The Demon’s Bride

Elise licked her lips, to wet it as she felt her throat and lips were dried up after Ian's question. She knew she had been the one to ask but then she felt as if she had dug to her own grave, wanting to pull the ground to hide herself.

"If it is both, what will happen if I choose both?" Elise asked without backing down. She didn't have much chance as a maid and she was willing to bet on the chance no matter how thin or silver it was.

"Greedy," Ian whispered beside her ears and his fingers stayed on her neck, gliding down on her collar bone where one of his knees went forward to press between her legs on the skirt, "But I don't hate it."

The scandalous position in which she was in had Elise's breaths to become harder to take. When Ian's hand capture her waist and went up to brush the curve of her breasts, Elise's entire body felt tingling with another emotion coming within which's started from her stomach. She then feel how Ian's lips hovered next to her skin just enough to brushed her and her nerves jolted at the texture.

She looked down to meet Ian's eyes as he took one step away, "We should go, if we don't go now I could tell before we could arrive we will see John's body rotting to skeleton." Ian tore his eyes from Elise and the expression she made on her beautiful face also from his bed which was only three steps for him.

Elise tried to calm herself by thinking something else and not to look at Ian when she shifted her eyes to watch the black wings appearing from Ian's back, "Is it attached to your skin?" Elise asked because she can't understand how the wings could come without ripping the shirt Ian wore.

"It is. Do you you want to see? But not here out of open and in private," Ian laughed when retrieving Elise look of torn. He put aside his joke to then pull Elise to the edge of the balcony by her hand. "Ready to fly?"

Elise watched the wings, an urge to touch and feel the smoothness came to her fingertips. Without touching she could tell how soft and silky Ian's wings were. It was like the wings of an angel which Elise had seen often from portraits and paintings in the Church where the wings was wide and large, a sense of strength hidden in it.

She had heard stories about beings who live in heaven since her youngest age. To see the wings surprised her as it only ever heard from folklores. Unlike angels though, Ian's wings were colored in pitch black like the color of the night sky or even blacker like a concentrated ink instead of white.

Elise took one step closer to Ian without tearing her eyes at the interest of the wings which flipped slightly to tell that it could move.

"Yes," replied Elise a look of expectation to fly in the sky but a hesitant settled on her eyes. But her curiosity peaked higher than her thoughts that was careful to fly on the sky.

"Come closer," Ian cooed and Elise walked nearer toward him when he turned his body toward her and bent to sweep her legs from the ground, carrying her to her hands. It was late for Elise to realize that to fly with Ian she only have one position which was to be carried on Ian's arm.

"Hold my neck, I promise not to drop you or make you fall but we need a proper measure," said Ian and Elise wondered measure for what? She bit the inside of her cheeks and gingerly wrapped her hands on Ian's neck, resting her head to his chest where she felt his body warmth only to suddenly released her hand and looked at Ian in alarm.

Under his smile, Elise said, "Your heart is not beating, Master Ian." It didn't beat anything nor a sound. Elise thought she couldn't hear his heartbeat because of her own drumming heartbeat but she had pressed her ears very close to his chest and heard none, not even a peak.

"You must have misheard things," Ian brushed it off and when Elise pressed the side of her face to his chest, Ian chuckled. His eyes were glimmering in mischief and joy to know that someone so adorable and pure could exist in the world even if she was meant to kill him. By hours and days he spent with her, Elise grew more enchanting to him like last night or now.

Elise was sweet to his eyes down to the drops of her blood even if he hadn't tasted her yet on bed.

Elise who was pressing her ears on his chest noticed how there was heartbeat from Ian's chest. Did she mistook it? "It is there, isn't it?" Ian asked, knowing the expression Elise would have. "Hold tight we are going now."

Elise saw his black wings moved, and in one swoop, they flew to the sky. Her hands tightened around Ian's neck, and when they were stable, Elise slowly opened her eyes to see how close the sky was and how far the ground bellow her. Seeing the ground frightened her and she held to Ian closely.

Ian saw her expression where astonishment and fear all clashed together, "How is it, fun?"

"It's scary," Elise replied honestly, "the ground is far and the sky is very near," said Elise, noting what she saw and noticed how Ian's wings continued to flap for them to soar over to the sky, crossing what birds would do as they had wings while she doesn't.

"That's one of the joy you could take from flying, it's not everyday everyone gets to fly, enjoying it would be one of your happiness you could look back to in the future," replied Ian and Elise watched how his black hair flew as the wind blow across.

"How many people knows about your wings, Master Ian?" she asked curiously and to keep her mind off from the ground that was far below her. Looking to the sky where orange color and blue color clashing was much better to her eyes.

