Jade was grinding her teeth so hard, she almost wondered if she would turn them into dust by the night.
She was chaperoning the meeting between her little sister and Sage Iceheart. As it was, the younger girl was shy and hesitant being around the disliked man.
"Sierra, please stop treating me as if I were diseased," the man said, faking hurt after he tried to move closer to her, and the blonde had moved away.
The woman stopped and let the dark-haired man wrap an arm around her waist.
Jade wanted to growl, 'Does she think that fake hurt is real?!' Before she could say anything, another voice spoke up.
"Sage, release Sierra this instant. Give her space," Nicholas barked, only relaxing when his brother did so.
The copper blonde settled next to the dark-haired woman, and gave her a half smile, "My apologies for being late. I know it it usual for parents to chaperone their children, but with Mother expecting her third child…"
"It's fine, my parents couldn't be bothered to keep an eye on Sierra, so I came here instead."
"Yes, I have heard that your parents are… aloof."
The pale magic user snorted, "That's putting it mildly," she watched as the couple made small talk, and she eavesdropped into it.
"I heard you were engaged before," Sierra tried to smile despite her obvious distrust of the man.
"I was. Her name was Danthalia," Sage mused, "She was a beautiful woman."
"What happened?"
"She died," the man replied, almost sounding sad.
"Oh, how?" blue eyes widened, "Sorry! You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, that was rude of me to ask."
"No, it's fine," the pale man assured her, "It was ten years ago. Some say she ran away, but those closest to her knew she would never do such a thing. They never found her body, so no one knows quite for sure what happened to her."
Jade's eyebrows rose and noticed Nicholas' tensed form. Hm, seems the older brother cared about this woman.
"Brother, I believe it is time to go," the copper haired man said in a clipped tone.
Icy blue eyes studied his older brother, before he bowed to his blonde fiancee. "I hope to see you again soon Sierra. Until then,"
"Bye," the young woman murmured, and once they left she slunk away to her room, where she locked herself away every day.
Jade wanted to scream. She wanted to fix everything, but she couldn't stop the helpless feeling she had, because she knew she couldn't do anything.
Sierra locked her door, a sob fighting its way up her throat. 'I can feel it; Sage isn't a good man. Why- why did mother choose him, of all the men, for me to marry? Oh yeah, because she's trying to hurt me!'
Tired of being cooped up, the young woman threw her window open, and jumped out, using telekinesis to soften her landing. She got over the fence in the same fashion, then she was running. She finally collapsed at a giant cypress tree, tears running down her cheeks as she lay there gasping.
"Sierra?"
Startled, the blonde looked up into pale blue eyes. "Sage! What are you doing here?"
The man gave her a lopsided grin that made her skin crawl, "I wanted to take a walk through the woods, but now I've found you."
"Please, go away," she whimpered when he moved closer, a scary light in his eyes.
"Why? Because you don't like me very much? You don't want to marry me? Well blondie, I can help with that,"
The young woman wanted to run, but she was already drained, and before she could move, he was on top of her. She squeezed her eyes shut, feeling him press against her. 'Please, anyone, help me!'
A few days later Ragnar returned to the couple.
"I have found that not only has this occurred in the past, there is a spell that specifically bonds the married couple together."
"Does it say how Zayne is to… Die?" Danthalia asked, wincing at the end.
The blonde man moved closer and caressed her hair soothingly.
"Aye. The spell will create a dagger, and you must use it to stab straight into his heart," the tall man said clinically.
Green eyes widened at that, "W- what? I must kill him?!" the brunette's voice raised in pitch in disbelief.
"Thal," Zayne pressed his fingers to the side of her jaw, forcing her to look into his eyes, "I do not fear death. If I must die by your hands to stay with you and the kids in this realm, then I accept it."
They stared into each other's eyes, before Danthalia looked down, "Oh- okay. If you insist. We should go get Kimi and Robin,"
"And I shall retrieve Resa. Meet back here, and we will return to the land of the living," Ragnar added, before with a smile, left.
The brunette sighed, making the dying man frowned at her, "Thal?"
"Yes?"
"Everything will be well."
