A/N: Edited by Lady Katherine2 who provided the theme for the drabble: "The heart has its reasons which reason knows not of." It was by Blaise Pascal.
Also, there are hints which pairing is being discussed here. Look/read closely and you will get which couple it was. Hugs!
Hidden Reasons
drabble #47 Shadows
1,040 words
It should have been the perfect example of a fairytale come to life.
The night sky was strewn with twinkling stars, and a silvery sheen surrounded the full moon. A fog rolled in, blanketing the rolling hills and creating a fantasy world of mist and shadows.
The scent of camellias, and lilacs, and lavender filled the air, the heady mixture of the flowers' fragrance adding to the unearthliness of the scene.
Many a lover dreams of such nights.
Many a poet yearns for such moments of beauty to inspire their muse to create poetry.
But she had never been a poet. The beauty of that night held no enchantment for her.
And they were not lovers so the scenery carried no romantic illusion for them.
She knew about the idiocy of falling prey to illusions.
Illusion was the greatest part of her magic.
He bowed his head, smiled, before turning to look at her. The long length of his blonde hair was not in its customary style. The gentle night wind blew on it softly and it framed his face, making his delicate features even softer to the eye. "You're here," he whispered softly. "The only question now is why."
Why was she there? What had dared her to come to a place she knew she would not be welcomed?
She shook her head, wanting him to know she was not aware of why. But this may be the last night they could talk with some semblance of civility. The Lunarian court had closed all portals leading to Earth. The drumbeats of war were slowly being heard throughout both kingdoms.
The heart has its reasons which reason knows not of.
He saw the confusion flickering in her blue eyes. He understood, a little, why she couldn't say anything. After all, if she had asked him why he was there, he probably would not have said anything either.
Instead he turned his attention to her steed, and he felt resentment building up. "Magnificent animal," he murmured. There was a hint of sarcasm on his voice; the honeyed words clearly tinged with malicious insinuation. The creature was another reminder of the reasons why she was deserving of better things in life. Things he, a mere mortal, could never offer.
'Things,' he thought with feigned arrogance, 'I have no intention to give anyway.'
The heart has its lies as well as its reasons.
Her head snapped in attention and stiffened her spine so that she was seated regally, as a princess should. "This is Pegasus," she said to him, voice unusually loud in that quiet night. "He is not an animal, but one of them that was born for the service of the gods. How dare you insinuate that he is otherwise?"
Despite himself he was amused by her superiority and he started to laugh. She had always seemed to him the most humble of the covey of the gods. Always, she had blushed when he had taunted, so to see her indignant was a welcomed surprise.
There was fire in that calm countenance after all.
She, however, was not amused.
"Stupid Terran," she whispered beneath her breath.
Yes, stupid, arrogant, man with his vain air of importance and his golden locks so carefully groomed always into place. She could never understand how someone so narcissistic was so exalted a knight.
Why, then, was she even bothering talking to one she obviously did not like?
Why was she there?
Her words reached him, and sobered him at once. Humble, indeed. She was a bitch, just like all her kind. His lips formed a malicious grin, but his next words were cordial. He was ever the gentleman, even in his anger. "Ah, yes. Terran. How is it, madam, that from your lips my proud lineage and noble ancestry sounds so filthy?"
He walked towards her, and Pegasus, not liking such close proximity from mortal men, shied away. Her hands instantly went to stroke the silvery white mane, while she made soothing sounds.
But her troubled eyes were on him. If he allowed himself the chance, those eyes could take him under their blue spell.
The way they did, the first time he met her.
'No,' he vowed, 'Never again.'
He moved away instead, his steps taking him further from her. There was no denying the tears in his eyes. But he told himself his eyes were dry and calm and cold.
Because the heart has its lies as well as its reasons.
"Pegasus," he spat the words, hate coating them, "seems to agree with your observation. But then, everyone of your race shares this view, do they not? One wonders how some filthy human prince managed to throw your structured world upside down. Or was he, the prince, better than the rest of us so that he was able to have his love returned?"
She turned her head away, refusing to show how his words had hurt, but nudged Pegasus to be still when he moved restlessly. "Many oppose it. I oppose it," she whispered, ashamed despite herself. "He should have never pursued Serenity."
"Why would you oppose of something so pure? He loves her true."
Her words were drawn out from her, as if she did not wish to speak them. "She deserves better."
His next words were a command. "Look at me," he stared at her, the sharpness of his gaze making her fidget. But she did look at him, her dark blue eyes meeting the cool icy shade of his own. "I wish we'd never met."
A tear fell from his eyes, and she bit her lower lip at the sight. She knew tears were falling from her own eyes as well.
Then gently, and without hurry, he moved his hands until he was touching Pegasus' flanks. At his touch, the creature moved fast, nearly throwing his rider off balance.
A flurry of wings later, he watched the silhouette of the maiden and the magical being flying back to that castle high up in the sky.
And he knew, though she never said it, that she wished she had never met him, too.
For love could play cruel games, games played by rules and filled with reasons that puzzled Reason herself…