Chapter Seven: Sypher/Vel…

Elda looked stunning - so beautiful that Vel’s pulse actually stuttered when she smiled at him in that skin tight red dress. A slow smile spread across his face when they entered the banquet hall together, her hand in his, his black sclera with its framing of dark veins proudly on show.

The whole event was a farce of pomp and pageantry, but at least he got to spend it with the prettiest girl in the room. He was so taken by her that he almost missed Horthan grinding his teeth in the corner.

As soon as their eyes met, Vel smiled and dipped Elda into a kiss that made her pulse flutter like the wings of a hummingbird. The absolute rage in the Falkrynian’s expression was divine.

“Did you do that because you wanted to kiss me, or because you wanted to annoy Horthan?” she asked, elbowing his side gently and faking a pout. He turned and looked down at her, Sypher chuckling affectionately in the back of his mind.

“Much like the proposal, it was a two birds one stone kind of thing.” He pulled her closer, his arms snaking around her waist until she was just an inch away. “I always want to kiss you. It just so happened that that particular kiss pissed off Lord Asshole at the same time,” he winked.

“Try not to wind him up too much,” she warned, her lips twitching against a reluctant beam. “I don’t need cannons firing at my home.”

“He wouldn’t dare,” Vel replied, his smile widening enough to show his new double fangs. “I can’t wait to threaten him.”

“If I know you, there’s a monologue planned,” Elda teased.

“Oh yeah. I’m fairly certain I’m going with tearing his heart out and keeping it in a box.”

“Eating it would be creepier.” He blinked down at her, tilting his head.

“And you say I’m the violent one.”

“You love it,” she grinned, stretching up onto her toes to plant a gentle peck on his lips.

“Openly embracing my demon blood is probably the hottest thing you do, but doing it in that dress?” He looked her up and down slowly. Elda smiled and did a twirl, purposefully giving him a better view. “Are you sure we have to stay here?” he groaned, taking hold of her hand to pull her closer again.

“Unfortunately,” she sighed, letting herself be drawn in until her palms rested flat against his chest. She traced the expensive fabric of his waistcoat with her fingertip for a second. “I know you hate this outfit, but I have to say I really don’t.”

“What, leather doesn’t do it for you anymore?”

“I’m not saying that.”

“So leather does do it for you?” Vel teased, enjoying the pink blossoming in her cheeks.

“Will you behave yourself?”

“Sweetheart, you married a demon. Behaving isn’t in my nature.” She arched an eyebrow at him, stepping back and setting her hands on her hips. “Don’t pretend you don’t want to smile at me.” She broke, a beautiful grin curving her crimson lips.

“I do,” she nodded. “Speaking of misbehaving, why is Sypher so absent this evening?”

“He hates parties more than me,” Vel shrugged.

“He promised he’d be here too.”

“He is here, he’s just… passive.” When she arched an eyebrow at him, he chuckled. “Fine.” The shift between his two halves felt different this time - she could almost sense him dragging Sypher out of hiding by his collar.

“There you are,” she greeted when she saw both of them looking back at her. “I was beginning to think you’d run off for good.”

“You really think Vel would let me get away with leaving him to suffer through this alone?” Sypher asked. “Besides, if I let Vel have free reign all night your mother might have an aneurism.”

“That’s true. Are you going to be present when it’s time to threaten Horthan?”

Sypher smiled. “Nope.”

“So Vel still gets the fun part then.”

“I think this is the fun part,” he shrugged, offering her a hand. She took it and let him lead her to the centre of the red carpet, her mind wandering back to the first night they met. The memory of Horthan's hands on her made her shudder.

“What did you think of me when you saw me in that corridor?” she asked, stepping into a gentle sway in time with the slow song the musicians struck up.

“That I wanted to tear Horthan’s balls off and make him eat them.”

“Graphic,” she grimaced.

“You looked delicate, El. Frightened. It made me furious to see him hurting you.” He raised a hand to touch her cheek, the leather of his glove cool against her skin.

“Was Vel furious too?”

“Actually, he was sulking. We were pretty separate back then.” Sypher smiled and Vel’s dark eye sparkled as his aura shifted yet again.

“I didn’t even realise you existed until the night we crashed,” Vel replied.

“And what did you think of me?”

“My first thought was 'holy shit she’s sat on me',” he shrugged. “Immediately followed by 'holy shit she’s sat on me and she’s beautiful'.”

“You didn’t think I looked frightened?”

“I couldn’t focus on anything but the colour of your eyes, varro.” He flashed a lopsided smile. “You had me hooked the second you realised what I was and didn’t scream.”

“I did?”

“Oh yeah, big time.” He spun her away, bringing her back to him with a grace that took her breath away. “I was an asshole to you because you scared me.”

“This is a terrible apology.”

He cocked his head, the smile turning wicked in a way that made her mouth dry. “I’m not apologising.”

“Why?”

“Because you loved me being an asshole.” Elda’s blush deepened, a flush creeping up her throat. “And I love that you love it.”

“Is it time to threaten Horthan yet?” she mumbled, suddenly unable to look him in the eye without her heart slamming against her ribs.

Vel laughed. “After this dance."

