Blaire

Blaire

A Sanguine Universe origin story of monstrous suffering

"The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window."

Johnny shared a nervous giggle with the other kids of Melrose Summer Camp. Their small faces, smudged with smores and tucked into hoodies, were well lit by the crackling bonfire staving off the night.

They sat in a loose semi-circle of logs facing their teacher and camp counselor Ms. Vitreous, hands full of blankets and stuffed animals respectively. With the night pressing in all about them, and an abandoned cabin not fifty yards away, Johnny felt the first inklings of fear shudder down his spine.

Ms. Vitreous smiled wickedly. Her long black hair looked like a river of ink that wound around her neck. She leaned forward, and the firelight reflected bright orange in her glasses.

"Now, the cabin wasn't always abandoned," Ms. Vitreous continued, holding her thin hands to the fire for warmth. "The locals who lived near these woods could tell you stories, cautionary tales about the little girl who lived...and died in that cabin."

Johnny looked to his left. Through sheer dumb luck, the girl he'd hoped to talk to all summer, Destiny Lewis, was seated next to him, knees and arms tucked tight to her chest. She flashed a nervous smile. Johnny gulped.

Ms. Vitreous surveyed her campfire victims, catching each of their eyes, one by one.

"Her name was Blaire. She was a young girl, not much older than all of you. She had long orange hair, bright, like firelight, and big green eyes that practically glowed in the dark. An innocent."

The fire popped and crackled. With slight, little shuffles, the kids scooted closer to the heat and the light. The sun had long set, and the darkness was growing steadily deeper.

Johnny felt the gaze of Ms. Vitreous sweep him and Destiny, landing on tough-as-nails Tom Smith. He withered a bit as she stared at him, her expressive lips locked in an expression of pity.

"She could have been your sister," Ms. Vitreous said, whirling on the other children. They let out excited squeaks. Destiny giggled. "Blaire lived alone in that cabin after her father left her there. She was cold and alone, with no one to talk to, no one to play with. Can you imagine? All alone. No father. No mother. Only the dark woods and the crawly things to keep her company. Only the darkness to call her friend."

Johnny felt Destiny press into him. She was warm and smelled of sweet things and fire smoke. She kept her eyes locked on Ms. Vitreous, who smiled like a predator as she swept around the blazing campfire.

Ms. Vitreous was a teacher first and a camp counselor second, but she had a knack for the dramatic that had only increased since taking a position at Camp Melrose. Maybe it was the low, orange light and his imagination, but she looked more waxen than usual, which was strange given how much sunlight they had all gotten today.

One of them, a young boy named Angelo, raised his hand. Ms. Vitreous grinned and pointed a long, bony finger his way.

"Why did that girl have no mom? And why did her dad leave her in that cabin?" Angelo asked.

Johnny found himself nodding with Destiny. They shared a nervous smile.

"Good question," Ms. Vitreous said.

She reached down and tossed another log on the fire. Like greedy, clawed fingers, the flames licked at the new log and sucked it in. Ms. Vitreous leaned forward. All of the kids leaned back.

"Blaire was not like other girls. There was something about her not quite right. Something wrong. She wasn't human, not in the way each of you are. In fact, despite her father's best efforts, Blaire wasn't human at all," Ms. Vitreous said.

Johnny's jaw dropped. Pressed into him, he felt Destiny shudder in revulsion as her mind ran with the concept. Not human? What was she then?

Ms. Vitreous watched each of them squirm. Some of them shook their heads. Others smiled to hide the anxiety growing within. She had them.

Destiny raised her hand, and Ms. Vitreous pointed at her.

"Ms. Vitreous? If Blaire wasn't human...then what was she?" Destiny asked.

Her small voice cracked, and nervous giggles swept the fire circle. Johnny smiled as Destiny nestled back against him on the log.

"That's what I want to know," Johnny whispered.

Destiny grinned and nodded.

"Was she a man-eating monster?" Angelo asked, prompting a round of little gasps.

"Was she a Vampire?" brash, headstrong Tom ventured.

"Vampires aren't real!" Came the expected answer from the other kids.

Ms. Vitreous chuckled and raised her hands for quiet. The tree's rustled, and an owl screeched nearby. Instant silence. Her glasses glowing in the firelight, Ms. Vitreous stalked the circle.

"Blaire wasn't any of those things," Ms. Vitreous said, shuffling nearer to a young boy seated by himself. His name was Jose, but Johnny didn't know him well. She advanced on him suddenly. "But her father was! He was a giant insect monster with eyes like a fly and mandibles like a beetle!" Ms. Vitreous cried.

