Chapter Text
Emilia stirs from her slumber, head still foggy and eyes refusing to open. She shifts around in search of her grumpy lover only to find the space behind her empty and cold. A disappointed grumble is all she can muster right now and moving was out of the question, so instead she turns to her mind. She tries to remember what happened last night after they went to bed but, for some reason, it’s a complete blank. She remembers kissing him passionately and then what... What happened? And why is she mostly naked?
The door behind her opens and quiet footsteps make their way towards her. She feels the dip in the bed as he sits down, and a hand gently caresses her face. Emilia only hums happily, snuggling even more into her pillow.
“No, my dear, not “mmm”. It’s time you finally got up.” his voice is low and hushed, lips leaving feathery kisses along her shoulder.
She only gives him another hum, a disapproving one this time.
“Honestly,” his lips move on from her shoulder towards her neck and the feeling makes her body tingle. “Whatever am I going to do with you?”
Emilia turns to lie on her back and exposes her neck more, silently urging him to continue. Emet-Selch only chuckles in response and resumes kissing her, this time with far more fervour, as he goes further up. He slowly trails along her jaw as his hand moves the sheets away and slides between her legs, gently teasing her through her smalls. Emilia shudders at the pleasure, heat pooling at her core, and the desire for more builds up. He keeps this pace for a while, never coming near her lips or pressing more with his fingers, making Emilia chase her pleasure instead. She tries to push herself into his fingers and catch his lips into a searing kiss, but he does not relent.
“Hadeeees,” she cries out. “Kiss me, touch me. More, please!”
“Aw, she even said ‘please’. And look how wet you already are.” he puts a chaste kiss on the side of her lips. “Like this, my dear?”
A sudden jolt of pleasure shoots through her entire body as his fingers press through her smalls just right. He sucks and licks the sensitive skin of her neck, all the while repeating the same motion between her legs until she is moaning and crying beneath him.
“Please!” she whimpers.
“Please what, love?”
“Touch me!”
“Hmm, I believe you’re going to need to be a bit more specific about that.” he rolls his fingers against her roughly which earns him another cry.
Emilia reaches out weakly in an attempt to grab his hand or move her smallclothes away. She doesn’t know anymore. All she knows is that this is not enough.
“Remove them... my smalls. Please, touch me properly!” her words end in a shout as he continues to tease her relentlessly.
She is so close. So damn close. If he would just...
“I think not.”
It ends as suddenly as it all began. Emet-Selch withdraws his hand and gets up from the bed, casually sauntering away towards the door.
“Consider this revenge, sweet hero.” he turns towards her, grinning. “Dropping like a sack of popotoes in my arms just as things were getting interesting.”
So that’s what happened last night. No wonder she doesn’t remember. No, wait...
“Anyway, there’s breakfast waiting for you in the kitchen and then we shall have our little talk. Do try not to tarry too long, yes? My patience is not endless.”
Emilia is left speechless, staring at his back as he disappears from her view.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
She quietly sneaks out of the bedroom wearing nothing but a large white shirt she had randomly found lying around. The Warrior of Light is absolutely determined to get what she wants and not even the Final Days will deter her from this goal. She may as well have cobwebs down there at this point.
Emilia peeks into the living room from the hallway and sees Emet-Selch casually lying on the sofa, seemingly asleep. She tiptoes around all obstacles until she’s looming over him and carefully pokes his face. He truly does appear to be asleep, and these robes are hardly a challenge to undo.
She carefully undoes his robe, opening it up to reveal the immaculate body underneath, only to be met with her new nemesis. The podea will simply be a new challenge for her mighty self to overcome.
“Easy does it now.” she whispers to herself.
With a few carefully calculated motions, Emilia manages to pull down his clothing just enough and reveal him to her hungry gaze. Her stomach flutters in anticipation as she very gently moves herself on top of him, mind too filled with need to acknowledge the embarrassing position she is in. She takes his already half-hard length in hand and gives it a few experimental strokes. Emet-Selch stirs in response but otherwise shows no signs of waking up. Satisfied with this reaction, Emilia bends over and drags her tongue across the sensitive skin, making him harder with each passing second.
