Chapter 18 - Willow
Willow
Visiting a garden was exactly what I needed after a long day of outlining, like a reward for finally coming up with a good idea for the Demon Lord’s book.
Too bad he was walking at a snail’s pace, so we still hadn’t left the castle.
I turned back to chastise him, but he looked deep in thought as he stared at a wall.
“The cracks are gone,” he said softly, running his hands along the walls that used to be full of cracks and fuzzy spots. They were solid and smooth now, with bright sconces and tapestries lining them.
“It feels warmer in here too. Think it’s because of Misty?”
“I don’t know.” He leaned closer to the wall, as if he was completely entranced. “The castle didn’t start changing until you came here.”
“Wait, you think I’m changing it somehow?” I bit my lip, not really sure how to answer that. “Well, I mean, I do like the library you have now. But the only kind of magic I have is storytelling, so I think it’s probably something else.”
“Maybe...” After a few more silent moments, he snapped out of it, turning toward me with a smile. “Sorry. Let’s get going before it’s dark out. There’s no point staring at a wall.”
Except it was a wall that had changed completely since the first time I saw it.
Whether it was Misty’s magic or something else, hopefully his home would keep getting nicer so it wouldn’t be so sad picturing him here all alone once I went back to the real world.
He deserved a cozy place to call his own, just like everyone else.
The air was cool as we stepped outside, and the sun was already on its way back to the horizon. We’d only have a few hours before it was dark, so I quickened my pace. If these gardens were as cool as he’d described, I definitely wanted to see them. Gran would want to know every single detail.
The Demon Lord led me away from the city to the edge of the forest behind his castle where a sprawling garden laid before us.
Magic hung in the air like moisture on a humid day, clinging to my skin and tingling down my throat as I breathed it in.
It was a rush, my head spinning from the amount of magic pulsing in the air.
“Whoa.” I reached my hand out to steady myself against a tree. “That’s some intense magic.” I waved my hand at him before he could fret too much. “I’m fine. Just needed a moment to adjust. Let’s head inside.”
His gaze roved over me, as if trying to decide if I was telling the truth or not.
I gnawed my lip and pushed past him as the magic settled against my skin, invigorating me.
If just being in the garden felt this powerful, I could only imagine what making medicine with these plants would do.
He hadn’t been kidding, they were literally steeped in magic, glowing with a faint purple light that I’d come to identify with demon magic.
It was beautiful. So many plants filled to the brim with magic, and I didn’t even recognize half of them.
Excitement rushed through me. This was like when I’d first started helping Gran and everything was a new and wonderful discovery.
From giant flowers that towered over me to delicate herbs swaying in the wind, it was all so bright and full of life.
I wanted to learn every plant in this garden and figure out how they could help people and how to tend to them properly.
That was my job as an apothecary, keeping the plants and people around me healthy.
The sweet scent of the flowers mixed with the brightness of the herbs and the earthy scent of fresh soil being tilled.
I closed my eyes, breathing it in. Even though we were inside a book, literally standing in a demon’s garden, I felt so very much at home.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Gran called out asking if I wanted some tea or if the bell above our shop door chimed, welcoming in a new customer.
This was where I belonged, with my feet in the dirt and my hands full of plants.
“I missed that look.” The Demon Lord’s voice was low and closer than I’d expected.
I opened my eyes to find him smiling at me as if he was watching a flower bloom or a mossmew play in the lavender pots.
Heat rose to my cheeks, and I turned away from him.
It felt like he’d changed in some crucial way while he was gone.
He was more open and comfortable now, like he wasn’t trying to pretend anymore.
Which made keeping him at arm’s length even more difficult.
There was something about a powerful man being so open and sweet that sent butterflies racing in my stomach.
He probably had to ask around about this garden, which meant he’d gone out of his way to plan this for me.
Nobody had ever put that kind of thought and effort into our dates before.
Not that this was a date.
I cleared my throat and stared up at a bird flying overhead with a long tail of fire, its wings bright in the darkening sky. I’d never seen a phoenix before, but it was a sight to behold! I’d heard their tears could heal most wounds and a single feather could warm a family’s house all winter.
“It’s beautiful,” I whispered, as if a loud voice might scare the creature away.
“So are you.” A small smile tugged at the edge of his lips as he watched me. “This was definitely the right place to visit.”
I put my hand over my chest, my heart racing as the magic of this garden, and his words, overtook me.
It wasn’t just the physical magic in the air, but the magic of all the creatures and plants thriving here when the rest of the world in this book was trying to keep them down.
It was almost too much to take in and made me even more sure that this final book had to end in a surprising way.
There were just too many beautiful and miraculous things in this village to have it end in bloodshed.
As we walked, the Demon Lord filled me in on his trip to the normal world.
“Nyssa and Oren are literally buried in books researching library magic while the dragons and knights run around them causing chaos. They were playing tag of all things.” He scoffed, but his lips betrayed him with a hint of a smile.
“The purple dragon won, of course. He always does.”
“That’s the one who follows you around, right?” And perched on his horns, which he pretended to hate. I was starting to see through that grumpy exterior though, because he looked pretty proud as he nodded. “I’m glad you got to visit them for a bit. How’s Gran?”
“Well, I know where you got your stubborn side from now. She had me working before I even knew what was going on. Planted me in a chair and told me to assemble hand warmers.” His laugh was warm as I paused to examine a plant.
