A/N: I apologize for the lengthy time I've taken away from this story. Instead of creating a shorter sequel, I decided to just continue on with this one and make it longer. I hope all my previous readers are still around to enjoy this; of course, I welcome all new readers as well. Happy reading and let me know what you think.
Chapter 22:
The familiarity of the first layer of heaven was right in front of Ayva's eyes. Her eyes burned with tears that had just dried up and flaked off her cheeks. Finn's scent was still all around her and the numbing pain of not being with him was threatening to consume her. Sidriel was standing only a few feet away from her with a solemn expression across his chiseled features. She didn't want his sympathy. It was just how the reality came to crash down around her.
"Ayva...I am sorry..." He stated taking a step closer to her.
"It doesn't matter. I'm stuck here now." She replied sharply.
Her hand absentmindedly went to her stomach. The knowledge that her body was growing another life scared the hell out of her and she had to do it alone. Finn was not there to help her through it. The burning sensation in her eyes returned as she clenched her hands into fists at her sides. Her power tingled throughout her entire body, causing her father to look up from the ground.
Ayva's traditional blue eyes were now pure white. Tears streamed down her cheeks as a wind came out of nowhere to blow around them. He was stunned by the amount of power she was expelling. He knew that she was going to be powerful; but what he was feeling was unexpected to say the least. It made him wonder if it had anything to do with her pregnancy.
"Ayva..." He called softly, taking another step in her direction.
She screamed out in frustration, expelling another wave of power before collapsing to her knees. Sidriel knelt down in front of her, pulling her into his embrace. He hated seeing his daughter this torn up; but there was no other way around it. Ayva had to be protected and taught how to reverse what she did to Aluxia. The balance tipping in favor of one side was bad all around, even if it was tipping in the favor of good. They couldn't risk the world imploding on itself.
"Shhh, it's okay. I'm here." Sidriel soothed.
"It's not the same. I feel like a piece of me was ripped out of my chest."
"That's normal. There is a lot of distance between you and him. I promise that you'll be able to speak to each other. I'd never let you not talk to each other and I can teach you dream-walking so you can see him in his dreams."
Ayva looked up with a sudden new life in her eyes. Sidriel knew that he had gotten her attention. He wasn't heartless and knew that he could never break their bond, would never try to. He's watched her from the time she was born right up to the moment he took her from her Finn. He'd seen first hand just how deep their bond ran. There was no power on earth that could break that.
Three Weeks Later...
Finn opened his eyes only to find himself in a the clearing Ayva loved so much that was located in the park across town. He looked around cautiously until her scent waved under his nose. He spun around swiftly to see Ayva standing there with a coy smile on her face. He took in all of her features right down to the small mole on the corner of her left eye. Her auburn hair was straight and part of it fell over her shoulder; but what he really noticed was how bright her eyes were. They swirled with power.
"Ayva..." He called softly, worried that it was just his imagination.
"Hey there. It's so good to finally see you. I've missed you so much." She replied.
"How..."
"How am I here?" She interrupted.
He nodded, still hesitant in believing that it was really her. She tucked hair behind her ear and took a couple steps closer, understanding the hesitation radiating off him. It was odd to be in control of a dream; but it was even better seeing him with her own eyes. Three weeks without hearing a word or seeing a single image of him was tearing her apart from the inside out. "My father taught me to dream- walk, so I can see you when you fall asleep." She explained.
"So this is real..ish..." Finn asked.
"Yes. It's the best we got at this point. I can't leave where I am anytime soon."
In a matter of seconds, Finn moved to stand mere inches away from her. His hand cupped her cheek, brushing his thumb across her bottom lip. She felt real and the warmth of her skin was intoxicating. Without another moment of hesitation, he dipped in to capture her lips. She pressed into him, deepening the kiss. He slid his hand down her arm to curve over her stomach. The rapid heartbeat of his child was soothing. "I love you..." She whispered against his lips.
"I love you too." He replied pulling her down with him so she was sitting on his lap in the middle of the clearing.
She rested her head on his chest, wondering how long she could hold this dream in place before she would tire out and it would fall apart. The words never came out of her mouth for fear that it would ruin their reunion. Finn held onto her tighter, not wanting to let go of her. The sound of their child's heartbeat came to his ears again, tugging a smile to his lips. "Active little thing huh?" He commented placing his hand on her belly once again.
"We never got to talk about it before I was taken away...I am sorry that I didn't tell you."
"Don't apologize. Sidriel isn't going to let anything happen to you or to the baby. I understand that, even if I hate every second I spend without you."
"I'm nine weeks, if my father's oracle is right. She's been checking over me once a week."
"Oracles are usually right about everything they speak of. I've never actually met one though."
Ayva could feel her hold on the dream was slipping from her grasp. She didn't want to let him go just yet; but of course, it wasn't about what she wanted. Shifting in his arms, she moved to stand up. He frowned realizing that something was wrong. "Times up..." She said choking on her words.
"I'm happy that I got to see you, even if it was short lived." He replied standing up to meet her gaze fully.
"Hopefully, I'll learn to hold the dreams longer. Keep looking for answers, I want to come home. I want to come back to you. I love you."
