The Fallen Vampire

It is amazing the effect that certain words can have on individuals.

The words 'I cheated on you' can send a man or woman into homicidal rage or suicidal despair.

'You're fired' Can reduce someone to a life of committing crime in order to feed themselves and their family.

Today, Taira also learned that the words 'I want to have a baby with you' can fill some women with a legendary lust that is practically unforeseen.

Few times in his life had he been attacked with such ferocity as he was a few hours ago, and there were several reasons why.

Just because Taira had never mentioned having kids before, didn't mean that the girls hadn't had their own discussions amongst themselves.

Quite frankly, none of them were oblivious to his somewhat reluctance to address the topic at one point or another, and were able to pinpoint that he must have had his own reservations about the prospect.

It was decided by the girls that they would wait until their husband was ready before they brought up such a thing; since the one thing that cultivators do not at all lack is time.

Without having to worry about their bodies turning against them of their own volition, they had a much larger window for these things than normal people would have.

And they told themselves that they were content with waiting, but that was before Taira actually told them that he wanted children.

The moment that he told them, they attacked him in a way that they had never done before in fifty years of marriage.

He felt as if he were an object that the girls were trying to use so that they could fulfill their deepest buried wish and make their family a little more whole.

They went at him with such reckless abandon that they exhausted themselves well beyond their limits, and ended up fainting after a measly six hours.

This left Taira alone in the bed, awake, amused, and still aroused.

Knowing that he likely wouldn't be enjoying any more depravity tonight, he got up from the covers and started on the task of cleaning up the girls and their bed.

Upwards of fifteen minutes later, all five women were clean yet still filled with his 'essence' so to speak and sleeping on dry sheets.

Just as Taira was about to climb back into bed with them, he had a sudden thought.

Within the dark room, he pulled on a simple set of clothes before stepping out into the hallway and heading downstairs to a very specific room.

As he passed through the dark corridors, he could hear faint, muffled sounds coming from the room at the end of the hall.

When he got closer, he was able to make them out as the sound of humming.

Gently knocking on the door of Inadu's bedroom, he waited for her to answer with a strange amount of nervousness in his heart.

When the door opened, he came face to face with a slightly shy looking Inadu in only a black nightie.

Obviously, she wasn't expecting to see him this late, and he could have justifiably said the same.

"Hello… is there something wrong?"

"No, I just… thought you may have been having trouble sleeping again."

Briefly, wires started to connect within Inadu's own brain.

She had wondered why she was able to sleep so marvelously when she was in bed with Taira and his wives, and now she was realizing that it may have been less of a coincidence than she had initially thought.

Taira ran his hands through his hair nervously, already dreading how his next words were going to come out.

"If you were alright with it... I was going to invite you to sleep with us again tonight."

"!"

"J-Just sleeping, I assure you. If you start to have nightmares again in the middle of the night, I wanted to be there to-"

In a surprising moment of boldness, Inadu suddenly threw herself around Taira's torso and wrapped him in the fiercest hug that she could muster.

Though he was undoubtedly surprised by this sudden show of affection, Taira did not shy away from returning her hug in kind.

"I wonder... what is this for?"

"Tell me something, Taira... do you truly believe that you can always be there for me when I need you, at any moment?"

"Yes." he answered without hesitation.

"Actually... I suppose that it is just like you to say something like that." Inadu laughed. "Let me ask you, what were you planning to do when you set out for the secret realm tomorrow? Would you take me with you?"

"Yes."

"Despite the danger?"

"I would protect you. No one will ever get the chance to harm you ever again."

"You fool… I am no use to anyone in a battlefield like that, I would only get in your way and get you or someone else hurt."

"I could-"

"Taira, please." Inadu pleaded.

Her soft slender hands gingerly touched his cheek, and he felt his heartbeat start to beat out of control.

Inadu smiled at him softly, but it still seemed like her eyes were immeasurably sad.

"I am.. so grateful for everything that you keep trying to do for me. It makes me feel cherished and cared for in a way that I have never been allowed to know before.

But despite that… I cannot allow you to keep supporting me endlessly.

Today I realized that there are things that I have to do for myself, alone, so that I must not be relegated to a happiness that only survives on your generosity. So… go."

With great difficulty, Inadu placed her hand on Taira's chest and pushed him away.

"Please do not let this version of me consume all of your worry. When you come back from the secret realm, I want to show you a better side of me that you don't have to treat like broken glass. And then… I would like to go out with you again, just the two of us."

Taira watched as Inadu slowly closed the door to her room and he only barely managed to stop himself from holding it open.

He knew that he was particularly attentive to Inadu after getting to know her and everything that she had been through.

But he never thought that there was anything wrong with his behavior, or that he could have been hampering her personal growth by doing so.

So, he begrudgingly accepted her decision, even though he would remember it for a long time as one of the hardest things that he had ever had to do.

As he returned to his room, his heart continued to twist itself into knots over the thought of her facing such horrible nightmares all over again.

'I really wish you knew just how much it hurts to do what you have asked of me… Were you anyone else, I could have ignored your wishes easily.'

It wasn't until he climbed back into bed with his own wives that he was able to put these thoughts behind him somewhat.

Tomorrow, they would be setting out to go to the opening of the secret realm on an entirely different continent.

If Inadu wanted to show him her growth in their time apart, then he would do the same.

'I wonder if she would like the head of a hero as a trophy… or maybe even her brother's.'