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AN: Okay, so again I apologize for being late. Sigh. I know, I am terrible.
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Chapter 26
Aurelia's voice was a soft chant, but it was building, and as it rose, so did the sense of power in the air. Static made Kendiar's hair stand on end, and chills were running down his spine. But the most important part was the pain. Or the steady decrease of it.
Ever since Aurelia had escaped, Silver had been in pain, and he had felt her pain. He had blocked it to an extent, but he had never been able to do so completely. Their bond was too strong, and he never wanted to sever his connection with his wife, even if it bought him physical pain.
But now, as Aurelia healed her sister, the pain was finally going away. After centuries, he felt like a boulder was being lifted off his chest. He wondered how his love was feeling, but did not dare check. He could not feel Silver's emotions at all, but it was just a temporary side effect of the ritual. Aurelia had told them all to stay out of the room Silver had been trapped in for all these centuries, until the spell was finished, and so he waited outside the door. The others were outside the castle. Only Natsume was in here with him.
He wanted to pace, but he made himself stand still. He would do nothing, nothing at all, to jeopardize his wife's healing.
Finally, Aurelia's voice rose to a scream before coming to a stop. In the deafening silence that followed, the sound of the opening door was like a gunshot.
Kendiar stared at it with a surge of hope.
Then she stepped through, and suddenly his world was righted. Before he could think, before he could even order his body to do so, he had her in his arms, ignoring the blood and gore she was covered in.
Shaking hands ran over his face, through his hair, smearing him with blood, before Silver wrapped her arms around him, and clutched him close.
"Welcome back, love! Welcome back." Kendiar said with emotion choking his throat.
She could not yet speak, but he felt her nod. Felt her pull him closer, and just as suddenly slip a dagger into his heart.
Kendiar gasped in surprise, but he still would not hurt her. He could never hurt his Silver.
He looked at her, wondering what she was up to. He met her gaze as she stepped away, all her lethargy gone, and he understood.
"Bitch!" Kendiar spat, flinging the dagger back at Aurelia.
"Go!" Natsume snapped as he caught the dagger before it could plunge deep into the heart of his Aunt. She ran. She had killed her sister, and now Natsume had to deal with the aftermath of the plan.
Kendiar's eyes flared with murderous rage, the air crackling around him with his power.
Natsume drew his sword. It was time to end this madness.
"A ruse! All a ruse to kill your own mother!" Kendiar screamed, spittle flying from his mouth as he rained blows on his son, neither needing nor wanting a weapon. He wanted to rip Natsume apart with his bare hands.
"My mother died eleven centuries ago! You kept her shade alive. Trapped her here in pain and madness. I gave her freedom." Natsume retorted, his sword deflecting his father, while cutting slashes into him. He knew he was wounding Kendiar, but there was no stopping a man who cared naught if he lived or died.
"You just wanted to protect your own woman." Kendiar threw back his head and laughed, there was hysteria in his laughter and more than a hint of madness. Natsume's skin prickled with unease.
"For her! For that one you killed my Silver! I'll take from you what you have taken from me, son." Kendiar spat, and the last word was a curse, as if nothing could be worse to him than being related to Natsume.
Natsume lunged forward, but Kendiar was faster. He was already out of reach. Natsume changed direction mid-leap, and threw his sword at his father. He had no weapon now, but he would not let Kendiar leave. He would not live under the shadow of this threat over his Mikan.
The sword plunged into Kendiar's side, and he let out a low gasp, more from surprise rather than pain, but that was all the time Natsume needed. He attacked, and now he was the one who did not need a weapon. He fought, with only one thought in his mind. If he did not kill Kendiar now, he would kill Mikan. Kendiar jerked the sword out and threw it aside.
Slowly, but surely Natsume pushed his father back, and suddenly, they were pressed against each other, in what once used to be the throne room. They had ruined most of what was left of the castle in their duel, and the wall was crumbling from the force of their blows.
"She will die, and you will suffer like me." Kendiar said, trying to throw Natsume away with a last burst of strength. But Natsume managed to hold on to his shoulder, and flipped around to punch him in the ribs.
"I already have. She will live and you will die."
Then he punched Kendiar again, and again, until his ribs snapped like toothpicks, and before he could recover, Natsume plunged his hand into Kendiar's chest and ripped his heart out.
