Hollow Repentance

- - - - - Torren's POV - - - - -

I narrowed my eyes as the character chuckled deeply and took a single step towards me, the blade still clenched in a pale fist. A man... That was a start, at least. It clicked. Who did I know that always wore a black cloak and hood when there was a possibility of being caught in the sun rays?

"Chill, Torren; it's Aldin. I came as soon as I'd healed to see how the kiddo was and when I spotted you both on the balcony, I wondered what her reaction would be if a stranger approached. Apparently, she stays inside..."

I entered his mind to reply, but didn't get a chance. Suddenly, Izzy charged, the branch held like a baseball bat, aimed directly for Aldin's head. Even for Aldin, that would be painful and possibly hospitalizing.

"Watch out!" I yelled suddenly, startling Aldin as he twisted around to face Izzy.

Within the split second of hearing my yells, Izzy swung the branch clumsily, pressing her eyelids firmly together as she turned. Foolish mistake, child. Had she been fighting against an enemy of my race, she would have been detained by now.

Defensively, Aldin swiftly raised his arm parallel with his head, setting the impact of her attack to his arm instead of his face. As the branch hit Aldin, I heard a sickening crack and winced slightly as the wood shattered instantly upon contact with his skin, scattering wood chippings in all directions. I glanced beyond Aldin, watching as an awe-struck Izzy stumbled backwards, tripping over her own feet and landing roughly on her back.

"Izzy, are you al--"

I was cut off as she released an ear-splitting screech, staring with wide eyes and scrambling away from Aldin as he edged menacingly towards her. What a bully! Just as a smile started to form on my lips, I spotted the tears forming in her eyes and rushed to her side as they began to fall. Hastily, I crouched down and wrapped my hand over her mouth, my other arm gently snaked around her waist to soothe her.

"It's alright, Izzy. It's just Aldin trying to scare you; trying to scare us both."

Both Izzy and I glared at Aldin as he tugged his dark hood down to reveal a broad grin pasted across his face; of course, mine was just faked. I chuckled as Aldin edged closer and Izzy held firm, glaring still.

"Hey, kiddo; I just thought I'd drop by and see how Torren was coping with a martial arts maniac like you!"

I couldn't repress it anymore; I burst into laughter and only laugher harder as Izzy turned her gaze to the floor, cheeks burning red. Hastily, Izzy climbed to her feet and stood defensively, both eyes transfixed on the Kukri knife dangling in his hand.

"Aldin, why do you have knife with you? It's illegal to carry a one that size around, you know."

I had only just explained that to her up on the balcony; did she really have such a short memory span? Typical humans. Glancing up from her, I spotted Aldin's worried eyes fixed on mine. I nodded silently and turned Izzy by the shoulders to face me.

"I told you before, the forest isn't a safe place; not even for a character like Aldin. Why don't we go into the lounge and talk; it'll be a lot more comfortable than standing out here in the dark."

Aldin nodded and I turned to Izzy to lead her in...But she was gone! Searching around frantically, I heard echoing footsteps and distant panting. I smiled warmly as I spotted the front door creaking open and an eager shadow rushing inside. Shaking our heads gently, Aldin and I sauntered casually along the lit driveway to the front entrance.

"I have a feeling the kiddo's going to be nowhere to be found again... This is going to be troublesome."

Forcing a nervous laugh, I turned the door handle and we stepped inside, our eyes scouring the hallway for any trace of movement. Nothing. Growling deeply, I stepped forward and paused as I felt a rough hand rest on my shoulder.

"Trust me, Aldin; I know how to handle Izzy now. She's much more predictable now."

I smirked as he rolled his eyes and strolled into the lounge, where my eyes darted around for any sign of life. Found her! As quietly as possible, I crept around the sofa with Aldin close behind me and we both dived onto seats. Startled, Izzy spun around, an apple clenched between her teeth. I smiled sarcastically and raised my eyebrows as she shuffled up onto the sofa next to me from the floor.

Before she could react, I snatched the apple from her mouth and held my arm out away from her so she couldn't reach. As, Izzy stretched over me for the apple, I could smell a luscious scent radiating from her hair. Lost for a few moments, I relished the feel of her skin as she brushed against me, barely realising how close she was. It was kind of nice; it wasn't often I came into contact with a human girl who would live longer.

"So, who said you could have this, then?"

