Hazel

My father nods in agreement and briefly looks at me. In his perfect world I would have done the same ages ago.

I look away and blink my tears away. Poor Jake. I hold my breath and look at Leo one more time. His face gives nothing away. Hi hair is a mess and he looks like he has lost some weight. Why is he torturing himself so much? I know why, and if I weren't so selfish I would be doing the same. With an evil witch on the loose, it's only a matter of time before she comes back for them.

"That is very selfless of you, Leo. I am very proud. Now would you like us to erase your memories of him as well?" My father is writing his verdict on a piece of paper.

"No!" He answers a little too rushed and panicked. He clears his throat, "I do not think that is necessary." He backtracks.

I look up at my mom who doesn't look happy about this. My father looks content enough. I am alone in this.

"You are weak! You don't deserve him!" I yell at Leo before getting up and storming out of the room. I have lost my only ally in this. If I am going to get Amelia back, I will have to do it alone.

******

"I must admit, I was very surprised you wanted to see me. Alone." Everett's dark eyes are filled with curiosity.

I must look like hell. It has been three weeks and I have not seen her, not even through my looking spell. My father was completely serious when he said I would have no further contact with her. I haven't been able to sleep and I won't eat. My body is going through withdrawal. I am desperate now. This is the first night I am able to get away without calling any attention to myself. My parents are at their monthly meeting but I know I only have a couple of minutes before they notice I am gone. I hope the guard outside my room forgives me for putting a sleeping spell on him.

"Everett, there has to be something you can do. You guys have all of the oldest spells in the books." My voice is desperate. I lick my dry lips.

He shrugs out of his robe and hangs it in the corner. He walks over to his desk and rubs his hands together. "All of our resources are being used to try and find the Rebels at the moment. Every Coven has been on high alert, so I don't know how much help I can provide." He bends his head and whispers something too low for me to hear. "I heard word that we are getting closer. It seems the evil witch is playing cat and mouse though so I won't believe it until she is caught."

My stomach is in knots. The only thing keeping me sane is the fact that Amelia is safe, my parents would have told me otherwise. Right? I pace behind him. The lighting in his room is almost non-existent. There is only one small candle in the middle of his desk. I don't think he wants me to see anything I'm not supposed to.

"Does Leo know you're here?" His tone is casual but I know everyone has been asking the same question: what happened between us? Leo and I used to be attached at the hip. But after his betrayal I can't even stand to look at him.

"Everett I only have two minutes left. Please hurry." My dad is going to kill me.

"Sorry." He rushes through his spell. Then he goes silent.

I hold my breath. There has to be something. I can't take another second of this unbearable pain.

He hangs his head briefly and I lose hope. Slowly he turns to me and holds up two rings. His dark hand takes mine and he places both of them in my palm.

"This is the best I could come up with on such a short notice. Our ancestors are trying their best to find a solution to your predicament but they said this should work for now." He takes my right hand and places one of the rings on my forefinger. "This moonstone will help you control your powers when you are around Amelia. It will channel them to the stone so you do not cause much harm when you touch her." I look at the white stone that gives off a blue hue under the light. He points to the other ring in my hand. "The Onyx stone on that ring should protect her from any magic that slips through your fingers. Make sure she wears it any time you are together. It will try and redirect your magic so it does not affect her as bad as it should."

I sigh in relief.

"This is only a temporary solution. I don't suggest you go overboard with it. I will keep you updated once I hear back from the ancestors. It might be a while though, until we catch the Rebels."

I hold on tight to the ring and pull him into a hug. He stiffens but I don't care. "I am so grateful!" There are some small tears forming at the corner of my eyes. "I have to ask, why are you helping me." I pull back to look at him.

He looks embarrassed by my hug but shrugs it off. "If I were to meet my soul mate tomorrow and was told I could never be with them because I was a danger to them, I would go to the ends of the earth to find a way. I am just trying to help as much as I can."

I smile a little. I never imagined him to be a softy. "Well, thank you Everett. If you need anything, and I mean anything, don't hesitate to call me."

He shakes my hand. "I'll hold you to that."

