Threads of Fate

Chapter 66 ~ To Bind for Eternity

    Azael couldn't bring himself to answer right away. His mind was churning with a variety of thoughts and questions, but he couldn't pick out which to voice first. Tissaia watched him worriedly, rubbing her hands together in an effort to quell their shaking. Azael swallowed and forced himself to draw a steadying breath before taking her left hand in his own.

    "Are you sure that's what you want?" He asked quietly. "Once the bond is formed, it can never be undone. No one has found a way. This isn't something you should ask of me lightly."

    "I don't," Tissaia answered almost before he'd finished speaking. "I don't ask this lightly. I know what it means. I was there when Kaius formed his and Talarion's bond, and I witnessed how it affected every day of their lives."

    Azael smoothed his thumb across her knuckles, feeling the notches in a few of them that were proof of the countless times her hand had been broken because of him. "And you've seen what it's doing to your brother now that Kaius is gone," he pointed out.

    "Do you want to live through that same pain? We're about to step into another battle, and I can't predict the outcome of it. I can only promise that your father will die, and I will not allow you to suffer at his hands again, but if the cost of that promise is my life..."

    "I don't care. I want to know that no matter where you are, even if you're in another plane of existence, I still bear a piece of you with me, and I'll still be yours when I find you again."
   
    "Tissaia, please think about this. Really think about it," he pressed. "I don't want to give you anything more to regret between us. If something were to happen to make you hate me again, and we were already bound..."

    Tissaia covered their joined hands with her free one. "I won't regret it. I've already promised to be with you until death. Now I want to promise to be with you even then." Azael tensed with concern as silver rimmed her sapphire eyes and she looked away. Gently, he hooked a finger beneath her chin and lifted her gaze back to his.

    "What's really driving this?" He asked. "Is it just the Elder's warning and Kaius's vision or is there something else?"

    Her jaw trembled and Azael slid his palm back to her cheek, letting her lean into his touch as her tears spilled and she caved to her knees. He followed her down and pulled her against his chest, threading his fingers through her hair in an attempt to soothe her.
   
    "What's going on, my Love?" Azael murmured, touching his lips to the top of her head.

    "I'm..." Tissaia stumbled over the words as a few sobs escaped her lips. "I'm afraid," she whispered. "I'm afraid of facing Father again and what it will cost. And when Talarion told me what Kaius had seen, I just..." She hid her face against his chest.

    "Azael, I want that future, no matter what comes after it. But I'm terrified that I'll never get to live it to begin with. I don't feel strong enough for this. I feel tired. So tired, and a part of me just wants to give up. To admit that we'll never be able to break free from Father. He's always told me that I am weak, and now, I feel like that's true. I feel weak, and alone."

    "That will never be true," Azael countered, a biting edge to his words. "You are going to be rid of him once and for all. I know you're tired of fighting. You must be tired of having to be strong. You've been strong for so long, ever since I've known you. You have always been protecting yourself and your brother. Even me. But you don't have to fight alone now."

    Tissaia met his gaze once more, her own still glossy. His next words were softer. "You are not weak, my Love, nor are you alone. I'm here with you, and I'm not going to leave you." He drew a shallow breath and brushed a light kiss to her temple.