Life

"Here." The elder Halpford said at last, brushing the left flap of his shirt aside. He took his child's hand and pressed it to the skin just above his hips.

The little boy's expression changed as he felt strange welts along his father's side. He took his hand back and moved a couple steps away.

Gadyel straightened and shrugged off his long sleeved shirt, allowing his boy to get a better look at the site he touched. His side, and most of his abdomen was riddled with strange symbols.

"What's that?!"

"It's a promise." Gadyel answered.

The boy raised an eyebrow as he waited for his father to continue.

"From the first day I met your mother," his voice was so soft and gentle. "I promised I would be by her side. I promised I would drop everything for her and come running."

Young James Halpford stared into his father's eyes as he continued to listen.

"Your mother made me a different person. I'm a better man because of her-because of you. I love your mother. I would never do anything to hurt her. I promise, as long as I am alive, I will never leave you or your mom."

"Then...what were you doing to her?"

Gadyel stooped low and hoisted his boy into his arms. "Boy, sometimes adults do really...strange things...when they're in love." He leaned his face in to kiss his son on the forehead. "Sometimes even gross." He smiled. "Maybe, when you're older, you'll understand."

James did his best to hug his father as he was carried back to his mother. "Dad?"

"Yes."

"What was that on you? Does it mean anything?"

Gadyel was unwilling to discuss his scars with such a young child. He did not want to relive the weeks of pain and illness that resulted from being tortured by his fellow crusaders. He frowned, trying to choose the lightest answer.

His son yawned and stretched his arms. It was at this moment his father held him tighter. "It's my name."

He rounded the corner of the house and saw his wife, still wearing her gown, sitting by the lake.

The sun was beginning to set. Soon the scavengers and other undesirables would be out.

The pair stopped beside Signoury. "He's still pretty worn out." Gadyel told his wife.

"I'm not-" it was a losing battle for the boy. After one long yawn, he rested his head against his father's.

"I'm going to get us something quick to eat before I set him down."

Signoury twisted her torso to look up at her husband and their son.

Gadyel shifted the the weight of the boy clinging to his side and extended a hand to his wife.

After accepting his aid in helping her to her feet, she wrapped her arms around her boys. "I'll be in soon to help you tuck him in."

Once she was alone the twenty six year old mother sat back down and stared out over the lake. Out of all the places they found, this house was her favorite.

The tiny one bedroom cabin itself was nothing to look at but provided her and her tiny family shelter from the elements. Gadyel had found a job as a farmhand working for a wealthy landowner.

The job, like the rundown structure, was not glamorous but it was better than nothing at all. Her husband's employer was sympathetic to their plight and provided them with a place to raise their child.

Signoury loved the view of the lake and the surrounding valleys. Whenever her boys were out on errands she would sit at the edge of the water and watch life go by.

Sighing, she reminded herself that even this home might be temporary. At least twice a year, they would have to pick up and move. Someone always found them.

When she first met the man who would later become her husband, she had been freshly exiled from her home city, Gilneas. She was cast out of the giant walled in city for practicing dark magic.

Her lover, if anyone ever wanted her honest perspective, was a soldier serving a murderous cult cloaked in secrecy.

If it were anyone else, she was convinced, he would have been lauded as a hero while she would have been burnt alive.

He and four of his comrades had just left a raid when the wheel of her cart fell off, dumping her most valuable possessions.

The heavily armored men, clad in blood spattered chain mail and long red cloaks, brought their mighty brown steeds to a stop less than forty feet from her.

The crests on their tabards alerted her to their identity.

"Go away! Go away!" She yelled. The then twenty one year old heard them talk amongst themselves in a foreign language. "Leave!" She demanded. "I've done nothing!"

It wasn't until one of them dismounted did she fear for her life. The intimidating figure shouted something to his companions and waved them away. Slowly, he turned and walked to her.

His face was completely hidden beneath an iron helm, a long shining sword hung at his hip.

"Leave me alone!"

"You don't know me and yet you hate me." The voice was youthful and calm.

She knew men like him were well known for killing magic practitioners they deemed "unholy."

