Chapter 19

Mary-Lynette stood in awe. She was just taking in her surroundings when a feminine voice called out Ash's name, alarming her. Spinning towards an archway, Mary-Lynette saw a smaller girl with coppery curls and bright green eyes. She skipped over to where they stood, smiling brightly.

"So, are you gonna introduce me?" she asked Ash.

"Um, Poppy, this is Mary-Lynette, Mark, Claudine, and Mr. Carter. You guys, this is Poppy North, my cousin's soulmate."

"Hi!" she said brightly. The Carter family simply waved, somewhat frightened by the excited-looking girl standing in front of them.

"Jamie!" she called over her shoulder. "Ash is back! We weren't expecting you back so soon. At least you called ahead this time" she told them, rolling her eyes at Ash.

"Ya, well some things came up. Do you figure you could show them to their rooms? We've been travelling a long time and they probably need some rest." Ash delegated. The girl nodded, and started walking towards the spiral staircase.

"Are you coming or what?"

Mary-Lynette looked up at Ash, unsure whether she should follow the copper-haired girl or not. When Ash nodded and pushed her gently forwards, she walked with a straight back towards the girl, trying her best to look somewhat confident.

As they walked up the staircase, Mary-Lynette caught a glimpse of Ash greeting a black-haired boy who was likely James. He was then led off into a side room. Poppy showed Mr. Carter and Claudine their room, and was just coming out of Mark's room when Mary-Lynette found the courage to speak up.

"So are you a vampire?"

Poppy looked somewhat surprised at the question. She hadn't been expecting Mary-Lynette to speak to anyone but her family at the moment.

"Yes, I am. I used to be human though."

Mary-Lynette nodded. "Why'd you become a vampire then?"

"Well I was sick. I had cancer and was gonna die. Then James - my soulmate - told me that he was a vampire. He offered to change me and I agreed. My twin brother found out and tried to stop us, but Jamie convinced him to let me get changed. And so here I am today!"

Mary-Lynette was shocked. So she wasn't the only person going through this all.

"So how'd you find out you were soulmates?"

"Well, Jamie and I have been best friends forever, and then I dunno. Something just clicked. And after he rescued me from Vegas…"

"Why'd you need to be rescued?" Mary-Lynette knew there was something to this story. It called to her, and she needed to know more, not realizing Poppy might think her rude for interrogating her.

"Well, Ash found out about me and told me that as long as I was around, Jamie wasn't safe. So I left with him and he took me to Vegas and tried to seduce me before handing me over to the Night World Authorities." she explained bluntly.

"Ash did what?" Mary-Lynette half-shrieked, infuriated.

"Oh. Shoot! I forgot! Mary-Lynette, you have to understand that Ash was a different person back then."

"Like hell he was!"

"He's changed. Please forget everything I said. I'm sorry! It was stupid of me!"

"No. It's okay. I'm glad you told me. I think I have a right to know that Ash tried seducing his cousin's soulmate!" Mary-Lynette was yelling now. Poppy tried calming her down lest the entire household come investigating.

"Here's your room." Poppy said finally, letting out a sigh of relief once Mary-Lynette closed the door. Yep. She was definitely Ash's soulmate alright - loud, jealous, and ungrateful. A perfect match.

Ash was talking with the other people at Circle Daybreak in the main living room when he heard a yell from above. Recognizing it as Mary-Lynette's, he stood up in alarm. Several people gave him strange looks before James explained.

"Um, Poppy said Mary-Lynette is a little tired. She's just angry with her brother is all."

Ash nodded. That sounded like Mary-Lynette. Sitting back down, he tried using the soulmate link to talk to her. Nothing. She was shielding her mind. Mostly dismissing it as her being tired, Ash went back to his conversation with the Daybreakers. He had been explaining to them his current dilemma with his mother showing up in Briar Creek and how he had convinced Mary-Lynette that they needed to leave. Ash figured it would be smart to leave out the part about him changing Mary-Lynette into a vampire. She could tell them later if she wanted. Making a mental note to ask Thierry to explain the process a little more in depth, Ash decided it was time to head up to bed. People had been slowly disappearing to their rooms pair by pair all evening.

Walking up the staircase, Ash tried reaching out to Mary-Lynette again. Nothing. Not even dreams. Maybe she was so tired that she didn't even have the energy to dream. Trying not to worry too much, he gave a slight tug on the silver cord. She was there and alright. Breathing a sigh of relief, Ash continued on down the hallway.

Knocking quietly on the door of the room he was to share with Mary-Lynette, Ash opened it slowly to find her sitting on the centre of the still-made bed. Wide awake.

"So nice of you to finally show up." she said sarcastically, glaring at him with the force of a hurricane.

Nope. She wasn't sleeping or tired. She had been purposely keeping him out of her mind.

Great.

A/N: Uh-oh. I have a feeling Ash is in BIG trouble. Sorry this chapter is short, but I just felt that this was the perfect point to leave off at...

Thanks to:

ernesdo: Hooray! That's good! It means you're officially hooked! :D Thanks for reading and reviewing!

alissarhode: Aw thank you! I'm a kind of perfectionist when it comes to spelling and grammar. Hopefully you like this present! :)

peppa12: Thanks! Hope this chapter meets your expectations! :D

Well what did you guys think? What do you think Mary-Lynette is going to do/say to Ash? Don't forget to review! It lets me know that you're reading! Flames welcome. Did you guys find that too short? I can be sure that the remainder of my chapters aren't this short if you prefer.

Happy Writing!