Confession

Was this place appropriate? Yes, yes it was. The world had been rendered "dark" since the mage's last year of dwelling there. Handed over to her sister-in-law, Tsumiko, Celia only found it natural that she too would be able to come here of her own accord. Even if she was told not to, she was this world's master at one point and found that she could go there regardless of whatever it was anyone said. A portal had cut its way into office, which stood at the peak of the tower. Out from it, came a woman who was clothed in a large, white cloak.

Silence was something this place gave to whoever came. When she removed the very life from the thing that made this world enjoyable, it was done out of both a fail-safe and a temper tantrum she threw over something rather... Trivial. Was it trivial? After 20 years, it could have been called trivial, especially since she had made "peace," with it. She thought she made peace with it, but Celia had visited a wise woman, a mother who knew exactly what to say and do. A few eye-opening experiences were the small prices she paid, in order to gain the courage necessary to pull through with this venture. A soft sigh left her lips, because she told her wife, Zienna, to meet her here. Even though she had the choice words all lined up, her nerves had finally left her...

"Even though she's old in human years... She's still a little girl. She doesn't understand, only feels... Your feelings are a poison... You'll harm her." The words echoed over and over. Painfully at that, to the point where she gripped her head with a hand and grumbled softly to herself. The act opened her cloak and revealed her new attired.

She wore an all white ensemble, coupled with bits of black. Beneath the cloak was another jacket of sorts, which came down to the same length as the clothing she wore below it. Impractical as it may be, she simply wore a black bra, tied at the neck and back, connected to a black choker. A pair of shorts held together by a black belt and a pair of white boots, with white heads of them being black. Accessory wise, she had long since ditched her earrings and instead used black bows in her hair.

The white silver-haired woman sat herself upon the nearly empty desk. There was a book that was next to her, which glowed with an otherworldly and dim light. A book coveted so dearly by Tsumi, that it was no surprise that when Celia vacated the area, she was asked if it were at all possible to leave the songstress in charge. She begrudgingly agreed, since it wasn't as though she asked with professionalism, but as a little girl. Calling one's older brother on Celia never quite sat right with her and was just one of the more annoying things about their expanded family, that simply annoyed her. Though, nothing agitated her more, than the frequent thoughts and experiences she had during the last twenty years.

"Hey, we need to talk... I, uh, haven't been honest..." Her brows furrowed into a frown. "No, that's stupid. I sound like I've been cheating on her and that's NOT the case..." Another shake of her head, followed by an exasperated sigh, showed just how frustrated Celia continued to grow. Her crimson eyes (turned red due to her transformation long ago) brightened with her unbridled power, with some of the objects in the room even beginning to levitate on their own accord, likely caused by her distortion of the world around her. A simple deep breath and things had settled. "What a fucking bother. She better hurry the hell up..."

Celia never usually asked her to meet her someplace so isolated. Usually, it was Zienna who dragged her into them, usually against her will on most occasions. It was a little strange of her, but this wasn't the first thing she noticed that was out of place. A few years back, Celia was acting strange, but never told her why. Either that, or simply dodge the questions she asked.

Zienna thought it was better not to look into it, as Celia was trying her hardest to shut her secrets away. Though it did occur to her that she might have been harboring a grudge, but if that was true, then she had a lot of emotional control to be able to hide it from the succubus' empathic senses. Even if that were true, Zienna never cared much about if people thought negatively of her. For her, it only added to the satisfaction when they are completely lost in pleasure she provided them.

Her wings wrapped around her body, completely covering her like a feathered cocoon. Blackened flames coated her, and as if she were paper, she disappeared as the flames burned out. In a similar display, she reappeared silently at their meeting place. Opening her wings, she saw that Celia was already awaiting her. "You wanted to see me, Celia?" she asked with a sweet, if not teasing voice.