Her body felt ice cold as he stood beside her. She watched as his hood covered helm tilted from side to side. He did not seem to be focused on her.

"Take what you want! Take it all!" She shouted and turned her head to look away.

The fearsome knight exhaled and dropped to one knee, his gloved hand poked at the splintered axle of her cart.

His attention was not on her. Now was her chance. Signoury whispered a quiet chant and slowly raised her right index finger. She knew a quick fire spell that would burn him from the inside out without igniting her belongings.

"You really do hate me." There was a hint of irritation in his tone.

"Huh?" Signoury was knocked off guard. The face of the iron helm was on her. From his position on the ground, he raised his right arm. Lazily he flicked his wrist in her direction before going back to tinker with the cart.

Something struck her. Whatever it was felt like a piece of wood smashing into her chest. An invisible force crashed into her laying her flat on her back.

Hearing her cough and wheeze, the man got to his feet and stood over her. "Your trolly is in pretty rough shape. I modified it a little bit. We'll use my mount to tow you home."

Signoury sputtered as she tried to speak. "They'll kill me!"

"Hmm? Who?" The stranger bent down to take her hand and pull her up. He seemed to be distracted by something.

Grudgingly, she accepted his aid. "You will. They will. Your friends will."

"Who? Why?"

"You know damn well who and why!" She placed a hand to her throat. It felt like her insides were set on fire while she tried to breathe normally. "You know what I am! I use magic!" She screamed out loud.

There was an uncomfortable pause as the emotionless helm glared at her. "Well," his shoulders shrugged, "I didn't until you tried to harm me." His tone had shifted. It was almost as if he found humor in the situation. "For as long as I serve the Light, it will guide and protect me."

The young woman brushed at her long black velvet dress and scowled.

Signoury stood in stunned silence as he set about pulling her broken wagon to his horse. He removed and rearranged certain items adorning the animal.

"I'm going to take you somewhere safe, since you don't want to go home." Before she could protest, he had her in his arms and then placed on the back of his horse.

Her head was suddenly filled with how quickly and effortlessly he had handled her.

In an instant he was seated behind her, reins in hand. "Don't worry." He dug his heels into the sides of the beast urging it onward. "I'm the only one Joachim likes to be a bastard to."

She smiled to herself, recalling everything he had done for her and asking nothing in return.

"That damn horse." Signoury whispered to herself tucking her knees to her chest.

The contents of the pouch was the reward for the raid he took part in. He gave her every cent of it, providing her with an apartment so she would not be forced to sell her belongings.

Never had she met anyone as selfless and kind.

He was rather handsome for a murderer, she thought to herself. His looks were still youthful, so many years later, despite being concealed by his new facial hair.

Gadyel had violated several rules established by the order he belonged to, just for providing for her at first.

The punishments got more severe the each time he attempted to sneak out and see her. She remembered the day he renounced the brotherhood. She was two days away from giving birth to their son.

Many months had passed from their first time being intimate with each other. She thought back to her fears-what if he had forgotten about her and moved on with his life? She was pregnant what would she tell their child?

The smell of smoke wafted through the air. How much time had she spent thinking about the past?

Off in the distance she could hear the cackling of the local monsters. Night was falling.

She slipped off her gown and entered the lake for a rinse off. Diving beneath the surface she rolled around the water feeling it swish around her naked body. It was a shame, to her, she was born human. Outside of her son and husband, water was her closest companion.

When she felt she was clean enough she dressed herself and went about setting up wards around the house.

Signoury placed a knee to the ground and whispered chants. Her husband was not fond of her abilities and they had brought her problems many times over but they also offered protection to herself as well as her family.

Her brown eyes glowed red as she ran her fingers through the grass and dirt. If any creatures attempted to cross, she and her husband would know. An evil smirk crossed her beautiful face. She liked to add elements of pain to these wards.

Signoury weaved her spells not just as an alarm system during the night, any fool could do that. She did it to dissolve trespassers into a smoldering pool of rot.

