Eight Years by Red Fox of Fire

[Florete]

And here it starts. Please leave all comments in the feedback thread here.

Chapter 1

After fourth period was lunch time, and since Scott didn’t get hungry until he got home after fifth, lunch time for him was nap time. His fourth period teacher, Mr. Prelmaw, didn’t mind having students in his class for lunch, so Scott was able to sit peacefully by himself yet still have other students around so as to not look like a loner.

After he finished packing up his things into his backpack, he nodded off and tried to get some sleep. He liked to stay up late at night because it was the only time he could do what he wanted without getting harassed by his parents and he knew he’d have time in school to catch up on sleep.

“Oh, Scooooooooott,” Scott heard someone say in his mind. He shrugged it off as a dream and ignored it. “Scott! Wake up! Please! I’ve finally worked up the courage and now I’m here to confess my love to you!”

“You’re a real dick, you know that, Josh?” Scott asked. He knew it was Josh, his best friend since first grade, because Josh was the only guy who would disturb his sleep and Scott could also recognize his voice like no other.

Scott opened his eyes to see a medium height Mexican with spiky hair and a wide grin staring at him, inches from his face.

“I love you, Scott.” Scott didn’t react. “Okay, I don’t really love you, but your guidance counselor, Mrs. McCall, does, and she’s summoned you up for a meeting.”

“And how the hell do you know that?” Scott asked.

“Mr. Prelmaw just got the call, and he wanted me to wake you up and tell you, that’s how. I eat in here with the guys, remember?” Scott looked to his left to see a group of three other guys eating and talking. “You really ought to hang with us sometime.”

“Yeah, whatever.” Scott grabbed his backpack and slung it over his shoulder. “I’ll see you around.” And with that, Scott walked out and up to the front office of the school. He found his guidance counselor at the end across the hall from the attendance booth, and she was waiting for him.

“Come in, Scott. Take a seat,” she said, gesturing for him to sit in the seat across from the desk. She was middle-aged, had long red hair, and wore glasses and a black dress. “We have something to discuss.”

“I imagine, or you wouldn’t have called for me,” Scott replied. “Am I in trouble or something? I swear I didn’t steal Mr. Bretoni’s underwear.”

“It’s…not that. You’re not exactly in trouble, but I am concerned.” She grabbed the file that was sitting on the desk in front of her. Scott noticed it had a picture of him paper clipped on the front. She started reading. “Scott Harp. Male. Blood type A. Six feet, one inch. Short, black hair. Green eyes. Wears a watch at all times. Hobbies include video games, internet, and occasional reading.”

“What is this, my life story?” Scott asked. “Am I the main character of an action film?”

“Let me finish,” she said without looking up from the paper. “Better at losing friends than making them. Spends most of his time alone. Has never had a girlfriend.”

“And I’m not disappointed by any of that,” Scott said rather smugly. “I prefer being alone over being constantly bothered and girlfriends cost way too much money, money I don’t have, money I need for my car.”

“It all contributes to one thing. Your grades. You’re lazy, and don’t reply to that because you’d probably just give me a smart-ass remark. I’ve asked people who know you and they describe you as somewhat arrogant, brash, and a smart-ass. You are currently failing three classes and barely passing the other two. This is your final year in High School. Do you even plan to graduate?”

“Maybe,” Scott answered. The bell rang, signaling the end of lunch and the start of fifth period in eight minutes. “Gotta run. Catch you later.” She gave him a wave off and he left for his Economics class.

After surviving the fifty-four minutes that is Econ, he packed his things and get ready to head for home when a girl approached him. She was short, had shoulder length blond hair, and looked amazingly cheery.

“Hey, Scott,” she said somewhat excitedly. “How are you today?”

“I’m fine,” Scott answered. “Just like every day. How are you, Lauren?”

“Oh, not so good.” She dipped her head and started to frown. “My mom just called me and said she can’t pick me up. I was wondering if you could give me a ride home.”

“Sorry, I can’t. My car’s in the shop. I’m walking home today and tomorrow, and maybe the next day if it isn’t repaired by then.”

“Damn, that sucks. Hey, how about we walk home together? We live in the same neighborhood, after all.”

“Are you sure? I take the path through the woods. You might get scared.”

“Oh, come on! There’s a pathway for a reason, jackass!” Then she went from angry to chipper again. “Besides, it’ll be more fun this way!”

“It’s amazing how your mood swings like that. Fine, you can walk home with me. Just make sure to keep up. I’m not stopping to admire any flowers.”

They began the half a mile walk to home. They didn’t talk the entire way, but Scott could have sworn he felt her eyes on him half the time. Ever since he’d met her at the start of summer four months ago, he’d always felt like she had a thing for him. Even if he was right, he couldn’t return the feelings. She wasn’t ugly at all, but he didn’t feel like being weighed down by a girl at this point in his life and he wasn’t exactly attracted to her anyway.

As they entered the woods, Scott felt Lauren move closer to him, obviously scared but not wanting to show it. Scott then noticed an opportunity. He quietly took a penny out of his pocket and pretended to stretch his arm outward as he threw the penny at a log. It made a hollow sound.

Lauren grabbed his arm and looked to where the sound had come from. “Oh my God, what was that?” She was shaking all over. “Scott, do you know what that was?”

“I warned you,” Scott replied. “But you didn’t listen. I told you this place was scary.”

“Wha- I…I’m not scared. Just concerned, that’s all.” She turned her head in the other direction. “Let’s just keep going.”

“Fine with me,” Scott said as he continued walking, doing his best not to laugh out loud.

