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The Ties that Bind	By : Lady_Kae Category: +M through R > Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Views: 2280 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own any characters used from the game Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch. All characters and game related material, plus any lyrics, save for original content is property of their respective owners and no money is being made from this

Chapter List
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A/N: OMG! This chapter took me forever to write. Then again, I've had a lot going on in the last month or so, on top of all the mandatory overtime I've been getting at work. No worries though, I'm going to keep cranking them out! Only a few more chapters left in Book 2! Without any further adeiu, enjoy ^^

Book II: Bond

Chapter 9: And the Walls Came Tumbling Down

A Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Fanfiction

Amara was concentrating deeply, though the ripple that coursed from her lower back and over her abdomen made her lose focus. “ Damn.” she swore.
“ Are you alright love?” Gascon asked timidly. She was sitting in a rocker at the moment and all he had seen was her flying forward gripping her girth.
“ Just a false labor pain, Gascon.” Amara replied with another wince. After a minute her features finally calmed and she sat back again with Gascon’s hands working at her shoulders. “ Something isn’t right here, darling.” she murmured. His fingers felt like heaven as he began to knead the tension from her back.
“ You’ve felt it too then? I wish we had some way of contacting any of the guardians or your grandfather. I can’t shake the feeling that wasn’t the first time Vana used that spell on someone…” Gascon said worriedly. He leaned over the back of the chair as they both looked out the window. The entire setting was nothing more than a recreation that they had thought up to feel more at home, but it was something at least. It beat being in pitch black darkness all the damn time for sure.
Amara nodded silently as his arms wrapped themselves around her from over her shoulders. “ I can’t do anything to help at this point. We need to bring Sean and Andi here as soon as possible Gascon. Time is running out and I don’t mean for the baby and I...Their world is going to start fading soon. I think it’s tied to the spell I cast when Vana attacked you.” she finished softly.
Gascon’s brow furrowed even more in his worry. They had been keeping close tabs on what was transpiring where their bodies lay, and he knew the spell was nearing its end. They had to wake soon, or Amara and the baby wouldn’t survive childbirth. “ Can you sense anything at the moment love? Maybe I can head over there to find out what’s amiss.”
Amara nodded and she bowed her head in concentration once more. She needed to seek out what else was there. Slowly the world around her began fading until she managed to focus in on a single blood red point. The malcontent this one felt was all but oozing from it’s aura.“ There’s another spirit here. His body died before his consciousness could recall his soul back and he’s been stuck here since.” Amara’s eyes were shut tightly as she reached out mentally through the plane they were occupying, attempting to gather more information from that point in consciousness. “ It’s odd though...It’s manifested where Sean and Andi are. Wait...It’s...It’s planning something. Violence. By the ancients, the ill will from...AHHH!” Amara screamed as both hands flew to her head and her eyes screwed shut even tighter against the burning pain flaring through her mind.
“ AMARA!” Gascon cried out. He hurriedly caught her before Amara could fall from the rocker and he scooped her into his arms. “ Break the connection Amara! Now!” He laid her down on the bed and Amara twisted and writhed as much as her pregnant body would allow. His wife was in agony and there was nothing he could do about it! “ Amara! It’s your mind! Force him out! Slam your walls down, hurry!”
Amara bolted up in the bed and she gasped for breath. Tears were streaming down her face and she winced at how her head still felt as if it were aflame. “ Andi...Sean...Danger!” she gasped out. “ He’s going to kill them Gascon!”
“ Who is he?” Gascon’s brown eyes were flitting over Amara nervously. By the ancients, he prayed that the mental torture his wife had been subjected to hadn’t triggered her labor. She had been in very real pain there for a moment.
“ His name is Romand! Gascon, if it’s who I think it is, we need to get Sean and Andi here now!” Amara pleaded as she gripped his forearms tightly. “ Go! NOW!”
Gascon didn’t need to be told twice. He grabbed his rifle from beside the door and slammed it shut behind him. He didn’t notice the crack that was left when it didn’t latch.

Riley was in his bedroom at home, though he was trashing the place like a man possessed. Something in his chest was burning, was trying to pry it’s way out of him. He needed relief! Dammit, he was a doctor and this was unlike anything he had ever felt before!
Just let me in control boy. You don’t exist anyways. came a cruel sneer.
“ No!”
You want the woman too, don’t you? Vanluviel’s beauty is something to behold isn’t it? Damn Barador for his meddling! You want him dead too, don’t you? Always and forever getting the very things we’ve longed for and coveted from afar. I would have killed him sooner if I had the chance, but both of us could correct that mistake now...We could kill them if you give me the reins. Make him suffer as we claim the very thing, the woman who he betrayed our friendship for, and then kill her before his very eyes. Then we’ll make him plead for his own death…
“ Who the hell are you?” Riley screamed into his bedroom. He had never been the violent sort. Not until Sean met Andi and stole her out from under his nose. Even then, there had been a voice tickling his ear that entire time telling him to get his revenge. And Riley had.
I’m you boy, can’t you feel it? You’re whom my soul mate would have been if I were still alive today. How the times have changed in the last eight hundred years...One thing hasn’t though...Barador is still an insufferable ass...the voice hissed.
“ Who is Barador?” Riley panted now. The pain in his chest was lessening the more he spoke to the voice. “ And you never gave me your name.”
My name? Oh I haven’t had a chance to say it in so, so long...An evil chuckle echoed through the room and Riley spun about. My name is Prince Romand of Evesta, and you and I have some justice to meet out. Barador you see, he’s the one you know as Sean, and Vanluviel? I think that one is explanatory.
“ Andi…” Riley whispered in understanding. “ What does your beef with them have to do with me?”
Don’t you see, boy? Barador did the same thing to me that your friend did to you. They stole the woman we desired from right under our very noses. And then when I finally met my revenge on Barador, Vanluviel cursed me into this...Neither alive or dead, just stuck in a state of in between. You can help me fix that you know...Both of us can take what’s ours, Riley. You just need to let me have control. With my power you can kill Sean if you so choose, and then do as you please with the woman. What will it be? Romand’s voice was a soft purr and Riley looked into the mirror above his dresser. His reflection was not his own however and the young man stood straight as he looked into the prince’s silver eyes. Silver eyes that matched his own.
“ Do what you must.” Riley hissed in return. He choked back another scream as his chest began burning again, but this time he didn’t fight it. It was odd, in his twenty five years of life he had always felt as if something was missing. Now, it felt as if he was becoming whole for the first time.
And with that wholeness came a power he had never experienced. A power that he would use to kill Sean…
Kill him. Make him pay…
Riley’s lips turned up into a feral smile and he stood straight as he began laughing madly. The wind outside was howling and the sky was growing darker as the stars began fading away.
Everything would die by his hand. But first there was the issue of the presence he had felt on and off since Sean and Andi had arrived.

Andi smiled serenely as Sean nuzzled her neck and she couldn’t stifle the giggle that bubbled forth from the contact. “ Sean, really. You need to stay still so that I can make sure they go on right.” she chided mirthfully. Her hands were sweeping in a left to right motion as she gingerly rolled a fresh layer of gauze over his chest and Andi eased Sean’s right arm from over her shoulder to back into his lap. She needed to get over his shoulder now to keep the padding on both sides of his torso put. “ Besides, once I’m done I need to call your parents. Terri’s going to be thrilled you’re awake again.”
“ That can wait until morning, Andi.” Sean rasped. He felt Andi press a piece of tape over the end of the bandage and she quickly grabbed the water on the bedside table.
“ Easy now. You’ve been out for the last week after all.” Andi said gently. “ I promised Terri I would call her and your dad the minute you woke up, Sean. I’m not in the mood to get my ass chewed out again. Once was more than enough.”
Sean chuckled and swallowed the cool, crisp water down. It was like a balm to his parched throat. He remembered that moment all too well. “ I’ll handle my mom, Andi. I…” he paused as he took another drink. “ I won’t deny I’d rather have you to myself for a bit before she starts in on her mothering.” He sat back fully against the pillows and Andi brushed a few stray locks from his face. “ I’m also a bit confused. You were telling me just the other day you wanted nothing to do with me, Andi.”
Andi shook her head. “ I was trying to push you away Sean...I didn’t want to accept the fact that you had never once tried to find someone else, had stayed faithful to me all that time. It was daunting that you still loved me that much, despite the fact that I broke your heart. I still feel undeserving of such love and devotion…” Her face fell as she spoke, her voice barely a whisper as tears began sliding down her cheeks. “ But when I saw you near dead on that stretcher, my heart started hammering. It felt as if it was tearing itself in two the longer I stared at the knife sticking out of your back. Then the only thing I could think of was that I couldn’t let you die. How much emptier my world would be without you in it. How empty it’s been since I made you leave…” Andi hurriedly wiped her tears away and she grasped both of Sean’s hands in hers tightly. “ I don’t want to feel that loneliness anymore, Sean. I’m willing to set the record straight, willing to do whatever it takes. I’m not saying we need to resume our engagement; even I’ll admit that’s too fast, but maybe, just maybe we can pick things up where we left off before my accident happened…”
Sean swallowed hard as Andi’s wet, azure eyes bore into his intensely and he pulled her in closer to him. “ We’ll talk once I’m out of the hospital, Andi.” he agreed softly as his arms wrapped around her. “ Just be warned that Mom’s going to want to transfer me closer to home now that I’m awake.”
“ Then I’m coming back to New York then. The school never specified I had to do all my hours here at Brigham’s. In fact, I’m sure I can email all my reports over from here on.” Andi purred. She rubbed the tip of her nose with Sean’s and he smiled softly. “ I’m not leaving your side Sean Morrison. You can’t make me either.”
“ Fine by me then.” he replied.