"Four who is alive some saw but died not soon after seeing my wings. It's a privilege," Ian's eyes moved down to Elise seeing her from behind and the shape of her nose.

It is a privilege, agreed Elise on her mind. There was no being she knew that have wings. Ian was not only immortal but had wings which made her pin to one possible hypothesis of what creature he was.

"It is scary but the sky is beautiful," she replied to see Ian returning her smile when she bring her chin up. "I am very thankful for the ride." It was not everyday she would fly around the sky and she decide to enjoy it even if it was frightening

"You should," agreed Ian, "it is the first time I have ever carried someone to fly with me," Ian answered and she felt joy and delight from his words in which widened her lips to a broad smile.

"I will fly faster," Ian then said and his wings clapped faster, the sound was loud to her ears and almost as if it was alive. The wind continued to brush her face, letting the hair she had kept neat to be blown by the wind.

Elise didn't know how long she was on the sky until she arrived at place covered with trees. Ian's wings flapped to keep him in air before his feet touched to the ground and Elise saw how fast his wings disappeared back as if it was folding to his back.

After he had landed, Ian let Elise down to the ground and she released her hands from his neck. At first the position where she had to be carried on his arm and wrapped her hands to his neck felt too intimate but she had gotten used to it as she flew. The embarrassment only came after when her shoes touched the grassy ground.

"It takes slow but you seem to be getting use flying. Do you like heights?" asked Ian to her when he fixed his hair which in truth he only swept his hands, pushing the hair to fall back after the wind blew them.

"I don't like it that much," said Elise. Unless if she had wings like Ian, she didn't think she would stop being frightened from a far distance. "I once fell in the past, from the roof. It wasn't a high fall and fortunately there was bushes underneath but I am afraid to die from falling. My mother, Mrs. Scott told me of someone who died in the past after falling from a high place,"

"Because you have experienced it once, you know how painful it is and fear it," replied Ian and he saw Elise sinking down in her thoughts, "Is it the sleepwalking that got you quiet, sweetheart?"

"I don't know why I sleepwalked. I have never done that before," said Elise when Ian walked toward her and his expression taking in the face she made.

"It was often said that when one is in a sleep state, their soul stayed on their purest form which make it easy to be affected or move. In some cases, in form of souls people could travel or venture to places. Another cases is where the soul is attracted by others," explained Ian to Elise whose brows were pulled to think.

"In your case however, your body moved not only your soul." Ian said to see Elise trying to find out something new had Ian to quirk a smile. As many things start to happen, Ian found many new side of her and he enjoyed to see more of her expression as it made him feel more alive than ever.

"Could it be that I was also attracted by something when sleeping?" questioned Elise and she saw Ian's grin widening as if telling that she has got it.

"It's still a suspicion now. There are many that could attract you, like spirits. Did you dream of nightmares?" he asked her.

Elise shook her head, "But before I notice I was walking on the roof, I feel like a dreamt a nightmare but I'm not sure," replied Elise as now she felt her memory of her dream shattering. It was hard for one who dream to recollect their dream clearly and this was the situation Elise felt. "Is it possible that I will sleepwalk again?" Today didn't but it there was no telling about the day after.

"I don't know," Ian replied and for the first time to Elise, she heard the words coming from his lips. "Don't worry, sweetie. If you fall asleep and woke up on the roof again, you don't have to fear. I will be there because you know," Ian leaned forward and lowered his voice as if to whisper, "I have wings to fly and I never sleep at night, I'll come every time for your rescue and need. You can rest easy."

Elise's smile widened at his words and her cheeks reddened, she then recall the sensation of Ian's knees between her legs and it had blood to rush over her head.

Ian then tugged her attention by saying, "If you still fear falling you could try to experience falling from a higher place maybe you will feel less scared that way."

Elise blinked at Ian who proposed her to fall from a higher place, "I don't think that is how someone forget their fear, Master Ian."

"Really?" came Ian oblivious tone. "You know how pain lessen when one feel it over and over again, don't you? It works the same. When one had experienced pain before, the second time will still hurt but if it happened for a hundred time, it will gradually feel less painful or in some case you'll grew numb over it."

"Is that how you felt?" asked Elise. Slowly, she had asked things that were more daring from before and Ian accepted her question.

"Yes. That was what I felt," Ian confirmed to then turn his back and Elise saw his coat was safe from tears or holes. Even though his wings had emerged from the spot and it had Elise confused.

"How does your wings work, Master Ian? Your clothes didn't rip," said Elise to have Ian's red eyes moving at her and he hummed.