"I know," bringing herself up on tiptoes, she gave him a gentle kiss, "You get the kids, while I get dressed for the wedding?"
"I shall," Zayne watched as she went inside, and he followed the sounds of laughter to the backyard.
Kimi and Robin were obviously excited for the bonding, because the blonde found them already dressed up. The dark-haired girl wore a pale blue dress with different colored flowers embroidered into the fabric. The redhead wore a simple black tuxedo.
"Robin, Kimi, it is time to go."
The duo stared at him, and the boy replied, "You're not dressed yet!"
Zayne smiled, "You're right, I should go get dressed now. Will you wait for uncle Ragnar in front of the house?"
"Okay!" they exclaimed and ran to the meeting site.
Shaking his head, the man made his way to the house. Getting to his room, he placed his hands on the armoire, thinking about a specific outfit he had worn once, the one he wanted to be married in. Pulling the door open, he smiled. Sitting on a hanger was a beautiful pure white tuxedo, with a pale blue tie with green ivy crawling up the fabric. Exiting his room, he caught sight of Danthalia too leaving her chamber, and his breath caught.
The brunette wore her hair in a waterfall braid. Her full length, off the shoulder gown was such a pale blue, he almost thought it was white, with greenery curling everywhere. The dead woman caught his eye, and blushed, "Zayne, what are you doing up here?"
"I had to prepare for the wedding as well," he motioned to his suit, then took several steps towards her, "It would seem we match…" the blonde stroked the flesh on her shoulder.
"So we do…"
"Shall we be going?"
That snapped the soon to be bride out of her thoughts, because she beamed at her fiance, "Yes."
Holding arms like the perfect gentleman and lady they were, they went to meet up with their friends and family.
Ragnar and Resa were already with the kids when the couple got outside.
The warrior looked the young woman up and down, a gentle smile on his expression, "You look beautiful."
"Thank you. Shall we be off now?"
"Yes, here," the man handed the brunette a small orb, and looked at everyone, "Stay close to the lass, she is our focal point of travel."
"How come?" Resa asked, making the dark-haired man sigh.
"Each of us died in different places, so our portals are all over the living world. If we travel with Thal, we will end up where she died. If we lose her… we shall either be lost in limbo, or sent through our death spots."
"Geez! All right, splittin' up bad. Although I wish to get Ambriel back for killing me."
"Another time lass," Ragnar reassured her, then nodded towards the dead bride.
Returning the nod, Danthalia began a soft chant, not unlike the other times the dying man had travelled with her. Everyone huddled close to her, then a light darkness settled over Zayne.
When he could see again, they were at the cypress tree, but they weren't alone. Just off to the side there was a petite blonde woman on the ground, a dark-haired man was on top of her.
Just as Zayne registered the woman as Sierra, Danthalia rushed over to them. The dying man watched as she grabbed the other man by the back of the shirt and threw him off of the girl. The brunette helped the young Blackthorn up, and lightly pushed her away. "Go, run,"
The blonde nodded, and ran, before pausing, "Zayne…"
"Sierra, go!" He repeated.
"O- okay," then she was gone, running presumably back home.
Zayne looked back at his fiancee, seeing the fury in her eyes, as she watched the other man get to his hands and knees.
Icy blue eyes looked up and froze. "D- Danthalia? Everyone thought you were dead…"
"I am," she spoke curtly, "Because of you!" Stalking closer, she kicked Sage in the ribs, forcing him to roll onto his back, where she sat on his midsection, "I believed I was the only woman you had defiled and murdered, but clearly you enjoyed it enough to do it again. All the lives you might have ended... If I had known, I would have done this sooner," Placing her hand over his heart, the man gave a gasp, then the two beings were glowing, with the light transferring into the dead woman.
'She's draining him of energy- she's going to kill him!' Before Zayne could do anything though, Sage gave a deep exhale, and went limp.
Content, the dead brunette got off of the body, and walked towards the blonde.
There was a shuffling in the bushes. Sapphire eyes scanned the area. For a moment he thought he saw a flash of copper blonde, but when nothing else happened, he turned his gaze back to his bride. "Did you…?"
