Supernatural Tales - Book I

Chapter 21

(Unedited)

Iris had been waiting for her guests when they finally arrived...

"Where is Genevieve, Iris?!" Sybil had screamed, her eyes glowing with the magic she shared with her sister, and Azure's face was void of any emotions while Athena was having trouble feeling stable.

"Hello to you too, Sister. It is nice to see your face after a century." Iris had spoken into her sisters' minds, still choosing to not speak to Athena, and Sybil's vampire growled while Azure remained unaffected.

"We do not have time for your petty games, Iris. Hand the human back to us and we will leave. We have managed to not hurt you for over a century, we are more than okay to do it today too." Azure's voice was leveled, her face free of emotions, and something shifted in the air as Iris got up slowly; her white eyes drilling into her sister.

"You have changed, sister. You feel... Dead." Iris muttered softly, walking closer to them, and with a simple raise of her hand, she had sent Athena back to her palace where Elsa had gasped at the sight of her.

"What did you do to her?!" Sybil tried to attack her, her magic at its highest, and Azure didn't look away from the white eyes watching her as Iris restrained their sister in magical chains.

"Calm down, Sybil. I sent the Queen home. She is not meant for this." Iris didn't even glance at Sybil when she spoke, her eyes rooted to her sister, and Azure had been too shocked to control her emotions when she raised her hand only to stop a breath away from touching her cheek.

"You are lost sister, are you not? Your grief holds you hostage. It cripples you. But you fight it. And for what? What is there left for you to fight for? Why not just give up and... Be free?" Iris spoke softly, her white eyes carrying a maniacal look in them, and Azure's eyes brimmed with tears at the jab of those words.

"I-I... I can not. I... I gave my word." Azure whispered weakly, feeling her magic slipping, and Iris watched her for a while; her white eyes peering into her very soul.

"Why did you not believe her? The human. Why did not believe that she was your mate when she tried to tell you?" Iris asked again, her voice hard this time, and her words shocked her sisters; causing them to look at her wide-eyed.

"I-I... I already had a mate. She-She is gone now... I do not feel anything for the human girl. I never have." Azure's voice got stronger with every word, her magic returning, and Iris had taken a step back before tilting her head the slightest; letting her sisters know she was thinking something.

"Do you remember the tale we used to love as foolish children?" Iris's inquiry made Azure look at Sybil, confusion, and pain gripping them both, and their sister didn't wait for them to reply as she waved her hand only for the holographic picture of their parents to appear before her.

"I still remember it. I remember how the Vampire Queen had spelled her mate's memories away to keep her and used magic to forbid her from feeling anything towards her... I remember she had failed." Iris spoke softly, her eyes on the holograph before her, and Azure had gulped when her throat suddenly went dry while Sybil scowled.

"Iris, what are you trying to get at? Get to the fucking point." Sybil spat at her sister, not in the mood for her games, and Iris had merely flicked her wrist to set her free; something she wasn't expecting.

"Mate bonds are complicated, sisters. No creature in any world can tell you exactly how they work. That has always been the plan of Almighty. It is our belief in our bonds, our instincts, that take us to our mates and help us recognize them." Iris had turned to Azure then, her white eyes sharper than ever, and when she walked closer to her again, Sybil prepared her magic.