Word count:1037

Ash P.O.V

I am currently trapped between the thick, heavy waves of consciousness and unconsciousness, and blurry scenes were rushing by.

The scenes of my early childhood were fuzzy, though there were a few memories with Nichole that were perfectly clear, when I first held her, a day after she was born, so small and soft in my arms, and I start to hand her to someone sitting beside me, before the memory is suddenly yanked away from my vision.

Most memories are fuzzy, until
I turn 7, on the dot, when a sharp memory jumps out at me from the waves.
~~~~
There I am, sitting in the long grass of the meadow oitside our cottage making daisy chains, on my birthday nearly exactly five years ago.

I'm not alone though.

I watch on from the side as the boy facing my younger self, killing the grass up by the roots.

"Stop!" I exclaim, my voice childish and high, "You'll ruin the worms home!"

His deep blue eyes meet mine and he sneers.

"I don't care about some worms, Ashey," he laughs at me, and stands.

"You can't catch me!" The caramel-haired boy yells over his shoulder, as he runs through the wildflower meadow.

"Hey!" I shout, stumbling to my feet, "Cade! Wait up!" I suddenly remember my twin brother's name.

I run after him, my daisy chain quickly discarded behind me as I blunder after Caden.

My small feet falter in their sandals as I pursue Caden up the hill towards the swaying willow branches at the top.

Cade vanishes from my sight as he crosses over the top of the hill, and ten seconds later, I cross aswell, panting, my tiny heart racing and legs burning, I suppose I have been unfit from a young age.

I see my brothers head bobbing as he bowls the long fronds of the willow.

He disappears as he runs underneath the cascading branches, which seem to grow thicker as he vanishes through them.

My young brain doesn't count this as strange, and I run on, as much as I, watching from the side, wants to stop myself, but I couldn't move, The only movement I had was drifting through the invisible waves to follow the memory.

As I trot after Caden, and push through the leaves, the branches knit together behind me.

I whirl around, and stare, shocked, at the branches that were locking together in an embrace.

I stare at the drifting branches in wonder and fear, every lasts twig was tied agianst its will.

"Ash!" I hear a young boy's voice whimper from behind me.

I turn around slowly to be met with my brother, and all the branches on that side of the tree have also trapped us, except for a particularly thick  one, that had yanked itself free and twisted like a boa constrictor around Cade, and he was squrming in its grip twenty feet in the air.

I screamed, and I screamed loud, and it wasn't just the seven year old me, I myself was screaming and thrashing in the wave, for my tiny body had collapsed on the soft ground, convulsing and screaming in pain, and I could feel it, I could feel that every fibre in my being was as though it was set on fire and every time I screamed in agony, a thousand knives ripped open my throats from the inside, and I could hear a distant voice calling my name.

As my vision cleared, but still slightly fuzzy, I was still writhing on the ground, but an opening was appearing slowly in the foliage, and people were appearing one at a time, people clothed in black and red.

These people had scowls on their faces and pure hatred in their eyes.

They were followed a meek, blonde boy, and the first thing I noticed was his Bright green eyes. The boy. Him. I had wondered why I had felt a hatred burning deep inside my chest for him. And know I knew, well nearly. I don't know what he had done yet.

They ignored me, and headed straight for Cade. I wanted to yell out, but od course, I couldn't.

The bald man from earlier pulled a knife from his belt and strutted confidently towards Caden.

The branches magically lower so they are both face to face, Caden was shaking, well, as much as he could tied up in living chains.

Baldy raised his jagged knife and lightly traced my brother's face, Cade froze, and his face here hard.

"This one," The man suddenly snapped.

Cade looked petrified again as the branch loosend and dropped him to the ground.

Cade groaned and a buff, hairy man came and picked him up like a rag doll and threw him over his shoulder.

Cade thrashed and kicked and bit, to no avail.

I had stopped thrashing, and was now on my hands and knees, and wretching my picnic lunch from my stomach.

A lanky, tall boy with matted ginger hair strutted over to me and kicked my in the ribs, making me fall on my back and whimper.

"What bout dis un, boss?" He asked as I heaved.

"Leave her as a warning, as a warning and a sign for Derek," He cackled, "Leave her to tell all the details of her brothers disappearance."

He walked over to me and pulled out a knife that had dried blood on it, blood lined with a bright, aqua blue. Strange.

I didn't have enough time think before the knife was slammed into my arm as he left it there.

"Just for a reminder," He hissed into my ear, and his putrid breath washed over me.

He got up and turned his back and walked away, signalling to his followers.

Him plunging the knife in my arm had left me out of breath. Then the pain hit.

Agony.

Pure, pure agony.

My mouth opened in a silent scream.

No sound came out as I struggled, and my ears were ringing, so maybe I was screaming, perhaps I wasn't, I could feel it all through the memory.

The pain became too much and the memory diasappeard, so did the pain.

I sank into the waves of unconsciousness comepletely.