Otherworld 3: Tala
Chapter 8 - Shilo
The young man who returned to Otherworld was not the same one that had left three months ago. Shilo was now a broken soul, his pain raw and deep. His childhood had been fraught with sorrow and loss, but he had remade his life, finding happiness with Chaal. And Chaal had been tortured and murdered because of that happiness. When the Blood Demon lord brought his son to Otherworld, Aara was appalled at what had happened. She knelt down in the main hall and Shido put his son in her arms. Tears ran down her face as she felt his pain -- his terrible, all-consuming pain! There was guilt there too; Shilo felt that he was blame for Chaal's murder. The Princess poured all the love and comfort she could over the boy, but it was not enough. No emotion she could send him would stop his agony.
Another day passed and Shido was distraught. His beloved son was in such pain and there was nothing he could do. "Is there nothing more you can do?" He asked the Princess.
"I blanket him in comfort and peace every chance I get, but it is not enough. The pain inside of your son consumes him. But more than that, he feels guilty." Aara replied.
"Guilty? What does my son have to feel guilty about?" Shido asked.
"He feels that he should have done something to stop Chaal's death. Tala only killed Chaal to punish Shilo -- in his mind, he is to blame." Aara answered.
Shido sighed. He would have done anything to stop his son's pain, but he couldn't think of a thing to do. How could he even think of happiness when Shilo was so broken? And this time should have been one of so much hope -- his mate, Xantha, had given him the news just last week. She was pregnant with their first child and it was a boy. Another son! But how could he feel joy when his first son suffered?
Days passed and Shilo was no better. He sat there in his room, mute, tears running unhindered down his face. He had not eaten in days. A guard opened a vein and let his blood drain into a glass, but Shilo refused the offer. He spoke to no one, not even his father, sitting there silently buried in his thoughts. Thoughts of Chaal -- thoughts of the last hours of Chaal life. Hours of pain and torment. Shilo could not get past it. He kept reliving those hours; examining each minute, trying to see what he could have done to stop Chaal's murder. There had to have been something! A few days later, Breal asked for an audience with the Princess. The young Blood Demon knelt before her when he met her in her study.
"You do not need to kneel before me, Breal."
"I know, but I want to. I have a request to ask of you."
"A request that requires you to be on your knees?"
Breal looked up at her, his ruby eyes misted with tears, "Yes, it does. My brother Chaal would not want this pain for Shilo. He loved Shilo very much."
"No one wants this for Shilo. I have tried to ease him, but nothing works." Aara told him gently.
"I have been talking to Aniki. He became friendly with Shilo during the party. He told me that your binding would fade the love that Shilo had for Chaal to a memory, and thereby stop the pain. Is that true?"
Aara looked at Breal in shock. And for this to come from Aniki? "You want me to bind Shilo?"
"I think it might be the only thing that will work. I'm sure that Shido would be acceptable to the idea. He thinks the world of you, you know that."
The Princess sat there, her mind in turmoil. She had never even thought of another binding -- much less of Shilo. She did not know what to say to Breal. She was very fond of the young man; well, actually, of the little boy she had known 16 years ago. The young man she barely knew. Binding him would indeed work; Chaal would become a memory and the emotional ties to him would be forever lost. Shilo's pain would stop. But it was a drastic step. A binding was forever and Shilo was the next ruler of the Southern Lands. And he was a Blood Demon, forever needing the taste of blood, unable to live in the sunlight.
Breal was heartened by her silence; at least she had not refused him immediately. "I will broach this idea to Shido. I'm sure he will agree to it." He said hurriedly. And before she could say anything else, he rushed out of the room.
Aara sat there, still stunned, and then summoned Aniki. What had gotten into that boy?
Later that day, Shido came to the Princess. She was in her garden, her favorite spot, under a shade tree and Shilo was in her arms. Again, she was trying to comfort him. And again, she was failing.
"Breal told me about his request. I would be very amenable to a binding." Shido began.
"But Shilo is your heir."
"My mate carries my second son. And given the long life span of demons, it will not even be an issue for many centuries. I will do anything to stop my son's suffering. Aara, please help him." Shido pleaded.
Aara was silent. She had bound Hiei because she felt his loneliness and InuYasha the same. Why not bind Shilo? She lifted Shilo's head from her shoulder and told him what his father proposed.
Shilo moved from her arms, sitting between the Princess and his father. "Would it stop the pain?" he whispered.
"Yes, Chaal would become only a memory without no feelings behind it. But a binding is forever, so please don't do this just to stop the pain. Time will take care of that too; the pain will ease and memory will fade."
"I don't want to feel this pain any longer." Then he was silent for a few moments, then looked up into her eyes. "Please bind me."
The Princess looked at Shido and he nodded his consent. Then she kissed Shilo's forehead and stood. "So be it." She gave him her hand and he took it, rising to stand next to her. Then she led him to his new bedroom, the third on the left from her room, Sesshomaru's old room.
Very gently, she undressed him, and brought forth her power, covering him in comfort and love, then adding passion. He began to respond to her, and she guided him. Although he had prior sexual knowledge, it was only with Chaal, and he had never entered anyone before. But her gentle hands showed him what to do and soon he was deep inside, riding his passion. At his height, she bound him, and then bound him as a brother to her five other males: Kurama, Hiei, InuYasha, Bakura, and Aniki. Aniki smiled when he felt the binding, glad that Shilo was part of their family now.
After the binding, she asked for the guard that had volunteered to feed him to come to his room. For the first time in days, Shilo fed. After the guard left, Aara returned to his bed, holding him tightly. He curled into her arms, feeling peace for the first time in days. "Thank you," he whispered.
That same night, Breal was undressing, getting ready for bed, when he suddenly stopped and turned to his partner. "Shido, please forgive me that I did not go to you first with my idea."
"There is nothing to forgive. My son is free from pain and that is all that matters. I am grateful that your words convinced the Princess to bind him."
Breal sat down on the bed, his clothes half off and hanging from his shoulders, "I miss him, Shido. Chaal had so much to live for. Why did he have to die so young?"
Shido put his arms around Breal, holding him tight. "I have never found the answer to that question. But think not of the loss, but of all Chaal gave us. All the joy and love. Remember his energy, his happiness, and his devotion to Shilo. Remember the good."