Page 50 of Citrine

I lurk by the surface, waiting for them to approach. The heavy footsteps give away signs of their location, as well as the babbling I hear from the distance. As they get closer, I can see them clearly.

The reluctance to kill that I felt when I first saw the female seems to have disappeared. My violent thirst to hunt and kill come back in full force, demanding the blood and head of the creatures that have encroached upon the water.

Are they the ones that took me?

I swim closer to them, eager to find out.

The one in front is covered in weeds, just like my yellow female, except it is far shorter and a different color. They are also much larger than her and of a different shape. Not her kind, then.

I keep my eyes on them, monitoring them as they approach the shore, then try to snap my tentacles at them. But I can't. There is a similar aversion that has so enraged me with the yellow woman, except I feel no attraction to the hulking creature.

It isn't one of the ones who took me, so no rage builds at my inability to attack it.

I let it move on, six limbs running down the shore of the lake. The figure behind it has the same body shape that's started to seem less odd in the female, but smaller, without her head weeds, and a gray-green skin instead of her warm brown.

Not my sworn enemy, but maybe one like it.

When this one comes close, I assume I will also be unable to harm it, but I'm wrong.

My tentacles shoot up before they can get by, and I grab them in an instant.

Though they struggle, my hold on them is tight. I pull them into the water, taking them deeper and deeper until we reach the Many Teeth's territory. I toss them forward and watch in glee as they're torn apart.

A wave of relief passes over me. She hasn't destroyed my hunter's instincts.

24

Eli

I jolt awake, heart pounding. Mind racing, trying to take in my surroundings and still confused.

My dreams were in no way peaceful. It's been a while since I've had any, but this one was as vivid as ever.

I was coloring with my mom, when she was still my mom andpadrewas watching us while fixing something in the kitchen. Life was simple… peaceful even.

My dream turned into a nightmare as my stepfather appeared. Then I sensed something looking at me. The gaze was intense, like it was right behind me. I knew it was about to kill me right before I woke up.

A shudder passes through me when I realize someone likely is watching me, though I no longer believe he plans to harm me.

This time, my morning is ushered in by the sounds of critters moving around. I'm drenched in sweat, a terrible combination with the grass I wove to be my bed. I laid in a fetal position too long last night and stretch myself out. I turn my gaze to my arm and rotate it a bit, feeling a difference in the pain levels.

It is not my first broken bone, not by a wide margin, but I already feel weeks along in the healing process.

My dream and broken bone remind me of the years of beatings I received before I finally ran away. The days and nights I spent crying because he ruined the vestiges of the relationship I had with my mother and made my life a living hell.

My dark childhood transitioned into my dark adulthood. Homelessness, hunger, near-death experiences… all of that.

I forcefully push all those memories away and imagine my golden cape of sunshine draping over me. I can't let my heart get hard. My father would've never wanted that for me.

It wasn't always easy, but I have focused on putting on a smile, never complaining and rarely cursing. I bowed my head when I needed to and took an extra shift here and there so my coworkers would get along with me.

I was the ultimate pushover, yes, but there was no need for me to be aggressive when I had food to eat and at least shelter for myself.

Sunny Eli.

I glance down at my new garish yellow hair and laugh at the irony. Sometimes the universe listens, but not in the ways you expect. Or want.

I stand and stretch properly, rising to the start of a new day. The nightmare fading to the back of my mind, I look around the empty clearing. The birds are still up in the trees, and the bugs are still buzzing, but I'm the only human here.

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