Chapter 9


Running.

It has always been one of Chloe's choice work out. May it be first thing in the evening or after she's done with all her classes. Other than being a good stress reliever, it also keeps her body in shape. Most of the time, it's Aubrey who jogs with her. Some days it's Claire. Chloe prefers Aubrey's company though. Claire hates coffee and Chloe's favourite café is a definite pit stop to her early morning runs. Nevertheless, running has always been one of Chloe's strongest points. She's joined marathons and charity races. It's a healthy exercise, it clears her mind, teaches her discipline and it makes her feel good overall.

But running for your life though? Now that's a whole new topic because running is an activity you're supposed to enjoy and feel free to do and not because you're forced into it. Besides, you know this whole running for your life thing is serious when you're heading towards the no trespassing zone of the Winter Forest with your long time archenemy who also happens to be your ex-best friend—which is such a cliché situation to find yourself into when you're about to die.

"Beca, wait!" she breathes out, legs ceasing to a halt while her hand tugs on the brunette's, with their hands clasped together it makes her companion stop as well. This was probably the longest she's ever made physical contact with Beca.

"What now? You left your phone back at home?" Beca sarcastically questions in between laboured breathing as she turns to face her. It's dark but Chloe could clearly see that look of disbelief the other female was sporting right now.

"No, it's," she stops for a moment to close her eyes before opening them once more. "I can't leave. I need to go back. Tom…," she starts but falters as she feels Beca's hand slips away from hers and Chloe instinctively tries to grab hold of it once more. It doesn't happen as the distance between them increases and suddenly she feels cold. But it's too late now.

"I can't leave them. They need me. Tom needs me," she says softly.

She hears Beca sigh before focusing back at her once more, "Are you not aware of the protocol?" she asks and it's not a question Chloe was expecting.

"What protocol?"

Beca lets out another audible sigh. The Du Pont doesn't answer immediately and Chloe feels like she is mentally debating on whether or not she should answer her. Somehow, this 'not knowing' situation makes her feel dumb. What important protocol has she not been told of?

"The heir's safety is first priority, always, especially in threatening situations like this. The school has created an emergency contingency plan to ensure that," Beca finally breathes out. "If I wasn't mistaken, your family chopper has just passed by ten minutes ago," she says before adding in a much softer tone, "Along with the Mori's," and Chloe hates to think of what has become of the other two elite family heirs. Nevertheless, Beca is in front of her right now which then gives her hope that the others may have survived.

However, it dawns on her that if what Beca had said was true then it would mean that Tom had left and whether he was forced to or not, it still hurts that he had left her.

She shakes away the heavy feeling as she mentally berates herself for being selfish. Of course, the heir must be protected at all cost, for the future of the bloodline and for the future of their kind. This was what she had signed up for when she started a romantic relationship with one. It has also occurred to her that she hadn't told Tom about her real whereabouts before all this happened. She had spent an evening celebrating with the Du Ponts, a celebration she has even helped make possible. Now she even feels guilty and ashamed for lying—the one thing she seems to be very good at these days. It's in the Vanderbilt motto to honour their word and yet here she was.

"You can go back if you want," Beca says in that familiar distant tone. "Or you can come along. It's only this or that! Decide fast, decide now. Make up your good damn mind because I don't have time for this, Chloe!" she says sharply and Chloe finds herself looking back at the Du Pont with surprise.

The truth is, Beca's never said her name before. It's been eight years since the brunette had even mentioned it. Absurd but true. It has always been 'Vanderbilt' or 'idiot', the obvious favourite nickname she keeps giving her which is always paired with other insults.

Even your name repulses her that she can't even say it

A tiny crack resounds throughout the whole forest and in a vampire's ears it's loud enough to notice. Chloe lets out a sharp gasp as Beca suddenly takes her by the arm, quickly pulling her to stand behind her. The Du Pont takes out her dagger, her free arm is outstretched in front of Chloe, shielding her. Another small noise breaks from somewhere in the darkness and Chloe instantly grabs on to Beca's free arm, pressing herself closely to the brunette. Fear gripping her whole body as they both stare at the path they had just came from.

Something was out there.

It had followed them here and it's threatening to destroy their small bubble of safety. It doesn't really occur to Chloe until Beca slowly pushes them both backwards one step at a time that they were right under the willow tree, Beca's tree—or so she claims. Hidden behind the large tree trunk, Beca puts a finger to her lip and Chloe doesn't hesitate on doing what she's told, hoping the loud pumping in her chest won't be heard. Beca moves away from her and almost instantly she grabs on to the Du Pont's jacket in fear, eyes begging her to never leave. The brunette looks at her quickly, a hand prying Chloe's fingers off her.

