{Stitch Our Hearts Together* [Navy - Day 5]

I remember when closing my eyes made me feel safe. When closing out the world gave me the freedom to pretend I was flying. But now all I can see behind my eyelids is Theseus coming at me. I know it's not him. It was all just one, big nightmare that led to a death, but his voice keeps ringing in my ears and I still feel the burn of his tongue on my skin. "Ever wonder if a sweet, caring, generous guy like me could be like your father?" I swallow hard. I try to focus on something else. I twiddle my fingers, I braid and unbraid and rebraid my hair, I sing the ABC's, I count lotus petals again, I dance out something I learned back at Tempus, I pretend to fly, I search for the girl that I hope was not part of my nightmare but know she had to have been - but nothing works. I still hear his voice ringing through my head. "Like it rough, don't you?" I hear the anthem begin to play and suddenly wish with all my heart that it could play louder. Never of the 4 times that I have watched it has it played so quietly. And although I may have been thankful before, I am upset now. "Can't take love any other way." I watch the sky flash and three faces appear. The girl from 7, Alaska. who I actually feel semi-sorry for. Phyllis. And Kiera. I feel a smile creep onto my lips.

Ah, yes, you like that don't you, darling Navy?

"Answer me!"

"Shut up! Yes! My God, all the answers are yes!!"

The anthem cuts out and I'm left with silence. And for the first time in 5 days, I feel utterly alone. I bend over and grab up Theseus' laurel out of the mud. It shimmers and glistens as the moonlight sends reflections of the past back at my face. Those nights after a successful performance, backstage, everyone smiling and laughing and getting so drunk that we all nearly stumble off the front of the stage and playing hide-and-seek throughout the racks and racks of clothes, trying to find the best hiding spot and staying up all night because there was no one to tell us we couldn't. Her majesty remembers when she was a only a young princess. No kingdom to worry over. I twirl the silver crown in my hands. Then I walk over to the ponds filled with lotus' and place the laurel on a lotus pad that floats on the surface, sporting a pink flower at it's center. I pick the flower and replace it with the blue one in my hair, leaving the silver metal surrounding the flower. I smile.

"You can sleep now, Theo. She's gone."

I watch as the sun dashes the water around me with sparkles of light. But it only peeks for a moment when I hear thunder rumbling in the sky. The sun rises above the earth only to be covered again by darkness. The winds keep up, sending tiny ripples across the ponds and ruffling the lotus petals. The sweat that has managed to drench my body starts to dry and goose bumps raise across my body. Thunder rumbles again, closer this time. I look to the sky. But - nothing. Nothing. This is not a real storm. A thump echoes across the Arena, my ears threatening to burst at the shear loudness of it. I look to the sky, but it offers no clue.

What is happening?

I gather up my things and ready my weapon. What I am aiming for is not certain, but I will be ready. The queen is always prepared to kill. Another loud sound booms in my ears and this time the ground shakes beneath my feet. I look up to the sky again before I start to run. The ponds around me start to sprout little fountains as rocks fall from the sky, like hail hitting the puddles back home. I clutch everything I have close to me, running as fast as my feet will carry me through the mud. Then I feel tiny pellets, like the bullets of a gun, start to pound against my body. I scream, as a full sized rock lands in front of me, and then again when one pelts me in the shoulder. I bend over to grab what I have dropped, my shoulder throbbing with the effort.

۵ ۵ ۵ ۵ ۵

I hear laughter. I see a little girl. I hear laughter. A boy with a sliced throat. I hear laughter. The cackle of angels above my head. I hear laughter. A crowd of people. I feel the swirl of water on my skin. The sound of thunder above my head. The color red - so much red. Laugh, laugh, laugh. Then I'm hitting the ground, black dust covering my arms, water and blood dripping the right side of my face. I cough, and cough, trying to rid my lungs of the disgusting water that was forced inside me. I place my hand on my forehead, a giant welt and blood sitting there. My shoulder still hurts, and when I look at it, there is already a giant purple bruise on the surface of my skin. When I finally catch my breath, all I notice is the black dust that has plastered my body while I was in my struggle for air. I'm the dark angel now. I get to my feet, looking at the trail of soaking wet supplies behind me. And then I turn in a circle.

Where am I?

The small dark particles dig into the soles of my feet, and I feel like I may as well be walking through hot tar. Then I start to hear the laughter again, mixed with screams of agony, and whispers so soft you might mistake it for the wind. But I can hear the name they call. Naveen, Naveen, Naveen. I keep walking, the voices getting louder, the river getting further and further away, the burning of the black getting more and more painful. The voices, the whispers, they start to become more distinct. Come here. Join us. Just a bit further. But the screaming becomes louder, the laughter louder. I turn at the sound of shuffling but nothing is there. I hear a hiss in my ear and swat at the space behind my head. But nothing is there. I keep walking, everything getting louder. A screech, a chuckle, a whisper. I scream when my foot doesn't find ground to land on and find myself clutching at the edge of a giant whistling hole. I quickly scramble away, pulling myself back to solid ground.

Join us. Come on. Jump.

I get back to my feet, inching my way to the edge, and look down. I see nothing, only black. Jump, jump, jump!!

"Hello?"

But the hole doesn't even echo my voice back at me.

This is the kingdom's edge. The queen is not welcome here.