“Who knew the vaunted hero of the Source would be this naughty!”
Emilia yelps in surprise as he grabs her by the thighs and pulls her back, closer to his face. Only now she realises just how bare and needy she is before his eyes.
“And what a view this is.”
He traces up her legs with his hands before gabbing a handful of her ample flesh, squeezing and spreading her apart.
“Y-You’re awake!” she stutters, stifling a half-broken moan.
“Bold of you to assume I was ever asleep, my dear.”
Her face flushes at the knowledge that he’s been awake the entire time, waiting to see what she would do next. Even when she thinks she has the upper hand, he is quick to prove her wrong.
“Now then, shall we continue?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Emilia snuggles up to his side and nuzzles her face in the crook of his neck, letting out a content sigh. She can hear the distant hum of that melody again. Once more, it is captivating and serene, pulling her into a calming embrace.
“That melody...”
Emet-Selch hums in response.
“It’s beautiful but so distant. What is it?” she peers at him.
“Hmm, it would seem you have much to remember still.” he relaxes his body under hers. “How about this?”
The melody grows closer now, much clearer and she cannot help but marvel at its perfection. Words cannot describe the tranquil tune surrounding her, encapsulating her entire being. She feels as though she belongs within these notes and they, in turn, belong to her. But, just like before, it does not last. Soon serenity fades away and a profound sadness fills her heart.
“Oh...” she whispers. “It’s gone.”
“So it is.”
Emet-Selch's voice is breathy and exhausted, and that prompts Emilia to properly look at him. His arm is draped over his now pale face with drops of sweat trickling down his skin.
“Hades? What’s wrong?” her voice is slightly frantic and very worried. She tries to move his hand away but to no avail.
“Give me a minute.”
That is all he says and Emilia listens. She gently strokes his cheek, hoping it does not annoy him and waits for his breathing to even out. A few minutes pass and he begins to look much better. That, however, does not alleviate the worry in her chest.
“Oh, do not look at me like that, my dear. I am quite alright now.” he smiles weakly.
“Are you sure? Why did that happen? What was that?”
Emet-Selch lets out a heavy sigh. For a person who likes receiving questions, he certainly does not enjoy answering most of them. Though he does find her panic for his wellbeing rather endearing.
“You said the melody was distant, so I wished to bring it closer to you. ‘Tis as simple as that.”
“There’s absolutely nothing simple about that.” Emilia frowns. “What is that melody? And why did it punch your lungs out?”
He chuckles and sighs again but this time much more light-hearted.
“I assume you already know what a soulbond is?”
She nods.
“When a true soulbond occurs it also creates a melody. A tune only the bonded can hear whensoever they wish.”
“A true soulbond?” she questions.
“Indeed.” he smiles. “When two souls are truly meant for each other and their love defies any explanation or reason. If they bond and intertwine, then they form a true soulbond. However, such a thing was so exceedingly rare even in our time that it was never properly studied. The melody was a myth and our people believed that the souls, overcome by overwhelming joy and love, would begin to sing.”
Emilia stares in bewilderment, tears forming around her eyes.
“Did you just...” she sniffles. “Did you just suggest that we...”
“Are made for each other?” Emet-Selch finishes her question as he sits up, wiping away her tears. “Yes, I believe I did. And it was no mere suggestion. You belong to me and I will have it no other way.”
Suddenly, Emilia is very aware of her situation. She should be worried. Something like that coming from someone like him should worry her. The man is capable of just about anything after all. Caging her somewhere “just to make sure” sounds like a pretty realistic thing for him to do at this point. And yet...
Why do I only feel adoration for him? Is that normal? , she thinks as she questions the very nature of her feelings.
Yes, it’s odd, isn’t it? All this love and trust. Borderline worship. No fears, no worries, no pain – only peace. Why should anything else matter? After all, almost everyone else abandoned you. He would never do that. You belong to each other.
[Snap out of it.]
Emilia hears fingers snapping before her face and blinks several times. Emet-Selch's hand is basically in her face, waving to get her attention.
