So that was Zara Wynters, he thought. She was everything he had been told she would be and more, although admittedly his friend had left out a lot of details. She hadn't noticed him however, which did not sit well with Philippe. He was not used to women ignoring him, and yet Zara did not seem to have eyes for anyone but her brother and Stéfane. Was he not her type? He knew she was not attached, his research had told him she had not been involved with anyone for years. Surly she had to indulge every now and then. He was more than the right type of man for such indulgence. He sighed, I really am an arrogant bastard, he thought. One little woman doesn't notice me and I'm as insecure as a teenager in high school.
Philippe was a little surprised when he had received a phone call from his closest friend, asking him to visit Kailan, and see that he and the girl were doing fine. He never understood his friend's obsession with those two, but he befriended Kailan almost eighty years ago at his behest, and found he genuinely liked the younger vampire. This was his first encounter with his sister, and he found he liked her too, more than he should. She most definitely had a temper, which may be a problem for him in the future, but he was confident he could control her. First, however, he had to make her notice him. It was quite convenient that Kai offered him a place to stay in their home. It would make his task easier.
---
Zara was back in her room, shaking after the adrenaline had left her system. Her heart almost stopped when she realized her idiot brother had taken the ring. He could be so foolish sometimes! She had been even more foolish to remove it briefly. She looked down at it now, resting on her forefinger. It was a thin band of white gold with a large oval shaped emerald set in the center with four claws holding it in place. Smaller cut emeralds surrounded it, all set in a fine border of filigree. It spanned almost half her slender finger. There was an inscription in an ancient language long forgotten by the world along the outside of the band in thin curvy writing. Only she and one other person knew the meaning of the enchantment. This small object was the only thing keeping her powers in check. She was beginning to think her little experiment was foolish. Removing her ring for the week in an effort to try and control her powers on her own was risky. She realized now the test was pointless anyways, because the ring still held some of its effects while she was close to it, like an invisible shield. She didn't think Kai would be just as foolish.
She wondered briefly whether she should just kill her brother and be done with it. She sighed, how many times had she thought of doing that over the years. She laughed out loud lightly. As much as her brother got under her skin she loved him to no end. He was her only family, aside from Stéfane. She could never bring herself to kill them, especially Kai, as she had sired him not long after she was brought into this life. Killing him would kill her. Of course they drove her mad, but she would gladly put up with it than walk the earth alone. She satisfied herself with beating the shit out of them every once in a while. He had been foolish tonight, his boredom causing him to be reckless. He loved when she lost control, saying it always brought out something to look forward to.
If he only knew how she feared herself. He thought after so much time she had come to terms with it. She hated the fact that she did not know how to control the raw energy that ran through her body. It pulsed within her, matching the beating of her heart. She had always downplayed her abilities, even in front of Kai. She did not want to worry him or Stéfane. There was nothing any of them could do; there were no books or ancient texts referring to anything remotely similar to what Zara possessed. God only knew she had searched the Earth thousands of times over. She had found no reference to any creature, vampire or other that held the same characteristics as she.
There was not one word on why her eyes held the strange silver iris, why when she felt any particular emotion strongly her natural green colouring would be completely taken over by the silver. There had been no texts on her ability to mentally communicate with anyone, regardless if they shared blood. No texts described the level of speed and strength she possessed. Only an ancient at least twice her age could posses such strength. Nothing mentioned her telekinesis, although most vampires possessed similar powers, none possessed more than one.
Most of all, nothing had described the energy she felt within her, like another living organism pulsed from her very core. The things she could do when she tapped into that energy were endless, and particularly terrifying. She had learned to tap into certain parts of herself, to strengthen abilities that she deemed harmless, such as changing her appearance and willing objects into fruition, but there remained a large part she shied away from. She knew she was extremely powerful, but she had never asked for such power. Over time she had decided she was probably a freak of nature; she was a vampire after all. She resigned herself to the fact that she walked the Earth alone, as a singular irregularity, some sort of mistake by nature that had never repeated itself since she was reborn.
In her attempt to find answers, she had searched for her creator, the man who sired her so long ago. He was the oldest of their kind that she knew of. He seemed to not want to be found, though. Xander hadn't checked up on her since their last meeting almost seven centuries ago, which ended rather explosively. She had lost her temper and hurt Xander, both emotionally and physically. He had left the next day, leaving her alone, confused. She regretted everything she said, the moment she said it but her anger won out as it always did. She had missed her friend, maker and mentor every single day since, but had accepted his silence as her punishment. She had tried to push the mental link they shared, but he had blocked her with such force she never attempted again.
That was her life, constantly traveling, searching for answers, searching for Xander, or anyone who could somehow help her understand why she was so different. She had learned little concerning her unusual traits, but she had gained much knowledge of cultures, languages and people. She had learned and seen things that she would never forget, that shaped her and while they weren't the answers she was looking for, they were answers to questions she never thought to ask. So she kept up her traveling, eager to see what she could uncover next. That was until Kai had called her, begging her to come home. It had been almost 45 years since she had seen him. She had missed him every single day.
They had argued over the phone for hours. He grew angry with her, telling her that she was chasing after shadows. She would never find anything and that she should just accept herself for what she was, an anomaly. He missed her and wanted her home again, not chasing after things that did not exist. She was frustrated with him. He didn't understand. He never had. She had always held back around Kai, for fear he would find her abhorrent, that he would turn her away.
He had never seen her at her full extent, when she drew on every last shred of her power; he came close once, but didn't see much as he was trying to save her at the time. The only person who had was Xander, and he had walked away from her immediately afterwards. She would not lose Kai or Stéfane. Eventually however, she had conceded to her brother's demands, thinking a few months back home would pacify him. That had been two weeks ago, and already she grew restless, eager to travel again, to add to her infinite well of knowledge. She sighed loudly, pushing all the memories back. One stupid ring had caused her to dwell on things she did not want to think about.
"Why so sad, ma chérie?" she heard Antoinette's voice from the door.
Zara watched Antoinette glide into the room, exuding elegance and there was no other word for it -- magic. She was a witch, one who managed to live almost seven hundred years, thanks to her Elvin blood. She was of average height, but so slender it made her look taller than she really was. She had golden hair that ran in long tight curls down her back, and highlighted her pixie-esque face. Her eyes were the lightest blue and always seemed to twinkle, as though she knew something you did not.
"Toni, can you work a spell to shrivel up Kai and Stéfane's balls? At least for one day? Please?" she asked, sitting up from her bed on her elbows, glancing at her dearest friend with wide, hopeful eyes.
Toni laughed as she sat on the edge of the bed, "Qu'ont-ils fait eh? What did these fools do to my Zara?" she asked, a hint of her French accent coming through, running her hand along Zara's hair.
"Aside from the obvious," she said as she rolled her eyes and gestured to her hair, "they took my ring -- again. Toni, I almost killed them both!"
"Will they never learn?" Toni sat up abruptly and began swearing in French, so fast that had it not been for Zara's excellent hearing, she would have missed half the things coming from the witch's mouth. She turned suddenly, a wicked gleam in her eyes.
"They will no longer be so foolish, chérie," she said laughter in her voice.
"What did you do?"
"What you asked and more. Let us say the women gracing their beds tonight will find them sadly lacking the certain equipment required to perform to their usual standards."
Zara began laughing loudly, the sound echoing in her room, as both women fell back on the bed and giggled until tears streamed their faces. It was quite convenient having a witch as a best friend, she thought. This should keep them from pulling any crap for at least half a century she thought wryly.
