The Kindgom of Heaven and Hell

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Faline all but cowered at the back of the great hall. She hated meetings. They were often times full of loud angry men who had a tendency to throw things. This night was no different. The entire village had shown up, despite the raging storm outside. Every man from every family was there, shouting to be heard over the next.
Her father, the Jarl, was seated at the head of it all, one long leg draped over his ornate throne. For a while he remained silent, his eyes not one the villagers, but going from the young woman hiding under one of the tables near the door to her sister who sat on top of it, holding onto a rather heavy broad sword. He shook his head at both of them. 
Oalf sighed heavily and held up a hand to silence the crowd. "I am fully aware of the danger we now face from the outlanders. And I am aware that those who cross our borders are far from human. However, I am not sure if we warrant help from out bordering villages. If we decide to seek help, we will need to go to the king. But...he is a bartering man. I am not sure we have anything he will find worthy enough..."

"I have." Faline said softly, not turning back to look at Lucian. "She didn't really want to see me." She whispered. "I think maybe she will avoid me once she brings back the dragon's egg." Odd as it was, the slender blonde seemed to blame herself for everything. Her shoulders were already slumped in shame. 

"And who or what should we be afraid of instead?" Braun snorted, taking the ale from the servant girl's tray as she stopped in front of him. "If it's the snow, old man, I seen nothing to fear from that."

"You think she will succeed?" Lucian asked curiously, though it was taking much effort to keep himself lucid.

The old man didn't say anything more, nor did he turn to look at Braun again.
"It's what finds you as you sleep in the snow. It comes only when you slumber." The serving girl from earlier breathed. "If you do go out there, pray your soul is clean."

"Of course." Faline said as she turned back to the table. She came to Lucian's said and poured him a glass of ale, strangely nervous as she held it out to him. "My sister isn't like me. She doesn't fail at anything she does. She never gives up and isn't afraid of anything." 

"Well that's comforting." Braun snorted, draining his ale. "I am very screwed." He muttered, slamming the glass down on the table and heading for the door. "Feed my body to the wolves if one of you lot find it. That's probably all it's worth."

"There is a first time for everything, as they say." Lucian breathed, inhaling the aroma coming from his glass as he picked it up. "No one is perfect, least of all her." He added before tasting the liquid he held onto. The king closed his eyes and smiled, seeming a little like his old self as he savoured the taste on his tongue.

It wouldn't be that hard to follow Cessily's trail, given how deep the snow was the minute the border was crossed. It was like a veil that kept the true magic contained on the other side, a force much too powerful to be trusted to the men of the waking world.

"Do you like it?" Faline asked him softly, glancing toward the servant girl who had made a big deal out of her making it again for him. "It's made from sunflowers...They are pretty much the only flower that will grow in the borderlands...They are my favorite...I..." She paused, nervously pulling at her fingers. "It is supposed to be a gift when a woman want to show a man that she is...truly...fond of him..." 

"I hate being cold." Braun whispered as he stepped into the deep snow. "I can't believe I'm doing this for a woman. I have lost my mind. That's all there is to it."

Lucian looked up at Faline in genuine surprise. "You mean..." He was smiling at her, the same warm smile he had had when she first presented herself to him.

Cessily had tried so hard to keep Braun from her thoughts while she was in her he snow, but he crept into them anyway. She was thinking this solo trek could have been avoided had she simply given herself to him like he wanted.

Faline's cheeks went bright red and she nodded, no longer able to hold his gaze. "Please, sire...don't say anything. I can't handle the rejection. Just...pretend until I leave. Okay?" She pleaded, already taking several steps away from the table. 

"Cessily!" Braun was shouting the young woman's name into the icy wind, not sure if she could hear him or if she even cared. He also had to wonder if the shouting was a good idea. Now that he'd crossed the border, there was no telling where the dragon was.

"Do I have to pretend?" Lucian breathed, setting his glass down to get to his feet. "I would much rather be truthful with you, and tell you..." He closed the distance between them rather swiftly and pulled Faline against his, his hands resting lightly on her slender hips. "I wanted you asmy queen since the moment I saw you."

An arrow slammed into the tree behind Braun, passing close enough to leave a slice across his cheek. The arrow belonged to Cessily, and was a warning that she was still rathe angry.

"I would make a terrible queen, Lucian." Faline whispered, looking up at him. She couldn't help the blush as it deepened, making her face a rather vivid beet color. "Are you sure you wouldn't rather have me as my father purposed? A concubine?" 

Braun's eyes narrowed as he turned his head toward the place the arrow came from. He tried to see where it had come from but with the swirling storm he couldn't see anything at all. "Cheap shot," He growled. "But deserved perhaps..."

"I told you, I do not have need of such a creature." Lucian breathed, touching his fingers to Faline's warm cheek. "You would make a fine Queen, if you would have me?"

