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“Go on,” he said, nodding at me.
I didn’t know why I was suddenly so nervous, but I wanted the freaking animal to like me. I reached out slowly. It watched me, still feeding from Samkiel’s hand. My fingers touched his fur, and I smiled.
“He’s so soft. His fur feels like feathers.”
Samkiel watched me with a smile. “They are ancient. On Rashearim, they represented strength and power. The Lorveg stag was my mother’s symbol.”
My hand stilled as the stag raised its head. “Really?”
Samkiel nodded, his smile dropping. “Yes, and this is the last one left in the world.”
My chest felt tight. “How did you get him?”
He shrugged, wiping his now empty hands on his long shorts. “I saved what I could from Rashearim, but I also destroyed many in my grief. That is just one of many regrets I carry.”
Samkiel smiled, not at me this time, but toward the animal between us. I watched as he raised his hand, stroking down the side of the stag's neck. It chuffed, content as could be, but it was the distressed look filling Samkiel’s storm-clouded eyes that made me speak next.
“Oh, so you brought me out for a lesson, not to swim naked in a lake?”
I tried to lighten the mood, make a joke, anything to ease the hurt in his eyes. It was enough to make my own broken chest ache.
He nodded toward my hand, not rising to the bait. “Go ahead, feed him.”
I held my hand out, and the stag studied me. “What if he doesn’t like me?”
Samkiel continued to run his hand along the beast’s flank. “Only a fool would not.”
My small smile became a giggle as the stag’s bristled muzzle teased at my palm. “It tickles.”
Samkiel said nothing as he watched me. The stag ate all the berries and afterward grazed for the fallen ones as I petted him. Silence grew but not uncomfortably. It never was between us. I knew Samkiel brought me peace. I could spend hours just in his presence and never feel the need to break the silence. It was something I hadn’t even admitted to myself, much less told him, but one reason among so many, why I’d left in the first place.
“You know, when Gabby and I were younger, she loved these stories and fairy tales about princesses who could talk to animals.”
Samkiel glanced up at me over the slope of the stags’ back. “Do you think I am a princess?”
“Absolutely. You’re spoiled like one.”
A smile tugged at his lips. “Well, I hate to ruin your illusion, but I do not talk to them, not really. It is more so an understanding, I suppose.”
I nodded slowly, even as my lips twitched. “Sure thing, princess.”
His eyes cut to mine, and I had a second to regret my decision before he flicked his wrist, and lake water splashed over me.
I gasped, and the stag made a displeased noise in its throat.
“You.” I huffed, my arms and face dripping. “Didn’t.”
He shrugged, utterly unfazed, as he continued to pet the stag that grazed between us. “I did.”
My rebellious scream scared the stag away, but I got my revenge.
* * *
We reached a dirt path that curved toward the palace, both of us dripping water and covered in mossy greens. It took a lot of force, but I eventually pushed him into the lake. I suspected he’d let me, but I still called it a win. Surprisingly, it was quite challenging to drown a god. I caught him glancing at me every so often, a smile on his lips, and I found myself smiling back, both of us giggling like fools at the complete and absolute ridiculousness that had transpired in the lake. For once, I didn’t get lost in my head.
The sun danced off the tips of the turrets where they pierced the forest’s canopy. I hadn’t realized how large the place was until we were outside.
I grabbed the end of my shirt and wrung it out, water spilling onto the stone bridge.
