by Sariah Skye
“Ew!” I cried out, in disgust.
His laughter trailed off and he glanced around us and sighed. “Your apartment is probably a lot nicer than this, huh? The one in Minnesota?”
I shrugged. “Not really. It's pretty lame. I adore Kit, but it's still a small business and it doesn't pay a whole lot; my slinging coffee for humans.” I sighed, picturing my bedroom with the gold and maroon quilt and my Harry Potter house banner hanging up nearby. “I just really want my stuff back. But...it's just stuff.”
He offered a sympathetic smile. He patted my leg gently and, after a brief moment, clutched my hand in his. “Leo, I am in love with you. I know this complicates things for you, and I'm sorry, but it's the truth. I love you. I still love you. Always have. Always will. I'm so happy that I remember now. It explains why I always felt a pull towards you that I couldn't explain. And, I would be more than happy to make love to you right here and now and every day after today for the rest of our lives if you'd let me, but this probably isn't the smartest time.”
I shied away from the intensity of his stare, pulse quickening at his declaration. “Well, it's the best offer I've had in a long time.”
Maxxus beamed and pulled me in towards him. He lengthened his legs out on the bed, boots and all, and I sidled up next to his long body, resting my cheek against his steady heartbeat, snaking my arm around his stomach. He pulled the blanket over us tightly. “This is probably inappropriate, isn't it?”
I shrugged blandly, melting into him and relaxing. Being next to Gabriel felt nice—wonderful even—but Maxxus felt familiar.
He felt like home. I muttered something like “Idon'tfuckingcare,” as I buried my face into his chest, taking a deep breath of his distinct scent once again.
“I don't know how long it will take but you should get some rest.”
I briefly looked up, alarmed. “The Shadows, though. I haven't seen them in my dreams since the Kit-thing but—”
“I will watch you. You should rest; Finnian told me that your magic is at its best when you are refreshed. It's been a long day and it'll be a long night if you don't.”
“Mmm...” my eyes felt heavy at his suggestion. I hadn't been tired before, but I noticed my exhaustion now. His heart steady in my ear, I inhaled his earthy, spicy scent and was lulled off to sleep, as he absentmindedly stroked the hair at the back of my neck, a fingertip gently tracing the outline of my dragon's mark I'd once tried so hard to hide. I shivered lightly and closed my eyes.
Chapter 13
I should have known my relaxing rest wouldn't last. I wasn't sure how long after I fell asleep that happened, but it must have been awhile. I was amid a pretty heavy dream involving some activities I wasn't allowing myself to act out upon, but my dreams were giving me a pretty nice preview, at least.
I was ripped out of our little shack, hidden in the woods where Maxxus and I had spent most of our time growing up, scantily clad and tossed into a dark, empty void.
Goddammit.
I looked down at myself, stretching out my arms. Scratchy robes covered my body now, in black; it was hard to tell, with the absence of any true light. I itched my arm and squirmed uncomfortably. “Ugh...” I mumbled.
“You didn't really think I'd want to see you naked, did you?” A voice rumbled around me with no origin. “I know how you seduced Maxxus into helping you. I won't allow you do the same to anyone else here.”
Ignoring the barb, I swallowed, daring to look around. Pitch black laid out before me for a far as I could see. My anxiety began to well up inside me, as I spoke out loud. “Hello?” No echo, my words fell dead into the void.
Sure enough... I was in the Shadow realm. But it didn't feel nearly as terrifying as before. I was nervous—my hands shook lightly, but I wasn't nearly as despaired as I normally was. Perhaps it's because I've been here before, and I knew what to expect. Or perhaps it was because my magic was stronger now.
I tried, in vain, to summon a small ball of light in my palm. It ignited briefly and fizzled out, but in the dim light it had provided, I caught several outlines around me; walls that squared off into corners and, what appeared to be the dim shapes of shelves scattered about... all encompassed by the ever-present Shadow tendrils that hissed and slithered about.
A light chuckle sounded from nearby. I quickly spun in my heap on the hard ground, trying to catch a glimpse of it. I summoned another light ball quickly, and attempted to gauge my surroundings further with the brief light it gave off.
