Page 19 of Raisa's Cursed Ravens
Her blanket slips lower, and I see the soft curve of her stomach, her bare skin begging for my tongue. I want to mark her, paint her with the proof of my need.
My vision goes white.
I slam my palm over my mouth to muffle my cry, biting down until I taste blood. My cock erupts, thick and hot, spilling over my knuckles. My seed splatters the stone, the scent mixing with her perfume in a way that nearly makes me black out.
I collapse, shaking, my head pressed to the mattress.
She sighs in her sleep like she knows what I’ve done.
For a long time, I just lie there, slick and filthy and more alone than I’ve ever been. I listen to her breathing, and imagine a world where I could crawl into bed beside her and let the nightmare end.
But that world doesn’t exist yet.
Not for monsters still chained by a curse.
I pull away, wipe myself on the edge of the blanket, and stare at the mess on the floor. The shame is bitter and bright, but not enough to kill the hunger.
Nothing ever is.
I get to my feet, already feeling my bones itch, the curse impatient for wings and sky. Humanity is fleeting under its pull, stolen moments given to us by her.
But I’m not done.
Not yet.
I lean over her, my mouth close to her ear, and whisper the truth.
“We’re coming for you,” I say. “No matter what it costs.”
We’ll set her free, even if we have to burn the world to ash. Not because she holds the key to breaking the curse entirely. Not to punish the king. But because she belongs to us.
She can lead us to ruin or lead us to heaven, and we’ll follow. We’ll kill and maim and destroy in her name and be grateful for the chance to do it at all.
She shivers, a tear slipping down her cheek as her lips form my name. “Grim…”
I want to lick it away, but I don’t. Instead, I stand and stagger back to the window, my bones creaking as the shift claws through me. My body remembers the pain, the surrender, the price.
I don’t fight it.
Instead, I let it take me, let it unmake me. And then I leap, black wings snapping open, and vanish into the night.
Behind me, a single black feather floats down, landing on her pillow as if to remind her that even here, locked away, she’s never truly alone.
She still has us, her monstrous, cursed flock.
Always.
5
Chains of Darkness
Raisa
The tower is colderthan I remember, and each hour after dusk leaches more warmth from the stones, the air, even the thin wool blanket pulled over my knees.
I count every heartbeat, wishing I could be anyone else, anywhere else, or at the very least, somewhere I could feel the warmth of the sun instead of its glaring absence.
It’s almost peaceful. Almost. Except things like peace don’t exist in places like this. Not even for princesses.
