Naeil dimly heard the sounds of children laughing gleefully, and then became aware of the sensation of someone snuggled closely against him. A smile came to his face as took in a deep breath, savoring the fragrance of the oils that Elsa used in her hair. He moved his head towards her shoulder, kissing the soft silky skin with the barest touch of his lips. She groaned sensually, reaching out and pulling his hand to her chest, as he continued his soft kisses along her shoulder to the nape of her neck. Planting a firm kiss to her neck, he felt her let go of his hand and reach her fingers into his hair, groaning again and pulling him closer. He became aware of her heartbeat in his hand, and with absolute love and desire, he accepted the invitation and bit into her neck, as was his privilege as her husband. She gasped and tightened her grip in his hair...and pulled. He chuckled and quietly asked, "I'm sorry, was that too hard, my love?" as he opened his eyes slowly, which widened in shock and fear.
Elsa lay still beside him, the sheets soaked in blood, a her face frozen in a look of shock, her very throat ripped out. As Naeil bounced to his feet in horror, he felt a pulsing his hand and looked at it, to discover her still beating heart in his grip. The door burst open and Anna looked at him and screamed in terror. Suddenly Kai was there, pointing at him. "Kill the beast, he's slain the Queen!"
Naeil reached up defensively, shaking his head, "No...I could never..."
Suddenly he felt the ground shaking and turned, and saw the giant form of a silver haired bear, a gaping hole in it's chest looking down at him and roaring, before lunging at him. Pain flared along his sides, and the sound of Elsa's voice calling his name softly rang in his ears."
Naeil's eyes snapped open and he forced himself to sit up, and promptly fell back again as the pain from his wounds flared. Elsa's voice was strong and clear, full of concern, still calling his name. He looked at her fearfully, his breathing rapid.
She looked at him, grabbing a cloth to wipe the sweat from his brow. "Are you okay? What is it?"
He looked her over quickly, and tried to focus his swirling thoughts. Her neck remained unmarred as ever, she bore no bloody hole in her chest. She was alive, and uninjured, wait...no. Her right hand bore wrappings along the bottom half. He looked over and saw a cloth marked by a red stain. Anger rushed through him, "What did you do?"
Her face stayed full of concern, but now an element of irritation joined it. "I did what I knew needed to be done. You refused when I asked the first time, so the next time you had a moment of even half consciousness, I gave you my blood."
The Wolf Prince's face locked into a stony mask, and he looked away from her. "There's a reason I refused, Elsa."
She tilted her head, "Really, a reason other than your own stubborn pride?"
His anger flashed again and he looked at her, and saw the anger reflected back. "What can I tell her? I'm worried that I might not be able to stop? The fact that in giving me a taste she's opened up a longing I might not have control of. That I might try to turn her and just end up killing her? That I might succeed and she'll end up hating me for it?"
"I think you should let someone else care for me for a while. You're obviously too exhausted to use good judgment at this point," he finally said, turning his face away from her.
Elsa's eyes widened in shock and then narrowed in anger, the temperature in the room dropped dramatically and a micro-blizzard roared into life around them. The Snow Queen turned and stormed from the room, the blizzard following her and not abating until well after she'd slammed the door. As she walked down the hallway, everyone that saw her backed fearfully against the walls. Even the Wulfen gave her a wide-berth. As she walked onto the palace walls, she shook her head in anger. "Stupid, stubborn, arrogant man!" she muttered to herself. Alongside her anger, she felt the bitter pangs of rejection. She had offered something very precious, and the man she loved, her fiance, had refused it and then had been angry when she'd given it to him anyways. The fears she'd carried when he'd left swirled back from the recesses of her mind, and she stood there looking over the frozen fjord, watching lantern glows dancing from the town.
"They can be irritating at times, can't they," came a cool voice from behind her.
