A/N:

Thank you for your reviews!!! Surprised at this early update? =) Well, I was bored so I decided to do this. I have an important note in the end that you should read, so don't forget that, okay? Anyway, this chapter has a bit of violence and swearing. You've been warned. Read on…

Chapter Eight

Despite the man's hard muscles and large, stocky build, he was stealthier than a cat as he made his way in dark. He climbed the manor's wall with such ease that his live burden couldn't help but be impressed at his ability, even though he was her capturer.

He moved his way into the shadows with an unmoving but conscious Tania on his broad shoulder. She had given up struggling minutes ago. It was no use, after all. The man was a strong as a giant. Plenty of times she tried to use her magic, but to no avail.

Was my magic removed? She didn't know that there was such substance that could remove one's magic. Weren't powers supposed to be…well, powerful? She frowned. Whoever put that substance in the water…

Charlotte. It had to be Charlotte, right?

Don't be so daft, her mind retorted. Someone could have drugged that water before the tray went to Charlotte. Be open to more suspects.

Weston. Of course. Weston hated her. Weston loathed her…but…why would he want to do this? He already had complete control over the money and the estate. She couldn't possibly have anything that could…

What does he want from me?

Tania jumped when the burly man, her captor, suddenly spoke up, cutting through the thick silence. "Sorry about this, Lady." He had a round and very deep voice. "I have to obey whatever my boss says, you know?" He hesitated. "Th-this is my first time to kidnap a young lady. It isn't right, I tell you. I-I'm sorry." The apology sounded pathetic. Tania suspected that he was one of those guys who had it right in their heads, but couldn't word things right.

She sympathized for the man. He was weak. Not physically, of course. He was a follower, one who always, always obeyed even though the situation was unjust. It was very obvious by the remorseful tone of his stuttering voice that he didn't want to do this.

Since Tania's mouth was gagged, she couldn't say anything to him. She sighed, feeling her warm, moist breath when she did. She looked around, narrowing her eyes to see through the dark. Once again, she was near the marketplace, the usually busy part of Déoras, except it was now quiet and deserted since it was around ten o'clock, maybe even later. All that could be heard was the usual roars and drunken laughter from the taverns.

They passed the busy part of Déoras without trouble at all, to Tania's disappointment. They met no one and saw no one. She half-expected to be rescued by some traveller who liked to take a stroll during night. Or maybe by guards who patrolled the streets…

She shook her head. She hated it when her mind did wishful thinking. It brought false hope, and that always led to disappointment.

She observed her surroundings once more. They were now quietly walking away from all the taverns, closed stores, and small homes, and were heading off somewhere familiar…

The forest. The unnamed forest where she and Darrin met the ogres.

As they grew closer and closer to their destination, it seemed as if their surroundings became darker and colder. It made sense; the line of streetlamps had stopped a while back, and not a single roofed structure was within sight. They were merely walking past a slightly grassy clearing, following a rough dirt road.

The silence was deafening, while the dark was disturbing.

Finally, when they reached very outskirts of the forest, Tania felt herself being lifted off the man's shoulder. He did it with such ease, which impressed her. Her mother always said she was big-boned, whatever that meant.

He gently placed her in what seemed like an iron cage, big enough for only one person. The gate closed with a loud metal clang, and the sound resonated in her ears.

Tania flared up, her blood level rising. She was not going to be treated like some wild, rabid beast. She shot the man a very fierce look, which he unfortunately caught. She saw him wince, but she did not feel one spark of guilt. He deserved it. He was an enemy.

Movement behind the big man abruptly caught her attention. As if on cue, her captor stepped aside, and Tania saw six shadowy figures. Curse the dark! She couldn't make out their facial features.

But suddenly, one stepped up, and he became close enough to be recognized by Tania. She glared instantly upon seeing his evil smile and cold eyes.

Weston. She had been right. Of course Weston was part of this. It was in his nature to be this…this…despicable! Her mind spat the word out. Damn him!

