My Demon, My Love...

A few weeks later, Azlyn had been released from the hospital and had returned to Reve’s room. It was unusual for a slave to be treated at the hospital, but Reve had threatened to tear the entire place down until she was given the proper care. Either he or Prince Kane were by her side twenty-four hours a day to ensure that she was never neglected. Reve only leaving occasionally to get a few hours of much needed rest.

While Azlyn was undergoing her treatment, Reve had made some changes within the castle. The door to Azlyn’s room had disappeared as Reve had ordered the doorway bricked in. The few belongings that she owned had been moved into Reve’s room and placed amongst his things, as if it belonged there. The slave bed had been completely removed and replaced with a three-foot tall vase filled with a variety of flowers and plant-life; it seemed out of place amongst Reve’s other belongings.

“I thought that you would like them. They brighten up our room.” Reve had told Azlyn when he caught her admiring the flowers.

Azlyn looked up and smiled at him. She really appreciated his thoughtfulness, however, the thing that had truly made her grin was hearing him refer to his room as their room. Reve quickly ushered her over to the bed and helped her to get comfortable.

Reve completely disregarded all of his responsibilities over the next few weeks as Azlyn was rehabilitated. He would not let anyone near his room without his express permission and vigilant supervision.

“I have a way to make sure that no one can hurt you again. If they try, I will know immediately and come to your aid. I just need you to be strong enough to perform the ritual.” Reve informed her.

Azlyn was unsure what exactly Reve had meant by this. However, she decided not to press the issue any further. She focused on healing and reveled in all the attention that she was receiving from Reve. She loved spending all of this time with him; locked away in their bedroom they could live life almost like a normal couple.

One morning, Azlyn awoke to find the bed was empty next to her. As she rolled over to face the doorway, she was surprised to see Reve standing in front of her. He was holding his own breakfast tray as he beamed down at her, a huge smile across his face.

“Good morning, beautiful! I brought you breakfast!” Reve proudly announced.

Reve brought the tray over and carefully placed it across Azlyn. She looked down at the beautiful meal before her, complete with a single red rose. She could not help but smile at all the thought and care that must have gone into this.

“This all looks so wonderful, Reve. Thank you!” Azlyn exclaimed.

“I made it all myself!” Reve bragged.

“Really? I did not know that you knew how to cook.”

“Well, Nissa may have helped a little.” Reve admitted, sheepishly.

Azlyn chuckled at how hard Reve was trying to impress her. It was very flattering that he went out of his way for her all of the time. Not to mention, she found it extremely endearing that he wished to wait on her rather than having someone else serve them.

“You are very sweet. What is the occasion?” Azlyn inquired.

“Well…” Reve started as he plopped himself down on the bed next to Azlyn. “How are you feeling?”

“I am feeling much better. I think that I am finally ready to return to work.”

“I am surprised to hear that you are so eager to get back to your duties.”

“Well, it has been strange sitting around here all day. My work is all that I have ever known.”

“Well, you will not be getting back to it just yet. Though I am glad to hear that you are feeling strong and healthy again. I have something that I have been wanting to talk to you about.”

“I knew this breakfast had strings attached.” Azlyn teased.

Reve chuckled, then took in a deep breath before continuing.

“There is a ritual that I would like for us to do. It will mark you as mine and will keep all other demons away from you. This ritual will also connect us in such a way that I will be able to feel your emotions whenever they are intense enough. So, if someone does try to harm you again, then I will feel it and I can get to you immediately.”

Azlyn had heard about this ritual before, though she was not exactly sure of what the rite entailed, she did know that it was to be taken very seriously. This ritual was meant for a demon to perform with the demoness that he had chosen as his mate for life. This would forever bind them; it could be considered as serious as the bonds of marriage, if not more so. Anyone who saw the mark would know that Azlyn had been claimed by a demon as his true love.

“Reve…” Azlyn took in a deep breath before continuing. “I appreciate what you are trying to do, but I do not think it is a good idea. It would become much harder for us to hide our relations if you were to place such a mark on me. Not to mention, this could, potentially, ruin any future possibilities of a mating with a noble demoness. You could not have two marked mates. You would have to kill me in order to properly mark her.”