******

"Hazel! Hazel!" A voice yells near the front of my home. It seems they made it through the front door.

I have just reappeared in my room and for a second got scared that it was my mother's voice trying to find me. Are they back from their meeting so soon?

"Hazel!" The voice yells again, it sounds angry.

My heart contracts. I know that voice. I have been hearing it in my dreams, except she doesn't usually sound so angry. I run down the hall, and stop at the top of the stairs. Amelia is in the middle of our foyer, being held by two guards. My heart stops, I choke on my last breath, and stare wide eyed at the most beautiful creature in my existence. Oh, how I have missed her. For the first time in weeks I feel blood rushing through my veins to my cheeks. She's wearing jeans and a black t shirt. Her hair is parted down the middle.

"Let go of me! I need to see her." Just then her eyes look up, as if sensing my presence and I feel her heart flutter.

"Amelia," My voice is barely above a whisper.

She stops struggling against the guards and takes a deep breath. "You're here."

I finally force my feet to move and run down the stairs. "Remove your hands off her immediately!"

"Your father has left specific instructions, she is not to be here." One of the guards tries to speak.

"If you don't release her this instant I will be forced to take both of you down." My threat stops them short.

Their hands fall and Amelia comes rushing to my side. She jumps into my arms and wraps her legs around my waist. I hold her tight and transport us back to my room. I close my door and set a spell that will hold back anyone trying to come in for at least a couple of seconds.

"Oh, my love." I kiss Amelia's head, cheeks, nose, chin, and lastly her lips. "I've missed you so much." She returns my kiss with more desperation and I have to pull away long enough to ask her some questions. "What are you doing here? How did you get here?"

Her eyes are unfocused but she leans back in to kiss me. There is a sweet current between us that have my blood singing. A shiver runs up my spine at our contact. A sudden jolt between our lips makes her jump out of my arms and I take a step back. She runs her tongue through her bottom lip. Why can't I just reign in my powers for even a second? Through my frustration I remember the ring.

I pull her hand and take the ring out of my cloak pocket. "Here, this will help."

Her green eyes watch me curiously as I put the ring with the black stone on her forefinger. Her other hand covers her mouth. I give her a second to get used to the ring then slowly pull her into my arms. I remove her hand away from her face and lean in until our lips touch. The heat between our lips is still there but I don't feel the magical current as strongly as before. She moans and brings her hands up to pull my deeper into the kiss. Her fingers tug at my hair. I wrap my arms around her waist and kiss her with so much hunger, I am afraid I will faint.

"Wait," She pulls my face away by pulling my hair in her hands.

I groan and catch my breath. "What's wrong? Does it still hurt?" I look for any signs to indicate the rings aren't working.

She shakes her head and avoids meeting my eyes. She leans her head in and nuzzles my neck. "I'm supposed to be mad at you."

I expect her to pull away but she stays in my arms. I sigh and rest my chin on her head. "Please don't be mad at me."

She places a kiss on my neck and I feel the tingles travel to my breast.

"I came here, ready to curse you out. But," She blows out through her mouth. "I can't. I love you too much to hurt you in any way." Her head sinks deeper into my neck.

I feel butterflies in my chest. "You love me?" I never thought I could feel closer to her than I already do. I put my hand under her chin and bring her face out so I can look into her eyes. "You really love me?"

I feel her heart flutters and I smile at the blush covering her cheeks. "Yes, and I know you might not feel the same and it's okay."

My eyes widen in surprise and I lean in to kiss her before she continues. When I finally pull back, she is gripping me so tight I chuckle a little. "Amelia, you are my world. I love you more than life itself." I am talking to her like she is dense, but I can't help it. How can she not think that I love her just the same if not more than she loves me?

Her eyes begin to water and she sniffles.

I pull her into a long hug. "Why would you think otherwise?"

She take a deep breath. "I haven't heard from you in weeks. You stopped talking to me, I had no way to reach you. And your father said this is what you wanted."

I push my anger away. I cannot waste any time with her. But I can't believe my father.

"How did you get here?" I pull back to look at her. No human should be able to find this place, even with a map.

