Dynamics (Mists of the Fae Book 7)

by Jaime Marks

  “Hmm, perhaps. I did not notice it when we awakened Kyle, however.”

  “I did. It is why I believed we would be able to awaken him in such away.”

  Marcus glanced at him. “That would explain the strength of their bond. They have barely interacted but it is clear to see the strength of it already.”

  “I believe Felycia and Devyn are as well, though perhaps not Lunyan. That is why the awakening took her so early.” He let his eyes drift to Astryn.

  “How old is she?” Marcus requested assessing the girl as well. She was oblivious as she tended to Kyle.

  “Either sixteen or seventeen. I am uncertain. We will have to watch her closely.”

  “I had hoped we would have more time to work on Alyric. Do you think he will grant the rights to her awakening?”

  “I doubt it, but she is ward of our lines. Kato will have to determine who would awaken her if Kyle is not yet able. I am certain either he or Demytria would do so without hesitation and both would fully respect and sympathize with her and Kyle’s situation with her Father.”

  “Indeed, though Grifyion’s restrictions on them were for different reasons.”

  Kyle’s head turned towards Astryn slowly, essentially lying his head in her lap. She gently ran her hands through his hair. “He seems to be feeling better at least,” she stated absently, a slight smile on her lips.

  “His lungs are healed and his condition stable. It will take him time to heal fully, but he should be up and about by tomorrow. We’re going to balance Byryn now,” Marcus explained.

  She nodded, “Thank you.”

  “Take care of him for me.” Cymeryn reached up and squeezed her shoulder before walking over to Byryn. “Let us tend to him, Grifyn.”

  Marcus knelt behind him and lifted him so he leaned back against his chest. Cymeryn knelt straddling him and rested his hands on his chest.

  “Ready? This may be a bit draining,” Marcus warned.

  “I figured it would be. Do I need to monitor the flow or am I just a vessel along for the ride?”

  “You need to ensure it is only the essence of Night that flows into him, but I will do the rest. It will take all your concentration and we will need to rebalance ourselves and rest before we can balance Star.”

  “The Divine Being may have already seen to her but I understand…Ready.” He nodded as he reached the level of focus he needed.

  Marcus pulled relentlessly on his essence channeling it through Byryn. It took all of Cymeryn’s focus to hold back his Light and Gray essences. He could feel the drain almost immediately. It was going to be a very long eve.

  Chapter 12

  Devyn had pampered and catered to Felycia until she relaxed but she couldn’t sleep. She had too much running through her head. Devyn didn’t know everything about her past. No one did besides Byryn and Trina, and even they didn’t know everything. Would the others think differently of her if they did?

  Mythos was so judgmental of Kyle. She thought this was supposed to be a new age. That the unawakened Shade were free to start new lives here. She wasn’t stupid enough to believe that everything would be peaches and cream but she had honestly thought that the Lucerna Lines would be accepting.

  They were the example that the Fae followed. If others realized they were fighting over Kyle, the amount of discrimination would increase. She really wished Byryn were here to talk to because she knew he’d actually understand where she was coming from. He already knew about her past…mostly.

  She’d been trying to shake these feelings since meal. It only made her miss her brother more. Until he’d left the realm she never realized how much he actually did for her…and for all the unawakened. Trycen and Wycelion were trying to pick up the slack but it was obvious some of the kids were floundering and there had been a lot more issues with his absence. If she had to guess there would be a lot more if he didn’t return.

  Byryn was the one who made sure those kids felt accepted and secure. There was discrimination but her brother had always managed it harshly, ensuring everyone knew it wouldn’t be tolerated. If some of the older unawakened caught wind of the issues with Kyle, they would react as if it were an attack against them.

  Devyn pulled her tightly to his body. “Where is your head at dear girl? I can sense the turmoil in you still. Let me ease you. This is not solely your about your brother, is it?”

  She sat up, looking down at him. She didn’t want to lie to him and they’d have to discuss it eventually…but the idea of him knowing scared her. “I just wonder if all of you knew my past…if you would think differently of me.”

  His brow furrowed and he sat up beside her. “Felycia, I told you the awakening wipes away the sins of the past. It is a new beginning. Why would you suddenly think otherwise?”

  “It’s just…” She looked away from him trying to measure her words. “My past isn’t exactly pretty, Devyn. There are a lot of things that I did that I’m not proud of. A lot of shit that happened to me that I had no real control of. All of the unawakened Shade share similar stories.”

  “Aye. Many of you, if not all, grew up in extremely difficult circumstances. There is no way to prevent or change that. It is simply what is. None of you should be judged by it,” Devyn replied gently running his hand up and down her thigh. “I do not want you to worry about your past, Felycia. I would never judge you harshly because of it.”

  “It’s not just that. I mean, I do want you to know, at some point…who I was, what I did. I need you to if we ever decide to move forward with things between us, but it’s more than that.”

  “Alright. What has happened that has upset you? Tell me and we shall deal with it together. You can always come to me with anything,” he reassured her.

  “Well, I’m supposed to be one of the Lucerna Lines now, right?”

  “Aye, you are. You are now Grifyion.”

