Disclaimer: I don't own Meru Puri
It would be easier if you had forgotten him too.
Brown eyes met silver. Airi visibly trembled as a calloused hand wrapped around her dainty one.
A hand that wasn't Aram's.
"In light of our history and families... we're destined for one another, don't you think?" Raz demanded, his face growing closer and closer while his free arm wrapped around Airi's waist to keep her still. There was something incredibly toxic in his eyes that completely ruined any attempt at seduction.
It made her heart pound anxiously in her chest. It was wrong.
"Do you think it would have been different if I had found you before Aram? Would I be the one to hold your affections if I had found you first?"
She was in the Deserted House and if Raz's words rang with any truth, than it would only be she and he for a very long time. Forever.
"If I didn't make you hate me first," Raz whispered, his breath teasing over Airi's lips while the hand in hers began to pry her small one open and release her grip on the magic box.
The box holding Aram's memories.
"Aren't you curious?"
The box opened just as Raz's lips pressed into hers. The onslaught of foreign magic had Airi arching her back and pressing unwillingly into Raz's chest for reprieve.
The last thing she saw was his steady, calculating gaze before darkness descended.
They were all gone...
Perhaps I'll see you suffer in this world.
Airi woke to a bright light. Her body felt so heavy and mind felt like sludge. Groaning, she rubbed her eyes and willed her body back to slumber. She was tired.
"Airi - chan?" A voiced called. It was a voice she did not know.
Opening her eyes, Airi cautiously turned over, sat up in her bed and looked around, disoriented. She was in a room - a bedroom by the looks of it. One she had never seen before. Everything was elegant and refined with thick white carpets and mahogany dressers. Even her bed was laced in white blankets and satin sheets and pink bed curtains. The whole atmosphere was aristocratic which was strange because she had nothing in her memory to make a comparison to what would be considered 'normal.'
"Airi - chan?" The voice called again.
Looking up, Airi was caught between panic and confusion as a man with a handsome dark, tanned face curtained in silver hair and matching eyes stood beside her bed and stared down intently at her. Their was something distinctly exotic about his features...
It was a face she did not know.
"Who - who are you?" she asked timidly. Briefly her eyes scanned down his form. He looked to be about her age. With a slim figure and a decent muscle mass, his shoulders were unusually broad and emphasized by his sleeveless red tunic and white slacks. His arms were decorated with several bracelets and Airi didn't know for the life of her why they only seemed to compliment his masculinity.
Realizing she was staring, the silver haired man raised an eyebrow and Airi quickly turned away with a blush.
"You do not recognize me?" he asked slowly. Airi could feel his eyes watching her intently. It made her stomach knot up anxiously.
"No," she answered in a whisper. Looking down, her eyes took in her white, silk nightgown with it's low cut collar and lace trimmed short, transparence sleeves. Her blush spread when she realized how nicely the gown hugged and complimented her figure. It wasn't something she would usually wear.
That explains the getup... I think it suits you.
Thankfully she was covered from the waist down.
Glancing back up, Airi bit her lip and tried to remember how she had gotten there.
"I don't understand," she began quietly.
"I can't remember... please tell me, who are you? Why can't I remember anything?"
Watching her intently, the silver haired man suddenly moved forward and sat down beside her on the edge of the bed. He sat a little too close for Airi's comfort but she decided to remain silent in favor of answers instead.
"I am Razalude of the House of Zerohuthia," he began, still using the same slow and cautious tone he had started with. His voice had an almost musical sound to it and the strange accent he possessed only amplified it.
"though you have always called me Raz." He finished and appraised her silently, waiting for her reaction.
Airi tried to wrack her brain for the name 'Raz' but there was no memory or emotion attached to the name.
"Raz." She tested the word on her tongue before her brown eyes once again sought his out worriedly.
"Why can't I remember you?" she asked and gripped her blanket anxiously. Something was definitely wrong.
"What can you remember?" Raz countered with a question of his own.
Searching inwardly, Airi balked when she realized how empty her heart felt.
"Not much... I know my name and age; but everything else is a blank." Drawing the blankets closer to her, Airi felt herself tearing up.
