I was conflicted. I was glad that it had been RaXi sent to find me, but unsure how to proceed with it. I didn't want to fight RaXi; if I fought with her, no doubt Pashnirix would get involved, and things could get very bad in a hurry. But I doubted that Pashnirix would be willing to simply let me go so easily.
I could feel the weight of both of their stares on me. Either I would submit to Pashnirix and defy the Organization, or submit to the Leader and...I couldn't even begin to imagine what Pashnirix would do.
"Tigress," I heard Pashnirix say.
Finally, I spoke. "Listen, RaXi. I wasn't lying earlier. I came here of my own free will. No, Pashnirix, be quiet." The Dragon has started to speak in protest, but I silenced him. "There's a lot more to this than you understand. I owe him this, as do you."
"Me?" RaXi was incredulous. "What could I possibly owe that...that dragon?" she spat angrily.
"The lives of your silly friends, perhaps?" said Pashnirix coolly.
"Pashnirix, be quiet," I hissed. Surprisingly, he did. I wondered how I was getting away with this, but continued anyway. "RaXi, if you truly want to make the right decision, and you are honest in saying you don't want to kill me, then you will hear the full story."
RaXi looked from me to Pashnirix. "Fine," she said, finally relaxing her stance and motioning for Setxune and Xyta to follow suit. "Fine. I'll hear the story. But don't expect me to change my mind. I'm here on a mission."
Pashnirix smirked. "Very well," he said, "then I suppose we'll cross that bridge when it comes."
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Back at the castle, we all convened in a study room, and Pashnirix brought out a plate of pastries and some tea.
"Danish?" He offered the plate to RaXi, but sent me a glance. "I'm rather partial to the lemon ones myself," he said with a half smile.
I growled loudly, and everyone in the room looked at me with a question in their eyes. I tried to refrain from braining the dragon with the expensive looking lamp on the table.
"Um, thank you," said RaXi, taking a pastry off the plate. "So...where does this all begin?"
I sighed. "That night when Organization Zero came to attack," I answered. "Pashnirix and I fought, and...he's the only other Nobody with my type of element I've ever met. I was curious."
"I suggested that we meet again some other time, a week, to be precise. Danish?" The dragon offered the plate to Setxune, who declined, and Xyta, who eagerly chose a couple of the pastries. He set the plate down on a table. "A week passed, and--"
"He kidnapped me to Destiny Islands," I cut in.
"It wasn't kidnapping," I heard him mutter, "you could have escaped at any time."
"ANYWAY," I continued loudly, "after he kidnapped me, we talked, and we agreed to arrange weekly meetings with each other, to better train with our elements."
RaXi's jaw dropped. "You...you arranged to have secret meetings with a member of the enemy organization? How could you?!" She rose quickly from her chair and moved her arm in preparation for an attack. I dropped my chains to the ground and brought them up around her before she could attack, wrapping her tightly. Setxune and Xyta moved to attack me, but Pashnirix held them both at sword point with copies of his blade.
"RaXi," I said quietly, moving closer to her. I could see the anger in her eyes. "You promised you would listen. In no way were either of us plotting against our respective organizations. We had an agreement. If I had gotten an order to kill him, I would have."
"And I the same," said Pashnirix, watching RaXi carefully. "We knew what we were doing, RaXi."
RaXi snarled and fought against her restraints. "I'm not letting you go until you calm down and listen, RaXi," I said.
She looked to the ceiling. "Very well," she said quietly. I waited a few more moments, and then released her, drawing my chains back to myself. Pashnirix let the other two go and resumed his position against the wall.
"So, after that, our first meeting would have been here, but the moment Pashnirix kidnapped me here, I was called back for a meeting. At that point, the Leader let me know that he knew about my secret, and wasn't exactly...pleased," I said sourly.
"I think that's around the time you were kidnapped, and the Leader wouldn't let me go to help rescue you," I said. "I didn't think that sending Xemmsur was the brightest idea, so I did what I had to. I went to Pashnirix for help."
"And that's how we've come to this lovely situation," interjected Pashnirix. "You see, she asked me to observe the battle between your friends and Marlex, and should they have lost, she asked me to overpower Marlex and keep you myself."
