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divinemare · 1 year

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⊹₊ ⋆ 𝔠𝔬𝔩𝔡 𝔰𝔱𝔞𝔯𝔩𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔰 ⋆₊ ⊹

┊⁀➷ nyx x oc

┊part eight

part seven

☁︎·̩͙✧

Nerves consumed her throughout the night, not allowing her even a flicker of rest. She kept replaying the conversation with Selah over and over in her head.

Even as she tried to think of her alternatives, or maybe tell someone, come up with a new plan, something that didn't involve taking the deal, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't come up with a single thing that would help her break free of this disastrous plan.

So, after way too much thinking, she got out of bed and wrote a note. A simple 'Deal'. Then the little paper disappeared.

Demetria bit her nails as she waited for confirmation, pacing impatiently until the paper returned minutes later.

'Welcome to the family’. She read.

✧₊˚.

The next morning, they were bidding farewell to their guests, and Demetria felt a terrible dread rise in her chest as she walked through the corridors of the ice palace.

Tomorrow was the High Lady of the Night's birthday, and though she was dying to accept Asterin's invitation and accompany them to Velaris, now more than ever it would be impossible.

"I'm going to miss you so much," Asterin said as they embraced. "Are you sure you can't come?" They parted, and Demetria felt a stabbing pain in her heart, but she disguised it well enough with a rueful smile and an apologetic look. "I can't, I'm sorry, I wish I could."

She broke away from Asterin to hug Kardam, the male was silent, but just as Demetria was about to pull away, he hugged her tightly and whispered in her ear.

"Be careful, Dem."

She felt fear rise in her body at those words. Kardam was a very cryptic male, maybe he meant something else that wasn't exactly what she was thinking, but...

Demetria pulled away and faked a smile that came up much more tense than she had wanted, and felt it tremble on her lips, but she didn't say anything else either.

She said goodbye to everyone, Hollyver, Elliot, Darya and the younglings, but each hug, each goodbye, hurt more than the last. In a couple of days they would all look at her differently, and the thought of that made her heart ache.

She walked away from everyone, her heart too tight in her chest and a lump in her throat that prevented her from breathing.

A hand grabbed her wrist and tugged so fast she didn't have time to react. But she didn't need to, she knew exactly who the electric, burning touch belonged to.

"We need to talk," Nyx said once they were out of sight of the others.

Demetria sighed. He'd been the first person she'd thought of when she'd sent that terrible note. Maybe, just maybe, Nyx could be her ally in all of this. After all, he was the heir to the Night Court, his court was being threatened as well. Her brother would be completely enraged if she told him everything, Kardam and Asterin would want to get involved, and that would put them in danger. Nyx, however... if anyone understood the good of making stupid decisions, it was him. She could trust him, she knew he would understand.

"Yes, yes, we have to."

"About the other night-"

"I need to tell you-"

They said at the same time.

"What about the other-?"

"What do you need-?"

Once again, they spoke in sink. Nyx tilted his head towards her to allow her to continue.

There was something that had been bothering her since that night, something she had wanted to apologize for, and she took this moment to do so.

"Nyx, if the other night is about me using my powers on you, I'm truly sorry, I didn't mean to do that, it just happened. I didn't see anything concrete, really, I think all the emotions clouded my mind. I promise I won't do it again."

Nyx's face contorted with emotions and confusion, blinking several times.

"Or did you want to talk about something else?" She asked, arching an eyebrow at his lack of words.

Then, his face suddenly changed. He stood completely still, cold, with a calculated calm that confused Demetria, as if he was masking a much greater feeling with that same look he used to give her when they weren't so friendly.

He turned away from her, as if her touch was poisonous, which only confused her all the more.

"No, nothing, that was it."

"Nyx?"

"I have to go, I just came to say goodbye."

"Okay, but I need to tell you something, it's very important."

"Goodbye, Demetria," and then... he left.

Demetria stood there for a while, staring at the spot where Nyx had disappeared with a frown, puzzled and too confused.

Nyx hadn't cared what she had to say, he just hadn't cared. And now she was alone.

Totally and utterly alone.

✧₊˚.

His knuckles were so bloody at this point, drops of red were falling plummeting to the floor. It had been three days since he'd left the Winter Court, and from the first day, he'd wanted to go back and apologise for being a jerk, but the sheer disappointment that Demetria hadn't felt what he felt... Well, it kept him training until his body was so sore, Asterin had to use her magic to heal it.

That third day was no different, his breathing was already labored. His muscles were trembling and he was completely drenched in sweat. But everything was better than thinking about her, everything was better than hearing her voice in his head, everything was better than feeling her disappointment when he backed away from her in his own chest, everything was better than feeling that cold wall made of ice spikes in his head and not being able to do anything to cross it.

"You have exactly 30 seconds to start explaining yourself, Nyx Archeron, or I'm going to break your face," Blaze's voice made him freeze and turn around with a frown on his face.

He hadn't expected his best friend at all.

"Blaze, what are you...?"

"Start. Explaining," the male gritted his teeth, in the century they had known each other, Nyx had never seen him so heated.

"I don't understand what-"

"Demetria, Nyx! What the hell happened with Demetria!”

Nyx felt his blood run cold and his breath completely leave his lungs. He had avoided her name completely all that time, and now for her twin to be standing in front of him, so furiously screaming her name. Shit, the Mother really did have strange ways of acting.

"Blaze, I can explain."

"Yeah, that's what I'm waiting for, a fucking explanation. Why did my sister, after apparently having her heart broken by someone, decide to marry fucking Abraxas?"

Nyx had never heard his heart break, never felt the air get painfully stuck in his lungs and the need to open his chest with his bare hands to take out his heart before it kept making feel like it was. Until now.

Demetria was going to what?

“Wait a second, what?”

“She’s going to marry him, Nyx, she accepted the damn deal!” Blaze shout, and again, that terrible pain pinched his heart.

Now a complete wave of wild emotions lashed though him. He tried to hit into that barrier of ice, hit and hit for her to hear him, but there was no response.

“I didn’t…I didn’t know,” Blaze looked surprised, what told him that his family had to know already, and none of them had said a thing.

He normally kept his emotions at bay, had learned from the best High Fae in Prythian to control the wild rushes of rough power cursing through his veins. But at that moment, it all felt like he was not going to be able to keep everything in him under control. He had never felt the need to explode so badly. He felt every kernel of power punch into his walls, into his barriers, begging to burst in a frenzy of emotions.

“I’m sorry, Blaze, I really don’t know what was I thinking, I couldn’t…I…” He couldn’t even find the words to explain.

Blaze was his best friend, Demetria’s twin brother, and he had been hiding it all from him.

“You think I’m mad you’re in love with my sister?” The silver-haired snapped, making him frown.

“Then what are you mad at?”

“I’m mad at you for not telling me! I’m mad at you for not telling her!”

“I tried!” He finally snapped, all the rush of feelings swirling up his body like a wild tornado.

“Did you really?”

He fell silent, not knowing what to say. He hadn’t said it, but…

“I-“

“Yeah, exactly what I thought,” Blaze sighed and grabbed the bridge of his nose, then got closer to him, a look of worry in his winter blue eyes. “Nyx, of course I’m not fucking mad that you love my sister, don’t be such a ridiculous asshole and use me as an excuse for being a coward.”

Nyx rolled his eyes and huffed a breath. “Well thank you, dear best friend.”

“As your best friend I’m in the legal obligation to tell you you were a coward,” the silver-haired put his hands on his hips, making him look way too much like his twin sister when she was scolding him.

