Chapter Eleven:
"Alright, I'm in a living room." I pressed the speaker button as I walked into a comfortable living room. There was a fireplace on one end of the room, chairs and a couch wrapped around it. I didn't give the room a long look as I was too preoccupied with what Godric was saying.
"Do you have what I asked you to find?" Godric's voice came loud and clear through the phone as I set it on a small table behind the couch.
"Found a pencil. What do you want me to do with it?" I twirled the pencil around my fingers, curious as to what Godric wanted me to do.
"Place it across the room if possible."
I glanced around the room before laying my gaze on the fireplace mantel. It was empty and a good enough distance from where I stood on the other side of the couch. I walked over and place the pencil delicately on the mantel before walking back to where I was. I felt torn at what Godric was going to have me do. Part of me was excited at the prospect of trying to figure these powers out, to know how to use them. But the other part of me was still hesitant to believe Godric. I didn't feel any different than usual. I didn't feel some surge of great power like I expected. I just felt like me.
"Alright, done." I bit my bottom lip, a habit of mine when I was nervous. "Now what?"
"Do you trust me, Elizabeth?"
"I would trust you more if you called me Ellie." I couldn't stop the small smile from appearing on my lips.
Godric chuckled lightly, sounding like music to my ears. I never really treasured the little things about the vampire until I was forced to be apart from him. I really did count on him for a lot of things. I had always been so independent. I had to be. But ever since that first attack, I began depending on Godric more than I depended on oxygen to breathe. He was a part of me, and not having him around to understand these new powers, it was hard.
"I want you to close your eyes."
"Just close my eyes?" I raised an eyebrow.
"Trust me, Ellie."
I snorted at the teasing tone but did what he asked. I didn't bother telling Godric I was doing so, knowing that the vampire would know that I would be doing so. I was stubborn, yes, but I did trust him with my life. If this was going to help, than I was going to trust what he said.
"I just want you to relax Elizabeth."
"I already tried this, Godric. It didn't work." I reminded him.
"I imagine it would be quite difficult to relax when you're being forced to do something you are unaware of how to do. And I understand from Eric than Pam can be quite annoying."
"You have that right." I snickered.
"Just lose all thought. Forget about where you are. Forget about my voice. Just relax. Let your mind wander free. It is just you."
I let Godric's words wash over me, instructing me into the unknown. I tried to do as he said, to just let everything go. I held my eyes closed, squeezing them almost. I breathed through my nose, long and deep breaths. I let the moment just take over me, let my thoughts just leave me. But the moment I began to let myself go, the images would return. I would see the blood; I would see the horrid three men strewn about the motel room in pieces. My heart quickened and I began breathing harder and more rigid. My body tensed as my hands clenched into fists at my sides. My eyes were almost in pain as I squeezed them shut so tightly.
"Relax Elizabeth. I know it's hard. I can feel your sadness, your pain. You need to just let it go."
"I can't Godric." My voice was cracking. "It's so horrible."
"I know, child. But you must let it go. Do not let that moment dictate the rest of your life. Move on. Allow yourself to remember only the good. Do not look at that moment in time. Look elsewhere. What is your happiest memory, Elizabeth?"
I had to shake my head to try and get the images out of my skull, but they just wouldn't leave. It was like they were glued to my eyelids and I just couldn't wish them away.
"Elizabeth? Think, child. Happiest memory."
I tried to concentrate, remembering back to when I was the happiest in my life. It was hard of course. When I was a child, I had grown up so quickly that I hadn't been able to enjoy many things. My brother and I lived through such hard times that there weren't many happy moments. But no, that was a lie. We were happy. Maybe not all the time, but we were happy.
"Do you remember such a time?"
"Kind of." I admitted.
"Tell me about it."
I inhaled as I let the memory wash over me, replacing the images that were haunting me.
"When I was 9, my brother wanted to do something special for my birthday. It was a hard year for me. We weren't well off, and we hardly ever could do anything exciting together." I recounted. "But for that year, he had saved up every single penny from working so hard, and we went to Disney world. He told me that mom and dad took him when he was around my age, and that every kid needed to go."
There was a tiny smile on my face as the images flashed before me, warming up every single inch of my being. No longer was I thinking about the horrid night in the motel. My body began relaxing, my fists unclenching as I remembered every minute of that vacation.
"We weren't there for long, but god, it was the best three days of my life. I remember it like it was yesterday. I was only nine but I remember every single moment of it. The first time we walked through the gates, my first ride on Space Mountain, begging my brother to wait in a 2 hour line to meet Mickey Mouse."
My eyes weren't squeezed shut any longer, and were just faintly closed as I stood there in complete peace. I had never felt so relaxed in my life. It didn't even feel like I was the same person. There was a warmth that overcame me, washing over my body as I told Godric about every single thing that we did for those three days. He never spoke, never stopped the story. I wasn't even sure if he was listening, but I didn't care. I hadn't felt this happy in a very long time. I didn't feel an ounce of pain, or hurt, or even sadness like I usually did when I remembered my brother. This was a happy memory; it didn't need to be tainted by such emotions. My brother had sacrificed everything to give me everything I ever wanted. I didn't want much, but he made sure that I had enough. He made that trip so memorable. It was a moment I should have been able to experience with my parents, but there nothing better than having my brother there. He truly was everything to me. He was a parent, a sibling, and my best friend. He was my protector, my provider, and truly my hero. I don't know if I could be able to do what he had, raise a child all by himself when he surely had other plans in life. But he had always assured me that he would rather raise me than be forced to watch me go through foster homes. He just wouldn't allow it. He was my older brother, and he was going to do whatever he could to make sure I grew up exactly how mom and dad would have wanted.
