Transformed Chapter ThirteenA Chapter by Tabitha M.Larissa had three more nightmares that night. The worst one had been of walking into Tyko’s chopped up body on the floor of the hospital and Doctor Evil saying there was nothing he could do while still holding the saw that dripped in blood. Olivia was there to comfort her after each one and she was still there when Larissa woke up from a perfect, dreamless three hour block of sleep. She wiggled out of bed, trying not to wake Olivia, and went to the bathroom. She pulled her hair back and looked in the mirror. Her eyes were red matched with pale skin and dark circles. All because they wouldn’t let her run. She’d rather put up with shin splints and chaffing. When she came back out Olivia was standing up and stretching. “Go back to sleep,” Larissa urged. “You must be exhausted.” “Sleep is for the weak,” Olivia said. “Besides, we’ve got yoga to do.” Larissa groaned. “Don’t be a baby,” Olivia chastised. They set up in the living room that was on their floor. Olivia used the computer there to pull up yoga videos. It started by talking about the history and what the chants meant. Apparently there was an intense debate weather or not you should be a vegetarian to practice or not. “Maybe we should just take a class,” Olivia said hesitantly. Larissa nodded slowly in agreement. Instead of shelling out the money they decided to persevere. The girl in the video was disgustingly flexible. She made every pose look extremely easy even the harder ones. Larissa’s legs were still sore so every pose and stretch tugged angrily at her muscles. It eventually ended with them collapsing in a fit of laughter. “I think I can feel my nonexistent abs,” Larissa chuckled. “You’d think my legs would be immune since I run around a bar all night,” Olivia commented, rubbing her shins. “But I feel the burn.” Lunch was being served as they walked up to the dining room. Hot dogs with varying bowls and bottles of condiments were laid out. Olivia and Larissa sat at the end away from Oliver, Tyko, Ant, and Sheena. Olivia piled her hot dog with chili and jalapenos while Larissa went for mustard. She kept her eyes on her food absently replying to Olivia while eavesdropping on the others conversation which wasn’t very interesting. The rest of the day was slow moving. After lunch she had followed Ant down to the fitness room where he showed her how to properly stretch and started her out with a gentle thirty minute walk not even a hint of running. After that her and Sheena picked corn and more peppers until the sun started to set. She quickly shoved a taco down at diner then retreated to her room. It was hours before she could sleep.
“Larisssssssa.” Her name was hissed, as if coming from a snake. A cold spike of fear stabbed her chest. It was colder than the metal table she was chained to. She pulled uselessly against her restraints until they bit into her skin. “How does it feel?” the voice cooed. “Knowing that you’re going to die?” Something scaly brushed her cheek. A scream stuck in her throat.
Olivia was there to calm the screams that escaped, to wipe away the tears, and to make promises that everything was going to be okay.
It was thirteen nightmares later that they finally got a last name. Marion. Lucas Marion. Somewhere in the back of her mind Larissa felt a rustle of recognition. The name sounded so familiar. “What now?” Olivia demanded. “She didn’t tell you anything else?” “Just that she doesn’t know where he’s keeping him,” Tyko replied. “It’s not the hospital. It’s not his house.” Larissa sat on the couch in the downstairs living room watching a movie, but not really seeing it. She had been watching it with Olivia after their yoga and lunch, but they had been interrupted by Tyko with the news. He still wasn’t talking directly to Larissa. “Doctor Evil goes to him, and doesn’t take anyone with him.” “Maybe we should follow him,” Olivia suggested. “Maybe,” he said pausing with a frown. “And she’s pretty sure the cure is hurting him,” he went on. “He’s been getting sicker and sicker for at least a week now.” “Maybe it will kill him,” Olivia said, her voice grudgingly hopeful. Tyko growled. “He doesn’t need to die. He needs help, or needs to be locked up.” “Because all those years in therapy apparently helped,” Larissa murmured under her breath. She didn’t think they heard her. Olivia gasped. “How can you say that? He’s done awful things!” “That doesn’t mean he should be killed, even if we could figure out a way to get away with it!” Tyko countered. “He’s still my brother.” “That doesn’t automatically clear him of all the wrong he’s done!” “I never said it did,” he said. “He needs to be locked up, not dead.” Olivia huffed. “I can’t say I agree. After all he’s done, to you, to Deidre, to Larissa, and whatever he’s doing to the new shifter he’s got locked up at some unknown location. People