"What happened to me Raz?" she asked anxiously.
Gasping suddenly, she was surprised when Raz took hold of her chin and cradled it gently between his hands.
"You had an accident," he explained and tenderly wiped away her tears.
"There was a spell. It backfired."
Airi blinked at him in confusion. Why was he looking at her so intently?
"A spell? Like magic?" she asked in a thick voice. Raz hummed in affirmation and dropped his hands.
"It was an accident but the spell you were performing backfired and consequently most of your memory was lost."
Airi blinked slowly as she took in the information. She could do magic?
Looking around with new eyes, she suddenly had more appreciation for her surroundings.
"Where are we? Is this some sort of magical world?" Airi was so distracted by her fascination, that she completely missed Raz's smirk.
"We are in the ancestral house of my family. As custom dictates we will remain here for the next one hundred years under the ward spells that guard this house," he explained patiently.
Now that you're in, don't think you're ever getting out...
Hearing his words, Airi nearly jolted out out of bed from the shock of it all.
"ONE HUNDRED YEARS!" she cried. It couldn't be! Was she trapped? Was she a prisoner? Why would she have to stay for one hundred years? She would die of old age before she could leave!
"Calm down, the very magic that keep that wards this house flows through your veins and mine. We do not age like humans. What is a hundred years to us?" Raz asked rhetorically.
His words slightly calmed Airi but it left her with even more questions.
"But why are we here? What could we possibly have done to deserve this sort of punishment?" she asked, bewildered.
"Punishment?" Raz scoffed and leaned in to tuck a stray hair behind Airi's ear.
"You misunderstand my dear Airi - chan. We are not here because of a punishment." His proximity made Airi blush.
"Th - then why are we here?" she asked, suddenly very shy. Raz's eyes seemed to shimmer in the dark at her curiosity.
"For our honeymoon of course."
"What!?"
Airi squeaked when Raz suddenly leaned in and captured her lips in a searing kiss. Without any effort he angled his head and caressed her Cupid bows into a heated massage that had Airi gasping and leaning dizzily into his chest.
I can end you with a kiss.
The small opening was all Raz needed to tease his tongues into her mouth. Moaning slightly, Airi became light headed when his tongue swept into her warm cavern and explored her at leisure before engaging her tongue in an erotic dance.
Desire, hot and thick ran down Airi's spine.
This was wrong.
Then nausea set it.
Pulling away, Airi panted heavily and moved to rest her forehead against Raz's chest to catch her breath while her hands clenched his shirt desperately. Her thoughts tried to catch up to all that had transpired in the last five minutes, but it was proving difficult for her.
Her husband cleared his throat.
"The spell has left you fatigued. You must rest, but first..."
Reaching into his pocket, Airi watched as Raz pulled out a necklace. The chain was so fine that is was almost invisible. In contrast the pendant hanging from it was quite large - fashioned in metal and shaped as a circle, the frame of which held two squares that were pointed out in the shape of a seven pointed star while the center held a distinct diamond shape.
The insignia of the House of Zerohuthia.
You really are a Latreia.
"A wedding gift," he announced and effortlessly slipped it over Airi's head and watched in satisfaction as is slid down her neck before the heavy pendant finally settled over the mark on her chest.
A marriage vow.
After a moment, Raz's pendant pulsed with magic before the whole necklace sunk hotly into Airi's skin, leaving behind a warm tingly feeling. Though the chain remained unseen, the pendant covered and nullified the original mark; thus making Raz's magical pendant ever present.
Not that Airi had noticed it.
"Thank you for the necklace," she told him quietly.
Raz nodded and gazed at the new mark on her chest like a predator. It was a cheap imitation compared to a true marriage vow, but until the mark was broken on Aram's end when he chose Mariabel and marked her, the original mark on Airi's chest would remain.
"Wear it always... now rest wife. I will return later."
What do I have to do to make you suffer?
Rising to his feet, Raz turned to go.
At least with his pendant covering the mark, he would be able to kiss her.
Now that he had successfully removed Airi from interfering with Prince Aram's affairs and had erased their memories and love for each other, his mission was complete. Queen Veedua would be pleased.
