There was a wind blowing through the dark, abandoned garden. Wild vegetation had grown out of flower beds, taking a deathly grasp on the old, grey pavement. Roots were swirling around and under the flat stones, slowly squeezing them until they’d break into hopeless pieces winds would slowly grind to gravel.
The stone wall of the castle was basking in the pale moonlight. Gabriele stood next to a dark, cloudy pond, staring at the depressing looking waterlilies. There was far too little nutrients for them, and they were slowly but surely dying. Their green had already changed to that of the dark forest moss and flowers were drooping brown and slimy over the leaves.
A sound made Gabriele raise his face and look towards an old, creepy, leafless tree that was as grey as was the castle wall behind it. A creature was looking at him. A woman, sliding slowly to the moonlight, her pale, skeletal hand caressing the petrified bark.
”You have summoned me”, the woman spoke, and her voice sounded like it was echoing from another realm. Her long, pale blond hair was playing in the wind in such a graceful way Gabriele wasn’t sure if normal world physics had any effect on it.
”My lord.”
Gabriele reached a hand towards her and she responded to his voiceless question by slowly walking to him and taking his arm. He helped her over some slippery stones to the broken pavement and started walking down the path. She followed, silently, as she often did. Her silence was different from the silence of their servants. They were silent because they were afraid. Chasity Vorlon-Merrick was silent because she didn’t feel like his presence at the moment was worthy of her words.
Such cold, cruel grace.
The silence continued as they walked through the garden, under the shadows of the old trees, dry leaves running ahead of them and dancing in the breeze.
”Do you remember our first walk here?” Gabriele spoke eventually.
”Of course, my lord”, Chasity answered. ”Ten years ago.”
”Do you remember what you said to me?” Gabriele continued and smiled. ”What you requested from me?”
This time Gabriele was almost sure there was a hint, just a glimpse of amusement in Chasity’s monotone voice. ”I requested a black unicorn, my lord. As a token of your courage and devotion.”
Gabriele let out a reserved but genuine laughter. Chasity remained silent, looking at him behind her skeletal mask. There was no real reason for her to wear it, as they had never really even considered kissing. In a way she was so ethereal and cold Gabriele felt he didn’t really quite manage to reach her. She was like a statue made of ice. Beautiful, but you couldn’t hold her without freezing your fingers black.
”It was a request of a child”, Chasity spoke eventually. Gabriele bowed his head, smiling: ”It was a request of a queen. And, to your defence, you did give me quite a lot of time to grant you your wish.”
”I have thought about it, my lord”, Chasity said and took Gabriele’s arm again. They walked out of the garden to the eastern side of the castle. Moonlight painted everything blue here.
”I think I have managed to find out what my request for you will be.”
”Ah, well, we might have a problem in that case”, Gabriele said, stopping and bowing his head again. ”As I have already gotten you a gift as a token of my courage and gratitude.”
It made Gabriele’s stomach twist in a nice way to hear some emotion in Chasity’s voice. She almost sounded offended as she looked at him.
”You have?” she asked, even forgetting to ad ’my lord’ to the end until a moment later.
”Why, yes”, Gabriele answered, nodding over Chasity’s shoulder. ”Just like you wished, my lady. I have gotten you a black unicorn.”
Chasity’s golden eyes widened a little. Slowly she turned around, almost as if she was afraid, and a sharp breath escaped through her cold lips.
In the field of blue stood a ring of stones, and inside the ring of stones stood a creature as black as the night. It’s blazing red eyes burned like the flames of hell it was born in and it’s thick neck muscles shivered as it stared at them, breathing hot air through it’s widened nostrils. Feathered hooves buried deep in the ground as it kicked big hassocks through the air, clearly agitated and furious about the magical chains binding it to those cursed stones.
Gabriele kept looking at Chasity. She, on the other hand, had her eyes on the creature of darkness.
”Can we go closer?” she asked, and he could hear her voice shiver.
As they approached, the demon got more and more furious. It screeched through its teeth and the air was filled with the sharp stench of sulphur. With an ease it could have impaled them with it’s long, spiky horn. Gabriele reached a hand and stopped Chasity as she was about to enter the ring of stones.
”Magic keeps it in there”, Gabriele said. ”Entering the ring would break the spell. It would rip us in pieces.”
”It is magnificent”, Chasity sighed, and before Gabriele could do anything, she had reached her other, gloved hand inside the ring. He took a sharp breath, seeing the air flicker as the ancient magic vanished like sand in the wind. Suddenly, it stood there, unbounded, free. A demon from the deepest, darkest forest, staring at the two vampires before it.
They’d die.
The creature took a breath, and Gabriele’s grip on Chasity’s shoulder turned tighter. As he was about to pull her away, those long, skeletal fingernails of her glove touched the satin black muzzle of the creature.
Time stopped. The wind stopped. All was silent.
Slowly, carefully the pale lady of the night stroked the demon, and it stared at her and accepted it. Gabriele wasn’t sure if he was more impressed by that invisible control she had over the demon or by the sheer idiotic bravery the woman had shown by shoving her hand in front of a monster after he had just told her doing so would get them both killed in the most painful of ways.
The wind blew again, cold. It waved the platinum hair, again, and after a moment of catching his breath Gabriele reached a hand and stroked one strand of hair back behind the woman’s ear.
”Ten years ago you requested a black unicorn from me”, he said, his voice thick with both excitement and admiration. ”Do you accept your gift as a token of my courage and devotion?”
A shiver went down his spine as he heard the woman sigh.
”I do”, she replied with an exhausted voice. ”And as a reward, my lord, I shall also accept your proposal.”
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