#nros

[motopg]

NICO ROSBERG for lovely jazz.

[namonakirei]

This is Mags! She’s an echo ghost drawn for @jitterbugjive‘s @mymagicgrandpa ghost-themed art contest! I tried to make a comic for her but my computer’s ports are fried... as is the motherboard, ahahaha, so I can’t post much art or comics stuff because I can’t use my tablet until I am able to purchase a new computer. More about Mags after the cut! Be warned, it’s really long.

So Mags is an Echo Ghost. Echo Ghosts are Ghosts who repeat an important moment of their lives, or their deaths, over and over again and they’re the type of ghost I chose for this contest. I liked Echo ghosts best because they have so much potential in a story, in my opinion. Of course, all ghosts have good potential, but I very much like the variety of stories that can be portrayed with echo ghosts; a child ghost that hears a noise in the dark, and repeats getting out of bed to find their parents, feeling that primal dread of being stalked until they are killed by a murderer; a person repeating the last argument with their child/parent/lover before an untimely death and their feeling of anguish and loss, fear that they’ll never be with their loved one again; someone reliving the moment a loved one nearly fell off a cliff or was ran over and saved them at the cost of their life, but only remembers the fear and not that they managed to save the person; someone who just heard the announcement that a civil war is to start and keeps reliving going to find their friends, only to find out they’ve been arrested for being in the ‘wrong side’. I guess what makes this my favourite kind of ghost is that fear doesn’t have to be limited to fear of their death. It can be fear for another person, a phobia, a fear of your culture or society crumbling; you can use this type of ghost to tell a story of PTSD, anxiety, paranoia, or a murderer, the collapse of a country seen from the ghosts’ perspective; you can have a detective story where the characters figure out what time the ghost is from and what they are repeating and find the right social and cultural context they’re in so you can find the best way to convince them they have nothing to fear anymore, and so on. I really like this versatility!

I first wanted to do something complex and cool and flashy with a deep interweaving storyline, where I’d make a comic to show the background and then the repeating moment... I thought I’d do something spooky, but then as I was sketching stuff, Mags showed up, unprompted. Mags is a sweet girl who used to live with Nona, and one day Nona didn’t come back. Mags has been waiting for her ever since. Mags died in some violent event- someone broke into the house, and Mags got in the way, not knowing what was going on. Her right eye is ruined, so her hair is unconsciously styled to cover it; she hates it being uncovered without really knowing why. Mags doesn’t know that she’s dead. She just knows her routine, and that she has to stick to it, and that Nona will come back, because she has to, right? ...Right?

More specifically, Mags is a ghost who is probably somewhere in the autism spectrum. She stuck to a routine in life, and she follows it after death, because she knows her routine is good, and breaking out of it is bad. She doesn’t deal well with changes, and will follow her routine even if elements of it aren’t there, or else she is likely to have a breakdown. She’s scared of changes, she’s scared of her Nona being gone, she’s scared of being alone. Her fear is that her Nona is never coming back and she’ll be all alone forever. The more time alone she spends, the more scared she is. She’s afraid she’ll be abandoned, since she was abandoned by her parents as a child because they didn’t want to/couldn’t care for her. She’s afraid she’s alone forever now, so she repeats her routine and tries to pretend everything is normal. At first it was just bits of it she kept repeating, like her morning routine, but the more lonely and scared she got, she started repeating longer and longer bits of the day. Now she’s repeating almost the whole day, getting more and more desperate for her Nona. She doesn’t have an exact memory of the time that’s passed or that she’s repeating her day to day, though, but the emotions stick with her, the loneliness and fear, and they build from loop to loop.

I may post a bit of Mag’s routine as a short story, but this post is getting pretty long now.

[motopg]

url graphics ⇝ NICOROSBERG made for leo

[namonakirei]

You wake up in a cold sweat, in a place you’ve never seen, and in clothes you’ve never worn. There’s someone sitting at the edge of the bed that looks at you and simply says ‘welcome.’