“I know! Ok? I know, I just…I though she had seen it, that she had…” Again, the words got caught up in his throat in an impossibly painful knot.

“That she had felt the the mating bond?” Blaze finished for him in a soft, much more calm voice than before.

Nyx shot his head up with an incredulous frown. “How did you…” When Blaze rose an eyebrow as if saying ‘you really thought I didn’t knew that already?’ Nyx shook his head and sighed deeply. “Never mind. Yeah, that. But apparently she thinks it was her powers and not…that.”

That had been what made him back away, he had been so out of words, so pathetically hopeful Demetria would have felt as he had. And then he had ran away from it, from his feelings, and from her.

“‘That’ has a name, Nyx, you got to say it,” Blaze said with a sigh, but Nyx lowered his head without being able to look into him.

“The…” He closed his eyes, then sighed, feeling the lump in his throat burn more than he cared to admit. “The mating bond,” he finally gathered his courage to said it out loud, his chest sinking in heavily at the final realization. “Demetria is…she’s my mate,” a sigh escaped him mid sentence, his voice shaky and almost unrecognizable.

He had become a whirlwind of emotions and regrets, he had spent a hundred years in pure oblivion, having her right in front of him, fighting her off, driving her away, being too full of himself he never stoped to think of what he had right in front. Demetria had been there all those decades, saving him from his own stupidity, he hadn’t realice just how much he loved to hear her laugh, how much he loved to see her put her hands on her hips when she was scolding him, how her ears turned red when she was lying, how her eyes squirmed when she was analyzing him, how she always had an answer for almost everything, and when she did not; she went on and learned it. How she was so terribly frustratingly beautiful and deadly all at once, how she was full of empathy and love for those around her. He hadn’t appreciated enough the little involuntary smiles and bites of her lip when she was too concentrated reading a book, or how she loved to wear beautiful clothes that had always unknowingly stolen his breath. How he couldn’t see a snowflake without instantly thinking of her, how she was just so cold and hot and powerful and sweet and…so her, he hadn’t appreciated that enough, her being her, her being Demetria.

“Yeah, now I owe your sister some biiig money,” Blaze interrupted his trail of melancholic thoughts with a low whistle, making Nyx rise his head and lift and eyebrow. “What? Oh, don’t look at me like that, we all betted on you being mates.”

“I can’t believe…you know what, yeah, I can totally believe that,” he shook his head, a little smile spreading at thinking just how much money Asterin had made from that bet, because she sure as hell had bet on them.

“What are you gonna do now, then,” his friend asked after a moment of silence.

“What am I gonna do? What am I supposed to do? She’s marrying someone else,” being shot poisonous arrows would hurt less than those words out loud did, he cringed at the thought of Demetria at Abraxas’ side, and a wave of hot rage traveled through his toes to his head.

“Yeah, and so was your mother, have you learned nothing from history, pal? Girl who’s about to marry a prick from the Spring Cour=bad. A mysterious good-looking Night Court male who opposes to said marriage and conveniently happens to be her mate=good! Now go get your happy ending too!” Blaze’s face, in other circumstances, would have been hilarious; brows furrowed and accusing look.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Nyx shook his head, heading off to clean his sweat with a towel, in reality, just finding an excuse to get away of Blaze’s scrutinizing gaze.

“Oh my…is this a Night Court male thing? You’re all trying to have a last-moment moral or what?”

“It’s just…she’s planning something.”

He had been thinking about it, he knew Demetria all too well to think she was doing all this just for spite, she would never, in a millennia, marry a male like Abraxas just because, leaving her court, her home, and her dreams for a weak, selfish and fool male. Hell no. There had to be something else, something hidden in all that. He just knew it.

It just had to be.

“Of course she’s planning something! To ruin her life!”

“No it’s not…it’s not that. Why would your sister, of all people, willingly choose to marry the male she hates the most?” He turned around to look at the silver haired again, eyebrows furrowed together.

“I’m sorry to break it to you my friend, but you’re the male she hates the most, and she did not agreed to marry you, in fact, she heavily rejected-”

“Yeah, ok, I got the point. Thank you,” he rolled his eyes, turning back away from his mocking friend.

“But you’re right, I thought so too. I questioned her this morning about it but she just…shut me out completely, that’s why I came here to talk to you, Demetria never shuts me out like that. She’s shutting everyone out, in fact. My mother, my father, even my aunt. No one has been able to really talk to her.”

“And you think she’ll listen to me? Of all people?”

“Oh hell no, she’s going to tell you to go fuck yourself, that’s for sure. But at least, you’ll be able to…I don’t know, maybe know what’s going on, help her in some way. She’s going through a bad time, Nyx, I can see it, she hasn’t slept in days, she doesn’t look like herself. You’ll at least make her explode and scream, get some feeling out of her. You’ll make her feel something, Nyx, I know you will.”

That was what scared him the most, that not only he had that power, but she as well. She had the power to make him feel everything at once. And if he had barely been able to control his feelings today, he didn’t wanted to start imagining what would be like when he actually had her in front of him, when he heard her say she was going to marry Abraxas. Fuck no, that will actually make him snap.

But, seeing Blaze’s worried eyes, and imagining Demetria’s state, specially after he had been so coward he hadn’t let her speak, let her tell him what was wrong and just ran away, well, he gave a shit if he ended up killing that son of a bitch if necessary.

Demetria was his mate, and like hell he was going to let her go again.

28 notes · View notes

wepurge-rpg · 2 years

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Ya duerman a la retrasadita de Hollyver y sus pjs de mierda // lol pero qué te ha hecho esa persona. A mi me parece agradable

lul

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wepurge-rpg · 2 years

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Ya duerman a la retrasadita de Hollyver y sus pjs de mierda // me van a dormir como a los perritos? )):

capaz

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wepurge-rpg · 2 years

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Ya duerman a la retrasadita de Hollyver y sus pjs de mierda

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divinemare · 3 years

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⊹₊ ⋆ 𝔠𝔬𝔩𝔡 𝔰𝔱𝔞𝔯𝔩𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔰 ⋆₊ ⊹

┊⁀➷ nyx x oc

┊part six

-`,✎ once she looked at him, she finally saw him, saw everything he was, everything he never let her see of him. and she loved it. craved it. every last dark, troubled and mischievous bit of it.

-`, tw ➛ suggestive language, swearing, implied sex.

part five

☁︎·̩͙✧

"Cry no more, the one you've waited so long for," Elliot paused his speech to open the doors dramatically. "Has arrived."

Kardam instantly sighed and shook his head, whispering a prayer to the Mother. As Asterin beamed happily approaching the chestnut male and greeting him with a hug.

"I'll owe a life debt to whoever cuts out his tongue one day," Hollyver entered the small palace sighing and rolling her eyes.

Elliot gave her a dramatic offended gasp and put a hand to his chest, but before he could speak, he was interrupted and nearly knocked to the ground by two younglings who rushed in so fast neither had time to react.

"I choose room first!" shouted Asra.

"Asra, wait for me!" Inara pleaded as she ran after her.

When Asra wasn't training —or really, when she was spending time with Inara, who seemed to be the one that brought the real bright side of her—, she looked like a real young girl, without so much Valkyrie leather or desire to cut up her opponents. Demetria smiled at the girls, then turned in surprise at the sound of Nesta Archeron's voice.

"Seraphina! Don’t ru-" but the youngest of them all, little Seraphina, only 6 years old, broke free from her mother's arms to run after her sister and cousin.

"Cassian," the female looked at her mate with a sigh.

"I'll get her," the male dropped the bags on the ground and started running after his little girl.

