The world came back into focus one inch of skin at a time. First a toe tingled. Then a spot on my upper leg itched. Hairs on my arm were caught by a breeze of cool air. Eyelids fluttered then slowly opened as the world spun into focus.

Nothing angry prowled the room. No screaming or madness inducing gibberish filled my ears. No broken down doll speeches. I tried to turn my head and look around. No shadows hung on the walls with carved faces of madness. Daylight was apparent outside. There were no tubes in my body. Just wristbands, pulse monitors, electric devices attached to sticky things on my skin.

I was alive.

Kahina was out cold next to me. I tried to swallow and found my mouth dry. There were problems we needed to talk about. My deal with Candy stood between us, until I found another option.

A nurse came in. She had a tablet of some sort that she was scanning readings into. The woman pressed buttons on the screen and moved on. I tried to wiggle an arm and wave her down. The effort resulted in her looking over. Her face had the sternest look I had ever seen.

I tried to speak and failed.

"You're in a Sector hospital. Agent Crumfield will be in soon. I'll make sure he brings a drink." Her words were professional and crisp. Sure enough, less than a minute later Daniel swept in the room.

Following him was the waitress who wasn't a waitress. Muni. Her raven hair looked even more pronounced. Easier to distinguish. Feathers fluttered through her hair. It was hard to tell if they were woven in, or if they grew from her scalp.

"Man. What a giant mess," Daniel said. "Here, drink this. It'll help, trust me." He tipped a small glass of murky water to my lips. There was something sweet in it. I was too thirsty to care.

A third figure came in. An older elf with pure silver hair. It took me a moment to remember him. This was the elder from Candy’s clan. I had seen him once from a distance.

"This him?" The elf asked.

"It is indeed. Our very own Mister Fields."

"Right." The elf wasn't as professional. His words held a left over gutter accent of the Emerald Isles. "I'll be quick then, and on my way."

Daniel shrugged. He clearly didn't care one way or the other. Muni remained silent. Everyone seemed to disregard her and focused only on me. I was confused.

"You made a deal with one of us. Honor it." The Elder said.

"Yeah," I said.

"You've promised. Stay clear of that Bloodletter." His accent grew increasingly pronounced the longer he talked.

"I know."

"I don't know or care why. You made a deal with one of us. We're honor-bound to carry through." The old man shrugged. He looked displeased at needing to be here.

"There a way out?" I asked.

"Not by human laws or ours. Western Sector is bound to enforce it as well. Unless you've something to offer in exchange for the debt?" His silver hair pulled back and an excited look crossed his face at the prospect of a deal.

"I don't know what you'd want." I had a ton of things.

"Bah. Fine. You hash it out with Kanda'rila. Or come see me. Don't go trying to wriggle out. If a deal’s violated our entire clan’s bound to dig up everything we can and make your life turn to shit. Trust me, us elves can find a lot."

I tried to open my mouth and yell. To threaten him. All that came out was a tired whimper. There was no energy in my entire body. Both eyelids were heavy and fingers barely moved.

"I'll help him get it sorted, Elder Land'ril," Daniel said.

"See to it, Agent. That's your job. I've had my say." The old elf turned and walked out the door.

Daniel sighed and rolled his eyes theatrically.

"Elves. Anyway, I wanted to thank you, man. My girl, she's shaken, but alive. That's better than I dared hope." The agent was keeping his distance. The glass he had me drinking from was nearly empty.

"We need to talk, Crummy." I slurred.

"Sure, man, but you get some rest first. You'll need it." Then he left too. Not a word about Muni being in the room. In fact, both men had acted like she didn't exist at all.

The raven haired woman stared off into space for a bit. Considering, choosing her words carefully. I had a lot of questions for her. My thoughts weren't straight right now, though.

"Is it starting to come back?" She finally asked.

"Is what?" I asked.

"That's good then." Muni’s body lost a lot of tension. "I'm not sure how long much longer it'll last."

My life felt far different since returning home. That other presence felt aware, alive, and less of a stranger. Abilities that I never experienced felt familiar and natural. Every time my thoughts started trying to understand why, I got sidetracked. It was frustrating.

"The elf he mentioned, Kanda'rila, forces me to leave what is mine," I said. "Daniel tells me I'm hunted. I don't know why."

"That's good."

"Not remembering is good?" I asked.

