Gabriel & Raven
“Why, by the love of the Mountain, does Penelope believe it will take both of us to solve a simple problem of wayward magic?” King Gabriel stomped through the deep snow toward the cabin on the Darnuith mountainside, leaving steaming footprints in his wake.
Queen Raven supposed her mate had a kingdom to rule, and fixing the neighboring ruler’s problems wasn’t high on his priorities, but Penelope, as a fellow witch, was her closest friend and the regent of a neighboring kingdom. It annoyed her he couldn’t be charitable this one time.
“I don’t know, Gabriel. Maybe she thought the cool air would soothe that hot head of yours,” Raven said with a smile, although it was clear from Gabriel’s answering scowl he didn’t see the humor.
“Goddess, the snow must be three feet deep,” he grumbled. “Why do I feel that Penelope simply didn’t want to break a nail? I don’t suppose you can Bippity Boppity Boop this away?”
Raven snorted. “Sadly, no. The snow and blustery weather are part of the Kingdom of Darnuith’s defense system and therefore enchanted by the region’s most powerful witches. Nothing we want to mess with magically, unless you’re a fan of freezing to death under two tons of avalanched snow.”
“Damn pain in my ass,” he grumbled, and Raven hoped he was talking about Penelope and not her. It was hard to tell these days with his general and persistent state of grumpiness.
“Honestly, Gabriel, is it that much of a burden? Penelope is one of my best friends and she’s never asked us for anything.
It shouldn’t take us long, working together.
If you can’t find the space in that workaholic heart of yours to do something purely for personal reasons, consider it an act of political good will.
Gabriel whirled to face her just outside the door to the cabin. “Workaholic heart?”
She stomped up to him until the tips of her boots touched his. “If the crown fits,” she said through clenched teeth.
He opened his mouth to answer her, no doubt with some snide comment of his own, when they were both distracted by the ornate door to the cabin swinging open of its own accord.
Raven narrowed her eyes on the carving, which depicted the knotted and bare branches of a tree in winter.
Penelope hadn't explained exactly what was wrong with the cabin, only that mischievous magic enchanted it and pestered the local population.
Certainly, nothing seemed off-kilter about the cozy, fire-lit interior inside the cabin.
A massive feather bed filled most of the room, alongside a small table with an inviting bouquet of wildflowers and a simple kitchen that ran the far wall.
Multiple candles gave the place an almost sacred feel.
“It’s like a church at Christmas,” Raven whispered, keeping with the solemn feel of the place. “Did you know it’s Christmas on Earth right now?”
Gabriel stuck his head inside the cabin as if he hadn’t heard her. “Did Penelope tell you what was wrong with the cabin?” he asked gruffly. “Is it safe to go inside?”
“No, but she did say it wasn’t dangerous, just ornery.”
“Ornery?” Gabriel harrumphed.
“The dragon-shifter king of Paragon isn’t scared of a little impish magic, is he?
” Pushing past him, Raven stepped inside, rubbing her outer arms. “As for me, I’d rather face the magic than the cold.
” She held out her hands to the fire, watching Gabriel stew just outside the door.
Once he saw that the floor didn’t open up and eat her, he seemed to resolve himself to the task and stepped inside.
The door slammed shut behind him.
Gabriel cursed, whirled around, and tugged on the handle. “It won’t open,” he said, his tone flavored with annoyance and a drop of accusation.
Raven waved a dismissive hand in the air.
“I’ve got it.” Drawing on her magic, she cast a spell on the door to unlock it, but when she tugged on the handle, it wouldn’t budge.
Worse, now that she was touching the cabin with her bare skin, she was getting a good taste of its magic.
She glanced back at the dark storm cloud that was her husband and tittered. “Oops.”
Gabriel’s hands landed on his hips, and a vein in his forehead pulsed like he might blow a gasket. “Explain.”
“This cabin’s magic isn’t exactly what Penelope described. It’s, um, not wayward so much as prescriptive.”
“What?”
A shimmer from atop the table saved her from having to explain, because a red envelope popped into existence next to the flowers.
Gabriel marched over to it and broke the seal.
“Merry Christmas from all of us. Enjoy the accommodations. We are all in agreement that you need them,” he read aloud.
“It’s signed from Penelope and everyone else who loves you. What the hell does that mean?”
Raven turned slowly, taking in the overflowing bowl of fruit, the pristine cabin, the fresh flowers on the table, and the roaring fire. She started to laugh. “I think our friends have given us a romantic night alone in this cabin for Christmas.”
