Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Kristin and P.C. Cast do.

Zoey

I heard once, on that Twilight movie Damien made me watch, that death was easy but living was harder.

In the blackness, I totally got that. My soul was at such ease, that it was hard to remember ever being worried or stressed. I was barley aware that Heath was right beside me calling my name over and over, trying to get me to wake up. I was dead, he was dead. I could stay in this blackness forever, it was that peaceful. For a minute I forgot all about the worries that I left behind in the living world. My boyfriend problems. Kalona trying to take over the world and kill everyone I loved. Stevie Rae and her red fledglings. Being in Italy at the Vampire High Council. I was at peace in this blackness and I hoped that I could stay in the blackness forever.

Zoeybird.

The words were barely a whisper, but my soul recognized them. Nyx.

Zoeybird open your eyes.

Automatically my eyes flew open, leaving the blackness and all of the peace that came with being in that blackness behind. The sun was still high in the sky, which meant that I was still in that beautiful meadow. I was still in the Otherworld. I looked beside me, Heath was there. Seeing him broke something inside of me and I started crying horrible, heart-wrenching sobs. Again.

"Zoeybird." Nyx spoke in her wonderful voice. She was beautiful, wearing a long white dress. Her black hair was pulled up into a high, elegant bun. She reached out and touched my shoulder. "Spirit, be with Zoey, comfort her." As soon as she spoke the words I felt my element flow through me, in spite of where I was and why I was there, I smiled. "There is that smile that I love so much u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya."

"Yeah, Zo is beautiful when she smiles." Heath said. Hearing his voice my smile evaporated.

"Oh Goddess!" I put my face in my hands "I messed up. I really, really messed up."

"No, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya. You are following your heart." Nyx took my face, gently lifting it up to meet her eyes. "You don't belong here. You belong in the world of the living. You belong with your friends and your grandma." with her free hand she reached out, touching the side of Heath's face, "You were a great Consort to my High Priestess. I did not Mark you as one of my own, but I do consider you a very important part of Zoey's life, which makes you very important to me."

"Thanks," Heath mumbled. He actually looked embarrassed! "I would do anything for you and Zo. Especially Zo."

"Say goodbye to your human consort, u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya. Then I will accompany you back to the world of the living."

I started crying those heart-wrenching sobs again. "I can't say good bye to him. I love him so much."

"Zo. I love you too but they need you back home. Our friends. They need your help. You're the only one who can beat Kalona."

"No. I can't do this alone. I'm so confused. This is bullpoopie." I shouted.

"You won't be alone, Zo." Heath said. He put his hand over my heart. "I'm always going to be right there, with you. Plus, you have all of your friends and Stark."

I walked over to Heath and threw my arms around him, holding him to me. Heath kissed me, it wasn't like any kiss we had ever shared. This kiss was final, the end. He was saying goodbye. He was the one that pulled back first to whisper in my ear "Do not trust Kalona, Zoey. He's pure evil, no good at all."

I couldn't help the way my heart started beating at just the mention of Kalona's name. I nodded. I didn't know if I would be able to ever stop loving him, but I would defeat him. He killed Heath, the most important person in my life. Heath, the person that I had known my whole life and had loved for most of that life. I thought that maybe I loved Kalona, but I loved Heath too. He was my human rock, always there for me whenever I needed him.

"Zo, listen to me. They want you to go to him willingly. They want to kill you when you do. Hell Zo, the crazy red head wants to kill you now." His voice was fierce, but then it took on a softer tone. "Please be careful Zo. I need to know that you will defeat him."

I didn't trust my voice, so I just nodded.

"Zoey." the way that Heath said my name was filled with such sadness. I looked up to see his face, he was crying. He was dead, he was supposed to be at peace but just like everything else I was messing it up.

"Yeah?" I asked

"Tell my mom and dad I said I love them." He leaned down, giving me one last kiss. Then he was gone.

I turned around to look at Nyx. She was sitting on the same dock that Heath had been sitting at fishing. "What do I do now?" I asked. I didn't know how I got to the Otherworld, so I obviously didn't know how to get back.

"Take my hand u-we-tsi-a-ge-ya."

I walked over to my beautiful Goddess, placing my hand in hers I closed my eyes.

It wasn't even a second later that I left the Otherworld. I was back in my old body, laying on the ground. Stark, my Warrior, was kneeling beside me crying. All around us I could hear people crying. The twins. Jack and Damien. I thought maybe Darius, but one person who wasn't crying was Aphrodite. She was screaming.

"Dammit Z, wake the hell up!" Her voice sounded on the verge of tears. "This wasn't supposed to happen! I didn't see this happen! Z! Wake up. Please."

I wanted so badly to open my eyes, to see my friends and to tell them that I was okay, but I couldn't. I felt like I wasn't really in my body, just an innocent by stander hearing all of this happen.

I felt the air around me grow colder, and I knew that Nyx was there.

"It's okay my children." I heard her wonderful voice say, "Zoey Redbird will be okay."

All around me I heard a sharp intake of breathe.

"Thank Goddess you're here Nyx!" Aphrodite said, she sounded much calmer now. "Everything is going to be okay now."

"Yes my daughter it will be." Her voice sounded much closer to me, then I felt lips being pressed to the center of my forehead, right were my Mark was. As soon as her lips touched my Mark, I felt a tingly sensation where all of my other Marks were. Everybody gasped again. When her lips left my Mark, my eyes flew open.

Nyx was standing right over me. Unlike in my dream, where she looked solid, here she looked like a ghost. I looked around to see all of my other friends huddled close together. Tears running silently down all of their faces. I probably should had said something to let everyone know that I was okay, that everything was going to be okay now like Aphrodite had said. I didn't. I didn't say anything at all, I just cried. Again.

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-Tay