"For now. You are hiding, Lord." Muni said.

"From what?"

"From the followers of Merlin. Pause for a moment. Don't struggle against it." Her voice was hypnotic. Or it was the water I drank. Probably some damned fine drugs in there. "Your emotions are the same. Thoughts. The only thing I can touch is your memory of them. You know that it's good to forget."

I didn't want to pause and didn't want to think about it. Instead, I focused on something else and asked "Why memories?"

"If you forget yourself, then so does everyone else. You stand out less this way." She clucked a few times. "But it is impossible to diminish you forever."

I had no idea how I was diminished. What she had done to make me feel differently. Or what I had forgotten. Worse, I was both frustrated and accepting of the lack of knowledge. Being of two minds about a topic explained why I hadn't gone straight to Candy for answers. It hinted at why I hadn't asked vampires or other elves about what I was. It wasn't only the vague notion of danger, something else in me didn't want to remember.

Not yet.

Muni knelt down next to me and Kahina. Well, next to Kahina. Muni seemed uncomfortable around me. Like she wanted to be tough but couldn't quite pull it off.

"Time to forget," She said.

"For me?"

"No. For everyone else who might have heard or seen you. I'll be very busy for the next few weeks." She sighed then fiddled with her ribbons. The action was extremely familiar.

"The elf is right you know," Muni said.

I didn't respond.

"You being near her is very dangerous."

The silence stretched for a few minutes before I finally said, “I know.”

"I can help." She offered.

"How?"

"I would take her memories of you when I take everyone else's. She would not seek you then, and not know you survived." Muni’s hands didn’t move as much when she spoke. The more we interacted, the more obvious her nature was. That black hair looked like an illusion covering something else.

My mind tried to weigh her offer. Would forgetting make it easier? Kahina would be free of me completely. No more wondering about my blood. No more worry about what I might do or say. She would never have to stress about me showing up drunk to a stuffy business meeting. Or punching her asshole Second in the face.

I would remember her, though. Remember nights with her. Seeing movies in the showroom of her mansion. Remember swimming in the single Olympic pool. Feeling both drawn to her and afraid to get close. The scent of peppermint would forever remind me of Kahina. But she would be safer without me, especially since the transition was done. The other partial vampires were all dead and The Order was only after me.

Could I be so clinical about it?

"Can you take my memories of her?" I asked.

Muni shook her head back and forth. The feathers braided into her hair never went out of position. Almost like they held on with glue and not bits of string.

"Taking your memories are dangerous. You I can only block temporarily, anything more will break the seal." She said.

"But it's not dangerous to take hers?"

"It's like comparing rainstorms to tidal waves. One is violent but survivable, the other is destruction incarnate." Muni’s words made little sense.

"I'm the tidal wave?" I asked. Her explanation would probably make a lot of sense if I didn’t already have issues. My brain was elsewhere anyway. I wished Kahina's eyes were open. Instead, all I had was this sleeping face to study. Beautiful to be sure, but not as good.

"You know many of us are forbidden from telling you."

"Why?"

"Because you ordered us not to," Muni answered.

I hung my head. That made even less sense than the tidal wave analogy. When did anyone listen to my orders? Besides that thing with Stacy and Corey being ordered to sit.

Things were peaceful right now and I didn't want to argue. Whatever was coursing through me was damned effective. Not to mention my body was barely hanging on. It was a surprise that I hadn't passed out again already.

A huge chunk of my blood had been drained by Kahina. Only my ability to heal kept me moving. Before that had been a nearly endless run in the woods, facing sword-wielding vampires, being shot by a sniper and a wolf tearing into my shoulder.

"Make the decision now, Lord. Before she wakes." Muni pushed for an answer. Her footsteps dared hop closer. The woman remained out of arm's reach.

"What will she remember?"

"A bodyguard laid down his life for her survival."

"Will she remember my face?" I asked.

"In a sense," Muni said. "She will mourn a man she barely knew. She may dream occasionally of his face. Of his protectiveness. An old boyfriend from before."

"But not me? Not that I'm alive?"

"It'll be someone like you, but that man will be dead. She will remember him dying in her defense. Only how she remembers the ending need change." Her words felt far away again. My eyes tried to focus on the pretend waitress. Black, just black with small eyes that stared at me. Feathers around everything.

