Delerium spent the rest of the day in the hospital wing. She felt so weak so drained. She didn't want to see anyone all she could think about was how the way she felt when she held that beating heart in her hand. She felt as though she was in control. A control she thought as a fledging she would never have but she had plucked it out of body so easily. She'd never been in control before it had felt so good. Why couldn't she been in control of her own life more like that? Why was it that others instead had that control over her? It wasn't fair she wasn't human but she was still a living-breathing creature couldn't it be the same with her as it was humans? It would be easy to pluck their lives just as she had plucked that heart out. She turned over covering herself with the blanket. She cried silently barely able to comprehend what she had just been thinking about. She wanted it to end…. she couldn't keep this up even if she happened to have friends and family by her. But she still couldn't do anything though. Rosalind's words still rang through her head. She was a monster that's all she was. But she didn't want to believe it at all. She was too stubborn to.
"Oh you poor little monster." A mans voice whispered beside her bed.
She swallowed her tears and through a calm voice, "Go away James." She snapped turning away from the sound of his voice.
He came and stood on the other side pulling the sheets off from her. He was grinning at her. She took note that he had shaved his beard off now his blue eyes sparkled more so then before. She looked away from him tears brimming her eyes. Couldn't bear to think that he might see her weakness. Any more of her weakness then ever before, she wasn't about to let it happen she couldn't.
"Hey wait a minute don't turn away." He whispered grabbing her chin softly he turned her back to face him.
"What so you can see me cry?" she snapped glaring at him her eyes filled to the brink with her tears.
He saw the tears and as one of those tears came from one of her pale green eyes he wiped it away with his thumb. His grin vanished as he watched her face in that sorrow of what he'd called her. The sorrow he had created for her. He couldn't believe that he had done that all he could think about was how he wanted to take it back.
"I'm sorry I didn't mean it, you're not a monster." He stated, "You never were a monster if anything you are farthest from being a monster Delerium."
"What are you doing here?" she whispered stunned but still weak, "Why are you saying these things?"
"I'm not so sure anymore I had come here to terrorize you but I can't do it when you're crying like this." He said sitting down in the chair letting go of her chin, "What are you doing to me?"
"Excuse me?" Delerium stated wiping away her tears she sat up in her bed, "Are you going crazy, I'm not doing anything to you."
"You're making me crazy!" James yelled at her, "I don't know why though. You're a vampire and yet when I saw you crying I couldn't help but feel weird and it just doesn't make any sense! Damn it!"
She smiled a little laughing at him she couldn't help it. She knew what was going on but she had done anything. She had been herself around him always. Nothing else just her strange and mysterious self and yet he had seen through all her shields to her. It brought laughter to her she couldn't help it. It just came out. She hadn't laughed for years and here she was laughing with a hunter with tears in her eyes.
"How can you laugh at this?" he demanded.
"I haven't laughed like this since I was a little kid." She stated breathless wiping the tears from her eyes.
"Kay officially confused now." He stated narrowing his eyes at her.
"You don't see it do you?" she whispered smiling at him done laughing at him.
"I still see nothing to laugh about it." He stated glaring a little at her feeling the fool in front of her.
"Let me guess when you saw my tears you began to feel as though you wanted to take it back right?" She whispered smiling a little.
"Yeah but how did you know that?" he asked narrowing his eyes at her, "Did you read my mind?"
"No little Delerium doesn't use her powers on humans, only on others like her boy." Jean-Claudes familiar voice snapped.
"Jean-Claude!" Delerium shrieked a little surprised by his sudden appearance.
"I didn't do anything little Delly." Jean-Claude smiled innocently.
"What do you want Jean-Claude?" Delerium muttered lying back down on the bed turning her head away from him hiding under the blanket.
"You need to feed my dear." Jean-Claude stated throwing a blood packet at her, "So this is the little paladin that attacked you on your first night here. James isn't it? A pleasure to meet you."
Extending his hand James had no idea what else to do but shake it. He was a little alarmed that a vampire was being so calm and dignified to him as though they were both of the same races. It was alarming to him.
"Jean-Claude quit it your scaring him. James you had best leave before Jean-Claude begins on one of his insanely long stories which I assure you is longer then the actual event." Delerium said smiling at Jean-Claude, "I know from experience."
"Oh come on now Delly isn't this just quaint a hunter with two vampires." Jean-Claude stated smiling innocently at Delerium.
"I think I'd better get back to the common room now." James stated backing away from Jean-Claude, "I'll see you later Delerium in class."
"Bye James." Delerium muttered hiding under her blankets.
She heard the door close and with that James leave. She was once again left alone with Jean-Claude, as always she would be.
"He likes you a lot Delerium." Jean-Claude whispered softly sitting down beside her on the bed where she laid hiding.
"No he doesn't." Delerium snapped, "He just wants to stab me in the heart like all the other hunters do. To see my life fade away in my eyes."
Jean-Claude peeled the blankets back from her smiling almost fatherly as he brushed her hair away from her eyes. With her eyes filled with tears staring up at him he continued to smile.
"He does honestly really do Delly." Jean-Claude whispered softly.
