Chapter 11 Xerxes
Xerxes
Iknocked quietly on Ivy’s office door, admiring the carved wood.
Orion had commissioned a woodworker in the Spring Court to create something for Ivy, and the Fae artist had done it beautifully.
The scene depicted the moment Ivy announced she would no longer be Queen of the realms. She stood at the very centre with Nyx’s skull in her hands, the Goddess’s crown glowing atop her head.
We, her mates, were gathered in a half-circle around her, protectors and lovers, shielding her from the fallen enemy unseen.
There were other elements of the design one could spend hours looking into but never find all the secrets. Like the faces of her loyal soldiers, or the different creatures of Nyx. Even our mate marks were carved into the wood, hidden between imagery of vines and flowers that replicated Ivy’s magic.
Through the bond, I felt Ivy brush at my barriers. I’d gotten used to throwing them up whenever I left the island, as did most of us now to protect ourselves and her from those who might intend harm.
You’re home, she said, the door opening silently.
My very pregnant mate rose from behind her desk, grinning widely at me. I entered the room, breathing a sigh of relief at the sight of her. “We just got back.”
“I thought you would be gone until tonight.” Ivy walked towards me, but I rushed to meet her, pulling her into my arms. Just her touch alone soothed my beast, bringing me a sense of peace I so desperately needed.
I’d only been gone twenty-four hours, but that had been long enough without her—especially considering how close she was to giving birth.
I held her close, breathing in her sweet scent. “The meeting finished early,” I replied quietly. “The Primals are wary, but they are open to our suggestion.”
Ivy pulled away, eyes wide. “They are? That’s fantastic!” she said, beaming.
I couldn’t help but match her smile with one of my own. “It’ll take time for them to trust us, but they will elect three members to join the council. And they even offered to send two scholars into Oberon at Rowan’s recommendation.”
“Oh, Goddess, that’s great!” Ivy hugged me tighter, her heart racing, the bond bright and happy.
“Oh, I am so glad they want to work with us. I would have understood if they didn’t, but with the barrier between realms coming down, they’ll be able to reach us soon—and we, them. An alliance is better than war.”
I had to agree there. With the knowledge that Theros—or as Ivy and the other creatures of Nyx called it, the Old World—was alive and filled with creatures never seen before by the realms, there were many curious and afraid of what it could mean.
Part of me feared it, but also understood it in a way, too. Which was why I’d gone back to meet with them.
“So, they’re definitely joining the council?” Ivy asked, looking up at me with shining eyes.
I nodded once. “Yes. They like having me on it currently, and I will remain until they elect three to replace me. But I offered to stay on. You don’t mind, do you?”
Ivy pulled back enough to meet my stare evenly, her features softening. “Of course not,” she replied gently. “I want you to do what makes you happy.”
There were so many reasons to love the female standing across from me.
Her beauty and kindness being two most would gravitate towards.
But there was more; her intent to ensure everyone around her was taken care of, her love for her friends and her family, the patience she held for those who didn’t deserve it being few I could name off the top of my head that some admired.
But I loved her for the little things, too.
Like her laugh when she woke to find the little ones in bed with us.
Or the soft hum of her voice when she read them stories from their childhood.
The moment light would hit her perfectly in the greenhouse and make it look as though she were glowing from the inside out.
The look on her face whenever we found trinkets in the back gardens for her, left behind by the ghosts of the manor.
I cupped her cheek, feeling the warmth of it beneath my cool fingers. Leaning in, I pressed a kiss to the top of her head, lingering a moment to breathe her in. “Eventually, they will assume control, and then I will be released from those expectations. But I don’t know what I will do with myself.”
“The council gives you purpose,” she murmured. “I get it. Have you thought about maybe going to the academy with Rowan?”
Rowan had become an instructor at Oberon, specialising in the war against Dante. When he’d brought up sending Primal scholars into Avalon to educate the creatures on Theros, the idea had struck me as interesting, but I hadn’t thought twice about it.
Now, though, I wondered what that would look like. “Perhaps I could start small,” I suggested. “I could go to the school with the girls and teach them.”
Ivy grinned. “I think they’d love that idea.” Though as the words left her lips, she winced.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, moving my other hand to her belly. “Are you—”
“No.” She waved a hand, breath shaky. “My feet just hurt. Sit down with me?”
She never had to ask me to enjoy her company. I would spend forever by her side.
Gently, I guided her to the sofa in front of her desk. Together we sat, her on one end facing me, me at the other. As much as I wanted her beside me, I settled with taking her feet in my lap and gently removing her slippers.
“What else happened while you were there? How was Phaedra?” Ivy asked, hands resting over her stomach.
Through the bond, I could tell asking about my old leader wasn’t exactly out of care.
Phaedra hadn’t given Ivy a good impression of her, and although my mate understood my world and the politics of it better, she still held some resentment over what’d happened.
