I do not own Seven Deadly Sins or any of their characters.
Countdown
Oswald sipped at his liquor in silence as the other Sins all happily knocked their alcohol back. Oswald wasn't much in the partying mood. According to Merlin, Arthur had gone missing somewhere South of Camelot a few days ago and she had yet to be able to find him. Aside from that, the news was generally positive. King and Diane had finally gotten together, though Diane and King's explanation of it was a bit more entertaining and fitting than Merlin's. They had fought Gloxinia and Drole and lost badly, only for the two former rulers to send their souls back in time to live out a battle at the end of the first Holy War three thousand years ago, the battle in which they both changed sides. Except, King and Diane had chosen differently, and for it had been returned to the present time with the knowledge of how to wield their abilities properly and gaining huge powerups for it, as well as finally being scared about each other's fate during the trial they had been put through to finally get around to doing something about their feelings. Gowther having his heart back was also good, as was Gowther deciding to stay with Guila, especially now that he stood a chance of actually returning her feelings. However, that left one headache left to torment Oswald.
Derieri folded her arms on top of Oswald's head, leaning her weight on him and grinning down at him. "Why are you being so sour? It's a party."
"And you've drank almost more than anyone," Oswald said. "I think you could probably outdrink both Merlin and Meliodas."
"Speaking of," Escanor said from off to the side, where he had been reciting poetry that no one was listening to. "Has anyone seen Lady Merlin?"
"I'm sure she'll be along," Oswald said, just as she appeared in her chair.
She had swapped out her coat and shorts for a leotard, though the front was still open in the middle, reaching inward only just enough to cover her nipples, and the back was open halfway down her back. As soon as Oswald's eyes flicked to her, Derieri's head bent down into his line of sight.
"You'd better not be doing what I think you are," she said, the blush on her cheeks matching her slightly slurred words.
"Why would I be doing that with you two here?" Oswald asked, glancing to his side where Jericho was resting on his shoulder, her fingers laced with his and nursing a mug of ale.
"Good answer," Derieri smiled, giving him a quick peck on the lips before returning to drinking.
"You really are a good-for-nothing swine," Hawk said, walking over. "Forcing those two to allow each other to-"
Oswald extended an arm of darkness, lifting Hawk by the nostrils with it. "If I want your opinion, Hawk, I'll ask you how you want me to cook you. In the mean time, my relationships are none of your business." He tossed Hawk, who landed on his back and rolled backward onto his feet again before huffing and walking away, beginning to search for fallen food.
"You're getting better at controlling your darkness," Derieri smiled, sitting in her seat at his other side. "Wanna arm wrestle?"
"Nope," Oswald said, taking a drink.
"You're no fun," Derieri sighed. "Oh well. Jericho and I'll fix that later."
Ban sprayed ale out of his nose before coughing and wiping it with his sleeve. Oswald raised an eyebrow and Ban shook his head. Oswald snorted and shook his head as Elaine glared at Ban suspiciously. After a few more minutes, Ban called for another toast now that all of the Sins were present, and they toasted. However, shortly after, Merlin dismissed herself, claiming to be drunk. Oswald watched her walk away, catching the slightest waver in her steps.
"What is it?" Jericho asked, recognizing the serious expression on his face.
"I think she's hurt," Oswald muttered.
Jericho looked after Merlin worriedly and Oswald sighed.
"I'm sure I'm imagining things," Oswald said.
"Well, in that case, we should get your imagination off of other girls," Derieri whispered. "Want to get out of here so me and Jericho can have some fun."
"I told you, I'm not doing that," Jericho hissed.
"Then I'll get him all to myself for tonight," Derieri smirked.
Oswald watched her sway for a moment and sighed. "Alright. Let's go you two."
Derieri grinned victoriously and Jericho sighed heavily, the three of them walking out of the bar and back to Jericho's house, where she had given Derieri permission to stay until they left. Derieri all but dragged Oswald to her room, climbing onto the bed on her knees and turning back to him, kissing him.
"I promise I'll be the best you'll ever have," Derieri grinned against his lips.
"Oh is that right?" Oswald asked, smirking, pulling back.
"Definitely," Derieri grinned.
