This was it, the night of the Lunar Ball, his final hours of freedom. Angel held his necklace in his hand as he sat there on his bed. He slowly turned the wolf head ring to where the enraged wolf head was facing him. The ring was attached to a platinum chain that he always wore around his neck. This was all that he had left of his life as a human. He valued it for this necklace resembled the man he was before he met Blaire. Before misery set in, he never wanted to remove it from his neck. He wore it as a sign of hope that he would find a way to be free from Blaire. Tonight, he wouldn’t wear this necklace. It was better to embrace the cage around his heart than to hope for freedom.

“Angel,” He heard a knock on his door. This voice. It belongs to Selene. That’s a relief, he thought it would be Blaire coming to fetch him for the ball. “The ball is starting so-,” Angel opened the door adjusting his black tie. “Look at you, all dressed up,” She punched his shoulder. “That’s a nice tux,” He put his hands in the pockets of his black dress pants.

“I’m impressed with you as well,” Angel was shocked to see the powerful and strong Selene in a dress. He thought she hated dresses. “So is this a forced look for you or,” Selene laughed.

“It’s forced,” Selene answered. “I can’t stand dresses,” Still, Angel’s eyes traced the violet dress she had on. The dress was cut before reaching her knees. She had on violet high heels. “That bitch Blaire, did my hair for me.” She had her sunflower blonde hair pinned up with a floral hair pin. “I didn’t even want to do anything with my hair.” She complained. “See this,” She pointed at her light purple eyeshadow. “She put makeup on me, I only wear eyeliner, that’s it, this is too much.”

“Oh, come on, you look elegant.” Angel complemented. “Sure, it’s not your style but,” He shrugged. “I’m sure Ziek will like it.” Selene pulled him to the side. “What did I say?” She hit him roughly on the arm. “Hey, take it easy.” He rubbed his arm.

“You bastard,” Selene punched his arm again. “How the hell did you know I was going with Ziek to this stupid ball?” She asked in an annoyed tone. “Talk, how did you find out about us, if that bastard told you, I’m going to-,” He cut her words.

“He didn’t need to tell me,” Angel answered. “I’ve known Ziek for years, we’re like brothers. I can tell when he’s taking interest in a girl. I also know when he does take interest in a girl. He always gets her.” He pointed out. “The guy is a former Rockstar with a toned body and tattoos. What girl is going to say no to that?”

“Damn you got me,” Selene admitted. “He’s too hot, it’s almost unfair. Do me a favor,” She placed her hands on her hips. “Don’t tell my brother about this. I’m going to let Ziek talk to him about it.” She let out a sigh. “Ziek wants to handle it, I’ll let him handle it. Speaking of, I’d better go,” She pointed towards Ziek’s room. “I got to-,”

“I’ll go get Ziek for you,” Angel offered. “If you don’t mind that is. There’s just something I need to talk to him about before we leave.” He added. “It’s a brother thing,” Selene replied with a nod heading downstairs. “Ziek,” Angel knocked on his door. “Can I come in, we need to talk.” Ziek answered the door. “You’re kidding right?” Ziek laughed.

“Dude, that’s so not cool,” Ziek stepped back. “We’re wearing the exact same outfit to the ball. I mean, we’re like brothers so I guess it’s cool but,” He shrugged. “Did you really have to dress like me?” He removed his suit jacket. “It’s okay, I’ll change shirts.” Angel walked in and shut the door behind him. “So,” He untied his tie, leaving it on his dresser. “This ball, did you know that,” He unbuttoned his white dress shirt revealing his muscular frame. “Werewolves are going to be there. This is good for us,” He removed his shirt, throwing it on his bed.

“I know,” Angel rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m sorry about the-,” He pointed at his shirt then at Ziek’s. “I didn’t know that you were ugh,” Ziek laughed, opening his closet searching for a dress shirt. “Hey ugh, purple,” Angel pointed at the purple dress shirt. “You should wear the purple one.”

“Are you sure?” Ziek raised his brow. “I hate this one, my sister got it for me for Christmas last year.” He pulled it from the rack. “I love her but purple just isn’t me.” He held the shirt to his chest. “I don’t know man, I really hate it.”

