Blood of the Skies and Shadows - Chapter Nineteen

Hey everyone, as promised straight after chapter eighteen is the more intriguing chapter nineteen! Wew! Anyway so there are more coming chapters so don't panic that you'll have to wait for several more weeks until another interesting chapter! Also I have much more time on my hands for the next two weeks because I am on school break, yay. And I've gotten some really positive responses about Ian's part in Blood of the Skies and Shadows so cross your fingers he'll appear much more in the following chapters okay! Alrighty, enjoy, comment and tell me what you think! Your thoughts and ideas are always appreciated and helpful to me in writing what interests people ^u^. Oh and thanks to all the readers/fans of Blood of the Skies and Shadows for being so very patient with me he..he! Love you guys the most!

Caelia!
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Lexi.
I paced slowly and steadily but I could practically feel the irritation radiating off my skin. Lilliana had led me to some sort of balcony, it was more like another entire floor but it was a balcony no less. The view over the eternal lands was breathtaking and would've enchanted my eyes possibly for hours on end, except that at the moment I could hardly care about the scenery. I brushed my fingers along the plants and flowers that grew around the balcony, hoping it would calm myself. No luck. I sighed heavily and sank down on to the marble edge of a garden bed closest to the railing of the balcony. My eyes stung with tears at the empty feeling inside me, I blinked furiously in attempt to force them back, but no luck. I knew crying wasn't going to help me at all but for now that was all I was capable of doing. I bit my lip and turned away from the entrance of the balcony so no one would see the escaping tears streaming down my face. My fists clenched in my laps. Frustrating. That was the word that kept replaying over and over in my head. I wanted to save everyone, but for the moment there was nothing I could do but wait or else I'd get myself killed. Before any other thoughts could fly around in attempt to burst my head open, more cryptic images seeped into my mind.

Again I was pulled into someone else's body but still I was connected to them, somewhere deep inside.

I was dressed in a beige and cream-colored nineteenth century dress, trust me you know dresses from another century when you live in the shadow world which is filled with vampires from those other centuries, it was low-cut but not too low-cut that I was uncomfortable with how much cleavage was shown, it had what seemed like layers of material elegantly set on top of each other reaching down to sit on the floor. There was subtle white lace sprinkled over most parts of the dress, mostly on the edges. Surprisingly with all this the dress still managed to be light in weight. I felt fear and sadness swelling inside me as my hands picked up the dress and my feet inched closer towards the heavy wooden door which was bolted shut with an iron lock. But it wasn't my own fear, it was hers. But I still felt like it was from my own soul. I wanted to slap myself, this made zero sense. I shook that thought from my mind, which was apparently hidden because this was somehow a memory, just one that I didn't remember.

From what I could see from my eyes, I was in some kind of old basement. A really olden styled one, from the dress I was wearing I guess something from the nineteenth century. I held my breath as I took each step, hoping the wooden floor would not creak, hoping I was not going to utter a sound. Hold on, utter? These were my thoughts but they also weren't. My frustration grew eerily but since I couldn't do anything I just paid attention.

I placed my palms against the wooden door and pressed my ear softly against the door, but hard enough that I could hear what was going on the other side. My strange heart skipped a beat when I heard his voice. I recognized the voice this time and I was pretty sure I always would from now. It was the strange, mysterious and beautiful man with the wings. Cassiel.

"She is not here. How many times do you wish for me to repeat it, Hamaliel?" He spoke calmly, but his anger was apparent. It crackled dangerously in the air, but whoever answered was either stupid and arrogant or equally powerful enough not to be scared.

"We know you're hiding her! Stop trying to prevent her death! It is futile!" A familiar woman's voice with a strange southern drawl cried angrily, but sounding almost desperate. My fists clenched as the pit of vexation in my stomach grew. A flood of emotions stirred in me. Helplessness and concern for him. Cassiel. Someone cleared their throat as if to capture someone's attention but me, the actual me and not the part of me that was mixed with the girl whose body I was wearing heard that there was a deeper meaning to it. Almost as if stopping the feud, but in a much more sly way.

"Leave Hamaliel. Cassiel and I are merely observing and watching over the human and shadow worlds. We shall return once we are finished here." His words were sincere and contained an allure that made you want to listen and please. With a haughty huff and the flap of wings, all went quiet. There was an exhausted sigh.

