Songs for this chapter: Broken by Gorillaz (Melena's part), Night on the sun by Modest Mouse (Mariah's part)

Fire & Blood

(Melena's POV)

The next night Mariah and I were in our bedroom, so quiet we could hear a leaf fall 20-miles away. I sat on the end of the bottom bunk and stared at the wall while Mariah sat in the top bunk staring out the window. Even though Mariah wasn't speaking I could tell she was suffering internally, even more so then when Bill rejected her. I wanted so badly to comfort my sister but I couldn't say anything that would make her feel any better.

After I recovered from Marnie going off on me I immediately checked on my sister. Mariah was crying as Bill held her. I thought the worst and prepared myself to rip that witch bitch to pieces for what she did to my sister. When I asked Bill what happened he told me that Marnie had placed a curse on him, a rotting curse.

Bill told me to take Mariah and Eric away and not to come near the manor as long as Marnie was being held there. I obeyed taking Mariah gently by the arm then motioned for Eric to come to me. I wondered why Eric hadn't attacked the witch then I remembered he had been to busy seeing about me.

I couldn't let myself react to that, I couldn't let myself get caught up in Eric's claims that he loved me. They would be lies the moment he reclaimed his memories.

"Eric we have to leave now." I said flatly.

"Is the King hurt?" Eric asked concerned.

"Yes he was cursed."

Eric shook his head in anger and frustration looking more like his old self, the Eric who acted as if I was beneath him.

"I have to take you back to Pam." I said coldly.

"What?" Eric gasped. "Why?"

"I can no longer put myself and my family at risk helping you. My sister nearly got hexed because I dragged her into this fiasco."

Eric opened and closed his mouth a couple of times before he spoke,

"Melena please I need your help I don't know anyone else," Eric pleaded. "I have no else I can trust."

"That's not true you have Pam." I pointed out.

"I don't remember her!" Eric yelled losing all composure, "You are the only one I remember, I can't remember a thing about me but I remember you Melena. I remember stealing glances at you when you weren't looking, staring at you for long spans of time. All I can remember is being lost in you."

I stared at Eric, taken by complete surprise of what he was saying. I wanted so badly to hold Eric, to hold his hand through all of this. Mariah's soft cries bled through the mist of shock. At that moment questions raced through my mind; what if Mariah had been struck with the curse instead of Bill or worse killed? How would I have been able to tell Mom that her child died? How could I live knowing that Mariah-my twin sister who is as apart of me as the blood in my veins-died helping me save the man I love?

These were questions I couldn't answer and didn't want to. So as I fought back tears I squared up to Eric and told him to go back to Pam and to stay away from me and my family.

After that Mariah and I snuck back to Aunt Sookie's and went to bed as if everything was right in the world when it was far from it. That morning when Mom came to pick us up she noticed her moods but couldn't understand where they came from. I lied and told her Mariah and me just watched a really sad movie but I don't think she bought it.

As I sat in the bed I couldn't stop thinking: what next? Eric still had amnesia but was being cared for by Pam, Bill was cursed to rot to his bones, and Marnie was still alive. Could me and Mariah go on with our lives in spite of all of this?

I didn't see how, but I hoped and prayed we could. Not only did Mariah and I need each other our mother needed us. We were her only children and the only living proof of our parents' undying love for each other. If we died our father's remaining love would die with us, and so would our Mother's heart.

We couldn't put ourselves in dangerous situations anymore.

(Mariah's POV)

"Let's go for a walk." Melena said suddenly.

"Why?" I asked, my voice sounding shakey.

"Because we need air to clear our heads," Melena said matter of fact. "It'll do us some good."

I sighed and forced a thin smile,

"Okay, lets go see Uncle Jason."

"That would be nice." Melena agreed.

Feeling a bolt of energy we both ran to Mom to tell her we were going out. When she heard where to she smiled brightly making me (and Melena) feel a little better.

"You two love the Stackhouses don't you?" Mom laughed.

"Of course," Melena said. "How couldn't we love Uncle Jason? We're women after all."

"You're girls," Mom corrected shaking a finger at Mel.

Mom walked over to the coffee table and picked up a fruit basket and handed it to me.

"Give this to Jason I heard from Andy he got pretty banged up while out on the job, say it's a 'get well soon' present."

