by T Ariyanna
They danced in slow circles around the room, and the furniture joined in. Plates twirled around them in pairs, never ceasing their song. The candle was holding onto the clock, who was squirming in its grip. They were twirling circles around Arion and Kaitlyn, but they didn't care. They watched each other in their dance, the rest of the world gone.
They slowed to a stop, though the music continued. Arion closed his eyes, building up his courage. His stomach was twisted in knots, and his legs were shaking. Before he could lose his nerve, he pressed his lips to Kaitlyn’s.
She froze at the kiss, but relaxed. She placed a hand upon his cheek as she kissed him back. The music had finally stopped, but they didn't notice.
They jumped apart as the gong of a clock rang out. Arion looked away from Kaitlyn, his face burning. Her hand was still entwined with his, and he gave it a squeeze. Sparing a glance, he found a smile stuck on her face.
Another gong sounded, and they jumped again. They both stared at the culprit. A grandfather clock twice their height was near the door, and it rang out again.
“Oh, no. No, it can't be that late already. My father is going to kill me!” Kaitlyn said. “We have to get back, now.”
She tugged on Arion's arm, and he burst into action. As he let go of Kaitlyn's hand, their clothing returned to normal, leaving a faint, shimmering dust behind.
He lunged for his coat, throwing it over his shoulders. He swirled the air into a tornado, and sent it throughout the chandeliers. It gathered up the flames, and the items around them clattered to the floor, as lifeless as they had been before. The tornado returned to Arion, and the influx of magic knocked the breath out of him.
The candle, the first to come to life, stepped up to Arion. It drooped its head, but hopped into his hands. He cupped its flame in his hand, and hesitated. Kaitlyn tugged on his sleeve, pleading with her eyes. He gave her a sad glance, and she dropped her hands.
He set the candle down gently. “I'm sorry I woke you up just to put you back to sleep. We had a lot of fun with you. Thank you for being such a great host.”
The candle gave a grand flourish of a bow, and froze in position. The flame flew into Arion's palm, and absorbed into his scar. With a sigh, Arion turned his attention back to their trip home.
Arion dug through the books stuffed into his pockets, then remembered that Tome had escaped. He called out for it, and it appeared in his hand with a dramatic plume of smoke.
“Let's go home now,” he said to the book. It fluttered open to the spell, but Arion didn't even get a chance to read it. Smoke spilled out from the pages of the book and swallowed them.
Within seconds, they were back in Arion's dark house. The only sign they had even gone were the books that weighed down his coat. He pulled them out and set them down, retrieving a bag for Kaitlyn. She laid them in the bag gently, fitting them against each other like pieces of a puzzle.
She turned for the door abruptly, but whirled back at the last second. She kissed Arion on the cheek and took off, yelling a farewell behind her. Arion waved awkwardly, though he knew she wouldn't see.
He stood in the doorway until she was out of sight. He locked the door and fell into a chair, drained of all energy.
“She sure is something. I'll give you this, kid, you know how to pick 'em.”
“Shut up,” Arion said reflexively, though there was no heart in it. “Why do you sound weird?” he added as an afterthought.
Cy stumbled over himself in his mind, and cleared his throat. “What's that supposed to mean? We just had a long day, that's all. Trauma, magic, living furniture, more magic. Did I mention magic? Because we used a lot of it.”
“And kissing. There was a bit of that, too.” Arion offered.
Cy made a gagging noise, and Arion rolled his eyes. “What's with all this we stuff recently? I thought you didn't care?”
“Just shut up and go to bed so we can be productive tomorrow. It took a lot out of me to ignore you all day.”
“There it is again. You said we just now.”
There was no response from Cy, but Arion could have sworn he felt the glare he was getting.
Chapter 11
Knock, knock, knock!
The loud banging on the door came again, and Arion threw his arms over his throbbing head. “Why can't they just go away?” he muttered. The quill shook in his hand as Cyllorian wrenched his hand away and went on making notes in the empty pages at the end of his spell book.
