Chapter 16

Nikki didn’t move. She just stood there looking at the stunned look on her best friend’s face. Minutes of silence had gone by until Nikki couldn’t take it anymore.

Finally Nikki whispered, “Say something Kris.”

Kristine flinched as if she’d just been slapped and suddenly the floodgates opened, “Are you insane! Did you even think of what you are really doing!” She yelled.

Before Nikki could even answer, Kristine continued yelling, “How can you even consider marrying him! He’s not even human! What are you thinking! Does that mean you are leaving? And what exactly do you plan on telling our parents? You can’t leave! You just can’t!”

With hands curling into fists, Kristine turned around and stormed towards the bathroom.

Nikki reached out for her arm, “Kris, wait.”

Kristine simply yanked away from Nikki, “No, I don’t want to talk to you right now!”

The bathroom door slammed shut behind her.

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

Nikki glanced towards Kristine who stood with her back against the wall and her arms crossed over her chest as they waited for the boys to arrive. Kristine still wasn’t talking to Nikki.

After she’d stormed into the bathroom the night before, Nikki hadn’t seen her until she came out again later after she’d taken her shower. Kristine had immediately turned the lights off, gotten into bed, and turned her back to Nikki.

In the morning Kristine had been the first one up, dressed, and out of the room before the sleep had left Nikki’s eyes. No matter what Nikki said, Kristine had remained silent all the way to school and Nikki hadn’t seen Kristine at all during school. She hadn’t even shown up for their lunch either.

Nikki had been worried that Kristine wouldn’t be there after school for the boys to walk them home. So, when she saw Kristine in the gym waiting, she had let out the breath she’d been holding.

As Nikki felt the brush against her mind, she sighed and opened the door to go to Xavier. He came up to her, already knowing how sad she was from her scent. Opening his arms, he let her lean into him before he hugged her close.

Lowering his lips to the top of her head, he gave her head a kiss and privately asked, What’s wrong, dimo agalo?

Nikki sighed against his chest and hugged him tighter, I told Kristine and she yelled at me and now she won’t talk to me at all. I tried to explain, but she’s ignoring me.

Xavier sighed and maneuvered his arm around her so they could walk home, Come on li’ho, I’ll see if Zach can talk to her.

Xavier looked in Zachary’s direction and watched as Zachary was hugging Kristine and softly talking to her. He mind spoke his best friend, Zach, Nikki says Kris won’t talk to her after she told her about marrying me. Can you find out why?


Yeah, she’s telling me something right now. Was Zachary’s response.

As the four of them made their way through the woods, Zachary continued to listen to Kristine who had simply told him she was upset with Nikki, but she’d tell him when they were alone. Currently, she was just telling him about the places she was interested in seeing once school was over.

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

When they arrived at the barn, Kristine tugged Zachary’s hand to lead him up the ladder into the loft completely ignoring Xavier and Nikki. As soon as the two of them had climbed into the loft, Kristine turned towards Zachary and asked, “Is that invisible shield thingy you do up?”

Zachary nodded, “You can tell me why you’re upset now.”

Kristine’s lips trembled as she launched herself into Zachary’s arms. “Oh Zach, Nikki said she’s going to marry Xavier. She’s going to go with him to his world and leave me all alone here. How am I supposed to go on without my best friend?”

Zachary ran his fingers through her hair, “You won’t be alone, Kris. You still have me and Nikki will come visit often, I know she will. It’s like you said, she’s your best friend. She won’t abandon you anymore than I will.”

Kristine sniffed and pulled back to look up in his eyes, “She’s going to marry Xavier, Zach. You know what that means right? I thought you told me that Xavier would be king someday, right? So how can he marry Nikki? Doesn’t she have to be a princess or something?”

Zachary shook his head, “Not really, no. The fact that they are soul mates is enough.”

