“Foryou.” His eyes searched her face. “I want to know every nook and cranny of your mind. I want to know how your thoughts work. I want to know your heart, your will, your wants.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m afraid if I don’t, I may go mad.”
They both took a soft inhale of air, and for a moment it felt like they shared breath. Shock was on his face and Vi could only imagine much the same was on hers. What was he really saying?
Taavin swallowed hard, the lump in his throat bobbing. But his voice was still thick when he spoke again. “Now, tell me, what’s happened to bring such conflict to your brow?”
“It’s a lot…”
“I have time.”
“But I’m not sure if I want to talk about it. I wanted to see you, to forget about the world beyond here… To be with you, because you calm me just by being near.” So it was her turn to have words fall from her lips that she hadn’t quite intended to say.
“I see,” he said finally. “If that is your wish, then let’s distract you with Lightspinning?”
“I’d like that.” Vi breathed a sigh of relief that almost turned into a soft groan of frustration when his hand left her face. She wanted both. She wanted to be emotionally bare before him so that his words could smooth over every rough insecurity and worry. But she also wanted to think of nothing, and simply enjoy his presence.
Simplicity was best, for now. She’d have time to explore whatever these feelings were later… Whenever that was.
“Thank you,” Vi breathed in relief.
“I’ve been thinking of something worthwhile to teach you next… I was thinking of your adventure sneaking out and howradiawould be a good word for you to master.”
“Radia,” Vi repeated, letting the word slither over her tongue. It begged to be whispered, barely said, clinging to the last breath. It glided over the air and then vanished before it could be fully realized. “To hide?”
“Yes,radiais a sub-clarification ofwatt, underneathdurroe.”
“So it would bedurroe watt radia?” First in Lightspinning was always the overarching discipline. Then the sub-discipline, then any clarifications, with personal words of power at the end.
“Just so.” Taavin moved around her. She watched him from the corners of her eyes. His profile was sharp enough to cut glass and his overall elegance was completely out of place in the tent. “Let’s use one of these.” He gestured to a pillow in the makeshift seating area beside them.
“All right.” Vi sat with one.
“Place it in front of you.” She did as he instructed. “Now, you’re going to make it disappear from sight. Whereasdurroe wattordurroe watt ivinis to create an illusion, forradia, you need to know the area around the item—in the physical world—that you want to vanish.”
“Around it?”
“Yes, you want people tosee throughthe item. To look at it and see the ground below—see past it.Radiais an illusion to trick the eyes and mind into missing what’s before them.”
“So wouldn’t it then be undernarro—acts of the mind?”
“It’s deceiving the mind through the eyes. It’s firmly underdurroe,” Taavin insisted.
“What if I said it undernarro?Narro watt radia?”
“Do you presume to know better than the Goddess about her words?”
“I meant no offense, I just—” Vi said hastily, realizing that she’d just likely offended him as the keeper of the Goddess’s flame. He grinned, and burst out laughing.
“I didn’t take it offensively.” Taavin’s laughter settled into a warm smile that had her stomach simmering with happy bubbles. “I don’t think you could offend me.”
“If I recall correctly, you found me quite offensive when we first met.” Vi remembered back to his initial gruffness toward her—when he thought she was just another iteration of torturous visions.
“Well, then, I don’t think you could offend meagain.”
She settled her palm behind her, leaning back. It was astounding just how quickly they fell into an easy cadence, as though nothing had happened at all. The flames that had been flaring between them were relegated to a smolder once more. “Should I try? Is that a challenge?”
