Remember

Chapter 3

I sat up abruptly in my bed, a small scream escaping me. Scream…that’s something I haven’t done in a while… I looked around my dark room, breathing heavily. My nightmares had come back, which were really only memories I wished I could call dreams. Maybe subconsciously being in a castle with four guys was worrying me- I didn’t want to be raped anymore. That was a part of me I wanted dead; I hated being frightened, weak and scared. Being helpless not only made me cringe, it pissed me off. And when I get pissed off, I find zombies or demons to kill. I ran a shaky hand through my hair, noticing the time on my digital clock- 3:04 AM. I reluctantly let a few tears escape me before I snuck downstairs, wearing blue and green plaid pajama pants and a tight black tank top. I flipped on the light switch in the kitchen, and fumbled through the fridge for something to drink. I found some bottles of beer on the bottom shelf, and quickly snatched two of them- I figured that just one wasn’t going to give me the buzz I needed, since I had my first beer at fifteen. I set one of the bottles on the counter, flipping off the cap of the other and taking a sip. I closed the fridge a moment later, leaning against it as I drank. I paced myself, drinking in silence until I had about two sips left. I heard footsteps upstairs, and quickly grabbed my other bottle as I went out of the other exit, turning the light off after me. When the coast was clear, I snuck back up the stairs, nearly falling down them when the wolf I had met outside greeted me at the top. “Jesus! You scared the shit outta’ me!!” I hissed, turning back around when the footsteps started getting closer. “Follow me,” I whispered, sneaking the two of us back to my room. The wolf happily hopped up on my bed, laying down and looking at me expectantly. I closed the door quietly behind us, smiling to him as I curled back under my covers. I listened to my ipod as I pet him, and looked out of my large window to the world outside. I drank my other bottle of beer slowly, letting the music and the light from the moon take me to a better place. I hummed ‘Imaginary’ by Evanescence tiredly as I began falling asleep. I put the bottles on the nightstand next to me, my second one having a little over one sip left, and passed out peacefully with the wolf for the night.

