You lucky people you. This chapter got sooooo looooong, I decided you'd get one more short chapter after this, as well as an epilogue. I'm just so giving ::wipes away tears:: J/k. But you may need a box of Kleenex to get through to the end of this chappie. =) It's really heart-wrenching if you've heard the song.

Hedge: You ready to get all girly? You'll be the first to see this, so feel special. =)

amphitrite: I really do. Hehehehe. J/k

Emmanuelle: Hey chicky, haven't heard from you in a while. You know how ff.net is. One second they say a chapter is up, the next it isn't. At the time of your review, sixteen and seventeen were up. The slackers. Hopefully this chapter will put you in a more faithful mood . . . =)



*Chapter 18*



She hadn't seen him in days. Unknowing to Tala, her eyes kept in constant search of him. Any sign would satisfy her misery. But she had run him off.

She cried every night, the ache in her soul getting deeper and deeper. Everyone looked at her cautiously when she passed them. She knew what they saw. They saw a girl, lost in her own depression, with tangled blonde hair and bloodshot, puffy eyes, no longer carrying the menace in their depths.

Staying in the mansion was no paradise, either. The days that she chose to leave her room, she was immediately drawn back to it. She hated being surrounded by all of the soulmates. They never had to worry about anything ever again. They had their one and only beside them.

She knew she'd never be the same. Some day she'd stop crying, but it wasn't anytime soon. Even Vesta couldn't console her, coming in and laying with her at night. Tala cried less then, knowing that somebody loved her, and was here, with her.

The day before New Year's Eve was when she was bombarded. Hearing a knock on her door, she made the mistake of permitting entrance. One-by-one, the girls staying in the mansion filed into her room. It was almost as if they had been called together for this purpose. Tala made a mental note to stake Thierry the next time he passed her in the hallways.

Hannah sat next to her, taking away her TV remote and hitting the power button. Tala turned and glared, only to receive a kind smile in return. "You can't live like this, sweetie."

Tala sat up, running a hand through her hair. "How do you know? Have you ever tried it?"

A tiny red-headed girl came to her other side. Poppy North sighed. "I have, as a matter of fact. It's not healthy, Tala. We want you to be okay."

Tala raised an eyebrow. "You want to help? Fine. Send me back two weeks before I discovered that I had a soulmate. Even better, send me back ten years so I can stop those worthless Night World wolves from tearing apart his family."

Thea was sitting at the computer desk, spinning in the chair. She stopped to meet Tala with soft brown eyes. "I don't even think Hellewise or Maya could complete time travel, so I think you're stuck to fix this situation now."

Tala glanced up to see Rashel and Keller sitting at the foot of her bed. "Oh, don't even tell me that you two are in on this!"

The two girls rolled their eyes, nodding in agreement.

Tala looked around, taking a mental roll of the room. *I'll be damned.* They were all there. Even some she didn't recognize. They had even let Jez out of the safe house to come up here.

Tala huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "*Fine.* What do I have to do to get you guys to let up?"

Hannah had an evil grin on her face. Tala swallowed as the other girl spoke. "You have to do girly stuff with us for the next two days."

"Oh no. Not me. I'm not buying into this." She looked to Keller for support. "I know you didn't agree to this."

The dark haired girl bit her lower lip, hiding a smirk. "Actually, there's this new store called 'Foxglove' in the mall, where they sell clothes for shifters, and I was hoping you'd help me pick out a dress for tomorrow night."

Tala put her hands up, shaking her head. "Okay, you guys are crazy if you think I'm attending this little gala that Thierry's holding tomorrow night."

Lupe jumped up on the bed, curling up tight next to Tala. "Come on, cousin. It'll be so much fun. You need to get your mind off of all of this depressing stuff and party down with us. Please?"

Tala groaned, putting her head in her hands. "Fine." She heard squeals of delight from all around her. She glared at the girls. "I'll go out with you guys today, and I'll *think* about the party, okay?"

She could tell that nobody believed her. The were all exiting the room, gossiping about dresses and make-up. Hannah patted Tala's shoulder. "Take a shower and meet us in the common room downstairs. We'll be waiting."



Okay, so maybe they'd been right. Tala had gone out, expecting the worst, and actually had a good time. They'd shopped for hours, being gawked at by the masses. It had to have looked odd to normal humans: a dozen or so of the most beautiful girls they'd ever seen, running through the halls of a shopping center, giggling and screaming. It had been the most disgusting, degrading, girly thing Tala had ever done in her life . . .

And she'd had a blast.

