Angelena begun to nod off on the couch, her chocolate milk eyes slowly closing as her head drifted downward. She had just found the most comfortable slouchy position on the couch, and she savored it. She was at the awkward age where she was just old enough to help mix the ingredients for yummy chocolate chip rainbow cookies, but just young enough to sit out on the couch while her sister and Mama put the cookies in the oven. With being older came responsibility. With responsibility came more work. Responsibility is boring, Angelena thought as her mind slipped into oblivion.
Crrraaaaaasssshhhh! came a sound from the kitchen.
AIEEEEEEE! came her Mama's voice yelling.
Angelena immediately flung herself off the couch, stumbling to her feet in a daze. "Who-Wha?" she mumbled. She pressed her hand against her slick forehead, where her tangled curls hung in her face. She must had fallen asleep because the kitchen looked dark, a dim light flickering in it. How much time had passed? Had she imagined the sounds? Was she dreaming them?
A burnt smell slammed into her nostrils. She couldn't help but gag. Oh no, had Mama burnt the cookies? She ran towards the kitchen, her little legs fumbling over the soft brown carpet. As she got closer she could see thick clouds of smoke fuming out of the kitchen, it was so thick it created the illusion of dreary night. There was something off about the smell. . . and a little bit garbagey. As if somebody rolled nasty burnt cookies in the foulest garbage possible, then set the cookies out on the counter to cool off.
As her foot hit the tiled floor her eyes became wide and fearful. Before her stood a large creature, black and ghastly, as if he was made out of smoke itself. The form of this creature swallowed the whole kitchen as it towered over Angelena. It's head was dotted with two little red eyes, its beak long and pointed like a predatory bird, its talons sharp like little nails, but huge vile nails about the size of Angelena's hands. Was what she seeing a reality? Her hair blew away from her face as the creature flapped its large black wings, and took off into the air.
She stood frozen in place.
Too terrified to even think.
She saw a limp black form clutched in the creatures claws. Angelena couldn't make out what it was until she squinted her eyes—she recognized Mama's limp form laying unconscious, like a little rag doll being flung here and there as the creature flapped it's wings darting from one wall to the next. Mama's hair flowed like a raging river, curly long tangles switching direction at each sharp turn of her head swishing back and forth.
Angelena suddenly knew she must do something. Anything. "No one messes with my mama," she dashed to the counter and grabbed the nearest mixing bowl. It was leaking gooey unbaked cookie all over her head as she put it on like a helmet. She grabbed a silver spatula and ran towards the black beast. She started swatting angrily in the air before she realized she was too short to reach the creature. So she did the next best thing, and tossed the spatula straight at the creature, smacking him right dab in the forehead.
She wasn't ingenious like her older sister Eliza. She only realized after she tossed the spatula and it clunked to the floor that she threw the one weapon she had. Horror swelled in her heart. Why hadn't she thought this one through? Had Eliza been here, Eliza would had outwitted the creature by now, saving Mama in the process. Angelena bit her bottom lip. Where was Eliza when she needed her?
The spatula Angelena threw only served to anger the beast, it's sharp beak opened up revealing a flicking red tongue, the screech that came from the beast was so unbearable Angelena flung her hands up to cover her ears. She watched in horror as the creature dug its talons into Mama's back, piercing her skin even deeper. The creature bashed and thrashed against the roof with such a ferociousness, Mama became a blurred shape, her unconscious body blurring with intoxicating motion sickness. Angelena could feel that sickness, wanting to collapse to the floor and release the acid climbing up her throat. But she swallowed it down, her eyes narrowing at the creature.
Tears crawled up her eyes, trying to push past the brim. Nobody treats Mama like that, she thought, as she clenched her little hands into fists. She was more than determined now, her eyes glancing around the room for a new weapon.
She found a salt shaker, pepper shaker, all kinds of shakers, some weird objects she wasn't sure what they were for, and even the cereal boxes laid out on the counter for morning breakfast. She shoveled all of them into her arms, pegging one item after another at the beast, hoping one of these weapons would do the trick. The salt shaker smashed the creature in the eyeball, and it snarled like a one-eyed pirate. Birds can snarl? Angelena absently thought as the salt shaker made contact with the tile floor, smashing into a billion tiny fragments. Next came the pepper shaker, the shaker that looked like rice was in it, the shaker that smelt so bad Angelena wanted to puke, and than the one with little red dots in it that reminded Angelena of little red ants. Soon her arms were once again empty, the floor littered with pieces of broken glass, cereal bits, and powdery stuff.
The creature looked the same, just more enraged. With it's fiery red eyes that wished to engulf the whole room. The beast smashed its head again and again into the roof, forming little cracks in the off white ceiling. Craaaaaack, craaaaaaack, the sounds radiated through the kitchen. First there was one, then there was two, then there were about 50 little cracks all interwoven together creating a little web. SMAAAAASSSSHHH! and the tiles fell to the floor, creating a spotlight for the beaming afternoon sun to peer through.
The beast was freed, flying into the clear blue sky with Mama in tow. Angelena screamed, reaching her hands out towards her mama. If only I could fly, she thought. She watched in horror as Mama became a little black dot against the sky.
When her Mama disappeared from sight, Angelena collapsed onto the broken roof tiles and remnants of her shattered weapons that littered the floor, gasping and heaving into her hands. Mama was gone. Mama was long gone.
She hadn't noticed the oven, and how the fumes still poured from it, or the little beady red eyes that peered at her as she fell to the floor sobbing.
