Disclaimer: Oops, I forgot on the last one. So this'll be a double disclaimer! I don't own Demonata, Darren Shan does, nor any of his characters (e.g. Grubbs, Bill-E or Lorcan). But I do own the vampoari, Esther, Violet, and all the other OC's who'll show up along the way.
A/N: Well, things are picking up now, aren't they! I wanted a romance, and literally read all the books in the space of three days to find someone for Esther. I couldn't make a suitable OC to be paired with Esther, so I went looking…Through all ten Demonata books! But I read them twice over, just to be sure, and for some reason Lorcan just stood out! I don't know what it was that made me think he'd go well with Esther, but something did. Maybe his direct approach opposed to her cautious one just seemed right to me? Meh. R&R please! And a humongous thanks to MarchFrostbite for being my first reviewer! I hope I get more, but I doubt it! Another massive thanks to everyone who's read this crappy fanfic-even if you haven't reviewed! Chapter 6 is coming soon. Over and out.
Have I ever told you I hate the woods? I guess not. But for the sake of it, you should know that woodland areas unnerve me to a certain extent. With the teenage former warrior with me, I feel a lot safer, and have to resist the urge to pull him into a hug and thank him over and over, just for being here with me. Lorcan seems in total awe of everything he sees, even though we haven't got to the modern things yet. Being bought back to life brings a lot of shocks to anyone, even if they're simply in the woods. He's tugging at his numerous earrings excitedly like my sister gets at Christmas time as he takes in the woods with awe.
"It's all so pretty," he says breathlessly, staring up at the sky with wide eyes. I can't help but think, if this is what his reaction to the woods is like, I have no clue what he'll be like around the Pimp Mobile. He stares intently as a rabbit dashes past us, shooting back down into a burrow. "If I still had my sword I could catch that, skin it, and we could eat it."
"Oh no." I say, smiling quickly at him. "You don't have to do anything like that! Just, don't do anything too irrational, like try and kill someone if they insult you. It's illegal and you could go to prison." He looks at me, confused. Back in ancient Irish times, I'm guessing if someone called you a 'dickhead' you could skewer him quick-as-lightning and get away with it. "A lot has changed, Lorcan; there are a lot more rules and regulations about what you can and cannot do. And carrying weaponry, like a sword, unless you have permission, is illegal."
"Things were a lot simpler when I was born," he sighs. "There weren't all these laws on what you can and cannot do. The world seems so strict now." His earrings glint in the moonlight, and I wonder what boys of this day and age would think of them. "Are there rules on marriage too?" He asks me, still looking around the woods as he says it, not so much as glancing back at me.
"Yes," I say. "You can get married at sixteen with your parents' permission, but most people wait till their adults." Based on the little I know about Ancient Times, people got married at all sorts of ridiculous ages, and another, important question pops up in my mess of a mind. "Were you married?"
"No," he says with a laugh, shaking his head. "There were many girls in the tuath, but none of them were particularly interesting. I wished to run off and meet someone exotic, someone different. Things always get boring when they're just the same." His Irish accent makes every word he's saying sound exotic, special, different, unlike me with my plain Geordie accent which makes me sound loud, obnoxious and stupid. He looks at me, and grins mischievously. "If you had lived in the lands when I was first alive, I certainly would have married you."
Suddenly I'm thankful it's dark, and the middle of the night, so he can't see the redness as it creeps up my face, staining my cheeks scarlet and I feel my ears go hot. "Why me?" My voice comes out in a mouse's squeak, and again he turns back to look at me.
"You're different." He says several steps ahead of me; his longer legs give him a wider birth in which to walk, unlike my meek little scampers to keep up with him. "Everything about you is different, Esther. You're unusual heritage, which makes you beautiful, but in a way I've never seen before." My ears heat up, and I begin to nibble my lip-a nervous twitch of mine. "You interest me with the things you say. And besides, like I said, you're different to everyone I've ever met. I haven't met many people, but you stand out compared to your weird employers. You didn't just stare at me like I was an achievement or something, you were the only one who tried to help me, and you did. Like I said, you live up to your name."
I've been so caught up listening to him I've fallen behind and I have to run forwards to make sure I don't get left alone in the woods without him. My face is still flushed, but my ears are cooling and I hope my blush will fade away soon. I look up at him, and feel butterflies begin to well in my stomach. Oh fuck! No, Esther, you cannot seriously be doing this, I tell myself. You are NOT getting a crush on the guy who you've been told to look after and who has just said would marry you. But I am. I'm stubborn, even with myself, and I know there's not much point in me trying to tell myself to shut up and back down.
