by Lumtrexa
I rest my head on my hand, all this new information is too much for my head to wrap around at the moment.
From what he's told me, it makes me feel like I'm a mistake. I probably am a mistake to him. A feeling of hollowness takes over me, I hug my arms avoiding looking at Lorcan.
I shouldn't feel upset by it, but for some reason I can't help but feel the slightest bit of hurt.
Abruptly, Bray swings the front door open, breaking the silence.
"Hope I'm not interrupting you two! Lorcan I found the map, I just need you to coordinate the path so I can set up the next shield." He says with a tired look.
Lorcan gets up without giving me so much as a glance.
"I'm going to take a walk around the yard." I say standing up and walking off the porch.
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I find a quiet hill, I decide to sit on the other side of it. I plop down on the dark green picky grass, guess they don't mow yards in Aeringdal.
Wondering what my parents are doing, if they've even noticed I've been gone, has really started to irk me. How much longer until I go back. If I go back...
Bang Bang
Jumping at the sound of thunder, I sit up straight. I hadn't noticed the darkening of the clouds in my contemplation. My mind reasons I should go back to the house, but I easily ignore it. It's not raining yet anyway. The humid air grows thicker, oddly, its almost comforting.
A sharp crackle resounds in my eardrums, making me flinch. Lightning? I stay silent for a few minutes, hearing nothing, I rest my head back against the hill. Feeling a painful sensation in the center of my back, I'm reminded of my problems. Which Lorcan has yet to further explain about.
I rub the irritated area on my back, I let out a hiss of pain at the instant burst of excruciating pain.
Deciding I might as well head back, I jump to my feet. I'm about to turn around and walk back over the other side of hill, but I notice a shadow cast over me.
Turning around, I let out a shriek seeing Lorcan standing right above me on top of the hill. The gray sky really makes his piercing eyes stand out, not to mention his flaming red hair.
Avoiding more awkwardness, I walk past him.
"I'm going inside." I say over my shoulder.
"Get in the house!" Lorcan hollers. I said I was going, didn't he hear me?
"I am." I clench stomping back toward the old house.
Suddenly, he grips my shoulder.
"I said now." He vents. I know its going to rain, but is yelling at me really necessary? Maybe I shouldn't let him boss me around so much.
I decide to stand my ground.
"Actually, I think I'll just stay out here a bit longer." I retort, without giving him a chance to complain I march in the opposite direction.
I glance back at him to see a wave of worry cross over his face, but why would he care if I got a little wet from the rain?
I let out an embarrassingly loud shriek of pain, collapsing to my knees.
The pain in my back has escalated, it feels as if my spine is going to snap like a twig.
I roll on my side clenching my eyes shut in agony, I tense up.
"What's happening to me?" I whimper hugging my legs.
Lorcan's distant voice barely reaches me before my mind goes numb against the infuriating pain blasting along my back, causing tears to stream down my face.
The pain is so unbearable, I easily give in to unconsciousness and pass out.
Chapter 21-My Wings
Pins and prickles crawl all over my spine, making me cringe. Bursts of colors blind in me in hues of off reds and pinks, darkness swirls around, blending them into incomprehensible patterns. I can feel the heavy thudding of my heart pounding against my chest. The pain in my back crescendos and I let out a shriek of pain. Something tears out of me, I can feel myself roll onto my side. Dried tears are painted all over my face entangled in my hair as I toss and turn in the prickly grass.
What's happening to me?
The thought is easily drowned out as the pain in my back spasms and torments me once again.
When my sobbing slows, I dare a deep shaky breath. The cold pouring rain does little to soothe me, my now heavy wet cloak clings to me making me more tired. Not to mention the lightning and thunder.
I shake like an autumn leaf, ready to free itself from a branch. I feel something under my back shift as warm arms clench possessively around me.
I pry my eyes open.
The sky above is shrouded in dark black clouds, pounding rain hits my face and I have to blink to see Lorcan.