"Stay here and don't move unless I tell you to. I'll be back," Beca assures her in the softest tone Chloe's ever heard her use. "And if I don't, just run as fast as you can, go straight ahead and never look back," she adds which has Chloe shaking her head and digging her fingers harder into the leather fabric of her jacket.

"Beca, you can't go out there. You're also an elite heir!" she reminds her, voice pleading for the Du Pont to not dive head first in to danger.

The Du Pont stills as she turns to look back at her in the eye, "You're right, I am an heir. I don't hide and cower in fear. I'll fight the fuckers who want to fuck with me and my people," she says with a smirk. "So, stay there while I flush this shit to where it belongs," she adds a wink to that before successfully ripping Chloe's grip on her and stealthily walking off.

It only took seconds until Chloe hears a choking noise erupt from the silence of the forest followed by a sharp cracking sound of neck being snapped. More of those sickening sounds and grunts fill up the whole place as she crouches low, a hand covering her uncontrollable whimpers. With her curiosity getting the best of her, she slowly moves to peek, admittedly becoming worried for the Du Pont.

The scene before her stuns her, her eyes growing wide at the sight, all so clear now that the gray clouds have paved way for the moon to shine down on them.

Blood spatters everywhere as Beca takes those masked men one by one, stabbing flesh, ripping hearts and snapping heads so effortlessly and without hesitation. Bodies that are definitely twice her size dropping down the ground as soon as she finishes them off. But it was obvious that they had advantage in numbers, Beca gets hit on the face and she spits out blood. However, the Du Pont can definitely take a punch as she turns her head back at her attacker, only looking even more pissed at being hit, before landing one of her own. Beca gets another hit and this time it's a cut to the arm. Chloe could hear the pained groan that escapes her lips as she falls down the ground after another blow to the gut. The attacker goes in for the kill making Chloe's heart stop for a beat or two. Before she could even think, her feet are up and sprinting towards Beca's direction. She catches sight of Beca's dagger a few feet away and in a blink she grabs for it before plunging it down with everything she's got against the enemy's back. It goes in and he shouts in pain, the blade missing his heart by an inch. A chill passes through her as the attacker slowly turns to face her. She instinctively takes a step back, swallowing nervously both from fear of being killed and from the guilt of stabbing someone seconds ago.

"Uh I do think we started off at the wrong foot here. I'm sorry?" she squeaks, taking another step back.

But then the distraction was good enough for Beca as she pulls out the blade and jumps on his back while he flails, trying to grab her by the hair. He fails and she raises up her arm, dagger in her hand, before dropping it down hard on to his chest, blade aiming right smack at the center of his heart, a sight that will certainly haunt Chloe even in her dreams. It hits its target and without even a drop of remorse, a sickening twist to the handle finishes him instantly. Both of them fall down the ground and the moment she regains her bearings, Chloe rushes over to Beca's side.

"Are you alright?" she asks worriedly, her eyes scanning every inch of the Du Pont's face for cuts and bruises—she definitely has both of those decorating her flawless face. Beca stands up slowly as she scans the whole area before settling back her focus on Chloe.

"You never listen, do you?" she says instead and irritation quickly flares inside Chloe's chest.

"So you're saying I should've just sat there and watched you die?" she asks incredulously with a frown as she motions over to the tree.

"I wasn't going to die," she defends as she pulls out her dagger from the dead body as easily as plucking a fork out of her steak, making Chloe wince at the motion.

"Oh really? 'Cause a minute ago it seemed like that guy was about to make a kebab out of you!" Chloe points out.

Beca turns around to face her quickly, "No, I was waiting for the exact moment where he goes in so that I can pull out a quick fade and lunge at—," she pauses mid-sentence, taking one huge breathe before exhaling loudly and shaking her head, "Never mind," she grumbles before walking off. Chloe follows her.

She glances back at the bloody scene, more than ten bodies piled and scattered around. It hits her then that Beca had actually killed off all those vampires. All of them, suffering brutal and violent deaths. Nobody just does that out of the blue and walks away from it like nothing happened. It dawns on her then and there that this wasn't the first time Beca had done this before.

Chloe shudders at the thought of Beca having killed someone before all this happened. Being with the Du Pont for almost a week, she wouldn't have thought that she could even be capable of pulling off something this gruesome. Yeah, she looked like it but no, she still wouldn't have thought she'd do all that.

