Romance Fan Fiction / Original Stories Fan Fiction / Fables/Fairytales Fan Fiction ❯ The Blood That Ties ❯ Loathing ( Chapter 11 )

Author's note: Ah! An update! Hurrah! Now on with the story!

The Blood That Ties

A deathly silence fell over the hallway, dimly lit by the flickering torches. No one dared to make a move, the motley crew's collective gaze locked onto the silent Emeris. Gabrielle could feel all of her limbs freezing in place, her breath nearly halting in her throat. For a moment, she was sure that Emeris must have been doing something to her, he was a wizard first and foremost...Who was to say he couldn't hurt her right then and there. But, forcing the breath out of her chest, Gabrielle realized that it was her own fear pinning her to her spot, not some sort of spell.

“Well. I suppose I no longer have to look for you.”

Even before Emeris spoke, he was intimidating. His posture was so stiff, as if he was made of stone, and the look of his face was a clear picture of anger of the highest standard. But, his voice just added to it all, his tone cold and sharp, like a double edged sword.

“Emeris...I was...I mean...” She was a horrible liar when it counted. How was she going to cover her ass this time? They had been caught red handed sneaking back into the Order. To make things worse, Gabrielle was in the company of people that Emeris had expressed hatred for on more than one occasion.

“Why does she have to answer to you, Emeris?” As if sensing her struggle with finding the correct words to string together to cover this mess up, Jean quickly jumped to her rescue, breaking the spell that kept everyone rooted to their spots.

“Sorry Jean, I understand you don't take in information very well, and I'll probably have to say this slowly...But. I. Am. Her. Mentor.” Emeris chopped the sentence into small, bit sized pieces, as if he were talking to a small child, and not a fellow diviner. Gabrielle's only reaction was to drop her spinning head into her hands, a strained sigh escaping her lips.

A hand quickly placed itself on her back, soon followed by another. Gabrielle didn't even need to look to know that the Twins were straining to show a form of sympathy towards the girl.

Uninterested in Jean's explosion to Emeris's remark, Gabrielle turned back to the twins, Andrea just behind them. The raven haired female glared at Gabrielle, as if this was all her fault. In essence, it was. If Emeris was not her mentor, this situation wouldn't have been so horrendous, but life never worked out like that for Gabrielle. Nothing came easy or without a heavy price to pay later.

“I'm so sorry...But you guys should get out of here...I'll try and convince Emeris not to run to the Abbot...” Or at the very least take the fall for them. They were only trying to help her, and look at how she repaid them.

“You sure, Gab? He looks pretty livid.” Darien gestured over Gabrielle's shoulder, turning his attention to the two diviners. They were both poised to strike, like two cobras circling one another in some pit.

“We tried to get you away from that...” Damon sighed, tensing slightly at the entire scene. Not that Gabrielle could blame them; they were all in deep shit if Emeris decided to turn tail and for see the Abbot. Gabrielle tried to express her apologies to Andrea; this was the second time she was caught sneaking outside of the Order. But when Gabrielle leaned passed the Twins, she could that the raven haired girl was no longer in sight.

“Really, just go you two. I'm sure if I play into Emeris's ego, this scene can at the very least be brushed under the rug.” Gabrielle shook her attention off of Andrea's disappearance, smiling softly at the worried imps. Gentling pushing their shoulders, Gabrielle spun both the boys around and nudged them down the hall, urging them to go, which they did, if not reluctantly.

Three down, one more to go.

This one would be a little trickier than getting the others to leave; at least they weren't currently involved in the spat.

“Emeris, you asshole! You really think just because you're the Abbot's pet, that it grants you immunity?! We don't do half the stunts you pull! What gives you the god forsaken right to come swooping in here and tells us that we're bringing shame upon the Order!” Spat Jean, quickly exchanging his princely behaviour for an angry, jealous diviner.

“Shut your fucking mouth, Jean. Before I shut it for you.”

“Ha! I would love to see you try and hit me. We all know without your precious little spells and hexes, you're weaker than a mouse!”

“Did I say I was going to do it with my hands?!”

Gabrielle stood helplessly off to the side, watching the two as they verbally spit acid at one another. At least Gabrielle couldn't blame herself for this, it was clear enough that their rivalry trumped Gabrielle's involvement in this stunt. Still, Jean was only digging them a deeper grave, Emeris hardly seemed intimidated by Jean's words. In fact, Emeris's semi-permanent scowl was replaced by a vicious smirk; he knew he had the upper hand here, no matter how you sliced it.

 

She had to stop this, because it got any worse, and a fight actually erupted between them. The spinning in her head was steadily getting worse, with every utterance spoken...Well, more like hissed in their case. It really was like a fight between two snakes, just waiting for an opening to lunge and inject their venom.

