8 July, 2009 - The Fruited Plain

Cerise sat in the booth, hunkered down against the wall, for endless hours. Day blackened to night and night faded to day again. She hardly slept, doxing off only to jerk awake each time the door opened. Each time she was disappointed. She kept hoping, perhaps beyond reason, that Rael would walk through that door at any moment.

It was possible. Time ran strangely in Erebus. Minutes could seem like hours and might actually be days. Conversely, the opposite might be true as well. And in the back of her mind was the niggling doubt that Rael would return at all. Cerise squashed that thought relentlessly everytime it surfaced, but it refused to go away completely.

The door opened again and she turned around to see another woman enter the cafe. With a sigh, Cerise raked her fingers through her hair, then sat back against the wall again. She couldn't help but look up yet again as someone else entered the Plain. Another woman. Frustrated, Cerise felt near to tears and when the two began speaking of a friend who had gone away, and whom they hoped would return soon, she could stay in the room no longer and took herself outside.

Wet tears slid down her cheeks as she turned unseeing eyes towards the sky. She had come to Manchester seeking comfort after the deaths of her children and parents, to the one person in all the world whom she knew could give it, and what had she done? With one hand tucked beneath her arm, she wiped at her tears with the other.

"Get ahold of yourself, Cerise," she whisperd. "It had to be... there was no other choice..." Sighing, she took a last look around the street, then headed back inside. The two women were still there talking quietly between themselves, only now, the subject of their conversation was painfully clear as one word stood out amidst the others. They were talking about Uncle Rael and the tears began sliding down her cheeks all over again.

Cerise stepped aside as the first woman moved towards the door, but the second lingered, giving her a concerned glance. "You know Uncle Rael?" Cerise asked before she could stop herself. Oh, yes, she knew him. He was her brother. No, Cerise corrected herself. He was -as- a brother to her. A subtle difference, one enough to keep Cerise from spilling too much.

It wasn't until later, when she was alone again in the cafe that the full impact of the other woman's words hit her. She had told Stacee that Rael was in a place of healing, that Naydene had told her of it. Wiping her tears, she smiled a little. A place of healing. Yes. Erebus was all that despite it's hellish reputation. A place of purification and reknewal.

Cerise suddenly wondered just what Nay knew of the place. Feeling better, she finally pushed out of her chair and headed for the door. It was time she and her 'sister' had a heart to heart talk....