Chapter 11 #2
She nodded and linked her hands around his elbow as if it was second nature. There was that tingle again, but this time it was only a gentle reminder of something Azrion couldn’t remember.
They took the stone path through the garden, and Azrion told Kat she was in for a treat, but he wasn’t expecting her to come to a complete halt when they rounded the thickest shrubbery. The sounds always hit one first, and Kat’s curiosity turned to awe when she saw the waterfall.
The Vumheri estate was built into a rocky outcropping, slate walls crafted from existing stone and jutting up into the sky.
Teal water plunged over the edges of its highest balconies to collect on lower ones and continue on, sparkling brilliantly under the stars where it pooled at the oldest manor’s entrance and spread across the grounds.
The gardens here were more water than plant, streams and ponds spreading out from the base of the waterfall to wind between slate platforms and beneath narrow bridges.
“Oh, my gods,” Kat finally breathed, pressing fingertips to her lips as she took it in unblinking. “It’s all magic,” she said. “It must be.”
“Old magic,” Azrion offered as she slipped out of his hold and went to the pool’s edge.
She hitched her skirt and knelt, and the shimmering surface of the water illuminated her in gentle teal light, dancing in ripples and waves over her golden skin.
She leaned toward one of the many lanterns that floated in the pool, so he called it with magic close enough to touch.
“The Vumheris are an ancient bloodline, and some of the oldest magics run in their veins. Constructing something like this would be too complex and time consuming now, but this home was crafted ages ago by some of the first demons summoned from the scar.”
Every shade of blue flickered over Kat’s face as she lifted it to gaze at the steepled manor. “It’s beautiful.”
Azrion hummed, lost in another beauty as one would expect during this particular scene.
“Your family’s like this too?” she asked, suddenly getting to her feet and almost tipping into the water.
Azrion caught her arm, and he felt a strange twinge at the question. “A bit, though we’re not as…wet.” Normally he would be exceptionally proud of the age of the Zizreni name and the power it carried, but under Katarina’s anxious eyes it felt much less impressive.
She took a deep breath. “Are they going to be here?”
“My parents already paid their respects at the ceremony. They’re not terribly fun, so they’ve already left.”
“I missed the ceremony?” Kat looked like she might throw up.
“The Vumheris observe very old marriage customs, and only a few are invited beneath the waterfall to witness the ceremony. The celebration, however, is for many more. Come, we don’t want to miss that.”
Kat took his elbow again, and that familiar warmth crept up his arm as he tugged her close. There would be a crowd up ahead, and she would need reassurance—at least, that’s what he told himself.
They followed one of the narrow bridges around a tall sprawl of trees and found the heart of the post-wedding party.
The largest platform was littered with demons who were mingling, dancing, and drinking.
Kat’s stride slowed, and Azrion let his pace fall in line with hers. “It will be all right,” he said.
“I’m the only human.” Her fingers tightened on his arm.
“Then consider yourself a guest of honor.”
She scowled at him—that wasn’t the right thing to say, but then again perhaps it was. Kat couldn’t be nervous if she was angry.
“An ambassador for all of humanity,” he needled.
“Me?” She swallowed visibly, but her scowl deepened.
“Why not? Your compatriots could only be so lucky. And here’s your opportunity to make a glowing first impression. Fenthorn!” Azrion waved at a pair of blue horns rising above the crowd of demons.
Kat fanned at her face and snorted. “The other women deserve better. I can’t—”
“Katarina, I am only joking,” he said, bumping her side gently with his elbow. “That demon is just my closest friend, no one you need to bother impressing, and he’s—” Azrion cleared his throat. “Apparently he’s brought Tuli…”
Kat’s touch slid up his arm as she asked in a low voice devoid of its prior shakiness, “What’s wrong?”
Azrion was normally quite good at maintaining a charming countenance when his mind couldn’t parse out what his eyes saw, but this time he had apparently failed.
He felt the odd creases in his forehead and around his lips even then, but he couldn’t quite hide them, not with the sincerity of Kat’s question still tickling his brain.
So strange, no one ever…well, Azrion never let himself appear like anything was wrong, so why would anyone ask?
“No, it’s nothing. My friend just has an unexpected date for the evening. He didn’t mention bringing one of Melora’s closest confidants.”
“Uh oh.” Kat’s head swiveled back and forth.
“They’ve been…mating, but I didn’t think they were courting each other,” he said, watching as Tuli trailed Fenthorn and then fall farther behind when she tripped over someone’s tail. “Fenthorn doesn’t talk about her like the two are mates, anyway. He’s much more cavalier—hello!”
“Katarina,” Fenthorn said immediately and took her hand as he introduced himself. “It’s a pleasure. Azrion is absolutely smitten.”
Kat responded with something like “hello,” but it was swallowed up by Tuli’s appearance, a little out of breath and a lot loud.
“Hi!” she said to Kat immediately. “Oh, you look so pretty! Is that one of Mhot’s?
She does wonders with—I mean.” Tuli swallowed, gaze darting across the platform and back, then she crossed her arms tightly and stuck her nose in the air.
“I didn’t expect a human to be able to pull off something like that. ”
Azrion sighed, gaze finding Melora a moment after Tuli.
