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[color=silver][indent][indent]Ever since moving to Edenridge, Alexandria Davies’ celebration of holidays looked different. This time last year, she would be dancing around the rooms of her tiny Boston college apartment, neck-deep into preparations for a Halloween party that all of her friends would be attending. They’d dress up in stupid costumes, drink cheap booze, play silly games, laugh at corny jokes, chatter about everything and nothing, and dance their hearts out into the night.

This year, Lex had taken up position on the couch in the living room of her cozy Southside apartment, wearing her boyfriend's oversized Edenridge High Football T-shirt and some fluffy socks, with the sounds of the film Halloweentown 2 keeping her company. A half-empty basket of laundry sat on the floor next to her, with two separate piles of men’s and women’s clothing growing taller and taller with each garment she absentmindedly folded, all while waiting for Mika to come back with their dinner. The young woman’s eyes were glued to the screen, her attention only wandering long enough to ensure she’d folded the item correctly before turning back to Marnie and Luke trying to find a way to return to the mortal world before midnight.

Two years ago, she would've laughed at the outlandish idea of staying in on such a fun holiday like Halloween. Today, Lex was perfectly content with her new domesticated lifestyle and her plans for the night: lots of Asian food, a marathon of old horror movies, and cuddling up against her favorite person in the world.

[color=FF1395]”Sooooo, when are we going to get to the real stuff?”[/color] An all too familiar voice poised. [color=FF1395]”Like, let’s skip the Disney section unless it’s Hocus Pocus, cos that shit is bomb and put a slasher movie on?”[/color]

Alexandria flinched at the unexpected interruption, and let out a loud gasp of surprise as soon as she'd whipped around in the direction of the voice and her eyes spotted something just plain unbelievable. 

[color=FF1395]"Hey Lexie.”[/color]

There was no immediate response. Lex was too shocked to speak. Sitting beside her on the couch was Allison; still as youthful and as beautiful as ever. The youngest Davies (now three years older than Allison would ever be) stared up at sister with wide eyes, her mouth slightly agape as she studied the other woman's every feature. Her skin still held the slight tan from the Davies last family vacation to Havana to see their grandmother; she was lucky, when she tanned naturally, it always lasted for months. Ally’s long brown hair hung across her shoulders and draped onto her emerald and white cheerleading uniform ever so slightly. She had not aged a day over seventeen.
 
[color=00A868]"[i]Is this a dream? Am I dreaming?[/i]"[/color] the brunette asked herself in a whisper, still fixated on just how [i]alive[/i] Allison looked beside her. [color=00A868]"Did I fall asleep watching the movie? Did I forget to take my meds this morning? There's no fucking way this is real, there's no fucking way…"[/color]

[color=FF1395]“You’re not dreaming…hang on”[/color] 

Allison jumped up to her feet and hurried into the kitchen. She returned to her shocked sibling a second later, now dressed in her PJ tank top and shorts; which at present still sat in her old room at the Davies house. She jumped back onto the couch next to her baby sister, crossing her legs and tying her hair up onto a bun like she used to on their movie nights. Ally offered Lex her sweet smile as she reached out and intertwined her fingers with her siblings. She was cold to touch but Lexie’s warmth soon began to fill her being.

[color=FF1395]”I don’t know how long I have, so just go with it, bean-- okay?”[/color] There was just a subtle hint of desperation in her words. Ally had been watching, waiting from the other side for what felt like forever: unable to speak, to sing… And now there she was, with the person she missed the most.

[color=FF1395]“You grew up so beautiful.”[/color]

Whatever words Alexandria had wanted to say immediately choked up in her throat after hearing Allison’s last sentence, and her green eyes filled with tears. The plethora of questions running through her mind about the unusual situation they were going through were pushed to the side as realization about the event that was occurring began to sink in. How many times had Lex asked any deity who would listen for an opportunity to come face to face with her sister again? How many nights had she spent crying, her heart hurting with the grief of her loss, the anger of her decision, the pain of missing her, the helplessness of knowing she wasn't able to help, the guilt of not seeing the signs until it was too late… Lex had so many questions, so many thoughts, so many things she’d always wanted to tell Allison but couldn’t...

And, finally, here was the chance she had so desperately been seeking. Would she take it, or would she continue to let her doubts.

Not a chance.

Without wasting any more time, Lex shifted around the couch closer to Ally. She reached out to affectionately touch her sister’s perfect face for a moment before she wrapped her arms around her in a tight embrace and started to cry.

Allison wrapped her arms around her baby sister and began to squeeze, tears welling up in her dark eyes she nuzzled her face into the crook of Lexie’s neck. She had watched over her sister for six years, desperate to reach out but unable to do so. She had spent all that time thinking about everything that had led her to that fateful night in the house of ReyRey Gonzalez and everything that she had been unable to be a part of because of it. 

Alexandria may look a little different and dress a little different but she still smelled exactly the same: like Marc Jacobs' Daisy. All these years later, and she hadn’t changed her perfume. It was the same one that Ally gifted her every year for her birthday; just one of their many traditions.