When I finished retelling the memory, I didn't open my eyes. I didn't want to moment to end. I felt so in bliss that I didn't want that to change.
"I can feel just how peaceful you are Elizabeth." Godric's voice was soft. "I want you to remember that pencil while you relive that memory over and over again. Remember how happy you had been. Remember how you feel right now."
I did as he said. I visualized the pencil lying on the mantel, taking every single inch of it in. While I did so, I kept the memory of my brother in the back of my mind, not wanting to lose the peaceful moment.
"I want you to visualize it moving, gliding up into the air. I don't want you to strain yourself, to think too much. Just simply imagine it moving."
I wasn't sure how such a simple thing could work, but I let my mind do as he said. I was in such a relaxed and peaceful state that he could have told me to cluck like a chicken and I probably would have done it. I imagined the pencil slowly but surely moving up into the air. It was difficult at first, but soon I could see the led pencil moving ever so slowly until it was suspended in air. I didn't feel any different, didn't feel anything happening. This couldn't have actually done anything to help. Imagining a simple pencil moving couldn't move it. It just couldn't. It was impossible. This whole thing was impossible.
"Do not let your doubt overtake you." Godric guided. "Just let yourself go. Anything is possible, child."
I breathed in deeply as I allowed the negative thoughts to be pushed aside. The memory of my brother was intertwined with the pencil floating into the air.
"Now I want you to open your eyes."
I wanted to question why, but I didn't. Godric knew what he was doing, or else we wouldn't be doing this little exercise. I let myself be in his complete control as I opened my eyes at his demand. My eyes just about bugged out when I realized that before me, hovering above the wooden fireplace mantel was the pencil. It was just suspended in air, staying there as if there were strings holding it up. But there weren't. The pencil was there, without any help, all because of me. I didn't dare even blink as I just stared.
"I can sense your amazement. You did it."
"I did it." I was knocked back into my senses, a grin crossing my face. "I did it Godric! It's working!"
"I told you you were magnificent. You have extraordinary powers, Elizabeth; you just need to understand how to use them."
I couldn't stop grinning as I stared at the pencil. It was the most amazing thing I've ever seen in my life. I couldn't believe that normal old me, had been able to do such a thing. It still felt like a trick, like I was just seeing something or this was a dream. But I knew that it wasn't. This was completely real. I was really causing that little pencil to float in the air. Me. I did it. Maybe Godric wasn't as insane as I originally thought.
"What are you doing?"
The new voice in the room startled me as I shot my head towards the doorway. Eric was standing there, with a pained expression as he gripped onto the pencil that was now suddenly lodged into his chest. He let out a sound of pain as he swiftly pulled it out. My eyes were bugging out as my mouth gaped open. I made the pencil move! It wasn't just floating into the air, it actually moved! Of course, it moved right into the chest of Eric Northman, but hell, it still moved! I don't think I had felt this happy in a very long time. I had these powers, the powers that Godric was sure that I had, and I knew how to use them. For the most part anyways. I had done it. I had actually done it.
Although, I never thought of Eric's reaction at the tiny incident. In a flash, I found myself pushed up against the wall, fangs baring down at me. I let out a small shriek as Eric yanked my head to the side and dove his fangs down towards my neck.
"Eric!" Godric's voice called from the phone. He must have put two and two together. "Leave Elizabeth alone, now!"
Eric was only millimetres from sinking his teeth into my pulsing vein when he moved his head up, glaring me in the eyes.
"You god damn bitch." He growled dangerously low.
"Eric, step away from the girl."
Eric growled again as he was forced to take a few steps back, though his glare never left me. I held onto my chest in fright as my heart raced like never before.
"What the hell was that?" Eric demanded an answer.
"I...er...I did it?" I chewed on my bottom lip.
Eric stared down at the pencil that was still in his hand, blood stained to the yellow pencil. I looked to his chest, where there was just a touch of blood on his grey t-shirt. Part of me actually felt concerned that I hard injured him, which was just insane. After all, he was a vampire; he would have healed by now. And anyways, he's been a complete asshole to me this entire time; he deserved to get a pencil stabbed in him a few times over. As well as a stake. Though, that little part of me felt ashamed for even thinking it. Despite the jerk that he was, he wasn't completely heartless as I originally thought. Or else he wouldn't have brought me here. While it might have been an order by Godric, he had still brought me to his home. Not to mention, he had technically saved my life, for a second time when he barged into that motel room and ripped those men to pieces.
The blood drained from my face as the memory returned. The images of my brother and I laughing happily vanished into thin air as I was brought back down to reality.