Kristine frowned, “Yeah, right. Zach, Nikki hasn’t even graduated yet! She’s just too young to get married. And well, she hasn’t really known him all that long either. You know my parents won’t like that one bit! God, what could she possibly tell them! Hi, this is Xavier, my fiancé. Oh and by the way, he’s not human and I’m going with him to his world!” She snorted, “Yeah, that’ll go over real well with my parents.”

Zachary grimaced, “I don’t think we will be telling your parents that.”

Kristine crossed her arms in front of her, “Well, what will we be telling them then?”

Zachary sighed, “It may just be better for Nikki to just leave and not say anything to them.”

“What? And what am I supposed to say if they ask me where she is? Don’t you think they’d notice it right away? Nikki and I have never been separated since she came to live with us! This is so wrong!”

Zachary swallowed and watched Kristine begin to pace around the room, “Kris, I know you are upset about losing your best friend, but please try to understand. On his twentieth birthday, Xavier will be crowned King, and on that day he has to take a wife. He won’t take anyone else but Nikki. He doesn’t have a choice. Neither does Nikki.”

Kristine glared at him, “Of course Nikki has a choice! So, what if Xavier has to choose a bride on the day he becomes King, it doesn’t have to be Nikki!”

Zachary gaped at her, “Are you saying he should marry someone else and leave Nikki?” When she didn’t answer he whispered, “Would you expect me to leave you if it were us instead?”

Kristine didn’t say a word. She just stood there with her back to Zachary. She sighed and turned to look at him. “She’s too young Zach. It isn’t fair for Xavier to do this to her.”

“Kris, if not Nikki, it’s going to be someone else!”

Kristine shrugged, “Well, then I guess that’s how it’s going to be.”

Zachary gritted his teeth, praying for patience, “Kristine, I don’t think you are getting this. They love each other. They are soul mates. There won’t ever be anyone else for either of them, ever!”

She rolled her eyes, “Whatever.”

He growled, “How can you be so selfish!”

She glowered at him, “I’m selfish! Me? What about Xavier? He’s the one who’s making all these demands on Nikki! And Nikki? She’s just clinging to him like a lifeline! She’s put him on this pedestal and forgotten all about the rest of the world!”

“Kris…”

“No! I am not listening to this! She’s making a mistake! And you are just stupid if you think this is all good news! How could you even side with them? All of you are so delusional it’s sickening!”

She stalked towards the stairs, “Take the wall down, I’m going home.”

“Kris, please, just hear me out.”

She growled, “Take the wall down Zachary!”

He sighed heavily and waved his hand, “It’s down.”

Kristine didn’t say a word as she began climbing down the ladder.

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

Xavier and Nikki were sitting on the haystacks, facing each other. They had their legs crossed and their knees were touching each others. Xavier held one of Nikki’s hands in his as they talked about his father.

“I know you are hesitant Nikki, but I told you my father can’t stop me from marrying you.”

Xavier squeezed Nikki’s hand as they heard the sound of footsteps coming down the ladder.

As they stood up still holding hands, they saw Kristine jump the last step and stalk towards the door.

“Kris, where you going?” asked Nikki.

Kristine whirled around and glared at her, “Home.”

Xavier looked up the stairs to see Zachary climbing down. He gave Xavier a hopeless shrug as he did. Xavier turned back to Kristine, “Kris, if you would let us explain…”
Kristine didn’t acknowledge Xavier as she continued to glare at Nikki, “Don’t take too long, I’m not covering for you this time.”

Nikki frowned as she watched Kristine throw the door open and disappear outside.

Zachary sighed and turned to them, “Sorry guys, she just didn’t want to listen to my explanations.”

Xavier nodded as he hugged Nikki close to him, “What did she say?”

Zachary shrugged, “She feels like she’s losing her best friend and she doesn’t understand what being soul mates means to the both of you. I tried to explain, but she’s too hurt about Nikki leaving to listen right now. She also thinks Nikki is too young to get married.”

