Illusion

"-and that's how I met your father." The strange voices erupt into laughter again. "What about you honey? How was your day?" I look up, Mum is smiling at me. But that's not your mum. I push around the peas and carrots left on my plate, "I guess it was good, Martha tried to ask out a boy, but she tripped over and spilt her soup all down his shirt." The laughter again. You don't know Martha. "That's a shame honey, I bet she felt really embarrassed," Dad said, "I hope she's okay." I nod my head, "She's fine, Dad." But that's not your dad. I stuff my mouth with carrots to stop myself from saying something else. What is happening? It's just a normal family dinner, me, Mum and Dad. But those aren't your parents.

"So, I was thinking we should get a family pet." Mum said, breaking the silence, "You know, something small and easy to care for, to raise morale." Dad nods enthusiastically, "Yes! That's a great idea, when I was younger we had a parrot, and it was always making us laugh." Mum shakes her head, "Something more easy to care for, like a fish, or a hamster." I swallow, "We have a day off school tomorrow, how about we go to the pet shop and look at the pets there?" Mum claps enthusiastically, "That's a great idea honey! How about we all take some time off and enjoy the day as a family!"

"Yes!" Dad adds, "I know a great park, it's where my first girlfriend broke up with me!" Laughter, then it all fades to black.

It’s the next morning. But it was just dinner time. We’re walking down the path in our best clothes. But you were just at home, in your work and school clothes. I look around, it seems like we’ve walked a long way. It’s been a while since I’ve left the house. We turn the corner and see the pet shop. “Wow,” Mum says, “That dog looks just like my Great Aunt Ellie!” The laughter. This time though, there’s something else, a whisper only I seem to hear. Wake up. I brush it off, there are a lot of voices in my head telling me nonsense, this is just another one. I don’t hear what Dad says, but the laughter comes again. So does the whisper, louder this time. Wake up. We walk into the shop, and immediately a parrot starts shouting, “WAKE UP WAKE UP WAKE UP WAKE UP!” in a scratchy, pitchy voice. A store worker came out and shushed the parrot. So it was just a bird, nothing important. Not a voice. Not a message. But it is. Mum looks at me, “Are you okay honey?” She smiles, but her eyes stare spears of ice into my soul. “Yes, the parrot just frightened me.” Her eyes soften, and she walks over to a glass cage full of guinea pigs. The parrot must have shocked me more than I think, because I turn towards a door at the back labelled, ‘STAFF ONLY’, in big bold letters. Creeping over, I reach for the doorknob.

No one is paying attention. I open the door, and am flooded with voices. I quickly close it and back away. THEY’RE NOT YOUR PARENTS. The voices were loud. GET OUT. RUN WHILE YOU STILL CAN. I look towards the door. RUN. RUN. RUN. RUN. RUN. RUN. They’re confusing, making me feel nauseous and dizzy. RUN. GET OUT. RUN. RUN. Then a clearer voice, much calmer. Emelie, you need to walk out of the pet shop. I listen, and walk towards the door. Dad steps in front of me. “Where are you going?” I step back, trying to keep calm. RUN. DANGER. DANGER. DANGER. GET OUT. RUN. RUN. RUN. RUN. “I-I’m going to get some fresh air, I feel dizzy.” Dad smiles, but his eyes are steely, “Why don’t I come with you?” I shake my head, “No! Thanks. No thanks Dad. I just need to clear my head.” He nods, and steps aside, “Make sure I can see you, though.” I nod and walk out. Listen carefully, the calm voice says, when I say run, you run as fast as you can, towards the white line on the horizon, okay? I look up, there it is. I’ve never noticed it before. “Okay.”

Inside the shop, Mum turns around and looks at me, she starts walking over. Ready? I nod. Mum reaches the door. Okay. Mum turns the handle. Now run! I sprint off, towards the white line. I’ve always been good at running, me and Ava were the fastest kids in school. That’s right. Ava. I remember. She’s my best friend. It’s all coming back, Earth dying, the plan for a better world, travelling through dimensions, getting separated, being captured and trapped. My ‘Mum’ is a power hungry witch, and she’s coming for me. She’s gaining, flying over the ground. Tears stream out of my eyes as I run. I don’t know if it’s the air whipping my hair around, or the fear or being caught. Keep running, the voice says, we’ll do the best we can to stop her. That voice, it’s Carla, she’s the supervisor in the operation. ‘We’, that’s Carla and James, they must have gotten back to headquarters safely.

Behind me, the witch staggers. “Those pesky humans have my physical body!” She shouts before flying faster towards me. I’ve almost reached the white line, I can hear Carla’s voice clearly, “Keep going! You’re almost there!” The witch flies faster, and reaches out a hand. At the same time, Carla’s hand shows through the blinding light. I hold out my hand, and run forwards, only to be grabbed at the collar by the witch. “No!” Carla shouts, as she is propelled far away. The white line fades, and I struggle to get out of the witch's grasp. She holds tighter, “Oh no, you’re going back, this time, to a place you’ll never escape.” The laughter sounds again, but distorted and glitchy. The voices swirl together, and there are children screaming and crying. It all fades to black as I kick and punch to get out.

“Wow, look at that one!”

“Yeah, it’s so big!”

“Grab that rock.”

“Twenty pounds you can scare it off the wall.”

“Fifty if you kill it!”

“Yeah!”

Swoosh. Smack. Thud.