Chapter 26 #2
It was difficult seeing her hurting, or even the reflection of his sister’s pain on another’s face.
What is she seeing? His gaze slipped to Selene, and guilt simmered beneath his scales like ice. What emotions is Selene forcing upon her? Were the tears Carwyn’s sympathy or were they Selene’s pain?
Somehow, Kier knew the answer, and it only softened him towards the witch even more. No. She cries for my sister.
She... cares.
When Carwyn finally pulled away, Kier expected she’d do so softly with a sob. She didn’t.
She let out a sharp gasp as she severed the contact and then proceeded to mutter beneath her breath.
She searched, her hands tapping against the ground for something – perhaps a stone – as her glassy, red-rimmed eyes darted everywhere.
The words falling from her lips were foreign, and he didn’t know what a single one meant as she crawled around before getting to her feet.
“Carwyn?” he asked, rising to all four paws to follow her, only to quieten when she threw her hand out.
She searched his shelves, almost knocking over a few vials before finding a lump of coal. Tears continued to slip down her cheeks as she knelt and drew a round circle, then words of witchcraft. Before long, she’d drawn a sigil on the stone, one containing a large crescent moon.
She shifted back and began writing words, and he thought they might be the ones she was repeatedly uttering. Once she was done, she finally wrote instructions in a language he could understand, the one they spoke, but he didn’t spare them a glance.
“You finally got through,” he stated, coming closer to sit on the other side of her work.
“Yes,” she answered as she wrote. “And if you are willing to aid this, I may not have to touch the dark aspect of it.”
She continued to mark against her scribbles, pausing intermittently to squint at her handiwork on the sigil. She made small, minor adjustments to it, as if she wanted it to be utterly perfect.
It barely looked different to him, but he appreciated her attentiveness.
Yet... his heart wasn’t overjoyed now that they had a tangible answer. The scrape of coal against rock should tingle him with excitement at the prospect of his sister opening her eyes. Carwyn’s rushed and exhilarated movements should spur him into fidgeting on his paws with impatience.
He should be ecstatic. He should be pleased. And yet, although he was proud of her, something else shadowed all this. It became apparent when he looked over her long, loose curls, the bridge of her nose, and the way her full lips pursed with thought.
He took in the sight of this little female, and his eyes crinkled with a sense of... longing.
“Carwyn, I will do whatever I need to save my sister.”
“I don’t feel comfortable taking Selene’s blood.
She’s had enough things taken against her will,” Carwyn stated, leaning back to sit on her feet with a furrowed expression.
“But this kind of spell requires strong magic. From what I read, usually pixies or fairies would be enough, but nothing beats dragoncraft. It’s no wonder you struggled to undo this on your own without knowing the hex. ”
“Carwyn,” Kier said, watching as she scratched her coal at the ground one last time, her fingers stained black.
“We don’t even have to wait until morning. We can do it now. If you draw this symbol in your own blood, I can perform the incantation to reverse it. It’s pretty simple, now that I know it. Some sleep spells require the sun to be present to reverse them, but this one–”
“Carwyn,” Kier repeated, grabbing her under the chin to lift her face so she would meet his gaze. “It can wait until morning.”
Her brows came together for a different reason, her lips pursing in understandable confusion. “I don’t follow. Don’t you want to wake her straight away?”
Yes, he did. He wanted to see Selene open her eyes more than anything, but...
“This will be our last night alone together,” he stated, his stomach knotting and his chest colder than he’d like.
Her eyes widened slightly, only to slip away as she lowered her head. “I’m sorry, but... I don’t... after what I saw...”
Kier came closer while being careful not to ruin her work and glided his palm up until he cupped the side of her face. He directed it back to him and used his thumb to wipe her tear-stained cheek, being careful of his sharp claw near her delicate eye.
“That’s fine, but we can talk and perhaps... I can lie next to you? I won’t be able to do so freely once she awakens.”
He should’ve done it before, but the thought had never occurred to him until this very moment. They’d been touching, had been intimate, so what difference would it have made if he fell asleep with her? He realised he’d never questioned whether he could trust her with his human form – he just had.
I should’ve seen her better in the beginning. Things would have been different. He would’ve been given more time with her to achieve what he’d wanted.
Now it was like she was slipping through his clawed fingers.
Considering how quick she was to jump right to reversing the hex, he wondered if she didn’t care as much as he did. Which would boggle his mind, as he thought he was magnificent and deserving of such tender-heartedness.
But when her eyes pooled with renewed tears and her lips trembled before she leapt forward to wrap her arms around his neck, he knew he was wrong. And as sad as it was, he was overjoyed that she was burdened by this as well.
Kier pulled Carwyn into his arms, lifting her over her scribbles until they were on the other side of the sigil, and embraced her.
With his heart cold and warmed at the same time, he hugged this witch tightly.
He rubbed the side of his spiked head against hers, feeling her soft skin and silky curls.
His claws pressed into her side and the back of her thigh, wanting to trap her to him.
I’ve... grown fond of her.
Somehow in her time here, she’d stolen some of his affection, and he didn’t know when or how it’d happened.
Was it her stubbornness or the sweetness? The fact that she was assertive but submissive when needed? Her intelligence and bravery knew no bounds; it was obvious by the markings he saw upon the ground. And when she was hurt, she got back up and tried again until she succeeded.
She was soft, warm, and her heart was inviting.
Blasted, I wish we had more time together.
It wouldn’t be long before she sought to leave. Selene would want him to herself, and he didn’t know what decision his sister would come to.
I just know that I won’t allow Selene to force her to the Elders or the king’s prison. She will either be freed, or... she will stay here.
With her wonderful scent staining his scales, he dug his claws a little deeper as he gnashed his fangs. He glared at the wall when a rather unpleasant and selfish emotion wormed its way behind his sternum.
Stay here with me.