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Chapter 22
Eric rushed us back to my front porch, touching down lightly. My eyes fought to stay open but exhaustion seemed to be winning the battle.
"Eric please just put me in my bed." I whispered to him as he carried me to my room. "I just need to sleep a while." I yawned and dug my face into his chest as he lay with me on my bed.
Upon awakening I felt Eric's absence. He hadn't been able to stay long before the sun had come up. I wondered if he had stayed in the basement or not. I felt the stirring in my stomach telling me it was happening again as I pulled myself up onto my hands and knees. The swirling and crashing started to move up into my chest burning and freezing as it went. The familiar scratching began as I coughed up the magic I had stolen from Marnie the night before. I was unable to stop it, it seemed. I needed it to dispel the spirit and so I took it without thinking.
My body writhed in agony as I fell to my back again, into the fetal position. I gripped my legs tightly, squeezing my eyes shut as the tears fell. This time had been worse then the last. Gasping for air I felt it swirling again this time I screamed as it fell from me.
"Oliver!" Godric ran into the room, "Oliver!" He was yelling. The world around me went black as I fell from consciousness.
"ERIC YOU HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE BASEMENT!" Opening my eyes I saw Godric screaming at Eric. I hadn't thought he was even capable of yelling. I giggled.
"Godric.." I croaked as I turned towards them, "Eric.." I reached for water that sat next to my bed. They were yelling so loudly at each other that they hadn't registered me waking up. Clearing my throat I sat up, swinging my legs over the beds edge. "GODRIC!" I raised my voice. I regretted this action instantly as I started hacking and coughing once again. My throat had been damaged during the after math of my busy night.
"Oliivi your awake." Eric flew to the bed taking me into his arms. Blood stained his face and shirt.
"Eric I am fine, truly. Just please listen to Godric and go back downstairs, you have the bleeds..." I said touching his chin lightly, looking into his eyes. This was a different version of Eric, one I had yet to encounter. "I felt your pain Oliivi. I had to come to you." He said hugging my before standing to leave.
Godric watched us, giving Eric what I assumed was his angry face. "Go now my child. She will be fine with me until later." Eric nodded at Godric as he left the room swiftly. Sighing I attempted to stand from the bed. I was definitely a little wobbly but I managed, tip toeing to my closet for a change of outfit.
"I am glad you are okay Oliver. Are you well enough for me to leave you a while?" He asked, looking worried still.
"Yes I think so. I just need a good hot shower and some food. I am sure I am okay." I reassured him as I pulled an outfit from my walk in closet.
"If you need me just holler." He said as he left my room.
Sometimes all I needed was some alone time. In this case I was sure that's what I needed. I was going to shower then take a walk through the woods. My body craved waves, rolling streams...Anything that could recharge my body. I wished even for a little rain here and there. It hadn't rained in weeks!
As I stood in the shower, water falling over me I decided tonight I would call for some rain. Maybe even a nice thunder storm, nothing big.
I dried myself off, pulling on a nice knit dress that went to my mid thigh (above the knee). I wore my usual long thigh high socks for warmth with my Doc Martins. I let my hair stay wet and wild. If I called for rain tonight there would be no use in having my hair done up.
I headed down stairs to the kitchen for some food, finding Godric had made me some soup. "Thanks for the soup. I can't begin to tell you how hungry I am after that shit. It's like I loose all my energy." I stuffed my face while we talked.
"You said you haven't experienced this before?" He asked again, we both knew there was no use. Claudine is gone and now I had no way to know just what had happened.
"Nope...Perks of being royalty I guess." I shrugged. We didn't talk much about my status among the Fae. Godric knew that it upset me. Being related to an evil queen wasn't the most appealing thing not to mention the lies that came along with it. They assumed that because I was unaware of Fae politics that they could do what they wanted with me.
"I am just taking it day to day at this point." I told Godric.
"Well I am worried about you. I think we need to keep you away from witches for a while." He told me. He was probably right. I hadn't encountered witches before, to my knowledge. This was the first time anything like this had happened. It was fair to say Godric was probably right about this.
