DELETED CHAPTER: Snakes (part 2)

"What was that?" Sofi wondered.

Toni held onto her protectively. "I don't know, but it sounded close."

The hissing sound came and went again. It sounded closer this time.

"Let's get out of here," Sofi said just before she took off along the banks. Toni took hold of her hand again and ran alongside her. Together they jogged through the forest, trying to escape the approaching hiss. The surrounding plant life became denser and denser, and sunlight became scarcer as they ventured deeper into the tropical forest. 

It wasn't long before Sofi and Toni ended up in a circular clearing where they were caged in by thick, compact tree trunks. They stood back to back, trying to keep their eyes peeled for whatever was hunting them. Suddenly, the strange, loud hissing stopped and all that could be heard was Sofi's and Toni's frantic breathing. 

After a few minutes, they calmed down and Toni whispered, "Don't worry. I think they're gone –"

As if on cue, a black dart sailed through the air and planted itself directly in Toni's neck. He slumped to the ground in unconsciousness. After letting out a startled scream, Sofi took off towards the wall of plants and squeezed herself between two massive tree trunks. Once she got out of the clearing, she stumbled on in near darkness. The hissing started up again and was so close that Sofi sweat in fear. She shrieked in desperate terror when she looked up and saw two figures in the trees above her, jumping from limb to limb. Whatever they were, they were following her.

Light finally seeped between the cracks of the dense jungle and Sofi leapt for it. She found herself in another circular clearing where her two followers soared in after her. They landed before her and Sofi finally rested her eyes on their forms. 

Two snake Encantados stood before her. She had never seen one until now, but she could remember Amancio describing them to her. They were slender, with sharp, long bodies. Their eyes were angular and dark on their olive skin. Their hair was black and their clothing was meager rags made out of snakeskin quilted together. And together the Encantados stunk of swamp water.

"Look who got lost in the forest, Jorge," said the Encantado on the right. The one on the left said, "What should we do, Alonzo? Should we help her find her way back home?"

"That would be the right thing to do," said Alonzo as he waved his long, skeletal finger in the air. "But if we let her go, then none of her human friends will come and find her."

"Yes, you're absolutely right. Let's keep her around so more humans will come out to play."

"Yes, but in the meantime we should eat one of her eyeballs. She only needs one."

"Right, I agree. And I'm sure it won't hurt if we peel back just a little bit of her skin."

Sofi scrambled to her feet and tried to tear past the hungry snakes. They caught her by either arm and shoved her back against a tree. Before they could throw themselves at her in a feasting frenzy, someone descended from above and landed swiftly in front of them.

Red hair set the dark clearing ablaze. Sofi let out a cry of relief when she laid eyes upon her rescuer. Amancio was standing firmly between her and the serpents.

The slithery Encantados recoiled in fear. Jorge whispered to Alonzo, "I thought that we already dealt with the babysitter."

Alonzo whispered back, "No, this is his student. Remember, the one he warned us about?"

"Oh. So what are we supposed to do again?"

"We kill him."

"Say that to my face!" Amancio hollered over their uncouth whispering. The snakes turned their gaze back on Sofi and Amancio. 

Jorge chuckled, "And what chance does a half-trained little dolphin brat have against two seasoned veterans of the Stone Clan?"

"Come here and you'll find out," the redhead said fearlessly. Alonzo and Jorge cracked their necks in unison right before they hurled themselves at the tree Sofi and Amancio were pinned against. Amancio went at them full speed ahead. He seized the backs of their tunics and flipped them over onto the earth.

The slam to the forest floor knocked the wind out them, but they sprung back up only seconds later. Then Sofi watched in both terror and awe as Amancio battled the snakes with a volley of attacks. Amazingly, their liquid-like bodies dodged the blows with ease. The snakes were extremely fast, and Amancio was running out of energy.

To her own surprise, Sofi found herself looking around the small area to find something to help Amancio. Near where the Encantados were brawling she saw a dart gun belonging to one of the snakes. Before she could talk herself out of it, she dove for the weapon.

"Sofi, don't!" Amancio's warning echoed in the background, but Sofi could barely hear him. The adrenaline coursing through her veins blurred all the other sounds. Once she landed and snatched up the dart blower, she rolled over on her back only to see one of the snakes leaping in her direction. Without hesitation, she brought the wooden pipe to her mouth and blew as hard as she could. The dart hit the snake in the center of the throat. He landed on top of her.

Sofi squealed under the dead weight of the unconscious snake. The other snake stopped and cried in horror, "Jorge!"

Then he turned to Amancio and said, "That's it. You're dead, dolphin boy."

Quicker than a flame to a match, Alonzo elbowed Amancio in the nose. Blood squirted through the air before he covered his face in pain. Sofi watched as her hero fell to his knees and got kicked onto his back by Alonzo. Then the snake turned to her. A bright light burned on his skin as he transformed. Soon a large viper was slithering her way. Sofi struggled to remove herself from under the other dead snake. The viper was very close to her leg, its mouth ajar and damp with venom.

At the last moment, Amancio lunged for Alonzo. When he had him in his grasp, he placed his thumb and forefinger on its neck and with the other hand, ripped the creature apart by its mouth. Amancio panted heavily as he gazed upon the two Encantados at his feet. Sofi turned her head away in disgust. After a moment of silence, Amancio asked, "Are you okay?"

Sofi nodded. He helped her move from under Jorge and onto her feet.

"You're not bleeding, are you?"

Sofi shook her head. She was so sick, she could barely stand.