Before he could answer back, she vanished and the clearing was starting to fade away to just a black void. Her scent was no longer there, as if she had never been there before. The darkness crept closer to him, threatening to consume him to the endless depths. "I love you too." He whispered.
Finn shot up from his pillow, sweat rolled down his face and dripped from his chin onto his hand that gripped the sheet that was covering him. He looked around the room, realizing that he was in his own bedroom. The sun was starting to rise with small light coming through the window. Running a hand over his face to rid himself of the sweat, he tossed the blanket off and shifted to stand on the hardwood floor.
He padded across the floor towards the bathroom that was connected to his room. Staring into the mirror, he could see the exhaustion reeking havoc on his face if the bags under his eyes were any kind of indication. Dean and Roman tried to talk some sense into him; but nothing worked. The only things he thought about was Ayva and the baby, his baby.
Splashing some cool water on his face, he returned to his room to get dressed. Slipping on a pair of workout shorts and a plain black t-shirt, he quietly opened his door. Once downstairs, he walked into the kitchen to make some coffee; but when he got there, Sera was sitting at the table with a cup already in hand. "Morning, Finn..." She said without looking up from the newspaper she was reading to look him in the eye.
"How long have you been awake?" He asked.
"Long enough, sit...drink some coffee." She issued looking up from the paper.
He poured his own cup and then sat down across from her at the table. There were books scattered across the table. Becky's laptop was plugged in and resting on the corner of the island. There was so much research going on, it made him feel like the house had turned into a Private Investigator's Office. It's been three weeks since Sidriel came to take Ayva into hiding and they've come up with nothing of use to help with the problem at hand. To make matters worse, they hadn't been able to locate Rowana. It was like she vanished into thin air. "I saw Ayva." Finn said breaking the awkward silence between them.
Sera raised an eyebrow at him, wondering if he had finally lost his mind completely. She couldn't think of any way that would be possible, unless her dear brother taught her how to dream-walk. That power was not easy to grasp that much she knew. "She said that Sidriel taught her how to dream-walk and that she'd be able to come to me in dreams." He explained.
"I'm surprised she learned how to do that in such a short period of time. It takes most pure blood angels years to master. I'm actually glad she learned, you are awful to be around when she isn't here." She commented in a joking manner.
"Very funny."
"Seriously though, what did she say?"
Finn took another sip from his cup, before looking down into the brown fluid that was tinted white cause of the milk he put into it. He thought about their short conversation. He thought about the rapid heartbeat of his child growing in her womb. It was all so heartbreaking to sit there without her next to him. "We didn't get to talk much. She apologized for not telling me about the baby. I got to hear the heartbeat..."
Sera noticed how his words trailed off and she studied him once again, searching for his emotions. She understood his fear of the unknown when it came to a child; but in all reality, it was more than that. This baby wasn't the normal half-blood child. It was going to have at least a fourth demon running through the veins on top of the angel blood. Once word go out that Ayva was indeed pregnant, there were going to be a lot from both sides that would do anything to eliminate it from being born. It was one of the reasons Roman and her decided not to have children. "I remember that sound..." She answered thinking back on when Ayva was still inside Nicole.
"Morning everyone..." Becky said stumbling into the kitchen with her hair pulled up into a messy ponytail.
"You look like hell, what happened to you?" Sera commented.
"Shut up, I didn't get in until late. You're lucky I'm even functioning today." Becky snapped.
Finn let out a sigh. Their bickering had only increased since Ayva's departure. Becky thought drinking more would erase the unease she was feeling; but it only seemed to fuel Sera's anger. Dean used his frustration in the basement with Roman. They spared constantly and he wondered if either one of them slept. "Drinking isn't going to help bring her back!" Sera commented.
"Oh would you please come off it! I'll do whatever the hell I want to. It's not my fault your brother decided to take her, so stop taking your frustrations out on me!"
"I'm not! You aren't being a good friend drinking your life away in hopes someone else will bring her back!"
Sera's words left a bitter taste in Becky's mouth. The anger swelled in the pit of her stomach and with a wave of her hand, she sent Sera out of the chair and through the glass back porch door. Finn stood between them, the swirl of red inched closer to take over the entire blue of his eyes. Sera got to her feet, the white had taken over her eyes while her body surged with power. "That's enough!" Finn bellowed.
The sound of his voice stopped the two women in their tracks. It annoyed the hell out of him when they got like this. Becky grabbed her coffee and retreated to the other room. Finn looked back at Sera. Blood trickled down her forehead from the cuts caused by the glass. The wounds closed fairly quickly; but not before staining the white of her tank top. "Do you think it's wise to provoke her every single chance you get?" He asked.
"She isn't doing the best things here. She's wasting her life away drinking. Do you really think Ayva wants to see that?"
"She's upset. We all are. Becky will get control."
"I hope you're right."
With that said, Sera disappeared on the spot leaving Finn alone in the kitchen. He looked at the damaged door and groaned at how much it was going to cost to get it fixed for the second time in two weeks. Sera and Becky were going to be the damper on his accounts if they didn't get their issues under control.