Page 301 of Vasmora

Waited.

Waited.

Nothing.

Rykaia chuckled. “Typical male to ignore you. Funny though, they almost always come within seconds.”

A bowstring croaked as the quartet abruptly stopped playing.

Zevander groaned beside me, and I pressed my lips to keep from chuckling.

Rykaia cleared her throat. “Perhaps you could try again, Maevyth.”

I gave a quick nod and whistled again, searching the sky for the cluster of ravens.

Seconds ticked by.

No sign of Raivox anywhere.

A creeping sensation crawled up the back of my neck. He never ignored my call.

Rykaia flicked her gaze to the sky and back to me. “Well, we may need to consider the dance after⁠—”

A violent gale ruffled the tunnel, creaking the woven branches, and I stepped outside of it in time to see four Corvugons zoom overhead. Raivox, Achlys, and two smaller ones trailing after them.

Dresses ruffled and hair whipped in disarray, as they hovered over us, moments before their talons punched the ground with a thunderous crack.

The crowd whispered around me as I made my way toward him, with Zevander following close behind. I took Zevander’s hand and, with my clawed nails, guided him up Raivox’s scaled foreleg and onto his back. Satin and lace bunched around me as my dress caught on rough scales.

Zevander settled in behind me, one hand around my waist, the other gripping Raivox’s horn.

“Fly, Raivox.”

A hard flap of his wings sent us surging up into the sky, Zevander’s grip tightening as we climbed upward toward the stars.

Once he leveled out, Zevander exhaled and rested his head on my shoulder. “I hate taking flight,” he said.

I smiled. “Are you serious? That’s my favorite part.”

Below us, the archway stood as an enchanting stretch of light, with its many candles and star motes. The crowd had gathered outside of it, nothing but a small, dark cluster from that height.

An object flickered past me, and I turned to see a lantern floating upward. Another slipped past. Raivox banked left, and I peered down at the hundreds of lanterns floating toward us. Like a sea of floating stars rising up from the depths. As they drifted alongside us, I reached out, my fingertip only brushing the parchment of one that sailed past me.

“There you are. The stars within your reach,” I said, smiling.

The arm banded at my waist tightened. “I have the brightest of them all right here.”

“I’ll admit. Rykaia had me worried for a moment. I thought I was going to have to strip out of this dress in front of all those people.”

“Would you prefer to consummate the bond here?”

I snapped my head to the side. “On Raivox?”

“Why not?” Zevander shrugged. “I’ve never done that in the air before. I’m sure he won’t mind.”

The moment he spoke the words, the world around me spun upside down, and I felt Zevander slide from behind me.

“Fuuuuuuck!” His curse echoed, and it didn’t occur to me what’d happened at first, until I peered over Raivox’s wing to find Zevander plummeting toward the crowd below.