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The Impossible	By : sandyl666 Category: S through Z > The Saga of Darren Shan Views: 3621 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: The Saga of Darren Shan belongs to Darren Shan. I am not making any money out of writing this piece of fiction.

Chapter List
- 15
- 16
- 17
Disclaimer: ...I've run out of ways to write the disclaimer in an anti-repetitive way, so I'll just say it - type it? - I don't own the characters or plot of the Darren Shan Saga/Cirque Du Freak.
A/N: I know, I put in a weird format this time, starting with no POV, and then going back to Darren narrating the story. I didn't even notice it when I was writing the story. I only realised when proofreading. Sorry if it bothers anyone.

Chapter 16: A Semblance of Normality
No POV
A short, plump-ish figure eyed a rundown house quietly. It kept to the shadows, silent, watching.
The house was indeed a shack. The roof was hideously covered in patches of wood, the wall had fragile-looking cracks running down its walls, the lawn was covered in various, overgrown vegetation and the fences had planks missing in places, or bits of them falling off.
However, it was evident that though the house was old, it was very clean. The window panes were clean and shiny, the doorknob polished and gleamed even in the moonlight, and the footpath leading up to the front door was neat, lacking the overgrown vegetation that encompassed the rest of the yard.
The figure regarded the house contemplatively, then turned away and rejoined the shadows.
Not yet. It's not time yet. Soon, my dearest friends, soon.

Back in the house, Darren's POV:
"Say 'ahhh'!" I smiled, holding out the food on a spoon to him lovingly. "Come on! Just a little bit, honey! You need the sustenance," I nudged the spoon at him.
He remained stubbornly unmoving, pursing up his lips distastefully at the substance on the spoon. He was such a picky child.
I tried to smile encouragingly. He made no move to consume the food. I continued to smile, though inwardly I was wondering if I would be charged for domestic abuse if I smacked him.
I put it out of my mind, sighing. I was tempted to, but knew from experience that force wouldn't work. "Come on, Steve! Laris ate his food obediently," I looked to the side at my darling infant. He gurgled at me happily, a small droplet of liquid-ish food trailing out the side of his mouth. I wiped it away with a handkerchief I kept nearby for this particular reason, doing my best to keep the hand holding the spoon steady.
Steve sighed dramatically. "Oh, all right," he curled his fingers around my wrist with one hand, keeping my hand - and the spoon - steadily in place as his lips closed around the metal cutlery. As his taste buds registered the various flavours, his face went from mildly disgusted to utterly screwed up.
He turned to Laris slowly, the horrified look still on his face. "You can actually eat this stuff?" Laris giggled and reached out for Steve. The ex-Lord of the Vampaneze grinned, forgetting the recent trauma of consuming baby food to grasp Laris's flailing fingers.
"Oh, stop exaggerating," I rolled my eyes at my ex-best friend. He grinned back at me, enjoying my recent exuberance in acting out my role as 'mother' and 'wife'.
I paused. Okay, well, maybe not so much 'wife'. I mean, it's not like we were married. We couldn't actually get married anyhow. Not legally anyway. Actually, what were we then? We were no longer best friends. We weren't even rivals anymore. Were we lovers? Not quite - we hadn't slept together since when he'd forced himself on me months ago. We do sleep in the same bed, and we do make out - sometimes. When we weren't busy taking care of Laris.
A hand waved in front of my face and I looked up, noticing the raised eyebrow on Steve's face. "You alright?" he asked me.
"Eh..." I said, dazed. "Oh! No, I'm fine! Really," I said, brushing away a stray lock in my face, trying to re- orient myself. The lock slid out of where it was tucked behind my ear.
"Are you sure?" he asked, helping me tuck the rebellious hair strands back behind my ear. His fingers brushed against the shell of my ear and I shivered at the contact. He grinned at me, noticing my pretty pathetic reaction to his sheer touch. I blushed and looked away from him. He placed a hand on my left cheek, tilting my head up and towards his mouth. Just before our lips made contact, Laris let out a loud, piercing wail. Both of us jumped as Laris pouted at us.
"Oh... Bedtime," I gave Steve a weak smile, chagrined at our recent behaviour. Right in front of our kid too. I chastised myself silently.