Looking at the Du Pont's back as they walk silently through the forest, only one thought enters her mind. The Beca she knew back then could never even hurt a fly.

What really happened to you all these years, Beca?

She almost bumps against the Du Pont when she realizes that the brunette has stopped walking. She was just about to ask when she follows Beca's line of sight. They were in front of that line, the one that was placed there to warn people. Once they cross it, they are officially entering the unknown shadows of the Winter Forest. All those stories about the horrors lurking deep within it swimming around Chloe's head, bringing no comfort at all.

"Take this," Beca suddenly says as she shoves what seems to be a car remote towards her. "Bugatti. Black. Very fast," she enumerates as Chloe looks at her in confusion. The Du Pont turns around to check the path they've come from before finally facing her.

"If you follow this caution line to the north, you'd circle back to the university gate. My car is parked just outside to the right. You get in it and drive away to the airport, don't ever stop until you get home. There's cash in my car that you can use and a cell phone," she explains hurriedly, her dark orbs avoiding hers as she does so.

"Why are you telling me this? W-What about you?" she asks, having a really bad feeling about this plan. It didn't feel right because if Beca is implying what Chloe assumes she is then it definitely is not a good plan.

"Just go and do as I say!" Beca says, her voice rising as she tries to push her towards the direction she had pointed out but she fights against it, refusing to leave. Every so now and then the brunette glances back at the dark path then at her.

"No! I'm not going without you!" she argues stubbornly.

"Yes you are!" Beca argues back. "They are after the elite heirs! Can't you see what's happening? This is a coup d'état! If they are killing the heirs one by one then it only means that something has happened to the royal council! Which means we are all fucked," she admits, puffing out air in frustration as she paces, a hand running through her locks, a habit of Beca's whenever she was annoyed, panicked or distressed. Chloe has seen that side before. She can also tell that there was more to this and it is sending Beca over the edge, until it finally clicks.

"Your father," she breathes out. "They won't go through all this trouble of murdering every single heir from the five families if your father was still in control," she slowly pieces together and it stops Beca from pacing, her movements going still.

"The leader of the council is a position that is greatly protected which is why they always secretly appoint someone to replace them when the worst happens. This will ensure that the power of the council remains secured," Chloe pauses as she contemplates on the next question she is about to ask before she breaks the silence once more.

"Who did your father appoint, Beca?" she asks, hoping that the answer wouldn't be the one in her head.

Because if it were true then…

She reaches out to the Du Pont, hand going out to her arm as she slowly moves to face her, to look at her in the eye and find the truth.

"It's you," Chloe softly says. "If the council falls, if your father…" she drifts off, not knowing what to say exactly.

"If he dies then it's me who takes his place," Beca finishes for her. "At least, temporarily, until matters settle down. The whole council could give out their votes and I could pass the crown over to that person they chose," she explains as if she is reading it from out of the book, a book she was probably forced to learn since she was be able to read.

"Until then, all of you are supposed to look up to me for answers," Beca finishes with a dry laugh as if the mere thought of it was too unbelievable. She then takes a couple of steps away from her.

"You need to go, more of them are coming this way. They are after me, not you. It's also best if you take your family out of the country and head someplace far, preferably, away from Europe, away from me. Things are about to get ugly and nobody is safe around me," she insists.

But it wasn't enough to make Chloe budge, she would've countered it quickly if she hadn't noticed the dark red liquid staining the palm of her hand. Blood. She had been smelling blood since a while ago but there had been too much of it that all over the place that she hadn't noticed it right away.

"Beca, you're bleeding!"

"And the world is not going to end if I do," she replies with a mocking tone but Chloe wasn't having any of it. She pushes apart the jacket to find a huge gash right above her hip. In seconds, the brunette slaps her hand away and covers the wound with her jacket, hiding it from her.

"Do you want to see your beloved Tom or not?" she angrily throws at her instead as Chloe stares at her, now conflicted. "If you don't get in that car, your chances of ever seeing him and your family again will be slim," she presses on as she continues to slowly back away from her.

"C'mon, don't act like this is the hardest decision you ever have to make. We both know, it's not. Everybody wants to survive. After all, it's always the saintly, righteous idiots who die first. The dumb ones," she mumbles before quietly adding, "You're an idiot but not that kind of idiot," and it's feels like a jab right at her chest. Honestly, how was she to respond to that? This stems way too deep underneath layers of past history between them.

"Just don't get any scratches on my car, Vanderbilt," she takes a few more steps further from her and it sounds like the typical thing Beca would say as a last farewell. Chloe could hear the rustling of leaves from a far. They were coming fast.