He met her glare with a cool, unperturbed gaze. When he spoke up, his voice sounded lazy and even arrogant. "Take off the cloth and untie her," he ordered to his men. "No one will hear her from here and she can't escape this lovely cage."

One of the men obeyed Weston, and when Tania was released from the cloth and ropes, she bolted up from the cage floor and started cursing Weston and his "despicable actions that only lowlife bastards could manage."

"You make me f----- sick! You think that you're safe with those bodyguards of yours?! You're a coward! You have put me in this cage because you feel threatened by me! When I get out of here, you and your f----- men will never—" At this point, she turned to his men to shoot them all a threatening look, but she abruptly stopped when she noticed something…

Weston's men were staring worriedly at her. Some were fidgeting nervously. Others were shooting Weston's back looks of disgust. It would be an understatement to say that she was startled. She was shocked, and in truth, she became speechless.

Does this mean that they don't really agree with what Weston's doing? she thought. If I can convince them to go against Weston…

"Finished?" the person in question sneered, interrupting her thoughts.

"F-for now," Tania stammered without meaning to.

"Good."

After swallowing two or three times, her steady voice came back. "How creative of you to place me in a cage like some animal," she said coldly.

Weston gave her a look. "This isn't just a normal cage," he said icily. "This cage will absorb your magic whenever you use it. It is necessary for your captivity since you are a fairy."

"What are you talking about?" Tania said angrily. "My magic is gone, you ass."

Weston rolled his eyes. "I'm surprised at how remarkably stupid you are," he said, ignoring her deadly gaze. "Your magic is still in you."

"Then how come it isn't working?" she demanded.

Weston rolled his eyes again. "The powder in your drink simply sealed your powers. Unfortunately, the powder isn't strong enough to seal your powers for more than ten minutes. Your magic should return soon, but it will be no use to you. If you do magic to try to hurt us or escape, this wonderful cage"—he lovingly stroked the metal bars like some obsessive lunatic—"will simply absorb it."

"What do you want from me, Weston?" Tania yelled.

Weston grinned, showing his crooked, stained teeth. Tania shuddered with disgust. "Getting right to the point, are you?" he jeered. "That's good. After all, we don't have much time." He gazed at Tania with those malicious grey eyes and said, "I owe some men money. A large amount of money."

Tania snorted. "My, my. What a surprise," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Weston glared. "You will not interrupt me, wench!"

Tania willed herself not to flinch at his angry, booming voice. She was afraid, that she would admit to herself. She felt extremely vulnerable without her powers. She realized now that she had relied on them too much.

But she wasn't about to let anyone see her fear, so instead, she replaced it with hate. She looked at Weston with an icy glare, her purple eyes flooding with revulsion. At the same time, she kept telling herself not to tremble.

Weston continued. "Anyway, when I came here, I thought that your parents' fortune would be enough to cover my debts. But today, I found out that it wasn't enough. I still need more—much more—money. 100,473 gold dasans, to be exact."

Tania immediately reacted to this. "100,473 GOLD DASANS?!?!" she shrieked, rattling the metal bars. "I don't have that kind of money!"

"I KNOW THAT! I AM NOT A DIMWIT!" Weston roared.

Tania glared. "Then what do you want from me?"

"You are slow. Very slow," Weston said angrily. "I want you to steal them for me! From nobles all around! Use your powers to do the job."

He was met by stunned silence. Tania stared at him, her unblinking eyes filled with shock and disgust at the same time. Did she just hear right? Weston was actually asking her to commit a crime? Weston was asking her to DAMN STEAL?!?!

"YOU'RE CRAZY!" Tania screamed, after snapping out of her trance. "ABSOLUTELY NOT! YOU'RE A MADMAN!"

Weston flashed her an insane grin. "I knew that you were going to say that," he said placidly. "But it doesn't matter. I am good at persuading people to do what I want."

"Congratulations," Tania replied sarcastically. "That is certainly a noteworthy skill."

