“I have bared my soul to you, Ilryth. I have said more than I should. Expressed skepticism toward your home, and you took it in stride. Allow me a chance to return that kindness.”
His chest swells slowly as he gathers his courage. “The beach out there is much like the rest of this island—a sacred place for my people. This is one of the few places in all of Midscape that we can walk on land without experiencing any discomfort or having to expend a great deal of magic to maintain our two-legged forms.” He shifts, his voice deepening no doubt despite himself. “So, it is here that we—my people—” He clears his throat and seems to gather the courage to continue. “It is here that we ensure future generations.”
My gaze darts back and forth between him and the exit of the tunnel. There’s been no change, no movement. But the noises persist, growing louder, reaching a crescendo that makes my own lower abdomen clench and grow hot with anticipation. But I refuse to let it get the better of me. I am not a blushing maiden, unknowing of the ways of pleasure. I gather myself. “You mean this is where the siren come to engage in the act of lovemaking?”
He nods. I am about to agree with him that we should go when he says, “Would you like to see it? The shores of our passions?”
I am still stuck in place. I stare up at him, feeling like I should say no. We have no business being there, do we? And it’s not something Ineedto see. I know how children are made. I have all the reasons in the world to refuse.
But instead, with a great amount of curiosity, and the slightest bit of eagerness for what he might truly intend by taking me here, I say, “Yes I would.”
CHAPTER35
Fingers still interlaced,Ilryth leads me out of the tunnel and into the sunshine. Here is another beach, another part of the island that the Lifetree anchors to the surface of the Eversea. Unlike the area directly before Lellia’s door, this beach resembles the first that we walked up from. Roots are tangled on two sides. The trunk of the tree is at the back. Open water laps against the shore…and in the sea foam there are men and women, bare and exposed.
They are writhing, thrusting, gyrating, and sliding against each other in the heights of passion. While there are three couples in different areas of the beach, they do not seem to engage with others beyond their singular partner, focusing solely on the individual I would assume they came here with. I have never seen anything so brazen or bold when it comes to matters of the flesh.
The general immodesty of my crew is a very different thing compared to this. When I have seen my crew in various states of undress, it is either at necessary times or in entirely platonic ways. But this, this…
My heartbeat quickens.Thisis something altogether different. Ilryth squeezes my hand, drawing my attention away from the fornicating couples and back to him. He regards me thoughtfully, I suspect trying to parse out what I make of this strange place.
He can no doubt see the flush on my cheeks. I wonder if he sees the slight heaving of my chest as I try to breathe on instinct, combating the immediate sense of embarrassment. All my previous notions of having little concern for modesty are gone.
“We can go if you would desire,” he reminds me gently. “I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”
I shake my head. Uncomfortable isn’t the right word. Shocked? A little. Deliciously tempted in a forbidden sort of way? Also, yes. “I admit…this isverydifferent than anything I am accustomed to. Or anything I have seen before. But these are your people and your ways. It is beautiful and not a cause for shame, nor something that should be hidden or shied away from.”
He beams as though I could have paid him no higher compliment. His shoulders seem to relax a bit, and I wonder if he thought this element of his people would’ve scared me away somehow. The thought only makes me want to hold him even tighter, even as our fingers unravel to avoid being seen touching. I wish I had the courage to say that there is nothing in his culture that could turn me away from him. He could be from the ugliest, most brutal, horrible corner of the world, and I would still want to know all there was about it…because it’s part ofhim. The words burn my tongue, but I can’t bring myself to say them. To expose the depths of my tenderness for Ilryth and everything that surrounds him.
“It was my hope that you would feel this way. This place is one of great magic, of life itself.” He nods toward the beach. “Siren come here with their songmates to consummate their love, to sing for Lady Lellia in the hopes of a child. This is one of the few pieces of land all sirens can come onto in our two-legged forms, necessary for conceiving a child, without any kind of discomfort.” He wears a slight smile. “Arriving at this shore is a dream come true for any siren who would one day want children.”
“You seem to have given it some thought,” I observe. “Odd for a man who hasn’t even taken a wife yet.”
He laughs. “Yes, well, despite my delays in seeing it through, I have always known that my duty would extend to having an heir. That I would come here is simply something I long since accepted.” The joy I initially heard in his tone when speaking about this place fades some.
“Does the prospect not excite you?” Had I misread him?
Ilryth doesn’t immediately answer, giving my question some thought. “I cannot say it ‘does not’ excite me because the act certainly does.” He smirks and I fight laughter with a snort. “But I have spent all my life knowing that I will beexpectedto have children. I have never much given thought to if Iwantthem. Frankly, it is not something I think I should consider.”
“Why not?”
“What if I discover that I do not desire a child, knowing that I’m expected to have one or more, anyway?” He redirects the question to me, even though I know he cannot expect me to have an answer for him. Ilryth shakes his head. “But those are worries for my future self. Let’s not dampen this day with my concerns for a year from now.”
We are both determined to ignore the troubles that plague the backs of our minds for the sake of this moment. Each passing day feels as though it could be our last, as if every passing hour is all we’ll have to truly know each other. The seconds slip away too quickly, time that seems impossible to fully appreciate until it’s gone.
“Would you like to see more?”
“More?” I’m not sure what “more” there is to see. But I am achingly curious. “Are you sure it’s all right? I wouldn’t want to make anyone uncomfortable.” We’ve been intentionally focused on each other, rather than the couples at the water’s edge.
“There are shallows and tide pools for those who wish for privacy in their intimate acts. If a couple is out in the open, it is because they do not mind the presence of others. Or even invite it, so that their songs of love might harmonize with others as a lovely offering for the goddess of life.”
I am certainly blushing now. Ilryth smirks slightly, but doesn’t comment on my slight scandalization. Instead he leads me down the beach.
Despite not wanting to stare, I find my gaze drawn to the distant couples in the surf. Their hair is slick with saltwater and clings to their bodies that glisten with sweat, highlighting the markings drawn across them and faint outlines of where scales would be. Their fanned ears stick out from the sides of their faces, even more noticeable when in their human forms. They are undoubtedly siren, even on land. And, were their physical features not enough of a giveaway, the songs of pleasure would be. It is a chorus in its own right, every couple lending to the melody—a beautiful song made in happenstance harmony. I smile faintly. My initial surprise aside, Ilryth is right. This place, and the act it is designed for, is beautiful.
We cross the beach and enter another area of woven roots splitting off the Lifetree. The entire time, the backs of our hands brush against each other like an illicit secret. Unlike the first two passages, the roots do not form any kind of specific tunnel here. Instead, they loosely weave together like the thick knots of nets, making a maze that is also filled with the sounds of more couples. I assume this is the place that Ilryth mentioned earlier—for those who wish for privacy.
My suspicions are confirmed when I catch glimpses of movement on the other side of roots in the corners of my eyes. But I do not outright look. If they are here then they do not want to be seen.