Demetria remembered with a smile when Seraphina learned to walk. Once she got comfortable, there was no stopping the little one, she ran every time her little feet touched the ground. Then again when she learned to winnow, Demetria had never seen Nesta so constantly agitated.

Demetria and Blaze showed everyone to their rooms, Darya, along with her parents, Amren and Varian, arrived minutes later, finally, her mother and aunt Vanessa arrived accompanied by Morrigan and Emery, and everyone began to prepare for the incoming celebrations.

✧₊˚.

Demetria watched her people dance with a small smile on her lips, her chest full of warmth and happiness at the sight of so much joy dancing around her to the music of the Winter Court. She took a sip of wine and let out a chuckle. Every now and then, someone would approach her, shyly asking for a dance, and of course, Demetria, unable to ignore the smiles and blushes on the faces of her people, accepted each and every request. Now, feeling her feet ache, she promised herself that she was just taking a break before returning to the party. After all, it had been almost three days since the start of the celebrations and there were still two more to go. This was just a pre-celebration, before the day of the actual Solatice came.

She looked around the place again, there was a bonfire in the middle of everything and everyone was spread out around it, snow was slowly falling from the sky, just a few drops of white that made everything look as if stars were falling from the sky. People chatted, laughed and drank, those dipped into corners of the cold dark night, and some danced around the bonfire full of laughter and joy. Demetria spotted her friends; Kardam stood in a dark corner, trying to be absorbed by the shadows in order to stop his mother's scolding. The read-headed female was urging him to go and dance with the, apparently, twelve girl who had asked him to dance, and the twelve girl he had politely turned down, Gwyneth telling her son not to be a boomer like his father, while the male wrapped in shadows stood beside them raising an eyebrow at the accusing words his mate, but also trying not to laugh at his son's situation. Asterin for her part was visibly tipsy and dancing with any male that came near, just a few steps behind, her father was being held by her mother in what looked like an attempt to stop her mate from scaring the shit out of every single one of those poor males. Then there was Elliot, kissing with a female and a male, at the same time. Demetria made a face while quickly turning her eyes away from the scene. Darya and her mother were together, sipping wine and laughing at something —or someone, probably—. Hollyver was dancing with the little Seraphina while Inara and Asra where with Cassian making the poor male sweat trying to catch up with their mischief. Her own parents and her aunt were a few seats away from her, talking to their friends and members of the court. Her godmother Morrigan already so tipsy on wine Viviane held her friend close. Then she saw her brother, flirting graciously with a female who was looking at him like he was some sort of god and was completely fascinated by the sight of him. Demetria snorted, wrinkling her nose. Sometimes, her stupid brother reminded her why he was friends with the stupid Prince of the Night, they were made for each other.

Speaking of which... where the hell was he? But more importantly, why the hell was she looking for him now?

Demetria scanned the whole place once more, trying not to look too obvious as she searched for a dark head and greyish purple eyes.

"Looking for someone, sweetheart?" the tingle in her neck suddenly hit her, the arrogant voice made her suck in a sigh and she did her best not to let it out.

Demetria slowly looked up, meeting those violet-grey eyes, that raven-dark hair and that obnoxious, annoying smile. "Yeah, looking for someone interesting, I haven't had any luck yet."

In her lie, the smile on Nyx's face only grew bigger, making his face look even more annoying. She tensed her jaw and stopped looking at him in an attempt to quell the urge to punch that smirk off his face. After a moment of neither of them speaking, Demetria was growing increasingly annoyed at his arrogant presence alone, so when she reached the point where she felt her chest heaved, she turned to look at him again with daggers for eyes. "Do you need something? Or is it just that you haven't found a female drunk enough to-"

"Dance with me."

Those three words were enough to leave her completely and utterly dumbfounded.

She stared at him with her mouth partially open, unable to utter a word. She blinked a couple of times, trying to decide if she had imagined it or if it had really happened. Nyx was staring at her with an unreadable expression, whatever answer or explanation she expected to find in his eyes, she couldn't find it. Then he reached out his hand to her, and that's when she knew she hadn't imagined anything. She stared at him for a moment, her mind waging a violent war between taking his hand or rejecting him with a sarcastic remark.

She chose the more unpredictable of those two options, the one her body decided to go for, ignoring every reproachful cry in her mind. She took his hand, looking into his eyes and never taking her eyes from his for a moment. This time, Nyx didn't smile cheekily, his expressions didn't change at all, and as they walked towards the crowd of dancing Fae, not for a single moment did they stop looking at each other.

Just as they arrived at the dance floor, the musicians were playing one of her favorite songs, it was perfect for dancing, in fact, it was the song she always danced to with her brother, but now, while Blaze seemed too busy eating some random female's mouth, she was busy staring into the eyes of the male she hated the most as she danced in his arms.

When the choreography forced them to clasp hands and dance in half circles, she swore Nyx was closer than necessary, and when he tilted his head, she had to hold her breath when his lips brushed her ear. "You look beautiful tonight."

Four words. Four words that had made her heart stop in her throat.

What the hell was Nyx planning, what did he want? Those two questions played over and over in her head as she looked at him.

"Is this some new prank or something, what's the catch?" Demetria asked once they were face to face again.

"Make you blush."

"I’m not blushing."

He grabbed her waist and lowered her a little to the ground, making her have to hold onto his shoulders. Their faces inches apart.

“Then there’s no trick,” he lifted her again and spun her around.

When she stopped spinning, her back was pressed against him, and a quick, inevitable trip down memory lane took her back to the night in Velaris when they'd been in almost those exact same positions, with his mouth on her neck and his hands on her hips after she'd accidentally touched his wings.

"Relax, Demetria. For tonight, just for tonight," he murmured in her ear as they took a step forward and a step back.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, was it... longing she heard in his voice? When she opened her eyes again, surprise struck her as she felt that same longing inside her. And for that reason, she didn't answer him, afraid that the feeling would be reflected in her voice. So she turned again and ended up facing him, her eyes told him everything her mouth could not at that moment. In that instant, the two of them loosened up as they had never done when they were together, and from then on, it was the music that drove them apart.

Asterin, who was also dancing, saw them and suddenly stopped with her mouth open. She then pushed away all the males around her and practically ran towards Kardam, who, miraculously, had been able to get away from his parents, condemning his father at suggesting to his mother that she also try to make her mate dance with her. Gwyneth had immediately looked at her mate and given Azriel no choice practically dragging him with her to the dance floor.

"Are you...?" Unable to continue the sentence, Asterin merely stared at the couple that were now dancing with less I-want-to-kill-you intensity.

"I am."

"Are they...?"

"They are."

"Holy freaking Cauldron."

"Holy freaking Cauldron indeed."

"Hey, have you seen Demetria? I was going to ask her if-" Elliot arrived, interrupting Asterin and Kardam's looks of astonishment, and when his eyes followed his cousins' gazes, the male smiled cluelessly. "Oh, there she is, I'm going to-"

"Don't you dare you big idiot!" But before he could take more than two steps, Asterin grabbed her cousin by the collar and pulled him back to drag him as far away from the now dancing couple as possible.

"Aste- Kardam!" Elliot shouted for help, but Kardam turned a deaf ear as he grinned broadly.

"Thank you, Great Mother, thank you."

✧₊˚.

Two songs later, everything seemed different. There was no snapping at each other, no dead stares, no tense jaws and shoulders or sarcastic retort for every word that came out of the other's mouth. For a moment, it was just them, dancing in the middle of the night with their eyes fixed on each other, at one point, they even smiled, Demetria laughing when Nyx couldn't keep up with some of the traditional winter court dances and slowed down so she could teach them to him. In that moment, she didn't feel angry or annoyed with him, it was almost as if they were the only ones dancing around the bonfire, they weren't, but they couldn't know that at the time. Focused only on each other, the rest of the world practically faded away.

