Chapter Twenty-Eight
Avari
The Elder’s words echoed in my mind as I made my way toward Alec to take us home. Ortensia needed a ruler, of course it did. It was silly of Willow and me not to realise it sooner, or perhaps just me. She kept wanting to go back.
Maybe she knew she had to take care of our people. That we left them alone. But knowing how she was, how she carried herself, prioritising only her comfort and desires, I worried about the prospect of her rule.
Ortensia already had one queen that ruled with fear and greed; the people deserved more. The land itself deserved better. It wasn’t like the Isles or Fogoya, at least not in the most part. Our deserts stretched for hundreds of miles, yet with magic, people adapted and life thrived.
Some towns had gardens so unusual they became hubs for magical remedies and tourist attractions.
And although I was mistreated and abused within our court, I knew not all of Ortensia was like that—only those close enough to be infected by my mother’s malevolence.
Yet as much as I craved my old home to thrive and reach its potential, I also didn’t want that burden.
Even so, life had a way of bulldozing through my wants and needs, forcing me down paths I would never choose. I just hoped this wasn’t one of those times.
‘We need to talk about this, Willow.’
My sister snickered. ‘Tell me, Ava, what makes you think there’s anything to discuss?’
Clearing my throat, I kept my tone calm and steady. ‘It’s supposed to be a mutual decision, so there is a reason to discuss it.’
Willow came closer as Alec raised his hands in surrender and left the foyer. Coward.
‘You literally do not have water powers. Did you forget that? More than half of our population are halflings… Why wouldn’t they just leave for the Water Kingdom if you take the throne?’
Perhaps if the corrupted ones left, the kingdom could finally breathe. Some things had to change. ‘Need I remind you that you currently have no powers?’
‘It’s recovering, slowly but surely.’ Raising her hand to my line of sight, she covered it in droplets of water. ‘What do you have to offer Ortensia?’
Nothing.
That kingdom was prepared to take my power, my will, and dignity, offering nothing in return. I already lost too much of myself there; whether it was selfish or not, I would cling to whatever I had left. ‘What do you have to offer it?’
Her proud posture quivered as her shoulders slumped slightly before she argued, ‘A queen that the people relate to. Your fire makes you… undesirable among water wielders; it’s just a fact.’
At least she wasn’t hiding how she felt. ‘Yes, we both know how desirable you are among all the males in our lands. Quite the queen material.’
A vein in her forehead protruded more as she squinted before shooting me down. ‘So I’m unfit to rule because I am not a prude? Neither of the two species that make either of us tend to be as restrained as you are. Maybe you need to look into that instead of commenting on my choices.’
‘We both know that I view intimacy differently, though that’s beside the point–’
‘You brought it up. You think you can dish out, and I’ll just let you have it?’ Willow snorted before doubling down. ‘Grow up. We all went through shit; you’re the only one who keeps wallowing and allowing self-pity to take your life over.’
My mind went blank. ‘Excuse me?’
‘That’s just the kind of person you are, you get burned once and you stop altogether. You think you’d make a good queen? You’re not fit for the throne; you are too passive and weak.’
Fire erupted from my hands, covering me at her mention of weakness. ‘Maybe the throne should go to someone else. A volunteer.’
She blanched, then covered it with a smirk. Her eyes glistened with a challenge. ‘What will you do? Burn me?’
‘Sometimes I wonder if the world would be better if I had had this fire when I was younger and burned you all when you mistreated me,’ I said, gritting my teeth and holding tight reins on the flames.
‘Mistreated you…’ Willow whispered, looking intrigued. ‘How exactly have I done that? You didn’t bother to have a relationship with me, we barely even spent time together.’
Lies. ‘We couldn’t have had a good relationship, you antagonised me my whole life.’
‘No, I didn't, and don’t pin this on me. Even when I was kind to you, you remained trapped in your silly delusions. Nothing in the court was ever as black and white as you make it,’ she argued, crossing her arms over her chest. The top of her shoe kept tapping on the ground as if my recollection bothered her, and she awaited some sort of explanation.
‘Oh, really? So you’re saying I made up years of abuse at our mother’s hands? Or that I deserved it?’
‘Did Lilian and I deserve it more than you did?’ she seethed, and the lie burned through me.
After everything that had happened, years of physical and emotional torment, she belittled what I’d been through, like they always have.
‘Cut the crap, Willow!’ I screamed. ‘She never abused you the way she abused me. She fucking cursed me so I couldn’t leave that Gods-damned kingdom!’
Ice shone in her blue eyes. ‘Oh, boohoo, poor Avari. She let you do as you pleased. You had no responsibilities beyond sleeping well and staying put. Cry me a river about your terrible life.’
‘You know nothing about my struggles.’
Closing the distance between us, she looked me up and down like she pitied me. ‘That’s exactly your problem, you know… You always lacked perspective. You only see what’s right in front of you.’
My heart raced. ‘How did she mistreat you then? Enlighten me.’
Willow raised her head in defiance. ‘No.’
Funny. Standing like that, she almost resembled our mother. ‘Can’t make up a lie that quick?’
‘I don’t need to lie,’ she uttered an exasperated snort. ‘I live true to myself; can you say the same?’
‘Then why won’t you say?’
‘My past is mine only and won’t be used as ammunition in a bothersome discussion,’ Willow claimed calmly.
I snickered. ‘Because you’re so noble all of a sudden? The Tom situation showed me exactly what kind of person you are.’
Her arms slackened at her sides as she let out a loud sigh. ‘Gods, are you still stuck on the Tom situation? I told you I had nothing to do with that…’
‘He was your friend...’
‘And have you seen him around me ever since? Even once?’ she asked, waving her arms around and seeming genuinely bewildered.
‘Don’t make yourself out to be this honourable sister; you couldn’t stand to be around him because he made us look weak.’
Willow cringed before shaking her head and lowering her voice to barely a murmur. ‘It’s not true, but you wouldn’t believe anything I tell you anyway.’
‘Try me,’ I challenged as my flames trailed around my skin like a shield whilst simultaneously preparing to attack her if she crossed the line.
‘He paid for what he did.’
A humourless laugh escaped my throat as I looked at her faux sombre expression. ‘You expect me to believe that?’
‘I already told you that you won’t believe anything I have to say. Let me be,’ she said and started to walk away toward the staircase. A few steps away, a shadow frog jumped out of a flower pot, excited to see her, and she shooed it away with her boot.
Everything about her disgusted me. ‘Gods, you are self-centred.’
‘And it’s the only way to survive in this cursed realm. You will learn that soon enough.' Her voice carried through the foyer.
‘Not everyone is as selfish as you, have you ever stopped to think about that?’ I asked her as the distance between us grew with each of her steps.
‘I have, actually. And I stand by what I said,’ she remarked before leaving me alone.
And unexpectedly, perhaps for the first time ever, I wished she stayed. If only to satisfy my curiosity or prove me wrong.