Oh boy, this one was a bit of a doozy... A lot gets covered in this chapter. Especially about Dante, and since I know everyone's been wanting answers, this chapter will hopefully answer them. Writing the memory in this chapter was heartbreaking for me, not just because it's a heartbreaking scene in the anime, but having my characters part of it, and knowing what happened to them because of it pains me. But, like in every tragedy, there is hope.
Hope you guys enjoy!
Thank you guys for your feedback! I'm really glad you're liking it! And honestly, I do love hearing from you guys, I know I don't respond to them but I truly do appreciate them!
See you next update!
Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Seven Deadly Sins, not that I wouldn't love to have the rights to have Ban... I own Hecate, her ability and any other characters not part of the anime.
Rated M for suggestive themes, strong language and potential explicit scenes later on.
"Captain…" Diane spoke slowly as everyone looked around the area.
"Yeah…" Their captain replied in awe.
As far as they could see, there was nothing but green crystals sprouting from the ground around them with a jade green sky setting the scene. The place was a lot different than Hecate had ever imagined it to be. Over the years, since she first heard about the place with Dante, the twins had come up with different theories and ideas on how it would look. One resembled a massive graveyard filled with shadows and spirits. Another had it resembling a dark void where a person would be pulled through… but neither of them came close to imagining it looking like this. They had both been wrong, all their theories disproven as she stared at area around her.
Hecate wanted to laugh. It was the only thing she felt that she could do in this situation. She was feeling overwhelmed with emotion that was surging through her at that moment. Even the warmth from Ban at her side did little to calm her down. The guilt she had been feeling all these years weighed on her, even more now that she was in the Necropolis. There was so much she wanted to say if she had the chance to see Elaine, so much that she wanted to tell her sister… and if Dante was here, to tell him as well.
"Looks like no one wins this time, Dante…" Hecate murmured under her breath, her hand reaching up and clutched the black pearl around her neck.
The others around her were talking, but their words seemed to blend together as the halfling got her bearings. It was a strange place for sure, the air around them was filled with the undeniable scent of earth, but something else, something between life and death. It was a strange concoction that she had a hard time describing, even to herself. As she looked around some more, she stepped away from the others, only to stumble a bit when she felt a force lightly push her forward. Before she could turn around and see who pushed her, she felt the fine hairs on her arms rise and the urge to move.
It was almost like her body was on autopilot as she moved forth, spotting a familiar figure in white up ahead, moving away from her. The others called out to her when she took off, but she paid them no mind. Hecate was focused, she needed to do this.
She was vaguely aware of another set of footfalls following behind her, trying to catch up with the halfling while cursing under their breath, but she paid no mind to it as she pushed off from the ground, surging forth.
"What were they thinking, running off like that?!" Hawk complained as the four of them watched Ban, Hecate, and King take off.
"I don't know… but I guess we gotta run after them now…" Meliodas sighed, running a hand through his hair as the trio disappeared without a word.
"Ban and Cat have been acting oddly since we got here… haven't they?" Elizabeth asked, worried about the two.
"Maybe… but they've always been a strange…" Meliodas shrugged a little and their group began following the trio. "Let's just hope we can find them in this place." He mused, after all, they didn't know how big the place was.
Ban was following as close to his Kitten as he could, but she had a head start on him, so she was farther ahead than him. He grumbled under his breath about the woman, wondering what was going through her mind at that moment. He hadn't even realized she had left his side until he saw the figure out Elaine and without thinking took off after her. That was when he noticed his Kitten already moving. He watched as the woman pause before a brief moment before taking off again and disappeared right in front of his eyes, causing him to stop and look for the two women. But there was nothing.
"What the hell…" he complained and rubbed his neck.
"Did you really think you could get away from me?" the voice of that child, the Fake-King spoke, much to his annoyance as the kid appeared before him.
"Go away, Fake-King, unless you know which way my Kitten went." He complained, making a shooing motion with his hand. He didn't have time for this.