Blearily, you open your eyes. The strong light makes you shut them closed with a slight groan, but you still sit up, and rub your forehead with your sleeve. Cold, damp sweat clings to you, making the loose garment you’re wearing cling to your skin, and you feel breathless, so you take a few moments to compose yourself before attempting to open your eyes again. The light is still very strong for you, but after blinking for a while your eyes get accustomed to it, and you can finally take a look at your surroundings.

You realize you have no idea where you are. This doesn’t look like your bedroom. This bed is not like your bed. And you distinctly remember wearing your flannel pajamas last night, yet your shirt feels like some sort of light cotton fabric. You look at the bedsheets, soft and silky, a rich red colour with golden embroidery at the edges. They look like they’re fit for a ruler, not for... just you.

“Welcome.” You hear a voice say, and you look up, abruptly. There’s someone sitting at the edge of the bed. You’ve never met this person, and you scamper back on the bed in fright. You have no idea who they are, with a rich black velvet suit with purple edges and embroidery, a hat that they tilt slightly in greeting, and facial features that are somehow obscured, even though they’re right here in front of you.

“What- who- where...” You can’t really articulate what you are thinking. It's hard to think right now, you're still groggy and confused- overall confused. The person laughs, and grins with a Cheshire grin. They stand up and bow to you, and vanish. You rub at your eyes, stunned, and look around to make sure they're truly gone. There is no trace of them, except a slight indent at the foot of the bed, the sheets still wrinkled from where they had sat on them.

A knock on the door knocks you out of your stupor. A voice comes from the other side, "May I come in?" You hear a woman say. You are at a loss for words for several moments, and the woman says, "I can leave you for another few minutes... but we have been waiting for you. Please do not delay too much."

"I... what?" You manage to get out, confusedly. "What... what are you talking about?"

"Oh dear..." You hear a sigh through the door, "I'm coming in!"

The door unlocks, and a woman dressed in a simple gown walks in. She bows to you, "My apologies for the intrusion. I presume you weren't told anything this morning?"

"Told what? What?" You blink, a little dumbly. She sighs again, and flattens her gown a little, a nervous gesture, you think.

"We've been waiting for you." She starts, "For a very long time..."

"That... doesn't explain anything." You state, still incredibly confused. You feel a little at the cotton nightgown you're dressed in. You prefer your flannel pajamas, you think, but then again, this place is warmer than your house.

"But still, it is true. We have been waiting. And you are finally here." She shakes her head, "I cannot tell you more now... but I can tell you we are waiting. And we will keep waiting... Do you need help dressing?" She asks.

"I... ah... no? No. I don't." You decide that being helped in getting dressed would be just too much weirdness in one day, even though you think you'd appreciate the company. The woman bows her head, and heads to the door.

"We will be at the end of the hall, through two sets of doors." She informs you, then leaves.

Alone, you look around the room. It's ornate, wooden panels painted white and decorated with carvings, some inlaid with gold leaf in beautiful accents. It's not too overstated, with only a few accents in each wall panel. There's a bedside table of simple wood, and a large armoire with two drawers below the door, and a large full-body mirror in its centre.

You get up and open the door of the armoire. A wide array of beautiful clothing is in front of you. You have never seen such rich clothes, and you have no idea what some of them even are, but as you look, one particular set of clothes calls to you. You take them out of the armoire and put them on, looking at yourself in the mirror. You look amazing, if you say so yourself, in the Asian-style blue shirt with metallic embroidery, gold and copper threads weaving together into a dragon that wraps around your body. Your pants are nearly black, but not quite, and give a touch of simplicity to your look. You take a few minutes to comb your hair, which is getting a little too long and needs a trim, and arrange it neatly before leaving the room.

