248Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzUSn3QjB8l
I sighed down lovingly at my little Georgie, loving how he stretched and yawned appreciatively as I scratched behind his ears. I always did this right before I left for work. It wasn't like I was leaving him alone, he could hang out with Jimin, and I worked 8 hour shifts, unlike some of my co-workers who did 12s. It made me feel good that he would be at home missing me, and excited to see me when I returned. I wouldn't be gone too long.248Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCy50dUxi9g
I worked the night shift at a little convenience store about 5 blocks from my house. I had to cross a pretty busy street, and it was right next to a pretty rowdy bar, so I usually cut through the alley behind the businesses, to avoid the inevitable cat calls from the drunken patrons of the bar. There was never anyone out there, and it usually made for a peaceful bypass to the chaotic outdoor seating near the sidewalk. On this particular night, I was in for it though.
I turned into the alley that lead to the employee entrance to the store I worked in, and was immediately flanked by this drunken, greasy, biker looking guy. When I looked over at him, I couldn't help but cringe. He wasn't very big, but he looked kind of...mean and gross. I didn't respond when he smirked at me, continuing to walk by my side. I felt threatened, even though he hadn't done anything, and when I turned to go into the back of the store, he grabbed my arm.
"Where you goin', sweet thing?" he asked, his breath in my face, heavy with whiskey, making me wrinkle my nose and turn my head.
"I'm going to work. Let go of my arm" I said in a firm voice, trying not to show how freaked out he was making me.
"No, no, no. I think you 'aught to come along with me to my pick-up. It's real nice. The seats are nice and comfortable..." he said, licking his lips and leering at me in a way that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. "We could get real comfortable in there, sweet thing, you and me" the guy drawled, starting to pull me away from the door, and farther down the alley with him.
"No!" I yelled, trying to be as loud as possible, hoping that someone inside one of the buildings, or passing by on the street, would hear me and come to my aid. "I have to work!" I said again, trying to yank my arm out of his grip, but only succeeding in forcing him to tighten it, wrenching a pained little yelp from me that seemed to please him, as he smiled wide, his eyes sparkling, proudly displaying the only 3 teeth he seemed to have left.
I gasped when he pulled a switch blade out of his pocket with his free hand, brandishing it at me threateningly. "Now, I don't want to hurt you, but I will if you make me" he said, his eyes cold and dark. "Now be a good girl and come along with me. This don't have to be hard, and it don't have to hurt. I just want what any man would want from a pretty little thing like you, out walking through alleys all alone, like you was" he said, his whole manner as if it was completely reasonable that he should be entitled to drag me to his truck and attack me because I'd been stupid enough to walk through an alley at night.
I couldn't fight. I was scared to death he would cut me. All I could do was shake, fighting back hysteria, as tears leaked from my eyes, and the guy dragged me farther down the alley. I looked around frantically, even reaching out with my gifts, desperate for any help I could get. I would take anything, a mean rottweiler, a savage tabby cat, anything. I couldn't wrap my mind around coming out the other side of an assault like this as the same person. I couldn't accept the reality that this guy was going to hurt me.
When we reached the truck, the guy pushed me up against it and started kissing me, the metal cold against my back, his breath making me gag as I tried not to breath in his stench. His hands were all over me, making me shake and cringe away. My fear and disgust seemed to please him, and that made this whole thing even worse. I thought I saw movement out of the corner of my eye, and the next second there was this...loud, angry sounding roar....and then I was just collapsing onto the ground where I'd been being held. There was blood...everywhere. I was covered in it. I gagged and leaned over, adding my vomit to the mixture of blood, gore, and bits of flesh, that had previously composed the body of my would-be attacker.
My head spun as I stood up, feeling dizzy and lightheaded from the adrenaline. I was sure I was in shock. There was no sign of who, or what, had taken out my attacker, and I was scared that it would come back for me. I ran, full out, to the back door of the convenience store, only a couple of blocks from where I'd been taken, planning to bang on the door. As I raised my fist, it was caught by a hand, wrenching a scream from my poor, jumbled countenance. I was terrified and fought like a banshee, going to the ground with my new attacker, sure that this was the entity that had killed the rapist, back to take care of me, too. I couldn't breath. This was it...
I sighed as a cool wave of calm washed over me, making me feel peaceful and safe. I sat up and the woman who had grabbed me, let me go, allowing me to stand and try to wipe the person-gunk off of my hands, onto the legs of my jeans. It didn't help much...I was still covered in...I gagged and vomited again. I felt calm, but that didn't do anything for my stomach, apparently.
