Ch. 12: True Love Revealed

Ch. 12: True Love Revealed

Frostbite sat at the edge of the bed, staring out the small window at the gradually fading moon worriedly. After Aspect had left, she went to go talk to Romotan, not about anything particularly important but just to discuss everything that had happened since she had seen him last. She made the decision to tell him about her arranged marriage to Shogun Isu and made him swear to not turn her in if he were to go looking for her. Although he wasn’t too happy about it, he reluctantly agreed.

After a while she had dinner at the bar and then went back to her room. Now she was awake, waiting for her friend to return.

Suddenly she heard the door slide open and she turned to see her friend standing there. “Aspect!” She leaped to her feet. “Did you-” The smile on her face quickly vanished when she saw the blood running down his face.

“Hey, Frost.” Aspect nodded to her. “I talked to him like we agreed. He gave me directions, and-”

“-A BLOODY LIP?” Frostbite interrupted, horrified. She raced to him and grasped the sides of his face, pulling him in close so she could get a better look. “What the actual crap?! Did he do this to you?!”

Aspect caught his breath, feeling his face flush red at both the closeness of their faces and the unusually attentive behavior that Frostbite was exhibiting. “Frost, it’s okay. I’ve gotten hurt much worse than this before. Granted, it was when I was much younger, but-”

“Shut up and let me doctor you.” She interrupted, pushing him back onto the bed before reaching into a nearby drawer.

“What are you doing?” Aspect asked, stifling a laugh.

Frostbite shot him a look. “Getting you some salve for your lip. What, do you think this is all a game?”

He shook his head, suppressing a smile. “You’re just not usually like this.”

“YEAH? Well, he shouldn’t have attacked you!” The Blacklai Fox came and sat beside him, lifting his face to get a closer look at his mouth. “Hm. Looks as if he busted it. You’re lucky he didn’t knock any of your teeth out.” She opened the jar of salve and, after wiping the blood away, dabbed a little on his lip. “You didn’t bite your tongue, did you?”

“No. Frostbite, I’m okay.” He averted his gaze, feeling overwhelmed by the attention she was showing him. “Not to be that guy, but you keep seeming to forget that I’m the Black Warrior. Venge was a tick compared to some other people I’ve faced.” When her expression didn’t change, his face softened. “Frost, it’s not your fault. I’m glad I was able to keep you safe.”

Frostbite sighed and rested her head on her hand. “...Well… I just feel so… bad. It’s weird. I don’t like it.”

“Don’t blame yourself.” He leaned back on the bed tiredly, gazing at her through slitted green eyes. “And anyways, that’s besides the point. I got the info we needed. Hey, what’s wrong?”

“I’m tired,” The Blacklai Fox confessed, yawning. “Any chance we can discuss this in the morning?”

Aspect’s gaze softened, feeling a wave of affection come over him. Her fiery attitude had vanished, leaving a soft, shy fox behind. “Of course.” He sat up. “I’ll sleep on the floor, if you like.”

Suddenly Frostbite crawled up beside him and grasped his wrist before he could slide off the bed. “Wait. Don’t… don’t go.” She averted her eyes, a shy smile crossing her face. “I need you.”

His heart caught in his throat. “What do you mean?”

“I… Aspect, I…” The Blacklai Fox stammered, searching for words as her spiked, fluffy tail thumped against the bed. “...I need you. I want you. To protect me, to feel me, to… love me.”

“...You… want me to… love you?”

She nodded.

Aspect’s eyes glimmered, a grin crossing his face. “...Frost, I always have. Come here.”

Before he knew it she slid on top of him, and she rested her head on his chest. “...Is this why you’ve always been so weird around me?” She asked suddenly.

“What! You’ve noticed?” He chuckled as he rubbed her back softly.

Frostbite lifted her head, staring down into his face, their snouts only inches away from each other. “Your face turns beet red every time I see you. And then you start to stammer, and then you can’t look at me straight… I always thought that you were just like that, but then I realized…”

“Realized what?” He asked gently.

“I know we haven’t known each other for very long, but… today I realized that I loved you. And then everything became clear.” She nuzzled his face slowly, closing her eyes as she relished the burning heat emanating from his face. “Sorry if I sound sappy, but… I think we were made for each other.”

“I agree.” Aspect reached out his hand to caress the side of her face gently, and she leaned into his touch, purring. “Remember earlier, when I told you that you were gorgeous? I meant it.”

“You’re such a flirt.” She opened her eyes, gleaming sapphire in the dim light. “You know what? You’re pretty cute for being a ‘fierce and powerful warrior’.”

“Not as cute as you.”

“SHUT UP!” She laughed and lightly punched him, then rolled off to lay beside him.

They both chuckled together for a little while, staring up at the ceiling side-by-side until their voices died away, taking solace in the steady breathing of their partner. Finally Aspect broke the silence.

