As Number Five revealed everything, my mind reeled, unsure how to react. My neurosis, or perhaps this damn syndrome of mine, made it incredibly difficult to accept that I had been right and not wrong, and that Damon had orchestrated it all. Wulfe, however, had known. He'd been furious, turning them into ticks. I wondered if this was good for pack life, and if it was all my fault anyway. Number Five kept me close, leading me to my bedroom, which had been cleaned, the curtains drawn to create a cool, dim space. My laptop was nowhere to be seen.
As Number Five guided me to sit on the bed, he removed my wristwatch, meaning I couldn't check on my babies to see if they were in distress. Number Four entered the room. Five handed him my wristwatch and nodded. Four looked at me, not like Doctor Damon, but like *my* Damon, and he smelled like him, making my heart ache.
Five hugged me. "Shh, baby, it's okay. We are here. Just calm down. I can feel you, my love, and that pain... it burns me too."
I muttered, "Sorry. I try to control myself. I am such a mess. Maybe Damon, Number One, was right, maybe this was a power trip for me."
Number Four approached me and said, "No, baby, he was wrong. Come on, let's get your clothes off. You have to rest. Your babies need you to be okay, and the only way you can be okay is to rest and heal. Let us do some headwork. Your mind is a mess, but worry not, we are here."
I looked at him and said in a low, weak voice, "I am not sure if I've eaten right. I am not that hungry always, maybe my enzymes or something messes my mind."
He just grunted and helped me remove my shirt. Number Five was taking my pants off, both of them in an extremely caring mood. After they had me naked, Number Four softly tutted, seeing how skinny I still was. Number Five opened the bed and laid me down, then came next to me, also without clothes, and pulled me close, pressing my head to his chest so I could hear his heartbeat.
He said, "Now, close your eyes, rest, and listen to my voice, good girl. Keep those peepers closed, that's it."
His warm voice almost caressed me, and I was overwhelmed. I was tired, but my restlessness threatened to take over. Damon's strong arms around me kept me tightly pressed against his solid, strong, hot male body, keeping me safe. He was almost wrapping himself around me, keeping me still, keeping me safe.
"Tell me a story," he murmured, "but first, I want a set of rules. It must be fun, with no heartbreak, no mentioning of my past blunders, and no other females. It also must be something I've never heard before. I'm sure you have stories like that. So, out with it. Keep your eyes closed, just tell me the story and show it to me too. Focus on that."
I was stumped. It took time for my tired, overworked brain to recall such a story, but fine, I had one. The memory sparked a flicker of interest in me, as it usually did, wondering if it would be as enjoyable to tell again.
I began my story, saying, "Well, this was after I was cursed with the sandwich, and I was in Idaho. Our larger base was there, and Jarod was in it. We were discussing all kinds of Pretender stuff, and the funny thing was, Jake was kind of jealous. Poor Jarod; it feels like half the world is jealous of him, of our connection."
Number Five murmured, "Easy, baby, don't talk about your connection to Jarod too much, or else I might see you needing a nap."
There was a hint of steel in his voice.
I sighed inwardly and tried to carry on with my story. "Well, we were discussing things in my office when Jake found an excuse to butt in and send Jarod to check on something about the Centre. Then, he said to me, 'You know, you are special, wonderful, quirky, and whatnot, but the whole Pretender stuff, I don't really buy it. Sure, you're a fast learner, but then again, there are those special savants among humans.' I was quite surprised and walked right into the trap he had sprung. He then said to me, 'Wanna prove me wrong? I can see that expression, but fine, come on, let's go to the Central Hub and make a bet.' I remember thinking that he had truly lost it, and I had no idea what this was all about, but I went along with it. You know me, cocky and sure of myself."
Number Five smiled. My eyes were closed, but as he said, "Baby, oh, I want to hear this, this sounds too perfect," well, it was, and then it was a little bit something else too.
My story continued: "I was in Central Hub, and Magnum and Rob were there too. They were talking to themselves, and I could see they had issues with Jarod and my bond. Consequently, they didn't believe much in pretender power, despite everything they had witnessed. Jake challenged me, and everyone heard him. This was one of the biggest bases, and it was full, with over 300 people present that day. His voice, heard by everyone, said to me, smiling, 'Flea, I have a bet. I bet you can't learn something you hate. I mean, there are certain skills you lack, and I've heard you muttering about them.' Magnum nodded. They were referring to welding. I had earlier seen Magnum and a few guys weld our gear and had muttered to myself, 'That doesn't take skill, melting metal to bind metals. Not my thing; useful, but fucking boring.'"
Number Five said to me, "My baby, I guess you changed your opinion on welding? I mean, this is so damn funny. You were truly a cocksure little princess in there."
I kept my eyes closed as I continued my story, feeling his amusement. Somehow, this closeness and telling my story made my restlessness lessen, as if I could sigh, relax, and rest—almost, not fully, but almost. It was such a feeling I wanted.
I desperately reached for it, but at the same time, I was afraid that if I reached too eagerly, I would lose it, and my restlessness and the messiness of my mind would return with a vengeance. My voice kept going. Damon pressed me a little closer to himself to keep me even more grounded on him, as he could sense my distress so damn acutely; who would have ever guessed?
