Harridan
IX: Casting a Shadow

A reddened Kieran laid on a soaking wet pillow, cooped up in her room. The blush pink pillow was dyed black, and her tears dripped black too. Her lips tremored with her body facing towards the window and the view of the swimming pool and the pool house beyond. Gathered in a tightly clenched fetal position. That's where she stayed... how she stayed... reeling from the sight of Blaine's body. Deep red blood pooling around her. Her ponytail splattered on the stone ground. Her eyes still wide. Her smile still bright. Motionless, yet dynamic; warm-hearted, yet still-hearted.

The night was long. From James dragging Kieran away from the scene. Both of them watching Peter cry over his daughter with other officers and paramedics surrounding the site. James pressed Kieran against his chest, not trying to stop her hysteria. He squeezed her firmly, feeling her tears seep through his jacket and shirt. The blackness refilled her eyes from watching the paramedics set Blaine on the gurney and covered her.

James could feel her shaking like a leaf underneath his chin. His hold didn't lighten. After the police warded off the scene, when the police started questioning, when the partygoers dispersed; James never let go of Kieran. Peter looked them over then left them to be. An officer came for questioning and Kieran was willing, but James dissolved it before they got far. His adamant, bulky form was a cautionary tale itself. He brought her home to Magnolia's cheerful disposition, but Kieran came right to her room where she never left.

Still shaking, Kieran sniffled and hugged herself tighter. Her eyes peered open, completely black. The sunlight - seeping through the overcast day - was sore on her capabilities, making her eyes singe. Kieran stared right out the window, wanting the pain. Smoke carried blackness from her eyes that seeped from her. The light grew too much, making Kieran writhe. She shut her eyes again, sniffling, with black tears running across her face. She shrivelled deeper under her covers to continue to wallow when the signature soft knock sounded on her grey door.

There were no footsteps on the luxe, grey carpeting but Kieran could feel she wasn't alone anymore. Anna sat on the edge of the bed and heard Kieran sniff the grilled pineapple that filled her nostrils. "I made your favourite," she sang. A sniffle was her only reply. "Oh, honey..." Anna set the plate on the bedside table and shifted to brush down the scattered black curls. "Tell me what you need."

"I want my mom."

Anna halted then pursed her lips. "I'm so sorry, honey, she's at town hall. She's covering the story." Kieran started crying all over again. Anna sighed then kicked off her shoes to lay next to her. Kieran didn't hesitate to snuggle against her. "Please eat something." Kieran shimmied out from under the covers to see a homemade pizza with finely cubed pineapple on it. Anna wrapped an arm around Kieran's waist. "Even if it's just a slice."

Anna set the plate on her lap and looked down at Kieran. The black had gone from her eyes, leaving the ordinary red and puffiness behind. Anna brushed the messy, ruined braids to take in the miserable face. The runny nose didn't slow down, nor did the streams of tears. Kieran took a slice of Anna's pizza. The pointed nails were all that were black, but not all that was still trembling.

Anna leaned her head against Kieran's as she took a bite of the steamy slice. Along with finely diced pineapple, the housekeeper added shredded barbecued chicken. The sweetness of the pineapple paired perfectly with the savory, slightly smokey flavour of the chicken. Anna also added some red onion for a bit of sweetness and crunch! Kieran hummed then shifted closer to her, shamelessly going for a second slice.

While she ate, Anna undid the Wednesday Addams' fish braids and unearthed the detangler. "Everything will be fine, hon," Anna sang. "She's in a better place; having tea with your grandparents."

Kieran set the slice back on the plate then closed her eyes. "It's my fault."

Anna dinged the bean-shaped detangler on Kieran's crown. Kieran flinched and massaged her head. "Don't let me ever hear those words out of your mouth, ever again," the housekeeper jeered before the defender could protest. "Don't you for a second think you could ever do something that heinous to anyone! Especially not your best friend. I see the love you have for each other, honey," Anna added. From behind Kieran the housekeeper shook her head. "That type of love is difficult to find, and difficult to cultivate but it is so, so strong. She's always around, where it matters," she concluded and pressed her two fingers against Kieran's heart.