"Go! Leave!" she hisses at her before facing out to the unknown, yelling out loud.

"You want me? I'm right here you weak assholes!"

Beca was diverting them her way, each step taking her far away from Chloe and almost crossing dangerously near the edge of the line. It doesn't take a genius to figure out the grand plan. Beca is going to lead them deeper into the forest. It's an even playing field that way. She could either outrun them or strategically finish them one by one. Chloe has always admired the Du Pont's game strategies. She knew Beca had always been so smart even back then. Always top of the class before she left. The library being her special hideout, a quiet place where she can bury herself in books which she says, 'can take you to places you can only dream of going without having to actually leave'

Beautiful places that she vowed to take you to.


10 years ago

"There you are! I've been looking all over for you," Chloe smiles as she finds the Du Pont sitting on the carpeted floor at a quiet corner of Constantine Albert's library. She giggles as the shy brunette jumps in surprise at her voice before looking up at her with those wide deep blue eyes. She stands up immediately but then the quick movement makes her drop the notebook and pen in her hands which have been pressed on her chest along with a big book she had been too preoccupied with to notice Chloe sneaking up on her from behind. Before the brunette picks up her things, Chloe beats her to it, handing it all to her with a bright smile. If the Du Pont had been flustered at the surprise earlier, she seems even more flustered now with the light tinge of pink colouring her cheeks. It's a very adorable sight.

The Du Pont takes her notebook and pen from Chloe, mumbling a soft, 'Thank you,' glancing up at her for a very brief moment before looking down on her feet again.

Chloe hears her clear her throat before she speaks once more, "W-Why were you looking for me? Do you… do you need anything?" she stutters, awkwardly looking around as if she was still unsure that it is her that Chloe is talking to. It's also funny how the Du Pont keeps slowly edging off further from her while Chloe keeps stepping closer.

She finally notices the book the Du Pont was holding and lights up when she recognizes it. "Oh! World map! Do you want to travel someday?" she asks excitedly, moving even closer to the small brunette whose back is now against one of the book cabinets.

She gets a small nod in reply which only makes her smile widen, "Me too!" she says happily before listing off the interesting places she has seen on TV. "We should go travel together!" she suggests excitedly, holding on to the Du Pont's arm as she bounces up and down on her feet giddily.

"What do you say, Becs? Can I call you 'Becs'?" she asks, looking into those deep blue eyes that keep avoiding hers, hiding underneath the curtain of thick wavy dark brown hair.

"S-Sure. That… that would be great. Okay, uhm, bye," Beca mumbles hastily before slipping past Chloe and speed walking out of the library in seconds.

For what seems like the hundredth time she loses the shy brunette yet again but it doesn't dissolve that determination to become friends with her even one bit. At least she got a few words out of her today though. Yesterday, she followed the Du Pont to the bathroom but only got another light blush and a confusing, 'Sunshine' in reply to her, 'Do you like chocolate chip cookies?' The Du Pont looked really embarrassed and panicked after a second and because Chloe didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable she quickly blurts out, 'Midnight!' in a very enthusiastic tone while she points at the brunette.

Her logic? Secret alien language.

She then points to herself and proudly says, 'Sunshine!" then back at the puzzled Du Pont who only blinks as Chloe says, "Midnight!" She does it once more, pointing at herself, "Sky," then back at the brunette with a grin, "Sea," before raising both her arms up in the air and happily yelling, "Rainbow!" with a little bounce to her step.

But then the fun secret alien language connection gets abruptly disconnected when a couple of girls enter the bathroom immediately waving at Chloe and quickly coming over to chat with her. On the other hand, they eye Beca warily as if she had been bothering Chloe. The small brunette then hurriedly leaves without a word, keeping her eyes down the ground while Chloe sadly watches her go.

She does find her again in another quiet spot after class ends. Every kid was playing around the playground or chatting happily on one of the benches like Chloe and her group of friends. However, today she has a friendship to build with a certain small brunette which is why she separates from her group to go looking for the aloof Du Pont.

Now, Chloe is aware of the Du Pont-Vanderbilt silent war but she never really understood it no matter how many times her older cousins would explain how Du Ponts are just unlikable and people who they just won't ever get along with. They always make sure to warn Chloe and her other younger cousins to never come near one. Ever.