“So… you’re still planning to be a maiden?”

Frostbite’s eyes widened. “Hey, slow down, Jimbo!” She punched him again and leaned back, her face growing hot. “Bro went from zero to a hundred real quick! Just because we decided we liked each other doesn’t mean that we can… y’know… that’s not how relationships work.”

“All right,” He conceded, pretending to sound disappointed as he sat up to take off his cloak. “If you want me to wait a little longer, then fine. I won’t force you. I’m not Venge.”

“You sure as heck ain’t!” Frostbite’s laughter died away when she saw him cast away his shirt, leaving a lean, muscular body behind, coated in sleek black fur. He had a small white tuft of fur at the top of his chest.

Aspect caught her staring at him and smirked. “Like what you see?”

She immediately shifted her gaze. “Stop being so hot.”

He shrugged, acting nonchalant. “No can do. I’ll only stop once you stop.”

“WHAT! I’m not even half-naked!”

“I mean once you stop being hot.”

“SHUT UP!”

The black fox laughed and laid down on the bed, and Frostbite snuggled up to him, burying her face in his furry chest. He began to stroke the back of her head, her soft breath stirring his fur deliciously.

“Good night, Frost.”

“‘Night, dummy.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Aspect opened his eyes, and was startled to find himself in a black void.

Where am I?

At the edge of his vision he could see a familiar orange light, and he turned to find his brother standing there, a smile on his face.

“Fire!” He rushed forward to embrace him. “It’s you!”

Fire laughed softly as he hugged his brother. “Hello, Brother. It’s good to see you again.”

“How did you manage to contact me again?” Aspect asked, stepping back. “Did you manage to get yourself out of trouble?”

Fire’s smile vanished, and he shook his head sadly. “I’m afraid not. I was only able to reach you when I wasn’t being watched.” He glanced around worriedly.

“Wait. Who’s watching you?”

“That’s besides the point. Listen. We don’t have much time.” His eyes glimmered red. “Do you recall the green fox Venge you met earlier?”

Aspect grimaced. “Unfortunately.”

“I’m afraid you must complete one more thing as you set off to find me, dear Brother. Venge the fox… he is heading to Dragonscale on a quest of his own, and he is traveling for the final time. Once he reaches it he will have found his heart’s greatest desire. I need you to travel with him on this final journey, so that he can remember what truly matters to him.”

The black fox’s heart felt like it stopped, and it took him a moment to respond. “...What! I can’t go with him! Didn’t you see what he did to me- to Frostbite?! I can’t do that to her. He is dangerous- a selfish, vile man.”

“Brother.” Fire said quietly, his voice becoming hard and stern. “Which is more important: A fleeting love? Or your own kin?”

Aspect growled. “Why are you asking that? You already know that you are just as important to me as my love for Frostbite.”

“I never said loyalty to myself.” Fire said suddenly. “I said ‘your own kin’.”

Aspect narrowed his eyes. “What are you getting at?”

Fire’s face never changed- it remained cold, knowing, and resilient. “I would’ve thought that you had pieced it all together by now, Brother. Are you as naive as this?”

“Just tell me! I have no clue.”

“Fine.” The ghost took a breath. “Venge… he is your half-brother, and my twin.”

Aspect was quiet for a while. Fire prodded him. “...Brother?”

Finally Aspect began to chuckle. Then he laughed. “Ah, ha ha ha! You’re joking, aren’t you?! Well, I don’t find it very funny, you know. Nice try.”

“Brother, I do not joke lightly.” The ghost replied with a scowl. “You may not remember, but we were all together once, before we were cast out into the unknown at the hand of an unfortunate turn of events. I am not your full brother. I am a half brother, for we have different mothers. Venge is my twin.”

Aspect sat down wearily, staring wildly out into the vast dark void. Fire sat down beside him, putting his hand on his shoulder gently. Aspect turned to him. “...Why is he the way he is, then?” He asked. “I’d like to think that we turned out decently, but… he’s a whole other breed.”

“It is because his misfortunes were far worse than ours.” Fire replied. “He has been through thick and thin, fought monsters and met spirits, and lost an eye when trying to defend my honor. When he survived he became surly and arrogant, and instead of becoming an honorable warrior like you, he became a rogue, serving only himself. But I believe good still resides in his heart, and if you reunite with him after all these years, then he will turn from his ways and realize what truly matters.”

“...I’m afraid I remember nothing about him,” Aspect said after a pause. “In fact I understand NOTHING about what's going on! Could you please tell me what exactly happened? Who are we?”

“I will tell you. But we must be quick.” Fire glanced around once again. “I fear that she may be watching.”

“Who’s SHE?”

“Not relevant. But, here- let me tell you about our upbringing, and why Venge has chosen the path he is on.”