"Julie? Are you still are you still here?"

"Julie?"

"Julie!?"

"Stay with me! Please!"

Beatrice panted heavily, black thorns lacerated her skin and cheeks, but she paid no attention to it. Despite the struggle to move in the mud, the girl moved as fast as she could.

"Julie... we're so close... don't give up."

Beatrice fell to her knees, exhausted. She turned her head, examining a lifeless girl on her back.

"Julie..." - She looked closer. Julie wasn't breathing. - "Julie!"

Beatrice frantically looked around, her eyes stopped on a large stone, a few meters away. Wasting no time, she moved Julie's body there and checked her pulse. It was faint, but still there. Beatrice's lips touched Julie's mouth, gently blowing the air inside.

Beatrice checked with her ear If Julie's body was still fighting. - "Breathe, please. Breathe, you're strong." - She said, wiping her teary eyes and continuing. When Julie's chest lifted and deflated slightly, Beatrice smiled for a short moment, then broke into tears. - "Don't leave, don't ever leave."

Beatrice lifted Julie once more and carried her until, behind a curtain of rain, she noticed a familiar, pink shade. Although Beatrice's legs ached, she began to run.

[ . . . ]

Beatrice rested Julie on Amelia's bed, examined wounds on her limbs, and with trembling lips, moved her hair to the side, but quickly averted her eyes. Cruel - was the only word she had in mind.

"Julie, just hold on." - Beatrice said, then started to rummage through the shelves and cupboards, without success. She then ran out of the bedchamber, to the guest room connected to a kitchen, and rolled a carpet away. A small hatch was underneath it. The girl opened it, climbed down the ladder, then looked around the stone basement. There were numerous vials, powders and ointments, and an opened book.

"Please, a healing potion." - Beatrice prayed, her eyes wildly jumped between the items. - "There!"

The girl snatched a vial, then hastily ran to Julie, uncorked it, and poured between her lips. Nothing appeared to change at first, then Julie's breathing gradually got steadier.

Beatrice, tired, rested next to Julie and grabbed her hand. It was cold. They lied peacefully, while the storm still raged outside. Beatrice's eyes slowly closed, she moved her cheek closer to Julie, then fell asleep.

A sound of thunder awoke Beatrice around midnight, her heart was racing, but Julie's soft breathing had calmed her. She was still holding her hand. It was warm and made her feel safe. Yet, she couldn't go back to sleep for some reason, she was feeling like somebody was watching them.

"Julie. Rest, I'll be back." - Beatrice whispered, then quietly leaped off a bed and snuck to the window. She moved her head to its edge, observing the forest furtively. Nobody was there. Beatrice exhaled with relief, then started walking back to the bed.

Then, the door of the house creaked.

"Amelia?" - Beatrice whispered, but it took one look at Julie and she reminded herself of the danger.

The girl silently moved to the door and peeked. A slender silhouette in a black cloak knelt over the opened hatch and observed, then started climbing down.

Beatrice looked at the window, then at Julie. There was no chance they could run. Seeing no other choice, Beatrice silently snuck to the kitchen and opened a drawer, then took out a knife. Her hands were shaking, she could barely hold her weapon.

Beatrice moved over the hatch, just behind the ladder, and put both of her hands on the knife's grip, stabilizing it. A blond head emerged from the hatch, Beatrice recognized it. She didn't hesitate, closed her eyes, and thrust the blade, shoving it into the elf's shoulder.

"Argh!" - Jennifer shouted, then quickly turned to Beatrice and attacked, but her blade stopped right before Beatrice's neck. - "Bee?"

Bee's entire body trembled, she stared at Jennifer in fear, while the elf stared at Beatrice in shock.

"Bee? Why?" - Jennifer uttered quietly, while her shoulder bled.

"Don't call me that!" - Beatrice shouted in fury, with tears in her eyes.

"Ah." - Jennifer's face got grim. - "You found her."

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Beatrice backed away, seeing that Jennifer climbs out.

"Bee. You were always an exceptional child, but to think you would reach this far." - Jennifer spoke, her expression didn't change. - "Perhaps, you will understand."

Beatrice kept backing away, to the counters.

"I did it to save the village." - Jennifer uttered quietly.

"You... you are a monster!" - Beatrice screamed, then grabbed canned strawberries and threw them at Jennifer.

"No, the true monsters are out there, in the skies. I did, what I could, to hide us from them." - Jennifer slowly stepped closer to Beatrice.

"You hurt Julie! I'll never forgive you!" - Beatrice tossed a mug at Jennifer's head, it shattered on her skull, making the elf bleed.

"Bee... it's her fault, she was born this way." - Jennifer stopped. - "She had to die, so we could live. You're smart, one day, you'll understand and replace me."

"No! I'll never become like you!"

"You have to. Otherwise, everyone you know will die." - Jennifer took a step closer.