I couldn’t blame her. We’d been the ones to trap them in the old palace and lure a thrax to them. Of course, my mate and the others in her circle easily defended themselves, but I understood the tension.
Taking Ivy’s swollen foot in hand, I massaged it gently, reaching for a balm in my pocket I’d picked up while in the village.
It was commonly used for pregnancy swelling, though not made often because of the low birth rates.
It was a wonder I’d found it at all, though reports from the clan leaders indicated the pregnancy rates were up.
“Nothing, really,” I replied honestly as I rubbed the salve into her heels. “They have yet to find the Prima.”
Ivy groaned, slumping to the cushion. “I know she’s out there,” she said, eyes closing. “I saw the pregnancy when I pushed the power onto her. There’s a female out there about to give birth or already has.”
“None of the clans reported any female births. Two males, though.”
“Saw those, too,” she muttered, pushing her foot further into my hand. “But she’s out there. I know she is.”
“And they will find her,” I said. “There are nomadic Primals. She could be born without a clan. They are sending out trackers now.”
“That’s good,” Ivy murmured, yawning. “Sorry. What about Phaedra? Does she still hate me?”
I stiffened. “Hate is a strong word.” Though perhaps still relevant.
Phaedra tolerated Ivy. After what’d happened and Ivy’s complete dismissal of her, the elder had very few kind things to say about my mate.
Though even she had to admire Ivy’s strength against Dante and how she’d handled the war—and everything that’d come after.
Ivy, though, giggled as if she were unperturbed by the elder. “Oh, she’ll get over it. You’d think she’d understand the rush.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “You would think. But she is still hesitant. I don’t think she will take the seat on the council.”
Finally, my mate opened her eyes again. “Why not?”
“What happened in Theros changed and reshaped our people. And now that we have a new Prima out there, Phaedra’s position is tenuous.
I believe there are some who blame her for us not being prepared for Dante’s attack.
For so long, we only saw the thrax as our enemy.
We did not look at the ocean for attacks, and we were ill-prepared to fight an army. ”
Through the bond, I felt her calming presence, a soothing energy passing from her into me. “You had no reason to be prepared for Dante. Hell, we weren’t. And that’s not on Phaedra,” Ivy murmured.
“But she could have believed you,” I replied, meeting her stare.
“And that is where some Primals see issue. Even though we don’t bow to Nyx, the Primals live on stories of her.
Nyx’s creatures and her Queens are still part of our history.
The moment you appeared, she should have listened, but she allowed pride to overcome her.
And because of that, an entire clan—a city full of innocents—was slaughtered. ”
I’d only seen the remnants of the city itself after Ivy and the others had passed through. I’d looked upon the destruction wrought below, and that’d been enough to change something within me.
The elder had seen nothing wrong in her opposition to Ivy. Rather than rallying our people and preparing for the inevitable invasion of our homes, she’d waited. Had the city known to run or even hide, maybe they would still be alive. Maybe they wouldn’t have been found.
“Dante did that,” Ivy said quietly, sitting back, a far-off look entering her dark eyes. “And he’s paying for it. For all of it. I don’t think it’s enough, but…”
“Death would be too easy for him,” I finished, massaging her other foot slowly. “I brought something else back for you.”
“Changing the subject is smart.” She groaned as she sat up straighter.
“You didn’t have to get me anything. I think you’ve all inundated me with plenty of gifts.
” As she said that, she looked around the office, where she spent more and more time.
I hadn’t seen her happier than when she left this space after a gruelling writing session.
Whatever gave her peace and comfort, even if I didn’t understand it.
I wiped my hands on my pants, then pulled a small pouch out from the chain around my neck.
“It used to belong to my mother. A gift from her mate on behalf of my father.” With trembling fingers, I opened it and revealed the necklace.
“Her mate found it walking the shores of the old palace during a full moon. My mother called it her sight into the realms.”
The moonstone shimmered under the light, the stone no larger than my thumbnail. My mother had carved metal to set it in so she could wear it as a pendant around her neck.
When I looked up, tears brimmed Ivy’s eyes. “It’s beautiful.”
“I know how you feel about necklaces, and you have many rings now, but I wondered if perhaps I should turn it into a bracelet for you,” I offered. “But it is used for protection, especially during pregnancy and childbirth. And I want you to wear it for what is to come.”
Ivy lowered her feet to the ground and moved to sit beside me. Gently, she rested her head on my shoulder, sniffling. “I wouldn’t change it for the world,” she murmured, touching the pendant. “And I would be honoured to wear it.”
“You would?” I asked, dropping a soft kiss to the top of her head.
“Of course.” She looked up, smiling. “It’s a piece of you. Of your family. And it would be nice to have this instead of the memories. A nice reminder. Not a dark one. I love it. And you.”
“I love you, too, my fated,” I murmured, throat thick with emotion and tears.
I knew it would take time, but hope flared in my chest as I put it around her neck. Where there were still faint scars from her battle against him, there was also a hope for more. And that was enough.