When her older sister, Sevina had been unsealed from her body, they had spent some long-needed time together. And those days, Zienna had elected to suppress all her powers so that no one would walk up to the two of them and interrupt. But because her old attire still attracted some unneeded attention, she had to change into something more modest. It was something she had wanted to do just to spend time with her sister that was always by her side, but never really 'there' in a sense. The new, less revealing clothes she wore were only supposed to be until the two sisters caught up, but she had developed a fondness for them, and the look stayed. It gave her a much more mature look, which she accented by growing her hair long and placing flowers in it.

While she looked enchanting right there in front of Celia, a closer look would make it apparent that she was kind of sick. Her skin was slightly paler, and ever her voice sounded a little off, and she her temperature was a few degrees higher. Zienna herself didn't know the source of the illness, but it had started to develop years ago, and only now did it show. It was a mere inconvenience, and aside from resting a lot longer than she should have, it had no adverse adverse effect on her.

Flames crackled in the silence of the abandoned tower, well the not-so abandoned tower and with it, came the appearance of Zienna. The half-succubus, who had turned her into a creature similar to herself. However, she had come to embrace the full fledged blood that came with it and Celia noted how much more of a seductress the woman had become. It was no wonder all those who the feathered woman bedded, became infatuated nearly immediately. Once again, though, that caused her to grow a little angry. Her crimson eyes sharpened into a glare but not towards her wife, just to the thought of someone else touching which was to be rightfully hers. Truth be told, Celia has had to give up a lot in the past several years, the last thing she wanted to give up were her emotions.

"Yeah, I wanted to see you." Her voice had changed over the passage of time. Celia sounded much more mature and womanly, almost with a cold expression similar to when Marigold was younger. The mage's eyes softened and she started walking over to Zienna. Those orbs of hers were soon flooded with tears, tears which cascaded down her pale, soft features akin to a tranquil waterfall. Closer inspection upon her betrothed did she start to notice the poison take hold. "Zienna... Zienna, I'm so sorry!" The halfling cried out suddenly. She ran over to the succubus, threw her arms around her neck and kissed her deeply.

The gesture lasted for but a moment, before she broke it and turned those red, tear-filled eyes over to her wife's dark purple. Her hands then drooped down to the woman's clothing, to which she gripped on them, in a display that showed she feared losing the woman. "I haven't been honest about a few things, my love... I spoke to Maya and she told me what to do..." Very vague and cryptic wording she used, but then she shook her head and decided to just be straight with her. "Let me start from the beginning..."

From there, Zienna would be introduced to the internal and external physical strife, that Celia had burdened herself with. The succubus would learn that for years, even after being turned into a half-succubus and conceiving their daughter, Silvia, Celia had been extremely unhappy with how Zienna slept about. Her red eyes conveyed this very pain and as they spoke, the mage used her expertise in memory/mind manipulation, to weave together nearly every single emotional outburst Celia had alone. Zienna was shown the jealousy her wife felt whenever she slept with someone other than her, how it angered Celia whenever she never prodded further when it came to her shutting away secrets, but most of all, the foolishness the woman felt at even romanticizing the thought of a succubus being bound to one, singular person. The purple-eyed woman would feel this and more, except for something that Celia had to verbally explain. The suicides.

Her deepest, darkest secrets involved the fact that on several occasions, Celia had attempted take her life not once, not twice, but a multitude of times. Her immortality as both a vampire and succubus, only brought her back to life and reconstructed her body back to its previous form. No matter what damage she suffered, her body just repaired itself and she'd be woken up in a plethora of pain. Celia went on further to explain that her sensations grew numb to the pain, rendering it almost null, until she realized how much the pain made her feel alive. Thus, in order to grow sexually satisfied after denying her wife sex, she'd opt to take her life and would grow to orgasm right before her life "ended." The woman then went on to explain how Sevina caught her after her seventh attempt and threatened to tell, but Celia had begged her not to under the pretense that she'd eventually come clean to Zienna. It never happened.

Once that was said and done, the mage explained that she went to visit Maya, Zienna's mother and through marriage, Celia's in-law. The ruby-eyed beauty further told of how the elder succubus convinced her and gave her the confidence, to confront Zienna about the whole thing. That was this entire situation was about. This was Celia's attempt at explaining to Zienna that even though she tried her hardest to live with succubus' lifestyle, she couldn't do it any longer. She wanted her wife to bed her and her only, with Celia vowing to serve as the woman's only source of nourishment.