Spring was coming to an end quickly, and Arion had spent the months cooped up in his house. He hoped summer would bring with it new lessons and spells in his book, but they only ever provided so much of a distraction before he had mastered them. All he could do was wait.
“You want me to get it?” Cy asked in his head. He forced Arion to look at the dagger that lay across the top of his desk. Ever since his last encounter with Kraven, Cy had insisted on keeping some sort of weapon around. The flame that Arion had lit sparked blue and orange, reflecting on the hilt of the blade. His hand twitched towards the blade against his will, but he yanked it back.
“No, I will. You just need to calm down.” Arion shoved away from the desk, wrapping his coat around him. He trudged to the door, where the knocking rang out louder than ever. He threw it open without looking, “Who’s here at this hour?!” he shouted.
He took a few steps back in shock, blushing as Cy scolded him, “Well, we're in trouble now.”
Arion shook his head, and kept himself from laughing as Cy was shaken around inside of him. “Kaitlyn, what are you doing here?”
“I'm here to check on you, like I do every chance I get,” Kaitlyn said. Her blonde hair was in braided pigtails on the sides of her head, and her freckles framed her sad smile. Her blue dress flowed in the slight breeze. A basket of fruits and vegetables swung from her hands. “May I?”
“No,” Cy snorted in Arion's head, fighting with him to close the door.
Arion smacked the back of his head, ignoring the slight pain, and stepped aside to let Kaitlyn in.
“Has it been a week already?” Arion asked, rubbing the back of his head.
“Mhm,” Kaitlyn hummed, wandering into the center of the room. “Sorry I haven't been able to come more often. Ever since we went to the castle a few months ago, father has been crazy protective. And it's only getting worse. But, you know that. Sorry.”
She apologized every time she came, but her visits were few and far between. He had taken her advice and tried to stay within his own home, where he couldn't cause any trouble, but he hadn't been the only one put on house arrest.
“This place always gets me. I don't know how you did it, but it's amazing.”
Arion glanced up to the wide arches that was the ceiling now, large lanterns hanging from the rafters. They gave off light of all different colors, changing all the time. In the past month, he had busied himself with making improvements to the house. Anything to distract him from staring at the map in his basement in sorrow. It had filled out nicely, only a few blank spaces left, but there was still no sign of his mother. He was close to giving up.
“You know it's just one of my tricks,” Arion said, throwing a hand up toward the ceiling. The lanterns went out as one with a whoosh, replaced by a sea of endless stars. Kaitlyn's eyes grew twice their size, and her jaw dropped.
She whirled on Arion and set the basket down, grabbing his hands in hers. “That's amazing! Can I see another one? Please? I know you've learned more!”
Arion gave a crooked smile and pulled his hands away gently. He stepped back, grabbed the edges of his coat, and spun around. As he spun, he surrounded the two of them with tiny stars. Kaitlyn reached her hands out to grab them. “The stars feel...comforting. They're so warm, but they don't burn. It's amazing.” She held one against her cheek, the heat of it making her flush.
Arion stepped a little closer, sweeping her bangs back from her forehead. “I could never hurt you, Kaitlyn,” he whispered. She lifted a hand and rested it lightly on Ari
on's face, tracing the scars on his cheek and neck.
“I never thought fifteen would be the worst year. Grow up, kid!” Cy interjected.
“Shut up!” Arion hissed, spinning away from Kaitlyn. He cursed at himself that he had spoken aloud, but Cy only laughed.
“Arion?” Kaitlyn's hand fell on his shoulder. Arion turned back to her with an apologetic smile.
“Nothing, Kait. Just talking to myself. Being locked up in here all the time is making me crazy, I guess.” He ran his hands through his messy hair nervously and forced a laugh.
“You're not crazy,” Kaitlyn crooned. She ran her fingers over his cheek, and his eyes shot open. He stared at her in shock as she leaned closer, and pressed her lips to his.
He lifted his hand to her face, and tangled his fingertips in the loops of her braids. He pulled her closer and kissed her back, his face burning.
“The hell are you doing, kid? Once was enough!” Cy screamed after a moment of the two locked together.
