ZARAMANNI (BOOK ONE)

Her light, careful footsteps led her to the bathroom where she hoped she would be able to get rid of the stench she just acquired.

The girl sighed as she walked to the tainted mirrors on the walls.

Her hands resting soullessly on the edge of the cream-coloured basin in front of her, she watched as tears reddened her eyes.

At that point, she was so unsure of how strong she could continue to be.

That day was supposed to be a good day for her. Her birthday was on that day.

But, Gavin and his notorious friends ruined that day. The day that was meant to be peaceful.

As she peeled off her wet top that showed the outline of her blue bra, Zaramanni pushed her hair to the side, her entire soul disgusted by the smell it emitted.

Her mind was instantly plagued by thoughts of the amount of shampoo and conditioner she would use to get her hair back into great shape.

Soon, she headed for one of the cubicles, her right hand now holding her towel which she was wise enough to keep a spot no one else knew of.

She was about to push the slightly ajar door when feminine voices rushed towards the room.

‘Oh, look who we have here,’ it was Gavin’s girlfriend, ‘the freak of our school.’

The girlfriend wore a devilish smirk which she always had on her face anytime Gavin harassed his victims. She was as evil as her boyfriend.

Rumour had it that she was much more dangerous because she always got away with her terrible acts no matter how gruesome.

Zaramanni, who was not willing to face another round of maltreatment, dragged her feet in a backward direction, her eyes circling the lightly painted room. She didn’t want to have any eye contact with the girl, she feared the fright growing within her would worsen and she could collapse as a result.

Gavin’s girlfriend let out a scoff as she made her vicious sight travel through Zaramanni’s body. Then, she began to walk toward her, the girls behind her wearing uncomfortable looks on their faces. Two of them left before the evil one could do anything.

‘Are you thinking of taking a bath?’

Zaramanni staggered into the space behind her, the fear within her now on her face.

Gavin’s girlfriend continued, the ends of her lips curled with high contempt. ’You deserve to fucking stay dirty, freak. You should stay dirty as long as you look like that. You should stink everywhere you go, carry that tag of filthiness with you. Let people know that they should run away whenever they see you. Let people know that you are an abomination that should not be seen.”

Her words… Those words…

Even though she said them with a tender voice, they pierced Zaramanni’s chest repeatedly. Those evil utterances made her heart and mind ache.

‘Don’t…’ Zaramanni managed to say.

‘What?’ The dark-haired girl glared hard and she quickly reached for Zaramanni’s hair, pulling it hard. ‘What did you say?’

After letting out a shuddering breath, Zaramanni locked eyes with the girl who scoffed again, disbelief on her face. ‘Don’t… call… me an… abomination.’ The words managed to come out and Zaramanni seemed to find little strength. ‘I am not an abomination! I am as human as you are! No one should run when they see me!’

Tears poured out of Zaramanni’s eyes as she screamed her burning thoughts into the girl’s face.

She was so tired… too tired.

‘How dare you? Have you seen yourself in the mirror? You are not human. Have you seen your hair? Your brows? Your eyes? Have you noticed how things about you unusually change? Please, are nothing like any of us, you freak.’

Zaramanni sniffled. Then, her voice hardened as she determined to make sure her day didn’t end on a terrible note. ‘Release my hair,’ she said with a low voice.

Gavin’s girlfriend finally displayed anger on her evil face. Suddenly, pulling her hair harder, she dragged Zara out of the cubicle. She tugged the roots so hard, that the girl let out a cry as she followed without having the will to.

‘You want to stop being an abomination…’ The atmosphere became more sinister as Zara was dragged toward a bucket filled with water. The unrealizing object was calmly seated in a corner, the water inside it was still until Zaramanni’s face was pushed into its depth and width, distorting its peace. ‘Then, die.’

Zaramanni heard only that. She didn’t hear what the girl said after or what the people that were watching said.

All she heard was that one word…

Die.

But, no. Zara was not that easy.

She had thought of death, she dreamed about the scary hold it had so many times as well.

Death had nothing on her, she wouldn’t give in to such a thing so easily.

But the terrible being named Stella was making survival hard for her. Gavin as well.

Everyone who saw her as a freak was making it difficult for Zaramanni to live right and well. They were not giving her a chance to survive.

‘Snap out of it!’ A voice suddenly intercepted the thoughts of the girl who had swallowed more water at that moment than she had for the previous two days.

‘Zaramanni…’

She felt a shake. Everything felt tumultuous all of a sudden.

Everything became a blur all of a sudden…

~

… and Zaramanni finally opened her eyes.

Mouth slightly gapped, her blueish pupils dilated, her head feeling uneasy, Zara wondered what that was.

Yes, that scene was a part of her crazy, annoying past. But, it felt so real. It felt as though she was reliving it again and she felt as hurt as before.

