Page 128 of The Dark Rising
Darius looks down at his hands, his power moving over them. “I told you, this is as easy as breathing. When you and your wolf are in harmony, I’m sure it will feel the same. It feels no different than having a blade in my hand, an extension of my own body that I can do with as I please.” His power shoots out of his hands, splitting off from him and wrapping around my own. Black and blue intertwine and it feels like his hand is in my own, not his power. “Try and force mine off of you,” he orders, and I look down at my hand to concentrate.
I will my power to push through his, to grip it in my own and twist it off of me. But my power has its own ideas and eagerly strokes over his. I scoff at the audacity of it. I push harder, licking my lips as finally, my mist moves, pushing against his. The black moves a little away from my hand, bristling until it moves back, gathering tighter around the blue. I can feel my energy start to drain with my efforts, and I growl, getting more frustrated when it doesn’t budge at all anymore.
“Calm,” Darius commands, and my head snaps up to him. “Control your emotions, your power is a part of you, within you. If your mind is all over the place, your power will be too.”
“I’m…struggling,” I admit, hating the weakness I have over my emotions at the moment, but I know I need his help. My legs start to shake, and my bones hurt.
His eyes hold mine before they roam over my face. “I know, little wolf, which is why you have to try harder. The good thing is that you recognize it, and now you can figure out a way to help yourself with it.” He steps closer until his chest brushes the front of mine, and I drop my hands to my sides. I look up at him, our powers still wrapped together around my hands. “Has it always been like this?”
I swallow. “No, not really. Since I let my Heir power in completely, I feel wild. Just… wild.” It’s a constant swirling within me, a constant battle of my power and myself. Like it’s wrapping around my soul but poking and prodding at it, aggravating it to make it unpredictable and therefore, making me unpredictable too. “I don’t like it.”
His hand comes up to the side of my face, his thumb running along my jaw. “You need to get your wolf out as soon as you are ready.”
“I know, I just need a little more time to prepare.” I just want more time with Runa before she hates me.
“It’s said that when you are an Heir, what makes us powerful is that the magic within us is one with our wolf’s. That’s why we are able to do things others cannot and only dream about. It is a rarity, powerful, special and heavy. Being an Heir comes with a lot of hardships, at least in this age.”
I shake my head and sigh. “It’s not like I don’t want her to come out, I just don’t want to force her to. It feels cruel, and I know it will hurt her. She was hurt enough,” I whisper the last words, my head drooping in guilt, but Darius doesn’t let me. His palm connects with my face, holding me steady.
“It wasn’t your fault,” he growls, and I scoff. He shakes my head a little, his eyes hard as his fingers dig into my skin. “It wasn’t, little wolf. How could a child help what happened? You need to let this way of thinking go.”
“I could have stopped her from coming out, I could have prevented it and kept her safe within me. I failed one of the most precious things in my life.” She was as young as I was, just a pup in terms of age. We both were too young, and we were wrongly hurt again and again. Getting your wolf is the most surreal experience we can have, sacred, and I let her down.
Magic gathers in my chest suddenly, the heat of my face letting me know my markings have appeared, and Darius watches them appear intently, trailing his gaze over them as they form. I see the ones on his neck, pulsing with mine, like recognizing like. I lift my hand, my power still floating around it and touching a single finger to one, delicate line under his jaw. I gently trace it down his neck to the curve where it meets his shoulder, feeling his power beneath my fingertip. He swallows hard, a deep sound coming from his chest that I feel bone deep inside of me. I close my eyes and breathe him in, just feeling peace for a second. A touch against my lips has my eyes springing back open, to see the only eyes that have ever captivated me.
He watches me with an intensity I have never felt before as our breaths mingle against each other, our lips touching but not fully connecting. I watch his pupils dilate, and I feel my own eyes change as once again, everything disappears and all my focus, all I see, is him.
The male with the wisps, the wolves, a boyish look on his face that’s so rare and few and far between, the one rubbing his nose gently against mine. When he looks at me with such unguarded intensity, it feels like I can’t breathe, yet breathe fully for the first time in my life.
He will be my savior.
My destroyer.
My moonlight if I let him be.
“You are the most dangerous person to me.” I whisper against his lips, reminding him or myself, I don’t know.
“And you are the most beautiful,” he murmurs before his lips are fully on mine, demanding access instantly. I part my lips and let him in. He makes a sound of approval as I cling to the sides of his neck while he tastes me. A hand moves up my back, fingers trailing up my spine until it’s at my hair. His fingers glide between the strands before he grips it in his fist and tilts my head back. A moan escapes my throat at the dominating hold, and he pulls me closer to him, our mouths never stopping, never not tasting while we feel each other.
He gentles the kiss, moving slower and savoring it until he moves back. My eyes slowly open and lock with bright ones, blinking away the haze of desire that he has stirred within me. He smirks, his own eyes heating before he pulls me to him again and rubs his nose against mine.
Wrapped in his embrace, for a few moments my worries, doubts and fears all fade away. Like he took them from me to give me this moment of peace.
And then I’m flat on my ass.
I grunt, my eyes widening in shock as I stare up at Darius above me, a chuckle falling from his lips. “Never let your guard down, little wolf.”
“For Gods’ sake,” I grumble out, looking up toward the sky and sighing.
As much as I enjoyed that moment of peace, he quickly reminded me of how fast that can be ripped away from me.
“Hey,” Josh says as he and Colten come over, and I see Darius tensing out the corner of my eye. I wave a hand in greeting, noticing Hudson not far behind them, it brings a smile to my lips.
“Hey Colten,” I say, my eyes meeting his. “Met any strapping Elites that tickle your fancy?”
He sputters, his cheeks turning a shade of red as Hudson steps up next to him, a scowl on his face as he glares at him. “Rhea!” I shrug, keeping the smile from my face. “We haven’t been near any other Elites so how would I know.”
“You can still look and see if you like any. I can come with you and we can sneak a look at them while they’re sparring. They would all be sweating, muscles on display— Hey!”
