Chapter 244

Chapter 244: Chapter 244

Dulce got out of bed well past mid-morning; he wanted to pay a brief visit to the witch Moira, any later, and she would likely be long gone to the western magical institution in Enysworth.

The leisure room was still being remodeled, and it would be done by the end of the day, the workmanship hastened to avoid the hassle of a spring rain.

Not caring to check where the Demons might be, Dulce left the cottage. There was a cool breeze blowing through his hair, his unbuttoned collar revealing the red-purple bruises that stained the skin of his neck.

"You might as well let me take you." Asael’s dry voice came from behind him just as he was about to set off.

Dulce looked over his shoulder at the Shadow Demon, his gaze cool. Without a word, he left in a blur of gold and black, going out of sight in an instant. He was startled to see the Demon waiting for him at the entrance to Magic Alley when he slowed to a stop.

Asael was leaning against the wall of the old church; it seemed like the Demon had been waiting for quite a while, his hands in the pockets of his coat. He pushed away when Dulce noticed him, walking over to hold a hand out to the Vampire.

Dulce glanced down at the outstretched hand and back up at the Shadow Demon who watched him patiently. "How did you know my destination?"

Asael closed his hand around Dulce’s smaller hand when the Vampire took his hand, the scenery instantly changing around them. "You might as well let me take you next time." He repeated, ignoring the Vampire’s question.

Dulce pulled away and immediately went off in search of Moira. Asael had warped them to the witch’s shop, but the eccentric human witch was nowhere to be found, not even her distrustful father.

He bumped into her as soon as he crossed the magical barrier, she had an armful of scrolls, her black hair frazzled.

"Dulce!" Moira exclaimed in half-excitement, half-shock. "I received a letter of invitation from Chancellor Alden himself!"

Dulce already expected this, but he played along, "And what did it say?" He asked, watching her calmly as she stumbled over to dump the pile of rolled-up scrolls in an open crate across the room.

"That I will be attending the institute, can you believe it?" She asked, hurrying over now that her arms were empty.

Dulce remained aloof in the face of her unabashed excitement, "Of course. I always keep to my word."

Moira laughed happily, but it was hard to miss the wetness in her eyes. She took the Vampire’s hands and swung them playfully. "And I will do the same by finding out more about the mating bonds of Hellhounds." She promised, determination in her eyes.

Dulce said nothing to that; Caedos was so adept at utilizing his canine charms on him that it seemed less troublesome to simply leave the mark be.

"Perhaps I’ll even be able to summon the first ever Demon in centuries. You evidently do not count."

Dulce let her swing their joined hands despite the disinterest on his face, unable to get into the fad for Demons. If he could, he would generously offer the nuisance he had unknowingly summoned to the witch...

Well... perhaps the first time around could be counted as an accident, but they were bound to him once more, and he could no longer claim to be senile the second time around.

"When will you leave?"

Moira separated from him, going back to the crate to finish up the task she had been carrying out before he arrived. "At first light tomorrow. My father will send me off with a teleportation spell."

Dulce nodded, satisfied. "If anything happens, find a way to contact me."

"You’re leaving already?" Moira stopped him in his steps, disappointment in her voice.

"You seem..." Dulce trailed off, watched several crates full of scrolls float into the air at Moira’s bidding. "...occupied." He completed, continuing his exit. "I have other matters to attend to." He lifted a hand in a wave as he made his way back to the shop proper.

"All done?" Asael closed the distance as soon as he stepped into the shop.

Dulce didn’t resist when the Demon pulled him up against him, closing his eyes briefly as the world spun around him. Asael hadn’t waited for his response before warping them away from Fairwyn, the Demon’s impatience palpable.

He opened his eyes to pools of gray, the arm around him tightening as he was kissed. Dulce didn’t have any qualms about biting the Shadow Demon, he didn’t even do it out of anger, letting himself be kissed and then biting down on Asael’s lower lip on a whim.

Asael stared down at him when he broke the kiss off after sinking sharp, little fangs into him. The Demon’s expression showed no fluctuation even though silver blood ran down his sharp jaw.

Dulce didn’t wait to see how he would respond, hastily taking his leave to check on the progress of the leisure room. Biting the Demon had been incredibly satisfying; Asael could be especially cruel with his brand of pleasure, it left him addled, but he could still be righteously miffed.

The leisure room had been cleaned up already, all of the covers on the furniture lifted, a fire roaring in the hearth. And right where Dulce liked to sit and look out into the meadow were lattice windows complete with stained glass. It filled the room in a shower of light and color, it was vibrantly eye-catching.

It didn’t take long for the leisure room to slowly fill up and soon, his peaceful silence was interrupted by multiple Demons.

Dulce shot to his feet in dissatisfaction, and knowing that he couldn’t stop himself from being followed, he announced his intention to the room. "I’m going on a walk through the meadow. Alone." He tagged on, emphasizing the word.

And without waiting to hear their opinions on his decision, he left the room in a flash.

When the lattice windows were open, all they did was provide a clear view of the flowers on the ledge, the stained glass scattering colorful light on the stone wall outside, and the blooming flowers in the garden.

Dulce slowed to a stop when he was a short distance away from the cottage, looking back with a strange sense of disappointment when none of the nuisances had trailed after him.

He pushed away the unsettling thoughts as he walked forward. It was mid-afternoon, but the weather was pleasant, billowing clouds shielding him from the afternoon sun. The breeze was cool on his face and in his hair, and for a moment, he could accept why he had been drawn here.

The meadows were filled with flowers, there was not a single red rose in the valley of flowers but he was reminded of his mother, she might have liked this meadow.

Dulce had been born in Marlen, millennia ago, when a different empire dominated the west, yet it was curious that he hadn’t returned to his mother’s house... Well not completely, his heartless shell had been too focused on avoiding the Vampire-hunting Queen.

Aylin.

Dulce didn’t care for her death, the most they had interacted was while he was without his head and heart. She wasn’t meant to be a Vampire... far too foolish, not selfish enough.

He wandered around the meadow until it was late in the afternoon, his waistcoat lost somewhere in the flower fields. Dulce laid down in a patch of soft grass and fragrant flowers; it was strange, he had wandered around for a few decades after waking up in his desert castle, yet only the past year stood out in technicolor.

It was almost colorful enough to drown out the voices of his past... almost.

He let his eyes slip closed, the waning warmth of the sun on his face. It was back. The exhaustion, the bone-deep tiredness that made him rip out his heart.

It pressed him into the rich earth; his heart felt solid in his chest, solid and heavy, it taunted him to rip it out once more.

A gentle pressure on his chest immediately alleviated the sensation that threatened to bury him deep within the earth, surrounded by damp, wet soil. He opened his eyes to find large, worried eyes staring down at him, the unmistakable sight of a Hound from the Hells crouched on the ground next to him.

Caedos had arrived without him noticing, the Demon gently rested his head on his chest; it dwarfed him.

Dulce’s empty blue eyes gleamed with life, and on a moment of impulse, he wrapped his arms around the Demon’s snout, laughter bubbling up. It spilled out when a large tongue swiped wetly over his neck and the lower half of his face, still holding on despite that.

Brimming with jealousy, Kath’tan made himself known, stomping over. "Hmph. What’s so good about an oversized dog?"