Jack floated through the winding corridors of the Holy Palace like a ghost deep in thought, [What do I do with Julia...? Haaaa~] Jack mentally sighed. It had been a long day, and he still didn't know how his God-Soul would interact in a soul union, so he couldn't wind down using such... Extracurricular activities, no matter how much he wanted.
[I need to check on Boss Crag. He should have taken over the South Eastern Undead Trading Company by now. If he hasn't then some of my plans for Bellum will be delayed.] Jack thought while he went to the front of his door, and with a swing of his hand the door opened, as if automatic. Jack did this unknowingly while thinking and didn't think about his actions that would shock most present-day Cultivators.
He went into his room and didn't even bother to take off his Holy garbs. He floated over to his evening tomb wondering why it was closed, as he waved his hand again. The latch mechanism popped and opened, from the inside. It was indeed a tomb that couldn't be cracked by anyone but an Ancestor Cultivator... Jack's God-Soul just happened to be ranked at Ancestor.
Without paying attention, the lid opened, and he let go of his Femur Ferula, to glide to the side, as he rolled over into his evening tomb, with his massive form including his pauldrons laying within... Thankfully the tomb could accommodate his massive form with a lot of room to spare.
He popped the mechanism from the inside, as the tomb shut, and only Jack's flaming eyes illuminated the inside of the tomb. Then, they shortly went out.
Just before Jack was going to suspend his weary mind and use his power to suppress the voice that would encroach on him while resting, he heard a stirring next to him, which finally aroused his attention.
[How did I miss Leslie in here? She must have returned to her body.] Jack thought to himself, as he moved his hand over to grab Leslie's... He wasn't going to try anything funny until he figured out how to settle his power, but he at least wanted contact with her. She was a touchy-feely zombie undead, anyway, and would appreciate his approach.
"How did you get back in from the outside?" A soft little voice sounded beside Jack, just when Jack had grabbed ahold of a little bone. He had searched for a few minutes trying to find something of Leslie but found that he held on to a bone, at least the pressure of his fingers told him it was hard and the shape of a... Hip bone?
[Wait... That isn't Leslie's voice?!] Jack's flaming eyes snapped open, as he turned his head to look at who was in his evening tomb, as the light of his eyes illuminated Emily in the darkness that was his tomb.
Both remained silent within the tomb for a long time, neither saying anything to each other.
"Is this a dream?" Emily asked in a small voice.
"Do undead dream?" Jack asked in reply casually, as if this was a normal occurrence.
"I have... I don't know what you should say to make me believe this isn't real... What is it those Zombie undead do to know it's a dream?"
"Pinch themselves?"
"Yeah... I can't really do that can I?" Emily thought out loud.
"Well, being a Skeletal undead does have its advantages," Jack replied tracing the lines on Emily's skull with his sight.
"You're being really nice... I guess this is a dream." Emily spoke rather blandly now that her hopes dashed.
"Well... I have a tough time telling whether this is a dream or not... I mean one day I died, and here I am... Who knew right?"
"You died?"
"...Many times, actually... Many times... Would you like to hear a quote I heard before... It's something I think about from time to time." Jack asked as he continued to feel around the hip bone he was holding.
Emily didn't make a comment on what Jack was doing, but it made her soul stir a bit, and feel slightly out of place.
"I like old sayings. What quote?" Emily asked.
"'I was the first you know. For me, the wheel of death has spun many times. So much time has passed... I have a lot of catching up to do.' When the old undead died again, he simply said, 'The Wheel... Spins... Again.'" Jack finished.
"How many times did he come back?" Emily asked wondering.
"Honestly... I don't know. I kind of feel the same. I've died for stupid reasons, and now I think on that quote... Will the wheel spin again for me the next time I come across that threshold, or will it be my last?"
"Do you want the wheel to spin?"
"I don't know. I'm very tired. I have so much to do... And I don't feel like I can do anything right. All I do is act day in and day out... I hurt those that I wish to see happy, and I lie to make others feel better. Haaaa~ I'm sure you don't want to see the sappy and sorry side of the king, but this is how I am..." Jack said feeling depressed. He had so much on his mind, that he just blurted out what he was thinking. He never intended to tell Emily any of this... He had never intended to bring this back up with Leslie, either.
"This is pretty deep for a dream," Emily spoke up after some thought.
"I don't think this is your dream."
"Isn't... My dream?" Emily asked again, "I'm pretty sure this is me. So, it can't be someone else's dream." she continued.
