Chapter 17 #2
"Ugh," she groaned, "But you didn't cause the near genocide of my kind or breed a hate so deep it's lasted thousands of years."
"Hey, give me as many years as Luce has had, and maybe I'd get up to some mischief.
" It was a joke, but I also wanted to point out just how long he'd been around as a reminder.
"You said the reason this all started was because he was hopeful he would find his fated mate.
I can't imagine just how lonely he has been. "
Truly, I did sympathize with that aspect.
"Yeah..." she said, then trailed off as her shoulders drooped forward a bit. "I've been so lonely for my whole life despite having my dad and Zurie. He had no family once he was cast down to Hell."
"I'm sure that hurt as well. To have no family. No friends. No love in his life at all. Imagine living that reality for as long as he has," I gently said, not wanting to excuse his actions in any way, but rationalizing why he’d been driven to them.
"I just...I just want him to stop trying to defend himself for it all and acting like he's a different man now than he was then," she admitted. "Change is reflected through actions, not words."
She wasn't wrong there, but he had shown a very selfless side of himself.
"Baby..." I started, trying to figure out how to tactfully state this.
"You said he's been waiting a literal eternity for the love of his life.
His fated mate. He finally got you, and maybe it took him a bit to process, reflect, and accept that it wasn't working out, but in the end, he made a selfless decision in letting the one thing he has always wanted walk out of his life. "
Her eyes widened as my words sank in, and her mouth parted slightly. "Yeah, he did," she agreed with a nod of her head as she looked up at the mountains behind us.
It was definitely a change of pace between us for me to be the voice of reason and help her work through this.
I quite enjoyed being able to be this pillar for her right now.
It also helped me show her that there was more to me than the self-centered jerk I’d shown her for the majority of our time together.
"He's an immortal being with what sounds like some deep emotional wounds," I surmised. "He probably needs more than a couple days to change and become the man you know he can be."
"When did you get so wise, bird boy?" she asked, a lightness to her that hadn’t been there before.
I scoffed in mock defense, "Who are you calling bird boy, bat girl?" using the animal equivalent to her wings as well. We didn’t have the exact same animals as the human realm, but we had variations of the common animals they had.
Gathering her into my arms, I tickled her sides, loving the genuine smile that lit up her face as she squealed, "Colt! Stop!"
Releasing my wings, I launched us into the air, making her scream in surprise, and her long, ebony hair billowed around her as we ascended.
The glee on her face brought a smile to my own.
Quickly, we reached the top of the mountain, breaking through the thin layer of clouds, and the view was beautiful as the sun set on the realm.
"Oh," she breathed out, taking it in with happiness shining in her stunning pink eyes, “It’s so beautiful.”
I had to hold in my cheesy remark about it not even being a fraction of the beauty that I saw in her.
It was obvious to anyone with eyes how stunning she was on the outside, but to know the depths of Ama’s heart was to know true beauty.
Wholesome and pure, she reflected the good of the realm despite having been treated like dirt.
How different would the realm be if more of us had her heart?
My wings pumped steadily, keeping us afloat.
I knew she could keep herself up with her own wings, but I quite enjoyed holding her and feeling in charge of the moment.
Our memories were made up of small pieces of time that stuck with us forever, be they bad or good, but this moment…
it was everything to me. It felt like a fresh start for us that held all of our dreams just on the horizon, well within our grasp.
"Colt?" she asked as she looked up at me from beneath her long, dark lashes, pulling me from my thoughts.
"Yes, baby?"
Her brows pinched together ever so slightly, as if she had been thinking hard about what she was about to say.
"When the war is over and everything is settled—because I refuse to accept any other outcome—I think I'd like to visit Luce and try to figure things out with him at a slow pace," she admitted, biting her lip once more.
"I don't want to give up on him. I just didn't want to be kept away from you all. "
Pulling her head to my chest, I stroked the back of her head and took a deep breath. "Then that's what we will do. It's as simple as that."
"I love you, bird boy," she murmured against my chest, rubbing her cheek into my chest as if trying to burrow in closer to me.
"I love you, bat girl," I responded, loving saying the words to her out loud. I would say them so often she'd get fucking sick of it, but I didn't care. She was my treasure. My mate. My baby.
Overwhelming emotion poured through me, and I squeezed her to me tighter. My hand roamed down to stroke her lower back and brushed against the curve of her ass. I grunted as she wrapped her legs around my waist in one swift move, pushing her heat against my still throbbing erection.
Her head pulled back, a mischievous smile aimed at me as my other hand moved lower to cup her bare ass to me now, the jacket completely riding up in this position.
Black wings appeared on her back, flapping slightly as they enjoyed stretching out for the first time during our flight.
I knew that sensation well, as I kept my wings tucked away quite often due to their size.