Elsa twisted and her eyes widened in surprise as she looked at the speaker. Walking slowly towards her, the graceful form of a woman wearing a black and teal dress, her red hair done up to resemble wolf ears, green eyes fixed firmly on the Snow Queen, her red lips curving in a small smile of sympathetic understanding. Elsa paused and inclined her head, "That's one word for it, Queen Magdalena."
The Night Queen shook her head, "Please my dear, I'm all for pomp and circumstance when it is called for, but that is not now. Magda is perfectly acceptable...unless you'd be more comfortable with Mother?"
Elsa's mouth opened briefly, but clamped shut again. "Your son is resting in my chambers, I'm sure one of the Wulfen would be more than happy to escort you to him."
Magdalena tilted her head, amusement playing across her face, "In time, my dear. However, right now, I believe it to be far more important to speak with you."
Elsa shifted slightly in surprise, "Perhaps a little later, I'm really not in mood to be sociable at the moment. I'm afraid I'd be horrible company."
The Night Queen's chuckled, "Well, then it's a good thing that this isn't really a social call. I must speak with you Elsa...now."
Elsa started, and then nodded and held out her arm, "This way, then?"
Elsa sat at the table quietly, nervously wringing her fingers in her lap as the Vampiress hummed softly, preparing some sort of tea. Finally the other woman approached the table and sat down placing a cup in front of the other Queen. "There you are, my dear. The perfect thing to help dispel worries."
Elsa took a cup and held it for moment before the other woman's expectant gaze compelled her to drink. Her eyebrow's lifted in surprise at the pleasant taste and she looked over at the Night Queen who was sipping from her own cup pleasantly. "It's good. What is it?"
The Night Queen waved her hand dismissively, "I won't bore you with a recipe. Basically it's a chamomile tea mixture, with some mild spices added for flavoring. I used to entertain with this when I lived in Venice.."
Elsa smiled in returned and took another sip. The Night Queen watched her, and then sighed, "Tell me, have you been intimate with my son?"
Elsa spat the tea out in shock and looked at the other woman, "WHAT?!"
The other smiled again and calmly drank from her cup, "I'm going to take that as a no."
Elsa struggled to work her jaw, "Well, for starters, it is a no, and why would you even ask me that?"
Magdalena shrugged, "I'm over 500 years old dearest, maybe I'm just looking forward to the grandchildren."
Elsa shook her head and began to stand up, "You said you needed to talk with me. Now I had assumed it was something very important. But if you're just going to toy with me..."
"Sit down, Elsa," the Night Queen said in a tone the brooked no argument.
The Snow Queen sat down, her blue eyes meeting those of the Night Queen's. Although the woman didn't look it, Elsa knew full well that Magdalena was more than capable of extreme physical acts of strength, speed, and violence, extreme for human, at least. It was a contradiction that had cost many men their very lives, both in the stories, and as Naeil had told her, in reality.
"I asked because it's important to know, Elsa. Naeil is not human, so your human definitions don't necessarily apply to him. Intimate means so much more than the base physical acts among us."
Elsa looked down at her mug in thought, and Magdalena continued, her tone becoming cheerful once more, "For example, are you aware that as far as the Wolf Kind are concerned, you've been 'married' for 3 months already?"
Elsa fought to not repeat her previous reaction of surprise, "We're..."
Magdalena sighed, "I see. So my son has not been as forth coming with you as I had hoped he would be."
Elsa set the cup down. "Okay, wait. Naeil explained to me about giving me his token. He said it was the equivalent of an engagement in Yoitsu society."
The Night Queen nodded, "Yes, that is completely true. But that's not why you are considered married, my dear. He also bonded himself to your snow. He bonded himself to something only you can create, Elsa. The instant he did that, regardless of whether he viewed it that way or not, he became your husband in the eyes of the pack." The red-haired woman smiled, "Which is why the Wulfen find your behavior so puzzling...or perhaps you haven't noticed it?"
She gripped the mug, "Married? We're already...married."
Magdalena smiled, "Of course, as a good Catholic, I would still strongly encourage you have a proper human ceremony, to avoid the scandal, of course.
