Oh bloody hell. I don't even know how long it's been. But YES, I finally got the chapter up and it was damn hard to write. In any case... it's there now... SO READ!
Disclaimer: Erm, no. I don't own the Twilight Saga, I am simply playing around with the characters.
In The Candlelight Chapter 11: Fragile
Alejandro
Crash. My fist slammed into the wall. It crumbled, tumbling down in brick-sized pieces. It was a dead-end wall – one of the countless in Alexandria.
"Shit," I muttered. That Benjamin kid was messing up everything. He was making Tia doubt her judgement, I could see it. I didn't need this. I had a job to do, and the sooner it was done, the happier I'd be. Complications… did not exist. I could not allow them to.
And besides. If I didn't get it done soon enough, I might actually fall in love with Tia. An image entered my mind before I could stop it: Tia and I running the Nile. It was a dream of mine, and I knew that she was the kind of person who would appreciate this kind of dream. And she's the girl I want to run it with.
I shook my head, cursing softly in Egyptian. I couldn't let myself get too close to Tia. I knew, beyond a doubt, that it would only end in heartbreak for all of us.
I put a mental block up, pushing away all thoughts of Tia and Benjamin and the whole bloody mess that I was in. I focused on destroying the alley wall – a bad idea, because with my whole attention focused on it, it was dust in a matter of seconds.
I kicked the dust discontentedly and swore. It puffed up in a little cloud around me. People had probably formed memories here, standing near this… well, what used to be a wall. Maybe they pissed on it. Maybe they kissed near it. And maybe…
A terrified whimper from behind me. I whipped around and spotted a young girl, maybe early twenties or so, staring from me to the rubble and back again.
She must not know.
I wasn't stupid. The Volturi… well, everyone knew about them. What they did. Why they did it. It reminded me of Stalin and his purges. Sorting out the good from the bad.
And their one rule: humans must not know.
She was scared already. She wouldn't trust me. And without trust, I couldn't erase her memory.
Trick Number One: seduction. Probably something all vampires gain when changed – the power to seduce. And that reminded me of something my sister had told me ever so long ago – "All women are born with the power to manipulate, Alejandro. You'll learn that."
I flowed towards her, smiling gently. Her eyes softened slightly and her tense posture relaxed, but her hands still stayed locked together, a sign of the fear inside her.
"Good evening," I murmured, brushing my lips over her hand. She shivered in the cold and I thought to drape my jacket around her, but it would be cold too.
"… Hi," the girl said dazedly. It's working.
"My name is Alejandro. What are you doing out so late? There are dangerous people on the streets at this time of night." I brushed my hand over her arm, and watched as she tried to regain her composure.
"I'm… Cato," she stammered, breaking eye contact. I cursed internally. I needed eye contact for this thing to work. "I was working… and I was walking home… and then, then I saw…" she broke off, scared again.
"Cato," I whispered, lifting her chin so that she'd look at me. "Some people have extraordinary gifts. And they use them when they can. You must have a talent, no?"
She nodded slightly and closed her eyes as my breath blew into her face.
Closed her eyes.
Trust.
Time to begin.
I searched within my mind for that special place where all my power was, and let it seep out until it enveloped her thoughts completely. Almost overwhelmed by the amount of information in her mind, I almost lost the connection, but managed to regain in just in time.
She was a student, that much I could see easily. She'd been studying and was out taking a walk. Her mind was stuffed to the brim with fact after fact, history date after history date, equation after equation.
Footsteps in the street beyond. I had to work fast.
I quickly rifled through her memory, but there was so much to go through! The girl obviously had a highly developed memory – she seemed to remember almost every moment since the day she turned three. She could write a word-for-word autobiography someday, with everything described perfectly, straight from her memory.
Photographic memory.
The phrase popped into my head uncalled for. I had no idea where it came from, but it seemed to suit the situation exactly. She remembered everything with a wide focus – nothing was left out.
There was a flash of recognition as a familiar face flashed by - my own. I paused in my rifling and retrieved those few memories that the girl had of me, crushing them until they broke into incomplete fragments of colours. Then I withdrew, breaking the connection, and closed my eyes briefly and stepping back faster than human eyes could see.
Adopting a concerned face, I leaned towards here. "Hello? Are – you alright?"
She blinked spastically.
"Who… are you?" she asked softly.
"Alejandro. What's your name?"
"Cato," she replied. I smothered a grin. I knew that.
"Is everything alright? You've been standing here for the past five minutes while I tried to wake you."
"No, no…" she trailed off, eyes focusing on something in the distance. Without looking, I could tell it was the remains of the wall.
"Oh…" she gasped, a hand pressed to her mouth. "How did that happen?"
"It was like that before. I saw it when I was trying to… wake you up, but…"
She muttered a protective prayer against the evil eye. I almost smiled. She was standing next to possibly the most dangerous being in Alexandria. A fine time to be praying. It was almost ironic.
"Listen…" I started. "It's not really safe, this time of night. Would you like me to drop you home?"
She looked startled by the request, but agreed. Taking her by the arm, I began walking.
