Curious to understand Part 9
Author: Shadow
Title: Curious to understand Part 9
Fandom: Kim Harrison's "The Hollows Series"
Raiting: PG-13
Disclaimer: The characters and the world they live in belong to Kim Harrison.
Summery: Battle undergoes, will Rachel become a demon's trall, or will she really murder for the sake of her loved ones?
Blood dripped down my hands as I ducked behind a gravestone, 'I apologize for my intrusion, whoever you are.' I thought as I sat upon the grave of someone I hoped was no longer here on earth. I sat there thinking about that afternoon. My mind began to mule over the promise I gave to Ivy, "You can run all you like Itchy Witch, but I will catch you eventually!" He taunted at me as he melted the stone that was shielding me.
I glanced at Ivy, her chin held high she was worried, but more than that she was afraid. I turned and looked behind me once I heard the fire stop scorching the grave covering my back. My will was constantly locked on the line, I ripped at the energy muttered the latin for my "were" spell. Getting faster on the draw I turned much faster than the last time I had used it. I licked my new born fangs, I darted from behind the newly melted rock. He gasped yelling as my jaws clamped down on the tendons in his leg, I heard a sick sounding pop, and in that instant I knew I had bitten clean through the muscles connecting his knee together.
Having my new superior speed, I lept slicing messily into his neck, upon hearing him scream I clamped down harder. Algalirept screamed bloody murder beneath me, I whispered latin turning to mist as he used to when I tried to hit him. His fist came up to grasp me by the nape of my neck, I jumped back turning solid again.
We continued to circle, he ran for it, I took the time to lick my wounds attempting to close some of the blood coursing off of my shoulder, thigh, and side. My moves were beginning to become sloppy, and rushed, I was beginning to be affected by the blood loss. I fought to control my body, to will myself on if not for myself, but for Ivy's. 'Ivy,' my mind tried to focus on that single thought throughout the night, throughout the entire battle, I was living on instinct, my reactions were no longer weighed or measured.
Pain fixed it's way up my spine as my hackles rose, I saw my target, a huge black timber wolf. We couldn't cast spells in this state, but I continued to thrum the magic throughout my body, focusing it into my muscles. The downside of this is when I did this I was pushing my body past it's capabilities and it was sure to catch up with me. 'No healing, thats specifically against Newt's rules,' my mind ran over this, other than that there were no rules.
We picked up our circling, the quiet thumps of our footfalls echoed throughout my ears, the soft sounds of heavy breathing, and my thundering heartbeat. He lunged first, my witch's instinct, and the training battles I carried out with Ivy were the only things that kept me from being sandwiched between his fangs. I reared back snapping his fore-leg, he howled in pain. My teeth pulled away from that and forced their way down onto his eye.
A scream followed behind the loud squish of his eye, I pulled back achieving a temporary victory. I drew back as he changed while running from me, I preceded to lick my wounds, just before I ran after him. He grinned as he disappeared behind the tall headstone, my jaws caught air as I turned to bite at what should have been behind the tombstone.
A whistle made my sensitive ears perk up and twitch my head to the left, I didn't see anything, but my graveyard. I sniffed the air trying to make sense out of what I could smell. Algalirept materialized before me, I snapped my jaws, but he dematerialized again, I got only the barest hint of clothing. I ran after his scent, he once again became solid, continuing to run. I caught up with him, because of my superior speed, he turned as he ran throwing the liquid contents of the vial at me.
I howled and tried to get it off of me as quickly as possible, the liquid acid was painted over the entire left side of my face, the better part of my chest, and patches of my side and hip were covered in the burning curse. I turned to mist trying to get the substance off of me, but the searing of my flesh continued. I whispered the latin in my mind once again, turning witch again I formulated clothes with it.
I sneered at him, once again we started to circle, in a jerky limp we continued our waltz of death. 'I have to finish this soon,' I stated simply in my mind, the pain was starting to get to me. I broke form, clumsily ran at him, knocking him beneath me. I felt his leg give beneath the pressure I was applying to him, I screamed the curse to end his life, the one I had used to turn stone to liquid, in the tunnels.
He was trying to scream, but simply couldn't manage it, his vocal cords were being melted. Tears burned their way down my face where the curse had hit me, he had stopped flailing a long time ago. I was no longer taking any chances, I was going to burn his body, I was going to cremate him.
It took me a while to stop after I had turned him to ash, now there just plain wasn't anything left. I collapsed on the ground, having no energy or will to continue any longer. Newt lowered the circle that she had placed around the graveyard, making it the perfect battle arena.
I felt hands on me, "You should dump some salt water on her," Newt calmly stated before disappearing.
Ivy's hands gently lifted me, my head lulled as she carried me inside the church, the sun was about to rise. She stepped past the living room directly into our bathroom, she didn't bother with taking off my clothing as she laid me into the bathtub. Another scream ripped past my lips, as she forced me to sudmerge under the water to break the unknown magic.
My mind went blank as new pain screamed throughout my body, she smiled at me lightly, "Rachel. Rachel your going to have to let me bespell you baby. Okay?" I nodded quickly, wanting her to take my pain away.
I've never felt happier for anyone to make me black out.
The next day:
I woke up in a jolt, screaming one and only one word, "Ivy!!!!!" I sat up no matter how bad it hurt, needing to know that she was safe. I turned when I felt hands on my bare back, I fell back from dizziness.
"Ray, your going to need to lay there for a while, I know how you can't stay still, but please? Rache I'm begging you just lay there, I don't want you to hurt yourself." I don't know whether it was the pleading tone, the slight panic to her voice, or the tears that were streaming down her cheeks, but I didn't move from that spot on our bed. The thought of this being ours still got to me, it made me feel powerful and powerless all at the same time.
I reached up and touched the bandages on the left side of my face, "Don't, you will unravel them." She spoke up quick again, her had took mine as she slowly, carefully pulled me into her arms. I laid against her feeling entirely helpless it reminded me of when I was young and when I had thought I was going to die any second. Ivy wiped up the tears I hadn't know I had shed.
She soothingly traced patterns on my spine, I softly cried some more, truly afraid. I hated feeling weak, it scared me, it was my one true fear that didn't involve people, and right then it was eating me alive.
"Shh, your okay. Your not at a hospital, your not locked away. I've got you, and I'm not leaving any time soon. There is no need for you to be afraid, not right now. Your going to be just fine, Ceri wants to come see you, she wants to see if she can help heal you." I was shaking on top of her, understanding everything she was saying, but it did nothing to cut through my fear.
I took a shaky breath after a while, "Ivy?" She replied immediately, I continued, "Would you sing to me? It might help me go back to sleep." She smiled, and started singing soft jazz to me, pumping out soothing pheromones, and trying to bespell me, I allowed her to have control over me, her thoughts became mine, as she put me to sleep I felt her crying softly.