“Trust me on this.” Angel shut Ziek’s closet door. “When have I ever steered you wrong?” He could tell Ziek was taking a minute to contemplate the question. “Just wear the shirt, man.” He shrugged and slipped it on. “You’ll be thanking me later.”

“I’m trusting you,” Ziek picked up his tie and began tying it. “I’ve got a lot riding on this date. Especially if I want to get a blowjob out of it and believe me I do.” He grabbed his suit jacket and put it on. “Anyway, like I was saying, the werewolves will be there. This is good for us.”

“I agree,” Angel leaned against Ziek’s dresser. “The fact, the Lunar Ball mixes both sides could work in our favor.” He crossed his arms. “If your sister is a werewolf. This will give us the opportunity to find her. It won’t be easy, since one the ball room will be packed and two, the fence dividing the two will be guarded by the two kings.”

This is going to require some thought. Angel could use his curses but Lord Alexander knows about them. If a vampire did get past his detection. He would automatically assume that Angel is behind it. He’s the only vampire with a skill set that can accomplish such a daring task with little to no effort. Even if he used his curses on someone else, Lord Alexander would still be able to figure out Angel’s behind it. Once discovered, he’d kill Angel on the spot.

“I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately,” Ziek let out a deep sigh. “What if my sister is a werewolf and our worst fears are true. Would it be right for us to let my sister know that we’re vampires? I think it would just make the situation worse.” He pointed out. “I’ve spent most of my life looking after my sister. If she were to find out that I’m a vampire. The pain of knowing that she’s expected to kill me on sight. I don’t think she could handle it.” He took a seat on his bed. “Hell, I can barely live with that being a possibility.” He shut his eyes. “You’re her best friend, you can’t tell me she’d be okay with killing you.”

“I haven’t really considered that,” Angel admitted. “I’ve been so focused on how happy I’d be to see her again. I had no idea that by asking for that chance. Could also mean causing her a great deal of pain. Regardless, there’s no way I can bring myself to hurt her. It’s better for her not to know.” He let out a defeated sigh. “So, that’s it then,” He put his hands in his pockets. “The search is over. It’s better to believe she’s human than it would be to consider the possibility of her being a werewolf.”

“It’s for the best,” Ziek agreed. “I don’t want to risk hurting her. Even though part of me would give anything to see my sister again. I didn’t tell you this before but,” He took a deep breath. “My sister and I. We had a fight. She was so angry at me, she said some pretty hurtful things to me. I’m not even sure why she said those things to me. Maybe I deserved it, who knows, I’m always messing things up. The only thing I thought I was good at was-,” He lowered his head. “Being her older brother. Somehow, I managed to fuck that up too.”

“I guess that’s one thing we have in common.” Angel sat next to Ziek. “We try our best to be the best big brother we can be. In the end, it doesn’t matter how hard we try, everything just has a way of blowing up in our face. It felt that way with my sister and it’s part of the reason. I can never forgive myself for what I did. But,” He placed his hand on Ziek’s shoulder. “I know your sister and she cares a lot about you. I think maybe that’s why she’s drawn to me. We’re alike in the sense that we both care deeply for our sisters and would do anything to protect them. She sees that, I know she does, she saw it in me. Have you ever considered that maybe it goes both ways?” He asked. “Maybe, she said those things to protect you.”

“I’m not sure, she was pretty upset.” Ziek rose to his feet. “I was hoping to get closure to apologize for whatever I did to make her so mad at me.” He chuckled. “I don’t know why this bothers me, I mean my other sister is always mad at me. I’m used to it but with Erika, it’s different she’s never been upset at me for anything. She’s gotten mad over small stuff here and there but nothing serious. This is the first time we’ve fought and it ended as badly as it did.” He let out a deep sigh. “So ugh,” He rubbed the back of his neck. “What happened to your sister?” Angel smirked.

“Nice try,” Angel heard a knock on Ziek’s door. “That must be Selene.” He guessed. Blaire must still be getting ready and he highly doubts that she’d come fetch him at this point. He opened the door so Ziek could get a full look at his date.

The second Ziek’s pale blue eyes got a glimpse of Selene wearing a purple dress. He shifted his gaze to Angel who smirked at him. His lips mimed the words: “You’re welcome.”. He walked downstairs leaving the two of them alone.

