gift or curse (A Twilight fanfiction)

Chapter 24

I hid my face in my hands and wanted to cry my eyes out, but of course I couldn't and so I groaned.

Demetri's hands pulled me against him and with a soft voice, all anger dissipated, he said: "Shh, it's alright. This is why you are here. To learn about your powers. To be able to control them."

I didn't want to have to control them. In fact, I didn't want them anymore. Perhaps they could protect me, but this instant just showed me that so much harm could be done with them.

"Why aren't you angry with me?" I whispered. "I used my powers on you. I can't control them, I will hurt you."

"I am not angry with you, Ariadne. I love you, and I don't care if you sometimes order me around."

I looked up, into his eyes. All creases were gone and a soft smile played around his lips.

"I love you too", I whispered.

He kissed me then, slowly at first. There was, however, still so much tension inside me, that, when his thumbs caressed my throat, I pressed myself against him and kneaded my fingers in his hair. The kiss deepened at once and in the narrow space the front of the car provided, I began to tuck on his jacket, when suddenly a thought hit me.

With a gasp I leaned back. "What if I could undo it; make him remember again? We could see if the memory is really gone, or just hidden."

Demetri's expression turned exasperated and then resigned. "Fine, we'll test your theory and then go to Sighișoara."

We got out of the car and I rushed to the front door of the house where we had met Georgy not ten minutes ago.

This time I knocked on the door before they heard us and when Georgy opened it, I immediately said: "Remember everything I had told you to forget."

I waited, taking a step back, a little afraid he might be angry once he remembered again, but nothing happened. I looked in his eyes, seeking the loss of focus that we saw before, but it didn't happen. Georgy frowned in confusion and when the woman appeared and asked who we were, I stumbled backwards.

"Remember us", I almost whispered, but she only shook her head.

"I'm sorry, I don't. What is this about?"

Demetri pulled me softly away. "Just a misunderstanding. We will leave you now."

---

We drove through the night, all the way to the center of Romania, where Georgy had told us the newly erected castle stood.

He didn't remember anymore. His memories were truly forgotten. I hadn't really believed it until I'd seen the confusion on the faces of the two vampires whose lives I'd altered.

Demetri, besides me, was also quiet. What was going on in his mind? Did he fear me, now? I really could make him forget. No matter what he said to me earlier, my power was that strong. It scared me.

When he stopped, the night a black canvas surrounding us, he took my hand. "Don't be afraid."

"But I am", I whispered. "I can do terrible things and I won't be able to fix them."

"Then change it."

I furrowed my brow. "Change what?"

"Order me to never let you command me."

I made to object, but my mouth stopped before a word could be formed. This time I blinked. Could I do that? Would my power work like that? It would counteract itself.

"Do you think that could work?"

He shrugged. "There's only one way to find out. You won't hurt me by trying."

He was right. I widened my eyes, closed my mouth and searched for the right words. It wasn't so simple. If I would say: 'never obey me', he could end up opposing everything I said. 'Never let me command you' could make him stop me from speaking to him at all.

"What are you waiting for?" This thumb caressed the side of my face.

I bit the inside of my cheek and shook my head. "I have to think about what to say. If I say the wrong thing, we could have a big problem."

His chin moved as he digested my words. "Yes, I see what you mean."

"I think", I stared outside and then focused again. "I think I got it."

"Are you sure?" His voice echoed my own nervousness.

"Yes, this will do it. Here goes." I took his hands, heaved a deep sigh, looked him straight in the eyes and said: "My power doesn't work on you."

After that I held my breath. I saw him straighten up a little and then blink. That was the sign that my command was heeded. But did it work?

"Did it work?" I asked, squeezing his hands.

"I don't know. Order me to do something."

"Ehm... kiss me."

He smiled. "That's not a very good test, I would have done that anyway." But he didn't lean forward.

"It worked, you didn't kiss me", I shouted. But then Demetri did lean forward to capture my lips with his. Was that merely a delayed reaction?

"Shh, we could be within hearing range. Don't want to alert them to our presence, now, do we?"

I shook my head. "Let me test it one more time."

He nodded and I looked him sternly in the eye as I said: "Leave the car."

No straightening up. No blinking. No movement.

"We did it!" This time the volume of my joyous outcry barely made it above a whisper.

However my elation faded when Demetri frowned.

"If others find out how they can be immune to your power, they will come after you, force you to do the same to them. You have to make me forget how this was done."

"No."

"You have to. Aro can read my mind and he will know. He will make you do the same to him. He will always see you as a threat, no matter how fond he is of you."

"But he can read my thoughts as well."

"You can stop him from ever trying."

"How?"

"Make yourself forget as well."

Make myself forget? How would I ... a mirror, of course. I could order myself. I didn't like the idea any more than making Demetri forget. So much could go wrong.

I was about to object, when a large boulder landed on top of the car. It crashed the windows in a thousand little pieces. I screamed, and my fingers clawed at the bend in roof to find a way out of the wreck. My eyes tried to look everywhere at the same time and in the end I rested them on Demetri.

Why was he so still? A boulder couldn't kill a vampire, right? With a grunt I pulled the rooftop away and pushed the rock off the car. There was a fracture running across Demetri's face. Like a cracked marble surface.

"No", I choked. I bent forward and touched his skin. "No."

Was he dead? Would he heal? I wanted to cry and yell at him to come back to me.

Movement behind him made me gasp. A hand reached for Demetri, fingers clawed, ready to grab my still unmoving husband and I did the only thing I could do.

"Don't!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. The short man glanced my way as I continued in one breath: "Don't hurt him, don't kill us!"