Chapter 16 - Breaking Bonds (Posted 29 December 2011)

"What do you mean?" Ethan asked quietly. They were full vampires. There was no going back.

"Exactly what I said," Benny told him. "I found a way to turn us human. All of us."

"All of us?"

Benny nodded. "Yeah. You, Sarah, Raoul, and me. The four of us can be human again."

"But... how?"

"Well... it's something I thought of after something Raoul said," Benny said, the name making Ethan's blood boil, "but I didn't think it would work. So I didn't say anything, because I didn't know what would happen if something went wrong. But I just kept thinking about it... and so I brought it up to Raoul and he thinks it could work."

"What could work? How can you possibly turn four full vampires human?"

Benny looked at his watch. "Dude, we have to get to class. I'll tell you after school, okay?" He ran off toward his classroom, leaving Ethan standing there, more confused than ever.

"Benny, wait..."

X

Ethan was anxious all day. He really wanted to know what Benny had planned. And, for some reason, he had a bad feeling about it. He didn't even know what it was, but the whole idea of Benny somehow turning the four of them human just seemed like a bad idea.

He waited outside at the end of the day. "There you are," he said when he'd found Benny, "where's Raoul?"

"He went home awhile. To get ready."

Ethan shivered. "Will you please tell me what's going on?"

"Oh, right. Come over here, I don't want everyone to hear what I'm saying." He pulled him over to a lonely tree.

Ethan decided he needed an explanation. "Were you even going to tell me about this?"

"What? Of course I was. Besides, I kind of have to."

"...Why?"

"Because, you have a part in it. That... and it involves breaking our bond."

Ethan's jaw dropped, and he felt lost. "Our bond is supposed to be unbreakable..."

"Yeah. But we can break it."

"How? Why do we even need to?"

"We've been blood brothers since we were little. We've been linked, so that if something happens to one of us, the other feels it. If something changes us, the other has to change too."

"I know..."

"But think about it." Benny said. "When did you start having visions? When did I start being able to use my powers? After, the bond. Shouldn't we have been able to somehow feel what the other was going through? Or wouldn't we both have the same powers?"

"Well... maybe... I mean, it makes sense..."

"Yeah. That's what's been confusing me. But I figured it out. We had these abilities before we were bonded. It wasn't a change that occurred during the bond, it didn't change us. But the vampirism... that changed us."

"What does all this mean, Benny?"

"It means, that if we can break our bond, any permanent changes that changed both of us will be reversed."

"Reversed?" Ethan said quietly.

"Yeah. Meaning we won't be vampires anymore"

"But... that doesn't explain how Raoul and Sarah will change too. And I already told you, we can't break our bond. Gramma said it was stronger than any magic... even the vampire curse couldn't break it."

"I know. But we can."

"I don't know about this..."

Benny frowned. "You haven't even heard my plan yet."

"What's going to happen then, Benny? If we don't have that link anymore?"

"You'll be free, that's what. You can be with Sarah without having to worry about me."

Ethan's heart sank. "But..."

"Listen, Ethan, this is the best way. Will you at least hear me out?"

"...I guess."

"Good, because this is where you come in. Do you know anything about vampire bonds?"

"No." Ethan shook his head.

"It's an ancient thing," Beny explained, "where two vampires form like this... psychic bond. A magical bond. And it's unbreakable. Even if the two people who are bonded hate each other, they can't just decide to end it."

Ethan's chest was pounding. "What did they do, then?"

"They went to see a priest or a priestess."

"Like Gramma."

"Yeah, like my gramma." Benny nodded. "And they came up with a solution. A combination of different types of magic. In order to break the bond, the two would each have to find another partner to bond with, and attempt to forge a bond with them. Then at least one of the pairs would have to... um... complete the ritual by... well," Benny's face became slightly red, "consummating it. Then they say a spell and... hopefully, the new bonds take the place of the old one."

"So... that's what you're planning on doing with Raoul tonight." Ethan realized. "You're going to bond with him? And then..."

"Yeah. But you have to bond with someone too. You don't have to take it any further than that, only one of the bonds needs to be... solidified like that. But here's the best part. Once the bond between you and me is broken, we'll turn human again. And so will our partners, because part of the magic will be taken from the old bond into the new ones, meaning..."

"They'll have to change back."

"But once we're all human again, we won't be able to sustain a vampire bond."

"So they dissolve." Ethan was following it now. "We'll all be humans. With no bonds with anyone else."

"Yep."

"Why?"

Benny was confused. "Why what?"

"Why are you doing this? Why go through all that to fix something that isn't really all that bad?"

"Because. What did Sarah want more than anything when we first met her? To find a way to be human again. To have a normal life. And I found a way you can give her exactly that."

"You're doing this for Sarah?"

"No. I'm doing it for all of us. Sarah and Raoul want to be humans. And you want to be with Sarah."

"And what about you? What do you want?"

Benny bit his lip. "I just want everyone to be happy."

"I'm happy now."

"I'm not." Benny didn't want to hurt Ethan. But if that's what he had to do in order to save him, he really had no choice. "I don't want to be this way."

"Benny, being a vampire isn't-"

"It's not that. I don't mind being a vampire. Awesome fangs. Eternal youth. Super speed, being able to fly, strength. It's great, really."

"Then what do you want to change?" Ethan asked, even though he had a guess.

"I... I don't want to be bonded to you. I can't handle it. Knowing that you're stuck this way because of me. Knowing that you'll never be able to live a day without feeling my pain. Or worrying about something happening to me in the future that might end up changing you too because of this stupid bond. Even when we go our separate ways, we'll still be connected. And because of that, I will never be able to move on. And neither will you. I don't want you to have any ties to me, Ethan. I don't want there to be anything, physical or magical, keeping us together when you're meant to be with someone else."