Sean was walking gingerly around his hospital room when Andi came bouncing in. He was finally heading home today and Andi had already made her finalizations to move back to New York. With her help, he had been able to find a quaint little four bedroom house in Suffolk County off of Madeline Rd. Between the money he was making at SteelHog now, and the fact that Victor had promised to help Sean buy the house as well, the payments were more than worth it. He kissed Andi softly at first as her arms wrapped around his waist, and he groaned pleasantly as she deepened the kiss. Oh how he had missed that. One eye opened suspiciously as the lights in his room flickered and Andi looked up in surprise as well. “ That was a mood killer.” he deadpanned.
Andi nodded in return, though she suddenly felt wary. She shook her head in an effort to fend off her uneasiness, and she looked back to Sean. “ You’re mom told me you took up street racing…” her voice was full of disappointment as she spoke and her hands trailed gently across his side. She could see the scars he had running from his back over his ribs, and to the front near his navel.
“ I promised her I would stop after the last wreck I had.” Sean replied as he sat back down on the bed. He took Andi’s hand in his and he took a steadying breath. “ In all honesty though, I can’t tell you how I got those scars. I woke up last August in Englewood across the Hudson, and dad told me I had a nasty wreck on the Palisades. Told me that the caddy had been completely totaled and that it looked as if it had been crushed. I told him I couldn’t remember a damn thing, much less how I wound up across the New Jersey state line.
“ He was livid though, and dad said I was lucky to even be alive. Apparently shards from the windshield had been embedded in my left side...Like with your leg and side…” he whispered the last part softly and Sean looked up at Andi with wet eyes. “ That night was the worst night in my life, Andi. I hadn’t even been there a full five minutes when the doctor told us about your injuries.”
Andi’s face paled. “ You already knew?!” she said shrilly, jumping up from the bed. “ Why didn’t you say anything all this time?!”
Sean shook his head. “ I don’t know what you’re going on about, Andi! Talk to me here. No hiding things in half truths, or in riddles and answering a question with a question anymore…” Sean paused a moment. Those words were so familiar, as if Andi had said them to him before in her own ire. But it wasn’t Andi either, he could see the woman’s face as clear as day in his mind’s eye. Those bright blue eyes, pale pink lips, chestnut brown locks drawn away from her face artfully, those slightly tipped ears…
Sean shook his head to clear the image. No, that wasn’t him that had experienced that, and it hadn’t been Andi to tell him. Andi! He needed to calm her down before she had a panic attack. She looked as if she were on the verge of one right now! “ Andi! Look at me!” Sean, though it hurt like hell to do it, pulled Andi back over by her wrist and he roughly sat her beside him on the bed. He cupped her face with both hands in an effort to bring her focus to his eyes and Sean felt his heart clench at the fear he saw there. “ What’s wrong, Andi. Talk to me hun. You said you wanted us to work this out.”
“ You all knew, and you didn’t tell me…” Andi sobbed out. Her eyes screwed shut and she kept hitting her leg in an effort to keep from pounding against Sean’s chest.
“ What?” came Sean’s whisper in her ear.
“ My miscarriage.” Andi finally whimpered. It was if those words released the floodgates, as Andi began crying for all she was worth in Sean’s embrace. If she had looked up, she would have seen how flabbergasted he honestly was.
Sean’s eyes were wide in shock. Surely the doctor would have pulled him aside to tell him that he had lost a child, right? Something that important could not so easily be written off as just happenstance. Not only that, when would have Andi gotten pregnant to begin with? Yeah, they both had been like jackrabbits when it came to screwing, but they had always, ALWAYS taken precautionary measures to keep from getting pregnant. Andi had been on the pill and Sean had used a condom damn near every time. He could only recall four times that he had never used a condom, but he had made sure to pull out too. Sean’s chest was heaving. “ Who told you that?” he demanded softly. He pushed Andi off his chest and he held her shoulders tightly. Sean shook her a bit as well. “ Who told you that, Andi?!”
Andi’s bottom lip quivered, though her tears were halting due to the unadulterated shock on Sean’s face. “ The doctor that was there when I woke up...Who else, Sean?” she whispered.
“ Andi, the surgeon never made any mention of you losing a baby, or that you had been pregnant on the table! Think woman, you’re a doctor! Would they honestly have given you such potent pain medication if you had been pregnant?! That’s the first thing they check for before putting someone under the knife, you know that!” Sean’s voice was a near shout as he finished and Andi’s eyes went wide. “ Did you ever verify that for yourself?”
“ No...I just thought...My injuries…” Andi sniffled again and she stood up, though her mind was going a thousand miles a minute. “ I’ll be right back.” She took off running from the room and down the hall. She needed to look at her records now.
Terri and Victor entered the room just a moment later looking puzzled. “ What happened there, Sean?” Victor asked.
“ I don’t even know where to start.” Sean admitted.

Andi skidded to a halt in front of the records department. “ MARK!” she called out in a panic. She knew that the man had to be there. “ Mark!”
Mark Sanford, Liam’s boyfriend, rushed over to the window where Andi was standing. Her breathing was labored and her color was so pale she looked as if she had seen a ghost. “ Andi? Honey, what’s going on?”
“ I need to look at my file Mark! Right now! They’re discharging Sean in roughly an hour and I need to have my file before then!”
Mark nodded wordlessly. The tone of Andi’s voice was desperate and he quickly looked it up in the system. “ Let me print that copy for you and you’ll need to sign something for me to release them to you.”
Andi nodded and she leaned against the counter. Dear god, she prayed Sean was wrong. If she had dumped him because of some asshole doctor telling her that, there were gonna be some heads rolling soon. Think Andi...Who was the doctor tending to you when you woke up? she thought desperately. She could hear the printer in the background, the gentle whoosh whoosh whoosh of the papers being spat out and falling into a neat little pile in the collection tray. Harris, Haddock...Dammit, it began with an ‘h’! I know that for a fact! “ Hames…” she whispered. “ Mark! You’ve been working here for years. Was there ever a Dr. Hames here?”
Mark nodded. “ Yeah. Adam Hames less than two years ago. By Hannah was he dreamy! OOH! Liam and I used to joke about how we wanted to…” Mark began, tittering a bit girlishly when Andi waved him off before he could finish what he was saying, though he was sliding the form that she needed to sign over to Andi. “ He was finishing up his clinical hours when you were here, honey. In fact…” Mark paused a minute as he pulled up something on the computer. “...October sixteenth was his last shift here before he graduated.”
Andi’s color went paler than she thought possible. October sixteenth had been the day she had woken up from her coma. She leaned over the counter to kiss the man on the cheek before taking her copy of her file. “ Thanks Markie. I’m going to miss you and Liam something fierce.” she admitted.
“ We’ll miss you too, sweetie. Now, get back up there with that delicious boy toy of yours!” Mark said with a smile.
Andi looked at the sealed manila envelope in her hands. This held all the answers to everything. As much as she truly wanted….No needed to know, Andi was terrified to open it yet.