  “So it’s sort of my job, or something, to speak up about things that concern the Kingdoms, right?” She questioned nervously. If he said no she swore she would just roll over and force herself to go to bed. This was a topic she really, really wasn’t sure she wanted to get into yet.

  “Aye, as the ruling Lines of the Fae it is our duty address all matters that affect the Kingdoms. In a respect, it is your responsibility as well. If you have seen or heard something that needs to be managed you have every right to do so, though you are new to this and no Fae would fault you if you did not.”

  She sighed heavily, “I was afraid you were going to say that.”

  He sat up and hooked her chin, lifting it so he could meet her eyes. “Whatever it is, Felycia, we will figure it out together. You never need deal with these things alone. If you are uncomfortable bringing them to the others, bring them to me and I will handle it.”

  “Ok.” She sighed thinking here goes nothing. She really wasn’t the kind of person meant to deal with this sort of thing. “You all say that Redemption and the awakening wipe the slate clean, right? But then Kyle shows up, and because he and Steph have history, Mythos persecutes him at every step. Astryn is pure Fae,” she noticed him visibly cringe at her description as she continued, “but because Kyle is Gray and has a questionable past, both her Father and Mythos appear to be trying to convince her not to get involved with him. I mean, she seems convinced that he’s her mate and so far as I understand it, we only get one…well unless your Reyana and your mate happens to be twins.” She shifted uncomfortably not sure if she was understanding all this. “I guess what I’m trying to say is it makes me wonder…”

  Felycia hesitated, measuring him. She knew he needed to know so he understood where she was coming from. She needed him to know so she knew if he truly accepted who she was, who she’d been before she came here. She needed to know if he would still to want to accept her as his mate if the truth came out.

  Taking a deep breath she decided the best thing to do was be honest about what she was feeling and jump off that cliff. “If everyone knew that my Mother whored me out and my Fa
ther had my brothers rape me as punishment for allowing it, or that I was nothing but a common whore before I came here because it was the only way I could survive; would you all still want me as part of your precious Lucerna Lines? Or would everyone be afraid I would taint them in some way, too?” She stopped. There was more but she couldn’t bring herself to say it. She wouldn’t put Bryce in danger for her own peace of mind.

  Devyn stared at her for a long time not saying anything. His eyes never left hers but the silence was killing her. Eventually he leaned forward and kissed her softly. “Have I given you any reason to believe that this would have any impact on our relationship at all?”

  “No, but…with everything going on, Devyn, I needed to be sure.”

  He nodded. “I can understand that.” Caressing her cheek, he held her gaze as he spoke in tense, hushed tones, “I know my silence has likely scared you, Felycia, but you need to understand three things. First, nothing that has happened in your past will change how I feel for you. I do not judge you for it and as I keep telling you, the awakening wipes clean the sins of the past.” He kissed her softly again. “Second, I will admit that I do not like to think about the idea of you in the arms of another. I am possessive by nature. What is mine is mine and I do not share. I choose not to ask you about such things because I do not wish to…exhibit my more possessive tendencies as I am aware of how you feel regarding such things. It is not that I judge you or do not accept it. It is merely that when I hear such things…I need a moment to contain the urge to hunt down and kill every male who has ever laid a hand upon you.” He smirked but looked almost embarrassed in his admission.

  “Finally, the slightest idea that someone has hurt you so deeply makes me violently angry. When you say brothers, it reminds me that several are in this Palace and one of them I tend to like somewhat. I know it is in all of your pasts and I need to allow all of you to move beyond it, but I am your mate. Whether you accept me or not it will always be my place to protect you from harm.”

  She went to protest realizing she had probably just hung Byryn and Wycelion out to dry but he slid his thumb over her lips silencing her. It was really annoying when he did that. Even more so that she actually let him.

  “Allow me to finish, dear girl. I will not hold it against any of your brothers, but before we leave this bed you will promise me, if any of them make you feel even the slightest bit uncomfortable at any time that you will tell me. You should not have to suffer, regardless of the circumstances. They have as much right as you to be here, and we have to tolerate them at public functions, but you determine how much involvement they get to have with you beyond the necessary customs. Do you understand me?”

  “I promise.” She spoke around his thumb and he smiled in amusement.

  “Now, you are right. We cannot be exhibiting such hatred and division on the subject of the Gray. It was one of the reasons I came here to address my concerns in the first place. If this is for the good of the Kingdoms, and I honestly believe that it is, we must present as unified.”

  She frowned thoughtfully. “If it’s affecting and bothering me, I’m sure if others notice it’s going to have a negative effect. I mean, every unawakened has a past and it’s alienating to sit there and watch all this sometimes.”

  “I apologize that any in our family have made you feel this way. It may not have been their intention, but it does not excuse it.” He sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. “What is worse is that we have already dealt with and overcome such discrimination in our society. We should be above this. Mythos, of all Fae, should know better than to be so narrow minded.”

  “What do you mean?” She asked curiously.

  “Well, when you say that Astryn is Pure Fae, it is a wording that you must never use.”

  Now she was confused. “Ok, but isn’t that what she is?”