Quickly giving in, Izzy pouted and sat with her legs pushed to one side on the sofa, reminding me slightly of the mermaids I had met up in Fairy Cove. I sighed contently and placed the apple back between her pearly teeth and pulled away impulsively as her frigid skin touched the back of my hand. Even to me, she was cold, and that was saying something.

From my untimely withdrawl, I sensed disappointment and shock echoing through her mind, but I'd fix that later. As Aldin watched silently and bemused, I crossed to the linen cabinet at the back of the lounge and drew out a crimson fleece throw, returning to the sofa and throwing it lightly at the back of Izzy's head. Gasping, she glowered at me and shifted slightly, immersing herself up to her neck in the fleece. Chuckling, I returned to my seat alongside her and turned to Aldin as he sat up more purposefully.

"So, kiddo; the main reason I came here at this time is because I wanted to make sure you were okay. Why didn't you run away when I told you to? You could have been injured worse than you already were."

I studied Izzy's expression carefully as she glanced over at Aldin, slightly shocked and seemingly embarrassed. Although, she might have just been warming up.

"Well, I just couldn't; I was scared and I didn't want to leave you on your own. That thing would've killed you! Anyway, I'm fine, there's no lasting injury; how are you holding up?"

Smiling warmly, I ruffled Izzy's hair and dodged her hand as she swiped towards me, glaring playfully. Chuckling, I turned back to Aldin who seemed awkward sat with Izzy and I; it was certainly unusual of him to look so out of place. We promptly engaged in important conversation, speaking in hushed tones and occasionally switching to telepathic communication for the details Izzy really didn't need to know.

"Well, before the kiddo appeared, I ran into that creature and managed to lure her into the alleyway so nobody else would be hurt. She knew about the kid; I'm thinking that Izzy was her true target; I was doubtlessly the bait."

"Damn it; so they've already started pooling their alliances with different species, then?"

Eventually, we broke off, mainly as Aldin needed to hurry home before the rays hit the mansion.

"Well, I think I need to put Izzy to bed now; she was supposed to be there before you came but we got distracted. If she's good tonight, I'm letting her out into the gardens on her own; mainly to test how much I can trust her."

I read Aldin's expression like a book and explored his mind to see if my observations were truly correct. Unknown to me, I felt suddenly irritated and betrayed.

"Aldin, may I remind you that it took me a while to accept your sister, which could have been sorted much quicker if I just learned to trust females. Whether human or not doesn't make a difference; Izzy taught me that."

Aldin laughed at me and shook my head; I spared no time reminding him of what the human sat beside me had just done for him, only a matter of hours ago. He fell silent for a moment and eventually stood up, glancing over at Izzy, who was no longer visible under the crimson fleece.

"Be careful tomorrow, kiddo. Do you hear me?"

No reply. Aldin furrowed his eyebrows, as did I, and I raised my voice slightly, growling softly at her;
"Answer him, Izzy. Don't be ignorant."

When she didn't even acknowledge me, I twisted my body around on the sofa to face her completely and gently took hold of her shoulder, shaking her lightly. Almost as though she wasn't in control of her body, Izzy slowly slid and slumped against me, her head dropping back against my chest to reveal her angelic face as she slept. I smiled warmly and chuckled, tracing my fingers along her tepid cheek and coral lips.

Aldin chortled deeply, turned back to the door and disappeared, accelerating to a mere 50 miles per hour, which I suppose was a safe speed to leave a crowded area at. Pushing Izzy lightly into a sitting position, I stood up and stretched my legs, stooping towards her as she started to stir. As tenderly as possible without startling her, I leaned closer to her ear and whispered;
"There's no need to wake up; we're going to bed now. Just relax and I'll take you up."

Silently, I unravelled the fleece and lifted both of her hands in mine, draping her debilitated arms around my neck and dropping onto my knees to reach a similar level to her. Izzy's eyes remained softly closed and I lifted her relaxed body against mine, smoothly wrapping her legs around my waist and taking her weight - which was not much - on my hips. Her head lolled naturally against my shoulder. Such a carefree child; if only I could feel secure about such carelessness. Tomorrow would certainly be...Interesting.

In an effort not to rouse the sleeping angel in my arms, I edged carefully through the rooms and climbed each individual stair with such precision and concentration, I started to suppose how annoying it must have been to be a human. My favourite pasttime included most of my powers coming to some use, especially enhanced speed; my life just wouldn't be the same without it.