“Selene, look at you?” Ziek walked up to her. “You look amazing,” He ran his hands down her nice curves. This dress brought out her figure, he was having trouble taking his eyes off her. She was just that beautiful. “Who did your hair?” He smiled. “You’re just so,” He stepped away from her to take in her features. “Beautiful, it’s like looking at a totally different person.”

“Don’t get used to it,” Selene warned. “You know how I feel about dresses.” He went to kiss her. “Not so fast,” She placed her hand on his chest pushing him back slightly. “You’re not getting anymore of this.” She traced her figure. “Until you talk to Brandon.”

“Right,” Ziek half smiled. “I’ll go talk to him. But first,” He held his forearm out to her. “May I at least have the pleasure of escorting you downstairs?”

“Nice gesture,” Selene smirked. “I’m not made of glass Ziek, I think I can handle a few stairs.” She ran her fingers through her bangs, brushing them to the side. “If I were you I’d be more worried about what Brandon’s going to do when you tell him. You might be the one who needs rescuing,” He let out a deep sigh as Selene walked downstairs. He followed closely behind her.

“Yo, Ziek,” Brandon grabbed Ziek’s hand pulling him off the last step and in for a hug. Brandon was wearing a black suit jacket, green dress shirt and black tie. He wore black dress and black dress shoes. “Nice, tux bro, but ugh,” He brought his lips to Ziek’s ear. “You do realize your dress shirt is purple and Selene’s dress is purple right?” He whispered.

“Yeah, I just caught that.” Ziek faked a laugh.

“You should probably change shirts. People might think you guys are,” Brandon laughed. “Together, that’s crazy because Selene’s a bitch. I feel sorry for any guy who’s dumb enough to date her.”

“What was that?” Selene scolded.

“You heard me,” Brandon smiled. “Hurry Ziek go change, Lord Alexander and Blaire will be down any minute.” He encouraged him. Ziek began to rub the back of his neck. “What’s the matter Bro?”

“Look um, Brandon, I’m not going to change shirts.” Ziek put his hands in his pockets. “I was hoping we could talk behind the staircase for a moment.” He knew Brandon wasn’t going to like what he had to tell him. The chances of him receiving a bear hug from hell were very high and if this was going to ugly. He at least didn’t want there to be any spectators.

“Sure thing Bro,” Brandon followed Ziek behind the staircase. It was a very small hallway rarely used by anyone. Behind it was a room that held the dungeons. Guards would come by to swap shifts but other than that. It was private. “What did you want to talk to me about?” He put his hands in his pockets. “I bet you wanna spar after the ball, I figured because you don’t have a date. I don’t have a date. It makes sense. Bro,” He hitched a laugh. “I already told you I’m always down for a little sparring session. You don’t even gotta ask.”

“Yeah, I know, I appreciate that I do.” Ziek took a deep breath. “You were a huge help when it came to cleaning the rust off my fighting style. I’ll always be grateful for that but that’s not what I came to talk to you about.” He wasn’t really sure how to word it. He wanted to ease Brandon into it, help him understand. Maybe if he did that, he’d escape this conversion with minimal pain. “So um, I’m a guy right?”

“Obviously, I mean otherwise, I’d be really concerned. Cause I punched you in the dick one time by accident and I’m pretty sure you felt it. I mean, you got one Ziek, it’s there.” Brandon raised his brow. “You aren’t going to ask me to check and see if you shaved it correctly are you?” He asked. “Cause ugh Bro, it’s a matter of personal preference. I don’t need to check it. I’m sure it’s fine.” He went to leave.

“No, it’s not that,” Ziek grabbed Brandon’s arm, stopping him. “Just listen okay.” He took another deep breath to calm his nerves. “I’m a guy and Selene is-,” He paused, giving Brandon a chance to fill in the blanks.

“A bitch,” Brandon answered. “Yeah, I know, she’s my sister. Nobody knows that better than me, trust me.” He bit his lip. “You know, now that I think about it, Selene really hasn’t been doing her part in training you. I’ve never once seen you guys spar. I’m going to go talk with her about that. I got you bro,” He went to leave.

“No, this isn’t about training.” Ziek stopped Brandon once again. “You’re right. Selene and I, we haven’t been exactly training. We’ve been doing something else, something a bit more intimate.”