"I want her here," Kieran lamented. "Next to me. Calling me by the names of soccer players, or dark culture icons. Talking like she always has good news to share. How she scrunches her nose when she concentrates. Kissing me on the cheek for no reason."

Anna sighed then wrapped her arms around Kieran. Anna rested her chin on the small of Kieran's neck. "I wish I had the words," Anna sighed. "Just know I care." Kieran hugged Anna's arms back. "If you want to talk, I'm all ears." Kieran set aside her pizza, watching Anna cross the foot of the bed and the white ottoman pressed against it. "If you need me, I'll be downstairs."

The mournful young woman had a new respect for the housekeeper; how Anna lived with a pain of pushing her son to suicide and kept her head up. It was a lot more than Kieran could say for Magnolia. Anna had this effortlessly glide when she walked. She shot the teenager a final wry smile before tugging the door closed.

Kieran looked ahead at the flip-top vanity to see her disposition just a mournful one and not... an extramundane... one. Her sprouting rueful pout marked the change. The faint sound of sizzling wafted in the room from the sunlight on her Black Eyes of Evil. She tilted her head, making the room rumble from darkness spreading from the shadows in room. Kieran seethed then clenched a fist.

Never use your capabilities outside the house. And never tell anyone about them, either. The consequences will be dire for all involved. Kieran shut her eyes and turned away from her reflection. The memory of Doreen's warning echoed with the room stabilising. Kieran saw Blaine's sweet eyes on her when the darkness radiated off her so wildly. How in those moments, Blaine didn't hesitate to stay by Kieran's side; her words were true. Kieran sniffled then threw off the covers, revealing her creased Wednesday Addams costume.

Without a second thought on her unruly appearance, Kieran grabbed her helmet - with her riding gloves in it - and her motorcycle jacket. The lifeless stillness in the mansion faded from her black Converse high tops' stomp. Anna and James came from beyond the stairs, the parlor that led to the pool, and watched her storm out. James jogged after her with a deep-set concern on his aging face.

Kieran ignored the sound of his loafers on the floor as she bolted. "Kieran," he called. Anna was hot on his heels. "Kieran, wait! Where're you...?" The rev of the Kawasaki and the dust cloud from the gravel driveway faced James and his housekeeper.

The motorcycle sped off, leaving the Georgian mansion in the rear mirrors. Stirling Lane was its usual buzz of energetic housewives, lawn-tending husbands, hippy dog-walkers, and such. Kieran accelerated to a break-neck pace well passed the speed limit. The bike's whirr became a roar with determination pumping through the twin pipes and the driver's grip. It was a white-hot rage, almost.

Hidden away amidst the wilderness in the outskirts of the central parts of New Bristol Woods, is a modern take of a lightweight moss-drenched, jasmine-coiled stone cottage. The cottage takes up a mere footprint of 500 square feet of land, and had a meek disturbance to the fauna and flora. The motorcycle stalled under the nearby beech tree. Messy black curls escaped the helmet, along with perfectly black eyes.

Kieran clanged her keys as she approached the door. The keys to the cottage went into the door, sliding in with a light jiggle; just how she remembered. The familiar two-note creak in the door followed after. Outside was feature rock walls and a blue-grey tiled roof. Inside was the makeshift bedroom - which was just Doreen's bed in the corner, with her open-air closet - and the open washroom. A wooden table with a galv bowl. Stone walls, smooth floors. No kitchen, no bathroom; no faucets, no switches; no cupboards, no sink; no pantry, no food. There was a stone fireplace and a cauldron hanging over it. The cottage is lit up by the use of floor lanterns and two narrow windows that were lathered with jasmine.

