slayers_desire | the path that the thread follows (part two of four)

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the path that the thread follows (part two of four)

It had been two weeks since Clark disappeared. There was no sign of him, and Raya was unable to learn anything from the AI at the Fortress. April was worried about him.

She was also worried about Kara, who still hadn't appeared and was difficult to find.

It was late December in Smallville, and the whole dimension was celebrating the Christmas season. But April had nothing to celebrate. Her boyfriend was missing. His cousin was missing. And there were so many unanswered questions.

April felt empty most of the time, and kept active in her school studies and being a hero to not dwell on the pain in her heart. But even in these dark times, destiny had a way of knocking on the door. One evening as April was finishing at a crime scene, where the criminals were captured and left for the police to find, she found a spool of thread.

Touching it, she got flashes of Laura, the second sister of the witches.

Knowing she had to go to Rome immediately, April didn't go alone. PINpointing to the farm, where the emptiness cried out to her, she struggled to set aside the pain and to find Raya. She had one person left to depend on, and hopefully the Kryptonian was up for distraction.

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Raya became used to relying only on herself in the Phantom Zone. She knows how to keep going with no friendly faces around her, how to not expect any help. But this is a whole different sort of loneliness. During the year she's spent at the Kent farmhouse, it's always had others in it. It's been a home, full of life and love.

But now it's just an empty house, devoid of its family. And all she can do is keep the farm running, feeding the cows and maintaining the farm like Clark showed her. She once said the peace and quiet of the farm appealed to her, but not like this.

She's sitting on one of the fences, watching the cows, and turns her head a little when she hears the telltale sound of a PINpoint. "April?"

Pulling down the hood of her Dark Oak costume, since they were alone, April nodded. "Hi Raya."

It has been so hard to come to the farm, she feels bad about not being here to help Raya with the daily responsibilities. In a fashion, April was just trying to escape her own lonliness and has neglected others who have been affected by the situation.

"Sorry I haven't been here earlier."

"It is all right. I understand why you haven't come." Raya holds no ill will towards her. After all, she's been through so much, and this is a very hard time to be missing a loved one. Raya's only been through one Christmas before, but she's seen the importance that human culture puts on that celebration, so similar in ways to the Kryptonian solstice celebrations. Now, the cultural legacy of Krypton is a broken heart and a lonely soul.

Raya looks her over, seeing her in her hero costume. "Is everything all right?"

"I have been doing Dark Oak stuff, to keep me busy." April explained, letting her hair down. "But tonight I found something unusual..."

"And I think I need to go to my dimension. Would you like to come with me?"

Raya hops down from the fence, graceful as she always is. "The distraction would be welcome." She's never been outside of this universe before, and a new experience like that would be a great diversion.

There is, of course, one concern that she has. "Are you in any danger?"

"We would be talking with a Witch, one of three that have oppossed me in the past. When Clark and I dealt with her younger sister, I did have a painful vision." April found it hard to admit, "I don't want to do this alone."

"You will not be alone. I know that you would rather have Clark with you, but I will do what I can to protect you in his stead."

"Is there anything I must do to prepare before we leave?"

"Thank you Raya. I am glad you are here." April missed Clark, but things would be much worse if she was alone right now. At least she had Raya.

"I think you should be fine. I don't get the sensation that we are in any danger from Laura."

Danger or not, Raya definitely does not want her to go alone. "Then I am ready."

Taking a moment to completely remove the uniform, April first PINpoints it back to her apartment. Then opens a PINpoint to Rome.

"Have you ever seen Rome before?" She asks as they enter the portal.

"I have not. I know that it is an old city, one of Earth's oldest functioning population centers." She looks around in curiosity as they arrive.

"In my world, there is an old Evil in the city. In addition to the Demons, vampires and other oddities that populate this Earth."

"I am dealing with three Witches, who are the embodiment of the Fates. Clark and I already talked to Chloe, or Clotho. Today we are going to meet Laura, or Lachesis."

"They are physical embodiments of fate itself?" She hasn't grown up with the myths of Earth, doesn't know how they fit in. But fate is something that Kryptonians know well.

"The youngest knew everything of the past, and the one we talk to today is suppossed to know everything about the present."

"She can't change things for us."

Raya has never heard of this before, but processes it quickly. A survivalist instinct she still has. "So she will already know that we are here."

"Yes. And she will know that we are looking for her. Her younger sister said that she would find me when the time is right."

"Today when I found a spool of thread as Dark Oak, I got a vision of Laura."

"The thread is linked to her?"

"The Fates are the ones who control the thread of life, according to mythology. The Powers That Be sent me the thread the first time I needed to seek out Chloe."

Raya has many questions, but she knows when to put such things aside. "Then let us find this Laura. Or should we address her as Lachesis?"

It won't take long, as she rounds the corner looking for the two woman. "Either is fine. Both are who I am."

"Hello April." Laura pauses, letting her gifts flow to her in the moment. "And Raya."

When in doubt, Raya errs on the side of the more 'human-sounding' name, at least in public. "Hello, Laura."

"You know why you are here, so at least I won't bore you with the details." April gestured to a side cafe where they could sit.

"You also spoke with Chloe." Laura sat down with ease. "And now you are here to convince me as you did her."

"I don't want to fight you Laura." April stated.

Raya may not be acting defensive, but she makes sure that she keeps a careful eye on the witch. She knows that Clark would be very upset if he came back to find April hurt because of a miscalculation, and caution always pays. But she will not make the first move, and hopes that it won't be necessary. "You must already know what arguments were made to your sister already."

"And the vision." April is really hoping to avoid another one of those.

"Yes. And yes. But there is something you don't understand April. You only saw a third of the vision. There are two other parts."

Laura folded her hands. "But you need to be ready to see them fully."

"The first was extremely painful..." April worried. She felt a little scared about seeing more of that vision. Especially right now.

"How do you know this?" Raya's suspicious of how Laura would know that there are other parts to the vision. Someone who can only see the present... how would they know the future?

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