Disclaimer: The Night World is the property of L.J. Smith as are any of the
characters you recognise like Thierry, Hannah, Lupe etc.
Spoilers: All of the Night World books and my story Bound by Flame.
Rating: 15
Author: Aife Bisclaveret {or Bernadette in the real world}
Title: The Fire That Binds.
Author's notes: This is a sequel to my story Bound By Flame, you don't have to have read Bound By Flame to read this one but if you want to it's on fanfiction.net and ttales.net under Aife Bisclaveret or I can send it to anyone who wants it.
Thanks so much to Claire for commenting on the last part.
Part 3.
Desdemona caught a glimpse of her own face in the rear-view mirror and sighed gently. It was hard to forget her grief even for a moment, especially when her own reflection brought it all tumbling back. It was strange how when they were alive she denied any suggestions of family resemblance but how now she could see her father and brother staring back at her through her own eyes and see her mother's smile in the curve of her lips.
She sat in the passenger seat of the car holding a bunch of flowers tightly in her hands, staring off into space oblivious to the two people with whom she shared the car. She didn't see the concerned glances that were turned to her from time to time nor did she notice the expectant silence that filled the car, waiting for her to react, waiting for her to break down.
Des glanced up as the car pulled onto the main street of a small town. Unexpectedly a smile appeared on her face momentarily; this place, this town had been her home for 18 years she couldn't wipe away the happy memories she had made here, all the sorrow she had experienced here didn't stop it feeling like home. As they neared the church Des could feel herself becoming more and more emotional. She smoothed down her black dress and took a deep breath trying to compose herself. She could do this; she had been through hell and back in the past year; she could handle this.
Neither of the others tried to speak with her before they entered the church and Des was extremely grateful to them for it. They realised that she needed to be left alone with her thoughts and that proved once again how well they knew her and what good friends they were.
She hurried up the church and into one of the front pews. Being in full view made her extremely self-conscious and this became evident in her nervous hand motions. She tucked her hair behind her ears, tugged the hem of her dress, twisted her necklace, touched her face and then went back to her hair beginning the cycle again.
She could almost feel the eyes upon her, could almost feel them searing holes into her flesh. She wondered what they were thinking about her but with an almost physical jolt realised she didn't care. Once this town and these people had been almost all she knew, her life had revolved around them but now they meant practically nothing to her. It was liberating and scary at the same time.
As the service began she could feel herself become emotional again and she was glad the others were there. Just there presence gave her reassurance and support. It was at times like these she missed Gwern most, when the void he had left was biggest. Times like these she needed him most and she didn't even know where he was. With anger she struck any thoughts of Gwern from her mind; he was gone; he wasn't going to come back. All she had was herself and that was enough; it had to be enough. She had gone through more in her short life than Gwern Burdock would if he lived to be 200. And there in lay the crux of their problem, Gwern could live to be 200, hell if he avoided wood and fire Goddess knew how long he could live, in the words of Buzz Lightyear, "To infinity and beyond," and she being merely human had an extremely shorter lifespan. That wasn't their only problem but it had been the subject of their last and largest fight, the one where he'd left, the sword on which their relationship had languished. No, she was not going to think of Gwern; she had enough to deal with today besides adding an errant soulmate to the list.
After the service Des found herself caught up in the small talk that occurred at all occasions like this. She lost count of the number of times she agreed that the service had been beautiful, informed people that no she wouldn't be in town for long and admitted wholeheartedly that of course she missed them. She smiled politely as people told her how they couldn't believe it was a year already. She answered all inquiries about herself as civilly and with as little information as possible. What was she going to tell them anyway?
"Yeah, I've joined a group made up of vampires, witches, werewolves, shapeshifters and humans who are currently trying to save the world. I have my own place in Vegas at the moment but I used to live in a mansion belonging to the head of the group." She was sure they'd take that well.
When everyone had finally left Des collected her bunch of flowers from the car and headed for the little graveyard beside the church. As she passed through the small connecting gate and saw the rows of headstones she almost turned back. She wasn't sure she could do this; it brought back too much of the pain, the sorrow, the guilt. She bit down on her lip hard and steeled herself; she had to face this sooner or later. That was one thing this thing had taught her; you can't run form your problems, no matter where you go they come with you. It was a pity Gwern hadn't learnt the same thing.
There she went again thinking of Gwern; it was like the more she tried not to think about him the more often thoughts about him popped into her head. She couldn't help it he had been such a big part of her life, he was interwoven into everything she was and much as she hated to admit it even though he was gone he was still apart of her life.
That thought brought her to the grave. She stared at the white headstone in front of her. She didn't know what to do. She kneeled down and pulled up some of the weeds growing around the headstone and arranged the flowers she had brought. She ran a hand over the top of the headstone then leaned back and sat on her heels.
"I really miss you guys," she started softly already felling the beginning of tears in her eyes. "I can't believe it's a year. I can barely believe you're gone and I know it was my fault and I'm so sorry. I'm sorry. I love you Mom, Dad and Jack. I know I wasn't a good daughter but I did love you; I do love you. I'd have done anything to protect you but I didn't know."
