Chapter 15:
Memories
More weeks passed by as Evangeline lived in Payne manor. Most days she was confined to their room with only Lisette and Will as company as Bertrand had a coven to run and orders from the council coming in nonstop. It wasn't long before they became close, to Eva's surprise. Lisette would help her dress for the evening and after they would sit together talking about everything from Lisette's reputation in the manor to Eva's dreams. Or what she thought her dreams were at least.
"I think...I want to help people," Eva said one evening they were together, lounging on the sofa in Bertrand's room. "I don't know how, but when I think of people being in pain I just have this desire to reach out. It probably sounds really strange when I don't even know anything about myself."
Lisette smiled. "I don't think it strange," she said. "You're a kind person and I have a feeling you were just as kind before your mind was tampered with." She placed a cold, yet comforting, hand over Eva's who in turn placed an appreciative hand over Lisette's.
Then there was Will. When it was only the two of them Eva found herself watching his every move. It was like being in the presence of a coiled rattle snake. Any moment it could strike and sink it's venomous fangs into you. Will tried to assure her many times she was safe with him, that the two had an agreement with one another before she was brought to Payne manor. Still, she was cautious around him and it was a fact that, to Will's surprise, was slowly beginning to weigh on his nerves.
When she wasn't trapped in her and Bertrand's room she was firmly fixed to the elder's side as he worked in his office. He'd sit at his desk working away on things she was never made privy to while she sat at the easel he bought her. She would paint until he was finished and they would retire to their room where a servant, or sometimes Lisette, would bring her dinner. There were a few occasions where he would take her out to a restaurant to eat but those were few and far between. He was still wary whether Eva had fully accepted the false memories he'd planted within her mind and would not risk her escaping him again.
Everything was peaceful for the most part but she did not allow herself to grow too comfortable. Her memories still felt wrong and a large part of her mind despised when he would begin kissing her or attempted at anything...more. He was always patient, never pushing her and stopping when she asked but she knew his patience would soon run out. A man like Bertrand could only be put off for so long. But each time their lips met her mind would go into a frenzy, stirring up images of someone else. Someone with green eyes and a midnight black mohawk...
"So no memory recovery yet sweetling?" Will asked as he laid across the leather sofa in Bertrand's room.
Eva was caught off guard by the question. Lisette nor Will ever brought up the topic of her warped memories. Each time she attempted to broach the subject they would shush or change the subject, saying it was not the time to talk about it. That she needed to be patient. The fact Will was bringing it up now, after nearly a month since she'd woken, made her approach the topic with caution.
"Why do you ask?"
Will sighed in irritation, sitting up from where he laid on the sofa. Ever since Eva's incarceration at the manor Jasper had been on his backside constantly. The necromancer was constantly asking about the healer. Was she safe? What was Bertrand doing to her? Had she recovered her memories yet? It was beginning to get on his last nerve. The plan was to wait till Eva's memories returned on their own but now that they had a plan together Will thought it was time to give Eva a nudge.
"Do you know why Bertrand made me one of his fledglings and keeps me around despite my smart mouth?" he asked earning a wary glance from Lisette and a head shake from Eva. "When I was human, I had this ability to dive into people's heads and tramps about in their memories. I could do it to anyone. I would take people across at poker, swindle multiple people out of their money and never get caught. But when I tried it on Bertrand I was met with a steel wall." He paused thinking about that night with distaste. "No matter what I couldn't break his mental barrier it was the first time I ever met someone like that. He took all my money in poker that night and then turned me when I was makin' my way home." He stood from the couch and slowly began to approach Eva where she sat on the large bed.
"When you're turned into a vampire all your natural abilities you possessed in life are multiplied then fold. So not only was I able to go into anyone's mind, no matter the mental barrier they put up, but I was able to tamper with it. Manipulating memories, taking control of a person's body, cause hallucinations," He gave her a devious smirk. "There's no one's mind I can't mess with. I've even gotten to the point where I can sneak into Bertrand's for a short while without him finding out."
