Chapter 12 ~ Christmas Bonus Part 1
Time passes in a blur. Soon, two weeks are over. In that time, Iris and Kanan have grown closer. They've even made their relationship official. Kanan asked her out on a trail ride with the horses one morning. Hannah was so excited when Iris told her.
Even though Kanan is now her boyfriend, Iris still can't seem to relax around him. She tries to avoid him and everyone else as much as possible. She doesn't know what's wrong with her, but she doesn't feel like herself.
As time passes and Christmas grows closer, it also gets colder outside. At one point, it even started snowing. Now, the day before Christmas, they were all stuck in the house together.
"Would you cut that out?!" Hannah snaps as Zander leans over her shoulder to check how the food's coming along for the seventh time this evening. He takes a few quick steps backwards as Hannah swings around and aims her wooden spoon at his head.
Iris laughs at her friends. She's become close with them, too. She quite enjoys staying in the house now. They all feel like her family, even though she's only known them for three weeks.
The house phone rings in the living room and Kanan jumps up from his place next to her on the kitchen counter.
"I'll get it," he announces as he walks out of the kitchen. There's a moment of silence in the kitchen as everyone resumes with their tasks. Noah scoots closer to Iris and leans into her.
"So, how's lover boy treating you?" He teases, a mischievous smile playing at his lips. Iris feels her cheeks burn and she swats his shoulder. He laughs at her reaction.
"Just fine, thank you," she grumbles, trying to cover her red cheeks with her curly brown hair. This only makes Noah laugh more.
"Fine, you say?" Zander joins in on the conversation, quirking an eyebrow as he sends her a suggestive smirk.
"Zander! Not like that! Gosh, you're terrible," her cheeks grow impossibly hotter as she now completely avoids meeting their gazes. Both of them bust out laughing again.
She doesn't understand why she's so shy. It's only about the topic of her and Kanan's relationship, though. It bothers her that they can make her blush so easily. She's never been the girly, touchy tipe.
Zander has it all wrong, anyway. Her and Kanan haven't even kissed. That's mostly her doing. She doesn't want to rush into anything. She still can't match Kanan's feelings for her, so until she can, she doesn't want them to get serious in the slightest.
Kanan comes back into the room just as Noah and Zander want to tease Iris some more. He shoots the two of them a threatening look and they instantly take a step away from Iris. She doesn't catch the exchange, instead focusing on Hannah and Daniel, who are having a cute moment by the sink, where Hannah was rinsing some vegetables a second ago.
Iris sighs. She wishes she could be that comfortable with Kanan. She doesn't want to act all lovey-dovey, though. That's disgusting. Please punch me if I ever act like that, she thinks to herself.
"Guys, it was Xa- I mean Mr Kingsley on the phone. He invited us all to go to Europe with him the day after Christmas. Apparently, he's heading over for business," Kanan says, grabbing everyone's attention. A look is passed between the lot of them and Iris furrows her eyebrows.
They did this often, acting like they knew something she didn't. She had asked about it the first few times, but when no one wanted to tell her anything, she eventually dropped it. Now, whenever they do it, she feels annoyed.
"What did you tell him?" Zander asks.
"I told him we'll meet him at the airport at ten," is Kanan's reply. Everyone nods, except Iris, and turn back to doing what they were busy with before. Kanan returns to his seat next to Iris.
For a few minutes, she says nothing, just staring absently at the tiled floor, letting her annoyance and frustration build. She absolutely hates it when people keeps things from her.
"What's wrong?" Kanan asks as he suddenly places his hand on Iris' shoulder. She flinches a little under his touch, but he doesn't seem to notice. She still feels the guilt when he touches her. She doesn't know what she's feeling guilty about, but she doesn't want to pay too much mind to it.
"Nothing. I'm heading off to bed. See you guys tomorrow," she quickly excuses herself. She feels sick all of a sudden and gets to her feet. Her friends all say their good nights and Kanan turns his attention away from her and towards Daniel.
She makes her way to her room. As she walks, she feels an odd sense of sadness wash over her. She's not sure why she's sad, but she suddenly wants to cry very badly.
As soon as her door closes, the tears start dripping down her face. She cries out in frustration as she plops down on her bed.