When the third song ended and everyone around them stopped to applaud the musicians, they stopped too. Breathing heavily, the sound of applause snapped them back to reality. They kept looking into each other's eyes, but a thought, a memory, crossed Demetria's mind in time to bring her completely back to the ground. She tensed slightly again and swallowed hard, when Nyx noticed, his eyes flicked for a couple of seconds to her throat, then to her mouth as she licked her lips, then back to her eyes. Demetria’s heart tripped over the three points on which he had focused his gaze.

"Why did you do it? How?" The questions she'd been dying to ask him slipped out of her mouth as her eyes tried desperately to search for answers in his now stone cold expression.

Nyx came back to earth at that moment, too, tensing his shoulders and breathing a little too hard, he took a step back from her, the absence of his body pressed against her leaving her without a grounding presence. He had every intention of leaving her there alone, with a thousand questions and zero answers, but Demetria wouldn't allow it, wouldn't let him suddenly turn back into the big jerk he usually was. So, just as Nyx was about to take another step back, she grabbed his wrist, making him stop.

"Why?" She repeated again, this time with more demand.

Nyx sighed, looked down at the ground and caught his upper lip between his teeth for a couple of seconds before closing his eyes and letting out a sigh. Now he was the one grabbing her wrist and, before Demetria could start arguing or demanding an answer again, he began to drag her away.

"Where are we... Wait, Nyx, wait!" He didn't stop, and when Demetria realized he was looking for privacy, she took the lead instead, now dragging him into the woods.

Nyx didn't protest, didn't say anything at all as Demetria led them to a place she obviously knew perfectly well. Somewhere in the forest, the trees opened up again, and when they were close enough, he saw a crag overlooking a lake, and in the distance, the mountains stood proudly, it was a sight close to home, so similar to the mountains of Velaris, only this ones were fully covered in snow. Once they reached the crag, he was certain that the view was one of the most beautiful things he had ever seen in his life, and he lived in the freaking city of starlights.

The sky full of stars, the moon and the mountains reflected in the water, like a mirror, an upside-down world. The ground was completely covered with snow and so were the few spreading trees. He was so amazed that he didn't realize that Demetria had been holding his hand until she let go of it. Then Nyx looked up at her, her eyes were shining with a brightness he had never seen before, as if this place they were in was bliss itself.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" She asked, still focusing her astonished gaze on the landscape.

"Very."

When Demetria turned her head and found him looking directly at her, her chest heaved again and her neck and ears grew warm.

"What is this place?"

When he turned his eyes away from her she felt grateful, the hot spots on her skin cooled again, and swallowing hard, she found the words to answer. "It's my place. I thought, since I'd apparently found yours, it was only fair to show you mine," they hadn't spoken of the day they'd nearly drowned, and bringing up the subject again made the air rush out of them both.

"How you found me that day, by the way, I've never shown anyone the cliff before."

"When I'm stressed or confused or…pretty much feel out of place, I like to be somewhere cold. The coldness, the snow, all that relaxes me. I had gone to one of the mountains, where it usually snows, when I saw you. I was going to go back because I honestly didn't want to see you, you were the reason I needed a breath in the first place, but then, when I saw you jumping, I just..." she didn't continue, she just didn't know how to do so.

Silence fell between them. Demetria focused her gaze on the mountains in front of her, in an attempt to avoid his intense eyes on her. When he said nothing, just stared at her for a long moment, long enough to make her uncomfortable, she punched herself in her head and turned to him to say something to fill the silence. "I haven't shown this place to anyone either, not even Blaze. It's mine. And I know it sounds ridiculous because anyone could easily come here, but... I don't know, it just feels like mine."

"I know exactly what you mean. That cliff is mine too."

His eyes were so intensely on her, she had to swallow hard to deflect the tension. Silence came over them again. And, maybe it was her imagination, but she could have sworn Nyx was moving closer and closer to her. But then again, tonight, everything about Nyx could be her imagination.

"Why did you help me all those months ago, how did you do it?" No, he was definitely right, Nyx had moved closer to her, so much so that the clouds of mist coming out of their mouths melted into one.

It was his turn to swallow, and just when Demetria thought he would turn away again and not answer her question, Nyx looked her straight in the eye. "Because you were scared, nervous, and I couldn't stand the feeling of it."

His words caught her so by surprise that she froze. How could he feel that? Because she had felt that way, deep down, she had felt insecure about the whole situation, afraid that it would affect her family, afraid to let the flame inside her burst out and consume everything around her, including those she had no intention of hurting. Nyx had felt that, the quiet desperation well hidden in all those layers of ice.

He was so close that she had to tilt her head back to stare into his eyes. Every word spoken had been true, she saw it in his grey-violet eyes, no gift of vision needed.

Before she could respond, or simply move closer to him as she had no words to respond to that, the sky lit up with colours. Green, violet and deep pink lights illuminated the sky in divine waves of pure beauty. When he looked up, Nyx sighed in awe, the beauty of the aurora grabbed his full attention, turning away from Demetria to walk closer to the edge of the crag as if that would bring him closer to the lights, his face lit up with an amazed smile and the green and violet and deep pink lights reflected in his eyes. His gaze was so pure that Demetria couldn't contain a smile, like a child admiring the world for the first time. Walking down next to him, she closed her eyes for a second letting out a sigh and then took another deep breath, smelling the snow around them and how the air seemed to change in the presence of the northern lights.

"This is... wow..." the male next to her let out a sigh, she looked up at him, his eyes were fixed on the sky as if he had never seen anything more beautiful.

"I know," she smiled, looked up at the aurora and spoke again. "I come here every solstice, when everyone is drunk enough not to notice my absence, to see better, here everything is so quiet and peaceful, here you can fully see the lights, back there it's mere coloured light, but here...".

She didn't bother to explain further, with the way he was looking at her now, she knew he understood.

"I did," Nyx said suddenly, tearing her eyes away from the lights and fixing them on him, confused.

"What?

"Every year I'd see you sneak away from the bonfire and into the forest. The first time I tried to follow you, but then I saw that you wanted to be alone; you kept looking around, as if you felt I was following you, so I came back, and since then, I always notice when you leave," his voice was rough and low, but they were so close that it traveled to her very body like a sweat coated weave.

Suddenly, her mouth was completely dry, she had to swallow hard and run her tongue twice over her lips to get them wet. She stared at him for a second, taking in his words. Once again tonight, he hadn't failed to completely stun her with every word that came out of his mouth. The lights ceased to be her main interest and his eyes became it instead. Demetria remembered perfectly well the first night she had sneaked away from the party to see the lights, she had felt so nervous that she had thought she was being followed, she had glanced behind her every now and then on her way to the crag, and suddenly, when she had arrived, she had stopped feeling that way. At the time she had thought it was nerves about being caught, her parents wouldn't have liked to see her alone at night in the woods when she was little, but now she knew she had been followed, followed by Nyx.

"How?"

He didn't answer right away, his eyes looking troubled, as if he was thinking again whether to answer that honestly. After a moment, when they were close enough again that the mist coming out after their breathing mixed, he finally did.

"Because I always see you, Demetria, it can’t be dark enough, crowded enough, or I to be drunk enough for me not to see you. Because when I don't see you, I feel the need to look for you," he lifted a hand, and she was so breathless she didn't even think to turn away from his touch on her cheek, Nyx was looking at her as if trying to take in every detail so he would never forget the exact color of her lips, or the flush on her cheeks, or the sparkle on her different colored eyes, how they seemed to held snowflakes in them, or the way her eyebrows moved without even her knowing they did whenever she was confused, sad or angry.

