Soul Mates, Part 1 Ch 4
Tug of War
Ailia looked up at him. "How do you know? You've only just met me. I don't even know you. How do you know that I'm the one for you? How do you know-"
Luke slid his hand from her chin to her cheek, stroking his thumb gently over her face and wiping away the tear track. "I know, Ailia. I know because both halves of my soul yearn for you. I know because I want to touch you and hold you. I want to keep you in my arms, and give you the world." He grinned as Ailia leaned into his touch, ever so slightly. His wolf preened with pride. "I know you feel it too, love, as confusing as it is. You can deny it all you want, but you want my touch. You want my warmth. You want my approval, my admiration, and my love. It is in every fiber of your body, and you have no idea why. You no longer want or need anyone else. Your soul knows that I can fill each and every desire and need you have."
I am only yours, and you are only mine.
Ailia's eyes widened. His unspoken words reverberated in her head. He knew. He knew her longing. He knew what had been in her mind all day. He knew her need for the simplest touch, the purest love, the gentlest warmth.
Luke nodded. "I have needed you as much as you have needed me; however, ever since I saw you walking the trail last week for the first time, I have been barely able to restrain myself. I have not known how to approach you and introduce myself to you, until today. My desire was to immediately be at your side and integrate myself into your life, but that would have only pushed you away, at least in the immediate. You know what I speak is the truth, my beloved."
Ailia exhaled heavily, processing his words. "So, you're telling me that you and I are destined to be together for the rest of our lives?"
"If you accept me, then yes. You have the right to refuse, of course, although I sincerely pray you do not. For both our sakes, as we will never want or love anyone else like each other, and without each other we will slowly go mad."
"Is this why you asked me if I believed in magic?"
Luke grinned. "Partly. The other part of it might just blow your mind, and while I am dying to show my full colors to you, today is not the time to do so. I will do so tomorrow, and give you tonight to process and come to terms with what I have told you today."
"Does it have to do with why I can hear you in my thoughts?" she asked. "I've heard it twice now."
"Correct. On that note, actually, I'd like to mention something. The connection that I have to you also goes in reverse. Your mind has been very guarded, and I assume for many good reasons. The strength with which you defend your mind is impressive for one that has had no training in how to block others. I have only been able to feel your emotions, and mainly when you are in great distress. However, if you so desired, you could hear my thoughts too. If you let the wall around your mind down, and open yourself to me, I will always be with you no matter where we are, and you will always be with me."
"That might be a while" muttered Ailia quietly. She withdrew into herself, pulling her legs to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. She slid her cheek from Luke's hand and rested her chin on her knees.
"As long as it takes, my love," Luke said gently. "Now, you should head home. You have a lot to think about. I'll find you tomorrow, and you can give me your answer then, on whether or not you want to be my mate. I also have more to tell you then, and I can't wait to blow your mind away."
Despite herself, Ailia snorted with amusement.
Luke looked at her, confused. "Did I say something?"
"No," said Ailia, shaking her head. "You're so formal, and a bit old-fashioned, I guess is the best way to put it." She intentionally stared into his honey eyes for the first time, allowing herself a moment of hope. "It's adorable," she commented, sticking her tongue out at him.
Luke gave her a mock bow. "I learned from some of the best, milady." When he stood, a grin was plastered across his face. "Now scram, I need to get home too, you know."
Ailia walked home slowly, purposely watching her feet as she placed one foot in front of the other on her way down the trail. The forest trail rustled under her feet, a layer of leaves creating a soft cushion on the ground for as far as she could see. It wasn't quite dusk, but the sun was still rapidly sinking in the sky. As the temperature began to drop, she pulled into her sweater to seek her own heat.
Damn this sky, she thought. The forest was a beautifully wild place, and on any given day you might catch a glimpse of a fox, coyote, deer, or other medium-sized denizen wandering around by the trail. The trail spray she carried came from a bear sighting she had had a few months back. While she knew the forest was no place for her, it was oddly alluring. But the fading daylight meant that she had to hurry home, and gave her little time to appreciate what was around her.
She wouldn't exactly call herself a tree-hugger, but Ailia had a deep appreciation for nature and the cycle of life. While she feared death, she understood its purpose in the world, and knew that it was all about keeping balance. Death made way for new life, and without that cycle, there was no way life would be able to thrive on the planet as it did. She believed in the spirits of living things. Except spiders. Spiders were soulless, creepy abominations that deserved to be eradicated if they were any larger than a dime. Fucking Shelob. Lord of the Rings was probably not the greatest gift she had received as a child.
Up ahead, she could see the "split" in the trail, where she would veer off to break through the trees. She turned her thoughts to Luke. No doubt he was handsome. He was by far taller than her, standing at about six feet. His hair was a pepper color, black with a sprinkling of brown that really came out in the sun. He was also exactly her type - he had strength under his broad shoulders and torso. Muscled, but not ripped and corded either. Still a teddy bear. She found herself smiling at the thought. She had no idea how much older he was than her, but by her guess it was an age difference of over ten years. And his eyes! No matter how hard she tried, she could not stop thinking about those eyes. They were familiar to her and not at the same time, and such an odd color. Golden amber was...almost animal. Of course, she knew her own silver-blue eyes weren't exactly normal, but she knew she could pass better than he ever would.
