Red Fang

Chapter 20: From The Brink Of Death

In the distance, a dark gray SUV burst into the forest and drove straight into the raging inferno, heedless of the current circumstances. Upon catching sight of Mavis's unmoving form, the vehicle immediately made a beeline for her, closing in faster and faster by the second. Once it had arrived at her exact destination, it skidded to a stop, and both X (#10) and Garson got out, quickly rushing to Mavis's aid.

"Is she okay?!" X asked concernedly as he opened the back doors of the SUV. However, although they were both worried for Mavis, they were worried for different reasons. Garson was worried because he genuinely loved her, while X was worried because if Mavis died too early, Frank's plan to infiltrate the Vermillion Enclave would fail.

Garson took a knee next to the unconscious vampire princess and tried to check her pulse, much to X's mild annoyance. "She's a vampire; it won't work!"

The young worker blinked. "Oh, yeah."

"Just hurry! We don't have much time! This forest is going to be nothing but cinders in a moment! Get her into the back and close the doors!"

Garson hoisted Mavis onto his shoulder and successfully brought both himself and her back into the vehicle, sealing the back doors just in time before the smoke could catch up to them. X then jumped back into the driver's seat, revved up the engine, and got all three of them out of there in record time.

X used the SUV's Bluetooth system to call the fire department and inform them of the devastating blaze before briefly looking back at Garson and taking his eyes off the front windshield. "Where am I taking us?"

"Just head back to the butcher's shop!" Garson instructed before turning his attention back to the vampire. "No, no, no, no, no.....come on, Mavis, wake up. I may not have known you for that long, but you brought a happiness to my life that I can't even describe. I knew I should've just gone with you from the start.....if I had, maybe this wouldn't have happened."

He slowly reached for her limp hand and put it within his. He wanted to believe that she was still alive, but she wasn't showing any signs of improvement; to make matters worse, neither he nor X knew how to perform sufficient medical aid, and the nearest hospital was miles away. "

"You were the first person in a while whom I could truly talk to about my troubles. Someone whom I could confide in without worry." He sighed, his lips starting to quiver with the first signs of grief. "You were willing to stand against the butcher shop intruders yesterday.....you were very brave back then. Please.....you have to come back from this. You just have to. I know you, and you are way too tough for some little wildfire to take you down."

He gently shook her for a few seconds, trying to rouse her and bring her to her senses. When that didn't work, he simply laid her on her back and readjusted her hands so they were formally clasped on her chest. "I don't know if you can hear me.....but I never held any ill will against you or your kind. I truly believe that you're a hero, and that the purity in your soul has no equal. You filled my life with joy from the moment we met, and it was a pleasure getting to know you."

Garson placed his right hand right on the spot where Mavis's hands met. "Mavis.....I love you."

At that moment, he thought he could sense movement returning to Mavis's hands, indicating that the vampire was starting to come to, much to his relief. The princess's eyes slowly fluttered open, and she stared upward at her rescuer. "G.....Garson.....?"

"Mavis!"

In the heat of the moment, the two of them shared a loving, passionate kiss; their first one since their relationship had started.