They reached her house first. As she strolled her way to the door she thanked him for walking her home and disappeared inside the building. He continued on. His house was only about two more minutes away, so he was there in no time. He opened the door and walked in. No one was home as usual. Both his parents worked and his brother and sister had both moved out on their own, so he spent a lot of time at home alone. He grabbed a snack from the kitchen, went up the stairs to his room and turned on the computer. It was only two o’clock and his parents wouldn’t be home until four at the earliest.

By six o’clock, his parents were home and dinner was ready. He sat down and started to scoop food onto his plate.

“So Scott,” his mom said to him. “Did you learn anything new today?”

“Not a thing,” Scott answered immediately.

“No wonder,” his Dad said with a hint of sarcasm. “I got a call today from Mrs. McCall. Apparently, your grades are really in the crapper right now. What do you plan to do about it?”

“I’m sure I’ll figure something out.” Scott’s dad waited for more, but Scott didn’t say anything else. No one said another word at the table.

After dinner, Scott took a shower. After that was done, he went to the kitchen to get a soda and noticed his mom on the couch in the living room opening some boxes. He went over to her.

“Have you seriously not finished unpacking yet?” Scott asked as she removed some photo albums from the box. “We moved in six months ago.”

“I’ve been busy Scott. You know that.” She opened one of the albums. “Oh, look at these! These are photos of you when you were little. There was this time when you fell down the stairs at our old house and bragged about not crying later. Then there was that Teddy bear from when you were three that you just wouldn’t let go of. Oh, remember this? You found a baby fox in the woods and took care of it. Those woods are still near here, but I don’t think we’d find any more foxes.”

“Yeah, I remember. Good times and all.” Scott walked up the stairs to his room where he spent the rest of the night. As he went to bed, he thought he felt a strange presence nearby. He looked up, didn’t see anything out of the ordinary, and fell back to sleep.

Edited January 29, 2009 by Red Fox of Fire

[Florete]

Chapter 2

The next day at school was more tiresome for Scott than usual. He’d had a difficult time sleeping and couldn’t figure out why. His first four classes flew by him like the breeze and he was wiped by the time lunch came. So wiped, in fact, that he had his head on the desk and was out cold barely a minute after the bell rang.

“Scott? Are you awake?” Well, he was now. He pretended not to hear the voice and remained motionless. He felt a hand shake him. “Scott, wake up.”

Scott lifted his head, tired, and looked at his watch. He’d been asleep for about ten minutes. He then looked up and noticed Lauren standing in front of him. She smiled as he looked at her.

“Hey, there.” Scott made no reaction. “My mom wanted to thank you for walking me home yesterday. She has a day off today, so she was wondering if she could make it up to you by offering to drive you home today, since your car is in the shop and all.”

“Thanks,” Scott replied sleepily. “But there’s something I need to do on the way home. It’s a private matter.”

“Oh,” Lauren tilted her head, appearing sad. “That’s too bad. But, I guess if you can’t…”

“However.” Lauren’s head shot up again upon hearing this, her face full of hope. “If the offer doesn’t expire, I’ll be able to take it up another day.”

Lauren’s face beamed. “Okay! I’m looking forward to it. Bye now.” And with that, she left. After she was out of sight, Josh walked over to him and slapped him across the head.

“Ouch!” Scott yelled, frustrated. “What the hell was that for?”

“That’s my line,” Josh answered sternly. “She practically asked you out just then and you totally rejected her! I know for a fact you have nothing to do after school today except go home and sit on your lazy but all day. Do you want to be single all your life?”

“You don’t understand.” Scott sighed and stared at the desk in front of him. “I’m not in the greatest of moods today. And what you said isn’t…entirely true. I don’t know what it is, but I feel like I need to go home alone today.”

“Come on man, what’s happened to you?” Scott looked up at him and scowled. “What happened after you moved away from here eight years ago? Ever since you came back you’ve just been this lazy bum who doesn’t care about anything, not even yourself! I noticed it gradually happening during the many visits you made here during the summer and winter breaks as well. You seem to have lost all self confidence. What happened to the awesome, fun, lovable Scott I used to know?”

“You don’t….You wouldn’t understand…” Scott turned his head away and sighed. “Let’s just say things didn’t turn out so well for me in Texas. Things are a lot nicer here in California.”

Josh leaned down on the desk with his arms crossed and stared at Scott, trying to catch his eyes. “I’m going to find the old Scott. I miss him and I want him back. You hear me?”

Scott clenched his teeth and shut his eyes in anger, although he wasn’t quite sure why what had just been said made him so angry. “He no longer exists. I suggest you not even try.” Scott grabbed his backpack and stood up to leave. Josh stood up as well. “I’m going home.”

“Oh, so you’re going to be a delinquent now, eh?”

“I’m sick. Sue me.”

“So go to the nurse’s office. Otherwise you’ll receive a truancy and you don’t want that on your record.”

“I can handle it.” And with that Scott left the room. He thought he heard Josh calling after him, but he paid it no mind and continued walking. Luckily, it was still the middle of lunch break, so there were no staff members to notice him leave the campus. He began daydreaming and lost sight of his surroundings. He started to remember the days before he had moved away from this city eight years ago. Back then, he was cheery and enjoyed playing outside. Of course, he was still in elementary school back then.

Before he moved away, he had three best friends. Josh was one of them, and also the one he had known the longest since they had been introduced as toddlers as a result of their parents working together. There was also Anthony, who he had met in first grade because they sat next to each other. Anthony was quiet back then, but nowadays he was going to a different high school and Scott hadn’t spoken to him since moving back.

And then there was Ashley, the only girl in the group and was also the life of the group. She was always full of energy and always wanted to do something active. She talked a lot and was never seen with a frown on her face. Scott wasn’t sure what had happened to her nowadays. He had asked Josh once, but all Josh would say is that he had made a vow to Ashley to never talk about Ashley to Scott. Scott couldn’t understand why and Josh wouldn’t explain, but apparently Josh was in full agreement with her decision, so Scott had no choice but to accept.