"So Jake said to me, 'I bet, with Magnum and Rob, that you can't learn how to weld in two weeks, and show us your skills. It's more than melting metals to bind metals, and if you're not interested in it, you can't learn to do it.' I took the challenge, right then and there. I returned to my office, booked online courses for welding, as well as local schools where I could try my skills, and I did it. I learned how to weld, and as a pretender, learning something new that I had never thought of even bothering to learn was so much fun. I went to school for ten lessons, and it is just one of those jobs where you have to do the actual work in order to get it perfect."
"And then," Number Five began, "there's something more. However, it's good to know you can weld, even though I've never seen you do it."
My response was, "Well, I bought a house, a massive mansion near Mississippi. I have my welding gear there, in my little hobby house. I was busy making a boat – I planned to craft it from lightweight, new-type aluminum and learn how to make it. It would be a nice boat to use. As usual, my mind, which is a special kind of thing, took over, and welding became something I wanted to do so much. Soon, my hobby house was full of all kinds of projects and fancy welding stuff, top-notch, you know me; I went overboard, and not just a little, but a huge amount."
Number Five remained calm, stroking my back, smelling my hair, and keeping me close. "Hmm, go on. What happened when Jake noticed?"
"Well, I asked them to come by, as Magnum had called me about some gigs. I gave them my new address, which is one of my old aliases. I haven't visited there in ages; it has a bubble on it. I lived there for those seven years, so I guess the magic house knows, but I'm not sure if Mariella or Number One have any idea of it."
Number Five's voice suddenly softened, almost predatory, yet incredibly seductive. "Oh, baby, we'll keep it a secret, and it will be our little sanctified space. I swear to you, once this is over, we will sanctify that house, and it will be just for our sex nest."
I wasn't sure what to feel, so I continued my story. "So the boys came, and I showed them around. Then I took them to my hobby house and showed them how skilled I was in welding, but I didn't notice their worry, as I was somewhat obsessed, talking a lot about my new hobby. And then they acted."
Number Five asked, "So tell me, my love, what did they do?"
Somehow, his gentle request to tell more helped. It centered me more than if he'd just let me blurt out my story.
Remembering it all, I sighed. I recalled my initial excitement and near obsession with my new hobby, rambling on about my gear while oblivious to the worry etched on Magnum's, Jake's, and Rob's faces.
I continued my story, "I had baked some, and we went for coffee. I talked about my boat and all the technical details, naturally making Magnum wildly jealous, as he also wanted to try out my gear. However, I admit, I was a bit too obsessive. The next thing I knew, I was strapped to a chair in a dark room. Constantine appeared and forced me to drink those vile potions again. He couldn't be certain whether I was cursed again due to my obsession, or if it was just my mind enjoying my new hobby. Rob had, once again, slipped me those cursed calendula drops and delivered me to Constantine, while Jake, Magnum, and a few others took away everything related to welding - all my gear and whatnot."
Number Five's voice was amused. "Oh my god, baby, your expressions must have been priceless! I wish I could have seen it! Gods damn it, your memory is hilarious! And baby, no welding. Not because you're obsessed, but because it's too dangerous for you and not good for your health, so don't even think about it. But it's good for us to know. I've shared this story with Number Four, Nine, and Ten so we're aware, and we'll make sure you don't do it."
I rolled my eyes, even though they were closed. They were a bit overprotective, it seemed, but I could handle this just fine, no stress at all.
"From this point on," Number Five said, "this is a valuable lesson. Mariella will be occupied, so don't worry about your little ones; we'll take care of them. We'll start them on solids, and you can rest and recover. You have time; they grow slowly. Considering the slight sleep regression and overall crankiness, you need to see them in a better mood and allow us to help. The future will be ours, and that house...oh my god, I can't wait for us to sanctify it, since, my love, you haven't sanctified anything with me to that extent yet. Now, we must have a house of our own."
I began to calm down slightly, keeping my eyes closed. His closeness and the sense of security, even in whispers, were working, slowing the frantic pace of my overclocking mind. I was just thinking why I had to be such a mess, why I couldn't be perfect.
Number Five's voice was patient as he asked me in the darkness of my bedroom, "My love, baby, do you want to be like Mariella? She has no impulse control at all, while yours are a little overdeveloped, but it's better than giving in to every damn want and need. Regarding your neurosis, we're crafting a potion that will link distress to the protector core, for us all. This means we could catch you right away. Slight distress would show up, and you wouldn't be able to hide it. We would then learn your triggers better, what to do, and how to deal with and help you."
I muttered, "Yeah, I'd be as messed up as one of you would be in distress because of myriad reasons, and then you would notice it, and it all would be a giant jumble."
Number Five's voice was slightly amused. His large hand stroked my back, caressed my skin, kept me close, kept me safe. "Baby, then we would heal each other, right? And all would be fine. But just think, slight distress or misbehavior in Mariella and Charles would be immediately apparent. So freaking perfect."
Maybe it might be, maybe not. I wasn't sure if that kind of potion would be possible to make. From my experience, what sounded too good to be true usually ended up with me burning my wings badly. But then again, I had been mistaken before, too. Maybe, just maybe, the future would be better for us all.
As I drifted off to sleep, a sense of safety finally enveloped me. I could no longer worry or let my mind race like a hurricane. Instead, I surrendered to the feeling of being safe, loved, and cared for, even though it sometimes felt alien.
I must admit that the house is truly sanctified, not just by myself and Number Five, but by other Salvatores and other individuals as well. To describe how we sanctified the house would be like writing a pornographic movie in text, so I won't be too explicit, at least not yet. One never knows what mood I'll be in when I reach that part of my story. -Mimi.