Three

              “Come on, Kelly-Jo. We must travel quickly.” David sighed, holding out his hand to support her over the rough terrain that she had traveled almost a week ago. She was leaving the vampire mansion. Anastasia had the key and Kelly-Jo felt like the world’s weight was finally off of her shoulders. Only now, she could feel it pressing down on her chest, so that she had to struggle just to breathe. But this was the correct choice—right?
The forest was an utterly new view now that her outlook had changed; now that she was safe and going home as opposed to being in danger and going into the unknown. But she couldn’t help but feel like she was letting everyone down. Not only that, but she was going to loose everyone that had come to mean anything to her. It was enough to make her headaches come back in full force.
            “David,” she took a deep breath, bracing herself for whatever response she would receive, “am I letting you all down by going back?”
            “No, honey.” He said gently, she thought she could detect traces of a lie, but she knew that vampires were usually always honest, sometimes a bit too honest for their own good.
            “Well, wasn’t I pretty important to your plan?”
            “Yes, you were, but we cannot expect every human to just be up for dying. We will go on until someone finds a human that is willing to do this. The key is the hardest part, and we have that now.”
            She felt his gaze rest upon her, but she continued to stare at the ground in front of her feet, the ground that led her home. Did he ever love me at all? Didn’t he say this was my choice and that he wanted me to go back? So why is he being so cold? “You make me, and every other human, sound replaceable.” Which was part of her problem, she felt like he was using her. “Is that what you’re going to do, David?” Her voice rose as she bordered on hysteria. “Go to some bookstore in another city and win some other girl’s trust and then ask her to die for you? Was this all just a game for you?” She was crying again, returning to the feeble human she had been hiding all along.
             “Kelly-Jo, you know this was not a joke.” He was quiet, so she had to stop sniffling to hear him. “More than anyone you know how much you mean to me.”
             “Sometimes I can’t help but wonder if I mean anything at all to you. And now I’m useless to you, so you’re just going to drop me off at my doorstep and find someone new, because you have thousands of years.” She sounded like a child, but she couldn’t help it. It hurt her so much to be abandoned by the only man she had ever loved.
              “Kelly-Jo,” his voice was stern and authoritative. “Please,” he begged, “you know that is not what I want. I am doing this for you. You want to go home. You want to lead a normal life. You want to grow old and die with your husband.”
              “No, David, I never said any of that bullshit! You and Anastasia both pressured me to go home. I want to live with you—forever. I want to experience everything with you. Instead, I either die for you or without you. Whichever way, I lose!” She felt sick as a headache pounded at her temples. She hugged her ribcage and bit her lip, trying not to cry again.  Do not cry…
              She felt his strong, cool limbs wrap around her. His soft hair tickled her neck. She longed to let herself go and be weak, allowing him to be strong. She closed her eyes, making herself do what was right. She breathed him in, for the last time. His scent was so distinct yet calming. “Just take me home.” She whispered, half hoping her wouldn’t hear, or at least would ignore her. His arms fell away from her.  She felt the cool breeze swirl around her causing tiny goose pox to run up and down her arms.  His face held a hurt expression that she couldn’t bare to look at for any length of time. But he wasn’t telling her what she wanted to hear either. He never had, or would for that matter. She wanted to be a vampire with him. Still, the one time she brought it up and was met with dead silence. He had sat so motionless, staring at her, that she could hear he skin cells moving. She’d given until it hurt in this relationship and he’d left her wanting to die for him. And he never offered her anything significant. It was the kind of relationship that woke her up in the middle of the night questioning who she’d become and why was she continuing down a path of such blatant stupidity.

Kelly-Jo was so caught up in her thoughts and staring at the dry, cracked ground that led her homeward that she didn’t notice David had stopped in front of her.  She slammed into his stone-hard back.  “Uph,” exited her throat as she stumbled backward.  “Could you at least let…”  He raised his hand in a be silent gesture and she trailed off muttering the last few words.

“David, David, I heard something about you chauffeuring a human around.  My sister mentioned it she said you might need help to rid yourself of the thing.”  An airy woman’s voice floated through the air.  “But I had to see for myself, because, frankly, it’s quite unbelievable.”  Kelly-Jo peered around David’s solid shoulder, she saw a beautiful woman in a long, golden gown that swept across the dirt but never became soiled.  She had bright blonde hair that matched the gown and hung to her mid back in fluid waves. Her gray eyes were large and bottomless in her sharp, angular face.

“Get out of my way, witch.”  He growled as Kelly-Jo sidled around David, unnoticed, to get a better view of the creature.  She moved like rich cream, her pale skin had an awkward green tint that made her look permanently ill.  She held a staff made of a pearl color and decorated with opals it sparkled when the sun glinted off of it, it seemed to be asking her to use it.

