Author's Note: First, I would like to once again apologize for the delay but I do have good news. School is finally over for me... although i am taking one summer class... but that's beside the point. My point is that I now have much more free time on my hands so there will not be such long breaks in between chapters. I know, I know, you'll believe that when you see it. I'm just saying :) So, without further delay, read, enjoy and review!
Brooke watched with curiosity building up inside her as Haley packed there things. Brooke tried to get hints from observing what was thrown into the duffel bags but there was so much variety that the effort was useless.
"You can't possibly mean everywhere, can you?" Brooke asked. Haley smirked. Brooke was insistent with the questions, desperately trying to figure out where they were heading.
"Everywhere that's important." Haley responded vaguely. Brooke huffed in frustration.
"Okay, so why do we need these?" Brooke took out one of the pairs of heavy duty Timberland boots and shook them at her sister. Haley rolled her eyes.
"Because the barefooted trend died decades ago."
"Are we going hiking?"
"Maybe." Brooke threw herself back into the bed.
"Why won't you tell me where we're going?" she whined. With a chuckle, Haley answered.
"Because I don't have this mapped out 100% yet… Plus, I'm enjoying how much not knowing is killing you."
"You know I never liked secrets." Haley took the boots and repacked them, along with two wet suits and a cowgirl hat. Brooke decided to give up on her interrogation for a bit. "So, how long are we going to be gone?" Haley shrugged.
"As long as it takes."
"But what about Dean? What about all of our friends?"
"They'll be fine. My main concern is with you right now and besides, I think we could all use a break."
"What will you tell them?" Haley smirked.
"It's not like I need their permission. Now come on. Help me zip this thing."
Brooke stood in the doorway deciding to let Haley handle this one.
"Haley, what the hell is Rachel talking about? You're leaving?" Dean nearly growled.
"Yeah, I have to fix my sister."
"That doesn't mean you have to leave." Sam interjected.
"Guys, it's nothing personal-"
"Sure it is." Dean cut her off. "You don't know how to deal with our apparent issues so you're checking out." Haley should have seen this coming. Dean is just reacting like any typical man who felt the sting of rejection after putting his heart on the line.
"Dean, believe it or not, this has nothing to do with us. This is about me and my sister, just like it's been since the 20's."
"I don't buy it."
"Dean, Brooke only remembers when she sees something familiar so Haley wants to take her to other familiar places. Places with meaning." Rachel tried in hopes of calming the room. All that tension was too much for even Rachel to bare.
"She's in love with my brother! Right here and right now with us, that is what's meaningful!"
"Dean, let them go." Sam spoke. Dean spun around to give his brother an incredulous look. He pleaded with his brother.
"Sammy, what if something worse happens?"
"We won't lose them." Dean's nostrils flared with anger. Sam ignored his question to try and play Dr. Phil. He wasn't having it.
"I know they can take care of themselves, but I still think we should stick together. Look what happened last time someone strayed from the group! Brooke almost died and now she has no idea who the fuck she is!" Haley made haste to get to his side. She put a soothing hand on his shoulder. All his fears were clearly written in his eyes.
"Dean, Sam is right." She whispered sweetly. "We have to go and Brooke may not remember much, but no matter what, she wont let anything happen to me. You know that." Haley stressed the word to make her point crystal clear. Dean looked shut down for a while and for a moment, Haley thought he was actually going to lock her out, but then his face softened.
"Come back to me Haley." He whispered low enough for only vampire ears to hear. She pulled him down to her eye level and kissed him fare well. She tried to step away but Dean wrapped her in his arms, trying to salvage as many seconds with her as possible. With a sigh, he let her go and her eyes averted to Sam, leaning against the wall. It was hard for Haley to shield herself against his puppy dog eyes.
"I'll keep her safe. You know that too." She said walking over and pulling him into a hug. Sam nodded into the crook of her neck and let out a sigh.
"I know." She gave him a kiss on the cheek and then turned to Rachel.
