Into The Unknown - Blackchords

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My eyes didn't stray from Michael as I wrapped my towel around my body and stared at his immobile body at the sink. I tightened my hold on the edge and just watched the way his face went through a riot of emotions.

It's been four days since he'd found out about Ana. Each day I'd woken up to an empty bed around nine o'clock and gone to bed later in the evening only to feel the bed dip at his return twelve hours later. I knew from Katherine that he'd been at Anastasia's. I was glad he wasn't out doing anything stupid or reckless. Everyone knew about Ana now, it was too hard to keep a secret especially after Michael stormed out of the house when he'd found out.

I had yet to see and speak to the new and improved Amy but according to Pam, Amy hasn't had a moment to do anything other than nurse her new baby, feed so she was okay to be around the new baby and shop around for the crap load of clothes, cribs, and accessories they didn't get much of a chance to do when she was pregnant. Long story short, the new vampire was an exhausted mother and I couldn't blame them for holding off on telling her about Ana. John, of course knew. I'd seen him yesterday.

"I'm holding up better than Michael I guess." He'd told me yesterday afternoon looking just as exhausted as we all felt. "She was Michael's mother figure."

"And what about you? You were basically her kids."

John's smile was grim. "I've learnt to deal with grief a lot differently to Michael. Ana was Michael's first mother figure after he turned. I had Pamela there as my sort of family figure in the beginning and in a way she treated me as my mother did before I found Ana. I'm not surprised this is a lot harder on Michael."

Today was the first day I'd woken up with Michael beside me. I wouldn't be surprised if Ana told him to stop visiting her.

I took a hesitant step forward and placed my hand on his arm. "Michael." I said softly.

He inhaled and exhaled sharply before turning to face me. "Evie... I'm sorry I haven't-"

"It's okay." I interrupted with a half hearted smile. "I understand this is hard for you."

Today was the day I got to meet Amy. I wanted to be excited and a part of me was but...

I ran my hand over his back before going back into the bedroom to get dressed. I shrugged on my summer dress and watched from the corner of my eye as Michael dressed from his own brief shower.

"Mike."

His eyes darted over me before he zipped up his jeans. "You don't have to worry about me."

"I have a right to be worried; I haven't seen you in almost a week."

"I'm here now."

I shook my head. "You're holding this in and it isn't good for you."

"I have my way of dealing with it, Evie. Just like you've had yours."

I caught on to way he'd used past tense and frowned a little. "Had?"

"Yes. Had."

I knew he was angry. Probably more so at himself but at the moment, I was in his line of fire which did hurt. But I knew after he found out about me knowing about Ana, he'd be too emotionally stunted to realise that Ana had told me in confidence and trust.

"Ana said she'd explain to you why she told me." I said.

"And she did."

"Then why are you upset with me?"

"I'm not upset with you." He turned to me briefly before shrugging on a t-shirt.

I had to be patient with him. I had to let him come to me. If he ever did. I started out toward the door when I started to realised I wasn't going to get much out of him today.

"I'm angry."

I paused and settled my gaze onto him. "At me?"

"At Ana. For giving up this easily." He said with a stiff shrug.

"Ana isn't giving up, Michael." I said softly.

"No?" He shocked me by raising his voice. "She's lived this long. She's practically the same age as me. And now all of a sudden she's... she..."

Slowly, as if approaching a wild animal, I approached him. I took his hand thankful he didn't pull away from me and held it to my chest. "What's happening right now with Florence is the most amount of power she's ever had to use; that woman is not giving up. I can't tell you I know exactly how you feel because truthfully I only have twenty-one years to compare to your century. And I haven't known Ana as long as you have but when her soul leaves us I'll be just as distraught as you and her family. When it happens we'll all be in exactly the same boat without a paddle. We'll all need each other when it happens. I know you're upset she told me instead of you," I pressed my lips to knuckles. "I can accept that. I've had longer to process it sure but it doesn't mean it hurts any less to know that-" My voice cracked. "-it's going to happen."

I exhaled a large shaky breath when he pulled me into his chest. His arm engulfed me into a hug and I buried my face into his chest. "You give me strength when I need it, Evie."

"Good." I murmured inhaling the homely scent of him.

"I'm selfish enough to take it."