“Like what?” Brandon asked. “Hugging, cause there’s no you guys would-,” He stopped for a moment. “No, Bro, tell me that’s not where you’re going after our sparring sessions. Tell me you aren’t fucking my-,” He bit his lip. Ziek couldn’t respond. Brandon’s anger was starting to build, his hand tightening into a fist.

“Brandon, listen,” Ziek started backing away from him. “I wanted to tell you sooner but Selene told me to wait.” He held his hands up. “She said it was better for you not to know. I was already half naked and by that point I figured well-,” Brandon backed him up against the wall. The hallway was narrow and he had little room to back up. “Brandon, let’s talk about this okay.” He shut his eyes prepared for the brutal beatdown that was in store for him.

“How many times Ziek?” Brandon grabbed Ziek’s shirt and forced his back against the wall. He didn’t feel comfortable answering that question. Ziek knew if he answered that. Brandon would kill him. “I’m only going to ask this one more time,” He punched the wall next to Ziek’s head making a small crater. “How many times did you stick your dick inside my sister?” He struck the wall again making the crater grow in size. “Answer the question Ziek.” Brandon yelled. “Or, do I need to destroy that handsome face of yours? Cause I will wreck it.”

“Okay, Okay, I’ll answer,” Ziek held his hands out to calm Brandon down. “Just give me some space,” If Brandon was going to kill him. He at least wanted some room to dodge. Give him a fighting chance. Brandon took one tiny step back giving him very little room. “Seriously, I need more than that.”

“Nope this is all you get,” Brandon popped his knuckles. “Now answer the fucking question. Before I bulldoze your ass. I’ll ram you through every wall in this castle, tearing this castle apart. Lord Alexander is going to have to rebuild this bitch. Now, you better answer the question Ziek.” Ziek took a deep breath.

“Six,” Ziek answered. Brandon coughed and clenched his chest. “We’ve done it six times already,” He cringed. “Look, Brandon, I,” He held up a finger to stop him. Brandon was going to need a minute to adjust. “I know this is bad, but,”

“Six, you’ve done it six times,” Brandon yelled. “Where the hell do you guys find the stamina? After training you go and fuck her and you’ve done this six times. Do you not take breaks? Cause I mean yeah we’re vampires but still even we need breaks. Is my training a joke to you?” He took several deep breaths. “Six, six times.”

“Well ugh, I really enjoy it.” Ziek shrugged.

“Clearly, cause you did it six times.” Brandon balled his hands into fists. “Six times and not once did you think. Oh maybe I should tell Brandon about this, this is his sister. No instead you were like fuck Brandon, I’m going to do it anyway.” He gritted his teeth together. “I’m going to kill you.” He kept trying to punch Ziek but he kept dodging his fists. “You’re dead, You’re dead, You’re so dead. I’m going to break every bone in your body. Six times, you bastard, I’ll kill you.” Brandon charged at him with a shoulder tackle.

“Oh shit,” Ziek screamed. He dived out of the way. Brandon smashed through the wall breaking into the dungeon. “Now Brandon, I know you’re upset, but see, I really like Selene.” Brandon grabbed the broken door off the floor. “Brandon, put down the door. You’re not going to beat me up with a door.”

“Yes I am,” Brandon threw the door at Ziek. He punched it. The door broke into pieces and Brandon tried to ram him into the back of the stairs. Ziek grabbed Brandon’s shoulders trying to hold him still before he could slam him into the stairs. “I’m going to crush you,” He picked Ziek up, catching him in a hug.

“Brandon, no, let go,” Ziek kept trying to break free. Brandon squeezed tightly around Ziek’s back. “Ou,” Ziek yelled. “Brandon, you’re hurting me.”

“That’s the point.” Brandon gripped tighter. Ziek screamed louder. “You wanna fuck me, You wanna fuck me, No fuck me, fuck you.” Ziek kept trying to break out but he wouldn’t let go. His grip was so tight, it was unbreakable.

“Enough,” Selene hit Brandon in the back of the head with a piece of the door. “Put my boyfriend down right now.” She pointed at the ground. “Don’t make me whoop your ass. I’ll take these heels off and shove them straight up your ass. Now let him go.” She yelled. Brandon dropped him. Ziek crawled over to Selene taking shelter behind her. “What the hell is the matter with you, breaking the damn castle. We need this castle.”

