Yeah, I said I'd update this soon.
I lied.
Well, I didn't exactly lie, but you know what I mean. XD I life-ed XD Contrary to popular belief XD I promise that I'm not dead.
One reason is, I actually have like…friends. For the first time in my life. This is so weird for me. But I'm actually like seeing them every day, and like…having sleepovers every weekend, and it's crazy! And then I had a load more essays. And I'm like…behind on every subject. Yaaaay! And then when I was actually like 'I'm going to update! I will! I will update!' I fell ill and had to lie in a darkened room for five days or so because light gave me really bad headaches. And then I had to catch up on school. And I turned eighteen! Yeah! I'm an adult now! How freakin' scary is that!? And my fave Uni Course rejected me. Sad times! But my second fave accepted me! Happy times! And Supernatural. So much Supernatural. I have watched five series in the past month. That much Supernatural. That didn't help updates.
And there is basically my life since my last update. Sorry. You probably didn't need to know that. But there it is. I'm just one bloody excuse after another, aren't I? Sorry! You guys must get sick of me! I can't believe that people still read this! Thank you very much, for doing so, it is so much appreciated!
Now this chapter was meant to be full of ACTION! You were expecting action, weren't you? Instead, I give you revelations. And TUMBLR.
(I'm sure the action will happen in the next chapter or something…)

Lots of love, and thank you so much for everyone who reviews!

Sapphy

xxx

11

Octavian's follow up article is published the next day. I have no idea how he managed it, but one way or another he's convinced a journalist from the Dublin Comet that the entire thing was an elaborate hoax by school bullies to torment a poor, innocent schoolgirl. Just knowing that the ridiculous article of before has been well and truly nullified seems to make the day brighter, even though Octavian is coming to school with me today, which is bound to be exceedingly annoying. Just like him. What's even more annoying is the fact that when Octavian returns to me after receiving his timetable from reception, somehow he's managed to worm his way into every single one of my classes. What the hell.
"Are you a stalker?" I snap as we walk along the corridor towards my…our…form room.
"I don't know what you mean." He says innocently, that stupid half smirk of his loitering on his lips.
"Oh yes you do. Why are you in all of my classes?"
"To protect you." He replies, his tone practically saintly. "I'm just doing this for your own good, Aislinn."
That's it. I suddenly grab his arm, pulling him into a medium sized storage cupboard and shutting the door behind us. I shove him up against the wall, narrowing my eyes. "Listen, buster. I don't know what your game is. If you're so keen to protect me, why the fuck don't you just tell me what I need protecting from, huh, instead of keeping me in the dark? Answer me that!"
He doesn't reply, still smirking in that unbearable way, and I feel something inside of me snap. I have been tormented by weird visions, ignored by my schoolmates, forced to watch people I know die, been featured in the local tabloid, and above all, this smug bastard holds all the answers but won't let me know what they are!
So that is why I swing a punch at his face.
He's not expecting it, and, to my satisfaction, he doesn't block it. His straight, aristocratic nose doesn't look half so pretty when blood is gushing out of it. He stares at me for a second in disbelief, before saying:
"Ouch."
I barely have time to give him a taste of his own medicine and smirk at him before suddenly I'm face down on the floor, my cheek pressed into the cold lino of the corridor with my arms twisted up behind my back, and Octavian sitting on top of me. My God he's heavy!
"Do not." He hisses in my ear. "Try me. You might find that you don't like the consequences."
"Then maybe you…" I gasp back at him. "Should try not to be such a dick. You might find that you don't like the consequences of that."
I suddenly hear the last sound I expect.
Laughter.
Octavian rolls off of me, beginning to laugh almost slightly hysterically.
After a moment, although I have no idea why, I join in.
We laugh, and we laugh, until tears are streaming down both of our cheeks. Eventually I manage to roll over, so I'm lying on my back next to him, lying on my back and still just laughing. Eventually, we both begin to calm down. I sit up, leaning against the wall, and after a moment, he joins me.
"Why are we laughing?" I manage to say, when I can breathe again, still chuckling now and then.
"I don't know." He replies, wiping his eyes and pulling out a tissue to hold to his bleeding nose. "This whole thing is just so screwed up. So ridiculous. We're just kids. I don't know what we can do. But we have to do it."
"Do what?" I look up at him, my laughter suddenly dying. "Tell me."
He sighs, rubbing his forehead. "I don't want to."
"Why not? Why won't you let me know the truth?"
"The truth is a burden, Aislinn. It doesn't always bring enlightenment. And this truth won't. Just fear and anger. And sadness." He stares up at the ceiling, his grey eyes far away.
"I still need to know." I whisper. "I can't carry on not knowing, Octavian. Not if I'm in danger."
"Ignorance is bliss." He murmurs.
"'Veritas liberabit vos.'"
"Are you quoting the Bible at me now? In Latin?"
"'The truth will set you free.' Learnt it for an R.S exam."
"'Quid est veritas?' though, huh?" he raises his eyebrows at me. "What is truth?"
"Stop philosophising. Come on. Just give me some answers."
"You are the biggest pest I have ever had the misfortune to meet, you know that Aislinn?"
"I can't be that bad."
"What gives you that impression?"
"You're still trying to protect me or whatever."
"True, true." A smile flickers at the corner of his lips for a moment before it's extinguished. "There are things out there which know about your powers, Aislinn."
I frown. "What do you mean? Who knows?"
"Just…there are creatures that are hunting you. Hunting us. To kill us."
"What?! Why? What the hell have I ever done to them?"
"You exist. That's enough. There were nine of us. Nine of us with these powers."
"What do you mean were?"
"Three of them are dead."
"What?!"
"The things that are hunting us killed them. Like they'll kill us if they find us."
"But why?" I can feel tears prickling at the corners of my eyes but refuse to let them loose. "Why me? Why do I have these powers? What did I do to get them?"
He opens his mouth, but then seems to reconsider, closing it again.
"Octavian! Tell me!"
"You were just born with them he says after a moment. "We all were. All nine of us."
"And the scars?"
"One shows which number you are?"
My eyes widen. "Which number?"
"I'm number eight. Octavian. And the girl-"
"Was number six."
"Exactly."
I stare at the wall in silence for a moment, trying not to freak out. The piece of paper I have…
"I'm number Five." I say in a tiny voice after a moment.
Octavian looks at me sharply. "How do you know?"
"It's on a piece of paper I have. I was found with it. It was in an envelope, with this necklace."
"Huh." He frowns, turning this new piece of information over in his mind. "How did you get taken into care again?"
"They found me in the road with a head wound. Took me to hospital. I didn't know my own name. They waited for a parent to claim me. No one came. Then the police discovered that I didn't technically exist. I had a weird accent, but only spoke English, so they didn't think I was an illegal immigrant or something. My accent became Irish over time anyway. So they just stuck me in a care home and left me to rot. And here I am."
"A head wound?"
"Huh?"
"You said that you had a head wound. So I'm assuming you have amnesia?"
"Well yeah, that's what I always figured. Why?"
"Well…all of us had some kind of guardian with us."
"A guardian?" My eyes widen. "You mean like a parent? Do you know about my parents?"
He sighs then, a long, deep sigh, which blows away any seeds of hope which were starting to grow in my mind.
"What is it?" I say, a feeling of foreboding building inside of me.
"You parents are dead."
I stare at him, a cold feeling spreading through me.
"They were murdered. Just like mine. All of your family was."
"How…" I manage to stammer after a moment. "How can you be sure?"
"I don't remember it happening, Aislinn. But my guardian…my Cêpan, he told me. What happened. The people who are after us….they killed all of our families and destroyed our home. And they're coming after us to finish the job."
I stare at him blankly, feeling the blood slowly rush from my face. I thought I'd given up on my parents; I'd assumed, when they never came for me, that they simply didn't care. But I never imagined this. That they were murdered. "And my…my guardian?"
"I'm assuming that they're dead too. I'm sorry Aislinn."
I turn away from him, quickly wiping my eyes. It's stupid to get upset over people I don't even remember. But just knowing that once there might have been people who loved me… "We should go to registration." I say after a moment into the awkward silence which has replaced our previous conversation. "We're already late."
"Okay." He says. And when I glance back at him, his previously arrogant demeanour has been replaced by an uncomfortable look, which is almost tinged by something like…fear. He shuffles his feet, unable to meet my eyes.
"What?" I frown.
'Nothin'." He mumbles, still unable to look at me. "We should go." Suddenly, he reaches out a hand and uneasily pats me on the shoulder twice.
I stare at him. "What was that for?"
"Urm…I just…" he looks, if possible, even more embarrassed. "Tears scare me."
"Oh."
"Yeah."
I continue to stare at him.
"What?!" he says finally, glancing up at me.
"You act all mysterious, but seriously, you're just such…a boy." I laugh and push open the door of the cupboard and, after a moment's hesitation, he follows me out into the thankfully empty corridor.