So many heated arguments took place between Signoury and her husband, concerning her unholy powers. Even to this day, she felt she could not be honest with him at what she truly was. He identified her as a warlock so she left it at that.

Gadyel wanted for her to not use her spells at all, citing them as a negative influence on their son. His wife refused to give in. She pointed out that, if something were to happen to him, it would just be her and their child. She would not allow her family to become victims.

Signoury reminded Gadyel of his own abilities as well as his past as a Crusader. As much as he hated to look back on those days, he conceded. There was one major stipulation, however. No magical abilities, his included, would be used in front of their son unless for protection. Only at night could magic be used for anything else.

"Whew!" thirty spells later, Signoury completed her task. She cracked her knuckles and licked her lips, hungering for the tortured screams of her enemies. "Maybe, tonight." She chuckled, putting a finger to her lips.

For fun, Signoury twirled in the darkness. Casting spells made her feel like a little girl being presented with her first doll. She raised her arms to the night sky as she spun and pretended the stars were flowing between her open fingers.

A strange laugh came from somewhere close to the house, interrupting her reverie. With a disappointed sigh, she stopped and looked around. Snapping her fingers she coaxed her wards to light with a fluorescent green glow and let them fade on their own.

"Take care of those gnolls." She whispered and entered the house.

Father and son were not in sight but the bedroom door was closed. A candle was lit beside a plate of leftover meat and bread for her.

Voices were coming from the other side of the tiny bedroom they gave to their son. Snagging a piece of the bread and popping it into her mouth, she entered the room and closed the door gently behind her.

Her husband was kneeling beside the boy's bedside. "-and the beautiful mage princess thought she could get the upper hand. She tried to set the amazingly handsome knight on fire!"

"Ah! Then what, dad?! Then what?!" The little one was so enthralled by the bedtime story his father was telling him.

"He called on the light to push her back a little-he was taken by her beauty and hoped she might like him...well that and he thought she would like him even more if he fixed her little trolley."

Signoury crossed the room and wrapped her arms around Gadyel's shoulders. "I know this story."

"But, dad-all he had to do was remove his helmet and show her his dashing good looks. She'd want to play games with him on his bed like the other princesses!"

"Gadyel!" His wife gasped and covered her mouth. "He wished!" She bleated out.

"Yikes!" The boy's father turned beet red in the face and stammered, "well he-well-"

"Why did she have to leave anyway, dad? She was a magical princess?" The boy sat up and folded his arms.

"Where she was from-they weren't all bad people." Gadyel began. "The beautiful princess had abilities her people didn't understand. Some of them were scared of her-they were so scared some of them wanted to hurt her. Others didn't want for her to be hurt so they told her to go away."

He reached up and placed a hand on his wife's elbow. "The knight wasn't worried about what others thought. He wanted to help her as soon as he saw her."

Signoury lowered her head and placed the side of her face against the small of her husband's back. The answer he gave was not unexpected. He told the story of how they first met many times. It was one of his favorite memories. He was always careful with portraying people.

The child yawned and struggled to keep his eyes open.

"I'm going to check on the fire." He said softly. He kissed his son on the forehead. "Light bless you, James."

His son did his best to hug him. "Light bless, dad!"

Signoury was up next. Gadyel left the room leaving her to kiss her son goodnight.

"Mom?"

"Yes, James?"

"Dad told you the story?" The little boy asked between yawns.

"He did."

"What happened to the knight and the princess? Did they stay together?"

Signoury reached in and ran her son's long black ponytail through her fingers. "They did." She whispered looking into his dark eyes.

"Where did they go?"

She kissed her child on the cheek and put a finger to his lips. "They loved each other so much, they moved to a giant kingdom and were wed."

"Really?"

She smiled at his enthusiasm and fought back a tear. "Yes! They even had a son together."

"No! Did they?! What was his name?"

"So many questions." She patted the top of his head and gently kissed his brow. "Light bless you, kiddo."

The boy was half asleep before she stood and made it to the door. She had just lifted the tiny candle from the old table by the door, when she heard his muffled voice.

"Mom? What was the boy's name?"