"Right. I'll go prepare the night formulas," Steve said, standing up from his chair as I lifted Laris out of the elevated kiddy chair he was in.
"Sorry, honey," I apologised to Laris as he huffed at me. I swear, sometimes it was like he knew exactly what was going on. Holding my infant in my arms, I left the dining room and gently eased my son into the baby cot, drawing the blanket around him simultaneously. I hummed in what I hoped was a soothing manner as I did so, trying to ease his journey into a restful slumber. Unfortunately, I lacked the beautiful siren-like harmonies that charmed sailors and my voice broke on a high note. While humming. I heard a bark of laughter from the other room and cursed the vampanezes' amazing hearing. My cheeks burned in humiliation. I cleared my throat. "Good night, kid," I kissed Laris's forehead, and he giggled, his tiny arms flailing. I smiled and grasped on of those tiny arms, stroking it with my thumb. His flailing movements ceased and he relaxed, slowly descending into Dreamland. I don't know how long I just stood there, stroking his smooth baby skin with my thumb as I held onto it, but it wasn't until much later that I heard Steve clear his throat from the doorway.
"You coming to bed?" he asked quietly. I nodded and eased my fingers gently from my child's. Laris immediately reached out, and finding nothing but empty air, let out a slight whimper. My heart dropped to my stomach at his whimper, but before I could turn around and comfort him, he clutched the blanket and rolled over. Then there was nothing but silence.
I watched him, my hand resting on the bars of the cot, clenched and tense with worry. Steve stood next to me, and we watched our child silently, our ears perked up for any other signs of distress. After a few seconds, Laris let out a little snore. Steve and I breathed out a sigh of relief. I looked at him and he looked back at me, and we didn't need any words to convey how we felt at that moment. We knew exactly what the other was thinking. It felt like one of those cheesy, golden parent moments, you know? The type of moments you remember forever and thank God that there's such a thing as family.
Steve grinned at me, then held out his hand for me to take. I raised my eyebrows at the chivalrous gesture, then shrugged and decided to play along. I lightly placed my hand in his. He gripped it and raised it to his lips briefly before leading me to our bedroom.
"I'm not a princess," I muttered under my breath out of habit.
"You keep saying that, but everyone obviously thinks otherwise," Steve laughed. I felt my bottom lip jut out slightly and the angle of my eyebrows slant into a frown. His laugh just grew louder. He twisted the knob and pushed the door open. "Ladies first," he said, holding out his hand, a gesture for me enter before him.
"Ladies first," I echoed, mirroring his gesture mockingly and nodding my head towards the room. I was feeling offended at his comment, and the laugh from before and was in the mood to be petty. He lifted an eyebrow, surprisingly nonchalant at my effort to offend him. I kept my pose, too stubborn to admit defeat. For several long moments, we remained like that, waiting for the other to break. After those long moments, however, Steve the Ever-Patient One rolled his eyes exasperatedly.
"This is ridiculous," he said, then placed an arm under my butt as well as behind my back, and lifted me up bridal-style. A loud, high-pitched squeal built in my throat. "Shh! Laris is sleeping!" Steve whispered to me dramatically. Despite the silly way it was delivered, I heeded his warning, as he predicted I would. Pressing my palms against his chest, I struggled against him. He hissed out a curse and ordered me - quietly - to stay still. Suffice to say, I didn't listen and we, with much difficulty, somehow managed to make our way to the bed. He threw me onto the bed and crawled over me, blocking off any chances of escape. I clamped my hand over my mouth, overwhelmed with a sudden, random urge to giggle. He watched me, amused. "You done yet?" he asked as I continued to giggle hysterically.
"Yes," I said, managing to temporarily stifle my giggles, then immediately broke into further peals of laughter. He rolled his eyes, then bent down and caught my lips with his. I instantly stopped laughing, all traces of humour vanishing as hormones took over our bodies. Steve's hand slipped underneath my shirt to fondle my right breast. I moaned at the sensation, my lips opening up slightly. Steve took advantage of that, slipping his tongue in and sliding it over the roof of my mouth, my teeth, the sides of my mouth. All the while massaging my chest. My hands found their way around his neck and winding into his hair causing him to press his body harder into mine.