Returning to the mansion, they had stayed up most of the night watching movies and eating chocolate and popcorn. Tala had found it rather amusing that Lupe had picked "American Werewolf in London." They'd gossiped, told secrets, shared Circle Daybreak horror stories, and she had even tolerated the soulmate stories. Of course, her permission had been asked before anyone had ventured into the category. She had laughed, saying it was okay. Being surrounded by people who cared about her made it completely worth it. She even had a chance to talk about her love of Broadway musicals, especially "Chicago."

Waking up on the floor of the lounge wasn't the most comfortable of awakenings, but she smiled when she saw both Vesta and Lupe, one on each side of her. The early afternoon sunlight was pouring through the picture windows, slowly causing everyone to stir. Tala looked around, smiling at her new-found group of friends. They had all blown off their soulmates or significant others to try and make her feel better, no matter how well they'd known her.

Maybe she could even tolerate a dance. *Maybe.*



Walking into the ballroom, Tala was amazed at the site. Black and silver streamers hung from the ceiling, balloons floating from every available space. Amidst the tables stood a platform stage, set up with spinning tables, microphones, musical instruments, and above all things, a karaoke machine.

She stood tall, holding her head high. She knew she looked stunning, wearing a forest green gown designed to show off her back. She could feel her golden ringlets brushing near her waist. Taking Vesta's hand, she smiled, walking to the table with her reserved seat. They would be sitting with Thierry, Hannah, Iliana, Poppy, James, and Lupe.

She sat down as Thierry took the stage, watching everyone else bustling to their designated seats. He stood behind the microphone, tapping a crystal wine glass with a silver knife. Slowly, everyone through the room joined in, the talk dying down.

He waited for complete silence before beginning his speech. He looked out over the crowd, holding a smile no one had seen before Hannah had come back into his life. "I want to thank everyone for coming here tonight and celebrating. It's an honor to see that we have so many members of Circle Daybreak, when a few years ago nobody had even heard of the organization. Hell, everyone still thought I was a Night World Elder." Laughs came from the group, a small chuckle slipping out from the Master-of-Ceremonies himself. "Every one of you is a valuable asset to our organization.

"As you know," he continued, his voice taking on a more solemn note, "a year from tonight, we will all be part of a world changing experience. I hope to have all of you and many more on our side when the time comes, and I know we can accomplish what is said to be the impossible." He raised his glass, all of the guests doing the same. "So, here's to a wonderful New Year, and to finding the last Wild Power. Cheers!"

Tala shouted with everyone, feeling passion fill the room. She was surrounded by clapping as Thierry took his seat between Tala and Hannah.

Tala smirked as she saw the next person take the stage. It had been rumored that Ash Redfern was the event coordinator for the evening, but she had hardly thought this was his taste. Evidently, he had buckled under Mary-Lynette's pleas and made the party moderately classy.

"Howdy folks," he smiled. "Yes, it's true, I am the designated party-planner for tonight's events. I thought I'd just fill you in on the itinerary for the evening. During dinner tonight, you will be delighted by the music of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, playing music from their CD known as 'Beethoven's Last Night.'" Tala gasped as she saw the performers beginning to take the stage as he spoke. "I know a particular werewolf with a passion for them." He looked at her, giving her a wink. She colored as he went on.

"Afterwards, we'll have karaoke for all until just before midnight. And, though I shouldn't have to add it, no booing. Catcalls are welcome." He gave a sly grin, adjusting his jacket. "From midnight on, we will be treated to the masterful spinning skills of our house DJ, James Rasmussen." Tala turned to her table-mate in awe. She had no clue he did that for a hobby! "So, everyone have a great evening, and happy New Year!"

Tala's dining experience was absolutely blissful. Enjoying expensive French cuisine with her favorite group playing in the background was almost too much. When Ash stopped by their table, she pulled him into a hug. "Thank you so much. This is just magnificent!" If only Monroe were there . . .

He smiled. "No problem. I'm glad you decided to join us. I mainly invited them to play because of you. It would have been a disappointment if you hadn't shown."

Something was on her mind. "Just a question, Ash. They don't know about us, do they?"

He laughed, shaking his head. "No, they were kept away during Thierry's speech, and will be checked before they leave. We don't want any secrets getting out."

Giggling, she went back to her meal, nudging Vesta. "You having a good time?"

The girl looked up with sparkling eyes. "This is incredible."

Just as she was finishing her plate, the orchestra was leaving the stage. Hannah and Poppy got up, grabbing her and Iliana. Tala glanced around. "What are you doing?" That's when she realized she was being directed toward the stage, where all the girls from the night before were waiting. "Oh Goddess, you have to go and embarrass me."

"We're embarrassing all of us," Poppy giggled, dragging her up the platform.