RaXi looked angry once more. "You asked him to take me?" she said.
I rolled my eyes. "Not permanently," I answered. "I figured I had a better chance of getting you away from him than the Leader of Organization Zero. If I fought Pashnirix and won, then you'd be safe. But if I lost, chance were that he'd have been so happy to fight me he would have given you to me anyway."
"Your friend speaks true," Pashnirix agreed. "A rather risky assumption, but accurate nonetheless. I would have given you back no matter what."
RaXi shook her head. "I still don't understand why I owe him anything, Rex," she said. "Nyx and Xemmsur won. They got me back safely."
I shook my head. "Xemmsur threw Marlex into a portal. He would have come right back and finished them off, had Pashnirix not prevented him."
"It was to my benefit," said Pashnirix, "as well as yours. That girl was sloppy, and I very well prevented their deaths."
RaXi fell silent, so I continued. "And in return for his help, I promised to come here for an amount of time. Unfortunately, he tricked me into wearing these armlets which keep me here for as long as he wishes," I explained. "So really, if you want to take me back, you'll have to go through him."
"And I," said the Dragon, "do not let go of my treasures so easily."
"And herein lies the dilemma," I muttered. "I can't leave--"
"But you're not a traitor," cut in RaXi, looking at me. "I understand now, I think."
After a pause, Xyta spoke up and asked, "So, what do we do?"
Yes, that was the question on all of our minds.
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Continue, RaXi! ^_^
I followed Pashnirix to a door at the back of the castle, which opened up to a lavish garden. He quickly switched to his Final form, spread his dragon wings, and flew straight up to one of the highest towers.
"Show off," I muttered. I switched to my Final form, and with a series of leaps and bounds, managed to jump my way up to a neighboring tower. I look out onto the landscape, a beautiful scene of forests, lakes, fields, and mountains.
"There," he says so quietly I almost miss it. He silently swoops from the castle and into the sky. I follow his path beneath him, jumping down from the tower and into the trees. I follow him for about a minute, before he alights in a tree just ahead of me.
Before I could ask him what was going on, he noiselessly dropped to the ground. I dropped down behind him into a crouch, my mouth open to ask exactly what the hell--
"It would appear we have some company," he said coldly, his voice all business, like he'd spoken during our fights. His arms were crossed and he looked bored, but I knew his looks were most certainly deceiving.
I peered around him at the three who'd stopped in their tracks. Nobodies... I frowned as I recognized one of them.
"RaXi?"
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^_^ Just a short post to set RaXi up! Continue, Support KIRA!
After that little...stunt Pashnirix pulled, I was beyond furious. I was ready to hunt. I paced back and forth, having gone back up to my room (but not without taking a few pastries with me!), and tried to see where I had gone wrong.
I had let myself be swayed by the promise of good food. I had even forgotten to keep my chains on me! Letting your guard down like this could get you killed, I thought bitterly. I quickly grabbed my chains from the table beside the bed and started wrapping them, but then a little voice in the back of my head said, But the reason you let your guard down is because you trust him.
"No," I growled, "I don't." I wrapped my chains tighter and clenched my fists.
You do, and it's because you to are destined to be mates, said the voice.
But how could that be true? We were Nobodies, beings by their very nature unable to feel. Anything that Pashnirix thought he felt for me was nothing but the instinctual stirrings of a dragon.
"And this once," I said aloud, "I refuse to bow down to my instincts."
"And why is that?" I whirled around to see Pashnirix lounging in my doorway, a frown on his face. "Why will you not allow me to court you as is proper?"
"I--Pashnirix, we are Nobodies," I said. "We can't fee-"
"Don't," he said sharply, turning his head. I fell silent as he looked away. Finally, he said, "It seems you truly do have a lot to learn, Tigress."
"Look," I said, "if you're going to try to teach me that 'there are other ways to feel than through a heart,' save your energy. I have no use for feelings, and they have no use for me. Those were for my Other, and look where she is now." I turned away from him. "She entrusted her heart to someone else after keeping it hidden for so long...and he broke it."