Signoury blew out the candle and opened the door. "They named him James. He was a brave, happy boy, that his parents loved very much." After pausing for any further questions, she backed out of the room and quietly closed the door.

Gadyel sat cross legged by the fire, holding his hands out feeling the heat on his palms.

Signoury exited their son's room and approached him. She watched as he looked up at her and smiled. "He's asleep." She whispered and sat down on his lap, facing him.

Her husband just nodded at her, gazing into her eyes, admiring the orange glow of the fire against her skin. "He's a growing boy. He needs his rest."

"What did you say to him, earlier? When he thought you were attacking me." She asked, running her fingers through his hair.

He continued to smile at her. "I am keeping my promise." He placed his hands on her hips and his head on her chest.

"Promise?" She let the word roll around before narrowing her eyes at him. "You showed him that mark?!"

Gadyel kissed between her breasts before pressing his lips to hers. "I did."

Signoury closed her eyes and rested her chin on his shoulder. "Those monsters almost destroyed you." She muttered. "Who heats up someone's shield and brands them like cattle with it?!"

His strong hands pulled her closer to his body. "They made my path clear. I escaped, rediscovered you, became your husband, and was just in time to welcome my son into the world."

His eyes were back on hers and she felt her cheeks warm, giving him a large grin.

"I love you." She whispered to him.

"I love you." He purred and kissed her harder, separating her lips with his tongue.

Slowly, he ran his hands up her sides, forcing the linen to gather underneath her arms. When the fabric could not travel further, it rolled down her shoulders and puddled over her forearms.

Her lover grinned at her bare chest and licked her right nipple.

Signoury moaned and put her hands behind his head, she pulled him in to suckle at her. She did her best to watch the door to their child's room.

Gadyel alternated between her breasts sometimes squeezing the one he was not tasting with a free hand.

"You know," his wife wrapped her legs around his waist and arched her back. She snaked an arm around and placed her hand inside the waistband of his pants.

"Hmm?" He stopped playing and admired the blemish free elegance of her throat and chin.

"The mage princess taught you everything you know about playing bedroom games."

"Ha." He scoffed and gently nibbled at her neck. "No she didn't."

"Oh?" She passed her thumb over his hardening member and lightly squeezed at its base.

"The warlock queen did." He exhaled and rolled his groin against her hand.

The room was getting warmer than he liked. He unfastened the buttons of his shirt and slid it off onto the floor.

Signoury removed her hand from the inside of his pants and traced the definition of his abdomen. His athletic physique always managed to make her salivate.

The palm of her right hand rested on the unnaturally white scar tissue of his brand. The first time she saw it was when he returned to her. It was a couple months old and brought him an intense amount of pain. He refused to let her touch him and could not even hold his own son for an extended amount of time.

She begged him to see a healer but he told her how far his order's reach went.

Gadyel slid his legs out from underneath his wife and stood in front of her. "I'm going to sneak a peek at the little man."

Signoury grinned when she noticed him work at the buttons of his pants and prepare for her. He was so smooth. She reached behind her and pulled at the hides they used for a bed. The floor was hardwood, better than dirt, but she had received splinters from the deteriorating panels before.

The elder Halpford cracked the door and listened for the soft breathing of his child. He let his head hang and smiled, reflecting on his experiences with fatherhood.

He did not know anything about his own parents, alive or dead, or if he had any siblings. The thought of his son growing up in an actual family filled Gadyel with hope.

The stalking and attacks on him, and his family, carried out by his former order was on the decline and he had a positive outlook on employment opportunities. He tilted his head and sighed.

There was one item that weighed on Gadyel. Life seemed perfect and, staring into the darkness, in the direction of his slumbering son, one idea had resurfaced. He tried, earlier in the day, to share his thoughts with his wife but was interrupted.

He rubbed a thumb against his chin and whispered. "Just give me a little more time, little man. You might have a surprise coming."

Signoury set to work flattening out the covers, making sure they would be far enough from the crackling fire. Glancing up, she saw her man coming back to her and positioned herself.

"He's still asleep." He told her, eyes still focused on the door.

"Is he?" Signoury's voice was low and sensual.