He held onto her firmly as to help her bear through her crying, once that passed, his hold was gentle as she fell asleep. He felt kinda like a bird protecting her eggs, giving them warmth, comfort and protection. Kariline soon fell asleep in his arms, leaving him unsure of what to do for a moment.
He looked outside, it was still the afternoon but he knew he had been out way longer then he should be. His parents would be worried...
She was so scared though...If her parents were murdered, what would stop the murderer from coming back? He knew he had to be back, yet it felt so wrong to leave her as he'd likely just keep himself up all night with anxiety over this anyway.
Also if the killer did come back and he left her...
Forgiveness of himself would be impossible.
He let her rest on him for a few more minutes until she began a light snore. He smiled slightly at the sound, his little brother snored like that as well.
He then slowly turned her a little so her back would be in the direction of his lap, and her upper back on his arm.
He other arm snuck underneath her knee's and he carefully stood up, holding her in his arms and leaning back slightly so her head could rest on his chest.
He had no idea where her room might be, however he knew it definitely wouldn't be the one she was staring at. He figured maybe upstairs? He hoped so.
Walking upstairs he made sure to walk as gently as he could to not disturb her. Once up the stairs he found himself in a hall way with a few doors, one open one was a bathroom. So that left two doors that were there.
Walking up to them, he was relived to see an paper cut out "Kariline" in a variety of colors. Yet the door was closed, a frown on his face as he contemplated how to open it. He used his fairly good balance and lifted up his foot and wrapped his toes around the door knob, turning it, and pushing it open, staggering in the process yet keeping Kariline steady.
The room looked girly enough, so he walked in and towards the bed, gently laying her down on the warm sheets with her head on the pillow. He lightly pulled the blankets from under her and lifted them up and over her body, letting them glide down onto her. He felt somewhat awkward about touching her too much but he tucked her into the blankets a bit to let her get settled in.
Afterwards he looked around and realized that it was a little dark in here. Giving the room a quick scan he saw a nightlight attached to an outlet close to her bed. He walked over to it and clicked it on.
Looking back at her for a moment he had to sorta register it in his mind that he was doing this. He felt for just moment, that he was taking care of his little sister. Even though he didn't have one, he thought that this must be what it was like.
Walking out the door he made sure to leave it open a crack, giving one more look at her before going back down stairs.
Downstairs, he looked out the front door and considered leaving, yet...The lunchs! Yes they were gonna go bad if they weren't in an ice box...No wait, a fridge? Yeah that's what it was called. Naraca never living in a home of his home had not known what it was like to have a place to consistently store food. He hefted all the bags like before and opened the fridge. It was quite filled surprisingly. Yet when he thought about it made sense. She was very young...How much could she know about cooking without parents to teach her?
Putting the bags in the fridge he walked out.
A chill running up his spine as he passed the hallway where 'That Door' was...
"Come on..." He mumbled to himself...
Very slowly, he raised his foot up in the air, moved it forward a little, then set down on the floor.
"Don't do it" He said to himself, taking another slow step forward.
His feet felt heavy, like someone just jumped on his back. His heart slowly began to beat a few more times then it should.
"Just leave...."
Another step...
"Mom and Dad are worried"
Another step...
"It could be really scary"
Another step...
His words to himself were like they weren't his own, his brain talking to his emotion that was moving him. Telling him to just leave. She was safe now wasn't she? What were the odds of that Alakai coming back? Besides, even if he did, even if she wasn't safe. Why the hell would he want to see what was in that room?
Yet curiosity...Was a powerful thing.
Before he knew it, Naraca was looking up at what seemed to be a towering door. Making him feel rather small. He looked down at the door knob, only imagining what could be inside. Could it be monsters? Maybe a vampire or a troll? He shivered at the thought. What if it was a big pit and he'd just fall straight down? He had no idea...
He wanted to know what was behind the door. So he'd just open it a crack and check right? If he saw anything he'd just close it and run.
What if it was something fast though...?
He raised his hand up to the door knob but hesitated. He was afraid, yet if anyone was looking at him, he'd likely open it right away to show off his bravery.
His fingers touched the doorknob, the cool metal giving him a chilling welcome. This door hadn't been touched in a while.
He gripped the doorknob, turning it slowly, the mechanism inside very silently turning to remove the metal piece within the door frame. He prayed nothing was behind this door. Once fully turned, he gently pushed the door open like behind it was a bloodthirsty sleeping dragon.
The door opened a crack, and he saw some red stuff on the floor. His eye's narrowed at the sight. Did someone spill some jam? Or soup?
His curiosity on what the stuff was caused him to open the door more. Seeing the small stretched out along the floor.
Opening the door more, he saw it wasn't just on the floor.
His eye's had never grown so wide, goosebumps caused the hairs on his arms to stand up. A powerful chill ran up his spine.
Blood! It was blood, it was everywhere! On the floor, the walls, even the damn ceiling!
"Ahhh!" He cried out as he slammed the door shut and immediately bolted down the hallway and towards the front door. Almost ramming the door open with his shoulder he took one step on and was about to follow with a flurry of more, before a quick flash of Kariline entered his mind like a photograph being shoved in his face.
"Kariline..." He whispered quietly.
So this was what happened to her parents...They were brutally murdered. Yet here she was, still in this house, having to live with that image every time she was in the house, or looked at that door.
He felt his heart settle, yet a feeling of determination and desire began to build within his stomach. With it, he looked outside for a moment, thinking that he knew the way home. Yet he took a step backwards, and closed the door quietly. He hoped Kariline hadn't heard him...
It took him a few minutes to prepare himself, but he opened the door to her parents house again, looking upon the blood with a more observant eye rather then a frightened one. He knelt down and swiped his finger across the bloodstained floor. It was dry, it must have been here a while now. It was everywhere as well.
He walked back out of the room, and sat down on the couch.
Kariline...
If she was his little sister...What would he do? What could he do to protect her? Well...What would he do for his little brother? He couldn't protect her from an unseen enemy, but maybe he could...
Out of curiosity, he walked into the kitchen and opened the cupboards underneath the sink. It was filled all sorts of bottles of different colors and different liquids. He was always told never to touch these kind of things.
He took one in his hands and looked at it.
"W-Window Cleaner" He read out loud as he observed the bottle.
Should he...? Could he really...?
Naraca wasn't sure, but it just seemed to...Cruel, to leave that room like that.
His lips curling close together, he nodded his head to himself.
"Alright!"
He didn't which one's to take, so he just grabbed every single bottle under the sink, even the oven cleaner and the bug spray. He took them all the bloody room and placed them on an end table by the bed in the room. He walked back out, remembering where she grabbed that broom and found the same broom, as well and a mop, several towels and cloths. He once again, took everything and brought it into the room, not forgetting the bucket that was where the soapy water was supposed to go. He filled the bucket with water and one of the cleaning bottles contents, then took everything into the room and began scrubbing the floor. Yet the stains barely came out with a few swipes.
"Oh come on" He said with a grumble, starting to scrub with more furious swipes. It took quite a few scrubs, but he was able to see what color the floor used to be. He smiled at his miniscule progress, took heart, and began scrubbing more and more.
He had no idea, but on several occasions he was using wrong cleaning supplies, not swiping hard enough or too much. Through all of his mistakes, the amount of blood all over the place, and the fact blood was nearly impossible to get out. He ended up working throughout the night until he collapsed on the floor from exhaustion when the sun came up.
However...
After all of his hard work, and with the suns welcome, the room was practically shining. Not a single drop of blood anywhere. Just a mess of bottles, clothes, brooms, mops, water and snoring boy on the floor.