"Eric, leave Elizabeth to..."
Godric never finished his sentence as in a blink of an eye, Eric was beside the phone, grasping it into his hand and crushed it as if he was just crumpling a piece of paper. My eyes were wide as he tossed the pieces to the floor, his eyes never leaving me. I felt truly scared as I stood there, back pressed against the wall as I watched him slowly walk back over to me. His head was cocked to the side as his eyes bore down into me. After a moment he grabbed me roughly by the arm and pulled me back into the spot I had been in previously. I was shaking now as Eric pressed his hands into my shoulders, pushing down hard. I almost collapsed onto the ground from the weight, but was able to keep myself upright.
"Again."
"What?"
"Do it again." His voice was demanding.
"D-Do what?" I knew what he wanted me to do, but I didn't want to, not without Godric there guiding me. He was right; I couldn't truly relax and concentrate when I was being forced into doing something. I needed Godric's calm voice encouraging me, not this large Viking barking orders at me.
"Don't play games with me." he growled. "Do it."
I gulped as he placed the bloodied pencil down on the table my phone had once been on before it was destroyed. He stood beside the table, looking at me expectantly. I didn't know what to do. I didn't know how to go about doing it. Godric had made it so easy. My mind was swimming with fear and the memories of the motel. I couldn't even think about one possibly happy moment. I couldn't concentrate, focus, or even relax when I was feeling like this. My heart was racing so hard I was expecting it to fly out of my chest at any moment.
"I said do it." He took a step forward.
"I can't." I shook my head, tears popping in my eyes. "I-I don't know how."
"You just did it. Don't lie to me." his eyes narrowed.
"But it was with Godric. He helped!" I tried to explain.
"I'll give you a choice." He was in front of me now, bent down so his eyes were level with mine. "You're either going to do it again, or I'm going to kill you like I've been wanting to do since I met you. It's your choice. I would make your mind up quickly however. I'm rather...hungry tonight."
My heart just about stopped. As much as part of me still wanted it all to end, I didn't want it at the hands of this man. He would draw it out, causing as much pain as possible, and that was what I didn't want. I hardly had to think as I nodded my head wildly, just praying that I would be able to get to the same peaceful, calm trance that I was in before.
"Good choice." He moved to my side so the pencil was now in view. "I don't have all night."
I sighed heavily as I let my eyes close. I bit down on my bottom lip as the images returned, the memories flying at me. I desperately tried to forget them, to remember my brother in any sort of memory. The only one I could draw on however, was the last time I had seen him in the hospital. My mind was so clouded, so dark compared to where I had been only minutes before, that I could think of nothing but death. I could feel my body shaking as a tear slipped down my cheek. I couldn't do this. I couldn't concentrate. I couldn't focus. I couldn't think of anything but horrible memories. I was going to die tonight because I couldn't think of anything but the worst things imaginable.
Suddenly Eric's cold hands were back on my shoulders as he stood behind me. I braced myself, knowing that I had taken too long and he was going to just kill me. I was surprised however, when his hands loosened on my shoulders, not gripping as tightly as before. They slowly began pressing into my shoulders in a way that I could only describe as comforting. His thumbs pressed into the muscles that were tense, massaging away the knots. I don't know what he was doing, or even why, but it was somehow working. Every movement of his hands brought me closer and closer to a blissful peak. My breathing grew soft, matching my now slowing heartbeat in a perfect rhythm. My body became less and less tense as his hands travelled down my back and up my arms, returning back to my shoulders. I could feel him grow closer, his lips beside my ear now.
"relax." His husky voice caused a chill to run up my spine. He laid a soft kiss right below my ear before removing his hands and taking a step back.
I almost ached to feel his hands back on my body, but I knew it would just distract me. I let my mind wander to the pencil, noting every single feature, including Eric's blood. Once I memorized the small writing utensil, I visualized it moving. Just like last time, I imagined it lifting up into the air, suspended above the table. I wasn't sure if it actually worked, wasn't sure if I could make it happen like I had with Godric.
"Amazing." Eric sounded surprised.
I knew then that I had done it. For a second time that night, I had used my powers. I opened my eyes, a smile on my face as I watched the pencil just float in mid air.
"You really aren't useless."
"Shut up Eric." I was grinning now as I tested my powers, moving my eyes from side to side. And there the pencil went, moving along with my eyes.
"I suppose I will keep you around after all. Just don't pull that stunt again."
I rolled my eyes, and chuckled when I saw the pencil follow the movement and rolled in a circle. I didn't want it to stop. I wanted to test the waters and see what else I could do with the pencil now completely under my control. I tried to take a step towards it, but I was stopped by a sudden wave of nausea washing over me. The room began spinning, everything becoming blurry. I blinked to try and get a control of my bearings and heard the pencil clink back onto the table. I found that I couldn't even keep myself any longer. I swayed to one side, and would have fallen if Eric's arms hadn't caught me before I met the ground.
"Seems you've had enough for one night, little one." His voice was soft as he lifted me up into his arms.
I mumbled something incoherently as my head fell onto his shoulder. I could vaguely see the smile on the blonde vampire's face before everything turned to black.
