Woo this chapter took a long time to write, sorry if I kept you waiting. I thought that it was important to show how Emma deals with her grief at the loss of both her families, human and not, and I really hate writing depressing bits. Don't worry, it'll all sort itself out sooner or later. Probably later bcoz I haven't a clue as how to get to the end yet:)
A few days after we had been separated I found a very slight trail leading to the coast. I was estatic when I had found it, but I was lost when the trail ended at the sea, no trace to be found on land. An idea suddenly dawned on me. Instead of searching for him on the French or English coast, I swam back home to Ireland. I arrived at a beach somewhere in Wexford, revelling in the overcast sky. There was no trace of either Mícheál or Róisín, but I had a feeling they would be here. Judging by the light of day it was about eight or nine in the morning. A symphony of pinks, orange and gold was woven through the late October clouds. I paused for a second to admire the beauty of it all.
I sighed as I took in my surroundings. I was home again, somewhere I had longed to be for decades. It was such a pity that I had to return under these circumstances. I had landed on a soft sandy beach, sand dunes high up about a hundred feet in front of me. I recognised the shape of the dunes, but I couldn't quite figure out where from. I must have been here sometime in my human life.
I started to walk inland at a human pace. I couldn't hear any humans nearby but I still enjoyed walking at a slow pace. It was almost as if the more I tried to act human the more human I became. I knew it was ridiculous, but I couldn't stop myself from hoping.
I continued along the trail until I came upon a small house. It was still pretty early in the morning, meaning that no sane person would be awake at this hour, so I figured that I might aswell find a change of clothes. The dress I had taken from Marc's mother was well worn by now, as well as stained from the salty seawater. I paused to wonder what Marc was doing. Was he getting ready for school? Was he being homeschooled? Was he working at the farm with his father? Was he happy? I made a mental note to check up on him when I returned to the mainland.
There wasn't much wardrobe choice but I made do with what I had. I went into the bathroom to check my reflection. I had always been a little vain, and aquiring a devastating beauty didn't help things. I tidied up my hair and checked my eyes once more. Beneath the heavy vail of dark lashes were my amber orbs. I noticed that the strange yellow colour in my eyes were halfway darkened. What in God's name had made them change to the colour they are? I sighed and brushed back my long chocolate brown curls once more. I had to admit, I preferred my eyes the colour they are. Gold was much more becoming than burgundy. Not to mention the fact it was easier to interact in public.
I smiled at the mirror in habit and turned to leave when I caught the scent of the most delicious thing ever. My head spun just thinking of it. It felt like I was hit by a tank repeatedly. Fire erupted in my throat in response as I realised what that tantalising scent meant. Blood. Not just any blood, but the most sweetest taste imagined. In that one milisecond, my whole being was focused on one thing. I had turned even more deadly than fifty newborns.
A fresh flow of venom flushed through my mouth in anticipation. I swallowed it down but it seemed to ignite the fire in my throat even more. I was now 100% predator. My eyes swept around the room to find the source of such a heavenly fragrance, but the culprit was nowhere to be seen. Venom pooled in my mouth once more as I took in a deep breath. I almost slid into the hallway as I started to search for my goal. I heard the sound of shallow breathing in the room at the end of the hall. I threw the door aside, not caring if I was seen. An old woman jumped up from her bed at the sound. I purred in satisfaction. I had found my mark.
I sprung on top of the woman, knocking her back on the bed. Her screams didn't register on my brain until after. I sunk my razor sharp teeth into the artery in her neck, tapping into her sweet lifeforce. I didn't rush this one. The thrashing and screaming gradually started to die down as I took my time, savouring each and every drop. It was the sweetest blood I had ever tasted, not to mention it tasted much, much better than it smelled. I couldn't believe that drinking blood could ever be so satisfactory. My eyes were almost rolling in my head from the intense pleasure of it all.
I drank until the body was completly dry. I threw the body aside in irritation. Although the burning in my throat was completly sated, I wasn't ready to be finished. Dammit why couldn't humans have more blood? Slowly, my mind returned to sanity. I calmed down and looked down on the old woman in pity. I didn't have the restraint to snap her neck, so she died in agony and terror. At least she was old and didn't have much longer. I noticed that she had severe arthritis on her hands, so I tried to tell myself that I probably ended her suffering. Deep down inside I knew that there was no justifying what I had done, no matter what I told myself.
Luckily, there was no one else in the house or in the surrounding area to hear the attack. I sat down on the edge of the bed and held my head in my hands. I thought of all the people I murdered, from John and the dying people in the train station, all the way to my family. I thought of all the faces. I could remember every single one looking back at me half in terror and half in awe of my beauty. I thought of all the lives I had ruined and all the families I had forever scarred. For all I knew, I could have brutally murdered the next Marie Curie, or the next Edgar Allen Poe or Shakespeare.
