Stolen Hearts; Chapter Sixteen

"Soriety," Simon sighed "This proves absolutely nothing,"
Soriety snatched the book back protectively her facial muscles stiff and accusing.

"My mother spent her life researching the stories of the children of hell. Every manuscript ever found outside of the White Nation and the Black Nation is in this house. None of them have ever dreamed this book even existed. The Book of New, everything about the two children is all in here. Simon you are what you are," she leaned across the table slowly and although she could not see with her eyes Soriety had gifts Simon couldn’t even begin to comprehend.

"Your eyes are the greyest of grey. In visions I’ve had for you they shine inhumanly in the night. To my skin yours feels like ice, but to my mothers touch she said it felt like fire. You have a way Simon, for terrifying people, for charming them; you get what you want from them with ease,"

"Some people would just call that charisma," he muttered not looking her in the face.

"That girl you showed me Simon, she fits the other descriptions perfectly," Soriety hissed her tune more desperately now.

"‘She who walks by no living tree’?" Simon quoted "That makes no sense; she’s lived in a forest half her life!"

Soriety smiled "Come on Simon I would have thought you were smarter than that!"

She was right; Simon figured it out within seconds "It’s referring to a family tree?"

Soriety nodded eagerly, enjoying the direction of conversation and fascinated by Simons denial.

Simon shook his head "Then you’re wrong about her, she still has a grandfather,"

Soriety continued to smile mysteriously "Her mother’s father right?"

Simon nodded in conformation. Soriety pulled out a newspaper clipping out of the book which she had used as a bookmark and handed it to him.

"I’ve had my theories on her already," she smiled smugly.

It was small and withered but still easily legible. There was a black and white picture of a young couple with a little blonde haired girl in their arms all smiling at the camera. Simon frowned as he read the opening few lines.

‘Already knighted a Sir just last week for his extraordinary achievements in opening a new boarding school in the North Ben Ruffelm and his wife Hazel have decided to adopt a little baby girl aged two. The young couple adopted Myra just yesterday and have already given her a surname that is sure to make history. Young Myra Rosalind Ruffelm…’

Simon stopped reading and handed the clipping back.
"I swear you make this stuff up," he grumbled but Soriety’s mood was not to be dampened as she pressed on with the point.
"See Ruffelm isn’t her biological grandfather!" she exclaimed with joy.

"But their eyes…they’re almost exactly the same color," Simon argued.

"What color are her eyes Simon, come on you have to have connected it. You’re so slow today!"
Simon growled, not liking the way Soriety seemed to be pushing so much.

"They’re blue,"
"‘Whose eyes are shrouded like mist and sea’," She sang, still grinning, convinced she was right. "What colour’s the sea Simon?"

"Blue," he grumbled, letting her do all the explaining instead of bothering to work it out himself.
"And what color is mist?"
"I don’t know… grey I guess,"

Soriety paused, waiting for him to get it but was sorely disappointed.

"Oh for Gods sake Simon. Her eyes have been charmed! Somebody turned them blue! Somebody wanted people to think that they really were related. I’ll bet she doesn’t even know herself!"

Simon groaned he didn’t like this; he didn’t like this at all.
"Soriety if you’re right and I am what you think I am then at some point I’m going to start a wild rampage and destroy everything right?" he shook his head "That’s just not me and you know that,"
Soriety took his hands in her own and smiled reassuringly her mood finally calmed.

"Simon the manuscripts are extremely vague about what you are here for. Many of them are biased with fear mongering," Soriety smiled warmly waving her hand and quite literally dismissing thousands of people’s views in one gesture.

"But the texts in the Book of New, the book that really counts; they only describe you as the bringer of anarchy. They say that you, as a person, will want it but that your will to get it wont be enforced by the Devil just as our will cannot be enforced by God. Anarchy can come in many forms Simon, not all of them are bad. I don’t believe for one second you will change from who you are now. You’re still Simon, same as always, you were destined to bring change that’s all and only time will tell what way you bring it. Besides," Soriety exhaled deeply.

"If legend is true, you are merely protector. The girl is the one who is meant to be the real bringer of change," she chuckled, the sound odd in her tune "I have no doubt that I am right, but you never know who might creep up out of the sidelines,"
"Protector?" Simon frowned.