Well, Beca wasn't anything like they described Du Ponts to be so, Chloe scours every inch of their huge school to find the brunette. She's always believed that everyone needs a friend and it baffles her that Beca doesn't have any or that nobody wants to befriend the 'quiet girl from France'. She also happens to be the only Du Pont her age as most of her cousins were back in France. It was common knowledge that her father, Darius, is currently taking care of business here which was why his daughter is enrolled at Chloe's school, one of the top and expensive schools in the country.

This time she wasn't in the library and Chloe was close to giving up when she spots a small flash of red hidden behind one of the trees on the school grounds. Red shoes, Beca wore red shoes today! Walking quietly as possible, she nears the tree before peeking from behind to find Beca leaning on it, headphones covering her ears as she bobs her head lightly to the beat while reading on yet another book that seemed to be about Australia.

Leaning lower, Chloe drops to her knees before lightly pressing her ear to Beca's headphones to listen to the music, her chin propped on the brunette's shoulder from behind as she looks down on the book. The reaction from the brunette was exactly the similar to the one earlier, only this time there was a small squeak of surprise.

Beca again fumbles hastily on her stuff, trying to put everything in her bag as she stands up. "So, this is where you hang out every time class ends?" Chloe asks, hopping right beside the brunette who is again, subtly trying to inch further and further away from her.

She gets a nod in response and when Chloe thinks of the benches on the main area and the playground occupied by groups of friends, she realizes that it's probably one of the reasons the Du Pont is out here alone.

And it's very unacceptable for Chloe who couldn't even imagine spending snack and lunch breaks by herself. No, this has to change. Beca needs a friend and Chloe is going to be that friend.

"I-Is there anything you need?" the brunette asks as she always does when Chloe goes to look for her, it's like she's expecting that Chloe needing something from her is the only reason why she keeps following her around. Which definitely is not the reason. She knows where this is coming from though. She's seen those other kids take advantage of the brunette. Harassing her for answers to their assignments, cheating off of her, making her do all the work when it comes to group projects and being nice only when they need something from her. Chloe hates bullies and fake friends the most so she decides then and there that it has to stop.

"Your approval," she answers with a smile before digging in her own bag to offer her favourite cookies. The answer draws out a confused look as Beca stares at the cookies.

"Approval for what?" she slowly asks uncertainly.

"To be your best friend," she simply answers.

"W-Why?" the Du Pont asks as she looks at her in surprise as if it was so strange for someone to want to be friends with her.

"Because I want to be your friend and I want to sit underneath trees to listen to music or read books, or eat. And also, because we're going to travel together in the future! We're going to be travel buddies!" she says without missing a beat. She was just being honest.

Beca looks down at the offered cookies again and, to Chloe's delight, finally reaches to accept them. "But… what about your other friends?" she asks meekly and Chloe just shrugs before plopping down to where Beca was sitting earlier.

"None of them are interested with the Pyramids or the Great Wall of China or even know what a Sakura is! I tell them it is Cherry blossoms and they are very pretty but still they don't know about them! Besides, they always talk about their boy crushes, always. I mean it's okay but that's getting quite annoying," she admits. "They'll be fine without me," she waves off with her hand.

Beca seems to contemplate for a while until finally Chloe feels her stepping closer to sit down next to her. Almost immediately she scoots closer to diminish the gap between them. She feels the brunette stiffen a bit so she hums the song she's heard her listen to a while ago, 'You are my sunshine' by Johnny Cash, a rare song for a nine year old to listen to but nevertheless, Chloe has heard her grandfather sing it to her before. It does the trick though and soon both of them are humming.

"How come they don't know what Cherry blossoms are?" Beca suddenly blurts out making Chloe giggle.

"I know, right?" she says as the brunette opens the pack of cookies for them to share on. "Should we go to Japan first then?" she says raising up her cookie at the thought.

This time Beca's eyes brighten up unlike Chloe has ever seen before and it's a sight she decides she'd like to see all the time. The Du Pont takes out another book inside her bag and this time it's about Japan, opening its pages to show Chloe the colourful pictures of the country's wonderful scenery.

"I'd like that," Beca softly mumbles as they both smile, the space between them now inexistent, arms linked as time passes, cookie crumbs on their skirts as their minds travel to far places together, thoughts filled with cherry blossoms.

A world of their own.


"Party's over here, dimwits!" Beca yells out before dodging underneath the thin warning line, moving backwards as she faces the darkness in front of her. They were coming quick so she starts to jog in the opposite direction, her teeth clenching at the sharp pain she constantly feels in her side from the wound from earlier. She'll have to ignore the pain for now. She's had worse wounds to be honest, this was actually bearable.

