"Will do." Luciara nods. "Athanasius is stubborn, an asshole, and tenacious," She starts. "Probably enough so that you wonder for his feelings about you."
I don't believe this is a time to talk about that, but go off I guess. "And?"
"Let me explain?" Luciara asks, she indicates a chair next to me, asking if she can sit. "Please?"
"You're his twin." I reply. "What makes you think I'll listen?"
Luciara shrugs. "I don't, and this is not an excuse, but maybe you'll understand why he is the way he is."
Cue the dramatic backstory because I know it's about to happen. "Sure."
“I wanted you to understand,” she says, softly. “And I fear I may have gone too far.”
I don't speak. Forgive and forget? I'm neither God nor do I have alzheimer's. I will listen though.
“When we were free,” she begins, gaze distant as she's watching that period in time through her lime green eyes. “Families pledged themselves to us. In service. In love. In legacy. It was an honor to be chosen. Especially for me, Moireth, and Chronomir. Life. Destiny. Time. We are easy to love, aren’t we?” She smiles, but it’s sad. Tired.
“Even now, humans light candles for us. Whisper prayers. Call on the beauty of life, the promise of fate, the mercy of time. But Death? Darkness?” She lifts her eyes to mine. “They feared those things. They still do.”
She reaches out slowly, and her thumb strokes gently over my knuckles.
“Worshippers came to him too, of course. Athanasius. But not like they came to us. Not in joy. Not in trust. His followers were desperate. Cult leaders. Power-hungry wretches. And others—those who were forced into service, chosen not out of pride but fear. They served because it was easier than dying. Not by his hand. No. But by those who couldn’t bear the burden of walking with death.”
My throat tightens. I glance across the room where he sits now, eyes like the void. He may not be looking at me, but I know he's watching.
“He never got close to any of them,” she says, voice dipping low. “He couldn’t. They didn’t want him. Not truly. They wanted what he could do. What he couldtake.Only one… only one ever made it past his walls.”
I feel it before she says it.
“She made him laugh. Asked him questions. Teased him. Made him feelseen.He began to love her. I saw it in him—he bloomed. And then she betrayed him. Sewed false trust like seeds, and when the mages came for him, she smiled. She laughed.”
The silence between us stretches like a thread pulled too tight. I look over at Athanasius, silver haired and smiling at Chronomir who seems bored and tired.
“He broke that day,” Luciara whispers. “In a way even I couldn’t mend.”
I look down at my hands, still held in hers. They’re shaking.
“But now…” She smiles, and I swear there’s hope in it. “He's making the first move. He smiles again. Withyou.He teases. He touches gently.Hewants.I’ve only ever seen him like this once before. And that woman—he never offered her the honor of being his consort.”
“Consort.” I echo, barely above a breath.
“A love chosen,” she says, “to stand beside a primordial. A soul we cherish for a lifetime—or forever, if they’ll have us. I’ve chosen Delilah. Chronomir… he’s only ever shown that tenderness toward Rose. But Athanasius?” Her smile deepens. “He would chooseyou.”
My heart stutters. Isn't that what I was looking for? Or was it sex? Did I crave the companionship of being with another who held me dear? I was earlier.
“You’re different, Ione. He knows it. Hefeelsit. But that old pain, it binds him. He keeps you at arm’s length not because he doesn’t want you. It’s because he does.”
I don’t know what to say.
“When he spoke earlier, he acted indifferent. Cold. But tonight?” Her gaze pierces mine. “He nearly tore Delilah apart and would have choked me out just to keep you safe.”
I swallow hard. I understand what she's implying.
“I’m sorry for putting you through that,” Luciara says. “But he needed to see it. Needed to see how far he’d already fallen. That revenge isn’t the only thing he’s been chasing.” She squeezes my hand. “He hasyou.And I know, Iknowyou won’t betray him.”
I exhale slowly. And this time, when I look across the room at him, I don’t look away. He turns towards me, surprised to see me watching him, and smiles.
"Caspian and I will find the wizard," Moireth begins. "Until then, we lay low, and wait until we convene again. No fighting this time." Moireth hugs me. "Have a good night, Ione, and remember, follow your heart, there's too much doubt in your head."