"...And that's what this is about, Zienna! I can't... I can't take it anymore!" The explanation wasn't without its tears and there were even moments where Celia outright choked on her own words, reduced to pathetic sobs. Her tears stained her face, puffed up her eyes and dampened their clothes. "I want... I want to bind you... I want you to be bound to me. Not just through some stupid marriage ceremony, but through your succubus customs. I want you to take from me and me only, because Maya said I have the ability to support you, so please..." Her tears had never stopped falling. "Please grant me this one simple wish..."

The succubus was taken by surprise when Celia suddenly had tears rolling down her cheeks. Zienna wondered if she had done something that had pushed the woman to that state, which admittedly, she had done a number of times, even though Celia tried to hide it. But Celia was apologizing. Did she see the sickly appearance and thought it was somehow her fault? Zienna wanted to tease her about it, make it seem like a bigger deal than it was, but she just couldn't muster up the energy. Whatever sickness she had, it was weakening her. "You shouldn't get too close, I wouldn't want you to get sick too." It was genuine concern, not only because she grew to care about Celia over the years, but because of the nature of the illness and how it was strong enough to affect her. But even with the warning, Celia had kissed her deeply.

Zienna could feel an array of emotions from Celia. Regret, anger, and a great mix of other emotions that seemed all too confusing to be taken in instantly. After the display of affection, Celia stepped back, and started to speak, starting off by saying that she hadn't been honest about a few things, before revealing that she had spoken to Zienna's mother, an elder succubus and a pure blood at that. She could only wonder what that woman had implanted into Celia. Before Zienna could say anything, Celia began telling her story.

As Celia confessed everything she felt, how horrible she felt, and with the use of her magic to aid in expressing her strife, Zienna could only feel what Celia felt, but couldn't really understand it. She herself was never jealous about something. Sure, there were times when she wanted to covet something, but she never reached the point where it made her restless, or even slightly distraught. So while Celia explained and poured her heart out, Zienna just had a hard time relating to it, even with her empathic sense and Celia's own ability to share her experiences from memory.

And then the topic reached the point where she confessed that she tried taking her own life a number of times, only to return every time, unable to find her peace. Although strangely, Celia had also found pleasure in it. Zienna couldn't say that she had tried that before, but she would surely be getting a lecture on it from Sevina. Speaking of her, it seemed that her older twin caught Celia in the act, but why didn't she tell her? She never even hinted it, at all. Zienna was kept wholly in the dark about it. And even her own mother knew and told her nothing about it? It normally wouldn't be so concerning since Celia's actions weren't rare among the victims of succubi, but, as Zienna often told her family, Celia had earned a place in her heart. While the concept of marriage wasn't a serious topic to her, she honestly did care, but in her own way.

But... Did she really want to only have Celia as her sole partner, just as she had suggested? To be honest, Zienna was a little apprehensive about the idea, since... this was different. This was big, and... she just didn't know what would happen. It wasn't unheard of that a succubus would settle down with a single partner, but decisions like that were... usually for those with more experience, and Zienna was far from that point. But at the same time, Celia was completely different from her other partners, counting the ones who were her regulars. There was a different kind of connection between them, but... There was just so much to think about.

For a few moments, she wrapped her arms around Celia and rubbed her cheek against hers, just trying to comfort her. But she found it hard to say anything since she was lost in her own thoughts. Until finally she said... "Are you sure this is what you want? And its not just infatuation because of my charms? Because... if its just infatuation, then... I'm afraid I can't... because if we do this... I will become powerless for a while... unable to gain anything from anyone aside from you. And while I can recover in due time... if you threw me to the side once my charms wear off, I'll most likely die... permanently..." She was worried, and with great reason.

