The Amulet of Tenebrae

Kendra was relieved but her heart felt heavy. She knew that Ruth and Carter wouldn't let anything happen to her mother, so she felt a little better in leaving her with the Knights. "Yeah...just tell them I'm sick and will be out for a while. My friends can bring my homework." She said feeling rather empty inside. "I'm going inside...it's getting a little bit cold." A chill definitely came as a slight wind picked up.

"I'll do that." he said. "........" he sighed and followed her in and closed the front doors. He got to the phone, copying her mother's voice and spoke on the phone telling them as she wanted them to. Once that was done he went on to the kitchen and decided to make something to....to at least cheer up Kendra. He could hear the wind picking up, "........more storms coming....." he sighed, this place was always prone to rain and storms and Rass figured it was from all the past magics in this area and soil that causes it along with other forces. He got the fruit Carter had collected front he orchard and got making a big bowl of fruit salad for her. He got it done in no time, but he covered it and kept it in the fridge to chill it first, knowing she was not in a happy mood at this time.

Once inside, Kendra went up to her room and shut the door. She laid down on her bed and stared out the window. She just wanted to be alone for a little while. The sky was growing dark and the wind was moaning. She laid there trying to rest, but she was too restless to sleep. She looked over in the corner and saw her guitar case leaning against the wall. She let out a deep sigh and got up walking to get her guitar. She took it out of the case and sat near the window. She took a small leather bound notebook from the front pocket of the case and opened it to the last page that had writing on it.

"Whadya say old girl? It's been a while since I played you." She said to the guitar patting it on the body. She slipped the guitar strap over her head and sat down cross legged on the floor by the window. She rested the guitar in her lap and started to tune it. She usually played her guitar when she had some sort of pent up feelings inside her. She took out the pick from behind the strings on the neck and began to strum. Slowly, the words and the song of choice came to her and she began to sing softly.

Rassler went out to the orchard to watch the storm cloud roll on it, seeing the darkness cloaking over and the sun setting as it got more and more as the clouds then started to flash with lightning and a soft rumble of thunder off in the distance. "..........SO a pissed Dick demon king and the elements can fell all the sadness on this land currently. He sighed, but his hearing heard singing and he paused, he looked up to Kendra's room. He went on inside and locked the doors. He followed her singing to her room, he leaned on her door, listening in. He wanted to go in but was not wanting to disturb her either.

Kendra tuned out the rest of the world and continued to play her guitar to help soothe her and vent the emotions welled up inside her.

"Will you hold me now...hold me now? My frozen heart. Kiss my lips and maybe you can take me to your world for now...I can't be alone right now. Will you hold me now...hold me now? My frozen heart...please make it all go away! Am I ever gonna feel myself again? I hope...I will..."

She strummed her guitar closing her eyes and feeling the music.

"Will you hold me now....Hold me now? My frozen heart. I'm gazing from the distance and I feel everything pass through me. I can't be alone right now. Can you hold me now...hold me now? I'm lost in deep winter sleep...I can't seem to find my way you alone....can you...wake me?"

He sighed, "............." he frowned, "Fuck it." he opened her door and came into the room, he knew she would be puzzled but he sat on the bed with crossed legs, "...........Keep playing." he said.

Kendra stopped playing when she heard her door open. She looked over her shoulder and saw Rassler standing there. "Rassler..." She watched him walk over to her bed and just sit there. He told her to keep playing. She turned around and wiped her tears away and started to play again. This time, she played something a bit more upbeat. It was a song she had known most of her life. She dared not sing in front of Rassler. She was too shy and embarrassed. No one, not even her mother had heard her sing knowingly.

"........" he sighed, "Why won't you sing? I heard you outside." he said, "Please sing.....Don't hear good music these days."

Kendra's heart was racing. She smiled when he said that she played good music and she was even happier that he enjoyed her singing. She nodded and kept playing and started to sing when she got to the chorus.

"I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean...Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens. Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance...And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance...Dance...I hope you dance. I hope you dance...Time is a wheel in constant motion always rolling us along...I hope you dance...Tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder..."

She stopped singing and came near the end of the song. She played until the song was finally over. She turned back to look at him, hoping her approved.

He laid on his side leaning in his hand, listening in to her voice, closing his eye. He actually.....felt almost at peace....which was strange for a demon to even feel. He continued to listen on to the song also being taken else where in his mind as she sung.