Nikki nodded, “I’ll try talking to her again tonight.” She looked up at Xavier, “Maybe we should just give her some space and let her get used to the idea. I’ll try to let her know that I’m always going to be her best friend and what you and I are doing isn’t wrong.”

Xavier nodded, “Okay.”

Zachary gave them a smile as he walked towards the portal to give them a few moments alone, “I’ll see you tomorrow Nikki.”

After Zachary disappeared, Xavier cupped Nikki’s cheek in his hand, “I love you, dimo ulhi’maos.”

She smiled, “I love you too, Xavier.”

She tilted her head back and welcomed his kiss. Closing her eyes, she lost herself in the feel of his mouth as he deepened the kiss. His arms went around her waist, holding her to him. As his tongue swept against her lips, she opened her mouth and welcomed him in.

Xavier didn’t hesitate to slide his tongue against hers. He could feel her pressing her body along the length of his and he knew it was too dangerous to continue. Pulling his lips from hers, he leaned his forehead against hers and sighed. “You should go, before you get in trouble.”

She smiled, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He let go of her and walked towards the portal turning to look at her one more time, “idi agalo esu.”

She smiled, “idi alsis,” she agreed.

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

As the days went by, nothing seemed to get through to Kristine. She continued to be angry with Nikki. Nikki had tried to talk to her again that night, but Kristine had just yelled at her again and then proceeded to give her the silent treatment from then on.

She didn’t treat Xavier any better. After two days of watching Kristine ignore Nikki and feeling the sadness in his fiancé, Xavier had tried to talk to Kristine again. Kristine had just snapped at him and told him that she wasn’t going to waste her time talking to someone like him.

Zachary was the only one who could still talk to Kristine, but his situation wasn’t much better. She was still angry at him for taking Xavier and Nikki’s side. He still tried to talk to her anyway.

“Kris, you are going to have to realize that no matter what you feel, Nikki is leaving with Xavier in two days. Do you really want to isolate yourself from her like this?”

Kristine huffed, “I’m not the one making the mistake.”

Zachary sighed, “It would be a mistake if Nikki didn’t go with Xavier.”

She glared at him, “Why are you taking their side? How can you possibly agree with what they are doing?”

“Kristine!” Zachary growled, finally exasperated, “Stop being so selfish and listen to me for once!”

Her eyes went wide, “What did you just say!”

Zachary looked at her for a few moments before running his hand through his hair. He sighed, “Did you know we could lose Xavier if Nikki doesn’t go with him?”

Kristine rolled her eyes, “Don’t be so dramatic.”

Zachary wanted to scream at her and tell her just who it was that was being a drama queen. Instead, he took another deep breath and continued, “She is his soul mate. And in our world, that is a very sacred thing. I know you think it’s just a saying, but think about it Kris. You know what we are. We aren’t human. And that wildness in Xavier could devour him if Nikki doesn’t go with him. He could turn into that thing you seem to fear so much and never come back. Only there won’t be a single shred of humanity left in him. He’ll be the monster you thought we were in the first place!”

Kristine stared at him, “You’re joking!” As Zachary continued to look at her with that sad look, she continued, “Oh my God, you’re not joking!”

Zachary shook his head, “Not even a little.”

Kristine swallowed, “So, you’re saying that if Nikki doesn’t go with Xavier, he’ll turn into a monster?”

Zachary nodded, “She is his soul, literally. She’s the only thing that will keep him whole. And you know our world needs him.”

Kristine slowly nodded, “Yes.” She closed her eyes. “There’s no way he can be cured or…”

“Kristine, it’s not a disease.” He sighed, “Look, our people are different. Not all of us have soul mates, just a select few. It’s a rare thing. So rare that when it does happen, those couples are sort of looked at as blessed. It’s considered taboo to mess with those couples.”

Kristine’s eyes widened, “Are you telling me soul mates are worshipped in your world?”