And he was her mate. The pull that she felt for him was undeniable, that much was true. He had been able to speak to her soul, her very core, and promise her everything she ever needed. She considered herself to be high-maintenance, although others had disagreed with her on that statement. Not with material goods or fashion and looks, but with her emotional state of mind. Most people didn't even know she had alter egos, and she usually kept it that way. Could he really be her soul mate, the one who could heal and protect her? The one who would stand by her? Her other relationships had all been long-distance, and had ended in failure after they had left her. One of them had almost cost her her life. Luke hadn't even had a girlfriend before her! If he could speak into her mind, could he read her thoughts? Could he see her memories?
Would he change his mind if he knew the abuse and pain she had suffered for the past twenty years? She shuddered at the thought. She'd be vulnerable again. Opening herself to more heartbreak and disappointment. Well, truthfully, she'd be opening herself to the chance that she might end up alone again; she could handle heartbreak the same way she handled Jason. Go tell it to fuck right off.
She broke through the treeline into her neighbor's backyard and began walking towards her house off to the right. She pulled out her phone; it was almost six in the evening. She knew Carrie would have something good cooking at this time. While she had gotten used to buying her food all throughout college, nothing beat a home-cooked meal. Especially if it was casserole. Carrie made an amazing tuna casserole, and she knew that Ailia loved it. She was a 6 foot tall 70-year old transgender woman who had remarried Ailia's mother shortly after Ailia had been given to her mother's custody at the age of 14. She cared for Ailia like Ailia was her own daughter. She had two of her own children, but they never came around. Ailia knew that without her the old widow would have more freedom, but also be more lonely. The one thing that allowed Ailia the peace of mind to not worry if she ever left Carrie was Carrie's fondness of the tuxedo cat Ailia had been given. Oreo was a bit of a shrimp compared to other cats, but he was pure lap cat material, and spent many evenings on Carrie's lap dozing.
"Carrie, I'm home!" she called out gently as she opened the door. The response that greeted her was deep snoring. Ailia grinned. The old lady needed her sleep, and there was no telling when that would be. But, true to form, on the kitchen counter in front of her was a steaming plate of cooked rotisserie chicken and a small bowl of gravy. Grabbing her own bowl, she forked in a portion of chicken and poured the gravy over it. She carried it over to her computer and sat down, powering it up. Absentmindedly eating the chicken, she logged on to the PC and pulled up a YouTube page.
And so passed the night, until she could keep her eyes open no longer. She stored the chicken and gravy in some tupperware containers, and placed them in the fridge. Dragging herself up the stairs to the second story, she turned into her bedroom and collapsed on the bed, falling asleep quickly and easily.
The morning came more loudly than Ailia had expected. She woke to the sound of a crash downstairs. She sat up, clearing the morning crust from her eyes, and stood. She carefully descended the staircase into the kitchen, clinging to the handrail to make sure she wouldn't stumble and fall.
"You alright Carrie?" she asked groggily. She glanced through the kitchen window. Carrie's car was still in the driveway, so she was definitely still here and hadn't yet left for whatever consulting job she still did at her age.
Ailia's mind flashed back to a time when she had similarly been in this situation. Similarly had woken up and gone looking for someone. Similarly looked through the window and seen the car in the driveway. A sense of dread washed through her. The last time she had been in this situation, her mother had died.
Looking over the kitchen, pots and pans that had been on the stove were scattered across the floor. That was the sound that had woken her up, presumably. Stepping past them, Ailia moved into the guest reception. Looking down the hallway that branched to her right and led to the dining room, there was no one there. Continuing forward, the spiral banister that led to the opposite end of the second floor was empty, and the only other place to look was the living room. She turned to the living room on her right, and that too was empty.
"Carrie?" she called out, now fully awake. Panic was overtaking the dread in her, and everything in her screamed at her to run and leave the house. But if Carrie needed her…
"Carrie!" She was basically yelling at this point. Had she made it upstairs? Was she in her bedroom and needing help?
Ailia moved. Instinctively, she walked past the banister staircase, and through the guest receiving room. The banister staircase was faster, but unsafe. If she hurt herself trying to get to Carrie, she might be useless.
As she passed through to the kitchen, a resounding thud noted the heavy landing of something behind her. Someone or something had been on the ceiling. And, of course, no one ever looks up.
She turned, and shrank back in horror as first Carrie's body, and then the cat's, lay in front of her. Shriveled up like a prune and pale, she knew they were both dead. Neither were the first dead body she'd seen.
A third figure dropped from the ceiling and landed on the floor behind them, barely making a sound. Bright purple eyes, pale skin and bloody fangs the size of a large wildcat, clad in all black.
A panicked voice reached her mind. Ailia! Are you alright? What's going on?! I can feel you, something isn't right!
The vampire took a step forward, and then another. Ailia stood there, paralyzed. The vampire walked forward until he was only two feet away from her, and sniffed. "You smell like werewolf." Her voice was a croaked whisper. "I see you have been found, wolf-mate. Your family made for a delicious meal, but sadly I cannot touch you just yet. You will no doubt meet the werewolf again. Tell him I bring a message: the vampires are...unhappy, with our arrangement as it stands, and demand a council." Her violet eyes flashed. "And the healer is to be present as well."
A flash of black, and the being was gone.
Ailia stared at the two dead bodies in front of her. Her last family. And not knowing what else to do, called out with her mind and her voice.
"LUCAS!"