Page 29 of The Unseelie War
“Besides,” she added with a smile, “have you seen me lately? I'm not exactlynormalanymore either. I’m a fellow freak, too.”
It was true. The merger had changed her in ways she was still discovering. Her hair now had strands of silver. Her eyes had become a deeper green, shot through with golden flecks that caught the light. The tattoos that marked her as the Weaver were in different places on her arm every time she woke up.
And a little voice in the back of her head told her that as time went on, and she got farther and farther away from her former life, she would become less and less recognizably human.
“You are magnificent.” He crooked a finger under her chin. “You are not a freak. Do not think that about yourself.”
She rose up on her tiptoes, bringing her face closer to his. “We make quite a pair, don't we?”
“Indeed we do.” His free hand came up to cup her face, his touch featherlight despite the sharp nails. “My beautiful, impossible Weaver.”
Something brushed her leg. It was one of the strangeextralittle claspers that were always twitching nervously in front of him. It seemed not sure as to what to do with itself, but very eager for whatever it was.
Serrik grimaced, and almost looked as though he were going to step away from her in shame, shifting his weight on his seven spider legs.
“No.” She placed her hand on his hip. “Don’t go.”
“I…” He looked worried. “Ava, I do not know if…if this is wise.”
“None of this has been wise since the start. Hasn’t stopped either of us.” Taking his hand in hers, she kissed his fingers before placing his palm back to her cheek.
“I may lose control.”
“Then lose it.”
Letting out a long, ragged sigh, he shut his eyes and bowed his head, his long, green hair falling along his face, veiling his features in green strands. “You will be the death of me.”
“Hopefully not.” She looked down and curiously poked one of the shorter, clasper-like legs between them. It twitched in response, before seemingly of its own accord, it hooked around behind her thigh and pulled her to him. The other followed suit.
They were remarkably strong. In fact, the strength in just those two legs alone…she didn’t know if she could wriggle away.
Her cheeks went warm at the idea of whatelsethey could do. And at the idea of being trapped.
“Keep your heartbeat steady, if you can.” Serrik’s voice had grown gravely all of a sudden. “Lest we truly test my self control.”
He could feel her heartbeat. Or hear it. Orsomething.She supposed that wasn’t that much of a surprise. She took a deep breath, held it, and let it out in a slow rush. “I should probably get more sleep before we…”
“It would be advisable.”
“Yeah.” She paused. “Advisable.” Boring. But advisable. “I…I did just want to say thank you.”
That earned her a dubious arch of an eyebrow. “For what?”
“For letting me see you. Really see you.” She turned her head to press a kiss to his palm. “For trusting me with this. I know you didn’t want to.”
His expression softened. “And I should thank you for not fleeing from me at your first opportunity. For seeing beauty where others see only nightmare, even if perhaps the Web is to blame for it. I am grateful all the same.”
They stood like that for a long moment, surrounded by the impossible architecture of their new world. Tomorrow would definitely bring something new and shitty and terrible into their world. Valroy, or some new world-ending nightmare, who knew.
But for now, there was only this—there was only them.
And for Ava, there was the growing certainty that whatever challenges lay ahead, she wouldn't face them alone.
She had her spider, and he had his Weaver.
And that, somehow, felt like enough to face anything.
CHAPTER NINE