I got up and threw about anything I could lay my hands on in anguish. I broke the bedside locker, I threw the stool against the door, I shattered the chest of drawers against the wall and into the next room. I was furious with myself, I didn't deserve to exist, let alone live. No wonder Mícheál left me. Mícheál. I wailed as I sank to the floor in defeat, my hands attempting to tear out my indestructible hair. I needed to feel something. I needed some kind of physical pain to deal with all the emotional hurt I was going through. I shuddered as tearless sobs shook through my body. I should have dealt with this when I killed my family. I was broken and Mícheál wasn't here to pick me up and put me back together again. He always helped me along, he fixed me when I fell apart, he gave me some sort of meaning to my existance. My world was grey without him.
Hours passed as I lay there on the floor. I had gradually calmed down enough to pull myself together. Luckily enough, I hadn't ruined my newly aquired clothes. I pulled myself to the mirror once more and cleaned up my face. I had blood smeared across my mouth. I noticed to my dissapointment that my eyes had returned to their normal colour of burgundy. I groomed my hair back into order and left the house. I didn't dare to look at the photographs scattered around the house as I passed through.
I noticed with shock that it was already dusk outside. The sun had broken through the clouds at the last few minutes of light as if to say goodbye to the day. The remaining rays of sunlight cast a glimmer on my diamond-like skin, although the effect was not nearly as astounding as full sunlight would have been. The woods that surrounded the house were almost silent. Wait – almost? Usually there was not even a breath to be heard when I was near the wildlife, as if I would be a danger to them! I cast my sight around, trying unsuccesfully to see what was causing the disturbance.
I caught the scent of something I had never encountered before. It was so unusual, it seemed to be human, but mixed in with nature. There was an air of awe surrounding the woods. I followed the scent out away from the house. Laughter from behind me stopped me in my tracks. I flipped around and crouched low in defense. I reminded myself to keep my temper in check. As I held myself in position, I saw the offending culprit. It was a girl, or rather a tiny woman, swinging to and fro on the branches above me.
I gaped in shock, too astounded to react. The girl-woman jumped down and landed lightly on her feet. "Dia duit, Emma, what brings you to my woods" she asked. Her voice was angelic, the perfection in her notes was unbelievable to even my ears. "How do you know my name" I responded. She laughed and started to braid her hair absent-mindedly.
She had long wavy blonde hair that flowed well past her waist. Everything about her was petite, from her thin face to her tiny waist, and even her bare feet. She was clothed in furs from various animals and had various wildflowers woven into her hair.
She started to dance around me. "You go first" she sang. I still hadn't relaxed my pose as I wasn't yet sure if she was a threat or not. "I came back to Ireland to look for my mate and I stopped by the house beyond to find some clothes." She came to a stop right in front of me and smiled.
"I am Beibhinn of the Aos sí, specifically I am a Bean Sídhe. I came to warn the old lady of your presence, but sadly people do not take heed of my kind any more." She paused and cocked her head to the side. "Do not worry young one, you will find what you're looking for in time. But be warned; your path is perilous and wraught with grief. What you are seeking for in your heart will present itself soon." I straightened myself up. I now looked at her in curiosity. I knew she wasn't a major threat.
How could she know all of this? Wait, aren't the Aos Sí the fairy people of the ledgends? I almost scoffed at the idea, but stopped myself as I realised that I also once believed that vampires didn't exist. The fairy smiled once more at me. "Let me tell you this, you have yet to start out on your path. The woods of Kilkenny are beautiful this time of year."
As she spoke those last few words, Beibhinn started to fade. Her voice was drifting further and further until there was no trace of her left. It seemed that her scent was a distant memory too far away to call back. If I had have been human, I would have thought that I was dreaming.
What was the fairy talking about? Kilkenny? Was she giving me a hint? It was hard to decipher, all the myths say that fairies speak cryptically and often never make sense. I went to leave the wood in a hurry. It was also common knowledge that fairies were fiercly protective over their land.
Yay, I have to admit that I liked the end of that chapter. I thought it might be interesting if I introduced another mythical creature into the equation.
"Dia duit" means "Hello" or "God be with you" in Irish, 'Beibhinn' means 'fair woman' or 'blonde woman', its a really old name that refers to viking women. I thought the name really fit:)
Ooh, and the title is referring to Emma's 'singer'(the old lady).
Was that okay? Please review and tell me what you think!