120. Aurora

CHAPTER 120

Aurora

Close to my chest, I carry the sibling I never got to meet. My heart breaks thinking of all the what ifs that come along with this discovery. Why didn't she survive? Did someone try to kill us in utero? I'm plagued by these questions that keep circling in my head. I wander aimlessly through the castle, searching for a room with a suitable table to tend to my mom and sister.

My precious sister, poor defenseless, tiny little thing. She probably didn't even get the chance to take her first breath of air. It makes me wonder if she passed on, and that's what caused me to be born early. Several turns later, I find the great library with a large oak table sitting in the center. Perfect. Through the bond, I reach out to my children and my mates. I wish for everyone to witness the final rites. Father taught me, and now I will teach my children. Dimitri enters silently and gently places my mother's remains on the table.

Eventually, everyone gathers around the table. Luckily, my father had somehow managed to acquire suitable types of cloth to do the wrappings. Arnulf offers to assist me with the herbs and wrappings. "Please explain to the children why I am doing these steps, so I don't break my concentration." I raise my eyes to him, and his sadness mirrors my own. A slow, steady nod is given as he positions himself near our children.

Quickly, I shift my hands to my gauntlets, and I begin to cut the strips I need. Klaus and Dominik start using their claws to cut fabric for me. Slowly, I draw in a deep breath, trying to be strong through all of this. "Arnulf? Is there a way to reach my sister in the great beyond?"

I look from her remains up into his eyes. They shift to his eagles then back to normal. "I'm sorry, my love, the elders say no. She was far too young to make that kind of connection." He feels like he's failed me.

I set the cloth down that I was holding and move over to hug him tightly. "Thank you for asking." I kiss his lips gently before returning to my task at hand.

Almost an hour later, I've applied the herbs to the cloth and then wove them like they are supposed to be. Dimitri offers my mother to me, and I draw in a deep breath before accepting her. The silk falls away in slow motion and reveals her bones to me. It's a surreal moment for me. I collect skulls, and this is one I don't wish to keep. My father is telling stories of my mother in the background as I start arranging her bones.

This is much more difficult to do than when Andre died. A physical body has a defined shape. Bones move because nothing is holding them together anymore. Every time I think I have them arranged perfectly, one piece moves, and I have to start all over again.

Alaric must have noticed my frustration and raises an eyebrow at me. "May I help, my love?" he asks tentatively.

"Please, I can't get it right, and I'm running out of time." My gaze moves to the sky, noting the change in color as the sun starts to set.

"I've got you," Alaric says, then kisses my temple. He moves his hand over my arrangement and uses a thin sheet of ice to hold everything where I wanted it. Fuck me sideways, why didn't I think of that?

Alaric pulls me into his side for a moment and hugs me tightly. "We are all here for you, my love. Your burden is our burden. Your pain is our pain."

Alaric kisses my lips so tenderly then passes me off to Klaus. He holds me and nuzzles my cheek before kissing me. "Whatever you need, angel, tell me, and it's yours."

Klaus passes me to Jayce, and my omega gives me the best hug ever. He lightly kisses my throat. "I love you." His words alone make me start crying all over again, and I squeeze him tightly. "I love you too." I nuzzle his cheek then get passed to Dominik.

Dom just looks down at me and gives me that bad boy smirk of his. "Hey, don't you have something you need to be doing?" He rubs his chin, causing me to give him a quizzical look with a raise of a brow. "Like kissing me?" Dom can be an ass at times, but he's my ass. I bounce up and nip his lip, drawing blood.

"Maybe," I say before he passes me to Dimitri.

My teddy bear, my rock, and may as well say my foundation. He has saved me more times and in more ways than I can begin to count. I look up into his hazel eyes, then throw my head back, exposing my throat. My emotions are all over the place. I need to feel grounded, even just for a little while. The soft rubbing of his beard over my throat almost tickles; the silkiness of his lips makes me feel something other than pain. "Not like this, beautiful," he whispers next to my ear. His large hand cups the back of my head and forces me to stand up straight. Gently, he kisses my temple again before passing me off to Arnulf.

Arnulf accepts me with open arms and hugs me tightly against his lithe frame. I hear his bird making soothing noises under his breath. I can't help but smile at how far he has come. No longer does he shy away from me or act skittish. His hands lightly grip my face as he looks me in the eyes. "Forever, from this life to the next." His words grip my heart tightly like a hug. I can't help but hug him and kiss him passionately. In a single moment, Arnulf managed to set my heart and mind at ease. I break the kiss and look back at the table. "Let's finish this."