I don't know what it is about Lorcan that's made me attracted to him. Maybe it's his honesty, something men apparently lack. Or maybe it's just the way he seems to genuinely like me for me. And he's the first boy to ever notice my 'hidden beauty', maybe it's a sign. I shrug off my childish thoughts and smile to myself, looking down at the leaf coated earth, dwelling in my own happiness at what Lorcan had said to me. The first person ever to call me beautiful, and not in that sleazy 'I want to get in your pants' fashion.
"Although, I might not marry you," he continues, absentmindedly kicking bushes that are in his way.
"Huh?" I say, looking up at him, startled.
"My brother would've liked you too," he says, looking up at the moon, a look of somewhat disappointment evident on his youthful face. "And he was the elder of the two of us, so if he wanted you, he'd get you. Even if I liked you more. And I know I'd like you more." He sounds so determined it's cute, "But in the time I lived, the elder twin was given privileges."
"Well now it isn't like that." I say quickly. "I guess times have become fairer. Nowadays, if you both liked me, but I liked you more, you'd get to marry me." He stares at me, green eyes wide in amazement.
"Really?" He sounds even more excited at this. "I think I like these times," he says with a laugh and looks down at me. "I like them a lot." He looks back at me with another grin, this one even brighter than the last. "And seeing as this time has you in it, it is even better." The blush shoots back up my face, and I brush my hair back in front of my face again. "Are you okay?" He asks, looking at my hair.
"Oh yes. I'm fine!" I say quickly. He holds out one of his callous, bruised hands and I take it with my much softer one. He tightens his grip around my hand and pulls me closer towards him, grinning like a lunatic. I don't get how he walks through the woods in his boots and just a tunic, whilst I'm shivering in my dress, but I'm guessing he's used to the cold.
"Do the woods scare you?" He asks, and I nod in response. "They'll get less frightening the more time you spend in them! I loved the woods almost as much as I loved killing demons." I notice I'm moving a lot faster now my hand is linked with his. "And I loved swimming too; I was the best in the tuath." He sounds proud but I figure he's earned the right to be proud. "Do you like swimming Esther?"
"No," I sigh sadly. "I'm a little funny about water; I didn't have a bad experience with it or something along those lines, but…I've just never been good at it, and I don't think I ever will be." Lorcan stares at me, grin never slipping, not even once.
"I'll teach you," he offers me. "I'll teach you to swim, and if one of your fanged employers ever tries to hurt you, I'll protect you." He says confidently.
"You don't have to do that Lorcan." I say quickly. "They could hurt you, they could even kill you."
"I've died once, death doesn't scare me." He says airily, grinning still at me. "Besides, you have promised to teach me the ways of your new world, so I owe you." I feel like I'm in his debt now, and before I can stop myself, I say something stupid.
"Well….Well when Marcella's taught me how to bring people back properly, not as zombies." I lick my lips carefully and smile at him. "I'll bring your brother back. We'll go to the site where he died and I'll bring him back for you. You're promising to protect me from powerful immortal beings, and all I'm doing is telling you the facts. I'll bring your brother back for you, I promise."
Lorcan's eyes light up like Christmas tree lights and he openly gawped at me, but it soon curved back into a smile, only this one was full of pure, clean happiness. "You'd do that?" He asks amazed. "You'd bring Ronan back for me?" I nod nervously, unsure of his response. He pulls me into a tight hug, kissing the top of my head, lifting me off the ground. "You really do live up to your name." I blush all over again and he laughs sweetly. "Your parents were wise calling you Esther."
"Your parents were wise calling you Lorcan." I reply, smiling a little myself. "You sound extremely brave." I said and he looked at me in such a way, I wondered if he was blushing himself. "And I bet you are."
"Well isn't that sweet!" An unfamiliar voice calls from the trees-not this again. Lorcan bristles, his body going tense, as if he's wondering whether this is an ambush. I look in the direction of the voice, and am greeted by a peculiar sight. A boy, no more than fifteen, stands by the trees; his skin is a little tanned, like he's spent a limited amount of time in a hot climate, but not that much. His hair's dark, and fairly straight, with matching dark eyes. He's dressed in a silken plum shirt and dark jeans, with brown walking boots. A smug smile is plastered on his lips.
But odder still is the silhouette next to him, a female figure. She's dressed entirely in black, like a widow at a funeral; she even has a lacy vale trailed over her face, covering it. Long, velvet gloves cover her hands; a long, sweeping dress, and stiletto heels are on her feet. I can see her neck, and her skin is pure white. Power seeps over me in an all too familiar fashion, trying to peel back the layers behind my mind, but failing. She's only a little over a hundred and fifty; nowhere near powerful enough to strip my mind.
Gloved fists clench and I do my best not to smirk, she's frustrated that she isn't getting into my mind. Still not deterred, she looks carefully at Lorcan and I can tell she's now the one who is smirking. "I heard of Marcella LaGuarda's powers, but this is certainly impressive. How long have you been dead little boy?" Her voice is heavily accent European, and she sounds Austrian, or maybe Hungarian.