"But we don't have hearts," he said after a while. "Anything we feel is through our souls, our wills, much stronger than mere emotions that come with a heart. To feel...isn't always a bad thing, Rex."
I said nothing, only sat down heavily on the bed. I had heard those last words before...even if only in a memory.
"I need a mate," Pashnirix said suddenly. "My last mate was killed. She was irresponsible, foolish, and weak. Tell me, Rex, why would I chose you as my new mate if I thought that you were as weak as she? That you could ever be as weak as she?"
He walked over to me with long strides, sat next to me on the bed, and grabbed me by the shoulders. "You are stronger than that, I know," he said urgently. "I knew from the first time we fought that you were different, better, the only one I could ever truly respect." He turned away from me.
I contemplated his words, and came to one conclusion: "I really wish you hadn't said that," I said lowly.
"Why?" Pashnirix said dully.
"Because now I have no choice but to face the truth," I muttered, "my instincts."
Pashnirix raised an eyebrow. "And your instincts...?"
I covered my face with my hands. "Are telling me to submit," I mumbled. I peeked through my fingers to see his reaction.
He smirked. "Good," he said, "it's about time. I've been fully acting on my own instinct to dominate, and I must say, you've resisted quite nicely."
My jaw dropped. He...he what? "You...you arrogant jerk!" I beat him with a pillow as he laughed and fought me off. Suddenly, he paused, grabbing my wrists to stop me.
"Hush," he said sharply, ears pricking to attention, nostrils flaring. Then he let me go, quickly striding out of the room. I followed him.
"What's going on?" I asked, hurrying behind him.
"Someone's near this castle," he said angrily.
I paced back and forth in my room, occasionally stopping to try and pull of the armlets, to no avail. Finally, I sat on the floor, leaning against the wall, and held my head in my hands. I couldn't believe...mate? His mate? Why me?
A part of me knew: it was the kinship we felt as animals, the sort of bond that only came with understanding another on the basest level. We were both animal spirits, almost destined for each other.
But the other part of me, the Nobody part, denied everything fervently. I couldn't feel; I had no heart, and neither did he. How could he claim to desire me, when we couldn't feel desire at all? All we had left were echoes of emotions, how our minds told us to react.
It was growing late in the day, and I hadn't eaten since morning. Granted, I could last for a while without food, thanks to the survival training I'd put myself under a while ago, but I could smell something delicious from downstairs. I growled lowly.
I had one of two choice: sneak downstairs and try to grab some food at the risk of it being a trap, or stay up here and suffer. I debated for a few moments longer, and then decided to take my chances.
I stood up and made my way over to the door, opening it carefully.
"Re--"
I gave a short gasp and lashed out instinctively, surprised to see Pashnirix at the door. He jumped back quickly to avoid my attack and raised an eyebrow. "I understand you're still upset with me, but is that really necessary?" he asked.
I frowned and muttered back, "I didn't realize you would be at the door. Trust me, if I knew, you wouldn't still be standing."
Pashnirix sighed. "And here I come, bearing good will," he said sadly with a hint of a smirk.
I moved to close the door on him, but he stopped it with his hand. "Go--"
"I came to invite you to dinner," he said over my protests. "I know you're hungry, Tigress, and I've prepared quite the feast."
My stomach growled at his words, the little traitor. "Fine," I said. When in doubt, follow your stomach.
He led me down to an exquisitely decorated dining room with a table spread out with all kinds of food: chicken, soup, rice, noodles, vegetables, fruits, pastries, cakes--I nearly fainted from sheer joy.
"Oh," I said softly. "You did this all yourself?"
I didn't look at him, but I could hear the smirk in his voice. "Of course," he said. "I am a dragon. We are very self-sufficient creatures, much like yourself."
But I wasn't listening anymore. I made my way to the table and piled a plate high with food, taking a seat at the end of the table. I saw him sit down across from me out of the corner of my eye.
Chuckling lightly, he said, "If I had known that it was this easy to subdue you, I'd have tried this ages ago."
I didn't argue. As it stood, I was thinking of revising my opinion of the dragon. A mate who could cook for me was definitely something worth considering...
