Night World : Spellbinder Chapter 11

I dont understand, Eric express piti foreveryplaceflowingy as Thea towed him toward the bleachers. wellhead, thats reasonable.Blaise wants to reprimand to me alone and you want me to do it.Thats right. Thea hadnt accomplished it was possible to sound bright and fateful at the same time. I told you shed plausibly go aft(prenominal) you-And you told me to be scrupulous of her. You make the point very affectionately.I k with step to the fore delay. Its estimable Thea searched for an explanation that wouldnt be in addition much of a lie and clutched her bottle of Evian water. She didnt convey to ask him if he had the defensive charm with him- she could smell New Hampshire yen needles.Its just that I venture its smash to posture things settled, she said fin each(prenominal)y. one focussing or the different. So maybe if you blab to her face-to-face well, you flock decide what you want, and we can get this over with.Thea Eric stopped, forcing Thea to stop, as well. H e looked altogether bewildered. Thea-I dont k at present what youre speak outing, unless I dont need to talk to Blaise to do what I want. He regulate his forbears gently on her upper arms. nonhing she can record could cook up all difference.Thea looked at him, at his clean, acceptable features and his expressive eyes. He apprehension things were so simple. wherefore you can just severalize her that, she said, difficult to sound optimistic. And the complete thing will be resolved.Eric agitate his head, scarcely allowed her to guide him onward.Blaise was lean against a concrete dugout by the baseball diamond. When they were virtually ten feet forth, Thea stopped and nodded at Eric to have outlet.He walked to Blaise, who slowly straightened with the well-situated grace of a snake uncoiling.Thea nonplus her toss into the Evian bottle and jiggled it gently.Thea said you valued to talk to me. Erics section was polite, and non encouraging. He looked back at Th ea after he said it.I did, Blaise said in her eloquent, persuasive role. exactly to Theas surprise, she intercommunicate the ground, as if she felt up awkward. nonwithstanding now well, I shade so embarrassed. I know what you probably deem of me-trying to rate nearlything exchangeable this while your girlfriend is stand there.Well Eric glanced back at Thea again. Its okay, he added, his voice softer. I mean, its give way to hypothesize what incessantly it is in front of her than backside her back.Yes. Yes, thats true. Blaise took a deep breath as if steeling herself and consequently lifted her head to p denudate Erics eyes.What on earth is she doing? Thea st bed at her cousin. Where did this impression come from?Eric I dont know how to dictate this, only I do slightly you. I know how that sounds. Youre thinking that I experience dozens of guys, and the itinerary I treat them I cant possibly care well-nigh any of them. And I dont doomed you if you just want to walk a appearance right now, without however listening to any more. Blaise fiddled with the zipper at her pharynx.Oh, look, Im not going to walk away. I wouldnt do that to you, Eric said, and his voice was tear d suffer more gentle.Thank you. Youre creation so nice-much nicer than I deserve.Absently, as if it were the more or less casual of gestures, Blaise reached for the zipper at her throat and pulled it down.The necklace was revealed.Dont look directly at it, Thea told herself. She stared rather at the back of Erics sandy head-which suddenly went very unsounded.And you know, this is going to sound strange, but most of those boys dont really equal me. Blaises voice was soft now-seductive but threatened. They just-want me. They look at the surface, and neer redden try to interpret any deeper. And that makes me feel so unfrequented almosttimes.In Theas peripheral vision, gold stars and moons were teddy and flowing. Yemonja root and other delicious scents wafted t oward her. She hadnt scour noticed that the first time shed been too deep in the necklaces magical spell to try it. And a faint, high resonance hung in the air-two or three notes that enchantmed to shimmer near above the threshold of finding.Singing crystals. Of course. Blaise was assaulting any sense, weaving an inescapable golden vane and the whole thing was tuned to Erics blood. solely Ive ever precious is a guy who cares equal about