T
Hecate didn't know what happened after she took off again, but she was no longer in the maze of crystals. Now, she was standing in an open section of bare land with tall crystal formations surrounding her in some kind of enclosure. In the center of it all was a single standing crystal, reminding her of a tomb almost. It was the only thing, other than her in the area and she felt compelled to walk towards it. As she did, the weight on her body started to lift, as if it were connected to that central crystal.
The moment she stood in front of it and stared inside her breath caught in her throat and tears welled up in her eyes. Her body trembled as she placed her hands upon the cool crystal structure, curling her fingers together.
"Dante…" the name slipped from her lips with a sob.
Resting inside the crystal tomb with their arms crossed over their chest, and a peaceful expression of slumber on their face was her twin brother. His loose purple hair fanned out around him, his skin still pale, but healthy looking. It was not his body, she knew this. Dante's body was hidden safely so no harm could befall him, and so no one could ever find him. No, what she was looking was his soul, trapped between life and death… never able to move from one place to the next. That was the price of Stasis.
"No matter how much I have tried… I haven't been able to wake him…" a soft voice spoke next to the halfling as a smaller hand appeared next to hers. "No matter how hard I try… he remains like this, locked away…"
"That's the curse of Stasis…" Hecate murmured quietly as she turned to look at her sister, Elaine.
The faerie was hovering beside her, her golden eyes filled with longing, never straying from her beloved who was within arm's reach, but still so far away from her. After all this time, Hecate was finding it hard to speak, to find the words she had rehearsed in her mind so often.
"What happened, Cat?" Elaine asked softly, feeling concerned for the halfling, not knowing what happened after she passed.
Hecate watched as Elaine turned to her, eyes filled with worry as she took the woman's hands in her own, taking notice of the black pearl around the woman's neck. She knew what it held, what it meant, the twins had never kept secrets from her after all, and vice versa.
"It was horrible, Ela…" Hecate murmured, feeling the first of many tears roll down her face as she thought back to that day.
It came as a surprise to everyone as the seventh day rolled around since Ban started staying with them. Earlier that morning, Dante dragged Ban off with him to collect some food for everyone, much to the human's whining and complaining. This left the girls on their own for a bit, not that they minded much. Their days were often filled with noise from the two men as they got into loud debates or arguments over something until the girls separated them with laughter. That morning through, Elaine was reading a book near the Fountain while Hecate spread out in the sun, arms folded behind her head as she dozed a little.
It was always so peaceful there, a place that she freely called home. The warmth of the sun was comforting as the halfling soaked it up and there was a light breeze in the air to keep them cool. But as relaxed as the woman was, her mind was abuzz, thinking over the past week with the bandit. By now, it felt as if she had always known the human, something that rarely happened. But she was struggling with acceptance of her heart and the doubt in her mind, the two at war with each other for so long.
"Hey, Cat…" Elaine spoke up softly, looking up from the book to the woman nearby.
"Hmm?" Hecate responded lightly with a hum as she opened one of her eyes to look at the faerie. "What's up, Ela?" she asked, sitting up a bit to focus on her sister.
"Do you ever wish that Ban came here to steal you away, instead of the Fountain?" the question was merely out of curiosity as the faerie thought about the way the two acted around each other.
It was similar to her and Dante, except that the two seemed to spend more time talking and teasing each other than anything. Plus, they were always going for walks and talking about traveling somewhere. Elaine knew the two felt something for each other, but it didn't seem like they were ever going to bring it up. It was something she and Dante had been trying to get the two to admit for a couple days now.
"W-what do you mean that?" Hecate squealed, her voice rising in pitch as she stared at her sister with wide eyes, feeling heat quickly rise to her face.
The question was not something she had ever thought her sister would ever ask her. Especially not so bluntly at that. Hecate knew she wasn't the type to merely speak up about her emotions. And when it came to the bandit, she tended to bury those emotions down, or at least she tried to.
"I mean, I know if Dante could, he'd take me away." Elaine giggled, flushing a bit as she thought about her beloved. "I wondered if you thought the same with Ban." She teased the woman, who shyly looked away, telling the faerie everything she needed to know. "You do know it's okay, right?" she probed a bit.
Hecate could only sigh as she ran a hand through her hair, not making eye contact with the faerie. This was hard for her… her mind and heart were at war about the man, each taking a firm stance on what she should feel.