"Don't worry. I'll stop them from getting themselves dead." Rachel said trying to lighten the mood. Haley smirked at her friend and shook her head before pulling Rachel into a hug.
"Yeah, try to keep yourself out of trouble too." Haley whispered.
"You don't have to worry about me. I'm way too awesome for that." Rachel said causing everyone to chuckle and roll their eyes. Suddenly, all eyes were on Brooke who was still partially hidden in the doorway. Haley could see the nerves clearly drawn on Brooke's face so she tried to give her a reassuring smile.
"Aren't you going to say goodbye to everyone Brooke?" Brooke eyed Haley and watched as Haley gave her a silent head nod. Brooke forced herself to move one foot in front of the other. Standing before the group of hunters and vampires, she simply waved her hand and plastered a smile on her face.
"Bye guys." She said, trying to sound cheery like she normally would. Rachel rolled her eyes and grabbed Brooke's arm, pulling her towards her.
"Come here loser." Rachel said hugging her tight. "Hurry up with this mystical quest please. I can only go so long without my dose of Brookie D." Brooke smiled at Rachel, desperately trying to remember the bond that she shares with her.
"Okay." She mumbled.
"Yeah, as long as you have that same killer instinct that you had when we first met, you'll be fine." Dean said, ruffling her hair like he used to do to Sam all the time. She shrieked and ran her fingers through her hair, wanting to make sure she still looked perfect. Dean raised a brow at her and shook his head. "This cannot be the same girl that trudged through the sewers with us before."
"I what?" she said in disgust, confirming Dean's accusation. "I would never!" Dean gave her a playful shove.
"I want my tomboy Brooke back. Go find her please." He said playfully. She giggled and then her eyes met Sam's. How could she even begin to say goodbye to him? Without a word, Sam walked up to her, pulled her into his arms and gave her a hug that washed away all of her fears. He kissed the top of her head and inhaled, wanting to remember everything about her while she was gone.
"Be safe." He said and then let her go. It was so abrupt, Brooke felt all wrong. She felt like running after the man that was retreating up the stairs. She felt like spending the rest of the night tangled up in the sheets with him, making sure he knew that he was the one she loved. But in truth, she knew she couldn't. The only way she could ever have him back is if she remembered her history. With more confidence than she had all day, she looked at Haley and spoke.
"Let's go."
"What are we doing here?" Brooke asked as she looked through the window seat of the American Airlines plane that was coming to a landing.
"This is where it all began Brooke."
"But… this was another life. This was where… we lived." Brooke said taking in the memories of growing up in a San Francisco home. Her life up until her teenage years did not leave her memories like her existence after death did. Brooke smiled to herself thinking about riding her bike to school, playing with the dog in the backyard and her old friends. Her breath caught.
"Peyton." She whispered. Haley watched her friend closely and took her hand.
"I told you who Peyton became." Haley said softly. Brooke nodded, knowing that the curly headed blonde was her greatest enemy and a heartless monster for the longest time, but she still mourned for the Peyton she remembered. The Peyton Sawyer who once was in another life.
"I still don't understand why we're here. I didn't forget this part of my life and I don't want to relive this." Haley gave Brooke's hand a gentle squeeze.
"I know sis, but you need to. You won't understand what happens next if the pain of Peyton's betrayal isn't fresh." Brooke took in a deep breath. "We still have a few hours before the sun rises so we can either start tonight or we could put this off for tomorrow night." Brooke shook her head.
"No, let's just get it over with." The two wasted no time leaving the airport and stealing a car. Haley took the wheel and sped down the empty road to where it all began. Haley steeled herself, knowing that a fresh wave of pain was going to hit her too as soon as she took in the sight of her old home. "Is that?" Brooke asked, trailing off in awe.
"My house? Yes." Brooke looked at Haley in shock and then looked back at the house which she once considered a home. "Do you remember that night Brooke?" Fresh tears made their way down her face and she nodded.