Reve turned to face Azlyn, his careless smile now replaced by a very serious frown. He reached his hand up and placed it gently on her cheek. He stared directly into her eyes as he spoke his next words…

“I want you to understand how serious I am about us. You mean everything to me. I want no one else. When I told my mother that I love you, I meant it. I love you, Azlyn.”

Azlyn could not contain her happiness at hearing those words again. A huge smile spread across her face and she threw her arms around Reve’s neck, pulling him into her.

“I love you too!”

How Reve had longed to hear those words. He had desperately hoped that Azlyn felt for him the way that he felt for her, but he had not wanted to pressure her. When he had seen her, moments away from her death, a terrifying vision had flooded his brain. He was forced to imagine a life without her and it was not one that he desired. He now knew that any chance he had for happiness in this lifetime would be to spend it with Azlyn.

Reve reached up and placed his hands on either side of Azlyn’s face. He kissed her long and passionately, celebrating his excitement at having her love. He desperately wanted her to agree to the ritual; he needed her to be his. He had to claim her; his primal-self screamed out at him every time he touched her. He required their union to be official, before he lost control of his primitive instincts and forced the ritual onto her without her consent. This was something he did not want to accidentally do. As he felt the pull to commit the ritual becoming stronger every day.

“So, will you consider performing the ritual with me then?” Reve persisted.

Azlyn thought quietly for a moment.

“Only if you are one hundred percent certain that this is what you want.” Azlyn finally answered.

“I am absolutely, one hundred and fifty percent, certain that this is what I want.” Reve assured her.

Azlyn stared into his eyes, searching for doubt, instead being met with absolute certainty. There was not even the slightest hesitation in his mind.

“Then, of course, I agree. I cannot think of anything that I want more.” Azlyn cooed.

Reve quickly grabbed Azlyn and began to kiss her again. Though he felt himself beginning to get too worked up and forced himself to let her go. If they were going to perform the ritual, then they would both need their strength for later; he could not risk wasting her energy.

“It is only fair to warn you, Az. This may get rough, I will let my primal side take over in a way that I never have before with you. It is essential that we connect on the most primitive level possible.”

“I understand, and I am not concerned.” Azlyn reassured him.

They had just began picking at their breakfast when there was knock at the door. Azlyn moved to get up and answer it, but Reve placed his hand on her shoulder and gently pushed her back into the bed. He jumped up and ran over to the door, opening it just enough for the individual on the other side to see his face. After Reve closed the door, he turned towards Azlyn with an uncertain look on his face.

“What is going on?”

“My mother has called a castle-wide meeting. She claims to have an important announcement to make that will affect everyone.” Reve informed her.

“Well, then we should get ready.” Azlyn said as she began to climb out of the bed.

“No.” Reve stated as a matter-of-fact.

“What?” Azlyn paused, surprised.

“I do not want you going to the meeting. The room will be crowded, and we will be separated. I do not trust it.”

“I will stay with Nissa, Blaz, and Zareb. They will make sure that I am safe.”

“I still do not like it, Azlyn. I would rather that you stay here, lock the door, and wait for my return. I cannot risk something happening to you.” Reve said as more of a plea than a command.

Azlyn was beginning to grow annoyed. She could not stay in here, locked away forever. Reve had to allow her to go back out and join the world. This meeting was a perfect opportunity for her to check in with her friends. Not to mention, she was curious as to what the queen’s important announcement could possibly be.

“You have to let me leave some time, Reve. I am going stir crazy. Please, just let me go to this meeting, I promise that I will be careful. I will go straight there and come straight back here. I just need to get out for a little while.” Azlyn begged.

Reve thought about this for a moment. He did not want Azlyn to feel trapped, she was not his prisoner. However, he did not want her to leave their room until after he had marked her. He struggled with this decision, but then concluded that he needed to do what was best for Azlyn and not just what made him feel the most comfortable.

“Fine. You can go to the meeting. However, I want you next to Zareb the entire time; he is the only one I trust. I will even have him meet us at the room to escort you to the meeting and I would like him to bring you back as well. I do not want you to leave his side for even a single moment.”

“Thank you!” Azlyn squealed as she threw her arms around Reve’s neck and began kissing him, multiple times, across his face.