"Leo." I must look surprised because she turns her head to the side. "He was hanging outside of Jake's dorm and when I asked where you have been he didn't want to say. I told him I wanted to curse you out since we were done and then he seemed to want to help with that so he dropped me off here."

I smile a little. Leo did this for me. He knew I would never let Amelia get here and leave without at least trying to get back on her good graces. I owed him one.

"Does this mean we can be together now?" She bites her lip.

I sigh and run my hand through her thick curls. Her hair is longer. "I will fight for us to be together. It might just take some time."

She looks scared. "I can't take being away from you any longer."

"Hazel!" My father's voice is on the other side of my bedroom door.

Amelia jumps at the sound and moves to stand behind me.

"Open this door! I can't believe you are blatantly going behind our backs-" I open the door with a flick of my wrist and he looks surprised. He probably expected a fight. I have to be smart if I wanted this to go my way.

"Hazel, what are you doing?" He looks at Amelia and then steps into the room. My mother stays by the door. She looks at us concerned.

"Father, Amelia is staying." I feel her hand search for mine and holds me tight once she finds it. "Her mother is dead, she had no one else in her life but me. She knows I am her soul mate and I will do whatever I can to keep her by my side."

He looks down at both of our hands and scowls. "That is not possible. We will be breaking our treaty with the humans by putting her life in danger."

"I found a way to keep her safe." I try to explain before her interrupts me. "Everett made us these rings." I pull our hands up so he can see them. "He said his ancestors told them they should help for now. He's trying to find a more permanent solution. Until then, I have to keep Amelia by my side. I am useless without her. You saw that first hand."

He begins to pace the room and runs a hand through his hair. "Hazel, that could take years. Please think about how much time of her life will be wasted away or what will happen if no other solution is found." He looks stressed out and I worry about his health. No matter how hard he is trying to keep us apart, I don't want anything bad to happen to him.

"I should have just erased both of your memories when I had the chance." He shakes his head.

I pull Amelia closer and try to control my fury. I can't let it take over when I am holding her hand. "You were going to do what?" I feel Amelia's other hand wrap around my waist. The feeling of her arms around me calms me slightly.

"It would save both of you all the pain and trouble-"

"Stop talking!" He looks at me like I'm a wild animal. "If you even suggest anything like that again I will leave forever."

My mother finally decides to speak. "Hazel, no." There are tears in her eyes. "Please don't go. Your father is just trying to do what is best for both of you."

I turn and wrap my arms around Amelia. I wish she wasn't here to see all of this but I won't let her out of my sight anymore. "The Rebels have a way of helping us live with our human soul mates for the rest of eternity." I run my lips against the top of Amelia's head. "If that is the only way I will be able to live with her then I will do that."

My mother cries louder. "No! Hazel, no! Ernest, say something! I will not have our only daughter run to those Rebels because you are willing to put your duty before your own family."

There is silence and I know they are speaking to each other through their minds.

"Hazel." My father's voice is defeated. "I am not sorry that I have tried to keep both the human girl and yourself safe. I am sorry that I have not been a more supportive father to you. And I promise we will find a way to allow you to be together but we can't do that until we capture the Rebels and the evil witch."

"Hazel, you and Amelia can still see each other. We'll arrange times for you to be together, but it has to be on our terms." My mother says behind me. I can tell she's trying to get closer but I refuse to turn around.

"For now, Amelia needs to get back home." My father sounds like he is trying to keep his voice in check.

I feel her arms tighten around me even more. "She's staying the night." I simply state.

"Now, Hazel" My father's voice is stern.

"Fine." My mother says at the same time.

I lean down to kiss her head and then slowly turn to look at my parents. They both are looking at me like I might disappear at any second, and with good reason. I run into their arms and they hug me.

"I'm sorry." I say quietly. "But I cannot live without her."

"We understand," My mother sighs against my cheek.

"We love you. But please, let this all be on our terms. I have to find a way to explain all of this to the Purelite Coven if she is to keep hanging around. And they have to be accepting of it." My father holds me tight. I haven't felt this close to him since I first found out about Amelia. It feels like a lifetime ago.