“Sounds like she chased off a possible apprentice, but she’s doing okay. She just seemed worried about you.”
I winced. “You told her I was stuck in a book?”
“Well, yeah, but she was fine with that part. Happy actually.” He leaned against a tree, watching me closely. “She said it would be good for you to be stuck in one place for a while, so you’d have no choice but to follow your dreams.”
“Sounds like her.” I shook my head, standing up and brushing the dirt off my hands. “Only she’d be happy her granddaughter was stuck in a book.”
Working on this book had been kind of fun so far though. There was something fascinating about learning the story by being inside it. That wouldn’t be true for anything else I wrote, but maybe just this once, Gran had been right to push me to do this.
The Demon Lord might have a little to do with all the fun I’d been having lately too.
Being able to talk to somebody about my stories again felt really good, like an itch I hadn’t been able to scratch in years.
It mattered to him in a way my stories had never mattered to anyone, not even my Grandpa. This was personal to him.
So personal that he needed to start making some decisions himself if we were going to finish this story.
I moved closer to the tree he was leaning against. “Remember when I was joking about different names for you?”
“Don’t even start with the Lord Shadowbuns again.” He covered his face with a hand, sighing. “It just doesn’t suit me, okay?”
“Well, I know that,” I said with a laugh, “but have you thought about what would suit you? It’s about time you gave yourself a real name. We’ll need it for the book.”
His eyes widened. “Don’t you want to decide that? You’re the writer.”
“And you’re the person who’s going to have to use it for the rest of his life.” I shook my head, leaning against the tree beside him. “No way am I picking that name. I’ll help you if you want though.”
He gazed up as the setting sun painted the sky in brilliant shades of pink and orange.
The phoenix from earlier had landed on a tree on the other side of the garden, flames licking the branches without setting them ablaze somehow.
I should ask if the professor had a phoenix I could meet or see if this one was tame.
The Demon Lord took a deep breath. “I’d appreciate help. I have thought about it, but none of the names feel quite right.” He glanced sideways at me. “Promise you won’t laugh?”
“Promise.”
“There’s a character in a book I really like named Elias, but it felt too soft.” His brow furrowed. “So then I tried to think of evil sounding names like Lord Darkmire or Ashbane the Terrible or Dreadthorne the Undying.”
I bit my lip, trying so hard not to laugh, but I couldn’t help it.
“Ashbane the Terrible?? Is that because you have ashen skin or what?” If looks could kill, I’d be in serious trouble right now.
I forced myself to stop laughing and took a breath to calm down.
“Sorry. I actually think Elias suits you pretty well, but might not be as imposing as you’re looking for.
What about the Thorne part of Dreadthorne?
Thorns draw the blood of anyone trying to hurt the plants they’re protecting, which feels like it suits you pretty well too. ”
His glare softened. “Thorne, huh? I do like the idea of stabbing anyone who tries to touch you. Like that soldier...” He glanced behind us, turning to sweep his gaze across the whole garden. “Where’s your bodyguard?”
Shoot, I’d forgotten to tell him about the whole Dain going off to kidnap the hero thing.
“Well, funny story, but remember when you tried to punish him by sending him on a suicide mission to get the hero?” I waited for him to nod before continuing.
“Well, I sort of casually mentioned how nice it would be to talk to the hero, and he took that as a command to go finish that mission you gave him. He swears he’s got a plan though, and I made him promise to come back if things got dangerous. ..”
My voice trailed off as he stared at me with a look I couldn’t place.
It felt intense, but in a soft way, like he was impressed by me for some reason.
I took a few steps back, kneeling to look at a black rose that was growing nearby.
It had extra sharp thorns just like we’d been talking about and really did remind me of him.
Beautiful, but prickly.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I know he’s one of your demons and I didn’t have any right to send him away.”
The Demon Lord pushed himself off the tree, kneeling to join me by the flowers. It reminded me of that day on the mountain when he’d helped me pick herbs. Now all we needed was playful dragons zipping around and we’d be right back there.
“I’m sure Dain’s fine. He seems quite capable.
” He reached in front of me to pick one of the roses, careful to avoid the thorns.
“You have this fascinating way of inspiring people to do great things. First the soldier with an impossible mission and now me with a name fit for a protector.” He gazed at the flower, running a finger along the stem carefully.
“Thorne. I like it. I like the idea of protecting people by any means necessary, too.” His dark purple eyes met mine and the glow of the flowers illuminated his skin.
“I’m glad you chose to be my writer. Nobody else has ever looked at me the way you do, never seen me as anything other than a villain. I trust your vision for my series.”
My heartbeat thundered in my ears, either from the nearness of him or the way he said he trusted me. Nobody had ever believed in me enough to put their fate in my hands, which is basically what he was doing by letting me write his final book.
He believed in my writing.
He believed in me.
“Thorne.” I leaned forward before I could stop myself, entranced by the glow of the flowers and the kindness in his eyes. His lips were only a breath away from mine as I whispered, “thank you.”
Without another thought, he closed the distance between us, pressing his lips against mine.
I should have pulled away, should have kept my distance like I’d been trying so hard to do, but my body had other ideas.
Warmth spread through me as I leaned into his kiss, craving him like I’d never craved anyone before.
Everyone always told me that I needed to open up and feel life more deeply. Well I felt this throughout my entire body. Every part of me tingled as his strong hand cupped my cheek. I wasn’t sure where we’d go from here, but I knew one thing: I didn’t want to run away anymore.