She made claws of her hands and swiped wide at Jose. He let out a yelp and fell from his log seat, vanishing into the darkness. Destiny gasped and laughed. A moment later, Jose emerged, looking startled and embarrassed. He climbed aboard his log and scooted closer to the group.

Ms. Vitreous stood tall and straight, peering down at Jose before dashing back around the fire. Her movements were erratic and strange, and Johnny felt unease at the almost inhuman way she crept around the perimeter of the fire. Her glasses gave her the semblance of two glowing orbs for eyes, and the darkness made her thin face seem even more gaunt. Ms. Vitreous continued, her expressive hands sweeping towards Johnny.

"And though that monster only wanted a daughter, a family to call his own, he was still a monster, and as such, could only make monsters. Yet when the father realized what he'd created in Blaire, he was delighted, overjoyed. He built for her a cabin in the woods, away from the prying eyes of humanity, and made for her a home," Ms. Vitreous said, sighing softly. "Then one day, he was gone."

Johnny leaned into Destiny. He kept his eyes glued to Ms. Vitreous. She wasn't going to startle him the way she had Jose.

"Is Blaire the monster, or is her dad?" Johnny whispered.

"They both are," Destiny whispered back. Her lips touched his cheek, and Johnny shivered.

"Now, Blaire didn't need to sleep much, and she could eat anything; dead animals, bugs, tree roots, you name it," Ms. Vitreous said. "No matter how much she consumed, or how much time passed, she didn't get older or bigger. There was an emptiness to her, a hollow place in her heart that longed for the one experience she couldn't provide herself: love."

A few of the kids ahhed. Ms. Vitreous nodded to them and smiled sweetly. She pointed into the darkness, to the abandoned cabin they all knew was there but elected to ignore.

"In that cabin, right over there, Blaire waited, hoping and praying that her father would return. She hid and peeked through the window and watched children venture into her woods to hike with their fathers, or play hide-and-seek and tag in the big trees. Some of the kids looked to be her age, and she longed for love and friendship, but she dared not go out to play," Ms. Vitreous said, catching Angelo's eyes. "She wasn't human. She couldn't hide that. Or could she?"

Johnny reflexively stretched his legs, and Destiny did the same next to him. In seconds, the kids of Melrose camp were squirming, shaking out their anxious nerves. Johnny smiled wide and let out a low, shaky breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

Ms. Vitreous paused, watching the kids shake and vent their anxiety. When they'd settled, she continued.

"In that very cabin, Blaire lit a candle every night, hoping for her father to return. A light on, just in case he came back for her. She made them herself from beeswax and little bits of twine stolen from birds' nests. By night, she waited with prayer, and by day, she practiced becoming human."

Johnny shivered as a coy smile twisted the corners of Ms. Vitreous's thin lips. The story kept getting deeper, and Johnny was starting to feel uneasy.

"No simple task, mimicking a human," Ms. Vitreous continued, unfazed by the wide eyes of the campers. "It wasn't easy. Blaire had to accept uncomfortable truths about herself and her nature to make it work, but one day, she was ready. She'd crafted the perfect face, the perfect hair, the perfect smile, even the perfect laugh.."

"Oh hell no," Tom Smith said, shaking his head.

Ms. Vitreous turned her head like an owl and made pointed eye contact with Tom.

"The kids that came to her woods to play the most were a young group of troublemakers fond of breaking the rules and running away from their parents. With her newly crafted face, Samantha, Ben, and Eli would have no choice but to love her," Ms. Vitreous said, her voice cold as ice.

Tom's eyes widened. Destiny gasped. Jose raised his hand, and Ms. Vitreous pointed at him.

"She built a new face?" Jose asked meekly.

Ms. Vitreous nodded.

"A perfect new face. When Samantha, Ben, and Eli showed up one day after school to play, Blaire ran out of the cabin to join them. Although Samantha found Blaire strange, Ben and Eli were enthralled by her, as she knew they would be, and invited her to play with them, just like she'd dreamed. It was everything she could have wanted and more."

Johnny gulped hard. The idea of this girl that wasn't human masquerading as one of them sickened him to his stomach. The firelight felt too bright suddenly and his hands were clammy with sweat. He wanted to take off his hoodie, but the thought made him feel vulnerable. Uncomfortable and somewhat resentful of Ms. Vitreous for subjecting him to this story, Johnny burrowed in himself, no longer able to enjoy the soft weight of Destiny pressed into his shoulder.

