Twinkle's Story: Chapter 8

*This chapter will be in 2 perspectives: Twinkle and Duke.*
*WARNING: This chapter contains some violence.*
Without further ado, here's Chapter 8. Enjoy! :)

TWINKLE

 I finally steady myself after hearing the truth about Duke's life. Now I know what he meant by 'world on fire'. No, he didn't mean it literary. He meant that we both have... how can I put this.? We both have difficult lives with torture. Mine being mentally and emotionally; Duke's being physically. This is in our world, so the tortures are like 'flames' that rise around Earth. Our world on fire. Somehow, this news that Duke told me, makes me feel better. The truth, Duke having just as an awful life as I do... suddenly, that feeling hurts more than ever.

Duke has also finally steadied himself from admitting the truth about himself into the public, to me. He no longer constantly looks in every direction to see if his mother sneaked past and saw him again. His absolute nightmare. Duke nods, whips his tail around, and walks towards a corner on the roof that was out of my view when we were talking earlier this night. Talks that sent shivers down both our spines. Duke returns where I can fully see him again, and he is now carrying a medium to large sized bag. I feel stupid, not knowing Duke brought this with him until just now. He laughs to himself as he places the bag down, between the two of us. We both lean against the roof's barrier edge, which surrounds the roof. There's just enough room to fold your front paws on top of its shelf. I feel the night breeze as I stare beyond the roof, my paws folded on top of each other on the small shelf on top of the barrier of the roof. I hear Duke unzip his bag, but I continue to look out beyond the roof, into the night sky. Then, I hear a clink of a glass. Surprised, I turn to look at the floor of the roof, where Duke crouches next to. There's one glass filled with this clear and fizzy liquid. I see the last drop of the liquid fall into the second glass. Duke holds the bottle right-side-up again and screws the bottle cap on it. He puts the bottle back in the bag he brought with him. Duke stands up again, holding the two glasses. He's now next to me, his front paws also on the shelf. He hands me a glass. I feel the glass that's right next to one of my paws. It's cold, so I place the paw that touched it back on the shelf of the roof's barrier. Duke holds up his glass beyond the roof; I do the same. He looks at me for a moment, then to the beyond, like me. Duke says, "I know this is ridiculous, Twinkle. We both kinda get and know the truth of each other's lives now. Our awful lives. So this calls for a toast." I don't know how this news is good for hosting a toast or anything, so I don't interrupt. He continues. "To our world o-" I cough. I give him an apologetic look and finish his sentence. "-on fire." Duke looks at me with a look I don't quite understand and smiles. "Ah yes. To our world on fire!" I smile back as we take a sip of the liquid in our glasses. At first, it tastes plain. Then, it has a sour flavor, yet it's a bit sweet. I then taste lemons and limes." I place the glass down, the last drops in my glass going down my throat. Duke's is also empty. He gives me a look for just a second, then shrugs. He moves my glass next to his, so he holds them both. I would expect him to put the glasses back into his bag. Instead, Duke tosses the glasses beyond the roof. I hear a noise as they hit the ground, inferring glass shards covering the streets below. He winks.

Duke says, "I've shared some pretty tough news today, Twinkle." He yawns. "Oh yeah, I'm pretty tired. So how 'bout lets not 'fly' tonight." He said it like a statement (not a question), so I don't bother to answer. I open my eyes again and look at the roof floor. Two sleeping bags lay on the floor. Duke adds, "And, I think it's crazy for me to go back to my- Sparkle's- house, especially with my wicked mother there now too. She'll most likely do something to me for not being home all day or something. I had enough hurt for today, anyways. Also, it's a beautiful night." We look up at the sky, the sky clear of clouds, stars shining brightly in the night sky. "Good night, Twinkle." Duke goes into a sleeping bag and instantly falls asleep. Probably relieved that his mother isn't here, and she can't find him here. I go into the sleeping bag that's next to the other one. I look up at the sky, and think about my home. I live in my hospital room nowadays, and I haven't visited home since the accident. I remember the fox banners and plushies that litter the floor of my room. I miss home.