I nearly screamed out loud in terror, as I clambered to my feet, noticing a large presence about ten feet in front of me. It appeared to be human, but not simultaneously. I could see the outline of a head, shoulders and torso, but the appendages seemed to blend into the darkness. I summoned another lightball and saw they weren't blending in, they were encumbered with tendrils that snaked from the ground in Shadow masses. I swallowed nervously, slowly stepping back, narrowing my eyes on the face in an attempt to distinguish the features, but, all at once I knew who it was.
“Nicodemus.” Was all I said in a small, strangled voice.
The strange form stepped out of the 'shadows' and became a bit more pronounced. I could clearly see his eyes, though they were not a normal brown shade, but tinged with a deep, blood-red violet. His appendages were still blurred with the dripping Shadow tendrils, but I saw enough of his bastard face to see it was him.
“What the fuck do you want?” I demanded, raspily. “Where is my grandfather? I know you have him!”
“He is... close. That's all you'll get out of me.” A bitter laugh escaped him. His head seemed to fall backward, letting out the disconcerting sound. It rattled my body with fear momentarily before one of the Shadow appendages raised, and the tendrils shot outward momentarily.
I felt a tightening around my throat, and I gasped for air—not enough to strangle me, but enough to make it very uncomfortable. I tried to grasp the invisible force around my throat, but I found my arms were pinned. I peered downwards and noticed a small tendril wrapped around my throat.
“You don't scare me.” I narrowed my eyes stubbornly, imagining a burst of soft light shooting from my core. Before my eyes glowed a slight glow of pink, and the tendril wrapped around my throat squealed with pain and collapsed to the ground. My hands were unpinned now and I shot up to my feet and stalked towards him.
Nicodemus held up a hand again—what I assumed was his hand—and I stopped once again, dead in my tracks.
I looked up at him and growled. “Fuck you.” I shut my eyes in concentration and tried to will the change to my dragon form where I hoped my magic would be stronger. I felt a small stretch, however, the dragon didn't come. A slight stinging sensation on my back indicated that my wings had at least obliged. I flicked my hand open, concentrating deeply on a ball of soft light, and a small twinkle appeared in my hand. My wings folded over me carefully, as if shielding me from the Shadows, and the twinkle popped and shook into a full-blown ball of black light—almost like a wisp, but much dimmer.
In the dim light, I got a better look at Nicodemus's face and body. It was him, but like he was shrouded under a thick, black cloak with a veil over his head. His eyes and mouth were distinguishable, and when he moved the light accentuated his arms; I could see that the Shadow tendrils had enveloped him, like a robe. He appeared surprised, eyeing my magic.
“I guess you underestimated me,” I spat at him, full of snark.
A show of black teeth glowed through the veil and he chuckled. “Perhaps, but a mistake I will not make again. Keep in mind, pink dragon, that this is my realm, and you are here because I allow you to be.”
I snorted. “I don't want to be here so what do you want with me?”
Nicodemus stepped closer. “I know you and that bastard green dragon boyfriend of yours—that traitorous maggot—are here. You're looking for me.” He snorted bitterly. “What you think you're going to do is beyond me, but if you want me—I'm here. Come and get me.” He outstretched his arms in a tau
nting gesture.
I glared. “What we're going to do for you is shove all this Shadow shit straight up your ass, and obliterate you to the Underrealms—that's what we're going to do, fucker!” I forced myself to sound more confident than I actually felt. I smacked my hands together and pulled them apart slowly, willing the arcane light mass to grow larger, and larger.
Nicodemus snickered. “Just what do you think you're going to do here? Your magic won't affect me here, little fairy dragon.”
Little fairy dragon. Words of Lorusto before he tried to fry me to a crisp. The anger swelled up in me like a drink, shaken too long—before long I would explode for sure.
“You dick...” I spat vehemently. I spun the magic around, willing it larger, breathing my magic over it. The normal brilliant sparkle was a dull violet hue here and it took on an evil appearance as it mixed with the magic in my hands.
