▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟒

  -ˋˏ  𝘐𝘴𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘭  ˎˊ-

˚ 　 ✫ 　　　 ˚ . 　　　 ⋆

. · 　　 +

✧

╰┈˚ · ° .   ZYRAN WAS NERVOUS,  that much was clear from the way he kept my hand hostage in his. Radan, on the other hand, was angry.

The meeting with Isobel was set to happen at the Grill, but Elena was not going to be alone. She was my sister, I wasn't going to leave alone with a vampire ready to go on a killing spree. But most of all, I wasn't going to leave her alone in such a delicate moment like this one. She was going to meet her birth mother after all, the woman that gave her away. No, I couldn't leave her alone.

My mates, well, they weren't that happy about my decision, but they didn't object much about it— Radan had been the most vocal with his discord of the two.

The Púca had just parked his car outside the bar, but as I was about to open the door, he was quick to place the security lock on them, keeping me from exiting the vehicle.

"Raden-" I started.

"No."

"Open the car." I told him.

"No-"

"Oh my god." I groaned, "Just open the door."

"Just fucking listen Andromeda." He snapped his head towards me, glare fixed in his stunning double colored eyes pinning me in my place. The fact that he used my name and not princess or brat probably made me even more aware of the situation at hand. "Keep your reflexes ready. She might be a vampire, but she is young. Your reflexes are going to be better than hers. If something happens, let her think that you are a vampire, don't use your sparkles-"

"It's starlight." I mumbled, quite offended by the truth of my capabilities at that moment— he didn't need to put salt in the embarrassing wound. I rolled my eyes, crossing my arms on my chest. I didn't even refrain from huffing out loud either.

"Sure, princess." he replied with condescension.

At least he called me princess now.

"Make sure to keep the glamour on your wings on, alright." Zyran said, leaning forward from the back seat, his fingers playing with the ends of my hair. "We are going to be at a table nearby."

"Ready to drag you the fuck out of there." Added Radan with a nod to his own words.

"Okay." I inhaled a breath, "It's going to be fine."

Zyran grimaced, "Probably."

"Yeah, probably not."

"Yeah, that's more likely." I snorted in amusement. I couldn't see how this could go well either.

"Be careful, Darlin'." Zyran placed a sweet short kiss on my lips just before I could walk through the doors of the Mystic Grill.

Then it was Raden. He took my chin in his hand, our gaze locked with each other's,"At the first sign that she intends to lay her hands on you, I'm going to pull her heart out from her chest." He stepped back, his cocky smirk so infuriating that made me want to slap him and at the same time kiss him, was found again on his lips. "Go, the others are already inside."

───── ⋆˖⁺‧ ☽◯☾ ‧⁺˖⋆ ─────

╰┈˚ · ° . I found Elena already sitting at a table, anxiously looking around herself. She had a cup of coffee in her hands that she sporadically took a sip out of.

"Hey." I greeted my sister.

"Hey, I ordered you coffee." She offered me a nervous smile as I took the seat next to her, moving the beverage closer to me.

"Thank you." I cleared my throat, "So... how are you really doing?"

Elena opened and closed her mouth a couple of times before sighing, "Honestly, I don't know how to feel."

"I guess that's normal." Awkward silence stretched between us but it was clear that there was something else to say. Or more so, that she wanted to say, "Just ask."

"You have more than one mate? How does it even work? Can it even be possible?" Elena fired question after question, not even giving me the time to answer ie before adding another. "Shouldn't soulmates be rare and exclusive? Isn't that cheating?"

"Alright, alright. One question at a time." I honestly had no idea if she was generously curious, wanted to know more because it was me, or she was just straight judging.

Ignoring what I thought was happening, I decided to honestly answer all of them. "I do. I have more than one mate. Five, to be precise. Zyran and Raden are the only ones I met so far. Is possible and very common for the faefolk to have mate groups. It's not that rare for us and no, it's not cheating if I'm mated to them." I explained as concisely and clear as I could. It was part of me, and I wanted my sister to know this part of me too. Then I remember the question that I had to still answer, "How is it possible? What do you mean by that, like sentimental or for sex?"

Elena was caught by surprise by my words. She gasped, opening her eyes in disbelief.

I was sure that both my mates had heard my words when a snort came from the booth in the corner while they were waiting. Thad had been Zyran, I knew that. And when I glanced their way, both of them were smirking.

"What do you mean by for sex?" In a more than hushed tone Elena asked, I don't know if it was just mean, but I could swear that disappointment and disgust was building in her tone, "Tell me I understood wrong. You can't mean like–" She spluttered a few letters, not even finishing her sentence.