"There is no 'perhaps' about it." Cessily's velvet smooth voice called to him. Through the snow Braun would just be able to make out the shilouette of her slender form and billowing cloak up the hill. Several more arrows flew at the large man, two pinning the shoulders of his shirt to the tree, a third between his legs a little too close to his privates as it pierced the fabric of his pants.

Faline wasn't exactly sure what he was asking her. It sounded a bit like a proposal but she wasn't really sure. She longed to say yes and throw her arms around him but she was terrified of saying yes and looking foolish. 
She was saved from this by her father's angry roar. "I don't care how many guards you have here! You will not keep me from my daughter!" 

To his credit, Braun showed no fear. He gave the silhouette a dark look, refusing to look down at the arrow that pinned his pants to the tree behind him. "You missed." He hissed.

Lucian tried to keep himself from groaning, was was rather unsuccessful. "Think it over, please. It may sound sudden, but... I wish for you to be my wife, my queen... The kind soul the people of this land need."

Cessily was down the hill and in front of Braun in an instant, the dagger from her boot pressed to his throat. "I never miss, something you should be rather thankful for right now, deviant." She hissed. Her eyes, once a deep moss green were now a much brighter, almost otherworldly shade. Even her long ebony hair had somehow grown back to the waist length it had been before her run in with the guard.

Faline nodded, giving him a bright smile before her father stormed into the room. She ran to him and threw her arms around him, hugging the elder man as tightly as she could. "Oh father, I've missed you so much." She breathed. 
The large man was all but in tears as he held his daughter against him. "I have missed you too, child. So very much." He whispered into her hair.

Something about this woman was not the one he knew. She was not herself and he was aware of it. The eyes were only a small portion of what gave it away. "I am thankful for very little these days, darling." He purred, even with the blade pressed to his throat. "Aside from seeing that you are safe that is..."

Lucian was keeping his distance, fearing the elder man would steal his daughter back and spirit her away to the borderlands. "Do you usually barge into a kings private dining room?" He managed to ask the elder man calmly.

"You expect me to believe you care for my safety?" Cessily scoffed, not letting her dagger up.

The Jarl's eyes were an ice blue that made his daughter's look like a clear blue sky. He gave Lucian a hateful glare. "Some may have forgotten, sire. But I remember. You are not who they think you are." He hissed. 

"Believe what you wish. But you know I would not have followed you here if I did not care what became of you." Braun whispered, his eyes resting on her face. "Your hair is lovely. I heard what that bastard made you do to it."

"You blindly sent your most beautiful child to a man you had never met, all so you can live your life a little more comfortably." Lucian sneered.

Cessily faltered this time, her long lashes fluttering slightly and though fighting something within her. A moment later she head let of of Braun and slid her dagger back into her boot. "Get out of here, it isn't safe for your kind." She breathed as she turned and walked away.

Olaf held tight to his daughter as she tried to pull herself free, his eyes still on the king. "There are more people than just one lovely girl to think of, sire. You of all people should know this." He hissed. "Your soldiers can attest to just how bad things have gotten on the borderlands. The outlanders are no longer waiting in between their attacks. They are happening daily. Perhaps I saved her from sharing the fate of her village." 

"You mean my gender, right?" Braun said as he followed her. The moment he was able to free the arrow from the tree he was stalking after her. "Cessily, I'm not going away. No little knife and arrow show is going to send me packing either. We're going to talk about this. Do you hear me, kitten?"

"You didn't know this would happen, just as you didn't know what life you were sending her to! For all you know, I could have passed a round the castle guards like some plaything!" Lucian roared. "Do not dare try and play the martyr in this tale!"

This time it was Cessily's sword that was drawn in a fluid movement, the tip pressed under Braun's chin as she spun around. "I believe everything that needed to be said, has been said." She told him darkly. "Wasn't it, you have needs, and I just need to get over it? Something along those lines?"

"I saw her when I came in." Olaf snapped, finally forced to let go of Faline. The slender young woman stood between the two men, shaking her head. "Her face was as red as a whore's dress. Do not tell me you weren't whispering things in her ear, reminding of her the things you would be doing to her once night came!" 
"Father...please....you don't understand..." Faline said softly, obviously afraid to speak up to her father. It was yet another trait she and her sister did not share. 

"I was mad at you." Braun said softly. "You have no idea how much self control it took to stop myself that night. I have wanted you since the moment they threw you in the cell with me. I can't explain it. I...I should have let you go from the very beginning. For what it's worth, Cessily...I'm sorry. I am no better than the bastard who insulted your heritage and refused you an audience with the king."

"I was asking her to marry me, to rule our people by my side." Lucian replied, the tightness in jaw making it clear how hard he was trying to keep his temper contained. He hadn't wanted to spring this news like he just had.

Cessily lowered her sword, then allowed it to drop into the snow at their feet. The young woman reached up and slowly slid her fingers into Braun's hair before pulling his face down to her own and allowing their lips to meet.

