Heart of Crystals

13 • The Motivation of an Assassin

•Cerise•

I was sitting next to Azure on the couch in Blaine's living room. It was a cozy area, with a fireplace to the right of the couch and television. There was also an antique cabinet that stood against the wall adjacent to the fireplace. My eyes were drawn to it as soon as Blaine led us to this room. I wasn't really sure why, maybe because it was vintage and elegant looking. Although I'd never been one to admire beauty on the surface.

Before us the television was showing moving pictures of aliens, a raccoon, explosions, and fights. It was chaotic, but I suppose it was entertaining. I didn't get many of the jokes though. When Blaine said we were going to watch a movie, I was surprised to learn that he wasn't kidding.

Blaine walked into the living room and sat down on the other side of me. He had a bowl of popcorn, which he placed on the table in front of us.

"My uh mom thought you guys might be hungry."

Azure smiled, "Well that was kind of her." He took some of the popcorn and ate it, before looking back to the screen.

We watched in silence for a few moments. 

My attention wasn't on the television though. All I could think about were the Umbra. Apparently watching television was supposed to distract you, or relax you after a long day. I wasn't experiencing that watching this right now.

"I wonder what realm this is in," Azure commented fully invested in the movie. I secretly envied his ability to not worry about the chaos that surrounded us. It felt like all I could do was worry.

I faced forward and looked closely at the planet that was being shown on the screen, "It looks like the exterior systems to me."

Azure nodded in agreement, "That's what I was thinking."

The broken down buildings and rusty surface of the planet hinted at a less controlled civilization. Many of the people there appeared to be smugglers or gamblers looking to make a quick buck.

"Well it's fake," Blaine's voice cut through my observations.

I turned to Blaine confused. He was looking at Azure and I like we had both grown an extra head.

"What do you mean?"

"It's not real," Blaine explained with a soft chuckle. When he saw that Azure and I were still confused, he cleared his throat and continued. "It was filmed, and the special effects were added to make it look like a different world."

I stared blankly at Blaine. You could do that? But it looked so real...

"How intriguing." Azure leaned forward, intently watching the pictures on the screen. "So this is all a facade?"

Blaine nodded, "Yea the characters are actors, they aren't actually these people."

I watched as each character on the screen moved and talked. It seemed so natural. How could they be faking it? I guess people were fake all the time, but these characters appeared so genuine.

"So these people are pretending to be something they're not?" I clarified.

"I mean, yea..." Blaine trailed off, a slight pause before his next words. "Have you guys never seen a movie before?" 

Azure and I both shook our heads.

"There's no such thing as movies in our realm,"  Azure said.

"And when we come to Earth it's not to watch movies," I added.

The look on Blaine's face was priceless. His brown orbs were wide in shock, and his mouth was slightly agape. Apparently movies were a big deal here.

After a moment Blaine shook his head and turned towards the movie again.