aren’t lab rats. Who knows, maybe he’ll kill the new one.” Larissa felt a chill in her blood. That was definitely not something she wanted to think about. The torture and mistreatment by itself was enough to make her skin crawl, but that plus the chance they might not even be able to save him... That was just too much for her brain to handle. She stood up and went towards the stairs. As she was walking up, she heard Olivia say, “Are you serious? You’re not the one that’s been holding her every night while she screams.” Larissa went straight to her room to let the burning tears escape. She was tired of being helpless, of needing someone to hold her at night, of the anxious thoughts, and the chilling nightmares. I’m stronger than this, she told herself over and over again. The past is in the past... she just needed to learn to keep it there. She’d been able to forget bullies in elementary school and abusive foster parents. Why not this? Everything in her past made her what she was. She had lived through it all...it was what made her strong. She dried her eyes and took a hot shower in an attempt to erase the effects of the tears. Her eyes were still red, but she felt better over all. She wiped the fog from the mirror and studied her streaky reflection. She took a deep, cleansing breath. “I am stronger than this.” She smiled at herself. She went back downstairs and was surprised to see Deidre. Her, Tyko, and Olivia were talking about the doctor’s condition. Well, Tyko and Deidre were talking while Olivia was listening and staring at the TV. You could almost see the anger radiating from her. Larissa sat beside her giving her a tentative smile. “I think it’s killing him,” Deidre was saying. “He looks awful. The cough is so bad. I know he’s going to do it soon.” Olivia smiled back at her. “You look better. An hour ago, you looked ready to jump out of your skin.” Her anger faded some. “I think I did,” Larissa mused. “And jumped into a new one. I’m tired of being afraid.” “Like really soon,” Deidre added for emphasis. “And you’re absolutely sure he hasn’t done anything to Lucas yet?” Tyko asked. “Yes,” she nodded. “Nothing other than the normal blood tests.” “Alright,” Tyko said sighing heavily. “Guess we just have to play the waiting game some more.” “I have to get ready for work,” Olivia said, waving at Larissa as she left. “I have to go too,” Deidre said. “I need to stay close. I’ll call you the second I know more.” Tyko nodded, giving her a departed hug. Once Deidre and Olivia, who had returned minutes later in her work attire, were both out the door Tyko sat on the couch across from Larissa. She knew he was studying her, but she refused to make eye contact, deciding instead that the back of her hands were more interesting than his golden eyes...even though they couldn’t possibly be. “Should we talk?” he said, finally speaking. Larissa finally looked at him with her heart skipping a beat. “About what?” She tried to sound confident, but her voice came out strained. “Anything that’s been going on?” he suggested. “Your horrible anxiety? Your nightmares?” “Those are not topics I want discuss,” she said. “They seem pretty important,” he protested. “They’re not,” Larissa said sternly, “something I want to talk about. Not now, maybe not ever. Hopefully they’re something I can add to my past.” “What about us?” he asked with a hint awkwardness. She didn’t say anything for a moment still studying her hands. She wanted to tell him that she missed him and that every fiber of her being would do anything to hold his hand. She finally looked at him, her breath catching when she was reminded of how handsome he was. She focused on making her voice steady. “Is there anything to talk about?” He winced. “Unless I’m fooling myself by thinking there was something great there.” She took a deep, shaky breath and agreed. “There was.” A small smile touched his lips, but it only lasted a brief moment before vanishing. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you. I’m your knight. I should have been.” “I’m the one that pushed you away,” she said. “Doesn’t matter,” he said. “I should have been the one holding you at night.” She felt the threat of tears, but pushed them down. “I needed the space. I think we both did. We were both fighting our own struggles.” “Well,” he said straightening up and adding a note of cheer to his voice, “if you’re willing move forward, so am I.” As much as her heart and body longed for him, she wasn’t sure if her mind was quite ready to handle it. She could relapse at any minute. She gave him a sad smile. “Give me some time to think.” “Take all the time you need, Mange,” he said sweetly kissing the top of her head gently as he got up and walked out of the room. The place he kissed tingled with so much warmth she almost called him back to say yes, she was ready to move forward and to put it all in the