The hallway is as beautiful as the room was, with a soft, velvety carpet, and many ornate lamps. You walk to the first set of double doors, still confused, but feeling a little more confident now that you're actually dressed. You sigh a little and take a moment to inspect the ornately carved wood. It's beautiful. You're glad it's not inlaid with gold or anything, just carvings of circles within circles that give the illusion of moving as you walk close to it.

You open the set of doors and find yourself in a small room. There are three sets of doors here, but you assume the larger set of double doors leads to where you must go. The other doors look old and worn, one  more so than the other, nearly falling off its old hinges, and when you try them, they are locked. You frown a bit, but walk to the next set of double doors. Circles within circles greet you again, and you push them open, and walk through.

You're in a balcony overlooking a large room. There is a crowd of people in it, below, standing at attention. You see the woman that talked to you somewhere near the front, and the person that welcomed you is standing at the back, near another set of dizzying doors. They tap their hat with a nod of acknowledgement and that wide Cheshire grin of theirs. You stand there, stunned. A group of people are grinning and seem to quietly congratulate each other. You notice that all of them dress in shades of blue. The rest of them seem torn between happy and disgruntled people, and your confusion grows, if that is even possible.

You walk closer to the railing, and they all line up properly. An old man with a white head of hair and a well-cared for moustache, wearing a dark blue suit with silver accents, takes a step forward.

"All Hail our rightful ruler!" He shouts to the crowd. And they respond in union,

"All Hail!"

@writing-prompt-s

[namonakirei]

You are the child of a Super-hero and Super-villain, they had a one night fling and you are the result.

My mom and dad don't get along.

It's... kind of an understatement actually. My mom and dad kind of hate each other. I don't like it at all.

They're not married. They've never been. I was kind of an accident baby, I'm pretty darn sure. I mean, both of them are super attractive, I get why they got together, even if just for a bit. And I've overheard their co-workers mention it anyway. They... tend not to like me, their co-workers.

Both of them should totally get together though. I don't say it just 'cause I'm their kid! I'm saying it 'cause they really, really, really would get along if they actually hung out and looked past their... their work. They both like to be styling, and cool aesthetics. They both like to champion lost causes- though their ways of doing so are uh, pretty much complete opposites- and they like cats. They're both super nice to people they care about, and they both like to heckle Soap Operas. They both made their own first costume and they like to go to the movies, even if Dad likes to throw pop-corn at people who talk in them, and Mom likes to point out inconsistencies. If she does it all quiet-like, Dad wouldn't mind! He doesn't mind when I do, at least.

And I know them. I spend a ton of time with them! One week at Dad's, one week at Mom's. They rock, they're such good parents. The only problem is that they insist on not getting along. It makes me sad.

Both of them have dated a few people since I was born, and nothing has lasted. Some of the people have been really nice, but it just... hasn't worked out, for one reason or another. I just want them to be happy, and I'm really sure that if they got together they could be super happy. They could change jobs too and Dad could open that restaurant like he's always wanted to in secret, and Mom could perform there, or make her own studio like she's also always wanted to in secret. They could be happy and banter like they often do and hang out and... take care of each other. But neither of them wants to admit they're being stubborn, and neither of them wants to admit they could totally work together.

I know there's got to be a way to make them see that they'd be good for each other. They both tell me my superpower is being the coolest kid ever, but I got Mom's supernatural insight and Dad's amazing creativity. I'm sure they should be together. And I'm sure I can push them along in the right direction.

Right now, they're arguing about next week's schedule. Dad's mad because Mom wants to take me back two days early, and Mom's mad because she doesn't want me to be in danger during Dad's weekend scheme. Mom knows Dad would never put me in danger in one of his schemes though. Dad's schemes hardly ever truly hurt anybody. But Mom's a stickler for rules, so that doesn't matter, and she's mad anyway because he lets me stay after curfew on scheme days. I wish they'd stop arguing about work.

