How times have changed

[Jenni]

Lilli didn't know what was happening when he threw himself into her arms, so she hadn't had time to alter the feel of her body, her skin was hard, like a vampires, and her body stayed rigid even as he threw his weight on her. She caught him in her arms though, "Evan..." The loneliness that had sneaked into her mind before still pulsed away inside of her, but she felt a little better that he was safe in her arms now, "You have to stay out of this with my parents. They are very hard people to kill. I should know, I've tried more than once. You're still quite young, so much life. She wouldn't hesitate to rip your throat out." Her voice was cold, unemotional, but the mere thought of Evan dying because of her, was killing her inside.

[James Mack]

Evan broke away, dismayed, as he felt himself come up again Lilli's sleek, hardened form. "I..." he paused, unable to think of anything to say. "Sometimes you are far too much like your parents." And with that he picked himself up and dusted himself down before beginning to walk away from her. He had tried - oh yes, he had tried. But nothing would get through to her. Although he tried his best not to show it, every step which pulled him away from her was making another rip in his heart. His legs began to feel like treacle, wading through the thicky substance with increasing difficulty. And with all his heart he hoped that Lilli would stop him. Pull him round and berate him for walking off on her, before bursting into laughter. Anything - a tap on the shoulder and he would stay. It took all his might just to stop him looking round. Argh!

[Jenni]

Lilli didn't need another word out of him, within a blink of an eye she was in front of him wrapping her arms around him, "I am nothing like them. But even if I was just slightly like them that does not mean that you have to leave."
Sometimes she wondered what would happen to her when she grew old, would she be immortal like her mother, or would she die, an old woman? Whenever she was with Evan she wished that she would die old, just like him, but when he walked away from her, she felt like she would never die, suffer eternal punishment for letting him leave. If she ever let him leave, "Right now you are so upset at what I have done, and I do not know what to say or do to make it right. I'm sorry."

[James Mack]

Evan was just about to give in and turn round when he found himself walking into Lilli's warm, all-encompassing embrace. "Lilli," he began, exasperatedly pushing her away when he realised that she still didn't understand. He couldn't succumb to her love yet. "What you..." he stopped himself, took a deep breath and started again. The words he was about to say were going to rip holes in his heart, but he knew that he had to do it. For Lilli. When he spoke again, his tone was even and business-like. "First, stop mauling yourself. You are fooling yourself if you think it's going to do you any good. Second, turn and fight. Find out what they're up to. If they do ever make it to you, you'll be ready for them. And most importantly of all, we'll be ready for them. I will fight alongside you, and do whatever it takes to keep you safe. If you can't let me do that then... then there's no point to this relationship anymore."

[Jenni]

Lilli took a step back, "No... point." She shook her head at him, "You think that I say I don't want you to fight beside me? No, I know what's best, I know that you should stay out of this because you could get hurt and I would never be able to live with myself if I knew that you got hurt because of me. But... I still can't bring myself to believe that you shouldn't be by my side, together." She held his arms for a second, her own now fully healed, "Will you fight with me? Even though you know the dangers of what we could face?"

[James Mack]

"Lilli," Evan began, a slight smile back on his face. "You really think this is completely one-sided? What if you got hurt, and all I did was stand on the side-lines. Oh Lilli, I'll be at your side no matter what happens." Finally. He had got through to her. The old Lilli was back, and he was at her side. Satisfied with this, he rushed back into her arms, kissing her ferociously. "I love you so much," he whispered, his heart once again whole.

[Jenni]

Again Lilli hadn't been expecting the sudden feel of Evan in her arms but her body was not as rigid as before, she kissed him back gently, "Evan, I know but I can't die."
When he told her that he loved her she couldn't help but smile slightly, "Evan, I will always be here for you, whatever happens."

[James Mack]

"Lilli, dying isn't the only sort of pain. Just look at what you managed to do to yourself," Evan paused himself, realising what she had just said.. He had never really considered that before. "You're not fully vampire... how do you know that you're immortal?" he asked slowly, the moment of affection over. "Surely you can't tell?" And he hoped so much that she was, for he wouldn't bear it if they had to break away from each other because he was growing old and she wasn't. At least her looks would be preserved for all eternity.

[Jenni]

Lilli looked at him and cocked her head to the side, "I've been thinking about it for a while actually, I mean I've grown old like other people, but does that mean that I'll continue to grow old or that I'll reach a certain age and never change? And yes, I have died before, because to become a vampire you have to die." She paused for a second, "When they found that out they made a game of seeing how long I could live for."
She smiled at him again, "Worried?" Now she was teasing him.

[James Mack]

"Well..." Evan wasn't sure how to react to Lilli's lighter tone. "How about we just face the future as and when it comes?" He didn't like that idea, but it was the best one he could think of. He checked the time, taking a step back as he realised how late it was. "We better head back to Hogwarts. You coming?"