They both readied themselves for the meeting. Then Reve quickly raced off to join his family, leaving Azlyn with last minute instructions to leave the door locked until Zareb came for her.

Moments later, Zareb knocked at the door and informed Azlyn that he was there to escort her to the meeting. They greeted each other with a warm hug, both happy to see each other after being separated during Azlyn’s recovery.

They talked about many things as they walked, though Zareb did not ask about the incident. He knew better, he was aware that Azlyn did not want to dwell on what had happened. She had recovered and now she wanted to move forward.

“Oh, I completely forgot to tell you! I found out what your name means! You are never going to believe it!” Zareb announced with excitement.

“Well, what is it?”

“Azlyn means ‘vision or dream.’ Your name has the same meaning as Reve’s! Isn’t that a crazy coincidence?”

Azlyn was surprised. That was a strange coincidence. She wondered if that was just another one of many hints that the Universe had been giving to indicate that she and Reve belonged together.

“Thank you for finding that out for me. I appreciate it!”

“My pleasure! You know it is my hobby!” Zareb beamed.

They made their way into the large throne room. The room was already crowded, and it took them a moment to find Nissa and Blaz within the crowd. Nissa quickly hugged Azlyn, happy to see that she had recovered. Blaz simply made comments about how she would never have been in that situation had she stuck to her own kind. They all simply ignored his comments and rolled their eyes at his cynicism. Everyone in the crowd murmured back and forth, taking various guesses at what this meeting could possibly be about.

A few minutes later, the royal family strode out of the back room and onto the stage where the thrones sat, displayed. King Chesed and Queen Mara made their way to their large, ornate thrones and gracefully sat themselves upon them. Prince Gedeon made his way next to his father’s throne and stood beside it; with Prince Hadeon placing himself on the other side of Gedeon. Reve stood next to his mother’s throne and Prince Kane arranged himself beside him.

The crowd fell into silence out of respect for the royal family. The air hung thick with the tension; no one was very comfortable being on display in front of the royals. Finally, Queen Mara rose from her throne and wandered to the center of the stage.

“I am sure that you are all wondering why I have called you here.” Mara began. “I, along with your King and Council, have come to a wonderful and momentous decision that will move the future of this realm forward.” Mara paused momentarily for dramatic effect. “In just a few weeks’ time, we will be inviting forty noble demonesses to live with us at the castle.”

Everyone was surprised by the announcement. What exactly was Queen Mara up to?

“Each of your princes has had ten demonesses hand-picked for them by myself. From these noble demonesses they shall each pick their future bride.” Mara clapped her hands together expecting a cheerful reaction to the news; which never came.

At these words, both, Azlyn and Reve’s mouths dropped open. They could not believe what they were hearing. The queen had found a passive-aggressive way to stop them from being together. Of course, Reve would have to follow the law and, as a royal, he was expected to marry a noble when requested. Reve began scanning the crowd, trying to pinpoint Azlyn’s location.

“We will expect you to treat these nobles as if they are already members of the royal household. You will show them the utmost respect at all times or you will answer to me! Rooms will need to be prepared and the kitchen will need to produce enough food to compensate for the extra individuals. Some of you may even require transferring from your regular duties for a temporary time to help with the extra workloads. For those of you who are directly affected, you will be receiving further instructions. That will be all. You are dismissed.”

Queen Mara, lazily, waved her hand towards the group of slaves, servants, and guards. Then she turned and walked back to her throne, sitting down with a smug expression upon her face.

Reve was furious, it was taking everything inside of him to keep control. He walked over to Mara and leaned his face down towards her. What he was about to say was meant only for her to hear.

“If you think that this changes anything, you are dead wrong.” Reve whispered with a snarl.

With that, Reve swiftly turned on his heel and jumped off of the stage into the crowd. He ran as quickly as he could directly to Azlyn. As soon as he reached her, he scooped her up and threw her over his shoulder. There was no time to wait, he had to mark her. He wanted his claim made public and he needed to do it now.

Queen Mara noticed Reve’s sudden determination. She watched as he carried Azlyn out of the throne room. Immediately, she turned to King Chesed and alerted him to the situation. The king had felt it unnecessary to intervene until now. He had grown worried that Reve would react irrationally at the news of having to take a wife. He decided that it was best that he head towards Reve’s room to talk to him and ensure that he did not do anything rash.