The witch’s lips curled into a smirk.  “You haven’t forgotten my name, have you?” she leaned toward him, “That would be a shame, forgetting us, and for what?  The mortal?  David, we are better than them, above them,” she raised her chin in a haughty gesture, “they are our food, and they are pathetic.”  She glared at the imperfect human; who stood unconcealed letting her know that she was prey and very much in danger.

“I am just taking her back where she belongs, Esmeralda.”

“What a waste.  You are hungry, and she is so vulnerable.  Watch and learn, darling.”  She drew out the word dahr-ling and her eyes darkened as she made a few undefined noises.  Her hair floated like she was in an anti-gravity room.

David flung himself in front of Kelly-Jo so swiftly a human eye couldn’t catch the movement although he wasn’t fast enough, Kelly-Jo crashed into a tree about twenty feet behind her as something struck her in the chest.  David was at her side momentarily.  “Kelly-Jo?”  His voice was panic stricken.  She couldn’t breath and the pain surged through her in furious waves.  She tasted metal in her mouth, and when she attempted to swallow she gagged.

“Ifosak.”  She tried to say so his eyes wouldn’t be so petrified; it discomforted her because in all the time she’d been with him he had never shown fear of any kind.  Her head spun and the alarm and vehemence in David’s eyes deepened.

“Kelly-Jo, you will be alright.”  He kissed her cheek and he was gone from her side.  You’re going to die alone.  You made it by yourself to be left here to die, when help is so close…

“Ah, love is so marvelous.”  The airy voice tilted along with the ground as she tried to hang on the last strings of consciousness, feeling it was important to have some defenses, even if it was just the ability to run. 

She struggled to stand, she gave out great effort and then she heard David scream for her to sit still.  So she stopped moving.  She wretched on the ground, writhing in pain at the sudden movements that hurling entailed.  And then, the world went black.

 

She woke up in a spacious bed and immediately threw-up, barely getting it over the side of the mattress and amazingly into the strategically placed trash bin.  The room revolved, but was still familiar.  She focused on the shock of red hair.  Anastasia was standing over her, easing her back into the fluffy pillows.  Okay, this is definitely a dream.

“How do you feel, Kelly-Jo?”

Like s**t.  She managed a glare at Anastasia that probably made her look more near-sighted than angry.

“Can you talk?  Say something.”  Anastasia was talking slowly, emphasizing her syllables.  Kelly-Jo found this odd; usually she spoke rapidly, not even pausing for a breath, because, well, vampires don’t need to breathe.

“Wha?”  Okay, this whole breathing thing was fricken painful.  “Whi, ore yew tailking slowlie?”  Kelly-Jo paused between each agonizing word to take a shallow, trembling breath of cool air.

Anastasia smiled.  “David will be here soon.  He will be very sorry he missed you wake up.  He is very nervous, be kind to him.”

Be kind to him?  Why wouldn’t I be?  Kelly-Jo wanted to ask Anastasia this, but her eyelids were flickering closed, and she was just so tired…

Author's Note

Well, I lost it and had to re-write it so be a bit understanding. Although, it probably needs a lot of help, so still be honest. Thanks for all of your support, it means a lot. =D:

Reviews

[fkglhf;hfg]

I really like it. They're relationship is pretty twisted, but at the same time I truly believe he loves her and I understand how she loves him. I was horribly confused in the prolouge, but you piece everything together very nicely. It's an intertesting story and it definetly left me wanting more. Continue the good work!
-Rita

[Nazarea]

I liked it. Sounds like its she's gonna become a vampire....I hope so at least. I like it, and the pace is going well. Its great. The only thing I could add is--explain more of the other races (witches, ect) if your going to use them.
Other than that..it was so great.
Nazarea~

[Kady x Babe]

Michelle, I really like this chapter. And like we talked about earlier there are definitely parts of it I could completely annihilate but instead i'm going to be nice and still brutally honest.

There is a point where Kelly-Jo is already behind David and yet the reader is led to believe he has moved without actually being shown this movement. "David flung himself in front of Kelly-Jo so swiftly a human eye couldn't catch the movement."

She was already behind him as she had been peering over his shoulder at the witch before them. The rest of this chapter seems to flow pretty nicely, as usual though there are a few glitches with plot points but I trust you well enough to point them out on your own.

I know you'll be able to turn this chapter into a diamond. :] The hardest part is over, you've created the general spine, now you've got to fluff and shine it, haha.

Again, I absolutely adore your writing and I cannot wait to see it published in a bookstore once you've made it the best it could possibly be.


~Kady