"Wait," she said. "My house.. erm, it's the other way."
"Oh." Slightly perturbed, I started leading her the other way. She gave directions at every corner and I turned when told to. Busy inhaling the lovely melon scent of her hair, I almost didn't notice when she started talking, probably nervous because of my silence. Recognising my impoliteness, I hastened to add to the conversation.
"I'm in my final year of college, when I'm done with these exams in two weeks, I'll be off to get a job, hopefully far away from here. My dorm is really nice, the girls are fun to spend time with…" she babbled on. I interrupted.
"How long will you stay here after exams are over?"
"A couple of months, maybe? Spend some time with family and friends, look for a house and a job."
"If that's the case… then, when your exams are off your back…" I heard her heartbeat speed and resisted a surge of bloodlust. "Would you like to have coffee some day?"
She turned to me, eyes shining. "I'd love to," she accepted happily. She'd stopped walking, and I raised my eyebrows, wondering why. Answering my unspoken question, she replied, "This is my stop. The student dorms." She motioned with her chin to a row of peeling buildings behind me.
"Right, well… I'll see you sometime, I guess. You never know," I said in response to her slightly crestfallen face.
"Yes. Hopefully." She set off up the stairs, redoing her hair and I watched until she was out of sight. She did not look back.
Tia's POV
Stalking past several open cafés, I stopped at one which was serving "scones with jam", which obviously, I couldn't eat, but smelled delicious. I decided to just sit and drink in the aroma.
I had to say, I didn't miss food. It had about as much appeal as trash would. But it was still nice to smell it. Maybe when all this drama was over, I could become a chef…
A shadow fell over my table and I tensed automatically, waiting for an attack, or worse, Benjamin. But it was just a waitress, and I relaxed.
"What can I get you, Miss?" she asked with a smile. Young thing, maybe nineteen or so.
How about a mug of blood? There's a hospital nearby, go ahead and nick some for me, would ya?
"Coffee will be fine, thank you," I said formally. Her smile didn't waver.
"One moment, Miss." I nodded my assent and she was off, weaving between tables with a swaying of hips and a distinct humanness that I envied.
I thought back to a conversation I had had with Alejandro prior to our leaving the house (we had left together and split up).
"What are you going to do now?"
"Not go anywhere with him, for sure," I said nastily, not bothering to lower my voice. Benjamin was out somewhere, thank god, and I was able to think more clearly when he was far away.
"He loves you." It wasn't a question, and I didn't meet his eyes.
"Maybe at one point," I replied noncommittally.
"He still does."
"How do you know?" I snapped, my temper snapping. Irritably, I snatched a bag from my case and snatched a few coins from the dresser. I stalked out into the hallway at a much faster pace than normal, but he caught up quickly, grabbing my arm to stop me from going.
"Hey, listen," he said gently. I turned away. "Listen!" He repeated forcefully, pulling my chin around. "I didn't mean it like that. All right? I was just… stating a fact."
I studied his face, noticing that he didn't look particularly happy, for all his stating.
"Why do you care?" I asked suddenly, the question bubbling out of my mouth before I could stop it.
"Care?" he repeated.
"Yeah. Why are you so involved in pointing out that you think Benjamin is in love with me?"
"Not think. Know."
"That's besides the point. Answer the question!"
"Tia," he began warningly.
"Tell me!" I shrieked.
"I don't bloody know, Tia!" he yelled in return. We stared each other down for a minute before I broke eye contact and brushed past him out the door.
And that's when I headed for this café and sat down, lost in thought.
"Your coffee, miss," the waitress reappeared, placing a steaming mug of black coffee in front of me, along with a tiny jug of milk and a bowl of sugar. I looked at the set-up appreciatively; it was the sort of place I would have come to often had I been human. Clean, simple, friendly.
Slowly, I lifted the little ewer and poured milk into the coffee. It swirled and blossomed, like white smoke. Mixing in sugar, I stirred it around meditatively, enjoying the routine of it. I didn't drink it though; I wasn't so lost in thought that I could disregard the unappealing smell coming from the cup.
I sat in front of that café for well over an hour and I barely moved. I don't know what I must have looked like to others, but staying absolutely still came as naturally to me as blinking.
Finally, just as the café was about to close, I laid some money on the table and left while the waitress' back was turned. I was off duty at work that day, so I decided to explore Cairo.
I had no fear of getting lost; my scent was there, clear as day to lead me back home.
I explored every stinky backalley and unused lane fearlessly, memorising each road instantly. I discovered quite a few places simply by exploring and listening; for example: a quaint coffee shop, serving not only coffee but beverages of a slightly less legal nature, a key duplication shop, another hospital with a rarely-used blood bank – meaning that I would be coming here pretty often for a snack – a flower store with the most sweet-smelling flowers I had ever smelled. And some places I learned of from listening; a man called Kepi, who apparently forged passports and such. He might come in useful some day.
It was around midnight that I came across a wall. Well, what was once a wall. It was literally dust, fine and powdery. It could only be vampire work – and besides, I could smell something sweet and familiar on the air, mixed with something warm and human.