            CRASH!!!! I shot up, looking around quickly. The wolf had jumped off of my bed, knocking over my bottles of beer from last night. I shook the ear buds from my ipod out of my ears, wrapping it up neatly and setting it on the nightstand on the other side of my bed. “Well, that woke me up! Thanks, pooch,” I muttered, petting him on his head for a few minutes before noticing it was 10:45 AM. I cleaned up the glass by hand, throwing it in the waste basket on the other side of my room. My door opened a second later, and I turned to see Dante, looking as handsome and cocky as ever. “You and Chi had a party last night and I  wasn’t invited??!” “Chi-?! Oh, you mean the wolf. And no…not exactly,” I muttered, picking up the last few pieces of glass. I realized I didn’t have anything to clean up the beer with, but the sound of Dante’s boots interrupted my thoughts. “Somethin’ wrong, Babe?” He asked, handing me some paper towels. I flicked my head at him with a small smile. “Thanks. And no…why?” “Awww c’mon, there’s no need to lie!” “Look Dante, I just don’t want to talk about it,” I said seriously, mumbling to the floor. He looked me over as I threw the towels away and sat on my bed. “That bad, huh?” I just looked at him with an ‘I’m not telling you’ expression. He rolled his eyes, fixing them on my chest a moment later. I glared at him, but when I realized he was looking at my amulet, I relaxed. “Where’d you get this?” He asked, his voice sounding miles away. He reached over and grabbed it, gently caressing it in his palm. I had to lean forward so he wouldn’t pull me, and I rolled my eyes at his thoughtlessness. “What’s it to you? And it’s fucking rude to just snatch people’s necklaces without asking if you can see it, first,” I retorted, sighing when he didn’t get the hint. When he didn’t answer me, I shrugged, studying his face. “My parents gave it to me before they died.” “Died?” He muttered, though it was more to himself than to me. “Yeah. It’s when people go ‘bye-bye’ and don’t come back,” I cooed sarcastically. He shook his head, still staring at it. “Anyway, I’ve been wearing it for the last three days, even when I was asleep for two of them…” Dante let it fall around my neck again, and for the first time, I noticed he wore an amulet, too. His was a bright red ruby surrounded by silver, on a thick silver chain. His was shaped in more of an ellipse than mine was, so it appeared taller and thinner. “Do you know anything about your amulet?” He asked, standing up and facing the wall. I raised an eyebrow, laughing to myself. “Not much, I guess. Why?” “You have no clue…do you?” He asked, whirling to face me. His movement startled me, and it took me a minute to regain my composure. “No clue about what?!?” I challenged, not liking his tone. “About the powers you possess.” I’m sure my face said it all, but I couldn’t help laughing. This sounded like a line out of the Harry Potter movies. “I know, I know; you don’t believe me. But I could teach you some things if you really wanted…” I laughed again, actually holding my sides. Powers? What, was he going to pull out a magic wand, next?? This was ridiculous!!! I wasn’t ready to believe the world had magic…it already had zombies and werewolves… I shook my head, finally pulling myself back together. “So…what? We both have ‘powers’?” He smirked, weighing his words. “Sorta’…Look, you interested or not, Dollface?” I grinned, wondering just how much fun this would be. I didn’t have powers, and neither did he!!! I just wanted to rub it in his face when nothing happened. “Alright, you’re on, Hot-Shot. Show me my so called ‘powers’, and I’ll give you something in return. How about…hey! Some never before seen fighting moves, guaranteed! From yours truly.” Dante laughed, and while it pissed me off, I was glad he wasn’t taking me up on my offer. I really wasn’t up for the teaching business… “Hahaha, how cute. My fighting skills don’t need improvement. But maybe…” “What??” I challenged, pursing my lips in amusement. I couldn’t wait to here this… “How about your cherry lips and mine get acquainted?” I laughed, though I shouldn’t have been surprised. “You want me to kiss you,” I murmured, looking him over. “You make it sound like it’s a bad thing! And I highly doubt one kiss with satisfy either of us…” He muttered with a sly smirk. “So…what, a date?!” He shrugged, though his expression told me he liked the idea. “Let’s see where a kiss leads us..” “So, let me get this straight.” I stood up and paced around my room slowly a few times. I turned to face him, leaning to one side with my hands on my hips. “If you magically show me my so called ‘powers’, then I have to kiss you…” Dante smiled, and I rolled my eyes with a laugh. I didn’t even need a reward for this! I knew he was going to fail miserably… “You’ve got yourself a deal!” Dante laughed happily with a smirk. “Make sure you breathe while you still can-there aren’t any refunds if I leave you breathless, Sweetie!” I rolled my eyes, pushing him toward the door. “Mmmm, where’d you get that from? Some cheesy B romance movie?” I mocked, shutting the door after him. I grabbed a pale green-almost white- tight short sleeved t-shirt and a pair of black skinny jeans along with my bra and panties before heading to the bathroom. Once I got my shower, I dried off, got dressed, and brushed my teeth. I did my make-up and clipped on my amulet and changed my nose stud before I went back into my room for my black leather boots. Today, was gonna’ be fun. I wasn’t sure when Dante was supposed to “wow” me, so I went on my laptop for a little while, checking various websites. A boot hit my window a few minutes later, and I walked over to see Dante wearing his crimson jacket, brown leather pants and brown leather boots. “C’mon Sweetness! Better pucker up!!” He called, arms outstretched, eyes closed and lips pursed. He was lucky he was hot and cute at the same time. I stuck my tongue out at him, and grabbed my white hoodie (lined with copper and gray faux fur), before heading outside to meet him. He was slipping his boot back on when I found him, and I leaned to one side, raising my eyebrow at him. “I’m ready…to be amazed!!!”  