Once again, he's staring intently right at me, his hair now a dull red due to the pouring rain, his crimson eyes are still just as piercing though. Blushing furiously, I hug myself.
"Don't look behind you." He says with an evil smile.
Not listening, I look over my shoulder and reality sets in. I would pinch myself, if I wasn't trapped in Lorcan's arms.
Two wings, dark pink, with tints of black, are somehow...attached to me. Hyperventilation sets in and I feel suddenly very vulnerable.
He never said this would happen! I can't help, but stare wide eyed, dumbfounded, at him. I'm too shocked to even utter a single word!
I'm finally able to connect the dots, the terrible excruciating pain was because of my wings. I have my own wings now.
Does this mean I'm fae now? Too many questions crowd my mind, giving me a headache.
I don't know whether to be stunned or angry at him for doing this to me without my consent. Then again he said it wasn't actually his fault.
That's right, I'm nothing but a mistake to him.
My mind reminds me I should probably be pushing away from him right now, after all he kind of did do this to me. I'm too tired from passing out though, I wonder if there's blood on my back. I'm too exhausted, he lifts me up with him. The moment his hands meet my wings a low purr comes from him and his grip on me tightens. Oddly, something inside me warms, but the feeling is easily buried under the dull pain in my back.
I can feel my wings drag on the ground, probably getting dirty as he carries me back to the house.
When we finally reach the house, Lorcan opens the door and I'm grateful for the warmth. We ascend the stairs, I feel bad for him having to carry me.
Well, maybe he'll leave me alone for a bit and I can take a nap in my room.
When he walks down the opposite side of the hall from my room, my mind goes into overdrive.
He takes me to the last place I want to go, his room.
I begin shaking my head furiously and pleading at him through my eyes, but he just ignores me and sets me surprisingly carefully on his bed. I feel like I would be squashing my wings, but I'm probably too numb to feel anything.
Even though the house is warmer than it was outside, I'm still cold to the bone.
A heavy blanket is spread over me, the blanket is itchy, but heavy. I'm grateful that at least he's trying to help me.
"Thanks." I whisper carefully.
He doesn't reply. Instead, he walks over to the other side of the bed and lowers himself onto it.
I gulp, while trying, but failing to scoot away. My body is like dead weight, I can't even move over an inch. I mentally roll my eyes at my helplessness.
"You're still cold, aren't you?" He says in a sinister voice.
Now is not the time for him to go into one of his trances or as he says "his other side".
Abruptly, I see his wings extend from behind his shoulders, easily reaching out to the edge of the bed and above us. The darkness of the room makes them almost glow, not as bright as his eyes though.
He lets out a creepy chuckle and lays on his side facing me, his black cloak really makes his face stand out.
He's definitely in one of his trances.
I try to just ignore him, I know he won't hurt me, despite him being a criminal and all. I still don't understand how I can feel safe around someone I barely even know.
My wings catch my attention, as I
see a slight shimmer in them reflect off the moonlight coming from a window on the other side of the bedroom.
"Want to see something?" He says with a menacing smile. I decide to go along with it, its not like I really have a choice at this point anyway.
He watches me quietly, staying completely still. I'm confused at first when he doesn't do anything, then I spot his wings slowly inching towards mine. Maybe its because I just got them, but I can't control or even move my wings at all.
His wings hang right above me, I give him a nervous glance. Then, they slowly reach down. When his wing just touches my shoulder, I feel a slight shock, then I turn my head so I can see my wings.
My jaw drops, the color in my wings seems to be glowing, the bone chilling cold vanishes from me. I still can't feel my wings though. I'm too caught up in the magnificent color of them right now to even care. The dark shades of pink simply intrigue me. The anger that boiled inside me at the thought of Lorcan being the cause of the unbearable pain I went through, suddenly disintegrates.
With new strength, I'm able to turn on my side and get a better look at my wings.
