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Sisters are Doing It to Themselves

"You got fat," said Alice.

"Well, that's the niceties out of the way. What you up to? How's things?"

Alice stared at her sister. As if she was even bothered? As if she was ever bothered? Why would she even come to the mental home in the first place? She had only ever been once before, and that was when Alice was admitted. After that, they had not spoken or seen each other. Alice2 hadn't fattened, though Alice was sure she, herself, had most definitely thinned. The food was excellent and not the slop she expected, being in a hospital. She was cared for. Her feelings and needs were considered. She was still, however (and despite the problems inherent), not at home with her family. Whether said family was loving or indifferent, it was her mother and father and sister. Though she might wish the bond she felt could be broken, she often thought it was the only thing which tethered her to something. It was her anchor as she drifted in the listless wilderness of familial apathy. She was tied to that which had cast her adrift, but it prevented her from spinning off into oblivion.

"What?" Alice2 asked. "A sister can ask, can't she?"

"Why do you care?"

"Well, that's nice. I came all this way to see how you are and you act like this. I can go, you know."

Alice sat back and shrugged.

Fine. Cool. Whatever. Go and be happy you've made the attempt and eased your guilt. I'll stay here, trapped but looked after. Caged but content. The last person I would need to visit in a vain attempt to brighten my day and remind me there's a world outside the asylum walls is you! I know exactly what the front of you looks like. Now let me see the back...

Alice2 didn't say anything for a long moment, giving her sister the chance to ask her to stay. Of course she should stay. It's been a while. It's good to catch up. See how each other has been. So much to talk about.

Except there wasn't.

"Look," said Alice2. "I'm here to see how you are. I know you've got issues with me. I know you don't like me, though I've never understood why. I mean, I'm a good person. A good sister. Can't you give me a break?"

A break. Yes. Would that be an arm or a leg?

Alice contemplated pointing out the error in her twin's description of herself, but decided to refrain. What would be the point? She was always better. Always more. Alice knew her own place in the world and in the limited affections of her family. Why pretend there was anything else?

Again, she shrugged. In other situations, she would have answered the challenge. She would rise to the occasion and fought her corner. But not today. Not here. She'd just woken from sedation after an episode. Any further outbreaks would not be met with such a calm response by her caregivers. Let her sister relieve the bladder of culpability all over Alice's feelings. A quick shake, a little wipe and wash her hands of any responsibility. Then she could go and let the younger, less special sibling go back to being a lunatic.

Alice2 sighed.

"Sis, if you must know, mum asked me to come check on you. I know you know I wouldn't come otherwise. I've had to cancel a date for this. Mum insisted. She wanted to make sure the money she's paying is working."

Ah, there you had it. At least it meant Alice2 wasn't growing a conscience. It wouldn't have suited her and she'd probably have it surgically removed. The feelings which came with it would have been alien to her and she would have wanted rid as soon as possible. Luckily, surgery wasn't necessary. Alice didn't think personality transplants were possible just yet.

"So why didn't she come?"

"She's on holiday with dad. They want a new car and can't afford it if they're paying for you." Alice2 leaned forward with her elbows on the desk. "There's no point in lying. You know how it really is. If the treatment is working, they can plan for the car. If not, they'll have to stick with what they've got."

What they had was hardly a shed on wheels. The four conjoined circles on the grill and the high specification made sure what they had was a lot more than many people could afford. The car was a nonsense, not a reason. They just wanted to know if they'd have to still be forking out for someone they didn't actually want around anyway. It was a sort of Catch 22. They didn't want to pay for the treatment, but as long as they were they had peace and didn't have to contend with their runt daughter. From Alice's point of view it worked well. She felt better off in the hospital and the fact her parents were having to pay for it was a bonus.

"Such a shame," she said. "I do apologise for not being well."

"Yes, and so you should. Do you realise what hassle this is? How embarrassing it is to have a psycho sister?"

"Don't you think that has a nice ring to it?"

"Freak," Alice2 sneered. "You're just a freak who can't handle having a sister who's so much better than her."

Alice smiled and saluted.

"Guilty as charged, sir! Thank you sir!"

Alice2 scowled, then smiled herself. She raised her hand to her head and saluted back. Alice's smiled dropped so dramatically it could almost be heard clanging onto the hard wood floor. If it had hit her foot, she could possibly have broken a toe. Her hand fell as swiftly, followed within a second by her sister's. No! She wasn't! Slowly, Alice circled her head, partly to try and relieve the tension which was building and would eventually result in a severe headache and partly to test her theory. Sure enough, Alice2 did the same.

"Don't be a cow," Alice said.

She frowned. Her sister frowned. She ran her fingers through her hair. Her sister's blonde locks were similarly teased. Two fingers up. Four.

This was a game the twins had played when they were young, except Alice had been forced to take part by their parents. It was fun, wasn't it? Pretend to be mirror images of each other. Alice2 thought it hilarious. Any hilarity was purely one sided, however. What had delighted the older girl, the younger had despised but their mother and father, the latter especially, thought it cute. Adorable. Not at all a knife twisting in her heart. Not even close to shaving off a piece of her soul with every murderously mimicked action. No. Just two sisters having a little entertainment. Where was the harm in that?

The harm could have been the fist in Alice2's face, right at that moment. Or a kick, so hard it would cause bruising to Alice's own foot, in between the legs. With the resurrection of a hated childhood cruelty, the firstborn of the twins had cemented her sister's fate. She had opened the door, slid in behind the wheel and turned the ignition to fire the engine into life. She had slammed her foot down on the accelerator and driven Alice off the cliff, leaving her to plummet down into the abyss below. The harm was the removal of the parachute. The harm was the foot on the back, making her fall faster.

Alice went still. When her twin did too, she was about to lunge across the desk. Dr. Edwards' entry was timed perfectly to prevent the move, almost as if he'd been watching their exchange from another room. Alice looked around the office and only then noticed the cameras tucked away in the corners of the ceiling. Of course. She should have realised he wouldn't just let them sit together without any supervision. It wasn't as if they were likely to be making daisy chains together or plotting to overthrow the government. Edwards would have known their encounter wouldn't have been particularly amicable.

She stared at her sister. Alice2 stared back but, were Alice's mouth was tight lipped, holding her anger back behind the caged of her teeth, Alice2's was a full lipped grin of gloating achievement. Alice wanted to turn off the ignition. She wanted to spin the wheel of the car and turn it from its crashing path. She couldn't. The abyss had a hold of her. It had reached up with its long, slender arms and grabbed hold of the metaphorical vehicle, pulling it down into its maw. Alice was sucked in. She was being chewed up - she could feel it in her stomach, rising up to be ejected from her mouth in the form of vomit. The shadows in the corners of her mind were growing. As they increased, the light in the office seemed to dim. Then, Alice saw movement to the side. She turned. Nothing. A filing cabinet. A floor standing fan ready for the oncoming heatwave the weather people had promised for the previous three weeks. Some certificates showing, no doubt, how much of a star Dr. Edwards was at his job. How special he was. How much like Alice2.

Edwards and Alice2 were nodding but Alice wasn't hearing. All she could hear was the pounding of blood in her ears and the soft scratching sound of nails on wood.

Movement again. Closer.

The she saw the smile on her sister's face being mirrored on something else. The shadow curled around her neck.

She didn't remember anything else. She didn't hear her sister's cry as she fell back at the younger sibling's attack. She didn't feel or hear the break of the doctor's wrist as he tried to restrain her or the taste of his blood as she bit into the palm of his hand. All she knew, before everything went dark, was the shadow's teeth and smile. And the sound of purring.

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