Prince Kane had also noticed Reve’s reaction to the news. He had seen his mother notify his father that Reve had just run off with Azlyn. He knew that he had to intervene. He had to allow Reve time for whatever it was that he intended to do. So, Kane followed King Chesed as he headed after Reve. Hoping to distract him from his goals.

“Father, may I speak to you about something?” Kane called.

Kane’s words were falling on deaf ears. King Chesed was far too focused on Reve to hear his youngest son calling for him. This is how it had always been for Kane. He was an intellectual and his father had never understood him. Chesed had spent all of his time and energy grooming Gedeon to take the throne. Or training Hadeon to assist Gedeon in ruling the realm. Reve was constantly being trained how to fight, along with military tactics and strategy, all of which Chesed enjoyed.

It was only Kane whom he had nothing in common with. Chesed had never cared for the realm’s finances, so he had no advice to offer Kane. Because of this, Chesed had all but distanced himself from him.

Meanwhile, Reve and Azlyn had made their way back to his bedroom. Reve was wasting no time. There was not a doubt in his mind that his mother was going to attempt to have Azlyn “temporarily” transferred to one of the awful demonesses that she had “hand-picked for him.” As if Queen Mara knew Reve well enough to pick out any sort of suitable mate for him. The thought was absolutely laughable. If Mara had really cared about what was good for him, then she would allow him to be happy now that he had been fortunate enough to find Azlyn.

“I am sorry, Azlyn. There is no time.” Reve said sincerely, as he stared into her eyes, brushing her hair away from her face.

“Reve, what are we going to do?! They are going to take me from you!” Azlyn said feeling frantic.

The panic began to set in, Azlyn had never been so terrified in all of her life. She could not bear the thought of losing Reve; not now, not when she had finally just accepted the idea of them truly belonging together. The queen could do her worst to her, as long as she still had Reve in the end. Watching Reve married off to some vile demoness would be a fate worse than death.

“No one is taking you anywhere. My mother will not get what she wants. For once, I am going to have what I want!”

Immediately, Reve’s demeanor began to change. His horns extended longer than Azlyn had ever seen them before, growing so long that they spiraled back in towards themselves. His eyes widened, but instead of taking in more light allowing them to soften, they grew darker until they appeared as two deep, black pools. His muscles began to bulge and tense, growing so rapidly in size they began to shred the shirt right off of his back. He released his pheromones and they overwhelmed Azlyn like a wave, putting her in a relaxed, almost trance-like state.

“I promise to do my best not to hurt you.” Reve growled, seductively.

Reve reached out and grabbed Azlyn, pulling her into him. He ripped off her shirt and he purred as he stared down at her body. He scooped her up into his arms and carried her over to the bed. He tossed her onto the bed as gently as he could. He climbed on top of her and kissed her hard.

Azlyn let out a soft moan against his lips and this drove Reve wild. His kisses began to trail down to her chest and then onto her stomach. As he savored the taste of her skin, his primal instincts began to take complete control over him. He could not hold back any longer. As he placed himself inside of her, all four of his canine teeth began to extend themselves to a point, like four tiny needles.

“I, Reve Ajax Reidar, claim you, Azlyn, as my one true mate. I mark you as my mine now and forever.” Reve growled.

Someone in the hall began to, forcefully, knock on Reve’s door. Demanding that they be admitted entrance. Reve ignored them and kept tending to Azlyn, growing rougher by the moment. The bed began to creak, its wooden frame threatening to give way under the pressure that Reve was placing on it.

“I…Azlyn…accept your mark…and claim…now and forever. I am…your one true mate…and you…are mine.” Azlyn cried out, barely able to form the words.

Suddenly, the door to the bedroom swung open and King Chesed stood in the doorway. A horrified look spread across his face as he realized what it was that he was witnessing. Reve looked over at his father and snarled before turning back to Azlyn.

Reve lifted Azlyn upwards, pulling her body into him. He opened his mouth and pierced her skin with his canines on either side of the muscle just above her clavicle on her left side. Azlyn cried out at first due to the pain of his teeth piercing her skin, but that did not last long as the pain quickly turned to ecstasy. Reve released the chemical that would mark her and bind her to him as she was overcome with an intense pleasure.