"If you can do all that then why haven't you taken him down yourself then?" Lisette asked from where she stood, watching the other vampire with a wary gaze.
"Because I'm still not strong enough to hold it for long," Will snapped in irritation. "I can only be in his thoughts for about a minute before he starts getting suspicious."
"Why are you telling me this?" Evangeline asked warily. Will continued to smirk and leaned down, his nose almost touching hers as they stared at one another.
"It's taking too long for you to recover your memories on your own," He whispered to her. "And my patience is about spent."
"Don't you dare!" Lisette hissed moving towards him. "You said it yourself if you mess with her mind anymore you could destroy it!"
"I said if he continued to do it," Will snapped pulling away from Eva to glare at his fellow coven member. "I'm an expert when it comes to the mind; I'm far more careful than he is. He just forces his way in there with no care of the damage he's doing. I can get in, find where they've sealed her memories and get out without doing any more damage."
"I'd rather not take that chance," Lisette snapped as she pounced.
"Why don't you take a nap," he commanded. Before Lisette could even reach him she fell to the floor in an unconscious heap.
"What did you do?" Eva demanded, rising to check on Lisette but was stopped. Will placed a hand on either side of Eva's face, forcing the young woman to look into his eyes. He gave her a comforting smile. It was an expression she'd never seen on his face before and caught her off guard.
"Don't worry she'll wake up in five minutes," Will explained. "By then I'll be done."
Eva stood stalk still not so much as allowing herself to breathe loudly. She could feel a tickling within her mind as Will stared into her eyes. They'd long since gone misty as if he was seeing something far away. The tickling sensation grew filling her mind, making it hard to focus on anything else. Then it was gone and Will had pulled away from her.
"What did you do?" Evangeline asked her hand rising to her head to inspect for damage.
"Just loosened the lock on your memories is all," he said with a shrug as the two heard Lisette groan from where she laid on the floor. "Awe looks like Lisette's waking up earlier than I thought. Damn."
"I'm going to kill you for that Conners," Lisette hissed from the floor still to groggy to stand.
"Yes well as fun as that sounds, I unfortunately have some things to deal with before the sun rises," and like that he was gone in a black puff of smoke.
"I hate him." Lisette hissed as she took a seat on the bed next to Eva. "So, so, much."
"Are you alright?" Evangeline asked with concern.
"I'm fine," she assured with a wave. "Just a minor headache, which that bastard's going to pay for later. How about you? What did he do?"
Eva scratched her head. "He said something about loosening the lock on my memories but I don't feel any different," she explained as he went over the memories she did posses. They were all the same. Fabrications of her and Bertrand doing intimate things and the day they met along with the memories she made at the manor. Nothing new or out of the ordinary.
Lisette shrugged not knowing what to say as the doors to the bedroom opened revealing Bertrand. He nodded to Lisette silently telling her to leave them. She nodded in turn and disappeared from the room in a puff of black smoke just as Will had done. He strode over to Evangeline and captured her lips with his own. The kiss was like the others they'd shared. It instantly filled her with disgust and the desire to push him away. She resisted her instincts and returned the gesture with an equal amount of passion, if not forced. Bertrand pulled away, to her relief, and smiled at her. It was a warm smile full of adoration and happiness. It made her sick. She wanted nothing more then to rip his dead her out with her bare hands. How dare he be happy after all he'd done to her, after all he'd taken from her...what had he taken from her exactly? The anger was quickly gone, leaving nothing but confusion in its wake.
"I have some business that needs tending to in my office," he explained gently caressing her face with his thumbs as he held it between his hands. "I thought you'd like to join."