"You can come out Lucie!" The unknown man's voice called out calmly. I sighed exasperatedly, unlocked the bolted lock and stepped out of the basement. I picked up my dress went up the steps and as if automatically, my feet took me over to where the voices had come from. Still being cautious I peeked around the corner, but wasn't welcomed with an infuriated woman who had wanted my life but instead a warm smile from Cassiel, the man this girl so obviously loved, and somehow deep inside my soul I felt it too. That love for him. I wanted to pull myself out of this girl. This girl who loved Cassiel and died because of her love for him, abandoning Lucian, her father. Deep inside her, she knew she was going to die, even though Cassiel was convinced he could save her. I felt the pain she felt as if it was my own, everything was burrowed deep inside me. As if I'd felt this pain before. It felt as if my gut was being twisted until it couldn't stretch any further.

I stepped towards them, smiling briefly at the other man. The girl's eyes were focused on Cassiel but somehow my mind just wouldn't allow anything but his ash mauve colored eyes and short mass of golden hair. His features were indistinct as if something was preventing me from remembering. Hold on remembering? This wasn't my memory, yet somehow it felt like it was. I groaned mentally. I felt so vexed I actually wanted to throw something like a toddler. Irritated I tried using Lucia's eyes to study the room we were in. It was olden styled, like the girl's dress. The obvious floorboards were covered with an elaborate rug made up of several dark colors, like black, crimson and brown. There was a big lit fireplace the center front of the room exactly opposite the door. Around the room were several bookshelves, but there were still some books piled high near the shelves. Antique cabinets sat behind a long old cream sofa with elegant gold leaves with what seemed like a semi-full scotch bottle and a set of scotch glasses. The room somehow didn't fit either of the people standing in the room. It was probably Lucian's.

"You know I despise being called by that name." I growled at the unknown man. Her words snapped me back to the two men. The words had slipped from my mouth before I even knew I was going to open my mouth. He chuckled huskily, a laugh of a strong leader. I scowled at him again until his was merely snickering under his breath. I turned back to Cassiel, wrapping my arms around him. His arms wound carefully around my shoulders, feeling the unease in me somehow. I felt at ease there, with my whole soul. Actually just Lucia, but me too. It was becoming scary.

"I will leave you two alone. Cassiel remember to return at dawn. I will create an excuse for you until then. Goodbye Lucie." The unknown man suddenly called from the door at the other side of the room. He chuckled as I scowled playfully at his retreating back. Once the door closed with a soft 'clack' I sighed heavily and rested my forehead on his chest. Biting back tears I grit my teeth. I had to always be protected by Cass. Our love to them was disgraceful and shameful because I was simply human, despite father being a half blood. But I didn't want to be seen that way, no matter what we were, we were still just a man and a woman who loved each other. I wasn't a 'human' when I was with Cassiel, I was just 'Luce'. I shook myself mentally, I felt myself disappearing into this girl's feelings because I really understood.

I felt the same even if I never admitted it. Yes...that's why I wanted to be awakened. It wasn't because of our ages, no, I would still love him even if I were physically twenty years older. It was because I didn't want to be seen as just a 'human'. That's why I tried my hardest to fight by myself, to be recognized as someone who could protect the people she loved and not need protection from those battles. I wanted people to see me for me. Lucia's feelings were synchronizing with mine so easily. For a moment, just a fleeting moment, it was as if we were one person. We both felt the frustration and melancholy of actually being helpless in situations like this. But somehow Demetri though still conscious in my mind, I drifted towards Cassiel. Something had been pulling me towards him, like an unspoken bond. Cassiel's words brought me back from the trance that had silently crept upon me.

"There's nothing either of us can do right now, Luce. Don't be so hard on yourself." He murmured as he smoothed the long golden locks running against the small of my back. I pursed my lips as I thought of how to reply and surrounded myself in his scent. It was the aroma of crisp summer water and fresh spring.

"I understand, Cass. I know I must stay hidden or else my life will be taken by your people. But I don't like it. The fact that our love must stay hidden. That I cannot be anything but weak right now. It's just...frustrating." And painful. I bit the words back instinctively. I wouldn't have said that either if it was the actual me. My eyes stung with the threat of tears. So I buried my head in his chest. In the silence my eyes started watering and Cass' shirt became a little damp with the tears that escaped when I blinked. His chest rumbled as he laughed softly, which was relaxing and soothing to me.

