Tristan's Peace - Chapter 11
Disclaimer: I do not own any characters that you may recognize from King Arthur. Nor do I own any that you may recognize from the Dark Hunter Series by Sherrilyn Kenyon. I am merely playing with them for a time. So please don't sue me, I have no money. Nada, zippo, zilch.
op - I'm so glad you do. It makes my toes tingle when you say that! Especially as I don't think that I'm very good at this writing stuff.
KnightMaiden - I'm happy things are less confusing. And that you like it. I'm trying to go for something different. Something not done before.
Cardeia - Ahh, Joachim. I had to do it. Really, I did. I adore Lancelot and thought it would be great for her squire to be one of his descendants. And I'll try and put Carrick in a bit more for you! As to whether or not Jac is related to our pair...Dunno. I put that in to give you all something to think about.
Ooooh, I hinted at the speculation of his tattoo. Does he have one? Would he have one if Teagan has his soul. In the books, Artemis branded the Hunter in the spot where she took the soul from. Daimons were called inkblots because of the dark spot in the center of their chest. To hit that spot was the only true way of killing them. And if a Hunter was hit in his brand, he would automatically become a shade. Like an Achilles heel. Hense, the soul needed to be returned by that mark also.
I'm glad you like the house. It will be featured more. It is an actual house I used to pass by every day. Then I got the nerve to ask and look around. I've never seen so many bedrooms in my life in one space. It has a porch on three sides of the house. With the second floor the same. Each room having access to the porch. And here's one of the 'items' we were talking about. And the other is here too.
I'm trying to give Tristan a calmness. No, a weariness. His life has been so tough. And we need closure.We are so getting there.
And you MUST put Tristan on an old Harley in Dust Devils.I'll happily beg if I have to. PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE!
Melosine - I'm glad you like it. I hinted with Joachim and him being a possible relation. He calles her Aunt T. But, other than that, I leave it up to everyone if they want to believe they are or not.
It didn't take but a few minutes to change into a fresh pair of faded blue jeans and a pale green cotton pheasant top. The edges of the sleeves hanging past her fingertips. Being May in New York still meant that it was chilly in the morning. Especially by Lake Ontario as they were. Her flip flops were by the door so she slipped into them on the way out of her bedroom.
Teagan didn't see Tristan again as she entered the kitchen. Joachim was there as was Brody. Both men looked like they were looking at some magazine. A copy of Vogue by the looks of it.
She ran her hand over Joachim's shoulder as she passed on her way to the fridge. He responded by placing his hand on hers. "Where's Tristan?" She asked the boys as she opened the heavy steel door. Pulling out the orange juice, she drank from the container. Not bothering with a glass. No one else drank it but Shay. Joachim didn't like the stuff and Shay wasn't here to squawk at her.
"Dunno. Don't have Hunter watch today." Body muttered, turning the page of the magazine.
Jac looked up, restraining from kicking the cocky squire. "He's wandering, Aunt T."
This time he did kick Brody at the annoying sound he made. Brody didn't like Tristan. He wondered why.
Teagan wiped a bit of juice from her chin with the back of her hand. "Thanks Jac. Do me favor?" The younger man nodded. She knew he'd do anything for her. "If I'm not back by dark, let him have the keys to the bike." Replacing the juice, she then opened the freezer door, pushing aside objects until she found what she was looking for.
"Does he know how to get around?" Joachim's attention back on the magazine. The pages crinkling as he flipped the pages.
Teagan picked a grape out of the freezer, popping it into her mouth. "Prolly not." She said around the frozen fruit. "Set him up with the GPS. I'll have my tracker on."
'Makes sense', thought Jac. All the Hunters were required to carry their cell phones at all times. Each phone equipped with a tracking device in case they got into trouble and needed baled out. And since no two Dark Hunters could be in the same vicinity very long without draining each other's powers, it also served as a warning on who was where. Only Ash and a few others were able to spend any amount of time together with the DH's. Teagan being one of them.
Brody lifted his head from the magazine, annoyance clear in his face. "Ash said he wants me to get him anything he wants." The tone of his voice dripping with his obvious distaste at having to do so. Though Brody was good at what he did, he only did it when he was forced to or it benefitted him in some way or another.
'That's why. He'll have to do more work.' Jac thought.