  “It is in a respect, but years ago, when the race first began to breed with humanity and the Elemental Fae began to awaken, there were similar issues. Many Fae thought that the so called purity of the bloodlines needed to be protected. Fathers would not allow their daughters to bond to mates who were not ‘Pure Fae’. The divide between the human born, whether they were awakened Elementals or not, and Pure, as they were called, was ridiculous. We were all Fae. There is nothing aside from experience to differentiate between a nonElemental human born Fae and a full blooded Fae. The Elementals may be somewhat different but they simply hold additional gifts and abilities from their connection to humanity.

  “Mythion put an end to it by refusing to bond any female who was forced under duress to accept a mate who was not their true mate. He would not only ask each female brought before him, but sense her fully for the truth. If the Fae before her was not her mate, he would ask if she wanted to bond to her true mate, who was more often than not in attendance as most Bondings are predominantly performed publically.”

  “But how did that end the discrimination?”

  “Well, there were sanctions placed against Fae who tried to force their daughters into such things, but in truth it was the King’s influence, I believe, which allowed us to overcome such issues. Mythion was a great Fae. He knew how to open the hearts of his subjects simply with words and guided them towards acceptance and unity. He made them understand that we were one and the same, very much as Queen Reyana is doing now. Her Father, her birth Father, would have been very proud of all she is striving to accomplish and at how well she is succeeding.”

  “So what do we do?” She asked chewing her lip as she weighed out the options.

  “You will allow me to broach it. I will know when the timing is right. When I ask you however, I want you to ask the King the very question you asked me but without actually giving him the details of your past. You are not required to share that with anyfae unless you wish it and I will not have you feeling obligated to do so simply because of his behavior.”

  “No, I have no desire to tell him. It was hard enough to tell you. I mean, I’m sure anyone else who matters probably knows being Byryn, Cymeryn, and Trina know.”

  He nodded. “Aye. Through their bonds that would mean Staryana, Reyana, Marcus and Grifyn know as well, but as you see, none of us treat you any differently. We accept you as you are, Felycia. Never doubt that.”

  He pulled her on top of him kissing her deeply. He had been getting slightly bolder over the last couple days but he didn’t seem to be pushing her. “I love you, my dear girl. I know you feel that and know it. It will not change simply because of the choices you were forced to make or things that others have done to you in the past. You are my heart and soul, Felycia. Do you understand?”

  She nodded and lay down on his chest with a yawn. He gently caressed her back as her eyes began to droop. “I believe you, Devyn.” she murmured quietly.

  “Sleep now, dear girl. You have been fighting it for hours.” He kissed her head and whispered, “Thank you.”

  “For what?” She yawned out.

  “Trusting me. Allowing me to ease your worries so you might rest. It means more than you know.”

  He amazed her. She really didn’t think he would handle her past nearly as well as he was. Maybe in some ways she was hoping that he wouldn’t. The way he treated her every moment, the way he met every challenge they faced together head on, never leaving her out and always careful to see that her needs were met. Everything about him. It was chipping away at that hard exterior she tried to cage her heart in. Every moment she spent in his arms she swore she fell in love with him a little more. It had only been a few days. She shouldn’t be feeling this way. It made her nervous, but it also made her feel safe.

  She drifted off to sleep in his arms. The arms of her mate. She had never felt safe anywhere else. No one else had ever made her feel beautiful. No one had ever made her believe so completely that she was loved. As she drifted to sleep her last thought was that it was probably too late to run. If she ever lost him for any reason it was going to destroy her completely because he owned her in a way that
she had been so careful to avoid. He owned her heart.

  Chapter 13

  Kyle could feel her before he even knew where he was. At first his chest clenched in fear, but he could sense she wasn’t afraid. Someone else was in the room with them…Cymeryn. They had to be safe. His Dad wouldn’t be so relaxed about their situation if he was unconscious in Lazurys’ domain with Astryn beside him.

  Slowly he forced his eyes to open. Luckily it was fairly dim in the room because bright Light would’ve killed him. She was such a vision, even in what he could only assume was training gear. They kind of resembled tight fitted, workout clothes but they were made of silks. Only the Fae.

  “Kyle? Can you hear me?” She asked softly.

  “Is he waking finally?” Cymeryn asked and he could feel him approaching the bed.

  “His eyes are open.”

  He reached up and gently caressed her cheek. The pull to her was so strong. He wasn’t really sure what to make of the idea that she was his mate but he had definitely never felt anything like it before.

  “Astryn… no one’s tried to hurt you or mistreated you, have they?”

  She smirked with a laugh. “I’m fine, but seriously, I think you should be more worried about yourself.”

  “Nah, I’ll live.” He forced a smile for her despite the pain before turning to his Dad. “Star? Byryn?”

  “Both safe. Byryn is recovering in his suite. Your sister is still with the Divine Being and your Moth-…with Reyana. Once I am certain that it is safe here I will bring them both home.”

  He nodded realizing for the first time that Astryn had her hand on his head and was playing with his hair. He turned to face her again making eye contact before glancing up to her hand. “As good as that feels, you don’t have to do that.”