So why was Oscar so different?He had more tentacles.Where the fuck had Cyril taken the bones to create them?
As alarmed as Cyril was about Oscar’s condition, Oscar didn’t seem to care.He cuddled close to Cyril’s chest, and Cyril could’ve sworn his pet was relieved.He’d never been sure whether or not Oscar felt emotions.He knew that Oscar cared about him, or at least it looked like he did, but it shouldn’t be possible.Cyril had always put it on his necromancer’s ability, but now, he was sure he could feel what Oscar was feeling.
What the fuck was happening to both of them?
The creak of the bedroom door opening made him turn.The first thing he saw was Vale’s back and butt because Vale was stepping into the room backward.Cyril understood why when he saw that his boyfriend was carrying a tray with one hand.The other hand was unavailable since that arm was pinned against his chest.
Cyril gently pushed Oscar down and wrestled with the blankets so he could get out of bed.Vale’s eyes widened when he saw that Cyril was awake, and he shook his head.
“Stay in bed,” he ordered.
“You’re going to drop the tray.”
“I’m not.Just stay still and keep an eye on Oscar.”
“What happened to him?”
Vale walked around the bed and put the tray down on Cyril’s nightstand.He took a second to make sure that everything was steady before sitting on the edge of the mattress and turning to Cyril.“How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine.What happened to Oscar?For that matter, what happened to Helena and the others?I don’t remember anything after reanimating Oscar.”
Vale shook his head.“I don’t know what you did or how you did it, but you were able to reanimate him.I should’ve known you could do it.You’re the best necromancer I’ve ever met.”
“It shouldn’t have been possible.I mean, I should’ve been able to reanimate him, but he’s different.”
Vale turned his attention to Oscar, who was dragging the blankets around his body with his many tentacles as if making a nest.“I think you drew from the bones of the people buried in the cemetery.”
Cyril grimaced.“That makes sense.I shouldn’t have done that.”
“You shouldn’t have been able to do what you did, Cyril.I’ve never seen anything like that.I thought you had to touch the deceased to reanimate them.It wasn’t only the reanimation, either.How did you convince so many of them to help?”
Cyril huddled in on himself.He still felt weak, and he suspected he was going to feel that way for a few days, but he also felt guilty.“I didn’t convince them.I gave them a push toward what I wanted, and they did it.I shouldn’t have used them that way, though.It goes against everything I’ve ever believed in.”
“I don’t think most of them minded.You were desperate to save the people you love.Anyone would’ve done what you did.I’m sure they understood.Besides, you said you didn’t convince them but rather gave them a push.That doesn’t sound like you forced them to do anything.It feels more like you communicated what you needed, and they decided to help.”
Vale might be right, just like he might be wrong.Cyril couldn’t obsess over it.There were other things he needed to focus on, like how the fuck he’d managed to do what he’d done.
His ability had always been strong, but even then, the only thing he’d ever been able to do was reanimate dead people.It allowed them to have a conversation with their loved ones, and not much else.He hadn’t needed anything else from them.He certainly hadn’t needed to awaken an entire cemetery of bodies to help him.
But that was exactly what he’d done.He didn’t know how, but he had, and he needed to find out more about it.He couldn’t afford to bury his head in the sand when he knew that what he was capable of could help people and maybe save his family again if they ever needed it.
Knowing Vale, Helena wasn’t the last person who would come after them.Cyril would need to be ready to protect Vale, and that meant finding out what was happening to his ability and how he could use it.
“What happened at the cemetery?After I reanimated Oscar, I mean,” he asked.
“Someone called the authorities.We ran out of there, leaving everyone behind.Helena wasn’t looking good, and I saw the body of one of their team members, but I didn’t see the other two.They might have managed to escape.”
“What about the people resting in the cemetery?”
Vale grimaced.“I’m pretty sure you’re going to get a call from the cemetery.They’ll need help to get everyone back where they belong.”
Cyril sighed.Theywouldneed help, and who better to ask than him?Even though they didn’t know he’d been the person who’d caused it, they knew he was the best and that he could return everyone to their resting place.He’d do it pro bono because he doubted the cemetery could afford to pay him what it would normally take to hire him for this kind of job.
It was the least he could do after the people buried there had helped him save Vale.
Epilogue
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