I finished my dinner and moved on to dessert, grabbing a handful of strawberries in one hand and a lemon danish in the other. I made a small noise of happiness as I bit into the warm, fluffy pastry. It was delicious.
I licked the extra lemon filling from my fingers, ready to start on my strawberries, when suddenly, I found myself being hauled across the table. I dropped the strawberries to brace myself on the table, suddenly very aware of my lack of chains. Before I could regain my bearings, I felt the warm lick of a tongue across the side of my mouth.
My jaw dropped, and my eyes flickered over to Pashnirix's. There was a tense moment, and then he whispered, "You had a bit of lemon filling on your mouth. I thought I'd clean it for you."
I was in such shock that I couldn't even move, until I saw the glimmer of mischief in his eyes. He released me, casually sauntering over to the door. I growled, slammed a hand down on the table, and shouted, "Dragon! If it's a fight for dominance you want, it's a war you'll get!"
Pashnirix just waved me off, cocky jerk.
I paced back and forth angrily. How could I have let myself fall into such a trap? I was the Tigress! I was not supposed to be this easily fooled...
"Do not be too hard on yourself, Tigress," said Pashnirix as I continued my efforts to removed the armlets. "You were not trapped by just anyone. You were caught by the best. You should be honored."
"Honored?" I glared at him, pausing in my efforts. "I should be honored that I am now bound to you like...like some kind of slave?" I seethed.
Pashnirix sighed. "Not a slave," he said almost tiredly. "I would never do such a thing. To restrain a will as strong as yours would be the gravest sin."
"Then WHAT?! What the hell are you trying to accomplish here, Pashnirix?" I screamed. When he didn't answer me immediately, I went back to clawing at my arms. I could feel my element slipping up on me, my senses sharpening, ready for a fight. I was a tiger; tigers don't do well when caged.
"Rexikat, would you please calm down, for just a minute, and listen to me," said Pashnirix in a low voice. "I'm not going to hurt you. Just relax."
I didn't want to relax. I wanted out. "Take these things off me," I growled. "Take them off now."
Pashnirix shook his head. "I cannot do that," he said, "or rather, I will not."
I couldn't take it anymore, his smug, chilled attitude. I leaped off the bed, surprised when he didn't move as I tackled him to the ground. He fell to the floor with a grunt, pinned underneath me.
"Why?" I said, slashing him across the face. "Why do you insist on owning me? I'm not one of your possessions; I'm not some thing to be claimed! I refuse to be owned!
"Ever since the first time we fought, you've been going on about how we have so much to learn from each other, how much you have to learn from me! I don't understand!" In frustration, I grabbed his shoulders, slamming him on the ground again.
"You're right," he said, "you don't understand. You still don't understand. And you won't, not until you understand that there are other ways to feel--"
"Don't you dare," I growled, holding a clawed hand to his throat. "If you say that to me one more time, I swear I'll kill you."
We both fell silent, and the room was quiet but for my harsh breathing. "Rexikat," he finally said, "the armlets do not restrict your will in anyway. They simply prevent you from leaving this world until..."
"Until what?" I asked.
"I say so," he admitted. "I can take them off myself, but I'm not willing to take that risk. Not until you listen to me, and learn."
"So you're content with keeping me here as your pet until--"
"Not a pet," he growled back at me, eyes flashing, "never a pet. An equal."
I drew back, surprised at his sudden anger. He took the opportunity to knock me off him, and drew himself up off the floor. He picked me up by the arm, and held me against the wall.
"Listen," he said viciously in a low voice with narrowed eyes, "I know you are upset. I know you don't like being caged. Trust me, I know. I've trapped you here when that's the last thing you wanted. But you are not in any way my slave, nor are you a pet. You are mine, my equal, my rival, my mate, the only one who deserves my respect in this universe."
My eyes widened. "Mate..."
I flopped onto the bed, holding my hands over my closed eyes. I moaned in aggravation. Mate? That was what this whole mess had started over? How could I possibly be his mate? The Nobody side of me protested violently, screaming out against the term that implied emotions, but the animal side, the tigress, understood everything completely. I didn't know which side to believe.
