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Chapter Forty-Two: Home Safe

Videl carries Angelique into the back room of a furniture warehouse fifty miles outside of Geneva. Angelique is conscious now, but in pain. Caomh's knife hadn't been poisoned or gone very deep, but it had stuck her in her side, and she grips her hip while gritting her teeth. There isn't a lot of blood, but the amount that flows continues to trickle down over her thighs and across hers and Videl's hands.

"Angelique," he groans, kneeling next to the upholstered couch he had laid her down upon. "I'm so sorry. This was my fault."

"Well..." she whispers, taking a deep breath. "I'm not...dead."

Night has fallen. Videl looks desperately at the wound, clenching his fists. "I...I don't know how to fix it!"

"It's okay," she mutters. "Just let it...be, my God."

Seeing Angelique in pain drives Videl into further despair. Over and over, he yells at himself that if he had done as she'd asked him, to get away from Caomh and keep his temper, then she probably wouldn't be bleeding and coughing back cries of pain.

Videl puts his hand to his head and runs his fingers through his curls. Then, he says firmly, "I'm taking you to Bruce. He'll be able to help you."

"No, that's back in America, that's too far for you to Jaunt," says Angelique, squeezing her eyes shut.

"I don't care," he retorts, "I'll Jaunt you to Asgard if I have to. I don't know how to take care of a stab wound properly, and if you think I'm just going to stand here and watch you bleed out, then you're absolutely out of your mind."

Angelique peers at him, then raises one eyebrow and says, gesturing to her hand, which is stained from her blood, "You could start with a light snack."

"Angelique!" Videl implores, "Why the hell would you say that? This is all my fault in the first place. I shouldn't have gone after Caomh, I should have listened to you, and now you're paying the price and making vampire jokes?!"

"But it's okay," she says faintly, reaching forward to put her non-bleeding hand on his arm. Her fingers are clammy. "That's why I love you. You're passionate and emotional. You wear your heart on your sleeve."

"I don't want to wear my heart on my sleeve," he says stubbornly. "I want to have Caomh's heart on a pike. And right now, we're going back to Minotaur, and don't try to argue with me about it."

"Why would I try to argue with you?" asks Angelique as he picks her up again. "Arguing with you is like arguing with a wall."

"You're not funny," he says, and before she can answer, the two of them are covered in black mist again, and the sights of the darkened warehouse vanish.

Then the blackness fades, Videl is standing inside the kitchen in Minotaur. There's hardly any light, and the pots and pans look like they've been unused for several days. Videl supposes that without Kyle, the culinary arts in Minotaur decrease sharply.

At Videl's fatigued shouts, Bruce appears from the bedroom hallway, a phone held to his ear. When he sees Videl and the limp Angelique, Bruce's eyes widen. He speaks quickly into the phone and, shoving it into his pocket, he says, "Let's get to the medical room, God, what happened?"

"We have the rondayven for Switzerland, but we ran into Caomh," says Videl bitterly as he strides alongside Bruce. "I was stupid and attacked him instead of listening to Angelique like a sane person and getting us out. Angelique tried to pull Caomh off me and got stabbed. I don't think it's too deep, but I thought you should look at it."

Bruce switches on the yellowish lights of the medical room, and Videl lies Angelique onto the table. Her fingers remain caught in his.

"I'll hold the rondayven here," says Bruce, inspecting the wound without touching it, "You can still go to your next location tomorrow, and so can Angelique if she's feeling reasonably all right." He walks towards a sink. "You're right, Videl. It doesn't look too deep. I can just stitch it up, and I think she'll be fine."

"Yes I will," says Angelique, "I can go wherever I have to tomorrow."

"Not if you're not perfectly all right," says Videl, leaning over Angelique like he's afraid she's going to break any second.

Angelique smiles up at him as Bruce finishes washing his hands and begins rummaging through the drawers of medical supplies. "Yes I will be."

"But–"

She reaches up and puts her hand around his mouth. "It's not that big of a deal. If I were Thea right now, you wouldn't be babying her. You'd probably be cursing at her that she was being stupid."

"I would not," says Videl hotly. "But because it was Thea, it probably would have been because she was being stupid. Because it was you, it was because you are innocent."

"You make me laugh," says Angelique, glancing at Bruce as he swaps the wound with antiseptic.

"Well someone has to," says Bruce. Before Videl can say anything in retort, he adds, "Videl, how about you go see Victoire while I'm sewing up Angelique? She's in her room. She hasn't been shutting up about you."

"I should stay with Angelique, considering I almost got her killed," says Videl. "Victoire can wait ten minutes."

"Just go," says Angelique with a flick of her wrist and a smile. "I'll be fine, you don't need to hover over me like I'm some dying damsel."

"No."

"Videl," say Bruce and Angelique at the same time.

"Well fine then," retorts Videl. He kisses Angelique on the cheek. "I see when my presence isn't wanted."

"Love you," says Angelique in a half-weak half-cheerful voice.

"Yeah, yeah," he says. Out of teasing spite, he doesn't almost doesn't reciprocate. Then, he remembers they're all playing a game against time.