Turning down a corridor, Raz made his way into the heart of the house. Unlike the noble house he had grown up in, the Deserted House had no servants. Though elegant and spacious, the house had fallen into decay and filth from years of neglect. It had been in his family for over one hundred years; but after his grandfather's disastrous engagement to Chrisnele and her abrupt departure, the place had become cursed with his endless pain and suffering from her betrayal and left desolate. Even after the man had found a new wife, his love for her and the children that she had bore had always been tainted by the sad bitterness that he held for his first betrothed. Eventually Raz's ancestor had gone mad from the grief and cast his memories into the magical shadow box and locked it into the Deserted House.
My grandfather loved Chrisnele. He loved her truly and deeply...
Raz thought of Airi. She was an identical copy of her ancestor and a princess in her own rights... and she had kissed him.
Reaching into his pocket, Raz pulled out the magical shadow box that held Prince Aram's and Airi's memories. If the prince's behavior was anything to allude to, then Airi's personality would remain intact. It was only a matter of molding her into her new life that would require investment.
It was too tempting of an opportunity to dismiss.
Squeezing his hand, Raz watched dispassionately as he crushed the shadow box before it shattered into tiny, magical particles. Without it, neither she nor Aram would never regain their memories. Airi was in his his clutches now and he had no intention of letting her go.
Satisfied that another threat had been removed, Raz paused when he reached the end of the corridor. He had cast a spell to renovate the house and slowly bring it back into it's full glory, but the magic had been slow to spread the center of the house where Raz's ancestor's magic was still potent; and so the corridor was still dusty and worn and dark with poor lighting.
It was annoying but easily overlooked.
Because of the barrier spell that surrounded the house, Raz would have to contact the queen via mirror portal. She would want to know of his progress in discarding Airi. The center of the house where Raz's grandfather's magic was still so strong would serve as an amplifier to Raz's own magic.
The doors at the end of the corridor were tall and imposing with large ragged handles and an overall unwelcoming aura, but Raz was not intimidated. Unhindered, he silently opened the massive doors before striding inside.
No one, aside from Raz's ancestor had ever been into the center of the Deserted House. His grandfather had built it for Chrisnele and fashioned after any delights she could fancy. The rooms were all large and decorated in the finest of baubles. The center of the house had been no different.
Walking into the center of the room, Raz made his way to a small balcony.
The entire room had been hollowed out and framed with an inverted balcony and a set of marble stairs. The stairs led down into a garden that would have served as an inner courtyard. It was far overgrown in its vegetation, but Raz could well imagine that in its early years the garden would have been beautiful.
That woman... if she had married as she was suppose to...
Chrisnele would have been enchanted by it.
... my father would be King of Astale right now.
Looking up, Raz's gaze fastened on the many stars lit in the bright sky. The courtyard and an open roof where sunshine could always warm it.
Raz wondered if Airi would like the garden before completely banishing the thought. It shouldn't matter what she did or did not like. She was a prisoner.
A descendant of the traitorous princess.
Removing a chain from his own neck, Raz held the seven starred mirror that served as its pendant in front of him. All members of the royal family possessed one.
Clenching the mirror tightly, Raz summoned his magic and used his grandfather's remaining magic to focus it.
After a moment the mirror began to glow and Raz released it only to let it float several feet in front of him. Inside the mirror, a feminine face appeared.
"Razalude" a regal voice commented. Raz bowed his head in respect.
"My Queen, the task with which you have instructed me has been carried out."
"Oh?" the queen's voice prompted.
"Airi has been safely tucked away in the Deserted House. She will not ever be able to escape it," Raz promised. The queen hummed, not quite in agreement.
"She can if she ever learns to harness her magic. You and her are the only ones who carry the blood of the original two to whom the house was created for," she pointed out.
"True, but after capturing her memories in the magical shadow box, Airi will have little incentive to leave," Raz argued before hesitantly adding,
"I destroyed the box."
The queen laughed.
"My oh my, you removed both of their memories? I only asked that you remove my son's. Why the sudden change in plan?"