Evangeline nodded smiling at the thought of returning to her easel, the only joy she had in the dark manor. His smile grew at the sight before the both disappeared in a cloud of black smoke and reappeared in his office, Eva sitting on his desk while he leaned over her. Right away he went back to kissing her sending a quick spike of fury from her lips down to her toes. When he finally released he she took the chance to dash over to the easel and sit down. She picked up the mp3 player that sat there and turned it on allowing the music to fill her ears. She sat there for a moment trying to think of what exactly she wished to paint. Usually she painted things around the office, or the view outside the window, but this time she wanted to paint something different. Something meaningful Then she saw it. A snow filled scene, the white stained red as a young woman stared at a hideous monster on the edge of death.
She was like a woman possessed. Her mind was blank as she moved with professional grace about the canvas, gliding her brush across the white surface staining it with the different pigments. Her movements became faster, more precise, bringing the image further to life before her. When it was done she was shocked and out of breath. It had only been an hour and it was a finished piece in need of no alterations or additions as if she had painted it a million times before She paused the music and removed the buds from her ears staring agape at the image before her. The painting awakened memories in her. The feeling of snow filling her boots as she moved towards a large monstrous creature. The sounds of its growling before she was pulled into clawed adorned arms...a woman calling her name.
"What masterpiece are you working on this time Angel?" Bertrand asked as he wrapped his arms around, resting his chin on her shoulder. His eyes went wide and his hold tightened when he saw what she'd done. "Why did you paint this?"
"I...I don't know," she answered, her brush falling to the floor.
"What do you call it?" he asked, his voice even giving no hint to what he was truly feeling.
She thought for a long moment. "The Monster's Love," she answered. "I think sounds fitting."
Bertrand said nothing, releasing her waist in favor of her marked hand which he used to pull her from his office. "Come, you need to be fed before the sun rises," she didn't try to fight him, didn't say anything to question his sudden change in demeanor knowing full well it had to do with her painting.
He took her out to a restaurant, to her surprise, where she ate with eyes constantly on her, analyzing everything she did as she sat there. When she was finished he paid and they were once again back home in their room. Eva ducked into the bathroom and changed into one of her many nightgowns before returning to the bedroom where he already locked the bedroom door and closed the metal shutters on the window. He said nothing to her as she climbed into bed beside him and pulled her into his arms as he did every night. Neither of them said anything as they slowly fell asleep.
~*~
She was falling, at least that's what it felt like. There was nothing but darkness around her making it impossible to tell where she was. The memory of how she got there was nonexistent. But the more she thought she realized she had no memories at all. She didn't know her name, where she came from, nothing at all. All she did know was she didn't have the will to move. To go back to wherever she was before being deposited into the endless void around her. Despite the dark she was content. If she continued to fall forever she wouldn't mind. Something screamed the void was better then what awaited her back home...if it was home at all.
She stopped falling eventually and landed on her feet still in the midst of darkness. But now it was different. She no longer had the serene feeling of calm she felt during her descent. Panic was welling up inside her, yelling at her to run forward and not to stop. So she did just that. She ran. And ran. And ran. For how long she had no idea but she didn't stop. Then she saw it, a white light glowing in the distance and her panic began to fade away.
She pushed herself to run faster. To reach the light at all costs but the closer she got the more an invisible force fought against her. It pushed her back trying to keep her as far from the light as possible. She did not falter and continued on never allowing that light to leave her sight. It wasn't long before the force began to disappear completely, defeated by her determination, and she was able to reach the light. She wasn't sure what she was looking at. Standing before her was a glowing white door encircled in multiple chains with a name engraved into the blanched wood.
"Evangeline Skye Agate," she read as her hand glided across the words fondly. The sound of it on her tongue brought about a storm of emotions. Comfort, anger, sorrow, joy; so many feelings spread through her all thanks to three words. Three words she realized came together to form something she'd been lacking for so long. An identity. She rested her head against the wooden surface feeling the energy zapped from her frame. It was warm and strangely soft. She craved whatever resided on the other side. Her hand moved to the handle and tugged but it didn't budge.