"But… I'm… so much older than him…" the halfling stressed, knowing it was a losing battle as Elaine began laughing.
"So?" she giggled, amused by the woman. "I'm at least three times older than you and Dante." She reminded her with a tease. "Come on, tell me what's going on." She probed, eager to know what was going on in her sister's mind.
That was when Hecate seemed to deflate as she fell back again, staring up at the sky through the leaves of the tree. This caused Elaine's amusement to falter as she realized that Hecate was having a serious problem. She floated over to the halfling and knelt next to her, waiting for her to speak.
"I think Ban… might light you…" Hecate admitted with a sigh, closing her eyes now in defeat. "As much as I care for him… I guess I'm jealous of that… I'm a horrible person…"
Elaine didn't know what to say as she reached out and gently stroked Hecate's hair. Despite knowing that wasn't the case she could understand how her sister might see it that way. Lately, Ban had been coming to her, asking her for advice on Hecate since the woman was harder for him to read sometimes. She knew the truth about it though, he saw her like a little sister, reminding him of the one he lost.
"That's not true, Cat…" Elaine murmured softly to her best friend. "You don't see it though, do you?"
Hecate let out a quiet hum, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with her, keeping quiet for a moment before speaking. "Whether it's meant to be or not… I'll still be there for him... as a friend…"
Hearing those words struck Elaine a bit and felt her heart ache for the woman. There was so much she realize and see. No matter how observant she was, Hecate was often blind to what she needed to make herself happy. And this was one of those cases, maybe Dante was having better luck with Ban while they were out.
"Oh, Cat…" Elaine murmured softly, and continued stroking the woman's hair a bit more.
"I'll be fine, Ela…" Hecate spoke softly as she looked up at her sister with a small smile. "I think I'm going to go up in the branches for a bit… I need some time to think…"
The halfling stood once Elaine moved back a bit and turned to the faerie. She pulled her into a hug, knowing that her best friend was trying her best.
"Thank you, Ela, I'm sorry for being so stubborn… I know you're trying." She whispered to the faerie before pulling back and giving her a smile.
Elaine could only watch as Hecate reached towards one of the branches and climbed. There was one spot where the halfling always climbed to, where it was directly in the sunlight, where the large branch seemed to open up and makeshift hammock for the troubled woman.
With a sigh, Elaine returned to her book, but she couldn't enjoy it anymore as she thought about her sister. It wasn't long after that she heard the men return and looked up when a shadow fell over her. She smiled at Dante, who grinned back lazily, holding out some berries for her as he took his usual place behind her she could lean back into him. Standing nearby was Ban who popped some berries into his mouth as he looked around with a frown on his face.
"Where's Kitten?" he asked the couple, wondering where the woman had gone to.
"Up in the branches, again." Elaine supplied as she pointed upwards. "You better fix this, Ban." She pouted at him, shooting him a look that the man was becoming all too familiar with. "She thinks you're after me."
Ban groaned at that and shook his head. "Yeah, yeah… I already got the third degree from your man…" he sighed heavily. "I'll go talk with her." He gave in and began the familiar climb. He knew exactly where she'd be… hell, he always seemed to know where she was, most days.
As he climbed to Hecate's special spot, he stared down at the seemingly peaceful woman and sat down near her head. Despite all the pep-talks and encouragement of the others, he had a hard time expressing himself with words. He figured his actions would be more than enough to show her, but he assumed wrong, as usual. Nothing was easy with that woman. Smirking a bit though, he grabbed one of the berries and gently pressed it to her mouth when she let out a sigh.
Hecate had been so lost in thought that she hadn't realized she wasn't alone until something entered her mouth. Without thinking, she bit into it and was rewarded by the sweetness of the forest's berries. That caused her to open her eyes only to let out a strangled cry of surprise when she sae Ban's grinning face and sparking scarlet eyes hovering above her. The man couldn't stop himself from laughing at her reaction as she sat up and swatted at him, her face heating up from the entire thing.
"What are you doing?" she demanded, her voice pitching as the man continued laughing.