"It's not selfish if I'm giving it to you, Michael. I love you so much and it hurts me to see you this way."

"I love you too." He pulled away and gave me a small smile. "It's almost twelve, are you ready to see Amy?"

I nodded, allowing the change of conversation. "I'm ready. Not as excited as I wish I was but..."

"I know. Will you tell her?"

"John said it'd be best if I did it." I frowned a little as we made our way downstairs and out to the car.

The drive to John and Amy's was comfortably quiet. Every few stop lights and take a peak at Michael and thankfully I didn't see any signs of him thinking about Ana, he seemed not happy but not entirely sad either. It would take a long while for Michael to get through the grieving process but it was absolutely fine with me.

For once, there was only one other car parked outside of John's wonderful home and for that I was grateful. I knew Celia was probably around doing what she could to help them.

I stepped quickly toward the front door and walked right in with Michael hot on my heels. I glanced back at him as we made our way upstairs to the living room and finally saw a genuine smile on his face.

"Why are you smiling?"

"Because I can't wait to see your face when you see her. Remember she's just over a week old though." He grinned.

Seeing Michael this happy made me perk up a little with excitement. I was going to see my best friend as a vampire. The first thing I saw when I walked into the living room was Celia and John in the living room. Jonas was happily sitting on Celia's lap whilst John was cradling Amelia and trying his hardest to keep his eyes open.

"Have I walked into a nursery?" I said and they both turned to me with a smile.

John's eyes opened a little wider as they settled onto me and he gave me a lazy smile. "My wonderful bachelor pad has turned into a home for babies, babysitters and baby's mothers."

"Careful, Amy can hear everything you say now." Celia scolded.

I blanched a little at the musical voice from upstairs that yelled, "Exactly!"

I glanced at Michael and his smug smile. Even in that one word I could tell that her voice was somehow still her own but personified into a purr.

John smiled at me knowingly. "She'll be down in a second, she's getting dressed."

I carefully settled myself beside John and smiled lovingly at Amelia sleeping peacefully in her fathers arms. "How's Amelia?"

"Wonderful. Except when she's hungry." He grumped. "And when she's tired."

"Dhampir's aren't used to their sleeping or eating habits until around four months. Jonas is a year now and he's just about getting used to it." Celia interjected. "You have work ahead of you John."

"I'm so excited." He mumbled standing slowly. "I'm putting her upstairs, I'll get Amy."

He disappeared and Michael sat beside Celia stealing Jonas off her lap and putting him on his. I watched the way they interacted carefully, Ana's words ringing through my ears. It was up to me. I knew Michael would be a great father. But was I strong enough to go through what Amy went through? Jonas giggled when he tickled him and I smiled. He'd be a wonderful father.

"Evie," John said and I turned my head to the stairs. "Ready?"

I stood, brushing my hands over the skirt of my dress and grinned. "I am."

I thought maybe I had prepared myself this past week to see her. Then again whenever I saw a new vampire, I was never prepared despite knowing a sufficient number of them. But hell this knocked the very wind out of me.

"Sweet Mother of Moses." I whispered to myself.

Amy descended the stairs with a giant grin on her absolutely stunning face. She was in a flowing skirt and a tank top. She made such casual wear look like a runaway outfit. I didn't know what to take in first. The silky flow of her brown hair - it was so long now, resting below her shoulders and probably the middle of her back - or the stunning angular shape of her jaw and cheek bones. Or even her bow shaped full red lips... or the pale but flawless skin complexion. But then there were her eyes. Human Amy had brown eyes. Just brown. But vampire Amy had honey coloured eyes. They were still brown, but noticeably a little lighter.

Human Amy was understatedly beautiful.

Vampire Amy was bewitching. She was the epitome of predator.

I barely had a moment to comprehend what was happening before she swept me into a hug. Thankfully, she loosened her death grip of a hold and I laughed and wrapped my arms around her. But then I froze. My God. Her scent overwhelmed me. It matched her completely. It was like a waterfall of citrus. A wave of different fruits crashing into me over and over again. Like biting into the juiciest watermelon... then a hint of lime... maybe even a blood orange...

"Amy," John said with a slight chuckle.

