**Rotten Fruit**

[X_HeartofRoses_X]

Rose pushed Sawyer away. "You tricked me!" She shouted, completely ignoring his mom. She collapsed to the ground, pulling at her ears and beginning to cry heavily. She wanted to be home. She wanted her mommy and daddy.  

[WritingWithLove]

Sawyer's heart shattered into a million pieces. If this was Limbo, he never wanted to see "Below." He moved closer to Rose and knelt beside her. He wanted to see her smile again, but he knew he'd screwed up.
He took a deep breath and decided that she was definitely going to hate him; the question was, how much?
He chose to make it minimally.
He turned to his mother and said bravely, "What do I need to do?" She smiled and replied, "Harness your energy, dear. You alone can control this place. If you want to leave, then go."
He concentrated in leaving.
Nothing.
Rose's cries distracted him, tearing his insides apart.
All he wanted was to make her happy.
He felt a light emminate around him, but it was quickly quenched by the darkness.
This was clearly going to take a while.  

[X_HeartofRoses_X]

Rose grabbed hold of the nearest solid object, which in this case was Sawyer. She cried into his side, shaking all at the same time. "I-I'm scared, S-Saw-saw...Please get us out!" She stuttered, still wailing.  

[WritingWithLove]

Sawyer looked at the poor girl who had said that she loved him only a minute before. She was so young, and he was as well, so who was he to judge what love was? Still, he pushes the thought from his mind, instead concentrating on his plan of escape.
His mother watches them, wishing she could do more. Her boy was being so brave. Her still heart almost beat again; she was so proud.  

[X_HeartofRoses_X]

"I-I'm sorry I yelled, I panicked. Sorry...I-I'm sorry..." She buried her face in his side.  

[Fenrir Shade]

Fenrir made a face of pain and regret, like a dagger had been plunged into his chest from behind. "Dammit!" he whispers to himself. He slowly turns around to face Ella, "H-hey. Long time no see." He wanted nothing more to be out of there.  

[The Jolly Victini]

Fenikkusu looked as if he had seen a ghost. He flared his wings and bolted through the castle at break-neck speeds. Once he got back to the spot he was previously, he flew right into Drizella and tackled her the the ground. With a claw wrapped around her throat, he began. "What has happened to young Rose and that boy?! Tell me now or you'll be going to a place much worse than that of Hell!" Fenikkusu doug his claw into Ella's neck, making her successfully uncomfortable.  

[WritingWithLove]

Sawyer stroked Rose's hair gently. "That's okay. I'd be mad, too." he admitted. He bit his lip and closed his eyes, trying to think of what to do to cheer her up. He WANTED to get out of here; he NEEDED her to smile.
***
Ella tried to hide her rush of fear the best way she knew how.
As much as she didn't want to, she mustered up some desperate tears and began to cry hysterically. "What do you mean?! What happened?! What about my brother?!" She looked around and gasped. "Tell me he didn't take the bag! Oh god, please tell me he didn't take the bag! Mother and Daddy need it for their research!"
Briar was astonished. She had no clue what was going on, but she wanted to find out. She turned to Fenrir and squeezed his hand. "Who's she?" she asked calmly, fighting back the urge to ask so much more.  

[The Jolly Victini]

Fenikkusu pressed his claw down further, now drawing blood. Fenikkusu, as calm as he was normally, was not against using violence to get information.. "Enough with the aligator tears! What have you done to my family?!"  

[WritingWithLove]

As the pain surged through her neck, Ella's mind rushed, desperately thinking of a way to get out of this.
Tell him! Spill everything! That's a good idea. I like that idea. I won't die.
She thought of her father, and tears rose to her eyes as she could hear him scream, "You ruined eveything! You back-stabbing b****! I'm ashamed to have you for a daughter! I hate you! Leave and never come back! NEVER!"
D-Daddy... I love you so much...
She held her tongue and closed her eyes. He was gonna have to do a lot more than that to make her sqeual. If she was destined to die, it was better at the hands of a stranger than to have her blood on her father's hands.
Briar ran over to Fenikkusu and yelled, "What are you doing?! What happened?!"
***
Sawyer was getting very cold. He was used to being cold, since his room had plenty drafts, but this was a new kind of cold. This cold didn't chill skin; it chilled bones.
"This place was not designed for the living," his mother explained, "The ones who come here are used to the cold. It emminates from their hearts." She moved closer and stroked Sawyer's hair as he asked, "There are others here?" She nodded gravely. "There are others here... Others here... Others..."  

[X_HeartofRoses_X]

Rose snuggled up close to Sawyer, shivering and still crying. "It's cold..." She whimpered. "Colder than the castle..."  

[The Jolly Victini]

Fenikkusu grit his beak. "This girl made a young boy do something to Rose and made them both pass out. I didn't fell a pulse in Rose, so I can only assume this girl made the boy kill herself and Rose!" Fenikkusu's talons were now cutting deeply into Ella's neck, pressing down on her throat. Flames began to spew from under his feathers. "Tell me what you did... NOW!" Fenikkusu shouted, his last word thunderous, as if he was shouting from the sky.  

[WritingWithLove]

Sawyer's mother pulled the children into her lap and hummed to them. Sawyer closed his eyes and held Rose's hand. His mother's voice soothed him. In an odd way, he was happy.
But Rose.
He needed to help her. He needed to leave.
A glowing light filled his heart, and it pierced he darkness once more. His mother let out a slight cry of pain, and he snapped out of it and let the light die. "Don't worry about me," she urged, "I-I'm fine."
"But the light's hurting you, Mama."
"Nothing hurts worse than the thought of you two being trapped here."
***
Ella cried out in great pain, and her will to live slowly decreased as she pleaded, "Okay, okay, I-I give! I'll tell you everything! Please, stop! It hurts!"
Briar knelt next to the girl, confused as to whether she should be furious with her or feel pity for her. The look in her eyes... Where had she seen that before?
She cringed. Her eyes were the same color as her mother's.  

[Fenrir Shade]

Fenrir was about to explain who she was, but was stopped by the sudden scene. He was going to step in, give her the benefit of the doubt, but from what Fenikkusu said, he stopped in his tracks. Fenikkusu never lies, and never acts that aggressively unless there is reason behind it. He approaches Briar and places his hand on her shoulder, "Come on, let Fenikkusu deal with this. This is none of our business."  

[WritingWithLove]

Briar sighed. He was right.
She stood up and stepped away from them, trying to ignore Ella's gasps for air. Briar turned to Fenrir and hugged him, burying her head in his chest. She felt horrible for just standing there.
There was no reason to just stand there.
Her whole life's purpose was to be the one who didn't just stand there.
And yet, here she was. Idle.
Just standing there.
She clung to Fenrir and bit her lip. The look he had gotten when he saw that girl... What was that?
Bitterness?
Hate?
No, she knew what it was.
Regret.
She whispered to him, "How do you know her? Is she... Was she your friend?"