"Okay vanilla girl." I muttered under my breath, "Let's talk about something else because someone is getting a bit heated." I don't even turn in the direction of the man as I continue to speak, "Yes Zyran, I'm talking about you, reign your dragon in."

Everything happened so fast in the last few months and even if a few times we had gotten close to actually having sex, I always felt like I wasn't ready yet. But I had the feeling that Zyran's dragon wasn't very keen on that decision, not that the male ever voiced it.

Elena, after hearing my words, turned towards the table of the two faeries, cheeks painting red with her embarrassment. She quickly covered it up though, snapping her head away, and clearing her throat.

"Can you hear me?" She spoke, turning towards Stefan who was faking playing pool, "Thanks for coming. I'm nervous. But I'm happy that you're here. I love you."

In reply, the vampire mouthed back the words, smiling at my sister.

I had to admit, they were a cute couple, but many things were not exactly right in their relationship. But he made her happy.

"Hello, Elena."

Isobel Flemming had arrived.

The vampire held many physical similarities with my sister. From their shared brown hair, olive tone skin, some bone structure from the face. Elena definitely had her mother's beauty. But the way Isobel showed herself, the high confidence and portament, those were very different.

"You look just like her. It's eerie." The biological mother of my sister commented. She took the other empty seat next to Elena, and her eyes never shifted from her daughter.

"You've met Katherine?" Elena asked her.

"She found me after I turned. Genetic curiosity, I suppose. She would be fascinated by you." Isobel told her. For the first time she moved her gaze away from Elena, meeting my eyes, "You must be her sister, Andromeda."

"The one and only." I replied, a fake smile showing on my lips.

"I asked to meet Elena alone but... I'll let it slide. Since you are her sister." Isobel sighed, moving her hair behind her shoulders, offering me a smile that was as sincere as mine had been.

"Is that how you can walk in the day?" Elena asked, pointing at the necklace around the vampire's neck.

Isobel touched the jewelry, "Katherine helped me obtain it."

"Who's my father?"

"Not important." Isoble dismissed the question made from her daughter, "A teenage waste of space."

"A name would be nice."

"It would, wouldn't it?"

I scoffed at the woman's audacity, "She has the right to know who her birth father is." I told the woman who simply rolled her eyes.

Seeing that Isobel was not going to answer the question about her biological father, Elena asked something else, "Why did you compel that man to kill himself after he told me to stop looking for you?"

"Dramatic impact. Wish it would've been more effective."

"Human life means that little to you?"

"It means nothing to me." Replied the vampire, "It's just part of being what I am."

"No, it's not." Elena replied.

In my opinion they both were right. Vampires are predators and humans are their prey. But what she did, it wasn't because she was hunting for their blood. No, that was just for her sick amusement. I was of the conviction that you could be a vampire and not kill people as if it was just a game— feeding from them was another thing. That was for survival.

"I know other vampires. That's not true." Elena insisted.

Isobel was quick to reply, showing us her cards, "You mean your boyfriend over there by the pool table? Stefan Salvatore. Why Stefan? Why didn't you go for Damon? Or do you enjoy them both...like Katherine did?"

As of now, yeah, it was probably both. Elena had a pull on Damon, she knew that he liked her, and there had been cases when Elena used that to her advantage. I wasn't shaming— I honestly couldn't with having five mates– wanting more than one person wasn't a bad thing, but it was in the way that one does that. Other than the fact that she continued to deny her feelings, it was clear that Stefan wasn't on board with a harem relationship— not even Elena was.

Loving more than one person was not a bad thing.

"Why did you wanna meet her? It can't be to just catch up." I asked the vampire, saving Elena from the awkwardness that the previous words had caused her.

"Because I'm curious about you, Elena." She replied looking at his daughter, "But the real reason is, I want what your uncle wants. Johnathan Gilbert's invention."

And here is the truth.

"How do you know my uncle?"

"I used to spend a lot of time here when I was younger. John had a crush on me for years. He was the first one that told me about vampires." Isobel explained and a wild thought flashed through my mind.

It couldn't be, could it?

"So, what made you wanna be one?"

"It's a very long list of reasons, Elena... all of which I'm sure you've thought about." When my sister shook her head in disagreement, Isobel continued, "That was your first lie. It's inevitable. You're gonna get old, Stefan won't. Forever doesn't last very long when you're human."

Taking offense in her words, Elena started to get up, taking my hand to drag me with her. I shuddered at the contact, taking my hand back from her grip but still following her wanting to get up and leave. "I'm sorry, but I don't have what you're looking for."