Sean was dozing lightly with his head on Andi’s shoulder. They were riding with his parents back in their plane and Andi was quietly flipping through the pages of her file. She had only dared to open it once Sean had fallen asleep, and Terri and Victor were up closer to the cockpit talking in hushed tones. She didn’t want any of them asking any questions before she got her answers first. The next page she turned was about the night of the crash and her eyes widened in interest. Now she honestly had a chance to learn more about everything that had happened that night. Her brow furrowed as no mention of her miscarriage was there, no HCG levels in her pre-op blood work indicating she had been pregnant. Nothing detailing a DNC, or anything like that. The plane was just starting to touch down when she shut the file and put it back into the envelope. It was just as well because Sean had woken up. The look on her face spoke volumes however as they got off the plane and into the cab that would take them to Sean’s apartment at the Avalon.

Amara sighed heavily as she rubbed her belly once more. It had been a little more than three hours since she had the last contraction and her eyebrows knit together in a grimace. Her blue eyes snapped open a moment later however and she bolted up in the bed. That presence...She felt it just as keenly as she had when she had searched for it. Not only that, there was no way it could have found her here! She and Gascon always made sure to cover their tracks when they jumped between the planes.
She looked over to the door and Amara’s heartbeat quickened at the sight of what looked to be black smoke curling under the door. That wasn’t any ordinary smoke...
That was the aura of true evil. And it was coming here first.
The longer Amara stared at it, the more she began seeing a face forming in the smoke now billowing into the bedroom. The door began opening and the swan of Cygnus hurriedly scooted to the other side of the bed in an attempt to put more room between her and what was now entering her sanctuary. Standing as tall as she could, Amara drew the rune for arrow of light faster than she ever had before in her life.
" Knock knock..." came a menacing tone as the door opened wider.
Amara let the arrow fly the moment she had a clear shot. There was no way in hell she was going down without a fight, pregnant or not.

Sean’s brow was furrowed worriedly as he and Andi began climbing the steps up to his apartment. He had already started packing everything even before he had left for Boston three weeks ago, and there had been movers here in an attempt to help him. All of Andi’s things were being moved to their new home in Ridge by the end of the week. He knew the look on Andi’s face, and he was already prepared to talk to her once they were alone behind closed doors. Sean fished out his keys and he opened the door, smiling sadly at the sight of all the boxes sitting against the wall.
“ It looks completely different.” Andi whispered as her arm snaked around Sean’s waist.
Sean nodded in agreement. “ C’mon. We’ll call for some delivery and then sit down to talk.” he said encouragingly. “ Don’t even give me that look Andi. Don’t think I didn’t notice how you’ve been since we left the airport.”
Andi sighed and she shook her head a bit. Of course Sean would have noticed. He probably felt it too. “ Fine. What are you ordering?” she asked.
“ Wang Chung's?” he offered.
Andi’s eyes brightened almost instantly. She hadn’t had good chinese takeout since she had moved to Boston full time. “ Oooo! Sean, you know what to order right?!”
“ One pint of shrimp lo mein, one quart a piece of wonton and egg drop soup, one quart of orange chicken, beef and broccoli, and chicken schezwan. Plus a crap load of white rice.” Sean chuckled. “ I know for a fact your appetite hasn’t changed a bit.”
Andi laughed a little in return and she nodded. It felt good to be back again, she realized. While they were taking time in reestablishing themselves, Andi felt whole being beside Sean again. Hell, tonight would be the first night that they shared a bed in nearly two years. Admittedly, she hadn’t felt right sleeping by herself since she had broken up with him. “ I’ll go choose a movie for us to watch then.”
“ Ummm...All the dvd’s are packed up.” Sean admitted. “ We can just order a pay per view if anything.”
Andi nodded. “ I’ll start looking through then.”
“ I’ll be in there once I’m done ordering.” Sean replied.

Andi had indeed chosen a movie by the time Sean joined her in the living room and she felt him kiss the top of her head. “ What time are they going to be here?” she asked.
“ Roughly forty minutes. It’s a busy night tonight apparently.” Sean answered as he sat next to her. “ Now, what’s been on your mind? You’ve been tense since we left the airport, Andi…”
Andi nodded. “ I got a copy of my medical records before we left Boston.” she admitted. “ I read over my file while we were flying and I found everything pertaining to my accident. You were right. There was nothing there about a miscarriage, or anything about me being pregnant.” She stopped Sean before he could say anything and she took a steadying breath as his arms wrapped around her comfortingly. “ I’m sorry Sean...For everything the last year and a half. As a med student, I should have looked into everything myself, and I didn’t. I took what he had to say at face value. God, I’m so sorry Sean. I don’t have the right to love you as much as I still do for everything I put you through.”
Sean felt a couple tears slip down his cheeks and they fell into Andi’s hair. “ I won’t deny I was hurt Andi…” He whispered. “ But what I told you when I saw you again holds true. I never took my ring off because you always had my heart. I never stopped loving you. And I know the hell you’ve put yourself through. Even though we were apart, we still have that uncanny bond of ours.” Sean’s hand nestled in Andi’s hair as he cradled her closer to him and he took in a deep breath. She still smelled of lavender and mint.
“ I know. That what made it so hard...I could still feel you as if you were in the next room.” Andi admitted. “ I knew how you felt when I did cry myself to sleep, which only made me feel worse.”
Sean felt Andi move a moment and his brown eyes met her bright, tear filled blue ones.
“ Can you ever forgive me for what I’ve done? I feel like I don’t deserve it, but…” Andi’s eyes screwed shut as she tried to fight off a fresh wave of sobs, and Sean brushed away the tears that spilled down her cheeks. She leaned into his touch and she opened her eyes tentatively, the look on her face nothing short of vulnerable.
Sean swallowed hard as he looked at her. “ I already have Andi…” he whispered. Sean closed the distance between them and he crashed his lips against hers. That moment felt oh so right, so wonderful.
Andi was in heaven. She leaned back against the sofa and Sean followed her willingly, as he wasn’t keen on breaking this soft, sweet connection that they were reforging. His hips were nestled tightly against hers and Andi gasped against his lips when heat flared through her. It had been so damn long since she felt like this!
Sean grinned sexily against her mouth and he brought a hand between them to caress Andi through their clothing. He sure as hell wasn’t averse to a round or two of make up sex. Now Andi on the other hand might try to stave him off because he was still healing from his ordeal, but even then she had said everything was looking great. He felt Andi arch high against him as he ran his thumb in a circle over her clit through her jeans and her hands wound into his short locks as she pulled him closer. “ Andi…” he whispered huskily. “ We don’t have that much time but…”
“ Dammit Sean.” Andi growled. He had almost gotten her too carried away there “ You don’t need to be doing anything that physically taxing as it stands.” She shoved him off at the shoulders and Sean couldn’t keep himself from chuckling as he sat on his heels. She sat up and turned away from Sean a moment with her arms folded over her chest.
“ You already said everything’s looking better than it should after three weeks, Andi.” he purred in her ear. Sean’s lips began kissing Andi’s neck with soft, sweet pecks and she groaned in protest. He could all but feel her temperature shooting through the roof as he kept it up. “ Besides, I feel great and I get my stitches out tomorrow. I don’t have to twist you into anything complicated tonight.”
“ Sean Robert! Stop it!” Andi’s tone of voice was practically begging him at this point though it was clear she wanted just the opposite. It had been a long time since she had experienced Sean's special brand of loving after all and Andi wanted to be twisted into some of those pretzels. No, she couldn't give in tonight, she needed to hold him off until he was cleared for rough physical activity. And she had just the means of getting Sean to back off. “ I swear to all that is good and holy I will tickle the ever loving shit out of your feet if you keep it up!”
Sean hovered mid kiss as he moved in to plant another one on the crook of her neck and he mulled over her threat. It seemed Andi hadn’t forgotten all of his major ticklish spots, and his feet were the worst out of all of them. She had only gotten him once before, but Sean still could remember how utterly ruthless Andi had been in tormenting him. Oh the pain in his ribs from laughing as hard as he had had lasted for days. The question now truly and honestly was…
Was it worth that kind of torture?
There was only one answer to that, and Sean had thirty minutes before the delivery guy got there. He had to work fast.
Andi smirked victoriously as Sean stopped what he was doing and she moved off the couch. “ Let me grab something to drink really quick before we start the film.” she cooed. Her voice was dripping confidence in her victory.
“ No need.” Sean all but growled out as he stood up behind Andi. He pulled her back to him by the wrist and up against him tightly. The slight twinge he felt was oh so worth it as he claimed her mouth possessively and he hurriedly began backing her up towards the back of the couch. One hand was gently kneading a breast through the material of her bra and shirt and the other was slowly caressing her once more through her jeans. He was going to have her legs feeling like jelly for threatening to tickle his feet like that.
Andi all but flared up the moment Sean’s lips claimed hers passionately and her eyes closed. Damn it all, she did not want their first time after this long to be nothing more than a quicky! She could feel his fingers working at the button of her jeans and she swatted his hands away. “ Dammit Sean!” she hissed through gritted teeth.
“ You shouldn’t have threatened me, Andi. Because now I’m going to bend you over the couch and put it to you so good that you’re not going to be able to walk straight.” Sean replied huskily. He heard Andi gasp sharply at the promise.
" Sean, the delivery guy..." Andi pleaded. He was already attempting to bend her over the cushions and she shrieked a little as one hand gently forced her face first into the throw pillows. Holy hell she could feel how much this was turning her on. She attempted to push herself into an upright position only to feel Sean's body trap her in place. His teeth found her earlobe and Andi gasped wantonly as he gave the sensitive piece of flesh a light tug. Damn him for getting her going so easily!
" Nah ah ah, Andi..." Sean's teeth caught her earlobe between them again and he nibbled on it, inciting a throaty groan from her. He still remembered every single hotspot, every little erogenous zone that made Andi's knees weak. He pulled her jeans and little lacy boyshorts down to her knees and Sean grabbed both of Andi's wrists. Holding them with one hand, he quickly freed himself from the confines of his own uncomfortably tight jeans and he leveled himself with her entrance. " Welcome home, sweetheart." He purred in her ear. She was definitely ready despite her protesting a few moments ago.
Andi's head flew back as Sean surged his hips forward, piercing her body for the first time in almost two years. He was hissing as she enveloped him, she was so tight around his hard shaft. Tears of joy and completion streaked her face unbidden as Sean began reclaiming her body as his own again, refilling the well that was her heart up with love and repairing the gaps in her soul that their separation had caused.
" Shit, Andi...." Sean whispered reverently, though his pace was only mounting faster and harder. He still remembered how much Andi loved being taken like this, how freeing it had been for both of them. Most of all, he missed worshipping her, loving her the way he used to. He always had made sure she was taken care of. Andi deserved that and so much more. " I've missed you so damn much....Your laugh, your smile, waking up beside you every morning. It was never the sex that made me love you Andi, I told you I loved you before I even took you for the first time. It was all the little things you did that drew me to you. How could I not love you? You made my life complete just by being in it."
Andi was crying as he spoke. She had missed him as well, both had felt the other's misery as the time had worn on. How could she have ever thought that Sean would have honestly moved on. Their love wasn't something that could just be forgotten after a month or two, hell not even a year or more had erased it. " Sean! I'm...I...Ah ah ah....OOOOOOOOHHHHHHH!" Andi all but screamed as her release slammed into her due to Sean's ardent stroke and she heard him gasp in surprise as her climax triggered his out of the blue. She felt Sean pull her up against his chest after a minute or two and her head lolled to the side a little.
" I love you Andi." He whispered against her neck as he held her tightly against him. The slight pain he felt was worth it. They were still joined, and he had no desire to break away from her yet. " Goddamn..."
Andi was just about to reply when a knock at the door startled both of them and Sean felt Andi tear out of his arms to head to the bathroom. Sean hurriedly tucked himself back in and he dashed for the door. Had it already been thirty minutes? Damn, Andi had made him blow faster than he wanted. He had been thinking of putting her through a hell of a ringer.
After all, he had promised her that she wasn't going to be able to walk straight by the time he finished with her. Sean's eyes glittered a little as he looked towards the bathroom. If only they hadn't been interrupted by their supper.
Andi was panting heavily as she leaned against the bathroom door and she fanned herself. Her knees felt weak and her stomach was all aflutter at what had just happened in the living room. Dear god, that had been absolutely perfect. Andi's eyes shut as she felt an after shiver run its course and she heard the front door shut after a minute or two. She needed to clean up before she left the bathroom.
Not only that, now she needed a fresh set of knickers.