Kahina was easier to see, and sunset would arrive soon. I took solace in the fact that we had met once upon her awakening. It had been one of the few things she asked for, in that video from a week ago. Kahina's face was starting to stir. She was eager to wake up.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

I had a deal to fulfill with Candy or the rest of her clan would blackmail me. It didn't take a lot of thought to figure out how a group of people who could spy on my every move might make life miserable. Worse still, they could drag Kahina's entire household and business into it and ruin her. She didn't need to deal with my shit. There was a list of reasons to go and only two for staying.

She was mine.

I loved her.

It would be better if I let her go. Easier if she didn't remember me. Kahina would be fully awake in a few moments. My acceptance of Muni's offer hung unspoken as I tried to talk. The side of my face had a quiet stream going down it. Hell, if anyone saw those tears my entire tough guy image would be ruined.

I didn't wipe them away.

"Do it." Before I change my mind.

"Do you remember your promise?" Muni asked slowly.

There wasn't emotional room left for anger or surprise. I merely stared at her.

"You don't." She looked timid for a moment, then replaced it with the waitress look. Used to dealing with people, didn't take attitude. Tired of the same old crap. "You promised to find my brother, Lord. Somehow."

Slowly my eyes blinked at her.

"Please find him. This world is incomplete without him. I will adjust her memories of you. It will prevent the danger that chases you from finding her. Just, please, find my brother." Muni didn't approach me with demands this time. No, this was something else. Desperation.

"Keeper too?" I didn't want that ancient vampire to know I existed. If he hungered for my blood like Kahina then life would be difficult. Especially for a vampire who could pop into an airtight room.

"That old man?" Her face ruffled for a moment. "Yes. And all her household will forget your life. The wolves will be hardest."

"Okay. Your brother. Deal." I could look into it once life settled down. It would take time to come to grips with being forced out of Kahina's life.

Life wasn't a perfect romance novel. Love couldn't overcome the united forces against us. Kahina could continue her existence, build her empire, make money, support the entire household if I just left. The pressure my presence would bring was too much. Elves, the Order, both were unwelcome.

Muni didn't even nod. She leaned her head down towards Kahina's. Like a bird perched over food. I didn't look away from Kahina once during the process. Not even when small grape like marbles surfaced on her face. Not even when Muni took them, carefully cradling them like a precious substance.

This might be the last time I saw Kahina in person and one of us should remember the moment.

Once it was done she chattered at me. She repeated the words. I was too exhausted to notice. Muni was probably telling me about her brother, but nothing got through. Finally, she gave up and left.

I reached over and carefully tried to fix Kahina's hair. Quiet minutes passed with the setting sun peering in through a window. Just us two. Liquid I couldn't control dropped down onto Kahina's serene face. It wasn't from rain.

Daniel returned. My brain wasn't in a place to care. Beyond tired, physically and emotionally. His presence stirred me out of our moment together.

"Time to go." He wasn't rude about it. The Western Sector agent had just as much reason as I to be upset over these last few days. Daniel provided me a shirt and pair of pants to slip on.

"Sorry, beautiful." I wiped at my face with a sleeve and kissed Kahina on the forehead. This was a hell of a way to keep someone safe.

"Come on, man." Daniel gave me a hand getting detached from the machines and out of the bed. He propped me up on one side. The man was stronger than expected. The guidance was comforting. At least he was still here.

Ann, Shaggy, whoever, stood outside and helped pack me into an SUV with the Western Sector logo on one side. In latin sat those words that loosely translated to ‘everything for the peace’. The two drove me home, keeping quiet, but I saw Daniel's hand holding Ann's. She would be okay in the end. They were both strong enough. Protected by their families, their government, and each other.

They took me home to a ruined apartment that was still locked down by police tape. Daniel didn't say anything as I got out of the car. Neither did I. Bypassing the tape I stepped into the mess that was my apartment. Blood remained on the floor and plaster was broken. The room felt disorienting and confining. I turned around and went back outside.

Sleep dragged at my eyelids from the second I got out of the vehicle. Instead of giving into exhaustion and Daniel's drugs I fell back on old habits. I picked a direction and walked. The length of time wasn't measured. Everything hurt and nothing was clear. My mind was numb. Only half aware. That might have been the drugs.