"Oops. I still can't control this smell thing yet." She said quietly as she let me go. Closer up, she was even better. "I've been begging John to let me see you since I woke up."

I still wasn't over how different she looked and by the slight blush that swept over her cheeks she knew. That made me smile. Still the same Amy.

"You're absolutely stunning." I murmured looking at her from head to toe. "And you're so... so..."

"Behaved is the word you're looking for." John said from the side.

Amy smiled a dazzling smile. "It's hard, I won't lie to you Evie. This week has been the biggest test. John is constantly making me feed which I won't protest to because of Amelia." Suddenly her eyes brightened in a way only a mother's would as she said, "She's perfect isn't she? I can't believe it, I'm a mom. At twenty-one. God, my mother is going to lecture me to no end, I can almost hear it now. Plus I've taken these last few months out so that'll only add to the stress."

This sense of childish happiness didn't go unnoticed and I glanced at John in question. "Her emotions. They'll mature in a few weeks trust me. But she's doing extremely well, better than a lot of us did probably because of Amelia. Comes and goes in phases throughout the day."

Then should I really tell her about Ana? As if sensing my thoughts, John nodded his head with a frown. Amy deserved to know it wasn't fair she was kept in the dark about it.

"How long do I have with her?" I asked knowing it will start to get difficult for her. She was only a week old after all.

"About half hour."

I frowned. It was sad I wouldn't be able to see her for more than an hour.

*

John was right it did come and go. Because as soon as we started strolling outside Amy was still talkative but the way she talked strengthened after ten minutes of walking along the trail. I loved how fondly she spoke of Amelia and John. Amy got the fairytale she wanted. She had a loving man in her life and a beautiful baby girl. Her story was almost ending.

I still had a hell of a way to go.

After another five minutes I started to realise my time with her was running out. So I pulled her off to a grassy area not too far from the house and sat her down. With her emotions still a little here and there, explaining what was happening with Anastasia was the hardest thing I ever had to do. The beautiful smile that graced her lips dropped before I could fully explain what was going on and her jaw was clenching as if she were stopping herself from crying.

She remained quiet as I told her everything from when Ana told me a few months ago and to how Michael had barely been home this week. I even had myself a small cry with Amy clutching onto her hand for dear life.

"I may not have known Ana long," Amy mumbled wiping at her eyes. "But it feels like I'm losing a family member."

"I know." I sighed. "And with Michael shutting me out when he feels like it, it's not making things any easier."

"He's dealing, isn't he? I caught John glassy eyed in the bathroom last night; I didn't know what was wrong, he wouldn't tell me. At least now I know. How's Katherine?"

"I haven't seen her since last week, but I spoke to her a few days ago. She's been with Sam and her mom sorting everything out."

"Everything as in the...?" Amy didn't even need to say it. Funeral.

"Kate said because Florence isn't here, it's best to get it done now."

At the mention of Florence, I was shocked to see Amy's pupils dilate a little. Seeing her eyebrows furrow in anger and a dark vein or two highlight along her neck made it all the more real. Amy was a vampire. She was twenty-one forever.

"It's all her fault that Ana's this way." Her voice had even dropped an octave, it was actually a little frightening.

But I lay my hand on her knee and was happy to see her eyes return to its full colour and her face relax. "Sorry."

"It's fine." I smiled reassuringly. "I mean I need to get used to the fact that you're a vampire now."

"I know, I still can't believe it." She laughed a little. Even that was a lovely sound. "When I woke up that day, everything was so surreal. I don't need to wear my glasses anymore which I still can't get used to. My memory was a little fuzzy but as soon as I saw John... everything just went into perspective, Eve. I had a child with the man I love even more so now than ever before and I didn't think that was possible."

"He is your maker after all." I teased and she lightly, almost feather like, hit my knee. I couldn't even class it as a hit. It was funny to see how careful she was with me.

"Yes, he's my 'maker' but it's not just that. In this form everything is heightened so much. I even love you more." I chuckled at that. "John and Amelia are my light in darkness and I will do anything and everything to protect them." Amy paused and turned her head away from me as she took a deep breath. "I'm sorry hold on..."

I glanced down at my watch and realised it's been just over half hour. "Should I go?"

"No, I'll be fine for another five, ten minutes trust me."