You'd think that through all of that there's no way I would be able to have any coherent thoughts. But the thing is - I did. I was wondering what Steve thought of me. I mean, come on. Would he kiss me and fondle me like that if he thought of me as his ex-enemy who he was still getting over? Probably not, right? Then what did he think of me? A lover? His best friend? A really, really dumb doormat who he could walk over? What? What? What was I to him?
As difficult as it was, I broke our heated kiss and gripped the hand fondling me, stilling his sinfully pleasant movements.
He frowned down at me. "What?"
"I- um. That is. I just..." I trailed off, biting my lip. What was I going to ask? What exactly could I ask without seeming ungrateful or paranoid? Before I could explain myself, Steve's confused expression cleared and his features hardened.
"Oh. I get it," he said, and rolled off me to his side. It was my turn to have confusion plastered all over my face.
"What? No, Steve, you don't get it!" I said quickly, mortified at having him misunderstand me once again. I placed a hand on his arm, trying to catch his attention and get him to listen to me. He turned around quickly, forcing me to withdraw my hand. He caught hold of my wrists and pinned me to my bed. For a moment my mind flashed back to those days in the hotel, where he had violated me repeatedly. I flinched and turned my head to the side, averting my eyes from his burning gaze.
"What do I not get? I mean, come on, I know that women need time after pregnancy to recover before being able to have sex again, but it sure as hell doesn't take eight months for you to recover." He paused, daring me to look at him. "It's because of what I did, isn't it? Is that why you keep rejecting me?" he asked in a small voice. The sudden meekness in his tone made me curious, and I turned my head to peek at the expression that went with the suddenly depressed voice. Okay, I have to admit, for the second time that night, my heart dropped. All the way to my feet. Which was quite a feat, considering that I was in a reclining position.
His heartbreaking expression just reeked of guilt and remorse. "I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I'm sorry for violating you like that. I'm sorry for denying Laris as my son, and accusing you of sleeping with some other man. I thought for sure..." he trailed off. "I thought for sure that you hated me, and that I hated you," He lowered his head to my bosom, closing his eyes and focusing on my heartbeats. "But I get it now. I love you. Just as much as you've always loved me. I'm sorry it took so long for me to get it," He placed a hand shakily on my chest, just above my heart. "I get it now, so please, don't hate me."
Okay. I have to admit. I didn't know what to do. Steve was always the cheery one. He made fun of everything. He always seemed so light-hearted, so sure of everything. And now he seemed so... vulnerable. He'd always kept this side of him hidden, except for the time he'd cried after Mr Crepsley calling him evil. I couldn't help it, I just froze up. Then I felt a dampness on my chest and it shocked me into action.
"It's okay," I said dumbly, pressing his head against my chest and wrapping another arm around him, as Evanna used to do to comfort me when I cried. I felt a strange sense of Deja Vu as I comforted him. "I don't hate you, Steve. I never could. No matter what. I've always loved you, through everything," As I said the words, I knew that it was true. It was the kind of clarity you got when you declared something you knew for a fact to be the truth. I had tried to deceive myself into thinking that I didn't love him, when I had always loved him. He was too busy sniffling to reply, but from the way his shaking fingers clenched mine, I could tell he understood. For a long time, long after his tears had dried, we just lay there, his head on my chest. It wasn't long before he'd fallen asleep, right on my chest.
It was right before I'd fallen asleep that I realised, I still didn't know what exactly I was to Steve. But he loved me. And that was all that really mattered.

I groaned and stretched the stiffness from my body. I must have been sleeping on the wrong side of the bed, as indicated by the tell-tale ache in my muscles. Noticing the sliver of sunlight peeking through the small crack in the curtains, I sat up abruptly. Laris always cried in the night. And I'd always slept light enough to wake up when I hear it, so I could comfort him and feed him his night formula. Or breastfeed him, if I could.
And last night, after all that had happened, I didn't.
I bolted out of bed, before remembering that my ex-best friend and ex-arch enemy had been sleeping on my chest. I looked around and sighed in relief, noticing that he was no longer there and I hadn't accidentally pushed him onto the floor or anything. Then Laris started wailing in an almost pathetic manner. Pushing away thoughts of where Steve could be, I rushed over to the cot and found my baby there, shaking the bars of the cot impatiently.
