Disclaimer: I do not own Magic: The Gathering, only my OCs.

CHAPTER 8-The Great Divide

Arrathir awoke with a pounding headache. It reminded him of the time he'd gotten drunk before they left for Shiv. His head felt as if it was slowly being compressed in a vise. Groaning, he rolled over, his eyes still closed. He just wanted to fall back asleep and forget the pain, but a splash of cold water hit his face, banishing the last traces of slumber.

Arrathir's eyes opened in shock. Sputtering, he brushed the wet locks of hair out of his face and looked around. He was lying next to a stream at the base of a waterfall. Charles was kneeling with his back to him, holding his cupped hands in the stream to collect water, getting ready for another wake-up call. As Arrathir was about to protest, Charles, who had not noticed he was awake turned and flung the water at his face. Arrathir yelped at the renewed contact with the cold water.

"What was that for?" he yelled accusingly.

"Extenuating circumstances," said Charles with a shrug "Arrathir, Eva left."

"What? Where?" asked the black Keeper, jumping to his feet and scanning the area.

"It's my fault, really," said Charles "After you passed out, we got attacked by a group of warriors. I managed to teleport us out of there, but I forgot Eva's whelp. When she found out, she insisted on going back to get it. I tried to talk her out of it, mate, I did," added Charles, seeing the confused look on Arrathir's face being replaced with anger.

"YOU WHAT?" he yelled "For fuck's sake! How could you be so stupid?"

"I'm sorry, but she was adamant about getting the whelp back!" said Charles.

"You could have stopped her!" yelled Arrathir "You sent her back to the wolves! What the fuck is wrong with you? Wait," he added, his voice suddenly colder and accusing "That was your plan: since you can't have her, you made sure nobody would!"

Charles was shocked by the accusation. Arrathir had never lashed out at him like this and it was a bit of a betrayal to have your mate turn on you like that. He stared at Arrathir, the hurt evident in his eyes, but there was also contempt. He gave Arrathir one last disparaging look before turning away.

"Hey! I'm talkin' to you!" yelled Arrathir, grabbing Charles' arm.

"Fuck off, Arrathir," said Charles, tearing himself from the black Keeper's grasp "You don't deserve Eva. You have no faith in her. Quit acting like her knight in shining armor. She's not your damsel in distress." With that, Charles walked away, leaving a seething Arrathir behind.

"Oh yeah?" he yelled after Charles "Well, fuck you!" He stormed off into the forest, quickly picking up Eva's fresh scent. Putting on a burst of speed, he sped after Eva, praying he was not too late.

How stupid can she be? Of all the idiotic, inane ideas she could have had, didn't it just have to be the one that could get her killed? Doesn't she care about what happens to her? She still doesn't seem to understand the idea of 'there's safety in numbers.' When I find her, she's getting a talk about not wandering off from the group alone! Especially here!

And what are the bets she will beat the ever-living shit out of you?

Chikuro! You're back!

I was always here, naki, but I must say, you handled yourself fairly well. Pity Charles had to save your ass. Doesn't make you look too good in Eva's eyes, does it?

He thinks he's so cool with his teleport spells, but really that's about all he can do. Never seen him summon a real creature.

Well, what would you expect? Blue isn't exactly an aggressive color. Chiburuu preferred to be sneaky and underhanded. Not surprising that his host inherited these characteristics.

You're saying he'd try to steal Eva from me?

If the chance arose, you bet he would.

I can't believe he'd do that. He's already admitted he wouldn't come between Eva and me.

Face the facts, Arrathir: You've known him for what, a week at most? I knew Chiburuu for decades and let me tell you, he's a crafty one. Never can quite trust him. Anyways, back on the subject of Eva, what'll you do when she attacks you again?

Run until she gives up. That would be my best option.

As opposed to, oh I don't know, actually standing up to her?

If she's trying to punch my lights out, it would be kind of hard to make her listen. You know how she is.

For crying out loud, Arrathir! Grow some fucking balls! You're going to let her beat on you for the rest of your relationship?