Lorcan tenses and looks uncomfortable, shivering violently, as if he's in the middle of a nightmare. It's frightening to see him so shaken by her words, and I don't know how he's going to take this, so I decide to step in for him. "None of your business," I snap sharply. "What do you want?"
The vampoari flinches and her human boyfriend looks unsure of my attitude towards them. Did I just hurt her feelings? A vampoari? Brownie point for me. The boy places her hands on his hips and pouts slightly, and I'm beginning to think he's more her gay helper than boyfriend. "I don't think the question as directed at you, bitch." The insult comes out more as a hiss, and I see Lorcan's fists clench. I don't know if he can understand the boy, but he certainly recognises an insult when he hears one. "So, I'll ask again. How long have you been dead gorgeous?" Yep, definitely gay, is all I can think.
"Crispin," the vampoari hisses at the bitchy gay guy. "She is much more powerful than you, even now, so shut your goddamn mouth!" Crispin's eyes go wide and he looks like a fish at this. "They clearly aren't answering so we must come back later. Goodbye." She says in her thick accent and quick as they arrived, they've gone again, but I don't feel safe.
"What was that?" Lorcan asks, confused. "What did they want?" The young warrior clearly doesn't know much outside fighting and being a boy, and is looking at me like a worried puppy.
"I don't know," I say shakily. "I don't get it. They appear for less than five minutes, insult me, ask you one question, and then decide we're too much trouble. Weird." I shiver but realise we're close to the car and look at him, smiling weakly. "Come on, we need to go."
"Why?" He asks, confused. "Won't we sleep out in the woods, under the stars?" I giggle at his confusion and his face creases into one of plain uncertainty.
"No, you'll come back to my house." I tell him, causing him to smile warmly.
"Brilliant," he says. "Then I can protect you from those bizarre people, and teach you how to swim. I hope you do not mind cold water too much, but you'll get used to it." Then something hits me, smack, bang in the middle of the forehead.
"Do you swim naked?" I ask, feeling extremely unsure of myself.
"Yes," he replies, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. "Don't you? I hope you won't mind too much about being naked around me?" My eyes pop, and I look at him, completely shocked at what he's just said to me. "What?" He asks naively. "Don't you swim naked?"
"Um…No." I say, shaking my head at the same time. "I have a swimming costume. They were made so you could cover yourself up whilst swimming so you don't get ill if the water's too cold." I explain after he opens his mouth to ask 'why'.
"How interesting." He says, but looks uninterested in getting one. "I don't find any water too cold, I don't think I'll ever want to have one. Swimming is a natural thing; I don't think it should be spoiled by fancy clothing items, Esther." And that was the end of it. I had a feeling he'd be impossible to persuade to wear one, so I decided pressing him would be futile. A good motto of mine. "Why don't we go swimming now?" He's looking extremely interested at the prospect of swimming now. Pervert.
"I don't think that's a good idea…" I start to say but know I'm getting nowhere in trying to disinterest him in going swimming. And he's looking at me in that way that means he's going to whine and bitch until I give into letting him go swimming, without we me or not. But it definitely has to be with me, or else he could get lost or something could happen and I wouldn't be there, and I'd hate it if he got hurt. "Fine, we'll go swimming!" I say impatiently. "Where though?"
"There's water nearby," he says, looking excited. "I can hear it." Wow, he must have sharp ears. He grabs hold of my hand and begins walking forwards briskly, dying to get in the water as much as I'm dying to get out of these woods. His earrings made a small 'CHINK' in the moonlight at the pace he's walking and I can't help but stare at them as we walk. He turns round as if he can tell I'm in awe looking at his earrings. "Like them?" He asks. "They were in fashion."
"How did you even pierce them?" I ask, and I have a feeling I'm not going to like his answer.
"Would you really like to know?"
"Not really…" I squeak, feeling my stomach churn at the possibilities of how he got the holes in his ears, for the earrings to loop through.
"Then I won't tell you." He says, grinning at me; how does he keep up that smile? "Unless you decide you suddenly wish to know." I shake my head quickly and he grins, but not maliciously, which really gets me. Most boys would relish in my horror, not him, and he's from times when fighting bloodthirsty demons was a daily routine. "I'm guessing most men in your times don't have piercings like mine?"
"Some do…" I say after some consideration. "But none like yours, but they suit you." I say, smiling shyly like I always do when I get a crush on someone. Only this is extremely stronger; I feel almost ill, a sick feeling pitting in my stomach, and dizziness mounting in my head. Is this love? Don't be stupid, I tell myself. Love never comes on this quickly, and if it has, then NO. What if he doesn't love you back? And there's tonnes of people he's going meet now he's come back to life, there's always someone prettier, smarter, and generally better than you, so never forget it.