I teased. “Oh, you will be!” I followed him until we were in the courtyard behind the castle. He turned to me, looking deep in thought. I sat on a bench right by the fountain, rolling my eyes. “I’m waiting, oh mighty Dante!” He narrowed his eyes, and I smirked. “Give me a minute,” he hissed, and I shook my head. “Uh, I’ve given you about fifteen. Can I go and have you admit that you’re dead wrong?!” When he didn’t answer, I sighed again, turning to the sky. I zoned out, uncertain if it had been ten minutes or ten hours. “Earth to Jace!!!” I looked over at Dante, seeing that he was now right in front of me. “Ready?” I narrowed my eyes, and he sighed. “Alright, alright. Close your eyes.” I smirked, laughing to myself. “How do I know you won’t just steal a kiss from me now?” “Does this face lie??” He asked, giving me his best smolder. Like I said, he was lucky he was so cute. I just laughed harder. “C’mon; trust me.” I stopped laughing once I was sent spiraling into another overwhelming feeling of déjà vu. It was as if his words had triggered a memory, only without an image. I sighed, shaking my head and closing my eyes. Dante grabbed my hands, and I could practically feel his concentration. Suddenly, I was bombarded with images of dark purple lights and a snow covered castle even more beautiful and immaculate than this one. Feelings and whispers came along with the images, but there were too many and they came so fast, that I couldn’t decipher them. The moon and the night sky were very prevalent, as were creatures of the night, like wolves and owls, and I think I began imagining things, because creatures that looked as if they shouldn’t be possible were walking or flying through a dark, gorgeous forest. Places that seemed as if they could only exist in a fairytale came into view, and my head began to hurt with all of the new information I was receiving. I heard my name shouted urgently, like there was imminent danger around me just before I opened my eyes. I was panting a little, and I could feel beads of sweat forming on my forehead. “Jace!!! Are you okay?!” Dante asked, crouching in front of me and staring at me intently. “Y-Yeah…” I murmured, confused, exhausted, and more than a little freaked out. I then noticed he had let go of my hands, and they were covered with a glowing purple light. I stared at them in awe, wondering why the flames weren’t burning. I looked at Dante in wonder, and the light died away shortly. “See? I told you…” “But how did you know?!?! What are they?!? How do I use them?!?” “So many questions! Look, they’re your powers, and you’ll learn to use them like they’re an instinct-promise.” He didn’t answer how, but I let that one go for now. He sat next to me again, looking me over. “You owe me a kiss, my love.” I blinked, refusing to let myself get lost in his eyes. “Oh no!!! You must’ve pulled some psychological bullshit on me!! There’s no way that I have powers!!! I mean…what the hell does that even mean?!?” Dante just stared at me with raised eyebrows, and I rolled my eyes. “Oh, fine,” I growled, leaning forward aggressively. “Ah! You have to mean it!!” “What?! Where did we agree on that?!” “You never agreed to fake it, either…” “I thought it was implied,” I growled, but he just shook his head with a smug smile. “You know, I can’t believe how-” I was cut short as Dante’s lips met mine. I sat there for a few moments, knowing I should just sit here and not give him the satisfaction of a full kiss, but when his tongue grazed mine, I all but became jell-o. I wasn’t sure how long we were sitting there, but time seemed to stand still. I didn’t care how much he irritated me at this moment. All I knew was that he was hot, he was kissing me, and he totally liked me. His hand caressed my cheek until we pulled apart, and I opened my eyes slowly to finish my sentence. “-How self-centered you are…” He revealed a rather sweet smile, though it still had a hint of his usual smirk to it. “I uh…gotta’ go…” I muttered, breaking the silence as I quickly whisked myself back into the castle. I kept telling myself I had dated way better kissers than him, but I knew I was lying. That kiss was out of this world, and I could never let him know it. I saw Reese in the living room chowing down on Chinese food, and when my stomach began growling in hunger, I quickly made myself a plate and sat next to him. “Hey, Hot Stuff. Have you seen Dante?” “Yeah, outside,” I muttered, stuffing my face as I watched whatever he had on. We made small talk until the door opened ten minutes later, and my heart skipped a beat. I was actually feeling nervous for the first time in a long time. What was I supposed to say to Dante? I mean, it’s kinda’ hard to act like nothing happened when you just kissed the guy that you, dare I say it, are starting to like. I turned around slowly, and was surprised to see Dean. He gave Reese and I a long look before flicking his head toward me, and making his way upstairs. Phew! That’s a relief!! I thought, wondering if it really was. My heart didn’t go