Déjà Vu by vampireisthenewblack

Chapter 4

A/N: I never do this, but I am HUNGRY for feedback after this chapter ;) Big thanks to the usual suspects, Seren, venis and Dellaterra.

Have you voted in The Twifestivals yet? I got a few nom's, I'm even up against venis for one :) Go support the slashers that share their shit with you and vote: twifestivals dot blogspot dot com

I don't have time to scream or yell for help. I don't have the breath for it. Arms like iron bars constrict my lungs and the air as it rushes by screams in my ears. I panic, scratching at him with my fingers and it hurts so badly. It can't be real. Every moment that passes drags me deeper and deeper into a reality that just isn't possible.

Everything stops and I am released. Dizzy and disoriented, I stumble and fall to the ground. I can't see, but I feel grass under my fingers. My eyes are streaming and I whimper as I drag great gulps of air into my lungs. It hurts. Everything hurts, but I know I have to get away from him. Unable to rise to my feet, I roll over onto all fours and scramble across the ground and I don't know if I'm going away or toward him.

Something slams me in the side—I feel like I've been hit by a sledgehammer—and I fall, curling instinctively into a ball.

"He's risked everything." The words are muttered, but I know it's him. "Who knows who the human has told? He'll have the Volturi down upon me."

I open my eyes. We must be in the park, because all I can see is trees and darkness. There's a figure, just a silhouette, standing several feet away. It moves.

Then it's gone, and I'm hauled to my feet, dragged up by the back of my shirt and my hair. I try to yell, but all that escapes is a gurgle as he shifts one arm around my neck and holds me hard. He drags me backward, deeper into the darkness, and I'm barely able to keep my feet on the ground.

I'm more afraid than I've ever been in my life. Nothing I do, no amount of struggling has any effect and I feel utterly helpless. All I can think is: Help me, Seth.

He stops and I manage to get my feet under me. He yanks me by the hair and I see his face again. I can only imagine what my expression must show, abject terror perhaps. His face is stern and immobile. "Stupid boy," he whispers, pulls my head back and his cold lips brush my throat. Then they are gone as he lifts his head up.

"I would think you'd prefer not to watch this, Alec," he says, perfectly calm.

I whimper and twist, wanting to see him, wanting to know for sure that he's here, but I can't move. "Alec, god, Alec, please..." I sob, not caring that I sound completely defeated. I sound weak.

I've never felt weaker.

"S'alright, love," he says, and I wonder at how calm he sounds. "Don't do it, Alistair. Please."

"I'm sorry," Alistair replies, his words clipped and cold. "I won't have them come here because of your impulsiveness."

"Edward's not gonna bring them here." He's getting closer, stepping toward us.

"It's not worth the risk." He tugs at my hair again, stretching my neck to the point of pain, and I cry out.

"No," Alec breathes, and the world moves fast again, too fast, but this time I'm moving on my own. I hit something and there's pain again. There's nausea and sinking and blackness. I'm dying.

~v~

Pain explodes inside my head. I try to open my eyes, but I can't. I shiver. I'm lying on damp ground, propped up against something hard and rough. I hear myself moan, and I register other sounds: growling, hissing, sharp words I can't make out. I force my eyes open and the pain increases, but I see them. Alistair has Alec pinned against a tree, his hands around Alec's throat.

I can't lose him again. Ignoring the pain and the dizziness, I pull myself to my feet, and as I move, both their heads twist to look at me, and their expressions are identical. It's hunger, pure and feral.

Something drips into my right eye and I stop, wiping at the stinging fluid as it obscures my already insufficient vision. My hair is sticky and wet.

I'm bleeding.

The two vampires standing only feet from me are staring.

My knees give way beneath me and I crumple. I can't get enough air. My lungs burn and my fingers tingle and the blood that runs down my temple itches and I twitch and scrub at it.

I look up when I hear a low chuckle. Alistair releases Alec and stands back. "Alec's going to do the job for me," he says.

My eyes flick to Alec, still pressed up against a tree. His hands grip the bark, and it tears away beneath his fingers. His mouth is open and he takes deep breaths. His eyes are wide and dark.

Then he's gone.

The air shifts around me and ice-cold fingers cradle the back of my neck. He's right here with me, holding me, his face inches from mine. Up close I register that his eyes are no longer red. They are pitch black, huge, focused unblinkingly on me. "Love," he whispers. He's shaking, his fingers twitching as they slip into my hair.

