I just realized i never posted the "possible finale" chapter of this fanfic. Please forgive me. I realized long ago that i didn't have it in me to do a sequel, like i had planned. But enjoy this chapter.

Chapter 14

Aftershock

We walked on and I spotted Kevin Embers, just the guy I'd been looking for. "Kevin, we need to talk." I said loudly. His head jerked my way. "Starla I can explain…" I clutched my fists. "You were involved; you were involved with Veronica and their plans. I can't believe you betrayed me." I began to thrust my fists into his chest. Warren behind me willingly let me continue. Kevin grabbed my wrists and looked down at me. The face I was once drawn to showed something new. Something I'd seen before.

A lust for power, power I possessed.

"Oh Starla… I've never seen you so beautiful before. You look irresistible when you are angry." I gasped. Who… who was this in front of me. This couldn't possibly be the boy who took me to homecoming.

He smiled seeing the panic on my face. "You couldn't have possibly believed that there could ever be someone like Kevin Embers; a nice boy who respected women, a boy who had amazing grades, and worked in a library, oh and of course a boy who'd fallen for Starla Bright." I felt insulted. I wanted to throw all my energy at him in a huge inferno but I had no power to do so.

Warren grabbed my fists and slowly lowered them to my side. Then he slowly moved in front of me. "You touch her, I swear if you touch her again I will kill you with my two bare hands." Warren shouted. Kids around us heard this death threat and stopped to stare. It seemed to them the old Warren Peace had returned. Kevin only smirked. "Fine by me. See ya Starla." He said with a wink. Then he spotted a girl in the hallway, waiting. She was familiar somehow. Oh I know who she was. She was in Kevin's class but I never got her name. She had straight dark brown hair that hung wildly around her and her blouse had the words "Hot chick" on them. How pathetic.

"Catch you later fire boy." He walked away and at once I felt a static shock run up my arm.

"I never liked that guy." Warren hissed. "I can't believe I trusted him." I said with a sigh. Warren pulled me toward him so that our eyes met. "Don't think like that." His gaze bore into mine. "They are going to come again, come after us. Even if their leader, my father… is dead, they will try to kill us." I buried my head into his chest. "But we will know how to defeat them now, we have our friends, they'll help us." Warren said kindly. He sounded like a different person all of a sudden.

"Alright, we better tell them everything."

Let me just say that explaining EVERYTHING to our friends was not easy. They had so many questions and none of them I could answer straight forward. All I could tell them was we had new enemies.

"So, they will come for you again?" Melanie asked. She looked shyly at me. I could tell she wanted forgiveness and I was willing to give it. "Yes they will come back, but as long as we all trust one another we'll be fine." I smiled at her and she smiled back. I felt a bit dizzy and stumbled. Warren leapt forward and caught me. "You need to get home; you lost all your energy in that attack." I slowly closed my eyes. In a way I was just as deceiving as Kevin… but in a good way.

"Ya, you better take her home Warren. See you guys tomorrow." Will and Layla waved us goodbye and then walked off hand in hand. "You sure she'll be alright?" Zach said gazing down at me. "Ya, look at her clothes, they are completely ripped up." Ethan said. How could I have forgotten! I was practically revealing myself to the whole school. But if I wanted to fool everyone into thinking I'd passed out I couldn't move. Warren held me closer to him. "She'll be fine, I'll just take her home." Then he left them without saying goodbye.

Even if my eyes were closed I could feel eyes upon us. The whispers I heard clearly. "Warren and Starla are a couple? Who would have thought of that?" and "How strange, you think he's only with her because she wears such revealing clothes" well… that one made me giggle. Warren looked down at me but to keep my cover, I moved all my weight onto him.

"Gosh you're heavy when you'll unconscious." He said as he readjusted his hold on me.

Then suddenly I felt the cool breeze on my body. Warren slowly walked down the huge steps in front of the school. I was assuming he'd brought a car like Kevin when He placed me gently onto something. It felt like leather. His car must have had leather seats.I found that really attractive.

I heard the engine roar on. Then, I felt the car rise off the ground.

Warren was quiet for a long time, so I figured he must be just concentrating on driving. So cautiously, I opened my eyes but to only find Warren looking down at me. "I should have known." He said with a chuckle.

I sat up slowly and tried moving my skirt down but it was so ripped up it remained high above my knees. "Here." He tossed me a wool blanket. It was warm and so I wrapped it around me. "Do you normalsuspect half naked girls to come crawling into your car?" I said lightly holding up the blanket. Warren chuckled. "Not normally, today was just a treat for me." I could feel my cheeks go beet red. I tightened my grip on the blanket.

"So faking to pass out just so I could drive you home, I'm impressed." Warren said slyly. "Well, don't you think its best that when a girl falls in love with someone she takes them home to meet her parents?" I said, with just as much slyness in my own voice. "To… meet your parents?" Warren swallowed hard. It was like he'd choose death rather then face them. I giggled. "Just my mother. Don't worry… I think she'll like you. If not... I'll make her like you." Warren smiled. He took on hand off the wheel and placed it on top of my hand.

I felt maybe this was a good time as any to ask. I wanted so badly to say, "Say Warren, what happened that night at my house?" but I couldn't find the courage to say it. I swallowed and my heart beat fast. "Warren…" He looked at me. "What is it?" he asked. "I have to ask you something." He looked worried. "Has something happened? Are you alright?" I nodded. "I'm fine Warren, It's just that…" Before I had a chance to speak the car landed on the ground outside of my house.