Demetria wasn't sure if it was him or her who approached even more, but either way, the distance would now be enough for her to stand on her tiptoes to kiss him.

His hand moved from her cheek to her chin, and he tilted her head up slightly, brushing her lower lip with his thumb. It was then that the air escaped her lungs completely, and a sudden desire to have his lips on hers made her want to moan just thinking about it.

"I will always look for you," Nyx whispered against her mouth.

He made no other move to close the little distance that remained, so, taking matters into her own hands, she did. She felt him then, all of him. His lips were as soft as she knew they would be. They tasted of wine and cinnamon. He loved cinnamon rolls, she remembered then, his aunt Elain had been the one to blame for the obsession. She cooked the most delicious cinnamon rolls, and for as long as they were little kids, Elain would sneak them one or two when their parents weren’t looking. That combination, that taste, lulled her from thoughts. His body was warm and strong, much larger than hers, holding her perfectly in his arms. At first, it was the softest kiss she had ever given, as if they were both afraid of what might happen, of making it happen, because, after all, years of not getting along, and being a pain in each other’s asses were now confused in the taste of their mouths and the longing of their hearts.

"Please, just... tonight. Just tonight, pretend you don't hate me, please," Nyx stopped kissing her, sensing in her the same fear and instability he himself felt. He leaned his forehead against hers and cupped her face with both hands.

Hearing him beg her for something might have made her laugh hours ago. Now, it only left her feeling so hot that she feared she didn't know how to control the sensation. Demetria swallowed, then it came out of her mouth the words she never thought she would ever be saying.

"I don't hate you."

A mere whisper was all it took for what Nyx had been holding back to finally be unleashed. He grunted and pressed his lips against hers again, this time in a much more desperate, lust-filled kiss. Her body exploded with a new kind of heat. Now it wasn't just her cold fire bursting, but his as well. Both flames, one cold and made of ice, the other dark and made of night and fire, mingled and fought each other, combining into one. Like their fire, their mouths fought for the lead, desperate to encompass all that was the other. Within seconds, his mouth was no longer on hers, but on her cheeks, then her chin, her jaw, and so he worked his way down her throat, to her collarbone. She shuddered and gasped as his lips reached that point, as his tongue took the taste of her skin. Her body screamed in agony from the fire that threatened to consume her all.

"If I touch you right now, how wet would I find you, sweetheart?" He whispered against her ear with his lips.

Maybe it was because she hadn’t had se in quite some time, maybe it was the thrill of it all, the taste of something forbidden while kissing with her long-sworn nemesis. But Demetria was afraid to admit the answer to that question even to herself.

"Why don't you find out for yourself, if you're so curious?" Her voice was breathy, her heart hammering so hard in her chest she could barely hear her own words. Nyx breath out a laugh, so rough, low and almost animalistic that it made her knees feel weak. His hands trailed down her throat, towards her collarbone, and stoped at her rapid falling chest.

"Because if I touched you right now, I wouldn't be able to stop, and this rock isn't exactly the place I've been imagining fucking you in."

The confession only made her hotter, at this point, she was sure she could feel the wetness rolling down her thighs, that the very spot between her legs ached with the need for him, for his touch, for his words.

"How selfish of you to think only of your own desires."

"Oh, believe me, darling, once I finally touch you, you'll call me anything but selfish."

Then he bit her earlobe, drawing a low moan from her. Demetria was on the verge of despair, with his erection pressed against her and his breath on her neck, she was sure she would lose her mind at any moment.

Nyx grunted again, as if it pained him deeply how much he was truly holding back. To think that she was the reason he was on the verge of insanity made Demetria proud and hot at the same time.

“Make that noice again, and I’ll freaking melt this snow and fuck every little noice out of you right here,” he pressed his forehead against hers again, his jaw tightening.

She couldn't help the small laugh that escaped her and tilted her head slightly so she could see his troubled yet hungry eyes and mischievous grin.

"Don't tempt me, you know very well I'll do anything to tease you," Nyx laughed then too, licking his teeth and then fighting his own smirk, shaking his head and looking up at the lights that still painted the sky. When he looked at her again, it all happened so fast that she barely had time to take it in.

Violet-grey eyes, night, stars, fire, powers of inimaginable reach, everything he was, everything he let her see and everything he didn't let her see, a kind of darkness she'd never seen before in her life, so full of... love, hope, fear, despair, so beautiful she could cry, so fearful she wanted to hold her in her arms and soothe her until all traces of fear were gone, he was scared, of himself, of what he could do, what was expected of him, and fearful it all could never be enough, she saw the need to be like his parents, yet the insecurity he could never be like them. A force so protective, so possessive, so loving. Mischievous, bold, full of energy and adrenaline. Everything he was, everything she never thought he could be.

She was too stunned to speak, she had no idea what had just happened, how could she not know that her powers were about to open up? How could she not have felt them coming? Right now she didn't care to think about it, all she cared about was the feeling so deep it almost hurt in her chest. She had seen him, every part of him.

In awe, Demetria put a hand in his face, tracing soothing caresses against his skin as if like that she could soothe the darkness inside him. And smiled, truly, for the first time genuinely smiled at him.

"I see you too."

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divinemare · 3 years

Text

⊹₊ ⋆ 𝔠𝔬𝔩𝔡 𝔰𝔱𝔞𝔯𝔩𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔰 ⋆₊ ⊹

┊⁀➷ nyx x oc

┊part five

-`,✎ he was what made her most mad, what boiled her blood with every arrogant word, with every stupid smirk, what made her frustrated like nothing else could. but, now she will learn, that also what made that destructive, dark icy flame inside of her tamed with the darkness of his own.

part four

☁︎·̩͙✧

With her bags packed, and very little desire to go home and deal with all her problems, Demetria was surrounded by all the younglings from the families in the courtyard of the River Estate. It had been a long time since they had all been together, even Seraphina was sitting next to her sister, and they would not all see each other again until the Winter Solstice, when the group reunion would take place this time in her court.

So that took them to this moment, one last fight, one last fun before saying goodbye.

With a sword in her hand and her winter battle attire, Demetria looked with a sly smile at her two opponents. Hollyver, Asra, and Demetria where the three last standing women from the pack; when it involved physical fighting, the three were the best of the group, that’s why they were always the last three fighting each other. Hollyver, having been the most spoiled by her grandfather and trained by Helion himself, and Asra, who was training to one day be a Valkyrie like her mother. Darya always refused to participate in the annual fights, but Demetria always knew that if the female ever did, it would possibly be one of the best fights she would ever have in her life.

"Bet! Place your bets here!" Elliot, putting his hands around his mouth to make his voice louder, called for everyone else to place their bets on their favourites.

Demetria laughed, shaking her head, as she twirled her sword in her hands.

"Aren't you suffocating in those clothes?" Hollyver asked, with a sly grin.

"Don’t yours cut off the blood circulation to your brain?" The redhead female laughed, throwing her head back.

"Destroy her, Dem!" Elliot encouraged behind her, earning a grotesque finger from his sister.

"You'll be next,” Hollyver assured the male, who simply shrugged her off counting the money in his eager hands.

Asra took advantage of the small distraction from both older females to launch the first attack in between. Demetria spun to the side to dodge it, and looked at the younger with a sly grin. Asra was a worthy daughter of her mother's cunning. But so was she.

