“Sure it is,” Nate replied. “You’re just allergic to joy.”
I chuckled, at least that was something I could agree with, but it earned me a glare from the little soldier.
Lionel stepped over a root, tone even but weary. “Focus, the fog’s getting thicker. Keep each other in sight.”
“Always the responsible one,” I murmured with a smirk. “I can see why they like you.”
Lionel didn’t look back. “I’m not doing it for you.”
Fair.
Suddenly it felt as if the forest breathed, and something changed in the air. In a matter of seconds, the wind was icy cold.
It had always been quiet, the Demon Lands were like a mental test of their own, but this… The wind was barely there and out of nowhere, there was a whisper, soft as breath, curling through the space between our steps.
“Say it,” it murmured. “Tell her. Tell her she’s yours, Nate. Why keep waiting for someone else to take her?”
Nate stumbled, hand tightening around his weapon. “You guys heard that, right?”
No one answered, instead we all listened to the voice winding through the trees.
“She laughs away her feelings for everyone but you. Claim her, make her remember who she belongs to.”
Nate’s jaw locked, his grin gone.
Then, another voice slipped out of the mist, quieter but sharper.
“Caleb,”it whispered, his name soft as a prayer, sharp as a blade. “You were right about him, about what he is. A demon walking in human skin. He’ll turn on you when it matters most. You could stop it now,savethem all.”
Caleb’s hand moved towards his dagger. It was just a flicker, but enough for me to notice the thought flash through his eyes. He was considering it; the whispers of the woods didn’t have to force him. His hatred was already there in the open. His fear of demons ran deep, and I hadn’t earned the right to be an exception in his eyes.
Lionel noticed too and subtly stepped between us. He didn’t say anything, just shifted his stance, always the peacekeeper.
Jaden glanced between them, eyebrows raised. “Everyone’s a little on edge, huh?”
His voice was easy, light, trying to bleed some tension from the air. But the whisper wasn’t going to spare him.
“You could have more than scraps, Jaden.”
He stiffened.
“They never notice what you do for them; you could take what you want. She’s pretty, isn’t she? Wild and soft. Or do you prefer the one with the wits?”
Jaden exhaled slowly, humor dimming from his face. “That’s not funny.”
Nate stiffened as he sent Jaden a glance. The voice was really digging into their skin, wasn’t it?
A cold breeze tore between the trees again, almost like laughter, quiet and freezing against our skin.
“Weak,” it hissed at Lionel. “Still pretending forgiveness makes you noble, pretending you don’t hate him. Pretending that seeing her in his arms doesn’t tear you apart. She’ll never look at you the way she used to. Why keep trying? You disgust yourself.”
Lionel didn’t flinch, but the muscle in his jaw ticked once, hard. I couldn’t blame him if he still hated me, not really. If he wasn’t still slightly upset, had he even cared for her at all?
“Don’t waste your thoughts on the demon voice,” I muttered, hoping to snap him back to reality somewhat.
Lionel’s eyes slid to me, calculating as always.
“You don’t need to worry about me,” he answered unbothered. “It’s weird when you do.”
