‡ Promise 25: Sleepover ‡

-As told by Keith-

'm sitting in my comfortable leather chair, in the living room, as Talon softly sleeps on the leather sofa. I quietly sip my drink, as Ocean Of Noise plays on the expensive sound system just a few feet away, and I'm thinking of the events of the following night. Dore, Fray, and I were carried back to the fortress, by the hordes of the undead. Apparently, Faldan had alerted everyone in the kingdom that I was under attack, from an assumed dead enemy. My people didn't hesitate storming the gate, ready to destroy anything that was threatening their king, but was relieved to find us battered and not dead.
In the fortress, many were rushing around, tending to our wounds and making us all comfortable. Fray was fretting over her shredded dolls; Dore was dozing in his bed; Faldan was getting his wing stitched back on; and I was becoming increasingly angry, as my servants were placing my broken arm in a sling. Faldan smiled towards me and that's when my anger blew. I rushed across the room and began strangling him. "Stop..." he choked, trying to get free. "Oi!" yells Fray, dropping a doll, and Dore hops from his bed. "You bastard!" I growl, squeezing tighter, "You had no right, sending Lily into the woods! You could have gotten her killed!"
"Master..." says a worried Dore. Faldan struggles, wanting to speak, but I have a iron grip on his air supply. I loosen it a bit, just a little, so he could spew his excuses. "It was the only way to save you." he rasps, his eyes pleading, "You were losing to Galur. I knew if the girl was there, you would find your complete strength. So, she wasn't in any danger." I'm suddenly disgusted and drop Faldan to the floor. "Ow." he breaths, rubbing his neck. "That was pretty risky, nonetheless." nods Dore, disagreeing with Faldan's plot, surprising me a bit. "But it worked out in the end, didn't it?" grins Faldan.
I punch the wall, just inches from his face, startling him. "Careful, Master." says Fray, now worried, "You don't want to hurt yourself, yes?" "What if I couldn't save her?" I growl, looking directly into Faldan's eyes, "What if I had lost and then she was killed? What then?" "I have faith in you." he says, quietly, "So, that never enter into my mind. You'd never let that happen. Even if you had to die to save her, you would. I know that. Your father was the same way." "It was reckless." I said, my anger slowly disappearing, "Never do that again." "Understood." nods Faldan.
We locked eyes, as if signing a contract on paper, resolving the matter. Faldan suddenly smiles, "And by the way, she is pretty... in a deathly sort of way." I ignore him and sit back down in my chair, letting my servants continue to tend to my wounds.
Now tonight, I sit recovering in my home, trying to figure everything out about Lily. Are we friends now? I shutter, knowing that can't be good. I was happy about dodging that bullet, the other night, relieved that I wouldn't be repeating history again. And in a blink, I found myself right back in the place I never want to be. And yet, part of me was happy at the thought of Lily being my friend. My mind travels back to last night in the woods, how she cried for me, and how she felt in my embrace. "Stop it!" I growl to myself, "This is crazy. This won't work. And this is dangerous for-" I suddenly got the feeling that Faldan was up to no good, in the woods.
I gave a long sigh, pulling my aching body to my feet, and headed for the backdoor. "Damn screw-up," I grunt, as I slipped over the fence, "What are you up to now?" I walked through the woods, annoyed and still aching from my injuries. They were healing fast, but I still wished to be well now, so I could beat Faldan with ease. He's the son of my father's favorite brother, yet Faldan doesn't have any of the qualities of his own father, or any of the Rolmirs for that matter. For as long as I known him, Faldan as done nothing but get into trouble and cause trouble. And if he wasn't family, I would've killed him long ago.
I wasn't prepared to see what I saw, when I stepped from the shadows. Lily was on the ground, drunk as can be, as Dore laughed. Fray looked uninterested and Faldan stood there with a stupid look on his face. "What the hell-!?" I yell, startling them all. "Oh, hi!" waves Lily, giggling. I gave Faldan a sharp look, "You gave alcohol to a minor!?" "I didn't see the harm." he shrugs. I turn towards Dore and Fray, my rage boiling, "And you didn't think to stop him!?" "Er..." blush Fray, looking away from me. Dore looks towards the ground. I then notice the familiar jug in Faldan's hand.
"Spitfire!" I bark, stepping closer to my idiot cousin, "You gave her Spitfire!?" "Wait," he gasps, moving a few steps backwards, "It's okay! She wanted it and look, she likes it!" "Yes," Lily nods, nearly falling over, "Spitfire is so nice..." I took a deep breath, wanting to strangle Faldan, but opting to help Lily first. "I'll have a chat with you later, Faldan." I said, darkly. He shudders and Fray looks nervous. I throw Lily over my good shoulder and began carrying her off. "Where are we going?" she giggles. "To get you sober." I frown, trying to keep the wiggling girl from falling out my arms. "Boo!" she hiss and then giggles again.
