Lilivata Chapter One

    “Happy Birthday!” the rousing chorus rang out, floating across the large room, a tall girl turned with a smile, her blond hair pulled back into a high bun, a few wisps falling to frame her sea foam green eyes, she laughed as the well wishers started up yet another round of happy birthday to you, for what had to be the tenth time.

         “Tired of hearing that yet, Lila?” a masculine voice breathed in her ear, she turn to see just who she expected, Chris Blake.
         “Almost as tired as I am of seeing you” she smiled, taking the arm her offered her, her voice sounded like wind chimes with a sweet southern bell accent, Chris was what could easily be deemed handsome, or depending one who you asked drop dead gorgeous, the kind of guy the girls swooned at the sight of. Not only was he good looking but he had an air of mystery which every woman and girl seemed to find irresistible, they didn’t seem to get that he seemed mysterious because he never talked to them, mainly because the vast majority couldn’t carry on an intelligent conversation to save their lives. Lila was the only one who didn't act like a fool when he came within a five foot radius of him, and mainly because of this they’d been best friends since the age of six.

         “Ah, I die a little inside to hear you say that” he retorted in mock pain, making Lila laugh, a thick southern accent coated his voice as well. “But I’ve got to be better company then these up tight yanks” he declared making quite a few people throw him angry glares. The two stood out when they talked being Virginians in Maine he couldn’t have picked a worse place to expel the bad traits of northerners. Lila gave the people an apologetic smile, while stifling a laugh,

         “You know I think a couple of people didn’t hear you insult them, mind speaking up?” she gave him a small shove, “besides I’m marrying one of these ‘yanks’ remember?”

         “Ah and where is ole Willie tonight?” he asked glancing around.

         “Chris please, you know he hates when you call him that” she turned just in time to see Chris spot William and make his way over, with a small groan she followed, sparks always seemed to fly when those two were near each other.

         “Good to see you Willie!” Chris greeted him with obvious over enthusiasm, only to gain a look of distain from the young man.

         “Blake” he acknowledged curtly, before turning to Lila, “Happy Birthday, Lilivata. How are you this evening?” he gave a nod and the faint traces of a strained smile. She gave Chris a stern glance to kept him quiet

         “Fine, and you?” she asked politely, he beckoned her toward him.

         “I have a gift for you” he said leading her toward the porch, Chris followed for a moment hissing in her ear.          

         “Yes isn’t it a good evening Lilivata” he drowned in a surprisingly good impersonation of William, “does he think that counts as a pet name or something?” it was true, no one had called her by her full name since she was two years old, but William had a very stand offish formal personality.

         “Chris, stop it” she shushed him, keeping her eyes on William’s back as he cut through the crowd,

         “What, don’t I get to be Christopher Blake?” he called after her, to which she shushed him again, before falling into step with William. He silently lead her out to the porch where a large red box with a dozen holes cut in the side stood, he gestured for her to open it, the whole idea of gift giving was a bit too intimate for his taste but he made a sacrifice in this case. Lila barely got the bow off before the top popped up to reveal a golden puppy, full of excitement and very glad to see her. He hopped up tipping the box over and spilling the pup onto her lap.

         “Aww, William, he’s so cute, thank you!” she beamed hugging the little dog as he jumped up to lick her face, his little black nose was cold against her cheek, a little island of white fur covered his left front paw, the rest of him a soft golden yellow, with big floppy ears.

         “I thought you would like him” William nodded trying to glean a smile, he found the situation entirely uncomfortable, leading Lila to wonder for a moment what their wedding night would be like, before shaking it from her head. Her Aunt Sophie, with whom she was staying here in Maine was much more excited about the wedding then either the bride or groom, she’d planed the entire thing and even bought Lila’s dress, as well as quite a few others, including the cream colored one she was wearing now. She’d brought her a few corsets also but Lila refused to wear them, letting Aunt Sophie stick two dozen pins in her hair as a compromise. William lingered for a moment as if he meant to add something but couldn’t come up with anything to say,

         “Well you’ll probably want to get to bed, too much excitement is tiring” he said, obviously disapproving of any excitement, and finding such an extravagant party silly and frivolous, Lila didn’t bother to tell him that she enjoyed the excitement, and really found the boring meetings and chats he liked to be much more tiring. Instead she held her tongue as always, bidding everyone goodnight to meet the protest of her party guests, and after a bit the wishes of sweet dreams and a few last happy birthdays, before she retired. Chris appeared at her arm to escort her up the steps.

