Touch of Destiny
Table of Contents
Prologue The Boy What Makes a Friend? Into the Calm The Tribunal Favor Worthy and Willing The Perfect Shape A Day at the River Finding Humor One Year Later Heart of Gumber Gentle Warning Answers Secret Errand Sacrificial Promise Winter Feast Blood and Snow Metal and Magic Solstice Moon Invitation Pieces of the Past The Raven's Perch Growing Spark Rude Awakening House Arrest Confrontation High Tide Caged Justified The Elder Tree The Raven's Den King's Call No Barrier Can Hold EpilogueHouse Arrest
Part III
6 May
It was a cloudy day. Outside, a soft rain was sprinkling down upon the Gumberwood. Though the trees provided some cover from the rain, a misty fog set itself low to the ground, making the residents of the village stay inside their doors. Due to the unideal weather, Damien and Naelen spent their day doing studies in the library much longer than was typical. Their teacher, Lanara, decided it was an afternoon for mathematic equations of a horrendous nature. She sat with the two boys, monitoring their progress as they worked through the materials.
Well into their tenth set of equations, Tenila came into the library with a stack of mail in her hands. "Today's messages, Milady." She presented them to Lanara and gave a small curtsy before walking away.
Lanara smiled while sorting the letters, but it faded once she came upon a handwritten note addressed to Damien.
"And again," she sighed, placing the lovely note behind the stack. "She keeps sending for you, Damien. Have you not written her?"
Damien glanced up from his work. "Am I allowed to? Would Kallus go even more insane if I communicated with Ash by letter?"
"I'm sure it would be alright to tell her you're under house arrest at the very least. You could ask her to stop sending you invitations."
Damien smirked while tucking his arms under the desk. "No, I don't think I will. It's comforting to know my silence hasn’t made her cold."
Lanara brushed away the boy's comment and pretended to have no reply, but Damien could tell she did. In fact, he sensed Lanara had been holding in many words since Kallus had placed him under this punishment.
"What is it, Lanara?" Damien asked.
"Perhaps I could write to her for you?” the lady suggested. "I would not explain everything, of course, but enough to help the poor girl save on this expensive stationary."
"Hm, no. I'll reply to her myself."
"Then see that you do. And soon." After a few moments, she got up from her chair and made her exit saying, "I need some water, so I'll let you two work alone for a bit. Be sure to finish all the pages."
Once Damien and Naelen were alone, they both stopped what they were doing and shared a glance. The young elf's face broke into a wide, teasing grin.
"Have you mated with her yet?" Naelen asked, causing Damien to scoff.
"No, we just kissed. Talked. Honestly, I thought I'd have more time before Kallus found out."
"Yes, I would've kept something like that to myself."
"Well, I did try," Damien said. "I guess your father knows me too well."
"All too true. It was probably inevitable. For what it's worth, I think Ashlyn is perfect for you."
But this made Damien puzzle. "You don't even know her, Naelen."
"Exactly. She's just as mysterious as you are, likes to keep to herself. Spends all her free time indoors rather than socializing with others. I can see why you like her."
"She spends much more time out in society than I do," Damien said. "Trust me on that."
"Does she secretly hate people as much as you?"
"No." His brows folded. "And I don't hate people, I just avoid them where I can."
"Yeah, right," Naelen chuckled. "You hate people, Damien, we know this."
"Or maybe I just dislike snotty Lor elves who pester me and make my life difficult."
"See? Was that so hard to admit?" Damien rammed his knuckles into the side of Naelen's arm. "Ow." Naelen rubbed the bruise, shook out his arm. "Ow, that wasn't necessary."
"Yes it was. You're being an ass."
Naelen cackled. "Better than being an outcast."
After going up to bed for the evening, Damien decided to leave his room, go across the hall, and knock on Naelen's door.
"What?" Naelen peeked at him through a narrow crack. "What trouble are you up to now?"
"Funny you should ask..." With a shove, the door opened fully to let Damien through, smacking against Naelen’s nose in the process.
"Ow!" The elf grunted in pain, cupping his nose. "What have you been eating lately? I swear, you're much stronger than you look."
Damien checked to make sure Naelen's nose wasn't bleeding. "Uh, sorry. I seem to keep doing that."
"By the Fates! Have you been training without my knowledge?"
"I said I'm sorry, Naelen, what more do you want?"
"First my arm and now my nose? What's next, my—"
"I need to borrow your window." Damien pointed to the darkened glass that faced the south side of the manor.
Naelen became skeptical. “You do realize why you're under house arrest, right? Why should I enable you?”
"I won't be gone long, I just need to speak with her."
"Yeah, and then you'll disappear for a day. Then you'll get caught and we'll both get in serious trouble."
"I'm not planning to let you fall with me," Damien said. "As far as I'm concerned, I just snuck out on my own."
Naelen rolled his eyes. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm horrible at lying to my parents. They'll get the truth from me somehow."
"I'm not asking you to lie, just leave your window unlocked for the night, I'll come right back."
Damien went over and pushed his exit open, analyzed his short leap to the branches on the evergreen that stood near. As he swung his leg over he heard Naelen's voice of concern.
