The Daughter of Death- *RAYOR*

Chapter 20: Family Reunions

His head snapped round. His eyes widened, looking me up and down. He got up slowly, his feet bare, and closed the gap between us. He seemed to study my face, like Father, and for a moment, I thought he would hug me. He stepped back.

Seeing his face was more painful than I could have imagined. The sprinkle of freckles, the wild hair. His dark eyes, older than his years. How he looked noticeably older hurt my heart. Three years, not watching him grow, and it had meant so much.

"Why are you here?" His voice sent a stab of pain rolling through me. and not just that. That his first words to me had been not I love you or I missed you but a question, a question that I should be asking. Every word seemed special, those words spoken with his voice. It was soft, sweet and slightly breathless.

"I-I-" I stuttered. "I lost something. I need to get it back. From the Cave."

"You can't go in there," he said. "You have to go away."

Hearing that nearly broke my heart. "What do you mean?"

"It's... dangerous," he said, somewhat reluctantly. He glanced back, his dark eyes worried. "Someone doesn't want you here."

My throat constricted. "Who?"

He looked down. The fact that he wouldn't even look at me shocked me to the core. "Maria."

"Mother?" I said. "She's here?"

"And she doesn't want to see you." the next words seemed to be a struggle for him. "Neither do I, Blakely."

Blakely. He knew I hated that. Hated my full name. He couldn't have forgotten. "Gabriel... how did you get here?"

"So you're not in a disguise?" he crossed his arms, leaning on his left foot.

"You're still a reaper," I said. "Of course. I'm... not in disguise. I lost my powers. I need to go in and get them back."

Gabriel stared at me steadily. "Uh... that's not going to happen."

"Why?" I felt the shock ebb away, turning to offense. "Because you won't let me?"

He glanced down again. "No, because of Mother. She... doesn't like you."

"She barely knows me," I scoffed. "If I talked to her- she's my mother-"

"Don't!" said Gabriel sharply, pulling me back. He was stronger than I'd expected. The first time he'd touched me in years, and it had been to pull me back.

"What do you mean?"

He crossed his arms. "I mean that I was being nice earlier. She hates you and she doesn't want you here."

"Why?"

"Why for what?"

"Both."

"She doesn't want you here because you'll get in the way. She hates you because you don't remind her of her."

"Oh, and you do?" I crossed my arms, matching his posture.

"Yes!" Gabriel snapped. "You're heartless! Why do you think I left?"

I felt anger now, fury at being spoken to like this by my brother, who I hadn't seen in years. But I swallowed it down, something I hadn't managed to do until I was... human. "I'm sorry."

The reaction was immediate. His eyebrows contracted. He seemed very shocked. "Uh, Blakely?"

"I can change! And I have. I'm sorry. But I need to find my powers, I've come so far! And then, I need to take you home."

Gabriel looked like he was struggling. "Don't go in the cave, Blake. I'll find your powers."

I smiled at him, which made him look even more alarmed. Reverting to a scowl, I looked down.

"But I'm not coming with you."

It was like a slap to the chest. "W-what?"

"I don't want to come with you, Blake. You've changed."

Defensiveness rose inside of me. "I haven't changed."

"Perhaps maybe I just noticed," said Gabriel. "You're not the same person to everyone else as you are to me."

"But-" I spluttered, at a loss for words. "Gabriel, I loved you! I mean, I love you. I didn't- I couldn't-"

"You don't love anyone, Blake. You have no idea what love is."

"And you do?"

"Yes. I know what it's like to wake up aching all over because of it. Because of you. I thought you'd change, if I talked to you. But you didn't."

"You were eight! You weren't clear!"

"You didn't care. You said you didn't care."

"I said a lot of things, but they're not true. Not now."

"Blake, you have to leave. I'll bring you your powers, but you have to leave. By the way," he smirked now, "who did it?"

"Arielle," I said reluctantly. "Gabriel, I don't want to leave without you. It's not just me. It's my friends, too."

"You don't have friends."

"Aster is my friend," I said, now slightly injured.

"Aster is your servant. Sooner or later, he'll get sick of it."

I shook my head at him, disbelieving. "You've changed, Gabriel."

"Maybe I did." Gabriel's eyes flickered up to the hill. I turned and saw Arielle and Willow, panting, reach the bottom of the hill. "That midget really rendered you like this?"

"She's not a midget," I said.

"You're improving."

Arielle and Willow neared Gabriel. "Who are you?" asked Arielle. I saw Gabriel's face twitch at the sound of her breathy voice, as I had done. In annoyance.

"He's my brother," I said bleakly.

"What?" Willow looked to Gabriel. "But- but your brother-"

"You have to leave!" Gabriel said cuttingly. He pointed to a wooded area. "Over there, there is another cave, quite small, with vines over the entrance. You can stay there. Don't go anywhere."

"Gabriel-"

"Just GO!" I saw now that there were tears in his eyes. He was crying, and he was crying because of me.

"Blake, we need to leave." Arielle tugged my arm. Almost in a trance, I let her pull me into a copse of trees, not caring that branches slashed at my face. She pulled apart the vines from what appeared to be a very large boulder, and we went inside, Willow laying out mats and food, and lighting a fire.

Willow touched my hand. "What happened?"

For the second time in my life, I began to cry.