He still had his eyes closed when she finished and he opened them looking at her, "..........That was good." he said, ".....You have the same talents." he said.

Kendra turned around and saw him lounging on her bed seeming so relaxed. She lifted the strap off over her head and put her guitar down beside her. "Thank you...no one has ever heard me sing. Not even my mom." She admitted. "Emily liked to sing too?" She asked feeling curious.

"I'm surprised, you sounds good to me." he said. "Yes....but must different music and songs of course." he said, ".........I can only remember a couple songs......" he said.

Kendra couldn't help but blush at his compliment. "You know...that's the nicest thing you've said to me since I got here." She chuckled. "Hmm, I wish I could have heard her voice and the songs she sang. Did she play an instrument too?" She asked.

He pouted and blushed looking away, thinking he was getting soft. "........You....have different voices I'll say that......" he said, "No, her brothers played the music. She used sing at festivals and for family events." he said, "Ivan used call her 'his Little Song bird'." he sighed, "She used hum when when we were alone."

Kendra couldn't help but smile seeing him blush like that. Maybe Zadicus was right. She was having some sort of softening effect on him. She closed her song journal and put it back in her guitar bag. She stood up and approached Rassler who was still lying on her bed. "I used singing and playing music as a coping mechanism when my father left us...I was very young when he left. I would sing hoping one day he would come back...but he never did." She sighed. "She and I are quite similar it seems. She would sing for you?" She asked.

".....I had to convince her sometimes to sing for me.....she got shy singing for me." he sniggered a little. "But yeah she sang for me....her voice is more.....soft when she sang....like a bell bird." he said, recalling a memory, it was a spring festival, when young unmarried men and women would try and find possible partners and Emily would be singing during dances. But the Demons would be watching from a distance or ironing the humans activities in those day when they used to walk about more often and openly.

Kendra saw the peaceful look on his face as if he were thinking about something. "Do you ever miss her?" She asked.

"..........................Everyday." he said, "..........Sorry, I don't wish to talk about it anymore....its still to much for me." he sighed. He sat up, "If you are hungry I made a fruit salad, its in the fridge."

"Of course I understand. Sorry for being so pushy, I'm just very curious about my ancestors." She said and started putting her guitar back in its case. "Really? Thanks...I haven't been very hungry since we got back but I should probably eat something at least."

"...........I can talk about the others until I feel ready to truly talk about Emily." he said, "And yeah, I figured something light would be best for you." he added on.

"If I didn't know better, I would think you were trying to cheer me up." She said with a sly smile then chuckled. "I'll be right back." She left out of the room and went downstairs to make each of them a bowl of fruit salad. She couldn't help herself and took a grape and popped it in her mouth. "Mmm...that's good." She got two bowls filled with fruit salad and took them back upstairs. She entered her room and gave a bowl to Rassler. "Here's on for you too." She sat down on the bed beside him and started to eat hers. "Yummy, this is really good." She smiled, the fruit helping to cheer her up a bit. The salad was made with all her favorites.

He pouted a bit whens he went down stairs, "...." he blinked seeing her bringing back two bowls of the salad. "I was fine...you didn't have to." he said. It was still being held in front on him and he sighed and took, "Yeah." he said. He looked at her eating it feeling a little more relieved to seeing she's calmed down and felt a bit happier. He got eating his bowl of salad, taking his time with it, a lot on his mind. 'What do I do after all this shit is over........can't go back to Demos.....can't stick around here forever........she won't be here forever.' he glanced at Kendra as he was eating.

"I know. Just take it." She put the bowl in his hands giving him no choice but to take it and eat it. Kendra quickly finished her helping realizing that she was more hungry than she thought. "Hmm, gone already." She stood up and put the empty bowl on the table. She looked at Rassler and he seemed very lost in thought. "Rass...you okay? Is something on your mind?" She asked.

He snapped out of his thoughts, "Hm? Oh.....i guess....just find out everything and what not...." he said, "Also not sure what I can do after this is all over." he ate half of his salad and placed it aside, not feeling really hungry. "......Just haven't thought about it at all...."

"Well, I was hoping that you would stay here for a while...I decided to go to college here and live at the manor until I graduate. This place has really grown on me in the short time I've lived here." She said and sat down on the bed next to him. "It wouldn't be the same without you being here huffing and puffing all the time." She chuckled.