"I found Peyton and Lucas in bed together, only it wasn't what I thought. Lucas was dead and Peyton… she was a monster. I came straight here afterward… I didn't expect to find that Peyton had beat me here. She killed you right in front of me." Brooke could hardly speak as the memory played out in her mind. "I wanted her dead and I tried my very hardest." She assured Haley. As hard as Haley tried, she couldn't help the tears that fell down her face. "But, I couldn't. She was too strong. She killed me."
"And then what? Do you remember what happened next?" Haley pushed. And so she did. Her mind seemed to play out the entire scene.
"Brooke! Brooke, wake up! Please wake up!" Haley screamed as she tried to catch her breath. She didn't understand what was happening. At first, Haley had been sure that it was a dream because she would be dead if it wasn't. She remembered Peyton attacking her. She remembered the struggle until Peyton bit into her neck and then she blacked out. Now, here she was, not feeling any pain and Brooke lay on the floor unconscious. When Haley got to Brooke's side, she pulled her friend into her lap and began to sob. Brooke's body was as cold and still as the dead. She had no pulse. No heartbeat. "Brooke! Please!"
"I see someone is finally up." Haley heard behind her. She growled and came to her feet with Brooke still in her arms. It didn't occur to her that she lifted Brooke with no problem. "Don't worry. She'll be fine. It's just taking her a while. Give it another fifteen minutes." Haley placed Brooke down on the bed that was covered in dried blood and charged for Peyton. Within a millisecond, Peyton was on the ground, but Peyton quickly flipped Haley off of her and began to laugh. Haley was frazzled. She had no idea how she moved so fast. She just wanted Peyton as fast as possible and then she had her. "Now, you haven't had anything to eat in days. I thought we could all sit down, have dinner and talk about the future. What do you think?" Haley screamed in frustration.
"What are you?" Peyton smiled wickedly.
"I am what you are, Foxy. I am everything. I am immortal." Haley gasped and touched her heart. Her suspicions were confirmed when she felt no heartbeat.
"What have you done to me?"
"I've given you a gift." Peyton said with a huff. "You're welcome." Without thinking Haley charged again, but Peyton did not tolerate any misbehavior that time. She caught Haley by the throat and held her in the air. "Let's get one thing straight, shall we? You are younger and weaker than me and I will not have you disrespecting me." With that, Peyton tossed Haley through the bedroom door and Haley tumbled down the stairs. Haley fought to get up but suddenly she felt something she never felt before. It was a kind of pull. An intense scent hit her nostrils and Haley's insides felt as if they were on fire. She looked up and saw her sister Quinn tied to a chair. She looked badly abused with blood covering her entire body, but she was struggling in her seat to get free. She was alive. Haley felt revulsion by her reaction to seeing her sister. Her excitement for knowing that someone she loved was still alive was no comparison to the craving she felt to be near the intoxicating scent coming from her sister. Haley's mouth began to salivate. She opened her mouth to speak her sister's name but pain over took her. Her gums went from a tingling sensation to a throbbing unimaginable pain that pulsated throughout her entire body. Haley spat out the liquid in her mouth and saw blood coming from it. She screamed and curled into a little ball. Quinn still tried desperately to get free and the look on her face wasn't filled with concern, but with fear and disbelief. Peyton made her way down the stairs and laughed. "I told you that your sister was going to come back to life." Peyton said to Quinn. "See? I told you. If you listened to me, you could have joined us in our triumph." Peyton walked over to Quinn and took the gag out of her mouth.
"I will never join you. You think you have won, but you have lost. You destroyed yourself!" Quinn screamed. Haley wanted to tackle Peyton, but her thoughts were focused on Quinn and her scent. She knew she had to keep her distance from her sister.
"Well, I also told you that if you refused, Haley would drink your blood. Every last drop. And she'd enjoy it. Trust me. There is nothing like your very first taste. It's, it's poetic." Peyton said reminiscing.
"I... will… not!" Haley struggled to speak. Her teeth grew longer and sharper into fangs and she could barely speak without slicing her own tongue. "Quinn!" she called, but Quinn only cringed further away from her sister.