Eventually, we arrived at Izzy's door and I twisted the key in the mechanism, struggling to balance Izzy carefully as I fumbled through my pocket for the key. I adjusted her in my arms and wandered over to the bed, scanning the floor for any trace of cleverly placed booby traps. I had to admit, Izzy beat me, that time. Delicately, I slid Izzy away from me and lowered her onto the mattress, savouring the fading warmth her body provided. A half-smile grew on my lips as she open her eyes marginally and rubbed furiously at them with the backs of her hands. Adorable.

I watched contently as Izzy crawled wearily over the mattress and dived underneath the duvet and out of sight. How childish. Quietly, I perched on the edge of the bed next to her and turned the cover down until it rested just under her chin. I have to admit that I was half expecting her to be asleep already, her carefree emotionless expression as the first thing I would see.

As I glanced up to meet her eyes, I was shocked to see a pair of beautiful pale blue eyes staring up at me, with only an almost evil smirk to draw my attention from them. Luckily, Izzy's appearance didn't match her attitude, or I would have been horrified. Sure, her long ebony hair made her seem as pale as my kind were at times, but nothing she could do with her appearance could actually intimidate me...I think.

"What?" I asked cautiously as Izzy persisted to stare at me, the same unwavering smirk sculpted on her lips.

"You smell like trees and mud. Did you have fun searching for me earlier?"

Narrowing my eyes, I planted my hand firmly at the other side of her body and smiled, hiding all trace of curiousity from showing. I dropped myself down towards her until my back started to twinge and stopped to study her nervous expression carefully.

"Actually, that's something I was a little curious about. Why did you run away, and where did you hide? I searched everywhere!"

No reply. I yearned for answers, not just because I was curious; it was mainly so I could make sure she couldn't do it again, but I wasn't about to let her know that. I stared emotionlessly into her eyes while holding her gaze, almost daring her to look away.

After several moments, there was still no response. Slightly irritated, I growled and tightened my grip on the duvet at either side of her. To be honest, I wasn't really that annoyed, I mean, I had secrets that she wouldn't even begin to dream of and she'd never find out if I had anything to do with it.

Fidgeting, Izzy's voice started to crack as she whispered,
"I'll only tell you if you promise not to get angry with anybody; no matter what I say."

I glanced away and tried to find away around the commitment; if it was something unforgivable, how could I possibly not be angry with her. Wait; did she just say anybody? That must mean...Dimi!

There was no way to avoid it, so I eventually just nodded slightly and muttered, "I promise", my curiousity overtaking my irritation.

Refusing to look me in the eye, Izzy sat up and pulled her knees up to her chin, staring intently at the floor and barely blinking.

"Well, when I ran out of the other door, I tried to tell Dimi not to tell you without having to say anything and he actually understood me. He pointed to a bush and I dived through it when the car started to drive away. I hid in the bush and watched you suddenly disappear as you went to look for me. Dimi and I talked for a while and decided to fake catching me so you wouldn't find out. It was quite entertaining, actually. Yet, when you showed up, it wasn't faking anymore; he really wouldn't let me go."

They tricked me; even more shocking, Dimi tricked me. Well, I suppose it was a good thing that Izzy was mingling with someone of her own species, even if it was Dimi. Narrowing my eyes once again, I turned my back to her and pouted, refusing to even acknowledge her. I wasn't angry or anything, it was quite amusing that I'd been tricked by two humans; it was more the curiousity of how she would react.

As she spoke, I could feel her gentle touch as she ran her fingers along the back of my arm. She felt so warm, it was unbelievable.

"It was only fair, I mean, you kidnapped me and almost pulled my shoulder out of place, not to mention this goddamn tattoo on my shoulder and neck!"

I couldn't help but smile as her volume increased, almost shouting at me for the last few words, not that I blamed her. Izzy knew nothing of our cultures and traditions, yet she had forgiven me without so much as an explanation. Sure, she made everything just a little bit more difficult than it needed to be, but then again, what's life without a troublesome human child to liven it up?

Slowly, I twisted myself around to face her, sitting on one of my legs for more support. I felt, different, when I looked at her next, almost as if she didn't mean the same to me as she did last time. I couldn't put my finger on it, but I suspected that it was something good; it just felt that way.

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