Lights In The Dark- Part 4

[They sit together on the edge of the empty fountain that stands in the middle of the old town square. Here in this scene of friendship in an unlikely setting. It's strange where a series of incidents can take one... where they'll end up, who they'll meet, what will happen. For now they shall enjoy this scene, until it changes again.]

"... So I ran away trying to reach this small town, then I must have passed out at some point because the next thing I remember is being in that building with those people." Mika finished. Gerry had been intrigued by her tale of strange notes and the mysterious pair of glasses she currently wore. An interested look from Mika signifies that it is now his turn to tell his story. After stammering a little he starts "Well one day a year or so ago I was doing Mother a favour and buying the weekly groceries. It was only a short walk to the grocery store... Then all I can remember is hearing a car pulling up quite close to me... then just waking up in an old bed back at that theatre where those Frankies all gather." He concludes with a nervous smile. Fascinated yet underwhelmed by his story Mika says "You've mentioned your Mother a lot today. Do you have any other family? Like siblings or a father?" To this Gerry sighs and replies "No. My father died before I was born. It's just been me and Mother my whole life."

To her he was a forlorn sight, and a rather odd one. His clothing looked very out of place. The black T-Shirt and tight jeans didn't look right with the slightly-too-big old-style military jacket. She wondered if it was a hand-me-down from a relative in a marching band or something similar. Since living with the Frankies his hair had grown long and been dyed to match theirs, giving him a more ghostly appearance. However, he did look in place here in this city of eternal dark. Like a lost soul wandering its streets.
He'd shown her a few places that he liked visiting. The old church, the small town hall, the small park and now the town square. Just an old fountain surrounded by the skeletal corpses of small trees. It was like something from a gothic fairytale. In Mika's mind, Gerry fitted this setting perfectly. A friendly, lonely ghost-boy. "What's in your bag?" He asks. Mika snaps out of her little trance and declares "Nothing much. Just a few running-away supplies, my sketch pad and some art materials."

Gerry's pale face lights up and he chirps "You like drawing?" Mika nods. Excitedly he says "Please may I have a look?" He assumes the look of a puppy begging for a treat as she hands over her sketch pad. Like an excited child he marvels over the unfinished pictures. Simply just sketch-lines and doodles of houses and small villages. The way in which he gazes at them would suggest that they are priceless masterpieces. Beaming he says to her "These are good. Like storybook pictures. I wish this placed looked more like these, instead of so dark and deserted." He hands her the book back and starts up again "Now I have to show you mine. They're all kept in my secret little attic."

[Whisking her from the edge of the fountain he hurriedly leads her off again through the sinister city streets. Past more rows of houses either empty or inhabited by hopeless dark-dwellers. He moved swiftly through these shadowed places like an apparition. If not for the glasses Mika wouldn't be able to see where he was leading her. Even when he couldn't see the way he knew where he was going. Everywhere in this sleeping city he'd haunted time after time.]

They slow down now. The houses are further apart here and the sound of waves hitting cliffs can be heard. A cool breeze blows in over the lake and the squawking of crow-like gulls can be heard. "This place is known as "Aqua Obscura" I've been told." Gerry informs his new companion. "Apparently it's Latin for "Dark Water," I can see why they call it that." Mika nods in agreement; upon arriving she can also understand this. If there was a coastal resort in Hell, it would be here. Taking her gently by the arm he leads her towards an old building that stands alone across from what was probably the village green. A faded wooden sign reads "Library." They walk up the front steps and he pushes open the creaking wooden doors with ease. A gust of wind slams them shut behind the pair of intruders. "It's never locked, because nobody ever comes here anyway." Gerry says. He flicks a switch and a few small bulbs begin to flicker on the walls. Books lie in piles on the floor as well as on the shelves. It looks as if somebody was reading then just vanished. From the lack of dust on them it was clear that Gerry came here often, from what he'd said he was the only patron of this place.

In the flickering light Gerry looks even more like a ghost. Mika kept expecting him to disappear by walking through the shelves. She followed him down the aisles of old, faded books. She'd read a lot of books, but hasn't heard of any of these. They all have peculiar titles such as "Merci Pour Le Venin," "I, Non Amo Te" or "Interfecisti Omnes Amicos Tuos" She didn't even recognise the language of some of them. Gerry continues through the aisles until he reaches a small door at the back of the library. Here he pauses allowing for Mika to catch up.

They have to bend slightly to get through the door. Once inside Gerry leads Mika up a narrow flight of spiral stairs. There's no light, but he's been up these stairs so many times before he doesn't need it. The darkness unnerves Mika, but she trusts Gerry and his knowledge of this place. Before long they arrive at the top of the stairs in front of another small door. Here Mika takes the matches from her bag and lights one. Both of them flinch from the sudden illumination, although here it glows like a candle through fog. Gerry opens the door and leads her through it into a large attic. Taking the match from her he goes and lights a candle mounted in a sconce on the wall. After he's done this he goes to light another one on the opposite wall. He continues until the room is full of light and the faint smell of melting wax.

There are windows at either side of the room; from outside these probably appear ethereal as the light shines through the darkness. In the centre of the room there's a desk covered in ink pens and paper. The papers are spread on the floor around the desk too, as if they had been spilt. With a proud expression Gerry sets about gathering up all the papers and shuffling them into a somewhat-neat order. Content with the order he hands the stack of papers over to Mika for inspection. She hadn't thought about what to expect from gothic-fantasy-ghost-boy Gerry, but upon seeing his collection of works she should have guessed. Black and white ink pen sketches of skeletons, graveyards and other such spooky things. Despite being initially quite sinister Mika found them deeply fascinating. Some had a humorous feel to them, as if they were Halloween decorations. Others looked like the haunting images conjured up in the mind of the lonely spook that he seemed to be.
Handing the papers back to him she smiles and says "These are good." To this he blushes, his pale face turning the colour of old blood stains.

[Savour every moment of the more uplifting scenes in any story, for just like that the setting can flip into something else. When only looking at one scene at a time one can't know of everything that is happening. When one is no longer part of the events they can see more than can be shown at one time. What is happening in front of the lens is never the whole picture.]