That's another thing. Their stupid jobs. The reason they both conflict so much is because Mom is a Super-Heroine, and Dad is a Super-Villain. They met while Dad was having a Villain-off with his rival bad guy, and Mom crashed in on the party. Dad says he looked at her and knew she'd be his most killjoy nemesis ever, and Mom says she looked at him and knew he'd be a pain in her butt the rest of her career. I think their actual first thought about each other was "Oh no, they're hot!".

Since then, they've fought each other a ton. From little squabbles to full blown epic battles in the country's biggest cities, them and their Hero or Villain friends have fought each other. At some point, both groups stopped fighting so much, and they hooked up. I think it was just a one night stand, and Mom had me nine months later. When I was like, four or five, both Dad's friends and Mom's friends got more active again. Back then they got along ok, even though they still weren't together, but after that it was... awful. Visitation schedules got stricter, and their shared custody got more heated. They both filed for sole custody and the judge told both of them that they sucked as parents, 'cause they didn't reveal their secret identities to the court so they both seemed like super-absent parents with crappy jobs, and kept the two weeks per parent shared custody.

I've been the only thing they've argued... mostly civily about. They both love me a ton and want what's best for me, they just can't agree on what that is. They both kind of want me to follow in their footsteps, and I kind of just want to open a bakery. They agreed to teach me to control my powers, and martial arts, and tactics and stuff, things that would help me as either a Super-Hero or Super-Villain. Science and Math and History too, they got great tutors to homeschool me. They both encourage me to make friends, sometimes with their bud's kids, sometimes with just... neighbourhood kids. My best friends are Karen and James, and I met them both at the library a couple years ago, doing a project for my History tutors. They're just normal kids, and we get along super well. Sometimes I wish I could be a bit more like them. And I might be, some day, if I manage to get my parents together.

-

Kate and James got me to see the best movie ever. It's called Megamind, and it's about a Super-Villain that turns into a Super-Hero by the end. It's also about how bullying sucks, and about how bad guys aren't always really bad.

Megamind kind of reminds me of... of both my parents, in some ways. But a bit more of Dad than Mom, 'cause Dad also got bullied by his powers. He told me how they would treat him like a freak when he was a kid, and how I had to defend myself or any kids that got bullied, because nobody deserves it. Mom also told me that, though in a different way. Her parents didn't like that she had powers, so they didn't treat her well, either. Neither of them are like Metro Man, well-liked and apparently perfect, but like him, they both want a simpler life-style.

And they both think Presentation makes the Super. I can't say how many times I've heard them rant about Supers with no style, and how lame they are, and how they are the worst. It's really funny, but it also makes me sad, because really, Mom and Dad are super alike, and they don't want to admit it.

It also stings that the stuff Dad handles best is the stuff Mom has most trouble with, and vice-versa. Mom can't cook to save her life, and Dad cooks amazing, but he can't organize even his sock drawer and Mom is amazing at keeping things in their place. Both blame themselves over stupid stuff that isn't their fault, and Mom is super good at handling emergencies while Dad kind of freaks out, but Dad is super good at powering through the aftermath of bad stuff while Mom hides in her room and has a breakdown. Mom's super insightful but bad at convincing people of stuff, while Dad is too trusting but could sell an igloo to a guy that lives in the Sahara. Mom and Dad would make a great team. I just got to get them to see that they have things in common.

Like Megamind.

Which gives me the perfect idea!

It takes me a while, but I finally convince my parents to take me to see Megamind for my birthday. They both argue the movie is old by now, but there's a local theatre that plays old-ish movies for a dollar, and since it's cheap and sort of close to their houses, they can't really argue. They ask me if I wouldn't rather go with one, then the other, but I put my foot down. I'm turning 12, and I want to have both my parents with me for once on my birthday!

They're both pretty surly when we get to the theatre. I go buy the tickets myself, and they get me a ton of snacks. Pop-corn, Nachos, and a Sprite, and Mom gets me Red Vines while Dad gets me Twizzlers, and both glare at each other like this was the root of all their issues. They can act like kids sometimes.