Gascon's eyes narrowed as he crept silently for a door. This was the place where the darkness had been radiating from earlier. He could all but feel the evil there as if the entire house was steeped in it. He made his way in and his sharp brown eyes surveyed every inch of space available to him as he moved. He wasn't taking any chances here, as his gun was aimed for anything directly in front of him and Gascon turned a corner sharply. Nothing here, he noted grimly. Something didn't feel right at all.
The lights flickered ominously and Gascon fought the shiver that ran down his spine. Things were definitely amiss here. He pushed forward a little more and without warning an all too familiar scent reached his nose. Gascon knew that smell anywhere.
Blood, and lots of it for that matter.
The eldest of the porcine princes entered what looked akin to a study of some sort and his hand immediately flew to his mouth. An older man was slumped over the desk near the bay windows looking over the cityscape and his face was stuck in an eternal scream of anguish. Both his eyes had been ripped out violently and lay before Gascon on the floor, the blue irises already clouding over in death. One arm was draped over the top of a bookshelf to Gascon's left and he walked around the side. He almost did wretch right then and there, as the man's innards were spilt over the floor and tangled in the legs of the office chair behind the man.
" By the ancients..." Gascon hissed. Upon closer scrutiny, he realized that the man's heart had been ripped from his chest as well. Most of his organs had been by the look of things. Whoever or whatever had done this had been absolutely ruthless.
He shook his head in disbelief and Gascon eased from the room like a shadow. There was still the rest of the house to check. A bedroom down the hall from the study met Gascon with another grisly scene, but more so than the other man. The victim was another man, younger than the other one in the study, but they looked quite alike. Maybe father and son?
The poor sod was bound tightly against the posts of his bed, and it looked as if he had been dissected alive if the expression of abject terror on his face and agony was anything to go by. Who had done this?
Without warning, the entire house was plunged into darkness and Gascon swore under his breath. It was pitch black and now he needed to backtrack out of the house. Instinct was telling him to hightail it like a bat out of hell from this place, that what he was searching for wasn't here in this part of the house.
I honestly wish Amara were here...he thought morosely. At least I would know for certain she's safe. I don't like the idea of leaving her alone right now, not with her state as fragile as it is.
Gascon was just about to exit the door when he bumped into something solid. His heart began pounding erratically in his chest, as he knew full well he had been alone when he had entered here. He tried in vain to steady his breathing, but his panic was starting to overwhelm him. The killing intent he felt from the presence behind him was unbelievable.
" Lookie what I have here..." sneered Riley. His voice was not his own, as Romand's had joined his. "...Another recreation of Barador perhaps?"
Gascon's panic turned to full blown fear. Sean was the only one who was supposed to be able to see him here, as he was Gascon's soul after all. If this young man could see him as well, that meant that...
He was unable to continue his train of thought when Riley's hand roughly spun the eldest of the porcine princes to face him and the other wrapped tightly aroundGascon's throat.
" Eat lead, bastard." Gascon wheezed as he rose his pistol. Then he pulled the trigger.

