Damon didn't understand the meaning behind Talia's words, but he knew they were heavy. Something told him that the small woman in front of him would risk everything for him, and support him with no questions asked, even when he was an asshole and when he mistreated her. Unconditional acceptance. It was something he didn't remember, yet he knew that it can be given to him only by the woman who stood in front of him.
Damon reached with his free hand to touch her cheek.
"Kitten…", he murmured, and a lone tear escaped her eye to settle on his index finger.
Damon's eyes were distant and full of confusion, and she knew that memories were struggling to emerge, but that was still not her Damon. She needed this spell to remove black runes once and for all, so she can stop worrying that he will forget about her and about everything they've been through so far.
Cornelia opened her mouth to try and reason with Talia, but James grabbed her hand and gave her a squeeze.
"Do what she asked.", James said. "I know you don't approve, but I would do the same for you in a heartbeat."
Cornelia looked at James for a long moment and then she nodded in understanding. She would do the same for him as well. But there was one problem. "What about the payment?", Cornelia asked.
"I will pay.", Damon said, surprising everyone. "It seems that this ritual is for me. If my memories return, and I realize that the girl in front of me is my mate, then… I will pay whatever you want." It was more of a challenge than a promise, but Cornelia didn't care about his motives.
"I will take your word for it, Alpha.", Cornelia said with a smirk.
"Didn't I pay already for this?", Talia asked with urgency. Actually, Axel agreed to pay, but then Evanora waived the fee, a mate for a mate.
Cornelia looked at Talia like she asked something silly. "That was to provide you with a ritual, and it didn't include me performing it. But don't worry, I won't ask for too much. I'm confident that your mate can afford it." Seeing Talia's disapproval, Cornelia spread her arms, hands up. "Do you want this to happen or not? It's not like you have other options unless you step outside."
'She is right', Liseli spoke in Talia's head. 'Let her do this.' How Liseli saw this, Damon should suffer because all this mess was caused by him, and Liseli didn't forgive Damon for how he treated Talia just a few minutes ago.
Reluctantly, Talia gave a nod of agreement.
Happy to get this confirmation, Cornelia glanced at James to say, "Stand back."
Cornelia raised her arms, and her fingers twisted to form complex seals. James wondered if the wind gathering there was a coincidence or Cornelia's doing.
A few seconds later, Cornelia's whole body was shrouded in a silvery glow and ancient words came as whispers from her lips.
The diagram below Talia and Damon lit up in a pulsating white light that was getting stronger with every beat.
The light rose from the ground to envelope two figures who stood there holding hands, until they were just outlines.
The wind picked up to carry leaves and small branches, creating a twister around Talia and Damon. Cornelia's voice echoed into the night, causing goosebumps to rise on the skin of everyone who heard her. The whole scene was magical.
Talia observed Damon and her eyes narrowed on the black runes that pulsated on his skin, as if an invisible force was ripping them from his flesh.
Damon groaned as his whole body felt like it was set ablaze, but his eyes didn't leave Talia's that were now glowing in silvery light.
Damon's vision blurred and he bit the inside of his cheek in an effort to stay conscious. Talia's form was glowing, and her hair turned silvery; she looked like a Goddess. Was this really his mate? She was beautiful.
Damon gasped at the sharp pain that assaulted every cell in his body, and he remembered a girl in the dark kitchen who gave him the slip when he was dazed by her scent which he couldn't track… and then he saw her in the attic, hiding behind her knees… he licked her wound and smuggled her out of the Red Moon pack… he tended to her wounds clumsily in a hotel, and he fed her, and he took her shopping for clothes… amusement park… the Summer Solstice festival… party at the Lightclaw pack… it all came to him like an unstoppable flood that filled his mind with memories and his chest with emotions that were always there, yet he couldn't reach them. And pain. So much pain for what he had done.
She was his most precious person, yet he treated her like she was not important. Again.
'You are such a prick!', Sapa shouted in Damon's head and Damon agreed with the old beast.
Damon closed his eyes. Maybe he should stop resisting and just lose consciousness, and when he wakes up, he will see that this was another bad dream.
"Ahhh!", Talia's scream over the howl of the wind around them made Damon's eyes snap open to look at her in panic. What happened?
He could see black lines slithering on her skin.
'What is that?', Damon asked his wolf in panic.
'I don't know', Sapa responded. 'It could be remnants from the dark magic.'
Damon's heart tightened. 'Will she forget about me now?'
Sapa had no idea if those small lines will have any effect on Talia, but he didn't feel like comforting Damon. 'Maybe that's not a bad thing.'
"NO!", Damon shouted, and his arms wrapped around Talia. He looked up in the tunnel of white light that opened up to show the full moon at the top. "You can't take her away from me. She is the only one I care about. I know I fucked up, more than once, but I can't fix it if you take her away! Please… don't take her away. You can't take her away, not now. I just found her…" For nearly three decades he was wandering on his own. When he found Talia, he was not ready to acknowledge her, and now when things fell into place… "IT'S NOT FAIR!", Damon hollered against the howl of the wind, desperation breaking his voice.
The white light around them pulsated strongly once, twice, and then it dispersed as a silent explosion in all directions that carried leaves, twigs, pebbles, and dust. Everything was numbly quiet.
Maya blinked to see the dust settling and Damon holding Talia in his arms. They were covered in fine powder and looked like statues. If not for Damon's chest heaving, Maya would think that they got petrified and for a few long seconds, no one moved.
