The Warning In The Wind
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It was the wild wind that brought Him, down from the black mountains in the East, where the sun rose from it's nightly subjugation and no one ever dared to tread.
At first, all there was, was a rumour, the fearful cry of birds, the farm animals lowing in distress; people made the sign to ward off evil and went about their business, uneasily turning their backs to the mountains, to the myths they only half remembered.
Then came the chill wind, so bitter it froze the water droplets in the air, turning them white as they fell like scattered feathers, burning where they touched bare skin.
Then the sun all but disappeared, the sky went dark but was lit somehow by a garish red light, streaming on the wind from the mountain's hidden heart.
And as the sound of the wind increased, they heard His voice, the crooning, hypnotic sound of imminent doom.
The Beast had awoken once more; He had slept, long and deep; with only His dreams to disturb the lives that came and went in the lands beyond the mountains.
But now, He was awake, and He was hungry.
He was coming, He was coming and a sacrifice had to be made, or He would destroy everything. Every dwelling, every field, every plant, every animal; anything that lived or breathed under the sun would be consumed or destroyed.
A council was held, hastily brought together, of Elders and Priests, Landowners and Wise women.
The people watched them discuss who would be sent to die, who would be sent to appease the Beast that drew ever nearer.
Mothers and fathers clutched their daughters tightly to them, men held their wives, earnestly entwining their fingers against the sacred rings they wore, the sign that they could never be torn asunder.
The wind moaned, it's voice sending shudders along people's spines, made the hairs on their arms and necks prickle as the wind whispered of His coming.
The girl they chose was an orphan, alone, with no one to miss her, no family to lament her passing, to gnash their teeth at the cruel injustice of it all.
They spoke to her of nobility, of the legacy of life her sacrifice would bring, of the shining place her soul would fly to after her life was gone from this world.
The girl, named Rey, held no illusions, took none of their pretty words into her heart, yet she acquiesced gracefully, quietly. If it was not her, it would be someone else, another orphan, another girl without a family, some poor other waif or stray.
They robed her in white, a fine dress of silk and white fox fur, and brushed her long brown hair till it shone, braiding it and decorating it with a crown of flowers.
The girl Rey saw no sense in this empty pageantry, would the Beast even notice? Would it care that she wore the scent of summer roses? That her eyelids and lips were brushed with gold dust?
She could not see that it mattered, perhaps it was purely to make her arbiters feel better, as if all this would somehow assuage their guilt at sending her off to die for the mere fact she was without family and all alone in the world.
They set her on a pure white mare and she rode away to the sounds of people calling their blessings and thanking her for her brave sacrifice.
Rey was not accustomed to riding in a dress, the mare was alarmed by the shrieking wind and the voices of doom it carried within it, shying and dancing as it rolled it's eyes.
Rey dismounted and sent the stricken creature away; after all there was no reason they both had to die.
Rey carried on on her feet, the wide skirt of her dress tucked into the ornate sash that glittered at her waist.
At least she had her old boots on; no one had seen sense in changing those - they would not have been seen if she had stayed on the horse. Rey doubted the Beast would object.
The nearer she got to the mountains, the louder the wind became, the darker the sky. Weariness replaced the fear in her bones, she almost wished for her death to come sooner, this waiting to be consumed was oddly frustrating.
Still, she continued on her way, each step she took was one step farther away from the lives she was being sacrificed to save; as in everything in her life, if Rey did something, she did it thoroughly.
Rey raised her chin, wrapped what little pride she had around herself as a cloak; the Beast would find no coward here, no weeping, pleading wretch, seasoned with the salt of her own tears.
No, she was Rey of No One, and of Nowhere, and by all the gods above and below, she would not show her fear, she would not let it rule her.
He arrived on immense wings made of pure night, He brought with him the scent of flames, of burning earth and brimstone.
His crimson eyes were as deep and as pitiless as oblivion itself, his frightful maw crammed full of jagged, serrated teeth the size of swords.
He was death.
He was Rey's death.
Rey's feet stilled as she beheld him, unable to look away as he circled her, once, twice and on the third time, he set down, on scaled feet with claws long enough to skewer a horse.
The wind rushed around them, pulling at Rey's dress, ripping the flowers from her hair as the Beast seemed to study her, eyes unblinking.
Rey could get lost in those eyes; perhaps that was the idea, she didn't know, but she did not wish to wait for death any longer, so she approached the Beast. Almost brazen in her fearlessness.
The closer she got to the serpentine body, the louder the wind howled, the sharper His scent became, the stronger the heat leaching from His mighty body.
When Rey could go no further, when the heat and wind were too much to bear, she stopped, puzzled and challenging in her look to him.
The Beast lowered His massive head, bringing His eyes to the level of hers as He contemplated her with intelligent eyes.
Rey held her breath, even her heart seemed to still, as if she were already dead. She spread her arms, in an invitation, acceptance of her lot in this life.
"What are you called, Lady in white?" The voice that issued from the burning throat of the Beast was low and deep, unexpected.
In her surprise, Rey's answer was glib, "Why does it matter? I do not name my food, why would you name yours?"
The Beast smiled, His teeth rang like steel as they moved against each other, "There is much meaning, much power, held within true names, Lady."
Rey's name had never interested anyone before, "I am called Rey... just Rey," she told the Beast, her voice soft now.
"Just Rey?" The Beast rumbled, perhaps the sound a cat the size of a mountain would make when it purred. "There is nothing, just, about you."
Rey allowed herself a little frown, "I do not understand."
"No, I do not suppose you do..." the Beast blinked at her, "Close your eyes, Just Rey," he told her, the tone of it was strangely gentle.
This must be it then, Rey thought, as she shut her eyes; at least, with how big the Beast was, it would be quickly done, he almost seemed… kind. And she found herself believing that he would not toy with her.
There was an inrush of sound, as if the storm surrounding the Beast was being sucked into one tiny spot in front of her, she felt it as the wind blew past her, faster and faster until suddenly, abruptly, all was silence.
The scent and the heat and the sheer presence of the Beast, was gone. Was she dead? Had it not hurt at all?
Rey wanted to open her eyes, wanted to see where it was her soul had been sent to, but she found that she could not.
Then, a sharp gasp broke the stillness, the sound of a man in pain, another indrawn breath, hissing between teeth.
Rey desperately wanted to open her eyes, yet some compulsion prevented her.
There was the sound of someone approaching her, steps getting nearer and nearer until they were just a breath away, their body so close to hers that she could feel the heat of them against her skin.
A warm, calloused finger traced the gold dust on her lips and her breath hitched as she gave a shocked gasp.
"Open your eyes, Just Rey." The voice was almost familiar.
Rey's eyes opened to find a man standing before her. He was tall and broad, with impossibly soft inky black hair framing an angular face, set with eyes as red as fire…
Rey let loose another gasp, "You are… the Beast?" She asked doubtfully, bewildered as he gazed down at her with eyes that seemed to sear her very soul.
"I am," he smiled, curving full dark lips in his pale face, "And I am also Kylo Ren. I have been waiting a long time for you, Just Rey. A very, long, time."
And so saying, he pushed his large, hot hands into her hair, and claimed her with a kiss.