Kendiar stared at him, uncomprehending even as death seeped into his eyes.
"If there is an afterlife father, may you meet mother there." Natsume said throwing his heart aside and twisting his head so that he could rip it off with the only weapon he had left; his bare hands.
Mikan's POV:
I stood still, waiting for Natsume to come out of that castle. For three hours after Aurelia had rushed outside to tell us that the plan had been successful and that she had killed her sister as planned, we had done nothing but wait and listen. We could hear the crashes, the sound of breaking stone reaching us even three miles away, but now all was silent. I was terrified of this silence.
Natsume had wanted me to leave. To just go as far away as possible, to hide, in case he lost; I told him that he'd better win. My lover, my fiancé, my Natsume, was fighting for his life. For our lives. He had made the decision to let Aurelia kill his mother. He had known that after centuries of being in debilitating pain and being trapped, his mother would be a madwoman. He had done what he thought was right. But I know he also did it to protect me. Dd it because no matter what she said in public, Aurelia had told us the truth. Silver could not be saved without sacrifice, and I was the only available sacrifice.
If he lost, I would die. His father would kill me, as brutally as possible. He would kill all of us. Natsume would not lose and put my life in danger.
In truth, I just wanted Natsume next to me and I would use anything to motivate him to win. He was mine, and I'd rather die than live without him.
"Someone's coming out." Yuu said from next to me. His face was impassive, his voice bland, but he was shaking with tension.
I peered at the castle, and I could see a figure as he stepped out, seeming to sway on his feet. Then he looked up, and even with the distance, I knew it was him, knew he had won, knew he was alive, and that was all that mattered.
Before I knew what I was doing I was scrambling to get to him. But three miles is a long distance, for a human. I was still sliding down the craggy mountain when he caught me and held me to him.
"Love you." He whispered, again and again, his face buried in my hair. I hugged him back fiercely. I was never letting him go again. Never letting him do something like this. Never. Never ever!
"What are you doing out here, love?" Natsume asked, coming to stand next to me.
I was leaning on the banister of our terrace garden, staring out over our grounds. When had they become 'ours' from 'his'?
I glanced at him. He had pulled on his pants, but that was it. He looked perfect in the moonlight. Then again, he always looked perfect, with his pale skin, sculpted body, dark hair and ruby red eyes.
"How do vampires get married?" I asked. I had wanted to ask him this ever since we had returned two days ago, but I had waited for him to heal. He had nearly died in that duel.
"We don't stand on ceremony, love. The whole wedding is for our human half, for you. Our ceremony simply requires a sharing of blood and saying an oath of loyalty." He answered, turning to look at me. He was so beautiful that he made my chest hurt. I had come so close to losing him. If he had taken my blood, he would have healed in a few hours, instead it had taken nearly two days. He did not hold that against me. Far from it. But I loved him. We were engaged in the human sense. It was high time I took this last step in the vampire world as well.
I turned to face him fully, and then leaned my head to one side, pushing my hair away.
There was no surprise in his face. He might get confused sometimes, but he did know me. He reached forward and took me in his arms and kissed the slope of my neck.
"It's not something you have to do, dearest."
"Want to." I answered. Stubborn man. He knew more than he let on. Knew I was scared of marriage after the fiasco my first one had proven to be. But I too knew a thing or two. One of them was that I loved him and wanted him forever.
He seemed to sense my exasperation and chuckled. Then his teeth sunk into my skin, but there was no pain. There was no pleasure, no more than having my lover kiss my neck without breaking skin, but it did not hurt.
I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer.
He made a small sound in his throat, and then he raised his head to look at me. His lips glistened with my blood, the fangs peeking out. His hand had held my head in place, and I didn't remember him doing that, but now he moved it to his own neck and sliced a cut there. He just looked at me. It was my decision. All of it was my decision.
I rose up and kissed his cut. Then I sucked. Swallowed the blood, and he was suddenly back at my throat.
When we parted, we were both breathing heavily, and we were married. I suddenly laughed.
I was giddy with joy and he smiled, eyes sparkling with happiness, yet the laughter was bottled. But then he could not hold it back, and he was laughing with me. My love, my vampire, my husband.