Page 23 of This Midsummer Heart
Instead, we are plunged into increasing darkness. I can barely see the way forward except by virtue of Titaine’s soft glow. In response to the chaos magic we feel here, it’s grown in intensity.
I’m half dark elf. There’s no way I should be unable to see in the darkness. It ought to be just as vivid as daylight for me, though painted in different shades.
My throat tightens. This is just another way our world’s loss of magic is changing me. But seeing this wood makes me wonder if not all magic is waning.
The chaos magic from across the river seems to be doing perfectly fine here in moon elf territory.
We should be close to the villages outside Lunevelle now, the prized treetop city of the moon elves. Instead, the woods remain too quiet beneath the constant hum of insects and frogs.
Suddenly, a pinprick of warm light flares in the distance, then vanishes.
“Fireflies,” Titaine says, almost reverently. But the light does not flare again.
“Will o’ the wisps,” I correct her, my voice low and rough. What I wouldn’t give to have my father’s dagger right now—or any dagger. “Titaine, you’d best dim that glow of yours. We might be attracting the wrong attention here.”
She fades like the embers of a bonfire, a faint, warm light fading slowly. I can’t help but think of Lusida, whose glow was like the moonlight.
I fell for that of a golden summer sun instead. And like summer, it was all too fleeting. Yet here’s Titaine beside me, close enough to touch.
I reach out to do just that, my fingertips resting softly on the crook of her arm so as not to startle her. I slide my grip lower down the barely illuminated golden tan skin of her arm, hating the way it makes me remember her softness, and what that does to my chest.
My hand keeps trailing until it finds hers.
Titaine tries to yank it away. My fingers lock more tightly, my larger fingers half-entwined with hers.
“What are you doing?” she hisses.
“The wisps,” I remind her. “One of us needs to watch behind us, and we can’t risk being separated.”
I sense rather than see Titaine’s lip curl in disdain. I squeeze her hand a little tighter, just to bother her.
Her hand is so much smaller, so delicate in mine, with no callouses from wielding a bow or blade. Then again, my own have gotten soft of late.
I wonder if she even notices.
“You watch our backs, then,” she relents. “I still remember the way.”
That’s Titaine for you. I should’ve known she’d never forget a thing.
We pick our way slowly, startled by more false fireflies until the welcoming glow gets irritated with our refusal to be led astray, and gouts of blue flame light up instead. Their angry display isn’t just for show. The path instantly becomes more difficult to find.
Titaine’s hand isn’t so loose in mine anymore.
We reach one of the smaller villages, only to find it completely dark. From the utter stillness of its streets, it’s obvious this place is abandoned.
When did this happen? Why did I not receive word? They may be moon elves, but I am still their king!
Titaine pulls us to the side, startling me. For a moment, I think she must’ve spotted something. I reach for a dagger that’s no longer there, nearly forgetting to hold on to Titaine. Fortunately, she keeps hold of my hand, squeezing my knuckles until they hurt.
She’s brought us to a water barrel. Titaine throws back the half lid, feeling for a ladle that doesn’t appear to be there. Then she leans forward and sniffs.
A lesser man would take this opportunity to dunk her head in there. It would be so childish, and not befitting the obvious danger we’re in…
“This water hasn’t been stagnant for long,” she declares, lifting her head before I can do something utterly stupid. A small voice in my mind whispers,You just wanted to touch her hair.
Obviously, the chaos magic in this place is playing tricks on me. I’m grateful Titaine rescued me, of course, and I’m feeling a bit sentimental. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to twine my fingers in those golden brown locks, and tip her face up towards mine…
“What foul magic is this?” I grind out.