Sean and Andi were giggling like teenagers as they cuddled on the couch and Sean had to keep pulling Andi backwards as she attempted to tickle his feet. She had warned him fairly after all.
" You know, you never did tell me the rest of what happened when you crashed your caddy." Andi said nervously. It had been niggling in the back of her mind since Sean had brought it up.
Sean swallowed hard. " All I remember was that I was tired as all hell that night. I swear I must have been seeing things or I was just that damn tired because there was no color to anything around me. I was driving back from Albany after having visited Mom, Dad and Martin. Then nothing..." Sean's voice was very soft as he finished and his gaze was far away despite the fact that Andi was sitting right in front of him.
Andi's breath hitched in her throat. " What date was that Sean?" She demanded. Her hands flew to his shoulders and she shook him a bit roughly to snap him out of his daze. " Sean I need you to tell me what day that was!"
Sean's throat felt tight as he looked her in the eye. " August eighteenth of last year. I'll never forget that day because it was a week exactly before your birthday."
" Any other times before that?" Andi's voice was chock full of apprehension as she spoke.
Sean thought hard. " April twentieth of that same year. My twenty fourth birthday." He whispered.
" So it wasn't just me then..." Andi's voice was quivering noticeably as she threw her legs over the side of the couch. Her head was cradled in her hands as she looked at the floor. She couldn't believe Sean had experienced the same things she had those days. Andi had tried to block it from her memory after all.
If they had been paying attention to the city outside, they would have realized that the lights were steadily going out in an ever encroaching radius towards them.
Sean was gobsmacked. He had been so sure he had only been seeing things. Now Andi had been through the same thing. The loss of the vibrancy of their surroundings, the feelings of loneliness and despair.
The feeling as if their world was crumbling down around them.
" That must have been what she meant." Andi whispered fearfully.
A loud thud from outside distracted them a moment but Sean shook it off. He needed to have this talk with Andi now. " Who do you mean by she, Andi?"
Andi's shoulders fell visibly as she tried to think of a way to explain this without coming off as crazy.
" It was Amara, wasn't it?"
Andi's head flew up and she looked right at Sean. " How do you know that name?" She demanded, catching the lapels of Sean's shirt in her hands as she jumped to her feet.
Sean's brown eyes bore into hers a moment and he gently wrapped his fingers around her wrists. Her hand was right over his stitches. " How do you think I know, Andi? I've been getting visits from..." he paused a moment. He was expecting Andi to finish it for him.
" Gascon..." she breathed, almost disbelievingly. Andi sat down hard, as if every muscle suddenly had gone on strike. " So I wasn't hallucinating all that time."
Sean's arm settled over her shoulders as be pulled her into his embrace. " Admittedly, it's reassuring to know that I wasn't the only one experiencing that." Sean kissed Andi's temple and he laid out flat on the couch with her over him. " When did you see her last?"
It was time to clear the air now and come up with a plan. If they were truly Gascon and Amara's souls, then they probably would have to go back to them. " The day you were stabbed. She told me that this is nothing more tha...." Andi began.
Without warning a loud thump against the door startled them and Andi was the first to her feet. Sean was right behind her and he reached under the couch where he had his custom desert eagle hidden. It was one of the few guns that he had designed not just for show, but for practicality as well. In a heartbeat, the pistol was leveled on the door as another thump; much harder than the first, rattled the door on its hinges.
" Get upstairs Andi." Sean ordered tersely. There was no way in hell he was letting anything or anyone get near her. " There's another gun, a nine millimeter, strapped to the bottom of the first drawer of my nightstand."
Andi complied with a silent nod and she dashed up the stairs without a second thought.
Sean stood ready as another thud echoed through the apartment and Gascon came hurtling through it as if he had been thrown. Sean didn't wait to fire as another form took residence in the door and it roared in anger as the steel slugs hit true. He nearly lost his footing as the entire complex shook and he heard Andi scream shrilly from the bedroom.
" What the hell are you doing?! Get her out of here now!" Gascon bellowed. He turned onto his back and he fired round after round into the now growing dark mass that was in the hallway.
Sean bolted up the stairs. They would have to take the fire escape, but at least they would be able to get to the street. He dashed through the game room and into the bedroom where Andi was checking the ammunitions on the gun Sean had told her to grab. " Leave it! I don't think it's gonna work." He ordered.
" What the hell is going on down there?" Andi demanded, her voice shrill in her terror. She tossed the gun to the bed and rushed over to Sean and he grabbed her hand tightly.
" No clue but we need to get down the fire escape now! C'mon!" Sean let go for only a minute to throw the window open and the building rocked as if it were teetering. Nimbly, he exited the window and pulled Andi out to him and the two began making their way down the stairs.
It was so dark that the two kept slipping on the steps leading to the street level and Sean took a moment to gauge their surroundings. Before he could even process what was happening, an explosion from above rocked the building harshly and threw the two of them off balance. Andi screamed as she went over the railing and Sean hurriedly grabbed her hand. They were still a good story up from the pavement below. Rubble was falling to the ground with heavy thuds and Sean hauled Andi back up beside him. The building began creaking as if it were holding too heavy a load and Sean looked up.
Against the night sky, what could only be described as a monster erupted through the roof of where Sean's apartment had been. It roared in rage as more gunshots rang through the still air and its hand reared back as it prepared to swat at something.
" Go! GO!" Sean ordered her, shoving Andi down the remaining steps that would lead them to the safety of the ground below. He was right behind her, his heart beating furiously in his chest in fear and Andi unlatched the ladder the moment she got to it.
A scream met their ears and both of them looked up to watch Gascon plummet to the ground with them. He landed hard on his back, bouncing off the pavement from the force of the impact and both Andi and Sean ran to his side.
" Gascon!" Sean cried out in dismay. Dear god, he hoped the fall from four stories up hadn't killed him.
A pained groan met their ears and Andi gently helped the man sit up. This was the first time she had ever laid eyes on Sean's double and she was shocked to see the similarities between the two.
" What the hell is that thing?" Andi whispered. All the while she was checking over the injuries the man beside her had sustained.
" A very, very vengeful spirit..." Gascon wheezed. Despite not having a physical form, that fall had hurt like hell. Maybe it was just a matter of thinking, he pondered quickly. His left hand flared with a brilliant golden light and it settled over him, leaving him healed in its wake. " I need to get the two of you to Amara. She's in a safe place apart from this plane."
" You'd think that, wouldn't you?" Came a menacing chuckle from above them. " I have two sets of reincarnations of Barador and Vanluviel before me as I speak. I'm going to take great joy in killing all of you."
" What did you mean by that?!" Gascon demanded hotly. If that bastard had hurt his wife at all, there was no telling what he would do.
Another laugh met them, chilling all three to the bone. " What do you think? She put up a valiant effort, but in the end she was mine." The behemoth above them sneered. He jumped from the top of the building, sending the three below him dashing for the opposite direction. " You all can run as much as you like, but in the end you will be mine."
Gascon slowed as he turned to face the monster giving chase, his face set in a determined scowl, and both Andi and Sean paused a moment. " Keep running. I'll hold him off here." He said softly.
" We're not leaving you behind!" Sean replied adamantly. He was already tugging at Gascon's sleeve to pull the other man along but Gascon would not be budged. " What good will it do if he kills you? What about this whole we need you guys if we're going to wake up crap you've been going in about?!" Sean pulled Gascon face to face via his collar and he resisted the urge to sock some sense into the other man. Both men reeled however when a pulsing rippled through both of them and Sean immediately let Gascon go. That didn't feel good. " Where's Amara?"
Andi looked up at the beast lumbering toward them. " She inside...It's like he ate her or something..." she whimpered. " The longer we stay here bickering amongst ourselves gives him an even more ample chance to kill us too. Gascon, you're coming with us. Sean and I..." Her blue eyes were dull with fear and uncertainty and Gascon felt his chest clench. She looked like Amara with that piercing gaze. "...we don't stand a chance without you. Please, we need to run for now." Her hands had come to rest on Gascon's forearm as she tried to pull him in the same direction that she and Sean were trying to escape in.
Gascon groaned. Damn it all, he wanted to kill that bastard for even harming his wife to being with. But what Andi said made sense. The two of them honestly didn't stand a chance without him. " Fine. Let's move." He growled out.

Dagaron was pacing a little wildly. He could feel the changes in the magic surrounding them, could feel how close they were to falling and leaving his grandchildren exposed. " Palisanther. I need you to get Tarin if you can. I daresay I will need his help soon enough. Amara's magic is falling and I can feel that goblin's presence not too far off. He's biding his time." The elven king said worriedly.
Will an elven shield hold for as long as I'll be gone? It could be nearly four hours if I have to track down that ale swigging dwarf. Palisanther asked, though his tone was a little light as he spoke of the dwarven prince.
" I'll use it only if Amara's spell does fall. Go! Hurry!" Dagaron said, his golden eyes full of worry. He knelt down beside Amara as her color had just gone very pale. By the gods, he hoped he was only imagining things. If he wasn't, the situation had just grown very, very dire indeed.

