burning at the stake | o.r.

chapter 7: platonically speaking

"Mari, I really don't think this is safe." Olivia's hand tightened around the girl's.

"It's not." Mariposa said without bothering to look back, continuing to maneuver through the broken branches that littered the forest floor.

"Then why are we here?!" Olivia whisper-yelled.

"Because it's safer than the vampires."

Olivia reluctantly followed Mariposa, her heart beating rapidly with the fear of being eaten alive... by any type of folklore at this point.

The girl led the cheerleader past a few more trees before reaching a raging river, separating two different sides of forest land.

"Ok this is the territory line, we just have to get across this river." Mariposa said as if it were one of the easiest things to do.

"How exactly are we gonna do that?" Olivia asked the obvious question floating in the air.

"We're vampires. We can jump that far." Mariposa clarified.

"I don't think we'll make it... we're not newborns anymore... our strength isn't what it was." Olivia said, her eyes wide as they watched the white waves crash violently on the sides of the cutoff land.

"Do you wanna get on my back? I bet we could make it in one leap if you hold on tight enough." Mariposa suggested.

"Are you crazy?!"

Mariposa groaned as she placed her hands on her face. Why does everyone always ask her that? It's not like they could really die... I mean they're immortal, the fear of death is pointless.

"Look, I'm not leaving you behind and I don't wanna make you do this but we don't have much of a choice." Mariposa spoke firmly. "So it's either we both go back and die or you get on my back and we both jump. Deal or no deal?"

Olivia looked around, frustrated at the fact that she knew that there was no other way and that she would have to risk not only her life, but Mariposa's, to that of a cold white water river.

She sighed. "Deal."

"But I'm jumping alone! I am not gonna die because the extra weight doomed us." Olivia joked.

"Great, I'll go first and then you follow. Sound good?"

"Great. Sounds great." Olivia thought back to the time she jumped off the cliff with Mariposa. She was afraid then and she's afraid now. The funny this the old Olivia would've never gotten past that initial fear. But something about the new one made that possible. Something about Mariposa made her want to be fearless.

Mariposa nodded as she backed up to give herself a running start. Her foot almost started off before Olivia interrupted her. "Wait! Wait, just... just be careful, please."

"Oh? The cheerleader has a bigger heart than I thought?" Mariposa grinned as she sprinted from her spot and jumped over the river, gaining ridiculous height as she soared through the misty air.

As she flew, a much larger white wave than all the rest, crashed against the rocks, prompting it to fly as high as the girl, Mariposa disappearing into it.

Olivia gasped as she watched the poor girl get seemingly swept up by the river water. shE squinted to see the other side of the gap, praying she'd see Mariposa had made the jump, but the fog that resulted from the crash of the ferocious wave had gotten rid of any possibility of her being able to do so.

"Shit, shit, shit." She reluctantly accepted what needed to be done as she took a few steps back, the absence of Mariposa slowly draining her hope in herself as her hands shook with fear. The only thing that kept her going what the craving she had for the girl's presence and the knowledge of her safety. Her running start served her well as she flew over the river gap with no struggle. However, she had something on her mind far more important than self praise.