Oswald hummed thoughtfully and reached up, cupping her chin before swinging her head to the side and back quickly, Derieri swaying dangerously instantly.
"Whoa," Derieri said. "That's...kind of..." She tipped backward, collapsing onto her bed and beginning to snore.
"What'd you do?" Jericho asked.
"She's drunk," Oswald said. "I just made her lose her equilibrium and pass out."
"So, does that mean I get you instead?" Jericho asked hopefully.
"No," Oswald said. "This means we're all going to sleep."
Jericho sighed but nodded and headed to her room, Oswald going with her, since Derieri, even drunk, tended to hit things in her sleep.
Oswald caught Elizabeth as she collapsed, passing her to Meliodas instantly. They were on their way to Camelot, passing through a ruin known as Corand, where Melascula was residing, feeding off of the souls of humans who were massacred there centuries ago. No one had actually said as much, but Oswald knew that's what she was doing. It's the only way she could be alive after having all of her hearts destroyed. And it was going to make her very powerful. However, all of a sudden, Elizabeth had begun to go out of control. The morning before they left, she had healed Merlin of a curse placed on her by Zeldris, which placed her into a deep sleep. After that, everything seemed fine until she healed Elaine again, then she began to thrash about, shouting that she had to tell Meliodas that someone named Barzard was bitten by a werefox. Then when Merlin tried to get through to her, Elizabeth had recognized Merlin from Belialuin. Then, a Triskelion appeared in both of her eyes before she had passed out.
Meliodas quickly carried Elizabeth upstairs, laying her in her bed before kneeling beside her, remaining silent.
"What happened to her?" King asked.
"I don't know," Diane said. "Merlin, Oswald, do wither of you know?"
"This is probably the effect of Zeldris's magic from when she freed me from his curse," Merlin lied.
"Then, does that mean that the curse has passed on to her?" Diane asked.
"No," Meliodas said. "Elizabeth's memory has started to return."
"Her...memory?" Diane asked. "you mean her past lives!? That's incredible!"
"It's not," Oswald said, understanding perfectly what this meant. "This is the absolute worst case scenario."
"What?" Diane asked. "Why?"
"Because once her memories return...Elizabeth will die in three days," Meliodas said, fighting to hold back tears.
"Die?" Diane asked. "What? You're...joking around again...right Captain?"
"That is our destiny," Meliodas said. "There's no longer any need to keep quiet about it. I'll tell you everything...about the true purpose of my three thousand year journey."
Oswald stood, turning and walking out of the room. He couldn't hear the story. He knew it already, but if he heard it, he'd break. The story was too sad. Meliodas, who fell in love with the daughter of the Supreme Deity, and Elizabeth, who fell in love with the son of the Demon King, fought their parents in order to protect each other, and were killed. Meliodas was returned to life, because his curse was immortality, at the cost of any deaths resulting in his emotions being consumed by the Demon King for power, ultimately leading him to become the heartless demon he once had been before Elizabeth. Elizabeth, on the other hand, was reincarnated, with no memory, as a human of the savage tribe. When they met, they inevitably fell in love again, and Meliodas told her everything. And then her memories returned, proven by a Triskelion in both eyes. And then, three days later, she died. Before that, she had told him about her curse, and his own. Then, he had vowed to find a way to break them, no matter what it took. And then the cycle began.
Oswald sighed, leaning on the small wall around the top of the bar. After a few minutes, Jericho and Derieri both joined him.
"That's...seriously messed up," Derieri said after a few minutes of silence. "I don't know if I could handle it."
"I couldn't," Oswald said. "I'd have given my emotions to the Demon King if I were in Meliodas's shoes. Or wiped my own emotions like Gowther."
"I finally understand why Meliodas is the way he is," Jericho said. "He's so afraid of losing Elizabeth again that he'd do anything to protect her. Even kill a friend."
"Yeah," Oswald nodded. "He's...justified."
"It's getting late," Jericho said. "We should head to bed."
Oswald nodded and they all walked to the room they were sharing. It wasn't perfect, and both girls were a little unhappy about having to share a bed between the three of them, but they didn't complain. They all climbed in, both wrapping their arms around him and he wrapped one around each of them before closing his eyes and failing to fall asleep, lying awake and listening to their steady breathing until morning.
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