Chapter 82

[The following chapter contains strong language. Reader caution is advised.]

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Monday 3rd July 2000

 

 

Oh maaaaan things have been so weird the past few days. Starting with Alex being super miserable.

 

Obviously this is Lucy. Alex hasn’t started talking in third person or something. I dunno exactly what type of monster he is but I’m positive that’s not one of the behaviours.

 

The others were all kinda down too, which I get, because it sucks not having friends around. And despite what Alex keeps muttering, they still care about him, and they still want him in their lives.

 

Don’t tell him this bit, though… they are growing a little wary of this becoming a common thing. Obviously, it’s not something they enjoy, so it’s not like they want it to happen on a yearly basis, y’know? Still, they know he’s hurting and that’s what they’re focusing on…

 

Saying that, at first they were planning on staging an intervention, or trying to talk him around, and Zahid was wanting to teleport into Alex’s room and “punch some sense into him”. It was Kendal who wound up suggesting that they give him time to come around, and she pointed out that he needed time to come back last year. Then Kitty was all “good point…” and now they’re waiting for Alex to feel better…

 

I’m giving them daily reports on Alex’s mood. The weekend passed, Monday came, and it was the same every time: “he’s still sulking”.

 

Seriously… I went into his room – it was the morning, so I wasn’t sure if he’d be awake, and I couldn’t even tell because he was curled up in bed, but no, he was – and asked him straight:

“Feeling any better today?”

 

“Stop asking,” he murmured like a zombie.

 

“Come on! The sun’s shining, the world’s an oyster- don’t make me do a whole song and dance routine! Because I will!”

 

“Go to school,” was what he came back with.

 

“I will!” I insisted. “And when I come back, I’m gonna tickle you until you cry!”

 

“Sure.”

 

“Come on, I thought you’d like the sound of that!”

 

No response. At this point, I kinda wanna punch some sense into him myself, but I know that wouldn’t actually help… Not that talking to him has done any good. Aaaagh, just thinking about it pisses me off! This isn’t what a monster-

 

No, wait… see, I keep almost forgetting… what makes us monsters is the dark stuff. The stuff we don’t like. So this is what a monster should be…

 

Anyway, couldn’t let all this misery cast a big grumpy shadow over my life. I had other things to keep me entertained, anyway! Us Adamites (how’s that for a totally weird but kinda cool name?) were planning to hang out on Tuesday evening, which would be a nice way to get away from all the sadness for a while. And so, on that Monday afternoon, I strolled home under the sunny sky, thinking about how much fun I was going to be having with my friends and my boyfriend – who, by the way, I was totally hoping I could have move into Alex’s room when Alex inevitably moved into Dakota’s, but now that was up in the air – and then my mobile rang.

 

One Will Harris calling!

 

“Hey Willy-Willy!” I greeted him chipperly.

 

“Please never call me that again,” he sighed back at me.

 

“Got it, Last Will and Testament! What can I help you with?”

 

He huffed softly before talking. Teasing him was so much fun!

“Just wanted to let you know that Kayleigh and I can’t make it tomorrow…”

 

“Spoilsports!” I whined down the phone. “Planning a romantic get-away instead?”

 

“Something like that…” he spoke a little awkwardly. I’m certain they’ve done it by now, I dunno why he’s still sheepish about him and her.

 

But more importantly… I had a hunch about what he meant.

 

“Maybe we could do Saturday, then?” I suggested breezily. “Then we have the whole day!”

 

“Uhm… possibly… I’ll have to keep you posted.”

 

“Got plans, huh?”

 

“Err…” he came out with. He crumbled so easily!

 

“Lemme talk to Kayleigh!” I pressed him, and he didn’t even attempt to act like she wasn’t there with him. A second or two went by as he handed the phone over.

 

“When did you become psychic?” Kayleigh asked with a huff.

 

“Same day you two hooked up!”

 

“You’re the worst…”

 

“So, you’re finally gonna make the move, huh?”

 

“Cut the riddles, Lucy…”

 

I laughed triumphantly down the phone.

“You and Will, and that floppy disc!”

 

“… hrm. How’d you find out?” Just like her to not act like she didn’t know what I meant.

 

“Overheard you the night Melody chucked us out!” I told her, relishing it so much. “I’m an expert at pretending to be asleep! Don’t tell Alex!”

 

“You pretend to be all cute and silly, but you’re just… a damn snake.”

 

“Thanks!”

She sighed at that. She was gonna be out of breath, at this rate!

“Dooon’t worry, not told anybody and don’t plan on it.”

 

“Good. But hey, they’re gonna notice sooner or later. Keep it zipped until then.”

 

“Roger that! I guess you’re planning to get away fast, before Dom realises what you’ve done?”