Arion pulled away reluctantly. He controlled his expression as he thought, What do you care? I know you don't like her, but come on? What’s your problem?
“My problem is that she's human. And a distraction! We have bigger things to worry about. We have no time for you to turn soft on me!”
Just stay out of it, Cy. It's my life. I can kiss whoever I want to!
“Fine, but don't come crying to me when she breaks your heart and gets us killed! It’s only a matter of time before…”
“Arion? Arion!” Kaitlyn had been trying to get his attention, and he smothered Cy's voice in his head.
Arion opened his mouth to make an excuse, but was drowned out by a hoard of angry voices and banging on his door.
“Is it too soon to say I told you so? Because I did. Not ten seconds ago even! They’re here because she is.”
“No. No! She has nothing to do with this. I already told you.”
“They're going to kill us unless you do something. Get rid them, all of them! Starting with her!” Cy shifted their gaze, and Arion was once again staring at the dagger.
Arion sucked down a deep breath to yell at Cy, but the door broke open and cut him off. Kaitlyn screamed and ducked behind him as the room filled with angry faces and pointed weapons. The village didn't have much, but axes, hunting knives, and farm tools would still work to kill him, in their eyes. Kraven was at the head of the mob, brandishing a curved gutting knife.
Looking around the room for an escape, Arion stepped back. He reached behind him and held Kaitlyn there, making sure she was completely protected. He raised his left hand defensively, setting up a magical barrier.
The villagers rammed against his shield over and over, and Arion fought to keep his concentration. Kaitlyn was yelping with every blow, and Cy was screaming with immense rage.
Arion shut his eyes from all the noise and focused on his magic. His hand grew hotter as he pushed against the onslaught of attacks. The barrier fell, replaced by hovering orbs of green fire in front of him. He used them as small blades, countering the attacks from all directions. He batted the blades against the humans, pushing them away, but they wouldn't back down.
With an infuriated yell, Arion shot a beam of green light from his hand as an extension of himself. He swept his arm in a wide arc across all the attackers, and they were launched backwards. He didn't even flinch at the crunches that filled the air as they each hit the walls, one by one.
There was a short pause before Kraven himself launched an attack. Arion widened the beam of light into a small shield, and slammed it into Kraven's face. The bully was sent reeling back, and his knife caught one of his followers.
Kaitlyn shrieked as blood splattered over Arion’s shield and face. Arion had never heard such a terrified sound before. He dropped the shield out of fear, and the blood fell to the floor at his feet. He looked up at the group around him, and realized how much damage he had done.
Many of the men had broken arms from their attack, and others had burns covering their arms and faces. Green sparks shot off of their skin, scorching any clear flesh they could find. Arion stared down at his hand, a wisp of green smoke rising from it.
Kraven was the worse for wear. Most of his face was covered in charred flesh, and his knife had cut him across the shoulder, which was bleeding profusely.
Arion stared in disbelief at what he had done. Kaitlyn was trembling behind him. He couldn't tell if he was shaking as well. Cy was silent in his head, and all he could hear were the moans of pain.
But Kraven got to his feet regardless. He stumbled shakily for a moment, and mumbled something unrecognizable through the burns.
Kaitlyn squeaked behind him, pulling on Arion’s coat as she backed away. He turned to her and gave her a small shove. Tears gleamed in her eyes as she stared at him.
“Go downstairs. Now!” he ordered, waving his hand through the air. The hidden door to the basement not far behind them opened up, and she darted for it.
A roar shook the air from behind him, and something sliced across his back. He collapsed to the ground, Kaitlyn yelling his name.
“NO! You have to get down there! GO NOW, KAITLYN!” he cried.
She froze at his voice, and then disappeared into his basement.
He rolled over as Kraven's knife came down by his face, kicking the legs out from under his opponent. Kraven swung wildly with his knife, grazing Arion's cheek. Still lying on the floor, Arion kicked into Kraven's stomach as hard as he could. Arion jumped to his feet to tower over Kraven, anger overtaking him.