"Oh, thank you," Weston replied brightly. "It is." He stared at her thoughtfully before saying, "You know, Tania, your race and mine may have a lot of differences, but we are similar in many ways as well."

"Oh lovely," Tania replied. "Are you here to lecture me now?"

He continued, ignoring her interruption. "For one thing, we have our faults and weaknesses. We are susceptible to greed, pride, gluttony—"

"As much as how fun this is, pond scum, I think I'll pass," Tania said dryly. "The answer is no; get it through you thick head."

In a blink of an eye, Weston's pale hand shot out and grasped her throat. He angrily squeezed, crushing her windpipe. Tania choked as air abruptly left her. Wincing, she gripped Weston's wrist, trying to pry him away.

His hand did not move, and Tania's feeble attempt only made him squeeze harder. "Now listen to me, wench," he snarled through gritted teeth. "You will not interrupt me again. You will shut that hole in your face and hear what I have to say. Is that clear?"

"Boss!" snapped one of his men. "Let her go!"

Weston pretended not to hear. "Is that clear?" he repeated, his strong gaze remaining fixed on the young fairy.

All Tania could manage was a small nod. When she did, Weston grinned wickedly and not-so-gently released. She collapsed to the cold floor, gasping heavily for air, while delicately rubbing her aching throat. She remained on the floor, coughing a couple of times.

"Now, where was I?" Weston said, stroking his bearded chin in thought. "Oh yes! As I was saying, your race and mine are similar in many ways. But, my dear Tania, do you know the main thing that makes us alike?" He paused and raised an eyebrow, expecting a response.

Tania shook her head. "No," she rasped. It hurt to talk. She bowed her head, feeling as if it was too heavy to lift.

Weston coolly looked down at her before saying, "We both fear pain, physically and emotionally. The thought of feeling it makes us weak, makes us run away. But pain is power, Tania. When you have it, it can either benefit you or make you suffer. It depends on how you make use of it." He bent on his knees so that he was eye level with the suffering girl. Flashing a cruel grin, he whispered, "In my case, I will use it to benefit me. You are not an exception, Tania. I know that you, too, fear pain. What do you say? Do you agree?"

Silence filled the thick air as Weston waited for his anticipated answer. Surely Tania would say yes. He could hurt this girl in many ways, and it would be extremely foolish to say no…

"No," Tania whispered.

Weston, thinking he heard wrong, raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me? Please repeat your answer."

Tania raised her chin and stared defiantly at him. This time, her answer was louder, bolder. "No."

Unbeknownst to girl and man, the spectators held their breath, fearing for the girl. It was not the right answer. She was not supposed to say no. Weston was not a merciful man…

"Fine," Weston said softly. "Just fine." With this, he reached for his right boot and nicked something out. For a split second, a glimmer caught Tania's eye, and as her vision focussed upon it, her eyes widened when she realized what it was…

A dagger. A dagger with a razor-sharp point. There was nothing special about it; it was cheap dagger, intended for battle use.

But it terrified Tania. She trembled as she stared at the steel blade. It glinted excitedly, waiting to be plunged into flesh.

Weston smirked. "I would use my sword, but a dagger gives a slower, more painful death."

Tania blanched. "You…you…BASTARD!" she screamed. Without thinking, she bolted up to her feet and held up her hand. In doing so, a huge and very violent spark escaped from her palm.

Her magic had returned, and she marvelled at the feel of power coursing through her veins.

But Weston was right about the cage. The moment her spark hit iron, the bars absorbed it eagerly. The spark spread all around the cage, crackingsounds erupting here and there.

Furious, Tania held up both palms and alternating sparks erupted from both palms…right, left, right, left, right—

"STOP IT!" Weston roared over the loud cracks. "STOP THIS RIGHT NOW!"

Tania stopped, not because Weston told her to, but because she was getting really tired. She let her trembling hands fall to her sides. Soon, the cracking sounds died down and the bright glow around the cage went out.