"Poor thing" the woman tisked, drawing my attention, as I straightened up and wiped my mouth. I really looked at the woman for the first time, and was surprisingly comforted by what I saw, a fresh wave of calm washing through me, as I looked her over. I couldn't describe it, but it felt good to look at her...soothing, somehow. She wasn't unusual in any way. In fact, she was absolutely the average 50-something woman you might see in the grocery store. Her dark hair, streaked through with silver, was pulled back into a sensible bun, and the light makeup she wore allowed me to see that she had been quite beautiful in her younger years. I liked her, although I didn't particularly have a good reason why.
"Dear...you've had a shock, and I promise to explain everything soon, but you need to come with me now. I'll take you home so you can clean up, and then we can talk" she said. I gave her a questioning look, still in shock, unable to articulate all of the questions that I had, right now.
She smiled comfortingly at me. "We need to get gone from here, dear. There will be police here soon, and they won't understand how you could be innocent of that nasty little man's murder...when so much of him is stuck to your clothing and hair" she said, clearly trying to be gentle and not freak me out, but still convey the seriousness of the situation.
I looked down at myself, realizing that I was covered in gore, all over again. The world spun, and I almost fell down again, but the woman caught me, seeming to be far stronger than a small lady her age had any right to be. I was grateful though. The last thing I needed was to fall back on my ass in the puddle of puke I'd just made.
"Lead me to your place, child. You can get a shower, and change, and we can talk about what needs to happen next" she said. Her words were unintentionally cryptic, but I was far too freaked out and eager to shower to ask any of the questions floating around in my head. I just nodded and lead her back down the alleyway, and then down the remaining blocks, to my apartment building.
I almost collapsed twice on my way up the stairs, but I held it together, and unlocked my apartment, warning Georgie to keep his distance as he rushed to the door to greet me. Jimin wasn't here, and that made me sad. I really needed my BGGF (best gay ghost friend) ,right now. "Have a seat anywhere" I mumbled out, heading straight into the bedroom and stripping off my clothes as quickly as I could. I turned on the shower and didn't even wait for it to get warm, instead just jumping in and shivering under the slowly warming spray, desperate to get clean.
I stayed in there for a long time. I don't know how long it was, but it felt like hours. By the time I finally got out, I was pruney, and a million times more relaxed, bracing myself for the nasty task of dealing with the clothing that I'd discarded. I slipped into some PJ pants and a BT21 t-shirt with RJ on it, and walked out into my bedroom.
I sighed in relief and smiled a little to see that someone, probably the lady who'd taken me from the alley, had taken care of that nasty task already. I finger combed my hair and walked out into the living room, picking Georgie up and giving him pets and praise as I carried him with me over to the couch where the lady sat. She smiled warmly at me and I felt that same sense of calm and well-being again.
She offered me a cup of tea, and it didn't even occur to me to ask where it'd come from. I didn't have any tea in my apartment. She leaned forward and took my hand. "My name is Agatha Rossey" she said, looking for all the world like a comforting mom-figure. The kind I'd wished for growing up, in fact. I nodded my head and sipped my tea, wanting her to continue. Now that I felt better, I was pretty curious about what the fuck was going on, and why this nice lady wanted to help me...or whatever it was that she wanted from me. There was clearly something.
"Bria" I said, giving her a little smile, going for friendly, although I was more exhausted as time went on.
"What a lovely name, child" she praised me, her words flowing over me like soothing water. "I'm here to offer you a place at The Academy" she said, the name sounding formal and grand as it rolled off of her lips.
"The Academy" I repeated, raising a questioning brow. "What's that?" I asked.
She smiled and squeezed my hand. "I know that you are gifted, dear...the fact is, I heard you crying out for help..." she said, giving me a sympathetic look. "I was on my way to intervene, when...whatever that was...came out of nowhere, and did the job for me" she said, shaking her head. "I must say, it was a sight messier than the job that I had planned to do, but needs must, I suppose" she said, waving the whole thing away like bothersome smoke.
"Wh-what was it?" I asked, leaning in a little. "What was it that killed that guy? I...didn't see it" I said, my voice small and frightened again, at just the thought of the thing.
She shrugged. "Neither did I, dear. Not clearly, at any rate. I'm just thankful that it chose to leave your pretty hide intact" she said, her eyes sparkling cheerfully. I couldn't help but smile a little. She looked like she was always amused or entertained by life. One more thing to like about her.
