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I huffed, still unable to get the knot in my chest to loosen.
“Fair enough.”
The Domenent brushed my arm gently, tugging at the coils of my hair.
“Stop that pouting. It’s adorable and disarming.”
I fluttered my lashes, widening my eyes, as I tilted my head up at him. He groaned, tugging at my hair again.
“Stop it. Pouting won’t change your treachery.”
“But is it helping?”
A pause. “Yes, wicked little creature.”
I grinned, setting down the plate of treats.
“You won’t give me your name. Will you at least share some of your story? From before coming to Zurethe?”
He smiled down at me. This time, both dimples surfaced. The Domenent leaned down and brushed my cheek with a thumb. To my surprise, I didn’t recoil. Instead, I leaned closer. My heart began opening to him, wanting more.
“Well. No one has cared to ask that before.” A chuckle. “You’re full of surprises, faeretheth. Come. I won’t simply tell you my story.” His eyes twinkled, melting my resolve. If he asked me for anything in this moment, I wouldn’t deny him. He winked, setting my entire body ablaze. “I’ll show you.”
Zhèmson
Walking through the garden, I kept quiet. I trailed the beautiful Temptress as she soaked in my hidden paradise. An inferno of passion built inside of me the longer I remained by her side. I was too old to question how I felt about her. I already knew.
I burned for her.
When the trees sang, she oo’ed. When furry creatures, colored like painted skies, dashed passed us disappearing in thickets, she ah’ed. I’d flown us into the garden, but landed so we could walk through it. Every now and again she’d pause, bend down to smell the flowers, or reach up to brush the leaves from the trees. Whenever she pushed to her tiptoes and found herself too short, the trees would grace her by bending down so she could brush their leaves. The reverential act did something to me.
How long had it been since I’d felt emotions like this?
She was a conniving Temptress, sent here to ruin me, and hand me over on a silver platter to the Sky Watchers. Still, I desired to have her with a growing passion.
The Temptress was beautiful and brilliant. With every passing moment, she proved to be the missing piece of my world. Did I dare think I could win her over? Even if I did. What would come of it? We’d be stuck in this rotting tower, unable to leave.
I sighed as she twirled in the wind with a hand in the mist. The thin wisps were as alive as they were playful. They whirled around her curvy frame, tugging her hair, brushing her feet, and lifting her off the ground, before gently setting her back down.
“You know, if for a moment we forget this has been your prison for longer than I could count,” she said, spinning to face me. “You’d have to admit. This tower is paradise.” Her eyes were bright, shining with tears.
If only she knew how right she was.
Would I tell her my ansèt, my ancestors, built it? That former Domenent kings and queens would come here on sabbatical? That it indeed was a paradise, before it no longer was? I grunted, overcome by emotion. Who was this fae? How could she so easily worm her way into the crevices of my hearts?
I kicked off my sandals and removed my tunic, basking in the sòlight. There was a peacefulness in the garden that comforted me. My fôrs felt free. Light. I could let my ethèr loose as it replenished and strengthened.
While it drained inside the tower, it refueled outside of it. I’d tried staying outdoors for an extended time when I learned this, but somehow, by some authority beyond my own, I ended up in the tower again, where I slowly decayed.
I breathed deep, bending to brush my fingers through cloudy earth. Small, crystal pebbles filled my palm, tingling my hand.
“The tower is special. I don’t hate her. I hate that I’m forced to be chained to her.” A breath. “Besides. This imprisonment strips me of my duty to both angel and fae.”
“Duty.” Her silver eyes twinkled. “Explain.”
“Duty to merit justice. Keep peace. Foster growth. Prosperity. Protect and guide.” My chest twisted. “We have oaths, faeretheth. Oaths we carry until we cross into the Ellelights. I can’t do that locked away in the tower.”
I looked down at her. Her silken gown clung to her like liquid silver. Her purple hair lifted and fell at the tug of the breeze. Alpha above. Her beauty was striking. I wanted to take her in my arms and bury myself inside of her. So deep we wouldn’t be able to tell where she began, and I ended. She held my gaze and drew close, as if pulled by an invisible magnet. I rose to my feet, towering above her. I took her hand, and without a word, drew her to the Mist Trail.