Zachary shook his head, “Not exactly. But they are treated with respect. Like they are favored or blessed by the powers that be.” He chuckled, “Many of the soul mates say it is actually both a blessing and a curse.”

Kristine arched an eyebrow, “How so?”

“Well, this thing they share. It’s like an invisible thread linking them together. It’s what makes them special. They can always feel each other, know where the other one is at all times, and are always in each others minds. It’s like they literally are one person. They share the same soul. So, you can imagine what it’s like to always be connected to someone like that, there’s never any privacy from the other person.”

Kristine gasped as she realized what he was saying, “Oh! And it’s already happening isn’t it? I mean that’s how Nikki always seems to know when Xavier is nearby!”

Zachary nodded, “Yeah. But Kris, think about it, if she’s one half of him, what do you think happens if he loses that half?”

As the realization sank in, Kristine swallowed, “He’ll be a monster.”

Again Zachary nodded, “Yes. He’ll be trapped in the other form and he’ll never know what he’s doing. All the things that made him human will be gone. He’ll be a rabid beast and we all will have to deal with that.”

“What will you do if that happens?”

Zachary sighed, “We’ll try to contain him of course, but the moment he kills, we’ll have to put him down. There’s no way to save someone once they get to that point Kris. It’s just like here, when an animal attacks a human, they are put down.”

Kristine closed her eyes, “I didn’t know.”

“Now you do,” he whispered.

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

Xavier sat next to Nikki in silence. His mind with filled with chaos. So many emotions ran through him as he constantly replayed the last few days in his mind.

The palace was already getting things ready for the coronation and wedding that would be taking place in less than two weeks. None of them knew who his bride would be since his father had yet to announce it. Of course, those in the know, knew it was going to be Nikki, but his father still refused to acknowledge that.

No matter what Devnet or Xavier said to him, he wouldn’t change his mind. He wouldn’t stop ranting about the atrocities of human beings. And to make matters worse, Marcus had been sending many noblewomen to see Xavier.

Xavier couldn’t count the number of times that he had to find a way to get rid of a woman who was trying her best to flirt with him. They were everywhere he went. Outside the training rooms, in the corridors of the castle, and even joining him for his meals.

Devnet did her best to get the women to leave before she could catch sight of Xavier, but it didn’t always work, especially if Marcus was there too. Xavier and his father had come to blows several times over the last few days and it had taken Zachary and Kegan quite a long time to get Xavier back under control.

Both of them had begged Xavier to stop being so noble and go make Nikki his completely before he did something horrible. But Xavier had refused. He still wanted to wait. He wanted everything to be perfect for the both of them. He refused to listen to his friends when they told him that they were now afraid he wasn’t going to make it to the wedding in one piece.

Xavier flinched when he felt Nikki’s hand on his arm, followed by her soft voice, “I know you have things on your mind, tell me what’s going on in there.”

He sighed, “Nothing.”

She frowned, “No, don’t tell me that. I know something’s bothering you. Is it Kris? You don’t have to worry Xavier, I am going with you, even if she doesn’t understand.”

He nodded, “I know.”

She sighed, “So, what is it then?”

He turned to look at her. As his eyes met hers, he saw the worried look in her eyes. He gave her a smile and caressed her cheek, “Nothing’s wrong, dimo agalo.”

Xavier leaned in and kissed her lips, intending to pull away quickly, but when Nikki wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held him close, he knew it was a mistake. He tried to pull away, but Nikki deepened the kiss and ran her tongue over his bottom lip. With a growl, he opened his mouth and ravished hers.

Nikki didn’t think anything was wrong as she kissed her love. Not even when his lips left hers to trail kisses down her neck. It wasn’t until she felt his claws against her back, ripping through her shirt. That and the prick of his teeth against her skin. Gasping she placed her hands against his chest and began pushing him away.

“Xavier, what are you doing? Stop!”