         “A puppy, how out of character” he laughed as the pup followed them nipping at his heels, “well goodnight” he turned to go stopping at the top step he turn, “you know, I don’t think you’ve looked this lovely since you were six” he smiled, “I guess Sophie picked out one really great dress” he continued down the steps to his adoring fans, leaving a smiling Lila to skip off to bed.

         She gave a small yawn realizing she was much more tired then she had thought, her new pup whom she had named DJ, short for Dr. Jones, an old friend of her family, tugged at the hem of her dress as she carefully removed the pins from her honey blond hair. As she released it from the last pin it fell cascading down to just above her waist, she sighed slipping out of her uncomfortable heels and into her soft white slippers, she never could wear heels, finding them impossible to walk in; but Sophie had bought them for her and insisted she wear them, so she caved and cased her delicate feet in the tight straps all night. A cool breeze pushed the ends of her hairs against her back, blowing in from the open patio door adjoining her room to the open air deck.

         Sometimes life can be amazing in its ability to change with the smallest and simplest of acts, the mere occurrence of a frisky pup dashing out the patio door, would have profound effects on Lila and the lives of everyone around her, and beyond to people she neither know nor would ever meet.

         “DJ! DJ, come back here” Lila called lungeing to grab the pup, for a moment she almost had him, but he slipped right out of her grasp, dashing out into the street, without a second thought Lila took off after him. “DJ! Come here DJ!” she called more and more desperately as he lead her farther and father from the house, down back alleys, letting out playful yips as if they were playing a game. She pivoted around the corner nearly colliding with a tall man standing right in her path, DJ held in his arms. She stepped back abruptly, quickly apologizing.

         “A young lady out so late?” he asked, “not very safe don’t you agree?” she got a good look at him as he stepped into the light, he was very tall, with pale skin and striking blue eyes, piercing, as if he was staring into the very depths of one’s soul, his short brown hair was neatly combed back not a strand out of place. He held the pup out for her to take, she hesitated a moment but stepped forward to take DJ into her arms. With one swift movement she felt his icy cold grip on her upper arm, “perhaps this will help you learn” Lila let out a choked scream jerking away from him. She almost broke free, but his grip was vice like, inhuman. She threw a blind punch feeling it connect with his stomach, he gave a growl shoving her backward, a sharp pain splintered through he left arm, as she grabbed it her hand came back warm and wet, covered in thick crimson blood. She heard the man step toward her as her vision swam, an intense concentrated pain radiated from her neck then every thing went black, as she lapsed into a sweet unfeeling unconsciousness.

         She could hear something, almost like a crying but not quite, and something else that bordered on the edge of her mind, she couldn’t seem to get a grasp on the sound. She took a deep shuddering breath; she was able to focus in on two things, an amazing pain in her left arm and the acute coppery smell of blood. Whimpering, that’s what the sound was, she tried to pull the events of what had happened from her groggy mind but with no luck. As she sat there the other sound became clearer, someone was calling her name, she tried to answer them, but she couldn’t seem to make a logical thought form. She blinked and realized that she was looking at Chris, but what they were doing in a back alley she had no idea.

         “Lila! Lila can you hear me?” he looked upset or scared, she wanted to tell him to clam down, she was fine but she couldn’t seem to get her mouth to obey. He was telling her something, that she was safe but it sounded as if it were coming from very far away, she couldn’t make out most of it. Her head spun as she felt him lift her, she could hear his heart pounding inside his chest, she managed to say something but she couldn’t understand what it was, he was telling her more but it was to hard to concentrate on the words so she closed her eyes and slipped into a deep sleep. 

         She blinked at a bright light, emitting a small groan, her entire body felt sore and stiff, almost disconnected. “Lila?” it was Chris’ voice again but it didn’t seem nearly as panicked or far away. He sounded worried, scared, serious. The night’s events floated back to her, but she still couldn’t quite get a grip on her memory.

         “What? What happened?” she asked closing her eyes against he bright light, she heard Chris call to someone that she was awake, the sound grated in her head, ringing in her ears and filling her skull with piercing pain.

         “You were hurt, I found you all bloody, what in the hell happened to you?” he demanded, every sound even the rustle of the leaves outside the window was amplified painfully in her mind. She shook her head,

         “I’m not sure, DJ ran out and…” she trailed off.