Scott was so lost in thought on his way home he barely noticed he had already entered the woods that eventually led to his neighborhood. He stopped and took a moment to look around. The trees here had always been tall and thick, their trunks sticky with sap. He used to come here a lot to hang out with his friends. He suddenly felt a longing to go back to those days again. They were, as he described them, the best days of his life. He loved these woods so much and wished they would always be here. That was one thing he hoped would never have to change.

He continued on, adjusting his backpack to a more comfortable position. He was in the thicker area at the moment where the treetops covered a lot of the sky. However, there was still plenty of light to see his surroundings in.

“H-Help me….” A voice off to his left broke his train of thought. “Please help me!”

He turned his head and nearly dropped his jaw at what he saw. It was a girl about his age, lying on the ground in nothing but rags, her face in the dirt and scratches on her arms. Her red hair was everywhere and prevented him from seeing any of her face. He quickly walked over to her and leaned over, putting his hand on her shoulder. “Hey, what happened? How did you get here?”

She looked up at him slowly as he said the words. The color was drained from her face and she looked terrified as her eyes stared longingly into his. “Please…Please help me!” tears began to appear in here eyes now. She tried getting up but fell back down again.

Scott quickly pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and opened it to notice his battery was out. “For the love of God. Perfect timing.” He pocketed it and turned back to the girl. “I’ll be right back. I’m going to get help.”

He started to get up to leave for the nearest house, but she grabbed his leg and held on like her life depended on it. “No! Stay here! Don’t leave me! Don’t ever leave me!” And with that, her head fell down again and her grip came loose. She appeared to have lost consciousness from exhaustion. Scott checked her pulse to find she was still breathing fine. He looked around, not entirely sure what he was looking for. Finally, he gave a deep sigh, picked up the girl, and started walking.

The good news was that she was very skinny and didn’t weigh much. Also, since school was still in session and people were still at work, there was no one outside in his neighborhood to give him a questioning stare. The bad news was that he had a hard time keeping her head up. Looking at her with her neck arched and her head hanging over looked so painful, it hurt just to see it, but every time he tried to balance her, she always found a way to fall over again. If he didn’t have his backpack on, he could give her a piggy-back ride, but he did, unfortunately.

Finally he arrived at home. He first noticed his mother’s car in the driveway and felt immediately relieved. She was a doctor and she must have gotten the day off. At least one thing positive had happened.

He walked up to the porch and kicked the door a few times. When his mother opened the door and saw him with the girl in his arms, her facial expression was a mixture of confusion and wonder, and she was speechless.

“Merry Christmas,” Scott said sarcastically. “Please let me in.”

His mother’s mouth opened and closed a few times before finally replying with, “Y-yeah, put her on the couch.” She held the door open and let him. He had to turn to the side to get in and then he walked directly to the living room across from the kitchen and laid the girl down on the couch. His mother first checked her pulse as he had, then felt her forehead for a fever. “She seems fine from here.”

“From here?” Scott asked as his mother tilted her head and placed it against the girl’s chest to check her heartbeat.

“With just my own two hands and no word from her, it’s hard to really tell if anything is wrong with her.” She lifted her head and sat on the end of the couch near the girl’s head. “What happened?”

Scott explained what had happened, starting with how he had left school early until the point when the girl fainted. His mother began to stroke the girl’s hair as she listened, staring at the pale face. When he finished, she didn’t say a word for quite a while.

When she finally spoke, her voice was soft and her words broken as if she had to choose her words carefully. “Scott…I, uh….I’ll watch her for now. You just- you go to your room and get some rest, or something.”

Without a word, Scott got up to go to his room. Before he was out of sight, he took one last look at his mother and the girl. His mother had a strange expression on his face, one he couldn’t quite interpret, but it made him feel bad on the inside, like there was something he needed to apologize for. He shrugged it off and fell down on his bed.

He was woken by his dad a few hours later. “You sleep anymore now and you won’t be able to sleep tonight,” his father said as he shook him and removed the covers.

“I’m awake, I’m awake.” Scott got up and stumbled around his room for a while until his mom called him down for dinner. He ate quickly and left, noticing that the mysterious girl was still sleeping, but now with a blanket and a pillow.

A few hours later, his mom came into his room on her way to bed. “I want you to sleep in the living room tonight. Grab your sleeping bag.”

“What?” Scott looked at her, annoyed. “Why do I have to do it?”

“You’ve already gotten your fair share of sleep today, and your father and I have to get up earlier anyway for work. Plus, if she wakes up in the middle of the night, it’ll be bad if she finds herself alone in the dark. Situations like that never turn out good. Good night.” And with that, she walked away and into her room. Scott heard the door close behind her.

Scott grumbled under his breath and reached under his bed to grab his sleeping bag. He brought it to the living room and began laying it out. The girl was still sleeping soundly, her hair still mussed and her toes sticking out of the end of the blanket. He decided to ignore her for now and got ready for bed. He wasn’t very tired, but he had nothing better to do. He brushed his teeth, got dressed, turned the lights out, and went to bed.

As he lay awake, he could hear her move around and make small noises. She must be dreaming, he thought. Hopefully mine are more pleasant than hers. Eventually, he fell asleep.

Scott was woken with a start as he felt a sharp pain in his stomach and something struggling on top of him. He pushed it off, stood up, and turned on the light at the end of the couch. The light blinded him for a moment, but he eventually saw that the girl had woken up and, startled by her surroundings, had fallen off the couch and onto him. She was shaking all over and squinting her eyes, trying to see in the blinding light.

