Albeit

Chapter 1- The Past

Running towards the boat with all my strength, I pleaded with the heavens to grant me a safe passage through the waters. The sun was setting in the land of Sleveria and a hint of orange and red permeated the sky. Reaching the boat, I gave a small sigh of relief when I saw the similar sigil of my old friends.
“Your grace,” the sailor bowed. Dressed in the familiar purple and navy uniform, he stood impressively, biceps bulging to signify the importance of his mission. I thanked him hurriedly, and in less then 3 minutes later, we were setting off towards a magnificent ship that would transport me from Sleveria to the mortal realm. I gazed back at Sleveria and felt sad that I was leaving my homeland, yet, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of growing excitement as I could finally be free to live for the first time.
“Is this your first time away from Sleveria, your grace?” the sailor asked.
“Yes, it is. By the way, you don’t have to give me any special sort of title.” I said. “Where I’m going, my bloodline and marriage means nothing.” I added, grinning at him. He grinned back at me.
“What’s your name?” I asked.
“Jonah. But I go by Jon.” He replied, smiling.
“You can call me Roe.” I declared. I cast one last look at Sleveria as we neared the ship. Murmuring a quiet goodbye, I let the excitement fill me as I took one step to my new life.

I laughed in delight as she showed me her work from the daycare. Her small hands were encased in my own, and I couldn’t help but marvel at the fact that this animated little girl was mine. She had none of my fear and worry that was ingrained into me from birth. Instead, her face was filled with enthusiasm at the thought of spending my free night from work, painting and decorating wooden boxes.
I missed my job. Yes, being a doctor was difficult, but it was too conspicuous, I needed a job to blend in. My shifts at a nearby café were enough to cover any money that we both needed, and the generous sum of money helped to go towards a spacious flat that was close to the daycare centre and my work.
"Are we going to have ice-cream today?" She asked. I glanced down at her offhandedly and tilted my head.
"Hmm, I don’t know.. Are we?" I teased. Her nose scrunched up in confusion and I laughed, swooping down and placing a kiss on her forehead. "Of course we are!”
She exploded into a fit of giggles as I tickled her. It was a bright and sunny day, and the sunlight was reflecting from her chocolate brown hair which hung in long curls over her shoulder. Her brown eyes met mine, and I smiled as they twinkled with amusement.
“Will Uncle Jonah be coming tonight?” She asked. I mentally checked the calendar. Jon was available most nights after retiring from the navy. He worked as a mechanic that specialised in high end cars, and was happy with the quiet life that he now led, away from the life of the sea. The two weeks aboard the ship was enough for me to start a friendship with him and he was the one of the few people who knew the person that I once was.
“Yes, but he might be a bit late. He’s stuck on fixing a car and he sent me a message to me this morning, saying that he wouldn’t be able to leave until he solved the problem.” I explained. Sofia’s face fell slightly. Her favourite person (apart from me) was her Uncle Jonah. He was her main fatherly role model in our trio, and I was thankful that she had someone like him in her life. Technically, he was her godfather, but she referred to him as an uncle. We’d remained friends and never engaged in a  romantic relationship.
We approached the apartment and I keyed in the passcode to the front door. Out of the corner of my eye, a black car drove off, silently pealing down the normally quiet road. I shrugged it off. Probably a relative from the apartment.

