Concrete Angel

The suitcase floated behind her, as the night stretched before her. It was the only thing that made walking through the snow that had built up around the pack house, her home - why she had ever left she didn't know - bearable. It was cold, and wet. Her love of snow couldn't even make this night feel better. It was dark, cloaking - she felt like she was being hunted. She was being so. But if she could just get back to the house, her family she'd be safe.

She just wanted to be safe. Vera didn't know the last time she'd felt safe.

Usually she could apart closer to the place, but her rush to leave had left her muddled, unfocused. It was only luck that had kept her from splinching. She didn't want to think about what splinching would do to the baby. Maybe that, and not luck, had been what calmed her enough to focus. Resting her hand over her stomach, she glanced over her shoulder and quickened her pace.

The house was closer now, she could see more than just the familiar roof. Her excitement increased, her senses dampening. She should have heard him, after all, she was more than human, her senses were part of her, but she was too focused on getting away. So focused she forgot to look back.

She had never wanted to look back.

"Vera!"

The name, and the rage behind it didn't come soon enough; the man lunged at her, clearly too afraid she'd get away if he didn't act now, taking them both down. Her surprised call was cut off as her head bashed against something hard and sharp on the ground. Pain erupted as her vision went blank. A few moments later she came back to find herself in the one place she never wanted to be again. In his arms.

"You're going to stop this foolishness now, and just come home. For better or worse, that's what you said. You. Can't. Just. Leave."

Her head spun, and blind panic took away whatever other rational thought she had. Limps flailing, the girl kicked, flailed, scratched. She had more strength than Noel had thought. Although, her screeches started with some formation of words - "put me down"- the quickly melted into nothing more than air escaping lungs.

Vera flopped into the snow, her body making a large dent into the ground. She didn't wait to realize the red decorating the snow was her own blood. She crawled through the snow, dragging herself forward, leaving a trail. A deep drag, the blood from the open wound on her head , which was already starting to close slightly, seeping into her clothes as she was forced to pull herself through it. Getting up wasn't an option, her legs felt like they were going to give out. As the foot pressed painfully into her back, pushing her stomach - her baby - into the ground. It was with a call of fear that she managed to flip over, Noel lost his balance but didn't fall over.

It was a shame that he didn't fall over. She didn't see the foot coming until it hit her stomach. All the breath came out of her, and before she could catch it the foot made contact again, and again. She couldn't scream, make a sound, utter a breath. He was raging words between the kicks but she couldn't hear them, they were gone, lost in the haze buzzing in her ears. Each breath was painful, new bruises were forming. The snow, sharp with cold, was cutting into her skin, freezing it.

When the kicks finally, blissfully stopped, she had stopped too, frozen, dead - or all but should be. When he ripped her up by her hair, she didn't even notices. Although her eyes were still open, brain still working, she wasn't focusing on anything.

His face was a murderous mask, before he smashed her into a nearby tree. Bark tearing skin, completely numb she didn't feel that either.

"you don't get to leave me."

Her lips, swollen and numb, struggled to respond, one thing she needed to say before she blacked out, fully convinced she wasn't going to be seeing anything else again.

"m-m-my baby," she gurgled, eyes already closed. "My baby."