 

“More or less,” she confirmed. “Especially now we’re done with our exams. No point hanging around. I’m not gonna tell you where we’re going, and I’ve no idea if we’ll ever see you again.”

 

“Awwh man, I’ll miss you and your cigarettes and your grumpiness!” I let her know.

 

“You’ll live,” she chuckled a little.

 

“Take care, both of you! Have fun!”

 

“Thanks. See you around.”

 

Then, the sound of the phone landing in Will’s hands. I could tell that’s what it was because I heard a “hey, careful!” from him in the distance.

 

“I take it you figured us out…?” he checked.

 

“Yep! Don’t let her push you around too much, and I’ll see you both when you’re Lokon-billionaires!”

 

He laughed a little. Man, were they made for each other or what?

“Look after yourself. Bye!”

 

“Byyye!” I called down the phone, and then he hung up. Guess that was it.

 

That was it…

 

I stopped walking. I had no idea when I’d next see the two of them. Two friends gone from my life. Why was life sucking so much…?

 

“Hello, Lucy.”

Melody’s voice, from behind me.

 

I span around to confront her, and teleported my Lokon daggers into my hands, and the moment I was facing her, I found a gun held to my forehead.

 

“If you try and switch to Painter form, I’ll shoot you before you can finish,” she warned. Her scythe was in her other hand, her chest was heavily bandaged, and she was wearing a cloak that probably wasn’t actually a cloak. I think she was hurting. But even if I was fitter than her, I probably couldn’t do anything before she shot me.

 

“Alright, alright, we don’t have to be violent…” I said, and yeah, I know, ironic! And then, I had the most genius idea I’ve had in days. I raised my arms up, either side of me, to showcase the daggers, and then I teleported them away… to Alex’s bedroom. That way, he’d know something was up and try to look for me. (Nooo, this wasn’t Alex’s idea…!)

“There, all gone. And I cross my perfectly-intact heart that I won’t bring them back out,” I promised with the gestures and everything.

 

She sneered at me, but lowered the gun. I kept still, partly because I didn’t want to risk her shooting me and partly because I was curious what she was going to do.

 

“With me,” she uttered, and she grabbed my wrist tight. Next thing I knew, we were standing in some weird basement bunker place, all dark and concrete, and pretty cramped. Melody dragged my arm downwards, forcing me to sit on the ground, and then she leant her scythe on the wall and plonked herself down in a chair, facing me.

 

“You could really do with some furniture in here,” I recommended to her idly. “Some nice wallpaper, a telly… some windows…”

 

“Feel free to keep yammering away. It won’t help you,” Melody undercut me.

 

“Hey, just saying, it’s a bit of a downgrade from Adam’s place, y’know? I figured you had good taste, this place needs sprucing up…”

 

“This is where Neil and Cassie Henderson had the Lokon weapons stored for ten years.”

 

“Ah, you’re squatting here, huh?”

 

“Hrm. I knew the gravity of that would be lost on you…” she grumbled, and then held her chest, groaning in pain.

 

“Why’d you bring me here? House-warming party?” I proposed. “Do you have a cushion or something? My butt’s already hurting.”

 

The look on her face said something like “my heart is hurting way more than your tush, so shut up and deal with it”.

 

“Really, though, you could’ve sent me an invitation or something…”

 

She pointed the gun at me again.

“You’re here because I want you to suffer. I want you to understand how much pain you’ve put me in. I want Alex to understand what it’s like to lose your sister.”

 

“Wait, wait, are you using me to get to Alex…?” I double-checked. “That’s pretty degrading, I’m not just ‘Alex’s sister’… I know you’re obsessed with him, but still…”

 

“Try and curb your motormouth, Lucy,” I was warned coolly. “You’re making my trigger-finger itchy.”

 

“Just saying…” I pouted. Seriously, even if part of it was revenge for the stabbing (maybe for whacking her with the briefcase, too?), it sounded like she did this just to get at Alex…

 

“It’s not like I have anything left. So I’m going to focus on finishing things up here before I find a new life. Because I… gambled. I took an almighty risk, doing what I did, and thanks to your brother and his friends, I failed.”

Not really their fault. From what I’ve been told, she blabbed and good ol’ Dirk overheard.

“Prison is all that’s left for me here, and as much as I believe in consequences…”

 

“Aww, you’re scared?” I cooed at her. “Don’t wanna go to jail? You’re human after all!”

 

“Not quite fear,” she countered, “more that I have no intention of letting myself be detained… or defeated.”

 

“You’ve already lost, you just said so…”

 

“I said ‘failed’. So long as I’m free, and the police haven’t gotten me, I’ve not lost.”

She leant forwards a little, staring at me like I was a really tasty meal (and not in the good way).