Hannah took the mike. "I hope everyone's having a good time tonight. We wanted to kick off the karaoke with a song almost *everyone* knows the words to. Hit it, Ash."

Tala laughed hysterically as the first chords of the theme song to "Friends" came out of the stereo. She started up with the rest of the girls as the verse started, clapping in the correct place. All thoughts of ignominy left her mind by time they were at the chorus. She belted out as loud as she could, partially singing to a person who wasn't there. "I'll be there for you, when the rain starts to pour. I'll be there for you, like I've been there before. I'll be there for you, 'cause you're there for me, too-oo."

After finishing the song, she was surprised when Hannah held onto her arm, not letting her escape with the rest of the group. Tala heard Ash's voice come over the crowd of cheers. "As a special request tonight, we're going to have our very own Tala Acevedo sing to us a song from the Broadway musical, 'Chicago.' Here's 'All That Jazz.'"

Tala glared at Hannah as she hurried off stage, blushing as the applause died out to the beginning of the music. She took hold of the microphone Ash was offering her. "You're all going to pay for this, you realize?" She heard the girls laugh as her part came up.

She watched as the words came up on the Teleprompter, but she didn't need them. The song was memorized to heart. "C'mon babe, why don't we paint the town? And all that jazz . . ." She felt the adrenaline rush through her veins as she picked up volume. "I'm gonna rouge my knees, and roll my stockings down, and all that jazz."

Slowly, she let herself get carried away, putting her whole soul into the song. She could hardly hear the clapping over the beat of her heart as the song ended. She took a deep breath in as she handed Ash the mike. Slowly making her way off the stage she joined her group, each of them grinning from ear to ear. She shook her head. "I hate each and every single one of you."

Poppy kept grinning. "We love you, too."

Tala sat and enjoyed the rest of the shows. It was a riot watching people stumble over the words. Some of the members of Circle Daybreak had exceedingly spectacular voices. Some did not. But, overall, everyone was having a great time. Morgead even took the stage, doing his own version of "Every Rose Has Its Thorns." She thought Jez was laughing the hardest during his song.

She glanced at her watch, noticing that it was coming on twelve o'clock. Another twenty minutes. She started to get a little forlorn, wanting to spend the stroke of midnight with her soulmate.

Watching as Ash took the platform again, she was waiting for him to announce the end of the karaoke sequence. She was a little taken aback to hear him say that there was one last performer, who had requested to go last. "And to end this year, a song known as 'When You Say Nothing At All.'"

Tala knew the song well. It was one of her favorites. She watched as Ash walked back into the crowd and the lights dimmed. The music started, yet no one was in front of the group to perform. She began to wonder if the mystery person had gotten cold feet.

As the lyrics began, a voice filled her, mind, body, and soul. It was like liquid velvet, comforting her with love and protection. "It's amazing how you can speak right to my heart . . ." A spotlight sparked to life, following a man walking onto the stage from the left side of the ballroom. "Without saying a word, you can light up the dark." Deep red locks fell across the man's forehead, but his deep mahogany eyes shined brightly from beneath them. "Try as I may I could never explain, what I hear when you don't say a thing . . ."

Tears began to spill onto Tala's cheeks as Monroe looked into her eyes from the platform. A gentle grin curved his lips. "The smile on your face lets me know that you need me, there's a truth in your eyes saying you'll never leave me. The touch of your hand says you'll catch me if ever I fall . . . You say it best . . . when you say nothing at all . . ."

She knew the whole room was staring at her. She could feel the approving smiles directed toward her from her table, but she wouldn't take her eyes away from his.

"All day long I can hear people talking out loud . . . But when you hold me near, you drown out the crowd . . ." He began to make his way down the steps again, in her general direction, his voice growing strength. "Old Mister Webster could never define, what's being said between your heart and mine . . ."

"The smile on your face lets me know that you need me, there's a truth in your eyes saying you'll never leave me. The touch of your hand says you'll catch me if ever I fall . . . You say it best . . . when you say nothing at all . . ."

He held out a hand as he approached her. She stood, barely, almost breaking down into sobs. As the music played on, he took her in his open arm, the room breaking out into hysterical applause. She held him tight as he went into the final chorus. "The smile on your face lets me know that you need me. There's a truth in your eyes saying you'll never leave me. The touch of your hand says you'll catch me if ever I fall . . . You say it best . . . when you say nothing at all . . ."

He leaned back, allowing her to look up at him. "I love you, Tala, no matter what we've been through, no matter what we'll go through. I'll never let you leave me again." With that he smiled. She accepted his lips, allowing the soulmate bond to take over her mind, drowning out the cheers of her fellow Daybreakers.







=)