Remembering Sanity

  "Speaking of our pasts, what happened to your family Jasmine?"

Jasmine immediately stopped smiling and looked down at her feet that were hanging off my kitchen table. "I-I don't want to talk about it..."

I quickly grab her chin and lift her gaze to meet mine. "Now, Jasmine its okay. Just remember that we are in this together, without you I would be all alone. I would be just another heartless monster." She smiled and kissed me I put my hand behind her head and pulled her close. She wrapped her arms around my back. "Like I said Jasmine, we are in this together. Now and forever." Looking up at me she smiled, it was a subtle yet loving smile that said everything at once with no words to be used. Later that day, I was sleeping next to her in a bed that she convinced me to buy for us both to sleep in when she stayed over. It was decent at least, a little hard so it reminded me of the bottom of my coffin. I woke up a little before sunset, Jasmine was still sleeping at the time. I got up and put on my pants, I went over to the stove to make her some breakfast in bed pancakes with some bacon. She woke because of the smell and said, "Smells like some good eats.." she giggled a little. I said, "Well I guess I should make you some too..." Trailing off I winked at her. Later that night we were watching a movie, just having one of those nights cuddle next to each other laughing and occasionally kissing each other. Slamming came from my front door, someone was here. I rose up to go check the door when Jasmine raced to stop me in my tracks. "Devon," She said, "Do NOT answer that door. The person is here for me anyways." Finally I accepted defeat and trudged back over to the sofa. Plopping down I said, "Well I am only keeping my side warm, so you better hurry." I stuck out my tongue teasingly. Jasmine opened the door to find a large, burly figure standing in the way. The person was heavily cloaked and smelled stagnant, a little like when the slowest part of the creek gets even slower during a hot summer and just sits there. The cloaked figure looked inside directly at me and said in a harsh raspy voice, "Why is IT here!? They only bring death to us!" 

Quickly getting off the sofa and standing next to Jasmine I took her hand and held it in mine, our fingers intertwined. "I am Devon, Devon Smith. Now I don't much appreciate being called an 'IT.' I have been called many things but that one is just so obscure I take offense. I don't know who you are, but I do believe you already know 'What' I am, correct?"

The cloaked figure responded, "Of course I do! Do you take me for mad?" The cloaked person had a possible British accent, maybe South Britain. 

"Well there is no need for offense, but if I may ask, who exactly are you and why are you here?"

The hood was suddenly blown back to reveal a young woman with long black hair and the same color eyes as Jasmine. She looked older though, like she had much pain from years of loss and experience dwindled behind her eyes. She looked exasperated after the hood blew back. 

"Look away! Don't look at me monster!" She shouted pulling at her hood, making an attempt to pull it back over her head.

I said to Jasmine, "J-Jasmine who is she? She looks so much older, but she has an older feel to her... I am not trying to be rude at all Miss." 

Jasmine looked away from me and said, "Its my Mother."

Jasmine's mother reached out and touched her forehead, and suddenly a burn appeared on her forehead and she flew backwards into the wall behind us. 

I took her mother by the shoulders and shouted, "What did you do to her!?"

She stood there, tears streaming down her face, "They, They told me it wouldn't hurt her..." 

I shook her a little, "What wouldn't hurt her!?"   She looked up at me and and held my gaze for an eternity it felt like before she whispered, "The memories of her past..." Looking back to Jasmine crumpled against the wall in slumped position. I turned back to her mother, "Is there anything I can...." She was gone, nowhere in sight. I went back inside and shut the door, picked up Jasmine and brought her to our bed and laid her down gently. Grabbing her hand I placed my head against hers, and I fell. I fell inside her head I guess. I woke up and saw Jasmine standing in front of what looked like a large mob of people holding stakes and torches and farming tools. "Jasmine!!" 

Jasmine looked towards me with a look of fear and ran off. 

"Wait! Jasmine come back!" I ran after her and lost sight of here near a large farmland where people were tending to sheep and other livestock. I just stopped and fell to my knees. I took shelter under a large nearby oak and slumped down under it as it began to rain a steady gray drizzle. Sitting there slumped I began to think about what Jasmine's mother had told me. 'The memories of her past.' What does that mean, I thought to myself. Maybe she is being made to remember her sanity... Or just a time when she knew and obeyed what ever rules it was that her family had at the time. All I could think of was a scene from an old movie I had watched as a child. A repetitious line that was stated time and time again, but I couldn't remember what the line was anymore. I was trying to remember for my sake, but couldn't recall. My sanity was wearing thin by this point and I just collapsed out of sheer exhaustion. Then it hit me right before I left planet Earth, "Remember your sanity. Think of it long and hard, it will never help you again, but never say never."