HEAT

What She Once Was *Any*

This whole story will revolve around you and a guy of your choice (won't be using a name for the male character). It's set in a time much further in the future. You'll see what I have in store.

I knocked on the old oak door. It gently creaked open.

"Hello?" I called, pushing it back.

An elderly woman sat in a wooden rocking chair beside a lively fire. Her hair was as gray as a storm cloud. The heavy lines in her face showed that she had lived a long life. Sullen brown eyes looked me up and down before beckoning me further into the small cottage. She motioned towards a stool across from her. I took my place before saying, "I have come to speak to you about-"

"I know what you have come for young man. And, although, I think your aspirations are foolish, I will answer what you have come for."

The old woman pulled a small drawstring satchel out of her robes. She dumped the silver powder into her palm before tossing it into the fire.

"Show me what she once was."

"Y/N, sweet child, come here," an old woman beckoned the small child over, "why don't we finish this story tonight, and then you get off to bed?"

The young girl smiled up at the old woman. Her E/C eyes shone with happiness, and exhaustion. Her S/C skin was dirty and bruised. Soot covered her clothing. Y/N climbed into the old woman's lap, cuddling into her ragged cloak. She held tight onto the woman with one hand, her other clutched a small pendant that hung from her neck.

"The valiant young man wielded his sword, defending the fair princess from the dark king. '

You'll never take her!' he shouted.

The King laughed at Dorian.

'Not once did you realize the this so-called princess was merely a pawn,' he spat, 'she was destined to die when she became of age. So that I could keep my throne!'

Princess Eva gasped. Dorian lunged towards the wicked man; his sword plunged deep into the chest of the King, he leant over the old man.

'You mustn't have thought that someone would come to defeat you. To rid this kingdom of you, a wretched ruler, who was willing to kill his own child in greed!'

The man thrust his sword deeper into the chest of the King. Blood began to pool around his feet. The King looked to the boy, 'I'd done it for nearly a hundred and fifty years, yet no one dared to question it.'

With those last words, the King's body began to disintegrate into the stone, leaving nothing behind except his robes. The common man turned back to the princess. She stood there, staring at the dust that was now being blown away.

'He would have killed me,' she said.

'I would never let that happen to you.' Dorian replied.

Princess Eva rushed to Dorian. Leaping into his arms, they two embraced in a sweet kiss. Now that the evil King was gone, the two could live together happily. Not with fear of the future, but with hope."

The old woman gently closed the book and sat it on the bedside table. Y/N was curled up in her lap, gently snoring. She chuckled at the young girl before carrying her off to bed. She tucked her in her large bed, the one and only bed in the house, before walking back out of the room. Sitting in the chair, she too fell asleep.

"Now do you see? Even the hearts that were once innocent and whole, can turn wicked and black." The old woman told me.

Her eyes showed sadness in them. She must have cared for the young girl very much. But, it still didn't explain how she had come to the woman she is today.

"I don't understand. How did this happen?" I asked.

"It wasn't one particular thing. It was many things, all leading up to one final one. And, that my dear, isn't something I can show you. That's something you have to learn from her."

I was unsure of what the woman was meaning. My hands came up to my eyes, rubbing the exhaustion out of them. When I looked back to the woman again, she was gone. Instead of being in the warm cottage I had been in before, I was now sitting on an old overgrown stump. The walls of the cottage were cracked and broken. The windows were shattered. The building itself was a shell of what it was mere moments ago.

I looked around, bewildered by what was around me. Standing up I walked through an archway. This room was in slightly better shape than the rest of the cottage. Weeds were growing through the floorboards. Thick vines had grown around the beams on the ceiling. Dirt and dust made the musty smell more potent. A large bed sat before me. The cloth was ripped and riddled with holes. The mattress itself was moldy and worn. Something on the mattress caught my eye.

Picking up the small object I saw that it was a silver pendant that hung from a broken chain. The silver pendant was simple, yet very elegant. It was a single braided piece of metal that formed a ring.

"How dare you.." A voice growled out from behind me.

I nearly shot out of my skin at the sound. I turned to be met with cruel E/C eyes. Her eyes burned with hatred and anger. I couldn't say anything. A long white and gold gown draped itself over her body. Words wouldn't leave my mouth, making her grow more angry. Her hand latched onto my throat. The familiar burning feeling radiated through my body. I couldn't help but scream before she released me, letting me fall to the ground. She bent down and snatched the pendant from my hand before storming out in a flurry of dust and smoke.

I held my throat, still feeling the burn from her touch.

"Why the fuck did they have to make genetic manufacturing a real thing..?"