DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story except for those you do not recognise as belonging to L.J.Smith, I am merely borrowing them for this work of fanfiction.
AUTHORS NOTE: Okay, I just read through the trilogy again from beginning to end and it was great. The only problem is that now I don't know why I decided I wanted Diana so evil. I can't change things now though, but I can promise to write another Secret Circle fanfic after this one where she isn't.
I hope you like this chapter, I think it's great (to a certain extent anyway). Beware of the fluff and sorry that it's so long, I got a little carried away. Please review, even if you have nothing to say and just read it; review anyway to say that you did and I will be happy.
Thank you so much to Pantherette for pointing out to me that my chapters were the wrong way round, all is fixed now though.
Cassie glanced around, she and Adam were alone and she had finally awoken from her clear and happy sleep. She looked up at Adam and watched him as he watched her.
She felt her mouth form into a smile as their eyes met, "I hope I didn't snore on you," she whispered.
"Not at all, you couldn't call the noise you make a snore. To deafening for such an innocent name."
She laughed as she stuck her tongue out at him, "I don't snore," she whispered as she mock glared at him.
"You're right, the dribbling was enough."
She laughed and stuck her tongue out at him again, "shut up."
"Okay," he said as he brought his lips down on hers.
She felt a wave of passion as the now familiar chord pulled her towards him. She felt the soft comfort and happiness as she knew that it was finally okay to feel this way as she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him closer.
They kissed forever. Her hands playing with his hair. His arms holding her, caressing her back and his hands fiddeling with her hair.
When finally they stopped it was getting dark. In front of them, further along the beach was the sea and it lapped against the beach like a laughing child.
Cassie looked up at Adam and smiled, he pulled her face towards his and kissed her forehead, "I love you so much," he whispered, "so much."
Cassie smiled, brought her lips towards his and planted a kiss on them.
"I love you so much too," she whispered into his ear.
She reached for his hand and laughing dragged him to the surf, "come swim with me witch," she laughed as she pushed him into the waves.
And they did. They swam, kissed, talked, laughed all under the stars and never noticed the solitary figure watching them from the beach. The solitary figure that watched them with such hatred and loathing in her eyes.
That night Adam dreamt of the past. Of a time when he and Cassie were not yet together. His dreams were quick and panicked and filled to the brim with fear.
They started off dark.
The sky was dark, the waves were dark, the air around him was rippling with darkness.
He ran. Ran and ran. Ran to nowhere just away. His breath was quick and his heart beat heavily. He continued running, running and running.
Running to a safe place. A place where no one would get to Cassie, a place where she wouldn't feel the pain she felt. A place she wouldn't hurt like she did. A place where he didn't know what he knew about her best friend and most of all a place where she would never know it.
He never found it. Only ran blindly on, away from knowledge only he was burdened with.
Slowly the dream changed; shifted.
He wasn't running, but he wanted to.
Looking round he recognised the surroundings, he saw black and white prints on the wall and one lone coloured one. He saw the diadem, the bracelet and the garter tossed on a bed. The symbols of the coven.
Looking up he saw Diana.
It was the night before the leadership vote. The night he found out the truth.
"What's wrong with you Adam," she whispered, her voice was soft and liquidy, too soft, too sweet.
"Why are you so distant?"
In his dream he turned away, he hadn't wanted to hurt her, he cared for her and he hadn't known, not then. Then he cared what she felt, even to a certain extent loved her.
He hadn't known.
"Let me repeat myself, what is wrong with you?" She had then said. Her voice hard, the dream Adam; the one who didn't know shivered and looked up surprised at the tone of her voice. This was Diana, why did she sound like Faye.
But she didn't sound like Faye.
Adam wanted to scream, to shout, to shake her, but it would do no good. He had known it somewhere that she was too pure to be real. That no one could seem so perfect and actually be that perfect and pure.
But still it shocked him. Shocked him that he could actually see what she was and that her whole life had been an act.
It was then that he hated her. Hated her for deceiving him, for deceiving them all. For deceiving Cassie.
"It's because of her," she snarled, "isn't it?" Her voice was cold, her eyes cold and unfeeling.
"She's bewitched you hasn't she, liked she's bewitched all the others."
Adam said nothing, he couldn't.