Teagan opened her mouth to speak but, Joachim interrupted. "I'll do it. Brody here is a one Hunter kind of man."
Teagan's face broke into a warm smile. "Thanks Jac. If he's anything like when he was human, he's not going to need you much." She popped another grape in her mouth, sucking in some warm air as the frozen fruit hit the roof of her mouth, making her lips form an 'oh' shape.
Smacking Brody lightly on his head, she bent, giving Joachim a kiss on his cheek in thanks as she passed on her way out of the kitchen.
"To bad you've got her instead of me. I'd like to take care of that ass." Brody commented as he watched Teagan's retreating form, earning another smack on the back of the head. This time hard enough to hurt. "Ow!"
"Shut it." His voice deadly quiet.
0o0o0o
Teagan shook her head as she heard Brody's comment. One day, his mouth was going to get him into trouble. It was a good thing he was Adamo's squire and not hers.
She found Tristan in the den, his head resting against the back of one of the larger couches in the room. One of his bare feet on the top of the coffee table. Coming behind him, she just stood looking down, taking in his features. The sharpness of his cheekbones, the smattering of grey in his beard, the thin line of his mouth, even the messiness of his hair with the braids throughout. It was all the same.
Tristan opened his eyes, watching her, watching him. "You leaving?" His adam's apple bobbing as he spoke.
"Not yet." Leaning down, she rested the bridge of her nose in the crook of his neck. Her hand finding it's way down his bared chest. Her fingers lingering in his slight mat of hair."What do we do now?"
"You talk to Ash." Tristan smiled as he felt her snort on the back of his neck. "You won't do anything stupid."
"No. Not today." Though she had a mind to ram Acheron through with something. What, she didn't know yet. Her mind was still not working right.
"Just listen to what he has to say."
"Yes, mother."
Reaching up, Tristan grabbed Teagan under her arms, pulling her so she was seated in his lap. His hand found it's way up the loose fabric of her sleeve, his rough fingertips relishing the softness of her skin. He gazed at the color of her blouse, thinking that light green was an odd color for her to wear. But as he looked more, he realized that it looked good on her. She could wear a paper sack and still look good to him. It went with her hair that she had pulled back into a loose knot.
He couldn't help the groan. He had missed the feel of her.
Again Teagan smiled, her own fingers doing some feeling. She wound them in the hair on the back of his neck. Her lips finding his neck, her tongue tasting.
Pulling back, Tristan lowered his head to hers, capturing her lips in a soft kiss. One that held a world of promise. His tongue seeking out hers, hers giving in to him completely. Each gently caressing the elongated canine teeth...
It was Tristan who broke the kiss, as much as he didn't want to. He wanted to do more than kiss her. "You need to go." And as much as he wanted to do more than kiss her, his body was in no shape to be doing much beside sleep. Lack of sleep tended to drain his Hunter abilities. It was all he could do to keep his eyes open.
Climbing out of Tristan's lap, Teagan gave him one more light kiss. Wanting to do more than kiss this man. Standing, she pulled on his hand, silently asking him to come with her.
"I want to show you something before I leave." She guided him around the couches, the end tables and around a bookcase that held what Tristan thought were college textbooks.
Letting his hand go when they reached the far end of the den, Teagan opened a set of wooden double doors, pulling them towards her. Standing aside, she motioned him inside the dimly lit room. Her face clearly showing pleasure at what was inside.
What met Tristan was a sight he had never seen. At least not in a private home. He had spent hours upon hours in the libraries of the different cities and countries. Reading kept his mind from dwelling on the past and had kept him out of the sight and minds of the humans in the world. It offered him a bit peace in his largely chaotic world.
But this... This was amazing. Books lined every wall. Even the wall that held the fireplace. From floor to ceiling. Every wall was covered with shelves stocked full of books. Books he knew were older than him. They had to be hundreds of years old. It didn't look as though there was a spot of dust covering these volumes. Not like his books at home. They had a healthy layer of dust covering them. She probably even had some of the same books he had.
Gently Teagan pushed him further into the room. "Go on, they don't bite."
"I do." He muttered under his breath. Instantly wishing that she hadn't heard that.
