A Demon's History: Lotus Thorns

Chapter Twenty-Three: Atoned Sins

         Anahera gasped for air as a sudden jolt startled her. She had fallen to the floor. She coughed a bit, looking up to see Lleon through her hazy vision. He had headbutted Celvin with his helmet, a deep and guttural animalistic sound coming from him. His tail swished around in agitation, anticipating Evermore's next move. Celvin rubbed his head a bit before shaking it off and charging at Lleon. The larger grabbed the blade of his sword despite it cutting into his hand. Evermore was surprised by this move, giving Lleon the chance to push him back with force. He swung at him, landing a few punches on the wolf. Celvin tossed his sword at Lleon in a last-ditch effort, but it nearly hit Anahera, telling by her audible whimper. This only seemed to anger the dragon Demon more. He ran at him briefly on all fours before tackling him, bashing his head into the ground until Celvin's helmet broke.

"W-Wait! Yer Angel lass would not want ye to kill me! Right?!" Celvin pleaded with desperation in his eyes.

Lleon paused but didn't loosen his grip on his head. He vaguely remembered that. Through his anger-plagued mind, he was barely able to stop himself. He looked at Anahera. She struggled to stand but managed to with the wall supporting her.

"Lleon," She breathed out. "Kill him."

"Avec plaisir." Lleon snarled out before quickly drawing his sword and bringing it down on Evermore's neck. When everything was quiet again, he stared down at the headless corpse. It was not a kill that satisfied him, and he did not understand why.

When he remembered Anahera, he rushed over to her and assessed her condition.

"Are you okay? Is the baby—"

He cut himself off when she shook her head and collapsed into his arms in hysterics, everything crashing down onto her. She screamed as she wept, asking questions she knew would not be answered. It echoed off the empty walls. He could not help but feel a twinge when she asked if it was punishment for her doings. She didn't deserve this.

Still, he stayed there and let her cry into his chest. Lleon never cared for despair. When he slaughtered, the sounds of despair were simply noises. Yet, this made him feel...helpless. A new outlook was revealed in him upon seeing such agony in Anahera because of the loss of her baby. Their baby. He hugged her tighter. One fact did truly sink in for him, and that was the fact that he almost lost her too. Anahera cried for some time before reaching up and shakily taking Lleon's helmet off. She expected an apathetic look from him but instead saw a streak of blood trail down his face. He was hurting too, looking at her with such gentle eyes she had never seen before.

It was over now, but at what cost?

          There was no longer a bleeding moon in the sky. The naturally pale sky showed true damage. Lleon knew Anahera could not take any more heartbreak, so he and his people did the cleaning and identification. During that time, the dawn of the next day, Anahera indulged herself in a much-needed bath. She wanted to sleep as well, but every time she closed her eyes, last night's events repeated in her mind. Anahera decided to look at the sky from her balcony. The serenity of it did not seem to become dull despite the war. She jumped a bit when Lleon stood next to her.

"Hello." He simply greeted.

"Hello." she echoed.

They could not tell if it was awkward or tense. Maybe it was neither. Maybe it was both. Lleon looked over at her, avoiding her eyes. Something unusual for him unless he truly felt he had done something wrong.

"Most has been cleaned up. I..." He did not know what to say. What was there to say? He was there when she picked out names, forcing him to pick one. He was there when she had made all the plans. She tolerated his presence when it was the topic of their baby. He wondered if that tolerance was no longer there.

"My work is more than finished." He finally said, turning to leave.

"Suppose you do not need to marry me anymore." She spoke, voice broken.

"What?" Lleon was caught off guard by her statement. "I...suppose not. What will you do now?"

"Rebuild. Mourn for what I have lost. Even if I must do it alone, my people need me. Perhaps...I will have to marry another Angel."

Lleon returned to the spot next to her, the conversation falling into silence. He thought back on last night's events. Those raw feelings of not only wanting to kill but the fear he felt when he saw Anahera near death.

"Anahera, I..." He trailed off, feeling her eyes on him. He wanted to tell her but refrained. "I'm sorry."

"I accept your apology." She sighed. "However, I am also sorry for not trusting you enough."

"You had every right to not trust me. I started this war, I impregnated you out of greed and didn't want to take responsibility for it, and I...I hurt you in so many ways. I lost you, my only friend, because I so blindly believed my father."

"You were but a child, Victoir. I do not fault you for it."

"And I almost lost you again! Permanently."

Anahera went quiet as he paced. Lleon eventually stopped and looked at her.

"I can't be around you any longer." He said finally.

"Why not?"

"Because I am afraid I will not be able to stop myself from falling in love with you again."

Before she could respond, he took flight from the balcony. So much remained unanswered to her. Her heart yearned for him despite everything. She had recognized her feelings, yes, but she never could admit them to herself. It was too late to anyhow.

The following days came and went. The clean-up was as bad as she thought it would be. Even worse were the nightmares. She wondered if they replayed in Lleon's mind like a lullaby. The day before, Caydren mentioned he lost Avery, so she would look for him.
It would not take long because Avery showed up, begging for forgiveness. Anahera was shocked to see his fate of becoming a Dark Angel. His tainted wings did not belong on such pure grounds. Still, he had been a friend to her and never meant to hurt her. So, she would banish him in the terms that he had his own kingdom and they remained allies. When all was said and done at the end of the day, she went inside.

          As she sat down at the dining table, she opened her mouth to call for Sébastien but stopped short upon remembering that he was no longer there. It suddenly felt quiet. She only wished that her father would check on her. To hold her like he did when she was a baby. She remembered those feelings well. Now, she was not even sure he was aware of what had just happened. Anahera became startled when a pair of arms wrapped around her tightly.

"Forgive me, Queen Anahera." Aria sobbed. "I am just so glad you're okay!"

Anahera smiled and hugged her back. "I'm glad you're okay as well, Aria."

Perhaps, she did not need him. She had not before, and she did not now. She had Aria, and soon she would have more people to care about her that would care about her the same way.