Michelle turned in her bed, facing away from the mirror. She shivered. It had been more than a week and the curse had eaten up most of her—the only flesh and bone left in her were in her left leg and above her neck. Nights only grew colder as she solidified. Michelle pulled the blanket over her head, curled into a ball, and closed her eyes. Though hope remained in her heart, her mind had been telling her that she might have to accept a dreaded fate.

Flash. She removed the blanket. The first thing she saw was a dark figure towering over her.

Without a second thought, she screamed and threw a pillow at it.

"Aïe!"

That voice. "Eddie?"

"Ouais, c'est moi," he said, annoyed. He waved his arm and switched on a lamp. "Did you have to throw a pillow at me?"

"You could've texted me before you popped into my room."

"Oh, right. Sorry. I was too excited." The corners of his lips quirked upward. "I got good news."

Good news. Was it what she had been hoping for? "Did you get it?"

He held up a vial and flashed a smile.

She sprang from her bed and reached for it. He handed it to her. She unscrewed the cap. She asked, "Do I drink this or what?"

"I think you drink it," he said. His eyes gleamed with eagerness. "Come on, what are you waiting for?"

She held the vial to her lips and drank the liquid in one gulp. Cool sensations rippled through her body as a bright, white light consumed her from the inside. The sound of cracking and shattering filled her ears. Alarm bells rang in her head. Am I dying? A strong force burst from within her. She felt her body breaking, and then forming, and then softening.

The light faded. She glanced down at her arms. They were covered in skin. She kicked off her blanket. Her legs were normal as well. She gasped in disbelief.

"I-I'm normal again," she breathed. She lifted her gaze to meet her lover's. "I'm normal again!"

She leaped off her bed and wrapped her arms around him, nuzzling his neck. Grateful teardrops trickled from her eyes and formed a wet patch on his shirt. They stood there for a moment, still and silent, as they hugged.

"Thank you."

"No, you don't have to thank me," he said, "it's my duty anyway."

They broke their embrace. Michelle turned her head to the side. Her eyes widened upon catching sight of two other people inside the room with them.

"Oh those are my teammates," Eddie told her. He gestured to them. "Jon and Stella. You've bumped into them in Place Dauphine, remember?"

"Oh, right," she said. She waved awkwardly. "Hi."

"Hi," Stella said, waving.

"Hello," Jon smiled.

"Anyway," Eddie said, "your parents and brother are here, right?"

"Yeah, they're asleep now, I think."

"Great! Euh, you can change first. We have to go somewhere after this."

"To where?"

"To Nitea to erase your memories, remember?"

Realization hit her like a freight train. "Oh, right."

"Just change into a shirt and pants. Don't wear a dress or skirt; we'll be flying on the way there." He then turned to Jon and Stella. "We'll teleport to their rooms. Jon, as soon as you see them, use your hydrokinesis to feed them the sleeping serum. Stella, you'll help him in carrying them on force fields. I'll paralyze them just in case they wake up."

"Got it," Stella said.

"Great. Louis, take us."

The three of them vanished. Michelle strode toward her closet and picked out a comfortable set of clothes. She glanced behind herself. If she changed in her bedroom, would they pop in before she was done? She did not want to risk being underdressed in front of them. She headed to the bathroom and changed her clothes there. As expected, by the time she had reentered her room, the three were waiting for her there. She dropped her jaw upon seeing her parents and brother sealed in force fields—though she already knew that superpowers existed, the mere sight of them in action never ceased to amaze her.

"Oh, I picked your shoes while waiting for you by the way," Eddie said. He waved his wrist, making a pair of slip-on sneakers float towards her.

She grabbed them from the air. "Thanks." She put them on. "Let's go."

"Alright. Louis, to the portal."

Michelle felt a force sweeping her off her feet. Before she could blink, they had arrived at the portal. She turned around. Eddie was standing near one of the walls, holding a flame in his hand. His other hand was opening a door.

He opened it. He then beckoned with his head. "Come on."

She followed him into the antechamber. Memories of the time she first found the portal flooded her mind. Her eyes widened once she recalled how she managed to cross to Nitea: by falling through a hole. She turned around in search of her lover.

"Defluo," Eddie uttered.

The floor faded beneath them. Just before they fell through, she found his arm and clung to it.

Light enveloped them once more. She felt herself growing heavier, and then lighter, and then lighter than air as they were pushed to the other side. They were entering the pond. She closed her eyes and held her breath. Pressure built on her body as water swept away the air.

Dark blue washed away any remnant of light. She opened her eyes. Eddie's right hand was grasping a book, while his left was wrapped around her forearm. She watched as the book lifted the two of them above the surface of the pond.

"To the Gatekeeper base," he instructed.