Silence and darkness returned. Weston's men unconsciously released the breaths they had been holding, while Weston stepped up and slapped Tania right on the face. Tania winced as she felt the sharp sting on her left cheek.

"You think everything can be solved using your powers, don't you?" Weston said coldly. "Just for that, I will not hesitate to make you suffer until you say yes to the assignment." His eyes bore unto her. "You shouldn't have tested my patience. That was a foolish thing to do."

Don't cry. Don't cry. Don't cry, her mind chanted. Do not let him see you cry.

But Tania was no longer in control. A sob escaped her lips, whether she wanted it or not, and soon, tears began to pour down her ghastly pale cheeks.

Weston burst out laughing. "So the fairy is afraid, after all," he said, the smirk evident in his voice. "I did not think that it was this easy to break you."

"You did not break me," Tania whispered, still crying.

"I'm sure," Weston said wryly. "Yes or no? And don't you dare pretend to say yes. If you do, you can say goodbye to the people you love." He smirked. "And just to remind you, they are not immortal."

Tania loudly sniffed, to Weston's amusement. Still crying, she managed to reply, but barely. "N-no," she sobbed, in between heavy breaths.

"You stubborn minx!" Weston yelled angrily. He took a step forward and raised his dagger in the air, ready to plunge it in her chest…

"Don't you dare," came an icy voice.

Weston, startled at the interruption, instantly wheeled around. His men, too, turned around, but instead of looking furious like their boss, they looked petrified. One loud "Boo!" and they would have squealed and scurried away.

Darrin stood there, a sword in his hand. His intense blue eyes were blazing with cold fury, and his lips were fixed in a thin line.

He looked dangerous. He looked ready to kill.

"Leave," Weston hissed, "if you know what's good for you. You are not part of this."

Darrin tightened his grip on his sword. "Step. Away. Now." He turned to Weston's cowering men. "You!" he barked. "Get out of here!"

They were gone before Weston could order them to stay. "Cowards!" he shouted at their retreating backs. "Pathetic cowards!"

"Looks like it's just you and me," Darrin said coldly. Weston did not flinch at the iciness in the young man's voice, but fear flashed in his eyes. For a moment, Tania thought that he was going to run away as well, but before she knew what was happening, Weston had her by the throat, his dagger dangerously close to her flesh.

"Who are you?" Weston demanded as he stared at the blond-haired lad before him. "You have no business being here."

Darrin let out a dry, mirthless chuckle. "You are about to commit a murder. I have every business being here. Release her. Now."

Weston sneered at him. "First, here's a question for you: Why is this girl important to you?"

"You're stalling," Darrin growled. "Release her now!"

"Answer the question."

Darrin took a menacing step forward. "I'm warning you," he snarled. "Don't test me. Don't do something that you'll really regret."

Weston grinned. "Such as this?" As these words escaped his lips, he raised his dagger and plunged it into Tania's abdomen.

Tania gasped loudly as the blade ripped through her flesh. She collapsed to the cage floor, the world around spinning uncontrollably. She looked down at her stomach, and was sickened at the sight.

Dark red blood was oozing out, spreading quickly on her dress.

Her vision blurred and the sounds around her grew faint. She was vaguely aware of the fight going on between Weston and Darrin, but it was the pain that occupied her. It hurt a lot. Her stomach felt as if it was burning and being sawed in the inside. She wanted to throw up, but couldn't.

Make it stop. Please make it stop, she pleaded to no one in particular. She felt her strength leaving her, the same way the dark stickiness was draining out of the deep slash on her abdomen. She couldn't move. It was too painful to. Everything was getting darker…

Suddenly, the iron gate opened, but the metal clang sounded so distant, too far away for her hearing. She felt herself being gently lifted up by strong arms and carried out of her prison. Then she felt the soft grass bed, with that someone's arms wrapped securely around her.

Her eyes fluttered open. Darrin's handsome face met her hazy vision. She should have known that it would only take him ten seconds to beat Weston. She almost smiled at the thought.