“Stop it you guys!” Gabrielle cried, daring to take a step closer to them. Her voice was hardly a whisper, so one could guess how little the reaction was to that.

“You're just a whiney brat, Jean!”

“Better than a murderer, Emeris!”

“Guys, please!”

“Take that back you useless excuse for a diviner!”

“Make me, Abbot's bitch!”

“I swear, one more word Jean...”

“What, What Emeris? Hit me with your best shot!”

“STOP IT!”

Twin thuds, two bodies being forcibly separated, only to connect with the opposite walls. A dark silence overtook the hall away, and Gabrielle thanked her luck stars that the hallway was vacant. Her hands shot down back to her sides, the tension in her mind dissipating.

She had done it again.

She really needed to get a hold of these powers.

“...Gabrielle...Did you do that?” Jean asked incredulously, his eyes wide with both pain and shock. The frightened red head could only nod her head, her mind reeling with all the different ways they could both turn on her. She just wanted them to stop making a bad situation worse...Not for her to do just that.

“Yeah. She does that sometimes.” Emeris growled, wincing as he pulled himself away from the wall, glaring daggers at her.

“At least it shut you two up. You sounded like bickering children...” Gabrielle finally found her voice, coughing awkwardly. The redhead turned her attention to the fallen blonde, a gentle, if not apologetic smile on her lips. “Jean, please don't stoop to his level...Just get yourself back to your room. I'll deal with this. Like Emeris said...He's my mentor.”

Jean only nodded enthusiastically, hopping to his feet and moving past her, though he paused for a moment at her side.

“If he hurts you. You know where I'll be.” He whispered in her ear, a gentle, shaky touch on her shoulder. Gabrielle nodded, though she didn't spare him a glance, her eyes locked onto Emeris. She could tell that his anger was only doubling now that Jean was leaving on the moral high ground, she would probably have hell to pay once Jean took his leave, which was a few seconds later.

And then there were two.

~*~

Somehow, a fight had not erupted between the two. In fact there was no exchange of words between the two as they silently agreed that they would return to Emeris's quarters. They simply nodded to one another, and left for the room. In retrospect, it was a very foolish choice for Gabrielle to make, with the rumours of Emeris being a murderer still hanging in the background.

Emeris's expression had gone back to the scowl he had been known so well for, leaving Gabrielle to glare like an angry child who had just got caught with their hand in the cookie jar. Even though there was a dark tension between them, it seemed as though it would have no effect on her lesson. Though instead of a `Q and A' approach, Emeris just had them reading in silence.

“I'm surprised you're not running to the Abbot.” Gabrielle was the first to speak, daring to jab at the already pissed off diviner.

“I would advise you to keep your mouth shut. You should be thankful I'm not running to him. You're such an idiot sometimes.” Emeris growled, flipping a page angrily.

“Excuse me? I'm not the one bullshitting to my face, saying that you actually tolerated me. Then backstabbing me...At least Jean treats me like a friend.” Slamming the heavy cover of the book shut, Gabrielle glared at Emeris openly, moving the textbook off her lap.

And with that, the gauntlet was thrown.

“You know what, I take it back!” Well, that was a shock, Emeris finally regretting something he had said. Maybe it was proof of him changing, in spite of what he said? “You're an idiot a lot of the time!” Nope. Still the same old Emeris.

The book in his lap quickly met Gabrielle's book on the ground, though its journey there was less forgiving than that of Gabrielle's textbook. Throwing himself out of his chair, Emeris gripped his own dark brown hair as he swiftly moved across the room. Whether it was Gabrielle's own benefit, or to protect himself from another attack from Gabrielle, he made haste to put some distance between them.

“Why don't you use that brain for once and realize why I'm not running to the Abbot! Hell, if I was going to do that why did I bother in bringing you back here?! Of course I don't want you to get in shit with the damned Abbot, you're my protégé! I want you to open your eyes and realize what you're getting yourself into, before you get hurt! And it'll be a cold day in hell before I lose someone else to that pompous idiot that lucked out when he was born!” He was shouting at her once again, though he kept his position on the other side of the room. His posture was stiff, but shaky, as if he was barely controlling his anger, and the room had taken an eerie drop in temperature.

However, Gabrielle was having similar troubles, her fists clenching as Emeris spoke, her head spinning. Losing her? Like she was some sort of prize to be tossed between the two diviners!

“Losing me? Emeris...Let me make this clear...” Leaping to her feet, Gabrielle tossed away the fact Emeris was probably keeping distance between them for a good reason, and chose to stalk him into a corner like he was prey.