The movie starts, and I'm really excited. Not ten minutes in, and Dad's already tossing pop-corn at some kids in the row in front of us that are making a ruckus. They don't stop talking, but Dad leans forward and whispers something, and they at least tone it down. Mom glares, but even she has to admit they were being super annoying.

A few minutes later Mom's making comments about 'Bernard' and his bad excuses on the down low. I snicker a bit, quietly, and Dad glares at her, but when I tell him I find it funny he sighs and just ruffles my hair affectionately.

We watch the movie, and I'm on the edge of my seat. Not because of the movie of course. I keep sneaking glances to my parents as we watch it. They're both enjoying it, even if they'd both just say it's decent for a kid's movie, and Mom would point out the plot holes and Dad would say the costumes could be better and both would heckle Hal a ton. Just like they're doing now, actually, in hushed comments above me. Mom says something about him being a "nice guy", and Dad snorts and says something about fedoras. What?

I roll my eyes and pay attention to the movie. It's getting to the coolest part, and I want my parents to see it.

"...there is no Easter Bunny, there is no Tooth Fairy, and there is no Queen of England." Hal says, and my parents and I share a chuckle.

"I always said the Queen of England was a conspiracy from the Reptilian Overlords." Mom says, dryly. Dad chuckles,

"Yeah, she's actually a farm boy named Neville." He grins a bit. Mom raises an eyebrow at him, looking a bit impressed. It's got to be some obscure reference to something.

Music plays from the screen, and the cool silhouette says, "You dare challenge Megamind?"

I nearly squeal. This is by far my favorite part, and I know, I know my parents will love it, and then we can all bond over it, and then... and then...

"This town isn't big enough for two Super-Villains" Says Hal. Mom rolls her eyes, and I hear Dad mutter,

"Like you are one, you dumbass aesthetics noob."

"Oh, you're a Villain all right, just not a Super one." Megamind retorts, as Mom hisses to Dad,

"Don't swear in front of our kid!"

"Sorry...!" Mutters Dad, crossing his arms.

"Yeah? What's the difference?" As Hal speaks, I grab the edge of my seat. Both my parents snort in tandem,

"Well, presentation, obviously."

"Presentation, duh."

My parents, who spoke at the same time, look at each other. Megamind, on-screen, agrees with their assessment.

I grin, and bounce in my seat a bit, but nothing seems to happen. My parents are just... quiet the rest of the movie. And when we leave the theatre, Dad ruffles my hair and Mom kisses my forehead, and I start thinking my plan was all wrong. I look at my shoes, until Dad suggests,

"Hey, let's get ice-cream."

Mom sighs, "Hasn't our kid had enough sweet stuff for today?" She asks him, and Dad shrugs,

"Ice-cream is always good after a movie though."

"...Guess I can't argue with that." Mom says, and I grin. At least we'll spend a bit more of my birthday together!

As I eat my ice-cream, I notice that Mom and Dad are being civil. They're not snapping at each other, they're just... chatting.  With me, too. We're all just... having ice-cream. Mom has Banana Split, Dad has Chocolate Chip, and I have Pistachio. We chat about ice-cream flavours, and we laugh about that one internet thing where this kid, or well, this guy, swears in ice-cream flavours.

When I leave with Mom for the rest of the week, she actually smiles at Dad before waving at me. No derisive comment, no angry words, no speeches or anything. Just... a smile and a wave, after Dad ruffles my hair goodnight.

Maybe my plan did work, after all.

@writing-prompt-s

[namonakirei]

Children who die at a young age are given a very special role in the afterlife: they become Invisible Friends, assigned to other children who need them back in the living realm. One Invisible Friend is just about to be reassigned from their first ever assignment.

"It'll be ok...." I brush her hair, sighing a bit, "It'll be okay, Sara."

She's crying into her pillow, in the dead of night. It breaks my heart to see Sarah like that... sadly, it's gotten more common lately. And at the worst time...

