CHAPTER 7

A/N – Hello everyone! I want to apologize for the delay in updates, I am currently on vacation (or something… :))) Also, a big hug to you guys for all your support and feedback, it means so much to me! That being said, on to the next chapter!

The small wooden door creaked ominously, breaking the silence, yet the blonde meister did not stir from her troubled sleep until ungentle hands thoroughly shook her awake. Two Sisters pulled her out of bed unceremoniously, gripping her upper arms in a bruising manner. Still half asleep and utterly confused, Maka tried to struggle free, but it was useless – they had her in an iron hold.

She was dragged out of her room and across the narrow, dark hallway of the habitation area, to another room she'd never been in before. It was somewhat smaller than the dining hall and without any furniture, just plain grey stone all around. It looked like it was meant for some kind of ceremony. Two small torches burned brightly on the sides, in contrast with the all too familiar darkness which normally dwelled around the place the Brothers and Sisters called home. The Older One stood in the middle of the room with a solemn look upon his hard features and Maka, almost blinded by the sudden light, was literally thrown at his feet onto the cold stone floor. But the painful impact was dulled by the terror gripping her at the sight of his unreadable expression as she looked up at him, at first not knowing what to make of it.

He knows! He must have found out I tried to take my own life! And now I was brought here for punishment! the blonde realized. Desperate, she clutched at the hem of his robes, too frightened to even cry. "Please! I haven't done anything! Please, have mercy on me!" she murmured choking, yet her pleading words resounded with unexpected intensity in the vast empty space.

The Older One looked down at her with disdainful disapproval. After all this time, she still hadn't learnt that she wasn't supposed to speak unasked? "Maka Albarn, will you be quiet or will I have to sew your mouth shut?" The blonde's whimpers died out, muffled by her own hands. By Death, what will they do to me?

"Get her ready, the ceremony is at midnight," he then ordered quietly and the Sisters hauled Maka up onto her feet once more. Her body fell prey to a weird numbness as the blonde could think of nothing past her fear.

They pulled her away to a smaller, adjacent room, which in contrast was filled with a multitude of cabinets, cupboards and various items the meister could barely distinguish in the semi-obscurity. The Sisters made swift work of stripping her of the ragged grey dress she'd worn since her arrival at the Temple and made her sit down into a large copper tub filled with lukewarm water. They scrubbed her whole body thoroughly with a hard sort of bar which could barely pass as soap, then dried her from head to toe in a rough towel.

Once the bath was finished, the two women pulled off a dark, dusty cloth, revealing a large mirror in which the blonde could see herself fully. Not that Maka wanted to – she didn't need to look in a mirror to know that she must have looked nothing short of awful. The Sisters clad her into a long, black dress, which was in somewhat of a better shape than her old one, with more of a cleavage and an interminable row of buttons on the front. The fabric was softer but also thinner and Maka was cold in it. What the hell was up with this makeover anyway? Unless… The Sisters brushed her hair next and swept it tightly into two braids which they twisted together in what felt like a complicated bun. After that, one of them held her chin up and smudged a generous amount of charcoal on the outline of her eyes. When they put the black veil over her head and pulled it down over her face, the blonde felt like she was about to suffocate.

"It is time to go," the Older One's voice interrupted the last minute preparations.

Maka no longer had any doubts what this was about as they walked down another corridor she'd never been in before. Damn Kid and the old beggar! Now the Older One will do the one thing he knows I dread, even if I haven't come of age yet… He will force me to marry, this very night! Tears welled up in her tired eyes and slid down her cheek under the veil, but she did not bother wiping them off. The Older One was now holding her arm as she was practically blind and nearly stumbled from sheer exhaustion, while the two Sisters came behind with quiet steps.

"You would do well to obey your husband in everything, because he will not be as tolerant as I have been with you until now," he instructed. "And above all you would do well to keep your big mouth shut. Do you understand?"

"Yes…" the girl barely mouthed, but the Older One seemed to hear it nevertheless.

"You should also know beforehand that your marriage, although you could consider it fortunate eventually, will bring you no privilege whatsoever. You will still work and have your duties, just like until now," he went on. Fortunate? What a bitter joke! By Death, how could I find this horror 'fortunate'? "The only thing that will change is that from now on you will share your husband's room and, should he be kind enough to allow it, his table as well"

The dark corridor seemed to stretch far past the habitations area and to lead further deep into the bowels of the mountain. The atmosphere got more humid but thankfully less chilly as the small group advanced in silence. They did not walk for much longer – soon they found themselves in front of a large, intricately decorated iron door, flanked by torches flickering with some bizarre, pale blue flames. The Older One pushed it open, revealing a large, dimly lit hall with high stone columns. The stale air smelled heavily of incense and smoke. Rows of strangely familiar statues were aligned along the walls and Maka stared at them from under her veil, almost forgetting her predicament. Judging by their stone carved garments, they seemed to be Brothers and Sisters, frozen in humble stances, standing with their covered heads bowed and their hands pressed against their chests.

It's a tomb! This place is a tomb! the meister knew instinctively, a cold shudder running down her spine. The Older One walked her to what seemed to be the middle of the hall, while the Sisters remained by the door. "Wait here," he said, "your husband to be will arrive shortly"

The blonde had no choice but to freeze on her spot and wait for the imminent doom. Why prolong her torture like this? Couldn't they just get it over with already? But then again, she told herself, if her future husband was late or something, maybe he wasn't that eager… Maybe he didn't want to be married either? That would have been a thing! But the wait did not last long. The Older One came to her side once more, a rough, thick piece of rope in his hands this time. Maka instantly panicked at the sight of it – what was he going to do with that?

