Crimson

Lemonade

JUNO

Lemonade .

I had first tasted it when I was seven , we had been travelling through a small town and unusually , Mama had wanted us to stay at an inn .

I had been beyond excited , staying at an inn meant a bath , a hair washing and sheets with a manageable bed .

The food was not a plus , Mama's food was always the best regardless of where we were .

When we arrived at the town , Mama seemed like a seasoned visitor and I , the amateur one that was being shown around .

Now , I remember the town as miserable , poorly lit and overall , a dirty place .

But , that had not been the case then , it had been gleaming to me .

And when Mama had held my hand as we walked into the inn , I had even held my breath .

The inn had been poorly lit with men of different sizes drinking at tables .

They had all turned to watch us when we walked in , we had been unfazed though .

Mama was as pretty as the sun and her body jingled with jewellery and there was me , with my long hair and visible blades , we were a duo made to be stared at .

We had taken a table at a corner and a young girl had come to attend to us , she had been very nice , genuinely complementing Mama's and my hair .

Mama had wanted rum for herself and when she was told that rum was not the best for me , she had asked for lemonade for me .

We had both never had any of the two drinks , so ,we had been impatient to have a taste .

When the girl had finally come out of the kitchen with her tray filled , Mama and I had exchanged a smile .

The smile then turned into a frown for me and a very poisonous glare for Mama .

As the girl walked towards us , every single man she walked past turned around to slap her behind .

The girl seemed about ready to cry while the men laughed wildly and the owner of the shop cheered them on , I had briefly regretted picking a table so far away .

She finally reached us and left our food to us , her eyes red and puffy .

Mama and I stared at her till she disappeared into the kitchen before we dug in .

Lemonade was the best drink I had ever tasted .

Mama also seemed to think that rum was also the best drink she had ever had .

We exchanged sips but then decided that our own drink was better and continued to laugh .

We stopped when we heard a yell and sobbing .

Mama stood , abandoning her rum and began to walk towards the kitchen , I took one last gulp and ran after her .

The men must have been so used to stretching their hands out to slap whatever passed because one of the men tried to do that to Mama .

I had gasped dramatically as his hands stretched out towards Mama .

Mama had lifted him up by his wandering hand and proceeded to pull it out of it's socket with a resounding pop , I had clapped so hard , entertained .

The other men however did not seem entertained , they stood up slowly to fight .

Mama took them out one by one while I dug blades into the arms they had been stretching .

When we were finally done , the inn was still full , my blades had been a tad too deep .

Mama did not mind though , she patted my head and pointed at a large wooden pot .

I went to the pot while she went into the kitchen , I kept drinking and drinking till Mama came out .

The owner of the inn and the cook were with her , they helped us load my lemonade unto a cart and another smaller drum of rum for Mama .

They also kindly emptied their safes while I went about emptying the pockets of the men lying around , Mama did not want me to do it but I did not want them touching my money with their bloody hands .

When we were finally done , we left the inn with a new cart , horse , money , rum , lemonade and a new friend .

Her name was Char and we dropped her off at her village , her own Mama had been sick , so , we stayed a while , Mama needed days to brew medicine .

We also left all the money we had taken , even my hard picked money .

I stood my ground at sharing my lemonade though and Mama had let me keep it all .

****

I had no idea why but as blood dirtied my courtyard and I ran around blades flailing , the only thought in my head was the tangy taste of lemonade .

I was wondering if I would ever tasted it .

The soldiers kept coming and I had lost sight of Vita .

I had lost feeling in my feet and my left arm , my head hurt and my eyes were heavy .

The arrow that struck me must have been poisoned , that would explain my drowsiness .

But , I could not let them go through me and into my house .

Once they realized that Larona was not here and I was , they would try to break into the shelter under the guise of searching for a criminal , I could not let them enter the shelter .

Another soldier came at me and I dodged his sword and sunk my blade into his eye , I pulled it out and pushed him unto a sword .

I did the same to another one , pushing him unto the sword , there was still room for one more body on the sword .

