Raven

Adrik

I slipped out of the room after taking one more look at my beautiful mate. She was sleeping in my bed, surrounded by pillows and silk sheets. Even Red had found his way back to her side. He was curled up beside her, with her hand draped over him as if she had fallen asleep mid-pet.

I ran a hand through my blond locks as I looked at her sleeping figure. I don't know what she did to me, but that was the best fucking sex I've ever had. And I was no prude.

Admittedly, I was trying to go easy on her. I knew it was her first time so my dominant side had to be more gentle. She had no idea what she was in for. I didn't want to scare her so I had to keep the demon inside me buried. But next time, I make no promises of keeping him contained.

I shut the door softly as I left the chambers, trying not to wake her. The hallway was empty and dark seeing as it was the middle of the night. I wanted so badly to be cuddling my little mate as she slept, but I was on a mission to find Xena. I needed answers about me and Raven. I had so many questions. How are we an inter-species couple? How many mated pairs are like us? What were the gods thinking by putting a delicate fairy with someone as monstrous as me?

I'm not even sure Xena would have any answers, but it was worth a try.

I walked down the hall towards the infirmary, where she was likely to be. On my way, I stopped a maid who was walking the halls while pushing a service cart. I asked her to bring breakfast to my chambers. I wanted Raven to be able to eat once she awoke. The maid curtsied and muttered a polite 'yes, your highness' before continuing down the hall.

I continued to the infirmary and pushed open the door once I arrived.

Looking around the room, I saw Xena at her desk. She glanced up upon hearing my arrival and I walked over to where she was sitting.

"Oh good, you're here," she voiced. I noticed there were multiple books littering her desk. Some were stacked on top of each other, while others were open displaying pages full of script. "I've been doing some research and thought you might want to know what I found," Xena said, pushing her reading glasses up on her nose.

"It's as though you read my mind," I joked. "Show me what you've got."

She nodded and opened a few more books from one of the stacks. I noticed some pages were missing. They looked as if they had been torn out of some of the books. Xena pushed her glasses further up her nose once again.

"I found all these books in the library. I took as many as I could hold. They are all about the mate bond. We don't have too many on fairies." She explained as she flipped through them. "Look here," she pointed to a passage in one of the books.

"The sacr'd mateth bond is to beest did share by creatures of the same heart. Nay two creatures of variety shalt indulge in the blessings of the spiritual connection." She read aloud.

The words seemed ancient and I couldn't unscramble them as she spoke.

Xena then pointed to another paragraph in a different book, "The union between mates wast did create by the gods f'r the divine intent of finding the oth'r half of one's soul. This avowal is true and shall standeth true awaiting the endeth" Xena read slowly. Though perfectly spoken by her, I still didn't understand what the passage implied.

"The fuck does that mean," I deadpanned.

She rolled her eyes at my crude choice of words. "It means there is no possible way that you, a demon, could have a fairy mate." She said sounding exasperated as she slumped back defeatedly in her chair. "Every single gods damned book I've read says the same thing. No mate bond can come of different species."

"I know she's my mate Xena." The words came out a little more harshly than I meant them to.

"Yeah, I know dumbass. I believe you. There's just no scientific explanation." She articulated, unfazed by my tone of voice.

I looked back at the books on her table. There has to be answers somewhere.

"What about these torn-out pages?" I questioned.

"I dunno, I just assumed they had been ripped out by one of the royals before. Probably used them as a drink coaster or something," she shrugged.

"What if they were important? Maybe they held the answers to our questions."

"Yeah, I thought so too. But even if they did, they are long gone now." She frowned, tugging on a dyed purple curl.

I picked one of the books up and closed it, flipping it over to the front cover. Underneath the gold lettering of the title, it said the name, "Han Montalli" I muttered.

Xena looked at me in question. "Who's that?"

"I'm not sure, but if he wrote this book then it means he must have the answers to what the missing pages are."

Xena and I exchanged a look.

"We had to find the author." I said. It may be a long shot, but it's all we have if we want to understand this situation. Raven and I may not be alone. We could very well be one of many couples to have an interspecies mate bond.

I heard the door creak open and whipped my head towards the sound. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Xena look up as well. The door slowly opened revealing a sleepy Raven. Her long hair was tangled in a dark wavy mess, and she rubbed the sleep from her blue eyes. My gaze softened at the sight of her.

"Raven, baby come here," I cooed.

She was wearing another oversized shirt. She must have stolen it from my wardrobe. I saw Red slink around her feet and into the room. My princess stepped inside, closing the door behind her. Her feet pattered over to where Xena and I were.

"You were missing when I woke up," her angelic voice pouted. My heart lurched in my chest at the sound.

I pulled her into me and she instantly wrapped her arms around my waist. I pet her messy hair, tucking it back behind her ear. "I'm sorry love, I had to leave to speak with Xena. Did you eat anything? I sent a maid to bring you some food." My beautiful mate averted her eyes and shook her head sheepishly.

Raven's eyes landed on Xena with an expression displaying that of confusion. I lifted an eyebrow, "Do you remember Xena? She is the one who saved your life."

Xena removed her glasses, placing them on the desk. "She probably doesn't, she was pretty out of it when they found her lying in the garden." She said directed toward me.

Raven looked up at me as though she wanted an explanation or an introduction.

"Raven, this is Xena. She's the head doctor at the infirmary and also the one who bandaged you up after they found you." I looked over at Xena in gratitude. If it wasn't for her, my mate would have been in worse shape.

I noticed Raven shudder in my arms, most likely at the thought of her injuries.

My mate slowly loosened her arms from my waist and let go. My brows knit together at the action.

Raven stepped closer to the desk. She reached for the flower vase that sat on the wood tabletop; it held a dead, wilted rose. Raven carefully pulled it out of the container. As soon as she made contact with the flower, it started to perk up. In a matter of seconds, the stem and leaves turned from brown to green. The crumpled flower bloomed with red, soft petals. It looked full and alive again. Xena and I stood slack-jawed, staring in awe at the now-beautiful rose.

"Thank you." Raven held out the flower to Xena.

Xena took it from her, still seeming to be in shock. She muttered a thank you, and held it up to the desk lamp, twisting it in the light. There were no imperfections. It seemed to be as healthy as the day it was cut from the garden.

Xena looked up at Raven curiously. Neither of us had ever witnessed the powers that fairies possess.

"What else can you do?" Xena asked, but was cut off by the door swinging open once again.