Part 15
Midian couldn't understand what was wrong with her, why she was so - so what? She couldn't even put it in words. Strange didn't even begin to describe it. She paused outside the General Store, trying to get her bearings.
She was looking for something. Someone. Aether. She wouldn't be satisfied until she found him. Why, she had absolutely no idea. She was absolutely certain she needed him. She didn't even know his last name.
She was utterly obsessed with this guy because Jade happened to mention he was cute? At first when she'd set out to find him it hadn't seemed all that weird, it had been perfectly normal. Now she was starting to think twice.
Attractive guys got her into trouble, look at what happened with Blake and Ash. There didn't seem to be anyone called Aether around. It was getting extremely frustrating.
"Are you okay, you don't look very well."
The voice was a girl's voice, but not one Midian recognised. The girl was tall with blonde hair and what could be brown eyes. Maybe she was Kestrel. The again, she sounded like she might actually care if Midian wasn't feeling well. Kestrel would probably just knock her out the way.
"I'm looking for Aether. I have to find Aether."
"I don't know anyone called Aether, sorry. Are you guys new in town?"
"Yeah, it's very important that I find him. Who - who are you?"
The girl might be smiling. "Oh, I'm Penny, I'll be a senior when school starts. You?"
Midian tried to remember what she'd be. She hadn't thought about school, or if she had then she'd forgotten. That was wrong, wasn't it? Oh, she was so confused! ^What's *happening* to me?^ she thought.
"Are you sure you don't need a doctor?" Penny asked doubtfully.
Midian shook her head. "No doctors. Can - can you take me to the Burdock farm house?"
Penny nodded. "Sure." And helped her to a car.
The breeze blowing on her face from an open window made her feel slightly better. The only thing that would make the pain stop completely was Aether.
She could make out a house and figures. Her vision was going sparkly She heard voices, running feet, someone was carrying her. No one was listening to her cries as she pleaded for Aether.
What was wrong with everyone? Couldn't they understand she needed him? The sparkles were fading to black.
* * *
"What's *wrong* with her?" Mark asked.
They had put Midian in the bedroom that used to be Mrs. Burdock's It appeared that she had now passed out. She had been blathering on about needing someone called Aether, who no one but Jade had had an encounter with.
Mary-Lynnette shook her head, feeling Midian's forehead. "She's not burning up or cold or Anything. This is weird."
Jade was downstairs talking to Penny, the girl who had brought Midian in. Rowan was in the lounge watching TV, baring some resemblance to her old self. Ash was talking to Circle Daybreak on the phone, trying to find out about Aether.
"It seems like an obsession curse," Penny said as she and Jade came into the room.
"Penny's a Daybreak witch," Jade said gleefully.
"What's an obsession curse?" Mary-Lynnette asked.
"A very powerful spell, and, incidentally, a Forbidden one," Penny replied.
Mary-Lynnette sighed. ^Great^ she thought. ^If things aren't already screwed up enough we now have a witch on our hands who can do forbidden spells and a guy, mot likely a vampire, no one has ever seen.^
It made sense to her that Aether would be a vampire, she just thought so. With all these people showing up she had barely been able to spend five minutes with Ash. She really wanted to talk about their relationship and she hadn't managed to. He'd be disappearing again before she knew it, and they'd be no better off than when he'd left a year ago.
It had been so hard, all she had been able to think about, dream about was their reunion., which had been spoiled by Midian's fear of him.
Then Blake, and Rowan's fear of him, then Alana the bitch, and now this.
^Why couldn't these people think of somewhere else to go?^ she thought moodily.
Briar Creek was supposed to be a hole-in-the-wall place with no Night People, that was why Rowan and her sisters had come here in the first place. How had all these people managed to find the place, anyway?
"Who around here would have that type of power?" Mark said, peering out the window into the back yard.
Penny shrugged. "It doesn't necessarily have to be someone in this area. I'd have to be a Circle Midnight witch one not opposed to taking risks."
"Yeah, and that really narrows it down," Ash snorted, appearing in the doorway.
"Did you find anything useful?" Mary-Lynnette asked.
"Whose proverbs have we got now, Shania Twains'?" Mark snickered.
"Who?" Ash looked at him blankly.
"Forget it," Mark grumbled.
Mary-Lynnette smiled faintly.
"Aether Tevistha is a standard pretty-boy vampire, a Night World agent who's tastes run to the - extreme." Ash's smile was strange.
"How do you know about his tastes?" Jade asked, eyeing him dubiously.
"I've heard things friends of mine have said," Ash answered blandly.
Mary-Lynette decided not to follow this line of questions. "Give us something good."
"He was last seen in a Black Iris in a city not too far from here, with our friend Blake Redfern, and a Circle Midnight witch, Juliet Weald."
"This is all a little too nice and neat," Jade said, glancing at the bed where Midian was still unconscious. "So Blake finds these people, what does he want with them, why would he make Midian obsess about another guy when he's the one obsessed with her? He wants her to kill the guy, or kill him then herself, then what?"
"It doesn't sound nice and neat," Penny snorted. "It sounds really screwed up, and we need a plan to break this curse."
Mary-Lynnette found herself agreeing with Penny on this one. They needed a plan to deal with everyone, and preferably all at once. As disaster prone as that probably was, it was the only way she could think of to deal with everyone and get rid of them. Not to mention they had to find out what Rowan and Alana were up to. Then something else occurred to her. "Where the hell is Kestrel?" she asked.