Iris, are you alright? Duarte's voice comes from inside her head. Iris is startled for a moment. She hasn't heard from the beast since the night outside the club exactly two weeks ago. She'd almost forgotten about him, to be honest.
No, she thinks. She doesn't mean for him to hear her, but he does, and suddenly her necklace glows a bright red. In an instant, Duarte is sitting on the bed next to her.
"What is wrong, Iris?" He asks, nudging her shoulder with his large nose. Iris lifts her head slightly to look at him.
She's surprised to see his unnaturally blue eyes filled with concern. He studies her face for a moment.
"Do you want to talk about it?" His voice sounds surprisingly human in that moment. Iris feels their odd bond when he touches her gently with his nose.
"Not really," she sighs, sitting up.
"Are you sure?" He asks. When seated, Duarte is a bit taller than her. Standing, though, she must be at least a foot taller than he is. She stares at his red, furry chest for a moment before breaking out in sobs all over again.
"No," she sobs. Her body moves without her consent and she flings her arms around the beast. He lowers his head to comfort her.
Duarte had never seen himself in this position, with a human girl clinging to him. He isn't one for emotions, but he's grown very fond of her. Her mind interests him and, since he has access to her thoughts, he's gotten to know her better than she has him.
He doesn't understand her emotions sometimes. She's very tough, aggressive and impulsive, that's probably why it upsets him quite a bit to see her like this. He feels his own anger flare at the thought of someone upsetting her.
"You know, Duarte, I don't know why I trust you. I mean, you're... you, I guess. I don't think I'm supposed to be fond of monsters," Iris seems to have completely forgotten her manners. She realises a little too late that what she said might offend the creature.
"It is the bond. We are connected. That's also why I am fond of you. We are like two halves of a whole being," he explains, his tone holding no sign of offence. Iris heaves a mental sigh of relief. The last thing she wants is for him to be upset with her.
She takes a moment to think about what he says. Finally, she says, "Like soulmates?"
"No," Duarte chuckles lightly, "We have different soulmates. We are more like siblings, to some extent. Twins, if you may."
"So, soulmates are real? Have you ever met yours?" Iris finds herself relaxing as the two of them talk. She likes Duarte's company, if she's being honest. She feels more comfortable around him than with most other people... well, beings, actually. Duarte was far from a person, but she prefers it that way.
"Yes. We lived together long ago. Do you remember me telling you about my female counterpart?" He says and she nods into his chest, "Yes, she is my soulmate."
"Will I ever get to meet her?" She asks quietly. Duarte is silent for a moment.
"Yes. She has found her human, also. We will meet them both eventually," he says finally. He sounds sad, like he misses her. Iris' heart goes out to him. He must miss her very much.
"Is her human my soulmate, then?" She asks curiously, pulling away from his chest. Duarte lowers himself onto her bed so he's lying down. She lies down next to him, looking into his bright blue eyes.
"No. You have a different soulmate," he tells her. She nods, closing her eyes. She's starting to feel tired.
"Do you know who it is, then?" Iris asks him before she lets out a yawn.
"Yes, but I cannot tell you. It could mess with the natural order of the future," he says. "You should sleep in any case. You look like you've had a long day."
"Do you mind staying out here? I don't want to be alone," her eyes flutter open as desperation grips her. She doesn't want him to go. He makes her feel better, like her problems and frustrations aren't real.
She looks out of the window and realises it's raining, not snowing anymore.
He smiles. "Of course, Iris. Sleep now. I will be here when you wake up."
***
Kanan, Hannah, Daniel, Zander and Noah all push open Iris' door as silently as possible the next morning. It's Christmas and they want to surprise her. But when the door creaks slightly and a big, furry red head with haunting, vivid blue eyes shoot up to greet them, they forget all about their plans.
Hannah lets out a shrill scream, startling Iris as she's brought out of her sleep. She's disoriented for a moment, blinking as she stares at the red fur in front of her.
She's forcefully yanked out of bed and trapped against a warm chest by a strong arm. She sees Duarte stand and growl at whoever is behind her.
She swings around to see her friends. Kanan has her in his embrace as he stares at the red beast in front of them in surprise.