At the same time, the three swords met, causing a pleasant sound of metal clashing together. Then, all three reacted at the same time, kicking each others leg; Asra's to Hollyver's, Hollyver's to Demetria's, and Demetria's to Asra's. All three fell at the same time.

But Demetria was the only one who managed to land on her knees, which gave her the advantage to get up faster and launch attacks on the disadvantaged females.

The fight went on for a while longer, Asra was the first to go down, unfortunately. As remarkable a fighter as she was, she was still young, 20 decades younger than Hollyver and almost 40 to Demetria. She still had a long way to go in her training, but Demetria still lamented the poor fate of the foe who dared to cross the young Valkyrie's path.

"Just you and me," Hollyver grinned, spitting blood to the side.

"Who knew, I'd have the satisfaction of beating you again for another year."

Both females laughed, and to think that at first their relationship had been anything but friendly.

Hollyver was a worthy granddaughter of Helion, spoiled so much to a point where Demetria and she couldn't get along for decades, but they soon found a common interest; training until they saw themselves bleed and knew they were preparing to be the best of their future.

Demetria would be the General of Winter's army. Hollyver would be the High Lady of the Day Court. And after decades, they realized that a future where they were allies would be a much better future than if they were enemies.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the winner is...Demetria!" Elliot announced dramatically, as everyone watched the silver head hold both swords to Hollyver's neck.

"Last time, Demetria."

Demetria laughed, lowering both swords and handing one back to the redhead.

"So you say every year."

✧₊˚.

The winter air felt like a soft, familiar caresses on her skin, she inhaled the smell of snow in the air, filling her lungs with the scent of home. That one las fight back in Velaris had given her a much needed action, a relief to her constantly preoccupied heart. But this time, as she set foot on her court’s ground, something was missing, an inexplicable hole in her chest split her into two pieces of feelings: the familiarity of her court, the feeling of home, and a strange, new yearning for... she didn't even know what.

Demetria quickly dismissed all such thoughts and feelings, she was home, and she would not allow any foolish feelings or consuming doubts to dampen the excitement of the Winter Solstice that would soon arrive.

"Back to your boring life?" Her brother came to intercept any other thoughts in her mind, putting an arm around her shoulders and towering over her.

"Back to your lonely and pathetic life?" She replied with an innocent smile on her lips as she looked her brother in the eyes.

Blaze laughed unfunnily and shoved his sister's head, earning a punch in the ribs from her and then both a warning from their mother.

The family entered the large and imposing winter palace. The ice palace staff smiled at them, happy to see that their rulers were back.

"My High Lord, my High Lady," their path to their chambers was intercepted by Kallias and Viviane's advisor and second in command. The man, much older than even her parents, looked at the twins and stared at Demetria for a few seconds, before turning back to her parents. "We have... visitors."

The four of them tensed, straightening their backs until it hurt and clenching their jaws, they all knew who these 'visitors' were, and none of them were too kin to face them, least of all Demetria.

"Mikalon, would you please tell these 'visitors' to go fuck off their flowery asses?" Blaze was the first to speak, leaning protectively closer to his sister and doing his best not to go shove a frozen begonia up their visitors ass.

Surprisingly, Viviane said nothing about her son's manners, even raising a white eyebrow as if confirming Blaze's words herself was a good idea.

"Demetria, to your room. Blaze, take your sister," Kallias —a normally calm and collected male— sounded so lethal in his command to his children that it even sent a shiver down everyone's spine, his powerful High Lord powers penetrating every ounce of their own cold-resistant blood.

Blaze was more than willing to obey, but Demetria was not. He grabbed her arm, but she quickly yanked him away with a tug of annoyance, staring into her family’s eyes with pure cold determination. "No."

Both parents opened their mouths to order her again, but she would not budge at their command, as she stood right now, she was an immovable block of ice, one that not even her father could move with warning stares and blunt orders.

"This is my problem too, my life, my own head is on the line, so we can stay here and sleep as a family in the halls, or you can let me handle this."

Never, not once in her life, had she ever spoken to her parents like that. She had always been quiet and obedient. To her displeasure, Nyx's words popped into her head at the worst possible moment, “Little rules-ass-kisser princess”. It was the stupidest of a variety of stupid nicknames Nyx had made up over the decades, but for some reason, as she stood there and now, defying her father's cold eyes, ignoring an order from him and then her mother, that stupid nickname stung in a new and strange way.

Damn you, Nyx Archeron, and your stupid nicknames.

Kallias and Viviane shared a glance and, with a sigh, finally nodded to their daughter, turning back to their friend and advisor and asking him to tell their "dear visitors" that they would all be there in a minute.

Demetria took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Was that what Nyx felt every time he challenged an authority? That sort of... victory? She shook off thoughts the Prince of the Night and straightened to her full height, beginning to walk towards the Throne Room without looking at the others.

"That's your fault, you stubborn female," Kallias shook his head, unable to keep a slightly amused smile from escaping him as he looked at his mate and pointed a finger at his daughter.

Viviane opened her mouth in disbelief and snorted. "It's not!” With a flick of her hair that was meant to hit her mate square in the face, she strode proudly towards her daughter.

Both family males stared at each other and sighed, taking their steps to follow the females behind.

Once at the doors of the Throne Room, before they were opened by the stony-faced Fae guards, their positions changed and now both the High Lord and the Lady stood facing their children. They took one last look at their daughter to make it clear that she was moving on, and when they saw nothing but sheer determination, they nodded to the guards to open the gates.

Blaze, who was at her side, squeezed her hand once and quickly. But the promise was still there; the promise to stay by her side and make his first words about the begonias come true if she asked him to.

She was grateful to have her brother's unconditional loyalty by her side, but she also felt a strange feeling in her stomach, everyone had seemed to forget who she was, what she was training, what she had been all her life, to become. She was the Winter Princess. She was no child, a little secret in need of protection, and she was going to make sure she made that message very clear to those waiting on the other side of the huge pale blue ice gates.

Three blonde heads turned at the same time to look at the winter family. The two males looked displaced, while the female looked nothing but bored. Selah. The first daughter of the Spring Court, though not the one to inherit its throne. It was the first time Demetria had seen the female in decades, she had rarely attended court gatherings, had never come to Winter for the Winter Solstice or to Velaris for Starfall —but, that really didn't have much to say, as Starfall took place on the same day as Nynsar in Spring—, and, even the few times they had seen each other over the years, they had exchanged no more than a few polite words. When Demetria entered the Throne Room, however, their eyes met and, for a second, they held each other's gazes, the two shades of cold blue and gray against the green.

"Tamlin, what an unpleasant surprise," once the words left her mother's mouth, Demetria broke eye contact with the Spring Princess and turned to the female’s brother and father.

"Viviane, as warm as always," the older male raised an eyebrow looking at the High Lady as if he shared the exact same thoughts, besides that of being annoyed by an inferior.

It infuriated her mother. All four of them, to be honest, but none of their cold stares flinched in the slightest.

"Demetria, beautiful as always, I see," this time it was the handsome, if extremely annoying and pretentious, younger male who spoke in her direction.

She did her best to keep her eyes from rolling. "Abraxas, boring as always, I see."

The male's jaw clenched in annoyance, giving her a warm sense of satisfaction.

"Are we done with these silly greetings, or would High Lord Kallias and Prince Blaze like to make their contributions as well."

Her satisfaction was quickly replaced by surprise at the words coming out of Selah's mouth. She had never really spoken to the female, nor had she ever gotten to know her, but due to the fact that she was rarely seen, she had just imagined the Princess to be as submissive and quiet a little sheep as her poor mother. And, most surprisingly, it was a pleasant surprise that she probably was not.

