Chapter 15 - Sidulous
I woke to warmth. There was hot enveloping warmth pressing against my back. I was lying on my side with my legs tucked into and my arms crossed over my chest.
I groaned. I hurt. All my muscles ached.
I twisted and turned into the source of warmth. It was then that I realised that it emanated from another body. I opened my eyes and found Scott looking at me. My chest was now pressed against his chest and we were in my bed. I blushed.
“You are still here?”
He didn’t answer he just looked at me with his serious eyes. Then he frowned.
“What have you done to me?” his voice blunt and his eyes probing mine as if looking for some truth.
I looked at him confused. “I don’t understand?”
“Did you infect me with something? Bitten me or change me somehow? What is this Irin? Why did you do this to me Natalie?”
“Me? I haven’t done anything to you. Talk to Jari, before Jari turned up I was perfectly normal too.” I pushed away from him, “Hang on, you said you have been dreaming about me for years, was that a lie?”
“No of course not. I have been...” he stopped, frowned and I could feel the waves of chagrin as I watched his face crumble.
“You have been what Scott?” I whispered my eyes held his as my arms gently wound around him.
“I have been in love with you for years Natalie.” He said very quietly.
He dropped his head and scrunched up his eyes in pain. With one finger under his chin I lifted his face back to mine and I kissed him. Without saying anything, I let my lips tell him everything I couldn’t. We moved together as we gave in to the desires. Our hands urging, our skin tight and our legs, arms and tongues entwined.
I pulled my lips away from him. Our foreheads rested together but I eased my hips away from his. I could feel his disappointment.
“But you don’t… you don’t love me, do you Natalie?” He forehead creased and his voice sounded slightly raw as I felt his shoulder muscles clench.
“Scott, we can’t feel that way. I don’t understand this Qaddis -Irin thing anymore than you do. But Jari came to me first. If it turns out to be something bad I want you to walk away. I don’t want you to get involved. If we get any closer I don’t know maybe you won’t be able to. I want you to have that choice. I don’t have the choice but I think you still might.”
He kissed me again. “I can’t walk away from you. I tried and the pain was excruciating. I can’t be without you. That’s why I asked what you infected me with. Ever since I first kissed you I can breathe, I can’t think and I can’t do anything. I just want you. I hear you, I feel you, and I dream about you all the time Natalie. It’s like you have become a part of me.”
“It’s the same for me too.” I reached up and cupped his face running my fingertips over his soft stubble. “Thursday night? Did you…umm dream?” I blushed wondering if he would understand my question.
“Yes Thursday night was quite a night, for you too then?” He lips curled into a smile as he trailed his fingers down my back and I wound mine through his hair, as we had done to each other in the dream. “I woke exhausted and knew that no matter what I couldn’t let you go. After so many years of denial I couldn’t let you slip through my fingers now. I would suffer any humiliation for you. I will fight for you because I love you Natalie.”
“Do you think that somehow we shared the dream? Is that possible?”
“What is possible? What is impossible? A couple of hours ago I would have said monsters were ‘impossible’, now… ? But it’s not just the dreams. Tonight you were ripped from my arms and you were gone but then I felt you. I felt your fear and your resolve. I heard you calling for me in my thoughts. I came to you because you called to me. I swam knowing exactly where you were and exactly what I needed to do to save you. I can’t explain it other than by saying that you spoke to me.” He looked me in the eyes so that I could see how serious he was. “Now tell me that you love me before I test to see how accurate our dreaming was.”
“I’m not sure,” I looked into his eyes and bit my lip, “I don’t know, this is all new to me and I don’t understand what this all means yet Scott. I think I do but…”
“Hmm so you need more convincing?” He shuffled closer as he lifted my face to his lips found mine with all the consuming need we exhibited in the dream.
“You’ll just have to make do with our dreams!” I laughed and edged away from him as he kissed me down the neck and his hands roamed my skin.
“But how are we going to know for sure that we were dreaming together? And don’t forget that I thought you were dead twice tonight. So I need to make sure that you are still alive, very much alive.” He smiled at me as his hands gently glided over my skin.
“No. You will just have to trust other indicators for that!” I pulled myself from his grasp and sat on the side of the bed. I was still in my underwear. “You need to behave, I am taking your father’s advice on this.”
“Yes, well, remind me to thank my father for that little gem of wisdom,” he said so sarcastically that I laughed.
“Come back to bed,” His hands caressed me, “and let’s take your Mother’s advice instead.”
I turned to find him looking at me with a hungry look on his face. I turned away from him.
“Yeah, just because she has been such a role model to me.”
“You think your Mother doesn’t love you, don’t you?”
“Well, yeah! After all it isn’t like she has ever been much of a Mother to start with, more like a distant, morose, flatmate than a parent. She has never loved me. She has never shown any emotion other than annoyance for me at all. I am an inconvenience to her.”
“And nothing from your father?”
“I know nothing at all. There are no photos and she has never mentioned him at all. I don’t even know his name or if he knows about me. I really don’t understand why she kept me,” I shrugged. All this had ceased hurting me long ago. It was simply the way things were for me and there was no point being miserable about it.
He held out his arms and I found my way back into them.
