Sorry for taking so long to update - It's my fault. I know it's really far past christmas - time's past so quickly! but I hope that you can still enjoy it - just imagine it's christmas time ;) But hey, at least we haven't waited until christmas to update again! ;)

A massive thanks to Karl for co-writing this with me :) She's written her note at the end :)

I hope you enjoy it,Please don't forget to review!

Harlequin & Karl :)

Groaning in annoyance, I collapsed on my bed. I refused to talk to him. I knew it was childish, but I didn't care. I'd had enough with all this ghost palaver.

I enjoyed seeing my brothers again, don't get me wrong. But I certainly didn't enjoy the painful memories that they brought back with them.

"Is that a way to treat your favourite brother?"

"Go away." I grumbled into my pillow.

"What was that? I couldn't quite hear you." He teased.

"I said, go away!" I sat up to glare at him. My exhaustion was catching up with me now. I'm guessing it was roughly two in the morning, and I still hadn't gotten any sleep from my long journey back from Sitia. I lay back down and closed my eyes. Hoping he'd take the hint and leave.

But of course, his traits of extreme stubbornness stayed with him—ghost or not. "Get up Valek, it's time to go."

"I'm not going anywhere. Especially not with you," I said in a venomous voice.

He made some kind of weird frantic movements with his arms and made odd sounds. I stared at him. He was insane. "You're not scared of ghosts?" he asked in disbelief.

"No, as a matter of fact, my girlfriend deals with them every day. Or has Lucian not gloated to you about it yet?" I said. Sarcasm dripped like thick syrup on every syllable.

"Oh yes, the Soulfinder. It's ironic really. I mean, you take lives and she makes sure dead peoples' souls make it to the right places." He snorted. "You could be a team. But we don't have much time for this now. I have to show you something."

"Great," I replied sarcastically. "More things to see." I rolled my eyes to emphasis my point.

"I'm glad you're so enthusiastic about this." He ignored my sarcasm and grinned wickedly as he grabbed me unexpectedly by the arm. And once again, my world melted into an array of bright colours.

The first thing I saw was the fire. Then the Keep, following with Yelena's lifeless body. And myself, standing by her side, checking for a pulse. I saw the worry creasing my face, and realized for the first time, how obvious my emotions were when I was around Yelena. Despite my efforts to keep my indifferent exterior.

"Look how worried you were about her, and you knew exactly where she was. But now, you have no idea where she is, and what is happening in her life right now. You don't even give a damn!" Ruben shouted at me.

"I do give a damn," I said, terrified of him. He was right, and I was scared of the truth he was throwing in my face.

"Then why did you leave?" he demanded. For some reason, I was sure that it was either I give him an answer or we'd both walked away as ghosts.

"We had argument. I got mad and went home. I didn't want to disappoint her parents by letting them see me out of control."

"And since when is that the right way to resolve arguments properly? 'We had an argument. I got mad and went home,'" he mocked me. "Yes, because every time we have an argument, instead of trying to resolve it, we just turn our back on it and disappear. That's a great way to talk to people. No wonder you're such a hermit, if that's the way you solve everything. What if something happened to her after you left. You wouldn't even know. You probably wouldn't even care."

His words brought guilt to my chest. This is what I feared – the truth giving me a big slap in the face. "I–I didn't know. I wanted to…" I gave up with a sigh. It was no use. Nothing I could say could change what I have done or make it sound any better, and very rarely was I lost for words. I failed not only myself but Yelena too, and I had to accept that.

"Good, let's move on."

Any hopes of another brother not witnessing mine and Yelena's lovemaking flew out of the window. This time it was even worse since it wasn't in the darkness of the dungeons. And Ruben proved to be even more annoying about it than Lucian was.

I huffed in annoyance before blocking Ruben's view. He got the idea and turned around. I focused my attention back on the scene before me. We were so in love back then and I'd give anything to go back to how we were.

Although I was literally watching the two of us make love, it didn't seem weird at all. Well, okay, maybe a little weird, but only in the sense that I couldn't experience it firsthand. Though I can remember it, the length of time makes it fuzzy and not the same.