"Yep. You won't get a fight from me. Honestly Godric all I want is a little peace." This made him smile.
"Come now child. There is no peace for those made of magic. It is our curse." His smile faded. He wasn't like us anymore, he was normal now.
"Well you aren't cursed anymore Godric. At least one of us will live a real life." I wished at that moment that he had gone away. Staying here wasn't safe for him. I shoved the last bit of food into my mouth as I stood up, "You should really think about traveling a while. If you stay with me that is fine but know that it won't be safe forever." I threw my bowl into the sink as I reached for my jacket, "I am heading out a while. I should be back later tonight... Think about it okay?" I didn't give him the chance to say no, I just went out the front door and down the dirt road leading to the woods.
I walked amongst the trees that separate Sookie and my property, looking out to see beyond them. I could see my Fae friend laying out in the sun, tanning. Instead of talking with her I stayed under the safety of the forest, pulling out my phone. I sent her a few messages.
Me: Hey Sook. Glad that Bill is back. We should hang out in a few days to talk.
Sookie: Hey Oliver! You left so fast last night, you had me worried!
Me: Sorry about that. Eric got a little carried away I think. Anyways I am fine.
Sookie: Well I am not waiting a few days. You are coming over tomorrow to see me.
Me: Alright! I will be there around lunch time. Be safe.
Sookie: Okay. You to.
Sookie may be younger then me but she never made it weird. In fact most times I looked to her for answers. She had her Gran's wisdom, I could always count on her in a pinch. I laughed a while as I trudged through the swampy soil beneath me. Sometimes I wished I could disappear without being missed. Recently I had found a few people who probably would be devastated or even upset if I left. I was stuck here.
I told myself a lot lately that the only reason I stayed was for Sookie. I knew the real reason I stayed was Eric. I loved him, there was no escape from it. If I was gone tomorrow I would miss him. Some part of me hurt everyday I had been parted from him. Claudine had told me of bonding, I figured this was related to that. Maybe someday I would find someone with the knowledge I needed who could help me understand. There had to be more then Sookie and I no matter how rare it was.
I finally came to my favorite place near my house, A small pond fed from water that flowed down from Sookie's place. It wasn't large but It was enough for me to put my feet in without fear of getting attacked by alligators. I stepped into the pool allowing the feeling to fill me up.
Night fell sooner then I had expected. I had been out in my woods a few hours basking in the glow of the sun that shone down through the canopy of trees. Time always went fast when I was in nature, there was no stopping it. I pulled my socks and shoes back on and headed back towards my house. Tonight I was going to speak with Eric and I knew there was no way to escape it. I couldn't put it off anymore.
As I walked the paths home I tried to prepare myself for the impending conversation, hoping it wouldn't turn out like all the others we had had before. I just wanted things to go right for us just this one time.
Godric was sitting out on the porch watching me walk the dirt road towards him. He usually came out to look at the stars every night for about an hour before going to sleep. He was always up so early in the morning that he went to bed very early at night, taking advantage of being able to spend his days in the sun light.
"Hey Godric. Hows the moon treating you?" I asked as I climbed the steps and sat with him.
"As it always has." He smiled kindly to me. "You spent a long time out there today. Did you speak with Sookie?" He asked curiously. Ever since we had been back he had been unable to spend much time with his usual friends and family. Instead he had spent time with me and even Sookie off and on. I wondered sometimes if maybe he liked her.
"Nope. I texted her a while ago but that was pretty much it. I needed some alone time yanno?" He nodded, looking back towards the sky.
"Eric was looking for you. He is still inside." He told me.
"Okiedokie." I squeezed his arms a bit and left him to the sky, heading inside to find Eric.
I flung my boots into the closet by the door. My house was warm tonight, Godric loved cranking the heat. I wasn't complaining though. In the past I had always left it off, coming home to cold feet. In a way I understood it, being cold for two thousand years clearly took it's toll.