Arnulf and I work quickly side by side, finishing the wrappings on my mother and finally my twin. To think I had a twin really fucks with my head. It takes several minutes before I finally can mostly process what could have been. When both wrappings are complete, we receive word that the pyres are ready as well.

We make our way out into the courtyard, and numerous pyres line the courtyard. One dragon shifted per pyre, ready to ignite it. I take my mother's and sister's remains and climb to the top of the pyre. The moon is full above us, and the veil is at its thinnest tonight. I set my mom and sister upon the sanctified cloth and raise my hands to get everyone's attention.

"We gather tonight to lay to rest our loved ones according to the old ways." I look to the other pyres, then down to mine. "Through fire, rebirth is possible. We free the souls of the departed to someday rejoin us." I rest my hands upon the bundles. "Tonight, I release the soul of my mother, Anca, as well as my twin, Seraphina, who passed before birth." I feel my frost starting to ghost out over the pyre as my emotions start to get away from me. "I seek safe passage for all those who fought to free our ancestral home from the blight of the Strigoi." A crack of thunder is heard in the distance with no storm visible.

"Dragons! Light 'em up! Time to send our loved ones to the great beyond." My eyes shift to that of my beast's, and my dragonic eyes lock on my mate and nod to him to release his flames. Alaric's ignitor clicks, and his fire rains down upon me. I look to my father, and he releases his frost flames. Fire and ice hit the pyre at the same time. My father's flames are so cold that they burn. I watch my clothes burn from my body and then look to the bundles before me. Eventually, their spirits' wisps burst free from their earthly bonds, and two smoke Lycans rise to the heavens. I look to the other pyres and start seeing the souls leave their earthly bonds. Our work is done here.

I launch out of the blaze and land near where my mates are gathered. Dimitri takes off his T-shirt and slips it over my head, and smirks at me. "Show off." His large hand lands firmly on my ass. The crisp smack sound gets everyone's attention. All I can do is laugh at the big guy.

"Aurora?" Arnulf says softly. "You did good tonight. It's the first time I've seen the ritual performed by so many species at once." He smiles then approaches me to snuggle into my side.

I know the amount of apex predators has him on edge. "Thank you, sweet one," I say, then kiss his temple.

"Bedtime everyone, we have a lot to figure out come morning," I say loud enough for it to carry across the courtyard. I grab Arnulf's and Jayce's hands and start heading back into the castle.

After searching the west wing, we gather enough mattresses to make a bed for us all to sleep together. Like a little child, I run and jump into the middle, and my babies follow me, laughing hysterically. Ladon sleeps as his human but remains as his dragon during the day. He already appears to be at least three to four years older than his sister. I shake the thought from my head and pull both children to me. My mates surround us, keeping us in the middle for protection. Jayce and Dominik sleep as their wolves because of their heightened senses. Dimitri moves closest to where we are lying, and I use him as a pillow. Both my children use me as a pillow, so everyone is happy, I believe. My eyes follow Alaric around the room as he double checks everything.

Dimitri's fingers thread through my thick, white mane as his bear rumbles, trying to get me to relax. Klaus has pulled my legs over his as he leans back against Jayce. His nimble fingers massage my arches, washing away tension I didn't know I had. Silently I count my mates, and I keep coming up one short. I close my eyes and search for Arnulf through the bond. A soft smile plays across my lips when I feel his location. When I open my eyes and look up, his eagle is resting in the rafters looking over everyone and everything.

"Baby?" Dimitri says softly so as not to disturb my sleeping children.

"Hm?" I respond quietly as I lie back fully to be able to look him in the eyes.

"Andre used to do the same thing. He would stay in the highest point he could find to not miss a thing." Dimitri's eyes glow the gold of his bear as he looks up at Arnulf. "He worries about his place with us. That he's not strong enough to protect you or the children." Dimitri cups the back of my neck, massaging it gently.

"I'll make sure to speak with him in the morning. Thank you for your insight, D." I rub my face against his chest as I allow my eyes to close. I'm in the safest place on the planet. All of my mates are with me, and my children are safe. It just doesn't get any better than this. For the first time that I can remember, I have a dreamless sleep—no night terrors, no nightmares where I wake up ready to decimate anything.