Demetria struggled to not crack a small smile, keeping her stone cold face in place and not risking a second glance at the blonde female.

"That's fine with me. I'm rather tired and would like to return to my chambers before the busy festivities of the incoming solstice take place, so let's save everyone some precious time and get straight to the point," just as she had said before, and just as her family had agreed to let her, she began to step forward, she now being the one who stood before the blonde haired trio.

Tamlin took his time to respond, looking at her just as he had looked at her mother, deeming her unworthy of his attention and wondering why a female would speak above the male ruler, let alone his daughter. But when he looked up at the High Lord and found nothing on his face but a proud smile, frighteningly cold like his entire presence at that moment, he turned his gaze back to her and gave her his fakest smile.

"We were worried about you, dear Princess, we have had no word of your response to our proposal, so we have decided to take matters into our own hands".

"Well, as much as I appreciate your concern, there is nothing to worry about. I was under the impression that we had been very clear before, but as it seems we have not, I will repeat myself; I have no interest in an engagement with the Spring Court, one would think our previous history would be enough to keep our ties strong, but if that is not our case, then lose no sleep, High Lord, we are not interested in 'straightening' our ties," not once did her tone change in the slightest, always being the same deadly cool, unflappable and regal one she had learned so well to maintain. She could feel the pride of the three white-haired fae behind her, which filled her with even more confidence.

Tamlin's green eyes flashed with a spark of anger and irritation, he must have thought he was dealing with a child, a spoiled little princess. But he hadn't the slightest idea.

"I'm sorry, Princess, but you seem to forget that these matters are none of your business, these decisions are no place for a child," he said it with such feigned sweetness that it almost made her want to vomit. She had never met anyone as pretentious as the High Lord and his son before her, and she knew Nyx fucking Archeron.

"Not the girl who’s hand it’s being gambled on?" She asked with a hint of irritation escaping her.

"The girl who’s hand it’s being asked for," Abraxas moved to his father's side, correcting her earlier words as if he was offended that she thought so poorly of his intentions.

Then she could feel it. Every part of it. The cold fire inside her threatening to shatter the glass in which she had contained it, the cold blue flames beating against the walls of her prison, violently begging to be set free to devour everything in their path. And right now, two blonde heads were in its path.

"Kallias, why don't you send your children and your mate to bed while we High Lords attend to the important matters at hand?" As if bored with her presence, Tamlin tore his eyes away from Demetria and rested them on her father, as if dismissing a child who had been noisily disrupting an adults meeting.

It infuriated her even more, the icy fire inside her shattering slightly the glass.

"Be very, very careful how you speak to my family. Make no mistake, Tamlin, I have been very patient with you only for the sake of our political ties. You would do well to remember that my mate is also the High Lady of the Winter Court, and you will treat her as such. And my children are also part of this court; Blaze would be the High Lord, and as you bring your heir, mine stays as well. Demetria more than anyone else has the right to deal with matters that concern her, and these much does. She will be second hand and General one day, remember that, it will do you good," Demetria did not even have to turn and look at her father to know that he looked just like the brutally cold High Lord that Prythian thought him like.

She remembered a time when she was absolutely intimidated by that side of her father, when she was a child, everything she did was mostly to always avoid that side of him ever appearing to confront her. She shuddered every time she was near that face of his, feeling bad for every soul at the end of his icy stare. Both Blaze and she had played at being like him, making stupid attempts to be as intimidating as her parents every time their Lord or Lady side came out, but cracking up when their scowls turned into ridiculous expressions or they ended up coughing from trying to make their voices lower. If she was being entirely honest, to this day she felt intimidated by them some times.

"A General, Demetria? Do you think you have the bone for the job?” Abraxas gave her a cocky smile, as if he knew something she didn't, knew she was going to fail.

She swore she heard the crackle of a glass inside her, the icy fire hitting her vessel with far more viciousness than she thought herself capable of controlling. Her jaw was so clenched that at any moment her teeth could easily break, her eyes began to burn, not with tears, but with the desperate pull of her powers to gamble on letting herself free, they wanted to seek, to find the weakness, and break it until there was nothing left but dust.

"Breaking apart so easily, sweetheart? Where's the fun in that?"

One moment she was burning with the uncontrollable desire to surrender every ounce of darkness she had imprisoned so long ago in her walls of ice, seconds away from the flame delivering its final blow and breaking it, and the next, suddenly, true darkness set in, a reassuring, shocking darkness that filled her insides with surprise. Demetria swore she heard a voice inside her head. No, not just any voice. A voice she knew all too well, a voice that had haunted her like a nightmare for so, so long. Ironic as it sounded.

For a few barely registerable seconds she gasped in her mind. It was impossible, it couldn't be him, he wasn't there, and yet, as far as she knew, he wasn't daementi like her father and mother. But wasn't he? She had been training for as long as she had a memory to protect her brain from daementi and by the High Lord of the Night Court himself no less. It had become a reflex, as much as breathing, to keep her ice walls hidden in the white mist and ice spikes. Even now, Demetria made sure her walls were standing. They were.

She recovered in a heartbeat, letting no one see her surprise, those imaginary words hitting her so hard, the flame inside her regained control and the ice crystal walls around her rebuilt themselves.

Slightly, very much, she smiled, not taking her eyes off the heir of Spring. "I have the bone for things you wouldn’t even fathom, Abraxas, would you like me to demonstrate?".

The cocky grin vanished in a flash from his face, anger building on the male’s sharp features. "Are you threatening me, Demetria?"

"I am advising you to choose your next words very carefully."

Silence filled the Throne Room for a long moment, each family glaring daggers at each other —well, all but the unbothered Selah, who seemed to be taking great amusement in watching Demetria ruffle her father and brother's feathers—. Then, it was Abraxas who took a step closer to her, Blaze immediately reacted and took an angry-eyed step of his own towards the blonde, more than ready to bring those begonias. But Demetria was quick to stop her twin brother with an arm, she didn't look at him however, she never left Abraxas' eyes with a rather bored expression on her face.

"Let me remind you, Demetria, that we have the upper hand here, my father was only trying to be a little polite by giving you the chance to pick yourself up and discuss matters, even though I suggested we make things simpler and force this once and for all, but now I'm angry, so, let me remind you, that if you don't agree to this, we-"

But his words were cut off by hers, the temperature dropped even lower than it was natural in the Winter Court, as the palace was enchanted to feel warm for visitors and servants from other courts, now all the splendor of the winter outside could be felt inside, making the three Fae accustomed to spring shiver at the sudden coldness.

"No, let me remind you where you are and who you are talking to. You will not come to our court and treat me and my mother as one of your females and then expect thanks for it. You will not come to my house and threaten me. I have been patient, but now you are far beyond my limits. Don't forget, Abraxas, I can see you, I can see your deepest fears, your secrets, I can discover everything with a single glance, shall we try?" The male flinched, taking a step back, as if that would help him close his soul to her, and before he could mutter a word with his mouth open, Demetria stopped him again, this time with an amused, malevolent laugh. "By the Mother, you pretend to be so arrogant, so full of yourself, when deep down you're afraid of your own sister."

The words struck hard, not only at him, but at said female on the other side of Tamlin. Selah, who had seemed so unperturbed seconds ago, had just turned her head to look at Demetria, her full attention now on the winter princess. So she continued, her smile spreading as her eyes looked deeper and deeper into him, shining now, like liquefied winter. Terrifying, relentless, mysterious, deadly, unnatural.

