I do not own The Covenant.

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Chapter Two: Home

She dodged away from the tree that she nearly collided with. That definitely was not apart of her plan when she decided to come to the funeral. The young woman pushed away the sharp tree branches that attempted to scratch her the faster she ran. He was right behind her. She could feel his presence as it pulsed against the air around them. There was not a doubt in her mind. Caleb was closing in on her. What she did not expect to find was the face of Reid Garwin. Not even ten feet away from where she was currently standing, the blonde-haired Son stood with his arms crossed. The way he was leering at her wanted to make her second-guess any thoughts of escaping. Genevieve would have to take the risk. She broke left. Not even another thought was needed, but with her next step came another Son of Ipswich.

Tyler Simms shook his head at her. "Nowhere to go." Genevieve let out a low chuckle from Tyler's mild comment.

"Wanna bet?"

Suddenly, a pair of arms went around Genevieve's waist and locked her against the body of a male. Each time she struggled against whoever held her, his grip seemed to tighten. Genevieve took several seconds to gather her strength, before she dug her feet into the ground and pushed against the surface for leverage. Her move caught Pogue by surprise, but he did not let go of her.

Caleb approached Pogue and with one swift hand, he tugged away the scarf that obscured Genevieve's face. Upon the reveal, Caleb was dumbfounded. He gazed upon the fresh face of his baby sister. Genevieve's green eyes were wide as they locked with her big brother's. Caleb remembered those very eyes were full of tears any time there was a loud thunderstorm outside her window. Silently, Caleb ordered Pogue to release his sister. Once she was free, Caleb caught her by her arms, before lulling Genevieve into a hug that he hoped would make up for years apart. He held onto his baby sister tight, fearing that she would vanish from his arms. Genevieve kept her arms at her sides and never once lifted them to hug her brother. When the elder Danvers released her, she betrayed no emotion.

"Gia…," he said her name numbly. There was no sign of the little sister that was always smiling and holding onto him.

"Goodbye Caleb," Genevieve told him coldly. She sidestepped her brother. "I only came here to say my goodbyes to Dad."

Pogue decided it was his time to step in. He caught the Danvers girl by her wrist. He remembered Genevieve perfectly. The way her hair curled around her face and down her back, the way her eyes crinkled when she laughed, and when she smiled…

Genevieve's expression changed in that moment without her realizing it. She had tried too hard to conceal her feelings from her brother, but with Pogue…things were different.

"Let me go, Pogue. I need to leave now," she insisted. He did not adhere to her plea. Pogue lifted his eyes to meet Caleb's.

"Caleb, would you mind if I talk with Gia for a second? We'll meet you back at your place."

Caleb was hesitant. He wanted to be the one to talk some sense into his sister, but he also wanted her to come back home without a struggle. He nodded his head to his friend. "Yeah, that's fine. I'll calm everyone down back at the funeral."

Once Caleb, Tyler, and Reid descended into the darkest opening in the trees, it left Pogue alone with Genevieve. He still held her by her wrist, but his grip had lessened until it slid to hold onto her hand. Underneath his thumb, there was the faintest hum of her pulse. Genevieve never once removed her eyes from Pogue's as gazed at him. The look on her face had said it all: she had missed him. Even she could not deny that one fact. Of course she had missed her brother as well, but not in the same way she missed Pogue. She had disappeared to protect them.

"Are you going to say anything or are we going to stare at each other?" Genevieve removed her hand from Pogue's and retreated several steps back, bringing her arms over her chest. "I'm not talking with you either, Pogue. I am not the same girl anymore. I've changed."

"That's not true, Gia." He impulsively followed the steps she had taken until he was close to her again. The smell of rosemary tickled his sense of smell and tempted him to close his eyes to eliminate his unnecessary sense of sight. He did not need his eyes to visualize the image of Genevieve in his mind.

"Back away, Pogue," she warned him. "I promise that I will make you regret being alone with me right now."

"Then do it already," he told her, no fear in his voice.

Genevieve shook her head at him, a smile of mirth ghosting her lips. He was still the same Pogue. Never afraid to face something head on. That was the trait she had always admired about him. Genevieve glanced in the direction she had run away from and then, directed her question to Pogue. "How do you know that you can trust me?"

"Because deep down, I know the real you and I know that you still care for everyone."

She laughed. "That doesn't answer my question."

Pogue began walking ahead of her, intending on returning to everyone back at the Danvers mansion. "Just come back with me."

Genevieve did not move from her spot, choosing to stay where she was until she had completely made up her mind. With a sigh, Genevieve hurried after Pogue until she was walking side-by-side with him.

When they had reached the backyard garden of the Danvers residence, Pogue and Genevieve noticed that everyone was no longer outside. However, the doors leading inside were open as if they were inviting the two inside. Stepping through the threshold was the hardest part of Genevieve. Her mother had not seen her in so long, she was afraid her mother would not accept her reappearance. Evelyn could not hide the look of shock on her face from her daughter when she entered the living room. Reaching out a shaking hand, she gripped the sofa for stability.