         “And?”

         “I-I don’t remember” she turned her head away, “I’m sorry-I” she wasn’t sure what she was going to add, something that bordered on the edge of her mind but she couldn’t put into words. “What did happen?” she wasn’t sure if she’d thought it or said it out loud, but it didn’t matter, she fell back into sleep, restless and full of shadowy dreams.

         She slept till noon, the next day with only a vague awareness of her surroundings; she perpetually awoke for horrid dreams that floated away likes wisps of smoke as soon as she opened her eyes, leaving only the feeling of fear and sadness. She felt as if she were mourning, but over what she wasn’t quite sure. When she fully awoke she found her aunt and Chris sitting at her bed side, Sophie was knitting, Chris just looked tired and defeated.

         “Lila, how do you feel?’ he whispered as soon as he realized she was up, she blinked a few times to clear her head, he sat on the edge of his seat hands twisting into one another anxiously.

         “Better” she lied, “Water please” she asked, her throat was so dry every breath was like a burst of fire up her neck, he quickly passed her a tall glass spilling half of it on the floor, Sophie stood briefly informing them that she would go after a mop.

         “Lila, do you remember what happened?’ he asked, for a moment she didn’t know what he was talking about.

         “I remember DJ, running off I was chasing after him and then…” she could almost remember it but it still eluded her, “I’m sorry, it’s just not there” she sobbed feeling as if she was some how letting him down, she’d polished off the entire glass of water but still felt unfulfilled, her throat was still dry and raw.

         “It’s okay, it will come to you. Just so long as your better” he soothed, “let me get you some food” he stood quickly, and hurried out. Lila let her head fall back onto the pillow, she felt so exhausted, as if she’d just run a marathon, her whole body ached. A few words floated to her ear as she lay there, she looked around but no one was in the room. She concentrated for a moment; it became so clear it sounded as if someone were right next to her. It was William, she could hear it so crisply, every word.

         “It’s ridiculous, sleeping all day and night, laying in bed” he sounded pretentious, she’d never heard him speak quite so strongly, after a moment she realized that he was talking about her.          

         “I’m sure she’s very sick and weak from-” William cut the other person off,

         “Silliness, shameless to divert everyone’s attention from more important matters-” At the moment Chris opened the door, and she could no longer hear him, she tried to bring his voice back but the noises in the room were to loud, they echoed in her mind filling it up.

         As the day drifted by she felt better and better, by seven o’clock she felt more like she was suffering from a cold. Sophie stayed by her side all day sending Chris away many times, insisting he get some sleep or they’d be nursing him next.

         “How are you this evening, Lilivata?” William stood in the doorway, she thought about telling him off for a moment before scolding herself for even thinking of such an unladylike thing to do.

         “I’m much better, thank you for asking” she tried to smile, realizing she sounded a bit short, he didn’t seem to notice.

         “ah, well then, would you like to accompany me out to a late supper?’ he asked, she knew what he would say next, “I had an important meeting run late” she blinked at her cynical thoughts of his predictability, if she hadn’t been so surprised at her shortness with him she would have declined, but she felt as if she needed to make up for her moment of disagreeable nature.

         As the night wore on she felt better and better, ordering a large supper, she ate quickly, but she still didn’t feel full. William talked the whole time but her mind seemed to wander, she been careful to wear a wide lace choker, to hide the odd wounds on her neck, and long sleeves to hide the bandages on her arm. She found herself thinking of the short comings of William, how stupid and unfair this wedding was, how she didn’t want him as her husband; she quickly shook those thoughts from her head, scolding herself, and assuring herself that it was just normal cold feet, nothing to worry about, but she couldn’t get rid of the feeling that she was acting odd, that her mind was drifting to meaner and crueler thoughts. She tried to focus on what he was saying but it just seemed to lull her mind into wandering, her thoughts drifted off.

         As the waiter came over she snapped out of her ravine, standing as he did, she glanced at the clock, it was past nine, they’d left right after sundown, she realized how long she been just sitting there, thinking and paying William no attention, he didn’t seem to have noticed.

