A/N:

La la la la la! My happiness at being back can only be expressed in song!

LA LA LA LA LA, dee dee dee, do do dooooooo! XD

I'm not done, but I'll let you guys get back to the story and more Hiei-ness! ^^-

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Chapter 13: The Phoenix Princess

I'd never been so bored. Waiting for the Falcons to file slowly into the Hall was driving me insane.

They had no sense of urgency whereas I wanted this over with.

I was anxious to have Astrid safely within my arms again with no worry or concern for the outside world.

We had yet to perform the mating ceremony and I was impatient to get that done, too. I wanted to trade marks and make her officially mine and be solely hers.

I sighed, remembering how her skin felt under mine. She was so smooth and supple, just the opposite of me.

I, who was scarred and calloused from years of battle and hardship, could never be worthy of such a perfect creature. And, yet, she had chosen me and loved me just as I was.

I found myself proud to have such a woman to be my mate.

I looked down from my hiding spot and immediately found Astrid. She was approached by many Falcons and she smiled at them even though I could tell it was forced. She must have recovered her voice for she seemed to be speaking with them.

Astrid did not look for me. I didn't expect her to since it could potentially blow my cover. I watched her, though, and ached to be with her. To greet people with her as her mate.

From what I understood, however, since I was a fire demon, the Falcons would not be accepting of me. I wondered why Astrid did not share their fear of fire? Perhaps because I'd saved her before she knew what I was?

I shook my head. No, there was something else that had nothing to do with me.

If she had had that fear, Astrid would have at the very least shown hesitation around me. She never did.

I continued to watch her interact with others as she greeted them with a strange gesture. She would press her thumb and forefinger together and twist her hand over her sternum so that her palm faced inward.

As she made this gesture, I noticed something strange. A discoloration across the back of her hand from her wrist to half-way to her knuckles. I frowned.

The only thing I could think of that would cause a mark that size was a burn.

I felt dread fill my being. I hadn't burned her, had I? The thought sickened me.

I desperately tried not to think about this and directed my attention back to my part of the plan. Rogan had informed me that the gel Astrid had put on the roof was extremely flammable.

This meant that I would have to keep tight control on the fire once I started it.

I glanced down at the crowd and noticed that everyone had made it inside. I waited another twenty minutes in the event of stragglers. Being the tight-knit community they were, it didn't surprise me when there were none.

I bent down and gave the gel the smallest spark I could. Regardless, the gel burst immediately into flame, spreading instantly a foot high across the roof.

I labored over the fire to keep it from spreading further and at a max height of five inches.

If I allowed it to burn faster, there would be more than falling ash and people could get hurt, including Astrid, and I would not let that happen.

For what seemed like days, I kept tight control over the flames. I would call this a simple task if it were not for how long I had to maintain it.

Even as long as it felt as though I were there, I knew it had only been an hour or so.

That was when I heard her voice, clear as a bell, rising from inside the Hall.

I knew whe sang for me, and not just because of the words, but because of how much of her heart I could feel in her voice.

It gave me new strength knowing she sang for me and, soon, I began to hear the startled cries of the Falcon's below.

A small group ran from the entrance, but they stopped just outside to look back.

That's when I noticed the silence, so I put out the fire and listened.

One voice cried out above the silence.

Astrid.

I kicked a hole in the charred roof and dropped down to the ground, disregarding anyone else.

What I saw chilled me to the bone.

Astrid was crouched over the performance dais, her entire body was consumed by flames. I paled.

There was no way she could have caught fire. She was on the opposite…

I spotted Rogan; he was thrilled, which could only mean one thing.

Thunder cracked in the distance meaning Mystique was on her way.

Astrid slowly began to rise from the dais and in one final cry, the fire surrounding her was dispelled.

I couldn't believe what I saw.

Astrid's skin was no longer a pale porcelain, but a soft bronze, and her hair had turned the color of bright copper. Her eyes were molten gold; the whites were gone from them with only black spots that was her pupils. And her wings.

Her wings no longer had the markings of a purebred Falcon. Instead, they displayed the colors of garnets and rubies, of blood and fire.

Her wings were bigger now with her unlocked power.

She had become fearsome in her new form, but no less beautiful. If anything, her beauty had increased.

The Falcons watching stared in awe and horror.

There was an outburst of whispers and I noticed a lot of them pointing fingers. I turned to where they were pointing, and saw the Chairman.

No one was as afraid as the Chairman seemed. In all of my years of hunting people down, I had not seen anyone that scared.

I could see why as Astrid slowly walked in his direction, one step at a time.

"Raldon…," she said, her voice like the floating ash that had revealed her true form, "What you have done is unforgiveable. You, the rest of the Council, and the Elders have kept a terrible secret. A secret for which you must pay dearly for."

A staff appeared in her hand, one I'd seen her summon once before when she'd saved my life at the Dark Tournament.

Astrid lifted the staff above her head and, instantly, it was struck by lightning, charging the staff with its power.

I jolted into action, she was going to kill them.

"Astrid!" I yelled, "What are you doing?"

Upon hearing my voice, she hesitated before turning to me.

"Hiei… these people…," she paused, her now golden eyes welling with tears, "Look at me. Look at what I am. These people destroyed my Clan, and for what? Jealousy! Such a petty, coward's fight. They killed my family, but they didn't stop there. They tortured me. When I went missing, no one tried to find me. They knew what I was."

I hesitated. I understood what it would mean to Astrid to get her revenge. I knew all too well the burning need to slaughter those who had wronged me by committing irreversible sins.

Which was why I also knew that revenge was not the way to go. Astrid was the kind of person who be haunted by the killings. She would never forgive herself no matter how much she told herself they deserved it.

Astrid would drive herself mad.

"Astrid," I gently took hold of her upper arms, "You don't want to do this. Don't do this, please."

Tears escaped from her as she whispered, "I have to. I'm the Phoenix princess."

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A/N:

O.O

Whoa. Things are definitely heating up! And I'm not just talking about all of the fire involved in this chapter.

XD

Well, I'm proud that I've managed a third update in less than a week. This story will be complete in no time!

^^- Send your reviews and love cookies, as always! See ya next chappie!