CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN
[ The Father with the Golden Eyes ]
"I can't imagine you come across those
type of eyes typically"
"AZRAIL, STOP!"
The Grim Reaper paused, her scythe clutched above her head with its dangerous curve pointed where Rose stood trembling. Her brows furrowed as she watched Lucienne hurry to interrupt, an older woman trailing after her with a small novel clutched tightly to her chest.
Rose squinted her eyes open nervously. "Unity?"
Azrail glanced at Morpheus, waiting for his permission to bring the cold touch of death down upon Rose's head, but his attention was focused on the librarian and unexpected visitor. Unity?
"This is Unity Kincaid," Lucienne explained with a short gesture to the older woman who turned bravely to face the Dream King.
Despite being nothing but a human, a mere insect to the power Dream of the Endless possessed, she stood tall and confident under Morpheus's sharp glare. "I am Rose's great-grandmother." She held up the novel to reveal a gold title inscribed in its leather cover. "And according to this book, I was meant to be the vortex of this age. But because you were imprisoned and locked out of the Dreaming, that date was handed down to my descendants-."
"I don't understand," Morpheus said suddenly, his eyes darting between the grandmother and granddaughter with a abrupt flash of panic.
Unity scoffed. "You're not very bright, are you?" She turned to her granddaughter widening her arms to welcome a hug to Rose. "Come here, Rose."
Rose hesitated, glancing worriedly to where Azrail's scythe still waited above her head.
The older woman rolled her eyes. "And put that scythe down, no need for you to overcompensate."
A frown fell over Azrail thin face as she reluctantly dropped her scythe, stabbing its curve in the dirt and letting Rose run to her grandmother's tight embrace.
She marched over to Morpheus. "What in the world is happening?" she whispered to him, sparing a glance to her sister who has drifted to stand behind the King cautiously. There was so much uncertainty surrounding the entire situation that Maeve declared her safest option would be behind one of the Endless. Potentially the only thing that could survive if the Vortex exploded.
"I... I do not know," Morpheus confessed.
Unity took hold of Rose's hands gently, holding them in a tight grasp with her thumbs tracing small lines over her dark skin. "I want you to reach down inside yourself and give me whatever it is that makes you the vortex."
Rose stammered. "But, h-how?"
"You're dreaming, darling. Anything is possible."
Rose hesitated, looking down at her chest as she pulled a hand free from Unity's. Slowly, cautiously, she pushed her open palm into her chest, watching with a gasp as it phased through and she was able to latch onto the very thing that makes her the vortex.
With a soft exhale, Rose pulled free a crystal heart. The red tinting flashed dangerous as thunder roared from within the confines space, strikes of lightning echoing faintly through the clearing. "This?" she clarified, looking at the adults who surrounded her.
Maeve's brows furrowed, leaning forward over Morpheus shoulder, still using him as a shield should things go haywire. "I can feel my magic," she whispered.
Azrail quickly agreed. "Me too."
"Oh, thank you, Rose, love." Unity cradled the crystal heart tight against her chest and she turned to Morpheus. "I'm the vortex now, Dream King, as I should have been long ago. So, leave my great-granddaughter alone."
Morpheus seemed hesitant to allow it to be, his eyes watching as the heart vibrated with power. The chaos grew stronger and stronger but Unity continued to cradle it as if it was a fragile crystal, thumbs tenderly tracing the edges and she maintained a tender smile. A crack echoed through the tight silence and the power finally exploded.
Morpheus was quick to use his own body to shield Azrail, leaving Maeve to take the blast on her own. A wave of power washed across the land, echoing for miles, but with it came the end of the Vortex.
"Oh, yes! My magic, it's back!" Maeve cheered, dancing through the grass with the soft hues of her power dancing over her fingertips as she summoned different illusions and blasts.
Slowly, Morpheus unravelled his arms from Azrail, watching her with a level of worry she only saw him possess when looking over to her for injuries.
"Are you okay?" Morpheus asked, tenderly cupping Azrail arms in his hands. The question sounded unnatural coming from him, and the Reaper's dark heart warmed with love.
She extended her hand, watching the violet hues of her magic dance over her fingers in a similar way to Maeve. "Yeah, I am." Her scythe flew into her grasp and immediately Azrail drew a jagged line through the open air, watching Oblivion split open. Oh, how she missed those beautiful cosmos.
Those of supernatural heritage suddenly turned to the humans, watching Unity lean back from her prior hunched position. Her hands were still held in front of her as if the heart still laid within her grasp. Azrail noticed something sad as she watched the woman. She lacked a human soul.
"What happened?" Unity managed to breathe out.
"You died. So that Rose may live," Morpheus explained, and immediately a look of relief washed through Unity. Little care for her own well-being was shown as a small smile managed to fade across her lips.
Rose embraced the woman with a sob. "I'm so sorry," she exhaled shakily.
Unity returned the hug just as tightly. "No, don't be. I'm not. I was meant to have died a long time ago, Rose." As they hesitantly separated, Unity gently cupped Rose's face with teary eyes, accepting that she was never to leave the Dreaming again. "But if I had, I would never have met my golden-eyed man and we would never have had our beautiful baby girl, and you would not have been born."
"Wait," Morpheus interjected. "The father of your child had golden eyes?"
The old woman managed a tender smile at the fond memory. "I've never seen anything like them."
Morpheus shared a distant stare in thought, but instead of remembering fondly, his jaw clenched and his hands formed tight fist. A flash of anger passed through his expression. "I have..." he spat in irritation, the confession seeming to physically pain him to admit. Lucienne shared a knowing glance with the King.
