Chapter 6 #2
“I certainly wouldn’t say that in so many words,” Sebastien said, with a conspiratorial wink, “certainly not out loud. But let’s just consider that employing a useful tool and appreciating what it can do for you is a far cry from having a member of your own family, your own blood as one of them?
” He pulled an aghast face, accurately evoking the pinched expression of a courtier filled with outrage.
“How lowering. How so very … plebeian,” he said in such a horrified whisper that she nearly laughed.
His own blood … Not all magic-workers came from parents who were sorcerers, but usually there were others somewhere in the bloodline with the power, such as aunts, uncles, grandparents.
Some families deliberately planned marriage alliances to breed for gifted children.
Her own parents had been chosen for each other for exactly that reason.
With the many magic academies vying for the best students, a powerfully magical child, especially one with one of the rarer talents, would bring in a tidy income.
No one escaped consigning their children to the blood geas and contracting them to an academy, so they might as well enjoy an influx of wealth to compensate for the loss of an heir.
“Do you not have sorcerous ability running in the family?” she asked, likely an impudent question from the likes of her to a verified prince, but he had sought her out after all. Never mind that part of her had been hoping against logic that he would.
He slid his merrily sparkling green eyes from side to side, as if checking for eavesdroppers.
“Now there’s the rub, isn’t it?” he said in a stage whisper.
“Am I a cuckoo left in the royal nest? Perhaps my sainted mother had a bit of a walk on the magically wild side or—horrors!—was she somehow magical herself and the king plowed her unknowingly? Believe me, the questions have been asked. But not answered as she who possessed those answers has crossed over to the realm of the dead. Thus, an additional reason for His Majesty’s, ah, concern about my new status.
At least I wasn’t executed for illegally harboring a sorcerous gift, so that was a definite upside.
That part is secret, though,” he confided.
Though he sounded entirely cavalier, Rose suspected Sebastien’s cheer masked a deep unhappiness.
That had to have been a hard fall even for a prince not expecting to become king.
And to have lost his mother, too. “I’m sorry,” she said, meaning it sincerely, though the words felt meager in the face of the magnitude of his troubles.
He cocked his head. “I do believe you are, sorry for me, that is. How very outré of you. Typically nobody pities a prince.”
“Sympathy isn’t pity.”
“True enough. Besides which, as you pointed out nearly immediately, discovering I’m a sorcerer, however pedestrian my talents and power, is hardly an event most people would see as a bad thing.
And … I like it here. There are definite perks to being here at HASP.
” He glanced around at the shelves, the ornately carved ceiling with its flying buttresses and gargoyle faces peering from the shadows, lively gaze skimming the rows of books before settling on her face, warm fascination in his eyes. “You strike me as one of them.”
She shouldn’t feel all fluttery. Courtiers like him flirted as easily as breathing.
He couldn’t actually be interested in her, but her cheeks grew warm with a blush anyway, the sexual need she thought she’d successfully deferred roaring new demands.
“I figured you weren’t talking about the food.
Like me, it’s unpalatable to most tastes. ”
He barked out a laugh, tipping his head back to release the joyful sound, displaying a long and tempting throat, his skin as golden as the rest of him.
She had to restrain the impulse to lean in and lick that tempting length.
“After living at court, yes, I do find the food leaves something to be desired. You, however, are most desirable. Far more so than any shallow court lady. Shall I count the ways you intrigue me?”
“Please, no,” she answered immediately, and a bit too strongly, then found herself flushing.
She clearly possessed no skills to counter a determined flirtation and she would need them when she took a job in a court somewhere.
The cardinal rule of this sort of thing, from what she’d observed, was to not take it seriously.
It was a game, nothing more. “I mean, no need to trouble yourself.”
“As you wish, though I reserve the right to try again in the future.” He continued to gaze at her with such warm admiration that Rose, flustered, fumbled for something more to say.
“So, you, ah, like it here then?” she asked, wishing the bland question back as soon as she asked it. He already said so.
“I do,” he answered easily, seeming happy to have the opening.
“There is something to be said for finding one’s, shall we say, tribe.
For the first time in my life, I feel I’m among friends,” he added, the most serious she’d yet heard him speak.
“I don’t need to be a big fish, which is a good thing, as my gift is so small. I’m just happy to have found my pond.”
“What is your talent?” she asked, realizing she didn’t know. “Or talents.”
He leaned in with a conspiratorial smile. “Just the one. Turns out I can talk to the animals.”
Unusual. “Zoopathy,” she told him, and he grimaced, charmingly, of course.
“I know. But saying I can talk to the animals sounds more fun, don’t you think? Ruff ruff! Mrow. Rawr. Bwok.”
She found herself smiling at his antics—and quite accurate mimicking of the animal calls and movements, making claws of his fingers and flapping his elbows like wings.
Then she shook her head at herself for wasting time with this silliness.
There were good reasons she’d forgone romance this far and those hadn’t changed.
She must keep them firmly in mind. “I should go.”
“Please don’t go.” He seemed sincerely distressed. “I’ve been trying to find an opportunity to talk to you since our one perfect dance and now that I have, I’ve already blown it.”
“Why did you want to talk to me?” she asked briskly, trying to sound as if she expected something school-related. Not that she hoped he’d suggest something … steamier. Maybe whatever answer he gave would provide insight into the reason he devoted so much effort with her.
He grimaced a little, adorably, turning it into a half smile.
“Because you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen?
Plus powerful. Everyone here says how you’re the best oneiromancer since Oneira herself and definitely the star of this little academy.
But I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know.
Everyone here is in awe of you. I’ve always been attracted to powerful things, so of course I wanted to get a little closer to the sun. ”
Reading between the lines, Rose easily deciphered his intent.
This was about her sorcerous ability. Rather than being hurt or disappointed, however, she found herself relaxing.
This made more sense than him being truly attracted to her.
And she knew how to handle power seekers.
“Careful,” she replied, giving in to the flirtation a bit.
Good practice for her. “You might get burned.”
“Mmm, I hope so. Or at least warmed,” he murmured, edging a bit closer. She tensed a little, waiting to feel crowded. Moving slowly, he picked up a long lock of her hair where it fell over her shoulder. “Your hair is like a spill of midnight ink.”
Oh, he was a true proficient. “I’m not sure that’s a good thing,” she replied, marveling at how she didn’t mind his proximity, the light touch. In fact … she wanted more.
He lifted his green gaze to hers. “Believe me, it is. One of the thousand compelling things about you. You fascinate me. But I’m wrong.
You’re not the sun, are you? You’re the moon, gleaming against the starless night.
A midnight rose. I’d love to know more.” He stood there, long, elegant fingers softly rolling that lock of hair between them as he held her gaze. Tempting.