Blood Child

The stars twinkled overhead with the promise of what was to come. Gabriel looked up as a single star shot across the velvet sky. He sighed in relief, that was a good sign. The last time a shooting star coincided with a claiming, his father was made King. Hopefully, whatever was to come would be good for them as well. He could only hope that nothing bad came from this night.

"My sons," King Astald greeted with a clap on each young man's back. "Tonight will bring great things for our kingdom. You both will soon take your places as the rulers of this great land."

"Of course, Father," Galadriel stated arrogantly, "I am ready to take up the mantle of King."

They stood in the center of the circle made up by their family and peers. Eyes of varying jewel tones watched them in fascination. It wouldn't be long now before their futures would be decided by the Universe. They would become like the rest of the enclave and be chosen by the Light, but have their own unique gifts. Or, they would be outcasts and chosen by the Dark. Just the thought of the Dark was enough to send shivers cascading down Gabriel's back. There hadn't been a dark elf in over three thousand years, and Gabriel was terrified that his brother would become the first.

Galadriel was not a nice elf. He tended to be cocky, presumptuous, and a bully. He like to pick on those younger than himself, and Gabriel was always pulling his arse out of the fire when their father found out. Galadriel was quite handsome with his lithe physique, silver blonde hair and blue eyes, identical to Gabriel's own. He used his looks to entice the girls to his bed, but never remained true to any of them.

It was common knowledge that Galadriel had bedded nearly every of-age virgin in the enclave. Not only was a womanizer, but he was also one of the less respected men due to his laziness. Galadriel would order the servants to do all of his chores for him. If his father were to find out, he would claim some illness or come up with a reason why he could not do the things himself. The King wasn't gullible by any means, but he let a lot slide with Galadriel because the boy had been so close to his now deceased mother. Her death had damaged him in a way that no one had expected. The happy child turned into a ruthless, arrogant young man who only cared for himself. The King had high hopes that the Claiming would change all of that to something far more respectable. Gabriel didn't share those hopes. As

Having a twin brother really wasn't all it was cracked up to be. Both, Gabriel and Galadriel, agreed with that sentiment. It supposedly meant that they would be strong leaders, together. They would have miraculous powers that would bring a new world to all Elvin kind. They would also be the first of their kind in many years. There hadn't been magical twins born since the Elves left the mortal realm so many years ago. Odd that it seemed to coincide with the last known Dark Elf. But, Gabriel knew nothing of the timing. Dark Elves were taboo and never spoken about in public, or private.

Where Galadriel was cocky, Gabriel was humble. Almost disturbingly so as far as King Astald was concerned. When Galadriel would bully the younger elves, Gabriel would protect them. Which made his father very proud, and the other elves most grateful. While Galadriel would lay with any woman, or man, Gabriel had never done so. He was still a virgin himself and respected the thought of love in a way that Galadriel had never learned. Which was odd because Galadriel was the one who had spent so much time with their mother. When Gabriel finally chose to give up his virginity, he would remain true to his beloved, Vanim. As Galadriel ordered the servants to do his chores, Gabriel was out on the boats fishing, or hunting in the forest for their dinner with the other male elves. As much as the two were identical in looks, they were complete opposites in personality.

As small children, Galadriel had spent all of his time with their mother. Gabriel was usually to be found at his father's knee learning all there was to know about the kingdom. When their mother was taken from them by a mysterious illness that none of the elven healers had ever seen before, Gabriel had been sad. Galadriel had been devastated.

King Astald chuckled at his son's eagerness. The boy had always been enthusiastic when it came to his future place in the kingdom. Even though Galadriel still had a lot to learn, the king had foreseen that his sons would do great things with the kingdom he himself had built up from the mists of Time. With Gabriel's knowledge of the way things were done, they would do very well. He was excited to see what the claiming would bring this night. Although, he knew that his sons would be claimed by the Light. There was no way that anything else could happen.

"Father, how will we know if we have been chosen by the Light or the Dark?" Gabriel questioned nervously. He wasn't ready for this. He had no desire to run a kingdom. He was a simple man. He was perfectly happy with his life as it was now. He spent his days fishing and tending the gardens. His nights were spent around the fire with his beloved Vanim. He didn't want to give any of that up. Perhaps as King he could leave everything to his brother. Yes, that would work well. Galadriel always wanted to be a sole ruler. Gabriel would just let him run things. He could be Galadriel's advisor. Even though the thoughts circled his mind, Gabriel knew his brother would never be a good King as a lone ruler.