"Yes," Soriety nodded "When the time comes your job is just that, to protect the girl. Fits your personality perfectly,"
"And you think Cala really is the other?"

Soriety nodded again "She fits perfectly as well. I doubt any other girl will have this effect on you,"

"So she’s going to be the one to bring the anarchy not me?" Simon almost laughed at the irony. The night Cala had returned he had sat right in front of her on the swing under the willow and called her just that. Anarquista, anarchist, because of the way she seemed to stir up trouble all the time and disobey authority on all charges. Simon shivered involuntarily as he remembered the rumors of her punishment and cursed that he wasn’t there to stop it, for he would have, regardless of the outcome.

Soriety nodded for the last time managing only to smile faintly.
"If I’m supposed to protect her then why did I want to hurt her so badly?" still determined to poke holes in her theory.

"Reread the first paragraph I told you to and make you own decisions. The book is yours by right but I should like to hold onto it if you don’t mind,"

Simon reread page fourteen and spoke the words himself.
"She who walks by no living tree, whose eyes are shrouded like mist and sea. She who came from fire not dust, who calls the first with murder and lust. Name thee as the betrayer, who sought to run from thy creator," he murmured.

"Keep in mind that the author of this book knew that descendants of god would read it but, he also knew you would as well, eventually…" Soriety seemed to be absorbed in her own mind as she retreated once again from her seat and ambled behind the curtained door at the back of the room out of view.

Simon scrutinised the words so that he saw them as if they were spoke directly to him, son of the devil. Simon shuddered at the foreignness of the thought, the absurdity; surely he should have had some idea.

He focused on the last sentence for his answer and he thought he had it.
Name her as a betrayer, because she ran from my creator. He translated in his head. Thy creator…our creator. She ran from the devil. Shocked, he remembered the old stories his brother had told him.

"The day they were due to leave it all went wrong. They were noticed by the angels guarding the gateway back to earth and were forced to flee using all the power they had to get as far away from heaven as possible, pushing past the queues of people as they went, to reach earth, to live." But the stories said that they both had run they had run from god, not the devil.

Simon focused trying to remember the story- all of it. What had the girl done against the devil his head screamed and - "But the girl was different she was acting right and speaking right and never drew attention to herself but she wasn’t thinking right." It came to him, slamming into his thoughts and surrounding him in anger.

The same seething, writhing, spitting hatred he had felt for Cala before. He wanted to murder her, to slay her where she stood, the betrayer! The voice in his head screamed.

Soriety walked calmly back into the room to see Simon stood up, hands grasping the sides of his head, hunched over. The desk had two sets of scratched lines in its surface where Simon had obviously tried to control him self by carving his fingernails into its exterior, his chair was smashed in shattered pieces by his feet. He was gasping erratically as he staggered backwards out her front door, eyes scrunched closed.

She followed him calmly outside and watched as he collapsed to the ground suddenly clear headed. Simon looked up at her pleadingly, his eyes flashing dangerously close to fanatical desperation.

"How do I make it stop?" he whispered, flopping onto his back in the dust and groaning, somehow still managing to look casual. Soriety sat down beside him although she found it undignified to be sat in the dirt.

"Hush now," she sang sorrow in her tune "It’s hard for you. She was made specifically for you, you should love her the way you did when you touched her in the hospital," she paused "But, she betrayed your creator, she betrayed you and although you don’t remember it and you probably don’t care what she did when you were both unborn now, some part of you still feels that colossal hurt for being let down," she huffed slightly "Besides when you’re not feeling either of those hidden feelings you were planning on playing a very dangerous game of seduction with her anyway weren’t you?" she sung dryly.

Simon grinned ruefully, smugly and cheekily all at the same time; he smiled his smile and chuckled gently.
"You know me. She’s stunning," he said.

Soriety shook her head slowly "I know you. She’s just a challenge to you, or was,"

Simon sighed but didn’t disagree, that was all he’d ever wanted, a challenge. Someone who he didn’t have to just bat his eyelashes for to make them come running, instead he’d got this. He wasn’t even sure what this was exactly.

"That’s why you tried for me, right?" Soriety sung not really looking for an answer, her melody a little tight lipped. Simon sat up abruptly concerned.