"My second death," she joked weakly.

Darrin replied with a sad, quiet laugh.

"I'll see you in five minutes…"

She welcomed the darkness.

Darrin held her in his arms for what seemed like forever. It was a mortal's death… She was going to be just fine, right?

Didn't she realize how dangerous it was to be dead for five minutes? It wouldn't take a genius to find out that a witch could put a spell on her, curse her to stay asleep forever. A fairy could kill her at this vulnerable state.

"Damn it, Tania," he whispered as he cradled her limp form. "You are not invincible."

He held her and waited. Waited for her to open her eyes once more…

Tania's eyes fluttered open. She smiled softly, feeling extremely good and well-rested, as if she had just woken up from a blissful sleep. But that smile faded as memories of the night came back to her.

"Damn Weston," she muttered under her breath.

"Hello to you too," a voice said.

Tania looked up and saw deep blue eyes. She was suddenly aware that strong arms wrapped around her, making her feel warm and secure. "Oh—uh—hey, Darrin." She smiled sheepishly. "What…uh…happened to Weston?"

Darrin nodded his head towards a certain direction. A man's body lay on the ground, stomach-down. "I knocked him out," he said casually. "He'll be out for quite a long while. Do you want me to kill him?"

Tania was very tempted to say yes. After all, a life for a life, right? It didn't matter that she was alive again. She was dead for five minutes. He killed her. He deserved to die…

But it was cowardly and wrong to kill someone in an unconscious state. Tania released a heavy, frustrated sigh and shook her head. "Nah," she said. "I've seen too much blood. Way too much blood." She looked down on her dark, stained dress and sighed heavily. "Another dress to be burned," she said sorrowfully.

Darrin shook his head in disbelief. "You just experienced your second death and you're worried about your dress."

"What?" She flashed him an innocent look. "For your information, this is one of my favourite and most comfortable dresses," she said in defence, pointing at her clothing.

He sighed and said nothing. There was silence in the air as the two lingered in their own thoughts. Darrin stared at Weston, itching to finish the job. He hated that man. But he knew Tania was right. He couldn't kill someone just like that.

Tania cleared her throat. "Uh…Darrin?"

He looked down at her, giving her a questioning look. "Yeah?"

"You can—er—let go of me now."

Darrin realized that he still held her in his arms. Instead of flushing and acting all embarrassed, he smirked. He actually smirked! "You know you like it."

Tania groaned and shoved him off. "You wish," she replied drearily. She slowly stood up and dusted off imaginary dirt from the skirts of her dress. She shook her head at the sight of blood.

"What shall we do with the jerk?" Darrin asked, standing up as well.

Tania looked at the knocked out Weston. Then an idea popped in her head. She grinned mischievously. "We'll tie him up, and I'll bring him somewhere far away."

"No way," Darrin said, shaking his head. "You're not going anywhere alone."

Tania couldn't help sighing. Here we go again. "Darrin," she said, trying to hide the slight impatience in her voice, "you're not my bodyguard anymore, remember?"

A hurt look flashed on his face. But it was only there for a split second, and Tania almost missed it. "Fine," he said stiffly.

Tania sighed again. After a short pause, she said, "Well…you're not my bodyguard, but—uh—would you like to go with me as company?"

Darrin pretended to consider this. He stroked his smooth chin thoughtfully. Afterwards, he nodded. "All right."

Tania grinned broadly. "Perfect! Now…where should we bring the brute?"

"I'd say let's toss him into the sea."

Tania laughed. "Riiight. Really…where should we bring him?" She absent-mindedly stared at the grass (which had blood as well) as she searched her mind for ideas.

Where could I take him? Kyrria? Nah…Thor! I could take him to Thor! But then again, what's stopping him from coming back here? He's not going to leave me alone. Maybe we should just kill him. He's a threat. He could hurt Kylee, or Georgia, or…

She caught Darrin staring intently at her. She turned to him, an irritable look on her face. "What?!"

Darrin shrugged and looked away. "We're going to be here all night," he muttered very quietly.

Tania heard it. "Oh hush up," she snapped. "Leave if you want to. No one's stopping you."

Darrin didn't budge.

"Or at least help me think of something. And don't suggest again that we toss him into the sea."

Darrin sighed impatiently and sat on the grass (the spot that had no blood, of course). Tania stood there for a short while, contemplating, until she sighed as well and sank down on the spot next to him.

"This is pathetic," she said glumly. "I have no idea what to do with the person I hate the most."

"I'd say let's just toss him into the sea."

"Can you please stop it with that?"

"Sorry. The idea is just so amusing."

Tania sighed again and absent-mindedly floated herself in the air, three feet off the ground. She did not realize that she was doing it until Darrin spoke up.

"Show off," he mumbled.

Tania started at the sound of his voice. Then, having realized what he meant by saying "Show off," she glared at him and said, "Leave me alone. It helps me think."

"Fine"—a pause—"Can I ask you something?"

Tania sighed. "Shoot."

"Any idea on who killed you?"

She shook her head. "Nope. They were both masked."

"Male or female?" he asked.

She shrugged nonchalantly. "Male. Their voices were too deep." And all of a sudden, her mood changed. "Can we please not talk about that?" she said irritably. "I prefer to not remember that night."

Darrin shrugged. "Fine."

Tania landed back on the ground and huffed crossly.

"What's with your mood swings?"

"Leave me alone."

"Touchy, are you?"

Tania just glared.

"Fine, fine," Darrin said, raising his hands in surrender. "I'll leave you alone."

Everything became eerily quiet after that. Tania sneaked a look at her companion, and saw that he was inattentively gazing at nothing in particular. She sighed.

It's now or never, Tania. Just do it.

He's going to remind you of this for the rest of your life.

But that doesn't give you an excuse to not do it. Get it over with!

He's going to gloat about it.

He probably will, but you still have to do it.

Fine!

Tania took a deep breath. "Thank you," she said softly, half-hoping that he wouldn't hear.

Darrin turned to her. "Pardon?"

He said it so innocently that Tania went on an inner battle with herself, debating on whether he was pretending or not. Seconds later, she forced herself to say those words again. "Thank you for saving me." She said it louder this time.

Silence. Tania braced herself for a mocking remark. Or a snicker. Or an arrogant chuckle.

But there was none.

"You're welcome," Darrin replied quietly.

Tania instantly looked up and met his intense eyes. There was no sign of mockery in them, but there was something else. She couldn't place her finger on what it was though, so she chose to shake it out of her thoughts. He was confusing her enough. Forcing a smile, she said, "How did you know I was here anyway?"

"I saw whitish blue light," Darrin replied. "It attracted my attention."

The sparks, Tania thought. She wondered why he was up and outside at this time, but decided not to try her luck. She doubted that he would tell her. Darrin had his secrets.

Suddenly, out of the blue, an idea popped into her head, which was weird since it had absolutely nothing to do with what she had been thinking earlier. "I got it!" she announced.

Darrin stood up as well. "What did you get?"

Tania answered with a mysterious smile. Darrin didn't whether to be annoyed or be intrigued. So, he settled in between. He watched her as she took a deep breath and loudly said, "Lucinda, come to my aid."

He looked at her as if she had gone crazy. "What are you—"

He was cut off by a sudden gust of wind and a faint smell of….lilacs? But before he could actually register what was happening, an elderly woman appeared before them, smiling widely and happily. Darrin just gawked.

"What can I do for you, child?" Lucinda asked Tania, giving Darrin nothing but a short glance.

"Lucinda, what kind of big magic have you done?" Tania asked.

Lucinda was startled at this question. After regaining her composure, she spoke. "Well," she said thoughtfully, "I turned people into squirrels, and I also gave 'gifts,' which I later on found out to be more like curses."

"What kind of gifts?"