When that question was thrown towards her, the question of whether or not it was infatuation that dictated Celia's actions, the answer was blatantly obvious to the halfling. Her cheek rubbed against her wife's, the cold, wet tears touching against Zienna's skin. "Infatuation is what those others feel when they're with you... They haven't experienced what I have. This is LOVE, Zienna. I'm no longer some high school girl, with a crush on the most popular person in school. When I see you, I see the mother to our child." Her words trailed off as the sobs started up once again. However, she managed to hold herself back and took several, frantic deep breaths. "This isn't infatuation. I am fully aware of the responsibilities that come with this dedication. I wouldn't dare leave you, because I've had 20 years to decide whether or not to do so..."

That was a hint to how the whole grief for the past years had nearly caused her to leave, but she didn't. It would have been completely childish and insensitive, plus it would have destroyed their family. Whenever she saw Silvia and Zienna, both of them smiling, even with former's health degraded over the years, Celia couldn't bring herself to do it. She simply couldn't. She loved them both dearly and would do everything in her power, to simply be with them. This is why when she figured out her negative emotions had been affecting her wife, the silvery-haired young woman needed to do this. They were connected on a deeper level to the point of where it was impossible to just run away and leave. This was a solution she needed to do. "Please trust in me, Zienna. It's beyond your appearance, it's beyond the material... Your love, attention, your personality... You're a free spirit and I know asking this is a lot, but this is something I am very serious about. I'll take care of you. I'll be your nourishment. I'll be anything and everything, just for you!"

She declared passionately and that empathetic sense the succubus shared, she'd be able to feel how honest and passionate the woman felt, as her heart continued to pour itself out. Celia was riding on the hope that despite how young her wife actually was, that she'd be able to wrap her head around the whole ordeal. Then again, she suddenly sprung everything on the poor woman without as much as slowing down. Finally, the last thing she wanted to say, the very last thing to show her dedication just made itself known. "And... And if you were to die permanently, I'd follow suit. I'd follow you to the grave and damn myself to whatever suffering it is that I deserve, for letting a special woman like you die because of my foolishness. It's my fault you're sick too, so I already feel like hell because of it..." She mumbled, followed by a shake of her head.

Celia buried her nose into the succubus' chest and cried some more. Her height, age and maturity betrayed just how much of a little girl she still was on the inside. Fact of the matter was that she cared for Zienna far more than anyone could say.

Was it really true? Was it really how she felt? It could be the charms talking again, but at the same time, she sounded like she really meant it. But that really wasn't enough. She could just be drunk with the succubus' presence, and if that were the case, then Zienna would have signed her death warrant by swearing herself to Celia. Once she does this, her powers would be weakened to the point of being completely absent. For a while. And while she had no reason to doubt the woman who she was married to in some ritual that mortals invented, succubi of the past have done the exact same thing, and perished because they were thrown away the moment their charms broke.

...

...

...

This was an insane choice... She just couldn't put herself in that situation. She just couldn't. But... with Celia being like this... Could she really say no? Did she really genuinely love her? Was her mind simply not clouded when she spoke those words? It couldn't be real. Succubi can't be loved. Not by someone who fell under their spell. They can only be coveted and lusted for. They could have friends. Really close friends. But having only one lover? That can't be possible. Even with Maya, who had a husband who didn't succumb to her powers, still had multiple partners, albeit quite fewer than others.

"I'm... sorry..." She wanted to say those words, but they never got out. "You would let Silvia live without a mother to guide her?" she asked. It was not her intention to guilt Celia into more torture if ever she died. Because, it was likely that she never even loved her in the first place, and that child would only be a reminder of the years she was imprisoned in a cell of emotions, manipulated by a mistress who tortured her for over 20 years. If Zienna ever did die because of the choice she was going to make, she only hoped that Silvia didn't suffer the same pitfall.