"Don't speak my name demon! Do what you will with my body! My soul will remain intact!" Peyton rolled her eyes.
"Oh brother." She groaned in distaste. "Well, you heard her Haley Bob." Quinn moaned when she heard the nick name she so often called Haley.
"I will not!" Haley refused. Peyton raised a brow.
"Really?" She kicked Quinn's chair with enough force that it slid across the room. Quinn inched into her chair as she stopped right in front of the demonic form of Haley. Haley didn't know what was happening to her. It was like her blood was bubbling. She grabbed Quinn's rope and attempted to free her, but touching Quinn triggered something dark in her. Blood wiped off of Quinn's hand onto Haley's fingers and the next thin Haley knew, she was sucking on her fingers like a lollipop while Quinn watching in disgust.
"My soul is intact. My soul is intact. My soul is intact." She chanted, realizing that her sister was moments away from ending her life. Haley's eyes were glazed over and when she looked at Quinn, she no longer saw family. She saw food. Closing her eyes and giving into the urge, she sunk her fangs deep into Quinn's neck and drank. A piercing scream echoed through the house. Quinn's pointless scream was the first thing that Brooke heard in her new life. Her eyelids began to flutter open and her memory was beginning to fill in the blanks.
"See, that wasn't so bad." Peyton said as Haley clung to Quinn's lifeless body, still draining her of every drop. "I had a feeling that you guys would be greedy so I brought extra." Peyton left the room and returned within a blink of the eye. In her hands she held Victoria Anne Davis, Brooke's mother. "I've taken the liberty to break her legs so she doesn't need to be tied up. Make sure Brooke gets this, you hear?" Haley finally had the ability to stop. She just held her dead sister in her arms and sobbed, wiping the hair out of Quinn's face whispering how sorry she was. "Haley, this is important. To seal the deal, Brooke must feed. If she doesn't, she'll die. You don't really want to go through eternity without her, do you?" Haley fought to regain her composer but it was no use.
"Why them?" she managed to ask through her sobs. Peyton shrugged.
"You won't know where you're going until you know where you came from. Now you know." Before Haley could react, Peyton disappeared out of the house.
"Haley?" Brooke called as she rushed down the stairs. "Oh my God. What happened?" she said kneeling next to her best friend. Haley couldn't speak. She only looked at Brooke apologetically and then pointed at Victoria. Brooke gasped. "Mom?" She ran to her side and took her into her arms and then it hit her.
"Brooke, you have to get out of here. It's not safe." Victoria said, for the first time in all of Brooke's life, sounding like a mother. Brooke's nostrils flared as the rich scent of her mother's blood hit her. Haley knew she should have told Brooke what was happening but what was the use? Haley wouldn't be able to stop her. Victoria can't run away. Brooke held her jaw as her gum began to throb.
"Haley… what's… happening?"
Brooke snatched away from her sister.
"You just sat there and watched me kill my mother! You didn't warn me!" Haley shook her head.
"No. I didn't."
"How could you?"
"I am eternally sorry for that, but now you know just what we're capable of. And that, was just the beginning." Haley put the car in drive.
"Where are we going now?"
"To visit our family." The two drove to the local cemetery and as they approached it, it was as if Brooke could predict everything. She hopped out of the car and rushed to the tombstone, tears falling down her face with no intention of stopping.
"Mom! Mom, I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" Haley parked the car and joined her friend. "How could we be so heartless?" Haley took Brooke's hand and placed it on her chest.
"No heart."
"I don't want to do this anymore. It's too much. Too painful."
"Brooke, you must. That's the only way to fix things between you and Sam." Brooke gave Haley an incredulous look.
"No! I don't want to be with Sam! I don't deserve him! I'm a monster. You're a monster! We should not exist!" Haley took Brooke into a hug and let a silent tear fall from her eyes.
"You have to see this Brooke. I'm sorry. If you don't know what we've done, you wont understand how far we've come. How much we deserve to be happy! We made the decision to go against our nature and do good and I will not stop until you see that for yourself."