“Ye. Look. Ridiculous.” Nero pants out his laughter.
“We all look ridiculous,” Aramis agrees and offers me another hand up. His wind blasts the worst of the iridescent dust off my face, then gently brushes my lips. Lemon pops out of my pocket and crawls up to my neck, licking at my cheek.
“You didn’t happen to find a stream on the way to the tunnels, did you?” I ask eagerly. “As much as I love looking like a firefly, I’d rather not draw unwanted attention to ourselves.”
Nero flashes me an amused grin as he claps his hands together and grabs his pack from Aramis’s hands. “Even better, I found a small hot spring and some caves to stay in overnight.”
Thank Goddess.
Sybil
Thesteamcurlsintothe air from the two small pools of water. The teal water glows faintly, spilling from the larger pool into the smaller one, until it dribbles down the mountain in a small stream. A sense of peace and calm fills the air as tiny fireflies dance, flicking in between the trees.
“The caves are just another two hundred feet up the path,” Nero points out where the lichen continues to glow illuminating up the mountain.
“This is all so–” I inhale, the scent of minerals and pine filling my nostrils. “–magical.”
I shed my pack, my boots, and overdress on the ground. I’ll wash it later. Lemon scampers from my overskirt pocket and dips his paws into the water before curling up at the edge of the steaming pool and closing his eyes. Without a single care for the men behind me, I follow suit, undressing down to my chemise before submerging myself to my neck. All I care about is getting some warmth back into my cold body. My feet barely touch the rocky bottom, but the warm water soothes my aching muscles. The white muslin gown clings to my body and I slowly move to the other side and settle on a naturally formed rock bench.
Aramis watches me from the shore as he slowly removes his layers down to his undergarment and slips below the water. The semi-translucent water comes up to his chest. Nero follows behind, causing the water to rise and spill into the next pool as his weight displaces it.
“So, what now?” Aramis asks, his eyes meeting mine. He doesn’t touch me but I can feel the need to gravitate in his direction.
“We should get rest for the night, then explore the caves in the morning,” I reply, keeping that heady gaze upon me. I glance up at the moon cresting above us and sigh, hoping the Goddess is watching over us now that Kela is no longer here to guide us. “One of them has to have the answers we seek.”
“Sybil, what do we do if we dinna find them?” asks Nero, concerned. He sinks further into the water and groans in delight at the warmth.
“We meet up with the council.” Aramis glances towards Nero, eyebrow lifted for confirmation. “We can’t go home yet.”
Nero grunts his agreement, lips pursing as he stares up at the sky. We continue enjoying the warmth of the hot spring in silence until water splashes behind us as Nero pulls out of the pool. “Right ye two. I’m going to find a nice place to rest, deep, deep within that cave,” he says, pointing to the smaller of the two caves. “Deep enough to not hear a single thing if ye get me,” he adds, and I can see Aramis roll his eyes. “Yer majesty wake me when yer ready so we can take turns on lookout.”
Once Nero disappears within the cave, I close my eyes trying to ground myself as the bubbling warm water caresses my skin. When I open my eyes again I see Aramis watching me intently as he moves through the water to sit next to me.
“Merry solstice,” he whispers, his fingers entwining in mine under the water. “I know it’s not the solstice you’ve imagined, but I’m happy to be spending it with you.”
“Merry solstice.” I smile at him, and tug our moving hands closer to me, so that we’re inches apart. With everything that has happened in the past few weeks, I forgot that the holiday was so close. It feels like eons ago that I was preparing for Bolide.
The moon illuminates his figure, giving him an unearthly glow making me gasp at how beautiful he is.
“It’s the first solstice I haven't spent alone in years.” I lift my hand and trace the outline of the moon's reflection in the water. “When I was younger, my parents and I would stay up late drinking milk tea and eating dried fruit biscuits while we came up with outlandish stories. After they died–”
The words fall away as I consider all my losses. I stare into the water, tears pooling in my eyes as I wonder what my parents would think of me now. I am not the successful healer they wanted me to be, and even though I had made their dream my own for many years, I am not sure it is still what I want. The replica of the moon shatters as I break the water’s surface, unable to suddenly take the stillness offered. I back away from Aramis wide-eyed without explanation, looking for a place of solitude. I need to breathe, and I need the space to think. My movement quickly takes me to a quiet rock edge where I can take my time to sort out my thoughts. Turning away and resting my forearms on the rim of the pool, I take a deep breath and sigh.
“I lost my mother when I was young too, you know.” Aramis moves quietly in the water until he settles next to me, the movement of the water gently pushing his body against mine. “Sybil?” Aramis turns his attention on me–that beautiful,thoroughgaze. “What can I do for you? How can I help?”
I smile, appreciating his offer. “It’s just taking me a moment to adapt to all these changes” I say, unable to better explain my inner turmoil. “My whole life I’ve only ever wanted to be a healer, make my parents proud, but I now realize that maybe I just wanted to help people.” Aramis’s fingers gently brush my arm, his gaze full of unspoken understanding. “And I don’t have to be a healer to do that. I can still do that. Freeing the shifters is my way of helping, my purpose.”
A smile appears on his lips as he says, “you are such a marvel, Sybil Vandeleur.” I move a few inches closer to him, cup his cheek and brush a kiss of thanks on his forehead.
“The experiences of our past shape us into who we are today.” Aramis whispers and takes the opportunity to intertwine our bodies. Before I know it, my arms are wrapped around his neck, his hands braced protectively against my waist. “I believe in you. I don’t know what our future holds, but I vow I will be at your side every step of the way.”
He pauses, as if holding something back, unspoken words lingering in his gaze. I shake my head to clear the thoughts as I hug him tight before lifting my gaze up at the stars, breathing slowly. They twinkle brightly between the tree branches, a living celestial dance. Letting out a sigh, I slip through Aramis’ embrace and dunk under the water, letting its soothing touch caress my body. I surface moments later when my lungs begin to burn, gasping for air.
As I stand in the water, a cool wisp of air brushes against my body, my nipples becoming taunt at its touch. I don’t need to look at Aramis to know that it's his winds caressing me. I turn around to see Aramis’ steady gaze slowly travel down the length of my body, from the crown of my head down below the water's surface. His gaze is as hungry as a starved man when he slowly approaches me. Heat coils in my gut as I step backwards, the stone wall of the springs hitting the back of my legs.
“I think you need some help cleaning up, my pomme sucrée.” Aramis’ voice is a deep rumble as he lifts my hand out of the water, gently massaging in between each finger before kissing my palm. The touch sends sparks down my body as Aramis sends a wind up my arms. Goddess help me, my nipples harden more. A small whimper bursts from my lips, but I desperately shut myself up. I can do this.
“Thanks, but I can clean myself.” I weakly protest, darting my tongue out to lick my lips. Aramis’ touch turns to a gentle caress as he pulls me closer to him.