Arabelle

Chapter 34 - Family Moments

Ian’s POV

Arabelle lay sleeping on my bed, it was 1:00am in the morning and she still hadn’t woken up, I had called mum and told her Arabelle was with me and that she needed a lot of sleep, also I had no idea how she will react when she woke up, I wasn’t sure if she was going to be violent again or if she was calmer now, all the same, she needed someone who could handle her in any situation she woke up in,

Mum had called Aunt Melissa and told her that I and Arabelle were together, she had been thrilled by the idea, bless that woman for being so understanding,

Mum had hurried back home when I had told her of the situation, she was currently preparing some herbs which could calm Arabelle down when she woke up, I had stayed behind to watch her, it wouldn’t do for her to wake up and find herself alone in a strange place,

She will wake up feeling very scared and tired, it was a terrible experience to be controlled by magic and not the other way around, magic could be a very loyal slave but it was indeed a very terrible master, that was why control was absolutely important at all times,

I had my share of losing control so I knew how Arabelle will feel once she woke up, I had mum there with me during all those times that’s why I wanted to be with Arabelle tonight, she would need all the help and support she could get,

Suddenly, she made a sound in her sleep, it was like she was in intense pain and I knew she was, she was about to wake up, I quickly sat up and rushed to the side of the bed and took her hand in mine, it was sweaty and clammy like she was having a fever,

Her eyelids fluttered open, she was looking around trying to recognize her surroundings, finally her eyes fell on me, she tried to sit up but she immediately fell back to the bed clutching her head and groaning loudly,

“Just lie still Arabelle, it will pass but moving around will only make it worse” I said calmly,

“What the hell is happening to me? I feel like my head is being split in two” she said, her voice was strained from the pain,

“It’s the effect of what happened at the bar, when magic controls you, the aftermath is rather painful” I said,

I watched as horror filled her eyes, she was obviously remembering what she had done at the bar, it must be shocking to her and she was probably scared that she could do something like that, I had been so scared that I had refused to do magic again, it was only because mum told me that refusing to learn to control it will only make things worse that made me continue my training,

“What did I do? Richard? Is he okay? Please tell me I didn’t hurt him” she said, she had sat up despite my warnings not to do so, her eyes were wide with horror and her hands were shaking,

She was scared and she was worried about Richard, I had a feeling things might turn out this way, she had possessed deep feelings for him in the past, those weren’t feelings that just vanished immediately, I had thought the issue of revenge will be too hard on her that was why I had suggested to mum that the revenge be left to me alone but mum had insisted that the decision be left to Arabelle since it was her life and when she had shown interest in revenge, I no choice but to let her be a part of it, if she had succeeded in killing Blackwood tonight she would have hated herself for the rest of her life, that was the reason I had broken her spell,

“He is fine, I dropped him off at his house myself” I said and managed a small smile,

She let out a breath of relief and fell back to the bed, she closed her eyes and remained silent,

I took her hand in mine and said “It’s not your fault, we should have listened to you when you asked us to stop, actually if anybody is to be blamed, it should be me, I knew this could happen but I had let anger cloud my judgement and got into a fight like a lunatic, I am so sorry Bella, I am really sorry”

She turned her head to look at me, her eyes were tired and weak, she smiled and said “Don’t you have any spell juice to give me right now? I could really use on right now because it really hurt right now”

I found it surprising that she could joke at a time like this, I had woken up screaming in pain the first something like this happened to me but here she was trying to make a joke, I couldn’t help the smile that crept into my face,

“That’s better, you don’t look jaw droppingly handsome when you are serious, keep smiling and you might just be the most handsome alive” she said, her voice was weak and strained, she was still in pain,

I held on to her hand and recited a healing spell, it will lessen the pain a little and grant her some comfort, I felt the magic flow from body into her hands, I could see her visibly relax after a while, when the magic seeped into her body,

She turned to me with a smile on her face and said “Thanks Ian”

I smiled right back and said “Anything for you Bella”

I heard a sniffling sound from behind us like someone was crying and I knew exactly who it was even without turning around,

“You can just come in mum, no need to stay from afar and watch us” I said as I turned around to look at her,

She was resting by the door with a smile on her pretty face wearing a red robe, her hair was tied in a loose bun on top of her head she was holding a small wooden plate, I recognized it, it was of the many places she made her vile tasting concoctions,

“I love you kids so very much” was all she said and walked towards us, she sat on the other side of the bed, she smiled warmly at Arabelle,

“I am going to make all the pain go away Ara, I promise” she said,

Arabelle smiled back at her, it was warm and heart touching to watch them, I was glad that these beautiful women were my family and I will do anything to keep those smiles on their faces forever,

“Help your sister up Ian” mum said and I quickly moved forward to help Arabelle up, I helped her sit up and mum held the greenish liquid to her lips,

I felt her body go rigid in my arms the moment the liquid came in contact with her lips, I couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped my lips but I was quickly silenced by the nasty look mum threw my way,

“Just endure the taste honey, I know it tastes terrible but it’s for your own good, it will help you get better I promise” Mum said in a soothing voice,

Arabelle managed to finish the whole thing, I led her back to the bed slowly, her eyes were drowsy,

The concoction was going to make her sleep then she will wake up feeling much better, that was how it worked, it was really effective but it tasted like hell in a cup, I remembered my first experience with it, I had sprayed it all over mum’s face and dress but she had somehow managed to get me to drink it, it was a taste I dreaded until this very day,

“I love you guys so much” Arabelle said and drifted off into a concoction induced sleep,

Mum sniffled again, I turned to look at her, she was about to cry, I put my hands around her and hugged her,

“It will pass soon mum, I promise” I said

“I know my dear, I know” she said, I knew she was smiling even without looking at her,

We stayed like that for a while with Arabelle sleeping peacefully between us.