Nicodemus threw his head back and laughed wildly. “What are you going to do with that?”
I slammed the magic in his direction, causing direct contact to his chest. His eyes widened slightly and he was knocked backward as it dispersed, dozens of tendrils shrieking and falling away as he stumbled, clearly caught off guard by my power.
I grinned devilishly, watching him compose himself. Before he got a chance to right himself, I quickly summoned more magic and slammed it at him, feeling exhilarated by the immense power I pulled from my core. Just as I was about to toss it at him, Nicodemus' arm shot out, and his Shadow magic flew out like a bomb, engulfing me wholly.
My arcane magic dropped and I let out a scream as the magic spun around me, like fog circling on the moor before a storm. I was lifted into the air a short distance, but even with the weightlessness, I felt a heavy blanket of Shadow try to press me down. My earlier confidence was shot, and my mind was filled instead with horrible thoughts…
Suffocating. Alone. I had no magic. I had no worth. If I just gave myself—
“No!” I flung my arms out, my wings thrusting sideways and catching… I don't know what. Air? But they found something flapped gently, out of the Shadows reach as they tumbled listlessly to the ground. The panic I'd felt erased and while I didn't feel right, I didn't feel as helpless. The Shadows weren’t having the same effect on me as they once were, that's for sure.
I dared to look at Nicodemus as I floated over him, wings beating steadily. I was expecting him to look displeased, or at least a little shocked but he grinned an evil smile.
“Well... now this is new,” he said, with malevolent laughter.
“It's not all, either. You won't stop us from destroying you!” I yelled at him, with newfound defiance.
He smirked. “You'll have to get me first.” He tossed his magic out, whirling his appendage over his head, illuminating the room around us briefly with the dim black light. I caught brief glimpses of racks full of weaponry, dank stone walls glistening with moisture from being underground and colder than the above land, rusty chains hung from the walls that seemed out of place and the quick illumination of his reflection off the set of mirrors on the wall opposite us. Maxxus was right, it did appear to be the weapons room he assumed Nicodemus would end up in.
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Gladly.”
Suddenly, his evil laughter faded as the room spun wildly. The itchy wool robes were yanked off me and tossed to some unknown place, leaving me in my underwear once again. The dark void of the Shadow realm was replaced with an indistinguishable scene. The only thing I could discern was a new-found feeling of heat and elation and pressure on my lips.
My eyes flew open and I gasped for breath. But it wasn't the Shadows. Maxxus had his body pressed against me, his mouth over mine frantically.
He released me back onto a soft surface. I looked around and realized that I was back in his room, sitting partially upright in his bed. Maxxus stood just inches away from me, a look of utter panic and helplessness on his face as he grasped my shoulders tightly as if for dear life.
He breathed out a sigh of relief, pulling my body into his and hugging me tightly. “Oh Gods, Leorah! You scared the shit out of me—I thought you were gone!! You were choking and screaming and—” his voice trailed off, as he choked back his words.
I peered intently into his face, flushed with worry and I grazed my finger across his jawline. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you.”
“Don't apologize!” He leaned in and pelted my face with kisses, hugging me tighter against his warm body which felt heavenly in contrast to the dank nothingness of the Shadow realm. “What happened? I thought it must have been the Shadows but, I don't have any light magic, so I did the only thing I could think of to pull you out of it!”
I smiled from the side of my mouth. “The first thing you could think of was to make out with me?”
Maxxus' eyes widened with horror and I snickered. His face softened and he kissed me once again, this time on the neck, playfully nipping with his teeth. I had to struggle to not lose myself to the heat welling inside. “Damn you, I should bite you here and now and show you who's boss for scaring the shit out of me like that!”
“Really?” I smirked, pushing him playfully.
Maxxus scoffed. “So what happened?”
My eyes were becoming rather hooded now narrowed, suddenly remembering where I just was. “It was Nicodemus.”
