The rest of the group begins to jokingly taunt Nox, but his eyes stay focused on mine. “How long?”
My head tilts to the side, the sunlight pouring over us on the open field and warming my cheek. “What?”
He rotates his sword in his hand as his lips curl to the right. “Let’s make a bet. How long do I have to take him down?”
I roll my lips together as I look over to Elora, who grins like this is the best thing to ever happen while she bumps her shoulder into mine. “Five minutes?”
He shakes his head and reaches back behind him to the second hilt peeking up over his shoulder. “Make it difficult, Sunshine.” Metal sliding against leather rings out into the air as he draws his second sword, the silver blade shining brightly in contrast to its midnight-black hilt.
“Three minutes.”
Cass clicks his tongue this time.
“Okay, one minute!” I shout in exasperation, drawing a few chuckles from the people around me. “Take Cass down inoneminute.”
Nox’s smile is cunning as he takes a small step towards me. “And when I win? What do I get?”
“What do you want?” I should have seen the trap for what it was because, as soon as the question is out of my mouth, Nox’s eyes darken, and my cheeks begin to burn. He doesn’t answer out loud, but based on the way Elora squeals and Daje groans, he might as well have.
“Now that I have the proper motivation,” Nox starts, turning back to face his friend, “I’m sorry for what’s about to happen.” The two circle each other for a full rotation, Cass drawing his second sword, before Nox attacks. I watch how gracefully Nox pivots and counters around his best friend, his movements fluid though I know the swords in his hands must weigh a ton. I hadn’t really studied his fighting skills when we were running for our lives from the tower, but out here in the open space of the training grounds, I can truly appreciate how magnificent he is. Cass fights similarly, seeming to block Nox’s attacks while the latter is still forming them. A product of their training together since childhood, I’m sure.
“Do you think King Sadryn can fight with a sword like this?” Elora asks. My head snaps towards her. She chews on her lower lip, pushing her glasses farther up her nose as she stares at the two dueling men in front of us. Though Iknowshe isn’t really looking at Nox, my magic flares in my chest, forcing me to close my hands into tight fists. It draws Elora’s attention, her gray eyes flicking over to mine in question.
“My stupid magic thinks you’re looking at Nox like…” I’m too embarrassed to even finish the statement.
Elora smiles, looping her arm through mine as the sound of metal clashing draws both of our attention back to the fight. Cass spins, kicking his leg out low in an attempt to sweep Nox off of his feet. But his effort is in vain when Nox leaps over it, landing with agile skill and then swinging his blades down over Cass’s head.
“Twenty seconds!” someone calls out, marking the time that has passed.
“Have you ever heard of fated souls?” Elora asks in a low voice meant for only me to hear.
I shake my head—my stomach plummeting when Cass fakes moving right only to go left, his sword swooping down on Nox who blocks it at the last second.
“I read about them in a very old book I found shoved to the back of a shelf in the palace library. It is written more like a journal—the account one of a personal nature for some parts. But the author writes about how they were fated to be with their partner. How they knew it wasdestined.”
“Forty seconds!”
“And they also write about how their magicreactedto perceived threats to their partner. How it wasn’t a conscious act but one that seemed to be driven by the magic itself. In an effort to protect the bond between the two.”
“I don’t perceive you as a threat at all.”
Elora nods, squeezing my arm more tightly. “Iknow that, andyouknow that, but your magic… Mage magic is raw, and very little of its complex nature has been mapped out. Millennia have passed, and our knowledge of the power that flows through us is much the same as it was at the beginning of that time. Actually, there is probablylessknown about it now; something to do with being too content to seek out more information, I’m sure. It is interesting—this thought that perhaps you might befatedto be with someone. Maybe it’s just your magic acting out because you’re still learning to control it, or maybe it’s somethingmore. Maybe you and Prince Nox are fated souls.”
A shout of frustration that isn’t Nox’s draws claps and cheers from those around us. Cass lies on his back, his hands lifted in surrender as Nox’s swords hover crossed above his neck. “Official time?” Nox asks, Cass giving him the middle finger.
“Fifty-five seconds,” Haylee answers. Nox removes his swords and slides them back into their sheaths before he holds his hand out to Cass.
“Do you think it could be possible?” I ask Elora as we both stand up, brushing the grass from the backs of our legs.
She nods, running her fingers through her hair—its red hue brighter under the sun. “Honestly, I didn’t believe it was a real thing until I saw the two of you. What you guys have isdifferent.”
I smile at her as I feel Nox near. I like the idea that perhaps there is a reason my magic acts sodefensivearound him, beyond being unable to fully control it yet.
“I’ve come to claim my prize,” he says, wrapping his arms around me as he lifts me up until our faces are level, my feet dangling above the ground. My laugh turns into a scream as he spins us, and I squeeze my arms tightly around his neck, burying my face in the juncture where it meets his shoulder as I pepper quick kisses over the warm skin there.
“Seems like a waste of a prize. You can have me whenever you want,” I say when we come to a standstill, the movement of dark blonde hair catching my eye over his shoulder.
Haylee walks over to where Elora and Daje are talking. Elora glares at Haylee, murmuring something too quiet for me to hear before abruptly leaving the group. Haylee watches her retreat, her lips flattening before her gaze moves to me. The rest of the world quiets as we stare at each other, her face indecipherable. I had told her today, as Nox and Cass had readied to spar, that I was declining her offer. That Nox wasmineand mine alone. Her brows had drawn down slightly, but similar to the look gracing her face now, I couldn’t make sense of what she was feeling.