Unity cupped Rose's face with both her hands. "Goodbye, Rose, darling." Rose hurried into the older woman's hug again, her body trembling with sobs as she tried to hide her face in the crook of Unity's neck. "Mr. Holdaway will see to it that you and Jed have everything you need."
Azrail paid little attention to the goodbye between Rose and Unity. She reached forward, hesitated, and then interlocked her hands with Morpheus's. She felt him tense, quickly turning to see who it had been but his gaze softened when it landed on.
"What's wrong?" she asked. "You know a golden eyed man or something. I can't imagine you come across those type of eyes typically."
"Yes... but I will worry about it later," Morpheus declared, squeezing Azrail's hand lightly before he turned to Rose and Unity. His eyes focused on Rose, a seemingly impressed look replacing the prior rage. "You and your brother are children of the Endless... you have suffered enough. You may leave this place. Goodbye, Rose."
He let the sisters do their individual goodbyes to Rose, Azrail's consisting of a short nod whereas Maeve did a respectful salute. Then, with a simple wave of the hand, Rose faded from their view and she awoke with a startled gasp.
Lucienne then tended to Unity, helping her find a place in the Dreaming, and left Morpheus, Maeve and Azrail still waiting in the Fiddler's Green.
"So, what do you think Azrail?" Maeve asked, approaching the couple with her hands on her hips, a knowing look passing her dark eyes. "It seems as if you've learned what I spoke of." Those dark and taunting eyes flicked down to where Azrail's hand was still wound tightly around Morpheus.
The Grim Reaper gasped, tugged her hand free and folded her arms. "What? N-no!" she stammered, reaching to pull her hood further over her face. Her red cheeks were evident even through the looming shadows of darkness. "I have no idea what you're talking about. Nothing, nothing at all! Shut up!" What followed was a severely awkward and uncomfortable laugh from the Reaper. "Stop looking at me!"
The embarrassment bloomed further when she heard even Morpheus manage a soft chuckle at her panic.
Maeve shared the amusement, rolling her eyes at how her sister tried to sink into the shadows. "Well, now that all is said and done, could I get a lift out of here?"
"Thank you for your help, Maeve," Morpheus interjected with a genuine smile and nod of respect to the Fallen Angel. "What you did I may never fully understand, but you have my respect and admiration. I'll make sure no one above knows that you were her tonight."
Maeve nodded her thanks, an uncomfortable smile passing through her dark lips. "Thank you for welcoming me into your Kingdom. They may restrict me from most things in our universe, but I'm glad I got to see the Dreaming, even if it was just for a moment." A sigh passed through her and she turned to admire the beautiful landscape a final time. "I really wish he knew about this. He would've loved it."
The couple watched the Fallen Angel from behind her, the sister frowning in realisation of what Maeve referred to. She didn't know where the man she loved had ended up in the journey after life, she just hoped it was somewhere where he found eternal peace.
"For what it's worth, his dreams were always special, and almost always about you," Morpheus explained, remembering the man in vivid detail. It was something he'd never forget because of how confusing the whole situation was. An angel appearing in the mind of a human's dream was unheard of. "You clearly had an impact on him. Don't ever think it wasn't worth it."
Maeve smiled, the edges of the small gesture quivering as her eyes glistened with tears.
With that being said, Azrail opened a path through Oblivion, letting Maeve step through and return to the Hall of Justice once more. The Fallen Angel glanced back to her sister. "So, you coming over for weekly dinners or something?" she asked hopefully.
Azrail laughed. She didn't need a meal, but from the few days she spent along side Maeve, she learnt the human's food wasn't actually as putrid as she initially would. And Maeve looked so hopeful, that the Reaper couldn't find it in her to decline.
"Yeah," Azrail agreed. "I think that'll be good. Special."
"Good, I guess I will see you around. It's been nice Azrail, I truly did miss you." Maeve bid them farewell and goodluck with a short wave of the hand, not to mention a sharp and quietly threatening glare or Morpheus' direction before the opening sealed shut.
Azrail waved goodbye to her sister, a feeling that they'll see each other again very soon. She didn't feel that sense of guilt that stalked her when Maeve fell, instead hope was twisting it her dark heart and allowing a little bit of light to break through the gloom that clung to her back.
"It's nice that you can have that," Morpheus mentioned softly, standing beside Azrail and letting his fingers interlock with hers firmly now that the only company they shared was each other.
Azrail spared a glance at the Dream King. "What do you mean?"
"A relationship with your sister. I... I haven't been as lucky."
As he turned, Azrail followed, keeping their hands tight together as they began the short walk back to the palace. The Dreaming was blooming with both dreams and nightmares alike, regaining the unique light that made it so precious and special.
"The man with the golden eyes..." Azrail mentioned and she watched Morpheus tense at the mention of it. "What's with that? You seem uncomfortable with the statement. Do you know someone with golden eyes?"
The look of thought that crossed through Morpheus' expression was familiar. Azrail was beginning to find that Dream of the Endless was quickly becoming an open book to her, one that she could effortlessly read.
He pondered for a moment over Azrail's safety if he were to mention it. But there was nothing he could say that would put her up against something she couldn't handle.
"Desire... Desire has golden eyes unlike anything else in the universe," Morpheus declared and Azrail found herself suddenly very afraid of what followed. "I don't know what they're planning or why they take such pleasure in meddling with my ventures. But I will speak to them and I will make sure they know I won't tolerate it for any longer." He glanced at Azrail, his eyes twinkling with love as he watched the Reaper's dark leaps creep into a small and reassuring smile. One that did wonders for his uncertainty. "And that if they were to ever lay a hand on your or your sister, they will pay dearly."
Azrail truly wondered how in the world she ended up so lucky.