"What's the feeling like if you don't mind answering?"

"It's kind of like... doing a marathon in the desert and not having any water. My throat gets itchy and dry, swallowing saliva is even a struggle." I grimaced and she smiled. "It's normal, I'm still young technically speaking. And before you ask, I haven't killed anyone. John and Christian taught me the basics in compelling and how not to kill when I feed. I almost did which almost destroyed me but I'm okay. I'm doing okay, Evie."

I smiled at my best friend and took her hand. "I'm glad."

"But I do have to say one thing." She said. "About your scent."

Oh dear. "What?"

"I'm not surprised Christian went a bit weird in Alaska. You smell pretty great."

"And this is where things get weird." I started laughing and so did she.

I noticed her breathing had halted when she smiled and I knew that it was time to get back. She didn't speak much on the way to the house so I went ahead and explained what happened over the phone to Chelsea. I could see the heightened sense of emotions creeping back up on her as I spoke so I told her I'd explain next time or over the phone.

Back at the house, Celia took Amy back outside to inhale some fresh, sans me, air and I glanced around the living room only to be told Mike was upstairs with Amelia. I grinned at the bomb site of a study. What used to be such a modern room was now littered with various baby items and a crib.

Michael looked up from Amelia's crib. "Did you tell her?"

"She's taking it better than I thought she would." I sighed joining him. "She did cry."

Michael slowly nodded his head. "Amy's a quick learner; I'm not all that surprised she's reigning in her emotions so well."

Both of us silently watched Amelia bundled into a blanket, her little mouth gaping open as she slept peacefully. I'd give anything to be as unaware as she was right now. Ignorance is bliss.

I lay my hand on Michael's forearm when I saw him grow still. "We can see her if you want?"

He shook his head. "She told me to stop visiting her for a while because I was... being selfish and ignoring you."

"You weren't-"

"I was though wasn't I, Evie. I just hate feeling this helpless while Ana's too weak to walk further than her living room."

I chewed on the corner of my lip. I hadn't realised it'd gotten that bad.

"Do you want to get lunch? I'm not ready to go home yet." He took my hand from his arm and squeezed it.

Mike and I said our goodbyes to the happy couple and Celia and made our way to a nice little bistro in town. Although I could see the sadness in Michael's eyes throughout lunch I did manage to squeeze a few smiles and laughs from him. We were seated on a table out front and I was glad to be soaking up the sun with a glass of Pinot Grigio. We hadn't been out to lunch in a long while. It was hard to do so when Michael was my professor and having the constant worry that we'd somehow bump into a familiar face in town.

But now, after finals and only a few months away from graduation I couldn't care any less. And judging by the way Michael sipped at his red wine and stole a few spoonfuls of my warm chocolate fudge cake he couldn't care if the Dean walked past and stopped to stare. Mike needed this.

Later that evening, Nate came over whilst Michael disappeared to visit Ana - after I forced him because he looked a little lost - and settled beside me on the couch. "How're you?"

"I could be better." I murmured switching the channel's over. "You?"

"Same." He sighed. "I've been with Sam today. He broke down a few times."

"This is so painful. Seeing everyone like this..." I rubbed a hand over my face and allowed him to pull me into his side. "What happens after? When Mike will be too distraught to leave the house or when Kate decides she doesn't want to speak to anyone because we both know Katherine well enough to know she'll-"

"Shh, Evie." He cupped my cheeks forcing me to look at him and frowned. "We are all here for each other whether we like it or not. We're a family."

For the one hundredth time I cried, planting my face into the crook of Nate's neck as he rubbed my back. Even his shallow breaths were beginning to tremble and it just pained me even more. Because Anastasia had wormed her way into the hearts of every single of of these vampires whether she's known them for a week or a year.

I recovered after a few minutes but kept my forehead against his shoulder. It was nice to have company after a few lonely days. Nate sat with me for hours, not speaking much but simply rubbing soothing circles over my back or muttering comments on whatever TV programme that so happened to pop up on TV.

It was yet another waiting game now. But this game I wished would never end.

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Guys I didn't realise I hadn't updated in a month. Its gone so quickly! Sorry! Yet another bittersweet chapter. I'd say another six-seven chapters. Definitely no more than ten.