"I figured you'd be hungry, and I decided to feed you." He grinned lazily at her and held another berry out to her.
When she reached out to accept it, he pulled back with shake of his head and smirked. Once she lowered her hand did, he offer it up again, watching she frowned at him, her brows pinched together. She tried reaching for it once more, but he pulled away. He was going to get his way, whether she liked it or not.
"What are you playing at, Ban?" Hecate asked, wondering why he was playing such a game with her.
"Just open your mouth, Kitten. Let me do what I want, for once." He told her simply, wanting her to just give in for once and relax, let him be in control for moment.
She hesitated for a moment and sighed. "Fine, what do you want?" she asked, and he gave her a victorious smirk.
Instead of responding, he merely pulled her towards him, using his magical ability, and turned her around so she was laying against his chest. He grinned at the blush that appeared on her face, watching as she looked up at him with a slight frown. Before she could even question him, he pressed a berry to her lips.
"Open," he spoke softly, and she did, slowly until he could pop the berry in, letting her chew and swallow before feeling her the next one.
The two were quiet while he did this, both sitting in the sun together, one of Hecate's favourite past times with the man. It didn't take long for her relax and just accept what he was doing, it was sometimes pointless to fight with him like this. But it gave her a moment of peace, where she could pretend things were real between them.
"You know…" Ban spoke softly as he looked down at her with soft eyes. "I never seem to hit it off with humans." He admitted to her, resting his head upon her own as he snuggly wrapped his arms around her middle, just holding her to him.
"What are you talking about?" Hecate spoke quietly, looking up at the man a bit.
Ban took his time answering her as he gazed down into pink eyes. He took her in, in that moment, seeing her fully and completely like never before. After all the teasing and talks with Dante and Elaine, he finally understood what it was he wanted. It was never the Fountain, but companionship. And he found that in his Kitten. She pushed him to be better and never thought twice about challenging him or correcting him. They go into many banners that he sometimes wondered how they never ended up fighting physically. Then there were the times where they would sit in comfortable silence, basking in the sunlight or falling asleep in their special spot in the forest. It was her that he had been searching for. And despite being terrified of that fact he wouldn't let it go. He was greedy enough to take what he wanted after all. He wanted this woman in his arms.
"I mean..." Ban sighed a bit as he looked up through the leaves of the tree, trying to find the right words as heat crept onto his face as he scratched his cheek. "You've seen me as more than just a bandit since day one." He stated simply and looked down at her, a soft, fond smile spreading over his face. "When I talk, you hear what I'm saying, and understand me when even if I don't say it… you're just able to… hear me." He stressed, feeling like the dam in him opened. "You also know when to take me seriously, even if we're in the middle of banter."
Ban gave her a lopsided grin, seeing the look in her soft eyes. Like always, she knew when he wanted her to listen, when he needed her to really hear what he had to say to her. She never judged him on what he had to say, always willing to engage him with whatever came to mind, sometimes even challenging him to broaden his horizons.
"Ban…" Hecate murmured, wondering where all of this was coming from.
Before she could say more, Ban ran his knuckles over her cheek gently, just watching her as heat rose to her cheeks. His eyes were filled with warmth and fondness, as he pulled her as close to him as possible, resting his head against hers once more.
"Look, Kitten…" he began softly. "I don't want this to stop… you and me… we're good for each other…" he murmured to her feeling her nod in agreement. "I want you to come with me, then." He told her, much to her surprise. "We're going to find Elaine's brother and drag him back here." He started explaining his plan. "I don't care how long it would take, but I know you want to free her too."
"And leave Ela alone?" Hecate asked softly causing the man to laugh.
"No, Dante will stay here with her." He told her simply with a smile. "She won't be lonely here with him, and you won't be alone either by coming with me. It's a win for everyone." He chuckled a bit. "After we bring that brother back, if you want, the four of us can travel together or…" he paused a bit as he thought over his words before speaking again. "Or it can be just you and me…"
He watched as she opened her mouth, twisting a bit to properly look at him, eyes wide in surprise and something else. It was something he hadn't seen in her eyes before then, and it made his chest tighten a little.
