Faustus's Extraordinary New Student, chapter 7

The third night of Lupercalia was, by far, the most fun for Freya. She now understood why people got all excited about this festival in the first place, as it was a very stimulating event. Filled with much passion as instinctual base desires. She couldn't wait for next year!

The night passed in sensual, sweet debauchery, and Freya enjoyed every moment of it. She especially liked it when Faustus allowed her to be the semi-dominate one for the night as she pulled sounds from his lips she had never heard before as they writhed together in carnal bliss.

When the night waned and they were able to pull themselves away from each other in order to make it back to the Academy, Freya felt both lightheaded and exhilarated. Though, as she went to bathe, she felt that strange tremor race up her spine again. The one, she had taken for anger earlier in the day, which made it hard to breathe, and to focus as the world swam a bit before her eyes. She wasn't angry now. What was happening? She only had a second, to realize something was wrong and shout Faustus's name, before the entire world around her, went black!

Hearing his name, Faustus bolted to her side in a second! He caught her just before she hit the ground.

"Freya? Freya, my love? Can you hear me? Please," he said frantically. When she didn't respond, he bellowed, "I NEED A SATAN-BLESSED MEDIC, NOW!"

xoxo

For two straight days, Freya lingered on the border between life and death, for reasons unknown. No one, not even the strongest of the Medi-witches could find anything wrong with her. Outwardly, she was fit as a fiddle, her pulse was good, her body healthy…and yet, she had a fever that drove her to delirium, she cried out as if she was in terrible pain constantly, and slept fitfully when she did manage to sleep, muttering and calling for Faustus in a soft tired voice over and over again. Not realizing that he had never left her side since this whole thing started.

Faustus, of course, was beside himself with worry and grief. Every time Freya screamed, he held her hand and talked to her. Trying to bring her back to him. Every time she called his name, he assured her that he was right there with her; and it broke him to see that she didn't seem to hear him. The High Priest was slowly coming apart as he watched his Beloved one fade slowly before his eyes and there was nothing he could do for her. Only when he was alone, with her, did he beg her not to leave him. To return to him. For two days, he sat beside her and held her hand, nursing her himself and prayed to the Dark Lord to save her.

The dawning of the second day, saw Freya in such a condition that Faustus really did panic! Calling for the head Medi-witch, he stood back as the woman looked Freya over and then slowly shook her head. "She is fading, High Priest. I am sorry. There is nothing more I can do for her."

It was as these words left the Medi-witches mouth that Freya seemed to gasp for air, as she muttered incoherently again, words no one could yet understand as her entire body seemed to tense as if in pain. her entire body shaking at the stress, her teeth gritted as she strove not to grind them against this onslaught.

This lasted for almost ten minutes, before she finally settled enough to softly call for Faustus, again, just like before. Only this time, her voice held more of a desperate cry to it, then an actual call. As if she couldn't find him and was in despair of that fact.

As the High Priests name left her lips for the 5th time, in so soft a whisper, Freya went suddenly very silent and still. A small exhale was barely heard as it left her, and the Medi-witch jumped into action. Trying everything she knew to keep Freya holding on, But to no avail. Reaching out a hand to Freya's head, in a sense 'listening' to her inner being, the Medi-witch bit her lip as she pulled back and looked at Faustus with such a look of sorrow, that it nearly floored him.

"I am so sorry, High Priest. She is gone." Whispered in finality, the Medi-witch bowed ever so slightly and turned to leave.

A brief, shining moment of hope… No— NO! This could not be!

As soon as the door closed, Faustus allowed his emotions free reign. Leaning over Freya, all but holding her to him, he wept as if his very soul would break in two! Begging, pleading with the Dark Lord to bring her back! Promising anything, if only he had his Freya back! Calling to her, himself, over and over. Begging her not to leave him. Asking her what he would do without her. Sobbing as he held the one person in his arms, that he knew, he would ever absolutely love.

He was fraught enough that he almost made the mistake of cursing the dark lord's name, but he knew that would be a mistake, so he held his tongue at least that much. Yet he begged and pleaded through his tears, his voice raw with emotion! Finally he had found someone he loved, above all else, above all reason, and it was being taken away from him! What cruel, twisted fate was this? Yet he could not afford to despair. Was it not the dark lord's will for them to marry? Then surely there would be a way, a way for Freya to come back, to be his, the way she was meant to… wasn't she?

xoxo

She wandered, lost, in the midst. Unable to find her way through or even back to where she had come from. All was dark and cold, and it felt like it seeped into her bones. Where was she? Where was Faustus? Why couldn't she find him? Freya wouldn't admit it, but she was frightened. For the first time in her life; really, truly frightened. She called for Faustus as she went, searching for some way out of this darkness. But no way out appeared. Drifting in a sea of nothingness….