You don't expect me to hit her back, do you?

No, but at least assert yourself! You know what you are right now? A wimp! You may not want to hurt Eva, but seeing as she chose you as her mate, you need to show her who is the alpha.

I don't really care who's the dominant one in our relationship.

For fuck's sake! OK, let me put it in simple terms: you're Eva's bitch. The girl is using you as her emotional punching bag. Every time she gets pissed, she unloads her frustration on you. Now, is that the role you want to play in your relationship?

No.

Then show her you're not afraid of her! Sometimes, a female needs her mate to lay down the rules. Trust me, if you keep submitting to her, she's going to lose interest in you. Eva needs passion in this relationship, and that isn't going to happen if you can't even respect yourself!

And how do you propose I do that without getting my teeth knocked out?

First, you need to dominate her. Put her in a hold or something. Once you've got her under your control, explain exactly how you feel about her abuse and tell her you're not going to put up with it anymore. Repeat after me, "I am not Eva's punching bag."

I am not Eva's punching bag.

Good, now just remember: if she goes for the groin, roll with the blow and exaggerate the pain. That'll get you some sympathy points and she might reconsider beating you up.

What? You just said I should stand up to her! Now you're telling me to let her beat me up?

Oh no, stand up to her, but there's a 50/50 chance she'll still kick your ass. If she does, you'll live, I hope.

Your reassurance is a great source of comfort.

Arrathir suddenly got a good whiff of Eva's scent. He knew she was very close now. Crashing through the underbrush, he came face-to-face with Eva, who was frantically looking about the forest.

"What are you doing here?" both Keepers exclaimed at the same time.

"I came to bring you back!" said Arrathir, relieved to see Eva was all right "What were you thinking, wandering off on your own! We almost got killed!"

"I have to find Hosaki!" said Eva "Charles accidentally left her behind when he teleported us."

"It's just a stupid whelp!" said Arrathir "It's not worth risking your life for it!"

"Hosaki is not just some whelp!" said Eva, furiously "She needs me! How is she supposed to survive all alone without a mother?"

"Oh, so now you're her mother?" asked Arrathir, mockingly "Thought you said you'd just keep it until it was strong enough to survive on its own!"

"Oh that is it!" yelled Eva "Now you're just begging for a beating!"

As she charged at Arrathir, the black Keeper suddenly had second thoughts about his plan. Sure, it was easy to hypothesize and plan in his head, but when faced down with a raging Eva, his bravado left him rather quickly and he looked about nervously for an escape.

No, I can't! I'm not her punching bag!

Eva leapt in the air for a flying roundhouse kick to Arrathir's right temple, but the back Keeper ducked the blow, Eva's foot sailing harmlessly over his head. As she landed, she spun around for a punch, but Arrathir managed to grab her wrist, stopping the fist inches from his nose. Furious, Eva swung out with the other fist, but Arrathir grabbed that wrist as well. He pulled the furious kitsune closer to him until their noses nearly touched. Eva glared daggers at him while trying to get loose.

"I've had enough," said Arrathir "Of your whole constant PMSing, beating me up for no reason, explosive attitude. You were using me, Eva; using me as your personal scapegoat, but now it is over. If you keep up the violent attitude, then I'm afraid we can't be together, because getting beaten up for no reason is not what I'm looking for in a relationship."

Eva stared at Arrathir with newfound respect. She was stunned: had Arrathir, the pushover (at least when it came to her) she'd always known finally taken a stand and decided to stand up for himself?

"What are you saying?" she huffed "You'd break up with me?"

"Yes," said Arrathir sadly "It's not the path I'd prefer, but I can't spend the rest of my life with someone who's got so little respect for me."

"I respect you!" yelled Eva "Why else would I ask you to be my mate?"

"That's not true," said Arrathir "Using me as your punching bag whenever the slightest thing goes wrong does not show respect. It shows me that you're a spoilt brat who throws a temper tantrum when things don't go her way. The decision is yours, Eva: control your temper, or we can't be together."