She sobs once more, but softly, and I smile at her a little, "Hey Saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaara?" I poke her, "Sara, Sara, Sara, Sara!"

"Wh-What?!" She asks, finally lifting her head off the pillow. I give her my silliest grin, and stick out my tongue,

"Bet 'cha can't do what I doooooo!" I start tickling her. She yelps, then starts giggling slowly,

"S-s-stooooop! Eeeee! Hahaha, I can't... Eee! I can't tickle you!" She giggles, trying to wrest my arms away. After a while, she does manage to push me away through force of will, but now her tears are contrasting with a smile. I motion to wipe her tears, and she follws with her thumb. I sigh a little, sitting next to her on the bed. "...Thanks..." She smiles at me. "I don't know what I'd do without you..." She sighs, laying back down on the bed. That one really tugs at my heartsrings so hard I think I might die again.

See, I died when I was eight. And when you're a little spirit, they have you come back to help other kids. They see us the way they want us to be, more or less, and they can hear us and feel us around. Sara's my first friend, and she's turning twelve. She's really big now! I met her when she was three, and she babbled about random stuff all day, it was hard to keep up! Now she's all grown up, drawing things and taking pictures. She's gotten super good at it, too! But... she's almost a teenager. And that means I have to go. I don't want to leave Sara alone... overall not after all the bad stuff that's happened to her... but it's how it works. When she turns thirteen, she won't be able to see me anymore, and I'll get tasked with helping someone else. Whether I want to or not.

It sucks. I want to keep helping Sara... I want to see her grown up, and happy... I don't wanna' leave my friend yet. She's my best friend...

"Sara... do you remember when we met?" I ask quietly. She beams,

"Yeah! Well, sorta'. I was super little..." She sighs, "What was I doing?"

"You were crawling under a tree." I grin. "You told your parents there was treasure there, 'cause you'd seen something shiny. But it was just a candy wrapper..."

"Yeah! The real treasure was you!" She giggles a bit. That's our little story. She had just grabbed at the shiny and seen it was a candy wrapper, and she was starting to cry, when I popped in and blew a raspberry at her, yelling 'surprise!'. She calls me her treasure because of that, sometimes. She sits up, grabbing her pillow and putting it in her lap, "Remember Maria?" She grins at me. I laugh. I remember Maria. She was a jerk, and we sure gave her a spook.

Sara used to get bullied when she was little because her mom cleaned houses back then. Maria was the meanest jerk bothering her around. But she didn't bug Sara anymore after the class went on that one field trip. We hid in the bushes, 'cause Sara is stealthy, and the other kids were all scared from the spooky stories the guide guy was telling about werewolves and stuff. Maria said she bet Sara was hiding 'cause she was such a coward, but when she stepped in front of our bush, I told Sara and she grabbed her by the ankle. Maria shrieked super loud and ran and climbed up the guide, screeching about the mean wolf out to get her. Sara couldn't even get out of the bush, she was laughing so hard! And since then she was Sneaky Sara to her class.

"Of course I remember Maria! Sneaky Sara to the rescue." I laugh, "You sure showed her who the coward was."

She grins proudly, then looks more... like... melancholic. "...That was fun... going out used to be so much fun..." She sighs. Sara has trouble going outside now. She just stays inside, drawing and taking snaps from her bedroom window. When she's with me, I can get her out to play, but sometimes she won't set a foot out of the house. It's been worrying me a lot, though I get what happened scares her a ton.

"I know... but... but it can be fun again, Sara." I think real hard until I stumble into something that might work, "Hey! Hey Sara! Go draw outside!" I beam, "You can draw cool stuff! You keep saying how your trees suck! So go outside and draw a tree! Go under the tree and draw it! Get on top of it and draw it! That's gonna' be great!"

Sara looks hesitant, bringing her knees to her chest and putting the pillow over them, "...you think?" She asks, voice a little muffled.

"Yeah! I think!" I beam. "You're gonna' be the best drawer ever, Sara!" I hug her. She giggles a bit,

"It's artist, silly!" She says, "A drawer is where you put your stuff. An artist is a person who does art."