Later that evening, after setting the freshly painted boxes out to dry, I sat with her on the balcony, both of us sipping hot chocolate as we immersed ourselves inside a story book. This was our favourite time of the week. We always made time to read on our days off and we spent hours and hours escaping into distant lands and suffering the trials of numerous characters. Sat between my open legs, her hair tickled my chin as I read, occasionally interrupting me when she stumbled upon a word that she didn't understand. For now, she was enthralled with the wonderful, yet terrible world of Inkheart, and her wide eyes followed every single word as I softly read aloud from the text. As we neared to the end of the first chapter, a loud knock jolted us from our moment of bliss. I raised my eyebrows as she looked at me questioningly.
"We’re not expecting anyone tonight," I said, shifting slightly to swing my legs off the love seat. "Wait for me, and don’t steal my marshmallows!" I added after a second thought. A guilty giggle responded, confirming my decision that I’d hit the nail on the head.
I reached the door and looked through the peak-hole. A man with a warm smile was patiently waiting just outside. Still keeping the chain on the door, I unlocked the door and opened it. "Hello, can I help you?" I asked.
"Why yes, you can. Is your name Rose Farington?" The man asked, the smile still plastered onto his face. I stiffened. I hadn’t heard that name in 7 years. Coupled with the unmistaken English accent, I felt the blood drain from my face as I realised my nightmare was about to unfold.
"I’m sorry, but you must be mistaken," I said, closing the door. The man stuck his hand between the small crevice.
"You’re her, aren’t you?" He smiled and with in-human strength, he yanked the door wide, breaking the chain as he made a move to come inside. Gasping in shock, I did the first thing that came to mind. Knocking his knees from under him, I slammed my fist into his skull and pushed him out of the door. Sofia screamed as she looked on helplessly. Slamming it shut and dead-bolting it, I ran and scooped her up into my arms. I ran into the bathroom, and deposited her onto the toilet seat.
"What’s going on Mama?" She whispered, tears running down her pale face. I pushed back the hair from her face and shushed her soothingly. The man was starting to yell and pound on the door furiously, however, I knew that even a steel-enforced door would not be able to hold the supernatural for long. Closing the bathroom door, and firmly locking it, I turned on all the taps and gently pushed the plug in to cause the bath tub to fill.
"What are you doing Mama?" Sofia tearfully exclaimed. I felt a pang as I realised that I couldn’t shield her from finding out the truth. Picking her up and letting her bury her face into my neck, I clutched her tight as I slid down onto the toilet seat. The banging was getting louder and louder and I quickly realised that the man was not alone. With an almighty bang, we both froze in horror as the door was blasted from it’s hinges and fell onto the floor. With my shaking hand, I began to feel the familiar tingle as I carefully unleashed my talent that I had suppressed for so long. Defying gravity, the water crawled up the sides of the bath tub and silently made its way to the closed door.
“What are you doing Mama?!” Sofia repeated with wide eyes. Once again, I hugged her with my remaining hands and felt my silent tears fall.
“Whatever happens, Mama loves you.” I whispered. I let the water run up the sides of the door and I clenched my fist, causing it to freeze until it had become as tough as crystal. The thundering footsteps of the intruders caused me to lift both of my hands and direct more water towards that door, trying to seal it shut. Knocks sounded on the bathroom door and Sofia whimpered, clutching tighter onto my neck.
“Let us in, your majesty!” A familiar voice shouted. I shook my head and clutched at my child tighter. ‘Over my dead body.’ I thought grimly. More knocks sounded and a bigger thump showed that they were attempting to break the door down. I knew that the ice wouldn’t hold long, and Sofia’s shuddering body showed that her fear was beyond what she ever anticipated. All of a sudden, the knocking stopped and I felt my stomach drop as another familiar voice was heard from behind the door.
“Rose, I’m going to break down the door. Stand back.” He said, and behind the door, a red glow started to emit, causing the ice to melt and stripping away our source of protection. Helplessly, I looked on as the door began to melt and fall apart as the man behind the door gave it one solid kick.
Burying my face into Sofia’s curls, the tears poured down my face as I forgot all my training and waited like a woman on death row, to face our fate. Her whimpers were growing louder as the man approached us, his footsteps light and gliding effortlessly across the tiled floor. I froze when he placed a warm hand on my head. A long time ago, I craved for his touch. It promised happiness, a chance to escape from a terrible life; now it promised a darker life, one which I was not prepared to go back to.
He knelt down and I could feel his gaze on both of us, but I stubbornly refused to let go of my daughter, nor meet his gaze.
“Please look at me,” he pleaded. His attempt was in vain as I tightened my arms around Sofia once more and ignored his wishes. He sighed, standing up. “Separate them.” He commanded quietly. At this order, my head snapped up and saw the husband of my child for the first time in 7 years.
He hadn’t aged a bit, which was hardly surprising considering the fact that he was a high-level supernatural. However, I detected shadows underneath his eyes, marring his handsome features, and shifting my eyes upwards, I was met with piercing blue eyes that caused my heart to skip a beat. I opened my mouth to scream, to yell obscenities, to beg, to do anything, but I was interrupted as Lancelot appeared from behind him and made a move to take Sofia from my arms.
“No!” I screamed and tried to shield her from his touch. However, my strength couldn’t compare to a man, 20 times my age and my attempts to constrict Sofia were futile as she was plucked from my arms and into his.
“Please, give her back to me!” I begged, jumping up and trying to lunge for her. There was a strong grip on my waist and I looked up to see that Liam had caught me and reached a hand to cradle my face.
“I’ve missed you, my love.” He said, drawing me in closer and placing a kiss on my forehead. Half of me wanted to just hug him and cry until I was tired, but the other half of me recoiled in disgust. The ‘disgust side’ of me won and I slapped him across the face. In shock, he let me go and i faced him with hatred in my eyes. This was surreal. I couldn’t believe that this was happening.
“Give her back to me. Or I will end you.” I said venomously. The guards around him were n a mix between shock and awe. No one had touched a hair on his head in battle for more than 3 centuries, and here I stood, a mid-level elemental; bitch slapping him across the face.
“Sir?” One of the guards sais, filling in the awkward silence as he just continued to stare at me. At those words, he recovered and he muttered an order for them to get out. Great, he wanted to kill me himself.
When the room was cleared, he looked at me with sadness and despair. 7 years ago, my heart would have broken a bit when I saw him with that much sadness, but with the many years apart, I’d grown bitter and now, I only felt a slight twinge.
“What have I done to deserve this?” He pleaded. “All these years, I finally found you. What’s wrong?”
“I hate you!” I said, albeit childishly.
“Why? The night that you left, you told me that you loved me!” He shot back, eyebrows raised. My heart leaped when I remembered that night. I’d been able to train myself to forget about anything associated with him for so long, yet, as soon as he mentioned it, all those memories flooded back. Gasping, the pain of that night hit me like a truck and without warning, tears started to pour from my eyes in a steady stream.