Memory Lane (Shadow and Holly)

"Your entire memory?" Holly repeated, thinking about her own memory, "I would say its more a question of if you WANT me to see it."

"There are parts I am not proud of, and wish I could forget." Shadow admitted.

"And parts with Jamie," Holly added, trying to be helpful.

"Not so many of those." Shadow warned.

"No need to sound warning," Holly muttered and turned to face to arch, "Im ok with this. You ok with this? Ill go away if you dont want me to come. Seriously."

Shadow sighed and walked through the arch, not answering Holly.

"Take that as a yes," Holly murmured, rolled her eyes and stepped through after her.

Shadow found herself in a circular room with Synari symbols paintes onto the walls There was a young woman standing there, looking out of a window out onto the city. She was holding a small child, a small child with violet hair.

"Arella?" Holly muttered quizzically to Shadow, when she too, had entered the room.

Shadow nodded, looking at the black haired woman with a pang of sadness. Arella turned round just as a man burst into the room, looking thunderous.
"Give me the child Arella, NOW!"

Holly stepped backwards automatically, staring at the man, feeling rather sorry for Shadow, and baby Shadow and anyone else who happened to be having a hard time.
She felt she had seen this before, in a distant memory.

Shadow bared her teeth in a snarl at the man, but knew she could do nothing. They were merely in a memory, they could not be seen or heard.

Arella narrowed her eyes.
"No, Meran, never." Meran growled, striding towards Arella while drawing a sword hanging from a sheath at his side.

Holly felt obliged to help Arella, but then she was all, 'not really there' and there were laws in the way, so she couldnt.

She glanced sideways at Shadow, hoping she wouldnt take this part of her memory too hard.

There was some anger definitely boiling in Shadow's mind, and there were too many evil plans going round her head for the next time she met Meran.

Arella didn't back away as Meran approached her, instead she held Mini Shadow close to her with one hand, and the other outstretched towards the man, surrounded by white magic.
"Don't you dare come any closer." She threatened.

Holly admired Arella's somewhat fearless actions and felt like going "GIRL POWER", but didnt.
"Cant we do something?!" she asked Shadow, staying a few feet away from her, just in case she went all demonic.

Shadow shook her head.
"We are merely spectators." She explained. "Look." To prove her point, Shadow went to pick up a book, but her hand went right through it.

Arella shot the bolt of magic at Meran, knocking him flying.
"You will not take Allyssianne!" She shouted.

"Aw," Holly said reaching out to touch the baby Shadow, but not succeeding.
"Ew," she commented when her hand went right through. She stepped backwards.
"Do you actually REMEMBER this?" she asked Shadow. The real one that is. Not the fake one. The baby one I mean.

"I remember five minutes after I was born Holly." Shadow said.

Meran glared at Arella, a scorchmark on the shoulder of his white, hooded robes. He then turned and ran out of the room. Arella breathed a sigh of relief and laid Mini Shadow down before chanting a spell over her.

"I dont even remember yesterday," Holly muttered, and she too, found herself sighing with relief as Meran left.

The scene changed to see Arella and Mini Shadow (who was now about one year old, but looked like she was three) Shadow's face light up as she saw all the books and happily wandered off between the shelves. Older Shadow watched, smiling slightly.
"Arella always thought my love for books at that age was a bit strange."

"It probably was," Holly said reasonably, watching the mini Shadow. She then added a little more softly, "She looks like ya..."

"No duh." Older Shadow said, following her younger self among the shelves. Young Shadow looked at the books before she picked one large tome out and sat, quite happily, reading it until a shadow fell over the page. She looked up to see a scowling Meran...

"No need for sarky-" Holly began, but bit her lip as Meran arrived.
"Something tells me he is not a nice man," she muttered.

Shadow was scowling as she leant against a bookcase. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see what happened.

Younger Shadow looked up at Meran, recognising him only as a Senate member, because of the white robes. She carefully closed the book and stood up to face him. Meran's scowl grew darker and he hit her across the head, knocking her back.

Holly yelled in surprise that only she and the Old Shadow could hear, and bit her lip.
"This is horrible," she whispered to Shadow.