"This cottage is the one place we don’t have to hide," Doreen began. "This is the only place where it's safe for us, Rie." The cooky, old woman circled the open floor with Kieran swinging her scrawny legs on the edge of the bed. "Our capabilities are a rare and wonderous find; a treasure, if you will. One sought out by many. That's why gran has one rule, which is...?"

Never outside the house, Kieran signed. Doreen gave a firm nod. Why can't I tell anyone? Doreen sighed and folded her arms. The short, plump woman took in her granddaughter's pout. Feeble, noodle-arms wrapped around the feeble frame. The black hair was too big and heavy for her pint-sized self and only added to her downtrodden. Why can't I tell Blaine, Kieran added.

"Everything you've ever felt about this and everything you will feel, I've been there. You will often feel alone, misunderstood." Doreen paused to wipe away the tears that came. "I knew my fate in New Bristol; I could no longer live there. I felt more freedom in the shadows of these trees. I couldn't be around people anymore, not with this secret." Doreen came down to her haunches to face the abyssal eyes. "You are a storm, Rie, and a storm cannot be put in a glass jar."

Kieran leaned against the stone wall and exhaled heavily. The place was smaller than she remembered. Smaller but exactly as she left it. With dust-heavy tarps, maybe, but it was as she left it. Hanging above the fireplace was Doreen's bowfishing kit. The quiver, the arrows, the fishing wire on the shelf, the bow that has a fishing reel on it. Bowfishing was perhaps Doreen's most accomplished skill. It was a difficult feat to accomplish when the water's refraction had to be taken into account when eyeing a target.

Kieran breathed in the overwhelming helm of dust that was heavy in the air. Underneath it was the old-lady-tinge that followed Doreen like the Plague. A hefty sneeze escaped Kieran. The dimly-lit cottage's darkness splattered! She sighed at the solid, jagged, spikes. Kieran wrapped her arms around herself, taking in her handiwork. Fresh tears swelled and Kieran stepped back and pressed into the stone wall. A hand covered her mouth to muffle her sobs. The spines protruded more. Kieran stifled her scream then caved onto her knees.

"I'm so sorry, Blaine."

The spikes retreated and dispersed at the mention of her name. Kieran looked away. She left the shadows to spread over her fingers, over her palms, passed her wrists. Crisp darkness pervaded. Kieran felt her veins fill with blackness that seeped into her eyes. Her knuckles cracked from her flexing her fingers. She stood up and modelled out of the cottage. The trees became silent. The breeze fell dead too. Kieran's zombie-like state was rigid in the front of the cottage.

Just off the property's perimeter - just beyond Doreen's formerly kempt garden - a bobcat crept closer. Kieran left the shadows to fester, not holding anything back. The bobcat, a large grey cat with spots and stripes, crawled its way closer. The greenery of the small garden wilted when the shadow digits spread towards them. The bobcat pranced, taking to full sprint. Kieran's monochrome eyes shifted from the trees onto the cat.

The feral cat pranced. Jet-black tentacles latched onto its paws. The shadows drew it back onto the ground, wrapping the bobcat in tacky blackness. Kieran waved off the large cat. The bobcat was released. The bobcat's shadow peeled off the dirt. The shadow bobcat yowled! The bobcat hastened off. The shadow bobcat purred then settled at her side. Shady tendrils made the bobcat blend into the surrounding shadow storm.

Kieran snapped! The soundless New Bristol Woods was met with her hands starting to swirl the shadows to magnetised towards her. Shadows radiating off her in all directions. Her chin tilted upwards as her hands spread. The woods tinted darker with shadows gushing through branches and scattering the organic debris. The veins in her face intensified, matching the sheer force that erupted from her. The air grew cooler and the shadow bobcat curled its tail.

