The Phases: After Dark

I'm getting pretty tired of saying this... Whoo! The next chapter! Chapter 9 or 10? I dunno...

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-- 4 months later--

Tom was dreaming. He had to be. Either that or her was going crazy, which was quite likely, because Maria, his sister, was dead, and could not be sitting on his window sill right now. "Open the window, idiot! I'm gonna fall!" In a daze Tom opened the window, thinking that he might enjoy the dream while he could, and Maria fell on top of him. For a moment he just stood there while she picked herself up, and then he flung his arms around her, and they were laughing and crying and holding onto each other and had no idea what was happening but just didn't care. Tom found himself sitting on his bed, with Maria (who was defiantly alive and not a dream) next to him. "I'll call mum and dad." He said shakily "They're out now, and they'll be thrilled, and..." But Maria was shaking her head sadly. "Oh Tom." She sighed "They can't know. I'm not even meant to be here. I was just passing through... but I had to see you, to make sure that you're ok." She sighed again, and looked away. "But, what do you mean? You're coming back, right?" Tom was desperate. She HAD to be... "Wrong." She turned and looked at him "I dissapered for a reason, Tom. What happens could affect the course of the univers. Look I know it's a lot, but--" Tom was just shaking his head. Walls had been built. He just couldn't accept it. She must be crazy he thought or who ever took her has brain washed her. "I'm not letting you go." He said fiercly. He tighed his grip on her wrists. "We can help you, make you safe--"

"They'll come looking for me, Tom."

"Then we'll fight them--"

"Stop." Tom stopped and looked up at her. Now he looked, he saw that her eyes were... strange. They'd always been green, but not that bright, shining emerald. And not just that. The way she sat, the curve of her mouth, the way her hair hung... she'd changed. Tom sighed again. "You really have to go, don't you?" She nodded. "But, wait, how did you get up here?" He'd just realised something. "Hey, this is 3 storys up. How on Earth did you get here?!" He crossed to the window. No ivy, trees or drainpipe to climb. The only way up was to fly.... He looked back at her, at her eyes. Hawks eyes. "Oh no. No you didn't. It's impossible. You can't have..." She was just looking at him. His voice stuttered to a stop. "I have to go." She wispered. "But... but..." Tom tried to clear his throat. "Where? Where do you have to go?"

"Across the marshes. I'll be at home there." She smiled wryly. "It's my natural habitat." This was too much for Tom, and he just passed out.

When he awoke he was sure it had been a dream. For one thing, he was on his bed, and he'd have fallen on the floor if he'd fainted. But when he got up, the first thing he noticed was that a note was stuck to the window with blue tack, and his binoculars were underneath it. He crossed to the window and read the note. She'd tried to start it several times. It read:
'Look, Tom, I know this is hard, but'
'I'm sorry, but there's no other'
'I wish I could come back, but'
 Finally, she'd managed to finish.

'Oh, Tom, I'm sorry. So sorry. But you have to understand that this is my life now. I'm not Maria anymore, and I can never be again. I am Emarai now. Look through the binoculars and you will see.'
Tom looked and could just see a shape on a tree. He focused the binoculars and saw that it was a hawk. A juvenile hawk. A female juvenile hawk. A hawk with emerald eyes. His sister.

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Duuuuuuun dun dun dun dun dun. Yeah, so this is only one persons point of view, but I figured it was long enough.