I traveled back to the nearby park. To walk the trails where Kahina and I had slept for a night. Next was the alley where Shaggy had nearly lost her life. The vehicle and windshield had been removed. The entire alley was clean. Almost like the entire event had been a dream. For a moment, I pondered how my blood had helped Ann live. Daniel had known. Daniel knew what I was. Yet I didn't rush out to throttle him for answers.

Muni had told me I would understand. That forgetting was important and acceptable. I did, and it was. It hurt knowing that Kahina wouldn’t remember me. The idea was strangely comforting as well.

Frequently I failed to resist the pull of Kahina's red splattered cord. I trailed the purple and blood spotted line from my neighborhood towards her mansion. The scenes tore at me. As I watched her with that other sense the same results played out all night. She was fine one moment, then she would seize briefly and a spot of blood would trickle out an eye. Her face a barely masked bundle of confusion.

I had to leave her alone. Had to cut off ties in every sense. Last time I left the area for four years so I could avoid the call of her presence. This time, it would be even harder.

My footsteps must have traveled half the city before finally starting back towards home. It was somewhere near dawn before my surroundings became familiar. This was the first night in months that wouldn't be spent near Kahina. Soon there was an easily recognized door in front of me. Even the door chime felt muted as the door opened.

Julianne's bar was quiet tonight.

The bar was my last haven. A place that I had only been to twice since the short woman died. Other problems distracted me and prevented the full weight of memories from hitting. A flash of Julianne's form haunted my mind. I could almost see her being the counter, shuffling glasses around and smiling.

Muni wasn't around. Maybe she was off adjusting everyone else's memories of me. Her actions would erase me from existence in the minds of those who mattered. Distancing them from my dangerous presence. The only recognizable face was a drunken trucker wearing plaid. His bench sat next to my normal seat.

How many hours had I spent in this building? I stood there in the middle of a place no longer felt familiar. The place could be burned down to the brick foundation and it would have the same alien presence.

There was a small shrine set up in the corner. It was hard to tell if the pack had done it or the bar patrons. Both perhaps. Burned out candles, little handmade frames around cute pictures of a younger Julianne. Happier times. Even now, months after she died, someone cared for this little corner of remembrance.

I walked over to the pictures and touched them one by one. There were so many captured moments that didn't include me. A lifetime of friends to Julianne that had never crossed my path. Her and Thomas, their stern grandfather. Other members of the pack. Stacy was standing quietly next to Julianne in more than a few pictures. A lot of these were taken at the bar, a few in other places. It was hard to imagine her ever leaving this place. This was where she spent all her time, all her energy.

There was one picture with Kahina and Julianne, both wore smiles painted across their faces. Julianne had a glass in one hand and both arms out wide. Kahina looked relaxed. In the background was a banner hanging across the ceiling. It was a birthday party from two years ago.

No wonder none of these pictures had me in them. I had been gone. Kahina would never come back here either, not with Julianne dead. Not if Muni was removing all those memories. Kahina would never visit Julianne's grave. She was the type who would feel the wound like it was freshly made the moment she saw these pictures. All the more reason for her to never visit.

Business was quiet enough for me to sneak a bottle out from behind the counter. I grabbed the remote and flipped on the television. There was a vampire reporter giving out the latest updates. A Tribunal member was found dead at sundown. A new household had been born. They didn't act like both stories were linked, they just put the pieces back to back.

I turned the television off and the bar room drifted to silence. That marked an end to us. She had everything she ever wanted. My protection. My blood. My love. And none of it mattered because she wouldn't remember.

Those final images were burned into my brain. Her eyes as my life drained out in pints. That protective anger as she killed the shadow creature. The horrified look as she saw my face. Her screaming and weeping over what had happened. Any doubt in my mind regarding her feelings had been obliterated with that image.

Useless certainty only a small consolation from this nightmare. Yet, her eternal life would stretch on like royalty while I sat in the crowd looking up with longing. It was a group I never fit into. Me, a thug in a suit, fitting into that crowd and being able to keep her safe had only been a dream.

It was safer for everyone if I kept to myself. Alone, like I had been for years. There weren't  any appropriate words to say in farewell. Forgetting what had happened would be difficult according to Muni.

There was one solution that would help. Like a prize from a cereal box, my hope for memory modification waited at the very bottom of this bottle. If not, then maybe the next drink would be a better solution.

Eventually, I passed out. Kahina and Julianne’s picture clutched in one hand, a half empty glass in the other.