Title:A Future, Inside…

Rating:PG-13

Type:Story (Chapter Two of… many!)

Genre:Angst/Gothic/Adventure

Disclaimer: Hi! If you’re reading this, then I’ll presume you’ve read Chapter One, so I’ll keep it simple. First of all, I owe everything (and I mean everything!) to CJ!

Second, the rating remains a theoretical one. Also, the story is still being told by Lena herself, reflecting upon her past.

Finally, Yulia has still not appeared (save for a small cameo!) She will, I swear, but I honestly can’t say when. I will do my best to make the wait worth it though! I’m sorry for all the Yulia fans out there! It’s just… I don’t want to rush the story… but I assure everyone concerned, Yulia plays a major role in Lena’s life, she just doesn’t know it yet!

As always, please remember that this is a work of fiction, and is not intended in any way to be an overtly accurate representation of Yulia or Lena! (Yulia will feature in a future chapter, promise!)

Chapter 2:

It was so strange; it felt like an enigma coursing through my veins. It had only been six months ago that my father had said my life was to change. Six months. It seemed more like six billion light years. I stood in the garden, barefoot, the ground damp and soggy. The air felt heavy with moisture, but peaceful, so peaceful. I always felt that the silence of the night was something to be treasured, looked after, kept sacred, but now it seemed even more important. Now I felt I was a part of it, I even felt an affinity with the silence itself, as if I possessed a psychic link with the night air.

As a gentle breeze lifted my hair slightly, I imagined it was the spirit of the night, whispering sweet nothings in my ear. I even imagined her form. I could see her clearly, beautiful, stony blue eyes, like a coral reef. Spiky, impish hair, framing a fascinating face. I stared at her, and she smiled. I blinked, and she was no more. Somehow, I felt there was something real about that spirit, something I couldn’t quite grasp. “Where’d you go, my little spirit?” I whispered to myself, as I watched the fog drift around my feet.

Deep down though, I desperately needed real sweet nothings in my ear, real warmth. The kind my father, despite his care and devotion, just could not provide. The Sun, my new enemy, my old ally. And my friends, I yearned for them so. More than I cared to admit. More than mere words could convey. Even school itself, the teachers whom I used to hate; now I longed for their scorn. “What I’d give to be told off right now” I chuckled gently to myself.

I looked up above, and noticed a star that seemed to transform the entire sky. It was as if the sky were nothing more than a deep blue oyster, and the star it’s translucent pearl. I gazed at it and, in doing so, it seemed to get bigger. It was as if I was traveling back through space, through time, back to the source of it’s lustrous light. I could clearly see its surface now, a grass field, puffy clouds, hills like sand dunes. I noticed something else, a small figure, a little girl. I could see her freckled face, her red hair… it was me, the old, innocent, unknowing me. I could see myself, six billion light years away, looking back at me. And then there were others, in the distance, running gleefully through the glades, getting closer and closer. As they approached, I could see their faces, I could see my friends. They were with her, the other Lena, and they were waving me to come closer, to be with them.

My eyes were moist with joy as I smiled and waved back at them. Instinctively, I started to run towards them, my hands stretched out as far as my arms would let me. I reached, I tried as hard as I could, I was on tiptoes, my heart beating faster than I could breathe. “Nnnngghh!! No! Please! I can’t reach! No!” I screamed, hoping the other Lena would hear me. She did, and reached for my hand. My friends helped her. My voice had transcended time, and I wanted my body and soul to follow. I stretched so hard my lungs felt as though they might cave in at any second. I was almost there. “Yes! That’s it! Just a bit more!” I gasped with breathless hope. “Just…” my voice was silenced as I tripped and fell to the ground. That wondrous vision, of them, of my friends, of myself, was gone, replaced by nothingness. As I laid there on the ground, I wanted to cry, but the pain I felt was so exhausting, I couldn’t even do that.