The grew clouds grew dense with thunder rolling in. Kieran inclined her chin, not holding back. She wilted more than just the makeshift garden; the beech tree where her bike was habitually parked; the thicket of trees on the other side of the cottage; the pit where Doreen would have fires burning. The sky's wrath didn't slow down. A jolt of lightning struck not far from there. The blinding light made the darkness dissolve. The light surged and Kieran dropped to the ground seizing.

She was jerking around chaotically, rolling onto her side. Her eyes shut and the blackness in her veins receded. Kieran gasped then went still. Panting softly, her unassuming eyes fluttered open to the property. She was shaking but mustered the strength to sit up. Looking around, Kieran was left confused. A confusion that was short-lived by the rain coming. She panted her way towards her bike.

A slow... tremulous... soaking... motorcycle ride later and Kieran trudged through the mansion. Anna gasped from the dripping wet senior schlumping through the kitchen. "Ohmygod," the housekeeper bellowed. "Where were you! We were worried sick!"

James' deep thumping haste crossed the foyer and into the kitchen to see Anna remove the jacket from Kieran's shivering form. "Are you okay," he asked. Anna set the jacket aside and grabbed a towel to drape over the soccer defender. "Where were you?"

Kieran shook her head, crying all over again. James tugged her against his chest, cupping the back of her head. Anna squeezed Kieran's shoulder before rushing to get something warm for Kieran. The storm outside grew louder, matching Kieran's harrowing sobs. James leaned into the island, never lightening his hold on her. Kieran buried her face into his chest.

"It's my fault."

"Kieran..."

"It's my fault."

"Kieran, listen to me," James cooed. "Just calm down. Deep breaths."

Kieran stood in the heart of the gushing river. Her panting form was soaking wet with shadows all over her. The steppingstone path she was on was drowned by the sudden rains. The water around her ran black with Doreen watching from the banks. "Stay calm. Deep breaths," she declared over the storm. Kieran was looking around pedantically with her drenched curls against her young form. "Visualise yourself calm."

Kieran winced and tightened her clutch on the rock. I can't! Kieran looked around with water splashing in her face. Help me! Doreen sat on their picnic blanket watching. She invested in a slice of her campfire meatloaf. Kieran looked around then took a single deep breath. The thirteen-year-old exhaled lightly and repeated. Her eyes opened and the shadows around her were gone.

Kieran exhaled lightly against James' chest and sighed with her eyes closed. "It's okay," James whispered. "It's okay, I'm here."

The front door opened with Magnolia's stilettos coming through the foyer. "What's going on?" Kieran sniffled then ran into her mother's chest. "Ohmygod, what's gotten into you!" Kieran buried her soaking face into Magnolia's shoulder. Kieran squeezed tightly and Magnolia grabbed at her daughter's arms, all while holding her handbag, notebook and signature pen. "Kieran, enough!" Kieran stepped away ruefully.

Anna cleared her throat with a cup of hot chocolate and a saucer in her hands. James looked to his housekeeper then to his girlfriend. "Anna," he called softly but his voice echoed throughout the hollow home, "let them have the room, please."

James exited the kitchen. James kissed Magnolia's temple before retreating to the parlor in the rear of the house. Anna set the cup and saucer on the glass dinner table. Upon her exeunt, Anna gave Kieran a light hug. Kieran went to sit by her hot chocolate and Magnolia sighed as she slumped into her usual dinner time seat. Magnolia pushed her dark blonde hair behind her ears.

"So, tell me," Magnolia began with her notebook and pen still in hand. "Were you in possession of any weapons around the time of the murder?"

Kieran flicked her neck and crossed her thick caterpillar eyebrows at her mother. "Wha-what?"

"Do you have any information that could help the police with their investigation?"

"Why are you...?"

"What do you think should happen to the person who committed this crime?" Kieran bit her lower lip but a sniffle escaped her still. Magnolia tapped her pen impatiently on her notebook. "I'm covering this story, and you are a lead."

Kieran took her hot chocolate and crossed the kitchen. "I hate you," she bellowed.

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