"Here!" Lorcan sounds ecstatic, oh shit. WATER. It glimmers a deep blackish-blue in the low light, moving with gentle waves occasionally peaking the surface, but as for that it's almost statue still. It'd probably look a turquoise colour in the day time, due to its position in the outer areas, but for some reason it glints blue in the moonlight. All water seems to do that. Lorcan looks at me, grinning excitedly.
"You first…" I say, gesturing to the lake, still unsure about getting into the water. He shrugs as if this is completely normal, and I have a feeling it is. Without saying another word, Lorcan undresses quickly, and then dives in the water, ignoring its probable freezing temperature. True, he didn't have much to take off, and only his earrings remain as he swims in the water, looking totally at ease in the water, swimming like a fish. I stand awkwardly on the doc, shivering slightly. As if sensing my reluctance, Lorcan turns around and stares up at me, curious why I don't share his enthusiasm.
"Aren't you getting in?" He asks. "If you want to learn how to swim, you need to get in the water."
Swallowing back my doubts, I force myself to smile. "Give me a second," I say, turning around so I'm not facing him. Here we go. Undoing the back of my dress, I slip it down to my ankles, and step out of it. The freezing air lashes at my skin, and goose pimples begin to form like normal; I take off my shoes, and stand there in my underwear, shivering. I turn around, and flush crimson. Lorcan's staring at me with wide, shining eyes, in total awe of me. I quickly clasp my hands over my front, smiling awkwardly.
"You're beautiful," he says, his voice total honesty, which makes things painfully more awkward. "I don't get why you decide to wear that weird outfit over your body, I think you'd look much prettier out of it." I go such a reddish colour he can see it, even in the low light. He laughs, grinning like he's pleased at my reaction, and I decide just to get in the water to shut him up.
Slipping my legs over the edge of the doc, I ease myself in the water. And try not to shriek at the coldness. Lorcan just grins at me, little drops of water coming of his head in a coppery colour, and I realise blood must be rubbed deeply into his scalp, like a thick layer of red dandruff. YUCK. He grins at me like a kid at Christmas and swims towards me, as natural in the water as a fish, till we're almost touching. Water was seeping through my thin, indigo matching bra and knickers, and I was shivering violently. Lorcan looked at me like my behaviour confused him.
"Are you cold?" He asks, putting his hands on my shoulders, making me jump out of my skin. "You're shaking."
"Yeah…I'm cold," I say, gritting my teeth tight together. Lorcan opens his arms as if to hug me and I'm in turmoil on what to do. Hugging him back could make things really awkward, but I'm so fucking cold. I look up at him, and both of us literally seem to freeze where we are. Besides, I'm still shaken by the random pop-up appearance of Crispin, and his widow-dressed mistress. What the hell did they want? Why did they show up, only to disappear after I said a few rude words to them? I know neither of them are too powerful, but why'd the retreat so easily? So freely. But I try to push the bizarre creepers to the back of my mind and come back into the real world. And jump out my skin again.
He's so close his chest is pressed up against mine, the skin contact giving me goose pimples of a whole new kind. I feel myself stiffen and my stomach clench, my breath coming out in short, shivering gasps. Part due to the freezing water, partly due to the amount of tension in the situation. Sexual tension. I feel my lips tingling like they're emitting electromagnetic pulses, and the two of us stare at each other, unsure what to do. I look up at Lorcan and see his own body has gone tense, and his nipples have hardened. He leans down so our lips are an inch away from each other, and I swallow, preparing myself for what's coming next.
But I chicken out, like usual in these situations; I take step back and smile awkwardly at him. He looks confused for a few seconds, as if the lightest of skin contact naturally means we must have sex, but it fades when he realises neither of us are really ready. Besides, we've only just met; sex would make things a dozen times more awkward-at least for me. Something tells me Lorcan could just brush it off, but I'm not him, I can't brush these things off. I'll fuss and faff and think about it forever, never able to get it out of my head, having it constantly replay, over and over, like a video that's stuck.
Even if I still lived with my parents, I couldn't talk to them about this; my parents meant best but they never understood me. I think finding out I'm a necromancer will only distance me more from them. I know they love me, and I love them, but that's not the same as feeling comfortable to tell them all my secrets and ask them questions about every single topic in the world. And when it comes to relationships, I'm totally stuck in between a rock and a hard place. No-one to turn to, no-one to talk to, all alone practically.
Maybe Marcella will understand? But even with her I'm not too sure. I barely know the woman, and now I'm excepted to live with her. Who the fuck is deciding the way my life is going? San Valentino? The 'pearly beauty'? The 'power'? One of their other little friends. Is there any vampoari higher ranking than them calling the shots? So many questions but no-one to answer any of them.
Time to get out of here.