She looked up at the chains baring her way. Some of them were old, rusted, and ready to break with the slightest of force. Others were new forged from steal and unyielding. She grabbed hold of the handle again and tugged as hard as she could. The rusted chains gave way falling to the dark ground around her but no matter how hard she pulled the new chains refused to buckle. A scream tore from her chapped lips filling the surrounding void with her fury. Her anguish. She fell to the ground sobs replacing her screams as she sat there. It wasn't fair, she thought. It was right there in front of her. Everything she was and had ever been was right behind that door and she was barred from having it. No matter what she did, no matter who she was, it was never enough to get or be what she wanted.
"No...No!" she cried getting up from her feet and staring at the chains. "I'm not giving up! I've come too far to give up when it's right there!" She steppped towards the door. "Whatever lies beyond this door belongs to me, me! That is my name and I'll be damned if I let anything keep me from what's behind this door!" The chains shook as if in fear of her, not prepared for her claim. She took in a breath, squared her shoulders, and held her head high as she stared down the door before her. "I am Evangeline Skye Agate and I command you to open!"
The chains shook violently at her declaration and one by one the links disintegrated into dust around her. A smile spread across her face as the door slowly opened releasing light and familiar sounds into the void. She could feel herself being pulled forward by its warmth and without hesitation stepped forward through the threshold. Now instead of darkness she saw only white. She was flooded with so many emotions, thoughts, memories. The white slowly began to fade, turning into different locations with people passing by her in rapid pace. Her head turned in every direction trying to take it in, growing increasingly irritated when she was unable to.
"Stop!"
Just like that everything paused, freezing around her. She looked around the balloon and streamer decorated room trying desperately to decipher where and when she was. Her eyes moved from the multiple people gathered in the kitchen, their eyes all focused on the small child propped in a highchair at the head of the table. The babe looked incredibly familiar with her dark hair and large eyes which were awe struck as they gazed upon the lit candle embedded in the cake before her. She read the "Happy First Birthday Evangeline" decorating the top of it in red icing before returning her focus to the people flanking either side of the child. The woman, a blonde fair skinned woman with large doe eyes that were identical to the child's, was frozen in the midst of placing a kiss on the toddler's cheek. The man on her left, who had olive skin, and raven black hair that matched little Eva's gazed upon the woman and child in pure adoration. A lump formed in her throat at the sight of them, tears threatening to fall.
"Mama...Daddy?"
The scene began to move again cries of happy birthday for the one year old filling the space around her. Her mother moved away from the baby's cheek a smile spread across her face. "Happy Birthday Evangeline."
The scene sped up again this time slower than before so she was able to fully take in what was going on around her. She saw herself grow alongside her parents and with each passing scene she could feel them taking root in her mind locking together like puzzle pieces to form who she was and would remain to be. She saw multiple scenes at the guild school where she was never happy, her days at the human school where she made friends with Kevin and then how he fled from her once she revealed her powers to him.
Everything slowed down to a normal pace and she wondered what it was she was about to witness. She watched carefully as what looked to be a ten year old version of herself walked through the trees of the forest where her home resided. She remembered how much she loved roaming around in the forest during the day to admire nature and point out all the different plants she remembered Gran had taught to her. It wasn't long before she broke through a familiar line of trees and stumbled upon a small stream. Nothing had changed from the other days she'd visited it, aside from the boy sitting on the bank, his head resting on his knees. He looked unfamiliar until he raised his head and looked straight ahead.
He was a boy from her class who'd just moved to town. He was always quiet and all the kids were weary of his quiet demeanor and the dark aura that seemed to surround him. She hated to see the sad look on his face and decided she was going to change it. She stepped into the stream, walked till she was just out of his line of sight, and splashed him with a large wave of water. He quickly turned his greens eyes onto her and she could see the anger slowly building in him. Those eyes looked so familiar and filled her with warmth. She smiled as the name passed through her lips unhindered.