I walked up to the bed as Yelena and I slept. Crouching down next to Yelena, I reached out a hand to stroke her face. But instead of stroking her soft skin, my hand went straight through her. I frowned before trying again. I huffed in annoyance before leaning back on the heels of my boots.

Of course I couldn't touch her. This is the past. And due to my stupid mistakes that's all it will ever be. But I still found it impossible to comprehend not being able to touch her again, or pull her into my arms, hell I'll probably never see her again.

Sadness wrecked through me and I dropped to the floor. Burying my face in my hands, I jumped when I felt a hand hesitantly touch my shoulder a few minutes later.

"Are you crying?" Ruben asked, incredulous.

"Of course not. I'm just thinking. I'm trying to find a solution. It would be helpful if you would shut up," I told him. I looked up. My vision was blurry but I knew it wasn't obvious from the outside. Or at least I hoped not, the last thing I needed was for him to tease me about becoming an emotional wreck.

"We don't have time to shut up. I have things to show you."

"But I don't want to"—my protests were cut off with the world fading into a colourful spiral again.

"We're here," Ruben announced. I huffed in annoyance. I was not getting up. Ruben tugged on my arm. "Come on, Valek. You have to get up." I didn't budge. There was no way he was going to get me to stand up and…

"I don't care Valek. This is important to me. Can't you just behave this once?" Yelena shouted at me. I looked up. This was a month ago. The first argument of many. I had been sent by the Commander to kill a young magician, but Yelena had shown up and stopped me.

"Behave. Yes, because I am a misbehaving child." my voice was filled with cold sarcasm. "I'm not a child Yelena. I'm a grown man and I can make my own decisions. I have orders to obey and they state that any magician born in Ixia is to be executed on sight."

"Valek, please listen to me. Don't do it. It doesn't have to be this way." She stood with her arms outstretched, protecting the girl behind her. "Don't. It isn't right."

I sighed, tired of her constant interference in my work. I had always ridded Ixia of magicians, and this one was no different. She was just more annoying as of late. This was the reason I avoided relationships in the past. I knew this would happen, that they would get in the way of my job, I just thought Yelena would be different.

Then I did something that I knew was wrong. That usually I wouldn't have dared, but in the past, I didn't know what it would lead to. I reached out and pushed Yelena aside, shoving her onto the floor. Then I finished the girl.

Yelena's ear-piercing screams echoed through my mind as I stared down at my hands. Covered in blood, they were solid proof of what I had done. When I looked back at Yelena, her eyes were wide and filled with tears. Her hand was covering her open mouth, trying to suppress the sobs from leaving, but it didn't work. Each sob wracked through my body like a hot iron. I knew she would be angry with me, but the look of intense hatred and disgust she sent me almost broke me.

I knew she would be horrified with what I did. But I thought she would understand.

As much as I loved her, I would always follow Ambrose's command. She may have my heart, but it's Ambrose who I made the blood oath to, not her. Even though I would do anything for her, even if it risks my life, I can't disobey him.

Ambrose had ordered me to kill the girl, and despite Yelena's protests and how much I knew it was wrong, I had to do it. I didn't know if Yelena would forgive me. Although I didn't blame her if she never did, I prayed that it wouldn't happen.

With one last heartbreaking sob, she turned away from me and ran out of the room. I groaned and tugged at my hair in frustration. I vaguely remembered they were still dripping with blood, but I didn't care. I didn't care about anything, Yelena had left and I doubt she would want to see me again.

Then anger surged through me. She knew what I did. She knows what my job is. Hell, she's even seen me kill before, right in front of her. So why does it only bother her now? If she didn't like it then why love me?

I never asked for her love. I never asked for any of it. Of course I don't regret loving her, I could never do that. But the hassle that comes with a relationship is just far too much trouble.

With another groan, I ran after her. By now she was far ahead, but it didn't take me long to catch up.

"You know I had to do it."

She stopped and span around, making me almost run into her. I took a step back when I saw the expression on her face. I may be a master assassin, but nothing is more intimidating than Yelena when she's angry.

"You had a choice! You don't have to follow his every command like a lost puppy. I begged you not to do it, but I guess that wasn't enough was it? I could have been dying and you'd still do it." That hurt. Doesn't she know by now how much she means to me?

"No, I… I love you. I didn't have a choice. It was a direct order from the Commander himself. You know I can't refuse."