"I never thought I’d say this, but I’m actually worried for you, Damien. If you ask me, I'd say Father has been lenient considering how many rules you've violated these past few weeks. It could be a great deal worse, you realize that?"
"Psh. Since when do you care about following the rules or respecting your father? He's crazy, Naelen, do you realize that? He thinks I'm going to be a victim of the girl I care about, he can't fathom the idea that I choose to be near her. That I feel safe with her."
"Are you sure about that? Is it really your choice?"
"Oh, not you too." Damien groaned from his gut. "I'm alright, Naelen. Promise."
"Okay..." Naelen backed away, gesturing to the window. "Go on then, I'll try not to worry."
Damien braced himself on the eave of the window and grinned at his brother. "If you do worry, just put yourself under a sleep rune." Then he hopped onto a branch of the evergreen and sleuthed his way down to the bottom.
The fog allowed him decent cover as he went through the back gate and jogged to the path that led to Ashlyn's house. Once he got there he saw a single light gleaming through the nearest window, thin white drapes parted down the middle. Sneaking closer, he made out Ashlyn's silhouette sitting on her bed with a book cracked open.
***
The tapping on her window made her jump and close her book. Outside she saw a male shape, a pair of deep brown eyes full of desperate concern.
"Damien?" Ashlyn whispered once she opened her window. "So, you're alive after all? I've been trying to reach you."
Damien was panting, clearly winded from a lengthy run. "How does it end?"
"What?"
"Your book," he pointed, "isn't that the same one you were reading to me? The tale of those lovers?"
"Oh." Ashlyn glanced back at the tome on her bed. "I get the sense that's not why you came all the way here. What's wrong?"
"I'm under house arrest," he said. "Kallus knows that I've been spending time with you. He's gone mad."
"So that's why you haven't replied."
"I'm replying now. Save your stationary, Ash, I can't do much about it."
"And how long does he intend to punish you?"
"He says until you're gone, but I think we both know you're not going anywhere anytime soon."
"Actually..." she held her breath, gripped her heart, "the King of Tauros has already summoned me." She could tell how it caught him a little too off-guard, how it sank into his already sullen face. "I—I wanted to tell you in person, not by letter," she added.
"So, that's it? You're just going to leave?"
"Well, no, I don't want to leave you." Suddenly the air around her was too warm, even on this chilly night. "I want you to come with me." When she said it, however, she saw the terrified look in his eye.
"I don't know." He dropped his head. "I wasn't particularly excited to live among humans the first time you suggested it."
"I understand it's sudden," she said. "I'm not asking you to give everything up for me, I just— I don't want to turn from this yet. I want to give us a fair chance."
"Ash..." He reached for her hand through the window. "You can't leave, you can't let Kallus win."
"This isn't about Kallus— winning or losing; this is about my destiny."
"Destiny?" He scoffed. "Really? Wake up, Ash! There is no force that obligates you to leave the people you care about. For once, just stay. Stay for me. Don't go running off like you always do."
"Damien..." She placed her hand over his chest, felt his thrashing heartbeat. "I can't stay, I have a path to be on. But there's nothing obligating you to linger behind."
"Yes there is," he sighed. "I made a promise never to leave."
"What?" This was news to Ashlyn. Unexpected.
"I promised to be Kallus' heir. If I leave he'll just track me down. I'm not free to venture off with you."
Ashlyn took back her hand, crossed her arms. "And why would you go and promise something like that? You're not a Lor elf!"
"I did it for Lila," he confessed. "She wanted to go to school, but Kallus was going to make her stay and find a husband first. My promise gave him more peace of mind."
"Oh, so you do understand the meaning of attachment? Here I thought you were hopeless when it came to that."
"Don't be angry with me, Ash. I did a good deed. Isn’t that what you want? For me to be perfect?"
"I never said that. I just—I want you to stop being so afraid."
His face was twitching now with too much agitation striving to get out. He stepped closer to her windowsill, his black eyes burning. “I will never stop being afraid,” he growled. “I’m a monster. A freak. And you…you’ve tried to gain my trust so you can use me!”
"Use you? I'm probably the only one who hasn't used you. I've been protecting you, Damien!"
"From what?"
"From all the real monsters."
"Hm." He crossed his arms, glowering. "Maybe Kallus was right. Maybe the one I should be wary of is right in front of me. I suspected this was all fake. An illusion. I mean-- it's too good to be true, right?"
"Damien—" her voice broke into sobs, "—I still don't have your trust?"
He sighed, lowered his gaze. "I'm sorry, Ash. I shouldn't have kissed you, it was stupid of me."
Her breath caught. Suddenly his heart was solid and cold. How did he do that, block off his emotions without a thought?
"Please...please don't push me away. I have no intention to hurt you."
"But you already have. You plan to leave!" His head kept shaking from side to side, stopped at an angle toward her. "I should go. I hope you do well in the human world." Then he turned and disappeared into the misty gray behind him.
Ashlyn stood there, stunned. She hadn't even planned on talking to Damien this night, and now seemingly it was over. His warmth, his affection. His desire. It was all there for a wonderful moment; now vanished.
After closing her window she faced her bed, looked down as far as her neck could go, and let herself fall apart.
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