"Jasper..."
He began yelling and cursing at the ten year old version of herself to which she responded with another splash of freezing water. The action silenced him for a moment before he cursed again and rose from the ground entering the stream to chase after her, splashing and laughing as he did so.
Once again the memories changed rapidly before her eyes. She saw multiple days shared between them at the stream; even in the winter when the snow was piled high on the banks they still met. This boy became her only friend, the only one who hadn't shunned her and enjoyed her company as much as she enjoyed his. The clips slowed down again and it looked to be a year later. The two were lying on the bank of the stream looking up at the tree canopy above. Jasper was pulling at his eyebrow with a quizzical look on his face.
"What would you think if I got my eyebrow pierced?" he asked, releasing his brow and turning his head so he could see her expression.
She laughed. "Jasper you're terrified of needles," she said trying to contain her laughter at the very thought of it. "There's no way you would get your eyebrow pierced. That and your aunt would kill you."
"Well when I turn eighteen I'm getting it done," he said with a pout. "Then you'll see I'm not a wimp."
"I never said you were a wimp," younger Eva tried to remedy before a voice interrupted them.
"Oh but we would," the two sat up from where they laid and looked at the group of eleven year olds who'd found their spot. It was four boys from their class who were always picking on Jasper. She recognized the leader of the group right away. His name was Tommy and was known as a bully by everyone in their school. No matter what he did he was never reprimanded either because of his father's position on the town council.
"What're you doing here?" Jasper asked as he stood up protectively in front of younger Eva.
"Awe Jaspy don't you wanna play with us?" the leader of the four asked as they approached. Two of the boys moved around Jasper to where younger Eva was, each of them grabbing hold of one of her arms. She twisted and turned trying to throw them off though careful as to not hurt them.
"Leave her out of this," Jasper snapped towards the main boy his eyes lightening in hue as he grew angrier.
"Awe does Jaspy have a crush on Eve?" the boy asked taking a step forward and connecting his fist with Jasper's midsection.
Younger Eva screamed as the leader and other boy started beating up her friend, kicking him and throwing punches as he doubled over falling to the ground. She struggled more trying to get free to help her friend. She wished she could use her training on the group of idiot boys but she'd be in a lot of trouble for doing so. After awhile Jasper was still, not fighting back and just laying on the ground. The boys gave him a final kick before turning their eyes on her.
"So what should we do with this freak?" Tommy asked twisting his fingers in her hair and forcing her to look at him. She cried out at the tug and Jasper's form seemed to twitch.
"Hey you have your dad's pocket knife on you? Let's cut off all her hair and make her look like the freak that she is," one of the boys suggested making Tommy grin maliciously.
"You're not..." they all turned and looked at Jasper. He staggered to his feet blood dripping from his head and his arms covered in fresh bruises. He struggled to stand on his feet. "You're not gonna touch her."
Tommy only smirked and poked younger Eva in the face. "I'm touching her."
She felt the familiar chill of death in the air as the wind picked up, causing the leaves on the trees to quake. Eva watched with apprehension as familiarity of the situation filled her. She wanted to step forward and stop Jasper but she knew she was stuck as a spectator, unable to do anything but watch the memory unfold. Her eyes widened when the sky seemed to dim and watched Jasper take a step towards the young bullies who had a hold of her younger self. He looked up from the ground and stared at them through his dark locks, his eyes having turned black as coal. The boys gasped.
"What's wrong with his eyes?" one of the boys asked Tommy as he tightened his hold on Eva making the eleven year old wince in pain. Jasper noticed and released a deep carnal growl taking the children by surprise.
"H-He's just trying to scare us!" Tommy dismissed with a shaky chuckle as he took a step forward determined on returning Jasper to the helpless heap he was before. He lashed out with his fist expecting it to come into contact with Jasper's face only to meet this surge of dark energy that swirled about Jasper stopping his fist in mid air. The torrent of energy whipped out kicking up stones, leaves, and anything else that it could possibly pick up.
