Sticks and Stones, Emmy41 [beach read book .TXT] 📗

gravely, but still soothing to the ears. I studied her some more, taking in the fact that she had a small scar running from her chin, along her jaw line, stopping near her ear, and the fact that her nose had a very faint splash of freckles on her paper white skin no regular human would normally see. She bucked suddenly, causing me to release her to steady myself before I crushed her. She shoved me, causing me to fall backwards. I expected to fall on her legs, but she had them out from under me faster than I hit the ground. She scrambled up as I stood up, pressing her hands into a wall behind her. Her eyes flashed.

“ what do you want?” she asked, her voice dropping another octave. I smiled slowly.

“ I wanted to see what your parents were hiding in the attic.” I said casually. She glared at me a moment, then closed her eyes. I noticed she didn’t put her weight on the wall, and I didn’t dare take a step towards her.

“ what’s wrong?” I asked, confused. Her head snapped up suddenly.

“ you need to leave. Now.” She said, in almost a whisper. I frowned.

“No. I’m not going to. What’s. Wrong?” she glared at me suddenly.

“ Its none of your business, alright?” She turned to leave and I gasped, reaching forward to latch onto her left shoulder. There were three oozing lines in the back of her shirt.

“ Good God, what happened?” I hissed. She tried to shake off my hand, and then she froze. I could tell the movement had caused her a lot of pain. I pushed her foreword so that she went into the room she’d attacked me from. I lifted a hand impatiently, turning on the lights in there as well. Suddenly something clicked into my mind.

“Doesn’t me doing that bother you?” she turned her head, then blinked so that we were plunged into darkness again. A second later the lights were back on. I raised an eyebrow. I wasn’t that advanced yet.

(her)

I glared at the guy over my shoulder, wiggling it a moment to show that I wanted him to let me go. He dug his nails in a second, and then released the pressure.
" Show me your back,” he said matter of factly. I spun to face him, not allowing my wince of pain to come through.
"Hell no." I said softly, rising to the balls of my feet so that I could pounce if needed.
A slow, aggravatingly mocking smile appeared on his face.
" I don’t think your going to have a choice, Honey." I narrowed my gaze at him, and his smile broadened.
" Are you trying to burn me on the spot? You might succeed if you keep giving me that look. He shifted his weight, and I lurched across the room, putting the loveseat between us, the stairs behind me. I glanced at my watch reflectively, and when I glanced up, he was leaning on the back of the couch, his face scant inches from mine.
" I could be over this silly piece of furniture and have you pinned under me so I cold heal your back before you draw your next breath." He said, sounding gratingly like an amused male jerk. I hissed lowly.

" You need to leave." I bit out, backing slowly away from him. As he promised, I sucked in a sharp breath as my stomach slammed into the floor, his legs pinning mine to the floor as he pulled my shirt up. He sucked in a sharp breath.

" What happened to you?" he asked softly, all traces of male amusement gone. I bit the inside of my cheek, refusing to answer. He realized that, and sighed. A second later I felt a feather light touch on the raw, burning edges of the rips, and I cringed into the floor, trying to get away from his touch.

" Who are you?" I spat out, suddenly furious that he had pinned me to the ground so easily. I felt him move, and then his breath hit my ear.

" People call me Baron. How about you?" I bit my tongue again, processing this information as he sat up again, his hand once again brushing against the edges of the ripped skin. Surprisingly, it didn’t hurt this time.

" You were the one trying to get into my head all day, aren’t you?" I asked flatly. He hesitated a moment.

" Yes, I am. And you made it extremely impossible." he ran his hand once more against my back, and I realized the skin was smooth now.

" What did you do?" I asked, shocked. He pressed his hand into the small of my back as he sat forward again, his other hand catching mine as I attempted to hit him.

" I healed your back. You had some kind of unnatural poison in the tears. What did this to you?" I closed my eyes, wiggling my hands in his vice grip.

" How old are you?" he asked suddenly. I frowned at the floor, confused.

" I'm almost sixteen. Why?" he sucked in a sharp breath, I heard it. His nails dug into my wrists.

" How are you so powerful?" I shook my head slowly. He pulled me up abruptly, spinning me so he could study my face intently. His eyes widened suddenly.

" You were touched by..." he trailed off, surprise making his eyes sparkle slightly, there deep browns lightening a shade. I snatched my arms away from him, scowling.