The trees were thicker and taller in this part of the forest and it was giving her an advantage. Biting on to the handle of her dagger she starts climbing up one of the trees. On any ordinary day, this task would've been so easy but with the huge cut on her arm and the gash on her side, it wasn't as easy. Pain shoots up from the deep wound making her grunt with each move she makes. Despite that, she makes her way up to a sturdy branch to wait.

At this time, it does occur to her that things could go sideways and this just might be a silent countdown to the moment she finally gets to fly. It wasn't a bad resting place either. At least she won't be lying in a coffin to be displayed in front of people forced to attend, many of who would only comment about the lavish preparations and how unfortunate the whole thing is—Blah. Blah. Blah There won't be those cheesy speeches about how she will be missed as if they missed her when she was still breathing. Also, having her cousins running their tears and snot on her coffin is a definite no, no.

It's better this way.

It's better here than there.

Reaching underneath her jacket, she breathes out a sigh of relief to grab on to a small flask. Twisting the cap open, she raises it up to the sky. One for the road, she thinks before drinking all of its contents. The bitter liquid running down her throat, making her close her eyes. When she hears a sound beneath her, she opens them once more, watching from above as her pursuers slowly scan the whole area below.

She quietly stands up, holding her breath as she waits for the perfect opportunity. One of the masked attackers stands directly below her as she mentally braces herself. However, a drop of liquid lands on his neck and Beca realizes that it's her own blood trickling from her arm down to her fingers.

Now

The second he looks up, she's free falling down on to him, dagger straight to the heart as she lands crouched on to the ground. With two swift motions, she slices her blade to the two other attackers standing nearby, going for their legs first. They double over in pain, caught by surprise as she digs her weapon deep in their chests. The others are now aware of her presence as they all charge at her.

"We need her alive!" one of them barks out.

It's another advantage if only they weren't shooting needles that could knock out a vampire cold for a quite some time. She jumps behind the trees, the sounds of bullet speed needles whooshing past her, only a few inches from her skin.

"Shit," she hisses before hitting another attacker with her elbow and grabbing at his arm. She twists her body to the left and with a swift move, flips the enemy over her shoulder to pierce her blade down his chest. Another guy grabs on to her but she easily turns the tables with her now standing behind him. She uses him as a shield from the incoming round of darts being shot at her, all the while stepping back to hide behind another tree. She discards the unconscious person to the side and takes out another one along the way.

But her luck was running out when she gets a punch to her side, right at her wound. It has her stumbling and crawling on the ground, the enemy right behind her. It's funny how many times she finds herself in such situations over the years. She's been in this scenario so many times that it comes second nature to her when she digs her fingers to the dry soil and turns to throw it right across her attacker's face, blinding his eyes. Unfortunately, as soon as she defeats one, there's always another one—or two—popping out of nowhere and this one's quite good. A female, of course.

Her opponent goes for her leg and soon, Beca's wrestling her down the ground. When she gets up on her feet, a brand new pain shoots up from her right ankle. She circles around, limping as she faces the attacker before they charge at each other at the same time with Beca now on the offense. They both land hits against each other, bodies rolling around until they tumble down a slope. They reach what appears to be the edge of a cliff as they gingerly tried to regain their sense of balance. She loses hold of her dagger and now her enemy, who loses her mask from the tumble, takes out a butterfly knife, twirling it around menacingly.

They continue their battle, punches and kicks going back and forth as they fight for the weapon. When Beca spots the small opening, she leaps forward, clasping the butterfly knife with both hands as she aims it right at the eye. The girl, catches her wrist in time, the edge of the blade inches away from her eye.

Beca presses her weight down to add more strength to her arms, almost successful when she gets a knee to her side, the pain doubles and her opponent pushes her feet up at her stomach to throw her backwards but not before Beca manages to slice the blade across her face. The woman screams in pain while Beca's feet slip behind the rocks and she starts falling off the side of the cliff. Thankfully, she grabs on to a stone crevice. She hangs on but her fingers are slipping and in seconds she'll be landing like a raw egg down the cement. And yeah, she'll probably survive that but it'll take weeks to at least regain consciousness which means she'll be on the ground motionless and most probably in a distorted position for weeks, close to death but not quite. It's an easy way for the assholes to retrieve her body too.

Nope, not happening.

She tries to use all the strength she has left but the sound of a small crack doesn't bring good news to her situation at all. She starts slipping slowly and in a second, she closes her eyes.

This is it. Au revoir

The rock gives way and in a heart-stopping moment she falls.

Or not.

