Playing with Fire [COMPLETED]

11 ~ demonically blessed

When Ruin returns, I meet him in the entrance hall. He is haggard, his eyes dull. He looks at me, and I feel a mixture of emotions from him. Love. The need to protect. Fear. Anger.

"War is coming," he rasps, his voice low and filled with pain. "I could not spare you from its wrath."

"It's okay," I whisper. "You don't need to protect me."

"I want to protect you, and now, they know it, too," he says, his tone sharp. Unforgiving. He sighs and places his hands on my shoulders.  "I am sorry for all that has been done to you. If you wish to go back to your home, your village, I'll make sure nothing bad happens to you. Or the village, or your family."

I .... I could go back? But .... would I fit in now? I turn my head and concentrate, trying to get used to the feelings of the new wings that protrude from my back. I look at them, the lavender, orange, and black feathers so beautiful.... Wings. My wings. They are real, and they are mine.

"I can't go back," I whisper. "Not just because of these, but also .... because of my power, and because I don't want to go back. They'd never accept me, not like they had before. And here, I'll always be safe. Because I'm with you."

"I cannot guarantee your safety here," Ruin murmurs.

"But you'd be with me here," I whisper. "And there, if I were to go back .... you wouldn't be able to always watch over me. You would not be able to stop them if they tried to kill me, or my family. Especially with the war, you would not be able to split your focus. For if you did, you'd surely die. And I... I could not live with that."

"What, with my death on your conscious?"

"With you dead at all!" I cry, looking away from his burning eyes. There. I said it.

There is a long pause, and the stretch of silence is agonizing to my heart. My soul. I just good as told him how I feel, and now .... I mean, I know he loves me. But is it love? Or is it just a familial thing? A friendship thing? A —

His lips crash against mine. His kiss is forceful at first, but then he calms, his kisses soft. Insistent. Yet, he does not take and take, he gives. He kisses my lips, his own working against mine, and I kiss him back. His hands explore my shoulders, touching my wings, then, when I shudder, for they are sensitive, he chuckles. He kisses me deeper, and I return it. I feel like I have finally come home. That now, I am the safest I'll ever be.

Suddenly, a rose gold light blooms between us. So bright I can see it with my eyes closed. We tentatively step back, both of us looking at the rose gold energy sparking between us. He gasps.

"What?" I whisper.  "What is it?"

"It's —"

The energy explodes between us. It flows into both of our bodies, filling our hearts, minds, souls with its sheet power. It is a claiming. A promise. A reminder of love.

I look up at him, confused.  But then, I see a tattoo snaking across my skin, on the back of my left hand. And one is on his, matching mine. They both are rose gold. And they both seemingly shine from within.

"A promise of love," he whispers. He looks up at me. "You accepted my love. Now, you have bound us once more."

"How? And what does that even mean?'

"I don't know how. It must be your power," he murmurs. "It means that no matter what, we will always be able to find each other. No matter what .... Elorha .... I think we are soulmates."