“Good morning,” Scott said. She looked at him as if the words coming from his mouth were treacherous.

“Wh-Who are you? Where am I?” Her voice was as shaky as her body. “What’s going on?”

“Yeah, that’s what I’d like to know. Got a name?”

“A what?”

“A name. You know, the thing that people call you and know you by. Your identity. Like, mine is ‘Scott.’ That’s what people call me.”

“I-I don’t know. I don’t think I have one.” She looked around and attempted to take in her surroundings. “What is this place?”

“This is my home.” Scott held his arm out to show her as if he wanted to sell it to her. “And I’m the guy who saved your ass yesterday. You fainted in the woods and I brought you here.”

“You…You did. I remember that!” She stopped shaking now and started to grow more confidence in her voice. She stared him straight in the eyes. “Um…”

Scott sighed and explained all that happened since she fainted, though there wasn’t much to tell. “Now, once again. Do you have a name for me?”

“Um…no. I don’t think so.”

“Well, before we do anything else, I want to have something to call you so I don’t have to say ‘you’ or ‘girl’ every time I need to address you.” He waited for a response, but she said nothing, so he decided to give suggestions. “How about Jessica?” She shook her head. “Victoria?” She shook her head again. “Vanessa?” Another head shake. “Good thing too. That’s my sister’s name. Priscilla?” She continued shaking her head. “Steve?” She tilted her head at this one, as if pondering it. “That one was a joke, don’t think on it.” Scott leaned his head on his fist, trying to think of a good name. “How about Sierra?”

Her eyes widened upon hearing the suggestion and she pointed at him. “That’s-that’s it! That’s my name! Sierra! That’s my name!”

“That’s your actual birth name, or just the one you want to go with?”

She lowered her arm slowly. “I-I don’t know. I think it’s my real name.”

“Good enough for me.” He stood up from the couch and walked to where she sat, extending his hand. “Hi Sierra. I’m Scott.”

She stared at his hand, not knowing what to do, then turned her eyes up to him questioningly.

Scott slapped his forehead with his free hand. “Just grab my hand in yours and shake it. It’s a normal human custom.”

She nervously grabbed his hand and gave a weak shake along with his, speechless, still staring into his eyes. Scott smiled and said, “It’s nice to meet you.”

Edited January 7, 2009 by Red Fox of Fire

[Florete]

Chapter 3

“So…What do you remember?” Scott asked Sierra as he sat back down on the couch.

“Well, I-” She stopped suddenly as a low rumble was heard. She put her right hand over her stomach, looking embarrassed.

“Hungry, eh? I suppose it makes sense. You haven’t eaten in quite some time.” Scott looked outside. It was still dark. He looked at his watch. Five-thirty am. “Well, I’ve never had breakfast this early, but I suppose I could make the both of us some oatmeal. How does that sound?”

She just shook her head without saying a word. He got up from the couch and went over to the kitchen to prepare the food. From the kitchen, he could look over the counter top and see the entire living room, so he could still keep an eye on Sierra. When he realized she was still sitting in the same spot on the floor, he called out to her, “You know, you can sit on the couch if you’d like. I’m sure it’s more comfortable than the carpet.” She made no response and didn’t move as if she hadn’t even heard him. He noticed that she looked really sad, like she was recalling bad memories. She still had the blanket wrapped around her, so at least she wasn’t cold.

Oatmeal was one of the few things Scott knew how to cook well. He hated cereal, so he always had to find something else, and he was often awake earlier than his parents so he couldn’t have breakfast with them, but he didn’t mind. He had a strange liking to having a quiet breakfast in the dark, so his parents would only ruin that.

As he was finishing the breakfast, he looked outside and noticed the sun coming up over the horizon. “It’s a good thing today is Saturday. Hey, wait a second!” Scott remembered what his mom had said before going to bed about needing to get up for work. “That lying bitch!”

“You shouldn’t call your mother that.” Somewhat startled, Scott looked behind him and noticed no one except Sierra still there.

“Was that you?”

“I-I’m sorry,” she replied. She almost seemed scared, like she felt she shouldn’t have said what she did. “I just don’t think you should call your mother by bad names like that.”

Scott felt confused at this. She seemed like she shouldn’t even know what that word meant. He shrugged it off for the time being. The oatmeal was ready now, so he grabbed two bowls and scooped some of it in, then brought it over to her where she was still sitting on the floor. “Are you sure you don’t want to sit on the couch with me?” He asked as he handed her a bowl and spoon.

“I like it better down here.”

“Suit yourself,” Scott said as he turned to go sit on the couch, but she grabbed his pants with her spoon hand before he could go any farther. He turned and looked down at her. She didn’t say anything, just looked at the floor, scared and embarrassed, holding on tight.

Scott sighed. “Let go. I’ll sit with you.” He sat down and they started eating, not saying a word as they ate. He was half done when he looked over and noticed her bowl was empty. “That was fast. You really must be hungry. Here, let me get you some more.” She let him take her bowl and get up to fill it up again, still not moving an inch. The sun was higher now. It was just a bit after six a.m. now.

“So, you two are up already.” Scott heard someone say as he was walking back to Sierra. He looked to the hallway entrance and saw his mother standing there. He ignored her and sat down again, handing Sierra her now full bowl. “Has our new friend said anything?”

“Her name is Sierra,” Scott answered. “That’s all I know. As for you…It’s Saturday. What are you doing up so early?”

“I told you last night, silly,” She said as she walked into the kitchen. “I have work. The hospital called last night and they need me in by seven o’clock this morning.”