* * *
Midian couldn't understand what was wrong with her, why she was so - so what? She couldn't even put it in words. Strange didn't even begin to describe it. She paused outside the General Store, trying to get her bearings.
She was looking for something. Someone. Aether. She wouldn't be satisfied until she found him. Why, she had absolutely no idea. She was absolutely certain she needed him. She didn't even know his last name.
She was utterly obsessed with this guy because Jade happened to mention he was cute? At first when she'd set out to find him it hadn't seemed all that weird, it had been perfectly normal. Now she was starting to think twice.
Attractive guys got her into trouble, look at what happened with Blake and Ash. There didn't seem to be anyone called Aether around. It was getting extremely frustrating.
"Are you okay, you don't look very well."
The voice was a girl's voice, but not one Midian recognised. The girl was tall with blonde hair and what could be brown eyes. Maybe she was Kestrel. The again, she sounded like she might actually care if Midian wasn't feeling well. Kestrel would probably just knock her out the way.
"I'm looking for Aether. I have to find Aether."
"I don't know anyone called Aether, sorry. Are you guys new in town?"
"Yeah, it's very important that I find him. Who - who are you?"
The girl might be smiling. "Oh, I'm Penny, I'll be a senior when school starts. You?"
Midian tried to remember what she'd be. She hadn't thought about school, or if she had then she'd forgotten. That was wrong, wasn't it? Oh, she was so confused! ^What's *happening* to me?^ she thought.
"Are you sure you don't need a doctor?" Penny asked doubtfully.
Midian shook her head. "No doctors. Can - can you take me to the Burdock farm house?"
Penny nodded. "Sure." And helped her to a car.
The breeze blowing on her face from an open window made her feel slightly better. The only thing that would make the pain stop completely was Aether.
She could make out a house and figures. Her vision was going sparkly She heard voices, running feet, someone was carrying her. No one was listening to her cries as she pleaded for Aether.
What was wrong with everyone? Couldn't they understand she needed him? The sparkles were fading to black.
* * *
"What's *wrong* with her?" Mark asked.
They had put Midian in the bedroom that used to be Mrs. Burdock's It appeared that she had now passed out. She had been blathering on about needing someone called Aether, who no one but Jade had had an encounter with.
Mary-Lynnette shook her head, feeling Midian's forehead. "She's not burning up or cold or Anything. This is weird."
Jade was downstairs talking to Penny, the girl who had brought Midian in. Rowan was in the lounge watching TV, baring some resemblance to her old self. Ash was talking to Circle Daybreak on the phone, trying to find out about Aether.
"It seems like an obsession curse," Penny said as she and Jade came into the room.
"Penny's a Daybreak witch," Jade said gleefully.
"What's an obsession curse?" Mary-Lynnette asked.
"A very powerful spell, and, incidentally, a Forbidden one," Penny replied.
Mary-Lynnette sighed. ^Great^ she thought. ^If things aren't already screwed up enough we now have a witch on our hands who can do forbidden spells and a guy, mot likely a vampire, no one has ever seen.^
It made sense to her that Aether would be a vampire, she just thought so. With all these people showing up she had barely been able to spend five minutes with Ash. She really wanted to talk about their relationship and she hadn't managed to. He'd be disappearing again before she knew it, and they'd be no better off than when he'd left a year ago.
It had been so hard, all she had been able to think about, dream about was their reunion., which had been spoiled by Midian's fear of him.
Then Blake, and Rowan's fear of him, then Alana the bitch, and now this.
^Why couldn't these people think of somewhere else to go?^ she thought moodily.
Briar Creek was supposed to be a hole-in-the-wall place with no Night People, that was why Rowan and her sisters had come here in the first place. How had all these people managed to find the place, anyway?
"Who around here would have that type of power?" Mark said, peering out the window into the back yard.
Penny shrugged. "It doesn't necessarily have to be someone in this area. I'd have to be a Circle Midnight witch one not opposed to taking risks."
"Yeah, and that really narrows it down," Ash snorted, appearing in the doorway.
"Did you find anything useful?" Mary-Lynnette asked.
"Whose proverbs have we got now, Shania Twains'?" Mark snickered.
"Who?" Ash looked at him blankly.
"Forget it," Mark grumbled.
Mary-Lynnette smiled faintly.
"Aether Tevistha is a standard pretty-boy vampire, a Night World agent who's tastes run to the - extreme." Ash's smile was strange.
"How do you know about his tastes?" Jade asked, eyeing him dubiously.
"I've heard things friends of mine have said," Ash answered blandly.
Mary-Lynette decided not to follow this line of questions. "Give us something good."
"He was last seen in a Black Iris in a city not too far from here, with our friend Blake Redfern, and a Circle Midnight witch, Juliet Weald."
"This is all a little too nice and neat," Jade said, glancing at the bed where Midian was still unconscious. "So Blake finds these people, what does he want with them, why would he make Midian obsess about another guy when he's the one obsessed with her? He wants her to kill the guy, or kill him then herself, then what?"
"It doesn't sound nice and neat," Penny snorted. "It sounds really screwed up, and we need a plan to break this curse."
Mary-Lynnette found herself agreeing with Penny on this one. They needed a plan to deal with everyone, and preferably all at once. As disaster prone as that probably was, it was the only way she could think of to deal with everyone and get rid of them. Not to mention they had to find out what Rowan and Alana were up to. Then something else occurred to her. "Where the hell is Kestrel?" she asked.
* * *