Hands grab on to her arm, keeping her from falling. She looks up to see bright blue eyes looking back at her and auburn hair dangling. It shocks her whole system but she recovers easily, fumbling for a word to say until she pulls out one.

"Idiot," she mutters, earning an angry look.

"Well, this 'idiot' is saving your life! So, shut up and at least pretend like you're grateful for once!" Chloe demands as she lifts her back up.

But no sooner had she started helping her up, the crazy bitch from earlier comes up from behind, face filled with blood as she puts her arm around Chloe's neck in an attempt to choke her. The surprised Vanderbilt visibly struggles as Beca sees the arm around her neck start to tighten, Chloe's other hand coming up to pry at the arm leaving only one hand holding on to Beca's.

There was only one way out of this.

"Let go," Beca suddenly says, looking straight up on to those sky blue eyes.

"No," Chloe manages to say. Of course, the stubborn brat chooses to be a dumb idiot even after Beca had told her she was not. She gave her the perfect opportunity to stay safe with her family yet here she is.

"Let go of me, Chloe!" she yells and she hates how desperate she was starting to sound.

"No!" the redhead screams back.

So, Beca decides to force it instead, loosening her grip on the Vanderbilt's wrist. Yet as she does, Chloe grips on to her wrist tighter. "I'm… never letting you go," Chloe coughs out. She was losing air but Chloe was a fighter, she always was, even Beca knows that. When she believes in something she'd go for it, with so much passion that sometimes it's already ridiculous how passionate she was getting.

This stupid passionate idiot

"Look at me!" Beca shouts up at her, meeting those bright blue orbs instantly.

Well, fuck this

"Cotton Candy! Rocket! Then quack right!" she says.

And to anyone hearing this, it sounds gibberish and would gain frowns or looks that says, 'this bitch must've gone mad' but if you speak and understand alien however, you'd get exactly what it means. Chloe was fluent in alien language and Beca hopes that after all these years she still is.

Chloe relaxes for a second. The hand stopping the intruder's arm from choking her moves to grab Beca's hand. Now using both hands, she spurts out a sudden burst of energy, pulling her up before quickly moving her head slightly to the right as much as she can. But that slight move is all Beca needs for her free fist to connect to the woman's bloody face hard, twice. The woman's hold goes weak instantly, her face contorting into extreme pain.

This time, Beca has grabbed hold of a much sturdier crevice, punches continuously coming at the enemy until she finally releases Chloe who coughs, gasping for air.

Beca's dangling feet also find something to step on as she uses all her strength to climb up. She scrambles to the edge just as the woman was up on her feet to finish what she has started. She would've been shoved back down the cliff if it weren't for the Vanderbilt grabbing on to one of the woman's legs. The attacker kicks her off harshly but that gave Beca enough time to charge at her. They are both down on the ground, wrestling and rolling around.

In a moment, the woman finally gets the upper hand, taking advantage of Beca's wound. She continues smacking on her face while Beca raises up her hands to the side of her head in order shield herself. She's been trained that if she had found herself in such position that there's always going to be an opening. Experience tells her that it always works. She only has to wait for it. The punches are slowing down and that's when she finds it.

Only, the woman stills so suddenly, the life leaving her eyes before she falls down the ground, lifeless. Behind her, Chloe stands eyes wide, bloody hands shaking, those same hands that stabbed the woman from behind. This time, the Vanderbilt didn't miss. A butterfly knife stuck deep in the heart from behind.

No

"Vanderbilt," she calls out yet she remains frozen, standing in shock. "Hey," she tries again, this time carefully standing up and taking the redhead's hand. They were filled with blood, someone else's blood. It reminds Beca of a time when she once did the same thing, though it was under different circumstances, it all still weighs the same.

"Chloe," she says louder, this time reaching out to hold her face, her fingers underneath her jaw, making the Vanderbilt look at her. The moment she finds her eyes, tears start to fall.

"Beca… I didn't—I just… had to. She was… going to," Chloe shakily says, her voice soft and scared as she pauses, a whimper leaving her quivering lips.

"Stop," she says firmly, looking down at the Vanderbilt's hands as she wipes the blood stains off of it with her jacket. "It wasn't your fault. I made you do it. I didn't give you a choice. I killed her," she insists. She knows it doesn't really help but what else can she do?

There's one other way but this isn't ten years ago

"But still… I stabbed her. I killed," Chloe says in that same vulnerable tone and Beca was quick to cut her off.

Maybe… tonight's okay. One more exemption wouldn't hurt much, right?

