Aarmau: Remember Me, Remember Us, Just Remember

Chapter 91

Aaron doesn't know how to react so he simply stares at her. Having lived with the curse his whole life he's never known any other way. He would have given anything to have it simply disappear but it was thought to be a definite impossibility.

When his brain finally catches up he can see the tears building at the corner of her eyes and that her hands are slightly shaking. Covering her hands with one of his own he reaches out and caresses her cheek with the other. "Why the tears Aph?"

She looks down at their hands and closes her eyes. "You're upset because of me and I'm afraid. I don't ever want to go through what I did after the first fire at the Cafe'. And then when you couldn't remember me, it was pure hell. If I lost you again I don't think I would survive. My heart can only take so much loss, Aaron."

Aaron can hear the fear in her voice and can somehow feel it as well. His own heart begins to race just thinking of a life without her in it and tears of his own fill his eyes and race down his cheeks.

He pulls her into his arms and they both begin to softly cry. Several minutes pass before they are both calm enough to pull away and they each instinctively reach up to brush the tears away.

Aaron clears his throat and makes sure she's truly seeing him before he begins to speak. "I will always regret what happened between us back then. I never meant to make you feel the way you did and I know you never blamed me for anything. I was struggling with how fast things were moving and I should have talked to you about it instead of shutting you out. I never completely forgot you Aph but I knew something very important was missing. I remember that lost feeling and I don't want to go through it again. I love you! I have loved you since before we really knew each other and I will love you until long after I die."

He watches the fear fade from her eyes and is replaced by love and tenderness but he also sees she's waiting for him to say something about the curse. With a sigh he nods, "Aph, I have lived with this curse all my life. I have struggled with this curse all my life. I spent a lot of time wearing a damn blindfold to keep from turning someone by accident and I still managed to do it. If it could be done safely, and I stress safely because I do NOT want anything happening to you, I would do it. To be able to look at someone without worrying, to not have to worry about passing it on to my children? I have prayed for that exact thing for as long as I can remember. Yes, I would do it."

Aph sighs and smiles, "That also means you would not be able to reverse an accidental change."

Aaron frowns, "Something tells me Garroth is ok with his new lifestyle but we should ask him anyway. Are there any negative side effects?"

Aph shakes her head, "Irene told me the only change is that the curse would be lifted. Anyone that is or was turned into a werewolf would remain a werewolf."

His frown deepens as he thinks about what she just said, especially the part that Irene was the one to tell her these things. "I thought Irene died. Before you said the things that happened were because you were acting on instinct, the way they would have reacted to certain situations based on their memories. Now you say she's talking to you."

Aph fists her hand over her heart. "I thought they were just memories but now I know a piece of her is still with me. She did die and she did move on but we're still connected. I now have no doubt she could pop in anytime she wanted like Emmalyn but she made it a point not to interfere in human lives. I'm not exactly human anymore so she probably sees it as a loophole. Once I figure out how to be the new me she'll probably go away."

Aaron nods and sighs, "I think I understand. You are literally a piece of her and now you have her completed soul. It makes sense she can speak to you. As long as she doesn't pop in when we're alone it's all good. But what about Lady Aphmau? And you said she gave the demon the ability to cast the curse. What did you mean?"

Aph sighs, "I feel Lady Aphmau but not like Irene. If she's there she's asleep or just not strong enough to speak up. I get the sense she doesn't have a place here so she's at peace. As for the curse, it's a complicated story."

Aaron smiles, "Those are the best kind of stories."