" They played hide-and-seek, and Blaire was excellent at hiding," Ms. Vitreous continued with a knowing smile. "She knew all the best spots in the forest. She showed them old honeycombs and how to make candles from beeswax and a hidden glade with an apple tree that always seemed to be in season. Blaire laughed and ran, and her heart felt full for the first time in what felt like eternity. Alas, all good things must come to an end."

A branch snapped in the woods, and the campers gasped. Johnny and Destiny jumped in unison and stared into the darkness. Ms. Vitreous seemed not to notice. Her gaze was distant.

"It wasn't until they switched to playing Tag that something went wrong. Blaire was running, she was It. Eli ducked under a low-hanging branch, but Blaire didn't see it in time. The branch snagged her face. It was just a scratch, but it pulled at her fake skin, twisting it like dough and disfiguring Blaire right before their very eyes!"

A collective gasp swept the campfire circle. Ms. Vitreous smiled.

"Blaire's false face came undone. It fell apart as putty stretched too far, revealing her true face beneath. Not ugly, but not perfect. Different. Wrong. Samantha, Eli, and Ben screamed and called her names as they ran home to tell their parents. Blaire hid in her cabin and cried, cursing the world and her father for making her the way she was. For making her at all."

Johnny felt his heart hammering in his chest. His pulse seemed exceptionally loud, and his shaky breaths made him feel like he was interrupting the silence. Destiny shuddered and closed her eyes, and she wasn't alone. Several of the campers looked down.

"When her body could produce no more tears, and the moon was high in the cloudy sky, the parents came for her with torches," Ms. Vitreous said impassively.

Destiny gasped and whispered "no."

"The parents of this town killed Blaire in that cabin, not one hundred yards away. With calculated brutality, they shoved tree branches through her windows and barricaded the cabin doors so she couldn't get out. They burnt her alive like a monster. They'd heard of the girl that lived in the woods. Blaire didn't know this, but her presence in the forest gave them nightmares. It made them angry, resentful, and hostile. The story that Samantha, Ben, and Eli told their parents was the last straw. They killed Blaire in that cabin nearly thirty years ago to the day," Ms. Vitreous said softly.

Johnny's mouth hung open. He didn't know what to say or even how to feel. Blaire was a type of monster, but she didn't deserve that. Did she?

Tom and Jose looked at one another and shook their heads. Lit by the campfire, Johnny could see his friends and fellow campers tightening their jaws in distress.

Ms. Vitreous stared off in the direction of the cabin.

"They say that when they searched the burnt ruins of that cabin they found all manner of things that had gone missing in town," Ms. Vitreous continued, her voice low and hollow. "Family photo albums, little stashes of money, women's jewelry, teddy bears, pretty dresses, but no body. No remains at all. The parents felt ill. They knew they'd burned Blaire alive. They'd heard her screaming, had felt her thrashing against the door and windows, but there were no remains at all. It was like she'd just vanished."

Ms. Vitreous paused to take in her campers. They huddled together, brought low by the sudden, sorrowful events of the story. She smiled sweetly.

"Eventually, a string of suicides drove many families to leave the town. Parents, teachers, mailmen, and even members of law enforcement started taking their own lives, seemingly out of the blue. The town lost more than a third of its population and never recovered. Those who remained in the town decided to convert the nearby woods into a summer camp and renovate the town to accommodate guests," Ms. Vitreous said, looking at Johnny and the other campers with a slow-spreading grin.

"No," Tom said, standing up.

"The program hadn't been all that successful, until recently," Ms. Vitreous said, sweeping the kids with her round, firelit glasses. "They say on quiet nights a little candle can be seen flickering in the cabin in the woods. Blaire still lives, and she longs for friends, just...like...you!"

Suddenly Ms. Vitreous gasped and pointed out into the darkness. Following her gaze, Johnny let out a yelp, and Destiny screamed. There, illuminating the windowsill of the burnt and ruined cabin, was a single yellow candle made from what Johnny could only assume was beeswax.

Johnny flicked his gaze back to Ms. Vitreous, and his blood went cold. She was gone.

"Look!" Johnny shouted, standing suddenly and pointing to the fire. "Guys, look!"

Ms. Vitreous was nowhere to be found. Those closest to her hadn't seen her leave. One moment she had been there, her glasses round and glowing in the night, the next she was not.

Horrified beyond measure, the kids started to scream and panic. The woods quickly filled with shouts as they realized they were alone and miles from the nearest town.