Des wiped her face with the back of her hands feeling a little embarrassed by the large, round tears that rolled down her face. She reached out and traced the carved names with her fingers.
"I miss you guys so much," she whispered.
Her tears flowed hot and fast down her cheeks now and she let them come. She let herself go, let herself cry not caring who saw or heard her sobs. Eventually, when she had cried herself out, she stood and said her goodbyes with her voice cracking. On her way back to the car she cleaned her face not wanting the others to see her like that.
The others were leaning against the car chatting when she got back to the churchyard. They smiled warmly at her as she approached them and she smiled wanly back.
"You okay Des?" Lupe asked.
"Yeah," Des told her nodding. "Thanks for coming with me, it really helped having you guys here."
"Anytime," Lupe replied.
"You did good Des," Icarus told her giving her a one armed hug.
"Thanks," she whispered in reply.
"So you ready to go home?" he asked.
Des breathed deeply in and looked around. "Yeah," she said, "lets go home."
Hannah Snow stood in front of a large window gazing at the two young men talking animatedly in the grounds below. The sun was setting in a blaze of red over the desert framing them both. Somehow it seemed to emphasize the differences between them catching warm, bright highlights in Thierry's blond hair and accentuating the black of Kane's. Hair colour was not the only difference between them of course, in truth the only thing they seemed to have in common was their youth and good looks. However it was not youth they shared but age, they were the two oldest, living, made vampires that Hannah knew of and therefore probably the oldest people in the world.
As their conversation heated up Hannah turned away from the window.
"Living, made vampire, I wonder if that's an oxymoron," she murmured to herself as she headed to her room. "I'll have to ask Thierry."
"She needs protection Thierry, you know she does," Kane said loudly unable to mask the depth of emotion in his voice.
Thierry sighed thoughtfully, "I feel for you Kane, I really do but most of our fighters are on missions, protecting the wild powers or searching for the last one."
"I need your help Thierry, you know I wouldn't ask if," he paused, "I'd do it myself but who knows what kind of attention I'd attract. The report I got wasn't the most reliable. I'm not sure if they know what she is to me but my presence there would confirm any suspicions they have."
Thierry thought for a few minutes as they walked to the house.
"There is one team I could send, they recently lost a member but I've got someone who could replace him."
"Are they good enough?" Kane demanded.
"Kane," Thierry said sternly, "I wouldn't have suggested them if I didn't think they were good enough."
"I know. I'm sorry. It's just if she ever got hurt I don't know what I'd do."
"I know," Thierry told him gently, "I feel the same way about Hannah and I'd trust them to protect her."
"Alright," Kane said knowing there was no greater endorsement Thierry could have given of the group.
Spoilers: All of the Night World books and my story Bound by Flame.
Rating: 15
Author: Aife Bisclaveret {or Bernadette in the real world}
Title: The Fire That Binds.
Author's notes: This is a sequel to my story Bound By Flame, you don't have to have read Bound By Flame to read this one but if you want to it's on fanfiction.net and ttales.net under Aife Bisclaveret or I can send it to anyone who wants it.
Thanks so much to Claire for commenting on the last part.
Part 3.
Desdemona caught a glimpse of her own face in the rear-view mirror and sighed gently. It was hard to forget her grief even for a moment, especially when her own reflection brought it all tumbling back. It was strange how when they were alive she denied any suggestions of family resemblance but how now she could see her father and brother staring back at her through her own eyes and see her mother's smile in the curve of her lips.
She sat in the passenger seat of the car holding a bunch of flowers tightly in her hands, staring off into space oblivious to the two people with whom she shared the car. She didn't see the concerned glances that were turned to her from time to time nor did she notice the expectant silence that filled the car, waiting for her to react, waiting for her to break down.
Des glanced up as the car pulled onto the main street of a small town. Unexpectedly a smile appeared on her face momentarily; this place, this town had been her home for 18 years she couldn't wipe away the happy memories she had made here, all the sorrow she had experienced here didn't stop it feeling like home. As they neared the church Des could feel herself becoming more and more emotional. She smoothed down her black dress and took a deep breath trying to compose herself. She could do this; she had been through hell and back in the past year; she could handle this.
Neither of the others tried to speak with her before they entered the church and Des was extremely grateful to them for it. They realised that she needed to be left alone with her thoughts and that proved once again how well they knew her and what good friends they were.
She hurried up the church and into one of the front pews. Being in full view made her extremely self-conscious and this became evident in her nervous hand motions. She tucked her hair behind her ears, tugged the hem of her dress, twisted her necklace, touched her face and then went back to her hair beginning the cycle again.
She could almost feel the eyes upon her, could almost feel them searing holes into her flesh. She wondered what they were thinking about her but with an almost physical jolt realised she didn't care. Once this town and these people had been almost all she knew, her life had revolved around them but now they meant practically nothing to her. It was liberating and scary at the same time.