"Shhhh," I shushed him as I lifted him out of the cot and patted his back as comfortingly as I could. "It's okay. It's okay," I said. He quieted down almost immediately, as usual. "Where's daddy? Do you know where daddy is?" I asked him quietly, not expecting an answer and jumping when I got one.
"He's right here," Steve said from the doorway.
"Oh!" I jolted in surprise. "Steve!" I scolded, holding my baby to my chest tightly. It was an automatic reaction. Instead of nearly letting him go, my instincts went the other way, forcing him tighter against me as I tensed to fight off whatever threat there was to my child. I loosened my grip immediately. Laris hadn't made any noise of complaint, but I knew my forceful squeezing was making him uncomfortable.
"Sorry," he apologised, holding his arms out to relieve me of the child with his arms clinging around my neck. Laris obliged willingly, allowing himself to be peeled off me and draping himself over Steve. I looked over the father and son jealously.
"Where did you go?" I asked, shaking off all jealous thoughts and convincing myself that it was a good thing for the two of them to bond.
"To feed," he answered simply. I lifted an eyebrow.
"At this time?" I peered out the window at the sun. It had recently risen, but still provided enough light for a vampaneze to be seen sucking out the blood of an innocent bystander.
"Yeah," he answered. I didn't say anything more. His vampaneze-ic activities was an untouchable subject for me. He knew I didn't approve about killing people, and I knew there was nothing I could do about it. I would be lying if I said I completely didn't mind that he had to kill someone each time he fed, but I'd begun to accept it. It was a vampaneze's normal way of life. Just as humans eat animals.
"Are you okay now?" I asked him, leaning forward to peer up at his face as we walked to the dining area.
"What do you mean?" he asked, obviously averting my gaze.
"Well, after last night when you were crying-"
"I wasn't crying," he said quickly. Much too quickly. I halted in my advance to the dining room and stared at the man I loved.
"Yes, you were," I corrected him.
He was still concentrating on a spot on the wall to his side, his ears pink with embarrassment. I coughed, trying to hide my laugh at his very sad attempt at being macho. He gave me a dirty look. "By the way. I met someone on the way home,"
I frowned at him. "You what?" I asked, pausing before the entrance of the dining room.
"Hello, Darren," said a familiar voice. My body tensed as I registered the voice and my head swivelled around to confirm the recognition.
"Evanna?" I gasped. And before I knew it, I had flung myself into her arms. She laughed.
"I missed you too," she said, wrapping me in her thick arms as she always did. After a while, I pushed her away to look at her. She seemed happier, free-r.
"What are you doing here?" I asked, my joy quickly being replaced by incredulity.
"To visit the two of you, of course. And to congratulate you on your healthy baby boy. I had not had the chance to do so," Steve passed Laris over into Evanna's open arms trustingly. " He's beautiful," she sighed.
"He is, isn't he?" I beamed, full of parenting pride and joy.
She nodded. Then for a moment, her expression sobered. She held Laris out to me and I took him, cradling him in my arms. "I must say, it was quite ingenious," Evanna commented with a half-smile.
"What?" Steve and I said simultanouesly, blankly.
"The treaty," she answered simply.
"Huh?" I said, still confused.
"You mean the contract thing we wrote before leaving?" Steve asked dubiously. "Really? I didn't think it would work,"
Realisation dawned as to what they were talking about and my mind flashed back to the night we left our friends.

"Okay, just sign here," Steve said, handing me the sheet of paper.
"I don't believe it," I sighed in bliss. "A chance to end this war and stop the fighting," I took up the pen, but before it's tip touched the paper, I turned back to Steve, realising something. "So, this is really all you want in compensation?" I asked doubtfully. He nodded. "There's a catch, isn't there?"
"Well... No. Not really. Come on, it's just a treaty. It's signed by the great Lord of the Vampaneze and the well-known Child Princess-" Wince "-of the Vampires. How can they not follow it? And then we'll just slip off into the night and raise Laris together," he said.
"'together'?" I repeated, my eyebrows rising to my hairline.
