Cursed: Redemption

Chapter 1: A Few Intruders Make a Huge Difference

Chapter 1: A Few Intruders Make a Huge Difference

~Scarlet~

For days we’ve just been aimlessly wandering around Athens, doing all those couple-like things like holding hands and kissing against monuments. We’d been doing this for over five years, in places like Buda-Pest and Moscow.

We’d left the school, the councils and all that other crap far behind. From then on, it was just us, and I liked it.

Ian’s powers were still growing; he started getting visions when people touched him almost six months after Tristan’s death. If it hadn’t been for that, I would really have avoided my mother all together. But she was an expert in this, so I had to grin and bear it.

Luckily, she showed me how to create his shields, so it wasn’t that bad. And I got to see Cassy and Declan, though their happiness seemed to have dulled down a bit. As can be expected for newlyweds…and being married to those two.

I mean, Serena really only cared about herself, in every way possible. Declan was close to killing her when she said she wanted to go tanning for the fifth day in a row. Or maybe that was me, I forget.

And Niall…well he is emotionally unavailable most days, though I think my sister can handle that. Anyone who can live with me and deal with my... tendencies can handle almost anything. (Emphasis on almost). Weirdest two weeks of my life, but in a good way.

Nevertheless, I was enjoying the peace Ian and I had, though I knew it wouldn’t last, with me it never does.

I love the sound of swords clanging around an empty room on a hot Grecian day. On second thought, I love the sound of Ian losing to me in a mock fight more. I don’t think he expected this when he asked me to teach him how to wield a blade…

Smiling, I circle Ian, the sword in my hand and sweat trickling down my neck. He looks so deep in concentration that I want to drop my weapon and kiss him. Instead, I feint right and swing around, getting him in the abdomen. He grunts, but retaliates quickly, gripping my hilt and swinging his own around to tap me on the neck.

I laugh and drop my blade edge first into the oak floor, hands raised to my head. “I surrender, I surrender.”

He lowers the blade and I take the opportunity to knock it out of his hand and put him in a headlock. We fall to the floor laughing and manages to straddle me somehow. “Why, Mr O’Connor, this is highly unorthodox.”

“I know,” he says and leans close enough to breathe down my neck. I shiver in anticipation and then I feel a breach on the outer shields.

“Someone’s here,” I say and he rolls off, the look of concentration back on his face. Taking up my sword I walk to the doors and peer around the corner. Ian mirrors me, but keeps further back, his own sword a little too lax in his grip. Rolling my eyes, I pull down the door handle and slip through the gap, motioning to Ian to stay where he is. He sighs, but does so as I carefully walk around the patio, activating the tracer spells all over the grounds and filtering through the disturbances.

I stop in mid-step, realising who it is almost immediately. Turning around I run towards the east end of the garden, where the olive trees look almost dead. The intruder is standing calmly with his hands in his pockets when I come to a halt and glare at him. My black tank top is drenched and I know he’s looking at my chest, he always does.

“What are you doing here, Leo?” I ask, loosening my hold on the sword, but not much. His legs are encased in typically designer jeans, with his white shirt loosely hugging his muscular torso.

“It’s my city, Scarlet,” he says, the blank expression changing to his typical lopsided grin. “I was going to ask what the hell you were doing in it, and not bothering to tell me you were here, very rude.” He raises an eyebrow and I roll my eyes.