As much as he hated parties, his smile never dropped. Sypher was happy to leave him holding the reins, and Vel seemed so alive. Elda appeared to forget that she was supposed to hate banquets and ostentatious outfits, and that there were eyes tracking her every move. For a moment both of them forgot that their friend had died, their future was uncertain and the weight of the world rested on their shoulders.

But then the song ended and reality tightened its hold. As gleeful as Vel looked at the prospect of terrifying Horthan, he didn't miss the nervous shake of Elda's frame. She hooked her hand through his elbow as they approached the Falkrynian.

“I see you got the ale out of your hair,” Vel remarked, making the lion Shifter jump and look up from the goblet he was glaring into.

“Yes, no thanks to your Spirit friend,” Horthan glowered. The demon arched an eyebrow expectantly. A beat of silence passed. “Your Grace,” the Lord ground out at last.

“She acted on behalf of my wife because you were an ass, Rhydian.” Vel’s use of his first name made the Falkrynian bristle, but he held his tongue. The demon leaned in closer, forcing Horthan to take a step back. “Speaking of being an ass, I hear it’s suddenly very difficult for Eden to trade along their usual routes. Routes that just so happen to pass through your kingdom.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Rhydian muttered.

“Hmm. I find that hard to believe.” Vel smiled with his double fangs on show, sharp enough to rip Horthan’s throat out. “If you value your boats, you’ll stop arresting innocent people and release the ones you’ve wrongfully imprisoned. If you value your life, you’ll stop lying to me about it.”

“And your sham marriage isn’t a lie?” the Shifter challenged, his cocky sneer returning.

“Sham marriage?” Elda asked, raising an eyebrow at him. “What part of my marriage is a sham, exactly? The part where I chose a kinder, gentler man than the one who assaulted me in the hallway? The part where he repeatedly defended me with his life and his reputation?” She smiled tightly. “Or the part where I gifted him the virtue you so brazenly planned to take from me?”

“You went to bed with a demon?” Horthan recoiled, utterly disgusted. Vel’s arm settled around her waist, pulling her closer.

“I married a demon, I fell in love with a demon, and I would die for a demon.” She looked Horthan up and down in revulsion. “He’s a better man than you could ever dream of being. If my people aren’t released from wrongful confinement within the week and safely returned to us, I will come for you, and I will let him eat you. Do you understand?”

Horthan’s face paled when Vel’s grin widened, his throat bobbing as he swallowed. Fine beads of sweat dappled his forehead as Elda watched his golden eyes stick to the wicked looking fangs, the pupils blown out in fear. Eventually, he nodded and scurried away.

“You’ll let me eat him?” Vel echoed, snickering at her. “Subtle.”

“I needed to get my point across,” she shrugged.

“You realise I don’t eat people, right?”

“Yeah, but they don’t know that.”

Vel snorted. “Your father will have me beheaded if he hears that rumour.”

“He tried that once and failed, remember?”

“Vividly.” Vel scowled, then his expression brightened and both the Angel and the demon looked at her through hopeful, mismatched eyes. “Now that we’ve danced and threatened the moron, can we leave?”

“I think my father would prefer one more dance.”

“And I’d prefer you out of that dress.” He held out a hand, tempting her to leave. She grinned and laid her palm in his.

“How long before your mother storms up here looking for us?” Sypher asked, tracing circles on Elda’s back with the tip of his finger. She tightened her arms around his torso, resting her cheek on his chest.

“Hopefully a few hundred years,” she yawned. “But if she did you could just fly us out of the window or something.”

He tucked the bed sheets around her with a chuckle. “That’s about all I’m good for these days.”

“I wouldn’t say that’s all you’re good for,” she grinned, but her face fell. “As fun as it was to forget for a while, we need a plan.”

“I know, maite. I'm at a loss, unfortunately. I can't crack the shield without magic."

"Wait. Wait a minute!" Elda sat up quickly, her blue eyes wide. The Soul Forge cocked his head, watching her think over whatever had just occurred to her. "The others cracked the shield after we went through!"

He blinked. "They did?"

"Yes!" She gripped his arm tightly. "Hephaestus showed me what they were doing while I was with him. When I saw them, they'd already managed to break through the shield and were attacking the monolith!"

"So we need Julian?"

"We need Julian," she agreed.

"I'll go find him. You stay here and hide from your mother," Sypher winked, climbing out of the bed and shrugging on a soft grey tunic. When his leather trousers were on and his feet were shoved into his unlaced boots, he ran a hand through his hair to neaten the mess Elda had made of it. "Jules might end up coming back here with me."

"I'll make sure I'm decent," she chuckled. The Soul Forge watched her pad to the drawers in search of clothes, then physically forced himself to look away and leave the room.

Tonight was fun, right? Vel asked as they paced through the halls, listening out for any signs of Julian or the others.

"It was," the Angel answered aloud.

We had fun. At a party. With people.

"Elda had a lot to do with it." With his abilities bound, the Soul Forge had to work harder to hear the nuances in people's steps or the deviations in the rhythm of the heartbeats surrounding him, but he could still detect them well enough. The fast thrumming of a Vampire pulse was faint in his ears.

The after party was more fun, Vel decided, and Sypher couldn't help his grin.