Ah, Tristan… the charming elf who could theoretically grant me eternal life…
Am I being unreasonable rejecting him?
“So… you’ve been here a while. How does this work exactly? Is the shadow wielder the guardian of their Dark Companion? Can they make decisionsfor them?”
Kurt opens the door to Stone’s stall and starts getting him ready for my trip with Tristan. “I don’t think so. Sorry, I don’t have that kind of connection, I’m free as a bird. Well, when I’m not busy doing my job. But I know Luke’s really happy with theLord. He’s always had a thing for all the goth stuff, so it makes sense helovesit here. As far as I know, the shadow wielder person can use their Dark Companion’s shadow and all that, but they need to be reasonable about how they go about it. It’s, like, illegal to hurt one.”
I flinch, remembering the horror of suddenly realizing I’ve been locked up with a predator, back on the boat ride to Gloombane’s tower. The moment my face hit the wood comes back, and all of a sudden the ground feels unstable, and the air tastes of salt. A wave makes me lose balance, and I fall, ready to protect myself.
“Are you okay?” I hear as if through the hum of waves, my heart pounding, and I blindly push away the arm trying to grab me.
“Step away from him! What’s going on?” Tristan roars, and before I can answer, he’s on the ground with me. He pulls me into a hug that stabilizes the ground beneath me.
“I don’t know!” Kurt yells in panic. “One moment we were talking, the next he lost balance!”
Tristan smells nothing like Gloombane. As long as he’s here, I’m safe.
My fingers tremble as I tighten them on his jacket and blow out a cloud of vapor. Reality seeps back, and I’m mortified, because this happened so out of nowhere.
“Not—not his fault. I’m sorry,” I whisper, because despite the tremors shaking me, I can’t have Kurt suffer because of my inadequacy.
Tristan hums and gives Kurt a long, stormy look as he helps me up. “Nothing to be sorry about. I’m back. Apologies it took so long. Is Stone ready?”
“Almost!” Kurt says, grabbing a bridle from the wall.
I know I shouldn’t cling to Tristan so much, but the fear’s getting the best of me, and I just can’t— I can’t not hold him rightnow. “It was just a memory. Nothing happened,” I whisper with my mouth pressed to his chest.
“We will make new memories today.”
I look up at him with my jaw dropping. How does he know what to say?
Tristan smiles and tucks some of my hair under my hat, then pulls me by the hand to Stone’s side. The kelpie has a wide saddle to accommodate us both, and I blush at the thought of how close we’ll be. Is this why Tristan decided on a riding date?Isthis a date? I wish I wasn’t so suspicious all the time. My heart used to be so much more open.
I wish it still was.
He helps me into the saddle, then climbs on himself, and we set off, with him as the steady, warm presence behind my back. Tristan even has Kurt hand him a blanket, which he then spreads over my legs, to ensure that I feel no discomfort whatsoever.
No boyfriend has ever been this attentive. Knowing that Tristan thinks about small things and takes my individual needs into account, instead of doing the bare minimum, like the vast majority of the men I’ve dated, puts me at ease.
Those aren’t the actions of someone who’s always gotten everything handed to them on a platter.
“Tristan… maybe I’m just confused, and being a prince means something else in my world than it does here, but… many of the things you do are technically menial tasks, like your work for the Nightcloaks. What exactly comes with your title?”
He casually places his arm around my waist. I wonder if he’d do that with just any malefriend, but I like it too much to complain. Instead, I enjoy his warmth as I admire the moonlit gardens we pass through.
“Hm. There are three main royal bloodlines, the Nightweeds, which hold the ruling position, the Goldweeds, and us, theBloodweeds. We all originate from a common ancestor, but to explain all that I’d have to show you a very extensive family tree one day. What matters is that while I might get to advise the Lord at times, and I get to be involved in certain decisions that affect all of the Nocturne Court, as a Bloodweed, I knew from an early age I would never be a crown prince.
“What does come with my family name is wealth and a large possibility that I would inherit shadow wielding talents. Which I have. I do have the freedom to lie about all day, eat, drink, and merry, or spend my family’s coin on new clothes and trinkets. Do I occasionally indulge? Certainly, but I’ve always wished for a purpose. I’m someone who likes toact. I want to be involved. Whether it’s to keep track of the beasts in the vicinity of our lands, to make sure everyone’s safety is as assured as it can be, or making my own bed.
“My father expected me to wish for knighthood, and he was right about that. While I have servants at the castle, being a knight often involves travel, and not always of the comfortable kind. I also represent my family name, so he found it crucial I have a grasp of manners as well as an understanding of how to provide for my basic needs. It turned out the latter comes to me easier than court politics or word play. Does all of this answer your question?”
I feel so warm all over when he looks at me.
“Yes. That’s… very admirable. You are, I mean.” I clear my throat and look forward, head tucked under Tristan’s chin as we pass through an open gate and venture out into a frozen landscape glinting under the pale moon.
Never in a million years would I have thoughta princewould show interest in someone like me, but Tristan isn’t the way I imagined royalty at all. Genuine and down-to-earth, he is someone I can relate to, despite the differences between our worlds and upbringings.
Snow covers the ground in deep, untouched drifts. A bit farther, trees claw at the sky along a road wide enough to accommodate two wagons, their skeletal branches stark on the backdrop of the silvery moon.