Their environment changed in a split second. A stone sidewalk skimmed over the surface of the pond, trees transformed into lamp posts and skyscrapers, and the cacophony characteristic of an urban jungle replaced the eerie quietness of a forest. Michelle looked to her sides. Next to her was the corner of the street she was standing on, colored a bright green.

"This is where the fun begins," Eddie said, smirking. "Ready to fly?"

"Just don't drop me."

"Of course I won't. Even if I do—which is highly unlikely—we always have Jon to heal you anyway." He gestured to the launchpad. "Just step inside and jump."

"Why not you come along?"

"Just trust me. I'll follow you."

Michelle inhaled. She glanced at the launchpad that lay in front of her. She jogged towards it, set one foot inside, and leaped. A strong force held her body and lifted it into the air.

Fwoosh. Michelle looked downward. Her eyes widened in surprise as she witnessed him soaring towards her, fire propelling him towards the sky. He reached her in just a few seconds.

"Pretty cool, huh?" he said, winking. "Let's go."

The two of them flew further above the ground. Michelle's mouth hung open as marveled at the scenery around her. The people and the vehicles below them looked microscopic as she soared between skyscrapers. People zoomed past them as they flew toward their destinations. Bright and vibrant city lights rivaled the stars that sparkled in the sky. She glimpsed Eddie's face. His lips had curled into an amused smile.

They arrived at the Gatekeeper base a short while later. Eddie held Michelle's hand as he guided her to the MEC. She took note of their path: they rode the elevator to the fiftieth floor, exited and took the first left turn, then halted in front of the second door on the right. They glimpsed the sign on the door. Eddie knocked first before he entered.

Grimelda was already inside, adjusting some settings on the control panel. She looked up from her workspace. "Ah, you're here," Grimelda said. "Come inside."

Eddie turned to Michelle and gestured. "After you, mademoiselle."

She smiled faintly and entered ahead of him. He passed through the doorway after her, and after him were Jon and Stella. They swayed their arms as they guided the bodies of Michelle's family into the room.

Eddie lifted his hand, pointed his fingers down, and moved them as though he were controlling a puppet. Michelle's mother stood up from the force field, walked towards the chair, and sat. Michelle shot a look at him.

"You can do that?"

He shrugged. "Took me a little practice."

Grimelda leaned over the control panel and pressed a few buttons. "This may take a while," she warned them. "In most cases, it would take ten minutes or less, but since your case went for almost two weeks, we'll have to craft a story. Buckle up."

She pressed a button. Michelle's mother's memories flashed on the walls, from the afternoon she first heard of the curse to the moment before she fell asleep that night. Her thoughts were scribbled onto the ceiling.

Grimelda analyzed them. "So the first step is to remove all traces of magic," she said. She twisted a few knobs and pressed some more buttons. "She also told others you were sick to explain why you couldn't go out. She didn't mention the disease, though."

"We can say she had flu," Eddie suggested. "It's contagious but not lethal."

"But I've still seen people after having flu, remember?" she reminded him. "A couple of years ago, you and Thomas went to my house to cheer me up and cook me some soup."

"They did? Your friends are so sweet," Grimelda cooed. She lifted her wrist and opened her phone. "Good thing I have a database of human diseases here. I knew it'd come in handy."

She swiped her screen as she navigated the database. It took a few minutes of tapping and scrolling before she settled. She went on, "Your parents also forbade your brother from seeing you. I'll replace those with memories of the two of you playing together. What games do you usually play?"

"We don't really play games together," Michelle said. "Usually we'd spend our time alone, in our own rooms. Sometimes he'd ask me to help with school but we're both on holiday right now."

"Oh. I can make it appear like he was uninterested in spending time with you. How does that sound?"

"That sounds great."

Grimelda fiddled with the controls. The images on the walls transformed as Grimelda altered the sequence of events. Michelle stood speechless, amazed at how seamless the memory alterations were. After ten minutes or so of discussing and button-pressing, a bright light entered Michelle's mother.

"Her father next."

Eddie commanded Michelle's mother to sit on one of the chairs nearby. He then steered her father to the chair. The process went about similarly, spanning about the same length of time. Editing her brother's memories was the easiest task, for he never knew of the curse in the first place.

At last, Michelle's turn had arrived. Grimelda gestured to the chair. "Don't worry, we're not going to erase them right now," she told her, "I can make it so that they only disappear when you sleep."

"Oh, okay."

She walked towards the chair and took a seat. Her body tensed.

"Just relax," he said.

"Uh, so all my memories are going to show up there, right?"

"Yes," Grimelda confirmed.

Michelle leaned out of the chair and looked at Jon and Stella. "Sorry, is it okay if you leave for a while? I don't feel comfortable."