"You are late, young one," a voice resounded from somewhere in front of her, although it could hardly be called a voice, it was more like a sinister shriek with a strange sort of multiplying echo. Even without her soul perception the meister could tell there was something infinitely foul and wicked lurking in those deep shadows. Are these 'The Three'? She randomly wondered, but she did not want to know the answer. Right now she just wanted to run without looking back, to get as far away as possible from that unseen horror.

"You were nervous maybe? We can't think you have changed your mind, not after the price you have already paid for this pretty little virgin…"

Only then Maka realised that a figure had materialized next to her, but to her surprise it wasn't a Brother, hooded and covered in rags. Instead, she saw the black tasseled cloak and the white bone mask of a Death God. She couldn't look at him too much though, before the Older One elbowed her brutally and she had to let her gaze drop to the floor again. They are marrying me to a Death God?! And I thought the old beggar was crazy…

"I have not changed my mind."

Only then the truth struck her, as the familiar voice said those words – it was Kid. A thing further confirmed by the fact that he muttered something under his breath in addition, out of which the other meister could clearly make out the words 'bullshit' and 'can't believe this'.

But why…? Because I have asked him to! By Death, I have actually begged Kid to marry me! This was it, Maka wanted to die right then and there. This was even worse than marrying a Brother, she could not believe she had asked such a thing of him in that accursed moment of weakness, that she had forced him into this! How the hell am I supposed to look him in the eye again? And all this only because I was a coward! A loud sob escaped her lips when the Older One bound their hands together with the thick rope and the young shinigami's cold fingers gave her a light, reassuring squeeze.

The sinister voice which seemed to belong to one and to several in the same time spoke some more, but the blonde was unable to pay any more attention to what was going on. It was beyond embarrassing. And she'd also heard them mention that he'd paid a price for her hand too! What could that have been, she wondered with dread.

"…this woman shall wear your ring so that everyone shall know that she is your possession and yours alone." The Older One hurried to remove the rough rope which had almost began to bite into the skin of her wrist and Kid turned to her, slowly removing both of his rings and slipping them onto her fingers. Obviously… Maka couldn't help staring down at the two skull shaped jewels now adorning her hands, again rather baffled at how well they fit her. And now I am his wife, his possession… his... what? There was absolutely no way she could wrap her mind around this.

"You may kiss the bride now"

The blonde winced in surprise as Kid moved to lift the veil off her face and she forced herself to look up at him, fearful that he was probably pretty much mad at her. He did frown slightly, but she guessed it must have been because she looked nothing short of terrible – she had been crying again and the charcoal the Sister had thickly applied around her eyes must have been now smudged down her cheeks. His hand rose up to her face, no doubt intending to wipe her dirty cheeks, but he reconsidered and his long, cool fingers only tilted her chin upwards before the shinigami leaned down to press his lips against hers.

Her eyelids fell shut and Maka's breath caught in her throat for the brief moment Kid's mouth was on hers, as she was tried by an emotion she'd never experienced before. A slight shiver ran down her spine, but it wasn't unpleasant. Yet it had been barely more than a peck and the reaper had done it precisely, without any hesitation or insecurity while she had simply stood there, trembling. He's done this before! Of course, Kid was only her friend, but the thought hurt her unexpectedly. Oh, by Death, this is a convenience marriage at best, I would do well to get a damned grip on myself, I can't act like this! Maka inwardly scolded herself, cursing her emotional nature and her lack of experience.

Before she knew it, the midnight ceremony was over and the Older One led them out of the hall on a different exit. He stopped on the threshold, gripping her arm once more. "From this point on, I can walk with you no further, Maka Albarn. Remember to behave if you don't want to feel your new master's wrath," he said warningly, before turning her back on her to leave.

The blonde meister followed Kid's black shrouded figure into another corridor, where there was pitch black. She would have felt more comfortable to hold his hand, but the Sisters – who, for some unknown reason were allowed to follow as well – motioned for her to walk behind him at a respectful distance. Once more she was forced to resort to groping blindly along the wall, while the two women walked closely behind her. Fortunately, it wasn't a very long way - she eventually heard a key spun in the lock and a door was opened, revealing a relatively small but pleasant looking room illuminated by candles.

Kid walked in, motioning Maka to follow and she did so shyly, throwing a wary glance around. The room was even smaller than she'd first thought, in fact it was no larger than her own, but it had an actual bed, covered with a soft-looking woolen blanket, and a miniscule table with a simple copper pitcher for water. Several small candles burned in a long and narrow niche carved along the back wall, where the gray stone was stained with smoke and old melted wax. Surprisingly though, the air was fresh and there was a bit of a draft, making the tiny flames dance and cast eerie shadows onto the empty walls.

The meister had stopped at the foot of the bed, a bit confused and not knowing what to do with herself as the two Sisters pulled the veil off her head and removed the pins holding her hair up, undoing the braids so that the honey colored strands now waved loosely down her shoulders. She looked up at Kid, who stood in a corner, still wrapped in his cloak and with his arms folded. She couldn't help noticing that all of his previous composure had gone down the drain and he looked terribly uncomfortable, observing the proceedings with a gradually growing scowl. When the Sisters began to undo the buttons of Maka's dress, he finally peeled himself off the wall and waved his hand dismissively.

"Enough! Get out, I'm impatient!" he said harshly and the Sisters retreated, stepping out of the room with a deep bow.

"Phew! By Death, these women are such a turnoff!" he grumbled more to himself, padding over and slamming the door shut in their wake. The young shinigami took a deep breath, his gaze carefully avoiding the blonde, who still stood unmoved and completely mortified, clutching the front of her dress.

"Right… this isn't awkward at all," he said conclusively.

To be continued