"Is that human around here?"

Sofi nodded and swallowed hard. "I think he's –"

"He's not dead. Whatever was on the tips of those darts is just a sleeping poison. Those snakes wouldn't waste their venom on a grown man. Fortunately it looks like whatever was on that one you shot at the snake was real, because he's not breathing. They must have been saving that one for me."

"Amancio, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wander this far."

"You could've been killed. And so could I. I shouldn't have come for you."

"Why did you do it?"

"Because . . . I love you."

Sofi looked at Amancio in astonishment. Nothing like that had ever come out of him before. He looked at her with concern and sincerity – something Sofi had rarely seen in his orange eyes until now.

"What did you say?" Sofi murmured. Had her dream with Amancio finally become a reality? She admitted that as much as Toni cared for and protected her, he never had the guts to say what Amancio just did. Was it a sign? Did this mean that Sofi really didn't belong with humans in the first place? Was Julio right? Was she destined to join Amancio and become an Encantado forever?

Sofi began to wonder if a life as an Encantado be so bad if she had someone to share it with. She felt as though the Encante was like Neverland calling out to her louder now more than ever. And then there was Amancio, the ageless boy who came to her window every day, waiting to teach her how to fly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Julio watched in anguish as Sofi took Amancio's hand and he led her out of the clearing. Everything that Julio had feared was true. Amancio was in love with Sofi. That meant that he was practically out of Julio's control. And there was nothing he could do about it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Toni's eyes fluttered open. He was safely in the hideout, lying on the worn couch. Sofi sat propped up on a stool in the kitchen. She was slowly peeling an orange. Her face was consumed in shadows. 

The sunlight was dim coming through the soiled curtains as dusk crept into existence. The last thing Toni noticed was a sensitive, throbbing pain on the right side of his neck. He then recalled the hissing snakes from that morning and shuddered at the thought of them.

"They were skilled serpents sent to kill us," Sofi explained as if she had read Toni's mind. She descended from the chair and walked over to where he lay. She stood there, staring at him as she slid the orange slices into her mouth. 

Toni lowered his eyes and asked, "How did we get away?"

"Amancio saved us," Sofi replied promptly. She was now done with the orange, and proceeded to lick the remaining citrus from her fingers, closely watching Toni all the while. His dark, curly hair glistened with sweat in the shallow light. He was sitting up now, but his body was still relaxed. Sofi eyes scanned his bare torso – he had lost his green shirt in the fall.

Scratches and bruises stained his powerful figure. A strange, but familiar feeling rose up in Sofi as she stood observing Toni. She felt something stronger than desire – it could be better defined as hunger. Her fiendish appetite drove her to cross the room towards the couch, and stealthily crawl onto Toni's exposed lap.

Toni looked up at Sofi in surprise, but as soon as their eyes met, he fell silent. Sofi gently pushed his black curls out of his eyes and, with her lips, caressed his cheek. This made Toni snap, "What are you doing?!"

Sofi couldn't answer. All she could do was continue to act on this strange and debilitating instinct. She stroked his forehead and said, "Isn't this what you want?"

Toni muttered in protest, but before he could barely get the first sentence out, Sofi began stealing kisses along his face.

"Wait," he said faintly before he fell back into the trance. Without his say so, his hands were fondling Sofi, exploring the areas that defined her sex. 

Toni felt ashamed. He wanted to stop, but he couldn't. He needed to touch her, to feel her. He was at the mercy of his own impulses and he didn't know why.

While he and Sofi groped each other in the dim shack, a familiar voice echoed, This isn't right.

Toni replied feebly, I love her.

The voice advised, You're under her spell.

Toni melted into the sofa as Sofi's mouth grazed the side of his neck. He could feel himself falling weak under her passionate embrace, but before he lost control, he snapped out of it.

Toni seized Sofi by her shoulders and ripped away from her. He was breathing heavily, as if he had just coughed up sour milk. Sofi felt a whirl of emotions going through her. She didn't know whether she wanted Toni or Amancio. She didn't know why she was acting this way. She was scared and totally confused at the same time.

The room was dark now and silent. Sofi whispered, "What's wrong?"

Toni looked at her with very frightened eyes. He swallowed hard.

"Everything."

Sofi floundered. "Toni, I –"

"What the hell was that, Sofia? Climbing all over me and then . . . . What were you doing to me just now?"

Toni didn't wait for her answer. Despite the pain from earlier, he got up and limped toward the door.

"Toni, wait!" Sofi shouted from the sofa. Toni ungracefully came to a halt. Fearfully, he looked back at her.

"What do you want?"

Sofi swallowed hard. She could feel herself returning to normal.

"Do you . . . do you love me?"

Toni could feel his throat constrict.

"What?" he mumbled feebly.

"Do you love me?" Sofi repeated, thirsty for an answer. Toni eyed her critically and then outside into the night time Amazon. The voice in his head had left, but the urge to get as far away from her as possible remained.

Toni said, "I have to go."

🍊🐬🍊🐬🍊🐬🍊🐬🍊🐬

I managed to find an image of Bruno Santos (Toni's actor match) about to kiss a girl that could look like Sofi. Weeeee!

Please vote if you liked the chapter!

~ Coco

*Note: By now I would hope that you all think I'm a fairly good writer. If you have any questions about writing in general or questions about me, feel free to visit my tumblr page and drop a question in my ask box. It can be completely anonymous!

Don't worry, I won't bite! Unless you are a cinnamon roll. Yum.

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