Elsa looked up at her, and couldn't help but let out a chuckle, but then her eyes darkened as he looked down at her bandaged hand, "Then...why did he refuse..."
Magdalena's face grew serious. "That is another matter entirely. What has he told you?"
Elsa shook her head, "Virtually nothing. I mean, he's been open about the fact that you are a..." she trailed off.
"You can say the word. It's what I am, not a curse."
Elsa smiled reluctantly, "I've seen him when that part of him comes out, usually when he's angry. His eyes turning red, his face twisting into something not human, but it's a part of him. I've accepted that, just as I've accepted the fact that he can change into a giant wolf and that he has wolf ears and a tail even when he's in human form."
Magdalena nodded, "So, you two have never talked about it, really?" She sighed in disappointment, "Then you have made greater progress on the issue than he has. I explained much to him when he turned sixteen. His response was to run away from the palace that night. Of course, in retrospect, I guess for you two, that was an important event."
Elsa blinked in surprise, and nodded, "Yes...although he never told me why he ran away in the first place."
The Night Queen chuckled, "I, for one, thought the whole affair evidence of him still being rather immature. After all, it's rather silly, running away from home because you are afraid of something within yourself."
Elsa looked back down at her empty mug, and grimaced, "I can understand the feeling though," After all, I only did it twice.
Madga nodded, "Yes, which is probably why you two connected the night you met. But back to the primary matter...Naeil is a dhampire, a half-blood. I must consume a certain amount of human blood to remain healthy. Naeil doesn't require any. I am sensitive to sunlight, although no where near what those ridiculous fantasies about my kind would suggest, but Naeil suffers no such limitation. Pure water, not Holy water, does inflict injury on my kind, but again, Naeil is immune."
Elsa nodded, "What about crucifixes?"
Magdalena actually burst into hysterical laughter, and pulled out the rosary she carried, "Oh dear me, I'm terrified to death of them." Saying a brief prayer and kissing the cross, she replaced it back into the folds of her dress, "I honestly don't know where that silly myth started, although the garlic one is because of one of my great uncles. He was allergic and now, apparently, we all are."
Elsa smiled and nodded, very much aware of the power of fear and superstition as the Night Queen continued. "In any event, there are certain legacies I have passed on to my son. He is capable of drawing upon my strength and speed, even in his Wolf form. Consuming blood can heal serious injuries, as you are clearly aware. He can also turn a human into a Vampire, albeit a much more limited individual than one of us born that way."
Elsa looked down once more to her bandaged hand, Was that why he didn't want to consume my blood, was he worried about turning me? On the other hand, immortality! To be at his side for centuries, seeing not only our children and grandchildren, but theirs as well! Why would he want to deny us that joy?"
"Obviously there is more to the process than simple drinking of blood, far more. There are great risks involved for the human, and immortality has it's price. For example, you would be incapable of bearing any children, and unlike him, you would need to consume some blood to survive."
Elsa sighed, "I see,"
"Did you offer your blood to him freely?"
Elsa closed her eyes, her anger with Naeil returning to the fore of her emotions, "Of course I'm offering freely. If it will help him, I would..."
Magdalena leaned in, "That's not exactly what I meant. What if he simply wanted it? Not for healing purposes, not for survival. Would you still give yourself to him?"
Elsa paused, "Is this one of those non-human intimacies you spoke of earlier?"
The Night Queen nodded, "Amongst my kind, it's a powerful one. Even with someone not a Vampire, it creates a deep connection, both physical and emotional. I'm not one to feed and tell, but in my experience, it is simply one of the most incredible sensations I have ever experienced, and Naeil's father has never complained once. So I ask you again, would you give yourself to him, if he desired it?"
Elsa thought a moment, and took a deep breath, "I don't believe there is anything I'm not willing to do for him," she whispered.
Magda smiled, "Well then, I think it is time we check in on your husband."
Elsa frowned but rose with the other woman, "I'm still very upset with him."
Magdalena laughed, "I'd be disappointed otherwise, my dear."