He growled and lifted his head to look at her. Nikki took in the eyes that flashed from a deep red to a fiery orange color and back again. She frowned, “What is it, Xavier?”

He growled again, opened his mouth to bare his fangs, and lowered them to her neck.

Nikki squeaked and shoved at his chest again, “Xavier! Stop this! You’re scaring me!”

Xavier didn’t listen, instead he pinned her down to the haystack and began to shred her shirt to pieces as he licked her neck.

Nikki shrieked, Xavier, vosto! Th’isti! Esu trasca! Vosto, asepros!

Even as Nikki begged him to stop because he was scaring her, he still continued to rip through her clothes. In the next instant, he was suddenly thrown from her and shoved into a wall by Zachary. He hissed at Zachary and struggled to get away from him.

Kristine ran to Nikki and wrapped her arms around her, “Nikki are you okay.”

Nikki nodded, but didn’t take her eyes off of Xavier who was currently struggling with Zachary against the wall.

Zachary gripped Xavier’s shirt and slammed him back against the wall again. His voice was loud and commanding as he spoke to his leader, “Vosto! Esu hubla‘go, Xavier! Tazolo sa‘go!”

Xavier snapped his eyes to where Nikki still sat on the haystack. Kristine had her arms around Nikki who clutched her torn shirt in her hands. Tears of worry sparkled in her eyes.

The sight of her eyes is what snapped him out of it. With a gasp, his form returned to normal. “Nikki,” he whispered as he slumped against the wall.

Nikki stood up and reached for him, but Xavier shook his head no. She stood there and watched as he turned to Zachary, “I should go.”

Nikki’s eyes went wide, “No!” She turned to Zachary as Xavier made his way to the portal, “Zachary! Tell him not to go!”

Zachary sighed, “He’s still too close Nikki, he needs to get himself under control away from you.”

Nikki closed her eyes as Xavier opened the portal door, “idi agalo esu vergita, Xavier.”

Xavier paused. “Idi agalo esu, dimo artia.”

After Xavier had disappeared through the portal, Kristine turned to Zachary. “Is he really going to be okay?” she asked.

Zachary sighed, “I hope so.” He looked at Nikki, “Are you okay?”

She nodded, “Yes. Just go to him, Zach.” Her eyes begged him to make sure Xavier would be okay.

He nodded and turned to Kristine, “I’ll see you tomorrow okay?”

With a nod, Kristine watched as Zachary disappeared through the portal too. She could feel Nikki shaking in her arms and when she looked down, she saw the tears spilling down her cheeks.

“Nikki! What’s wrong? Did he hurt you?”

Nikki shook her head, “No. He didn’t hurt me. Oh Kristine, he’s so close! I tried to tell him we didn’t have to wait, but he wants things to be perfect for us. I’m so scared he won’t make it. I can’t lose him Kristine. I love him!”

Kristine nodded as she hugged her friend tighter. She now understood everything. Everything they had all been trying to get her to see. Xavier and Nikki were meant for each other. It was so obvious in all the things they did. And she could see how it was hurting Xavier to keep his distance. He needed Nikki, but he was being such a gentleman waiting for things to be perfect before he claimed her.

Kristine knew Nikki would have given it to Xavier had he asked and now, she didn’t blame Nikki for wanting to. If it was Zachary who was in danger of losing his soul, Kristine wouldn’t have hesitated to do it. How could she ever blame Nikki for wanting to marry Xavier?

She knew she’d never forgive herself for coming in between her best friend and the man she loved. Two souls who belonged together.

Translations
dimo agalo - my love
li'ho - honey
dimo ulhi'maos - my soul mate
idi agalo esu - I love you
idi alsis - me too
vosto! - stop!
th'isti! - Not this! (Don't do this)
Esu trasca! - You're scaring me!
Vosto asepros! - Stop please!
Esu hubla'go! - You're hurting her!
tazolo sa'go! - look at her!
vergita - forever
dimo artia - my heart