hi guys! today i'm entering for ivy tendrils, although i'll probably enter for more lol anyways bAcKstORy tiME +++ Darkness. And then brilliance. The moon glinted off the mirror, bathing the forest glade in silver light. Her heartbeat quickened. This was it. She scrambled to arrange the roses on the glass--white for death, red for life. Neither had bloomed yet, although they would soon. The buds were large, full to bursting with silky-soft petals. The moonlight wavered, and her heart leaped into her throat. /No, no, no,/ she pleaded, her paws clumsy with desperation. /It has to work this time. It has to./ She hooked the red rose with her paw, careful not to drag it off the mirror. /This has to work./ She unsheathed her claws and tore into the rose bud, ruthlessly tearing it apart. Petals flew into the air, looking disturbingly like great drops of scarlet blood. /Please, please, let it work./ The white rose bud quivered, and the trees overhead rustled as leaves were stirred in a sudden breeze. She gasped, and a smile started twitching at the corner of her muzzle. Had she really done it? Was he really back? The bud stirred again and the trees began to moan as smoke poured out of the mirror, clogging the air in a thick, sickly-sweet blanket. She coughed several times, straining to see the bud. A single white petal drifted to the ground. And nothing else. She wailed, the cry ripping out of her throat. No. No! This had been her last chance. Her last chance... She plunged into the smoke, which was already clearing. What had she done wrong? She tripped over the mirror, and heard the sound of glass cracking. It wasn't supposed to be this way. He was supposed to be back. She held up her paw to inspect it. A fat drop of crimson slowly rolled down her pawpad, landing on the shattered mirror and single rose petal with a tiny splash. The trees screamed. And something changed. The air warped, and she struggled to see. Everything was hazy and blurred, streaking into the wind. She couldn't breathe. And then she saw it. He was right in front of her, as though he'd never been gone, but she had to swallow back the bile when she saw that his wounds were still gaping, and his fur still blood-soaked. Something was wrong with his face, too. It kept flickering, like a shabby illusion. She fought the urge to heave when she saw the exposed bone along his side. And his throat... ...well, she just wasn't going to look at it. He was back, and that was all that mattered. "Vine," she sighed, tears pricking her eyes. She had done it. He was actually here. As for the state he was in, well, she'd love him anyway. She already did. It didn't matter what he looked like, just that he was here. Alive. He stretched out a paw, craned his neck to look at his side. When he finally took a step towards her, a white rose petal fluttered behind him. "I can't say I'm feeling wonderful," he said. She gasped and ran towards him. The relief at hearing his voice again was so profound. But as happy as she was to see him, she found her steps slowing as she neared him. It was getting harder not to stare at his injuries. "I'm so glad you're back," she sobbed, moving forwards to bury her face in his fur. He stepped back, and she halted, confused. "You think I'm just going to forget about what happened?" he growled. Her eyes widened in shock. "What? What are you talking about? Vine...I'm so sorry you...died...but I fixed it! We can be together again." He didn't answer for a moment. Then his eyes met hers, and she felt a chill ripple through her body. This wasn't the brother she'd known. "No," he said slowly. "No, you didn't." She fell back a step. "Vine, I don't understand. What did I do wrong? I--you're back! Everything is okay now!" Her voice broke. "Vine, I just want everything to be normal again." He stroked a petal with his paw thoughtfully. "It was the wrong rose, you know." "What?" "If you'd used the red one, I'd be alive. For real. But, you being the fool you are, you used the white one, and now I'm cursed to live like this forever." His voice rose, and his eyes flashed. "Don't you see? You summoned me with /death!/ And now I'm trapped between two worlds, neither living nor dead." His burning eyes fixed on hers, and another shudder ripped through her fur. "We can fix it though, right? There's never been anything we couldn't fix, not when we worked together." She needed him to say yes. Needed him to tell her it would be okay, that yes, they could fix it. But his eyes hardened. "No." Then his gaze turned thoughtful. "Well...maybe." "What?" she blurted. "I'll do anything! Anything for you." She gulped down a sob. "You saved my life by sacrificing yours. I'd do anything, go anywhere, for you." She lifted her chin. "Tell me what I need to do. I'm ready." He purred, a menacing rumble. "Oh, good. You don't mind giving up your body, then?"
She blinked. "...What?" "It's quite simple, really. Your life for mine. Unless, of course, you don't want to pay off the debt?" There was a warning note in his voice that warned her refusal was not an option, and she wanted nothing more than to run away from the disaster she'd created. But she needed to fix it, and anyways, she did owe him a life. So she swallowed and met his eyes again, despite the warning bells going off in her head. "Deal," she said, and the world froze. "Many thanks. It was a pleasure doing business with you," Vine said, but his voice was far, far away, lost in the darkness that surrounded her. Huh. The moon must have disappeared behind a cloud. And that was her last thought before her body slumped to the ground, an empty husk. +++ Vine rolled his shoulders and stretched, testing his new body. It was smaller than he was used to, and closer to the ground. Everything felt different. Oh well. At least he /had/ a body. After all, it was hard to conquer the world without one. Teeth gleamed in the darkness as he smiled. A lone white petal was lifted up in the breeze. +++ if i had a penny for every time i used cartouche in a project i'd be rich