"Oh, it's okay," Stella said. She and Jon promptly left the room.

Once they left, Grimelda projected Michelle's thoughts and memories onto the walls and ceiling. The first image that appeared was the moment when Eddie kissed her on the forehead. As soon as they caught sight of the scene, the couple flushed red with embarrassment.

Grimelda suppressed a laugh. "You two are lovebirds, huh?" she teased. "Anyway, I think the obvious first step is to replace all her memories of her being awake at night with her sleeping. Unfortunately, that means I'll have to erase your first date."

"Is there a way to preserve it?" Michelle inquired.

"I can move some elements of it to other memories." Grimelda swiped her screen. "Ah, the moment when you two met in a park. I can transfer some of your conversations there, like when you two revealed when you first started liking each other. The rest of it has to go."

"Is it possible to make the rest of our first date a dream?" Eddie asked. "Or a plan, rather, and she daydreams about it."

"I'd rather have it as a vivid dream."

"Or you can have both," Grimelda recommended. "The two of you can plan to meet at his house after he's done hosting guests. After that, she'd dream about it."

"Sounds good to me."

Grimelda fiddled with the controls once more. While the three of them discussed which parts of her memories should be altered or erased, Michelle heard a ping emanating from one side. She turned her head to her right. Eddie was holding his phone, reading a text message.

"Michelle?"

"Oui?"

"My mentor's asking for the ring back. Is it okay?"

She slid the ring off her finger without hesitation. "Please, take it."

"I can teleport it to him for you," Grimelda said. The ring disappeared with a point of her finger. "Speaking of the ring, you're going to have to deal with its loss once you wake up."

"I can say that I lost it."

"Or, you only realize you lost it after your memories are erased," Eddie suggested. "You'll look for it, won't be able to find it, will probably cry about it, and then I'll cheer you up by buying you a new ring that's not cursed."

"Or I can get someone to replicate the ring—"

"No!" Eddie and Michelle exclaimed at once.

Grimelda chuckled. "Understandable. Anyway, so how do you want to deal with the ring?"

"I'll go with his suggestion."

Grimelda fiddled with the controls. Michelle stared at the walls as she watched her magical memories metamorphose into something more mundane. A slight heaviness filled her heart once she saw her waltz with her lover fade into a dream. Alas, it was for the best.

"There's one more crucial memory we have to deal with: the time you found the portal," Grimelda said. "Before I can alter it, may I ask why you were visiting Bibliothèque Mazarine in the first place?"

Michelle blushed. "Euh, is it okay if I whisper it to you?"

"You may."

Grimelda glided across the room and lowered her ear. Michelle murmured, "I noticed that he's been frequenting that library even though it's far from where he lives. I was curious to know why he always went there. When I visited, I was hoping to bump into him."

Grimelda stifled a giggle. She then whispered, "I can make it so that you weren't able to find him in the library, but you lingered there anyway because you found it pretty and peaceful. After that, you went home. How does that sound?"

"Sounds good."

Grimelda returned to the control panel. "Oh, I almost forgot, did you mention anything magical in your text messages?"

"I did."

"Anything else I should know?"

Michelle shook her head.

"Alright. While you're asleep, I'll send some warlocks and tech wizards to your house to remove any remaining traces of magic. By the time you wake up, you'll forget everything that has happened and your life will be back to normal."

Grimelda tapped on screens and pushed some more buttons. Michelle looked to her left side. Her eyes widened with wonder as she witnessed light liquidizing in one of the control panel's compartments. After a moment, Grimelda opened the compartment and retrieved a bottle from it. She handed it to Michelle. "Drink."

Michelle held the bottle and drank its contents. The first thing she noted was how viscous the liquid was. She recoiled as soon as a drop landed on her tongue, for its bitterness was sharp. She gulped it down as fast as she could. A sweet aftertaste overwhelmed her tastebuds as soon as she finished drinking.

She handed the bottle back to Grimelda. "Thank you."

"No problem," Grimelda said. "It's my duty after all. You and your boyfriend can leave now."

Michelle merely nodded as her face flushed red. She stood up and walked towards Eddie. The two of them bade Grimelda goodbye before they left the MEC, hand in hand.

***

Flash. Michelle extended her arms to stabilize herself after Louis teleported all of them to her parents' bedroom. Jon grasped Michelle's father's shoulders and heaved him off the force field.

"It's okay," Eddie said, "I'll do it."

With a wave of his hand, Eddie lifted Michelle's parents and tucked them into bed.

"Two down, one to go. Louis, to her brother's room."

Flash. The walls closed in on them as the space around them diminished. With a swish of his wrist, Eddie carried Michelle's younger brother to his bed.

"Our job here is done," Jon said. "Let's go back."