After a blissful moment of affection; the former Queen of Eden pulled away from her younger sister's embrace but still held her arms around her waist. With a wry smile, Allison gazed upon Lexie once more.

[color=FF1395]"I love you, kid.”[/color]

The shorter girl sniffled loudly and nodded. [color=00A868]"I love you too,"[/color] Alex croaked, wiping her face with one of the washcloths she'd picked up from the laundry basket on the floor beside her. [color=00A868]"Everybody loved you here, Ally-- everybody loved you so much. That's why, no matter how hard I try to find a reason, I just can't understand why you… did it..."[/color] she trailed off, voice cracking at her last words. She didn't mean to sound accusatory or resentful. She was simply trying to get the answer to the question that had been haunting her for the last six years.

Of course this question was coming.

To someone looking from the outside in, Allison Davies had it all. She was beautiful, popular, intelligent, the entire world was at her fingertips. Yet when she took her own life in the winter of 2016, it stunned everyone. It was probably the utter shock and suddenness of her death which made it easier for people to find something else, someone else to blame. For years, Allison’s death had been attributed to Charlie Decker, a broken boy who did bad things. He poisoned her out of spite for some hidden slight and on the night in question she was merely experimenting at a party like most teenagers would.

The guilt and shame she felt for that still broke her heart. He didn’t do anything and they painted him with the brush of  a monster.

It was only recently that it was discovered that Allison Davies was not poisoned. Through some intrepid detective work and the testimony of one of the Edenridge Notorious, it came to light that the perfect girl wilfully took her own life.

[color=FF1395]“I didn’t plan it, Bean.”[/color] Ally caressed her younger sister's face with her thumb, wiping away a track of tears as she did. [color=FF1395]”In the moment, I was lost and it was the closest emergency exit.”[/color] Allison had thought about this moment for all this time, trying to find the words to explain why she did what she did. [color=FF1395]”There was a lot of things people didn’t know, just like everyone in the world I had my secrets”[/color]

[color=00A868]“But that didn’t mean you had to go through things alone,”[/color] Lex told her sister, taking her free hand and squeezing it in reassurance. [color=00A868]“I know we probably weren’t as close as we would’ve wanted to be back then, but you could’ve come to me at any time.”[/color]

Allison directed her smile again at her baby sister.  [color=FF1395]”Hindsight is twenty twenty, Lexie”[/color] She finally released Alexandria from her grip and placed her own chin in her hands. [color=FF1395]”What happened to me doesn’t matter anymore. It’s all about you and what comes next for you. Tell me everything.”[/color] Ally had been watching over Lex all her life and she knew exactly what had been going on, even after her death but she still wanted to hear it from her sister's mouth; she may be a ghost but she still loved the gossip.

[color=00A868]“What happened to you will [i]always[/i] matter, Ally. But I’ll go ahead and fill you in, at your request.”[/color] Lex took a deep breath and smiled at her sister. [color=00A868]"Well, for starters, I kinda went off the deep end for a bit, if I'm honest..."[/color] the girl admitted with a grimace. [color=00A868]"Mom and Dad went hardcore strict on me after you passed-- my therapist thinks that latching onto me was their way of dealing with their grief. I was so desperate to forget everything that was happening that I started smoking pot and hooking up with one of the Southie dealers. I guess I wasn't being as slick as I thought I was or whatever, because I got caught in the end..."[/color] she told Allison, shaking her head in visible embarrassment at the actions of her younger self. She knew that everything that she’d gone through had made her the woman she was today, but that didn’t make her any less embarrassed about her past misdeeds.

[color=00A868]"They shipped me to some inpatient psych facility in the city, and then they sent me to a military boarding school up there when I got better. And to mine and everyone’s surprise, I [i]did[/i] get better. They gave me a diagnosis at the facility, so they were able to get me the right meds and the right treatment. When I was given the all-clear to go back to school, I went without a fight. I started to do well in my classes again, I made some new friends, and even dated one of my classmates for a while."[/color] Lex suddenly paused for a moment, took a second to look across the room and pointed to a framed photo sitting atop the fireplace. In the image, the brunette's short, petite figure could be seen with her arms wrapped around the waist of a blond-haired, blue-eyed, chiseled young man who towered over her, his hands resting on her hips as they wore matching Class A cadet uniforms and wide grins. 

[color=00A868]"Meeting [url=https://i.pinimg.com/originals/c5/69/15/c56915bccc11c53d7709d23f7b9a98a2.gif]Jonah[/url] and the time we spent together was definitely one of the highlights of my time at Bedford. And even though he and I broke up right after graduation, we’re still really good friends. He’s deployed in Japan right now, but he makes a point to call me every other week so we can catch up on whatever's new. After high school, I went off to college for two years, made a few more friends and left with a associates nursing degree under my belt. And after getting a call about a super irresistible job offer with Sinclair Health, I moved back here. I've got plans to get my BSN eventually, but for now I'm just focusing on getting the experience and enjoying myself."[/color]

[color=FF1395]”What a life so far, bean.”[/color]

Ally beamed. All of this she already knew, she had been watching over her after all but it was nice to hear it all in her sister's words, in her sister's voice. [color=FF1395]”And you still have so much to do, trust me.”[/color] Allison leaned back on the couch and put her legs atop her little sister's lap. It was just an Allison move; make yourself comfortable anywhere you were. She glanced around the apartment, soaking in everything about it. So much of it screamed of Lex’s individuality, but there were few small touches that weren’t her... They belonged to someone else, someone that Lexie obviously cared about.