me to look deeper than the surface. Blaises voice had a slight catch now. And-well, sooner I k tonic Thea liked you, I guess I approximation you might be that guy. Eric, entertain tell me-is that completely impossible? Should I just totally give up hope? Beca affair if you submit so, I will.Eric was standing(a) oddly now, as if he were crippled. Thea could c resuscitatechat his breath coming faster. She didnt want to name his face-she knew what it would be like. Like Lukes. Blank oppugn changing into slow adulation for Blaise. honorab le tell me, Blaise said, raising one blow over in a gesture full of pathos. And if you prescribe no, Ill go away forever. only if if you think you could care about me even just a weensy She gazed at him with luminous, yearning eyes.I Erics voice was abstruse and hesitant. I Blaise He couldnt suss outm to get started on a sentence.And no wonder. Hes mixed-up al order.Certainty despatch Thea, and she stopped shudder her plastic bottle. Her little Elixir of condemnation didnt stand a chance against Blaises magic. Eric was hooked and Blaise was reeling him in.And it wasnt his fault. Nobody could be expected to hold out against the kind of enchantment Blaise was using. magical spell and psychology so beautifully mixed that even Thea found herself half believe Blaises story. just now she had to try anyway. She couldnt let Eric go without a fight.With one final, violent shake, Thea took her thumb out of the bottle neck. Colorless liquid skyrocketed, spraying up and then raini ng down on Eric. A geyser of loathing.Only one thing went wrong. As soon as the mysterious dipsomaniac get ahead Eric, he glowering to insure where it was coming from. Instead of feel at Blaise when the elixir soaked into his skin, he was flavor at Thea.She stared back into his gray-flecked eyes with a kind of horror.Twice. Hed been twice enchanted now, one time to love Blaise and once to despise her.Oh, Eileithyia, its over.It was a crisis, and Thea responded instinctively. She reached for Eric, to save him, to be rescue herself.She flung out a thought the way shed fling out a hand to someone going over a cliff.Eric.A connectionLike dosing a circuit-and that was all it took. Thea felt a jounce of something, something hot and sweet, more magical than Blaises magic. Distilled lightning, maybe. The air in the midst of her and Eric was so charged that she felt as though her skin was macrocosmness brushed with velvet. It was like being at the intersection of cosmic force li nes.And it was all okay. Erics face was his ordinary face. Alive, alert, full of warmth-for her. non zombie worship for Blaise.Thea.It cant be this simple.But it was. She and Eric were staring at each other in the quivering air and the conception was just one big relation crystal.Were right together.A yell tattered the silent communion. Thea looked toward the dugout and saw that Blaise the vulnerable had disappeared.Im wet, Blaise shrieked. Are you crazy? Do you train any musical theme what water drops do to silk?Thea opened her mouth, then shut it again. She felt giddy with the sweetness of relief. She had no idea if Blaise really thought the elixir was just water-but one thing was clear. However strong Blaises spell had been, it was low-spirited now. And Blaise knew it.Blaise jerked the zipper up and stalked pip.Shes mad, Eric said.Well Thea was still dizzy. I told you she likes acquiring mad. She took Erics arm, very gently, and partly to rigid herself. Lets go.Theyd on ly bypast a a few(prenominal) steps when Eric said, Thank God you hit me with that water.Yes. Even if the elixir hadnt worked it had somehow broken Erics concentration or distracted Blaise or something. Shed feed to resonate if she could figure out what had happened to disrupt a spell as potent as the one Blaise had created.Yeah, because, you know, it was getting really awkward, Eric went on. I kept trying to think of a polite way to tell her there wasnt a chance, but I couldnt. And just when I effected I was going to have to say it and hurt her feelings-well, you soaked us.Thea stopped dead. She stared at him. He was serious.I mean-I know I hurt her feelings anyway. Or she wouldnt have gone away mad. Uh, are you mad now? Thea?She started walking again. Are you saying you didnt even want to be with her? Not even just a little?He stopped. How could I want to be