I pout. I knew that! But I made her laugh... that's the important bit! I grin and ruffle her curly black hair. "...so... are you volunteering again this weekend?"

"Yeah! I wanna' do that every week." Sara nods firmly. "I like helping out there." I smile. I'm so proud of Sara! She volunteers at her grandma's church's soup kitchen. She just does dishes and stuff for now, and chats with people, but she loves to help. She gets so happy when she makes people smile. ...I'm going to miss that smile so much.

Sara frowns at me, "...Hey Mi?" She pokes my face lightly, and I turn to look at her, "...are you ok? You look super... super sad sometimes, lately." She says, quietly. I flinch.

"I..." I look away, "I... I gotta' go, Sara, go to sleep..." I turn away, and I'm about to leave when I hear a sniffle.

"...Did... did I do something wrong?" Sara sniffs, "Am.. am I boring you? I-I'm sorry I said you were silly! That was mean of me! But please don't go... I-I'm sorry I was mean..."

She looks like she's going to cry again. I flinch again... I'm messing it all up! That's wrong!

"Sara... no, I'm sorry Sara! You didn't do anything!" I say. "I... I just..."

We both sit quietly on the bed for a bit, until she prods gently, "What's wrong, Mi?"

"...you're gonna' be thirteen in a couple months..." I mumble. Sara frowns, looking at me for a long while. It feels like forever.

"...Oh..." She says quietly. "...oh." She buries her face in the pillow again. I knew she'd get it. Sara's smart, and she knows lots of stuff that start or end when you are a teen. Her grandma's taught her a lot about that stuff.

We're quiet for even longer, but when she lifts her face, Sara's determined, "...can you visit sometimes? Even if I can't see you?"

"Yeah!" I smile a bit, "...I... I'll have to help someone else... but... I'll always visit" I hug her as hard as I can, and she hugs me back.

"You better! I-I'll become the best artist! And I'll draw outside! And... and... and..." She looks at me, "I'll draw you! I'll draw you, before you go! You-you gotta' pose for me, ok, Mi?"

I nod, grinning a bit, "Yeah! O-okay! I'd... I'd really like that, Sara..." I smile, tears streaming down my face now. I sob a bit, and hug her, "...I don't wanna' go..." I whisper to her. "You're my best friend... the first... person I've helped..."

"...Mi..." Sara hugs me back. It takes willpower to hug one of us, and I can tell she's focusing completely just on giving me a squeeze. "You're my best friend too... b-but I'll be ok! I h-have mom and dad, and my new friends at school, a-and I have grandma, and God's going to help, too! I'll be... I'll be ok..." She sobs quietly. We both do.

We're really sad. But we both know it'll get better... and knowing Sara's so determined to be ok helps me too.

-

When I have to go, it's night time. Sara was born at like 3 a.m., so she turns thirteen at 3 a.m. too.

I was told it's not usual that us Invisible Friends stay for so long, but that it's a bit more usual with your first kid. We usually leave when they're like, eleven, or twelve, because that's when they stop wanting us around. But... Sara's special. She loves me, and I love her, 'cause we're best friends. I want to stay here forever... but I can't. I know Sara's going to be ok though. She's super strong! And she's been working so hard lately. She's been going into the brush to draw, and she's been getting better. She's been going out more with her friends at school and made a couple in the neighbourhood.

She tried to stay up with me until I had to go, but she conked out sometime past midnight. It's ok though. I ruffle her hair one last time and give her a last hug. I take a deep breath, and get up. I take a good look at Sara one last time, and then I go.

Atop her desk, there's a picture of two kids. One has black, curly hair, a wide smile, and a mint-colored T-shirt and grey cargo shorts. The other has strawy hair, and freckles, and wears a striped blue shirt and shorts. I'll always be smiling at Sara from there. And that's enough. @writing-prompt-s