Without another word, her mind shuts off as she pulls Chloe close to her, wrapping her in her arms as the Vanderbilt lets out a sob, clinging to her tightly. A wave of unexplainable emotions fills every inch of Beca's system. The warning lights go off, just like before, when Chloe hugs her back tighter, head burying at the crook of Beca's neck. This time she ignores it.

Just for tonight

"She was… she was going to kill you. I had to do it. I had to," Chloe says again and again, sobbing hard against the skin of her neck.

They can just forget this ever happened afterwards

She brings a hand at the back of Chloe's head, tenderly caressing it and resting her own head against it. She closes her eyes before gently humming a song that had always calmed her down, the same song she always listened to whenever she was sad, uncomfortable, scared or whenever she was in so much pain. That same song she once shared to a bubbly girl who kept following her everywhere until they sat underneath a tree at the backyard of Constantine Albert ten years ago.

That cute little girl, who gave her chocolate chip cookies, taught her alien language, smiled a smile that once brought back the colour in her life and gave a new beat in her heart, her beloved sunshine.


A/N:

For this week's chapter, a little peek ten years ago to our adorable elite babies. Actually, I almost couldn't update because I was so busy but god do I just love you guys too much. I know what waiting feels like too-ehem-to all the authors whose fanfics I am following please update-ehem-anyways, Bechloe's journey to the very mysterious Winter Forest-and also memories from ten years ago-begins. We are unraveling what really happened back then bit by bit. In short, we are reaching the part where it gets so much fun!

kimmania: And thanks for reading and following this story!

Parziwolf: There's an actual upcoming more detailed scenario looking back to that badass otter placing a blanket over the sleepy red panda. That's something to look forward to I guess. Also, the mystery of Bechloe having some sort of deep sixth sense sort of connection to each other is something to look forward to as well. I'd like to keep you guys on the edge of your seats so that you'd all keep reading to this little fic of mine :)

Oh yes fingerpicking is definitely something I want to be good at. So I'm going to go get my guitar and practice... for science. haha.

llvr: Your take on Bechloe's view towards Scott and Emily's relationship is exactly what I had in mind when I wrote it. Yes, Scott and Emily are somehow mirroring what Beca and Chloe had in the past and it sort of scares them (Beca and Chloe) mainly because obviously things hadn't worked out well between them. And if I hadn't wrote it clearly, Scott is pretty close to Chloe (as she is the only one he actually talks to at home) like Beca is to Emily so it makes the situation even more of a big deal. We are getting close to the truth and hopefully, I get to write it as good as I imagine it to be. In regards to what the other Du Ponts now think of Chloe's significance to Beca, I might touch on that in the future chapters.

As for how I've written the characters, I was aiming for a more realistic approach which is, having at least two sides to a character. Beca despite being this rude, uncaring, cold and sometimes manipulative bitch has actually a softer side while Chloe who everyone thinks is like so perfect, bright, lovable and extremely nice has actually a dark side to her which results to having nightmares of the wrongs she has secretly done in the past (because she's actually more capable of committing mistakes). Basically, I want to point out that everything has a reason and you're right, Beca and Chloe are simply human beings (despite having fangs, supernatural abilities and a craving for blood during breakfast) that have naturally complex and unique characters and personalities. And I'm happy that you think I wrote it in a way that doesn't seem forced or weirdly unbelievable. So, thanks! I look forward to more of your insight or review in the next chapters.

Comiiksde: Actually I was waiting for someone to mention Staubrey because (not only am I a Staubrey shipper but) I've already been subtly writing their little interactions since the beginning. Finally, somebody noticed!

Sa0621: Aww true love vibes right there. And I like it. Haha. So many interesting plot twist suggestions which I will maybe take into consideration~ Nothing is too extreme for us writers. All of these are good plot twists.

Yuzu-chi01: Uhm something Beca can't do? Well, probably sharing and being open with her feelings? Yes Staubrey is creeping up from behind. Staubrey is already alive (subtly) since the beginning actually. For future references, know that when I put Aubrey and Stacie in one sentence it's not just coincidence. Ha! I like that, Beca clearly doesn't have a choice (not when I'm writing this fic). Yes, no more blueberry fights unless... it's sexy blueberry fights ;)

Okay, I'll try to lock my door~ Try~

Kasia143: Ouch, that's definitely what pain feels like. BTW! You're theory, my friend, is my favorite theory! I laughed so hard reading it. A European princess that Beca has screwed with! Now, why didn't I think of that! That would have been way better... :(

Thanks to everyone who followed, favorited and put in their comments/reviews. I love and appreciate them all. See ya next week, ya lovely little humans!