Part Eight:
 

Rating: PG, with, like, one curse
 

Arianna reclined her seat and stretched her legs. She loved flying first class.

“It’s great having friends in high places,” she said out loud. On her left, Gabriel nodded his agreement.

“I just can’t believe Lund is a trusted member of Circle Daybreak.” Gabriel shook his head. “He must be, if Thierry’s sending him to pick us up.” He shrugged and opened a magazine.

On Arianna’s other side, Ash was silent. His ever-changing eyes were dark, and somewhat glazed.

She put a hand on his arm. Startled, Ash turned to look at her. He relaxed, sinking into the plush chair. Smiling, he sought her hand and laced his long fingers through hers.

You’re thinking about her, aren’t you. Ash heard her voice in his head. It was more of an observation than anything else. He sighed and nodded slightly.

She’s all I ever think about, he sent.

Arianna squeezed his hand. I’m sure she thinks about you, too, she assured him. I mean, what girl in their right mind wouldn’t? This earned a mental laugh from Ash. I don’t think she realizes how lucky she is.

Ash looked into her eyes. I did love you, you know. Even if I wouldn’t tell you so, I did.

Arianna gave him a wry smile. I’d kind of figured that out, once I was done hating you. She sighed. I loved you, too. That’s why we worked out, I guess. We were both dead set against it. So when we fell in love with each other there was no demand for the words, because we were in denial.

Yeah, Ash agreed. Not like most relationships where someone’s always whining about being the only one to say ‘I love you.’

They were silent for a moment, lost in old memories. Ash absently ran his thumb over Arianna’s knuckles and stared into space. He was glad he’d found his soulmate. Otherwise he’d be insanely jealous of Gabriel. As it was, he envied the amount of time he and Arianna were able to spend together. He hadn’t seen Mary-Lynnette in a year, and he missed her terribly. There were times when he would crave simply holding her in his arms so he could feel complete again, a feeling that he only experienced when Mary-Lynnette was with him.

Then Ash remembered why they were on the plane. He was on his way to take - to save- Mary-Lynnette’s life.

He recalled that one night in the woods when she had asked him to change her, and then she had instead changed her mind, sending Ash off to right his wrongs. Back then, he wasn’t even sure he could.

He’d tried though. Goddess knows, he’d tried. Shit! He’d even gone and joined Circle Daybreak! He’d participated in dozens of missions, helping people, and risking his own neck. He’d never planned on doing that for anybody. But he had done it for Mary-Lynnette. He’d jeopardized his own life many times - for her.

He hoped to the Gods it was all enough.

As the plane began its descent, Arianna leaned over Gabriel’s lap to stare out the window like an excited child. This was her favorite part of the ride - the part when her body dropped from an altitude thousands of feet in the air to the ground in a matter of minutes, leaving her stomach among the clouds. It was like being in a huge elevator.

Gabriel seemed a bit nervous, so Arianna moved her elbow that rested on his leg more towards his knee and away from his midsection, and he relaxed.

Ash was still brooding, his eyes a pale green. When Arianna leaned back in her seat and took his hand, he squeezed it gently. He noticed that Gabriel was watching, and slowly let go of her hand. She gave him a confused look, and Ash could tell she was hurt slightly by this gesture.

You belong to him, now, Ash explained. I no longer have any claims on you. I forfeited those a long time ago.

You’re my friend, Ash, Arianna told him. And that’s what counts. She grinned. Besides, I don’t belong to nobody but the Goddess. She’s the only one with any control over me, and you know it.

Ash gave her a small smile, nodded, and went back to staring at a point in space a foot away from his head.

Arianna turned to Gabriel. He hadn’t been listening to her conversation with Ash, but she knew he’d wanted to. She pulled his hand into her lap and massaged it; kneading it with her fingers and knuckles until his muscles were no longer tense.

Mary-Lynnette’s going to need a new name, she sent to Gabriel.

What? He was somewhat distracted by the lazy patterns her fingertips traced on his palm and wrist.

A new name, she repeated. What kind of a name is ‘Mary-Lynnette’ for a vampire? You’ll have the vicious female huntresses of Briar Creek, Oregon: Rowan, Kestrel, Jade, and Mary-Lynnette. It just doesn’t fit.

Rowan’s a kind of tree, a kestrel is a bird, and jade is the green stone, right? Gabriel asked.

Yeah. Arianna sighed. And Mary-Lynnette is a human. She reached across his legs for his other hand.