-x-

"Miss Brennan!"
I wince as I walk into registration. We're both ten minutes late.
"Sorry Mrs O'Doherty." I mumble. "I was collecting Octavian. He's new."
Mrs O'Doherty blinks as she sees the newest member of our class entering the room, holding a bloody tissue to his nose.
"Delighted to meet you." He says in his Eastern European accent (I really need to ask where he got that; in fact, I need to know more about his life in general…), before taking Mrs O'Doherty's hand and kissing it graciously. She looks, for once in her life, absolutely flummoxed.
"Erm…okay…well…both of you take your seats." She says. Something tells me she would have been less surprised if Octavian had been a walking and talking narwhal.
I quickly slide into my seat at the back, and Octavian follows me.
"Who's Prince Charming then?" Kaitlin hisses to me before my behind has even come into contact with the plastic of my seat.
"New guy at the home." I murmur back, glancing at Octavian out of the corner of my eye. He's not looking at us, but I get the feeling that he can hear every word we say.
"Right. Hm. What happened to his nose?"
"I punched him."
"Really? Huh. Nice one. He looks slimy."
"Slimy?"
"Well yeah. I mean, he's a good looking example of the male race, but he just freakin' kissed our form tutors hand. What the actual fuck. Who even does that?"
"She didn't give us detention though, did she?" A smooth, accented voice joins our conversation.
Oh holy macaroni. He has been listening to every word we've said.
"Well know, I suppose not…" Kaitlin stares at him.
He stares back.
She continues to stare at him.
He looks away first.
"Anyway, Ash." She continues talking to me as if he doesn't exist. "I got on to Series Two of Code Geass last night-"
"Oh God! Wasn't the episode finale of Series One heart-breaking?"
Kaitlin and I turn at the same time to stare at the good looking example of the male race sitting next to me.
"What?" Kaitlin finally says, slightly faintly.
"Well…I mean…When Suzaku and Lelouch were facing each other…"
"Merlin?"
"Yes."
"Doctor Who?"
"Yes."
"Sherlock."
"Yes."
"Supernatural?"
"Yes."
"Tumblr URL?"
"StupidSexyDwarves."
"Marry me now."
"Gladly."
I stare as my best friend proposes to the weird guy who only forced himself into my life two days ago in order to inform me that people are trying to kill me and my entire family was murdered.
Why do things like this only happen when Katlin is in the nearby vicinity?

This is what happens when I write in the vicinity of my friend Chase. Tumblr and insanity dominates.

Please review.

xxx