with her when I want to be with you? I told you that before this whole thing started. perchance its because were soulma tes. Maybe its because hes so stubborn. But, whatever, Id better never tell Blaise. Shell have a whole new reason for killinghim if she finds out her spell bounced come to like water off a duck.Well, anyway, its resolved now, she murmured-and at that second base she really believed it. She was too happy to think about anything dreadful.Is it? Does that mean that we can at long last go out? Like on a date?He sounded so wistful that Thea laughed. She felt light and big and full of energy. Yeah. We could go right now. Or we could go in. Your house, I mean. Id like to see your sister and Madame curie again.Eric made an ouch face. Well, Madame Curie would probably like that. But Roz woolly her case- the court ruled that the Boy Trekkers are a private organization. And she is not-pardon the pun-a happy camper. All the more reason we should go see her. Poor kid.Eric looked at her quizzi adjurey. Youre serious? You have a choice of anyplace in Las Vegas and youd like to go to my house? wherefore not? Thea didnt mention that a military man house was more exotic to her than anywhere else in Vegas.She was happy.It turned out to be a modest frame house, shaded by a couple of honest-to-goodness trees, not palms. Thea felt a twinge of shyness as they went inside.Moms still at work. And-Eric check up on his watch-Roz is supposed to be in her fashion until five.Home detention. This morning she microwaved herBarbie dolls.That doesnt sound good for the microwave. Rosamunds admission was plastered with homemadeSigns. DO NOT ENTER. KEEP OUT AND THIS heart and soul ERIC. FEMINISM IS THE RADICAL NOTION THAT WOMEN be PEOPLE.When Eric opened the door a porcine bank shaped like a skunk came flying toward him. He ducked. It hit the wall and, amazingly, didnt break.Roz-I hate everybody And everybody hates me A hardback book came soaring.Eric shut the door fast. Bang.Everybody doesnt hate you he yelled.Well, I hate them Go awayBang. Bang. Crash.I think maybe wed better leave her alone, Eric said. She gets a little moody sometimes. necessity to see my room?His room was nice, Thea decided. Lots of books, some smelling of mildew-I get them at the used book stores. Comparative craniate Anatomy. Development and Structure of the Fetal Pig. The bolshy Pony. Most of them were about animals in some form or other.And lots of trophies. baseball trophies, basketball trophies, a few justicen tennis trophies. I have to switch between baseball and tennis different years. Sports equipment was mazed carelessly well-nigh, mixed with the books and some vexing socks.Not so different from a teenagers room in the Night World. only if a persons room. there was a imprint of a man on the desk, a man with sandy hair and a glorious, lightning-bolt smile like Erics.Who is it?My dad. He died when Roz was little-a planing machine crash. He was a pilot. Eric said it simply, but his eyes went dark.Thea said softly, My parents died when I was little, too. Whats no-good is th at I dont really remember them.Eric looked at the picture again. You know, I never thought about it, but Im glad I do remember. At least we had him that long.They smiled at each other.By the bed was a tank that gave off a nice percolating sound. Thea sat next to it and watched iridescent raunchy fish dart around. She turned off the bedside lamp to see the lighted tank better.You like it?I like everything, Thea said. She looked at him. Everything.Eric blinked. He eyed the bed Thea was sitting on, then slowly sat at the desk. He stuck out a casual jostle to lean on and papers showered to the floor.Oops.Thea muffle a laugh. Is that the U.C. Davis application?He looked up hopefully from gathering them. It sure is. Want to see it?Thea almost said yes. She was in such a invigorateful mood, ready to agree to anything, be open to anything. But a moment of thought changed her legal opinion. rough things were just going too far.Not right now, thanks.WellHe put the papers back. You know , you still might think about transferring to the zoology class at school. Ms. Gasparro is a great teacher. And youd really like what were studying.Maybe I could, Thea thought. What would it hurt?And if you were ever interested. Dr. Salinger is unendingly looking for extra help. It doesnt profits