80__I promise

Natalia appeared behind the curtains of Amie and Jade’s bedroom. Standing as still as she could, she listened for any movement in the room.

“There’s no one but me,” said a soft voice in amusement.

At the green light, Natalia lunged out and smiled at Amethyst who watched her curiously.

“My Amie! My little Amie, are you still awake?”

Her sister gathered her in her arms for hugs and kisses and Amie giggled. “Everyone hurried downstairs when you rang the doorbell.”

Natalia paused the kisses to tilt her head. “Me? That wasn’t me, I just arrived.” She shook her head. “Never mind that.” Laying a gentle hand on Amie’s head, she smiled. “I have your healing.”

Her sister’s expectant eyes grew even wider. “Really? You… you really do?”

Glistening tears filled the younger girl’s eyes and Natalia felt her heart constrict. “Yes, I do. I promised you, didn’t I? I told you I’d get it back, Amie. I told you you’d be okay.”

A soft mewl of a cry turned Amie’s mouth down as she nodded. “Talia!”

Natalia hugged the crying girl, rocking her side to side. “It’s alright, kiddo.” With a deep exhale, she let out all the worry that had been pent up in her heart. “It’s alright now.”

Natalia rubbed her back. “Let’s carry out your healing and then surprise Mother and them, how’s that?”

Her pale green eyes lighting up with excitement, Amethyst nodded. “Okay.”

***************

It was a little while later that Natalia snuck downstairs. Her clothes were dry as she’d worn a rain cloak, but her boots were soaked and left wet prints in their wake.

She hadn’t even thought of taking them off, too excited about taking her mother and siblings upstairs to Amie.

For a moment, she didn’t see anyone in the dimly lit halls and found it strange. Soon enough, Natalia looked down the first hallway from the front hall and saw it then. The warm glow of a lit fire.

If the fire was lit in that room’s fireplace then that was where they were. Hurrying down that hallway, she didn’t stop walking until she reached the open doors and stepped into the warm room.

What she saw turned her blood cold and dropped her heart down to her boots.

Across the room stood her family. They stood on one side, together, like a solid wall. With serious expressions, they all stared directly in front of them.

At Raiden.

Natalia froze on the spot, staring. What was going on?

What was he doing here? Her mother and sisters looked so serious that she just knew he had to have said something to them about why she’d left Zaire. He didn’t meet their eyes either, his gaze looking to the side.

The sight of him like that, unable to say a word, it filled Natalia’s heart with something miserable until she didn’t think anything through and marched into the room.

The Queen turned first. “Oh? Natalia.”

“It wasn’t him, Mother,” she said, coming to stand between her family and a stunned Raiden.

Monica blinked. “I don’t think you know what you’re talking about—”

“Of course, I do!” Natalia said. “Raiden told you, didn’t he? About how the gem that was stolen from us was used to heal him.”

“Yes, he has,” her mother said sternly. “And I need you to listen to me right now, young lady.”

Natalia’s heart dropped. She knew it. She’d known her family would react this way. “I said it wasn’t him! It was his mother, so there’s no need for you guys to be cornering him this way!”

Raiden was staring at her, looking at the arm she held out across him. Was she defending him right now? What on earth was going on?

“Yes, your sister was in pain for years—”

“I know,” said Natalia. “I know, Mother, you don’t have to tell me. And I know, I caused it, it was my fault, so I have no right to defend him. That’s why…” She trailed off and took a second to gather herself. “That’s why I left him. I knew you wouldn’t be able to accept it, none of you would… I knew you would make me choose.”

Monica crossed her arms across her chest and looked at her daughter, studying the untameable fire in her eyes. “So, if we're now opposed to this union—”

“I will get rid of it,” Natalia told her tensely, achingly. “It’s not… it’s not much of a loss, we’ve known from the beginning that we couldn’t possibly work out. This only confirmed it.”

Her mother stared at her for a long, intense moment and Natalia met her gaze one more time. “I’ve left him, Mother. So don’t blame him anymore. Don’t corner him this way and say hurtful things to him. He’s been through enough.”

With that, she took Raiden’s hand and started to march out of the room.

“You can be such a fool, Natalia.”

Her mother’s words stopped her in her tracks and Natalia slowly looked at her. “Mother.”

The Queen slowly shook her head, her emerald green eyes now glistening with diamond tears. “Such a fool. You are not a machine, Natalia! You have a heart and a soul and you can feel pain! Do you realize that?!”

Natalia was staring at her mother in confusion.

“Do you realize it?!”

“Y-yes…” She nodded. “Yes, of course I do—”

“And yet you will sacrifice the one you love for us?”

The quiet question stilled every movement of Natalia’s body and she stared at her mother.

“How much more will you sacrifice?” whispered Monica, her heart aching at the thought of her eldest child accepting heartbreak for their sakes. “How much more will you let yourself suffer for us? Don’t you feel sorry for yourself?!”

Lana laid a gentle hand on her mother’s shoulder in an attempt to calm her.

Slowly blinking, Natalia let the words sink into her mind. What was this? This isn’t how she’d expected her mother to react. “It was… it was because the gem—"

“Do you consider your old mother so daft that I would blame Raiden for something that wasn’t his fault?”

“Mother, of course not.”

“I’m so disappointed in you, Natalia. What I said last time was only in anger, my dear, I didn’t mean it. Amie wasn’t the only one who was hurt that day, that wolf hurt you both! Amie may have been physically scarred, but your invisible scars from that incident are just as valid! I’ve never blamed you for that accident, Talia. The gem was taken by his mother and he was never even aware of where it came from. Overthinking the entire matter, you assumed I would be cross over such a thing and then you left your one and only soulmate! Hurting you both!”

Natalia jolted, lowering her gaze. This definitely hadn’t been what she’d predicted.

