Blood & Carrots - Memoirs Ep. 04

"Sam! No! Gods... I-" I clenched my teeth and yowled out to the night sky, "No! You're mine damn it!" There was no hesitation, my course was already set. I tore my wrist open and drew a mouthful of my blood, shoving my bloody lips to his, forcing the blood down his throat, his eye shuddering a little as it widened, realizing what I was doing.

I repeated the action two more times, forcing three mouthfuls of my blood down his throat before I grabbed his color and jerked him to me. "Keep your eye fucking open! You're not fucking leaving me, you hear me?! I order you... as your Countess! Don't close your fucking eyes!" He clenched his teeth, his body trying to reject the damned blood since it was right on death's door but he weakly squeezed my own arm, giving me just the faintest of nods.

His heart suddenly spurred back into motion, giving a few heavy beats before it made one last shuddering throb and ceased completely. I just hugged him as tightly to me as I could, sobbing as I stroked my hand down the back of his head. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry for being selfish... I'm sorry for giving you no choice..." I whispered the words before pulling back to look upon him.

Samuel gave a pained yowl as his body quickly acclimated itself, large sharp canines growing as I watched the various scars start to heal over and even his blinded eye reform a new blood-red iris. He snarled like a wild animal at me, clenching his teeth as I gave him an apologetic frown and brought my fist down against his temple, knocking him from consciousness.

I couldn't take him to the family, I had to bring him to my circle to let him have his frenzy in one of the null-magic rooms. It'd be insane to let him frenzy with time dilation. Once I had him sorted, we were finally able to talk.

He stood before the mirror in the room, looking intently at himself through both eyes, no doubt trying to adjust to not only his enhanced vision but having it restored to both of them. All the scars and injuries had healed, but he still had just a whisper of gray in his brown-blonde hair, still looking like a rabbit in his late thirties.

"I'm going to miss all those cool scars on you." I purred playfully as I moved up behind him, giving him a sad smile in the mirror. His red eyes met mine as he offered me a grin, showing the sharp fangs.

"Yeah? Not interested in keeping me around now that they're all healed up, my Countess?" He turned to look me eye to eye. My own shifted to red as I clasped his hands in my own.

"Samuel... I'm sorry... I didn't know what yo-" He put his fingers to my lips and gave me another smile, shaking his head.

"Katrina... all I could think about was you and Alice at that moment... How little of my time I got with the two of you, but how happy I was to have had you in my life. This will take some adjusting of course, but... To know I get more time with you and her, it is worth the price."

I pushed my forehead to his own and smiled, a purr in my throat as we held one another. "Did you mean your words of love to me?"

"A man may speak folly upon death's door, my Countess, but... yes, I did mean them. I knew my time with the two of you would be short, so I loved hard and fast, I opened my heart to the two of you without hesitation. Yes, Katrina... I love you and Alice both, my newly extended time doesn't change that."

"Thank you, Sam... They are guarded words for me, but I must love you as well to have embraced you as I did. Of course, you already knew Alice loved you." I pushed my palm to his face, seeing his eyes had settled back to their brown color. "Love us then, and we shall love you, my Knight." I pushed my lips to his own as we drew into a deep kiss.

"Barely a month, eh? I suppose it was only a matter of time. You realize you'll still be expected to undergo the evaluation and maintain all our laws, yes Samuel?" I rested my hands on my knees as I looked upon him while he sat there, both Katrina and Alice leaning against him.

"Of course, my Empress. I will take upon any family responsibilities with the utmost diligence and though I am young amongst you all, know I will give my all in the name of our court," Samuel spoke the words respectfully as Alice just grinned and Katrina purred proudly.

"Finally, someone with some level of respect in this house." I huffed out in my haughty tone as my angel-fox pulled me close.

"Come now, Lorelai. Was it not you that said you preferred to dispense with formalities?" Ryder lazily ran his fingertips through my curls as I gave him a fussy look.

"Even so, I must still put on a show of dignity and grace for the new blood of our court." I put a hand to my chest dramatically as I spoke.

"I'm just glad we didn't lose you that day, my lovely bunny... I would have been devastated." Alice frowned as she hugged closer to Samuel.

Katrina hissed through her teeth as she also drew closer. "It was a fault of my own, I was too arrogant, too sure I'd be up for the task, I led us right in without thinking things out."

Samuel perked his ears at that. "Kat, that is hardly-"

"No, Samuel. She is right," I interrupted him as Katrina met my eyes and frowned. I lifted my chin and continued, "You are powerful, very powerful. I've felt it when we have sparred, Katrina. Were you not so entrenched in Blackpaw, I would offer you a position as a Marquess of your own house, but I digress..."

I sat up and rolled my neck before meeting her eyes. "You knew better. You treat every encounter with respect, doubly so when you have others under your command."

"Yes, my Lady." She sighed and frowned at me.

"Samuel." I turned my gaze back to the rabbit with a scowl. He swallowed hard and frowned as he looked upon me. "You could have used your powers to pull Katrina back through the gate, exiting the combat and having spent just a glimmer of energy, instead you chose to wade into combat. I expect you to think more clearly as a member of this family."