"Now then, to answer your original question" she said, releasing my hand and clapping hers together. "The Academy is a home, of sorts....for extraordinary people with gifts, such as yourself, dear" Agatha said, smiling warmly into my eyes. "I would love it if you would come and stay. There is a world of knowledge for you. We can teach you to better use and understand your gifts. We can help you unlock the full potential of what you can do...and, of course, we can keep you safe from those who would rather exterminate the gifted, than cultivate them" she finished, sipping her tea and giving me a moment to absorb all of the info she'd just given me, while I silently petted Georgie's soft fur, and he snuggled into my lap, happy to be held, just happy that I was home early.
"So...there are others out there like me?" I asked, incredulous and a little happy that I wasn't alone in the universe.
Agatha nodded her head and smiled, the impish twinkle in her soft grey eyes making me smile back. "Indeed, child. Well, there is probably no one who is exactly like you, per say" she qualified. "But you'll find, when we reach The Academy, that everyone who lives within it's walls possesses unique and interesting abilities. Call them talents, call them gifts, whatever you like" she said.
"But why?" I asked, looking down at my lap, trying to formulate my question in a way that wouldn't be insulting. "Why create a place for people like me?" I asked.
"Because I know, first hand, just how hard the world can be when you're alone and those around you don't understand you, fear you...hate you, even" she said, her jaw setting as she seemed to be reliving a hard memory. "I know what it's like to be truly alone...I won't have it for anyone that I can help. It's my mission in life, I guess you could say" she said, her eyes softening again as she returned to the present and smiled warmly at me.
"What if I don't want to go?" I asked, gnawing on my lower lip. "I mean, you seem really nice, and what you're offering sounds great...but what about my life? What about my apartment and...and my dog, and...and..."I stuttered, but she held up a gentle hand and shook her head, giving me a serene look. I felt another wave of calm settling on me, and realized, all at once, that she was directly responsible for that. It must be one of her gifts. Holy shit... She was like me....
Agatha smiled, clearly pleased with the leaping light in my eyes as I truly realized that I wasn't alone anymore. "It's all taken care of, dear. Your charming little puppy can accompany you, of course" she said. "There's another guest of The Academy who is quite fond of cats, actually. I think he has...oh, four or five of them" she said, shrugging her shoulders as if the number wasn't really important.
"So...how do we get there? Is there a train? You know...like Hogwarts?" I asked, making her laugh, the bell like tone, very pleasing to my ears, making me giggle a little, too.
"No dear, this isn't Harry Potter, although I will say, Quidditch looks like a roaring good time!" Agatha declared, making me laugh again. "In all seriousness though, dear...you will come to the Academy, won't you?" she asked, her eyes hopeful and friendly.
I'd never felt so...wanted, in my entire life. Not by anyone. The idea of going to a place where everyone was different and had different gifts...a place where I wouldn't have to hide myself, was intoxicating. I could be free. I could meet others like me. I could have real friends and learn more about myself and what I could do. Of course I was going. The answer seemed obvious, now that my head had cleared a little, and I'd absorbed the information that had been given to me.
"I'd love to go to The Academy, Agatha...thank you so much for finding me" I said, tearing up, finding myself smothered in her motherly embrace as she pulled me in for a hug, stroking my hair. "Thank you so much" I whispered, looking up into her face, my eyes filling with tears.
"Of course, my dear" she said, her eyes warm. She gave me one last squeeze and pulled away. "Now lets get going, shall we? What do you need to pack? Nearly everything will be furnished for you, except for your clothing, and accessories for your little dog, of course" she said.
"Just let me get a bag together" I said, smiling and opening a closet in the hall, taking out the one piece of beat down luggage that I owned. I was actually happy that I didn't have a lot of things. All of my furniture was third hand, and the only keepsakes I really had where photos and things from my boarding school. My clothing all fit neatly into the bag, along with those keepsakes, and I was off. I packed an extra little carry bag with Georgie's toys, his treats, and his favorite blankey, and started walking out the door.
I turned when I heard Georgie wine, sitting in the middle of the living room, looking scared and confused. "What is it, baby boy?" I asked, putting down my bag and picking him up. He didn't really talk to me, not in the way another person would, but I could look into his eyes and realize that he thought I was leaving without him, having flash backs of being stuffed in that smelly bag, and left in that awful alley, all alone...He didn't understand where we were going. I smiled and petted his head, kissing his soft fur. "I love you, you sweet little floof. You're coming with me. We're going to go live in a place where it's not weird for mommy to talk to you" I said, giggling when he got all wiggly and excited, his tail wagging furiously. I set him down. "So come on! It's time to go!" I said, ushering him out into the night after Agatha, closing and locking my apartment door for the last time. I knew, as I walked away, that my life would never be the same.
I couldn't wait.
248Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqWHfOpBHDU
