(14B) ". . . a Measure of Control. . ."
After nineteen years of living together, Odessa was glad to have made the gamble to live with Vera. Vera was the complete opposite of Odessa, and while normally that would end in arguments and a tense atmosphere, it led to a strong camaraderie between the two. Odessa never thought she would feel such a strong connection with anyone before. She could honestly say she had a best friend, someone she could confide in and hang out with whenever she wanted to. It was a rocky start with a lot of wariness on Odessa's part, but Vera had been patient and after a handful of years Odessa was finally comfortable enough to confide in the blonde.
Vera was sympathetic and understanding when Odessa told her of her origins and of her upbringing. She had all the right answers and all the right things to say as Odessa ran through her traumatic childhood - it was truly amazing. Odessa felt like someone finally understood her, and wasn't that just the best feeling in the world? She couldn't remember a time when she had been so carefree, so willing to laugh and smile and give her opinion. Vera allowed her to be herself in a safe environment and the small cottage quickly became a true home. Vera became home.
Of course they had their moments when they needed space, when opinions differed too much and tempers ran hot. Odessa had been especially mad when Vera began bringing people to the house - humans. Vera would bring them back to the house after a night out and would bed them before draining them dry. Sometimes she let them leave if she enjoyed them enough to bring them back again, but those times were rare. While Odessa didn't care whether or not Vera drained them - she was part vampire afterall and it was in her nature to love the taste of iron-filled blood - she didn't appreciate that she was sharing their home with strangers.
"You cannot keep bringing them into our home, Vera!" Odessa yelled with pointed eyes.
"Why not? I am not hurting anything, and a little fun never hurt anyone," Vera said as she sipped from a glass while she sat on the couch. Her legs were curled up against her side and her other hand was waving Odessa off.
"A little fun never hurt anyone," Odessa agreed, "but that does not matter in this situation. I am asking you to not allow just anyone to traipse into our home!"
"Relax, Odes," Vera replied easily. "You are too tense. Maybe you need a good lay, huh?"
"I do not!" Odessa yelled, appalled.
"It will be fun!" Vera exclaimed. "I will bring someone home for you tonight."
"I said no, Vera," Odessa turned down the offer. She stomped off to her room and laid down on her bed, turning away from the door to face the beige walls of her room. While she allowed Vera to change the interior of her room and the shared living spaces, Odessa kept the changes to her room minimal. She kept the beige walls and the brown wood furniture. The only thing she brought into the room was a nice rug and the few knick knacks she accumulated over the years. She felt safe in her own room, and it was her go to place for when she needed time away from Vera. Day turned to night as she remained in one spot. She didn't move until she heard the opening of the front door and voices file into the air. She stood up in a huff and opened her door to see Vera with two men.
"Odessa," Vera greeted enthusiastically. "I brought you a friend!"
"Vera, I told you I did not want company tonight."
"Nonsense! This is Kristjan and his friend Benteinn," she introduced. Kristjan was holding onto Vera and was whispering dirty things into her ear, things Odessa really did not want to hear. Benteinn was eyeing Odessa and whispered to Vera, asking if Odessa was the friend Vera was talking about earlier. After Vera gave him confirmation, he strode up to Odessa and grabbed her hand. He kissed the back of it and looked up into her eyes with a smirk.
"It is a pleasure to meet you," he said in Gaelic. Odessa stared at him in confusion and tore her hand away from his grasp. She glared at Vera and stormed back into her room. That night, Vera kept Kristjan and Bentienn alive and brought them back night after night until Odessa caved in and gave Bentienn a chance. It was her first time doing anything sexual, but she quickly found out that she much enjoyed the sensation of it. Her instincts kicked in and she couldn't help but revel in the pleasure. Once Vera grew tired of Kristjan and drained him, Odessa knew she had to do the same to Bentienn. She was sad to see him go and did it with as much gentleness as she could offer. But she moved on and got other lovers. It was easy to have sex with a human and then kill them as Odessa saw no harm in the action.
She should have known that it wouldn't last long.
They had indulged in their pleasures too many times during such a short period of time. The locals began suspecting them of killing off their men and women, and soon Vera and Odessa were bombarded with threats and violence. They had walked into town that night to find two more people to bed with and were immediately attacked. People tried hitting them, scratching them, cutting them with sharp objects, but none of it worked against them and eventually the humans realized they were the ones being hurt rather than their targets. Odessa and Vera were dumbfounded and could only watch as the humans gave themselves broken hands, ripped fingernails, and false hope at ridding the town of the monsters.
Once they realized what was going on, they ran back to the cottage to escape. Odessa had slammed the door shut and gave it a hopeless look, like she had ruined her chance at being happy for the rest of her life. Vera, on the other hand, was angry. She screamed, causing Odessa to flinch and turn around, and threw the small coffee table across the room. The cup of cold tea that sat upon it had flown through the air and broke against the wall, staining it. Vera didn't stop there, and she proceeded to grab the lamp off the side table and hurl it at the wall closest to her, bathing the room in darkness and covering the floor with more glass. Everything that stood in the room was thrown and broken to pieces.
"Vera," Odessa said, trying to get her attention. "Vera! Vera!"
She walked up the blonde and grabbed her arms, shaking her and trying to get her to look her in the eyes. Vera ripped her arms from Odessa's grip and pushed her to the ground. She pushed her hair back with her hair frantically and screamed again before sitting down on the edge of the couch. Her leg shook up and down as she tried to calm herself down.
"They think they can do this to me - to us!" Vera yelled as she paced the room.
"Vera, calm down. We should have known this was coming," Odessa tried to soothe her. "We can just move and start over. It will not be that difficult."
"No! I refuse to allow those humans to scare us off!"
"Think rational, Vera! There is no need to do anything further! We need to leave!" Odessa tried reasoning. "The Volturi - the Volturi could be here any moment! We need to leave!"
"What will those dogs do, huh?" Vera shouted. "You think we cannot take them!"
"What are you saying? We exposed ourselves, whether it was intentional or not. We need to go!"
"We can fight them!" Vera insisted as she stopped pacing and walked up to Odessa. Her eyes were wild and her hands that held Odessa's face were slightly shaking. "We have you!"
"Me?" Odessa echoed hollowly.
"Yes! Your power! It is great! It can wipe out the entire Volturi. Odessa, please!"
"You want me to use my power?"
"Listen," Vera said, "I know two vampires who would help us. They do not like the Volturi either, and only want what is best for everyone else!"
"You sound like you have been planning this for some time," Odessa accused her. Vera looked guilty.
"I admit my reasons for approaching you were not innocent," Vera admitted.
"So, you used me for your own personal gain."
Odessa grabbed Vera's hands and removed them from her face. She backed up to put some distance between them and glared at Vera warily.
"I was sent to look for others - powerful vampires - that could help our cause. I came across you a few months into my journey and saw the handle you had over your power. I knew you were the perfect person for the job. I did not think it would take this long for the opportunity to present you with the option, but it could not have been better timing!" Vera explained. "You understand, right Odes? This is what you have been created for! You were made to be powerful, to right the wrongs of those who abuse their power for evil! Join our cause - help us overthrow the Voturi so we can take our rightful place on the throne!"
Odessa shook her head violently and rushed out the front door. There was no way she was going to help them overthrow the very government that helped stabilize the hidden vampire world. Besides, she refused to use her gift for evil purposes. She refused to start a revolution that was unnecessary. Pointless. Nothing was so drastic to do such a thing. She paced a few meters in front of the house, trying to tune out the vicious snarls Vera was emitting from the cottage.
She should have known nothing good was to come from Vera living with her. She should have listened to her instincts and should have thought longer about the colors she was seeing in Vera's essence. She should have known the blonde was superficial with her intentions. She should have known that danger or revenge was being held close to the blonde. She shouldn't have given the blonde the benefit of the doubt. She ran her fingers through her hair and pulled her fingers through hastily, ripping out a few hairs and throwing them to the ground. Behind her, the door to the cottage opened and Vera came stalking towards her.
"Odessa!" Vera shouted angrily. She rammed into the hybrid and caused them to tumble to the ground. They tumbled around, each trying to get the upper hand. Vera was able to get on top of Odessa, and she held the hybrid's hands down to the ground. "You will listen to me!"
"Let me go!" Odessa yelled.
"Not until you listen to me!" Vera yelled, venom dripping from her lips and falling onto Odessa's cheek. "We will be unstoppable! Imagine it! Sitting on your own throne, humans lying at your feet wanting to be sacrificed, all the blood you can drink without being afraid of consequences!" Vera's eyes clouded over as she thought about it, and Odessa took the chance to gain the upper hand. She kneed Vera in the stomach and threw her off. She stood up quickly and grabbed ahold of Vera's essence. It was riddled with more red than Odessa had ever seen, marring the beautiful orange and purple colors.
"Leave and never come back," Odessa spit out. "You leave and never stand in front of me again! If I ever see you again, I will kill you, do you understand?"
Odessa watched as Vera ran away until she was out of sight. She held her breath, waiting to see if Vera would come back, and when she didn't, Odessa breathed in relief. Now, she had to think about what she would do. She had broken a law - had exposed herself to humans without meaning to but nonetheless had. She had just lost her best friend, and she didn't feel right staying in her cottage. She didn't feel like living anymore. So, she made her decision. She would go to Italy, do some sight seeing, and turn herself in.
And she had planned on doing just that!
She was fully prepared to walk into that castle and present herself so she could serve punishment for her crime. . . right after she had a cookie. As the taste of chocolate invaded her mouth, and a spicy scent invaded her nose, she knew she couldn't do it. She got lost in the sights, the smells, the atmosphere that Italy presented. She would miss it too much. She didn't want to give up the chance to experience it all again. With her head on straight and unclouded, she knew she couldn't give them the chance to discover something so rare. So, she fled, not without bumping into someone, of course. And as she raced to leave the city limits, all she could think about was how stupid she was and how much she really wanted to encounter that smell again.