[color=FF1395]"So what’s the dirt on Mika then? How deep in this are you?”[/color]

At the mention of Mika Zima, Alexandria's face broke into the biggest, brightest of grins. [color=00A868]"You're not going to believe this, but we live together,"[/color] Lex gushed, green eyes shining as she was reminded of the person who had chosen her to be his sidekick in the path of life. [color=00A868]"Mika and I actually [i]live[/i] together. Can you believe that? All those years of him being my high school crush, and we ended up as boyfriend and girlfriend sharing this cozy little apartment together. It still blows my mind when I think about it, honestly."[/color]

Ally smiled as the happiness just radiated off of her sibling. She deserved all of the joy that the world could give her and if Mika was the one to do that, then so be it. Allison herself was not the best judge of character when it came to men so she dearly hoped that Lex had a better system. [color=FF1395]“That’s great Lex, I’m really happy that you’ve found someone to hold on to…”[/color] She couldn’t feel her sisterly instincts kicking in and she really just couldn’t help herself. [color=FF1395]”…that said, you’re a big girl now, and you can make your own decisions-- which I will trust wholeheartedly. But just… Do me a favor? Be careful. I don’t know much about Mika but I knew his brother, and he was nastier and more vile than anyone else I’ve ever met. There’s something ugly eating away inside and I hope Mika doesn’t have the same problem.”[/color]

Lexie confidently shook her head and gave her sister a reassuring smile. She’d heard about Hyde and all the infamous actions he had committed from Mika himself. But even with her boyfriend's Serpent affiliation and his Honey Badger street persona, she was certain of the kind, caring, funny, loyal and affectionate man she was sharing her life with. [color=00A868]"I appreciate the concern, Ally-- I do. But trust me when I say he doesn't. I know Mika’s not an angel. I knew that from the start, even before I dove in headfirst into this whole thing. But if there’s one thing I’m one hundred percent sure of, is that he’s as opposite from his brother as anyone could ever be. Does he have some issues? Yeah. So do I-- and so do all of us, for that matter. Mika’s not perfect by any means, but I wouldn’t want him to be. Even with all his virtues and his flaws, he’s the right one for me.”[/color]

Suddenly, the door opened and a noticeable thud sound reverberated through the thin walls of the apartment. It was the kind of sound that a heavy bag of some kind would make when it was tossed without care. Mika walked in and went for the kitchen first as he caught the last half of Lex’s praise(?) for him. After the day he’d had, it wasn’t a surprise that he saw Lex’s dead sister just sitting on the couch like nothing was strange about it. [color=635687]“Damn straight I’m not an Angel,”[/color] Mika clarified, sporting a grin for both sisters. [color=635687]“I mean, you know how long I’d be sucking those older Angels of Eden’s dicks just to get out of prospect territory? Couldn’t be me.”[/color] He’d laugh as he looked between the two. [color=635687]“I’m a serpent because, A it’s much cooler than being an angel, but also B, it’s in my blood…so to speak.”[/color]

[color=00A868]"My boyfriend, ladies and gentlemen,"[/color] Alexandria laughed as she shook her head. Leave it to Mika to make his appearance in his usual blunt and crass fashion. She'd never wanted it to be any other way.

The former Queen looked at the clock on the wall and sighed. [color=FF1395]”I think it’s about time I made a move. I’ve got a few more people to see before this is all over,”[/color] Allison jumped up to her feet and her visage slowly began to dissolve back to what it was when she first arrived, looking as she did on the day of her departing from the world. [color=FF1395]“Plus I reckon you two deserve a little alone time. Stay wrapped up all warm in here while the monsters play outside for the rest of the night.”[/color]

The Queen watched as her skin began to decolorize and become paler, she could feel the small burning in her throat from where the vomit choked the life out of her. She didn’t want her sister to see her like that. Nobody should’ve seen her like that but they did and she couldn’t take it back. She jumped forward and propped a soft kiss to her baby sister's forehead and made her way towards the door which Mika had just entered through.

She stopped suddenly in her tracks and her face scrunched up. [i]Fuck it[/i]. They were warned not to interfere with the flow of the world but she couldn’t help herself. Allison turned back to Alexandria and Mika as her eyes began to bloodshot.

[color=FF1395]”Before I go, I need you two to know: things are only going to get worse from here. There’s so much darkness coming and it’s at the edge of town now. Get out. Leave. I’m not supposed to say this but this place is going to burn and I don’t know who survives but it needs to be you. I love you.”[/color]

And as if snatched from existence, before Alexandria and Mika could even react, Allison was gone by the end of her last sentence.[/indent][/indent][/color]