"That will not happen." Olaf said firmly, shaking his head. He glanced over at the table, his scowl deepening when he saw the ale in front of the king's seat. "She is fit to be a concubine and nothing more. She is no queen. She is not royal blood and you well know it." 
Faline knew her father was right, she just hadn't expected it to hurt so much. She stood where she was, her eyes squeezed tightly closed. It was all she could do to keep from letting the hateful barbs cut her as the thorns in Lucian's garden had. 

Braun was gentle this time. His kiss was all but timid. He allowed Cessily total control over the moment. He wasn't about to lose her again. He didn't even dare to touch her, no matter how much his fingers shook with the desire to simply rest against her shapely hips.

"And who is a Jarl to tell a king what he cannot have?" Lucian asked thinly. "Faline is more than perfect to be queen, if she chooses. You are the one who was not deserving of her! Perhaps you should take a look in the mirror, or at your other offspring before you decide who is fit only for rutting with!"

Cessily unhooked her chest plate and took Braun's large hands, slowly sliding them beneath her undershirt against the smooth skin of her slender waist. Her bright green eyes were holding his gaze steadily, trying to find the words to tell him wanted him too.

"I would watch my mouth if I were you!" Olaf roared, shoving Faline aside. He was in the king's face in a moment, shoving him hard against the wall. The guards were on him a moment later, several swords pressed against his back. 
"Lucian...your majesty, please..." Faline said softly, trying to gracefully pick herself up off the floor where her father had shoved her to. "My father is tired and under great stress. I beg you to forgive his actions..." 

Braun groaned softly, her skin warm beneath his icy hands. And yet, something didn't feel right. "You're not Cessily." He said softly, refusing to move his hands any further. "She wouldn't have changed her mind so soon. It's only been a week since we were last together. Who are you?"

"He can beg my forgiveness in the dungeon!" Lucifer hissed. "I want him in chains, just like his dead daughter was!" He roared at the guards.

Cessily cocked here head to the side and watched Braun curiously. "I cannot keep up with you!" She huffed finally, pulling herself completely from his grasp. "I am giving you what you just told me you wanted!" As she turned away to pick up her sword however, there was a faint shimmer against her back, like the flutter of wings that couldn't quite be seen. Not yet.

"You bastard! I knew it!" Olaf howled as the guards threw him to the ground and began to tie him up. 
"Lucian, please!" Faline begged again, trying to move closer to him. It was odd, however. His eyes were dark, not the honey gold they usually were. He didn't seem like himself in that moment. His rage was terrifying. 

Braun closed his eyes and groaned again. Once more he had come so close and had shoved it all away on his own. "You're trying to give me something that isn't yours to give. Cessily doesn't want me. I've figured that out by now. Trust me."

"Knew what? That I sent the daughter you never wanted anyway to her death?" Lucian sneered, seemingly deaf to Faline's pleas. "You really think I sent her on some noble quest thinking she would return? You sent both of the away, you lost all claim to them!"

Cessily glanced back over her shoulder, her eyes filled with wicked intent right then. "Sweet Cessily doesn't know what she wants." She purred.

"I sent Cessily to get rid of my shame!" Olaf shouted, struggling to get free of the guards. "She was to return with the soldiers. I never expected her to find a husband. It didn't matter what I said and she knew it! I sent her to get rid of that brainless girl that has been nothing but a burden since the day I bedded my wife's hand maiden!" 
Faline stood where she was, no longer pleading with Lucian to save her father. Her insides felt like someone had taken them out by hand. Her chin quivered violently for several moments until she could fight the humiliation no longer. She turned and ran, leaving the men alone to finish their battle of hateful words. 

"I can't argue with that." Braun agreed, shoving his fingers through his hair. He muttered a curse when it loosened the tie that held his mud colored hair back. The strands blew in his face in the wild winter wind, making it hard to see where Cessily was going. "So...you've taken over her body. Mind if I ask why? Since you're not going to tell me who you are..."

Lucian smiled darkly at Olaf. "Congratulations, Jarl, you just lost." He purred. "You expect me to believe that lovely creature is your shame? I think you simply cannot stand that she was always too good to ever share your genes."

The magical creature was again in front of Braun before he could even blink, her fingers toying with his hair now it was lose. "Silly mortal... This isn't her body. Sweet Cessily is a part of the Sandman's collection now. He gave me her glamour as a gift."

"What the hell are you..." Olaf was suddenly feeling like he had truly been right when he'd said that Lucian was not the true king. This man was a monster. Probably not even human. He'd come here to get away from the outlanders and he had probably walked right into the middle of them. "In the name of the gods..." 

Braun frowned deeply at this. "I have a problem with that." He said firmly. "It wasn't his to give. Whatever the hell glamour is..." He added with a hiss. "I demand you take me to this Sandman. I swear to the gods I will have his head if he's hurt her."

"Your gods left you long ago, Jarl." Lucian replied darkly. "How stupid must you be to not see it? The ones you call the outlanders? Where do you think they come from?"

The creature with Cessily's face giggled as though Braun had said something outrageously funny. "He is god, silly boy." She breathed. "The oldest of them."