Gabriel pinched the bridge of his nose. “Incredibly untimely. I’m supposed to meet Nathaniel about some issue he has with one of our inter-realm trade routes.
And, I must address the lunar festival overlapping with Everfield’s celestial alignment celebration, or we’re going to have a bunch of drunk vampires chasing fairies—pure havoc.
Plus about a thousand other things. I don’t have time for this! ”
“Out of curiosity, how far down your to-do list is our relationship?” Raven said, crossing her arms and leaning a shoulder against the mantel.
His brow furrowed. “You know it’s not about that. We have a duty to the kingdom. This—” He gestured madly around the room. “Whatever this is, can wait.”
Gabriel tugged at the door handle again, even resorting to bracing his foot against the wall.
Raven broke into raucous laughter. “My God, I know the honeymoon is over, Gabriel, but I never thought you’d resort to a dragon-shaped hole in the wall to avoid a night alone with me.”
He abandoned the door and came to stand before her, eyes blazing. “This isn’t about avoiding you. There’s nothing funny about this situation, Raven. We are prisoners here. What if someone is using this opportunity to attack the kingdom?”
She waved a hand dismissively. “We’re not under attack. Our friends locked us in to give us time alone together. They must have noticed that we needed it. That door isn’t going to open until we accept the gift and spend the night here. Is that so bad? A night alone with your wife.”
“Of course not,” he barked, but his gaze moved to the window and the blizzard now blowing between them and Paragon.
Raven frowned at the tension she saw in his shoulders. Her husband had always been the growly sort, but never outwardly grinchy. Something deeper was plaguing him tonight, and she needed to find out what. “Gabriel…”
A resounding pfsssst, filled the room, and Raven turned toward the sound. The fire had extinguished itself, although smoke still curled off the logs and a few embers glowed from the grate. “Weird,” she said. “Plenty of wood left to burn.
“I’ve got it,” Gabriel said, stomping to the hearth.
He drew a deep breath and blew dragon fire across the logs.
But although his efforts were enough to leave the bricks of the fireplace glowing red, the wood refused to catch.
Eventually, he ran out of breath and stared at the logs as if they’d betrayed him.
“Was that there before?” Raven pointed at a brass plaque fastened to the hearth.
Gabriel’s lips peeled back from his teeth. “To kindle true, speak truth.”
Raven giggled. “Clever cabin. The fire will only ignite if we speak the truth to one another. A truth from the heart, I presume.” She shivered against a sudden burst of cold that blasted down the chimney and blew back her black hair.
“Yes, yes, I believe I have it right. The cabin would like us to share the truths weighing on our hearts.”
“Here’s a truth,” Gabriel snarled, “I hate it here and I want to go back to the palace.”
Another gust of air powered down the chimney. A plume of ash ballooned in Gabriel’s direction, covering him in soot. He wiped a hand over each eye and then across his mouth until Raven couldn’t hold back her laughter. “You look like a smiley face.”
“Raven!”
“Don’t bark at me, dragon. I’m not responsible.” With a snap of her fingers, she used her magic to clean Gabriel up, sending the ash up the chimney.
“Thank you,” Gabriel grumbled.
With a deep breath, Raven said, “I’ll go first. I miss you. You've spent too much time on royal duties, and I believe you've consequently neglected your family. Neglected… me.” A spark flickered among the logs but fizzled out just as fast. “There, that’s the type of truth it wants. Now you.”
“I haven’t been neglecting you. I’m king. I’ve been doing my job. Same as always.”
Raven frowned. “It doesn’t feel the same as always. It feels like you refuse to allow anyone else to help you. Charlie, Nathaniel, or Marius could and would lend a hand if you asked them, but you seem afraid to hand over the reins. It’s almost as if you don’t trust them.”
“I trust them, Raven. And I do allow them to handle things sometimes. Why, we just had that dinner date at the Silver Sunset. You ordered the roast.”
“That was almost three months ago, and you left during dessert to check in on Charlie. She was fine, by the way.”
“Three months?” He squinted, looking powerfully bewildered.
“We haven’t even…” Her gaze flicked to the bed. “in just as long.”
“Not true,” he said defensively. “We’ve slept in the same bed every night.”
“Slept being the operative word.” She crossed her arms again.
“Impossible. Perhaps you simply don’t remember.”
She tipped her head, her lips curling with her arched brow.
“I suppose that’s worse,” he mumbled. “It appears I owe you an apology.”
“I don’t need an apology. I need the truth. Quickly, before we freeze to death.” The temperature in the cabin had dropped so abruptly that she was shivering.