"Are you…" Hecate cut herself off, unable to finish the question, but he understood, he usually did.
"Yeah, Kitten." He looked down at him with a soft smile. "Want me to be my partner?"
Hecate didn't know what to say to that as she began laughing quietly. While it was not the way she pictured he'd ask, she wouldn't have it any other way with him. She raised a hand and rubbed her eyes, trying to stop the threat of tears from falling.
"Yeah. You know I do." She told him with another laugh, and she watched as he grinned widely, pulling her into him, holding her tightly.
"There's no backing out now, you realize that, right?" he whispered to her, feeling her curl her hands into his jacket.
"Why would I want to do that?" Hecate teased to him, pressing her head into his shoulder, feeling his laughter as he suddenly stood up with her in his arms, twirling them around as she laughed.
Before either of them realized it, they fell off the branch as the entire tree shook violently around them. They landed hard on the base of the summit, groaning as they sat up. The scent of smoke and fire caused them to cough, feeling hands on their bodies as the others came to their sides.
"What the hell?" Ban coughed, groaning as he sat up more, feeling sore after that fall.
When Hecate opened her eyes, she felt her heart stop at the sight before them. She barely heard Dante talking to her as he looked her over. Instead, she was focused on a large, red form with curled horns. It was just as the descriptions her father had written in his journals. The twins never met their father as he died the moment their mother found out she was pregnant. According to their mother, their father was cursed to 'live until his seed gave root and watch over the seal of his people till then'. The journals their father left though, spoke about creatures like this, going into detail about them.
"No…" Hecate whispered in disbelief, unable to believe what she was seeing as she searched for Ban's hand for comfort.
Next to her, Dante froze, his mind going to the same information that he had read from their father. All moisture left his mouth as he breathed heavily, fear gripping his entire being. His mind was running rampant, trying to find the best way to get everyone out of there alive. His first concern was getting Elaine and the Fountain away from the beast.
"What the hell is that?" Ban stuttered out, clearly shocked and even a touch fearful of the towering creature.
"A Demon…" She, Dante, and Elaine spoke quietly.
"A Demon?" Ban repeated in disbelief.
"Only one thing can se the Faerie King's Forest ablaze, and that's the flames of Purgatory." Elaine explained and Hecate pushed herself up with a cough. "But I thought they were defeated by the Goddesses in the Ancient War and locked away!"
"They're supposed to be sealed away…" Hecate muttered, remembering the writings in her father's journal. "How… how can it be here?" her voice quivering as Ban turned to her, never before seeing her so fearful like this before.
"Kitten?" Ban questioned, resting a hand on her cheek, watching her flinch as she turned to him.
"…I'm… I'm scared…" she added quietly, looking down at the ground where their hands touched, and Ban felt his heart clench. He never expected her to admit something like that to him, but he couldn't blame her.
"I am too…" he spoke just as quietly, pressing their foreheads together. "But we'll get through this, together." He reminded her and she nodded.
"What about the Fountain of Youth?" Dante asked Elaine, turning to faerie, watching as a vine came over with the chalice.
"Don't worry, I made sure of that first thing." The faerie assured him with a soft smile.
The man nodded as he stood up, unsheathing his sword. He took a deep breath, trying to find his internal calm so he could push through. He looked over when he heard Ban and Hecate stood as well, both of them focused on the Demon before them, their eyes firm with conviction on what actions they were going to take next. He felt himself grow more confident, knowing he wasn't alone in the impossible task they were about to take on.
"You have to leave with the Fountain, Elaine." Dante stated as he turned to his beloved, knowing she wouldn't like that.
"Come with me!" Elaine begged them, knowing exactly what the stubborn trio was about to do. "The Demon hasn't seen us yet; we can leave and survive before either does!"
"Elaine…" Hecate spoke up softly as she turned to her sister. "You need to survive with the Fountain, if the Fountain is lost, then so are the lives of all of the Faeries here… let us do this."
Elaine stared at her sister in horror as Ban turned to the halfling, the frown on his face.
"You heard your man, Elaine, take it and get out of here. Kitten you go and—" Ban turned to Hecate, only to see her glaring at him.
