Chapter 19 #2
“Did you ever stop to think that maybe the Oracle didn’t mean any of this stuff?
You said it yourself, it was the priests who turned the prophecy into what it is today.
They might have been wrong about it and you just accept it.
You are the God of Wisdom and yet you blindly follow a prophecy that was written down centuries ago! ” I said angrily.
He stared back at me, but didn’t say another word. We looked at each other and all the unspoken things hung between us like the dark clouds outside the barn.
Theo looked away first.
“I am sorry, I didn’t want the day to end like this,” he finally said, grabbing the basket and walking towards me. “Let’s go home and talk about this another day.”
I only nodded, too tired and emotional to say any more. We took the pathways, I was holding on to the basket slung across his shoulder so as not to touch him. When we reached the Lodge, I quickly said goodbye and hurried inside, past Caelan who was coming down the stairs.
He gave me a quizzical look, but didn’t stop me. As I got to the top of the stairs, I heard Caelan sigh. “What did you do now, God of Wisdom?”
* * *
I didn’t see Auretheos the following day and I didn’t try looking for him.
He had been right about a lot of the things he had said, but that didn’t change the fact that I was angry at him for being so cold towards me.
He always seemed so calm and collected that it was hard for me to believe anything ever fazed him.
Making the conscious decision to not think about Theo anymore, I returned to the task at hand.
Lydia had given me small exercises for my training days in order to build up my tolerance towards the rush of magic.
I had been able to successfully stop time when Malek had thrown an apple at Lythandra at breakfast and the fallout of my drunken rush had been minimal.
I still had a long way to go, but my skills were improving.
The Abbot kept to himself most days, he was busy with temple business and hadn’t spoken of harnessing my powers again.
Lydia and I had taken up to training in the attic of the Lodge as it was getting too chilly to practice outside.
I had completed another one of her weights training sessions when we were interrupted by one of the sentinels.
“Forgive my interruption, but the Lord has requested your presence in the dining room in an hour.” I looked over at Lydia, who seemed to be less surprised than I was by the formal invitation. She shrugged and rolled her eyes.
“Fine… It’s my birthday today. I specifically asked Auretheos not to make a big deal out of it, but it seems that boy won’t listen to anyone,” she said with an exasperated sigh.
I went over to hug her, and she reluctantly returned the hug.
“Happy birthday, Lydia! I didn’t know, but I will get you a gift for sure!” I said.
She huffed. “When you are as old as me, you have had every gift there is.”
She made a show of not caring but I could see the smile tugging at her lips.
“Let’s get changed then and see what that boy has arranged for tonight. And let’s hope there is wine involved.”
When we got downstairs an hour later, the whole gang was already inside the dining room, whispering and laughing. When Lydia and I entered with our arms linked, the room erupted in cheers. Despite her protests at the impromptu celebration, Lydia bathed in the attention.
Everyone but Theo hugged her, congratulations and laughter filled the room as gifts were opened and wine was poured. The food was excellent, and with it came an unexpected sense of normalcy.
As the conversation faded and the moment settled, Theo cleared his throat.
“I have been made aware by… certain people that an apology is in order.”
All heads turned to me, and I nearly choked on my wine.
“I am sorry Maelis for getting so angry on our trip. I should have been more considerate of your feelings. I sometimes forget that this is not your home here. You chose none of this and I am sorry for being so rude.”
Lythandra grinned and blurted out, “Now give her the present!”
My eyebrows lifted.
“There is no need for a present. I accept your apology, and I want to say that I am sorry too. It’s true that this is all new to me, but I shouldn’t have said those things to you. I guess I have no idea about what kind of pressure you have been under.”
He shifted, taking a little box out of his trouser pocket.
“And here I was thinking that I’d be the only one getting presents today,” Lydia said and pretended to be sulking.
“Bad news Lydia, it’s past midnight and technically your birthday is over,” Malek laughed and got hit in the face with Lydia’s napkin.
The others kept joking back and forth, returning to their conversation, but Theo’s eyes were on me.
“Won’t you open it?” he asked softly.
I took a slow, steadying breath and lifted the lid of the little velvet box. The moment I saw what was inside, my heart stopped. Nestled against the dark fabric were the earrings I had admired in the shop on my very first day here.
My throat tightened, and I blinked hard to keep the tears from spilling over. “Thank you,” was all I managed to whisper, my voice barely holding together.
I lifted the earrings out with trembling fingers and slipped them into my ears. The metal was cool against my skin, grounding me in a moment that felt impossibly fragile, like one wrong word might shatter it.
Lythandra squeaked. “Oh Mae, they are gorgeous! You have good taste, T”
Everyone agreed, voices blurring around me.
I looked over at Theo, and something unspoken passed between us, a quiet understanding that went deeper than words.
How he had known about the earrings, I didn’t know.
But this was more than a gift. It was a sign that he saw me, not just who I was now, but who I had been when I first arrived.
He leaned forward in his chair, voice low enough that only I could hear.
“You look stunning, Mae.”
A shiver ran down my spine. His breath brushed my cheek, and for a moment the room disappeared. There were only him, me, and the unspoken things neither of us dared to name.
Then, as if nothing had happened, he turned back to the others, leaving me reeling in the echo of his words.
It was late when we finally said goodnight, but sleep felt very far away.
I was already on my way upstairs when I noticed that I had forgotten the box from my earrings downstairs. I went back to the dining room to collect it, but stopped in front of Theo’s office. Should I go inside?
Tap, tap, tap, tap.
Red for the roses, white for the veil, one to remember, one to betray.
Knock.
I lightly knocked and Theo looked up from some papers he was studying.
“Are you still working now?” I asked and entered the room.
He sighed. “I don’t think I can sleep, so I thought I’d better be productive. What about you?”
I held up the box in response and he smiled.
“I am glad you like them.”
I walked across to the other side of his office and sat down on one of the sofas there.
“You were right about there being too much at stake,” I said and looked down at my hands, examining the lines on my palms. “I rarely form a connection with anyone and I am not as good at hiding my emotions as you are.”
I heard him exhale sharply and looked up, surprised to see anger flashing across his face.
“Is that what you think of me?” He ground out. “I am doing my job, Mae. It’s called being responsible! I am sorry that I can not act on every little bit of attraction that comes my way.”
His words cut deeper than I expected. I knew he was right, nothing had ever happened between us, and nothing ever would. Even if the prophecy were lifted, he was a god, destined to outlive me by centuries. I blinked back the tears.
“I am sorry, again, for angering you. Maybe it’s best for us to take some time apart.” I sniffed and got up to leave.
“Please don’t cry,” he said softer now. “You don’t know how hard it is to see you hurting and not being able to comfort you.”
I sniffed again and looked at his face, worry and yearning written all over it.
“Would it truly be that bad to hug, Theo?” I asked, wiping away at my tears with the sleeve of my dress.
He blew out a breath.
“I don’t know, how strict the prophecy is about physical intimacy. But I know that I could never just hug you. It would never be enough, I would never be able to stop there.”
I slowly lifted my eyes up to meet his gaze. His eyes were burning with emotion and something else I couldn’t quite define.
“Oh,” was all I could say.