         They walked along the street, a cool breeze blew in from the water, Lila found it rather chilly, but she was used to much warmer temperatures. William chatted about money and business as they walked, Lila looked at shop windows as they passed, she never really had a taste for fine things before, but she now found herself coveting everything she saw. Out of no where she felt a hand grasp her wrist, she turned abruptly to find a young woman, a bit older then herself, her long red hair was caught up in a braid and twisted around in a bun, she had striking features, more handsome then classically pretty, her deep blue eyes held a look of pity, this surprised Lila, this woman was obviously a fortune teller, a drifter, if any one was low in social status it was her not Lila.

         “You’ll be over taken by your new self if you don’t take action” the woman had a lyrical voice, lulling, “it will consume you” she sounded deadly serious, but still utterly calm.

                “What-What are you talking about?” Lila demanded, pulling away from the woman, her wrist still remained enclosed in the woman’s hand, the fortune teller was about to say more, but William cut her off.

         “Go on, you’ll get no money trying to scare her into giving” he informed her pulling Lila away, “despicable” he added, taking Lila’s arm and heading on. Lila twisted around to see the woman as they walked on,

         “You need my help! Please it will destroy you!” the woman called after them, but William just hurried on, ranting about how beggars would resort to any thing to get money from upstanding people. But the woman’s word echoed in Lila’s ears, what had she meant? Maybe William was right, maybe she was just after money, Lila tried to convince herself that this was true but it seemed hollow, futile.
         
         That night she was plagued by shadowy dreams, full of ominous warnings and twisting alley ways. She bolted awake to see someone sitting next to her, asking her what was wrong, what was she dreaming about. She blinked, for a moment she didn’t recognize her, then it rushed back to her, it was Sophie. She waved a hand telling her it was just a bad dream, Sophie soothed her for a bit, and Lila dropped back into sleep.

         She woke up a little before noon, feeling sick to her stomach; she stumbled out of bed, just making it to the bathroom before throwing up. She collapsed into the floor after vomiting up the complete contents of her stomach, she leaned her head on the bathtub, knees drawn up, and arms wrapped around her aching middle. She groaned, wiping her mouth on the back of her hand, she spit into the sink and turned the water on, splashing it in her face, and washing the taste of vomit from her mouth. She glanced up at herself in the mirror, and blinked, she looked so pale, but it was more then that, she thought she looked like she was fading, for a moment she had the fleeting thought that she was dying, or already had, and was now ceasing to exist. She quickly shook that thought from her head, shuffling back to bed; she pulled the covers up under her chin, but still shivered under them.

         By mid day her mother and father showed up, they were here for the wedding tomorrow, but found Lila sickly and pale in bed, her mother immediately took up the post as nurse, trying to bring Lila’s fever down.

         By the seven o’clock they were talking seriously about postponing the wedding, they didn’t say it to Lila, but for some odd reason she was able to hear people that were anywhere in the house, so long as no other noise blocked her path. Strangely she didn’t care what they did about the wedding, she couldn’t figure this out either, the other day it had been at the fore front of her mind, but now she was almost dreading it.

         She couldn’t keep anything down, but it didn’t matter because no mater what she ate and drank she didn’t feel full, she still felt as if she were starving, as if she’d never eaten before.  They decided to wait three more days and have the wedding then regardless, at night she felt better but the fortunes teller’s words haunted her, it seemed as if the woman had known something she didn’t, for something was eating away at her.

         Each day made her feel worse and worse, her weight started dropping, and she became paler and paler, her dreams got worse and worse, more horrid with each passing night.

         She held her aching stomach, sipping broth to try and quiet its rumbling. She felt like she were going crazy, she was dizzy all the time, and lack of nourishment was starting to effect her mind; she had flashes that seemed so real, like day dreams but she could feel herself move, lunge from her bed and strangle Sophie, or plunge her knife into Chris’ chest. She dreaded seeing anyone, for fear that she would actually do this at some point, at night she found herself sleep walking, waking in the hallway or on the stairs.

         The day pulled on, Chris visited her, bringing her some toast and soup, which she couldn’t keep down for more then a few minutes, half way through her dinner she did it, the thing she’d been dreading. It was as if her body was taken over, as if she had no control, in one swift movement she plummeted her knife into Chris’ temple; for a moment the look on his face stayed the same, then slowly turned to pain and surprise. He slumped back on his chair, emitting a soft cry he fell off to the side, sprawling out on the floor; a deep crimson pool gathered around his skull, eyes glazed over, and staring blankly at the underside of the bed.