Three Candles Glowing in the Dark - Part Three, Pledge

Disclaimer: See other two parts.

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Lina woke up the next morning to find the other side of the sleeping bag empty. She dressed quickly and stepped out of the tent to find Xelloss standing on the edge of the cliff looking out unto the world before him. She walked softly, yet quickly until she stood beside him.
"Ohayo, Xel," she said, her voice light and happy.
Xelloss smiled at her and said, "Ohayo, Lina-chan."
She noticed a soft, melancholy tone to his voice, but dismissed it as being moody for he had just woken up and wasn’t in the greatest of moods just yet. She moved forwards slightly and asked him, "Why didn’t you go all the way last night?"
He looked at her, both eyes open and sincere, and replied, "I didn’t want to hurt you, Lina-chan."
She smiled softly and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him down playfully atop her. She pressed her cheek against his and whispered in his ear, "I love you."
He smiled from this and whispered back, "I love you too, my dearest Lina-chan," before wrapping his arms around her slim waist and kissing her cheek.

Lina walked, or rather, skipped out of the forest first. "We finally made it!" she chirped.
Xelloss followed behind, his face looking sullen and distressed. Lina ran up to him happily, but stopped when she saw his expression.
"Doushita? Xel?" she asked.
Xelloss looked up at her shining face, making his heart wrench up all the more. He sighed, then said, "Lina-chan, please don’t ever leave me."
Lina’s eyes widened a little in confusion and she repeated, "Doushita? Xel?"
He produced a dagger from his cape and showed it to her. "This is what’s wrong," he answered.
Lina backed away from it and stammered, "I…I don’t understand…"
Xelloss opened his eyes again. They were full of sorrow and betrayal. "Lina-chan…I have orders to kill you…"
Lina stared at the blade bluntly, then uncharacteristically fainted.

She woke up in a bed. Getting up, she realized it was an inn. After looking around a bit, she noticed Xelloss looking out the window, his eyes once again closed. He turned at the sound of her sheets ruffling, forced himself to smile, then walked over and sat on the edge of the bed. He looked up at her through lifeless, amethyst eyes and said, "You have two choices. One, you can become a mazoku and spend eternity with me. Or two, I can carry out my orders."
Lina lifted her head, her eyes brimmed with tears. "There’s not much of a choice is there…?" she thought. She opened her mouth in an attempt to speak, but her words refused to come out. As if Xelloss knew what she was going to say, he smiled at her and said, "Aisuru, boku no tenshi madoushi."
She waited nervously as Xelloss pulled her into a passionate embrace, kissing her in a soothing manner. He traced patterns into her back, cutting into her skin with some kind of mazoku spell. She winced from the pain and clung to him tightly, fighting back the hot tears. He stopped and took out the same dagger he had before, however, the blade was emanating black for it had sensed her blood and hungered for it.
"Close your eyes, Lina-chan. You won’t want to see what I’m going to do," he whispered in her ear. Lina did as she was told, bracing herself for the inevitable pain.
At last she felt a painful stab through her chest. Her breathing slowed steadily until it completely halted as she fell limp into Xelloss’s arms.
She heard him whisper, "I’ll be there waiting for you when you reach the other side," before all returned to black…

The last remaining candle, one made of a black material, stood. The flame flickered violet a few times before going out, only to be replaced by a cold, black flame that glowed a dark, lifeless light…