"He's a monster!"
"Run before he kills us!"
The bullies ran away in a hurry leaving Eva standing there staring at Jasper in disbelief. She thought he would return to normal now that he'd scared them off but he didn't. The onslaught of power continued seeming to grow in strength the longer he remained like this.
"Jasper?" Eva called out shakily, hoping to catch her friend's attention. He didn't acknowledge her. "Jasper they're gone now you can stop!" again the mass of death and darkness increased, whipping out and knocking Eva's younger self to the ground. The impact caused her to scrape the palms of her hands and knees. A tear streamed down her face at the pain and the fear surging through her in that moment. She remembered from her lessons what kind of being could manipulate the darkness and harness the power of death. Her eyes went wide slightly as she remembered the name. "Necromancer."
She turned her head around to stare at Jasper as if seeing the boy in a new light. He was a necromancer, a powerful and dangerous one from what she was seeing. All the time they'd spent alone together he could've eaten her soul at any time and she would've been defenseless against him. The thought made her stop. "He could've...but he didn't," she watched his power grow about him, sucking the life out of all the foliage and any small animals who were unfortunate enough to get close to him. Eva pushed herself to her feet and stared at Jasper through the darkness surrounding him. "If I leave him now I'm no better than the others," she scolded herself remembering Kevin who'd ran away from her when she'd revealed herself to him. She couldn't do that to Jasper. She couldn't do that to Jasper. "No matter what he is he's still Jasper, he's still my friend." She took a step forward and began fighting her way to the heart of darkness where her friend was waiting.
The scene began to slip away then and faded to another. Eva's younger self was sitting in a small circle of debris left over from Jasper's episode. The wind had calmed and the sun was shining again making Eva feel relieved. Jasper's head rested in her lap, his breath coming in steady as she sat trying to catch her breath. Slowly Jasper's eyes began to open no longer anthracite but the brilliant green she adored so much. He stared up at her scratched face, his breath catching when he was met with a relieved smile and two happy tears that streamed down her cheeks and onto his face.
"I'm so glad," she sobbed pressing a hand to her face to hide her tears from him. "I was so scared I'd lost you."
He laid there not saying a word staring up at her in wonder as if he couldn't believe she'd stayed. Hesitantly he reached up and touched her cheek, his face contorted in an emotion Eva was having trouble identifying. He caught the attention of younger Eva, making the eleven year old girl look down at him.
"I'm sorry firefly," he said making Eva's heart skip a bit. This was the day she'd become his firefly, his little light in the dark. "I'll never do that to you again."
Eva couldn't help but chuckle at that. The scene changed again and this time she knew it was some time in the future for when she saw herself and Jasper they had grown significantly. Again they were in their forest sitting under a tree with their sketch books out. As they sat in silence there was some tension in the air between the two of them, like something was weighing on one of their minds.
"You think we'll be able to get into that art school in New York?" younger Eva asked, her voice slightly different from the last memory.
Jasper looked up from his page and shrugged. "I know you will, your art is amazing," he said as he turned back to his page, his voice also deeper than the last memory. "Mine's horrible."
Eva scoffed and tore the book out of his hands making him shout in protest as she stared at the drawing before her. She stared at the young girl depicted on the page bathed in a glowing light a pair of insect wings sprouting from her back as her long black tresses spilled around her thin shoulders. She turned with her eyes slightly wide.
"You're drawing me?" she asked.
He tore the sketch book from her hands fighting a blush from forming on his olive cheeks. "You weren't supposed to see it till I colored it," he muttered. "It was going to be your birthday present."
"It's gorgeous Jasps," she commended with a smile. "How can you say you won't get into that art school when you can draw like that?" He just shrugged, closing his sketchbook and shoving it into his bag as he got up from where he sat under the tree.