Something makes me tip my head back and arch my neck.

"Love..." he says again and licks his lips. "I'll be quick, all right? He would have... I—I'll be quick, love."

I can't move or breathe or resist as he lowers me to the ground and straddles my hips. "It'll only hurt for a bit, love, I promise." His lips barely graze mine and then hover over my cheek. A rumbling growl rocks his body and he lets out a soft grunt as he closes his eyes. "I'm sorry," he whispers hoarsely. "I remembered you. Just you. I love you."

His lips slide over my cheek. It's slick with my blood. He lets out a sound, a whimper that I haven't heard since he's been gone, and his fingers tighten around my neck. He holds my upper arm with his other hand so tightly that I arch up beneath him and cry out in pain.

He only holds me tighter and drags his lips down to my throat.

On the edge of my terrified consciousness I hear Alistair. The tone is confused, but I can't make out his words. There is another noise, like the shaking of the trees and I think the wind has come up, but I can't feel it. Alec keens against my throat as if battling something inside him, and the sound of the wind in the trees gets louder.

Closer.

It's not the wind. It's too regular, rising and falling in a fast rhythm. I can feel it through the ground beneath me, tha-dump, tha-dump, like a heartbeat.

I open my eyes in time to see an enormous dark shape pass over me. Alec is gone and my arm burns as his hand is torn away. My eyes follow the movement and I see a black mass, rolling until it hits the trunk of a tree.

The vibration shakes the ground beneath me.

There's movement, white flashes among the darkness, blurring, and then it's still. Alec lies on the ground now, and outlined against the distant streetlights a gigantic muzzle sniffs around his face.

I manage to pull myself into a crouch. I wipe the slickness from my face and brush my hands on the grass, and I begin to back away. I should run, I know, but I can't, because no matter what he was about to do, it's still Alec lying there beneath... whatever that thing is.

It backs up slowly. Alec glances quickly at me and the thing growls. Alec looks up again. "I knew it," he says, his voice incredulous. "I fucking knew it."

The thing whines and backs away further. Turning its head, it looks at me. All I can see is a shape, a little colour around the edges. It's not black. It's covered in tawny fur, and it's monstrous. It looks the size of a horse as it hovers over Alec's outstretched legs.

Alec pulls himself up onto his elbows. "Fuck me," he whispers, and then he turns his head to look at me as well. "He doesn't know, does he?"

The thing whimpers again.

"What on God's earth is it?"

Alistair, when he speaks, surprises me. Suddenly all eyes are on him. The beast approaches and the growl it emits is low, rumbling, menacing as it stalks toward him.

I see it more clearly now. For a fleeting second I know I've gone insane. It's a canine, a wolf perhaps, but so large that there's no way it's real. It moves fluidly, smoothly toward Alistair, and all I can think is that it might distract him for long enough that I can get out of here.

But despite the fact he was about to kill me just a few moments ago, I can't leave Alec. And I need to know where Seth is.

I pull myself to my feet, and with my eyes still on the tremendous wolf and Alistair, I hiss at Alec. "Did you leave him in the pub?"

Alec groans and moves further from me. "Well, yeah, but he didn't stay there, did he?"

The wolf swings its huge head around and lets out a short, sharp bark, and then he turns back to Alistair. Alistair gazes at the creature, his head tipped to one side, as if merely curious.

The wolf crouches, about to spring, and Alistair takes a single step backward.

The wolf moves fast, but not so fast that I can't see it. It leaps at the shocked vampire with a low growl. The vampire is almost too quick for it as he blurs on the spot, but only a few feet away from where he stood, the wolf catches him. Huge jaws lock around the vampire's arm, and as Alistair screeches in outrage the wolf shakes its great head. A shriek fills the air, like the sound of metal ripping, and something spins away and hits the ground with a thud. Alistair is screaming, cursing, as he twists and grabs at the wolf, hitting and kicking as the wolf snaps at him, trying to get hold of him again.

I feel my legs go out from under me again and I slump against a tree to steady myself. I should be running.

"Holy shit." Alec takes a few steps forward. "Did you just...?" He disappears, only to reappear in the midst of the wolf and Alistair. "I fucking hope you aren't gonna do that to me, mate," he calls out as he takes hold of Alistair's remaining arm.