"Telling me to leave?" Hecate mocked a bit as she turned to him. "I thought we were partners." I retorted. "Pulling through this together, remember? I'm not leaving." She restored stubbornly and the human gave her a smirk.
"Stubborn." He scoffed light heartedly and the woman snorted.
"Please, don't do this!" Elaine begged them, but no one listened to her.
"Don't worry, we got this." The twins grinned as they turned to her, placing a finger over their mouths for her to be silent.
"We're gonna take it out while its back is turned!" Ban added with a smirk.
Elaine could only watch in horror as the three people she loved walked towards the Demon. They knew they might not survive the encounter, but they wanted her to keep living. She watched as the trio readied themselves, activating their magical abilities, waiting to strike. The Demon breathed in for a moment before spitting out a large fireball, completely unaware about what was about to happen as the trio struck. All three attacks hit, and Ban pulled out one of the Demon's hearts while the twins turned to speak in a panic.
"What are you doing?" Dante shouted in a panic as he stared at the smirking human.
"Ban! There's more hearts!" Hecate shouted to him, watching as his eyes widen in disbelief.
Before anyone of them could say more, the Demon turned to them slowly and stared at them with lifeless eyes. Hecate felt herself freeze as the Demon began moving to attack them. Finding he strength, Hecate moved, grabbing Dante with her as she moved towards Ban.
"No!" Elaine cried out, flying towards them with her arms stretched out with tears in her eyes.
The next thing Hecate knew, she was on the ground gasping for air as a flurry of pink petals began falling around her. There was pain her side, as if she was missing part of her body. She felt a weight on top of her, then something dripped onto her the back of her neck as blood dominated her nose. Coughing heavily, the halfling looked up and stared in horror at the sight of Ban and Elaine nearby, panting and breathing heavily as their serious wounds bled out. Above her, someone groaned before the weight lifted and plopped onto her ground next to her.
Dante was panting with a large hole inside, his orange eyes darkening as he panted his hand outstretched towards Elaine as he mouthed her name. Hecate forced herself to her knees, crying out in pain as she looked down at her side, seeing that she was indeed missing part of her side, but it was smaller than Dante's hole.
"Focus!" she panted and closed her eyes, spreading her arms out as she focused.
She had to save them! She couldn't help them die, not like this! She kept that mantra going in her mind as she separated the spilt blood, pushing it back to the people she loved. She had to save them. She couldn't let them die. She had to keep focused and heal them. Blood moved back to the three slowly, with Hecate panting heavily as she pushed herself, ignoring her own pain and wound. She had to save them… she couldn't let them die…
Dante groaned as he opened his eyes, feeling faint and light-headed as he watched her. He couldn't speak properly to try and stop his twin from doing what she was doing. He could feel his body slowly stitch itself together, but it was slow, and he was losing blood faster than his twin could replenish it. He gasped as he turned to Elaine and Ban, his eyes blurring with tears as he watched Elaine and Ban speaking but couldn't make out the words.
"C-Cat…" he gasped out, watching as his twin's eyes slowly opened to reveal glowing fuchsia eyes that did not seem to see him as she breathed deeply and pushed herself more.
Her lips were moving, but no sound fell from them, it looked as if she had put herself into a trance. He could feel the weakness in his body lesson but knew in part because she was giving him some of her own blood. He couldn't reach her though, but he knew Ban could. Of anyone could reach his sister, it was that man.
"Ban…!" Dante called to the human, who weakly turned to them, his scarlet eyes widening when he saw the woman.
"K-Kitten…" Ban coughed, watching as bloody tears fell down her face as a sob escape her silent lips.
"I… I don't have the strength… I can't—I can't save everyone." She whimpered, still trying her best to push through and save the people she loved more than life itself.
But it was hard, the blood around them was mixed together and she was having a hard time separating everyone's blood as she tried healing them. She was shaking badly, her breathing labored as she focused, doing what she could do not lose anyone. The wound she had though was inhibiting her abilities as her body tried healing itself while she worked on the others. But there was so much blood... everyone's wounds were large and deep.
Hecate gasped when she felt herself being picked up, her connection to everyone severed as her concentration broke. She was in the arms of Ban, who stood impassively, looking down at her sadly.