A great roar echoed through Central Park, and Gascon paused for only a moment to fire a few rounds from his rifle, only to have Sean follow it up with a few rounds unloaded from his own pistol. Andi was ahead of them and she waved them onward. If they could get into the city proper, they might stand a chance at getting to where Gascon wanted them. The alleyways would be much to tight for Romand's current and terrible form.
" Stop pausing to shoot, dammit!" Andi screamed at them. Men! Why was it they kept trying to do the very thing they knew was futile?
" Try using magic, Andi! We have to slow him down somehow!" Gascon snapped over his shoulder.
" Damn it all Gascon! I'm a doctor, not a magician!" Andi shot back. She wasn't paying attention to where she was running and Andi screamed as she slipped on what could only be described as the edge of a bottomless pit. Her hands clung desperately to the edge and she looked down behind her. There was nothing but pitch black.
" ANDI!" Sean cried out, terrified for her safety as he skidded to a stop to grab her hands with his. " Gascon! Hurry!" He called out over his shoulder. He could already feel her slipping in his grasp. " Baby, just hold on! Don't let go, okay?"
" I could say the same about you!" Andi replied shrilly. She was trying to find a foothold, anything to help her out of this and she kept coming up with nothing. She could only pray Gascon made it over in time to help them! " God dammit! Where the hell is he?"
Andi's question was answered as Gascon went flying into the treeline when Romand had smacked him away like a gnat.
Both of them paled and Sean looked up as a great, clawed hand began reaching over them and he tried pulling Andi up one more time. Both of them slipped a little more towards the precipice and Andi shrieked in fear. " Leave her alone, you bastard! It's me you want dammit!" Sean bellowed.
" All in good time, boy. You can trust me on that." Came that chilling sneer again. His massive hand wrapped around Andi and she struggled ineffectually in his grasp. " That's right, girl. Put up a fight, let me see you squirm. You will not escape me in the end."
Andi looked down to Sean and then over to where Gascon was finally moving. It seemed as if Romand's blow had knocked him unconscious. " GET OUT OF HERE!" Andi screamed to both of them. Romand was bringing Andi closer and closer to his now gaping maw and tears began streaming down her face. Dear god, this was exactly what had happened in her nightmare from so long ago. She felt as if her entire body had gone numb in fear and without warning, a bright light started building brighter and brighter from inside that seemingly bottomless depth as she stared at it.
Romand roared in pain and anger as stomach bulged greatly and he dropped Andi in surprise. Light kept pouring from within him, was casting an eerie glow from his stomach and Gascon's eyes widened in hope. That had to be Amara! That was her spell Daybreak!
Without even thinking it through, Gascon rushed forward was he drew his blade and he plunged it into the soft belly of the beast that had crashed to all fours. Again Romand bellowed in surprise, but it was useless. Gascon had already drug the blade across his exposed midsection.
The light flared intensely from the wound and Gascon caught Amara as the woman all but collapsed out of the opening. She had been biding her time, building the spell to a harshness that would have rendered any goblins to immediate crisps.
" Thank the ancients." Gascon whispered in partial relief. There was still this menace to deal with after all.
" We need to hurry!" Amara cried out in fear, her hands gripping Gascon's sleeves desperately. " Gascon! The baby's coming!" She quickly wove another spell and Romand was sent recoiling from the force of it towards the bottomless pit nearby. She had managed to buy them some time, but not a lot. This world was starting to crumble around them.
Sean had heard what Amara said and he looked down at Andi, who was sputtering after having the wind knocked from her from that fall. " How can we end this?" He asked.
Gascon and Amara both looked at one another. There was nothing for it. They had to pull Sean and Andi back to them if they all stood any chance of survival.
Sean's face fell the longer the two went silent. In order to end this, he and Andi would have to make the ultimate sacrifice. He got to his feet, pulling Andi up with him and he began walking over to Gascon. There was truly nothing for it. If it meant Andi lived, even if they were just the souls of the two before them, then his life was worth that sacrifice.
Andi pulled Sean to a stop. " Wait a second! Sean we just can't..." she began.
" Andi, I can't shake the feeling that if they die, we die. There's no choice in the matter. This isn't our life to live anymore. What about Amara? The baby she carries, Andi? They'll die if we don't do this...This may be their only means of escaping. If I can help them do that, and help you survive in the process, it's worth it."
Andi mulled over everything Sean had said. Time was not on their side as Amara was moving towards labor and Andi's head fell. He was right. There truly was nothing for it then. The two of them had the ability to end this here and now, to ensure that all of them survived. " We'll do it together then, Sean." She whispered. Andi pulled Sean in by his collar, fully intent on kissing him this one last time. She was stopped short as Romand's massive hand suddenly darted between them and grabbed Sean, knocking her back to the ground." NO! SEAN!"
" I am not going to let you escape so easily when I have been waiting hundreds of years for vengeance!" He bellowed, his silver eyes narrowing on them maliciously.
Gascon wasn't thinking when he grabbed Sean's hands and both of them felt that same pulsing ripple through them again. Both also knew what it meant.
Sean swallowed hard as he looked over to Andi. " I love you." He whispered. Sean tightened his grip on Gascon as the pulsing intensified and he began fading from sight. He couldn't fight it any longer.
" Sean!" Andi’s scream was futile as she went to her knees in tears. That bastard! Romand was going to pay for this, for bringing their world crashing down around them.
Romand roared his displeasure as his hand was suddenly empty and Gascon hurriedly shouldered his rifle to unload a few rounds to put some space between them. " NO! I will not be denied my revenge!" He shouted, his voice forcing the ground to buckle and give beneath him. He was much too close to the edge of the pit as it was.
" Andi! Over here! Hurry!" Amara screamed. Romand was attempting to reach for her next.
Andi got to her feet, though her eyes were shining with an unreal light as the beast before her began bearing down on her. Her hands flew up, instinctively tracing a rune and Amara couldn't hold back the gasp that escaped her. How was she using magic? Andi had never shown that she knew any of what Amara had.
" No! How is it you know that spell?!" Romand bellowed. He recognized the rune Andi was drawing as well.
" I don't care how I know it. But what I do know is that you fucked with the wrong woman, you stupid asshole." Andi seethed. With a final stroke going from east to west, Andi unleashed the spell that she had been pouring all her energy into. A bright red light blasted Romand and he was sent reeling backwards, his form shrinking smaller and smaller as he took on a human form once more. " This is for Sean, you piece of shit." She hissed vehemently. She grabbed his gun where it had fallen on the ground between them and Andi discharged the remainder of the bullets, each one hitting their mark in his chest and head.
The impact from each bullet sent Romand backwards towards the event horizon, leaving the man to teeter on the edge.
Dropping the now empty gun, Andi's hands began tracing another rune and knocked the unbalanced man backwards one final time with a well timed pulse spell. She watched with grim satisfaction as Romand disappeared from sight and slowly she went to her knees again. She felt so drained, physically and emotionally after all that. Tears began streaking her face as her head hung low.
Both Amara and Gascon were looking at the young woman dumbfounded.
" Of everything that could have happened, I was not expecting that." Gascon said softly. " What was that one spell she used before the pulse spell?"
" Origin. It was a spell of Romand's design none the less. It was one way to cure the brokenhearted before the evestans learned take heart and give heart." Amara replied. " I wasn't aware it could be used to return something to its original form however. That's good to know at least." Amara stepped away from Gascon and over to where Andi was. " Andi?"
" Just get it over with." The young woman whispered. " There's nothing left for me here. Everything I've ever known is gone..."
Amara crossed over to Andi's front and she settled a gentle hand on Andi's folded ones. A gentle ripple began crossing through both of them. " I'll never forget this...Thank you, for everything." Amara replied. Her voice was thick with emotion as she spoke and Andi looked up at her one last time. She was fading much faster than Sean had.
" Sean felt it was worth it. I only hope he was right." And with those words still echoing around them, Andi disappeared from sight for good.

