Chapter Nine: It's a dark place... (When you walk that road alone.)
Slipping beneath the rose brush, Jade felt her fur ripple with unease. Making an unhappy sound in the back of her throat, she tucked her bushy tails about her firmly and huddled closer to the wall, licking at her shoulder to try and tame the bristling mess. Pale silver eyes glowing in the evening light, she crouched and shifted on her paws, sifting through the scents on the air.
Sensation blindsided her, the subtle threads of grass twining with the full throated cry of the roses, as from further afield the cool, pure laughter of water reached her and then there was swooning musk grabbing her firmly by the muzzle and perfume swooping at her from dizzying heights and itwastoomuch she couldn't andtheywhere and she didn't-
Gasping for breath, Jade jolted painfully, knocking her elbow against the arm of the chair. Close to hyperventilating, she dipped down until she could feel the reassuring pressure of her knees against her temples. Sucking in slow draughts of air, she let out a low sound of relief as soft silk brushed her skin.
A chill crept over her at the feeling, and unease raked gentle claws over her exposed back. Shifting her weight, she half rose from the chair, feeling her horror stricken heart beat a despairing solo in her chest. It was a world gone mad. Drab and demure moths fluttered and beat against the glass separating them from the dance floor, always moving, ringing it and sobbing as they clawed frantically.
Expressions cool with disdain, the ones within the light murmured and made sharp, cutting comments that sent lancing shards outwards, tearing the Dancers to shreds little by little. She could see worlds in those tears, caught dizzying glimpses of streets and bedrooms alike and yet not her own.
Forcing herself to breathe slowly and carefully, Jade got to her feet, cradling her elbow. Acting on instinct, she drifted into the shadows of a stand of potted plants, watching the edge of the dance floor carefully. Others tripped and stumbled, ripped free from the light and thrust to the edges of the dance floor, clothed forcefully in glamour and delusions, in fantasies and secret hopes that suited them none till the dawn.
Fractures split and tore the dance floor into sharp divisions, drawing down the lines of the battlefield. It rippled through the crowds, pausing here and there to absently drain a Dancer before twisting to prey on an Other, seemingly indiscriminate in whom it hunted.
Fighting her terror at the sight of that pure, distilled perfection, Jade shrank back into the cool touch of the greenery, unconsciously inhaling and trying to sort the scents around her. Somewhere far away a clock began to ring but she paid it no attention, too focused on teasing out a subtle scent from nearby.
Her tails twitched as the scent drifted away and she let out a low growl, skin itching inside the silk dress. A wild longing ripped through her, rattling and howling through her rib cage; how easy it would be to slide from this dress, this human skin, and prowl the dance floor on silent paws, to lead astray these poor young ones and take them to a dark corner where she could feed undisturbed...
Flexing her hands and feeling her nails dull themselves down, Jade took in a shuddering breath. Now was not the time to take a Walk, she told herself sternly, the silver chain about her neck feeling heavier with each passing second. Seconds- wait, but what, this was important- the heavy bass thud of the clock's ringing chime rattled through her until she felt she was about to shake herself to pieces.
Teeth chattering, she stumbled backwards and hit the wall- or at least she thought she did, because suddenly the world was all a glittering glass-green maze where even a breath could flay her to scarlet ribbons. The silver about her neck burned and she fought to hold onto that, the pain burning brightly even as the plants about her shifted and murmured, sending creeping roots and vines out to bind her hand and foot, leaves slyly inching across her face to muffle her low snarls.
This was- not, and before it had- but now she was, and They- Four, she HAD to remember that, because- hurting, dragging her down and hurt so much to battle against the tide, and- it was cold claws sinking a bone deep ache into her as it looked at her with eyes that burned- and he was saying something in a voice low and melodious but- it no longer had words, it was Perfection, it was It, and she was- spiralling, falling, tumbling ever deeper with the ringing chime of midnight crying in her ears.