“But Ziek,” Brandon argued.

“Yeah and he’s my boyfriend.” Selene countered. “It was my decision to start having sex with him to begin with. Are you saying, I need your permission to fuck Ziek? I’m not allowed to make that decision on my own.” She crossed her arms. “What he’s just supposed to say no, when he wants it just as bad as me.” She laughed. “What were you expecting, Brandon?” She ran her fingers through her hair. “Let me make this perfectly clear, I’m not Patience, I don’t need you to get all protective over me. I can handle myself.” She glared deep into Brandon’s eyes. “You are still the little brother, which means, I don’t need you telling me what I can and can not do. So either you walk away, or I whip your ass. What’s it going to be?” She crossed her arms. “I’m waiting,” Selene’s lips formed a cocky smirk.

“He’s my friend,” Brandon glared into Selene’s eyes. “As my friend, I think he should have at least checked with me first.” He argued. “But of course, You decided to stop him from doing the right thing and tell me first. You decided it was better to hide it from me because you couldn’t wait have my best friend fuck you. I bet that’s why you enjoyed it so much because it was just another way for you to hurt me.” He pointed at himself. “You’re the reason our family is so fucked up Selene, I don’t care what anyone here says. Patience died because of you.” In less than a second, Selene struck Brandon with a powerful backhand busting his lip.

“I didn’t kill her,” Selene argued. “A werewolf did.” She turned around and ran a finger across her eye. Brandon’s words, he went too far. Ziek walked up to her to embrace her but she pushed him away. “I don’t need rescuing, I can handle it.” She stormed off while Brandon was wiping blood from his lip.

“Here,” Ziek took a white cloth out of his pocket. “This’ll help,” He handed Brandon the cloth to hold to his lip. “Look Brandon,” He went to speak but Brandon handed him the cloth and cut him off.

“It’s okay Ziek, I’m not mad.” Brandon placed his hand on his shoulder. “I know you wanted to tell me about you and my sister. If you’d told me sooner, yeah, I’d still be pissed but I’d get over it because at least you were honest with me. It’s just-,” He sat down on the floor. “Selene told you to keep it from me. To be honest I’m more mad at her than you. You’re a cool dude. I can’t blame my sister for liking you.”

“I really like Selene,” Ziek confessed. “I don’t know if I’m ready to say that I love her yet. I’d like to get there, it’s just going to take time. With your blessing, I’d like to have that chance. So, what do you say, are we still bros?” He held his hand out.

“Bring it in, bro,” Brandon tried to hug him. Ziek stopped him. “”What? It’s just a hug.” He laughed.

“I’m still hurting from the last hug you gave me.” Ziek crossed his arms. “How about this?” He held his fist out. “Team Powerhouse,”

“Team Powerhouse,” Brandon punched his fist. “Take care of my sister, bro, she’s your problem now.”

“Yeah and,” Ziek let out a deep sigh. “She’s a handful.” He followed behind Brandon rejoining the rest of the team.

“Did you guys hear a wall break?” Fate questioned. He was wearing a solid blue dress shirt, black suit jacket, black tie, and black dress pants. “I could have sworn I heard a huge explosion go off from behind the stairs.”

“I am certain it’s just Brandon.” Scythe continued styling Fate’s hair. “You know how he is, he has to break something in the castle. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be Brandon.” Scythe was dressed in a black suit with a dark green dress shirt. His long black hair was dyed and now had jade streaks going through it. His right ear was pierced with a dragon earring. “Excuse me, while I go clean up Brandon’s mess.” He walked upstairs to get his sword.

“Wait, so, Brandon is allowed to break shit and nobody says anything.” Jayden raised his brow. He was dressed in a black suit with a grey dress shirt. He had on a black tie and black dress shoes. “I mean this our castle, somebody should do something about this. He’s breaking our home.” He added. “Angel, you’re commander, it’s your job to correct this.”

“I’ve tried, he just does it anyway so after a while I just said screw it let him break shit.” Angel explained. “Besides, it’s not like we can’t just fix it. Though, I’m starting to feel bad for Scythe because he’s the only one who can fix it. I’m not allowed to.”