"He doesn't and I can't Jean-Claude you know that." Delerium whispered a single tear falling from her pale green eye.
The door opened before the two could finish their conversation. She looked up and saw her older brother with his friends walking in with a bundle of flowers. She smiled at them wiping at her eyes to get rid of her tears.
"Hi guys what are those for?" she whispered her voice cracking a little.
Hermione took the flowers from Harry and sweetly came and stood next to the bed smiling whispered, "There for you. As silly as it may seem for flowers to make you feel better at least it gives you something other then white walls to look at."
"Thank you Hermione that's sweet of you all of you." Delerium stated looking to her brother seeing him smile, "Thank you."
"Well I can see that all of these happy bodies don't need a dark cloud here." Jean-Claude stated smiling as he retreated to the door, "Delly if you keep thinking about him as much as he does of you then you're in love the both of you."
"Your in love?" Harry exclaimed, "Who? Where are they? Is he a good man? Not some stranger or creeper is he?"
"Harry calm down its nothing and he doesn't Jean-Claude." Delerium stated shaking her head adamantly, "Now stop putting foolish ideas in peoples heads Jean-Claude."
"Delerium if you don't then why are you trying to persuade everyone that you don't?" Jean-Claude grinned wickedly from the door.
"I…I…I can't be." Delerium sighed casting her eyes away from everyone.
"Oh my god Delerium he's right you are in love!" Hermione shouted, "Who is it? Come on who is it?"
"I'm not in love!" Delerium shouted.
"You are because you're trying to so hard to convince us your not." Hermione stated smiling and laughing, "I was the same way before I started dating Ron Delerium."
Over in the common room James was pacing back and forth beside the fireplace. One of his trusted friends was watching him go back and forth trying to figure out what was wrong with him. James kept muttering and shaking his head.
"James what the hell? Would you quit pacing and sit down already!" his friend finally snapped shouting at him.
Jumping James sat down in one of the chairs beside him, "What's the matter with you Ben?"
"Your driving me mad with your pacing back and forth back and forth!" Ben shouted at him closing his book, "Now tell me what's going on in that messed up head of yours."
"Ben I've messed up real big this time. I really don't know what to do at all." James put his head in his hands shaking back and forth.
"What is it?" Ben whispered softly.
"I can't tell you its wrong!" James shouted at him.
"James there's only one way I could even help you is if you tell me!" Ben exclaimed frustrated.
"I've fallen in love." James muttered turning a little red, "Fallen in love with the wrong type of person."
"You fall in love! That can happen!" Ben yelled shocked at him, "I've know you since we were little kids training together, I've only known you to ever have a love for the hunt. The thrill the anticipation of the kill."
"I can't do this hunt Ben." James stated shaking his head as he placed his hands down staring his friend straight in the eye, "I can't do it you'll have to tell the father I can't handle it. Just make up some sort of excuse."
"What?" Ben shouted, "There is only two valid good reasons to ever quit a hunt. One is that you find out that your target has too much of a conscience to even make a kill ever! The second is that you fell in love with the target!"
"Yeah in love." James sighed averting his gaze.
"You didn't! You would never!" Ben screamed, "James your one of the best hunters to ever go through our academy. You've never done anything but listen and do what your told and now cause of this one girl your going to give that up. For love!"
"Yeah Ben I am cause I can't kill Delerium no matter how much I'm paid. I just can't." James stated smiling.
Back in the hospital wing Delerium, Elizabeth and Hermione were sharing a meal together just three girls talking. Laughing and sharing stories of everything from guys to just embarrassing stories of growing up that every girl has. Delerium was having such fun that she couldn't believe that it was she. Something just seemed wrong with all this. Was even possible that a vampire could be happy with two humans like this?
"We can have fun like this all the time Delly." Elizabeth answered her silent question with a soft smile.
"But can it stay this way?" Delerium whispered, "It just seems weird all of this. Almost like normal."
"Delerium this is normal and this is it. Be happy don't question it just go with the flow." Hermione stated smiling happily, "It can stay this way for a long time Delerium just don't over think it."
"Do you two really think James likes me?" Delerium muttered blushing a little.
The two girls looked at each other briefly before answering simultaneously, "Delly were going to help you."
The three girls chatted innocently about every type of subject all but one. The one that was threatening Delerium's life, her old Master. None of the girls knew it but he was watching them. Watching every move of little Delly. He was quite obsessed with her more then ever now that she'd killed she would be stronger faster. Her blood lust would be greater now and he couldn't wait till she found that out.
"Its not fair why does the little witch have to stay there? Why can't we just go in there and take her?" a seductively sweet voice whispered in Rosalind's ear, "Come on lets go and get her back. Lets get our toy back."
"Persephone I thought I told you that I decide when we get her and only I decide when we get her." Rosalind snapped, "Let Delly live there for a little while. Let her grow up normal for a little bit but soon she'll be back here and she'll be mine."
"That paladin James could be a possible problem." Persephone whispered.
"Oh he'll be dead none too soon." Rosalind grinned wickedly as he took his phone out pressing a speed dial, "Yes Father things have changed from before. The target has an acompliance now. One of the little paladins you hired a James I believe you call him. I want him terminated."