past, but her mind made her bite her tongue. She needed a distraction so she went out to the farm. She grabbed a basket and helped Sheena pick the never ending amounts of corn. “You must be making a fortune off this stuff,” Larissa commented. “Yeah, this has been a great harvest,” Sheena said with a hint of pride. “People are coming back every other day for more. The peppers are selling great, too.” “So how’s living with Ant going?” Larissa asked when her basket was half full. Sheena glowed with happiness. “It’s perfect. I don’t think it could be any better.” “That’s great!” Larissa smiled. “I’m happy for you.” She listened as Sheena gushed more about her relationship nodding and aww’ing in the appropriate places until it was time for dinner. Cressida passed out plates of chicken, pasta , and set three bowls in the middle of the table filled with different sauces. She picked the closest one to her which turned out to be a creamy cheddar sauce. The food no longer felt like rocks in her stomach which she took as a good sign. Oliver sat across from her with a spicy looking Asian sauce on his plate. “You know, I use to have bad anxiety issues,” he said in greeting. “Interesting way to start a conversation,” Larissa noted swirling her noodles in the orange sauce. He shrugged. “Everybody knows about it, it’s not like it’s a secret. Thought I’d share my experience with you. It might help.” “I don’t need help,” she grumbled. “I’m dealing with it.” “My anxiety was just social,” he went on ignoring her. “I had no friends, just my social butterfly sister who just made it harder on me, always trying to include me or set me up with her friends. That was always weird.” He shook his head like he was recalling an awkward memory. “One day, I decided it wasn’t worth it. I had no friends, while my sister had a flock. There was nothing hurting me, nothing holding me back but myself. So I stopped. It’s harder than it sounds, but you can do it. There’s no point in living with unhappiness. Life’s too short.” She swirled her pasta more as she thought about his words. They reminded her of the thoughts before her shower. She was stronger than this. Her past didn’t need to haunt her and neither did the things she couldn’t help. They were all doing everything in their power to help and eventually things would work out. They always did. They had to. He was right. The only thing stopping her was, ultimately, herself. She had needed time to herself, but now, for the life of her she couldn’t come up with a good reason to have pushed Tyko away. If anything he probably would have helped. Maybe she was afraid of thinking she wasn’t strong enough to deal with it herself. She hadn’t wanted Tyko to see her struggle like that. A physical struggle is one thing, but fighting inner turmoil is a whole different ball field. “You’re right,” she said munching on a bite of tender chicken. “There’s nothing holding me back but myself.” He nodded, pleased. “Just need to find out what makes you happy, and focus on that.” What made her happy? She already knew the answer to that and as soon as her eyes spotted Tyko, who was sitting a few seats down teasing Sheena about something, she knew that just further affirmed it. Her body ached with longing for him and a place in her heart had felt empty since she shut him out. He was the one person she would want to spend every second of everyday with. “I already know what does,” she said feeling the grin on her face grow wider. Oliver laughed at her. “Then get him. Like I said, life is too short. Don’t waste it on being unhappy.” Her grin faded into a grimace. “I don’t know if I’m ready.” She cast Tyko another quick glance. Her heart beat a little faster at the smile on his face. “That’s the kind of attitude that puts the road block in front of your happiness. Only one way to find out,” Oliver hinted. “Don’t put your happiness on hold. You’ll regret it.” And with that last tidbit of wisdom...he left. Larissa sighed deeply, a new kind of nervousness settling in her heart instead of her stomach. She knew he was right, but could she bring herself to do it? She finished her meal with thoughts and plans buzzing around her head. Olivia came home a couple hours later and Larissa immediately drug her into her room. She told her everything on her mind and when she was done, the excitement that rushed through Larissa’s veins showed on Olivia’s face. “Are you sure you want to do this?” Olivia asked. “What changed your mind?” “Your brother,” Larissa laughed. “But I had to tell you before I scared myself out of it.” Olivia grinned already heading to Larissa’s dresser. “Let’s do this.” © 2015 Tabitha M.Author's Note
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Added on May 12, 2015 Last Updated on May 12, 2015 Tags: fantasy, shapeshifters, romance, young adult Author
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