"Such a crier, sometimes Luce." He teased, I could almost hear the smile on his face. His laughter melted my sorrows temporarily as I fell into his bright mood. I couldn't help the smile tugging at my lips.

"Be quiet." I grumbled back lightheartedly. His laugh became deeper as I felt his arms move from around me to hanging over my shoulders as he leaned his head down to my eye level, because he was at least ten inches taller than me. He stopped laughing as he spoke gently to me.

"Why? It's rather adorable in truth." He murmured. Lucia's eyes were focused on his face completely yet I still only was able to focus on one feature at a time, the rest of his face would look blurry. I caught a glimpse of his mischievous smile then concentrated on his eyes. Lucia's chest clenched painfully at his smile and she felt warm and at peace, her heart didn't race but her love for him was apparent. What wasn't clear to me was why I felt this too, not because I was in her body but the me who was watching everything from inside her with my own thoughts and feelings. I shrugged off the thought, things couldn't be much more understandable than when these images of these two people who I didn't know started flashing through my mind. I sighed mentally not only was I no long able to tell where Lucia's mind and feelings started and where mine ended but I was also getting used to these perplexing memory like scenes.

The warm playful moment slowly slipped from Cassiel and Lucia's fingertips as the atmosphere became heavy with unspoken words.

"You know..." Cassiel began, his eyes never straying from hers even as the situation became hard. "this love we have. It doesn't need to be acknowledged by anyone else aside from us, that's whom it should really matter to. All of them, their view on love are limited because of the way he taught us and treated us. But they'll realize they can't restrain love. As for being unable being weak, you are anything but that. If you were weak I would not have fallen for you in the first place. For now you can't do anything except for staying hidden but I know there's something inside you that won't give up no matter how long it takes Luce. Even if it will take us both more than a few lifetimes." His voice was tranquil and cool, didn't contain the amount of exasperation or pain my voice revealed but his words were sincere from the bottom of his heart. I could feel myself shake with happiness. Even though I did not believe that anything will change or that I will still be alive by the time that might happen I felt reassured because Cass believed it. Alexia Ivera! I yelled at myself internally. I was losing myself once again. Stay detached from Lucia. I kept repeating to myself over and over. But somehow it was natural to slip into her feelings and thoughts. No matter how invisible and indistinct that bond was between me and her, it was strong.

From my mouth, soft lyrical laughter flowed out. For a brief second I could feel the fear, frustration and sadness Lucia felt being frozen to a stop by the joy she felt from this man's words. No more sooner did Cassiel join in with the laughter from my mouth.

"It does sound rather too sentimental." He mumbled jokingly. A euphoric smile spread from corner to corner of my lips. My hands moved on their own as I gently cupped his face in my hands. I knew what was going to happen. I jerked myself back, as far away from 'Lucia' as possible. I tried forcing a wall between me and her but nothing stopped me from slipping back in sync with her.

"It was perfect." She murmured delicately, her voice airy and light with joy. The moment sped up as the heart in my chest did. Before I noticed it my lips were touching his, but there wasn't a dull uncomfortable feeling I thought there would be. In truth, my body lit up like a flare.

My whole body slowly heated up, like there was molten lava moving through the veins throughout my body. My lips tingled with static from the touch of his soft firm lips. The gentle brush of his fingertips left my skin burning and aching for more. His lips were so warm and as the kiss deepened our heart beats sped up. My chest tightened painfully but it wasn't a bad feeling.

Trying to pull myself away from Lucia was like pushing against a thick solid cement wall. Mentally I was sweating and gasping. No. No! I demanded. I didn't know why but deep inside me somewhere I wanted to stay there, wrapped in Cassiel's arms with my lips meeting his. Half of me wanted to jerk myself out of this memory-like daydream, but the other half of me wanted to cry because I knew this kiss wouldn't last.

The moment sped up. My senses were heightened but volatile. My senses were so sharp everything little detail was too strong, enough that I shut them out. The image in front of me, Cassiel's eyes the strange olden styled room started becoming blurry and fuzzy like static on a TV. The mental strength I'd been exerting felt like it had turned around and hit me. Before I was violently pulled out of Lucia I heard one last thing, the sound of rustling feathers again.