As the service began she could feel herself become emotional again and she was glad the others were there. Just there presence gave her reassurance and support. It was at times like these she missed Gwern most, when the void he had left was biggest. Times like these she needed him most and she didn't even know where he was. With anger she struck any thoughts of Gwern from her mind; he was gone; he wasn't going to come back. All she had was herself and that was enough; it had to be enough. She had gone through more in her short life than Gwern Burdock would if he lived to be 200. And there in lay the crux of their problem, Gwern could live to be 200, hell if he avoided wood and fire Goddess knew how long he could live, in the words of Buzz Lightyear, "To infinity and beyond," and she being merely human had an extremely shorter lifespan. That wasn't their only problem but it had been the subject of their last and largest fight, the one where he'd left, the sword on which their relationship had languished. No, she was not going to think of Gwern; she had enough to deal with today besides adding an errant soulmate to the list.
After the service Des found herself caught up in the small talk that occurred at all occasions like this. She lost count of the number of times she agreed that the service had been beautiful, informed people that no she wouldn't be in town for long and admitted wholeheartedly that of course she missed them. She smiled politely as people told her how they couldn't believe it was a year already. She answered all inquiries about herself as civilly and with as little information as possible. What was she going to tell them anyway?
"Yeah, I've joined a group made up of vampires, witches, werewolves, shapeshifters and humans who are currently trying to save the world. I have my own place in Vegas at the moment but I used to live in a mansion belonging to the head of the group." She was sure they'd take that well.
When everyone had finally left Des collected her bunch of flowers from the car and headed for the little graveyard beside the church. As she passed through the small connecting gate and saw the rows of headstones she almost turned back. She wasn't sure she could do this; it brought back too much of the pain, the sorrow, the guilt. She bit down on her lip hard and steeled herself; she had to face this sooner or later. That was one thing this thing had taught her; you can't run form your problems, no matter where you go they come with you. It was a pity Gwern hadn't learnt the same thing.
There she went again thinking of Gwern; it was like the more she tried not to think about him the more often thoughts about him popped into her head. She couldn't help it he had been such a big part of her life, he was interwoven into everything she was and much as she hated to admit it even though he was gone he was still apart of her life.
That thought brought her to the grave. She stared at the white headstone in front of her. She didn't know what to do. She kneeled down and pulled up some of the weeds growing around the headstone and arranged the flowers she had brought. She ran a hand over the top of the headstone then leaned back and sat on her heels.
"I really miss you guys," she started softly already felling the beginning of tears in her eyes. "I can't believe it's a year. I can barely believe you're gone and I know it was my fault and I'm so sorry. I'm sorry. I love you Mom, Dad and Jack. I know I wasn't a good daughter but I did love you; I do love you. I'd have done anything to protect you but I didn't know."
Des wiped her face with the back of her hands feeling a little embarrassed by the large, round tears that rolled down her face. She reached out and traced the carved names with her fingers.
"I miss you guys so much," she whispered.
Her tears flowed hot and fast down her cheeks now and she let them come. She let herself go, let herself cry not caring who saw or heard her sobs. Eventually, when she had cried herself out, she stood and said her goodbyes with her voice cracking. On her way back to the car she cleaned her face not wanting the others to see her like that.
The others were leaning against the car chatting when she got back to the churchyard. They smiled warmly at her as she approached them and she smiled wanly back.
"You okay Des?" Lupe asked.
"Yeah," Des told her nodding. "Thanks for coming with me, it really helped having you guys here."
"Anytime," Lupe replied.
"You did good Des," Icarus told her giving her a one armed hug.
"Thanks," she whispered in reply.
"So you ready to go home?" he asked.
Des breathed deeply in and looked around. "Yeah," she said, "lets go home."
Hannah Snow stood in front of a large window gazing at the two young men talking animatedly in the grounds below. The sun was setting in a blaze of red over the desert framing them both. Somehow it seemed to emphasize the differences between them catching warm, bright highlights in Thierry's blond hair and accentuating the black of Kane's. Hair colour was not the only difference between them of course, in truth the only thing they seemed to have in common was their youth and good looks. However it was not youth they shared but age, they were the two oldest, living, made vampires that Hannah knew of and therefore probably the oldest people in the world.
As their conversation heated up Hannah turned away from the window.
"Living, made vampire, I wonder if that's an oxymoron," she murmured to herself as she headed to her room. "I'll have to ask Thierry."
"She needs protection Thierry, you know she does," Kane said loudly unable to mask the depth of emotion in his voice.
Thierry sighed thoughtfully, "I feel for you Kane, I really do but most of our fighters are on missions, protecting the wild powers or searching for the last one."
"I need your help Thierry, you know I wouldn't ask if," he paused, "I'd do it myself but who knows what kind of attention I'd attract. The report I got wasn't the most reliable. I'm not sure if they know what she is to me but my presence there would confirm any suspicions they have."
Thierry thought for a few minutes as they walked to the house.
"There is one team I could send, they recently lost a member but I've got someone who could replace him."
"Are they good enough?" Kane demanded.
"Kane," Thierry said sternly, "I wouldn't have suggested them if I didn't think they were good enough."
"I know. I'm sorry. It's just if she ever got hurt I don't know what I'd do."
"I know," Thierry told him gently, "I feel the same way about Hannah and I'd trust them to protect her."
"Alright," Kane said knowing there was no greater endorsement Thierry could have given of the group.