“Don’t you love him?”

Her gaze snapped up to her mother’s face. “Hm?!”

The Queen huffed and crossed her arms. “Raiden, the man who risked getting a cold for you! Do you love Raiden?”

“Uhmm…” Natalia blinked in puzzled shock. How could she go from scolding her to asking such embarrassing questions in less than five minutes?!

Releasing a calming breath, her mother looked at her. “Think very carefully about it because your answer could change the rest of your life, my darling. Do you love him?”

Tensing, she nervously bit her lip, Raiden’s hand suddenly becoming too warm against her own palm. It was embarrassing to be holding his hand whilst having to answer such a question.

How could she possibly proclaim her undying love for Raiden in front of everyone?

“She’s called me *frithir mi* ,” offered Raiden in a quiet, oddly calm voice.

Her sisters gasped and her mother looked at her.

Natalia’s head snapped towards Raiden, her eyes wide in shock. Why was he exposing her?! After she’d defended him? The betrayal!

“What does it mean?” he continued.

Her mother looked at him and a gentle smile curved her lips. “It is in one of our old mother tongues. It means… my love.”

***********

Natalia stood inside her dressing room, having just worn a fresh t-shirt over her shorts. To take a hot bath, she’d finally changed out of her cold clothes and now she had nothing more to do in the dressing room. So she walked around in it. Nervously. Stiffly.

What else was she to do with Raiden sitting in her bedchamber?!

Raising a hand to her mouth, Natalia bit on her thumb, pacing restlessly. She’d only managed to evade him for a few moments when she’d gone up with her mother and sisters to see Amie.

The healing gem and the potion were still working so Amie hadn’t been able to do much more than walk across the room to their mother, but that had been enough to have all five of them weeping in each other’s arms.

Soon enough, her mother had kicked her out of the room, saying it was rude to leave Raiden alone for so long. Complaining at the door, Natalia finally gave up and transported herself to her bath chambers.

If she had found him in there, bathing, she would have simply passed out, unable to handle any more for the night.

Luckily, it had been empty. Sure, he must have been stunned to hear the water running when she hadn’t walked through the door, but at this point she was sure he was used to her phantom-like abilities.

Now, with no more ways to run away, she paced around the room.

Stopping, Natalia huffed. She was being silly. There was nothing to be nervous about. She spun on her heel and marched to the door.

It opened.

She halted like a braking car, her eyes widening as Raiden filled her doorway.

He looked at her as she stared at him. “Are you… planning to bathe all night?”

His light words were meant as a jest to break the ice, she knew that. The easy thing to do would be to return the joke and chuckle lightly as they both went into her bedroom.

Sadly, Natalia was currently unable to do that.

Not because she had somehow lost the physical ability to chuckle, but because her throat was clogged. With emotion, to be precise.

Secretly panicked and appalled by the sudden onslaught of tears, Natalia only stared at him and tried to get herself under control.

She hadn’t been ready to face him. She’d practiced apologies in her mind countlessly while bathing, but it hadn’t been enough. Tears blurred her vision.

Raiden frowned worriedly. “Natalia?”

“…I’m sorry…”

He stared at her, his brows rising. “Hm?”

Her mouth turned down, tears spilling over. “I’m s-sorry for leaving, I shouldn’t have…”

Completely losing the battle against her darn emotion, the tears totally spilled out, choking her as she tried to apologize.

Raiden was heartbroken at the sight. “Oh, no. Oh, my little love, don’t cry.”

“I w-was so mean… to just… leave!”

“Oh, nooo.” Gathering her in his arms, he hugged her tightly and stroked her hair as she cried. “Don’t cry, Natalia, please.”

She cried even louder. “You were already dealing with so much! There was Devil and Shadow and Evelynn and the alphas and Cyrus! I-it was… it was so much for you! And I *leee-ee-ee-eeft!* ”

Raiden was beside himself with worry. “Oh, God. It’s okay, Natalia.” Leading her into the bedroom where a fire burned in the hearth, he sat her down on the bed and wrapped her in his arms. “I was fine, love, I promise.” He’d nearly lost his mind, but that part wasn’t important.

“You were?” she sniffled. “I hope I didn’t hurt you too badly.”

“You did, but I forgive you.”

She gasped and pulled back, looking up at his face. “I did? I’m so sorry, Raiden.”

“Don’t apologize, I’m not angry with you.” Reaching to the bedside, he grabbed her a handkerchief and then slowly wiped her tears as she blinked at him. “I was never angry with you, so don’t cry, okay?”

His whispered words soothed her and she sniffled, nodding. It was the most she had ever cried in her life, but she had just been so heartbroken at the thought that she’d now hurt him just like the other horrible people he’d had in his life. Natalia hated to be bunched under the same category as them.

Raiden scoffed out a laugh, his heart light with relief.

Oh, dear gods. He’d thought he’d really lost her.

Carefully, he wiped away her tears as they sat facing each other, her wide eyes staring at him.

“You’re done crying?” he asked.

She nodded. “Mm.”

He smiled, his face bright and beautiful with the glow from the fire. “Good. Don’t cry that way again, Natalia. It breaks my heart.”

She stared at him for a long moment before slowly leaning forward and then placing a soft kiss on his mouth.

Raiden sat still, accepting the kiss, being grateful for it. It felt like his soul was being revived, being thawed after staying frozen for so long.

Gently, he held her face and deepened the kiss. The amount of comfort he got from it, the amount of love he felt in it, it was all unfathomable.

With the storm raging outside and the sound of rain beating against the windows, they focused on the warmth of the room and the love they could finally freely express.

Natalia inched away and met his gaze. “I’m… really sorry for leaving you.”

He shook his head. “It’s okay. Just promise you will never leave me again.”

“I promise,” she said with no hesitation. “I promise.”