"Kill Sage?" she finished his sentence, and sighed, "No, he will be fine in a few hours. Perhaps I should have ended his life, but I refuse to bloody this day with his death," she gave him a nervous smile, and Zayne couldn't help but smile lovingly back.
"We should get this wedding going, would you not agree?" Ragnar interrupted.
"Yes, that would be best," the blonde replied.
"Then come forth, bride and groom," the tall man said in a deep voice.
Zayne took his Thal's hand, and they walked the few feet forwards until they were standing in front of Ragnar.
"Today is a wondrous day! One where these two beings will be bonded together in matrimony for all eternity-"
"I object!" A female voice called out.
Zayne was about to turn to see who it had been, when Danthalia screamed in pain. Whipping his head to her, he saw a thick black and red rope of energy wrapping around her torso, constricting her. He followed the end that was leading away from the dead woman and found the dark-haired sorceress holding it.
"Jade! What do you think you're doing?!" he asked frantically, noticing that the dead woman was looking paler by the minute.
"It's a necromancer spell I've learned. It'll drain her of all her death energy, and keep her from absorbing any from another source," she said with a tight smile.
"Why?"
"Because it will make her fade away, and she will no longer exist. Ever."
"Jade, this is more complex than we knew-" Resa tried to reason, but the dark magic user cut her off.
"-I don't care! I refuse to let this dead bitch kill you, Zayne."
The groom made a snap decision. Running to Danthalia, he wrapped his arms around her, and created a shield around them. This broke the pale woman's spell, and he immediately used his healing incantation to transfer his energy into the weak brunette.
"Zayne, what are you doing?! I'm trying to free you from her!"
The blonde's eyes hardened slightly, and once Danthalia was steady on her feet he released the woman to look at the dark magic user. "Why? So that I may die by your hands as they groomed you to do?"
Violet eyes widened, "How..?"
"It does not matter," the groom refuted, "It only matters that Danthalia wishes for me to stay with her, because she wants me to."
"I do too!" Jade yelled, "At least with me you wouldn't have to die to do so!"
Deep blue eyes stared into the woman's, "You wish for my family to end…"
"That's my mother's twisted idea, not mine. The plan was that since I was barren, the Lightwalks would die with you, and I went with it so she wouldn't look to Sierra."
The living man blinked, "Barren… So- You didn't plan on killing me?"
"No…" the Blackthorn crossed her arms, "and once I met you in that glade… I found you weren't so bad. I actually… Enjoyed… spending time with you."
For a moment Zayne did nothing, but then a small smile grew on his lips, and he took a step towards her. "I enjoyed my time with you too, but I didn't know you felt that same way…"
Jade turned her head, but the blonde could see her pale cheeks stained a beautiful pink.
The blonde was about to take another step to her, when he heard Ragnar call his name. He turned, and saw the cold look he was receiving from the tall man, and the confused looks from the kids. What he didn't see was Danthalia's expression, as she had her face turned away from him, but he figured she was hurt.
The living man was stuck. 'Do I choose the living, or the dead? They are both amazing women- Thal, with her caring and gentle heart, and Jade for her stubbornness and tenacity,' Zayne sighed, knowing that no matter what he chose, the truth would be that deep violet eyes and a defiant smirk would always follow him in his dreams. He knew what he had to do, what his heart was telling him. Turning, he walked to Danthalia, and gently brought her eyes to look into his. "Thal, I'm quite attracted to you, but… I love Jade. If things-"
The brunette cut him off by placing her hand over his lips. There were tears in her eyes, but her voice never wavered. "I understand it could never be. Not under these circumstances. I cannot force you to die with me, because that is not who I am, and the resentment would slowly poison you if I did," she looked at a shocked Jade, "Go where your heart calls. Be happy for the rest of your life."
Zayne pulled her hand away, "But one day I will meet you again."
"Hopefully not for many decades," she smiled, and shooed him towards Jade.
With a smile as bright as the sun, the living blonde made his way to his dark-haired fiance.
"Lad," Ragnar called, making the man look back, before catching an orb.
He had a confused look on his face, but the dead warrior added,
"If ever the Blackthorn matriarch gives you any problems, use that- or have your wife do so- It will contact us, and we shall back you up."