Diana, he thought, what happened to you.
"Don't look at me like that Adam. Don't look at me like you can't believe what you see. You don't know me, never have, no one knows me."
"You think I'm so sweet, so innocent... so nice. But I'm not and it makes me sick to think of it. I'd die before I'm like that Adam. I'd die, you hear me."
"You've been so distant since you got back from Cape Cod, I have to wonder what happened, but I think I know."
"Yes, I know. I see it in your eyes everyday, I see it in the way you look at her and the way she looks at you."
She turned, prancing around and walked back and forth pacing from one end of the room to the other.
All Adam could think of was Cassie, she was already hurting so much. If Diana hurt her...
If she found out about what Diana was really like...
"You love her, you love her so much. So much more than you ever love me. And you know what Adam, I hate her for that."
"You think I'll hurt her, and perhaps I will. But not now, no one can know what I'm really like you see. That would ruin everything, think of what people would think of me."
She stopped pacing, moved forward, reached up to his face and he flinched.
"I wouldn't do that Adam, you never no what could happen to Cassie if you do."
She kissed, kissed him hard and possessively keeping him just where she wanted him.
"You'll always be mine Adam. Always."
Adam awoke quickly, his body was covered in sweat and his heart was cold, so cold, so scared.
He remembered how he had left that night. How he had walked along the beach and looked up at Cassie's window. He had watched forever that night, making sure she was okay, watched and longed to hold her in his arms.
He remembered the next day. How he had told the coven of him and Cassie. Of how he had realised the pain she felt of being blackmailed by Faye. Of how he had longed to say Faye at the leadership vote, but knowing what would happen if he did.
He remembered the pain that had hit him in his stomach as he watched Cassie beg Diana for forgiveness when she had done nothing. When the person she was begging for forgiveness wasn't the Diana she thought she was. That Diana had never been real.
He thought of the look Diana had given him, the look that let him know she was truly his when she had told them both she forgave them.
That she'd give them another chance.
He'd hated her so much them, for making out like she had spared Cassie from something. For making herself the martyr. For stopping them from being together. For deceiving Cassie so much.
Shaking he reached for the phone. How could he have not realised, his breath quickened and he was scared, more scared than he had been in his dream.
God Diana would be mad now. Mad that things were finally perfect for him aside the fact of the threat that loomed over his head.
Fear circled him, suffocating him. He needed to hear her voice, he would know if anything had happened to her, but still he needed to hear her voice.
Adam dialled the number he knew by heart.
Cassie's dreams were hot. Hot. Hot. And more hot.
Fire licked her skin, sweat ran down her body and fear etched in her veins streaming through with her blood.
There was hysteria around her, yet she could see nothing, her vision was gone.
She only knew of the fear that raged through her. Of the fear that raged through others. Of the sadness that plagued the people and haunted there dreams.
There was terror there, and the terror was unforgiving.
Hot, so hot, everywhere was so hot.
She wanted to run. To get away. To find somewhere safe, to a haven she knew of but didn't know.
The fire tore through her. The screams around her deafened her.
Screams of terror; of sadness, of panic and of pain.
She wanted to scream too. Screaming could blank out the pain, could get rid of it for a short blissful moment, but she couldn't.
Her throat was too dry, her body too hot, her head too full of pain.
The fire ravaged over her, tore up her insides and everything was so hot...
Then she falling, falling quick and unforgiving.
And through the heat the pain of the fall slithered through.
With a halt Cassie awoke. She could barely breathe and the change in temperature numbed her.
Her throat hurt and the sweat that bathed her body didn't sooth her aching limbs, but she was awake and she was no longer dreaming. That was all that mattered.
She turned and without sitting up reached for the phone.
She would phone Adam, to hear his voice would make everything okay. Would stop the aftershocks of pain that even now cursed through her body.
She jumped when as her hands reached for it and it rang.
She picked up the phone, held it close to her ears, sought refuge in the comfort of it.
"Adam," she whispered, barely able to speak her throat so hoarse.
"Oh god Cassie, what happened," she heard him say and even now at this very moment his voice filled her with hope, happiness and sent tremors through her body.
"I had a dream, "she whispered, "a nightmare. God Adam it was terrible."