It becomes a blur of fur and limbs and crunching, screaming, growling. Together, Alec and the wolf tear off parts of Alistair. Fabric rips like paper, hard white hands and feet and bits I can't name hit the ground.

I watch as they rip Alistair into pieces. I cry, my chest heaving and hurting as it is racked with violent sobs. It's the savagery and relief and confusion; it's not knowing where Seth is, or if he is looking for me.

I don't know if I'm safe with Alec now.

~v~

Alec and the wolf pile bits of vampire into a heap. It seems far smaller than it should be. Some of the parts are still moving, and I watch in horror as Alec picks up a hand, the fingers grasping at air, and tears it down the middle.

When it's done, the wolf slumps to the ground and Alec stands beside it. He glances at me quickly, then just as quickly looks away.

The wolf seems to notice. It's far too self-aware for an animal. Letting out a soft growl, it gets to its feet again and puts itself between me and Alec.

The massive head hangs almost to the ground as it comes closer. It's of impossible size, and strange and frightening intelligence, but it seems more real than vampires right now. "No... god, no..." I whimper as I stumble away from it. "Alec..."

Alec backs away. "Don't be frightened, love."

I'm going to die. I know I can't run from it, but I try, slipping and stumbling, and I feel the animal's hot breath on my back and hear great paws hit the ground behind me. At any moment I expect to be pushed down and torn apart.

"Fucking twit. Don't chase him," Alec cries. "Can't you change back? Are you stuck like that or something?" Alec appears in front of me and catches me as I fall against him. He turns his head away as he holds me out at arm's length. "He's not gonna hurt you, love. Don't you see it? That's your boyfriend."

I don't understand what he's saying, and I shake my head. I feel a nudge at my elbow and heat as the giant wolf huffs its breath onto me. "Alec," I whimper. "Help me. I have to find Seth—"

Alec sighs. "He's right behind you." He looks around me, and I feel the wolf raise its head.

I moan in abject terror when I feel the wetness of the wolf's muzzle on my neck. I try to push Alec back so I can run again, but I can't move him.

"If you can look like a man again at all, mate, now would probably be a good time, yeah?" Alec rolls his eyes, and then, breaking my grip, he moves away.

The wolf whines mournfully. I feel it move back, and when I risk a glance behind me I see that it's pacing. It looks at me and whimpers, then at Alec, and I notice the eyes of the creature. Huge, brown, and sad.

My breath catches in my throat. "No..." I choke on the word. "No... it can't...

"It is," Alec whispers. "It's him. I can smell it. I don't know how, love, but I don't think he can undo it. Or he would have by now, you know?"

I can't stop shaking my head. I can't—won't—believe it because it's impossible.

The wolf whines and sits back on its haunches. Then it drops, belly to the ground, and begins to crawl toward me. The entire effect is like that of a submissive puppy and I gape at the creature as it comes right up to me and drops its huge head onto my feet.

"Seth?" All the other words get stuck in my throat as the wolf jerks its head up in a tiny gesture that is so like Seth. My heart is racing and my hand is shaking, but I hold it out. The wolf nuzzles it, and then a massive tongue drags over the tips of my fingers.

"I should go," Alec says.

I glance up sharply. "No, please."

"Love, you're bleeding..." He won't look at me.

It's obvious the wolf doesn't want him to leave, either, as it jumps to its feet and barks.

"You might be able to understand me, sweetheart, but I don't have a fucking clue what you're on about."

The wolf makes a sound of frustration, and then, in front of my eyes, shifts and reforms.

Seth stands before me, naked, breathing hard, his eyes filled with the same pain I'd seen in the eyes of the gigantic wolf.

"I wish I hadn't seen that," Alec mutters. I can't take my eyes off Seth. There are leaves in his hair, and it's tangled around his face. There's a wound on his shoulder, not much more than a scratch, but it looks as if it's been there for days.

"We have to burn it," he whispers, but he's not talking to me. He's looking at Alec.

Alec raises an eyebrow at Seth, and then looks him up and down and smirks. "All right."

There's a blur of movement, and I flinch away from the barest touch at my hip, but then Alec is standing back where he was, holding out his hand. Sitting on his palm is a silver lighter. My lighter. "Get it started then."

He disappears.

I stare at the place he was standing, then I look back at Seth. There was a wolf here, and now there is Seth. Alec is gone.