Where were the other counselors, Johnny wondered? Now that he was thinking about it, he hadn't seen them in a few hours. At least since sunset.

Destiny's hand entwined with his, and Johnny squeezed it, whirling in circles. The night seemed to press in all about them. The fire popped loudly, prompting several screams from a girl named Mayra, and tough Tom began to cry. Instinctively they crowded near the fire, bumping back to back.

"It's a trick. It's not real!" Jose said, trying to reassure the others. "Ms. Vitreous is just trying to scare us!"

The fire crackled loudly, and one of the logs disintegrated into ash. The warm fire glow diminished slightly, and the dark of night oozed in. The campfire needed to be fed, but Johnny was too scared to move. It was all he could do to hold tight to Destiny's hand and keep his eyes trained on the little candle in the distance.

A flash of movement caught his attention, and Johnny gasped as a pale hand swept the candle on the windowsill, snuffing it.

"Oh shit, oh shit," One of them muttered, probably Tom.

"I'm scared," Destiny whispered.

"Me too. It'll be ok," Johnny whispered back.

He didn't believe his own words. It was impossible to. Where were the other camp counselors? Where were the other kids? It couldn't just be the handful of them, could it?

Suddenly, Johnny froze. Destiny felt him stiffen.

"Johnny? What is it?" Destiny whispered, her voice cracking.

She turned, grabbed Johnny's arm, and froze as she saw what he did.

There, in the dark, staring straight at him like glittering emeralds were two green eyes. They came closer, almost seeming to glow. The night peeled back like a blanket to reveal a pale white girl with freckles on her cheeks and long, orange hair. She stepped forward sheepishly, her hands behind her back, holding something.

"Blaire!" Johnny whispered, struggling to find his voice. "Blaire!"

The kids spun around. Tom took one look at Blaire stepping from the curtains of night and fainted. He hit the unforgiving ground hard.

Blaire twisted her neck, studying the group of kids pressing closer. Johnny was at the forefront with Destiny at his side. Mayra and Jose were bunched against them like sausages.

Blaire wore a simple pink and black crop top that revealed her lean teenage abdomen and waxen white skin. She wore grass-stained blue jeans and classic black and white chucks. Her long red hair moved like a bed of snakes, and she stared at the children unblinking, even as they flinched and backed away from her.

Johnny couldn't help but notice streaks of red along her jaw and rather pretty lips. Blaire noticed and smiled. There was blood on her teeth.

With a heaving sigh, Blaire raised her arms behind her back, dislocating her shoulders, and brought them down around the front. She held a bloody pile of skin that resembled their teacher, Ms. Vitreous, which she dropped at Johnny's feet.

Johnny and the children backed away, screaming, and circled the fire, putting it between Blaire and them. Blaire popped her shoulders back into place and stepped fully into the light.

Now that Johnny could see her clearly, he knew that Blaire was not human. No, not human at all, but a replica. Not born, assembled. Like a toy, Johnny realized. A horrific, complex action figure meant to pass as a human, for a time.

"It's been so long since I've had company," Blaire said, stepping closer to the fire. "So much work to get you here. So much...playing human."

Blaire's voice was not like Ms. Vitreous's. There was an innocence to it that Johnny found compelling. He wasn't the only one.

Angelo and Jose let go of Mayra and stepped forward. If not for Destiny clutching his arm, Johnny might have joined them.

There was something so sad about Blaire, so tragic. He had to help her feel better, no matter what, didn't he?

"This isn't funny!" Destiny screamed.

Blaire laughed, a sound so sweet and pure Johnny could hardly believe it came from such a blood-stained angel. He found himself laughing too.

"It is to me," Blaire said and lunged forward.

In a flash, Blaire separated Mayra and Destiny from the group. For someone so lithe and thin, she moved like a creature made of stone. She took the girls, one in each arm, and bounded off into the night. Her footsteps thundered away, and the screams of the girls trailed off.

Then she was back, dropping in front of Johnny, Angelo, and Jose in a feral crouch. She rose slowly. Johnny and the other boys watched her, spellbound. Blaire's hands dripped with fresh blood. She reached out and brushed Johnny's cheek and smiled.

"They killed the little girl, but they couldn't kill the monster," Blaire said, sounding for the moment like Ms. Vitreous. "They burned her home and set her free. Now she lives for misery."

Blaire threw her head back and laughed, and the three boys laughed with her. She caressed her newfound playmates and led them by the hands away from the safety of the dying campfire light and into the darkness.

"Welcome to my cabin in the woods," Blaire said merrily. "Let's light a candle and play."