“Oh…okay…” Scott continued on his oatmeal as his mother poured cereal for herself. He noticed her look over at them a few times as she ate from the kitchen table, as if waiting for the right moment to speak up, but she never did. She finished up and went back to her room to get dressed. Scott noticed that Sierra had finished her bowl again, and so had he. “Do you want any more?” he asked her, not sure what to expect as a reply.

She shook her head and stared into the bowl. “I really love oatmeal.”

“Lucky for you. It’s pretty much all I know how to make. In fact, it’s the first thing I really learned how to make, back when I was about eight or nine. Wow, now that I think of it, that’s almost ten years ago…” Scott lost himself in reminiscence. He remembered preparing a large bowl that could feed at least four people while his friends, Josh, Anthony, and Ashley sat at the table waiting for him. He had lived in a different house back then, though the structure was similar to his current one.

“Scott, is it almost ready?” Ashley asked.

“Give him a few more minutes, Ashley,” Anthony said. “It’s not like it’s hot out of the bag.”

“But I’m hungryyyy!” Ashley complained.

“It’s almost done,” Scott reassured her. “Just another minute or so.”

“Hey Ashley, you’ve never had Scott’s oatmeal, have you?” Josh asked. Ashley shook her head. “You’ll love it. He only learned how to make it a week ago, but it’s amazing!”

Ashley smiled in delight. “I can’t wait!”

“And you don’t have to,” Scott said as he started scooping the oatmeal into bowls. “It’s ready! But be careful, it’s still hot.”

“Yay! Me first, me first!” Ashley was almost falling out of her chair jumping around so much. “Ladies first!”

Scott gave her the first bowl, then gave Anthony and Josh bowls of their own, and finally sat down with his own. They all began eating.

“You’re right, it’s great!” Ashley exclaimed. “I love it!”

“It needs brown sugar,” Anthony stated bluntly.

“Of course.” Scott got up and grabbed a box of brown sugar from the pantry on the wall behind him. He handed it to Anthony, who opened it and applied it.

“Now that’s what I call oatmeal,” Anthony said.

“Hey Scott, how do you do it?” Josh asked, curious. “How did you learn so quickly how to make such great oatmeal?”

“It’s a secret, of course. Otherwise, it would be nothing special.” He looked over at Ashley. She was gobbling it down like it was her last meal. “I’m guessing you like it?”

“I really love oatmeal,” Ashley said as she finished her bowl. She then handed it to him. “More please!”

“Scott?” Scott snapped back to the present. He looked at Sierra and noticed her staring at him, confused. “Are you alright?”

“Huh? Oh, uh, yeah, I’m fine.” Scott felt confused. He couldn’t remember ever having a sudden flashback like that. He shrugged it off and turned back to Sierra. “So is there anything else you remember?” He also noticed that his mother’s coat that had been hanging over the chair was gone. She must have left while he was in thought.

She put a finger on her chin and stared at the ceiling. “Hm… All I remember is waking up among those trees and wondering what was going on. It was in the middle of the night and I couldn’t see anything. I stumbled around for a while, not knowing where I was going. It was really scary and cold.” She paused for a moment. Scott thought he saw a tear fall from her eye. “I heard a lot of movement around me. I eventually lost consciousness, though I don’t remember how or when. When I woke up, it was daytime. I felt warm and noticed I had fur on my skin, like an animal had scraped by me while I slept. I couldn’t stand up, so I did my best to crawl as far as I could, and I eventually saw you walking.”

“Sounds rough.” Scott looked at his watch. Seven o’clock. He had no idea what to do now. They sat for a few minutes, neither one saying anything. Then he heard the front door open. He looked over to see his older sister, Vanessa, and her boyfriend, Jordan, walk in.

“Hey Scott, how’s it going?” Vanessa asked in her normal cheery mood. “Mom asked me to stop by before going to work. She told me about the ‘situation’.” Vanessa had shoulder length hair, black like his own, stood as tall as him, and wore a purse over her left shoulder and earrings.

Scott stood up and beckoned Sierra to do the same. They walked over to where Vanessa and Jordan stood. “Good to see you two.” He turned to Jordan. “And you.”

“Yeah, I haven’t seen you in a while.” Jordan wore shorts and a T-shirt at all times, even in cold weather. His hair was about as long as Vanessa’s, dirty blonde. He stood only an inch or two taller and with great posture.

“This is Sierra. I’m sure you’ve heard the story.” He turned to Sierra and it was then that he noticed she was still wearing the rags he had found her in. He looked to his sister. “Do you think you can help her out?”

“Sure. Come on, Sierra.” She grabbed Sierra’s hand and began to drag her into the hallway. “My mom still has some of my old clothes around. We’ll see what fits you and get you cleaned up.” Sierra cast a glimpse back at Scott as she was dragged away. He gave her a quick wave goodbye and turned back to Jordan.

“So, how are things?” Scott asked. He had only met Jordan upon moving back. Vanessa, eighteen at the time, had not moved away eight years ago with the rest of the family. She had had a job and found herself able to find a cheap apartment and so was able to stay. She had apparently been dating Jordan for almost two years. He seemed like a really nice guy to Scott. He had a high-paying job as a computer graphics artist and had graduated from college with his Master’s degree the previous year. It felt to Scott like everyone around him was smarter than him at times.

“Fine, as usual,” Jordan answered. “I’m off for today, but Vanessa has to work early on Saturday’s so I decided to drive her today.”

The two continued talking for a while on different subjects, including TV, video games, and music. Scott had always shared a certain connection with Jordan because they had a lot of similar interests and secretly hoped that Jordan and Vanessa would marry some day. Getting free trials on new computer programs was awesome, and if it worked he was allowed to keep it.