"Of course," he scoffed. "Unless..." he said hesitantly. "If you want to raise him yourself, that's fine too I guess..." He shrugged nonchalantly but I could sense the underlying desolation of the action.
"No! I- I want to raise him with you!" I said quickly, stammering a little in my haste to explain myself.
He smiled, relieved. "Good. Now just sign here. They'll stop fighting. And we can leave the world of vampires and the vampaneze, and avoid any chances of Laris becoming the Lord of the Shadows. We can start a new life. Raise Laris normally. Without me here to lead the vampaneze, they'll have no choice but to follow the treaty,"
"But the vampires wouldn't. I doubt they'd place much faith in a simple piece of paper. And they know how much I love you. How easily you can control me," His eyebrows lifted in surprise. I bit my tongue, annoyed at how much I let slip out.
He cleared his throat. "And how easily is that?" He tried to keep his tone casual, but the grin on his face gave it away.
"Forget I said anything," I replied in a flat tone. "Anyway, you really think this will work?"
"Of course. Jeez, you seemed so happy when I first told you. Stop hesitating,"
"I was happy that you weren't going to throw me in a frying pan and cackle as I burned to death. And I never expected you to suggest anything to do with peace. In fact, I still don't," I eyed him suspiciously. He shrugged innocently. Way too innocently.
"I'm not doing this for me, if that's what you're thinking. I couldn't care less if the war goes on. But I don't want you or Laris to have to choose sides. That's all."
I was speechless. I mean, what can you say to that?
"Thank you," I said, finally regaining my voice.
"You're welcome, now sign here," He thrust the parchment at me, the thin paper rustling.
My expression of gratefulness faded instantly and I continued to regard him doubtfully.
"It'll work! I'm sure of it," he assured me.

"I didn't actually think it would work," Steve admitted.
I slapped his arm with the back of my free hand, accidentally-on-purpose forgetting to hold back my vampiric strength.
"Ow," he protested.
"Then you'll be glad to know that both the vampaneze and the vampires are keeping the treaty. They were quite touched by your actions. Darren, in bearing Steve's child despite the odds and Steve in giving up on the victory of his clan to assist you in giving birth. They have begun to tell of the dramatic adventures of the Child Princess-" Wince. Twitch. Twitch. "-and the Lord of the Vampaneze," she smiled at us both. "And the treaty you left behind spurred them on to consider that maybe peace between the clans would not be so bad after all. The other three Princes have added their signature to the contract, and so has Gannen Harst, who is acting as the temporary steward of the vampaneze. They have discussed the guidelines that will allow both clans to live peacefully side by side," Evanna informed us. "Though of course, where there is peace, there will be someone threatening to tip the balance in favour of war once again. Namely our father,"
Unconsciously, I reached out and grabbed Steve's hand. He squeezed my fingers comfortingly.
"He came to me and asked me to bear children," she stated. I frowned.
"Wait, but your child - you told me they'd mark the start of a new breed of vampire or vampaneze, right? They can survive sunlight and..." I trailed off as I realised what exactly it meant. "Whichever side you bear children for would gain an advantage," I whispered in horror.
"Yes, and the war would be renewed. The treaty that was put in place is already shaky enough. A spark like that would be enough to start the war once again,"
"Then don't have children," Steve said, shrugging. I slapped him with the back of my hand. He frowned at me. 'What?' he mouthed at me.
I just pursed my lips and shook my head.
"It's alright, Darren," Evanna said. "Yes, those were my thoughts exactly, actually. Our father bribed and begged me to have a child. I resisted. Then I came to a realisation - there was a way to make use of this chance instead of destroy everything we had worked so hard for. And I decided to take it. Both of you inspired me to make that decision. You taught me that the impossible can happen,"
She paused and we waited, curious as to what decision she made exactly. Laris gurgled, staring at the ceiling.
"I told our father that I wasn't too sure as to whose child I wanted, a vampire's or a vampaneze's. But he didn't care, as long as I bore a child of one of them. So I spent some time with both sides. Some with Gannen Harst, and some with Vancha March," she went on.
My jaw dropped.
"Vancha?" I said in shock.