"Yes you can!" she shrieked at me. "Why can't you think for yourself? Do you even have your own brain? It doesn't look like it right now." She turned away and started to walk away. I grabbed her arm. "Don't touch me," she snapped. I let go. She turned violently and stalked away from me. I followed her.

"Yelena, please," I begged.

"Please what? What do you want this time?" she demanded. "Because that's all you ever do—take. And I, like the fucking idiot I am, give it all. So why don't you ask. So that your precious loyal little girlfriend can satisfy you and your fucking needs again. And then you can just dump her in a fucking corner, like always. When you come back, she'll still be there and she'll take you back with outstretched arms." Tears streamed down her cheeks.

"No, Yelena, no. I… No. You mean so much more to me. I'm sorry. I love you. I can think for myself. I can. But I swore… Yelena, forgive me? Please?" I asked.

"No."

A knife sliced through my heart. "W-what?" I stuttered.

"No. Didn't expect that did you?" she asked with a laugh. I shook my head meekly; it was the only answer I could give her. "You expected me to come running back into your arms. Well guess what? Until you learn to respect me, respect yourself and think with your own head, you can go to hell." She turned and walked away.

I stood there stunned and heartbroken, looking like a complete moron until she was out of sight.

"What happened there?" Ruben's voice startled me. I jumped. I had been completely transfixed on the scene.

"What?" I asked.

"What was that? Why didn't you go after her again? Or tell her to go to hell?" Ruben demanded.

"I figured she just needed time to cool down, until she wanted to talk to me again. And I could never say that to her."

Ruben raised an eyebrow in disbelief at my excuse. Realizing he wasn't going to give up, I heaved a big sigh of exasperation before answering again.

"Fine. Yelena's really scary when she's angry. I may be a master assassin, but even I wouldn't interfere with her wrath."

As I expected Ruben laughed at my real reason. It didn't bother me though, everyone seems to think that just because I'm an assassin, I'm fearless. Well, I'm not. In fact, most of my worst fears involve Yelena, the main one being losing her. But I guess that ones already become a reality. And all because I was too much of a coward to confront her and beg for her to take me back.

God, I'm an idiot!

"Come on, Valek. One more thing," Ruben urged me to continue. I stood frozen. I refused to see another one of mine and Yelena's episodes. But my brother ignored my protests and refused to give in. He pushed me out of the stupor I had been standing in and into the small clearing.

I swallowed hard. This was the place I had abandoned Yelena in. The final straw that led to me turning around and leaving her.

A small fire produced a small amount of light that glowed in the clearing. Yelena knelt next to it and warmed her hands. "Valek, what's wrong?" she asked. He voice was soft, quiet, loving. I missed it.

"Nothing. I'm fine," I lied easily. The Commander was threatening to end my interactions with Yelena if I continued to let her interfere with my work.

"Don't say that." She moved closer and leaned forward so she was lying over my back while I sat. "I know you better than that." She touched her lips to my jaw, kissing it softly. "What's wrong, sweetheart? Hmm…" she breathed into my throat. "Tell me." I reached over my shoulders to hold Yelena closer. I tugged her down into my lap. Cradling her, I attempted to ignore her mouth while it tasted my skin.

It was hard to believe that such a tender embrace had transformed into a shout-fest.

I tilted my head so that I could kiss her lips. Even from the outside, I could tell how distant the kiss had been. Yelena pulled away and started to move out of my embrace. My former self's arms tightened. "Stay. Please. I need you," I heard myself whisper.

Yelena settled back into my arms. She pleaded, "Then tell me what's bothering you. We have to be honest with each other if we want this to work out."

I sighed. "It's the Commander," I gave in.

"What about him?" my love questioned.

"He's… not entirely approving of my relationship with you." I had chosen my words with care, hoping to appease the revelation that was to come. Yelena waited patiently for me to elaborate. "He thinks I should be more focused on my duties and less on you." I stopped there, letting her come to her own conclusion before I revealed the Commander's way to resolve the problem.

She remained silent. I led her on, "He thinks you interfere with my work. And I can't allow that to happen."