“Back to reality?”
“What just happened?” she blinks a few more times, looking around confused.
“You tell me, hero. I am fairly certain I lost you there for a moment.” he sounds nonchalant but his expression says otherwise.
“I, uh...” she glances to the side and jumps in surprise, giving him a good startle as well. “HOLY CR- Ahem.”
There, behind the wall in the darkness of the corridor, she sees two glowing circles staring intently at her. The initial shock quickly wears off when she realises what those are and panic sets in instead.
“Bath! I liked that bathroom! I need a bath!” Emilia jumps from the couch and clears her throat again, realising how stupid she sounds. So why not make it even worse. “Apologies, good sir, but I believe I shall abandon you for a moment and relax in the gorgeous bath you so graciously gave me access to.”
Emet-Selch stares at her, blinking rapidly. He appears to do that a lot in her presence.
“Are you alri- No, you know what, I will not question it.” he sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. “We still need to talk, hero.”
“Yes, yes. And we will!” she replies frantically while haphazardly putting on the white shirt from before and walking to the hallway. “After my bath!”
The moment Emilia goes around the corner, now out of sight, she grabs Mae by the shoulders and starts pushing her towards the bathroom while mumbling unintelligible curses. She quickly pushes her friend in the room and slams the door behind them, locking it.
“What are you doing here?! How did you get in here?!” Emilia panics even more.
“Oh, so now you question that!” Mae pouts for a brief moment before going back to her kind smile. “Anyway, are you okay? You seemed pretty shaken up back there.”
Emilia slumps against the door with a heavy sigh as all the tension from her body melts away at the sight of Mae. She didn’t realise how on edge she was until now.
“I don’t know, Mae. I just don’t know.” she hugs her knees. “For a moment I was so sad and angry. I felt so lost. As if I wasn’t there at all, wasn’t myself but I also was. It was me but it wasn’t. And then this voice pulled me out. Does that make sense?”
“Well...” Mae sits down next to her and rests her head on Emilia’s shoulder. “Ordinarily, I would say no, that sounds pretty odd. But your situation is a pretty odd one, isn’t it? Maybe your mind and soul are just too overwhelmed by it all. It’ll get better.”
“And what if it doesn’t?” Emilia peeks at her friend. “What if it only gets worse? What if I keep zoning out, haunted by terrible thoughts, forever?”
Mae snuggles up to her more and lets out a reassuring purr.
“I won’t let that happen, Em.”
They remain like that for a while. Snuggled up to each other in silence with only Mae’s soft purrs filling the room. Emilia can’t count the number of times they have done this. Everyone sees in her a strong fighter, a pillar they can always rely on. And that is the way she presents herself – a shield and a sword, ever at the ready for those in need. But the reality is different. Deep down, she is weak and fragile. Whichever shard has Azem’s strength and will, Emilia is certain it is not within her. Still, for the sake of it all, she can never give up. No matter how many times she breaks.
“You mentioned a voice...” Mae breaks the silence.
Emilia hums. The voice hasn’t spoken to her much but even once was enough to creep her out.
“It’s an ancient’s voice. At first, I thought it may be Hythlodaeus but that didn’t add up. I’m not sure who is speaking to me, but they seem to be watching at all times.” she lets out a defeated sigh. “It doesn’t sound like any voice I’ve heard before nor is it present anywhere in the memory shard. Honestly, it creeps me out.”
“Is it malicious?”
“Definitely not!” Emilia is sure of this. “It’s helpful and... supportive? I just wish I knew what the deal with it is.”
“So, we can probably rule out random danger that will break our bones!” Mae hops back up on her feet looking triumphant. “I think we have enough of that already. Some of it is even waiting for you grumpily in the next room.”
Emilia snorts at that remark and gets up.
“Why do I get the feeling you’re not his biggest fan?” she chuckles.
Mae looks shocked for a moment then switches to a pondering stance. And then she simply stays like that, not giving Emilia an answer. At all.
“You are a menace."