DUKE

I wake up the moment, I feel warm sunlight. I open my eyes, and I see that the sun just rose above the horizon, leaving the sky orange and pink, as well as blue. I tried my best to seem calm with Twinkle last night. I spoke calmly; Twinkle didn't become suspicious or anything. However, that's not really the case. Last night (all yesterday, anyways), I was sweaty, and my heart beat very quickly- above the average heart beat rate. That's what happens when I suddenly become stressed and get a great fear haunting me now. Being petrified. Acting calmly (even though I really wasn't) around Twinkle. Calming her, protecting her, I really didn't know. I decide I'll return back to Sparkle's house now. I didn't want to wake Twinkle- or tell her either. I decided to keep the bag and the sleeping bags still on the roof. The bag is pretty heavy, and I'm still too tired to try to lift it anyways. Which brings me to another thought. Carrying that heavy bag is nothing compared to other things I was forced to carry. Ordered strictly by my mother before she left us and entered arctic wolf territory. When Dad, her, and I still lived together in a single house, she would torture me in numerous ways. One way was ordering me to carry extremely heavy objects that no fox should be able to lift single-pawed. To make it worse, it was only for her enjoyment, her entertainment. That's why it's so easy for me to lift Twinkle. Now that's way easier than lifting a bag full of bricks on my shoulders, anyways. However, I thank my mother for doing that to me. One thing. Lifting heavy objects makes me fit and strong. I giggle to myself. As well as give me muscles- that cool and popular guy appearance. I bring my thoughts back to this situation- where I am now, in the present. I pass by Twinkle sleeping in a sleeping bag, and I brush my tail tip against her cheek closest to me. She twitches for a second, but she's deep asleep again, the next second. I then open and close the door that leads to the roof, and then I climb back down the stairs. I exit the building. I grin as I pass by the broken glasses in a field. I look back towards the Tall Tower's roof where Twinkle still is, and walk on the path towards Sparkle's house.

I easily enter the house- it's always unlocked. Surprisingly, Sparkle and her immediate family are laid-back people. Even though everyone knows Sparkle can get very bossy at times. I guess that Sparkle and her parents are upstairs, sleeping probably. Then I see a light on in the kitchen. Curious, I look over and around the corner of the kitchen. Hidden from the view of seeing me from the kitchen. I see my mother lazily sitting on a kitchen chair. Two of the chair's legs are in the air; the remaining two digging into the hard, beige kitchen floor. Then I notice a wiry telephone cord wrapped around her shoulder. Her elbow on the table, phone in paw. Looks like a normal, average conversation. Based on what my mother looks like. But she's my mother- a cruel and violent beast that loves torture. I focus my eyes at her, and focus on listening to the conversation. I have no clue who she's talking to on the phone, though. "... Yeah, he's gone. Look, he never gave me the money. He's gone, thank Zios. Now I only have a stupid child to take care of now..." I watch my mother scratch a mark on the kitchen table with a claw. She has an evil look on her face. She continues again. "... Ugh, come on, focus! I'm talking about Eternal. Looks like he doesn't really live up to his name. He's not eternal-living!" I hear a strange kind of laughing from my mother. What does she mean? She said "Eternal"- that's my father's name. Then as I listen to what my mother says next and realize what it means, my blood turns cold. "... Yeah, it was clean. Nothing to worry about. It's fine with him. He let me borrow his black sword for it. No one but you and me knows about this. Okay? I got to go now. Bye." She hangs up the phone. Not really. The phone just isn't to her ear anymore; it now hangs over the table's edge. I shiver, the most terrified I've ever been in my life. I imagine my mother putting the arctic wolf leader's famous black sword

... into my father's back, neck, heart.? I didn't really know. The sword turning red, sticky with blood.

 One thing I know for sure is that my mother killed my father; she is a murderer. No idea why, though. I gulp, then turn the corner and flee out of the house- and for my life. And I don't look back. I might be the one she wants next. Wide-eyed with terror as I race down the streets, I think of the story Twinkle told me about the wolf pup she rescued. I wanted to be just like them. A wolf. Crying and howling at the moon and the night sky. I brush away the tears that now are on my face, and I run away as far away from that house as possible. I don't know where I'll go next- after the Tall Tower. I feel a stone in my stomach; more pain than the shoulder wound. I don't look back. I pause and take a breath, and then continue running again- for my life.