She looked up at me with so much warmth, I swore it rivaled the sun shining down on us.The laughter of our friends echoed in the air.Old and new.
And when Violet kissed me back, I felt the flames of our love ignite once again.
CHAPTER13
Violet
Dinner was still quite awkward,and I feared it would be as long as Sirus and Lithia O’Neil were with us.Desmond was different around them.Quieter.Colder.
Though I garnered I would have probably been the same way if my parents were known for conquering kingdoms and kidnapping.
The more I got to know Desmond, the more I genuinely liked him.Not in a romantic sort of way, of course, but in a curious sort of way.I’d seen him wield magic, seen his purple fractals, and his tenacity was most admired.I knew he would make a fine study at Blackthorn and found myself looking forward to his admission.To riding that boat with Delaney and I, such as I had the year prior.
And of course, I looked forward to the school year spent alongside my friends.
I never thought I’d long for the halls of Blackthorn when I’d learned I would be spending my summer at the newly re-inhabited and magically renovated Castle Lir.
I pushed at my roasted carrot, feeling a sort of remorse edged with guilt over my longing.It wasn’t that I disliked the castle, it just...didn’t feel quite like home.
Home was a tiny cottage in a small village with annoying neighbors and loads of books.Home was a tight room shared with a vibrant roommate who always knew just how to pry my deepest secrets from me.
The cold air and endless hallways of Castle Lir were not home.Not yet, anyway.
But I knew one day it would be, and that itself was also terrifying.
My mother wasn’t in any sort of hurry to step down from the throne, not after taking it up again so suddenly.The rise of Lir was still in action.It had been months since I’d been discovered, and everything had moved so fast.I feared it would not slow down any time soon.
Yes, Blackthorn was looking quite homey at the moment.
“When will you be leaving?”Desmond broke the silence as he sat needle-straight in his chair.He cut into his roasted vegetables precisely.
“We set out for our journey at the end of the week,” Lithia answered him.
I watched her carefully.She looked so familiar, but I knew I’d never seen her before.I’d only just met the woman.But I couldn’t shake the feeling of déjà vu.
“It is only for a few days.Three at the most.Don’t worry.”My mother reached her hand out to me, and the vision came out of nowhere.
It was the same table we sat at, but it was different.The haze of nostalgia burned in my lungs and my throat as I looked to where I knew Desmond sat, but Desmond was not there.Instead, there was another man, one who looked strikingly similar to Desmond, except for the eyes.His eyes were...red.Like an incubus.
Beside him was a tall, thin goddess with raven hair, dressed in the prettiest crimson silks.Fractals of purple and sapphire danced along her arms as if she were shielding herself from something.Or someone.
I looked at my hands, and they were thin.Long, tapered with blush-colored nails that were lit up by bright purple magic.
The voice that spoke was not my own, but it was.
It came out of my mouth.
“No.I will find another way, I?—”
“You will start a war!Is that truly what you want?”the man asked.
Sirus.It is Sirus...Desmond’s father.
“He is my consort!”I yelled.
The woman—Lithia, I realized—looked at me—my mother—with sadness.
“Wasyour consort, Ama.He is no longer with us.”