I checked down stairs not finding Eric anywhere. Wondering if he may have gone upstairs I climbed the stairs to my bedroom.
Once inside I saw him sitting on my bed with his head in his hands. He seemed so full of sadness since being changed back. I wondered if he had been a bit upset about getting his memories back.
"Eric." I said, walking towards him. I stood against his knees, "Eric what is it?" I asked running my hands through his thick blond hair. His face lifted to look at mine.
"I was just sitting here waiting for you." He said putting his hands on my hips and pulling my into his lap. I didn't fight him, curling into him and laying my head on his shoulder.
"I went out to the swamp today. Sorry I wasn't back when you woke up." I missed him. His arms went around me holding me close. "So...You got your memories back then?" I asked feeling a little uncomfortable with his strange silence.
"Yes it seems so. I remember everything." He ran his hand through my hair as he inhaled my scent. "How is it that you allow me to touch you?" He asked.
I looked up at him, "Family stuff. Claudine came and helped me cloak my scent." I told him, shrugging. Draining the Fae that night had distracted us from having this talk sooner.
"I am glad." He kissed my hair lightly. I moved away so I was sitting up on his lap.
"Eric we need to talk. You know I cannot be with you in the way you want me to." I had my brave face on now. I wasn't going to give up my morals for him.
His face stayed serious as he pulled me back into his chest, "I think that you misunderstand the way I wish to be with you Oliivi." He said, again playing with my braids.
"What does that even mean Eric? Sometimes I feel so lost talking with you." I sighed.
"I want you to be mine Oliivi. In turn I would be yours, always." He said leaning his head against mine. This shocked me once again, I had never known my brother to be a one girl kind of guy. "You cannot be serious Eric? I cannot give my heart to you only to have it thrown away later." I needed reassurances.
"No. I would never hurt you Oliivi. I want to make us both happy. I have always wanted only that." He wasn't aware of the bonding that could happen between us. He didn't understand!
"I don't want to hold you back brother. If we were together I wouldn't be able to control the bonding. We would be stuck that way, always." I told him, not even understanding it myself. "I won't be dieing anytime soon either, It would be pretty permanent."
"Of course we would bond. I would hope you would take my blood again, if only to keep you safe." He didn't understand.
"Eric I don't mean a vampire bond. Claudine told me we are bonding. Apparently it started a long time ago. I cannot stop it or lessen it. I don't even know how it works." He could be stuck with me and more. If we bonded there was no telling what came with that. We could grow wings for all I knew.
His eyes grew wide as he stared down at me, "We have already started this Fairy bonding?" He asked me. I only nodded unable to say much more. I hoped he wasn't angry with me.
"Well then it is settled." He said straightening out a bit. His head no longer leaning against mine.
"What? What is settled? I am pretty sure nothing has been settled Eric." I laughed, my giggles muffled a bit by his chest.
He grunted, "Of course it has been settled. If you cannot stop it then we must finish it." He was very sure of it. I wasn't sure of anything. I choked a bit on my laugh.
"Eric you can't be serious? We don't know what could happen!" I regained composure.
"We know we would be bonded. I would ask that we bond my way as well of course. All I want Oliver is for you to be mine. I love you, nothing has changed." He was crazy!
"Look I don't know okay! I don't know how to even complete the bond. This isn't exactly something I have done before!" I raised my voice as I tried to remove myself from his lap. His arms held me tightly in place not allowing me to leave.
"We will try. I won't be without you anymore. I have been alone for a thousand years without you. I won't do it any longer." He shook his head. "It is only you Oliver. Always." He whispered as he kissed my hair again. I relaxed a bit against him.
"What are you going to do if I don't agree?" I asked.
"You will agree. Oliver what is there to loose?" He knew he had me this time. All we had was time in the end. Sighing I leaned back into him.
"Fine." I murmured. I would give it a go if only just to see what happened in the end.
He smiled huge, "I am glad. I was worried for a while there."
In a second he had me on my back straddling me. "I have waited far to long." He said pressing his head against mine. "I love you."