“Just look at what you've done to her now,” Arion breathed. Arion ripped open Kraven’s shirt, pressing his left hand over Kraven's heart. His screams shook the whole house as Arion tore his way through the skin with magic. The edges of muscles around his fingers shriveled away from the sparks, and blood gushed out. Arion let a twisted smile creep onto his face as he dug further into the other boy's chest. His fingertips grazed his hot, trembling heart.
“ARION!” The voice shook his entire being, and he froze. Staring down at his own hand, buried in the boy's chest, he felt lost. He ripped his hand out of Kraven’s chest, blood splattering everywhere. Arion whipped his head around, a stricken expression glued in place, and found Kaitlyn standing at the top of the stairs. Her face was covered in tears, and she held her stomach and mouth. She was bent over, and Arion could tell she was trying not to retch.
He looked back down at the boy beneath him and felt like he was going to be sick as well. The only skin left on his face covered his left eye and a part of his mouth. His eyes were fading. He coughed up blood, and it mixed with the sweat and tears that covered his face.
What scared Arion the most was the hole in Kraven’s chest the size of his hand. A small scrap of skin was left in the middle, and the edge of his lightning bolt stood out in Kraven’s flesh. Through the holes, he could watch the heart as it struggled to keep beating. The wound had been cauterized, but Arion wasn't sure if he would live. He knew he didn't want Kraven to live, and the thought sickened him.
He pushed himself off the boy, running his blood-soaked hand through his messy hair. Without another glance, he darted for Kaitlyn and ushered her back downstairs. He heard the rushing footsteps as soon as the trap door was set back in place, and he pushed against it, though he knew the villagers had no chance of entering without magic.
“You’re back.” Kaitlyn's voice cracked as she whispered, and she fell victim to a coughing fit. Arion rushed to her, but wasn't sure what to do. He moved to rub her back, but the blood on his hand made him stop. Instead, he simply crouched next to her until she caught her breath.
“Your back looks bad,” she sobbed, scrubbing away the tears that fell as she spoke.
“I'm fine. Are you…” he didn't finish his question. He didn't need to. Her eyes told him everything she was feeling. And it was all because of him. “I'm so sorry, Kaitlyn. You shouldn't have had to see that. Any of it. I'm so, so sorry.” He dropped his head into his hands.
/> “We should take care of your back,” she said again. There was no heart in her statement, as though it had been rehearsed. She crawled behind him when he didn't move and tenderly peeled the coat away from his skin. She touched the edge of the cut lightly, and let out a small shriek. Arion cried out in pain and pulled away from her.
He smiled and said, “You've seen enough for today. I can handle myself. It's okay. Thank you.”
He wrapped his arms around himself, and felt for the cut with his fingers. When he found the edge, he felt inside just to check the damage. Hard bone scraped against his fingers, and he gasped. Kaitlyn's hands reached for him automatically, but she pulled them into her lap at the look on his face. He closed his eyes and healed the wound as best as he could with what strength he had left.
There was a long moment of silence, where they just listened to the stomping of boots above them. “They're still trying to get in,” Kaitlyn whispered.
“It's alright, I promise. You're going to be perfectly safe.”
“What about you?” she asked. He stared into her eyes, and knew the real question she wanted to ask.
“I'm going to stay here with you, and make sure you’re safe. I won't go back up there.”
The villagers pounded against the door, and Kaitlyn jumped. She grabbed hold of Arion's arm and buried her face into the fabric.
“I just want them to go away!” she cried.
“I don't know how to make them. They should be taking their wounded back. I can't figure out why they’re still here.”
“You better figure it out before they get in here,” Cy said.
Finally decided to join the party, huh? A little earlier would have been nice.
“You seemed to have had it under control. You're still alive, and she doesn't even have a scratch on her. What do you think I could've done anyway?”
Stopped me.
“I'll make this alright, don't you worry. I'll make sure you're safe over everything else,” he said to Kaitlyn, breaking his connection with Cy. He raised his hand to brush a strand of hair out of her face, but she jerked away from him. His reassuring smile slipped away, and she tore her gaze from his.