Beatrice desperately searched the counter for items to throw, but she couldn't find anything. - "Don't lie to me!"

"It's a shame you won't listen. I didn't want to do this the hard way."

Jennifer leaped to Beatrice and grabbed her neck. Beatrice kicked, screamed, and pummeled the elf with her hands, but Jennifer was unfazed. She pulled out a small bottle from her belt, uncorked it, and was about to force it down Beatrice's throat, when the time stopped.

"Ah, what a joy, what a delight! To destroy, and to fight!" - Octavia appeared behind Jennifer and leaned to her face, caressing it with her cheek. - "...but, that's not what I am here for, there's but one girl, I adore."

"Octavia! You promised to save Julie!" - Beatrice uttered while trying to pry open fingers that held her.

"Oh, don't be upset, for you should know, I don't forget." - Octavia moved her fingers playfully under Jennifer's cheek. - "...know your freedom is near, my sacrifice is right here." - The jester bowed and pointed with both hands at Jennifer.

Beatrice stared at the jester in disbelief. - "...but ...I thought..."

"It's a crime to waste the time..." - Octavia said threateningly.

Beatrice understood and freed herself, then moved behind Jennifer and grabbed the knife's handle, but for a moment, she hesitated. The aura around the jester seeped with something menacing, something evil. Beatrice looked at Octavia, one last time, because she felt like she was going to make the biggest mistake of her life.

"Tick, tock, goes the clock. Stop forever, it will not."

"If I do that, do you promise, that Julie will live?"

"What other choice do you have, little bird?" - Octavia tilted her head. - "Go on, hurry!"

"Promise!"

"You have my word."

Beatrice pulled out a knife, then very slowly stabbed Jennifer in the back.

"Bravo! Bravo! Mark my words - that's the key." - Octavia clapped. - "What once was, shall never be."

When these words resonated, Beatrice observed how the edge of a knife turned black and the time began to run again. There was no trace of Octavia.

Jennifer gasped, then coughed out a few drops of black blood onto her hand. She turned, with a grim realization on her face - "What have you done, Beatrice?" - then collapsed.

Upon realization that she has killed someone, Beatrice started shaking. She wobbled towards a chair next to a table, then slid onto it. - "Jennifer... Amelia..." - She covered her face and began to cry. - "What should I do?"

"Bee..." - It was Julie's faint voice.

"Julie!?" - Bee turned in an instant and ran towards the rabbit girl, then hug her.

"I heard your shouting. Are you alright?"

"Jennifer... she won't hurt anyone, anymore."

Julie had a sad, pained expression. - "Good." - She said with spite, on a verge of crying. - "Good."

Beatrice wiped her tears in Julie's chest and lifted her head. - "What will we do now?"

"I don't know... I don't care..."

"Julie..."

"I believed that my life couldn't get worse... and the world wanted to prove me wrong... why couldn't you... why couldn't you let me die!?" - Julie screamed.

"Julie... I care about you..."

"No... you care only about your selfish feelings."

"Julie... If I hurt you in any way, I'll apologize... as many times as it takes... but the world without you... I don't want that."

"..."

"Julie, speak to me."

"You're too close. It hurts."

Beatrice let Julie go. The rabbit girl just walked silently, until she bumped into a table. - "Are there any chairs?"

Beatrice quickly ran and brought one to Julie, then helped her to sit.

"Bee, my parents. They can't see me like this. It'll break their hearts." - Julie said with her hands down.

"Julie. I'm not sure why, but nobody remembers you anymore..." - Beatrice explained. - "...but I'm sure your mom and dad will accept you as their daughter, no matter what happened."

Julie shook her head. - "No, I don't want that. I don't want them to remember."

"Why?"

"It's... just better this way."

"...but what will we do, once we go back to the village?"

"I can just live with you If that makes you happy."

"...but ...will it make you happy?"

"Nothing will make me happy."

Beatrice lowered her head, she couldn't bear to hear that. - "Is there nothing I can do for you?"

Julie paused for a moment. She hesitated to speak. - "If... if you could take me somewhere far away, with no people... I could live with that."

"I will, I promise."

For several minutes, both girls sat in silence, next to Jennifer's body.

"I'm hungry, Bee."

"I'll make us something." - Bee moved to the cupboards, there were only flakes.

"Are rainbows sparks okay?"

"I hate them."

Bee saddened. - "There's... nothing else."

"I hate them, but we need to eat."

Bee poured flakes into two bowls and brought the spoons. They ate in silence, walked to bed together, then waited for morning to come.

[ . . . ]

Bee looked in horror at the town's scorched ruins. Still holding Julie's hand, she hastily ran towards the town's hall, fearing for the worst. Amidst the ruins of a building, her eyes could see the charred bones of her neighbors. Everyone in the town was dead.

Beatrice dropped to her knees, tears flowed down her face. She didn't know what killed them, but she realized her guilt.