To my reviews last chapter:
Jt2300:Thank you for saying so, it was definitely the longest one and I hoped the length didn't kill quality
SailorCC:I was hoping to pull on some heartstrings with romance and Wrath being who he is and saying he loved her is definitely a integral point in the fanfic, both for previous chapters and future ones.
Visitor:I've read many Frozen fanfics and It actually never occured to me for Elsa to lose her shit and get angry. It was a nice touch of irony given who she was speaking to and I was so excited to write it. I still personally think the 'For the First Time in Forever' and 'The Frozen and Pierced Heart' are much better fanfics but that's just my personal opinion and I appreciate your high opinion of mine.
To my mystery guest who has given me plenty to think about: I appreciate any feedback in my chapters as well as constructive critism to help me better my chapters and fanfic, so please keep them coming. I would like to express while I LOVE reading your detailed reviews in particular (literally I get so mad when I get the email saying you reviewed and in the email its cut off so I can't read it fully so I have to wait a few days before it shows up on the fanfic) I would like to express that you don't HAVE to make them so long. I love that you do and actually look forward to them being detailed, I just wish to express that you don't have to feel obligated cause I bitch and moan about not getting as many reviews as I would like. I'm happy to get any at all. Also your questions about Father and Talib well those are meant to be shrouded because well...the moment the readers find out the answer will be the moment why the questions couldn't be answered until them. Concerning Elsa's episode, I actually enjoyed it because I've only been drunk once, twice last weekend, and during that time I was so impulsive and more prone to reveal my deeper thoughts when I'd rather think about everything I do and keep my thoughts to myself. Her confrontation with Crystal could've gone many different ways which make me laugh to think about but I didn't want her to do something TOO out of character even when she's drunk, like her slapping Edward, she wasn't really slapping him she was slapping everyone who was expecting her to be a perfect girl. Wrath also putting his few cents especially after the last few days hopefully made an impact to the reader if they consider everything that's happened in the last few chapters and think of things through his perspective. I will not comment on him as it could be consider spoilers but I am happy that you noticed the development Wrath has from starting out as a mindless beast.
The kingdom of Corona had been under shutdown following the rather disturbing find of King Alrick's amputated arm and weapon. King Frederic had his army scouring the kingdom in the hopes of finding the lost member of royalty but had no success. With the fear that his family could be targeted by the same party that sent the grisly message, he locked down his kingdom until the culprits were found. His wife understood the measures and supported him yet his daughter the Princess was not as accommodating.
Rapunzel spoke out against them locking down the kingdom saying that they should be out there searching as well but Frederic was not having it. When she raised her voice saying that she wasn't afraid of some thugs who were holding a man captive, her father stood and raised his.
"They sent us the arm of one Blackdust's most famous military leaders! The man had his personal force with him and was captured, his men's corpses were found down a river! If the culprits are capable of subduing someone who rose to the top of a kingdom that prided itself on conducting war then I will not have my family running around until these men are brought to justice!"
Usually the Princess wouldn't back down from such an outburst but then she got a good look in her father's eyes. While there was anger and frustration in them, she could see soul crushing fear in his eyes. He had known what she was capable of, she'd proven herself to be more than a woman her age but he still didn't want to put her in risk of an unknown enemy that already had caused the death of many. So with reluctance, she backed down and decided to let him have his way for now.
The lockdown had been going on for sometime and the citizens had been feeling the effects. Businesses were closed early due to the new curfew and anyone entering or leaving the capitol was thoroughly searched. Even the pub thugs that hung out in the Snuggly Duckling were reverting back to their dangerous demeanor so as to ward of anyone they deemed suspicious.
As things stood, no one moved around Corona without the King knowing…
...except Cassandra, who had many secret routes to sneak out of the capitol and was heading up her own investigation into the current state of affairs.
When she had reported to the King that she had found the bodies, she expected that she would be tasked to help find the culprits and search for the missing King. Unfortunately, her dad had told her to keep to her handmaiden duties and stay with the Princess. She was ready to argue against the decision but King Frederic had also agreed and she was now stuck babysitting Rapunzel who was confined to the castle.
The black haired woman loved the Princess, she really did, but she was trained to do more! She knew castle protocol, was better than most of the other guards, and succeeded in pretty much anything she put her mind to. As a child, she did it for the attention of her dad who spent most of his time being Captain of the Guard but he still made time to make sure that she was ready for whatever life threw her way. Growing up, she excelled and pushed herself in hopes of the day he would name her Lieutenant and maybe Captain after he retired.
Yet now, he wouldn't even let her be a guard!
It was so frustrating that she had spent so much time honing her skills and now she couldn't even use them when her home was in a state of emergency. Which was why she snuck out to do things her way and show her father and the King that she had what it takes. She went back to the river and followed it upstream until she found signs of a battle taking place sometime ago.
The signs led to a pass that oversaw the dam that was unstable and had to be rebuilt time and time again. She searched each of the tunnels in the canyon and found faint traces of a mass amount of people using the tunnels as a base. The trail ended cold in the tunnels and would've frustrated her, if she wasn't ambushed by a squad of unknown soldiers. They weren't expecting a woman such as herself and thought they could have their way with her.
Little did they know that Cassandra was a savage and brutal warrior if pushed far enough. She didn't kill them and tried to scare them into giving up some information on the whereabouts of the rest of their forces. All the threats in the world would've meant absolutely nothing because the soldiers all bit off their tongues so as they couldn't talk. One of them, waited a moment before following his friends' example before telling her one thing.