"When the moon reaches its zenith, you will both be drawn to the center of the circle. Then we wait." King Astald smiled on both of his boys. He was so very proud at this moment. He wished his lovely departed wife could have been there. He pushed back the prickling feeling of tears in his eyes and his smile widened.

"Wait? For how long?" Gabriel asked anxiously. He was supposed to meet his lovely Vanim after the claiming. They were going to celebrate his coming of age. It was to be a very special night for them both. They would be consummating the growing bond between them.

"That is for the Universe to decide, my son." King Astald looked fondly upon Gabriel. As much as he tried to hide it, the boy had always been his favorite. Much as Galadriel had been his wife's favorite.

"Come now, Brother, there is nothing to worry about. We will be claimed by the Light and all will be well." Galadriel calmly stated and began walking toward the circle of candles. "I believe it is time. Do you feel it, Brother?"

"I don't know. All I feel is an odd pull. And kind of itchy." Gabriel looked to his father in trepidation. For some reason, he just couldn't be as blase' as his brother about this whole thing. He had a very bad feeling growing in his gut. Something was going to go horribly wrong.

"Follow that pull, my son." The king clapped Gabriel on the back once again and gave him a slight shove towards where Galadriel had gone.

Gabriel took a deep breath and looked into his father's eyes trying to convey the unease he felt about this, to no avail. King Astald just nodded encouragingly. Taking another deep breath, Gabriel stepped forward to meet his fate.

"Whoa, wait!" Harry interjected suddenly. "So can you explain exactly what being Claimed means?"

"Not really. It's just something elves do. We either go Light or Dark." Gabriel responded with a shrug. He'd never really understood why the elves had to be Claimed either. "I think it might have something to do with our magic affinity."

"Oh, ok."

Galadriel was already standing in the center of the circle of white candles with a blissful smile on his face. He stretched his arms out wide and laughed loudly. Gabriel warily approached his brother. Every fiber of being was telling him not to enter that circle while his brother was still standing there. Even so, he made to step over the barrier when the flames of the candles shot towards the sky. A blinding white light flashed down from the heavens to engulf his brother. He jumped back, barely missing having his long platinum hair singed by the rising flames.

Gabriel stood in awe as he watched his brother bathed in a light so bright and pure that it nearly blinded him. He could no longer see Galadriel clearly. Only a pale silhouette of the elf proved that he was in fact still there. Gabriel flinched as Galadriel's laughter increased in volume before dying out completely. As suddenly as the light had come, it vanished. The candle flames faded back to their original height, and Gabriel gasped when he saw his brother.

Galadriel turned in a slow circle showing off his new appearance. Gabriel couldn't believe the changes Galadriel had undergone. Galadriel had always been tall and lithe. now, he had muscle in all the right places and was even taller than his original six foot frame. His hair had come unwound from the plait it had been in when he entered the circle and now flowed down his back in a sheet of white silk. His clothes had changed as well. No longer was he wearing the dark green of the royal house. His once green trousers and black shirt had turned a deep gray. The black cloak he'd been wearing was now blazingly white. Even those changes had nothing on what had truly captured Gabriel's attention. Galadriel no longer had the same bright blue eyes as Gabriel. His eyes were now the color of mercury. An unsettling swirling mixture of stormy grey and molten silver. When those disconcerting eyes landed on Gabriel his whole body shuddered in revulsion. Those eyes were like two chips of dirtied ice. There was just something 'off' about Galadriel's obvious Light appearance.

"Brother! It was magnificent!" Galadriel cried in joy as he approached his father and Gabriel. "You must take your turn!"

King Astald could not believe what he was seeing. He had never heard of a Claiming happening this way. Usually, the elf entered the circle, a mist swirled around them, and then they announced their affiliation whether it be Light or Dark. 'This was amazing!' He could only assume it was because Galadriel and Gabriel were twins. He couldn't wait to see what happened when Gabriel, the stronger of the two, entered the circle. Gabriel may have been slightly younger than Galadriel, but he'd always had a sense of power that tended to leak when the poor boy was excited or upset. As he was now. Astald could feel his son's power reaching out to his father for reassurance.

"Gabriel, you must go now, Son," King Astald patted his favorite child on the back, "before the moon begins its descent." He knew it was wrong for a parent to favor one child over another, but there was just something about Gabriel that caused him to have an affinity for his youngest son. They had shared much more time together than Galadriel and Astald had while the twins were growing up. Galadriel had spent more time with his mother, 'Universe rest her soul.'