It seemed to last forever, but when she heard a faint echoing growl all around her, she knew she wasn't alone. Not anymore. Turning, she saw a light in the darkness and ran towards it. She came to a stop as she grew closer and saw the Dark Lord, standing before her, as if waiting for her. Slowly, she approached him as he turned to gaze upon her. His goat-like ears flicking across the top of his head.

"You are a long way from home, My Child." He greeted her softly. The rumbling purr of his voice was comforting in a way.

"I am, My Lord. I—I seem to have gotten lost." She bowed politely, which made a smirk appear across the Dark Lords face. "Have you come to lead me back, Lord?" She asked softly.

"I have not." He said with such finality. "That…is purely up to you, Freya."

"What—-what do you mean, Lord?" fear laced her voice just the barest bit.

"You are in the in-between. You choose whether you go on or go back. But in going back, it will not be easy and at times, extremely painful. Whereas going on, you simply….fall." he rumbled out gently.

It wasn't even a choice for her! If it meant she would see Faustus again, Freya would face any type of pain to get back to him. It did make her wonder though, why she was going through this at all and as if sensing her thoughts, the Dark Lord grumbled low in his throat.

"You have a terrible enemy, my child." His eyes seemed to glow in the darkness before her. "Be watchful next time, or the curse could have been much worse." He waved his clawed hand over her, and Freya instantly felt…lighter, somehow. As if something had lifted off her shoulders. "A choice still has to be made though. Come or go back?"

Faustus was weeping, openly weeping, as he held his beloved in his arms. He would take neither food, nor drink, nor allow anyone who was not a Medi-witch to come in and disturb him. Freya was his light, his world, his everything! Without her, there was no sense in keeping himself alive.

Yet he felt her energy shift, as though…. Something was happening. He sat up, alert. "Freya?" he asked, hardly daring to hope.

“I choose to go back." Freya said in a strong, clear voice.

"Very well. But first, a word of warning to you, young one. You are not the only one under threat. But, I gift to you the ability to protect the one you love WHEN the time comes…and ONLY then. You will know when it happens. So take comfort in that, that when it seems Darkest, you are not alone." He paused and then lifted a hand as if waving her off. "Now….go. You will find your way back on your own and be stronger for it. So Mote It Be!" With those words, the Dark Lord vanished, and Freya was left all alone again.

It took her a long time, an exceedingly long time to fight her way back out of the darkness; and the Dark Lord was right, it was terribly painful! At times, it felt like she was being ripped in half, or her blood was evaporating in her veins the closer she got to the light. Pain followed her back into the waking world and with the softest of inhales, she slowly, opened her eyes.

The first thing she saw, was Faustus. His eyes wet and red from crying and that made her pause as her brows slowly furrowed in confusion.

"Faustus?" Her voice was weak, soft as she called for him. "You're——you're crying?" She posed it as a question, for it scared her a little. What had happened to make him look so sad? If she could move, she would reach for his hand but as such, she felt heavy and sluggish. What had happened to her?

"Freya— FREYA!" Faustus sniffled. "Yes— of course, my love, I'd no idea— but I prayed— and you're back! The Medi-witch had said— but here you are! You were— you were on the brink of death for two days, Freya! Have you any idea how terrified I was?"

His words were so confusing. Jumbled sounds that made no sense at first. The only thing that made sense was the way he looked at her. Excited, but terrified. Sad, but ecstatic. She blinked up at him, as she really couldn't move as of yet, and managed to tilt her head ever so slightly. "Love—-Faustus—-slow down, please." She said softly, as she managed to move her fingers ever so slightly to hook with his. "What happened? Last thing—-I remember is—-being in the shower after third night of Lupercalia." Her eyes furrowed again. "Are you saying it's been—-two days since then, Love?"

Had it been? Really? It didn't feel like that much time had passed. But then the Darkness was all encompassing, and the Dark Lord took his time in collecting those wayward ones who had lost their way. Was she really, going to be collected, had she not chosen to go back? Or doomed to wander forever in the dark? Both thoughts, were terrifying to her.

"Dark Lord—-gave me a choice." She said, feeling her words become stronger little by little. "Go with him or come back." She looked into Faustus's eyes and managed a small, love filled smile. "No choice. Always choose you…." She sighed softly as the pain within her made her shiver. "Dark Lord said I was—-cursed. Who?? Why?"

Faustus took a breath and attempted to explain. "You called out for me and fainted," he said. "You were indeed gone for two days. I demanded a Medi-witch see to you, and she implied that you were dead. I… had hoped… that she was wrong—" He was choking up again.