"I’m sorry Soriety, I shouldn’t have let you into those feelings, and it was cruel to show you. You know the only reason we didn’t stay together was because I didn’t want a relationship so I don’t want you thinking I’m chasing another girl for one now. I wasn’t looking for anything more than…"

"A shag," Soriety chimed in teasingly. Simon scowled, it sounded like he was a complete ass the way she said it so acceptingly.

"It’s not quite like that…" Simon muttered feeling angry with himself this time.

Soriety glided her fingertips across his permanently tensed jaw "You treat a girl like a proper lady Simon Black. You have never heard any complaints have you?"
Simon hadn’t but he still felt slightly rotten when he thought about them all.

"See. You’re alright as long as you stay a gentleman about it," she smiled warmly and Simon warranted it was more than he deserved.

"There are those times when I’m with Cala and I don’t know what I’m doing though," he muttered "I think its best I stayed away from her,"
"You can try," Soriety giggled "But I think you’ve finally met your match. Simon she was quite literally made for you, and vice versa. You won’t be able to stop yourself, your going to have to suck up your commitment issues,"

Simon groaned not sure whether it was because she was right and he didn’t want it to happen that way or because she could be wrong and he did want it to happen that way.

"What happens if I hurt her though Soriety? I can’t tell her this; it’s dangerous for her," Simon thought of all the other things he’d never be able to tell her things that - and the words might just never have been said before- were too dangerous even for Cala Hunt.

Soriety snorted "If you want to do your job and protect her then go ahead but don’t think you’re going to be able to keep her from danger. As for you hurting her," Soriety’s mouth twitched slightly in an odd manner but she continued "You’ve got self control, use it. I reckon it’ll get easier as you go along,"

Simon looked glumly ahead, this had been the last thing he’d expected one his way here.
"You might want to leave the knives behind next time you see her though," she teased again, standing up. "Well if that’s everything, I’ve got some fish to cook before night fall…" Soriety started to make her way back inside Simon grasped her arm gently and swiftly.

"Sorry Soriety, one last thing," Simon smiled turning on the charm.
Soriety raised her eyebrows again but stood silently waiting for Simon to fish out a scrunched up photograph out of his pocket. He held it out to her and she stared down at it and gasped.
"I still have friends in the Black Nation, they tipped me off, apparently there’s a pirate on the hunt for it," Simon shifted nervously "I’d like to get it before he does,"

Soriety scowled "Why?" she sung suspiciously.

Simon sighed and rolled his eyes "Because the pirate who’s after it is the same pirate everyone accuses me of being and I’d rather like him to do something about that,"

Soriety eased up and laughed slightly, her voice like wind chimes "I can imagine you wouldn’t want that sort of attention right now,"
"Exactly," Simon sighed still hoping Soriety would answer his original question.

"The item you have in mind is mentioned in the book; technically you and Cala own both the book and that object there by right so I am obliged to tell where it is,"
"You know where it is!" Simon spluttered immediately excited.
Soriety nodded her head solemnly.

"I’d advise you not to go looking for it Simon, it’s terribly dangerous,"
Simon held his breath, if it was his right to know where it was Soriety would tell him as long as he didn’t give her reason to believe he would do something stupid like use it.
"It’s in the Black Nation now, ironically,"

Simon held his face expressionlessly and expertly, and waited again for her to continue.
"If you follow the coast north from here and cross over the salt marshes you’ll hit the mountains pretty abruptly. Stick tightly to the coast until your parallel with where the river Normid joins Lake Rojhan you’ll know your there when you come across the mouth of a barely three mile long river, it’s the only other river that touches the west coast so you wont miss it. In the middle of the rivers mouth there should be a deep spot barely a meter wide and three meters deep. What you’re looking for is down there but I doubt it’s unprotected,"

Simon grinned and thanked her "I only needed to know the general location but thanks, I’ll be sure to find him now,"
They exchanged a parting hug before Simon set off back to the school with no time to spare, it started to rain as the thunder clouds finally rolled over casting shadows convincingly enough for someone to believe it was night fall.

He ran quickly keeping his head down and prepared for another two day trek in stormy weather once again wishing he’d been able to grab his horse before he’d set off but he hadn’t had the time.

(: Yes I did write the text from the book myself and I hope this has sort of made it a bit clearer I just couldn't fit it all into one article it would have been too long. Chapters will be coming out a lot faster now, time to speed the story up a bit. Hope you enjoy it.
Lullabyes x