Chapter Twenty Four

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Your P.O.V.

Dandelions. The soft smell that I would usually have loved now seems invasive as it takes over my senses. Xander lays limply on the floor, seemingly in some sort of muscle spasm. His eyes are back to that blue.

"Venus...you're here." My father's voice snaps me out of my trance. He doesn't resemble either of us, other than the shock of red hair on his head. The gold eyes that stare me down don't hold any malice, but confusion and guilt. He stands and makes his way towards me, arms extended for an embrace. "I'm so sorry, I didn't want to hurt you. You lied to me and left: I was so angry. The remorse I felt after that night...that horrible night...but I raised our child." He motions to Xander. "We can be a family again." This man is close enough to touch me now. I take a fighting stance. He flinches.

"Oh. I understand," He backs up slightly. "I wouldn't trust me either." There's a pause.

"My name isn't Venus," I whisper, dropping my fists. The man stops in his tracks. He looks up at me. With pain in those golden eyes, he stretches an arm to caress my face. I jump backwards. "My name is (Y/N)!" My tone comes out much stronger than I mean it to. "I was found by a dragon. Right next to this town. I had no mother, no father. For years, I was confused. I had no idea as to who I was, where I came from. But now I know. I have a brother. I have parents...I have a family."

The man before me is silent. Xander's shaking has slowed, and he lays sprawled on the ground, chest rising and falling in rapid motions.

"Venus didn't like my ideas," He doesn't yell. It's almost as if he needs someone to listen. "She called them barbaric. To infuse a child with the strongest magic known to man was not barbaric, but ingenious. I suggested making our child the most powerful mage in Fiore. She didn't agree, so she ran away from me." I open my mouth to say something, anything. How my mother was right, how he is a maniac. How what he's saying is irrational, but I don't know if I fully believe it. "But Xander. My beautiful boy. He was willing." My father's face suddenly falls into sadness. "But the minute I fall into a state of weakness, I am betrayed."

More silence. My heart suddenly aches for this man who was only trying to do what he felt was right for his family. "I–"

"(Y/N)!" Suddenly, Sting bursts through the doors to the room. We lock eyes before he whirls to face my father. "Who are you?"

Everything is silent. No one says a thing, and the only sound is Xander's ragged breathing. Xander. I almost forgot. I rush to his side to take his pulse, which is unnaturally high. The individual beats seem to blur together as my brother whimpers.

"What is going on here?!" We all turn to the doors once again to see Yukino, Rogue and the exceeds horrified at the scene before them. A pause. Everyone is frozen.

"Can anyone find something to heal him? Please..." I whisper.

"Let's all go and split up. We can cover more ground that way!" Rami suggests. The other exceeds nod and fly back up the hallway.

"I'll go too," Yukino says, her voice cracking a bit. She runs off after the exceeds. The man across from me is breathing heavily and I just barely notice a tear roll down his cheek.

"We were going to reshape the guilds of Fiore. With my son by my side, our mission would've been completed." Sobs echo through the stone room. Light reflects off of something forming from behind Amaren. As his sobs grow, so do the mirror shards from his back. "I am betrayed!"

"(Y/N)..." Sting whispers. He sounds wary as his electric blue eyes scan the growing threat in front of us.

Suddenly, he screams. Jagged shards of mirror fly around the room, bouncing off the walls. I fling myself over Xander in a lame attempt to shield him from the oncoming weapons. The shattering of breaking glass is deafening. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Sting and Rogue combining their magic into fusion.

And then it stops. Just as quickly as it came on, the attack is finished. The pain hits me all at once, my back is obviously sliced to ribbons. I pull away from my brother, who is still spasming on the floor. A line of blood is left on his shirt from where my face was. I reach a finger to swipe my jaw and it comes away bloody. Thankfully, Xander seems unharmed.

"(Y/N)! Oh my god..." Sting rushes over to me then halts when he sees my wounds. Rogue is on the other side of the room, tending to the attacker, who is now unconscious. Yukino and the exceeds burst back into the room, arms flooding with bandages, lacrimas, and some other unrecognizable medical supplies.

My vision starts to blur and my head feels heavy. The floor seems to tilt, but no one moves. Sting's mouth is moving, but no sound is coming from it. Before I drop, the last thing I feel is Xander stir from underneath me. My sight goes dark.

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