"Well, its going to have to wait for now." He took his keys out of the ignition and walked around the car to let me out. I stepped out onto the cold pavement, clutching the blanket tightly. I knew my mother was going to be so mad that I haddestroyed the hundred dollar dress but maybe she'd forgive if I told her I just saved the world from a destiny of death.

Warren clutched my hand tightly. He was nervous. He reached up with his free hand and rang the door bell. I had forgotten my keys when I left so there was no other way. The knob turned and the door flung open. My mother looked down at me. "Starla you're…!" She was excited to see me but then her gaze fell down to my hand, which was held tightly in Warren's. She looked up at me. Anger covered her face. "Starla, is there something you'd like to tell me?" I looked up at her and then at Warren. He gave me a half smile and we both stepped inside.

"Sit down, please." My mother said glaring at both of us. I motioned for Warren to go ahead and sit down on our living room couch. I sat close to him and held his hand tightly. "Now tell me why, Starla, your dress is ripped to the point that I can see almost every bit of your body and why…" She took something from off the seat next to her. She held it up so that both of us could see it. It was Warren's jacket. Obviously I hadn't hid it very well when he left it with me that night in my bedroom.

I turned red and tried to hide my face but my mother already saw it. "Starla, could you please tell me what's going on here?" she demanded harshly. I looked down. I couldn't meet her gaze. "I can explain…" I said under my breath. Warren, who had his arm, wrapped protective over my shoulder, let go of me and stood up. "Mrs. Bright, don't blame this on Starla." My mother looked up at Warren in surprise. "So, are you saying this is completely your fault?" that's when I stood. "It isn't mine or Warren's fault." I said protectively. "Then whose fault is it that you look like a … a…" she pointed to my dress to afraid to say what she was thinking.

"It's a long story mom." I said with a long sigh. "I have time." So for the second time that day I had to explain the whole bomb thing. My mom looked at me with sadness. "Your father… gave his life so you could live?" she asked again as if she hadn't heard me clearly first. I nodded. "Yes, he did. He loved you mom." I could see the tears forming in her eyes. "I knew you would have to face it someday but I thought I'd be there to protect you." She said, putting her hands to her face. "Your daughter is strong enough that she can take care of herself. I saw her, she was amazing." Warren said.

My mother looked at him and then at me. "So it is true… both of you… are connected now." I looked at Warren nervously. He just kept a solid gaze on my mother. She took Warren's jacket and handed it to him. "It's not mine anymore, give it to Starla." Warren said nodding toward me. My mother simply nodded and handed the jacket to me. Warren let go of my hand and I clutched his jacket tightly. I could smell his cologne on it and warmth radiated throughout my body.

"So you love her?" my mother asked, typical of my mother to ask personal questions. Warren looked down at me. "Yes." He said. I smiled a little. I did feel my heart pound but I wanted to hold his hand so badly. "Starla do you love him?" my mother asked, still looking at Warren. "Yes." I hummed. My mom looked at both of us. "Then this isn't the end, not by a long shot." She stood and let out a sigh. I saw something in her eyes but it vanished before I could get a better look.

My head began to pound and I felt dizzy. I tried standing up but I collapsed. "Starla!" My mother shrieked as I feel to the ground, knocking my head against the glass table. "Please don't tell me you are faking it again." Warren said as he looked at the wound on my forehead. I wanted to respond with a "no" but I'd lost all control of myself. I closed my eyes and fell into my unconscious world. The same one I'd visited when I had met the lovely woman in white.

I sat in my field. The field that had oncebeen stained with my despair and lost hope, now glistened with love. The sweet morning dew clung to blades of glass around me. A gentle breeze caressed my cheek. I wasn't wearing my rag dress anymore. I wore a white peasant top and a long blue skirt. My hair blew behind me. I could hear my mother voice. I looked in front of me to see a pond. The pond had never been there before. I guess now that I was more powerful, new things would be added to this world, this fantasy world.

I gently placed my hand into the water. It was cool and had a strange currents pulling in circles. My hand did not feel wet however. It felt like it was in a twister. Slowly, I pulled it over and ran by finger over the edge. The voices were coming from within the pond.

"Show me my mother," I commanded. Immediately, the image of my mother and Warren appeared. My life-less body was held by Warren as my mother lead him to my room. My mother opened the door for him and then Warren went inside to place me gently on my bed.

"You must be going soon," my mother said. She didn't seem to hate Warren anymore but I could see the protectiveness in her eyes. "Will you please tell her when she wakes up that I left and…" he looked down at me. "And what Warren?" my mother asked, almost harshly. "Tell her I love her." He said.

From my fantasy world I smiled and kissed the water of the pond. "I love you too." I whispered into the rippling waters.

Warren spun around and looking at my body. "Did she just speak?" he asked my mother. My mother looked at him like he was crazy. "No she did not." She said. Warren looked confused and then he left with my mother. The door closed.

So, now I would sleep here in my fantasy world tonight. I looked at my world and what I had created. It was so beautiful. A sun and a moon danced together above me in the velvet sky. I wanted nothing more then to bring Warren here. We could be alone at last here.

Slowly I lay down on the ground, resting my head gently in the grass. "I Love you Warren." I whispered.

I wasn't sure if he'd ever tell me what had happened that night in my room. I prayed he hadn't made me his even if that's what I wanted. I did want that… but not in that way. It was too soon for that.

I sighed as I fell deep into a gentle sleep where I dreamed of Warren and me together in a place where difference didn't matter. It was a place where we were free to love.