"Just stay here… let me take care of this, Kitten…" he murmured quietly to her, pressing his lips to her forehead before turning to the Demon.
All Hecate could do watch helplessly as Ban fought the Demon, panting heavily as she fought with staying conscious. She watched as Ban was attacked and squashed, watching as his wounds disappeared as if he had never been injured at all. It wasn't long before the Demon was defeated and Ban walked over to her and picked her up again, and that was when Hecate noticed the change of his scent.
"The…" Hecate barley managed the whisper and the man nodded.
"Yeah…" Ban spoke quietly, not happy about it. He felt his Kitten press her head into him and he sighed softly.
He took Hecate over to Dante and Elaine, the male halfling clutched Elaine to his body, his once orange eyes now black as black tears fell down his face, staining the pale fingers of Elaine who tried calming him, but it was clear she was fading. Even with the healing from his Kitten, it wasn't enough.
"I… I lo—" Elaine's words fell short as her hand fell from Dante's face, leaving a bloody trail behind and her life slipped away.
Dante let out a howl of despair, letting out all of his sorrow and anguish. The sound echoed around them as the duo watched. He clung to Elaine's body, crying over her as he yelled out. Ban looked away from the scene, allowing the man form of privacy as he looked down at his Kitten. He saw the bloody tears fall down her face, falling onto his bare chest as she mourned the loss of her sister. As much as Ban wanted to join them, he couldn't. He felt numb, empty. He hated himself for allowing Elaine to force the Fountain down his throat. She should have taken it, now he was immortal… but they had lost the faerie.
He felt Hecate weakly push at him and noticed that she was trying to get down. As much as he didn't want to, Ban set the woman on his feet, holding her when she swayed violently. At this time, Dante had stopped his howling, instead he was mumbling under his breath. His wound was almost closed, but it still oozed and bled as the man stood with Elaine's body clutched in one arm. When he finally looked up, Ban faltered, Dante's eyes were pitch black.
"It's not fair…" Dante muttered under his breath, but it was still loud enough for the two to hear. "Why did she have to die?" He questioned, his dark eyes focusing on Hecate in a glare. "WHY DIDN'T YOU SAVE HER?" he demanded, yelling out in fury as he gripped his sword.
"I-I tried to!" Hecate panted, desperate for her brother to snap out of it.
"You let her die… why didn't you save her?" Dante spoke again, "It's not fair… why didn't you save her?"
Hecate felt her heart clench as her brother activated his Little Garden. She was frozen in place her brother's fractured mind cracked further. He fell. Falling into his grief and despair. He no longer saw her as his twin, but the person who killed his beloved. She was his enemy and anyone else who came upon him would be treated same way. He could kill entire nations and not realize it, not until he finally faced death or something drastic happened to snap them out of that state. This was their curse, the vampiric madness that took control the moment they lost themselves to the emotions inside them and drowned in the pain.
Ban could only watch as the twins faced each other. Dante was still mumbling, accusing his twin of liking Elaine, of not protecting her. Hecate had stopped responding to him as she stood before him, panting still as her wound continued leaking blood. Before he even realized it, Dante shot towards Hecate who merely dodge each time he tried striking out at her. It was only after Hecate kicked him away and clutched at her wound that the new immortal moved to go to her side.
"Stop!" she yelled at him and he passed, eyes wide when he finally noticed what she had already seen.
Dante was standing again, black blood dripping from his mouth as he pointed his sword at his sister, except instead of the usual vines, there was a pitch-black rose with thorns slowly spread out from the tip. Ban looked down and noticed that he would have stepped into one of those roses if his Kitten hadn't shouted at him. Slowly, the woman stood, her entire body shaking from the stress of the day and she raised a hand, pointing it at her brother.
"You're not seriously going to try using Black Death on me, are you?" she scoffed, unimpressed, but Ban could hear the pain and heartbreak in her voice.
"Why did you let her die!?" Dante demanded in return, the black tears continuing to stream down his face as he glared at her, shaking his head after a moment. "No…" he spoke quietly. "The question isn't that… it's why the hell I decided to save you instead of her?!" he yelled out.