Jade bolted upright with a gasp, heart thudding in her ears, and reached her hands upwards for the silver chain about her neck. Only tender, abraded skin met her searching fingertips; and even as she patted her pillow and the floor nearby, a sinking feeling told the teen that her protection was gone for good.
==/==
Luxuriating in the cozy warmth cocooning her, Jade let out a grumpy noise when someone prodded her with a foot. She bunched up inside her quilt, yanking it over her head as the curtains where forcefully yanked open.
"Morning girls! Time to wake up!"
Lorraine carolled, nudging Jade with her foot again as she unceremoniously yanked the blankets off of her daughter. Katrina let out a howl of protest that died down to a whimper, curling up into a foetal ball. Her mother gave a low, satisfied chuckle that turned into surprised laughter when a cranky Katrina started hurling pillows at her mother.
Meanwhile, Jade had decided she didn't want to be part of the pillow/blanket war erupting between mother and daughter. Wrapping her quilt around her, she shuffled out of the room, barely noticing when a pillow whumpfed into her side as she reached the door. Blearily looking down the hallway, she minced down it, making an irritated noise as the cold wood chilled her bare feet.
Katrina had taken the war to the next level and was, from the noise level, apparently trying to strangle her mother with her quilt. Nudging open Hayden's door, the brunette yawned hugely and stumbled over to the bed in the middle of the dark room. Tired from waking up so early that morning, she didn't even notice the lump in the middle of the bed until she crawled onto it.
"Mmph- what the- Jade, is that you?"
A tousled blonde head poked itself up out of the blankets and Hayden blinked, scrubbing the sleep crust from his eyes. Making an unhappy noise, Jade wrapped her blankets around herself and curled into a ball at the end of the bed. Sitting up fully, Hayden looked between his half open door and the weary teen at the foot of his bed, the gears in his mind churning slowly.
"AAhh! GEORGE! Young lady, that is- aahh! Katrina Websy, that is cheating!"
Lorraine howled indignantly, her protests almost drowned out underneath her daughters maniacal cackle of delight. Arching an eyebrow, Hayden shook his head slowly and grinned. A typical weekend morning, then, but he wasn't really in the mood to join in on the family fun. Yawning hugely, he slumped back down into bed, carefully angling his feet away from Jade's head. The teen in question huffed a quiet, contented sigh of delight and promptly fell asleep once more.
It was the lack of noise that woke her, Jade decided later. Something in her reacted, setting off alarms when she could no longer register the familiar noises of a suburban house in the middle of the day. Yawning, she pulled herself into a seated position, feeling as though she was moving through air as heavy as mud. Raking sleep mussed hair from her face, the teen shivered a little as cool air hit her bare shoulders.
Glancing around the room, she at first mistook the odd blurring of her vision as a symptom of her having not woken up properly. Rubbing at her eyes, she glanced towards the door and froze, tension yanking hard on her muscles as the air within the doorway rippled, flexing with strange lights that warped her view of what should have been the hallway beyond it.
One hand absently rubbing the sore, ridged welts around her neck, Jade cautiously eased herself to her feet and walked forward, doubling over as nausea dug vicious claws into her stomach, making her dry retch as she drew closer to the door.
Pausing about a metre away, the teen eyed off the forming vortex, mind gone blank from shock. Those odd, shivering waves of unease where setting up a tattoo at the base of her spine, pulsing in time to the fragments of sound ricocheting around the room.
"-going to be dangerous, but"
"...Koenma-sama, we accept—"
"—call Hayden, I was going to—"
"...course we would love to have you over, especially—"
"—come pick us up we would appreciate it, our flight—"
"...going to have to leave early, and..."
Shuddering, Jade backed up as she braced her head in her hands, trying to deny what she was hearing. As she moved backwards the rhythm within her seemed to change, making her feel off balance, as though she was a few steps behind in the dance. Then the voices changed from not-but-familiar to known-and-familiar.
"—happy to come over, I can help you get ready—"
"...really want this to go well, I'm sure we can..."
