Fulfilling Fate

“Can you go talk to your mother for a while after dinner?” I asked Zion as we dressed.

He looked at me. “Why?”

“I want to talk to Heather,” I said honestly.

He nodded. “Very well. Come here, love.”

I sighed as he bent his neck. I knew I was pale and fed from him. I was afraid. Could I really be pregnant? Or was this some kind of fluke? And did Lebanon know about it? It was hard to imagine the two brothers talking about it and no one else.

After dinner, Zion respected my request and I waited for Heather. She knocked timidly and I let her in. We sat in front of the fire and I waited.

“I don’t know how to feel,” she whispered.

“Why not?” I asked and she looked at her hands.

“It’s not mine, Aviel,” she said.

“Yes it is. It may not have your DNA, but it is yours.”

“It’s Gerard’s,” she said as if she hadn’t heard me. “It always will be. It will never look like me. It will wonder why it doesn’t have a father and we’ll have to tell it. What if it hates me? What if it decides that I’m not worth it? And Kassandra….” She covered her face and I knew she was crying. “She yearns for Gerard.”

I sighed and hugged her. I let her cry into my shoulder.

“I know it’s because she wants to feed from him, but-.”

She just started to sob some more and I rubbed her arm. I waited until she calmed some again.

“Your love for Kassandra will never change,” I whispered. “And her love for you will never change, too. Yes, the DNA belongs to Gerard but you will always be its parent. The only thing that can make that different is you.”

“What do you mean?” she sniffled.

“If you act strangely around Kassandra, it will be worse,” I explained. “Kassandra probably feels strange about this situation, too. Make sure the two of you talk about everything.”

“We’ve talked a little,” she said. “But most of it is about how she wants to feed from Gerard, how she wishes he was here.”

I frowned. “Have you told her how it makes you feel?”

“No.”

I shook my head. “You have to tell her. How will she know if you don’t?”

“I know she wants him, though, because it’s his child.”

I looked at the window. “Look, I can’t make you do anything you don’t want to, Heather. I can tell you, though, that if you keep quiet about all of this, it will drive you mad. You’re in this together. Talk to her.”

“I’ll think about it,” she muttered and I shook my head again when she wasn’t looking. “Thank you for talking with me.”

“Of course,” I whispered. “If you need me, let me know.”

She got up and left. Zion walked in a few minutes later and closed the door gently. I smiled a little at him.

“It was an absolute failure,” I said and he nodded.

“So was my mother’s conversation with Kassandra.”

“What do we do, Zion?” I whispered as we got into our makeshift bed.

He held me close. “They have to figure it out on their own, sweet,” he said. “We can’t do it for them.”

“That’s not what I was talking about,” I said.

He sighed as I managed to put my hand on my stomach.

“There’s… a way to be sure but it would require my mother finding out.”

I looked at him. “What is it?”

“She can look into people’s minds,” he explained and I nodded, remember how she brought forth the memory of Izzy. “She’ll be able to tell us.” He kept me from looking away. “Avi, how will you be if you are?”

I thought about it. “Scared,” I whispered. “I never thought I’d have a child so I didn’t really do any of the planning women usually do.” I bit my lip. “What about you?”

“I’ll be excited, to be honest,” he said. “I’ve always liked the idea of children.”

“So did I,” I sighed. “Even though I knew, when my mother said we were getting married, I imagined us having lots of children. Now, though….” I stared into his eyes. “How will you feel if I’m not pregnant?”

“I don’t know,” he said after a while. “What are you doing?”

“I can’t stand this,” I breathed and practically ran to my room, ignoring him calling for me. I knocked eagerly and Lebanon stared in shock. “I need to talk to Eavana.”

“What’s wrong?” Eavana asked, sitting up in the bed.

I rushed to her bedside. “How do we do this?” I asked. “Do you put your hand on my head again or my stomach?”

She just looked more confused. “What are you talking about?”

“We think she’s pregnant,” Zion said, closing the door.

They stared at us then Lebanon laughed a little. “Well, Eavana?”

She put one hand on my stomach and the other on my forehead. This time, I didn’t see anything. Instead, I felt a strange sweep of warmth go from my head to my feet. I tried not to move and held my breath when she lowered her hands. She kept her eyes shut.

“Mother?” Zion whispered, standing beside me.

“I’m so sorry,” she sobbed and I stared. “You lost the baby, Aviel. It’s because-.”

I didn’t hear the rest.

+

“She’ll be fine. Just give her some more blood.”

“This is all my fault.”

“It’s not your fault, Zion. Just take a few deep breaths.”

My eyes blinked open. I was on the couches in my study with Lebanon, Eavana, and Zion standing around me. Zion tipped a goblet in my mouth, not realizing I was awake yet. He was crying. As he wiped the blood off the corner of my lips, he saw my open eyes. He immediately hid his tears.

“How are you feeling?” he asked but I sat up and put my arms around his neck.

He froze then held me back, crying a little.

“I’m sorry I killed it,” I whispered and he groaned, holding me tighter.

“Oh, Avi,” he said. “No, baby. It wasn’t your fault.”

“Yes it was,” I sobbed and felt a soft hand rub my back.

“We don’t know how the curse happened,” Eavana said. “All I can think of is that it occurred when you were turned into a witch.”

“So it’s Suzenne’s fault,” Zion said bitterly, pulling out of the hug to wipe my tears away.

“No, Zion, it wasn’t,” Lebanon said firmly.

“She’s the one that made her drink that potion!” Zion shouted. He looked rather frightening as he stood up straight. “If she hadn’t put that liquid in Aviel’s body, this wouldn’t have happened!”

“Zion, I wouldn’t have been able to get pregnant,” I reminded him and he turned his glare to me.

“That’s exactly the point! You wouldn’t have to go through this pain! I don’t care if we don’t have children, Aviel! You don’t deserve this! Where is that woman?”

“I don’t know,” Lebanon said but I knew he was lying.

Zion hissed at him. “Yes you do. Where is she?”

Lebanon shook his head and stepped in front of the door.

“No, Zion,” he said and Zion balled his hands into fists.

“Look at her, Father!” he shouted, pointing at me. “I know you can feel it, too! This isn’t fair! You have to do something about it!”

“This won’t solve anything, Zion,” Eavana whispered, now rubbing his back. I saw his shoulders start to relax. “I know you’re upset but trying to exact revenge when there’s no point will harm you. And think about Aviel,” she added.

Zion stared at me. I was still crying and he walked over. He took my hands and pressed his lips to them.

“It’s going to be okay,” I said. “We’ll talk to Suzenne tomorrow. Just calm down, please.”

“But-.”

I touched his cheek and he looked at me. His eyes were still burning with rage and I gulped, not sure if I should tell him this.

“You’re scaring me, Zion,” I whispered and his eyes widened. “I don’t like seeing you like this. Please, calm down.”

He sighed and shut his eyes. He took a few deep breaths then fell onto the couch beside me. I heard Lebanon and Eavana leave and he got comfortable beside me. He wrapped his arms around me and I cried into his chest. He rubbed my back until I calmed down some.

“Everything will be okay,” we said in unison.

But, as Zion drifted to sleep, I knew it wouldn’t be for him. Not for a long time.