Looking around, his memory jogged as he saw the two red, large, overstuffed chairs arranged before the fire. Each sitting on a rug he assumed was also old. This entire room screamed history, ancient history.
The fireplace caught his eye, it being as large as himself. Surrounded by a brick wall that looked like it was specifically designed for this place.
"Look up." Teagan whispered as she sat lightly into one of the large chairs, her leg hanging over the edge.
Tristan did. And nearly lost his heart. Automatically, he reached behind him, feeling for the sword he realized he had left in the bathroom. He stepped around Teagan, his eyes over the fireplace.
"Is it...?" Above the mantle, the mate to his sabre was hung. The miniature of his own.
"Yes." She said from behind him. "Take it. It's yours."
He started to, but stopped himself. It wasn't his. He had given it to her. "How did you find it? When?"
"Sometime after when I assumed you died. I found it in Egypt. Payed a good amount from the collector that had it. I've been looking for yours all this time." Her voice lowered so much that Tristan backed up, kneeling beside her. "I thought it had been destroyed."
With his quickness, Tristan pulled Teagan to him, his lips finding hers. Kissing her with as much passion and heat that he felt. Her arms wound themselves around his shoulders, pulling him closer, deepening the kiss.
They only broke apart when Joachim cleared his throat, interrupting. "Sorry to intrude." He shuffled his feet, holding out a small cell phone. "But Ash is wondering what is taking you so long."
Tristan groaned, standing. Extending his hand to Teagan, he was welcomed with the warmth of her hand. "Go."
Teagan squeezed his hand before she let it go, her faced still flushed. She addressed Joachim, her eyebrow raised. "Tell him he can wait all day if I want."
0o0o0o
Stepping into the coffee bar, Teagan stopped off at the counter, ordering her white chocolate raspberry mocha and picking up a pound of chocolate covered coffee beans. She liked to keep some at the club and by her computers at the house. Coffee and chocolate, two flavors that went so very well together.
She loved this place. And would come here whenever she could. The tables were scattered throughout the place. Many of them had places to plug in laptop computers. If you didn't want to sit a table, it had sofas and overstuffed armchairs. Her favorite spot was in the corner. One of the sofas was so soft that she had trouble pulling herself out of the cushions at times. It was an ugly plaid pattern, the fabric stained from the many years of coffee drinkers.
As it closed early in the evening, it was usually closed by the time she made it out and to the club. Here the coffee was fresh. They had the most incredible biscotti she had ever tasted. And it was doubly wonderful dunked in a steaming cup of black coffee.
Yup, she was addicted. But it wasn't like it was going to kill her or anything.
It didn't take her long to find Acheron. His bright pink hair and dark sunglasses giving him away. His incredibly long body folded under him as he sat in one of the easy chairs. His fingers tapping on the laptop perched on his knee.
He didn't even look up at her as he motioned the chair opposite him.
Teagan took a similar position as Ash, folding her much shorter leg under her. Propping the other on the round coffee table in front of her. Idly, she used her foot to push the multitude of magazines away from her flip flop. Thinking that she needed to re-do her toenails.
Sipping her hot drink, she looked at Acheron over the edge of the tall cup. She watched as he saved whatever he was doing before closing the laptop. Probably updating the website, Teagan mused.
"Took you long enough." He told her as he took a sip from his own cup. No doubt some exotic coffee blend that Teagan had never heard of. His voice was one of mild annoyance.
She shrugged her shoulders. "I had no reason to hurry out." She still wasn't very happy with him. "Been a bit occupied, you see."
Acheron smiled, not quite showing the fangs that Teagan knew were there. "Yes. How is he?"
Teagan took another drink before answering. "Hopefully going to sleep." She gave him a glare, her eyes swirling briefly before going back to their original blue. "Well?"
"Well, what?" Ash couldn't help himself. It was so much fun to goad people. Most knew that he knew the future. That if he wanted, he could tell someone exactly what was going to happen in their lifetime. Even when they were going to die. Teagan knew. But she never asked. Now, he had to tell her about her past without revealing to much of her future.
Teagan wasn't going for the bait. "You know what. Why now?"
"I told you. He needs protecting."
"Horsecrap." She heaved a large sigh, taking another drink of her coffee. Absently, she ran her fingernail along the rim of the cup. "Please, just tell me why. Why didn't you tell me he was a Hunter? Or that he was still on this earth."