Lucinda took a deep breath. "Well…I made a couple of people obedient, I gave couples eternal love, and much more. Oh, it was dreadful! You don't know how much I regret doing all those!" she sobbed.

Tania suddenly felt guilty for bringing the whole thing up. Seeing Lucinda break down like this was…disturbing. "I'm so sorry."

"It's all right," Lucinda said softly, wiping a tear.

"I called you to tell you that I have decided to give that human"—Tania pointed at Weston—"the gift of obedience."

Lucinda instantly let out a loud gasp. "Oh, child! Don't! You can't! You possibly can't!"

"Why not?" Tania asked defiantly. She pointed at Weston's unconscious form. "He deserves it. He's a disgusting monster. He killed me, Lucinda, which means he won't hesitate to kill others…even mortals."

Lucinda stammered. "B-but…"

"Are you sure, Tania?" Darrin spoke up. He didn't sound as if he wanted to reject the idea. In fact, he actually sounded eager about it.

Tania nodded. "I'm sure." She turned to Lucinda. "Can he break it?"

"I only know one who was able to do it," Lucinda replied wearily.

"That proves that it is possible."

"But still—"

"I'm going to do it," Tania cut in. "He deserves it, trust me."

Lucinda sighed heavily. "I cannot stop you, child. But I strongly suggest that you don't do it. Farewell." With a nod and a sad gaze at Tania, she vanished.

The moment Lucinda disappeared, Tania crept towards Weston. She stared at his limp body, half expecting him to open his eyes and grab her wrist. But of course, he did none of that.

"Are you sure about this?" Darrin said from behind.

"Don't you think that he deserves it?"

"I do think that he deserves it, but Tania, once you put this curse on him…" He trailed off.

"I think that this is better than tossing him into the sea and just letting him drown," Tania said hotly.

Darrin bit back his smile. "Fine. He's a bastard anyway. Do whatever you want to do. I can't stop you."

Tania grinned and kneeled next to Weston. Then she placed her hand above his sweaty forehead and spoke. "My gift, or rather curse"—she snickered—"to you is obedience. From now on, dear ass, you will always be obedient."

The palm of her hand started to glow brightly. The luminous light bathed Weston's head, but he didn't stir.

After a few seconds, the light faded from Tania's hand.

"Done," she announced as she stood up. "Now, we can go." She turned to Darrin and suddenly remembered that they weren't supposed to head off to the same direction. He was no longer her bodyguard.

It was an awkward moment. Tania admitted to herself that Darrin had been good company. How should the goodbye be? Should it sound distant? Should it be a friendly one?

She shook her head at the way her thoughts were stirring. For goodness's sake, it was only a goodbye! No big deal, right? She met his eyes and gave him a friendly smile. "I guess this is goodbye then," she said cheerfully.

Darrin gave her a look that she didn't really understand. And that unnerved her for some reason. "Goodbye, my lady," he said politely and formally. "I won't leave before you."

Tania couldn't help feeling hurt at his aloof tone, but she hid it well. She nodded, still smiling, though it was constrained. "All right." She jumped off the ground and hovered mid-air. "Thank you again, Darrin," she said. "For everything."

Darrin smirked. "Was this the hundredth time I've saved you?"

"Yeah, but I wouldn't brag about it."

"Goodbye, Tania."

Tania smiled. "Goodbye."

She hoped that it wasn't a long-term one.

But Fate could be so cruel sometimes.

A/N:

Do you think it was right of Tania to curse Weston? Think of it this way: Weston is a sly pig who is willing to harm anyone, if it means getting his way. So, if his poor victim says "Don't harm me," he will have to obey, right? Does that make sense? Anyway, please review!

Important:

I'm going to be revising this story. I'm changing the name Cowen into Damien. I'm also changing Darrin's name because I can't have two male characters that start with D. Do you have any suggestions for Darrin's new name? I hope you don't mind. If you wish to keep Darrin's name, try to convince me with good reasons. One last thing, what do you think of Darrin? Do you like him? Well, that's it for now! =)