"—make it work, I know you can—"
"...leave around 10am, you'll be fine to..."
"—course I can get home, it's all good and—"
Fighting back tears, Jade sank to the floor with her hands over her ears, feeling desperately confused as the two beats warred within her. She felt delicate and frail, half expecting the next beat to be strong enough to shatter her into pieces. Somewhere far, far away a third beat added a counterpoint tune, drawing the other two into harmony as the low, thudding bass rumbled through her.
Stiffly getting to her feet, the teen roughly wiped at her face, forcing herself to take slow, calming breaths. She didn't quite understand what was going on, or why the world around her was slowly condensing into nothing more than two great, swirling doorways... but she could breathe, she could think, and with the slow toll of the clock thudding down till midnight, she had time to think.
Moving cautiously, she eased herself closer to where the doorway out of what had been Hayden's room was. As she did so the snippets of sound warbled out to her, the words and the voices within them fading in and out, as though they were slowly being tuned to a frequency she could hear. Jade trembled when she recognised the names being spoken, but the odd burn marks around her throat helped to ground her.
Taking a few steps back, towards where the window should have been, she relaxed a little when she recognised her own voice, as well as that of Katrina's. It appeared as though she had a choice- dare the unknown, or retreat into the comfort of the familiar. But there was more to it than that, she argued silently. She could very well be leaving behind all that she knew and loved for something beyond imagining, where she might not even have her family!
Engrossed in battling her thoughts, it took her a few minutes to realise that there was an odd, strangely familiar beat that didn't fit into anything that she'd heard so far. Opening her eyes cautiously, Jade looked around, swallowing heavily when she turned around and found herself face to face with her reflection.
Or... that was what she had seemed to be. Other-Jade smirked, flashing fang as she examined sharp, curved nails. Black tipped, furry ears perked up with interest, belying the indifferent slouch of her body. By her knees, black tipped tails where swaying lazily- all four of them, in fact. She shifted her weight to one hip, an eyebrow rising as she concerned her dumbstruck human counterpart.
Then she grimaced, and Jade noticed the blood. It was hard to see against the black clothing she was wearing, but then the Other-Jade grunted, bracing a hand against her side, and when she drew it away her palm was wet with blood. Eyes gone wide, Jade took a hesitant step forward, wondering if there was something she should be, could be doing.
"Wait."
Freezing at the sound of that oddly familiar voice, the teen swayed back on the balls of her feet, hands fisted by her sides. Jaw working as she tried to find the words that she need to speak, she finally settled for meeting the calm, cool grey gaze of her counter-part. Tilting her head in acknowledgment, the Other-Jade lifted her clean hand, palm up.
Driven by the subtle whisper of the more that always lurked at the edges of her mind, Jade carefully lifted her hand and fit into that of her other self's.
"Are you... a youko?"
Amusement glittering in her eyes, Other-Jade granted the teen a quick, bright smile.
"We haven't much time. I've come to offer you a choice."
Jade could feel the way her Other-self was steadily slipping away, in the tiny tremors of her hand, and the fingers that brushed her wrist as the fox-woman fought to keep her balance.
"I... my dreams. Did you send them to me?"
Arching an eyebrow again, the fox raked a bloodstained hand through her loose hair, letting out a rumble of discontent as the move pulled at her wound. Blood was beginning to pool at her feet, having already soaked through her thin, black silk vest.
"No. You managed to access a node, and I gained access to you through that connection."
Mind racing, Jade felt the puzzle pieces falling into place. With enough time, she knew that she could understand this, she just needed a little bit more—The teen let out a startled yelp as something deeper and more ominous than thunder cracked over head, shaking her down to the very marrow in her bones. Across from her, Other-Jade grimaced, panting slightly as her face began to pale.
"Listen to me. You have to choose. I'm fading fast- much longer and I won't have any tails to save us with."