“Yeah but, Scythe can't fix everything.” Fate asked. “He’s smart but he’s not equipped to handle Brandon’s urge to break things. Know what," He snapped his fingers. "We should sit down and talk to Brandon about this. Explain to him how hard this is for Scythe.”

“Tried it, he still does it.” Selene brushed her hair back. “I’m always getting on to him about it because it’s me who has to hear about it when he does it. Next time, he breaks something, I’m just going to break his fucking arm. He’s already pissed me off once today.”

“Already, wow, he’s on a roll.” Angel put his hands in his pockets.

“Hey guys, what’s everybody talking about?” Brandon’s eyes wandered the room. Scythe came downstairs holding a sword. Wait a sec, Angel recognized that marking on the sword. It was almost the exact same marking as one of his curses in one of his books. It’s the mark for restoration, it was useful only to weapons. Once used, the weapon would break and whatever was targeted would be restored. “What’s up, Scythe?” Scythe rolled his eyes and went behind the staircase. “What’s up with him?” Angel followed Scythe to see if his observation was correct. Scythe swung the sword, the wall was completely fixed and the blade broke in his hands.

“Once again another one of my precious swords are ruined by Brandon’s actions.” Scythe let out a sigh. “I lost so many good swords this way,” He swung a second sword. This restored the door, soon after the sword broke in his hands. “This one cost me two,”

“Interesting, so you can use curses too.” Angel noted. “Though only on weapons I assume.”

“I prefer to call it weapon enchantment but call it what you like.” Scythe explained. “It’s not hard to do, all my students can do it. Though, I’ve only taught them one that best benefits their unique skill set. So that way, each student is unique.” He smiled. “As cool as these enchantments are, they still pale in comparison to your gift Commander Angel. So, I wouldn’t worry.” He walked upstairs to dispose of the broken swords.

Angel rejoined the others who were all still waiting for Lord Alexander and Blaire at the main staircase. Scythe had now returned and was standing next to Fate. Blaire was taking quite a long time to get ready. Then again she is a princess so maybe it’s to be expected. This is a formal ball after all. Still, the team was getting restless. “Excuse me, while I go check on Blaire. Selene,” She nodded. “Watch the others, nobody leaves this area.”

“Got it,” Selene crossed her arms.

Angel started to head upstairs. “No, Angel, don’t go, it’s a trap.” Fate yelled. “Blaire’s an evil bitch who spawned directly from hell. If you go up there, she’ll send you straight to hell. I’m telling you man, she’s evil.” He shouted. “Come back down stairs while you still have a chance.” He grabbed Angel’s shoulder. “She’s not worth it, you’ll die man.”

“She’s my fiance, I have to go after her.”

“Oh yeah, I forgot.” Fate laughed. “You’re already in hell. Go forth my son, and claim your devil of a wife. Oh, and, if I haven’t said this already.” He placed his hand on his heart. “On behalf of everyone in this room, I thank you for your sacrifice.”

“Fate, enough,” Scythe interrupted.. “Blaire is your sibling student. Show her some respect.” Fate busted out laughing. “Fate, this isn’t a joke.”

“Oh yes it is,” Fate laughed harder. “You want me to respect her.” He hitched another laugh. “Wow, it’s like you don’t know me at all.” Fate walked up to Scythe. “Another thing, Blaire is not my sister. There’s no way in hell I’ll claim that bitch as my sister. It’s better to just send her ass back to hell where she belongs.”

“What was that Fate?” Blaire came downstairs. Her red hair was pinned up with a silver hairpin that was decorated with diamonds. She wore a blood red dress that was cut to reveal her right leg. Her nails and lips were painted red. She wore red lace heels that had diamonds sparkling on them. Angel took notice of a blood red heart shaped locket around her neck.

This locket, inside it was an old key. Angel knew of this because he remembered Blaire telling him that her father gave her this key just before the ball. She told him. She thought it was stupid of her father to entrust her with a key to a secret Library she’d never use. But her father insisted she keep it with her just in case.

“You heard that,” Fate smirked. “Good, I was hoping you would. Demon spawn.” He walked past Scythe getting face to face with Blaire.

