Clouds drew closer overhead as rain pattered against the concrete. Elle paused, closing her eyes and lifting her head to let the raindrops gently caress her face. The moment ended all too soon, broken by the thought of Anna’s tearful cries as she’d walked out the door. Hefting her bag of stolen goods over her shoulder, Elle hid in the shadows as she skirted around the edge of town, disappearing into the woods.

Her path that day was winding, adding to the time she’d been gone. She pushed open the door to her ‘home’ a few hours after she’d left, dropping her bag of goods on the counter. A sharp, metallic scent caught her nose, and the hairs on the pack of her neck rose. “Anna?” She called, suddenly very worried.

Just in case, she glanced over at the knives, checking to ensure no more were missing. All sat in their place on the block.

Anna didn’t answer.

Elle swallowed the lump in her throat and hysterically thought I need an adult.

“Anna?” She tried again.

“Elle!” Anna called, her footsteps echoing down the hallway. “You’re home!”

A relieved whoosh of air left Elle’s lungs. “I told you I’d be home soon.”

The sunlight cascade in through the clouds and the window, landing on Anna as she stepped out of the dark hallway and into the kitchen. It reflected brightly in Anna’s clear eyes, and Elle’s heart lifted.

“So you did.”

The standard, unreversed text on the mirror world shirt caught Elle’s gaze, and she immediately realized her mistake. Her temples hummed as her heart pounded like a drum.

The cool metal of the knife met her hand as she slipped it into her pocket, wrapping her fingers around the hilt. Elle smiled, pulled out a package of band-aids with her other hand, and asked, “How’s your arm?”

‘Anna’ looked briefly confused before her face schooled into a more neutral expression. “It’s doing a lot better now,” She took a few more steps forward, and Elle tossed the box of bandaids at her.

As ‘Anna’ reached up to catch them, Elle sprinted for the door.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

‘Anna’s’ hands smacked into the door, splintering it and rattling the wall. Her face twisted, revealing razor-sharp teeth as ‘she’ smiled. “Not this time.”

Elle changed direction, heading for one of the bedrooms. The creature’s footsteps followed her leisurely as if to say, ‘I don’t have to try.’

The metallic smell grew stronger, and tears burned the edges of her eyes. Elle had broken her promise and left Anna to die alone. Her shoes smacked and stuck in a thick, dark liquid that leaked through the door of their shared bedroom, and she couldn’t bring herself to open the door.

Instead, she darted into the spare bedroom, slamming the door shut behind her as she had done her first night in the mirror world.

Unlike last time, however, Elle had practiced for this. She easily slid the window open, landing lightly on her shoe-covered feet onto the mint beneath her window. Knowing what was coming next, she darted to the right, away from any potential broken window debris and towards the creek that twisted through the trees surrounding their cabin.

The door splintered through the glass behind her, sending it sprinkling down with the pouring rain.

Elle pumped her legs faster, drawing the knife fully from her pocket.

Her foot brushed against the weeds at the edge of the treeline, and she thought she just might make it.

Something heavy slammed into her back, knocking her to the damp ground. Elle twisted in the creature’s grip, managing to flip herself over. The creature grabbed her hands, pinning her to the ground as she fought.

With Anne’s face, it leaned in, eyes flashing red and teeth razor sharp. Sharp claws dug into Elle’s wrists, and she cried out in pain, almost dropping her last line of defense.

“Stop fighting. It hasn’t worked before you, and it won’t work for you.”

Elle stopped kicking, letting her head fall limply to the floor. Tears dripped out of the corners of her eyes, mixing with the rain. “What are you?”

The monster leaned forward as if to whisper a secret into her ear. “I am your Reflection.”

“My…?!”

It laughed, letting go of her left hand to run a claw down her face, leaving a bloodied trail. “Humanity’s reflection,” it clarified. “For now.”

It ran the finger back down her arm and gripped her wrists so hard Elle feared her bones would crumble in its grasp.

Elle gasped in pain. “Why…?”

“Why not?” It asked back. ‘Anna’s’ head tilted in a considering manner. “Thank you,” it continued, with a bladed smile, ”for letting me out.”

Lightning crashed into the forest. The creature loosened its grip just enough, and the knife in Elle’s hands flashed as she stabbed it into the creature’s face. It wailed, rearing back.

Elle scuttled out from underneath it, got up, and ran.