From: Save Address Block Sender Date: Mon, 22 Jun 1998 08:39:39 EDT Subject: a clouding of vision "It's time" Shinji said, as the man in grey turned and began walking down the hall to their right. Teri scooped up the bundles of clothing wrapped in brown paper that she had dropped earlier, shouldered her bag, and hurried after Roland and Shinji. The tiles were almost completely white this far from the entrance, she noticed as her feet clicked staccato on the polished floor. She glanced down at the floor and saw her reflection in the stone-- she frowned. Reflection on white tiles? A faint skittering. Teri looked up quickly as the sound filtered to her. Realization- she opened her mouth to warn-- just as the Jiy hurtled into her feet- she flew through the air, slammed into the ground and skidded, face down. Packages hurtled, scattered from her arms across the hall. Cursing, Teri pushed herself up, opening her mouth to stop her companions-- her jaw dropped. Gone? She blinked and sat, half-sprawled on the floor. "Shinji? ROLAND!" "shinji? rola--" the voice echoed back at her and she grimaced. Sighing, she dragged one package to her and, gathering half-crooked under one arm, slid to one of the remaining two. As she reached for it, she looked down at the floor again and sighed. Scraping her hair back from her face, she watched her reflection intently and sighed again, trying to keep back panic. She hated being lost, hated being left behind-- her throat closed up. The echoes were gone. Not a sound. She tried to swallow, but lost her train of thought half way through. Her palms were sweating. She couldn't blink-- she wasn't seeing. She was frozen, her mind shivering in the back of her skull, an endless barrage of questions keeping it there... what now? where had they gone? why didnt' they hear her trip? would they come back? would she be.. the reflection blurred. Teri blinked to clear her vision, but the floor remained murky. She knuckled her eyes-- contacts must be drying out. She bit the inside of her cheek, frightened in her frustration. All she needed, right now, was for her contacts to-- She opened her eyes, fluttered them. Ran what hardly passed as bangs anymore back behind her ear again.. and froze in shock. She peered closer at her reflection, which hadn't moved with her arm... A young man's face peered back at her, strong jawed and sharp. His eyes, almost colorless, creased at the ends in a cocky smile as he winked. Teri's flew wide, then narrowed in attention as she tilted her head slightly and looked closer. The surface of the floor shimmered, rippled slightly as if a skin of water in the wind. The man's blue hair fell into his eyes; he tossed his head, and the lock backwards. The air was dark, it felt dark. Slow and thick but pleasant. Teri's lips curved into a small smile. She moved her hand towards him, but he only watched her with amused, kind eyes. Her heart was pounding, her terror long since fled. The pads of her fingers brushed the reflection of his cheek-- and her eyes narrowed even further in wonder... the stone was warm, and soft. His cheek flexed as his smile widened; her fingers shook as she felt it, even though she knew-- she KNEW-- she was touching stone-- "There you are!" Teri's head snapped up at the sound, her hand shook violently, she stared as if slapped, her lower lip quivered in surprise. Her face, blank, and terrified. "Teri?! Are you alright?!" Shinji yelled, alarmed, and ran down the hall to her, lifting her by the arms to her feet. The echoes of his boots on the floor reverberated around them as Teri's eyes cleared and recognition flickered across her face. "Shinji," she breathed, shaking fingers raised to press against her forehead. Roland, who had spoken first, frowned at them, jerking his head in the direction he and shinji had come from. Shinji nodded, frowning as well, and gently urged Teri towards the gunslinger. Teri kept her eyes on the tile-- now smooth and blank, as she walked by. Shinji flipped the two packages into the air with his toe, and grabbed them in one arm, the other still urging Teri down the hall. His glance met Roland's, silent and sharp, as they passed. Teri looked over her shoulder, once, before the hall was left behind them. Down the passage-- one of three she could have taken attempting to follow Roland and Shinji, stood the priest, his crisp grey robe covering even his neck, dark grey gloves hiding his hands. The man felt cold to her; his gaze was chilly. A red door, tooled in gold and leather, stood closed behind him. The priest pressed one gloved hand to Shinji's forehead, then to Roland's, and then to hers. Shinji mumbled what sounded like a proper response, but Teri was so suddenly consumed by a wave of ice and hate that she lost all train of thought-- she raised her eyes-- startled to find his gaze boring into her as he removed his finger. Before she knew it, she was being herded through the red door, the priest's robes swirling behind him as he walked quickly away from them-- in the opposite direction.