Disclaimer: I, in now way, own the ideas or concepts of the Forbidden Game Trilogy . These all belong to the lovely LJ Smith and her publishers. Please don't sue. I'm broke.

Not Forgotten

Jenny walked through the front door of her house. Stopping at the entrance to the living room, she looked around. Navajo weavings and Hopi baskets hung silently on the walls, casting slight shadows from the glare of the fireplace.

This is how it always started. Every shadow grabbed her attention. The darkness moving outside the sliding glass door caused her to turn her head. Quiet stillness echoed from every corner of the house.

She made the trip to her room gracefully. Candles of all shapes and sizes were placed carefully down the hallway. Her door, she noted, was open just slightly. She smiled to herself. He had planned something special tonight . . .

Pushing the door open, she gasped lightly. The look was breathtaking. It wasn't her room at all. Tall deep blue walls and a cathedral style ceiling. A large canopy bed with silk sheets the vividness of twilight. And the most beautiful thing in the room, the two eyes looking back at her, the impossible color of the sky at dawn.

Moonlight hair, chiseled body, a slight smile on his playful lips. He wore the same soft white leather outfit he had worn as the Erlking. His leather belt glittered with beautiful sapphires, and in his hand was the silver rose he always held for her.

His voice came to her, like running water in a brook. "Happy anniversary."

A smile came to her lips. "I can't believe it's been five years." She walked to him, accepting his open arms.

He held her tightly, whispering softly into her hair. "Five years ago you walked into the store. Five years ago I hurt you."

She looked up into his eyes, now a deep azure, giving away the anger he was holding inside toward himself. "That was so long ago. We're passed that. We're together now, see?" She ran a hand through his hair, the ring he had given those years ago glinting from her finger. "We always will be."

"I love you, Jenny." He smiled, hiding the pain of the truth behind his eyes.

"I love you, Julian." With that, she kissed him.

Those same soft lips, never changing. They touched hers lightly, almost trembling, kissing her gently. The brush of his mouth across her skin sent chills through her body. Slowly, he pressed harder, putting all of his passion and being into that moment. He lowered her gingerly to the bed, his hands supporting her.

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Laying on his warm chest, Jenny sighed. She didn't want to close her eyes, didn't want to go a minute without him there. His skin against her naked arms was almost too much for her heart to bare. She looked up into those magical eyes to see them looking down at her.

He smiled, touching her cheek gently. He knew what she was thinking. "Close your eyes. It will be okay."

She held him tighter as she closed them, feeling her body drifting away. In the first few seconds, his voice came through the darkness, "Nothing really dies as long as it's not forgotten."

She opened her eyes quickly to catch him, to hold him and never let go. She held her breath as the first sight came to her eyes: The unimaginable blue of the sun breaking the horizon.

Slowly, Jenny's eyes took in the rest of the room: the frame of the window and the soft white lace curtains that framed it, her vanity dresser, all of her stuffed animals. Her arms sank to her chest, the person she had been holding gone with the darkness.

She rolled over to the weight on the bed beside her. Meeting a boyish grin, she ran a hand through the neat, dark brown hair. Noticing the sparkle of the gold band, she smiled. "Happy Birthday, Tommy."


Fin.