Pain .

While I was trying to focus my weary eyes on the sword that was swallowing soldiers up , someone had sent another arrow into my right arm .

Removing the arrow meant more bleeding but it was better than more poison in my bloodstream .

I pulled the arrow out and threw a spear that was lying around in the direction of the arrow .

A man fell out , he was impaled on the spear .

I could not move any longer , the feeling of the poison traveling through me was paralyzing .

I thought of Ali waiting for me in the cold , he had not been properly dressed , I should have brought out an extra coat for him .

I kept slashing , watching blood dance , I had no time left .

I was running on someone's extra time already .

I had closed my eyes , they were too heavy .

I used my ears to follow their sounds and slashed wherever I heard a sound .

Would Ali leave okay ?

I could hear some soldiers behind me , so ,Vita was alive .

He should have never come here , not only was he going to get hurt , his reputation would be in the mud .

An arrow whizzed past me and struck someone behind me , I turned to see if Vita was hit , but , it was one of the soldiers .

I turned back to where the arrow had come from , new people that were dressed casually .

One of them had red hair that shone brightly in the midday sun , I smiled thinking of the girl I had sent with the ring to Ali , it seemed like a very long time ago now .

" Juno !"

Now , I was hearing Mama .

Was it because I was dying ?

I heard it again as my legs gave out , I slashed one of the soldiers legs as I fell .

" Juno!! "

I wanted to answer that I could hear her but my voice would not work , I gave up and tried to look into the sun's eye , it was hard not impossible .

Someone blocked my view of the sun , his face was hazy and he smelled metallic , like blood .

He lifted me up and began to walk somewhere .

A familiar Haze settled on me , was this what it felt like to die ?

I decided to speak to the goddesses , I had never believed they truly existed , after travelling so much , it was hard to believe in deities but still....

If there was one , I wanted to ask for forgiveness .

I could have lived better , there were so many things I could have done better , I would not ask for a second chance though , I just wanted everything to end with me .

I still had no idea what had happened to Mama , Ali would never leave without me , he would probably do something stupid like retaliate .

I tried to open my eyes even if it was to ask Ali to go and have a normal life , a brief life however , I could not wait long for him to join me here .

My eyes would not budge , my fingers too .

I felt it then , I was being pulled under for the third time that day .

I could hear voices around me , they sounded distant and I could not make out what they were saying but it meant I had not completely lost consciousness .

I was doing good , I heard a mocking laugh and I was pushed .

I fell through memories of Agrippa , memories of Vita , of Ali and deeply tucked inside , memories of Mama .

I stopped falling then and I was suspended in a distant memory .

Mama sat by a table , she was singing while grinding something .

Books that were banned in the Utopia lay on every surface .

Cold hands held my hands .

" Look !!"

A voice shrieked .

I looked closely and realized that she was not singing , she was chanting and the thing she was grinding was whimpering softly .

The books also did not look like old harmless books anymore , they looked ancient and exotic .

Why was this in my memory when I could not remember it ?

The voice shrieked again .

" Could not or would not ?"

I tried to cover my ears but my hands were gone .

What did Mama being a witch have to do with me ?

" You could have avoided such a long fight with those dogs if you had any idea what you could do ".

The voice was softer , it still sounded like a very polite shriek .

A force began to pull me towards an open book that Mama had been looking at .

It had words written in different patterns and in an unrecognizable language .

" Read ".

The voice was back to shrieking , but I could not read the words , I could see them but I could not process them .

" Read , fool ".

What an impolite spirit .

I opened my eyes wider and tried to read again .

A word caught my eye , it was clear as day and looked as if it had been written in the simplest language ever .

I read it out .

" Anohe ".

I stopped breathing and my head imploded , I could not see .

It was as if I had been thrust in a dark abyss , my mind was on fire , my chest constricted .

Everything hurt but I heard the voice clearly .

" It is yours , say it ".

I shook my head but my mouth had a mind of its own .

" Anohe ".

I awoke .