“Better to be a demon spawn than a washed up version of master Scythe.” Blaire countered. “Still chasing him by the tail, feeding on his crumbs. You’re so pathetic.” Her lips formed a devious smirk. “Angel,” Blaire called out. “It’s come to my attention that you’ve yet to compliment me on my dress. I suggest you rectify that now before I have you killed.” She turned to face him. “Well, I’m waiting.”

“Right, where are my manners?” Angel cleared his throat. “You look great Blaire, it’s a nice dress.” He took her hand and she squeezed it tightly. “What, I complimented you, didn’t I?” He whispered.

“Yes but I had to ask you to,” Blaire spoke in a bothered tone. “I shouldn’t have to ask, you should do it because you’re my husband. It’s your job to notice when I dress up for you.” She laughed. “For you, that’s rich,” She laughed harder. “I couldn’t say that with a straight face even if I wanted to.”

“Right well,” Angel glanced over at her. “It makes no difference what you decide to wear, you’re still ugly on the inside. There’s no fixing that.” She crushed his hand, nearly breaking it. “Ou,” He slipped his hand free, gripping it. “That hurt.”

“Good,” Blaire smiled.

“Blaire, you look stunning.” Jayden walked up to her. “I mean look at this dress, it must have cost a fortune. This is like, the hottest I've ever seen you. You should dress like this more often.” He went to hug her, she punched him in the stomach.

“Don’t touch me,” Blaire glanced over at Angel. “You see Angel, that’s how you compliment a woman.” He rolled his eyes at her. Jayden fell over clenching his stomach. The diamond that cloaked Blaire’s fist disappeared. “My father should be here shortly.” Jayden was still lying on the ground screaming in pain.

“Blaire, be nice to your brother,” Scythe bent down, helping Jayden to his feet. “He’s your sibling student. You should respect him.” Blaire’s pale brown eyes glared deep into Scythe’s. The two of them exchange silent glares until Scythe let out a defeated sigh. “Fine, you nor Fate seem to understand. The lesson I’m trying to pass onto you.”

“Would you look at that, it’s like a bonding moment for us.” Blaire smiled at Fate. He flipped her off and turned his back to her. “Yeah, I don’t know what you’re trying to teach us but um, I don’t need your training anymore. I can take care of myself now. So thanks, but no thanks.” She turned her back to Scythe.

“Oh hell no,” Fate yelled. “Don’t turn your back on Scythe,” He walked up to her. “He’s the one who trained us. Our training isn’t over, until he says it’s over. Honestly it never is, there’s always something he can teach us. What so, you’re too good for Scythe now?” He laughed. “Whatever, this is exactly why if we fought, I’d whip your ass.”

“Oh really,” Blaire created a diamond sword in her hand. “You think you can beat me please, I trained with him first. That makes me better.”

“No, your dad didn’t have time to train you and asked Scythe to do it instead. I’d say he only trained you because your dad made him do it.” Fate crossed his arms. “The truth is, the only reason you get anything is because your daddy gets it for you.” He grinned. “There’s a word for that, it’s called spoiled. Face it, you’re nothing without your father. So put that sword away, I’d hate to make you look bad in front of everyone here.”

“We’ll see about that,” Blaire went to slash him. The sword stopped seconds before it could cut Fate. Scythe was prepared to stop it but Lord Alexander came down stairs wearing a black suit with a white dress shirt. He was using abilities to control Blaire’s diamond sword. She kept trying to fight him but he wouldn’t release control.

“Blaire, that’s enough.” Lord Alexander snapped his fingers. The sword broke her hands. “I will not have you fighting moments before the ball. Act like you have some sense.” He glared at Fate. “Stop antagonizing my daughter, she has a short fuse. You know this.” Fate let out a deep sigh.

“Yeah, I know, sorry my lord.” Fate lowered his head.

“Sorry about this my lord,” Scythe bowed to his feet. “My students still need to learn how to get along. They’ve yet to grasp the principle I’m trying to teach them. It may take some time for them to understand.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself Scythe,” Lord Alexander urged him to stand. “Some lessons do take time and it is clear that this lesson. Is not one that can be taught overnight.” He turned his attention to Blaire and Fate. “Rest assured, they’ll get it with you as their guide. I’m certain of it. However, I will not stand for anymore outbursts.”