Alejandro was here, I realised. But… with a human? Confused, my brow furrowed. Why on earth would Alejandro break down a wall and rendezvous with a human… girl?
Sniffing the air, I began to follow the faint trail he had left behind. The scent of the human made my throat burn a bit but not excessively. Several times, I picked out red outlines hiding behind dustbins and such – people were hiding. Some of them even tried to mug me, poor things. They didn't know what hit them. Literally, I probably concussed a few of them.
The trail ended at a row of peeling buildings. At least, the human's did. Her scent led up the steps and inside, but I didn't follow it. It was a students' dorm and I didn't want to enter. It would only bring back too many memories. Alejandro's, however, carried on past the building and into an alleyway.
I didn't follow. I'd find out later.
Making an about turn, I headed for home – or what was home at that point for me – cutting through the city as fast as I could, feeling an abrupt need to run.
But then another thought shot through my head and I skidded to a halt in the middle of a deserted road.
I'd run away from Alexandria, come here.
So why was I feeling the need to run, again? How much running could one person do, and still want to run more?
Smack.
"Ugh," I groaned, shaking my head to clear it. "Sorry," I added to the person I'd knocked over. And then I noticed the smell, an extremely familiar smell…
"Oh, not you," I muttered, too low for him to hear.
"What was that?" Benjamin asked in an amused tone.
"Nothing," I snapped, shooting him a glare.
"Where have you been all night?"
"None of your business."
"You should get back, it's almost dawn," he told me, looking east at the slowly lightening sky.
"Says you. Heading in the opposite direction from the house. Now where are you off to, I wonder?"
"Hate to use your words, but…" I held my breath. Don't say it. "It's none of your business."
Damnit.
I turned away, fighting the urge to bring down a wall like Alejandro had done.
"Why'd you come find me, Benjamin?" I asked abruptly. And then I clapped my hand over my mouth. That was not meant to slip out.
"What?"
"You followed me. Here. To Cairo. You needn't have. Why did you?" I asked in short, clipped sentences.
He was silent for a very long time. I'm not sure how long, almost half an hour. My vampire patience was pretty much unending, though, so I waited for him to speak.
"That's it?" I asked finally. "No answer?"
"Wait, I'm thinking," came the terse reply.
"You're a vampire. Think faster."
"You're a vampire, too. Be patient."
I smiled. As long as he wasn't being nice, it was easier to tolerate him. Because when he was being kind, when he begged for forgiveness, I had to fight with myself not to give in.
"I'm not sure how exactly to say this," he began hesitantly. I didn't turn around, but he knew I was listening. "I made a mistake, Tia. I messed up. I shouldn't even have associated with you in the first place. I should have saved you from Raphael and walked away." That hurt. "But I didn't," he continued. "And then Tassara came along… a piece of my past, someone to be feared. Someone stronger than me, and she terrified me." I spun around to face him, and he kept talking.
"I know I should have told you what I am as soon as you woke up, but I lost my chance. I ran and ran, and bumped into Tassara. She went after you before I could stop her and then the next day… you know what happened." He winced at the memory, rubbing the back of his neck.
A long time passed before I fully processed everything and formulated an answer. "So what do you want?" I asked carefully.
"I can't ask you for more than friendship. It would be wrong, after all I have done. But the least I can ask for… is that you forgive me?"
Indecision bloomed inside me.
I had killed myself for the boy! It was impossible to simply forgive him.
"I will think on it," I told him in my most regal tone, looking him in the eye.
The first rays of the sun burst over the roofs of the buildings and shone off of our skins, creating diamond reflections, beautiful and perfect but oh so fragile. Just like this moment. This small moment of peace wouldn't last.
We stood, and we watched the sun rise.
"Time to head home, Tia?" Benjamin asked, an odd smile on his face.
"I'm not sure where home is at the moment," I sighed. "But I'll take it." And cutting through a maze of alleyways to avoid the sun, we slunk into the house and went to our rooms, both lost in thought. The temporary peace was still there, but the moment was gone forever.
A/N: So, I've had a total Harry Potter phase lately, although 'twas inspired by more than the release of the movie, I'm not that shallow. I just randomly picked up Philosopher's Stone one day and began reading and I got captivated. Again. J.K.R., you are a magician with words. So yeah, I've been doing some HP fanfiction and plus, this chapter of ITC really didn't have much substance. Which is why it took so long to get up.
Apart from that... I know it's a bit ungrateful to expect reviews when I update so sporadically, but I'd really like some more. Cause honestly, reviews are the things which really keep me writing. When I'd almost ditched this story, I got one saying that it was the best Tia&Benjamin story on FFN. Which just really touched me, and got me writing again.
As always, thanks to Ms. New York, who has been reviewing from the start, even though I'm such a bad update-r. Haha, wrong english much :P
And, a big thank you to Pretty Little Liarr, who told me that ITC is the best Tia&Benjamin story on FFN. love ya x
To all my (few) readers, thanks for putting up with my lousy updating skills. Take care, happy holidays! xxxxxx tara