Nothing Gold Can Stay

The stars overhead shone brightly in the vast darkness of the night sky. It was amazing how all those tiny specs of light held a thousand tiny secrets. Somewhere in the old streets of New Orleans there was an estate centuries old. To the outside eye, it was the vacant and dilapidated mansion of the very late someone or other, whose name had been lost to time. The city hadn't torn it down due to the history of the place but has yet to do anything about the condition either. It was for the most part, just what it looked like. But for a certain woman... It was so much more.

She sat quietly on the edge of the balcony, the window to her old room open behind her. The cold January breeze whipping past the moth eaten sheer curtains causing a ghastly whooshing sound to fill the tiny dust covered chamber. She was dressed simply in black. Black nylon pants with a tight fitting black shit, cut high in the front with long coat tails in the back. Her long raven locks were half clasped to the back of her head in an elegant, old century jaw clip. Her pale skin shone majestically in the moonlight and her eyes sparkled with the stars. Though her body was that of a 20 year old, her eyes... Her eyes were much, much older.

Silently the gusting winds that swept past her brought out the familiar yet dulled smells of the room behind her. It had been too long since she had stepped in this building. She didn't even know why she was here... She just felt... drawn. She adjusted her weight and pulled her knees up to her chest as she continued to gaze at the stars. How long had it been? Years? Decades? The last was probably closer to the truth. After the disaster with the hunters in Louisiana she had picked up and moved to Europe. She'd been there for almost 77 years. She sighed deeply wondering what in the world it was that made her come back here. This place held nothing but painful memories for her. The last time she had been here, it has in his arms.

She lowered her head for a moment as the thought entered her mind. Though it was so long ago it felt like yesterday. She remembered everything about him and the time they shared. Her perfect memory was such a curse to her at times as well as it could be a blessing. She smiled to herself despite the pain. From his looks to his rough voice... to his touch. She missed him so much. What ever happened to him all those years ago? She had to wonder. Had he gotten caught? Or did he find a better life for himself...? Why didn't he come back, even just to tell her he was leaving...? At least then she would know he was alive...

With a heavy heart and a deep sigh she rose and re-entered the room. Brushing a spider web away from the end table by her old bed, she lit a candle she had brought with her. The room lit brightly for a moment and then slipped into a soft glow as the candle adjusted itself into a comfortable intensity. The room looked much like it did when she left. Save for the inch thick coat of dust covering everything and the casual spider web here and there. The dresser was still open; a few clothes lie on the floor, moth eaten to match the drapes, from when she left for Europe. She didn't exactly have the time to pack nicely. The sword and shield still on the wall, though rusty and a bit fractured. She turned and faced the bed. The same moth eaten drapes and sheers that fell form the top of the window also lined the bed. There were so many memories swimming though her mind, she had to close her eyes and take a deep breath just to maintain her sanity. Then there, on the floor by the bedpost, she saw something that hadn't been there when she left.

Bending over she picked it up. A single, perfect and un-aged red rose.

" I knew you would come..." His voice was soft, but just as strong as it had always been.

She spun on her heels, dropping the rose. The momentary terror the shook though her freezing her in place. If she were a cat, she might have lost a life just then. She rubbed her eyes and stared open mouthed. Surely this had to be a dream... an illusion... a mistake. As the image before her stayed stubbornly in place, despite her efforts to clear her eyes, she tried to call upon her senses to regain composure. After a long moment of open-mouthed silence, she finally swallowed her fear and stood with slightly less conviction than she felt.

"Drake..." He words piercing the silence.

"Katrina." He replied and stood just as still as he had been.

"What are you..." She started. " Where did you..." She shook her head trying to fix her thoughts. A moment later she felt his hands upon her shoulders.

"Come. We have much to talk about." He said and took her hand.

He led her down the dark halls into the old library. To her astonishment it was the only room she had seen so far that looked like it was supposed to. The tables were kept and polished. The bookshelves were dusted and the books ordered. She walked in as he shut the large door behind them. All the old wall scones had been fueled and lit giving the room the old warm feeling it used to have way back in the day.

"Beautiful isn't it..." He said softly letting her know he was directly behind her. She turned to face him. There were so many emotions rushing though her at a hundred miles per hour. Her emotions were thundering down the steepest hill in her heart and threatened to bust through her carefully guarded floodgate. She was enraged that he had left her so suddenly, relived that he was alive and safe, she was hurt that he never contacted her and she was broken hearted. She didn't know which thought to grab onto. For so long she had built herself up to adjust to the pain, and now...

Without warning, a second later, she threw herself on to him. Holding him tightly with one arm and beating on his chest with the other. She began screaming something incoherent as she cried into his shirt. He said nothing and made no attempt to stop her from hitting him. What he did instead was wrap his arms around her and squeeze her tightly. He held her for a small eternity, waiting for her to stop crying. It was a long while, but when she had finally stopped, he gently pushed her back by her shoulders.

"Please... sit down." He said softly, avoiding her eyes. He led her to the nearest table and pulled a chair out for her. As she sat, he pushed her chair in and too the seat across from her.

"Katrina..." He began and looked up at her. Her eyes still misted with tears. "I... I'm sorry Katrina."

"What happened?!" She stammered out about to lose control over her emotions again at any given time. Her mind still racing and her heart breaking all over again just looking at him. The wall she had spent so many years building, crumbling around her.

"It's like this..." He said, finally meeting her eyes. His deep blue eyes still able to pierce her like a dart. " 77 years ago...I left New Orleans without notice... I know that you suffered from this... but you have to believe that I did it for you."

"For me?!" She injected. He raised his hand and continued.

"Katrina, we had been running for too long. It was unfair for me to drag you along. They wanted me dead and they would have killed you too, if they found us. I... was just trying to protect you. I know you are angry... I know I messed up... But you have to believe I was trying to protect you..."

"Your saying that leaving me behind... all alone, the way you did... was in my best interest?! It was best for me to go on every day thinking that you hated me? That I had done something wrong? That is was right for me to go to bed every night wondering if you were dead? Well, it didn't help me any. They still came for me."

"I know." His reply was simple. He looked away for a moment then back to her. "I came to apologize...and..."

"And?" She urged trying to sort her thoughts.

"Katrina..." He took her hands. " They are still looking for me. I am tired of running... When they find me... that its. I am not going to fight any longer.

"What are you saying?"

"I am done Katrina. I came to say good-bye. We were living a fantasy... Everything has to come to an end eventually..."

"What...?" She repeated, as her watering eyes began to spill over. She shook her head and covered her face with her hands. " Why... why are you telling me this?" She managed to finish.

"Katrina..." He sighed and placed his hand over her cheek. " There has never been a day where you haven't been in my thoughts. I have felt so guilty for so long... I just... thought you should know. I wanted to say good-bye." He watched her cry for the next few minutes. His heart was breaking just looking at her. He felt so angry with himself for knowing that he had caused her this pain... But it had to be this way... 'What happened to me?' He thought. 'I used to be so tough... Before her... I never would have cared...' He stood, pushing the chair behind him. The vast emptiness of the library echoing the screech of the wood on stone. Silently he pulled her up and into his arms. He held her tightly, leaning his head against hers and ran his fingers through her hair.

"I'm sorry..." He whispered into her ear.