She only receives a giggle and a stern reminder that she should probably return to Emet-Selch. While the man has eternal patience for almost everything, Emilia appears to not be one of those things.
“Wait...” Emilia pauses at the door and looks back. “How will you get out? And, seriously, how did you even get here?”
Mae giggles again.
“Oh, you!” she gives Emilia a slight nudge. “Go get your genocidal maniac, you can fix him! And if anything goes wrong just scream “sushi!” and I’ll come to your rescue!”
She pushes Emilia out and closes the door behind her. Content with not questioning this any further, she makes her way back to Emet-Selch and finds him calmly sitting by the window, staring out at the city. Even with his face not visible, his demeanour speaks volumes – tired and forlorn. Once again overcome by emotion, Emilia feels compelled to hold him tightly, and so she does. He doesn’t utter a single word nor makes any moves. Instead, his body relaxes in her embrace, and they remain like that in blissful silence. Perhaps, if she was unaware of the anguish that torments his heart, she would wish for this moment to last forever. Alas, their reality is not so kind.
“I hope I didn't make you wait too long.” her voice is soft as a whisper, afraid of disturbing this gentle moment too much.
“You did not. However...” Emet-Selch grabs her arm and spins her around, making her land right in his lap with a surprised yelp. “I am very curious as to what you did exactly. Bathing was certainly not it.”
She makes a shocked little “oh” sound and wonders how to answer that. Being the lie detector that he is, Emilia probably wouldn’t get away with it. And while lying to him is never something she wishes to do, avoiding Mae being in any sort of danger is far more important. She has to be quick about this.
“I had an odd moment earlier.” she begins, only she has no idea how to continue.
“Yes, I noticed. Though I believe “odd” is an understatement and “moment” should most certainly be plural. Not that this answers my query.”
“R-Right, well...” Emilia stutters and fidgets. “I just needed a few minutes to clear my mind. And I may have spent them talking to myself...”
He stares blankly at her for a few seconds before hiding his face in the crook of her neck, chuckling.
“It’s not funny!” she lightly smacks his shoulders. “A lot of people do that! Thinking aloud and all that!”
Still smiling, he mumbles a quiet “yes, yes” and places a feathery kiss on her neck. They’ve had several lovely moments like this, and she wonders what goes on in his head in these situations. One moment he is cold, cruel and detached, and the next he is loving and caring. Their relationship and entire dynamic don’t make sense to her. They are moving so quickly but at the same time not going anywhere.
“Now then.” he looks at her sternly.
Moment is over. Back to business.
“I believe it is high time we discussed some matters.”
Emilia’s expression drops and knots begin to form in her stomach. Once more she thinks on whether she made the right choice in telling him or not. Her future self has every right to be consumed by rage and hatred but is there truly no other way to prevent such a thing from happening? Is The Rejoining the only way? All these people...
You chose this path three times over. Now walk it.
“Eos?”
He calls her name to bring her focus back on him and the matter at hand.
No, that is not my name, she thinks. That is not who I am. Not anymore. But... but it also is. I am her and she is me. No, no, I am me and no one else. I am...
“Eos!” he calls for her once more.
"Yes!”
The reply comes automatically and she whips her head around to face him.
“My dear, what in the name of Star is happening with you?”
He worries for her, and in some weird, perhaps even twisted way, such a thing makes her happy. His warm hand traces her face and caresses her cheek, and she leans into his soothing touch.
“I’m sorry...” she mumbles. “I think it’s all just too overwhelming.”
Emet-Selch hums thoughtfully.
“How about this then.” he places a gentle kiss on the tip of her nose which earns him a smile from her. “You needn’t tell me anything. Simply give me the crystal and I shall see it all for myself.”
“Oh!” Emilia blinks at the revelation. “I hadn’t thought of that! But are you sure you’ll be alright, my love? There’s... a lot in there, and truth be told, I doubt you’ll be happy about any of it.”
His laugh is genuine, mixed with a large portion of sadness.
“I have not been happy about almost anything for the past twelve thousand years. While your concern warms my heart and is appreciated, I assure you this will not be a new experience for me.”