Frowning, Raz bit his tongue and resisted the urge to politely tell his auntie to bug off. He did not like explaining things to the queen. While she wasn't dangerous or cruel per say, she did have a very strange way of thinking and an even stranger way of manipulating people. He was loath to give away his intentions. It gave any possible adversaries potential power over him.
Still, he could not refuse her majesty. Raz made a tight fist.
"Auntie, Airi thinks that we are wed," he confessed quietly.
The silence that followed credited to the queen's shock. Raz resisted the urge to shift restlessly.
"Oh my, I must say I was not expecting this." the queen commented at length.
"What a cruel thing to do, nephew. To play with the heart of girl with no memory. You realize that Astale will not recognize such a union as marriage as Airi is still vowed to Aram," the queen condoned.
"Once he places a new vow on another maiden, his vow to Airi will dissolve." Raz reminded her. The queen clucked her tongue.
"Am I to understand that you no longer wish to pursue your travels? You were once so eager to see the lands beyond are borders."
Raz dipped his head even lower.
"With all due respect, your majesty, my interests have obviously changed."
The queen huffed in response.
"Fine. Keep your trophy, but don't expect any sympathy from me when you present her to the court and they sneer at your own marriage vows. Though a member of the royal family, you are not a prince and do not posses the same immunity that Aram did. No one will bless the marriage of Chrisnele's descendant."
Not a single person in Astale will bless you.
Raz fought back a smile. It wouldn't matter if the court blessed them or not. He had no intention of keeping Airi in Astale any longer than necessary. Once he had her - truly had her - he would destroy her, just like her ancestor had done to his.
I can't begin to describe to you the power that my family lost because of that woman.
Airi's hatred of him had been the greatest obstacle in his plans. She was so strong willed and her emotions gave her an even greater edge. Without them, she would be so much more pliable to bend. To break.
"Under normal circumstances, Aram would not be of age to wed until his seventeenth year, but for the sake of restoring order I will suggest to the court and husband that a premature ceremony be held for Mariabel and my son. That girl has no idea how many laws she has broke when she entered Astale. Do keep her close, Razalude. It would be unfortunate if she ever broke free. The poor thing."
Raz nodded. The faster Aram wed Mariabel, the closer his plan would come to full fruitation.
"I will summon you again once progress has been made. Until then, nephew." The mirror suddenly grew dark as the magical stream was abruptly cut off. Holding out his hand, Raz barely had time to collect it before the doors to the corridor opened once more.
"Razalude?" Airi's voice called. Raz jerked in surprise before turning around to find said girl standing in the doorway. The poor lighting outside bathed her outline in a soft glow. Still wearing the silk nightgown he had dressed her in earlier, she held one arm in securely across her chest while the other presses into the frame around the door.
"What are you doing here?" Raz asked with a grimace. He wasn't prepared to deal with his prisoner so soon. More importantly, he worried what she may or may not have heard from his conversation with the queen. It would put a terrible wrench in his plans if Airi knew what to expect.
"I was looking for you," Airi told him somewhat uneasily. Glancing around the strange room, she slowly made her way inside.
"I told you that I would return later. You are suppose to be resting-"
The rest of Raz's scolding was abruptly cut off when Airi surprised him for a second time that night and took his hand into hers. While the kiss he had instigated earlier had been pleasant, Raz's real motivation had been investigating her response to him. This affection was different. Her affection... surprised him.
"I don't want to be alone right now. My head is so empty."
She murmured, her voice laced with longing. All thoughts of breaking his new wife were suddenly eclipsed by awe as she showered him with kisses. Hesitant arms wrapped around her ashe slowly guided her back into the bedroom.
Later than night while she curled up next to him under the bed sheets, Raz found himself unable to reconcile his vengeance with the reality of his future. As his fingers twisted absently through Airi hair. The box was truly destroyed. Her memories and Aram's were gone forever. There was no going back.
The mark over her chest was already fading. Once it was gone he could replace it with one of his own. The possibilities teased his thoughts as he stared down at the young woman who only hours ago he had so thoroughly claimed as his. Now that the act was over, he found that he didn't want her quite so broken.
Airi murmured his name in her sleep and despite himself Raz smiled.
His ancestor was a fool for loving a Latreia... but then so was he.