"Kanan, let go of me," she feels annoyed that she'd been woken up so unnecessarily. Iris tries to wriggle herself out of his hold but it only tightens. Kanan pulls her behind his back.
"Stay back, Iris," he says, his voice coming out in a growl. Iris' eyes widen as she realises that her friends haven't met Duarte and think he's a threat to her.
"Duarte, get out of here. I'll handle this," she tells the still growling red monster as she tries her best to pass by Kanan.
He blocks her view of the wolf-beast, but it's already too late. Duarte disappears with a flash of light and Iris' necklace glows a bright red.
Startled, Kanan takes a quick step backwards and knocks Iris over. Luckily, Noah catches her before she falls. Kanan swings around to face her, bewilderment evident on his face.
"I'm so sorry! Are you alright?" He fusses when he realises he knocked her over. He pulls her to his chest and hugs her, planting a kiss on top of her head.
Instead of blushing at his public display of affection like she usually would, she feels herself get annoyed. She pulls away from him, muttering an "I'm fine," before dusting herself off.
"What the hell was that thing?!" Hannah shrieks. Iris turns to see her clutching onto Daniel. She looks scared as she looks around the room, as if expecting the monster to jump back out at any moment.
"Duarte," Iris answers simply. Hannah looks at her like she just grew an extra head.
"What?" She asks, clearly confused. Iris sighs.
"Let's go down to the kitchen and talk about it there," she says, brushing past them and heading down the hallway. They follow her as she makes her way downstairs.
She thinks about how she'd explain the situation to them as they walk. Would she sound crazy if she just says, "So, the wolf monster thing you saw? Yeah, he lives in my necklace and he's supposed to protect me. He's from Olympus, too. Yeah, we're friends."
She sounds insane, even to herself.
"Do you mind explaining what that was and how you know it?" Kanan asks when they're sat down in the living room.
Tell them my name. My real name. They'll understand then, Duarte's voice resonates through her mind. For some reason, he sounds calm, despite the situation.
"His name is ÎαÏÎ¹Î»Î¹Î¬Ï ÏÏν ÎαÏÏν," the name slips from her mouth almost automatically, surprising even herself. Her eyes widen, along with everyone else's.
"The King," Kanan murmurs under his breath but Iris hears him. Her eyebrows furrow as she gives him a confused look. He just stares at her nacklace, like he's in some sort of trance.
"What?" She asks finally. Her voice seems to snap Kanan out of his trance. He looks dazed, but quickly recovers, plastering a smile on his face.
"Merry Christmas!" He cheers. Hannah immediately joins in. Zander and Noah laugh off the situation and start bantering over something. It's suddenly as if everyone just forgot about what happened earlier.
"What?" She asks again. No one seems to hear her, though.
Leave the situation be. They'll tell you eventually. For now, enjoy Christmas, Duarte tells her. She sighs heavily, feeling her mood sink to the level it was the day before. They were hiding something from her. It had just been confirmed.
"Come on, Iris, let's go make some food. I'm starving," Hannah says, standing up. Iris follows her wordlessly. They walk into the kitchen together. "So, what should we eat?"
"I don't really mind," Iris shrugs as she comes to a halt in the archway that seperates the kitchen from the living room. She leans against the pillar and watches her friend rummage through the fridge.
"Oh, I know!" She suddenly turns to Iris, excitement on her face. "Let's make cookies!"
"For breakfast?" Iris asks despite the smile that tugs at her lips.
"Why not?" Hannah shrugs, opening a cabinet to take out the flour. Iris chuckles. Hannah turns to her, grinning widely, "There's no time where eating cookies as a meal is wrong."
"Your logic is amazing," Iris laughs and her friend joins in. An arm snakes around her waist and she looks up to see Kanan smiling down at her.
"You're under the mistletoe!" Noah shouts excitedly from his seat on one of the couches. The both of them look up at the same time just to see that there is, in fact, mistletoe hanging above them.
"Kiss!" Zander cheers. Iris shoots him a glare but he continues his chanting. She turns back to Kanan, planning to laugh it off and get out of the situation. She doesn't exactly want to kiss him.
Taking her completely by surprise, Kanan places his lips on hers and she feels her whole body stiffen as the guilt seeps back into her chest, tightening around her heart.
*ð*