"Genevieve…?" Genevieve's name sounded lost in her mother's voice. It was a name she had not said in awhile. As her daughter approached her, Evelyn felt as if she could not make her feet move. Genevieve Danvers closed the distance that was left between them and shyly smiled at her mother, gauging a reaction out of her. Evelyn threw her arms around her daughter's frame and enclosed her in a tight hug. Genevieve was shocked as she was before when her brother hugged her, but this time she lifted her arms to hold onto her mother. Slowly, a smile forced its way on her face. She tried to hide it, but it revealed itself anyways.

Later that night, Genevieve was left alone in one of the guest bedrooms until her old bedroom was fixed up to accommodate her again. She had changed out of the formal dress she had on earlier and traded it for one of her mother's old silk nightgowns. The watery fabric slid down over her body like a waterfall and pooled at the floor. Genevieve often had to lift it a couple of inches off the floor so that she would not trip over it. She half-expected her brother to come into the room to check on her or ask her a million of questions she could not answer, but he never came. Eventually she was able to calm down significantly enough that she was able to allow herself to fall asleep. It was probably one of the best night's sleeps that she had ever had in a long time. It was good to finally home.

The night came and left as soon as it had dawned. Sunlight breached Caleb's curtains, stretching across his face to wake him up from his slumber. He groaned in protest, but knew that he had to force his eyes open despite his want to remain sleeping. Caleb wanted to be up, before his sister. Although he was glad to see her back home alive and well, he knew that something was wrong with her. It was like she was a different person. A deep fear resurfaced from the back of his mind. It attempted to coerce Caleb into thinking that his sister was an imposter sent by Chase to further hurt him and the others, but there were a few holes in that theory. Caleb pinched the bridge of his nose as if to scare the bad thoughts away, before he threw back his bed sheets and watched them scatter across the open space.

Once he had exited the shower, Caleb returned to his bedroom to get dressed for the day. Unfortunately, he still had a few more classes to go to, before graduation. The first semester had ended, but the second semester was starting today. Dressed in complete uniform ten minutes later, Caleb was ready to go downstairs to eat a quick breakfast. He found his mother behind the kitchen counter cooking pancakes. It was the first time he had come downstairs and had not found her on the sofa asleep with an empty glass of liquor in her hand. The morning was already looking better.

"Morning, Caleb," she greeted him as she slid a fresh plate of pancakes his way.

He inspected the pancakes, before cutting a slice from one of the pancakes and forking it into his mouth. To his surprise, the piece made him crave for more. Caleb had finished his second pancake, before he asked his mother about his sister.

"Genevieve is still asleep, I believe. The poor girl was practically unconscious when I went to check on her late in the night."

Caleb set his fork down. "Have you checked on her since then?" There was an anxious feeling gnawing at his belly and encouraged him to run upstairs to make sure that his sister was still asleep. When his mother did not answer his question, he quickly told her that "he'd be back", before he rushed up the stairs, taking them two at a time. He pushed open the door of the room Genevieve was on without bothering to knock. He released the breath he did not know he had been holding when he found his sister's sleeping form in the four-poster bed. There was a pillow perched on top of her head as she lay on her stomach, her body sprawled across the mattress. Caleb removed the pillow from its spot on the back on her head and rested it on side of her. Gently, he shook her until she woke up completely out of it. She threw her fist out and nearly caught Caleb's cheek in the process, but he managed to catch it.

"Gia!" he exclaimed loudly, waking her out of her sleepy state. When she saw that it was Caleb, Genevieve immediately blurted out apologies. "It's fine. I managed to dodge your right hook."

"Is it morning already?" she asked him.

"Yes. Mom is downstairs making breakfast. I think she left some clothes for you to wear in the bathroom. Come downstairs when you're finished."

Caleb had left her room a few minutes later, closing the door behind him. Genevieve moved from under the heavy comforter then, disappeared into the bathroom to take a bubble bath. Even though she had a preference for showers, it was nice to have long bubble bath. Genevieve did not exit the bathroom until fifteen minutes later. She could believe how relaxed she had felt. Her limbs were loose and her skin felt smooth as if she had shredded her skin prior to her bath. In front of her was a pair of jeans that were brand new and her exact size. The shirt, however, could have been better. It was not really her style. Genevieve rummaged through the maple wood drawers in the room in search for a pair of scissors. Once she came across a pair, she went about cutting the midsection of blouse. Satisfied with her work, Genevieve slid the shirt over her head and pulled it down until it was settled on her body properly. Although her brother and mother disapproved of her adjustments, they greeted her with a smile.

"Hungry?" Her mother held up a plate of pancakes to offer her. Genevieve was not hungry, but she felt like she was inclined to eat her mother's prepared breakfast.

"So, Caleb," Genevieve began through a mouth full of pancakes, "You're going to be school for most of the day?"

"Actually," he said to her with a knowing smile. Genevieve did not appreciate that smile. "You're going to come with me so, you can get enrolled."

"That won't work," she protested. "I mean…I have no transcripts. Not since middle school. I don't even have the transcripts from the high school I went to."

Evelyn stepped from around the counter to her daughter's side. "We'll just request them, darling. I know that it will be hard to just jump in this late in the year, but you will have your brother."

Genevieve's smile did not reach her eyes. She glanced down at her empty plate and silently cursed the moment. Returning to high school at Spenser would be an interesting development to say the least, but she knew that it would end well.

a/n: That's it for this chapter! I hope this one was just as good as the first or at least better! Please let me know in a review! Thanks for reading/following!