(Him)


I studied her a long time, until she dropped her furious gaze.
"Where is he?" I asked, suddenly terrified. If he was somewhere close, and dad and me hadn't sensed him... we were in big trouble.
" Kyndil is here, in this house, isn’t he?" I asked softly when she turned away from me. I stepped forward, making her look at me.
" Isn't he?" she jerked away from me, stepping back into the hall.
" I'd appreciate it if you got out of my house now, please." she said calmly in her quiet voice. I fallowed her to the door reluctantly.
" I never got your name." I said to buy time. She stared down the hallway a long time, then sighed.
" It's sweetie. Please, just leave." she said. I racked my brain for something to say, but finally I just sighed, striding down the steps and across the street. I waited until I was in the house to burst into a flat out run, bursting into dad’s office.
" We found him." I said excitedly. Dad froze, and then took off his glasses slowly.
" Your absolutely sure." he said slowly. I nodded viciously.
"Where?" I felt my smile falter.
" He’s, err, in the house across the road." his eyes darkened.
" You don’t joke around about this kind of stuff, Baron! What’s wrong with you?" I groaned, sitting in his chair across his desk.
" I'm not joking, dad. He bound himself to the family’s oldest daughter somehow. Just like the last family. And the last. How come we still haven’t found out how he's doing this?" dad sighed, rubbing his eyes.
" They only have one daughter, Baron." he said it as if he was trying to convince himself.
" No, I just met their oldest daughter. Her names Sweetie. She had three cuts along her back, and Kyn-"
" Don't say his name!" dad hissed, lurching forward. I sat back.
" Fine. HE had given them to her. I felt his power. There gone now though." dad sat back.
"Naturally, you healed her." I grinned.
" Naturally." he groaned.
" And how did the human child take that?" I raised an eyebrow.
" She’s not human. At least not fully. Somehow she got some kind of Smarintine in her." dad shook his head slowly, and then set it on his desk.
" Your sure its Smarintine." I nodded.


(Her)

“Ow.” I allowed the moan to escape as I woke up. I tried to move and instantly regretted it, freezing. I attempted to asess the damage while sitting there.

My face felt like it was twice the size it was supposed to be. My arm was crooked, and my leg hurt. My arms and back hurt as well, and I knew both my legs where covered in bruises. I remember a long cut on the inside of my thigh, and I sighed, managing to sit up through whimpers and dizzy spells. I was sitting up, eyes closed, when suddenly I felt someone else in the room. I felt my eye snap open, because my left one was swelled shut, to see Baron standing in the doorway.

“ How the hell did you get in?” I said. It came out muffled, but he understood.

“ I just did.” He frowned, and then was suddenly standing in front of me. He trailed his fingers along the side of my face, and a tingling sensation started.

“ What are you-”?

” Healing you. Stay still.” He sat down in front of me, frowning as he traced around my eye. I blinked, and was able to open both of them. He traced my cheek, and my temple, and then smoothed his hand over my forehead before coming back around to my chin. Then he traced my bottom lip lightly.

“ Would you-“

“ Please, stop talking. You just busted your lip again.” I closed my mouth and he rushed his fingertips on my mouth again. Then he pulled my jacket off, making me gasp.

“ Would you-“

“ What did I just say?” I clamped my mouth shut, scowling.

“ Thank you. I’m trying to help you, Sweetie. Please, hold still.” I shook my head, and then groaned. His hands flew to the nape of my neck, where he caressed it lightly until the pain subsided. Then he gently stuck out my arm and ran his hand along it. I watched in awe as the bruises disappeared, and then I saw him grimace.

“ Tale a deep breath.” I gave him a funny look, but sucked in a deep breath. I screeched as he snapped my arm back in place, jerking my arm away.

“ I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I promise I won’t do it again.” he held out his hand, waiting for me to place my arm in it again.

“ Can you stand?” I shook my head, marveling that it didn’t hurt to do so. He nodded.

“ Ok, I’m going to pick you up and have you stand slightly, putting your weight on me, ok?” I nodded. He slid his arm around my waist, and picked me up, making me gasp. He held me so that my feet where touching the ground, but I had no weight what so ever on them. He sighed.

“ Hold absolutely still.” He quickly ran his hands over my legs, making me squirm and then almost fall over.

“ What did I just say!?” he snapped, glaring at me. I flinched slightly, and he sighed.

“ Sorry. Please, listen to me, ok? I’m trying to help.”

“ Why?” I asked softly. He studied my leg, ignoring me. Suddenly he knelt in front of me, letting me grasp his hands tightly to steady himself.

“ Put your hands on my shoulders while I heal this cut, will you?” I hesitated, but did as he asked before he got mad again. He ran his fingertips over the