Summer's End

He had always been there, like a silent shadow from a half forgotten dream. Protecting and comforting from the dark, when Lora Harraway was feeling alone or scared. The dark haired young woman couldn't remember a time, when he hadn't whispered stories of contentment to her as she drifted off. Nor could she recall a time when she'd seen his face.

Even after years of visits and hours of conversations, he would never show himself fully. All that Lora's eager eyes could see was the ancient-looking cloak he always wore. When she was a little girl, and had first met him, his cloak hadn't been troubling. Seeing as the details that most adults face with apprehension, are often lost upon the innocence of a child. But now that her childhood was over, the young woman's curiosity had grown into a force to be reckoned with.

Lora had agonized over why he kept his face covered. She had even gone as far as posing the question to the man himself. But he had given no answer, save for a muted curse aimed at his 'creator', that he hadn't meant for her to hear. Before he'd then leapt from her cottage window and out into the night.

After that, Lora had kept her thoughts to herself, but the desire to understand his hidden visage remained. Why would her midnight friend hide from her in such a way? After he had shared so much with her, and helped her through so many trials. . . His secretive nature seemed petty; silly even.

On the eve of her seventh birthday, Lora had lost her only living relative. Her grandmother had passed away in the throes of senility, leaving behind a frightened little girl. Lora had laid down in the bed with the corpse of her grandmother, as her tears dried up and she became numb. She had stayed that way for two days. And that was how he had found her. It had been midwinter then, and she was nearly frozen when he finally sought her out.

Her Guardian Angel (as she had come to call him) had lifted her up and cradled her little body close as she shuddered and wept. He had hummed a tuneless song as he lit the twigs in the hearth and wrapped her up in the folds of his coat. It was the closest Lora had ever been to him, though even then, his face had stayed in complete shadow underneath his cowl.

Since that birthday, her Guardian had never left. He would disappear during the daylight hours, but when the stars rose in the heavens and the world darkened, he would come back. After years of routine, he had made a cot for himself, enabling himself to sleep next to the fireplace- where he and Lora would sit and eat supper together. They would talk and tell stories to one another, until they tired and fell into the depths of dreams. In the morning, when Lora awakened, he would be gone- with some little present left behind as a promise of his return. Sometimes it would be berries or feathers, or smoothed pebbles. Or now and again, a new book.

It was the books she loved the best, despite never having learned past her letters. For it meant her Guardian would read to her, with his gently flowing voice. His tone never rose in anger, though his passion for the world never ceased to be recited. He would speak of Heaven, and the glorious Angels that lived there, in a bittersweet way. Lora would always have to take his hand to jolt him back to the moment. And he would resume his reading, though his previous ardor would be diminished, as the embers of the hearth sparked into the wee hours.

Lora had often wondered if his reluctance to show his face, stemmed from the masked resentment he carried for God and his Heavenly Host. Seeing as nothing save those two topics seemed to ever upset him. But she had been unable to find an answer, to such an inquiry. Yet.

Currently the young woman stirred the evening stew pot, her dark woodland eyes staring out the square shaped window. It was the hottest Summer that Lora had ever known, and she'd had her cottage door and windows open almost constantly because of it. Even then, the slight sheen of sweat never completely left her brow.

The forest that surrounded the cottage on all sides, was bright with vibrant foliage and beautiful maple and evergreen trees. There hadn't been a cloud for days, save for the troubled ones of Lora's own mind.

With a steady hand, the woman let her wooden serving spoon wade into the broth. It cut through the chunks of rabbit meat and potatoes nicely, and the pleasant aroma had long since filled the cabin up. But the wonderful scent of the food couldn't stop Lora from worrying. For she had finally made up her mind on what to do.

She would see her Guardian's face tonight as he slept and forever put her questions to rest. She didn't know what she would face upon doing so, but she wished for the insight all the same.