 

“One; We are friends, You are not my master, my keeper, or whatever position you can think of that would grant you any power over what I do and whom I associate myself with." They were nearly toe-to-toe, their eyes locking in a glaring match that made the one between Emeris and Jean pale by comparison. Gabrielle was a woman scorned, and by hell, she wasn't going to walk away without tearing Emeris a new one.

"Second; I honestly don't give a flying shit about this rivalry you and Jean have going on. It's none of my business, but I do not appreciate being spoken to as if I'm sort of possession that you two are fighting over. Hell, I even understand that you two are men, in the same field, and therefore your egos will not allow you to be civil with one another. But it does not mean I will not show him the same respect I would show anyone else; because fate has a way of making anyone you get off on the wrong foot with vital to keep in your social graces. Like us. And maybe I just want to make a friend for when you're busy being a prick yourself." At this point, Emeris seemed firmly attached to the wall she had cornered him against. Considering the swirling in her head had died down once again, she could only assume she was the cause of this. But, she lacked the ability to care at that moment.

"And lastly...I am not an idiot; I am only an idiot for trying over and over again to be civil with the person I owe my life to instead of someone who...I don't know...Would respect me! Instead of yelling at me for every little thing and trying to fucking tell me what to do! Do I make myself clear?!" She was surprised with herself, she managed to say that all in one go, and wasn't shouting like a spoiled child. If she wasn't so livid, she might have patted herself on the back for such an effort. However, Gabrielle opted for pulling herself away from Emeris, who seemed to quickly pull himself away from the wall...Maybe it wasn't entirely her own powers that kept him there.

 

"Now, would you excuse me for not having the slightest clue how to deal with a woman. With someone who doesn't hate me with a fucking passion." Gabrielle scoffed at this, he was pushing her closer and closer to fucking him with such a passion. He paused, reeling himself back in, probably trying to control his anger as she was.

"And don't you dare think you're blameless in this. You try to be civil with me and then immediately try to push me away. Every god-damn time. We've almost hashed things out during these stupid lessons, but then you go 'Oh, now it's time to try and break things off so I don't get hurt. Because I keep blaming the death of my family on myself'. Just. Fucking. Brilliant of you." A retort died on Gabrielle's lips. She had not breathed a single word of her family since she entered this place, save for explaining her situation to the Abbot, who already seemed to know. How did everyone keep finding things out about herself?!

"So excuse me if I get a little miffed about it."

“Emeris...” She wasn't sure what was going to come out of her mouth next... She was already trembling at this point. Frankly, he had hit the nail on the head, it seemed each day they would start out being civil, until something set her off. “Don't fucking talk about things you can't even fathom...” The words hardly had the punch she was looking for, since it came out more like a plea than a snap.

 

"You seemed to have been pretty god damn lucky in your life. You have a roof over your head, a position that pretty much allows you to piss off anyone you want without negative repercussions, you have the luxury of having pissed everyone off that no one in their right mind would probably think of trying to manipulate you or take advantage of you. So Jean is jealous, boo-hoo, it's not like he can do anything to you. Stop whining like a little prick and see you actually have it good here." She didn't mean to get so mad but maybe because it was being built up in other areas. Because before Gabrielle could stop herself, her anger seemed to surge through her as she physically pushed him...Though the effort was similar to that of a weak child, only hitting because they ran out of words to express themselves.

 

“I would suggest you take your own advice. Don't talk of things you cannot even begin to fathom. Do you really think I'm lucky?!” Emeris hissed lowly, taking the weak push in stride, though before he could reel back for his next verbal assault, a sob escaped from Gabrielle. “This is useless! Every time your family is muttered, you burst into tears! Do you really think you're doing them any justice, sitting around here, fighting with me, bawling at every twist and turn?! You know, if it's really that difficult being around me, just fucking leave. I'll have the Abbot reassign you.”

 

And so, the foolish boy gave Gabrielle exactly what she needed; an excuse to run away. She had done it so much in her life you would assume it was second nature for her, and in reality it was. But, Gabrielle had tried to desperately not to run away, to try and stand her ground for once in her life...Hoping it would do her some good. However, Emeris practically opened the door for her, and Gabrielle didn't hesitate in taking it.

 

~*~

 

“So, just like that...He told you to leave?”

 

“Definitely sounds like him, though we thought he would have ditched you long before.” Damon said, casting his twin a gaze before gesturing that he should be receiving something. Darien rolled his eyes at his brother's antics, but plucked a roll of bills from his jeans pocket, tossing it to his brother without ever so much as an utterance.

 

A giggle escaped the young redhead, perched on her bed as the twins took turns moving various pieces of furniture around the large room that served as Gabrielle's home. It had been a few days since the fight between Emeris and herself.

 

Though Gabrielle had thought Emeris had been bluffing about going to the Abbot for re-assignment, in the passing days no one came to her door, no one yelled at her in the early evenings to get her ass up, no lessons, no Emeris, no nothing. It seemed the brunette was truly serious about asking the Abbot to reassign them.

