The Butterfly Girl: A Star is Born

#18 Responsibility

[Apollo]

Neither Apollo or Teri knew how long they sat there, but it felt like a long time of talking and laughing. Sophia still hadn't come back, but the more Apollo talked with Teri, the more he seemed to forget she was ever supposed to be here before it got dark.
They made it through most of the snacks, but Apollo was able to save the rest. Teri seemed to really enjoy surface world food.
"So how come you never went up on land before?" Apollo asked.
Well, ever since I was born, my Mother told me that it was dangerous to go up to the surface. She said there were all kinds of monsters up there roaming and waiting. There was even this old tale she used to tell me about the last person who went up there by themselves because they were curious, and the monsters got them and threw their bones back into the water to remind us that they were still there and that they'd always be waiting."
"And did you believe it?" Apollo asked.
Teri nodded.
"Yes, for a long time I did believe it. But as I grew up, I found that the story wasn't really true. I guessed she had made it up for me to keep me from exploring the surface by myself. It certainly worked. Maybe a little too well, because I still remember the bad dreams I used to have about the monsters finding me. But a story is a story and soon I began to doubt there really were monsters up here." Teri said.
"Then how did you find the courage to come up here?" Apollo asked.
Teri looked down, staring at her reflection in the water.
"Well, I woke up one day and I found this tunnel that went all the way up here to this lake, and I couldn't help but follow it. And that's when I saw you being attacked by Cardosulks and I knew I had to do something to help. When you left, I stayed to make sure there weren't any more of them hiding around, but somehow they surrounded me. And then you came back to help me, and here we are now!" Teri smiled.
Apollo smiled too. He looked down at her long tail drifting in the water. It was pretty.
"But if there's one thing I really want to know... are there really monsters up here? Besides the ones that attacked you?" Teri asked. Apollo glanced away from her.

Should I tell her?

"Well, kinda. There might be some..."
"Really?"
"Yeah, you won't see them very often. But when they do come out, they'll do anything to try and hurt you. That's why we fight them. So they won't attack us anymore and we can be safe." said Apollo.
"You fight the monsters?"
"Yep. Me and my friend fight them together whenever they try to attack us. We don't know what exactly they are or where they come from, but we can't let them beat us."
"That sounds really dangerous! Don't you ever get hurt?" Teri asked.
Apollo nodded confidently.
"Oh yeah, of course we do. Not all the time, but we do get lucky sometimes. It's just part of the job. Sophie and I have each other though and it's easier when we fight together. Even if we do get hurt, we still try to look out for each other and make sure we give ourselves time to heal. It's not so bad."

Apollo thought back to all the previous encounters he and Sophia had. There were indeed monsters that lived deep in these woods, and they seemed to have been living here just about as long as both Sophia and Apollo have. Between the time they spent together, playing, living, exploring and surviving off of each other, these monsters would occasionally pop out and attack them. Neither of them knew what exactly they are or where they come from, but they've never had time to find out. The only thing they do know about them is that they've managed to stay out of human knowledge. As if they too are hiding from them, much like Apollo and Sophia are. And they seem mainly focused on attacking them, and they've never been spotted anywhere outside the forest. Whatever the reason, both Apollo and Sophia have promised to never give up fighting them until they find a way to stop them all for good. No matter how long it takes.
When Teri asked about the dangers, Apollo also thought back to the last time he and Sophia were badly injured. They were caught by surprise and, to Apollo's memory, they fought for a long time before they were able to find a chance to get away before it was too late. Sophia had to practically carry Apollo home because he had twisted his leg during the fight, among some other light injuries, and he had trouble walking. Sophia luckily wasn't any worse, but she was bruised and roughed up basically everywhere and even though she tried to remain strong enough to carry Apollo all the way back to the house, he could tell that she could hardly stay on her feet much longer. She had various cuts and scratches all over her face, arms and legs, and because it took so long for them to get back to the house, Apollo could only watch as the blood and puss streamed down from her like wet paint. Yet she continued to stay standing as she figured out how to make a homemade brace for Apollo's leg. Until he eventually begged her to sit down so he could help clean up Sophia's wounds.
The worst part was that they had to go to school the next day.