So he turns back and says, "I love you too, angel."

*

"VEEL!"

Victoire's scream is so loud, Videl is fairly certain she just alerted half the street above them of the location of Minotaur. She runs and throws herself at him, wrapping her arms around his leg and speaking in a loose babble of squeals and laughter.

"Hi Victoire," says Videl, bending to pick her up. She seizes him around his neck and lies her head down in the nook of his neck and shoulder. He can feel her curls, so like his, tickling him.

"You back," she says gleefully.

"Yes, I'm back," he says, then hastily adds, "But I'm not staying long. Just enough for me to rest and for Angelique to...rest, and then we have to go back to Europe."

"Ur-up," she says.

"Europe."

"Ur-up."

He can't resist a smile. "We'll work on phonetics once I get back."

She leans back, and her red eyes widen. "When you come home?"
Videl sighs. "Soon. Hopefully very soon."

Victoire reaches up and puts her tiny fingers on the glittering ring around Videl's nose. She has always been fascinated by his piercings, and the ink sprawled over his finger. Videl had often been subject to derisiveness and condescension because of the way he decorates his body, which is a commonplace activity with his people. On Earth, away from Ardhigiza, he is viewed as someone "dirty" or "up to no good". But Victoire had always adored him, no matter times he had snapped at her. She loves him unconditionally, and loves everything about him. Sometimes, a child's innocence is a beacon of love more than the most passionate of lovers.

"Home safe," whispers Victoire.

Videl kisses her forehead, but dread is sinking into him. They're all scattered around the globe. Angelique could have died today. Max is dying in a room somewhere. Perhaps someone is dead, and he doesn't know it. Perhaps he'll die tomorrow, and will leave Victoire forever.

Once, Videl had considered being irritable and cruel to Victoire, not out of scorn or annoyance, but out of caring. He'd told himself that if she hated him or feared him, she wouldn't miss him as much when he's gone. But then, the more he'd thought about it, the more repulsive the idea had grown. What is the point of denying the parentless Victoire a little bit of love?

The irony will always be that this had been one of the reasons Loki had turned away from Thea when he first met her. Videl had chosen love over pain. Loki had chosen pain over love.

"I'll try," murmurs Videl, holding his niece close. "I'll try."

*

"Saissa," drawls Caomh, "Be a dear and wipe this blood from my skin, will you?"

Saissa swallows. She sits down next to the young witch on the red velvet couch in one of Fjodr's sitting rooms. The blinds are closed, so the only light comes from the flickering candles on the wood table.

She reaches forward and presses the cool cloth to Caomh's neck, where Videl's sharp fangs had brushed. Caomh doesn't wince, just watches Saissa with glittering silver eyes. She avoids his eyes, focusing on mopping away the blood.

"SAISSA!"

The wet cloth falls to the ground. Saissa whirls around. Neidra is standing at doorway of the room. A dagger is held at her side. Fjodr is right behind her, his hands behind his back looking as calm as if he has just walked into a garden party.

Saissa does not have time before a furious Neidra seizes her and shakes her. Saissa bites back a whimper.

"You let Thea escape in Ireland. Why is Thea not dead? Why?"

"I t-tried!" stammers Saissa, looking desperately to her father. Fjodr does not move. "I tried!"

Neidra snarls, and looks at her son. Saissa watches the sorceress's eyes trail to the blood on Caomh's neck, and on the fallen washcloth. "Caomh," says Neidra in a much different tone, still gripping Saissa. "What happened to you?"

"Videl happened," says Caomh airly, "But never fear. He got away, but at least I stuck Angelique."

"Videl got away from Caomh," says Saissa, breathless from fear. "Thea got away from me. Wh-what's the difference?"

"Thea is only slightly more important than the fanged prince," retorts Neidra. "And look at this now. My little lamb is hurt."

Saissa privately thinks that there is nothing further from a lamb than Caomh, but she's too petrified to say anything.

Neidra turns to Saissa. "You and Caomh will be together more often, as Fjodr and I will be together. Find Thea and murder her. If you find Loki, do the same."

Saissa can't keep back her squawk of terror. "I can't k-kill Loki!"

"I suggest you try," says Neidra.

"He'll kill me!"

"Then so be it."

Saissa looks to her father, but Fjodr has barely reacted.

"Additionally," says Neidra. "Caomh dictates whatever you do. You have no choice but to obey him, or be killed."

Caomh grins at her. Saissa swallows.

"However Caomh is injured, so you shall be too."

Saissa does not even get to speak before Neidra seizes her and pushes her neck back. When the blade sinks onto her skin, Saissa begins to scream. "PAPA! PAPA, HELP!"

But Fjodr does not move. Saissa sobs.

"PAPA!"

Saissa remembers the silver in Loki's eyes when he'd been under Neidra's control and shown cruelty to his daughter. As Neidra digs the dagger into her soft skin twice, as if her dagger was a sharpened fang, she desperately looks for the same pigment in Fjodr's eyes. Her shoulders fall, and she cries out again as she sees the normality of the brown color in her father's once-caring eyes.

"PAPA!" 

:( 

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