Eddie nodded in agreement. He turned to Michelle. "Bonne—"

"Wait," she interrupted him, "do you mind if you stay back for a while?"

He tilted his head. "Just me?"

"Just you, if that's fine. You don't have to if you don't want."

Eddie glanced at his teammates. "Is it okay?"

"It's fine," Stella said.

"Okay. Louis, take them back."

Jon and Stella vanished into thin air. A moment later, Eddie and Michelle found themselves landing on her bed. They sat next to each other. "So, what is it?"

She sighed. "It's just that, I've been alone for almost two weeks. I haven't had a lot of company recently."

"I understand. If you want to talk to me, let me know."

"Thanks."

She leaned against the headboard and exhaled. The two of them sat in stillness once more, not feeling the need to fill the air with small talk. Michelle reminisced the events that had happened over the past two weeks. As much as she understood that she was never supposed to know of his secret, she could not help but be dismayed at the fact that she would forget everything soon. She turned her head to her left. Her gaze met his.

"Eddie?"

"Ouais?"

"You trust me, right?"

"Of course I do. Why?"

"I was thinking, maybe you can convince her to not erase my memories."

"Michelle, you know you're not allowed to know."

"I can keep a secret."

"It's not about keeping secrets. It's about rules. The rules say that you must forget."

She frowned. "I don't want to forget."

"I also don't want you to forget, but what can I do? My own mother's not even allowed to know of my powers."

She sighed. Eddie edged closer to her, entwining his fingers with hers. His piercing stare penetrated her.

"Michelle, as much as I want you to remember, you have to understand that it's not an option. Besides, even if you don't remember all of this, nothing's going to change between us."

"Something did change between us, remember?"

He smiled. "I know."

His right hand reached for her cheek and stroked it gently. Their gazes locked as he caressed her. She smiled. He had touched her several times throughout the years, but they never felt so warm and gentle until after they established their romantic relationship. There was something different about the way his fingers traced her skin, like a fine paintbrush tip gliding across a smooth canvas.

He stopped stroking her. Michelle stood up. "I'll change."

"Sure. I won't look."

Michelle walked to one corner of her room. She glimpsed her back. He was facing away from her, his hands over his eyes. She then removed her shoes and changed into her sleepwear. She climbed back onto her bed, lay flat, and tucked her legs underneath her blanket. It was at that moment that he opened his eyes.

She asked him, "Where do you want to have our first kiss?"

He laughed. "You've just become human again, and that's one of the first things on your mind?"

"I can't help it. Your touch is tantalizing, okay?" she said, blushing. "Anyway, where do you want to have it?"

He pondered for a while. "Somewhere private, that's for sure. My house?"

"Definitely, but which room?"

"My bedroom?" he proposed, smirking. "In all seriousness, that's the only part of the house where we're guaranteed privacy, although I'm open to kissing in the music room as well."

"Why not the swimming pool? Like in the movies?"

"That's too sensual for me."

"Says the guy who suggested his bedroom."

He rolled his eyes. "You know I'm not like that."

She giggled. "You know, ever since you kissed me on the forehead a few nights ago, I couldn't stop thinking about it."

"I can do it again."

"Please do."

He leaned into her and kissed her on the forehead. Warm shivers were sent down her spine as soon as his lips pressed against her skin. He broke contact a few seconds later.

"Euh, Michelle?"

"Ouais?"

"So I've kissed you twice, but"—at this point he turned red—"you haven't kissed me."

She looked at him and smirked. "Where?"

"On the forehead or cheek, whichever you prefer."

Michelle pushed herself to sit upright, puckered her lips, and planted a kiss on his cheek. She nearly shuddered; in a sharp contrast to his finger, his cheek was as cold as a corpse. It was much softer, though, and smoother too. She made a short smooching sound before she withdrew.

He touched the side of his face where her mouth had been. "I'll never wash this cheek ever again."

"You dirty boy."

Eddie laughed. He rolled off the bed and stood up. "Bonne nuit, Michérie."

"Bonne nuit, Edmort."

He vanished from her vision. Michelle pulled the blanket up to her chest and closed her eyes. A smile formed on her face. Her life had returned to normalcy, at last.

✧ ✧ ✧

The good news is that Michelle is finally cured! 😃 However, that also means it's time for her to forget everything 🙁 on the bright side, though, that also means they can finally have their first kiss 😏 If you were Michelle and could choose how you want your memories to be erased, how would you edit them?

We're super close to the end of this book! Thank you so much for making it this far into the story! If you liked it, let me know by pressing the star-shaped button on this chapter 😃 It took me eight months to rewrite and edit this book, and votes are a simple way of letting me know that you appreciate my time and effort into writing this story 🥰 If you have voted already, thank you so much! ☺️