“Oh, certainly not, I’d fear seeing what you’d come up with to rise to that challenge.” He leaned back on his palm as well. Their fingers were nearly touching. His posture was angled slightly toward her.
“I’m not one to back down.” Her voice had gone breathy, and when Taavin spoke, his matched.
“No, you’re certainly not.”
Was he leaning closer to her? Or was it her imagination? Vi took a slow inhale that got stuck halfway down her throat. The world seemed to slow, silence overwhelming them. Such a heavy silence, it was making her dizzy.
Vi stared up into his eyes. Taavin loomed there, close enough to touch, yet far enough that the world was still between them. She searched his face, looking for secrets and truths alike and landed on his lips—as though that was the place they were all hidden.
Those feelings she’d wanted to ignore were back, with a ruthless urgency she could no longer ignore. The more she saw him, the less they could be denied.No, oh no—her mind screamed warnings through her haze as she focused on the delicate curve of his mouth.
This was a terrible idea; she was headed down a road with this man that she never even realized she’d gotten on. How had she let this happen?
She was the crown princess. She was the one who would live out her days in a political arrangement beneficial for her family and Empire. She didn’t careabout things like feelings… or love… she couldn’t. It was the one luxury a princess didn’t have. Heartache was the only thing that awaited if she did.
“But,” Taavin started slowly, as if trying to find his momentum, too. He continued to hover there, his own eyes embarking on an exploratory mission over her face as if he were looking at her for the first time. “I suppose it’s only natural, isn’t it?”
“What is?” Her hand shifted slightly; the side of one fingertip touched his, lightning up her side just as his touch had earlier.What was she doing?
“Oh—” Taavin cleared his throat and shook his head, as if emerging from a haze. Vi watched as he straightened away, looking at his hands instead of her. “It’s a natural question to ask—aboutnarroanddurroe. I think many others have, and you raise a good point. But I think you answered your question by saying it aloud. Did you feel anything?”
He spoke so fast it took her brain a good three seconds after he finished to process the words. She’d never seen someone try so hard to be nonchalant and it made the weight of the moment all the more glaring. Vi swallowed, giving her head a shake of its own. If he was ignoring it, then so should she.
It was for the best, and they both knew it.
“No, I didn’t feel anything with them. None of the usual sparks… no glyphs coming to mind.”
“Exactly. That illuminates why it’s important to remember that the words we know are merely an interpretation of the Goddess’s. It is the way our mortal minds can understand a language far beyond our own. Her power is multi-faceted and there are many ways for us to tap into it. Moreover, there may be layers that we do not—and could never—understand.”
“When you say many layers…” Another thought occurred to Vi. One that was hazy, but slowly coming into focus. “Are the elemental magicks of Solaris merely layers of this greater power? You’ve called the elemental magicks ‘fractured powers’ before—and that the rest of the world merely possesses a more general magic.”
Taavin made a low humming noise. “It’s something I would certainly like the opportunity to study more. Magicshouldmerely be magic—any discipline being a way to focus the channel to achieve a goal.
“But, according to lore and passed-down stories, the magic of the Dark Isle is fractured—a whole power broken into its base elements. Thus, the sorcerers there cannot explore whatever discipline they please to see what they take to. They’re relegated to one element.”
“So you’re saying my power isn’t broken like everyone else’s in the Empire?”
“Likely because you are her champion.” He nodded.
“Then… Could I possibly someday learn how to control the other elements as well?” Vi asked eagerly, imagining a time when she would control the currents of air alongside her mother.
“I believe it should be possible. In fact, I imagine I—or anyone else on Meru—could do the same. But the question is how much effort would it be worth when you’ve so clearly taken to Lightspinning?”
“Right…” Vi looked down at the pillow she was supposed to be making disappear. It was a delightful hypothetical. But she had far too much to worry about right in front of her to explore too many tangents. “So I’ll stick with Lightspinning for now. Specifically,durroe watt radia.”
“For the best… Like I said, when you say it, imagine you are seeing through the item. Project the glyphs onto it.”
Vi raised a hand, trying to keep it still. Her heart was still racing around him. “Durroe watt radia.”
Light peeled off her fingertips, spinning through the air. This was far more delicate than any glyph she had constructed with her magic until then. The strands holding together the shifting lines and circles were tenuous at best. Vi tried to imagine it slowly building around the pillow.
“It’s very faint… Is it working?”
“It’s hazy… you’ll need to work on your construction more for this one. Here—” Taavin reached over, resting one hand on her wrist, the other on her palm. He lightly adjusted her hand position with his fingertips. Vi’s spine had never been locked so straight. “This hand position may help. It’s a softer glyph for sure… it needs a delicate hand. Not yourjuthrigidness.”
He smiled at her, and Vi forced a smile back. Inside, she was melting before the heat from the fire that was burning between them anew. Her mind was consumed with the fact that she had to navigate her family, her visions, running away… and now, worst of all… the budding feeling ofsomething morewith Taavin that she never asked for.
He paused, his expression falling, lips parting softly. She shouldn’t have looked him in the eye. She knew he’d see right through her from the start.