“Just because my plans are blown to smithereens, it doesn’t mean I’m done.”

 

“Man, you’re determined…” I told her, reeling back just a little because I was getting third-degree burns from that fiery stare now.

 

“School bored me. Ordinary prospects held no interest. I needed more, and I had access to knowledge and abilities that would grant me limitless potential for new avenues. Can you blame me for milking every last drop out of that opportunity?” she asked. Monologuing made her lower the gun. “No, I’ve not lost yet. I’m going to torture you, and then I’ll leave here and travel somewhere else… somewhere nobody knows me, and I can make new plans.”

 

“Okay, I’ve got a question- no, two questions, minimum,” I spoke up with a hand raised. “Firstly… you’re really gonna do all that with your chest like it is…?”

 

“I’m sure I can find a way to clear out the wound. Then the white can heal me up. Maybe killing you will be enough for Harmony to pull this back out of me… I’m sure she wouldn’t do it herself.”

 

“You haven’t managed in the past few months, so…”

 

“I was busy.”

 

“Yeah, bullshitting the world, well-played!” I applauded her. “All that talk about monsters taking control, you really made everyone think you meant it!”

 

“That was the idea…” she grunted, her injury apparently aching again as she spoke.

 

“Hard to imagine you would’ve held on to power if it all pulled through, though… y’know, since your heart wasn’t in it. And by ‘it’, I don’t just mean ‘good condition’…”

Couldn’t help it!

 

“Perhaps,” she reasoned, actually looking thoughtful for a moment. “But I enjoy monsters. I enjoy the study of them. It could’ve all served as one massive experiment.”

 

“You play Pokémon with people, got it,” I nodded at her. “Oh, yeah, question two: d’you really think you’ll never get caught just because you move somewhere else? You’d get found eventually.”

 

“Heh…”

And she smirked.

“I have thoughts about that…”

 

“Sure you do, you’re all plots and plans and then it only takes a guy like Dirk to screw them up,” I shrugged dramatically. “I’m just saying, even you can slip up. I’m looking out for you.”

 

“How sweet,” Melody purred, then aimed her gun at me again. “I don’t recall asking, but thank you.”

 

Yeah, ever had a gun pointed at you? It freaks you out.

“Okay, look, I’m not gonna pretend this isn’t scary as hell, because yeah, I don’t have a thing on me to try and fight back, and I don’t want to die. And if you do anything to upset Alex, I’ll haunt you forever.”

 

“He upsets himself. All I ever do is offer to help him. How’s he doing, anyway? Had another meltdown yet?”

 

“Yeah, you’re sounding really caring and compassionate right now…” I glared at her. “You wouldn’t care if he’s on top of the world or super-duper down-”

 

“Ha…”

She heaved herself up from the chair, still pointing the gun my way.

“Just like him. So easy to read. It barely took him two weeks to ruin his happy ending, huh?”

 

“I never said that…!”

 

“Your face did,” she smirked triumphantly. She ran her free hand through her short hair, like the thought of Alex being depressed excited her. “Okay. Okay. That might change things. I don’t have to do the heavy-lifting here… hrm…”

 

“You know talking to yourself is the first sign of madness, right…?” I joked, because who wouldn’t say that? Maaaybe somebody with a gun pointed at them, but cut me some slack!

 

“I’d been wondering if there would be a way to bring Alex under my wing after breaking him. Sounds like I’m saved the problem of him despising me for harming his precious sister.”

 

“Great! You can stop pointing the gun at me, then!”

 

“Could do…”

She bobbed it side-to-side a little.

“Perhaps a little pistol-whipping wouldn’t hurt… well, wouldn’t hurt things with Alex…” she chuckled to herself.

 

“God, would you just admit you wanna fuck him already?” I groaned, shaking my head in dismay.

 

“I think you’ll find he’s the one who wants to fuck me-”

With a pained yelp, Melody suddenly collapsed to her knees, clutching her bandaged chest again. Almost made me feel sorry for her… almost.

 

“You’re hopeless, Melody…” I sighed like she was an old friend rather than a threat. “Just be honest with yourself!”

 

“She can’t,” came the not-really-that-familiar voice of Harmony (I had a hunch before I saw her, at least!): she emerged from the shadows at the opposite side of the bunker to me, behind Melody, all happy and breezy.

“She’s always kept her cards so close to her chest that even she doesn’t know what they are.”

 

Melody looked to her, glowering.

“I had a hunch bringing Lucy here would mean you showing up…”

 

“Of course. I’ve been looking everywhere for you, sis!” she smiled brightly at Melody, and leant against the wall.

 

“Isn’t it time you dropped the act?” Melody hissed.