"If you really knew what you were up against, you wouldn't even bother trying. It's only a matter of time until all we care about becomes irrelevant."
The words sounded like they belonged to a zealot that was more than ready to die for his cause but the fear in the soldiers' eyes told a different story. It looked like they would rather die rather than betray whoever commanded them out of fear. Plus, it seemed that they too were dreading whatever their master had planned since they said we instead of her, meaning that everything they cared for was also at risk.
This made Cassandra consider that whoever they were up against had grand schemes in their mind. Ones that seemed big if they severed a King's arm, hid an army, as well as left a squad for anyone who came looking.
With the trail gone cold and her only sources of intel now mute and bleeding profusely, she left to return home. Part of her thought about rushing those men to get medical help but it seemed like a pointless gesture. They didn't want to speak out against their master and removed their means of communicating. If she took them back and they did survive the bloodloss, they'd likely kill themselves out of fear of upsetting their master.
So she left them to die as they wanted.
She returned to the castle and carried out her duties as a handmaiden during the day then snuck out during the night. Days went by and she still found nothing. Others would've been dismayed but Cassandra's stubborn nature kept her from even considering giving up. When she couldn't find any more signs, she decided to search everywhere in Corona. Town to town and covered every inch of land that wasn't in the patrol routes in case the enemy knew about them and were holed up somewhere that the routes wouldn't go over.
Tonight, she was in Old Corona just taking a cursory glance around the village. The people had decided to evacuate to the capitol after some of Varian's more disastrous experiments had disrupted their lives one too many times. The only one who remained here was Varian who didn't want to abandon his lab.
She was used to the empty place and almost missed the signs that someone else had been here. It was subtle but she realized that the village gate had a lantern on it with a fresh candle. She supposed Varian could've put it up but she remembered that he made potions that acted as his source of light. If this was really the alchemist then, she would see some more miracles of science, as he likes to call them.
Entering the abandoned village, she searched around and still found it was abandoned as usual. Cassandra felt her hope drop a little when she thought that maybe she had found something turned out to be nothing. Her stubbornness came back with a vengeance telling her that the candle meant something and there weren't any cobwebs on the lantern so it was new.
Which meant that someone was here.
So the woman chose to do something she really didn't want to do.
She walked up to a house that stood off on its own and had various additions to it such as a few chimneys and a metal contraption of some kind next to the house. Blowing through her nose in frustration, she raised a hand then knocked on the door. She heard a few grumbles coming from the inside before the door opened to reveal a young teenager with a discolored stripe in his black hair wearing some patched pajamas.
"Yes?…"
Cassandra really didn't want to ask Varian due to the little guy having a crush on her but she needed to know if anyone was here besides him. Taking a breath to prepare herself while the alchemist wiped away the sleep in his eyes that kept him from seeing who knocked on his door, she spoke with a forced smile.
"Hey, Varian...look there's something that I need to ask you…"
Her voice must've registered in his head because all of his sleepiness was slapped off his face and replaced with his usual enthusiasm whenever he spoke with her. "Oh! Cass! You're here! And I'm in my pajamas! Please come in and let me get changed."
Cassandra planned on saying no and asking him at the door but the alchemist had already zoomed off to presumably change. Sighing once more in frustration, the woman walked into the house and closed the door behind her. The first thing she noticed walking in was that the house was spotless. Everything was immaculate and without a smudge of dirt. She thought it was likely because of those blue balls he used to help her clean the castle once.
Probably should ask for some…
Clearing that thought from her mind, she looked around and could see signs that no one lived here. She knew that Varian had a father but from what she could tell, the house wasn't the least bit disturbed. The furniture didn't have one crease in it, there were no skid marks except one under a four chair dining table. The kitchen looked hardly touched as she could see the faint look of rust on the hinges for the cabinet that likely held utensils for cooking.
The woman had been to Varian's lab, while he was messy, everything was in a place that he knew about. She could tell that he lived in his lab all times during the day but here in his own home, it barely looked like anyone lived here. The entire village was deserted except for one teenager who worked on his experiments.
Cassandra suddenly became quite aware of a grandfather clock that ticked much too loudly in the absolute silence that was becoming more apparent to her. There was nothing to drown out the loud tick, no rustle of the leaves outside, no one walking about or working, no sound of another human just existing in the village.
The villagers were deserted save for Varian because of his antics. The question that weighed on her mind was; did they leave to get away from him.
If so...
Does it not bother the alchemist to be here alone?
The woman tried to shake those thoughts out of her head, she wasn't here for that. She had a kingdom to think about, one teenager's problems shouldn't weigh so much in her mind. The tick tock noise was finally drowned out by Varian running back to her in his usual alchemist get up. Goggles on his head, thick gloves that reached his elbows, dirty brown apron and white collared shirt.
The excitement on the teenager's face was easy to see but he tried to tone it down so that he could look more grown up as he tried to act cool by deepening his voice and crossing his arms and leaning on a nearby wall.
"So...Cass, what brings you to my humble abode?"
Usually she would give him an eye roll but decided to cut him some slack and just ask him what she wanted to know.
"Varian, is there anyone living here besides you?"
The question threw him off and had him dropping his 'cool guy' facade. "What do you mean? It's my house, only I live here. Who else would be here?"