“Somehow, that doesn’t make it better nor is it reassuring.” she sighs. “But I trust you. Here, take it.”
Emilia takes out the crystal from her pocket and hands it over to him. Carrying it with her at all times has become such a habit that she doesn’t even remember putting it in there.
He closes his eyes and focuses on the memories stored within. To say she is feeling nervous would be an understatement. She spends the entire time staring at him, hardly ever blinking, as his brows furrow occasionally and his fist clenches around the crystal. She doesn’t remember it taking this long for her, but then again, it came to her like a crashing wave. Emet-Selch is most likely analysing everything he is seeing.
And then, she begins to feel it. The air around her grows heavy and she can feel the very aether crackling. She looks around in confusion, noticing a thick layer of darkness coating the floor, spreading and swallowing everything in its path. It is difficult to track it. The darkness seems slow but it is consuming everything with an alarming speed. A deep grumble brings her attention back to Emet-Selch and she is met with several sets of glowing eyes piercing right through her.
“Oh stars, this was a bad idea after all.” she grabs whatever clothing she can still find and shakes him. “Hades! Hades, please, you need to calm down! We have t-”
She has no time to finish that sentence as darkness viciously surrounds her, forcing her to shut her eyes and attempt to defend herself in vain. However, upon suddenly feeling a gentle breeze, she opens her eyes and finds herself floating above the phantom Amaurot, safely nestled in Emet-Selch's arms.
Did he completely lose to anger and transform?, she thinks.
But there is no more time for idle musings. Emilia needs to figure out how to stop him, but she can’t even move properly. He has her in a steel grip and wherever he is headed... nothing good awaits. So, she does the only thing she can think of on the spot.
“Sushi!” Emilia yells at the top of her lungs. Perhaps, at a later point in time, she will laugh at the fact that she screamed about raw fish in a seemingly urgent situation, but right now it seems like the best thing to do. “SUSHIII!”
In an instant, with no warning whatsoever, an array of stars explodes in front of Emet-Selch, stopping him in his tracks and blinding both of them. Unlike her, however, he recovers quickly and turns his attention to the culprit.
“Hold on!” Mae’s voice echoes below them. “Let her go, you monster!”
Emet-Selch moves with incredible speed, and in the blink of an eye, he is above Mae, striking where she is standing.
[After what I have just witnessed... those sickening memories... you dare call me a monster?! Insolent rat!]
He grips Emilia even tighter, making her scream in pain, and goes for another strike. Charged aether slashes at Mae again and again, not giving her time to do anything but dodge.
“I understand how you feel! I do! But...” Mae pants as she dodges another attack.
[What could you possibly understand about how I feel?]
“How could I not? Watching someone more precious to you than life itself suffer...” she tries to align a Rescue on Emilia but is interrupted by another one of his attacks, forcing her to jump out of the way. “...it makes us feel all kinds of nasty things! But it doesn’t mean we should give in!”
[They must pay. Every single one of them!]
“Emilia still loves all those people! You can’t punish them for something they haven’t technically done, and more importantly, you can’t do this to her!”
Emet-Selch hesitates for a moment, stopping his onslaught, and gives Mae an opening. If she attacks now, it can stagger him long enough for her to pry Emilia out of his grasp by any means necessary. Mae notices how Emilia’s struggles have become sluggish, and her breathing laboured. She cannot delay any longer.
[No... no! Their existence is meaningless in the face of creation, unnecessary obstacles! She does not need this burden. She will see, she will understand!]
They both attack each other at the same time, the unyielding light of the stars and the overbearing darkness collide in the middle, erupting and sending harmful waves of aether all around them. By reflex, Emet-Selch shields himself and, in doing so, tightens his hold on Emilia even more.
Emilia no longer knows what is happening around her. Breathing is difficult and she cannot muster the strength to free herself, if that is even possible. She can feel her consciousness slipping away, the effects of the final attack making it even harder to keep her eyes open. She tries to hold on, but it is no use. The last thing she hears is Mae’s distorted panicked voice.
“Emet-Selch, you’re killing her!”