(AN) Okay, so this is an interlude. I plan on having these little less than 1000 words chapters every 5-10 chapters. They explain a lot of back story for characters that are important, but whose stories never came up in WWR. This first one is from Jezebel's POV and reveals a couple important things. First, Jezebel has always lied about it being her sister who succumbed to evil and her brother being killed. I can't really blame her for lying about this, but knowing the truth makes it easier for everyone to realize why she didn't stop her. Second, Jezebel is always fighting that darkness in her. Kind of like how the Cullen's are always fighting their thirst. It also reveals a new character, Pandora (Yes, that Pandora!) who is the crux of the rest of the plot :-) The poem Jezebel recites at the end is Robert Frost's Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening.
Disclaimer: I actually do own all the characters in this chapter :-)
Interlude: Miles to Go Before I Sleep
I was hidden from the city below me, cloaked in the dark shadows. I could see this city stretching around me covered in brightly colored lights. The darkness surrounding me grew darker, but I didn't turn to see the source of this darkness.
"If you're debating throwing yourself off the tower, I will stop you." The darkness whispered. "Your suicide attempts are growing quite old, Jezebel. I love you too much to let you die like that."
"Love. The best and worst of things." I mumbled under my breath. The shadows sighed, reaching toward me. "Please don't touch me." The shadows retreated, hurt. I took a step closer to the ledge.
"Where am I?" I asked softly, I couldn't quite recall how I'd ended up here, perhaps I'd been wondering and just ended up at this place.
"London, Jezebel. You're on top of the clock. I think they call it big Ben." The shadows sighed, exasperated. I nodded, looking down. The gleaming clock face read two in the morning.
"Jezebel…please step away from the edge." The voice called. I complied, knowing all too well that she would save me if I threw myself from the top. She had before.
"It's not too late." I whispered. The darkness sighed.
"The way is set. The path is lit. You can still choose my side, Jezebel. It's never too late for you to do that. Where do you stand?" The darkness stood next to me now, and I felt a cold hand grasp my own with a love and tenderness that made my heart ache. "Where does your heart lie?"
"With you." I answered. The honesty nearly cut me in two, nearly caused me to stumble. "It'll always be with you." Tears blurred behind my eyes. I could us as we had been, two innocent children with the world at our command, running through the forests, flowers in our hands, hair trailing behind us, laughter ringing in the air like the sweetest music. A boy ran in front of us, younger than we, his smile dazzling when he turned to us. He was gone, I reminded myself. Nothing could bring him back.
"I love you still, Jezebel. I'm doing this for you. We could change everything, Jezebel…we could bring him back…make the world right." The darkness cooed. I shook my head, the images were too tempting.
"What is done cannot be undone." I whispered.
"We have no limits." The darkness said, more insistently. "I made a mistake. I know better now. We can fix it. I need you, Jezebel. Come back to me."
I didn't answer. My name didn't just pour from the darkness, but came from somewhere far away, somewhere far to the west. My mind pulled me toward it, like a mouth to a flame. "Beltane is calling."
"Go then." The darkness said, pulling away from me. I turned to look at it. The darkness flowed from a slender body, tall and strong. She was more beautiful than any mere mortal, more beautiful than even a vampire. She was Snow White for me, hair like ebony, skin like snow, and lips stained red with blood not her own. She was icy cold, hard as marble, and had eyes that glowed luminescent burgundy. Her hair seemed to be constantly in movement, flowing in a non existent wind. And from around her the darkness seemed deeper, and like it was moving with her hair, long sweeping tentacles.
"I love you." She whispered. "You have my heart as well. I will keep this world for you and you alone."
Parts of me yearned for her like nothing in the world, more than air and water, more than food and cigarettes. The part that always fought the rest, the darkness that yearned for its maker, reached for her now. And the other part of me…the part of me that was still that same invincible girl, wanted simply to embrace her and make everything alright.
It was not alright. Nothing would ever be alright for us ever again. She was my love, my life, who had given into temptation, which had killed our son. I took a deep, shaky breath as I stepped closer to the edge. The city below me teemed with life. They went about their way unknowing of the darkness that was silent above them, of the predator that waited in the shadows.
"I will continue to walk this world alone, Pandora." I whispered as I stepped off the edge. Above London, I fell from the clock, feeling gravity drag me down. And then it was gone, and I was lying on soft green grass. I opened my eyes, taking in the towering trees above me. I was close now, so close to the light.
"Whose woods these are I think I know…" I mumbled softly, reciting the poem in my head as I walked through the clearing, the clearing where all those souls would die if time did not change.
"These woods are lovely, dark and deep," I began the last stanza just as I reached the trees, sliding under their grasping branches. What wouldn't I give to just rest here awhile?
"But I have promises to keep." So true, hadn't I promised to save this world?
"And miles to go before I sleep." I stopped, staring out at the winding path. It seemed to stretch on forever and my glorious immortal body was tired. I forced my feet to move, walking the path alone.
"And miles to go before I sleep." I whispered into the wind.