She wanted to say his father but bit her tongue, she didn't want to go there.
"Not here in this house, I mean this village. When I came here, I saw that there was a fresh candle in a lantern on the village gate. I know you use your alchemy to make light so you didn't put it out there so someone else did. Do you know who did it?"
Varian's eyes widened and shifted slightly to avoid the stare that the woman was giving him. The gesture instantly made her think something was up but she didn't jump on the teenager just yet.
"Oh, that's my bad. I ran out of the elements I used to make my illumination potion so I decided to use the archaic way of getting light until I replenished my stock. As for your question, no one lives here in Old Corona, it's just me."
A fake smile and laugh followed after his blatant lie that had Cassandra staring at him a little harder. The first thing she did was look him over from head to toe looking for any weapons on him. While she knew that he would never use one against her, it was her response to anyone who lied to her and might be looking to disable her when she let her guard down. When she could see that there was nothing on his person, she looked over his skin for any marks that might have come from someone hurting him. He looked fine so she looked around their surroundings, especially the windows, looking for someone who might be watching them.
Her alertness paid off as she noticed that out the window in a tree overlooking the house was a glint in the branches. It was barely noticeable but she could make it out. It could've been some metallic object or glass but the fact that it was hidden in a tree made her suspicious. She placed a gentle hand on Varian's shoulder and brought him in for a hug. Surprised by the gesture, the teenager was about to sputter out his embarrassment but he heard Cassandra whisper in his ear.
"We're being watched."
The woman felt the teenager's breath hitch with those words but she didn't feel him start shaking in fear as she thought he would.
"Cass, I'm sure it's your imagination, it's just me here…"
"You're lying."
Varian took a deep breath and pulled himself out of the woman's grip to give a stern look. "No, I'm sure it's just me here. Everyone left to get away from me, if there was someone here who cared to stay then I would know. Since no one doesn't, I know that I'm the only one here."
The comment pulled a particularly deep buried heartstring that she didn't want to think about. The feeling of being abandoned. She forced herself not to think of how she was abandoned, the day she met her father and he said it would be alright. Cassandra could tell that Varian wanted to save face but it did bother him that the villagers were all gone and it was just him.
"Varian, you should know that people care about you. Raps, the idiot she's married to, and me too. We all care about you and I know what it's like to be left on your own. It hurts and keep you from thinking clearly but I'm telling you, we are being watched."
The alchemist's face faltered for a moment before he wiped it away and raised his voice. "My entire village left me to be alone! My inventions failing drove them away because they didn't work and I wasn't smart enough to make them work. But with his help, I'll be able to build wonderful things that will show everyone that I am not a failure!"
Cassandra jumped at the volume of his voice and tried to gesture for him to quiet down as she spoke. "Varian, you are many things but a failure isn't one of them. Sure you may have made some mistakes here and there but you are still incredible for the things you have accomplished. I'm sorry you feel that they abandoned you but your friends didn't. Raps would've visited if Corona wasn't on lockdown because of a missing King and there are people out there who are dangerous. You aren't alone as long as you have your friends, and your friend right now is asking that you keep it down and move away from the window because we might be in danger right now!"
Varian did not take notice of her gesture and went on to raise his voice even more. "We aren't in any danger, Victor wouldn't hurt anyone! He's the only one who stayed to teach me about how to be a better alchemist!"
Cassandra was about to ask who Victor was when the sound of a gunshot filled the air. Reacting on instinct, she dove at the teenager and knocked him to the ground out of the view of the window. She expected to hear the sound of glass shattering but only more gunshots filled the air. As she laid there cradling Varian close to her, she listened for the gunshots and noticed that there weren't any sounds of the bullets hitting the house and that they started to get fainter and fainter.
Carefully untangling herself from the teenager in her arms, she gave him a stern look.
"Stay down."
Without waiting to see if he listened to her, she inched over to the window and barely put her head out so she could see through it without totally exposing her to the glint in the tree. The first thing she saw was that there was a figure running in the direction of the sound of gunfire. From the way they were facing, she could tell that it was the shadow that was in the tree. Taking another quick glance around the village to look for any more figures, she whirled to Varian who was stunned by the sound of gunfire.
"Varian! Now's not the time to freeze, it's obvious that people are here. Do you know who they are? Who's Victor?"
The teenager jumped at the urgent voice that came from Cassandra and found himself answering without much thought.
"The only one I know is Victor, he's an older alchemist who came here a few months ago and has been teaching me some new tricks. In exchange, I've been helping him trying to create a new metal with outstanding properties."
"What do you mean by outstanding properties?"
"Lightweight and extremely durable. We currently have a prototype that he wanted to test more but he sent me home before I could get a good look at it."
The handmaiden wasn't nearly as smart as Varian but she had a sharp mind. When he said that they were making a new metal that was lightweight and durable, she instantly hypothesised that it would likely be used to create weapons. If this Victor had intended to use the metal in such a way and didn't inform the young alchemist then the man might be up to something. Whether it was related to the disappearance of King Alrick or not was still up for debate but right now something was happening and they needed to move.
"Varian, you need to get out of here. Once you leave, go to Corona and tell the Captain that there were gunshots in Old Corona."
The teenager almost nodded but realized that she said you and not we...
...which meant that she was planning to stay here.