“NO!!” Chesed exclaimed.

However, King Chesed was too late. Reve had completed the ritual. As he released Azlyn from the grip of his teeth, he turned his face towards his father and smiled, sinisterly, as Azlyn’s blood dripped onto his lips. He kept Azlyn’s body pressed against him, so none of her would be exposed to his father, brother, or the guards that accompanied them. His eyes twinkled as he reveled in the fact that she was all his and no one or nothing could come between them.

The black venom began to swirl and dance on Azlyn’s shoulder as the Universe decided what form their mark would take.

Later that night, King Chesed returned to his quarters and found Queen Mara awake and waiting for him. He had been hoping that she would have either gone to her own quarters or already be in bed by now. He had elected not to go straight back to his room after catching Reve marking Azlyn, for this very reason.

“So? What happened? Were you able to stop him from acting out?” Mara asked, frantically.

“Umm…well…uh…not exactly…no.” Chesed mumbled.

“What?! Why?!” Mara shrieked.

“Well, I was…uh…too late.”

“What do you mean too late?! What happened?!” Mara demanded.

“Reve…uh…he marked the slave girl.” Chesed explained.

“He what?! How could you let that happen?! What are we going to do now?!” Mara panicked.

“I say that we just leave them be.” Chesed shrugged.

“What?!?!”

Queen Mara was fuming now. She could not believe that King Chesed would suggest they should allow this relationship to continue. This association is an abomination and it must be stopped, immediately.

“We absolutely will not allow this to continue! How could you suggest such a thing?”

“Well, Mara, what do you recommend that we do?”

“I say we get this over and done with. End this forever. Let’s kill her.” Mara suggested, a yearning burning in her eyes.

“We cannot do that.” Chesed responded, solemnly.

“Why not?!” Mara was growing frustrated with Chesed.

“Because our son has marked her! Do I need to remind you that he can now feel her emotions and her pain? If we kill her, we could potentially kill Reve as well. If he doesn’t die from the literal pain of her death, then he may die from heartbreak. Like it or not, you can never harm her again without risking your son.” Chesed reminded Mara.

Queen Mara was quickly brought back to reality by King Chesed’s words. She realized that he was right and there was not much that she could do about it. While she may not like it, Azlyn was here to stay. Anything that she did would only cause Reve pain and while he was not her favorite or most important son, he was still her son. It would take more than this for her to write him off completely. However, the whole topic of marking was a sore one for Mara and she wanted Chesed to remember such.

“I would not know, Chesed. I have never known what it is to be marked.” Mara snarled.

“Come now, Mara. Do not be like that.”

“Like what? I begged you to mark me, if for nothing else than to keep up appearances. But you refused.”

They both grew silent for a moment as they sat in contemplation. Their marriage had been one of convenience and status, rather than love; King Chesed had never felt the desire to mark Queen Mara, so he never had. He knew that this hurt her; his refusal brought her more pain than any of his affairs ever had. Whilst Chesed may not have been a demon of many morals, he did feel that it was inappropriate to make your mark without the drive to do so.

“What do we do about the scandal?” Mara finally asked, after some quiet consideration.

“What scandal?”

“When everyone finds out that our son, a prince of the demon realm, has taken up with a slave.”

“No one will find out. We will not let the information leave this castle. We will forbid it.”

“As if that has ever stopped Reve.”

“It will. We will threaten that slave’s life otherwise.”

“Fine. However, what do we do about the ten noble demonesses on their way to the castle, hoping that they will have the opportunity to marry our son?”

“That will not be a problem. He may be willful, but Reve is not a fool. He is a prince of the demon realm and he will marry a noble demoness as instructed. I have no doubt about that. He was only claiming the slave so that she could not be taken away from him. We will just ensure that he keeps their relationship discreet until after he is married to a proper wife.”

“So, another loveless marriage born of status?” Mara asked, contentiously.

“Let’s just see it as another demoness turned princess, shall we? He will pick her out of the ten that you have approved of, so you can rest assured that you will get a daughter-in-law of your liking. The rest can be figured out later.”

“I suppose that you are right.” Mara agreed, with a sigh.

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