The Demon King said to call him Papa

Chapter Twenty-seven: Growing pains part 2

"Feeling better?" Papa asks as he hands the spoon to Mimi, after hand-feeding me. Dr. Strom had coughed and gave a pointed look at my hands as the tray was placed before me earlier. 

"Yes." I was a little disappointed on how bland the soup tasted but it was better than nothing.

 "Since you are now awake, we will need to think about how we remove the rest of the flowers and how to deal with the withdraws." Dr. Strom rubs his face, half a beard grown on his skin.

"Is there a way to make it painless?" Papa asks as they start talking while Aidan and Nadia came around to the other side, kneeling besides the bed. 

"I am so sorry Princess." 

"I keep doing things that make you end up sick." Aidan's face was gaunt while Nadia's face was just a little better than his. "I'm a terrible guard. I'm supposed to protect you but-"

"We are supposed to protect you." Nadia cuts in, lowing her head to the same level of her brother. "We keep failing you."

"It's not your-"

"It is." They speak together, their gaze fierce. "So we decided to do something about it."

Dr. Strom and Papa stop talking as the beastkin twins took out their swords.

"Here and now: we swear to be your shield and sword."

Magic started to swirl around in the room, lifting the petals from the breeze it created.

"We will protect you not just from your enemies, but from yourself. We will share your burdens and walk beside you for the rest of your life."

They both look up at me as their swords glowed. 

"Do you accept our oath? Will you allow us to be apart of you; to become family in every way other than blood?"

I could see in their eyes that this was something important to them, how they were promising me something that I have never experienced before coming here: family.

That thing was wrong.

"I accept." I swallowed the lump and blinked back the tears as the glow flowed into me and left a warm mark over my heart with a similar glow shined on the twins chest.

"Now we are connected Princess." Nadia smiles as they put away their swords. "You will never be alone."

"Ever." Papa agrees; his thumb tickling my cheek a little as he rubbed it. "You now have two older siblings."

"You want to remove another flower?" I could barely keep myself calm as I stared Dr. Strom down.  "So soon after Soraya just woke up?"

Dr. Strom glances over at her, who was curled up on my lap- still holding onto the flowers. 

"It's been a month since we last removed one... I know that your worried but now that the twin's oath is in play- the pain should be less."

I knew that he was right; Aidan and Nadia did a selfless thing by using the vow which connects them to Soraya and can take some of the pain from the withdraw but images from the past few times we removed flashed through my mind.

I never want her to go through that while conscious. 

"Forgive us your Majesty." The twins approached carefully and knelt. "That we did not discuss this with you before completing the vow." 

I stared at them in silence before a sigh escapes my lips. 

"There is nothing to forgive."

I pat the both of them on the shoulders as they both look up at me. 

"I understand why you did this but are you sure that this is something you want?"

The vow they performed was one where emotions and even pain is shared between the participants: it wasn't so unusual if one died, the other would as well. 

"This will allow us to make sure princess won't be in as much pain." Aidan's gaze was steady. 

"There are no doubts in our decision." Nadia adds, standing besides her twin. "We would of done it even if there was another way to help the princess."

"Good." I looked down at my daughter and pulled up the blanket up around her shoulders. "Let her sleep for now, we will remove a flower tomorrow."

~~~~

"Hi Papa." 

Soraya smiled at me as I came in, Dr. Strom and the others lingering around as tension filled the room.

"How are you feeling?" I kiss her forehead and felt how warm it was. "You seem off."

"I'm okay Papa." 

She looked so small in the bed, with the pillows surrounding her with Nova by her side.

"We've already spoken to the princess, your Majesty." Dr. Strom looks up from his bag on the night stand as Abaddon stood off to the side. "Whenever you are ready-"

He turns to look at her.

"We will remove the third flower."

"Papa?" Soraya looks up at me, her eyes a little wide as they looked into mine.

"Its okay." I sit down next to her and patted her head. "We are all right here. You are safe."

She looks at each person; the beastkin twins, Mimi, Abaddon and Dr. Strom before nodding.

Dr. Strom carefully moves her fingers aside as he pulls out a flower. Soon as the cut end of the stem leaves Soraya's hand, she starts to shake uncontrollably as a cold sweat covers her.

She slumps back as Nadia and Aidan bend over in pain, their faces red to keep from making a sound. The shaking grows harder as her eyes roll back into her head and little whimper of pain escape her clenched teeth.

"Your Majesty!" Dr. Strom quickly clears the pillows around us. "Lay her on her side! Quickly!"

I do as he asks and lay her head on my lap as her body tenses up. 

"It's okay." I lean down towards her ear as tears fell down her face. "I'm here, we are all here."

"P-papa..."

I have never felt so helpless as I watched my daughter in pain. This might be even worse to watch then when she was unconscious since I know for sure that she could feel this and remember.

It was like time took an eternity to go by as her seizures dissipated and her small body finally relaxed.

"Soraya?" I brush away her hair from her face, it sticking a little from her tears. Her eyes flutter open a little and meet mine before they close. 

"Excuse me, you Majesty." Dr. Strom reaches over and checks her pulse before going to check on the beastkind twins who were panting on the ground. "They are all okay. The princess just passed out and the twins will be alright."

I make eye contact with Nadia as she sits up and gives me a weak smile while Aidan shakes his head like he was trying to clear something from it. 

Once they stood up and looked steady on their feet; I nodded to Abaddon.

"Lets allow the princess to get some rest." He says, not meeting my eyes though I knew that I had the same look in mine. 

"I will stay." I say before Dr. Strom says a word. "I want to be here when she wakes."

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