"One chance. That's really all I can give you..." Celia couldn't see it, but there was a sad smile on Zienna's lips. She held the woman close. It would be nice to have someone who really loved her, and should she die because of that unneeded want, then at least she wouldn't have too long to live in regret. "My life... is in your hands now..." Zienna closed her eyes as her wings were engulfed in white. Their forms shrunk as tiny pieces of the light were chipped off by a non-existing wind until they were all gone. The spot where her wings sprouted from shot out particles of light which faded rather quickly. Zienna pressed her palm against Celia's back, and she would feel a gentle warmth enter her body.

As the process continued, Zienna felt her powers fading, as did her mind. She felt like all she wanted to do was sleep. Just sleep. For a long time. The light on her back disappeared. It was done. It was over. She stepped back with a weak smile. "My wings are clipped. I... am all yours now... I wonder.... if you still feel the same about me now that my powers are too weak to do anything..." That was all she managed to say before her eyes darkened as it dilated. Her body swayed before collapsing. She only felt weakness up to that point. With her powers so suddenly released, her spirit needed to adjust. It would take a long time, but if Celia was sincere, she'd be fine... just fine...

Her heart throbbed so painfully, as the unbearable silence went on. Celia was almost certain that Zienna was going to say no. She could feel it in her very being, the rejection that she feared so much. A desperation arose and the halfling nearly broke down into tears yet again, but didn't. Maya's words echoed over and over in the woman's mind, reinforced her positive thinking to the point of where she didn't break, then allowed her to just hold her wife closer. This was an extremely tall order and Celia knew that, but she wanted to show the succubus that this was more than lust. That's when the silence was finally broken and in the same vein, nearly did Celia's heart.

But it didn't. Rather, what the mother of their child said next had only solidified her reason to prove this to the woman. The silvery-haired female's brows furrowed and knitted into a frown. There'd be no way Silvia would lose any of her mothers, because both of them were going to be there for her. All it took was that one chance Zienna mentioned too, because Celia already knew the consequences for failure. Being held close, The Darkson princess couldn't really see that somber smile but she didn't need to, in order to feel it. 20 years and she's sort of grown attuned to the basic succubus package. Charms, empathy and on a more secretive level, sex drive.

Beyond all of that, however, was the emotional pain she suffered while in the confines of hers and Zienna's matrimony. Celia took it seriously way back when and while the latter did, she didn't normally express it in a manner, that showed she cared. This entire situation was ironic to a point, but that really didn't matter anymore. Those crimson eyes of the snowy-haired princess had taken a look upon those beautiful ebony wings, which slowly shrunk, until they began to break and chip away. They widened at the sight and this is when Celia knew that everything had begun. This was now her test of dedication towards the succubus, which opened her eyes to the wealth of emotions she bottled up. "You won't regret this... All I need is this one chance, my love... thank you." Her last words came as a choked whisper, because of how everything occurred. A hand to her back and the woman felt a warmth wash over her, with her own eyes closing in response.

When it was all over, their embrace ended, Celia was faced with a weak Zienna, who nearly fell to the floor. Thankfully, her wife wasn't dazed by the whole process and managed to catch her before that, then held her bridal style. Those last words about her wings being clipped and how she was all hers, really resonated deep in her mind. The succubus' powers were practically gone, no charm, no nothing. What did Celia feel...? Absolutely no change. Others may have looked upon her with disgust or an uncaring attitude, but Celia's heart continued to throb. That moment, she forgot all about her own negative feelings and realized her wife was in a state of mortal danger. "Let's... Let's go home, my love."

A soft, saddened, yet happy smile managed to stretch across her lips. It was a real, genuine smile she hadn't often done in the last 20 years, but there it was. Shame Zienna couldn't see it after so long. The succubus' wife leaned down and planted a soft, soothing kiss upon her lips. After which, she pulled back, closed her eyes and summoned a pair of wings. Snow-white in color, they closed over the two and the halfling began to chant a spell. One that'd bridge their souls on a metaphysical level and allow Celia to constantly transfer her life energy into the other woman's body. Once it was chanted, she smiled brighter and slowly engulfed the two of them in flames. A bit dramatic, but she was teleporting them back to Limbo...

Because how in the hell was she supposed to take care of an unconscious succubus?

[Topic End]