It felt like a lifetime before the evening meal had been eaten, and they had turned in for bed. But in truth, it was only several hours after sunset, that her Guardian had pulled out his cot and laid beside the empty fireplace. It was still so hot outside, that they had both opted to sleep without blankets. Though, as expected, the gigantic cloak and cowl stayed firmly in place, as the man had fallen into the sweet arms of slumber.

Lora had waited for the longest time, listening to the still of the cottage, before she had become bold enough to sneak from her bed. She crept across the single large room of the cabin on silent feet. After several carefully laid footfalls, she found herself crouched beside her sleeping friend.

With the windows of the cottage thrown wide, the moonlight shone clearly. So the usual blindness of night was foreign, and all was illuminated.

Lora knelt for several long minutes, as she watched the familiar coat rise and fall with his breathing. In that moment, she almost turned away. She had been oblivious for so long, it felt wrong somehow to know what lay beneath. . . And yet, she could not silence her questions and curiosity. So with a clammy hand, the girl reached out and untucked the hood, before she hesitantly pulled it back all the way.

As the moonlight came to rest fully on her Guardian's face, Lora's hand retracted almost violently and shot to her mouth. She was almost too late in muffling her scream of shock, but luckily her reaction had been delayed.

As her palm clamped firmly over her gaping mouth, the girl felt the beginnings of tears form at the creases of her eyes. Lora had never been one to cry, save for the night her grandmother died. . . But she did so now, as she looked upon her friend's face for the first time.

With all her imaginings she had never thought something like this could be real. But it was, and it made her tears flow harder as she looked down at the ghastly vision.

His skin was deathly ashen and pale, with strange stitches crisscrossing here and there all over the plains of his flesh. Countless scars and markings lined every inch that her eyes could see, and an aura of cold wafted from him. . . Just as her grandmother's corpse had, once it had lost the heat of life. He wasn't alive nor was he dead. For which Lora could not find a way to explain. There was no blush of pink to him. . . no sign of life, save for the constant rhythm of his chest as he exhaled. Long raven hair fell around his face, with dark eyebrows and lashes to match. And despite the macabre condition of his appearance, his muscles were relaxed in sleep and gave him the semblance of a child. There was such innocence and purity, even with the depth of his deformities, that it gave the woman pause.

Lora's hand slowly lowered from her mouth, as the initial fear dissipated into acute sorrow. Translucent rain marked her cheeks as she gazed upon her dearest friend and companion. After years of being blind, she now understood his pain. His reluctance to let her see his face and his wistful nature when he spoke of Heaven. He surely had never known the love of eternity here on earth, for humanity was cruel and his heart was worn easily. Lora did not know what he had faced before he had found her, but she mourned for it. If she had not cared for him already, his face surely would have scared her. She could only imagine what he'd gone through with those who did not care.

The young woman slowly outstretched her hand once more, and let her forefinger gingerly trace his jawline. The contact was feather light so he would not wake, though he murmured as her warmth touched him. She did not flinch away from the cold flesh beneath her finger, until she was accustomed to the sensation. Then, she lay down beside him on the free space of the cot, and placed her hand atop one of his. How he had hidden his hand's natural pallor for so long, she could only guess. Perhaps the dirt of the forest had helped with the shade of his complexion.

For a time, Lora basked in the cool of his hand beneath hers, before her eyes slid closed and she too fell asleep.

"No." The single word awoke Lora from her sleep with a start, her brown woodland eyes shooting open to look startled at her Guardian. His hand was no longer held within hers, and he was no longer lying down.

"N-No!" he repeated, his normally calmed voice trembling with panic as he shook his head frantically.

Lora sat up from the cot, holding out her hands to him in a peaceful gesture. She forced her expression to be smooth, even as her heart hammered up into her throat at the abrupt awakening.

"Adam, please be calm. It's alright. Everything is alright. I promise."

As she used his name, the man winced and his face shone with utter torment. It was then that Lora noticed that his eyes were a brilliant shade of blue- beautiful and clear against the ashen gray of his skin.

