Love Thirst

XVIII- The forgiving

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A gasp exited an agape mouth as a hand rose to cover it up and another clawed at the leather book in its hold.

"Oh my." Stefan sounded out in horror as his eyes grew twice their size. He shook his head and his short curls in the process as he placed the book in the desk and left the room in a hurry.

Vladimir was down the hall glancing around to see if he could avoid Euthymius for as long as possible, nearly tiptoeing his steps like a burglar and blending into the white marble wall on his side to further his sense of security.

His journey towards his living quarters was quicker than he expected when his soul brother dragged him like a madman towards the reserved room.

"What are you doing?" He groaned in their mother tongue as he closed the door behind him and drew the curtains in a paranoid manner, allowing the room to fall in darkness except for the lamp above the pair of old friends. "Where did you get all that strength?" The blonde sneered as he sat down at the red velvet chair in the corner as the yellow light stood out on his skin.

"I finally understand now, Vladimir." The brown haired one confessed, running a hand through his short curls.

Vladimir frowned deeply and glanced at him curiously."What?"

"Why Euthymius acted the way he acted in the battlefield and the day we came here." Stefan sat down at the edge of the decorative bed fidgeting profusely.

The blonde one cleared his throat and became closed off at the sound of his name. "Can we not talk about him?"

"Euthymius had a sister." He started.

"I know, she died." Vladimir said, recalling the interaction he had with their mate. "He told me."

"Well she didn't just die. She was killed." Stefan let out after some hesitation at the last word.

"Oh no." He exclaimed in hurt as he felt himself grow worried for what Euthymius must have felt. "What happened?"

"This is crazy."The brown haired one said standing up from his seat and nearing the other, choosing to sit on the chair next to him. "Bare with me." He pleaded as his hands shook.

"Get to it Stefan!" He scolded, shaking the shoulders of the other in an impatient way. "This isn't one of those drama novels you normally read."

"One night she was killed in the patio of the castle, an intruder took off her head and burned her body and when the guards came, they went into shock and couldn't react before it was too late. The killer escaped and she died." He let out with a manic look in his eyes. "Euthymius was out on a mission and when he returned his brother told him the news and who had murdered Didyme Volturi."

Vladimir felt his chest tightened at the description of the tragic event. "Well? Who killed her?"

"Apparently us."

"What! What are you talking about? Us?"The blonde stood up in disbelief as he paced back and forth.

"Euthymius was told that we killed his own sister and escaped to a hideout." Stefan explained with a panicked expression. "Someone killed her and framed us."

The blonde vampire ran his hands through his face as he looked around with shaky red irises. "It must have been an inside offense." He muttered through the gaps of his hands. "So that's why he acted so cold."

Stefan nodded grimly as he pursed his lips in thought.

"Does he know we are innocent now?"Vladimir asked, stopping his fidgeting.

"I think he figured it out. It will be hard for him. We should be there for him."

They both nodded, albeit the blonde one hesitated slightly but had no choice when he was dragged towards the room of their mate which was slightly ajar.

Euthymius was looking out of his window, shaking his head frantically, but stopped when he noticed the scent of his mates.

He turned around to glance at them, his hair disheveled, shirt rolled up on the sleeves but still tucked to reveal his prominent waist.

Silence. A sense of tension grew between the pair and the beautiful dark haired male, the pity evident on their eyes.

Suddenly they were startled by his laugh. A genuine sound, raspy and warm like a fireplace, milky eyes reduced to slits of comforting rawness that made both of the Romanians fill up with ease.

The pair of old friends shared a confused glance before being startled by the feeling of their hands being grabbed.They both looked in astonishment at the male holding both of their hands gently and caringly as he took his turn into glancing deeply at their eyes.

"We know." Stefan confessed in an airy tone. "I read the report."

Euthymius looked down at their hands as he gently hoovered his thumb over their knuckles. "I wanted you to know, that's why I left it there." The black haired man dropped the smile on his face and gazed at them once again.

They were quiet for a second, waiting for the other to take the next move, and unsurprisingly Euthymius spoke first.

"I'm sorry about the way that I treated you when we first met and when we talked privately once you reached the castle. I have been fed a lie and took it for honesty for centuries. I had my suspicions that it wouldn't have been an outsider but ultimately I didn't want to go against my brother."  He said in a choked voice, eyes slightly pooling with venom. "I'm sorry."

Stefan hugged him tightly, bringing instant comfort to the taller man who leaned his head down on the neck of the shorter one.

"It's not your fault that you believed in them. As well as treating us coldly when you thought we could have done something so awful." Surprisingly it was Vladimir who spoke from his side and made the black haired man raise his head up and look at him in admiration so intense that would have made him blush had he been a human.

"Thank you." Euthymius said simply but sincerely. "Without the two of you I wouldn't have been able to become closer to the truth and have this much affection to comfort me."

"What are you going to do now, Euthymius?"Stefan asked, separating their bodies and instantly missing the warmth it brought.

"What I should have done centuries ago. Interrogations! No one is safe until we find out who did it." He explained.

Placing his strong hand on top of their shoulders, Euthymius continued."And I'm going to need your help."

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And so the investigation is going to get even more serious as well as their relationship! Hope you look forward to next chapter and please comment your thoughts on this one!
-in_obsequio