(I can't believe this!)

(It seems the boy Arrathir once was it dead, but the man has finally emerged, and he's laying down the law. Arrathir must have matured quite a bit if he's willing to sacrifice his relationship with you to ensure a successful relationship)

"If that's the way you're going to be," snarled Eva "Then we're through!" Pulling back as far as she could, she spat furiously into Arrathir's face. The Black Keeper was stunned. Eva had struck him before, but never in such a disdainful way.

Her words, as well as her actions, stuck a nerve in Arrathir. For the first time since they'd met, Eva had turned away from him. In his shock, he released her, Eva taking this opportunity to tear away from him and running off into the forest. As he watched her run away, he realized he'd just lost the love of his life. For a split second, he considered tearing after Eva and begging her to take him back.

No, I'm not going to give her the satisfaction!

Falling to the ground, Arrathir stared sadly in the direction that Eva had run off. Just like that, she was gone, but it was different from the time she'd died. Her last words to him flashed in his mind.

She ended it. After all that talk about wanting to develop our relationship, she just gave up. How can she do this to me?

Arrathir buried his face in his hands, unable to hold back the flow of tears that streamed down his face as he vented the pain of his breaking heart in a long howl. He wept bitterly, memories of Eva flooding his mind, only accentuating the pain as he realized the good times were over forever.

Sunlight was filtering through the curtains, leaving a strip of light on the bed. Arrathir felt very rested. He'd forgotten how much a good night's sleep could do. Suddenly, he realized something warm was on him and there was an arm around him. He looked over to see Eva next to him, her head lying on his chest. Blushing furiously, he tried to move away from her, but she was partially pinning him down with her body.

…

Arrathir turned his head to find Eva's face right next to his. Even in the darkness, he could see her blush. His throat was suddenly very dry and his heart started beating a tempo that would have put Phil Rudd to shame. He could feel Eva's warm breath on his skin. Their lips brushed timidly and Arrathir gulped, closing his eyes and awaiting the kiss.

…

"I can't stay away from you forever," said Eva "The only way I can overcome my fear is to confront it."

"I don't want to hurt you, Eva," said Arrathir "If you feel uncomfortable being near me, don't do it."

"Idiot," said Eva, getting on Arrathir's back "As if being near you could make me uncomfortable. It's the demon I hate, not you."

…

Eva drew closer, seeing the uproar of emotion from Arrathir she could only but join in. In a geyser exuberant expression the two lay in harmony, quashing any atmosphere that where they lay was not long before a battlefield. Arrathir would have succumb to unconsciousness had not it not been for Eva's whispered reply.

"I love you too..."

The Keeper's face lit up and he somehow found the energy to pull himself up, wrapping an arm around Eva and pulling her in for a kiss.

…

"A-Are you proposing?" stammered Arrathir, completely astonished.

"Yes," said Eva with a smile. She captured Arrathir's lips with her own, lightly nibbling his bottom lip. "What do you think?" she asked, breaking the kiss "Will you be my mate, Arrathir Quinn?"

…

"Eva, I love you," said Arrathir "And someday, I want us to be mates. I have no doubt I've found my soul mate in you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

"When you're ready," said Eva, tears of happiness brimming in her eyes "I'll be waiting for you, Arrathir."

As Arrathir continued expressing his grief, a fiery rage began burning in his chest, soon consuming his entire body. Wiping his eyes, he stood up, his eyes flashing dangerously.

Charles…this is entirely your fault. I can't forgive this…

To be continued…

Author's Note: GASP! Could it be? An update? Yep! Finally having gotten over my writer's block, I'm able to continue with the story. Apologies to all who've waited so long, but I just haven't been able to find my muse lately.

In other news, I've gotten my hands on a Nintendo DS Lite, and I must say, I am addicted. Not having owned a handheld system since the GBC, I was unsure of what to expect with the DS. That said my fears were quickly quailed. I really love my DS. Currently addicted to Mario Kart DS and planning on getting Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass when it comes out.