Page 70 of Shardless
“What do you mean?”
Another snort. She peered up at him, mouthing a single word: “Je-ze-bel.”
Skye barked out a laugh. “Touché,” he said, planting a sloppy kiss on the crown of her head. “I think I owe you a turn now.” He took the bottle when she handed it to him. “Well, two turns.”
Taly yawned. “We’re out of coins. Someone’s going to have to get up.”
Skye slumped down, taking Taly with him and tucking her more firmly into his side. “Not worth it. Just ask me something. I’ll answer.”
“So much power.” Her words were starting to slur together as she laid her head against his chest. Her fingers pushed aside the edges of his shirt as she traced one of the seals tattooed beneath his collarbone. “Tell me something about you that I don’t know,” she commanded, her warm breath fanning out against his skin.
The heat of her lying next to him coupled with the alcohol had him feeling wonderfully languid, and he pulled her in closer. “Technically, that’s not a question.”
He gave a small whine at the sudden rush of cold air when she pulled away so that she could drunkenly glare at him. “Fine. What’s something I don’t know about you?”
Skye briefly considered telling her about the events of last summer—about Ava. That night still crept into his nightmares, and on any given day, the scent of blood would unexpectedly sneak up on him.
No, he thought, his heart slightly stumbling when Taly smiled at him. He didn’t want to ruin this. Whateverthiswas, it felt too good to tarnish with bad memories.
“Okay. I’ve got something for you,” Skyefinally said. “You remember when you thought you saw fairy fire outside your window?”
“Yes,” Taly replied cautiously.
Skye set the bottle aside and braced himself. “That wasn’t fairy fire. That was me in the tree with a lantern.”
Skye bit back a grin. He had gotten exactly the reaction he wanted. She froze, staring at him with wide eyes as she tried to grapple with this startling revelation. “You…” she sputtered, shaking her head. “How could… why would… Shards, you jerk!” Skye was laughing so hard he barely managed to grab her fists when she started thrashing him. “Why would you do that?” she cried, struggling against him.
“Because it was too good of an opportunity to pass up!” Skye wheezed. Tears were starting to stream down his face as he continued to howl with laughter. “Obviously, you were dreaming the first night you saw it, but every night after? That was all me. I even started moving things around your room so you’d think that the fairies had done it.” That prompted another scream of rage, and Skye threw a leg over her own when she started kicking at him. When she finally quieted down, he asked, “Are you done now?”
“I’m going to get you for that,” came the muffled reply. She had slumped against him, her face crushed against his shoulder. “When you least expect it, I’ll be there.”
“And I’ll be waiting.” Shifting, he pulled her back against him, tucking her into his side. “My turn.”
“Wrong. It’s still my turn,” she said, grabbing the bottle and thrusting it towards him. “I say drink. You still have far too many of your faculties.It’s hardly fair.”
Skye took a long draught, almost choking on the liquor when his next question popped into his mind. “Okay then. Like I was saying—my turn. Prepare yourself.”
Once again, he set the bottle off to the side and readied himself for a beating. Even though this wasn’t where he thought he would be spending his evening a few hours ago, there was no other place he’d rather be right now.
It was going to be a fun night.
Chapter 15
-An excerpt from the 27thVolume of Shadow Magic: A Manual of Best Practice Standards for the Ethical Application of Aether Contamination Spells
The subject of the forbidden rituals inevitably arises when new restrictions on the practice of shadow magic are proposed. Shadow mages, by their very nature, control the flow of aether. By extension, this applies to the aether of those around them. The power to manipulate another mage’s personal aether pool grants shadow mages the unique ability to exert influence on other fey.
Aether contamination spells (i.e., spells that require blood to be ingested by the target) are among the most hotly debated branch of spellcasting. These enchantments function by allowing the shadow mage to infect or contaminate another mage’s pool of aether with their own. The desired enchantmentcan then be enacted by penning the correct series of runes onto the subject’s skin.
Though there are various accepted methods to anchor a spell, embedding crystals into the subject’s body is by far the most common approach. If the spell is not anchored, its effects will dissipate as soon as the target is able to metabolize the foreign aether. An anchored enchantment, however, can remain active for decades, sometimes centuries.
Except for aether suppression spells, most classes of spells that require aether contamination are either regulated by the Shadow Guild or banned by formal ruling of the Genesis Council. Ascendancy, desecration, and necrotic renewal are among those rituals that have been forbidden and struck from the public record.
Taly cracked open her eyes. The curtains were drawn, but a thin sliver of sunlight peeked through a gap in the sheets of fabric, blazing a fiery trail across the dimly lit room. Her mouth felt dry, sticky with saliva, and a dull pressure throbbed behind her eyes. The pain ebbed and flowed, sweeping her closer and closer to consciousness with each undulating wave.
Could be worse, she thought drowsily.
Though her memory of the previous night was a little hazy, Taly did recall that she and Skye had managed to finish off the entire bottle of brandy. While Skye, being both a shadow mageanda highborn, probably wouldn’t suffer anything more than a fleeting headache come morning, Taly hadfully expected to wake up with one of the worst hangovers of her life. But, strangely enough, even though her head felt fit to crack open, it was nothing a little coffee and a greasy breakfast couldn’t fix. She’d take that as a win.