Acheron placed his cup beside him on the table, unfolding his leg as he did. "I couldn't. Artemis forbade it."
"Did Tristan know about me?"
Ash shook his head. "No. Artemis forbade it. She forbade me from telling either of you."
"Why?"
"Because I brought you back."
"Why did you bring me back?"
"You are possibly the last of my descendants. I couldn't bear the thought of you just dying." He sat back in his chair. "So I bit you."
"Okay." This she knew. This was part of the reason that Artemis hated her so much. That she was somehow related to her Acheron was sometimes more than the red haired Goddess could take. That Teagan was like Acheron in many ways. She had no where near the amount of power he had, but then she never cultivated them. So she had no idea what she was capable of. She was a healer. She healed the Dark Hunters of injuries they couldn't heal themselves. On more than one occasion she had saved the man from becoming a shade.
"Why doesn't she want Tristan and I to know about each other?"
"Jealousy. It made her happy to know that both of you are around and have no way of finding each other."
"I still don't get it?"
"Artemis granted him his revenge to spite me. To spite me because I made you. I broke a code that I wrote myself. That no Hunter should bring another over. That is why our bites are deadly." He picked up his cup, draining it before going on.
Teagan was silent, letting the man speak.
"She made him, knowing what you two were to each other. She is enjoying watching him fall further into his mind."
"That's why you sent him to me. To save him."
Acheron nodded. "You've done it before. You are the only one who can."
"So you were being honest when you said that he was drinking." Drinking blood from humans was as bad as going rogue. It was one of those rules that they all had to abide by. It carried a death sentence. "Artemis is sending a goon. Isn't she?"
"Yes. Being with you will offer him a certain amount of protection. Artie can't get to you."
Teagan sighed, sipping her cup and nearly spitting it out, realizing that it was cold. Leaning forward, she set it on the table in front of her. She rested her arms on her knees, looking at Ash. Her fingernails lightly clacking against each other. She was trying to process everything that he was telling her.
"So why now? And what do you want me to do?"
"I'm telling you now because I am tired of what Artemis has brought him to. Or will. Eventually he will go rogue." He had seen it. And it had haunted him for weeks. And it was because of this that he finally said 'Enough.' Teagan would definitely find out the minute he went to the dark side. And then it would be over, Artemis would send in her own hunter and Tristan would become a shade. For her to find out that way and not before, it would cause her own madness.
"How do I prevent that?"
"Simple." Acheron broke into a toothy grin, not bothering to hide his fangs. He leaned forward, picking up her coffee cup. He secretly wanted all his men to find their true mates. It wasn't often that something like this happened in their world.
"Well?" She watched as Ash touched the edge of her cooled coffee, the steam starting to rise from it again.
"Love him." He handed the cup back to her.
"I do." At least she thought she did. Then another thought started to creep in. "Shay." It was no more than a whisper. Shay who wanted so much from her. So much that she couldn't give him. She never could.
But he was such a good man. How would this affect him?
"Yes. Shay. What are your feelings for him?"
"I don't know." She ran her finger around the edge of the cup, the steam warming her finger. "I don't love him."
"Good."
"I need to talk to him. Don't I?" She took a sip. The hot liquid feeling good as it went down.
"Would help."
"So. How do I help him?" She blew out a big breath.
"Give him back his soul."
Teagan paled. She had heard of other Dark Hunters gaining their souls back. Not all of them succeeded. First, the human woman or man had to petition Artemis for that Hunter's soul. Then, if she chose, she gave them the amulet which contained that most precious part of them. Often, they succeed in giving the Hunter back his soul, then becoming human again. On several occasions, it failed. There were several men now wandering around as shades because their lover had failed Artemis' test.
"She'll never give me his soul." Her voice no more than a whisper.
"Artemis doesn't have his soul. You do."
Teagan nearly dropped her cup, her shaking hand placing it on the table to keep it safe. "Excuse me?"
"When you died, he willed his soul to you. You carry it. In you." Reaching forward he pointed to her chest. The spot where the dragon's wings were drawn over her heart.
'She will bleed for the great Hawk. And that bird will shed blood for her.' "That's why I can't sense him."
"Exactly. You two are connected in a way I cannot even begin to imagine."