I look up at Lorcan's wings to see he's retracted them a little, they glow just as bright as mine. The dark red of them halos around his head, radiating his face. I wonder if my face is radiating too.
Remembering the soft feel of Lorcan's wings, I gently feel mine. Sure enough, they feel just as silky.
Little sparkles land over my hand and spread across my wings making them shimmer. I'm confused, but then I remember when Lorcan blew glitter onto my face. Sure enough, the guilty look is written all over his face. I have to admit, it does look pretty cool.
I let out laugh and spread the glitter evenly over my wings watching the sparkles blend and shine through the pink hues.
Lorcan watches me with an amused look.
"You try." He says.
Me?
"I don't know how." I say.
"Just close your eyes and concentrate." he replies.
I hesitate at first, I then nod my head and shut my eyes. I think about glitter, what a silly thought. Imagining mine being a dark pink, like my wings. A funny feeling tickles my throat and my eyes open. Lorcan lets out one of his creepy laughs and I can feel the strange glitter sitting in my throat. I struggle to hold in, suddenly a burst of laughter escapes and I choke on the glitter.
My face reddens in embarrassment.
"Try again." Lorcan urges his face serious.
I concentrate again, then I carefully blow, like I would blowing bubbles.
I decide to copy him, blowing my dark pink glitter at his wings. It lands on his wings in a cluster covering the edge of his wings.
"This is so strange." I say amazed. Suddenly, he blows his red glitter right in my face.
"Hey!" I say holding in a laugh, while wiping it off my face.
He chuckles, I take that as my chance. Quickly, I concentrate again and blow glitter right into his face.
He sits up and wipes it off his face with a low growl. I can't forget how unpredictable he is right now. Did I make him mad? Unsure, I scoot a little farther away from him.
Before I have time to dodge, he lets out one of his psychotic laughs and throws a handful of glitter at me. My whole cloak, I'm sure my hair too, is covered in red glitter!
Paying him back, I blow two handfuls of glitter and chuck it at him. It's almost like a snowball fight, but with sparkles. Its a little funny, it feels as if the glitter itself is comforting,
We're both laughing pretty loud, covered from head to toe in glitter. Getting sleepy, I lay down flat on my back.
Lorcan scoots closer to me. I notice again how much smaller I am compared to him. I'm surprised that I find myself expecting him to stay near me. His arms, once again, snake around me.
"Let me go back to my room." I say.
"No." Lorcan says with a sinister smile.
"Fine." I mumble. It’s really not like I have a choice anyway.
"Go to sleep." Lorcan whispers.
"I'll try." I say with huff.
His wings suddenly span over us, enclosing us to the world, as if we're in a cocoon.
He's quiet, eventually nodding off to sleep. I feel my heart rate slow, the pull of sleep gets stronger. I can feel a little bit of "life" in my wings. Every so often they fidget.
The tips of Lorcan's wings touch my wings, almost playfully, keeping me awake. Surely he's asleep...
As if answering my question his eyes burst open and he chuckles, I give him a light punch in the shoulder, annoyed.
Finally, I'm able to close my eyes and get some shut eye.
How can I trust someone I barely know? How can I feel safe with someone who turned me into something without even asking me? Something's definitely different about Lorcan.
I don't know in this moment if I'll ever get to see my family again.
I don't know what tomorrow will bring either.
All I know right now is, whether its good or bad, the closer I am to Lorcan, the safer I feel, even if he's in one of his "moods", I still trust him.
And I don't know entirely why.
Chapter 22-Submerged
Waking up, I rub the glitter from my eyes. I stretch my legs lazily, brushing off the glitter from my dark cloak.
Instinctively, I reach behind me, to find empty space. What happened to my wings?
I glance over at Lorcan, to see he's out like a log. His wings are gone too, but then again they usually always are when he wakes up. Maybe they are supposed to go away when I sleep...but where exactly do they go?
I nudge Lorcan on the shoulder, getting a little disturbed at his obnoxious snoring. Who knew fae would snore too?
