Fifth Avenue - The Replacements
Chapter Thirteen

“And when we got down there Hartley was on the floor, she had been shot” Flutter finishes explaining as Doc looked down to the now grey looking Hartley “will you be able to save her?” she aks scaredly.

He places his hand on her cold cheek “It’s going to take a lot of work” he admits “but she’s strong” Doc looks to Flutter with a somewhat reassuring smile “go back to the team, keep an eye out for any activity The Association makes” he orders in a soft voice.

Flutter smiles and looks to Hartley “Oh Doc” she says and he looks back to her “when we brought her up to her room, she was passed out but when I went to leave her she tightly grabbed my arm and said something like...” she pauses trying to recall what she had said “he wants me to go with him, I don’t want to go, then she passed out again” Doc looks to Hartley “I just thought you would want to know” she says before leaving.

Doc seats himself beside her and removes the bandage from her neck placing his hand against the still weeping wound “Be strong for me” he whispers to her.

He sat at her side healing Hartley for 12 hours straight, they moved a blood IV bag and pushed it into her arm so she could get the blood she had lost back. “I’m so sorry Catherine” Doc says moving a strand of Hartley’s hair from her face, but freeing before he puts it down.

The ice blue colour seemed to be fading into a chocolate brown one “I’ve failed you and Richard, I haven’t watched over her as close as I should have”

“Do you, talk to my parents often?” Hartley asks quietly and Doc looks down shocked.

“Everyday” he says honestly before looking at the brown hair which had to his glee returned to the normal ice blue colour.

Hartley weakly laughs “going mad old man?” she teases “how long since you last slept?” she asks more seriously and Doc just smiles at her tiredly.

“I’ll sleep soon, you’re too weak to leave alone” he says tapping her hand lightly and Hartley closes her eyes again tiredly.

“Doc” she yawns squeezing his hand to ensure he was still there.

“Yes Hartley” Doc answers quietly.

Hartley winces slightly as she puts pressure on her freshly healed wound “can we save him, Justin?” she asks.

Doc sighs “we can always try” he answers, not wanting to diminish the dreams of a girl who had already lost so much in her short lifetime.

She smiles and snuggles into her bed to get more comfortable, although her dreams were not as good willed as she had hoped, she was haunted with the same man she had dreamt of earlier, begging for her to follow him.

The following morning Hartley sat in the training room watching the team train until she was strong enough to join them.

As Flutter flew over Flicker kicking him in the face, Hartley stumbled back feeling light headed “Hartley!” someone shouted before her eyes closed and white overtook the room.

A little girl who Hartley could tell was Candii, by her bright pink eyes, sat in the corner of her room having a tea party with her dolls happily, her door swung open and a tall man with a large beard stalked towards her, his heavy boots making an overly loud thud on the hardwood floor.

“Candice” the man says roughly, as he speaks the little girl backs away into the corner sadly.

“No” Hartley says trying to block the man from Candii, but the man stepped through her as if she wasn’t there, because she wasn’t.

The room flashed white.

Candii was now a young teen and she sat out on the on the street laughing madly, with closer inspection Hartley made out the familiar colour of red which stained her delicate looking dress.

Sirens sounded in the distance and she began to sing whilst skipping down the street, a knife still dripping in blood held tightly in her hands.

The street flashed white.

‘A young girl murdered her two parents earlier today’,

‘8 killed in mass murder today, reports say a sighting of a young girl with pink hair’

‘The local boy’s orphanage mourns as it loses over 30 students in a mass homicide from an assailant known as Candii’ a reporter’s voice says ringing throughout the darkness.

The room lights up again and both Hartley and Candii were in a bathroom, Candii was applying her eyeliner while humming a happy tune, Reaper walks into the room and she smiles “morning honey boo” she says happily.

Reaper snarls “You used me” he states angrily “I don’t like being used” his voice got low and he marches forward grabbing a fistful of Candii’s hair and smashing her face into the mirror.

“What’re you doing?” she screams, the mirror was now cracked and her nose was heavily bleeding. Candii looks back to Reaper only to see his eyes completely black “don’t do this” she sobs ” I thought we were okay, please” she pleads.

Angrily Reaper slams her head into the mirror around nine more times before he lets her body drop to the ground, he steps back blinking and he looks down to see Candii on the ground, lifeless. “Candii?” he says quietly, leaning down to her and bringing her into his arms “oh god, what have I done” he asks himself in a mortified tone.

Hartley sits up head butting Doc as she does “ow” she whines rubbing her head.

Doc rubs his head lightly “you had another one?” he asks curiously and she nods “who?”

“Candii” she answers quickly “Candii is dead” Hartley looks down slightly “Reaper did it, but I-I don’t think it was him, it was like he was somebody else like he was possessed” she explains.

Whisper walks in with a guilty look and holds a paper reading ‘I think that would be my fault’ when Hartley gave him a confused look he writes something else down ‘back in the house, after he called me a fag I got mad’ he wrote ‘I told him he didn’t really love Candii, nor did she really love him, Candii had touched him and that she planned to rid him’ Doc read out everything that Whisper was writing ‘I didn’t mean for anyone to get hurt’