Interlude 3

 My family had always been a radiant presence, their laughter and love filling our home with warmth. My husband, Aster, and I shared a deep bond, strengthened by our two children, Poppy and Ellis. Our home was filled with laughter and joy, every moment cherished and celebrated. The walls were adorned with family photos, each one capturing a moment of happiness.

Poppy was the light of our lives, her bright smile and infectious energy lighting up every room she entered. She loved to bake, her enthusiasm for creating sweet treats unmatched. The kitchen was often filled with the sweet aroma of freshly baked cookies and cakes, a testament to her passion. Ellis, quieter and more introspective, brought a different kind of joy to our family with his intelligence and curiosity. He would spend hours building intricate models, his brow furrowed in concentration, and then proudly display his creations to us.

“Look at this, Mommy!” “Mom… Ellis ate all of my pudding!” Their voices, filled with excitement and playful frustration, echoed through the house. Together, they were my world, and I felt incredibly blessed.

But the accident changed everything. We had decided to drive for a family dinner, a simple outing that turned catastrophic. Poppy and Ellis were in the back seat, chatting and laughing. I glanced at them in the rearview mirror, my heart swelling with love as their laughter filled the car. The road ahead was clear, the streetlights casting a warm glow. We never saw the drunk driver coming. In an instant, his car careened into ours with devastating force, shattering our world.

Time seemed to slow as the impact hit. The sound of metal crunching, glass shattering, and the screams of my children filled the air. My world stopped. The car's impact was a blur of horror, but the aftermath was a clarity of agony. I watched in disbelief as Aster frantically tried to revive our children. Ellis was unconscious, barely clinging to life. Poppy... Poppy was gone. Her lifeless body cradled in Aster's arms, a sight that would haunt me forever.

The driver, reeking of alcohol, stumbled out, his face twisted in shock and fear. He fled the scene, leaving our family in ruins. “Kids…” Aster called for help, his voice breaking with desperation, “No Poppy... Stay with us!”

But I could only sob, my heart shattering with every pulse. The cold night air bit at my skin, and the streetlights cast eerie shadows on the twisted wreckage. Denial gripped me, a cold, unyielding force that numbed my senses.

"This world is filled with disease," I whispered, refusing to accept Poppy's death. "My daughter died? No, she just went into a deep sleep." My grief slowly twisted into a dark, consuming depression, pulling me into an abyss I couldn't escape. I withdrew from the world, even as Aster begged me to visit Ellis in the hospital.

"Please, come see him. He needs you," he pleaded, but I couldn't move, couldn't face reality. The walls of our home closed in on me, the memories of happier times mocking my pain.

"This world is filled with nothing more than filthy creatures," I muttered. "Lies... All of them are liars." The strain tore our marriage apart. Aster, helpless against my spiral into madness, left, taking the remnants of our once-happy family with him. The love and warmth that had defined us were gone, swallowed by an all-consuming darkness.

Ellis eventually recovered physically, but when he came to visit, he found me a shell of the woman I once was. I opened the door, and though Ellis stood before me, my grief-clouded mind twisted his familiar face into that of a demon.

"IMPOSTER! WHY DOES HE HAVE HIS FACE..." I screamed at myself, rejecting the boy who stood before me.

The pain of loss had warped my perception, turning my own child into a stranger, his face a cruel mockery of the son I once knew. His eyes, wide with confusion and hurt, mirrored the anguish that twisted inside me. I missed my children desperately, so Schnabelmaske offered me peace of mind in exchange for being its new host. It whispered promises of power and solace, its voice a seductive murmur that fed off my despair.

"There is no salvation in this world. You need me.” Schnabelmaske said as its shadowy tendrils wrapped around me.” I can offer you all the power you need to get revenge on the vermin."

"Ellis. Ellis, my wonderful boy. Don't ever leave me," I murmured, taking Schnabelmaske's hand. It was a pact born of madness and sorrow, binding me to a darkness I could not escape. The shadows within me grew stronger, snuffing out any remaining flicker of hope.

My once vibrant life was now a dim, colorless existence, my happiness drained by the specter that fed on my grief. The woman who had once been the heart of her family was now a tragic figure, lost to the madness that had consumed her. It was almost like a spell.

Maybe even a curse. The emptiness gnawed at me, an unending void that consumed every trace of my former self.