His protective feelings of her instantly bubbled to the surface as he spoke. "You're coming with me Cassandra, you can't stay here."
The woman had turned her back on him and was scouting out the village for anymore figures. She didn't even look back at him as she answered him. "This is no time to argue, I need to stay and figure out what's going on. Maybe the lead I've been looking for is here and I cannot let it slip through my fingers."
"Cass whatever lead you've been looking for can wait until help gets here. I'm sure your dad will send some guards here to help and you can investigate with their help."
The handmaiden took a final look before deeming that the coast was clear as she walked to the front door and stepped outside to look into the distance where she could pick out a faint gunshot or two.
"If I go to Corona, he'll just tell me to go back to my handmaiden duties. I'm not losing this chance to show him I'm more than ready."
"You can't do this by yourself."
The woman finally turned to the teenager and gave him one final defiant look that was plain to see that it wasn't aimed entirely at him.
"I'm tired of people telling me I can't do something."
She then turned back and ran off toward the gunshots leaving Varian alone at his house. The alchemist looked in the other direction where the village gate was that would lead him to Corona then back to where Cassandra ran off to.
Logically, he should do as she said and go to Corona to alert the Captain as to what happened so he could send guards to help. He knew that Cassandra was a very capable woman and could probably handle anything that came her way but the emotional aspect of him leaving her alone in the midst of danger chipped at his logical thoughts.
He liked her, it was an obvious crush, he knew that she knew and didn't reciprocate his feelings. It stung but he could live with it. Even though they had gotten closer over the years, which was kind of stretching it when it came to Cassandra, he highly doubted that she would be pleased that he tried to help her after saying she couldn't do something on her own.
He knew that in her mind, she would think that he was trying to 'rescue' her which would only drive her to go out and do more to prove herself. He could understand that, he wanted to prove to his dad that he could be more than a screw up, which was why he stayed and was under the tutelage of a brilliant mind such as Victor Zoloman. The older man had taught him a great many things in such a short time and it was refreshing to have someone he could have a conversation with about elements that a normal person wouldn't be expected to know.
Thinking of the older alchemist, he noticed that the direction of where Cassandra went was where Zoloman's lab was. As far as he knew, the alchemist slept in his lab. While he hadn't gotten to know the man for a long time, Varian did not want to see any harm to come to him. Hearing gunshots in the direction of the man's home did not bode well for the teenager which had him making up his mind.
Cass is going to be so pissed.
Varian ran after the woman who had gotten a good lead on him in such a short time. He could see her outline go into one of the buildings that was a few meters away from Victor's lab. Keeping his head on a swivel he tried to sneak in behind her while keeping on the lookout for the people who were shooting earlier.
Which reminded him…
...When did the gunfire stop?
At first it shook him to hear so many all at once but he quickly got used to it as his fight or flight response kicked in when he resolved himself to follow after Cass and look for Victor. He didn't notice that the night was actually silent now. He didn't know whether or not that was good news or bad news, either way, he wanted to catch up with Cassandra first and go from there.
Soon he was inching along the wall into the same house that the woman had gone through first, he listened for any sounds from inside but it was completely silent. The doorway was now in sight and the first thing he noticed was the door was knocked off its hinges and lying in splinters inside the house. Slowly and carefully, he inched ever closer to the door and as he got closer that's when he heard it.
It was a faint sound coming from inside the house. It reached his ears at random intervals and sounded like someone was faintly grunting. He knew that Cassandra went into this house and wondered why she would be making such a sound. If there was a bad person here, he would expect to hear the sounds of the two of them fighting it out in the house as the woman wasn't going to go down without a sound. So if it was Cass in here and she was making that sound then something else might be going on.
His mind quickly went through a few scenarios of what could make the woman make that sound. Perhaps there was a poison in the air and she had inhaled it and was not suffocating inside. Or there was a trap and she was caught in it and was struggling to get out while not making a huge sound. A few more came to mind but he didn't want to keep her waiting, so he pulled out a rag and one of his potions from his pockets and soaked the rag in it before tying it around his face. The neutralizing compound that he soaked his rag in was horrible to smell but would protect him from any hazardous chemicals that were in the air.
A useful concoction he created after passing out one too many times in his own lab from the fumes that came from unstable chemicals.
Taking one last breath to calm himself, he tiptoed into the house and first noticed that it was dark inside. So dark in fact he had to reach for a wall so he could edge along it to cross the room. The sounds began to get louder and louder as he edged along the house as quietly as he could. It seemed to be coming from a few meters ahead of him. He kept his hand ahead of him until his fingers curled around what seemed to be an open doorway.
The alchemist entered the doorway and couldn't see anything. It was completely pitch black in this section of the house but the sounds of grunting came from right in front of him. It was a reaction, one that wasn't made from the logical part of his mind.
"Cassandra?"
The grunting ceased when he spoke and he heard the frantic sounds of movement. Reaching into his left front pocket that housed his illumination compounds, he shook them up and the blue, green, and pink colors lit up the sight in front of him almost made him drop the vials in his hand.
He found Cassandra but she was in the middle of the room with some blood going down her head and a rag in her mouth. Her arms were stretched above her head with her feet dangling over the ground. The look in her eyes was something he didn't expect to ever see from her.
Fear.
Varian's first instinct was to get her down from there but when he noticed that the woman's eyes widened and looked at something behind him, he then felt a hand on his shoulder.