About a half hour had passed when Vanessa stepped out of the hallway with Sierra, who was now wearing zipped up sweater and a long skirt. “What do you think, Scott?” Vanessa asked. “Ain’t she pretty?”

Scott looked from one girl to the other, indifferent. “Perfect.” Then the phone rang. Scott walked over and picked it up. It was the auto shop where his car was stored and they had called to let him know his car was ready to be picked up. He thanked them and hung up. “Perfect timing,” Scott said as turned back to the others. “My car is ready to be picked up. Can you drop me off on your way?”

Vanessa nodded her head, smiling.

[Florete]

Chapter 4

The technician handed Scott the key to his car with a smile. “Take good care of her,” he said. “And if she ever breaks again, just bring her back and we’ll fix her up for you.”

“If I didn’t know better, I wouldn’t realize you were talking about the car.” Scott smiled, half wishing he hadn’t said that, the other half laughing helplessly inside him.

“What was that?”

“Nothing. Nothing at all. Thanks for the help.” He tossed his keys in the air a few times as he walked over to his now fixed car where he had told Sierra to wait. His sister was also waiting for him there. Jordan was waiting in his car for Vanessa.

“Scott, can I talk to you alone for a second?” Vanessa asked.

Scott looked at Sierra, then back at his sister, then back at Sierra.

“It’ll only take a minute,” his sister reassured him.

“Stay here, all right? I’ll be right back,” Scott said to Sierra. She just nodded her head as Scott and Vanessa stepped about ten feet away. She grabbed a pen and paper from her purse and started to write something down. “What is it?” Scott asked.

She finished writing and put the pen away. She handed the slip of paper to Scott. It had an address on it. It looked like somewhere downtown. “Take Sierra there. You’ll find someone that should be able to help her.”

This sudden suggestion made Scott suspicious. “What am I going to find there, Vanessa?” he asked inquiringly.

“I was talking with Sierra while finding her some clothes and getting her cleaned up. That is, I was attempting to. She’d barely say a word to me. Normally all she would do is shake her head one way or the other. She seemed rather anxious to get out, but to where, I don’t know. You told me she’s amnesiac, but I think she must have gone through some stranger trauma in her past life as well. The person you’ll find here can probably help her.”

“That’s nice. Now, who is this person I’m supposed to meet without knowing so much as a name? I’m not just going to waltz in expecting a therapist so I can find a circus.”

Vanessa sighed and looked away. “I think…I think it’s better if you don’t know until you meet her. You’ll have to trust me on this one, Scott. Have I ever done anything to make you distrust me?”

“Well, there was that time when you-“

“Rhetorical question, no need for an answer.” She paused and gave another deep sigh. Then she looked at her watch. “Listen, I have to go. Just trust me, all right?”

“Hey, wait up!” But she just walked off to her ride without looking back. “Damn it…” He looked back to his own car and noticed Sierra still standing there in the exact same position like a statue. He walked over to her. “Come on, Sierra. Let’s go home. I need more rest.” And with that, they got in the car and drove off.

***

“Hey, Scotty!” Josh suddenly appeared in front of Scott and pounded his hands down on the desk. “How’s it going?” Monday at lunch time and Josh was still his cheery self. “Have a good weekend?”

“You have no idea…” Scott explained the situation with Sierra to Josh. Josh sat in the seat across from Scott as he listened, very interested. After Scott finished, Josh paused for a bit longer to think about all of it.

“So you find this chick half dead and half naked in the woods, she can’t remember anything but her name, and she seems to love sticking to you?” A wide grin appeared on Josh’s face. He tapped Scott on the shoulder. “I think you’ve found your soul mate. She’s perfect for you.”

Scott rubbed his shoulder where Josh had tapped him, his eyes closed and his head down. “Hilarious.” Then he remembered the address Vanessa had given him. He grabbed the slip of paper from his pocket and showed it to Josh. “Do you happen to know what I’ll find here?”

Josh studied it for a bit, and then shook his head. “Sorry, can’t help you. Although I think it’s right next to that thrift store right off the highway. Don’t know what it could be.”

“Well, thanks any-”

“Hey, what’s that?” Scott jumped in his chair and turned around to see Lauren. “An address? Ah, who lives there? Someone close to you?”

“Holy shit, you scared me, Lauren.” He hesitated, then handed her the slip of paper. “Know what I’ll find there?”

She studied it for a bit. For a split second, it appeared as though a sense of realization had come over her, but she covered it quickly. “Um...Who gave you this address, just out of curiosity?”

“My sister, Vanessa. Why?”

“Oh, no reason.” She handed the paper back to him. “Sorry, I don’t know where that leads either. Wish I could help, but I need to go.” And with that, she was off.

“Well, that was weird,” Josh noted, more to himself that to Scott. “She looked like she recognized it at first. What do you think?”

“God, man, I don’t know what to think.” He sat there for a bit, staring at the address on the sheet of paper, not sure what to do. “It seems I’m supposed to go there without knowing what I’m getting myself into.”

“Well, your sister suggested it, so why don’t you just try it out? There’s no harm in checking it out. You might actually find something useful there.”

He didn’t like the idea, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized he should. Sierra’s condition didn’t appear to be changing and he didn’t know of anything he could try. Plus, it was better than rotting away at home doing nothing. “I’ll check it out after school with Sierra.”

“Oh, and one more thing.” Scott looked at Josh with a blank look on his face. “I’m sorry about calling you a delinquent the other day. You’re lazy, but you aren’t that bad.”

“No worries.”

***

Scott walked in the door to find his mother trying to tie up Sierra’s hair, yet was failing miserably.

“Oh, darn it! I never could get this right!” As she fumbled with the hair a bit more, she noticed Scott. “Scott, can you help me here?”

“What the hell do you expect me to do? I don’t know hair except my own.”