But Isobel wasn't so easily convinced. The vampire moved quickly, intending to grab Elena only for me to react first, catching her wrist in my hand before letting it go before the nausea and the unpleasant feelings could arise.

"Don't touch her." I said through clenched teeth.

"Then sit down. And tell all your boyfriends to walk away." Isobel replied, hard eyes narrowed into slits.

From a few tables away, both Raden and Zyran had gotten up, just as Stefan had already started to walk towards us.

I motioned with my head to my mates to stay seated as Elena did the same with Stefan.

"I want the invention."

"We don't have it." I told her.

"I know that. But Damon does." Turning towards Elena she added, "And you're gonna get it for me."

"He's not gonna give it to me."

"Then the blood will be on your hands." Simply, emotionlessly, Isobel said. "It was nice meeting you, Elena." That was the last thing that Isobel Flemming said before walking away.

Tears started to gather in Elena's chocolate colored eyes. Meeting her biological mother had not gone as peaceful and heartwarming as I knew she had dreamed of since knowing that she had been adopted. Maybe it was the hope of having another mother figure in her life after losing our own, or maybe it was just because of the thought of knowing the person that brought her to life— but Isobel had been a delusion for the girl.

"I'm sorry." I whispered to my sister. Slowly, I took her hand in mine trying to console her. It was hard to do it when I couldn't hug her and I was already a few seconds away from yanking my hand aggressively away from her.

I wanted to comfort her, but I did not know how to. And as much as we loved each other, our bond wasn't comparable to the one that she shared with Bonnie.

It was only when she spotted the witch from afar that a small smile formed on her lip. She wanted her best friend.

Elena stood up looking at Bonnie, but the Bennet girl as soon as she spotted Stefan behind my sister, turned around and completely ignored her. The vampire engulfed her girlfriend in his arms letting the girl silently cry on him.

She didn't even notice when I stood up and walked away.

Oh, jealousy, such a bitter emotion...

Sometimes I still held hope for us two to build a better relationship between us, but I had to come to terms with the fact that we were too different from each other to have anything more than what we had.

───── ⋆˖⁺‧ ☽◯☾ ‧⁺˖⋆ ─────

╰┈˚ · ° .  The exchange went smoothly. As Elena had explained to me, the Jonathan Gilbert Device thanks to Bonnie had lost all the power making it safe to trade. Apart from the sadness and disappointment from being definitely not what my sister had expected from her mother, everything had resolved– at least, without any death— just a slight accident with Matt and a threat against Jeremy.

I had to admit that it had been a stressful day for everyone so when I finally got back home, I had only one thing that I really wanted to do. Sleep.

"Do you think that Bonnie really de-spelled the device?" I asked in a soft murmur to Zyran, who was silently— as tired as I was— relaxed next to me on the bed.

"The truth?" He started, a sigh leaving his lips, "No."

"I thought the same." The corner of my lips slightly turned upwards as I spoke the next sentence. "Raden too since he scoffed when Elena told us that." The Púca had driven both Zyran and I back to my home before leaving.

"Yeah, he did not believe for a single second that Bonnie actually did it." Zy chuckled lightly, the sound echoing in the otherwise silent room.

"What if it's a weapon not only against vampires but other supernatural creatures too?" I asked the question that had haunted my mind since discovering the use of said device.

"I guess we can only know if it'll ever be activated." The dragon shifter turned on his side— mirroring his position we could now easily look at each other. "We protect each other." he whispered. I knew that he was just talking about Raden, him and I. Only us three. It will always be us first. "I love you." He whispered, "I love you in every definition the word love could ever have."

And I could feel it vibrating though the bond— even almost touching it. His love traveling through the burning flame across a stream of stars of our mate bond.

"I love you." I whispered back, "And I'll never finish falling in love with you."

✎

˗ˏˋ 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞 ˊˎ˗

Hello everyone!!The L bomb guysss, I think it was time for them to say it, to be honest. For the last part of this chapter I wanted some time for Zy and Meda to pass together alone, that's why Raden wasn't there. I hope you guys appreciated it.

Meda's struggles with touch goes very deep, not only on skin level. How you read, even comforting her sister becomes hard.

Elena choosing Bonnie over Meda? Oh that shit hurts even for me to write. I would've cried tbh. Their relationship is frailing more and more even if our girl wants more she knows that Elena will always choose Bonnie over her.

One more chapter!

Thank you for reading this chapter, I'll see you on Saturday!

˚ · ° . 𝐔𝐩𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐞 . ° · ˚

𝐖𝐞𝐝𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲

𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲

𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞!

– 𝐋𝐨𝐥𝐚 ☾