 

“It’s not an act. Don’t forget, I’m the only Harmony Hill there’s been for the past twelve years. I might be more than this, but it’s still part of me. Or rather, it’s part of you…”

Harmony pointed at her twin’s head.

“A template drawn from your mind. Remember? And who knew Harmony better than her sister?”

 

“You can’t validate yourself as the real her based on that- ghhh!” Melody interrupted herself, almost convulsing in pain.

 

“Maybe not,” Harmony chirped happily. “But I’m your version of her. My existence as Harmony is based on your vision of your sister. If I’m wrong, it’s because of you. But I know you can’t hate me…”

 

“Yeah, even if she’s not really her, she’s… basically her, right?” I chimed in. Melody shot me the darkest glare.

 

“It took me far too long to realise that I hadn’t just wished my sister back to life,” she told me. “Because that’s what I thought I was doing… I was so naïve… and the horrible thing is that a part of me is still glad that I did it.”

 

“Because I’m still your sister.”

 

… if that was Harmony, she sounded totally different.

 

I looked up from Melody at the same time she looked back, and we both saw Harmony now in the form of a little girl. Still Harmony, but younger. About twelve years younger.

 

“Don’t…” Melody pleaded her, shaking her head.

 

“Remember… I’ve been with you all this time…”

Little Harmony held out a hand to Melody.

“I know you’ve lost everything, but I’m here…”

 

“No… I still have plans…”

 

“We both know they won’t work out,” Harmony smiled at her.

 

Melody’s shoulders dropped. If I had to guess, she was only just realising how far she’d fallen.

 

“You can fool yourself if you want, but it won’t end well. You’ll be put in prison and that’ll be it. But you have me. In the end, you always have me.”

 

“I need time… that’s all…” Melody muttered stubbornly.

 

“Don’t mind me sitting here while you two have your sister talk…” I told them, feeling left out. Melody snapped her head back in my direction, aiming again, but her hand was shaking this time.

 

“One shot. The shoulder, maybe. Just to make her hurt. Then I find Alex, and I win him over – can’t be hard, now – and we leave to… Hawaii, perhaps. Indonesia. Somewhere far away. And we begin again, my dragon and me. It’s easy. It’s easy. I can do it.”

 

Harmony walked over, and put her hand on Melody’s shoulder, making her jump. I was so worried she’d accidentally pull the trigger, but fortunately, she didn’t.

“I have a better idea, sister. Something way more fun, for both of us. All you have to do is let me in.”

 

“I… you aren’t her…” Melody whimpered, no longer looking at me or at anything in particular. Her eyes were glazed over like her mind was too busy to really take anything in.

 

“Shhh…”

And Harmony hugged her, just about wrapping her little arms around her sister.

“Stop fighting it. We’ve been sisters for twelve years. Do you really think that doesn’t mean anything to me? I never knew a thing before you. Happiness, fear, anger, fun… all of it, thanks to you.”

 

“And us…” I added, because seriously, isn’t that why the Painters even exist?

 

“You too, yeah,” she laughed softly, but her eyes were closed as she held Melody. “I know I’m not the original. But I’m still Harmony Hill. And you’re my sister. So let’s play together.”

 

… I dunno about you, but it only dawned on me just then how bad that would probably turn out for both of us.

 

“Wait, wait, think about it, Melody!” I spluttered loudly. “You never know, things might go great with you and Alex in your weird sex hideout! Don’t make a rash decision or anything! Think about it some more!”

 

“She’s just trying to save herself,” Harmony said like she could read my mind, which, y’know, I suppose she can. “But I don’t have to tell you that, do I?”

 

“Fine.”

Melody dropped her gun on the floor, and embraced her tiny sister.

“Screw everything else. You and me. Let’s have some fun.”

 

“Awesome.”

Harmony smiled like the sweet child she appeared to be, and then she exploded into rainbow light that lit up the bunker. I had to shield my eyes, because it was so bright that I thought they might pop.

 

Slowly, the light faded away, until it was finally safe for me to look, and what greeted me was… sort of Melody. It was pretty much her, only there was a colourful glow beneath her skin, and her hair had grown out, flowing at least half-way down her back and shining with colour. It was pretty obvious (like, I shouldn’t have to point this out) that Harmony had fused with her.

 

She steadily stood upright, letting the cloak fall away, and unravelled the bandages around her chest, showing off the nasty orange-tinted wound I’d left her. Holding a hand close to the wound, she drew liquid white out of it like a snake-charmer, and then pulled it forward, watching it dance around her fingers. A moment later, it dissolved into the air, hissing like acid.

“Disgusting,” she remarked with her top lip curled. Then, she looked at me, and smiled devilishly. “Now, time to find your brother.”

 

“I knew this was a bad idea…”

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