Dagaron hurriedly blocked a powerful sword stroke from Grimlock and the goblin warlord gave an annoyed snarl as he bounced off an invisible barrier. It was the one protecting Gascon and Amara, though it was shrinking closer and closer to them as the spell began wearing off. Laughing darkly, Grimlock looked back over to Dagaron with a predatory grin.
" The spell is fading fast, elf king. It won't be long at all until that wench and her husband are in our grasp." The goblin sneered hatefully.
A great roar from their left forced the warlord to jump out of the way as Palisanther came crashing into the glen. He had smelled Grimlock not too long ago. Something I will not allow to happen! The great cat growed out as he made to pounce on his newfound quarry.
" Nor will I." Tarin reiterated. He slid from Palisanther's back and he looked over to where his friends lay in their repose.
Dagaron mentally cheered the timing of the two and he smirked. The odds were steadily rising out of Grimlock's favor. " Do you want to keep pushing it? I can keep this up all night if I have to." Dagaron purred as he swung both his blades a bit.
Grimlock looked between the elf king, the mountain guardian, and the dwarf all standing opposite to him, and his cold, yellow eyes flitted back and forth as he measured his chances. None of them noticed the slight rustle of clothing and leaves, nor how a curly brown mop rose up from the forest floor. " I guess we keep dancing then." He snarled savagely. He wasn't leaving until he had the two in hand to present to his queen.
" Fancy your chances, do you? You've got another thing coming if you think I'll let you anywhere near my wife." Gascon suddenly said, leveling his pistol on his nemesis.
Grimlock's eyes went wide in surprise as Gascon shakily got to his feet and he backed up a bit. He needed a distraction, anything to divert their attentions so that he could escape and get reinforcements. If that bastard was awake that meant the elfin bitch would soon be waking as well. The warlord knew now was not the moment to strike however. Grimlock knew how deadly a marksman Gascon was, and he knew if he tried to run now that he would have a bullet in the back of his head before he could get through the tree line.
That distraction came courtesy of Amara as she screamed in agony. She had awoken right in the middle of a harsh contraction. A swear from Gascon was heard as well as her pain spilled over to him via their bond. It seemed as if that was in working order again now that they were whole once more.
All four men looked in shock at the evestan swan and Tarin blanched visibly. None of them realized that the goblin warlord had used that opportunity to slip away unnoticed. " Dagaron, we need to move them from here!" Tarin exclaimed.
Gascon shook his head in the negative as he instantly knelt beside Amara. Her hand had found his and she was squeezing it with a death grip. " There's no time. How fast can we get Marion here?" Gascon asked Dagaron through a grunt. How did women put up with the pain childbirth entailed? He would have been completely paralyzed by the full brunt of it. While he knew the pain in his hand and what he could feel was nothing compared to the pain Amara was currently in, it felt as if she was trying to break his hand. He knew full well that the elf king but had to send the queen a message telepathically for her to come.
" She should be on her way." Dagaron replied. " We should have plenty of time if we move her with magic Gascon."
" Are you mad?! She's in too frail a state to use magic on! It could kill both her and the baby! We can't take that kind of risk, Dagaron. In fact I won't!" Gascon retorted hotly.
" Will all of you shut up?! My damn water just broke and this baby is coming! We do not have time. Palisanther, a little privacy if you could arrange something please. Grandfather, go fetch some towels and blankets. Tarin, by the ancients it's so good to see you, but we're going to need a fire to heat water with. And someone please fetch my mum. NOW!" Amara shouted, effectively silencing the bickering she was being subjected to. Her eyes screwed shut as another contraction rolled through her. A normal labor could last for quite a while, but Amara had been forced into a harsher one due to the events that had happened before their waking. The terror, stress, and newfound heartache had triggered it and now she had no means of stopping it. The baby was a full three weeks early if her timetable was right.
All three men paled at the sheer aggression in Amara's voice, though she had not threatened any of them.
You may as well hurry, Dagaron, this baby isn't waiting it seems. Palisanther said gently. He erected a makeshift shelter for her out of stone, being mindful not to put it too close to her either. He didn't want her getting hurt after all. He touched his nose to the opening, making a curtain of ivy to act as a door. This way Amara would have the privacy she needed. There was no chance of it falling either, making it the safest place for the expectant mother. The ivy would also thicken and harden should any danger rear it’s ugly head. There was no telling what would happen with Grimlock still out there. Nothing wrong with being too cautious either. Palisanther thought to himself. Tarin had disappeared into the tree line to gather wood for a fire. In all honesty, he was the wisest out of the three other men as he had been the one to keep his mouth shut the entire time. Palisanther knew first hand how deadly the heirs of the evestan throne were together. He had no interest in finding out how much more dangerous they would get if something went wrong while Amara was giving birth.
Dagaron sheathed his blades and drew his wand. Silently, he cast the travel rune and disappeared in a flash of blue light. It was best that he just do as his granddaughter had requested. If her water had broken, that meant they had less time than he had initially thought.
No sooner than Dagaron had left, Marion appeared in the clearing. She looked around and noted the structure Palisanther had made. " Where's my father?"
" Getting blankets and towels like I told him to!" Amara called out from inside her new haven. A sharp gasp of pain followed and Marion rushed in. Both women had tears in their eyes as they looked at one another.
Thank the gods of old, they were awake!
“ Gascon! Amara! Oh my darlings, you’ve had us so worried!” Marion cried out. Her arms flew around both of them for a brief moment and she planted kiss after kiss on Amara’s head. Her baby was safe, that was all that mattered. Speaking of babies, looks like my grandchild is getting impatient. she thought. “ How far apart have your contractions been, Amara?”
Amara screamed in pain as she felt another one roll over her, and her hand gripped her husband’s all the more harder. “ Barely a few moments apart!” she gasped, tears flooding her eyes at the unbearable agony she was enduring. It’ll be worth it in the end. she thought. I’ll be holding my son or daughter soon enough. It’s worth it!
Gascon bit back his own groan. He would definitely have to cast a healing spell on his hand later, if only to be rid of the tenderness that would set in. He had honestly forgotten how strong his wife was. He knew better than to say anything about that pain at the moment, though he did bring their joined hands up so that he could place a kiss on her knuckles. “ I know things like this are normally left to the women, but I’m not leaving her side, Marion.” Gascon said seriously. His brown eyes leveled on his mother in law and Amara looked up at him as well. She hadn’t been expecting to want to stay to see the baby’s birth.
Marion smiled and nodded. Neither of them were in a position to be fighting as it stood. If they were safe in here, then that was all well and good with the evestan queen.
Dagaron returned with the towels and blankets that Amara had requested, along with a surprise from Elaina; Dagaron's wife. With their twelve children, she had always had an uncanny knack of knowing what she was having. Judging by the colors on the blanket, it seemed as if that intuition had passed over to knowing what their granddaughter was having. " Amara, I have the items you requested." He said gently.
A disgruntled groan met him and Dagaron shook his head. Amara's labor was moving much too swiftly for his liking. Marion hurriedly poked her head out and grabbed everything from him before disappearing just as quickly back into the little shelter that Palisanther had erected for them. The guardian was pacing back and forth to the left, and it didn't take much to for the elven king to see that the spirit of the mountain was just as on edge as everyone else was. " She'll be fine, my friend. Women, human or otherwise, have been bearing children since time immemorial." Dagaron said with a small chuckle.
I just wish there was more I could do to help ease the pain she's in. I'm sure Gascon's not having too good a go of it either. Palisanther replied.
" I can speak from experience that he isn't, I promise you." Dagaron replied. He had felt the pain himself twelve times over.
" All we can do now is wait." Tarin said from beside the fire.
A scream made all three of them jump, along with Marion's voice encouraging her daughter to push. Dagaron's brow furrowed. He hadn't been gone a full twenty minutes gathering everything. His golden eyes went wide in terror as he felt the presence headed their way and the king of the golden wood pulled his blades from either hip. " Get ready, they're coming back!"
Gascon was sitting behind Amara when he heard Dagaron's battle cry from outside. No sooner than it had, the ivy covering the door sealed them in and the eldest of the porcine princes looked at Marion worriedly. As much as he wanted to be out there aiding the others, his wife desperately needed him here in her most vulnerable hour. " Amara, you can do it! Come on love!"
Amara collapsed against her husband's chest in tears and soft sobs racked her body. " Gascon! I...I can't." She gasped. Before she could say another word she flew forward as another contraction gripped them and the urge to push was overwhelming. It burned horribly as if she was on fire and the pressure she felt was immense. She screamed as she began bearing down once again and her hands gripped her husband's like a vice.
" Scream all you want Amara, I can see the baby's head! We're almost there! You can do it!" Marion responded. The sounds of the battle outside were making her heart drop and she couldn't hold back a scream as someone or something hit the vines over the door with a sword. Someone was trying to hack their way in.
A roar from Palisanther shook the little housing he had erected and a dying scream from a goblin was heard just outside. Amara paid it no heed however. She was already pushing once more, holding tight to Gascon as she screamed in agony. The pressure was moving lower and lower now, and then it was gone.