"So her name's Cassandra, a beautiful name for someone I can easily tell is defiant."
The deep voice behind him was flat with no trace of the humor that would've normally come with that sentence. Gulping, the alchemist turned around and was now facing the wounded tall imposing one armed man. He wished that the light didn't reach the man's cold eyes as they were staring at him like he was an ant that was about to be squished.
The weight of the man's stare had him completely immobilized. His usually racing mind came to a complete halt as he stared up to the man who cracked his neck a few times before leaning over to tower over the teenager even more.
"There are only two outcomes to this situation. You both live or you both die. While it would normally disgust me to kill women and kids, I have very little patience at the moment. You tell me what I want to know, and maybe I won't make you look like me."
Edward was awakened by a quiet snort that came from the blonde on top of him. A sound that brought a grn to his face as he imagined her embarrassment if she knew she made such a sound. The facade of being an immaculate Queen would not allow such an action. It was heartwarming to see her aspects of her that showed that she wasn't perfect.
In their opinion anyway.
He was aware of the conversation she had right before she went to sleep. The one concerning if she really wanted to be Queen or not and Wrath's surprisingly empathetic words. He never knew why the predator preferred to stay in his lonely courtyard despite the subtle hints he had at wanting to see past the nothingness that surrounded it, until last night when he told the blonde.
It was his way of maintaining a modicum of control. The courtyard was his and no one could take that away from him. Even if it was his prison, it was the only thing that he had to his name and he didn't want to give that up. The concept made the demon appear more human in the way that he was afraid of drastic change and the thought of losing everything. It also made it much more impactful for Elsa to hear it from him that if she continued to live her life trying to be what she was expected to be, she would end up where he was, a life he wouldn't wish on anyone.
The depth of emotion that Wrath expressed when he said that was overwhelming to feel. It was a painful blend of depression that came with the acceptance that his life had been an empty one as well as sadness when he watched someone that meant something to him follow in his footsteps.
Speaking of Wrath's feelings…
Edward was also aware of what the predator said right before he fell asleep. Elsa had remarked that he really meant it when he said that he loved her and Wrath's simple response came out without any hesitation or thought. He admitted that he did and that it was plainly obvious to see. Whenever he would be in control, he would place Elsa's wellbeing as his highest priority.
His actions were of those who cared about someone very deeply but to love someone was surprising. Up until now, Edward thought that the concept of love never crossed the predator's mind. He wasn't a mindless beast anymore and actually was quite philosophical and intelligent but to the young man, he kept his emotions and true thoughts to himself.
When the two of them fought back in that cave, Edward could feel the anger that radiated off the demon but could tell it wasn't entirely aimed at him. When they talked again afterwards, Wrath admitted that he had considered killing Elsa multiple times and stayed his hand likely because of the young man's feelings. Then when they went on that field exercise with Stonewell and faced death, the predator seemed more accommodating to work with him. Finally when that soul echo of Rahim went on a rampage, Wrath took it upon himself to stop it before it could hurt anymore people.
It was odd to think about how much the predator had changed from being such a ruthless killer to a very caring individual. Elsa was obviously a big part of that, and as baffling as it was, it didn't bother him in the slightest. Usually it would scare him to death knowing that Wrath was anywhere close to the people he cared for, yet now, he was at ease whenever the demon took control.
There was no struggle and the change was even more natural than breathing.
It was a very curious observation that made him wonder if Elsa was right in the beginning and the two of them had more in common that he originally thought.
Taking another look at the woman on his chest who was still fast asleep and the pocket watch he had placed on a nearby table that showed it was still quite early, the young man felt he had some time to speak with his associate.
It didn't take much effort to get into Wrath's courtyard anymore, he could just blink and he was already there. The old stone surroundings greeted him once more as he looked around and noticed that the predator wasn't tending to his weapons as he usually was. In fact, he wasn't even in the courtyard. Edward could see him past the open gate that now wasn't just pitch black but now showed the reflective surface that was beyond the courtyard.
He was standing on the edge of the reflective surface staring intently at it and carefully but slowly reached out with his feet and poked at it with his talons. When the tip of one of his talons touched the surface, he would jump back quickly before going back to his original position and repeating his actions. It was like watching someone test how the water was and trying to convince themselves it was ok to go in.
Walking next to the predator, Edward tried to get his attention by tapping him and calling his name. Both attempts were unsuccessful as Wrath continued to tap at the reflective surface, never once putting his entire foot on it. The young man then took a step on the surface so he was directly in front of the demon and waved at him.
"Hey Wrath, can you hear me?"
The predator again did not say anything and kept his gaze intensely focused on the surface as he continued to prod it. The young man took a look at the demon's face trying to see if he could get any indication at what the predator was feeling but it proved pointless as his face was still in the same fanged grin that Edward now thought was cruel. Given the way Wrath spoke as well as the little glimpses he allowed others to see in his mind, the young man doubted that he actually had a reason to smile.
He was about to call it quits as the predator didn't seem to even acknowledge him but tried one more time by reaching out and gently grabbing the demon's ankle which was what he seemed to be focusing on the most. That proved to be the wrong thing to do as Wrath instantly reacted to the contact and raced back into his courtyard before closing the gate door behind him. Edward was so surprised at the reaction that he had instantly let go so he wasn't pulled behind the demon.