"You chose me over the Dark Lord?" he asked in wonderment. "And… he was fine with that?"

Faustus shook his head. "In all my readings, I have come across no curse that could have done what this did to you. It is either older than the written word or newer than my extensive collection. As for why, I would imagine jealousy of your position. You're to become the next Lady Blackwood, which grants you immense power within the Academy and the church…. There are many, even here, who would kill for such prestige, and others who have resented you for your family's history and my attentions to you since the second you walked through those doors."

Freya listened closely, as Faustus explained to her his side of things. She had been lingering for two whole days, and then pronounced dead? No wonder Faustus was upset. Seeing him start to choke up again, she managed to reach out a hand and lightly wipe away his tears. Her fingertips brushing the side of his face before she had to drop her hand again. She was so tired.

"Of course, Love." She replied to his question. "Not even a choice. Always, always, choose you, Faustus." She nodded and wondered, should she tell him what else the Dark Lord had said, but decided not to. Not yet at least. "He seemed fine with it. Made me better, before he left me to find my own way back. It—-hurt, still hurts, but I did so. I found you…"

Freya's eye furrowed slightly at hearing her Beloved's explanations and inner rage flooded her before she controlled it. She was too tired and hurt to be angry. "Only one comes to mind, Love." She said softly as she looked up at him. In the entirety of her time here, only one person had ever crossed her so many times she had lost count. Ursula. Why would someone her age hate her so much? If it was her?

"I'm so very glad you're back," Faustus breathed, holding her close, but gingerly so as not to hurt her more.

He thought about her words. "Ursula?" he guessed. The girl had, he knew, had a crush on him, and her family had ambitions towards the Priesthood. "Well, never mind that, my love… you should rest. Actually, we both should have a meal, and then rest."

"I am glad I made it back, too, Love." Freya's words were soft as she cuddled into Faustus's embrace as much as she could. "I would never willingly leave you; you know this. I love you."

She sighed softly, deeply as she laid back and nodded at his words. "Food, sounds wonderful. I am actually very hungry." She tried not to yawn, as it was silly for her to be sleepy after being 'asleep' for two days, but her eyes stung. Only the mere thought of food kept her awake enough to eat it.

Soup, bread, and juice wasn't exactly what she had in mind, but the Medi-witch said that it would be counterproductive for her to have anything course after not eating for two days. Soup would be soothing to her stomach, and if she kept that down, she could have more the next meal. She nodded, agreeing with whatever the woman said, she was hungry and tried not to inhale the soup when she finally got it. Going slow, so as not to make a mess.

"Of course… and likewise, I would never willingly leave you. I was ready to follow you, if you—" He stopped short.

"Would you like me to help you?" he asked as she began to eat. Her hands were not the steadiest, and he was worried about her scalding herself.

That caught her attention and Freya looked up sharply at Faustus at hearing his words. "No Love. I would not want that for you." She said softly as she looked up at him. "I cannot even imagine it. That you would—-because I—-" She shook her head.

She looked down at herself and smirked. Try as she might not to make a mess, she had made one and her hands were slow but shaky still and it made her make a face as she laughed at herself. "Please? I seem to have made a bit of a mess." She flexed her right hand as if to get it to work properly and smirked. It hurt, but not as badly as before.

"You're back now, so I don't have to," Faustus said softly, stroking her hair.

He nodded and gently fed her soup, as though she were a small, helpless child. He liked taking care of her in this way, but he wished she wasn't in so much pain. He had faith, though, that she would return to being the powerful witch he knew and loved. For now, he would simply have to love her well and be strong enough for the both of them.

It was awkward, at first, having Faustus spoon feed her. The Great and Powerful High Priest doing such a meagre, ordinary task that was so out of his usual element; that the very idea would have made Freya laugh had it not been herself he was feeding. She saw the way he watched her as he helped her and blushed faintly. The look he gave her was so full of concern and love that she nearly drowned in it. He never had to say those three little words again because with just one look, let alone his actions, Freya knew just how deeply Faustus loved her.

Settling back into the pillows when she was done, she nodded and smiled up at Faustus. "Thank you, my Love. That was good." She smirked and looked over at his tray, which he had yet to touch. "Your turn." She chuckled softly as she got comfortable as she could. It wasn't easy, but the pain was slowly fading. Maybe by tomorrow she would feel better enough to move about.

Faustus smiled. "Very well, then, if my beautiful bride insists." And he began to eat as they chatted about lighter topics. When both their plates were cleared, they settled in to cuddle together. Faustus had been keeping her clean, and had bathed himself also, his one self-care task that he had kept up with. So they only needed to rest, perchance to sleep, nestled into each other like a pair of happy, exhausted kittens.