The Dark Lady

There exists neither good nor evil in this world

 

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I'll move on
to another place
from my memories
unmade

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It was rather a while before Flynn woke up, and even as his mind reached consciousness his eyelids remained firmly closed. He was petrified of what was waiting for him on the other side of the self induced darkness. If it weren’t for the strong smell of flowers, when it was the middle of winter and his mother hated anything floral, the blonde could have fooled himself into thinking everything had been a very nauseating dream.

Of course, this conclusion would have been wiped clear the second his eyes opened, but at least he could have been fooled into a momentary illusion.

It was his own curiosity that betrayed him in the end. He sat up slowly – very slowly – waiting until last before opening his eyes, and gasping as he did so.

He was surrounded by dozens upon dozens of potted roses, arranged neatly in a wide and perfect circle around him. What caught his breath was their colouring. Each pot blended seamlessly into its neighbour, with yellow turning a pale orange, shifting to red that moved to mauve and back again.  Flynn approached one flower, it’s colour like mulberries smudged on white cloth. Gently he brushed fingers across the cluster of petals, more beautiful than anything he’d ever seen in his short existence.

“Ohh, up already?” a smiling voice said from behind. Flynn quickly turned to see a beautifully petite brunette lady in an opening he hadn’t previously noticed.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to touch them, I just-”

“There’s no need to apologise for anything. They’re here for us all to enjoy, and you were apparently enjoying them,” she interrupted his panicked confession, wandering over to fiddle with a rose a couple pots from Flynn’s. He was then taken aback when he noticed the folded primary feathers showing from under her clothes.

“How are feeling? You tore out some rather important feathers, so you won’t be flying about for a while,”

“Oh. That’s okay,” he said to the rose as his thumb caressed its petals awkwardly. He’d never been allowed to fly, and had no idea how to try on his own.

“I have never seen this place before... It’s so beautiful. Where am I... in relation to the nearest town, I mean?” Flynn asked softly. He felt truly torn between staying in the rose room forever, and returning to his sick mother. If he went with medicine, he was sure they’d let him see her at least once more. If he proved he wasn’t a monster – really proved his innocence – the townsfolk would accept him enough to at least let him care for her. Hence, he needed to know so he could eventually get back.

“Mm, we all agree. Everyone anticipates visiting each time we come here. It’s one of a kind,” she said with a sigh. “We’re near enough to Gelfarth to get provisions, but far enough away that nobody will ever find it.”

A quiet smile kissed Flynn’s lips at this knowledge. He was going to return, nursing his mother back to health until she was well enough to once again fend for herself. Afterwards, he would return to the rose room, never to inflict his presence on the small town again.

 

***

 

Flynn felt a violent shiver rip through his body upon stepping from the sleeping rose room. It had been explained that newcomers and such were placed in there to prevent panic when they woke. The brunette, whom Flynn eventually found was named Ela, also said that the rose they went to first meant a collection of things he hadn’t understood, and he doubted he ever would.

He’d managed to collect a variety of things in the few hours he’d spent in the rose room, and now these were the only objects Flynn carried with him through the still snow.

Everything was quiet, making the blondes footsteps sound like a giant. His mother had spent over twenty-four hours by herself in the freezing cold, when at only the beginning of the week Flynn had been helping her do even the most trivial tasks.

She could very well be inside, freezing to death and too weak to call for help. If she skipped meals, medicine or regular fluid intake she would catch another form of sickness. He doubted her body could take much more, let alone something as severe as pneumonia.

Thoughts similar to these sent spasms of panic through his being, forcing Flynn to leave the serenity of the rose room and face the numbing cold.

Thirty minutes into his walk, however, he was forced to stop as a figure quite literally flew in front of his path. The man had windswept hair and tawny brown wings, with the same expression of sincere concern on his face that was worn the previous day. Flynn just gaped at him, having never seen a man fly before let alone with wings.

“Every time I see you, you seem to be going blue with cold,” His voice had a beautiful sound to it, like a musical tease to each syllable. “May I ask why you are wandering in the snow at the dead of night with only a light coat on?” It wasn’t a scolding, merely a concerned inquiry.