Dagaron's blades looked like a silver twister of death. Grimlock had managed to round up a decent number to attack with; about twenty or so, though the goblin warlord was currently busy with Tarin. Grimlock had killed one of the dwarf's younger siblings; his only sister, about a month ago when the warlord had ambushed her unit in the northern sector and the prince of the underhalls was hell bent on revenge.
The battle came to a pause when a new cry rang out over the battle, forcing everyone to look towards the shelter that Amara was ensconced in.
It was a baby's first cries.
Dagaron hurriedly felled the goblins around him and he sprang up high, his swords ready to meet death on the fifth warlord. He wanted this menace dead!
Tarin leapt out of the way as he saw Dagaron coming down and Grimlock moved as well, effectively dodging the fatal blow. The elf and dwarf began fighting in tandem in an attempt to put Grimlock down but the warlord was viciously meeting every slash with a parry of his own. Tarin gave a garble cry as the goblin's jagged blade sank into his leg, forcing him to a knee. Dagaron blocked a blow that would have beheaded Tarin and Grimlock laughed menacingly.
" It's only a matter of time, you stupid elf!" Grimlock bellowed. “ I will not leave here without their heads if I can’t take them alive!”
“ The hell you are!” Tarin bellowed.
Gascon and Amara listened intently as everything went deathly silent outside. Amara was clutching the baby to her chest, and she was leaning against the wall furthest from the entrance. Gascon was right against the vines now, trying to listen for any little thing possible.
“ TARIN!” Dagaron screamed in dismay.
Amara’s eyes went wide in terror and she looked at Gascon. He was looking over his shoulder at her now and his shoulders were starting to shake as rage began overtaking him. She could feel it spilling over to her and Amara’s heart began thudding in her chest. While he had come close to doing so a few times before, Amara had never seen Gascon this enraged. The promise of death was shining in those normally warm brown eyes.
“ I suggest you turn away Amara.” Gascon seethed as he turned back to the door. His wand was flicked from up his sleeve and into his left hand. He kicked his rifle up, catching it deftly with his right hand and it was slung over his shoulder. His pistol was pulled faster than Amara had ever seen from his holster and he twirled it expertly a bit before he began casting the pulse spell.

An explosion rocked the battle as shrapnel littered those unlucky enough to be close to the shelter. Without missing a beat, Gascon took to the field as his pistol flared to life. His sharp eyes were scanning the surrounding area for either Tarin or Grimlock and Gascon finally found Tarin first. Dagaron was kneeling over his still form, and Gascon’s eyes caught Grimlock advancing further on the elf despite the distance Palisanther was trying to keep between them. “ DAGARON! BEHIND YOU!” Gascon bellowed. He holstered his pistol and wand at the same time and just as quickly shouldered his rifle, getting Grimlock into his sights instantly. He pulled the trigger three times, catching the warlord in the chest. Grimlock paid it no mind however, and he roared in rage as he kept advancing on Dagaron. Again Gascon fired more rounds into the bastard, moving forward himself as he tried to slow Grimlock’s advancement. “ Get him out of the way already Dagaron! Get him to Marion! HURRY!”
Dagaron seemed to snap out of the shock he was in at the mention of his daughter and the king of the golden wood lifted the dwarf up. Gascon was right, he needed to get Tarin over to Marion. While it was faint, he still had a pulse and his breathing was shallow. There was still time to save him.
Gascon shouldered his rifle as Dagaron passed him, and the porcine prince grabbed both of Dagaron’s blades from where they were sheathed on his back. “ I need to borrow these a moment if you don’t mind.” His voice was deceptively soft, though Dagaron could hear the unbridled hatred and rage in his normally jovial tones.
“ Do what you must. And Gascon...” Dagaron’s golden eyes had turned blood red in his rage. “...Take his head.” he hissed.
Gascon nodded and he continued his advancement on Grimlock. The warlord was watching him with interest now and his pace slowed the closer the prince came.
“ You don’t stand a chance against me, boy.” the goblin snarled hatefully as the two began circling one another.
“ You’d like to think that, wouldn’t you?” Gascon seethed. His warm brown eyes were nearly black in his fury, and the eldest of the emperor’s sons tested the weight of the silver swords in his hands. They were light as a feather, meaning Gascon would definitely have a speed advantage. “ I’ve been able to best Dagaron in sparring if that says anything.” That had been almost seven years ago. “ Also bear in mind that I had sworn not to lift a hand in retaliation in order to keep my wife safe when you had us captive earlier this year. I owe you for that too now that I think on it.” A dark fire was flooding Gascon’s veins the longer they circled one another. Never in his life had he ever felt so much hatred for anyone or anything.
Grimlock turned to look behind him and his eyes locked onto where Dagaron and Marion were over Tarin. Amara was barely standing in the ruined entrance of the shelter Palisanther had erected. She was holding her baby as tightly as she could to her and she was trying to give directions to her mother as Marion’s hands flared with a soft white light. “ Well, it’s not over yet.” he laughed darkly. He ran forward, not bothering to face the prince. He was going to do his damndest to kill his wife instead. If he was lucky, he’d get the baby as well.
Gascon tried to catch up, but the goblin proved much faster than him in his current state. While his rage was lending him strength, it wasn’t enough to overcome the weariness he had woken with. “ AMARA!” he screamed in fear.
Grimlock was upon them before any of them realized it and Marion looked up at her daughter and then to the encroaching warlord. There was no hesitation as the evestan queen summoned her blade and she jumped up in front of her daughter protectively. Her other hand pushed Amara backwards further into the shelter not a moment to late as she jabbed her sword forward.
“ MUM!” Amara screamed. Her blue eyes were wide open as she stared at the bloodied blade protruding from Marion’s back. “ MUM NO!”
Grimlock staggered backwards, his black blood flowing down his chin and his hands gripping the sword impaled in his chest. It had just barely missed his heart.
As Grimlock moved out of the way, it gave Gascon a clearer view of what was going on. “ MARION!” he screamed as he ran forward. His mother in law was completely run through on Grimlock’s jagged blade.
Dagaron hurriedly caught his daughter as she fell toward the ground and within moments Gascon and Amara were at their sides. “ Can we pull the blade?” he whispered fearfully.
Amara carefully handed the baby to Gascon as she tried to see if there was any chance at saving her mother. She was just about to wrap her hands around the hilt when Marion brought hers up again.
“ There’s no time…” she whispered weakly. Her golden eyes were locked onto her daughter’s tearful ones. “ I’m just glad I was able to hold my grandson for the first time...What…” Marion wheezed and her hand shook as she brought it up to smooth the fine honey brown hair on the baby’s head. “ What is his name, Amara?”
“ Tamrand.” Amara half sobbed. “ Mum, please let me try to pull the blade and heal you!”
Marion shook her head. “ It’ll hit my heart if you try, Amara…” she whispered. “ Tamrand…” Tears streaked Marion’s face as the baby wiggled a bit in Gascon’s arms and his tiny hand grabbed her finger as she rubbed his cheek. “ His name means the same as mine...Gentle heart. I know you’ll live up to that name, my little prince. Gascon, bring him closer so I can kiss him one last time.”
Gascon had silent tears streaming down his cheeks as he obliged Marion’s request. Her lips pressed softly to Tamrand’s brow and she smiled serenely. Her eyes met his tawny ones and she weakly grasped Gascon’s forearm.
“ Take care of them, my son.” she breathed out. She looked back over to her daughter and she tried to reach for Amara. Darkness was encroaching on her vision now. She felt Amara kiss her palm and hold it to her tightly. “ While three hundred years is certainly still young for us elves, I’ve lived such a full life thanks to you. Your life was worth the sacrifice, my darling daughter, so never think otherwise. I would do it again and again if I were forced to repeat it for eternity. I love you, Amara…”
“ I love you too, mum.” Amara sobbed.
“ Tell your father the same for me.” Marion wheezed one last time and she pulled Amara forward to place a kiss on her daughter’s head.
Amara felt Marion’s lips touch her and more tears flowed unbidden. Slowly, her mouth relaxed and Marion slumped down in Dagaron’s arms as she passed. Amara pulled Marion’s still body into her arms, and she held her tightly. There had been so many nights that Marion had held her the same way after a nightmare had woken her or if she was getting read a story in the granny’s nook in the library. Marion had always had such a comforting hold that Amara had wanted to nestle into it every chance she could as a child. Now she would never be able to feel that warm embrace ever again. Her broken cries grew stronger and her grip tighter as Amara refused to let her go.
I won’t let her sacrifice be in vain. I won’t! she thought through the despair welling within her. She needed to stay strong. Not only did Gascon need her as much as she needed him right now, but their son did as well. “ I named him Tamrand because of you, mum.” Amara whispered, her voice shaky and thick with raw emotion. She lost the will to say anything else as she began sobbing in earnest again.
What should have been the most joyous day of her life had been nothing short of a nightmare.
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The Ties that Bind