Chapter Twenty Nine
February Twenty-third
Too close… No… Find space…
Space? Clean… Fresh… Open… Safe… Space.
Wrong, all wrong… Trapped!
Harry awoke with a silent snarl which curled his lip in an irritated line. His eyes were flooded to a glowing emerald which shone eerily in the dark room. It was dark outside, still night… Perfect.
The pregnant faeling rolled from the bed to land gracefully on the floor, wings snapping out in case he failed to catch his balance. He stood up slowly, breath halted cautiously lest he make a sound. His dominants lay asleep still. Their bodies entwined in sleep as eagerly as in wakefulness and Draco's arm lay abandoned on the bed, where Harry had just been.
Sleep… Don't wake… Don't find me… Nearly time…
Harry's head snapped towards the door, his ears perking as he heard the tell tale signs of movement in the sitting room beyond. Somebody was awake.
Top lip drawing up in aggravation, Harry stalked to the one window, catching the opening and sliding it upwards swiftly. He purred as the light breeze from the night air ghosted over his flushed cheeks, warm and inviting. The waxing moon was unnaturally bright in the cloudless sky as Harry gripped the window frame, and left the room.
He scaled down the wall swiftly, claws grasping the old stone as though it were sponge. His protruding stomach was only a mild inconvenience. He panted harshly as he reached the bottom and his feet touched dew covered grass. A sudden spike of pain in his stomach caused him to whimper and clutch the area protectively.
Too close
With a determined gasp, he stalked towards the forest, his posture stiff and his nose raised in the air, wary of enemies.
The trees covered him like the roof of a home. He sighed blissfully under their shadows, raising his face up as though seeking sunlight. The chill of the forest enveloped him, causing his stomach to constrict and the pains to spike in quicker succession. He needed this… He needed cold and the elements to deliver his baby.
He wandered further into the forest, hands raking over the harsh tree trunks and the soft moss. His wings crackled and twitched behind him, a solid colour of smoke, held out with magic. There would be no withdrawing the appendages here. He needed them.
He stopped suddenly as an open area emerged before him, surrounded by tall trees that let in little moonlight. He dropped to his knees in the clearing, digging his fingers into the soil and shivering as his baby squirmed painfully within him, ready to be born.
Soon… soon…
He was aware of another watching him from a distance, but the fae was young and smelled somewhat familiar, family. Every so often it would move forward as if to enter the clearing, but the snarl which Harry emitted caused it to draw back with a sigh. As long as it remained away, Harry had no interest in the creature.
As he rubbed his face against the wet grass slowly, Harry picked up on another being, a darker being. This one was too close. His raised his eyes to growl in warning at the approaching vampire, back arching as the stranger continued to advance. The smell of death clung to him like perfume, sickly sweet and making it difficult to breathe.
The fae dropped from his perch in the trees as the vampire entered the clearing, eyes wide in distress.
"Harry," the fae whispered, his voice shaky with fear, "I need you to come to me, now."
The faeling ignored the black-eyed dominant, gaze intent on the vampire. The man was tall, larger than he and had dark eyes which burned into Harry's. As the faeling retreated back from the threat, the vampire's mouth twisted in a cruel grimace.
"Step back!" the fae growled, placing himself in front of Harry, "By interrupting his pregnancy you are writing your own death sentence, Step back Vampire!" The large creature raced forward suddenly, fangs extended. He sunk his teeth into the smaller fae's neck savagely, ripping blood from his body. The fae shrieked in agony before he was cast aside viciously and silenced as his head hit a protruding rock.
The sickening crunch that sounded from the impact caused Harry to blink and eye his attempted saviour in horror.
"Zane?"
Harry screamed as he was suddenly grabbed and hauled against the vampire's chest, his stomach spasming violently as the smell of death and frozen magic encased him. His eyes rolled back in his head and he gasped in fright, his hands clutching his abdomen.
"It's nothing personal, gorgeous," the vampire purred, "I'm only collecting. What Donis wants, Donis tends to get."
With that, the pair took off from the forest, Harry falling into a black nightmare as unconsciousness reached him.
###
Draco awoke howling.
He ripped the sheets from his body, only barely aware that Aaro was conscious and clutching his chest as though in pain.
"Harry?" Draco yelled, aware that the terror and sickening pain that dwelled within him was not his own, but his submissive's. "Where is Harry?"
Aaro pulled the door open, snarling as his mother made to restrain him, "He's gone!" the black eyed dominant was near feral, his fangs displayed in a show of fear. "He feels as though he's dying. Where is he?"
Mayca cast up her hands in a useless manner, "I thought he was still sleeping," she whispered, eyes huge. Temm clutched her head and groaned. "He's gone to find a nesting area, his instincts have kicked in."
Draco keened in confusion. "It's too early! He can't be ready to birth yet."
The front door was flung open suddenly and Mayca shrieked as Dara made his way into the room, a still Zane clutched in his arms. The fae was barely conscious, eyes fluttering weakly.
Mayca wept as her son was placed on the floor, "What happened?" she whispered, hands straying to the fae's torn neck to stem the bleeding. Zane glanced at her suddenly, eyes a solid black.
"He has Harry, tried to stop... so sorry..." The boy dropped back, his lids closing as his breath began to stagger. Aaro turned horrified eyes on his silver-eyed mate, conflict tearing him apart from the inside. "We need to find him."