“You have me.”
“You left me on Wednesday Scott! I was standing on the gutter crying and you drove away. So please excuse me if I don’t exactly trust you yet.”
“I am sorry. I need to learn to trust you too,” He closed his eyes and I felt his pain.
Suddenly the bedroom door flung open. I automatically sprang to my feet defensively protecting Scott as I faced what was coming through the bedroom door.
“Hmm, nice. But we are going to have to take you lingerie shopping too aren’t we Natalie. Matching set?” Jari winced.
I felt Scott pull me back under the covers. “There is nothing wrong with her underwear,” he growled.
“Other than the fact, there is too much of it and definitely not enough lace,” Jari laughed as Scott glared at him.
“Calm down boys. Jari you have some explaining to do.”
“So it would seem.” He smiled as he sat on the corner of the bed, “So Scott do you love her? Are you linked with her yet?”
“Linked with me?”
“The Irin and Qaddis are linked. They are twinned so that they can feel what each other feels and knows what each other needs. That is what makes them such a formidable fighting pair and what gives them the power to make judgements.”
“OK Jari, enough of all this cryptic crap. Some creature tried to kill me tonight so I would appreciate some straight answers,” I growled at him while throwing on a shirt.
“What creature? Where?” Jari looked surprised.
“At the lake, it was a hideous thing with tentacles coming out of its head, and huge sharp teeth... why are you laughing Jari? I’m serious! If you don’t believe me come and see it.”
“What do you mean? What did you do to Sid?”
“Sid?” both Scott and I asked in surprise.
“What did you do to him Natalie?” Jari actually looked stern and concerned.
“It’s in the boot of Scott’s car,” I looked at him astonished, “Sid?”
“Yeah and he is going to be a little bit more than pissed. Get dressed, both of you.”
Dressed we stood around the back of Scott’s car. All was quiet. The street had that eerie dewy feel to it that you get just before first light of dawn. Jari pulled off his shirt, shook his head looking at the car boot and sighed loudly before turning to Scott and nodding to him.
Scott popped the boot.
Tentacles flew out throwing the boot lid up and exposing the fearsome might of the beast. Jari was right, it was seriously cranky. I automatically braced to take the attack. But as I did something else happened. Jari started to glow. A strong white light emanated from his chest and arms and shone brightly illuminating the car and the creature.
The tentacles pulled back to cover the creatures eyes.
“Stop that Jariel!” The sound was high and shrill. Almost like a child on helium.
“Have you calmed down Sid?” Jari asked as the light blinked off and was gone.
I tried to focus on Jari but I had bright spots in my eyes.
“Hey, not my fault! Your girl here assaulted me! Look at my face, look at it! If she has marred my handsome features I will be very upset Jariel. I might even...” The words came out from between the sharp teeth. It looked wrong because the mouth moved but not quite in time with the words it was saying – almost like a badly dubbed movie. The creature’s eyes also seemed to glare at me in a strange non-expressive way.
“Shut up Sid. What were you doing attacking her?”
“Attacking her? Is that what she said? Ha! I was merely taking her down to meet the kids, hell it’s not often that I get to meet your...”
“Sid, you didn’t think an introduction might have been appropriate before you dragged her down to the bottom of the lake?” Jari spoke in the same patient way that you would use to chastise a small child for taking cake without being offered.
“Well now you mention it, yeah probably,” the creature looked like it almost shrugged which given it had no shoulders just a head visible was disconcerting.
“Irin, Qaddis, this is Sidulous, Sid to his friends.” Jari introduced me like it was the natural thing to do, like he was introducing me to an old friend, not to a monster.
“Friends?” I looked at Jari as he shrugged and smiled.
“It is a pleasure to meet the...” Sid’s squealing voice took on a sing-song tone.
“Enough Sid!” Jari started to interrupt Sid but Scott was also speaking.
“So let me get this straight,” Scott said slowly and carefully, “No one has a problem with this. This... Sid, right, almost killed...”
“Excuse me Irin,” Jari intersected quickly turning to Scott and stared at him like it was important that he stopped speaking right now. “It was a misunderstanding.”
“Look as much as I love a good reunion,” Sid groaned which was a painful noise given the high pitch of his voice, “But my skin is starting to dry out and I have one mother of a headache. Do you think you could drop me home before the missus starts to extract her revenge on all of mankind?”
“Scott, give me your keys and I will drive Sid home while you kids have breakfast,” Jari said in an almost bored voice and caught the keys as Scott tossed them to him.
Scott and I walked into the house quietly while Jari drove off.
“Do you…? Are you…?” Scott stuttered as he looked at me.
“Seriously freaked out, yes, questioning my sanity, yes, wanting to get the hell out of here before Jari gets back, definitely.” I looked at Scott and he looked at me, “Please tell me that you know how to drive, ride, pilot, whatever, a motorbike.”
Scott smiled a huge grin at me so I fished the keys to Jari’s motorbike out of the pocket of his discarded jacket.
I hugged him, clinging to him as the motorbike roared to life beneath me. I closing my eyes and just concentrated on him nothing else. I blocked out all the madness and just concentrated on the tangible boy in my arms. Scott.