Yelena's expression hardened. She removed herself from my arms. "Why not? Am I not important enough?" she demanded. "What is it with you? The both of you. I understand that, for you, a relationship is on a completely different plan than your work. But trying to help you make the good decisions is not interfering."

"Yelena…" I sighed. I hadn't wanted to fight. We had been going on a trip, Yelena's mother had insisted on meeting me. I wasn't too happy about that. "Let's not fight. We've been doing too much of that lately."

"No. I need to know why. You can't keep doing this." She stood. I looked up at her face. She was angry, that was easy to see, even from my current viewing point.

"Yelena, please," I heard myself beg.

"Valek, I swear to God, sometimes I regret"—she cut off abruptly.

"You regret what?" I demanded, rising and facing her.

"Nothing."

"Yelena," I warned. "Don't test me. You regret what?"

"Test you?" she demanded. "Yes, because I'm a misbehaving child, testing the authority." She snorted without humor. "I am your equal, Valek. You have no authority over me I could test."

"Yelena. What. Do. You. Regret?" I repeated.

"Why should I answer that? Am I testing you again?"—she cut in.

"Yes, you are. I might not have any real authority, but I am the man in this relationship, and that requires some submission from you. Now what do you regret?"

"Submission?" Her eyebrows shot up. "I'm not a dog Valek. And I certainly do not have to submit to you. You being a man justifies nothing."

I had grown tired of her avoiding my question. I grabbed her arm roughly. "Be quiet," I ordered. I was surprised to find that Yelena shut up. "You regret what?" I demanded.

A single tear ran down Yelena's cheek. She struggled against my firm hold. "Please let go," she whispered, more tears following the first one. I stood firm and waited for an answer. "You're hurting me. Please, I didn't mean it," she said, her sobs leaking into her speech.

I pushed her away from myself, letting go in the process. Yelena stumbled to the ground, where she curled into a little ball. "Sometimes I regret loving you," she whispered, rubbing her upper arm where I had taken hold of her.

The pain that sliced through my chest at those words at that moment was just as real as the one I felt now while watching the scene as an observer. I struggled to catch my breath for a second.

Yelena had turned away from me, crying now. "Just go away."

My former-self didn't respond. I gathered my things and, with an enraged expression on my face, left. In my mind at the time, she had crossed the line. Now, it was me who had crossed the line.

I didn't have any more time to dwell on it though, since my world faded into spiraling colors.

Since I was still wallowing in my own self pity from the last scene, it took me a while to realize I was back in my room. It was hard enough experiencing it the first time, but seeing it again from a different perspective, I realized what an idiot I was. If I disobeyed Ambrose for once in my wasted life, or was brave enough to go after Yelena, and then things might be different.

Hey, this is Karl. And I have a question for the readers of Unraveling Worlds. I know the story isn't very popular… But I keep writing it because, personally, I think it's a very good story and I'm proud of it. But. Butbutbut. Right now, I'm at 99 reviews. And my last chapter was pretty full of suspense. I was wondering… You know… If I could maybe get to, at the very least, 100 reviews for my efforts? I work really hard on that story and I'm kinda sad there aren't any more readers. ):

Also, for the blog. Harlequin and I are currently working hard on getting Valek's answers to the questions. He hasn't killed us yet, which is a good sign, sooo… (: The blog will be updated at the same time as the next chapter of Valek's Poison Study.

As for Chances, chapter three was sent to our beta—Children-of-the-Blood—but she is very busy with school work at the moment, so it might take a little while longer until we update.

Okay, I have a special thank you to give. I don't know if you're reading this, but KIxia, you very much saved my life. Dark Secrets was kinda going downhill if you hadn't stepped in. I'm glad you did and your idea is G-e-n-i-u-s. Thank you so much. :D

Monster in the Mirror should be updated soon. It's just that Harlequin and I want to stay fairly in advance on the posts, so we have to finish the chapter we are currently working on before you can read chapter one.

I think that's it for me (: Oh, and one more thing. If you have any questions you want to ask my characters (even the new ones I made up and in any one of my stories) you can leave them in your review. Either for this story or for the one the character is in. The answer to your questions will be posted on our blog—which can be found at http:/ramblingsoftheundecidedfuture (dot)blogspot(dot)com/ (just replace the (dot) with an actual period :)