 

“You don't look too elated about the turn of events though. What's up?” Damon asked Gabrielle, straightening out a couch against the opposite wall from her bed, an extra from the armor room.

 

“I'm not really sure. I mean, he was really just being an asshole...”

 

“Do you really think I'm lucky?!”

 

“I guess it was just something he said that got to me...” Gabrielle sighed, shaking her mind of the young diviner. Soon another giggle escaped her lips as Darien was quick to move the couch back to the wall adjacent to the bed, the original position he had it in.

 

The twins had been determined on visiting the girl tonight, having seen no sign of her for the past three days. Gabrielle had made an excuse that without her lessons, she was set on making this place actually look like a home to her, not some generic dorm room. They swallowed the lie easily, Gabrielle hardly looked like the kind of girl who would spend days crying and running over a past she could not change.

 

“Well, no matter, you'll have a new mentor soon...” Damon smirked, moving the small coffee table a few feet away from the couch, seemingly just to spite his brother.

 

“...And then we'll have to keep stealing you from whoever that person is.” Darien didn't miss a beat, finishing his brother's sentence and moving the coffee table back to its original position. “Why would you move it there! A coffee table is supposed to be within easy reach of the patrons seated on the couch. It's why it's called a coffee table!”

 

“And I think you're full of it. If it was meant to go there why wouldn't they call it a couch table?” Damon innocently asked, shooting Gabrielle a sideways smirk.

 

“What?! What kind of name would that be? People would be confused whether or not it was a couch to be put next to a table, or a table meant to be put towards a couch!”

 

“Well, I don't know about you, my dear twin. But this looks like a table. A regular table. Why can't we just put chairs around it?”

 

At this point, Gabrielle clamped her hands around her mouth, not wanting to confuse Darien any further by hearing her laughter. Never the less, Darien seemed to become quite confused at his brother's outrageous argument.

 

“W-What?! Do you not notice how low this table is?! You cannot put a chair next to this table! You'll bump your knees! Watch!” At this point, Gabrielle was shaking with laughter as Darien dramatically sat on the couch, gesturing wildly to his position in relation with the table. “See! This is the perfect height for if you were sitting on a couch, and say you needed something to put your...I don't know...Coffee on?!”

 

“But we don't drink coffee... Is there a different table for that then?”

 

Damon cocked his head to the side, feigning confusion as he gazed down at the table. This twin was utterly speechless, maybe even flabbergasted, jaw dropped, eyes wide in disbelief over the stupidity of his brother.

 

“Hey, Damon. I've never seen an Imp try to catch flies before!” Gabrielle managed to spurt out before flopping onto her back on the bed, suppressed laughter shaking her entire body. Damon soon joined in, leaving Darien to be very, very confused before finally cluing in that he had been had.

 

“Hey! That's not very nice! Damon I thought we were a team!” Darien whimpered, pouting as if he were a small child, not a man of nineteen like his brother. Damon could only smirk and shrug in response.

 

“You're cute when you're frustrated. Don't worry.” Gabrielle grinned brightly at the twins, rolling over back onto her stomach as she gazed at the two. Having appealed to his ego, Darien quickly changed his sullen tone into that of an upbeat one, shooting his brother a mischievous glance.

 

Before their antics could continue, a loud knock emitted itself throughout the room, causing Gabrielle to leap up from her bed. Was it Emeris? Was she right in thinking that he was bluffing? Gabrielle gave the twins a confused look, unsure what anyone would say about the young vampire having two men in her room.

 

“It's okay Gab, go answer it. You don't have to worry about us.” Damon winked at Gabrielle, then turned back to his brother. Gabrielle wondered for a moment what they would ever do if Damon did not have the ability to bend the shadows to his will, how they would ever manage to sneak out if they were simple people like her.

 

Not that one could call a vampire, with some uncontrollable telekinetic powers, simple.

 

In fact it sounded like something straight out of some grotesque novel.

 

“Coming! Just a moment!” Gabrielle called out to whoever was behind the door, waiting until the twins disappeared into her bathroom before waltzing over to the door. It couldn't have been Emeris, whoever it was had too much patience to be him.

 

Cracking the door open slightly, Gabrielle was shocked when her first instinct had been correct. It was Emeris.

 

“E-Emeris? What are you doing here?” Blinking, Gabrielle rubbed at her eyes for a moment before double checking that she wasn't seeing things. It was Emeris, that was for sure...But there was something off about him... The boy looked the same as ever, dark fitted shirt, cargo pants, and messy brunette hair. Yet...He seemed more...Closed off?

 

“I don't have time to waste with you. I'm taking you to your new instructor.”