back to beating like normal until he was out of sight, which made me sigh inwardly to myself. I shook my head. It was bad enough to get involved with one guy so quickly…but two?!? Things would not end well. I mean, Dean and I hadn’t kissed, but we’ve had our moments. I threw out my paper plate and grabbed a can of soda, turning when I heard footsteps behind me. “What’s eatin’ ya’?” Reese asked, putting his glass plate in the sink. “Eh, it’s nothin’,” I bluffed, waving my hand. He shrugged, perking up a second later. “Hey! Wanna’ spar with me tomorrow??” “With you?! Sure! That’ll be fun…” “Ha ha,” Reese laughed coolly, rolling his eyes. “You watch-I’ve got some moves!” I laughed harder, shaking my head. “We’ll see about that, Reese Cup,” I teased, ruffling his hair. I made my way up the stairs, peering into the living room. I sincerely hoped they didn’t think that just because I was a girl, that I would be cleaning up their messes… I explored the various room upstairs, surprised when I found an old training dummy in one of the storage rooms. I carefully carried it back to my room, brushing up on some of my moves for tomorrow. I set it up, grabbed my sword, listened to my ipod, and began. Not only did I like making sure I didn’t skip a beat when I needed to kill the undead, but training cleared my head, and my mind definitely needed a good break.  I began fighting and stabbing the dummy with not only Babylon, but with my hands, dagger, and throwing stars as well. After I broke a sweat, I turned off my ipod, startled to find Dean watching me. I pulled the ear buds from my ears and wiped my forehead with the back of my hand. “Don’t hurt yourself…” I managed a weak smile, setting my ipod on my nightstand. “You know…singing clears your head, too…” I nodded, suddenly remembering my powers. I thought about how cool it would be to use them to kill zombies and other creatures, and recalled Dante telling me how naturally they would come to me. I closed my eyes and concentrated, bringing up some painful memories. I always found that killing was easier when you have some anger and hate in you. Suddenly, a dark purple blast shot out from my hands, blowing the dummy to smithereens. Dean’s eyes were as wide as mine, and I looked at him sheepishly. “You have powers?” He asked, mostly to himself. I nodded, trying not to let the smell of burnt rubber bother me. “Yeah. Dante showed me them earlier…” Dean’s eyes clouded with anger or jealousy… I couldn’t tell which one. Apparently, he and Dante didn’t get along, which wasn’t surprising- they were the complete opposite. He looked at Chi, who was standing close behind him, and then his eyes were back on me. “Judging by the color and the blast, I’m guessing you control night elemental and probably darkness…” “You know about magic, too?” I asked, once again impressed. He raised his hand, and it immediately caught fire. “About fire, mostly. But maybe I could help…” I cleared my head, concentrating on my hand being covered in flames, too, just like earlier. A second later, my palms were covered in purple and black flames, which were more than captivating. Dean raised an eyebrow with an astonished smirk. “You learn fast…” he murmured, his deep voice sending a shiver up my spine. “I had to.” Dean stared at me thoughtfully, and the silence was starting to become awkward. “So…you wanna’ help me?” I asked, inviting him in. He walked over to me and explained how I could harness my energy, showing me a few techniques and small bits of magic that I could use to fight with. He warned me not to go over my limit, since my powers would quickly drain my energy. He advised I practice a little each day, so that my body would build a tolerance to the energy I would be using. “Thanks Dean,” I murmured, dipping my head to him. When he just continued to stare at me, I exposed a pretty smile, hoping to jar him from his thoughts. His eyes moved from whatever he was staring at to my eyes, and I tried not to get lost within the depths of his. “Would you do me a favor, Jace?” Uh-oh. I wasn’t exactly liking where this was headed… “Uh…I think I’m done making deals for one day,” I muttered, trying my hardest to forget Dante’s kiss. “Do you think you could try to sing instead of hum?” His eyes had left mine, and I leaned to one side with an eyebrow raised. “Uh…why?!” “Just think of it as payment,” he murmured, leaving at that. I stared after him, shaking my head. I cleaned up the burnt pieces of the dummy I had blown up, remembering how cool that was. If it worked on a dummy, why not a vampire, or shapeshifter?? I got changed into clover-colored pajama pants and a tight white t-shirt, brushing my teeth and putting my hair in a ponytail before shutting my light off, closing my door, and heading to bed. I pondered on a few things as I stared at the ceiling, curling up under my blankets…

Number one: Why was Savlian hardly around, and what’s his motive?? He calls me out, not to mention brings all of my stuff here, so I can take care of his ‘ghoul’ problem, but he hasn’t given me a job yet?

Number two: How did Dante know I have powers, and what kind does he possess? He probably would’ve shown them off…

Number three: Why did Dean want me to sing so badly?

And number four: Does Reese ever sleep? Does he even have a room with a bed?! He’s always in the living room watching TV and eating…

I wondered for the rest of the night, even in my dreams, preparing for another day here at the castle…

** A/N: Heyhey! How are you guys liking the story so far? :3 Hopefully you're enjoying it, and on the right is a picture of Dean! ;D

~Holly*