“Watch your language, Scott.” He rolled his eyes, indifferent. She continued to fumble around with the hair for a while until she finally managed to tie it up into a ponytail. “Finally, I got it!” She tugged it a bit. “You like that?”

“Ow!” Sierra cried out. “Please don’t pull so hard.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Here, take a look in the mirror.” She led Sierra to the mirror across from the door where Scott was standing. “Do you like it?”

Sierra played with her hair for a bit, moving it about and letting it fall back into place. “Uh…Yeah, I guess so.”

“Good,” Scott said. “Now that you’re stylin’ and everything, I have somewhere I need to take you.”

The two of them turned around to look at him as if just noticing he was there. “That’s fine. When will you be back?”

“I don’t know, but hopefully soon. Come on Sierra, let’s go.” He took her outside and back to his car with him. He knew the general location. All that was left was finding the exact spot.

It took about a half hour on the freeway to reach the spot. Upon exiting, he made a right into an abandoned parking lot. One building read “Nifty Thrifty”. The letters were big and red, but most were worn out. The building to the right was unmarked except for the address; the address written on his sheet of paper.

He parked the car, unbuckled his seat belt, and sat for a bit, thinking. What the hell was he doing about to walk into an unmarked, likely abandoned building? He looked over at Sierra. She just looked at him without saying anything.

He sighed. “We might as well go in. Come on.” He got out of the car. She followed suit and he locked it. Together, they walked to the door. The white paint was peeling off and doorknob was old and rusted. He considered turning back now. He felt like he wouldn’t be able to as soon as he walked in. He looked at Sierra. Nothing. Just more blank stares.

He grabbed the knob and twisted it. It creaked as the door opened. Upon walking in, he saw nothing but a desk with a bell on it and a door behind the desk on the left wall. There was also a bench to his right and a single light above him that gave off more light than it looked capable of. Hesitantly, he rang the bell.

Only a few seconds later, a woman appeared from out of the door. She wore fortune-tellers robes and a hood over her head, hiding some of her face. She walked like one with many years of experience, yet appeared no older than her mid-thirties. She looked up at them and smiled. “Sierra!” she said, ecstatic. “Why, it’s so nice to see you again!”

[Florete]

Chapter 5

Ever since Scott had first heard her speak her name, he had felt a connection with Sierra. It was as if she were part of some distant memory locked away inside him. None of her actions, looks, mannerisms, anything about her rang any bells in his mind, only her name. He knew the name meant something, but he just couldn’t put his finger on it.

She hardly spoke when he wasn’t around, and she didn’t speak much even when he was around. His mother would tell him how she might try to hold a conversation with the girl, but Sierra would usually stay silent, not answering, or give a quick answer in a hushed tone, like “Yes” or “I don’t know” or “Sorry.” She preferred to sit around somewhere, anywhere, and stare at the walls, the TV, the fireplace, anything. Sometimes she might walk around the house just looking around, not saying a word.

Scott neglected to give her much attention. Even if he were to try talking to her, he wouldn’t know what to say, as proven by the few and quick conversations the two had had already. Scott would be sitting at his computer and Sierra would just walk in and sit on his bed, staring at his back. He would ask her a question, something simple, like “How are you?” She would always answer him also. Scott didn’t know why she only spoke to him, but he didn’t care much. After all, he had only known her for a couple of days.

He never asked about her private life, either. Why should he? It was none of his business. His mom had gone to the police station and let them know about Sierra. They told her that they would call if they got anything. Scott figured someone would notice soon enough and come to take her away, so why get to know her.

So why should Scott really care about her? He was wondering that as he spoke to the fortune teller.

Scott’s jaw dropped when he heard how the woman addressed Sierra. He turned to Sierra and noticed she was just as confused. “Sierra?” He asked. “Do you…know this woman?”

She didn’t answer for a few seconds. She just stared at the woman as if trying to remember something. Then she shook her head and said “I don’t know her.”

“Ahahaha!” The woman laughed upon hearing this. Clearly, this amused her. “Of course she doesn’t recognize me. She simply doesn’t remember, but she does, in fact, know me. She just doesn’t realize it.”

This made Scott angry. “How do you know her? Who are you? Answer me!”

The mysterious woman was still smiling, but she had ceased laughing. “I have many names, but you may call me Charity for now. I am a fortune teller. How may I help you?”

“A fortune teller?” Scott sighed. “What the hell was Vanessa thinking? Come on, Sierra. We’re going.” He turned to leave, but Sierra didn’t follow. She stood rooted to the same spot, staring at the woman who identified herself as Charity.

She turned around to face him. “Scott, this woman…She knows me. She knows who I am. I want to…I want to find out what she knows about me! I want to know about my past!”

“But, Sierra-”

“Are you sure about that?” Charity asked. They both turned to look at her. She suddenly had a very serious look on her face, as if Sierra had just suggested a very bad idea. “Memory recovery is not outside my reach, but you might not like what you find. Some people who have their memories recovered end up realizing they would have been better off never remembering. Of course, you’ll never know until you try.” She closed her eyes and smiled again, chuckling. “The wonders of the human brain. Curiosity never satisfied.”

“Sierra, this is a bad idea.” Scott could tell she was listening, but she didn’t turn to face him. “This stuff isn’t real. Whatever she says she can do, she’s lying. They always are. It’s best for us to just go.”

She stood in the same spot, not responding, head tilted down and fists half clenched. “Scott, I-” She stopped herself, trying to get the words out correctly as if her life depended on it. “Scott, I want her to recover my memory. I want to know about my past.”

Scott looked at Sierra, then at Charity. She just smiled at him, a creepy smile if Scott had ever seen one. “How much will it cost me?”