"Then this isn't a dream..." Jack said simply.
"Then how do I know I'm not dreaming besides this?"
"Should I act for you?" Jack asked.
"Act?"
"Yes. I can act like I usually do if it will make you feel better?" Jack had a teasing voice.
"Try it."
Jack's morose voice immediately changed, "So my second Consort has seen fit to enter my chambers, and even place herself in my evening tomb. Couldn't stop yourself, I see."
Emily was shocked by the sudden change and didn't speak.
"Oh, I can tell by your silence, that it must be true. Then come into my arms so that I can hold my second Consort." Jack turned on his side, and with his hand that was holding Emily by the hip bone moved up to grab her and turned her to become his little spoon. She was just the right size to be a teddy bear.
"Isn't that better."
Finally, Emily squeaked out, "No. It's not."
"Oh? I don't remember you being so strong-willed. Does your husband need to teach you a lesson?" Jack asked with a heavy voice. A voice that reminded Emily of the pile of skulls in the middle of the palace square. This was the Jack she remembered.
"Alright, you made your point... Stop being like that. I liked you better before you started acting like this. I don't like you like this." Emily intended to say this firmly, but it only waffered out into the air in a whisper.
"I see. I thought as much. I'm sorry I'm like this." Jack let her go and put her back where she was, as he turned back on his back. He kept his eyes on her with his head turned, but this time instead of holding her hip, in placed her small head into the palm of his skeletal hand, under her spider webbed hair. He held her softly, as a skeletal undead could hold another of its kind. This pressure wasn't lost on Emily, and it warmed a part of her heart.
"I like this."
"Yeah... So, do I." Jack said as he looked at the tiny profile of Emily.
"So, everything you do is an act?"
"Everything I say is an act. Everything I do is real... Does that make any sense to you?" Jack asked as he was unsure if the meaning was being conveyed properly.
"So, the way you spoke to me the day you met me, the way you spoke to me the day you made me your consort, and the way you spoke to me the day you went into secluded cultivation... That wasn't what you really meant?"
"I meant what I said, just not the way I said it."
"I see..." Emily said, as she paused, and asked something that was on her mind, "Do you love me?"
"What?" Jack asked as this train of thought derailed into a train wreck within his mind.
"Do you love me?" Emily asked again, but with a firmer voice.
"Haaaa~ Do you want the truth, or would you rather me lie to you?" Jack asked.
"...I want the truth..."
"I don't love you, but I can come to love you. At the moment, I am fond of you, and I am indebted to you. If you choose to continue to be my Consort, I will give you anything your heart desires. If you wish to no longer be my Consort. I will release you and you may find your true love, or you may just continue to be your own love. I won't hold you against your will." Jack said with a bit of softness in his voice that was rarely heard from him since he entered this world, only Leslie had heard this voice before...
"Is it because I'm in a child's body that you don't favor me? Am I not pretty enough as a Skeletal undead? Am I not smart enough? Well-bred enough? Do I not come from a high enough background?" Emily asked with a bit stronger voice. It seemed her time with Leslie was returning dividends.
"These things help me love someone, but none of these things are required for me to love someone..." Jack said after a bit of thought.
Emily remembered her mother's words and finally decided to act on them.
She turned over, with her head still in Jack's palm. She gazed into the flames of his eyes, as she spoke the words her mother told her.
"Jack..."
"Mmmmm?" Jack wondered what this tone meant.
"I want to be yours."
"...?!?"
"You're the most powerful undead in all of the Underworld, that commands the lava oceans and the causes the mountains to bow. A literal god among undead. What female wouldn't want your attention? What female doesn't want your love, attention, or affection?"
Jack felt that this was a bit of an exaggeration, but he didn't mind listening to such things.
"With just a heroic figure, you can wave your left hand and you can bury armies, and with your right hand hold the lava rivers hostage." Emily continued to coo her words.
[Did she watch me outside? Could she see what I was doing in Zitergall?] Jack wondered.
"I'm yours if you want. Will you have me?" Emily asked again, but with a slightly more mature voice than her usual tone.
Even Jack who heard Leslie regularly felt odd from this whisper, though he remained silent feeling this was such odd behavior.
A period of silence ensued, as Emily gritted her teeth to finally break the silence... "You want me to beg? Fine... I beg you to make me your... Make me your whore." She had pulled herself from his palm, and closer to him, as she held onto Jack's rib cage.
Jack unconsciously held the tiny lolita in his arms, as he heard the seductive voice of Emily.