"Thank you…" the blonde murmured, truly at a loss for words.
"Yes, this will be… helpful…" Jade added, obviously unused to saying thanks.
"Be well," the bartender said in farewell.
"See ya two around! Imma not done makin' Ambriel's life miserable!" Resa added.
"Bye Zayne…" the kids said mournfully.
The blonde knew he felt most sad about not only leaving the kids, but breaking their little hearts. 'But Thal will heal them; her heart is big enough to fix anyone.' With that thought, the soon to-be couple left, fully intending to go straight to the Lightwalks to tell them the truth.
"Was this a decision you will not regret lass?" Ragnar asked quietly when the living left the area.
"Had I forced the matter, he would not be content."
"You have great wisdom, Danthalia," the dark-haired man replied approvingly.
The five dead heard a cough behind them, but paid it no mind.
"Shall we-"
"Flower..?"
The brunette's head whipped to the side, her eyes widening when she took in the copper- blonde male striding towards her.
"Nich- olas..?"
"Wow, you look good… all things considering."
"What- what do you mean by that?" She asked, taking a step back.
"I heard what Sage did to you," Nicholas answered sadly, "I wish I had known."
"How did you…"
"When my idiot brother escaped my side, I figured he would come to the forest. I was about to stop him from hurting Sierra, but you got to him first."
"He is not dead," she defended quickly.
"That is a shame, he should never be able to harm a woman. The world would be a better place without him."
They stood there, in awkward silence for a moment.
Just as Danthalia was about to say something, she watched as an arm wrapped around the blonde's neck, pulling him down. Time seemed to slow down for the brunette, she had just realized that it had been Sage, when the weakened brother pulled out a knife. He brought it down into Nicholas' chest, but didn't get far as Ragnar was there, pulling him off, and completely draining him of living energy.
"I'll be seeing you in The Mountain, lad," the tall man grinned as he dropped the dead husk to the ground.
In that short time Danthalia ran to the copper blonde, and kneeling at his side, examined the wound.
It was clear the younger man had meant to stab Nicholas straight in the heart, but the warrior's interference had dragged the blade down, nicking the muscle. He had perhaps minutes to live.
"Nicholas…" she whispered, tears falling down her cheeks.
"It's fine," he gasped as the dead woman tore her dress and used it to try and staunch the bleeding, "It just means I can die and be with you…"
"What about Annie?"
"What about her?- Found she was only after my family's status and power. Even if she had not been, I only loved one woman…"
"Who?" Danthalia asked, confused.
The quickly dying man caressed her cheek lovingly, "You, flower. Did that one time mean… nothing to you?"
Thal blushed, "You were drunk-"
"Yet you… accepted me," he gasped, "Why?"
"Because I loved you, but I never figured you could love me…"
Nicholas let his head fall to the ground, "I am an idiot. I… should have been more forward with you. Then… we would be together now…"
The brunette blinked her tears away. "We still can. When you wake up, find your way to Ragnar's mead hall, and we will start from the beginning," she instructed quickly, already seeing his soul leaving his body.
He gave a jerky nod and pressed a kiss to her lips. They stayed like that barely a breath, before Nicholas' head fell and he was still.
Everyone was silent for a solemn moment, before Ragnar spoke,
"What shall you do with the bodies, lass?"
"Leave them. The living will find them, and can make any speculation they desire of Sage's demise," turning, Danthalia looked at Kimi and Robin, "I know you two really liked Zayne, but Nicholas is a nice man as well. Will you give him a chance to let you get to know him?"
"Are you gonna marry him tonight?" Robin asked, making his mother blush.
"No, since he is dead, we do not need to rush into anything. In fact, I would enjoy it greatly to get to know him, since it has been so long…"
"Okay. Are we going home then?"
"Yes, Let us go home," Thal said with a sigh.
A.N:
*The funeral march plays in the background*
It has become a dark day, for the S.S. Comfortship has sunk, never to be seen by the light again. In it's wake S.S. Graceship is alive and strong. Plus there's the new ship, Moonstoneship that's on it's maiden voyage. One more chapter to go!