"You fear she is stronger than you, more worthy of the throne than you, it is understandable, she is all that and more, and, there are already two High Ladies, another one is on the line of succession, why shouldn't there be yet another,” as soon as Demetria spoke, she saw from the corner of her eye how Salah flinched. Interesting.

"Enough!" Tamlin's voice made the ice beneath her feet tremble a little. The unnatural light in her eyes dimmed as she came back to herself, no longer inside Abraxas' very soul. What a horrible, dull place.

She gazed nonchalantly at the High Lord, noting the claws that had managed to come out and his chest dropping rapidly all due to anger. "This is..."

"The end of our conversation," Viviane, who had been silently cheering her daughter on, letting herself be carried away by her and watching her like the proudest mother she had ever been, raised one of her white eyebrows and, mustering the same Lady energy as her mate, cut off Tamlin's search for words, dismissing him just as he had done her daughter and herself earlier.

"The hard way it will be," the male nodded, assessing the High Lady with red eyes.

"The. End. Of. Our. Conversation," the female repeated, even more sharply than the first time. The threat of nearly freezing his head off caused Tamlin to take a deep breath, withdraw his claws and straighten his back.

"Guess you won't be staying for the solstice,” Demetria mentioned, an amused glint on her eyes.

Abraxas looked up at her, trembling, sweetish, visibly still unable to recover from what she'd done. "We sure as hell won’t."

One corner of her lips lifted in a way she'd seen Nyx do so many times before —most of them, directed at her—. "That wasn't an invitation to do so."

"That's my girl."

✧₊˚.

It had been two months since Demetria had finally cut through the arrogance of the heir of the Spring Court. And now, with a new and powerful confidence, she welcomed the High Families who came to briefly savour the solstice. As all courts celebrate in their own way, some High Lords, high class Fae and children of other courts stayed a day or three, unable to avoid the call of the magnificent celebration held by none other than the Winter Court, not even Helion and his son and daughter-in-law, along with their children, whose Day Court also held great events for Winter Solstice celebration.

Now, she was finally greeting those she had longed for most. It hadn't mattered that they'd only met a fortnight ago for a quick day of training with Kardam and some small talk, Asterin had pounced on Demetria as soon as they'd seen each other, speaking too quickly but basically saying how much she'd missed her. Then, a warm embrace with Kardam that lasted almost as long as Asterin's —though without them nearly tripping in the snow—. And then, a snort from somewhere behind her brother's tall frame, of course she recognised it instantly, even before his "calm down, drama queen" retort to Asterin's excitement.

It had been months since she had last seen him, and two months since she had last heard his voice in her head. Somehow she had convinced herself that since anyone else couldn't drive her as crazy as Nyx, her brain had used him as an anchor for the fire that had come so close to exploding, distracting her to something else that infuriated her. But, when her brother's body shifted to the side, letting her see him, his eyes, the raven colour of his hair, the tan of his skin and the familiar frown on his face, she knew, deep inside her, that it hadn't been like that.

But Demetria wasn't about to acknowledge whatever it was that was growing strangely inside her, so, as usual, she answered Nyx with words that made him frown even harder. And after that, she'd made it a point to avoid him as best she could, building up her mental shield a little more and, at all costs, avoiding the eyes she felt so transfixed on her more times than she'd like to admit.

"Demetria, I swear to the Mother and the freaking Cauldron that you are the fucking love of my life," Asterin said with her mouth partially open and her eyes full of shocked awe.

Then, a very strange and loud laugh came from Kardam, causing both females to raise their eyebrows at him. It wasn't every day that the male laughed so loudly and freely.

"See, you even broke Kardam!" She gestured with her hands to her cousin, still unable to blink.

She had told her friends every single detail —out of sheer demand, and Asterin's "omit-something-and-I’ll-extract-it-from-your-cut-out-tongue" demand—, of what had happened two months earlier. The last time they had seen each other it hadn't been enough to finish the story, so she had promised to tell them all about it once they arrived at her court for the solstice. She left out one crucial part, though: the part where she heard Nyx's voice in her head.

She wasn't going to share that information until she could figure out what the hell it had been, and while it would be so easy to ask them for help, knowing that they might know what it could have been, she didn't let that little detail slip.

"That little bitch had it coming," the female in front of her said, referring to Abraxas. "Damn it, I'd pay all my money to see it all with my own eyes."

"I have to agree with you, sister dear," that deep, amused voice raised each and every hair from her neck to her very legs. Nyx stood in the doorframe with his arms folded across his broad chest and mischievous eyes on her direction. "Maybe if you let me into your head, I could see that more than absolutely wonderful scene."

And suddenly, all her attempts to avoid the Prince of Night fell flat. Standing right in front of her, his gaze so fixed on her, he had just indirectly declared that he was a daementi, which, too, led her to think that he had somehow gotten into her head those months ago and talked to her. How was that possible, she wasn’t sure, considering daementi powers were not inherited.

"You'd better stay out of my mind if you don't want your head rolling down the halls, pigeon," looking and quickly finding a curt reply that hid her true thoughts and confused feelings, she rolled her eyes at the cheeky smirk on Nyx's lips. Something about it unsettled her, as if he knew she had understood exactly what he meant.

What kind of bullshit games was he playing now? She had no idea, she'd never felt so confused with Nyx, just when she thought she had it all figured out.

My girl. He'd called her my girl. The thought, the sound, hadn't left her in those two months, no matter how much she wished and told herself it had. Now, with him so close, standing there, in his insufferable way, she could hear it again, and the memory of it gave her goose bumps. As if he was reading her mind at that very moment, he smiled again, making her blood boil in her veins.

"Is there some reason why you came to ruin my evening with your annoying presence, or were you just sad and bored because none of the ladies were giving you their undying attention?" She did her best to look nonchalant, blinking and arching her eyebrows.

"I wouldn't exactly say that about the ladies," the flirtatious smile —the one she probably hated the most—, lasted only a few seconds before he was back to his usual arrogant self. "I'm actually here for one reason: for you," a heartbeat passed, a heartbeat in which her own heart stopped its march, her hot blood turning cold again, before he continued so unperturbed that it brought her back to her previous state in a heartbeat. "Your mother asked about you. And so did yours,” he looked at his sister. “And yours,” then at his cousin. “Our cousins are arriving soon.”

Her mother, the other guests, right. Stupid delusional brain.

She sighed lightly and glanced at her friends, who were looking very carefully at each other as if there was something very interesting to look at, something amusing. She rolled her eyes and stood up, walking nonchalantly towards the door and past Nyx without even looking at him.

They had to part ways, since the guests were to stay at the little palace built up only for this occasions, and she was to great the incoming guests with her family.

"See you in a bit," she didn't turn to look at her friends as she said goodbye quietly, pretending as if the dark-haired male wasn't mere inches away from her.

But apparently, the Mother couldn't spare her a moment. Nyx, in a swift movement she hadn't expected, and therefore couldn't stop, grabbed her wrist, halting her steps and making her look at him. Annoyance filled her expression, but her heart began to beat a little faster.

For a brief moment, so brief that she almost thought she'd imagined it, Nyx looked sort of annoyed that she was ignoring him, sort of... stroked. But it faded so quickly that she couldn't tell if she'd made it up before his arrogant grin took over again.

"See you tonight, sweetheart," with a wink, he released her so quickly that she didn't have time to fully register what had happened.

Demetria blinked a couple of times, anger and annoyance quickly taking over her features. She snorted and cursed his name, not daring to glance at her friends who had seen... whatever that was, and turning back to, scowling furiously, resume her walk.

Fuck that sweetheart nonsense, fuck his stupid flirtatious grin and arrogant smirks, but most of all, fuck him.

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