Teagan placed her hand over her heart, the quickness of it surprising her. "How do I do it? How I do I give it back?"
"I don't know." He saw the look that she was giving him. "I'm being honest. I don't know. This isn't supposed to be happening. I'm doing something I shouldn't."
Teagan sat back in her chair. "Wonderful." She still had the feeling that there were things that he wasn't telling her. But, she had trusted him for so long, she may as well continue to do so. He usually only told her bits at a time. When it was most useful for her to know.
Acheron stood up, pulling a duffle from behind him. "I have to go. Here's Tristan's bag."
She stood also, taking the heavy bag. "Thanks." She opened the bag, intending to put her beans in there. Something silver caught her attention. "Acheron Parthenopaeus."
'Yes!' Ash turned around. "Yes, dear?"
"What's this?" She held up a silver torc. It's intricate design interlaced with what Teagan thought was her hair. It was heavy, the ends of it done with tiny, engraved dragon heads.
He took the necklace from her hand, hefting it as he did so. "I do believe that this was your wedding gift to Tristan." He handed it back to her. Looking at her over the rims to his sunglasses.
"But, we're not married." She whispered.
Ash came to her, placing his large hands on her shoulders. Bending down to her level. "You are married. You just don't remember. Unfortunately, there is much that you don't remember. Tristan will help you." He stood up, his arm coming around her shoulders. "Walk with me. There are more things that I need to tell you."
0o0o0o
Her house was deserted except for Tristan. Tired as she was, she kicked off her flops, leaving them on the kitchen floor. Someone would pick them up later.
Barefoot, she made her way up to her room, holding the torc in her hands. Her fingers feeling the hair that was entwined with the silver. Not surprised that it was in such good condition. If it was anything like Tristan's weapons, he would take extra care with it.
She had sat in her jeep, just staring at it, her finger running over the piece of hair. The way it was intertwined with what looked like ancient Celtic designs. It seemed to be ancient writing, this she knew. But she couldn't remember. The silver working of the heavy necklace so fine it looked as though it took years to make. And that the worker had such a skill.
She was married to Tristan. Believing all these years that he had died before they could do so. And she didn't remember it. Any of it.
Acheron had said that there was much she didn't remember and that Tristan would help her remember. He had admitted to jumbling her memories of her death, being as violent as it had been. And her remembering was coinciding with Tristan's increasing need for blood. Ash had told her that eventually she would remember. And that Tristan would help her.
And in that respect, while Acheron was mercifully addling her mind, Artemis was doing nearly the same with Tristan. Only making his memories more painful. Bringing his most horrid memories to the foreground while the good and pleasant ones were more in the shadows. She had even planted in his mind that she had cheated on him with his brother, Galen.
She hadn't. She knew in her heart that she hadn't. Acheron knew she hadn't. But Tristan needed to realize that on his own. Maybe that was why he had been so stand offish with her. Not wanting to get any closer to her than he already had.
Her mind spinning, she made her way to her room, pushing open the door.
There lay Tristan, sleeping in her bed. With only the sheet pulled up to just above his rear cheeks. His arm over his head, making his body seem longer. His dark lashes forming dark crescents on his cheeks. The sight of him like that against all that neutral white made her flush.
Teagan made her way over to the bed, climbing next to Tristan, the torc in her hand. With her free hand, she ran it over the expanse of his exposed back, over his shoulders, down his arm. Lightly, she traced his spine to the slight swell of his behind. Her hand becoming re-familiar with his body.
Slowly, Tristan turned over, the sheet falling lower over his hips. The feel of her hands awakening him as they moved to the front of his thigh. Seeing the torc in her hand, he sat up, not bothering to pull the sheet to cover himself. He reached out to her, pulling her closer to him. He put his lips so close to her ear that she could feel him breathing.
"I will never leave you."
Silently, she placed the necklace around his neck. Tears falling as Tristan kissed her, pulling her under him on the bed.
A/N: How was that for a reunion?
Cardeia - You mentioning that coffee made me fall off my chair. It is exactly the same coffee that I order whenever I go to the Barista that is near my house. As the thing is quite pricey, I only go about twice a week. And I even keep the coffee beans by my computer. They are even better than Swedish Fish. Though they keep me wired.