There she stood in her monochromatic glory, a pall of pinks with white accents, eyes sharp as they caught his through the crowd and then looked away as if he were nothing.
She was so good at this game he was tempted just to let her win.
“She can only see you from this distance, Tuli, not hear you. Save the nastiness for when you’re in earshot. ”
“Oh, right!” Tuli smiled mindlessly again.
“But you might want to keep scowling.”
“Oh. Right.” Tuli’s face fell into a pained grimace, directed right at Kat.
Azrion snickered and pat Kat’s hand. “Like I said, Tuli is one of my ex’s favorites. So congratulations, you two.”
Fenthorn gave him that look, the one that said, Not now, and Azrion’s lips peeled back into an even wider grin as if to say, Yes, actually, right now.
Tuli pushed her cheek against Fenthorn’s shoulder and positively melted.
Azrion was immediately jealous of the affection and then that was quickly replaced with pity.
Despite her yellow coloring, Tuli wasn’t the brightest demon, too easily manipulated, especially when she wanted to fit in.
She didn’t have ancient blood, but she proved useful enough to Melora, though she was rarely invited to such events.
“How long has this been official?” Azrion asked through his teeth.
Fenthorn stuttered. “I, uh, guess since last night.”
“When he asked me to accompany him.”
“I mentioned the wedding.”
“His sister’s wedding,” Tuli stressed, winking at Kat like they had been lifelong friends. Another of her faults, in a way, trusting everyone immediately. “He wants to introduce me to the whole family.”
“She’s managed to meet almost all of them.” Fenthorn’s jaw was stiff, but the demon squeezing his arm didn’t notice.
“I said, do you want to meet Fenthorn’s mate?” A familiar voice in a completely unfamiliar tone came up behind them, and when Azrion turned, there was his sister, arm out as she helped Fenthorn’s great grandmother across the platform.
“Oh, that would be very nice, dear.” The elder demon tottered along beside her, and Tuli squealed, abandoning Fenthorn. Zaiya let Tuli guide the Vumheri matriarch away and smirked wickedly at Fenthorn as she filled in the spot left by his new mate.
“You said you thought I could do better,” Fenthorn growled at Zaiya.
She shrugged. “I told her the same thing.”
“Katarina, this is my sister,” Azrion said, and then directly to Zaiya, “Entertain her for a moment, and be nice.” He gave Kat a reassuring look then tugged Fenthorn by the shoulder away from the other two at a quick pace toward a table littered with food.
“Your human isn’t exactly what I—”
“Don’t.” Azrion glared at him while handing over a small crust of bread covered in a fanciful twirl of some shredded meat.
Fenthorn accepted it warily, dark blue brows pinched. “All right. What are—”
“What are you thinking?” Azrion crunched down on his own crust but tasted nothing.
Fenthorn’s gaze drifted back to the crowd where Tuli was chatting with his great grandmother. He didn’t look like he would speak, but he didn’t need to, the irritation on his face said everything.
“You know Tuli is easily enamored,” Azrion said as kindly as possible, taking another bite and trying his best to look nonchalant.
Fenthorn snorted. “Yeah, but she’s also one of Melora’s lackeys.
She’s actively trying to make your life harder, so think of this as me trying to make it a little easier.
” He took a bite and grinned as if the fling he and Tuli were engaged in wasn’t older than Azrion and Melora’s latest split.
“Doesn’t hurt that she’s very good with her tongue. ”
Azrion groaned, snatching up a glass of wine. “Then be clear that’s all you think of her as and see if she still wants to use her tongue on you.”
Fenthorn frowned, gaze dipping to the floor.
Azrion supposed he understood a bit. Watching one’s younger sibling find their soulbond did all sorts of strange things to a demon, and then there was the matter of work at the scholar’s hall too.
Fenthorn had spent ages crafting complex spells to transmit messages via water utilizing reflection runes, and then Itcheran had reassigned the project, effectively cutting Fenthorn out of his own research.
It had been weeks, but he hadn’t gotten over it.
In fact, he refused to even discuss it. Regardless, the way he was acting with Tuli wasn’t at all like his oldest friend.
“You’re not exactly a paragon of virtue yourself,” Fenthorn finally muttered.
Azrion took a long drink, Kat’s fall of golden hair flickering in the corner of his eye somewhere in the crowd. “You’re right. I’m not,” he admitted then poked Fenthorn hard in the chest because he could do nothing to himself. “But you’re supposed to be better than this. Be better.”
Azrion turned away from his closest friend, long strides taking him toward his sister who had somehow dragged Kat into a group of dancing demons.
That was not what he expected, but even more unexpected was how the human laughed.
Even dressed like all the others, she stood out, but not because of her lack of height and horns.
It was as if the stars shone directly on her.
But…that was probably the too-quickly drained cup of wine talking.
“Mind if I cut in?”
“Yes,” snapped Zaiya, and she twirled Kat away into the flock of dancers.
Kat laughed, and if magic had a sound, that would be it.
It tickled Azrion’s ears so that they twitched, begging him to follow after.
But as it stood, Katarina didn’t appear to need rescuing.
Zaiya was fun in her own way, he supposed, and she deserved a little cheering up, even if it meant she was stealing his date.
And then a logical corner of his mind whirred itself to life, Your fake date.