Walking up to the gates, he tried opening them but they wouldn't budge. He gave it a few hard tugs but nothing happened. He tried yelling for Wrath to open up but the demon didn't respond and kept the doors locked. It was obvious that the predator didn't want to speak which would've had Edward going back to Elsa but before he left, he went back to the reflective surface and kneeled down to get a closer look at the spot that Wrath was looking at.
He could only see his own reflection of course but he felt something on the other side. It was faint but there was a deep foreboding in his gut that something on the other side was looking at him right and was waiting for him to break through the surface. Edward's first thought was the Hell he dragged Wrath out of and wondered if those copies of Rahim were still there, lying in wait.
He remembered the meek way that the predator had spoken as well as acted when that subject was brought up. It must still be haunting him and perhaps he thought that if he took one more full step outside his courtyard onto the reflective surface, he would be dragged down again.
Another prison for the one he was already in.
It was now beginning to dawn on Edward how pitiful Wrath was. He didn't mean it in a condescending way, but it was true, the amount of grief the predator had was just one thing after another. Even Rahim's life seemed more pleasant in comparison.
The young man felt that he should say something to the demon but remembered that he was in Wrath's soul. Which meant that if he wasn't ready to talk then nothing would make him talk, he would have to come out on his own time.
He blinked once more and was back in his bed with Elsa still on his chest. As if she could feel his inner emotional turmoil, she began to awaken. She slowly sat up from his chest and rubbed the sleep from her eyes then looked around the room to get a bearing of where she was. Edward wiped off any trace of worry that marred his face by the time that she locked eyes with him and he smiled before speaking.
"Good morning, how did you sleep?"
Elsa rolled on his chest with a lopsided smile and rested her arms on his chest and placed her chin on them.
"I slept great with my favorite pillow."
Feigning being insulted that he was reduced to her pillow, he lightly brought up his upper body before bringing it back down to bounce the blonde on his chest. She kept her balance as he repeated his actions a few more times like he was trying to buck her off then he stopped and gave her a look.
"I'm just a pillow to you?"
Elsa made a faux thinking face as she pretended to bounce the question in her head before she leaned in close to him so their lips were almost touching.
"What's it matter if you're a pillow or not, you're mine right?"
Amused by her bold claim, he pressed his lips to hers while wrapping his arms around the small of her back. This kiss was teasing and soft with her pulling back a bit and making him have to lift himself up to follow her. The heat that was beginning to build up inside him had him about to turn them over so he was on top but she gave him a firm push and had him laying back down while she took a higher position above him. He dropped his hands lower to her hips and had an expectant smile on his face but then noticed that she was giving him a deep stare. Putting his building arousal on hold for a moment, his face morphed into an inquisital expression.
"What is it?"
"I'm waiting for you to tell me what's wrong."
Had it been anyone else, he would've put on a confused expression and attempted to tell them that nothing was wrong but he knew the blonde had him pegged. He couldn't lie while he was staring in her blue gems. Sighing, he brought them both up until his back was against the headboard and Elsa was sitting in his lap.
"How'd you know?"
The blonde tapped his chest where his heart was before pointing to his eyes.
"Your eyes, they told me that you were hiding something from me."
Edward narrowed his eyes as he considered what she said. "My eyes told you that I was hiding something from you?"
"Yeah, they seemed guarded like you didn't want me to see something. Generally when you wake up with me, I can look in them and see everything but right now it's blocked like something is bothering you."
The young man absorbed the information and shook his head to himself. He should've known that there was no hiding anything from him. She had done this before and it was somewhat futile of him to try and hide his thoughts from her. Even when it wasn't even him that was bothered, she knew.
"Well if it makes you feel any better, I'm not the one who's bothered."
It didn't even take her a moment to guess who he was talking about.
"It's Wrath, isn't it? What's wrong with him?"
Edward looked at Elsa and could see that there was genuine concern on her face for the predator. For the first time it seemed that someone actually cared for the demon. Despite what he had done and the power he possessed as well as what he was and what he was made to do, Wrath had someone who genuinely cared for him.
The young man hadn't told Elsa about what Wrath had gone through when Rahim took his stone because the predator seemed to still be shaken about it and he honestly felt that it wasn't his place to say. He was actually surprised that last night the demon had chosen to speak to the blonde when she needed it most but he could tell that the predator needed time.
"He's still a little shaken up from his encounter with Rahim, I'm sure he'll speak with you when he's ready, for now though, he's locked himself in his soul and won't come out."
A sad look crossed her face as Elsa remembered what he had told her last night about his space, the one that was his prison yet was his own space. It was just like how she was with her room, she didn't like to lock herself in her room but when everything got too much she found herself doing it. It was a defense mechanism that her upbringing had instilled in her, she tried to break it but deep down, it was still there. Anna, Edward, Kristoff, Olaf, Kai, Gerda, and Stonewell all helped her break out of that prison and she was grateful to them.
She just wished that Wrath could have people helping him break out of his own prison.
"Can he hear what I'm saying right now?"
Edward shrugged. "He should be able to but there's no guarantee he's actually listening right now. I just saw him and he looked really out of it. I think we should give him time and let him come out on his own."
It was a sensible idea that most would employ but for the woman, she felt a strong desire to at least try something and not just leave Wrath to his own devices. Anna always kicked down her doors to help and while at times that could be detrimental, it also has proven quite effective. The blonde couldn't physically do anything like that but she did want to try something. Elsa had a determined expression on her face as she sat up straight and stared intently in his eyes.