"Yes, my Empress. Forgive me..." He bowed his head.

"Come now, no need to ask forgiveness, you were not of this family at that time and you are yet young. I expect you to make mistakes, but I pray you learn from them as to not make more... final ones." I cleared my throat and sighed, "Well, enough of that, I apologize for scolding you both, but I felt it needed to be addressed, I only do so out of concern."

Alice squirmed and I gave her a fussy look, hoping she'd get the hint but she just blathered it out anyway, "Gods, Lorelai... you get me so fucking wet when you get like that. Hum... how about you, me, and Sam today?"

"W-What?!" Samuel yelped out, then grunted as Katrina hissed and jerked him over to her possessively, Alice giving a fussy pout as her pillow was pulled away.

"You drag one of your other boys into the bed with Lorelai, Sam is mine too and I'm not willing to share him, at least not over some casual thing!" She hissed the words in a surprisingly childish tone as Alice blinked at her a few times with a crooked grin.

"Katrina... my Countess..." Samuel whispered to her as the cat hissed out and clung to him.

"This is all very cute, but I'd not partake anyway, and need I remind you Alice, that none are to lay with new members during their evaluation periods? You and Katrina may be exempt since you were already his lovers to begin with, but that is it." I huffed out in a matter-of-fact tone, but then offered my rabbit a smile. "You may of course, join me in bed, but let Katrina and Samuel enjoy some privacy as well."

"As you wish, my love." Alice cooed happily as she snuggled back up to Samuel.

"Uh... am I invited, my ewe?" Ryder offered me a playful grin.

"Of course you are, my angel-fox, that was already assumed." I offered my angel a grin as I leaned into his chest.

You finally spoke out as Samuel blinked a few times and frowned. "Oh, actually... I can't use time dilation anymore. The short version is, that it was fueled was my life force. I theoretically could activate it in a limited capacity, but the drain upon my body would likely put me into torpor after just a few seconds."

The next question you asked made him pause and look down in thought. "Uh... no, I've not tried, I just assumed."

"Alice's power certainly brings unknown factors into play with all things, doesn't it?" Ryder called out while tilting his head.

"Time dilation is still a trained and learned skill, like any other magic. My fusterclucking shouldn't have any impact on that," Alice sighed out.

"Perhaps not, but your powers do influence so much of ones biology and energy, that there's no telling what that means for such a skill. It could be it will adapt to pool from another." I folded my arms as I mulled on it, then nodded to myself. "It is just as well. Samuel, I shall take you to the training facility later with Katrina and Alice. We will put a few things to the test while I am present. This way if you go wild for some reason, I can calm you down."

Samuel perked his ears and gave me a nod, but also looked worried. "Empress Lorelai, it is an honor to train with you, but also uh... I've heard the things you've done, so it's a little frightening as well."

I chuckled at that and leaned against Ryder anew. "You are a respectful thing, and you show wisdom to be fearful. Only a fool holds absolute bravado. For now, put your mind at ease, I am not so full upon myself to demand respect or ask you to put your life on the line, I simply wish to be present in the event your power did run amok for some reason."

"Thank you for being willing to help, Sam, my Lady," Katrina purred the words while clinging to her new rabbit.

"Of course, my sister. It is my duty to see to all the members of our court." I set her with a business-like look as I cleared my throat. "You two did well by the way. Felling so many of our enemies will surely send a message to the remaining members of the Shepherds."

"It is truly a sad thing. We always tried to educate the ones we captured, tried to set them on a better path." Samuel frowned as he put a hand to the rosary he still wore.

"Be that as it may. Like with the celestial I can brook their transgression and hostility for only so long. I have ordered the council at large to kill on sight if they should show themselves." I snarled with red eyes as I felt my anger rising.

Ryder followed up to my statement, "I will not try to talk my ewe down, but know that several knights have been tasked with finding the outliers and attempting to bring their pious ideals to more proactive directions. Lorelai is not outright slaughtering them, Samuel, simply ordering her- your family to defend themselves with deadly force."

Samuel snarled as his eyes shifted to red. "I once sympathized with their path, but no longer. We never once sought to kill them, only guide them to a better path, yet they struck down one of your own along with my own friend. So I'll show no hesitation in-"

"That's enough, Sam." Katrina gripped his arm as the rabbit looked down at her. She shook her head and sighed. "We both enacted gruesome retribution on them, I think you've tipped the scales enough to let that bitterness wane a little. Follow the Empress's orders, yes, but do so out of duty, not malice. Just because you are one of us doesn't mean you can't succumb to hatred just as easily as you did as a mundane."

You spoke out in agreement as I also nodded at your words. "Your sibling has the right of it, being also newly turned, they understand... We are still cut from mundane cloth and we are just as susceptible to the battery of emotions." I gave a frustrated sigh as I looked at the time. "We are getting long in words on this topic of politics and I do not join these talks for it, let us move on for now."

I'm not going to lie, I kick my tail writing these! A single episode can take me twelve to fifteen hours or longer to make after conception, writing, editing, and proofreading! If you enjoy this, support me, please? Vote, Fave, Comment, offer feedback, or anything else. Thank you, and as always, I'm nothing without your support!