Gabriel once again took a deep breath and hesitantly stepped into the circle. He hid his shaking hands in the long sleeves of his cloak. It wouldn't do to have everyone see his fear. He really didn't want to do this. Something was not right. He stopped just before reaching the center of the circle and turned to look back at his father.

"Father," Gabriel began to explain his reluctance when a sudden wind seemed to come from nowhere in the still of the night and pushed him gently into the center of the circle. There was no more time for words, or fear.

"If it makes you feel any better, your brother had no idea how upset you were," Harry said. He felt the need to comfort the vampire because it was obvious to him that Gabe was ashamed of his fear.

"It does, in a way." Gabriel smiled softly and pushed a hand through his black hair. "But really, it doesn't matter much anymore, does it?"

"If you think that Galadriel doesn't think on that night as much as you do, then you are mistaken. Other than speaking about the bl- the way the night ended up, it's all he talked about." Harry had to interrupt himself before he gave away that he knew about the Blades of Flame. For some reason, he felt that Gabriel needed to tell him of those on his own.

"Well, I guess it was a major turning point for both of us. Shall I go on?"

"Yes, please do." Harry nodded encouragingly.

The candle flames extinguished completely, the white candles turning black. A grey fog seeped into the circle, swirling up around Gabriel's legs to engulf his entire body in the suffocating mist. Several of the onlookers gasped in surprise when every source of light was suddenly gone from the clearing. They couldn't see a thing. The king made to rush into the circle to pull his son out when another gust of wind blew him back harshly. He fell into the elf, Tiernan his servant, who helped to right him.

"Gabriel!" the king shouted, but his words were heard by no one. With the complete darkness came complete silence. He once again tried to move toward the circle, but found himself literally stuck in place. His feet felt cemented to the ground. "Gabriel!" He tried calling out once again, but once again it was to no avail.

Gabriel stumbled a bit as the wind gently pushed him into the center of the circle. His eyes widened in terror as the fog began swirling about his feet. He tried to leave the circle but was stuck where he stood. The higher the dark mist climbed, the more the terror filled his heart. 'This isn't supposed to happen!' Once the mist reached his shoulders, he began to hear a voice. A sweet melodic, hypnotizing voice.

"My son," the voice whispered in Gabriel's ear, "I am so happy to welcome you home."

"Home?" Gabriel gasped. 'Am I dying? Is that why everything is so dark and silent.' He could no longer hear the rasp of the wind that had pushed him, nor could he see anything but the stars above him.

"Yes, my son, home." the sweet voice answered, and Gabriel felt what he thought was a hand brush softly against his cheek.

He jerked back and tried again to escape, but failed. He was stuck fast. "Who are you?! Why is this happening?!"

"You have come here to be Claimed by me, my child. I will not harm you. Do not fear me, Gabriel. Accept what I offer, and your life will be fulfilled in ways you could never imagine!" The voice soothed. It knew the boy would accept. They all did, eventually.

"Accept what you offer? What are you offering?" Gabriel was shaking with dread, but felt the soft touch of a hand stroking his hair. It reminded him of how his father would do such a thing when he was pleased with Gabriel's understanding of his lessons, and it caused him to relax a bit. "Why is this so different from Galadriel's Claiming?"

"All Claiming of Twins is different, my son." The voice continued on in a pacifying manner. "I am offering you power, honor, longevity, and something that most of your kind would kill to receive from me." Gabriel could hear a slight amusement in the Voice when it said that last. "I am offering you your heart's desire. I can give you everything. All you must do is accept my gifts." The voice whispered enticingly, but Gabriel was still quite unsure as to what it was offering him. It was being very vague. He was dubious and unsettled. At least the shaking had stopped, and he was no longer terrified beyond comprehension.

"Will I be like my brother if I accept your gifts?" Gabriel didn't want to remain identical to Galadriel anymore. He was tired of always hearing about how great it was they were twins. 'Seriously, what was so wonderful about having another person look exactly like you in every way?' He just didn't understand the attraction of it. He needed to be different. He needed to stand out from his brother in every way possible. He never wanted to be mistaken for his arrogant, bullying arse of a sibling ever again.

"No, you will not. You will be you. No more standing in his shadow of venom," the Voice whispered seductively. It knew exactly what the boy needed to hear to agree. And, he must agree. They all did. Eventually.

"Then, I accept your gifts." Gabriel stated with finality. The Voice grinned to itself in triumph.

"So mote it be, my Blood Child."