"Please let me explain," Lora continued beseechingly as she reached out for him. But the man shifted away, as if he were a cornered beast, and quickly rose and ran towards the door of the cottage. He flung it open and dashed out into the morning, a deep cry tearing from him as he collapsed several feet from the doorway. He would have run farther, if his legs had allowed it.

Lora, who had immediately followed behind him, stopped short as he fell to his knees in the tall grass. In all her years of knowing Adam, she had never heard him make such an unearthly sound. It caused a chill run up her spine, and made her heart sink to the soles of her feet. When she had pulled back his hood to look upon his face, she had never intended to harm him. She hated herself for making him suffer, and vowed to make it right, no matter the cost.

The woman approached her Guardian unhurriedly, until she was standing directly before him. As he openly wept, she dropped down to mirror him and reached out to take his hand again. His gaze lifted as she grasped it, but he didn't fight to pull away. Instead, he looked down at their hands with remorse and grew quiet in his lamentations.

For a time, Lora was silent too, as she let her thumb absently trace his hand. She looked upon him without staring, but now that the light was fair, she studied him intently.

"How did this happen to you?"

"You mustn't ask that," he breathed. "I would sooner die than corrupt you with such horrors, as the tale of my birth to this form."

"If it hurts you so, I won't question it again," Lora promised. "But please, you must come back inside. Let me apologize for this despair I have caused you. . . Let me make it right."

He gazed at her with such a pained expression that it took her aback. "You would make amends?" He scoffed with evident self-loathing. "You would make amends, when it is I who have frightened you?"

"You have not-" she began but he cut her off, as disgusted teardrops dripped down his jawline and neck.

"I have tainted your heart," he assured her. "With this grotesque abomination of a face. . . I kept it hidden to spare you and myself. For these accursed features repulse all who look upon them." His words were dark, but his tone had tempered into a wistful lull.

"I am not frightened, and I do not think less of you for it."

"You might believe that to be true now," he whispered as glassy tears continued to cascade from his wearied blue eyes. "But my hideous visage will forever haunt your dreams. You will never look upon me as you once did. . . The monstrousness of my face will torment you, until you come to loathe me for it. . . I will lose you, Lora. . . Just as I have lost everything else."

Lora watched as pure anguish crossed his eyes, and felt her heart break. As Adam shut his ancient orbs and cried, the young woman found herself leaning over to wrap her arms around him. The contact made him jump, but her grip was unrelenting as she placed a kiss to each of his ashen cheeks.

"My view of you has changed," she agreed softly. "But you will forever be my Guardian Angel, and I will always love you for it." She cupped his dead flesh in her hands as she gave him a tender smile. "You will never lose me, Adam. We'll be together until the end of it all. I won't leave you."

The pained blue eyes opened again to regard her, before the weeping turned to sobs once again. His entire body wracked as she held him close and whispered calming words in his ear.

As the sun rose in the morning sky and the birds sang high in the trees, Lora and Adam's summer died along with the innocence of childhood and delusions of beauty. The irredeemable heat of June was replaced with the sullen frost of an eternal winter. As the man and woman held onto each other and cried.

A/N: I originally wrote and posted this story over on Deviantart for a contest, but I thought I'd share it here too. ^^

This is a little bit of an AU for the classic novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. I based my version of the Frankenstein Monster (Adam) after my favorite film interpretation, the 2004 mini series with Luke Goss as the Monster. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. It is the most accurate film adaption of the book I've ever found.

(**This story takes place after the events of the original story. After Victor Frankenstein dies and the Monster goes off on his own. I imagine that Adam would have gone back to the forests and hills one day, and I'm sure if he found a little girl in need he'd try to help her out. **)

I would love to hear what you guys think! I'm a bit nervous. I've never written anything for Frankenstein before and I'm a bit nervous of how it turned out. lol Love you guys, hope you're all doing well!

~Lyn