as they celebrate. A small, but wholesome celebration. To a new chance, a new life.