There was no way I could send her home, in her current condition, so I took her into my home. I sat her in a chair in the kitchen and headed for the coffee maker. "I..." she hiccuped, "I thought you said I wasn't allowed in here anymore." "I'm going to make you some coffee." I said, pouring fresh grounds into filter, "Though I'm not sure this will work. You had Spitfire." "Spitfire's great!" she cheers, throwing her hands into the air, "Whoo-hoo!" "No, no!" I frown, grabbing her hands, "Spitfire's dangerous." "Why?" she frowns, sliding out of her chair, "I only had a sip!"
"Yeah," I sigh, trying to keep her from falling to the floor, "With Spitfire, that's the equivalent of six beers." She tries to repeat the word "equivalent" in a question, but is unable to, in frustrated slurs. "Imagine if you had two sips." I nod, making my point, "You see, it's dangerous." "Ooh." she giggles. "Right," I frown, heading for the machine, "Good conversation." As I pour in the water, I hear a thud behind me. I turn to see Lily on the floor and rush over to help her. "Dammit!" I gasp, leaning down to grab her arm, "Are you okay!?"
"I-I gotta go home." she says, now a little worried, as I help her back into the chair. "You can't do that now." I frown, brushing the dust of the floor from her arms. "I'm sleepy." she says, almost near tears now. "Okay, okay..." I said, my mind thinking fast, "You can sleep here, for a little while. Yeah, maybe it's best if you sleep it off, for a few hours. And then you can go home. Okay?" "Okay." she sighs. I help her into the living room and toss Talon off the sofa. I quickly lay Lily down on the couch and cover her with a blanket. As I go to turn off the music, I hear Talon growl.
"Talon!" I yell, shooing him away, "You don't own that couch, no matter how much you think you do! Go sleep in the bed." Talon gives me a hurt look, as if he's been betrayed, and runs off. "Talon." I sigh, "Come back. I'm sorry!" But he doesn't return, for the rest of the night. I turn off the lights in the living room and start to leave. "Wait." she calls to me, "Where are you going?" "Just to the next room." I assure her. "No," she whines, "Stay with me." "I don't think that's appropriate." I frown. "Please?" she frowns, now sitting up, "I want to talk to you."
"Lay down," I said, worried, "Before you fall off the couch." "Talk with me?" she pleads. I give a heavy sigh and sit in the chair across from her. "There's no point in talking now." I inform her, "By tomorrow, you won't remember it, due to the alcohol." "Sure I will." she giggles. "I'm going to kill Faldan slowly." I growl. "I have questions." she said, peering up at me, "And you have to answer them. And tell the truth!" "Fine." I shrug, knowing where this is going, "You want to know about that woman in the woods, right?"
"Who is Rose?" Lily asks. The name sends chills down spine and my head starts to spin. That question brings up many memories and questions of my own. How does Lily know that name? Who mentioned it? Faldan or Fray? How much did she already know? "Did I ask something wrong?" Lily worries. I realized what my expression must have been like and gave her a small smile. "No," I assure her, "It's okay. Just not the question I was expecting." "You don't have to answer it." she says, remorseful. "It's okay." I sigh, sitting back in my chair, "It's just a name from long ago. A girl I once knew, back in France."
"Who was she?" Lily asks, quietly. "Who was she?", I scoffed, "That's a long answer. She was many things. Bright, funny, talented. She was kind and cared about many people. Though, there weren't many who returned her kindness. When I met Rose, a long time ago, her father had just died. He was her only family, so Rose was an orphan. And the people treated her like scum, because she had no one. I felt for her, because I could relate to her, I'm an orphan myself. So, I took her under my wing and she called me 'Grand Frère', which means 'big brother' in french. And I was her big brother, in my heart, and she was my little sister."
"What happened to her?" asks Lily, sitting up a little. "She died." I said, "And it was my fault." Lily gives me a sad and worried look. "But that was a very long time ago." I shrug, standing from my chair, "Lily, get some sleep. I'll wake you, in a few hours." She doesn't say anything, as I leave the room, and I head into the kitchen. I quickly splashed my face with cold water, from the sink, then wipe my face with a dish towel. The memories aren't so easy, pulling up old hurts and regrets, things that I've tried to forget over the centuries. I take a seat at the kitchen table and let out a long sigh.
Before dawn, I wake Lily up to send her home. She can sneak back into the house now, not too drunk, and be in her bed before her parents wake up. "I guess this is a lesson for you." I nod, as I help her over the hedge, "Don't take drinks from strangers. And especially from demons you don't know." "Good point." she blushed, standing down into her yard. I turn to go back in. "Um," she says, stopping me, "I just wanted to say... thanks." I could tell that's not what she wanted to say, but decide to let it go at that. "No problem." I nod, "Now go lay down and stay away from Faldan, in the future. He's a real idiot."
Lily gives me a huge smile. It painfully reminds me of my little sister...