Zara clutched the cloth around her chest instantly… The pain was as before.

“Zaramanni?” It was Alisha. She held the girl by her shoulders, concern on her face. “Zaramanni? What is going on?”

Zara couldn’t reply. Instead, she hugged her bag to her chest while her soul tried to recover from the devastating thing she just felt. Her head hung low, she realized she had been crying as a few drops of tears fell onto her arm.

Alisha wiped those tears for her, worry in the woman’s bold eyes. “You should sit down,” she offered. The next second, without waiting for a response from Zara, she was leading her to have her seat on a fluffy-looking object.

As Zara sat down, she noticed that some of the short trees that guided their journey were no longer upright, they lay on the ground like useless wood.

“Wh-” To ease the crack in her voice, Alisha handed Zaramanni a bottle shaped like a waterskin. After downing some of the cool liquid, Zara was calmer and ready to talk. “What happened to the trees?” she asked.

“Don’t you recall?”

“What?” Zara noticed King Darren move closer to them, a frown on his face. Zara suspected he was about to spit some angry words.

But, he didn’t. Instead, he gave her a concerned glance which soon disappeared as he looked away. Zara locked eyes with Alisha once more after the woman dabbed the sweat on her forehead. “What am I forgetting, Alisha?”

“I don’t know what happened, but, you suddenly stopped walking and went into a trance. While I was trying to bring you back, you started crying and at the same time,” Alisha glanced at the fallen trees, “ those trees started to collapse.”

“Huh?”

“I have…” Alisha sighed. “We should rest here, we have been walking for almost two days. Darren, that’s fine with you, right?”

The ladies placed their sight on the King whose jaws clenched as his legs restlessly danced.

“As long as we don’t waste time,” he sharply responded.

Alisha got up. “I will get us something to eat. Just stay here and rest, Zaramanni. I will take care of you.”

Zara nodded as she processed everything.

From the somewhat surreal trip to her past to the way she mysteriously fell the trees…

It was certain, there was something. Something that desperately needed to be addressed.

Zaramanni glanced in the King’s direction and saw that he had his back resting against a tree, his eyes closed, his rest already in progress.

Her attempt to engage him in a conversation crashed, so she looked up at the sky which was showing signs of approaching darkness. A deep sigh, that was loud enough to cause a little creature hiding behind her to jump, followed.

Then, the girl closed her eyes to get some rest that would reset the troubled state of her mind.

~

Zaramanni’s ears twitched as they caught a sound that differed from the night sounds she was already accustomed to. It seemed to be a cracking sound, more like bone cracking sounds.

Suddenly keeping her eyes open, Zara hoped that nothing deadly was about to ruin their journey.

Then, as she patiently listened, a manly groan made her spring out of her lying position.

It seemed the witch had heard the sound as well because she was on her feet.

The ladies shared a look before they turned their attention to the dark space opposite them, their feet getting ready to rapidly move.

“Wait…” Alisha spoke softly into the night as she looked around, worry on her face. “Where is Darren?”

A loud tumble answered her question. The man she was asking for appeared from nowhere, standing on all four of his limbs.

Before the women could utter a word, bloodshot eyes glared at them. Veins on the King’s forehead and neck popped out aggressively as he seemed to fight an unknown force.

His lips widely exposed his gnashing teeth, his groans became louder and suddenly, he began to grow a strange appearance.

Dark-coloured fur appeared on his exposed skin, his shirt tore as his spine arched higher and higher until it fully formed. His shorts tore as his thighs increased in size and developed a resemblance to that of a huge animal.

It then became clear to Zaramanni. The man was changing into a werewolf. But something seemed off.

As the man became a wolf, a very huge wolf, the growl and dark eyes of the animal reminded her of a particular person, an evil person that was once in her life. Clearly, something terrible was about to follow the scene she and Alisha were watching.

The wolf’s deep growl never ceased, its fangs communicated fury and its digging claws showed its impatience.

“Alisha…” Zara whispered carefully as she tilted her head in the witch’s direction. “What do we do?”

“We-” Alisha didn’t get to finish her answer. The beast raced towards her with a certain purpose, caged the woman between its limbs, and gnarled loudly.

Zara, who was hoping that the wolf would just keep snarling and do nothing, soon let out a shriek as the wild teeth of the wolf dug into the right arm of the arrested woman.

Screams filled the atmosphere.

Alisha yelled, pain in her voice, and Zara screamed louder as her buttocks kissed the rough ground, her eyes shocked by the sight in front of her.

With no intention to stop, its huge beastly head moving savagely, the wolf mutilated the arm of the witch.

Soon, blood decorated the night, the women’s screams pierced the air some more and the scene became one that could be likened to a horrific show in a haunted house.