Head jerking up, Jade stared at the fox in shock. That had not been what she was expecting to hear. Before she could marshal herself to demand an explanation, the fox pulled her closer, tone gone clipped and brisk as she tried to keep her pain from showing too obviously.
"You exist in a world parallel to mine. Your talent was stronger than that of most dreamers who connect to a node, and it got you noticed- in both worlds, and beyond."
Deciding that trying to make sense of all of this was a waste of time, Jade managed to nod, firming her jaw as sharp nails dug at her skin. Her Other-self was hunched over slightly, using the teen as a support.
"I made a mistake, and got myself into some... trouble. Lord Koenma dispatched some of his Reikai pets, in the hope of locating and ending the dimensional disturbances you caused by connecting to the node so strongly."
Pausing for a moment, Other-self wiped at her sweaty forehead, panting heavily. Biting her lip, Jade cautiously moved in closer, easing in until she could support her Other-self with an arm around her waist. Hissing slightly, the fox-woman shifted her grip and leant heavily against the teenager.
"At the same time, I was reprimanded for my mistake. Then you made a direct connection to me from the node."
Trying to ignore the sick, queasy feeling in her stomach at the sight, smell and feel of blood, Jade forced herself to examine the situation at hand. This was important, and it felt like every part of her being was shrieking a warning to step carefully.
"You said I had to choose. Do you mean I choose whether I live and you die, or whether I stay in my reality or yours?"
Her monetary flash of pride at her realization was replaced by the sting of wounded ego as the fox let out a raspy chuckle and swayed against her.
"A rather simplistic view, but close enough. Now listen closely, I can only say this once. I have enough strength to save us, but you must make the choice. Our soul is linked now, and if I die, so do you. Choose your world and I will fade into your being- you will always be odd, on the edge, different. Choose mine, and you will be one among many, but there is every chance that the Reikai dogs will imprison us."
Jade didn't even stop to think about her words- as her other-self had panted and gasped her way through her explanation, she had felt a slow, itching burn open up from her ribs and down across to her hip, with blood leaking sluggishly from the wound as it formed.
"That isn't everything, but you're right—we don't have time."
Somehow, she knew that she'd already made her choice. Jade had expected to be afraid, the same way that she always was. She'd waited for the doubts, the fears and insecurities to raise their ugly heads, paralysing her until the time to make a decision had passed, leaving her powerless and out of control once more. But somehow they... hadn't seemed as important. Because she already knew what door she would step through- had been stepping through, really, for almost a year now.
Chin lifting stubbornly, Jade shifted her grip on her Other-self and began to slowly, painfully drag them both to the door that she had chosen. Claws digging into the flesh of the teens upper arm, the fox tried to help as much as she was able.
"Are you... sure about this? There is no turning back once you walk through that door."
Sniffling back tears as the wound across her abdomen began to seep through the thin cotton of her singlet, Jade somehow found the strength to speak through a pain unlike anything she had experienced before.
"I never... I didn't ask for any of this. But now..."
Swallowing past the burn in her throat, she resisted the urge to rub at her itchy, tear streaked face. Pausing in front of the vortex, she looked down at her bloodstained feet and considered the last step she had to make. She had nice feet, Jade noted absently- they both did. Hopefully they still would after this.
Gathering up the dregs of her courage, she deliberately didn't take a deep breath—because that would hurt way too much.
"Ok. You ready?"
The fox let out a low, pained laugh and slumped against the teen.
"As ever, little one. Take us through."
Screwing up her face, Jade forced her eyes open, shifted her weight... and let them fall.
A/N: It's been almost a year since I updated this story... which I feel really bad about. Hopefully this is interesting enough and long enough to make up for that. I'm trying this strange thing called self-discipline, and if I can stick to my guns, there should be another chapter up before the end of November. Again, my apologies for leaving this for so long; I got really stuck on how to proceed with the story. I'm not happy with a few bits, but after managing to write everything after the dream sequence in one sitting, I decided it was a better idea to post it, as opposed to sulking about it.