"Jasper where're you going?" younger Eva asked as she rose from the ground quickly to follow after her friend. He didn't respond to her and continued walking. "Jasper why're you so mad at me? I'm sorry I ruined the surprise I had no idea you would be drawing me."
Jasper stopped abruptly taking Eva by surprise and making her skid to a stop before him. "Tommy asked you to the dance today."
Younger Eva made a face of disgust. "Don't remind me. I'm about half sick just remembering it."
"So...you didn't say yes?" Jasper asked his features tense as he waited for her answer.
"Of course not Jasps! Jeeze is that what this is about?" younger Eva asked in surprise. "Did you think I said yes?" she asked with a teasing chuckle which died when she saw the serious look upon his face. "You did? Jasper why would you think I'd say yes to Tommy? He's the meanest, stupidest, little troll. Plus why would it—." She was stopped by a pair of lips pressing against her cheek. Her eyes went wide when Jasper pulled away and looked into her eyes his hand taking hold of hers gently.
"I thought you liked him," Jasper said unable to meet her eyes. "And I couldn't stand it."
The scene changed again, this time she could see her younger self running desperately through a snow covered forest towards something. She broke through a tree line not long after that and came face to face with the blood coated clearing. Her eyes darted around frantically before falling on two left hands, each with a familiar wedding band on the ring finger. She fell to her knees releasing a scream of horror as the tears began to trail down her face.
Once again her memories shift and she sees herself sitting in her bedroom staring at the floor. Her face was stained with tears and her eyes looked dead. She could hear footsteps coming towards her and saw a familiar young boy standing in her door way. His face was contorted in sadness at the sight of younger Eva as he pulled up a chair, taking her shaking hands in his.
"Firefly," he tried. His voice strained when he didn't see her eyes light up at the nickname or with that familiar grin take over her face. "Spectra's going to come up to take your memories away." He told her but she didn't seem to react. "They said it's going to keep you safe from the same bastard that did this but I..." he didn't finish.
"I want her to," she admitted making Jasper look at her in surprise. "I don't want to keep seeing my parents like that and I know the less I know the safer I'll be." She chuckled though there was no humor in it. "Besides it's not like Gran's giving me a choice. Like always it's her way or no way."
"I can keep you safe," Jasper said determinedly. "We'll leave together and go to the underground and find work and—."
"Jasper we're thirteen," she said cutting him off. "We're too weak to go on the run by ourselves. I don't like it either but this is how it's going to be." She finally looked at him a sad smile forming on her face. "Maybe when it's safe again we'll be together again. Who knows maybe we'll meet at that art school we keep saying we're going to."
He squeezed her hand. "I'll find you firefly and when I do nothing will ever hurt you again. I'll protect you. I promise."
Eva squeezed his hand back. "And I'll protect you too. I promise..."
There was a knock on the door of Eva's room and she turned to see a young Spectra standing there, a solemn expression on her face as she gazed upon the two best friends. "It's time kid," was all she said. Jasper gritted his teeth and nodded solemnly, reluctantly rising from his chair and letting go of Eva's hand. Spectra sat down in Jasper's chair and placed a hand on either side of Eva's head from there everything turned to black around her.
It was awhile before the darkness faded away and the scenes continued from there. She saw all the times they'd moved, all the different first days of school she had, all the times hunters tried to steal her away for her gift, the fatal night she saved Bertrand's life, up until her first day of Art School. She watched as her former self walked into her first class and locked eyes with a boy with a black Mohawk. He gazed at her with wide eyes as if in disbelief of what he was seeing. She gave him a shy smile and a nod before taking her seat as far from him as possible. She couldn't believe she hadn't recognized him, that she had no reaction to seeing Jasper again after all those years and at the very school they always said they'd attend together. A tear streamed down her face at the irony of it all. The scene changed again and she began reliving the events of the past few months anger igniting within her when she saw Bertrand dig his fangs into her neck.
"It's time to end this," she vowed before everything went black around her.