“I’m travelling to Gelfarth with some medicine. My mother is extremely unwell, and I’m going to nurse her back to health,” Flynn explained carefully. His eyes flicked to the man’s face, only to once again see the same sad smile as before.

“I was under the impression you had been forcefully removed from Gelfarth,”

“I was. Last night, before you found me,”

“You understand the townsfolk banished you?”

“Yes...”

“Then why, for all the things for you to do, are you choosing to go back when no doubt you’ve seen their attitudes to people like us?” His expression was of a person who already knew the answer to a question they asked.

“My mother is very, very sick. It’s important she’s taken care of, and so I’m going back to do just that,” he replied.

“You don’t understand. The townsfolk are scared of us. They think us unholy. They are not going to let you anywhere near your mother,”

“Why are you trying to talk me out of going?!” Flynn finally burst out. “My mother is sick! She needs me!” and yet he didn’t see it wasn’t as much as he needed her – Like a crutch... a support. He loved her with so much of his being, he felt as if a piece of him had been torn loose when dragged away from the small and shambled house.

“I am truly sorry. You need to understand that no matter what you do to sway them, the people of Gelfarth have been fed lies about us to prevent our upbringing... Our survival,” he said quietly. “Have you ever heard of the angels that fell from ‘God’s grace’? The holy beings that betrayed Him and turned bad?”

“Only once,”

“I see. The people believe we are messengers from a form of Hell, pushed from wherever it is we supposedly come from to become the infants of pregnant women. In other words, they believe us to be demons,” the man had taken rather a few steps towards Flynn whilst saying that, and his body was inclined as if ready to catch the blonde if he were to suddenly collapse.

“They... They think we’re evil?” he choked out, disbelief was written on his face with realisation of his mother’s last words.

She meant them. She actually wanted Flynn to be ‘taken away’, not because it was the customs of the town, but because she actually believed them – believed Flynn was demonic. Guilt began to twist and burn inside him as thoughts clashed in a firework of disjointed epiphanies both true and false.

“Is it true; are we demons?” he gasped.

“No, and nor are we angelic. As I said, the townsfolk were fed lies about us, and unfortunately they were not beneficial...”

Every last shred of hope he’d contained concerned with re-visiting his mother was eliminated like a wildfire through his mind, and without even realising it he was being told to breathe by the gentle voice now holding him, until his tears subsided and he was walking with an arm wrapped firmly around his being.

 

 

***

 

“I don’t think I remember asking you for a name. What should I call you, mm?”

“I’m Flynn. What do I call you?”
“Raphael,”

“Okay,”

“Flynn... I want you to join my family,”

“I... Are you sure?”

“Of course,”

“Are they okay with me living with you?”

“Yes. We discussed it this evening over tea,”

There was a long pause, during which both were fearful of the others thoughts.

“I... I think I would like that, very much...”

“In the morning, I’ll introduce you to the rest of our family. I think you’ll fit in wonderfully,” Raphael said quietly as he stood from the bedside surrounded by roses. “But now you need to sleep. I’ll see you again in the morning. Sleep well, Flynn...”

As Flynn closed his eyes and drifted into timelessness, so too did the memories of his former life. The following day he would start his life anew, only rarely opening the sealed lid of the past.

 

 

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I'll hold on
and my heart will find you there
love will shine free
Forever

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-tbc-

 

By J.M Selleck

 

Author's Note

Oh lordy. This one was much longer than the others, ne?

The rose room was something that occurred to me a few nights ago. The way I visioned it was utterly beautiful, and so I couldn't resist having it in here.
The rose with petals like smudged mulberries is called 'The Dark Lady', hence the chapter title. It's my absolute favourite rose, so give kudos to Flynn for choosing it, LOL! Look it up on Google...
I feel I also must apologise for going off topic, somewhat. I promised the discovery of �Family is more than flesh and blood�, and decisions to �Determine where his loyalties lie�... I kind of only half did the latter. So, uhm, sorry...
This is also the end of what my mind had conjured up thus far. I have absolutely no plans for future conflict/resolution, so if you�d like to see more of Flynn�s life, pleeeease suggest any ideas.

I would also like to thank for their reviews;
Nemuri Kentai, for your absolutely fantastically awesome reviews :D! I love them so much!
And Ashleigh, for well placed threats � Keep practicing that cackle! xD