Dante's blade glowed darkly as he moved for the final attack, but just before he reached his twin, his body froze. Before him, Hecate held her hand out before moving it in a downward motion as his sword lowered and the vines and roses disappeared. She slowly walked up to him as he glared at her. Her own red tears still falling as she pressed two fingers against his forehead and Dante's body suddenly fell into her. Hecate caught him and Elaine, her sobs clearly spilling out as she clung to them. Her strength soon failed her, and she fell, only to be caught by Ban, who stared down at them with pity.
He stayed quiet for a few moments before speaking up, not knowing what else to do. "What was that?" he asked quietly, not expecting the weeping woman to answer right away.
"Stasis…" she spoke quietly through her sobs. "A technique I can use to induce a coma-like effect on someone… where that person is neither dead nor alive... but existing in between…" Hecate's voice caught in her throat as she explained. "I…"
"I know… I know…" he whispered to her, gently prying her away from the people she loved and pulled her tightly into his arms. "You had to do what you did… I get it." He assured her, running his fingers through her hair as she cried.
He felt her nails bite into his chest as she tucked herself into him and Ban all but coiled himself around her to give her some feeling of security. He was still trying to figure out what happened here, how their lives turned to ruin in a moment of minutes. It wasn't fair. It just wasn't fucking fair at all.
"I'm promising you this, Kitten," he spoke to her, tucking her head under his chin. "I will find a way to bring them back. No matter what. We'll get them back." He whispered into her ear, his voice firm with resolve and he felt her fall into him, barely nodding into his chest.
Hecate could only hold onto Ban, his words, in her mind, were empty, meaningless. There was no chance they could resurrect the dead without a hefty price to pay… but they were the only words that she could hear without the ringing out Dante's words rearing their ugly head at her.
"In such a short amount of time… he fell so far… I couldn't let anything else happen…" Hecate murmured quietly, bowing her head at the memory. "I'm so sorry, Elaine… I couldn't save you, even when I was pushing myself past the brink losing myself… I should have done something…" Hecate sniffed, her tears falling freely as she looked at her sister, who was smiling at her with that understanding smile she always had.
"I don't blame you, Cat." Elaine reached up and gently stroked her hair. "If you had pushed yourself further, then you would have fallen too... then where would you be now? Ban would have lost everyone that day otherwise…" She murmured softly. "But it's going to be okay now." She assured the halfling.
"How do you know, Ela?" Hecate asked, not feeling like it was true, but the faerie merely laughed.
"Why else?" she smiled knowingly. "You're with Ban again." She stated simply. "And you'll soon have your twin too," she added softly, looking over at Dante. "You'll have to awaken him again… and... don't worry, he won't hate you." She assured her sister. "He knows you're not at fault and knows how much you love him."
Hecate nodded slowly, but there was doubt in her heart until she turned to face her brother. A new wave of tears pricked at her eyes now. While not truly awake, there was now a smile upon her brother's face, and a hint of sparkling orange eyes seemed to glow before his eyes shut again, but his smile remained in place.
"Dante…" Hecate murmured and placed her hand on the crystal tomb, feeling how warm it was to the touch now.
"Ban's in danger…" Elaine spoke suddenly, turning slightly with a frown on her face.
"He's probably with your brother…" Hecate sighed, shaking her head as she turned to the faerie. "He doesn't know what happened… and blames us…"
"I know…" Elaine spoke quietly and without a word led the way to them with Hecate following behind.
Taking one last look at the crystal tomb, Hecate could feel the weight of guilt that she carried for so long lifting off her, only to be replaced with her newfound resolution in getting her brother and Elaine back.
With Elaine as her guide, it didn't take the two to find the men. By the time they reached King and Ban, Hecate could only watch as Ban turned to stone thanks to King's weapon. She watched as King talked to the immortal for a bit but didn't hear what words were exposed as King's weapon slid out from the man's stone body.
"So… that was your plan earlier, huh?" she asked, walking up behind the faerie.
"Huh? C-Cat!?" King faltered a bit as he spun around, surprised to see the halfling there.