"Let me try something first."
The young man gave her an encouraging expression as she placed her hand over his heart. Elsa's face took on a look of concentration as her hand began to emit a small light as her magic danced above his heart. The blonde would've never attempted this with anyone else, she had almost killed her sister when she released her magic and it struck the redhead in the heart. However, the blonde had been practicing with her abilities and gotten a great deal more precise with them and she kept in mind who was under her.
Edward's body was different from that of a regular human, she had seen him have horrific wounds and recover from them. What she was trying to do in her mind would be too dangerous but the young man's calm and trusting expression pushed her to continue.
Her magic slowly seeped into the young man's body and flowed through it as if it were blood. The wintery wisps did not have to force their way through anything, the young man's own body guided them to their destination.
Wrath was sitting against the courtyard gate with his knees to his chest and his arms wrapped around them. Earlier, when Edward had come, the predator was faintly aware of the young man's presence but he was focused on something else. He could actually see past his courtyard, the reflective surface looked like an ocean of opportunity to him. One that he wished to explore to see what lied beyond the walls of his soul.
Unfortunately, the moment he stepped out from his courtyard, he felt them. The countless copies of Rahims that were just under the surface all of them were aware that he was out of his courtyard. They all longed to grab and drag him to the Hell that he left them in. The possibility of returning to that place was more terrifying than anything he ever felt.
Yet, he still wanted to leave his courtyard.
So he took small steps out of his courtyard and tapped on the reflective surface to test its strength. He remembered how hard it was for him to break through it but he didn't want to consider how strong countless Rahims were when they could make him suffer if they broke through the barrier. The first few taps assured him that the surface was durable and he increased the force behind each tap slowly to get the confidence to walk on the surface. When Edward tried to get his attention, he blocked the young man out to focus entirely on the feeling of how tough the barrier was.
He was about to take a step onto the surface when Edward grabbed his ankle then Wrath found himself back in that abyss. He couldn't breathe, he could barely move, and all he saw were the copies all rushing to his position. As quickly as he could, he raced back into his courtyard and closed the door. He felt Edward trying to get in but he kept the doors closed.
Rationally, he knew the difference between Edward and Rahim but his terror made him see the avenger grabbing his ankle and he didn't want to see that again so he blocked out the young man. He didn't blame Edward but Wrath couldn't even begin to think about opening the gates until the raging beating of his heart as well as the constant shakes of his body ceased.
It made him feel pathetic, he was sitting here hiding in fear from someone who was long dead. He was the King here yet he was so afraid sitting here that he didn't want to think. The anger and rage he could feel from his weapons were once again beginning to make the pit in his stomach grow in size as he could feel all of their desires to kill him. He wanted to block them out but he couldn't, there were just too many of them.
This onslaught of feelings were new to Wrath and all he wanted was for them to stop but he didn't know how. So he did the only thing that was natural.
He waited.
He would wait until all of these feelings went away, he didn't care how long it would take. He would sit here until the feelings went away and he had a semblance of peace in his soul once more.
It seemed like an eternity had passed and nothing had changed. His heart was still beating faster than the hooves of a herd of reindeer. His body shook more than a newborn baby left to die in a frozen tundra. And the ever present feeling of his victims all watching over him waiting for the chance to kill him multiplied his feelings indefinitely.
Yet he still waited. hoping that soon, something would make all bad feelings go away.
Another moment, he started to feel something else. It was faint but it poked at his mind as he lifted his head from his knees and scanned his courtyard. Nothing seemed out of place but there was something here again. Worried it was another intruder, the predator got to his feet and walked down the rows and rows of weapons again searching for any sign that someone else was here.
When he found nothing near his weapons, he got the feeling again from the stairs near the back of the courtyard. Taking cautious steps to the stone steps that he sat at often to stare at the lone star in the black sky, he saw it.
A lone snowflake had slowly dropped in front of him before landing on the bridge of his nose.
He crossed his eyes to look at the apparition and wondered what in the hell it was doing here. On closer examination of it, he finally deduced that it belonged to Elsa given that it was styled in her custom snowflake design. When the thought crossed his mind, he noticed that it began to snow.
He looked up and could see the gentle rain of snowflakes coming from the lone star in the sky. It was an absurd occurrence that wasn't possible but it still happened despite there being no way it should. As each snowflake fell and hit his skin the bad feelings went away. He could feel peace coming to his soul with each gentle tap that came from the snowflakes. None of them even melted when they hit his skin or the ground, soon his entire courtyard was covered in snow.
Despite the surroundings, Wrath wasn't cold in the slightest. He dug in his talons in the snow to embrace the new feeling. He even bent down to grab a handful of snow to see if this was really happening. The powdery substance gave way to his grip and he felt a slight chill that was relaxing to his touch. Taking a seat on the steps, he sat there for a moment just watching the snow continue to fall.
He enjoyed the peace it gave him and would've lost himself in it if he didn't notice that in front of him the snowflakes were falling a little faster in one spot. He watched them pile up on one another until a shape was beginning to form. The snowflakes piled until a large pile formed then stopped. Wrath waited for a moment and watched the pile start to move.