"Alright." I said.

Melena and I could have ran from our house to Jason's in a matter of seconds, but we weren't in a rush so we walked as slow as we could to enjoy the outing. When we were only a short distance from Uncle Jason's house Melena spoke for the first time since we left the house.

"It's nice not having to sneak somewhere for once and in the middle of the night." Melena said softly.

I turned to look at Mel, her face radiant in the sunlight.

"Are you really not going to help Eric anymore?" I asked carefully.

Melena stopped where she was and stared at me hard and stern.

"Yes, I am and you're not going near Bill tell this witch mess blows over."

"Mel I didn't plan on seeing Bill," I told her as my voice broke. "How can I see Bill in pain from a curse that was meant for me?"

As I started to weep Melena hugged me tight and I hugged her back. How did things get so chaotic? How did I go from wishing Bill could love me to praying he wouldn't die of a skin rotting hex?

As I pondered all this I heard a sound nearby. At the exact same time Melena and I unwrapped our arms from around each other and looked toward the source of the sound. A middle aged black woman wearing a bath robe was walking toward us, her slipper covered feet snapping sticks on the ground.

Seeing who it was we both relaxed, chuckling at ourselves. Melena waved at the old woman politely but she didn't respond. She seemed really out of it, her eyes were dark and blank like a doll's eyes. It was like she was looking at us from far away.

Just as I was about to ask if the woman needed help smoke started rising from her flesh. Before that could register in my mind the woman's skin blackened then her whole body was engulfed in flames. Melena and I shrieked as the woman became an inferno, her clothes burning from her body, the rollers in her hair melting and discoloring her hair.

I looked around me in a panic to find something to douse the flames with, hoping if I put them out in time I could heal the woman with my blood. Before I could do anything the woman's body erupted in a fountain of blood and gore, splattering me and Melena head to toe in crimson.

Melena started breathing heavily, her body shaking violently. I watched Mel as she wrapped her arms around her shoulders, trying to comfort herself as she tried to comfort me mere moments before. Even though I was shocked and terrified by what I had witness it wasn't the first time I seen someone die.

I grabbed Melena's shoulders and shook, not too hard but not too gentle. Melena opened her mouth and a blood curdling, vocal cord ripping scream flew out of her mouth. Without thinking I slapped Melena hard across the face. The scream stopped in her throat and she stared at me, at first with surprised hurt then with clear understanding.

"Melena," I whispered slowly, "It's okay it's alright."

Melena gulped and nodded. I wiped the tears that were beginning to dry on her cheeks and hugged her close to me. As Melena moaned into my shoulder I looked at the gorey pool that once a living old woman.

From what I had been told about how dead vampires looked I knew that the woman had been a vampire. What had she been doing out in the sunlight? I thought to myself, Was it suicide?

A familiar voice called out and cut my thoughts short.

"Mariah! Melena!"

I turned around and saw Uncle Jason sprinting toward us, his face alight with confusion. Once he reached us and saw the bloody mess he froze.

"Did you guys kill a vampire?" Uncle asked his voice high.

"No," I answered, "She was just walking out in the open and she caught fire."

Jason shook his head and exhaled loudly, then when he saw Melena trembling he got on his knees next to her.

"Mel, are you alright?" Jason moved

Melena looked at Uncle Jason but her eyes were out of focus, then in a mumbling mockery of her voice said,

"She burned, she was burning alive and then she was nothing. She's nothing now, but a stain, a stain that's going to be washed away."

Tears fell from Melena's eyes harder than before but she still continued speaking like she was in a trance,

"When I die will I look like that? Will Mariah look like that? Will that be all that's left of us, a stain waiting to be washed away?"

What Melena said struck me to the core. We're half human but we're also half vampire so there is a chance that when we die nothing would be left of us but a puddle of blood and guts. I thought of our father and looked at the carnage that was once a living being, tears welled in my eyes blurring the horror.

Uncle Jason sighed and held both Melena and me to his heart. Jason was so warm (warmer than usual) and welcoming that in no time at all me and my sister's thoughts of fire and blood were eased. As my last tear fell and I buried my face in Jason's shoulder I wished with all my might that this would be the last death Melena and I would witness.

Even though something within me said it wouldn't be.

To be continued...