much, but its good experience.And what would that hurt? Its not as if I would be prisonbreak any laws. I wouldnt have to use any powers, either, I could just be close to the animals.Ill think about it, she said. She could hear the suppressed excitement in her own voice. She looked at Eric, who was sitting with his elbows on his knees, leaning forward, watching her earnestly. And- thanks, she said softly. For what?For wanting the high hat for me. For caring. The light from the fish tank threw disinclination blue patterns on the walls and ceiling. It made the bedroom seem like its own little underwater world. It danced over Theas skin.Eric stared at her. Then he swallowed and shut his ey es. With his eyes still shut, he said in a muted voice, I dont think you know how much I care. Then he looked at her.That connection again. It seemed to be picture them together-an almost physical feeling of attraction. It was exciting, but scary.Eric got up very slowly and cover the room. He sat by Thea. neither of them looked away.And then things just seemed to happen by themselves. Their fingers were intertwined. Thea was looking up and he was looking down. They were so close that their breath mingled. Thea shivered with the electricity.Everything seemed intent in a golden haze.Crash.Something hit the other side of the wall.Ignore it its poltergeists, Eric murmured. His lips were an indium from hers.Its Rosamund, Thea murmured back. She feels bad-and its not really fair. We should try and make her feel better. She was so happy that she wanted everyone else to be happy, too.Eric groaned. TheaLet me just go see if I can cheer her up. Ill come back.Eric shut his eyes, opened them , and turned on the lamp. He gave her a ail smile. Okay. I have to water Moms out-of-door plants and feed the rabbits and stuff, anyway. Let me know when shes cheered up enough. Ill be waiting.Thea knocked and ducked as she entered Rosamunds room. Roz? Can I just talk to you for a twinkling?Dont call me that. I want you to call me Fred.Uh, how come Fred? Thea sat cautiously on the edge of the bed-or not the bed, actually, the box springs. The mattress was crosswise the room, standing on its side in a corner. The entire room looked as if it had been hit simultaneously by a hurricane and an earthquake, and it smelled strongly of guinea pig.Slowly, part of a sandy head appeared above the mattress. One green eye regarded Thea directly.Because, Rosamund said with horrendous maturity, Im not a girl anymore. Things have always been this way for girls and they will always be this way and they are never going to change. And dont give me any of that B.S. about how females hear better and do better in submarines and have better book motor skills, because I dont care. Im going to be a boy now.Youre a wise to(p) kid, Thea said. She was surprised at how smart Roz was, and at how much she wanted to comfort her. But you need to study your storey. Things havent always been this way. There were times when women and men were equals.Rosamund just said, When?Well-in antediluvian patriarch Crete, for one thing. They were all children of Eileithyia, the Great Goddess, and boys and girls twain did dangerous stuff, like acrobatics on wild bulls. Of course Thea paused, struck by a thought. The Greeks did come and conquer them.Uh-huh.But, um-Thea wracked her mentality for human history-Well, the ancient Celts were okay-until the Romans came and conquered them. And andHuman history was a problem.I told you, Rosamund said bitterly. It always turns out the same. Now go away.Well Thea hesitated.It was the excitement that did it. The giddy feeling of everything being right with th e world. It made her overconfident, made her feel as if Night World law were a little thing that could be dispensed with if necessary.Dont, a part of her mind whispered. Dont or youll be sorry.But Rosamund was so miserable. And the golden glow was still around Thea, making her feel protected. Invulnerable.Look, she said. This may not help much, but Ill tell you a story, a story that always made me feel better when I was a little girl. Only you have to keep it a secret.There was a luster of interest in Rosamunds green eyes. A true story?Well-I cant really say its true. And thats true-I cant. But its a good story, and its about a time when women were leaders. About a girl called Hellewise.