"Lorcan wake up." I say quietly. He remains as still as stone. Curious, I lean over him to see if he's actually asleep. I tuck my wild hair back behind my ears, yawning. A strand of my hair suddenly comes loose and falls onto his face.
Before I have time to pull it back, he grabs my hair and yanks me down, causing my head to bang against his brick-like skull.
"Ow!" I yelp.
He sits up in a panic rubbing his head. He must not have realized he was still holding onto my hair because he used the same hand holding my hair to feel his head. Hence, nearly ripping my hair out!
I glare at him through sleepy eyes.
"Oh sorry." He mumbles with a sly smile, pink glitter still smeared all over his face and through his red hair. He finally releases my hair and I hop off the bed.
"What happened to my wings?" I ask.
"When fae like us go to sleep, they fade on their own. They usually only come out when you want them to. You will get use to it. I'll show you how to release them later." he says with a yawn.
"Okay..." I reply heading out into the hall.
I need to get a new cloak, this one is going to drive me crazy with the sparkling glitter all over it.
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After breakfast, I asked Bray if there was a spare cloak around. He found one that never fit his brother or him. Since it was just big enough to fit me, he said it was mine to keep. The fabric felt the same as my old one, I wonder if Earl made it? I didn't ask Bray anything about Lorcan and what he did to me, I didn't bring up my wings either.
I tug at the sleeves of my cloak, its black like my old one, but the sleeves are a little too long and the cloak looks like it almost swallows me. I decide to just deal with it, I'm lucky they had an extra one anyway.
A knock comes from the bedroom door, a cough escapes me. I hope I'm not getting sick, that's the last thing I need right now.
"We'll be leaving tonight." Lorcan says with an amused look. Does my cloak really look that ridiculous on me?
"Alright." I reply with a sigh. I would ask him where, but I know he probably won't tell me and in all honesty it’s probably better if I don't know.
Lorcan continues standing at my doorway with a strained look on his face, what's bothering him?
"What's wrong?" I ask cr
ossing my arms.
"Its nothing. Be ready in twenty minutes." He says shutting the door in my face.
Well that was weird, I can't worry about it for the time being, I've got a lot on my mind as it is. I have to prepare to leave. Walking over to my bed, I consider what to bring. Even though mostly all of the stuff in the room isn't mine, I take a blanket off of the bed and fold it neatly.
I walk into the hall and enter the small bathroom. I then quickly wash my face and untangle the awful knots in my hair. I use some water to pat down the loose strands in my hair, so they lye nice and flat. From the time since I've left, my face has definitely not been this pale. Maybe its just the lighting in the bathroom, but I have my doubts.
"You should hurry up, someone's getting a little impatient." Bray shouts from the other side of the door.
"Coming!" I holler. I smooth out the wrinkles in my cloak and hurry downstairs.
I tell Lorcan I'm going to bring one of their blankets and he nods his head opening the front door. Bray skips down the stairs and whips his head out the door.
"Goodbye!" Bray says with an overly dramatic voice. Lorcan and I simultaneously turn around on the porch.
"Bye Bray." I say with a small wave.
"Keep my brother in line." He says with a laugh.
"Shut up already." Lorcan retorts at his brother, walking down off the porch.
"I will. Remember to travel quick. Shields only last so long you know." He says with a smile, shutting the door behind him.
And with that, I scuttle after Lorcan, almost tripping over my own feet as I walk down the wooden porch.
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I was happy to see we weren't walking back in the direction we came from, instead we're heading to the more hilly side past the house.
For the past hour I've been growing bored after hearing Lorcan go on and on about the tactics the fae guards use to track down elusive fae, which in this case is us.
Every so often, I kick a rock out of my way, the ground has slowly been getting more rough to walk over. Large boulders are scattered over the picky grass, the trees aren't dense yet, but I can tell the farther we go the closer the trees get to each other.