"Gannen?" Steve exclaimed at the exact same time.
Then, together: "Seriously?" My face echoed his disbelieving expression.
One of Evanna's hairy eyebrow lifted. "You have a... problem with my choice?" She lifted her chin, daring us to challenge her decision.
"No! No!" I said quickly.
"Not at all," Steve said equally as quickly. She watched us carefully for a moment more, then went on.
"As I said, I spent some time with both and..." she paused for dramatic effect, then placed a hand on her abdomen. "I'm pregnant."
Steve fell off his chair.
My mouth had gone dry. "Evanna!"
"I know."
"But- why?"
"I told you, to make peace."
"How will this bring peace?" I asked, confused. Steve got up and gripped the back of the chair.
"It will." Evanna said confidently.
"So - whose child is it?" Steve asked.
"Both. I'm having twins. One by Vancha, and one by Gannen," Evanna said, smiling.
There was silence, then Laris started to cry. I patted his back.
"...I did not see that one coming," Steve said, his knuckles turning white.
"Evanna, that's... That's great! It's amazing!" I said excitedly.
"What's more, I mixed all three bloodlines. My children are a third vampire, a third vampaneze and one third me. That's how I've tricked our father. He thought any baby of mine would divide the clans, but instead they will pull them closer together. My children, when they are ready, will breed with other vampires and vampaneze, to give birth to a new, multi-race clan. All divisions will be erased and finally forgotten."
"The two of you have taught me many valuable things," Evanna went on, a gentle smile on her face. "You taught me that the future isn't set in stone. We can create our own future, all of us. We have the power to rule our lives - we just have to make the choice to use it. It's always possible to achieve the impossible," She paused. "So I presume the both of you are planning to stay together from now on?"
"Of course!" Steve answered indignantly before I could say anything.
"Despite being siblings?"
"Obviously. I really don't see why that's an issue and why you women are so concerned about it," Steve rolled his eyes.
"And you, Darren?" Evanna asked.
"I love Steve. I don't want to be apart," I answered truthfully. She smiled and shook her head.
"I should have known. The future won't be easy. Quite the contrary, I'm sure my father is planning a variety of ways to get back at you. But I think that if we work together, we shall be able to establish the peace we want," she said, her smile soft and lovely.
"We won't let Tiny win," Steve agreed.
"Good." She got up from the chair with a sigh. "I must be going. There are things I must be doing, chores and duties I need to fulfil,"
"So soon?" I asked, wincing at the whiney tone my voice had adopted. Evanna smiled knowingly at me. She held out a hand and I placed mine in it without hesitation. She gripped my hand soothingly, sandwiching it between both her palms.
"This isn't goodbye. We will see each other many times in the future Darren," she assured me. "And you are always welcome in my home, sister," I felt a happy thrill run down my spine at being called a sister by Evanna.
"Okay," I said meekly. "And you're always welcome here too, Evanna. Don't hesitate to ask me for anything,"
"Thank you, Darren," she said graciously. Steve helped me up from the chair in an almost gentlemanly manner and we walked with Evanna to the door. She placed her hand on the doorknob, then paused.
"A normal life. No matter how much you desire it, you should know that it is not possible for the both of you," she said seriously, meeting Steve's gaze, then mine. "You are both destined for greater things, as are your children. You may run from the world of the vampires, and the vampaneze. But you can never truly escape it. I would suggest you try not to resist it,"
There was silence as we her words of wisdom slowly seeped into our minds. Then Steve just had to open his mouth.
"Children? As in, more than one?" he asked, one side of his mouth twitching with excitement.
"Steve..." I said warningly. He looked at me with that innocent expression once again.
"What? I just want to know what the chances are that I'll be getting laid ever aga-" I cut him off, slapping his chest this time. Laris giggled at the loud smack. Evanna smiled patiently.
"I shall leave you to it then," she said, taking a step out of the house.
"Bye Evanna," I said quietly, sadly.
"Good luck, Lady," Steve called out after her. We watched her from the doorway as she vanished down the curving roads, her tiny yet broad figure causing her to stand out and yet she remained unnoticed by the passer-bys. I continued watching her until my vampiric sight could no longer follow her small silhouette.
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The Impossible