“Dammit!” He cursed, slamming his fist in frustration on the bed next to me. “That's not what I meant by his finding me. I assumed he'd storm the hallways yelling for me. Oh, I'm so sorry”
I held up my palm for him to stop. “No. It worked. He wasn't able to overtake me. I was actually able to knock him on his ass briefly with my magic,” I smiled triumphantly. “And I—” I glanced back over my shoulder for my wings; they weren't present. Only in the “dream”. “Well, I flew. And he couldn’t touch me, I don't think. But that's when he sent me back. Or you pulled me back or—whatever.”
Maxxus considered this. “That's something, I suppose. Did you see where he was?”
I nodded. “I believe it was the training room like you said. He showed me.”
“He showed you?” he responded, surprised. He scratched at his chin, a look of uncertainty in his face. “That... sounds off. This definitely sounds like a trap.”
I considered this. “Probably. But if we're going to get some answers, that's where he'll be.”
“You didn't see your grandfather, though?” he questioned.
I shook my head, realizing that I hadn't even had enough time to think about it. “If he was there, I didn't see him. But he said 'he's close'.”
Maxxus stood and cursed, pummeling his fist into his other hand angrily. “Damn him!”
“Let's go get him, then. If I were able to strike him in the Shadow realm—just think what I'll be able to do here, in ours,” I said. “He doesn't stand a chance.”
Maxxus sighed. “I hope you're right.” He put his hand to his head and then closed his eyes, resting against the wall for support.
“Are you okay?” I asked, concerned.
“Oh…. yeah. Just tired. And a little overwhelmed. You actually were out for a couple hours, and I had to get up for a while to keep myself from falling asleep.” He motioned towards his quarters, which were decidedly much cleaner than they were before. He pointed at his pack on the floor, next to the bed. “I gathered up my clothing, at least.”
I eyed the small pack oddly. “Um... how'd you fit all that in there?”
Maxxus grinned. “Special pack Finnian gave me.”
“What the—” I looked around for my own pack across the room. I opened it and pulled out the pouch he'd given me and eyed it suspiciously.
“Reach in. All the way,” he instructed.
I shoved my hand in. I figured when I hit the vials and whatnot on the bottom I'd hit the seam, but I didn't. “What the…?” I pushed my hand in all the way up my upper arm, feeling paper-wrapped sandwiches and a cold, sweaty plastic bottle of—
“—Mountain Dew!” I pulled it
out triumphantly. “Man, forget anything nasty I ever said about him!” I quickly twisted off the cap and took a long swig. It burned as it chased down my throat and I let out a groan of pleasure after. “Oh geez, that's good.”
Maxxus gave me a strange look, and grabbed the bottle from me, taking a sip of his own. He nearly choked and thrust the bottle back at me. “Geez—it's so—sweet!”
“I know!” I said blissfully. I took another long drink, capping it tightly again and shoving it back in the pouch as he grimaced.
He shook his head with a laugh, before snapping his fingers as if remembering something. He grabbed for his own pack and pulled something out enclosed in his fist. “I found something for you.”
“Oh?” I sat back down on the bed hesitantly.
He thrust his palm towards me and opened his fingers. I gasped, seeing the golden and green stoned ring he'd offered me before, on that day he asked me to be bonded with him. “Oh my...” It was beautiful yet simple, and I felt the tears sting in my eyes, sad for promises not yet kept, love lost and confusion.
He grabbed my hand and pried open my fingers, setting it gently in my palm and clasping them back over it. It tingled slightly in my grasp and I felt a sudden warmth. “I forgot how pretty it was.” I opened my hand and fingered it; almost promptly putting it back on my hand but stopping short.
He sighed. “You can keep it safe until you make up your mind.”
I frowned, seeing his wounded expression. Why was I hesitating?
I grumbled. “I wonder if Finnian removed all the magic,” I mused out loud, clutching the ring tightly in my hand, feeling it's pleasant tingle.
Maxxus looked up at me, quizzically. “What do you mean?”
I sighed. “I don't know. I remember how I felt. I am sure that our memories were removed sometime after that night by the river. I loved you immensely and I was so thrilled to be with you—what is stopping me now?”
Maxxus smiled wryly. “Gabriel?”