Out stepped a perfect snow replica of Stonewell who even had a snow cigar in his mouth. The snowman didn't say anything and brushed off some imaginary dust off his uniform before frowning and reaching into the pile and dragging out a snow Klein and Hector. The young guard looked sheepish while the noble had a bored expression on his face as Stonewell started to silently bark at them. The pile started to move again and Mr. Jorgen was pushed out the pile by Sven who was carrying Olaf on his back. Kristoff came next after his reindeer as well Anna who followed after him. Kai and Gerda came next before finally Elsa walked through and dissolved the large pile.
Wrath was stunned as he watched the snow people interact around his courtyard. They acted exactly as their real life counterparts would've. Klein and Hector listened to Stonewell rant on them while Mr. Jorgen stood off to side snickering at the Captain. Olaf and Sven were playing in the snow with Kristoff and Anna joining them and even getting into a small snowball fight. Kai and Gerda were off to the side trying to avoid a rogue snowball from the couple's fight.
The predator then felt someone brush up against him as he looked next to him to see the snow Elsa sitting next to him watching everyone go about having fun. For a moment, he wondered if the thing next to him was actually sentient and would respond to him but before he could probe it to find out, the snow woman looked at him with a smile and raised a finger before writing in the air.
Do you want to build a snowman?
The question was somewhat ridiculous given who was asking who and Wrath didn't know how to answer. The snow woman silently laughed before she rose to her feet and grabbed one of his arms and tugged him to his feet and before dragging him over to the rest of the snow people who all stopped what they were doing to look at the two of them. When they got closer, the snow Elsa let go of his arm and crouched down to start gathering snow for her snowman. The others did the same as Wrath awkwardly watched.
When Elsa got her base down, she turned back to Wrath and gestured that he do the same. The predator looked out of place crouching down and making a clump of snow between his hands. The snow woman patiently watched him make the next ball for their snowman and helped him place it on their base. She made another smaller ball then placed it on the snow man's chest ball then waved her fingers and formed a hat and pair of stick arms then gave them to the demon.
He looked down at them with a confused look that she somehow understood and she gestured to the snowman. Wrath added the items in his hands to his snowman and watched Elsa make a few gestures and carved out an ugly lopsided smiling face for their snowman. Around this time, everyone else was finishing with their snowmen and were waiting for the two of them to finish theirs. When all was said and done, there were ten more snowmen next to the one the two of them made and they were all holding hands like a family of snowmen.
At the base of each snowman was a name; Stonewell, Hector, Klein, Mr. Jorgen, Olaf, Sven, Kristoff, Anna, Kai, and Gerda all had their own snowman. Under his was Elsa's name with an ampersand next to it and a blank space. Wondering why she left out his name, Wrath turned to face her and was only given a knowing smile from the snow woman as she took a seat and watched the other snow people begin a snowball fight.
The predator debated on if he wanted to join the snowball fight but ultimately decided to just sit next to Elsa who leaned against him as he sat down. The two of them watched their friends have a great time and Wrath, for once, had a reason to give a small smile as he didn't feel any anger, fear, or loneliness.
He actually felt that he wasn't alone in his courtyard anymore and looked up to the lone star in the sky.
Thank you.
Elsa released a breath that came from letting the magic in her hand disappear. Some sweat was on her brow as she panted a bit and slouched into Edward's chest. She had put a lot of concentration into what she wanted her magic to do once it got to its destination. The young man had told of her Wrath's space and how lonely it was and for a while she wondered if there was ever a way she could access it.
She knew that physically she could never go there and didn't know if her magic could ever breach the soul plane. After running through some ideas in her head, she gave up on the possibility of it ever happening. However when she just learned that he was shutting himself away, she thought the least she could do was try.
Getting some air back in her lungs, Elsa looked back up to gaze into Edward's eyes and see if there was any change. On the surface, the young man's face was the exact same as when she started but she could tell that his eyes weren't as guarded as they were before. He had a somewhat worried look on her face when she collapsed into his arms but it disappeared when she straightened herself out.
"Are you ok?"
The blonde nodded at his question and could tell that it was still Edward speaking to her and not Wrath. While she could tell that her efforts may have helped somewhat, it seemed that the predator still had no intention of speaking. She felt a little disappointed that she couldn't get him to speak but tried to keep that from showing on her face.
"Yes, I just had to concentrate really hard."
The young man nodded before giving her a gentle smile and placing his forehead against hers.
"I could tell. Oh, and I'm sure you would like to know that Wrath said 'thank you' for whatever you did."
The blonde smiled brightly after hearing that the demon had actually responded. While it would've been nice for him to speak for himself, hearing a thank you from him was rewarding enough.
"I just gave him some company."
I am SO SO SO SO sorry for the LONG update. I've been busy and the few days I got off, I just could not be bothered to write another chapter, especially a lemon. I wanted to like hell but I just couldn't fit a lemon into this narrative. Also this chapter was honestly crap in my opinion but I rewrote it a few times and it still doesn't feel right. I'm at a loss, I'll try to bring some better content in the future chapters some of which I'm very excited to write. Anyway, my internet is actually out right now so I can't even upload this chapter right now and I've been shafted at work or been out drinking and died in my bed on weekends. I'll likely stop since I just ordered a husband pillow and it should be here soon so I can comfortably type in the comfort of my bed instead of sitting up right for hours since my chair is crap. So again, please pm me or review and I will respond as soon as possible, I am so sorry for not writing a lemon, I was really excited for it but I just can't fit it in right now with the way the chapter went, I thought I could but I just couldn't.