The Girls Are All Grown Up

Ch. 39

 The last thing Brick expected this strange woman that knew Blossom-- his Blossom-- as 'Scarlet' and a criminal, to say was that Blossom was the best jewelry thief in the whole state now. Or how many jobs she'd gone on. And especially not that she'd broken out of jail twice with Dracy.

He had not been prepared to hear that at all.

But apparently Dracy was using those memories just as a warm up before she got to the really important parts (according to Blossom herself). Parts that had to do with the supposed bullet injury and something that had spooked Blossom enough to run off all over again.

''I don't really know why you can't tell it yourself, girly, but if it means that the favor I owe you is finally gone then alright.'' Dracy said to Blossom, to Brick she said: ''There were some odd things about Scarlet that I'd noticed, one of the things was  how every door and window had to be locked and blocked by something no matter what. Another was that she talked in her sleep on the bad nights.''

''Her sister was usually the sleep talker,'' Brick told Dracy, ''Blossom never used to do it though.''

''Was she blonde?"

''Yes.''

''That's why, then.'' Dracy glanced at the red head with a grim expression, ''Well only on the really bad nights would Scar talk, and I didn't realize what she was actually saying in her sleep until the night before everything went to hell.''

Brick frowned, leaning forward. ''Was it about what happened? An incident in the past?"

Dracy chugged some more of her tequila before she even tried to answer.

''You could tell it was a nightmare, but she never screamed or thrashed out...so I never thought all that much about what she was mumbling... She kept saying two names, Bubbles and Buttercup. Then she would say ''I'm sorry, I'm so sorry-- please stop me'' over and over again, and then about the dark eyes watching and making her do something. The last thing I remember her saying was that she was sorry for opening up the door.''

It was silent for a moment except for Dracy's drinking.

''It was our bedroom door I opened, and I didn't know something was there... it was so quiet, too quiet-- it had just been so--'' Blossom cut herself off, wrapping her arms around herself.

''Aye Girly, we never know what's in the dark til we see it,'' Dracy raised her bottle as if to toast Blossom on her trauma.

''Anywho... I never could understand it. After I heard what she was saying, I still didn't know what it was about. But the next night was when everything fell apart and after she was gone. So I never knew.''

Brick snatched the tequila from Dracy, ''What happened that last night?"

She actually hissed at him. Just like a cat.

Blossom took the bottle from Brick and gave it back to her old friend without a word.

After another swig, Dracy was willing to talk again. ''A while back, the two of us went on a heist on the edge of town.

It started normal enough for us, minus the drinking contest. There was supposedly a particular jewel with a high price on it we were going for, had a payer lined up for it already too. We got there-- no jewel.''

''Someone already got to it?" He asked, glancing at Blossom to try and read her face. All he saw was shame in her eyes and red hair falling into her face as if a curtain could keep it all at bay. Could keep him from seeing more.

''Not quite,'' Blossom muttered so softly he thought he imagined it for a second.

Dracy took a good long swig of her drink before answering. ''Something else was waiting for us. It was wild-- I've still seen nothing like it-- a chill took over in the air and it was almost like the shadows of the place were all staring right back at us and waiting.''