“My services have no price,” Charity answered. “Money is of little value to me anyway. If it was a necessity, I’d advertise.”

Scott looked at Sierra again, already regretting the answer he was about to give. But he could tell she wouldn’t budge on this decision. “Fine. We’ll give it a shot.”

Sierra’s face lit up. “Thank you for understanding,” she gratefully thanked Scott with a huge smile on her face. She turned back to Charity. “What do I do now?”

Charity smiled again. “Follow me.” She lifted up one end of the desk so they could pass as she walked through the door she had come from earlier. They followed into a dimly lit room. There was one small table in the center with a chair on each end. The walls were covered with newspaper articles. In an opposite corner of the room sat a crystal ball on a short desk. There was another door at the opposite end of the room.

“You sit here.” Charity gestured at the chair nearest them for Sierra as she walked around to the other end and sat in the other chair. She turned to Scott as Sierra sat. “Scott, I have to ask you to not intervene during the recovery process. If you do, not even I know what might happen. It could kill her, it could make her go insane, anything. Conversely, it could also make her a genius or recover her memory completely, but we can’t risk that. Understood?”

Scott paused for a second. “Uh…yeah, I guess.”

“Good.” She turned back to Sierra, ready to start. “Before we begin, I need to explain a few things. First off, memories are never ‘lost’ per se. ‘Forgetting’ is merely sending a memory to the depths of the mind, but I can always be brought back. You can think of the mind like a storage cabinet; every day you are inserting new files, or memories in this case, so old ones end up further back and might be more difficult to find again later. This analogy doesn’t work, however, when it comes to your situation; amnesia. Your memories have all gone away somewhere into the depths of your mind, so my job is to find out where they are and pull them back. Are you following me?”

“Yes. Yes, I think so,” Sierra answered, nodding her head. “Are you really able to do this?”

“Sierra, Sierra! This is why you’ve come here. What good would I be if I couldn’t accomplish this simple task? Perhaps I shouldn’t say simple, though. This technique isn’t without flaw, and it might hurt a bit. It’s unlikely that I can recover all of your lost memories, but the ones I can recover should be sufficient enough to help you get the rest on your own. When you’re ready, we’ll start.”

Sierra nodded her head, determined. “I’m ready.”

“Close your eyes and try to relax.” Sierra closed her eyes. Charity reached out with her arms and held Sierra’s head in her hands, covering her ears. Her head suddenly dropped as if she had fallen asleep. Scott watched as nothing happened for a few minutes. Neither of them moved a muscle. Suddenly, Sierra’s eyes shot wide open, her pupils not moving but staring straight forward. Scott jumped back in surprise, and then walked a bit closer, wondering if something was wrong with Sierra. Then, as quickly as they had opened, they shut again.

Charity still wasn’t moving. She was entirely motionless, her head down and arms outstretched. However, Sierra was starting to shake as if in fear. Her arms were slowly moving up over the edge of the table to where Charity’s hands met her head. She started to breathe heavily as if running out of air. She began making weak sounds like she was trying to say something.

“Sierra?” Scott called out to her, worried. “Sierra, are you there? Are you alright?” He moved closer again, close enough to touch her.

Without further warning, she let forth a blood curdling scream, causing Scott to cover his ears. After partially recovering from the surprise and while she was still screaming, he reached out to grab her.

“Scott, don’t!” It was Charity. Her face was suddenly full of anger, but she otherwise hadn’t made any motion.

But the screaming continued. Her hands had reached Charity’s now and she was beginning to violently shake her head. Scott couldn’t take it anymore. He swiftly reached out and pulled the two apart, knocking them back in their seats, then stumbled back himself.

Sierra appeared to be knocked out but breathing fine. Charity shook her head a bit and blinked her eyes open. She gasped as she realized what had happened and scolded Scott. “What were you thinking!? I specifically told you not to interrupt! You don’t even know what you might have just caused!”

Scott was still somewhat dazed, but managed to get out a reply. “Sh-She sounded like she was in serious pain. I felt like I had to do something.”

Charity crossed her arms and turned away, furious. “I said it might hurt, Scott, and I know you heard that.” She took a moment to calm down a bit. “She appears to be fine for now. That is, as long as she plans on waking up. We won’t know her condition until she does. I suggest you go home now. I’ll be here if you need me again.”

Without saying a word, Scott picked up Sierra and carried her out of the building and back to his car. He placed her in the front seat and buckled her seatbelt, then sat down in the driver’s side and started the car. He heard a small noise escape Sierra and looked over to see her waking up. She was holding her head with one hand and moaning like she had a headache.

“Sierra? Are you all right?” Scott asked.

She came to her sense upon hearing his voice and turned to face him. “Scott? What happened?”

“I don’t really know. Do you remember anything?”

She sat silent for a while, thinking as she stared at the floor of the car. “I was sitting there and…um…Well, everything was blank for a while. I couldn’t see anything, feel anything, hear anything, nothing. Then a little girl appeared in front of me. She looked scared, like she was lost. I don’t know where we were, but we were surrounded by trees. I stayed with her for a while until we found someone who knew her, and then she left.” Sierra paused, looking sad. “But that’s not all.” She turned sharply to look at Scott again. “Scott, I know this place. I’ve been here before.”

This information somewhat surprised Scott, but he realized it made sense since Charity had recognized Sierra. “When was this? And why?”

“I-I don’t remember why. But it was a long time ago. Years ago, for sure.” She looked out the windshield at the building they had just left. “Although I remember being here, I don’t remember Miss Charity. I don’t remember seeing anyone here, just being here.”

Scott sighed as he put the car in gear. “Don’t worry about it for now. Let’s go home. You can think about it more there.”