“Yes my lord, I will try to be more patient with her.” Fate allowed. “Even if she is a-,” Lord Alexander glared at him. In seconds, He saw diamond chains emerge from the ground. “Nothing, forget I said anything.” He surrendered.

“Wise Decision,” Lord Alexander smirked. The chains disappeared. “Angel, Blaire, I’d like a word with you two.” Angel and Blaire walked up to him. “Blaire as you are aware there is a competition held at the Lunar Ball. Normally we’d use Scythe to contend as our champion. I was thinking about changing it up. Do either of you have any thoughts?”

“That depends,” Angel shrugged, “What kind of competition is it?”

“It’s more of a singing one for shits and giggles,” Blaire yawned. “Does it even matter at this point who we pick? We always win. That silly wolf pair and their laughable rap routine is hardly any competition.” She laughed. “At this point, they should just accept their failure and move on. Why not just give us the trophy. Save us the trouble.”

“A little friendly competition never hurt anyone Blaire.” Angel pointed out. “Besides, they might surprise us. Though, if it’s as bad as you say. I feel bad for them, they really need to invest in a new routine, Or, who knows they might have improved it.” To be honest, just hearing about it, he doesn’t see the routine being anything more than comedic. “Well if we’re talking about singing then I’d have to say Ziek.” He answered. “He used to be famous for it. He might even enjoy himself up there, it’s been awhile since he’s performed. He might be rusty but even so, if they go for that rap routine, he’s sure to win.”

“Really,” Blaire took a step back.“I never knew Ziek had that kind of skill,” Of course Blaire wouldn’t know. She never spends time with the team. Even though, technically, it’s her team. Angel just does all the work for her. It’s the main reason he gets upset at her when she tries to send the team on missions without telling him. “I’d like to see it, I agree with Angel, Ziek should serve as our champion.”

“Nice to see you two finally coming to an agreement on something.” Lord Alexander pointed out. “Perhaps there is hope for this marriage after all.” Not really, Angel still didn’t want to marry Blaire. He was just being forced to. Otherwise, it’d never happen.

“Ziek,” Lord Alexander called out. Ziek looked up. He appeared to be in the middle of a conversation with Brandon. “Please, step forward.” He nodded and stepped forward. “I would like you to serve as our champion for The Lunar Ball. You will compete in a singing competition against the wolves.”

“Cool, I’d love to compete.” Ziek smirked. “Though, ugh, I do have some questions. One, do I have to write my own material? I suck at writing lyrics and two. Are instruments allowed? If so, I’d like to get my guitar.”

“Scythe as our reigning champion. Please fill Ziek in on the details.” Lord Alexander requested. Scythe replied with a nod and stepped forward.

“Instruments are allowed and No, you can do a cover song. It’s recommended you do a unique song but not required.” Scythe informed him. “I wish you the best of luck, Ziek.” He smiled at him.

“I don’t need luck,” Ziek grinned. “I got skills. Besides,” He glanced over at Selene. “I already have a song in mind.” He smiled at her. Selene turned her head. He went upstairs to get his guitar. Once he returned, they left for the Lunar Ball.

While on the way to town where the Lunar Ball would be held. Angel watched as Ziek escorted Selene to the ball. The two of them were both laughing, enjoying themselves. Brandon was behind them teasing his sister about her new boyfriend. Scythe and Fate were falling behind the group. Both of them holding hands. Jayden was going on and on about how excited he was about going to his first Lunar Ball. So many of them were all going to enjoy this night. Angel wanted them to. He was happy for them. They deserved it.

After Angel gets married to Blaire. The momentary pause in the war would end. The fighting would start up again and this time, a winner would be decided. There was a chance that everyone on his team could die. These moments for some of them were the best they were going to have before the war. Most would be busy, training and preparing for one last clash with the Werewolves. For this reason it was important for them to enjoy these final moments.

However, in Angel’s case, his eyes lingered on his engagement ring. It was hard for him to find joy. As each second went by, his freedom was slipping away inch by inch. It felt like a cage was being built around his heart. Very soon, the cell door would be locked and his heart would be trapped inside forever. It’s strange, Angel thought he would be used to cages by now.