I nod. "Your terms."

******

~Amelia~

"So have you chosen your classes for next semester yet?" Hazel runs her hands through my hair.

We're lying on her bed. My head is on her chest and my legs are wrapped around hers. I still want to be closer.

"Yeah, I was scared I was going to have to retake Finance but I pulled through." Her fingers feel magical. We have been like this for the last hour or so. She has been asking me so many questions about what she might have missed and I have been talking non-stop. Everything feels right.

"So were you really planning on turning your back on your family to be with me." I still can't believe she threatened to leave them to join the Rebels. I don't think I would have let her but her parents took the threat seriously enough.

She looks down at me and my heartbeat accelerates as her brown eyes shine. "Like I said, I love you more than life itself. I just want to be with you." She makes it sound so simple.

"And you were afraid to kiss me because you can harm me?"

She brings my hand to her mouth and kisses my palm. "The ring should keep you safe. Don't tell me you didn't feel the small jolts of magic on your lips when we kissed."

I hide my face in her neck and bite my lip. I actually like our heated kisses.

"You also fainted under my touch, so no. I was not going to go anywhere near you until I found a safe way to touch you."

My heartbeat falters at the mention of that night. The best orgasm of my life ruined by my inability to stay conscious through it. "That was the best night of my life." I say quietly. I try to forget her attitude after the orgasm. Now it makes sense why she blamed herself for my safety.

She rolls over so she's laying above me. My hands automatically grab her waist. Her shirt has risen up so I feel her skin burning my fingertips. My body begins to feel warm but I welcome it.

"I want to make you feel so good, but we can't push it. These rings are only meant to help temporarily." Her hand lightly runs circles on my tummy and slowly pushes my shirt up so there is physical contact. My back arches and I bite back a moan. It's been so long since she has touched me. I feel like I am going crazy over a mere look from her.

She brings lips to my ear and I shiver. "Let's keep it PG 13 until we know for sure that these rings do what they are meant to." Her voice is husky. It makes my breast tingle and my pussy soak my underwear. "Do you want that?" She takes my earlobe between her soft lips and I moan out loud. My breast push up against her own and I am a quivering mess.

I forget what she asked but I just shake my head to keep her going.

She purrs against my neck and lightly places a kiss and sucks at the spot right below my ear. I whimper, wanting her to do that same thing on my clit. I am almost ashamed at my train of thoughts but this is what she does to me.

"Spread your legs." I open my legs and she places one of her own between my legs and the other next to my hip. "One day we'll be able to do this without clothes." She trails kisses down my throat and eventually her lips find mine. I open my mouth wide and search for her tongue with my own.

She growls and pulls back slightly. I whimper. "You have to follow my lead, Amelia." The way she says my name makes me almost cream my pants.

I nod again and let her lips lightly run over mine.

Her hips begin to move in slow circles and I feel my own grinding against her thigh which is right in between my legs. I feel the slickness in between my pussy lips and moan again. "Hazel," I sigh into her mouth and she groans. Our rhythm picks up and I feel the pressure building against my clit. I pull her hips closer to me and feel my nails digging into her soft flesh.

She moans and picks up the pace. "Fuck." She says against my lips. I lick her lips and try to kiss her deeply again. She lets me and our tongues fight back and forth over dominance. In the end though she takes mine in between her lips and matches her hip movement to her sucking rhythm. I can't hold back any longer and I come all over my underwear. Her body tenses and I can feel her orgasm take over her body. We both ride it out as long as we can.

She rests her forehead against mine and lightly kisses my lips. Her hand snakes down past by belly button and her fingers slip past my jeans and underwear. Two of her fingers run against my pussy and I can't control the sound that comes past my lips. She draws slow circles until she pools as much of my juices into her fingers. She brings her hand out and runs her slick fingers against my lips. I have never tasted myself before. I moan at how turned on I am and she takes that moment to dip her fingers into my mouth. I suck on them and hear her hiss. She finally removes her fingers and kisses me deeply, tasting juices against my tongue. She raises her head to look deeply into my eyes. My heartbeat accelerates and she smiles. Her hand hovers over my heart.