Good Morning, Little Ones!

Thank you to Mel, Jill, and Dani!

.: 41 :.

"There is an option I haven't considered," Edward says slowly.

I look up at him."Yes?"

He pours more honey into his oatmeal. Watching him eat is something else. The man is a serious sugar fiend.

"It's dangerous," he says, glancing at me.

I raise an eyebrow.

"More dangerous than the Hazel Court or going into the ocean?"

Edward grunts. "Yes."

Well.

I lick my lips, dipping my spoon into my oatmeal. I'm on my second bowl and finally feeling somewhat less starving.

"Will it help?" I ask, looking up at him.

Edward frowns. "There is a chance."

I'm silent as I weigh the options. On the one hand, I'm reasonably sure that at this point anything we choose to do will lead us to trouble, but I'm not sure seeking out trouble is the best course of action. However, I'm currently out of ideas, and despite how much I'd like to just stay in this little cottage, we have real world things to worry about.

I think once again about the herbs I need to procure, and my stomach tightens into knots. I have to leave this cottage.

"What's going through that busy mind of yours, Little One?"

I look up at him, hesitating before I speak. "I'm not eager to run into more trouble," I say slowly. "But I'm out of ideas." I frown. "Did I do or say anything when I surfaced in the sea?"

Edward's face turns hard. "I'm trying very hard not to think of it," he admits. "You were a small breath away from being a corpse."

I'm quiet as I think about that. I don't remember what I learned down there. I remember the sting of teeth sinking into my neck, and the burning that flooded my body as that creature spoke hidden truths into my mind. I'm terrified about what the consequences of giving it my blood may be, especially since I don't know if I've learned anything from it.

"What did you encounter?"

He hasn't asked me yet, and I look up at him, surprised he's asking now. I swallow hard.

"It was," I pause. There are no words I have to describe the creature. "Old," I say finally.

Edward arches a brow. "Old?"

I lick my lips. "Old, like old world. A relic of a world that housed gods and monsters."

Edward shifts, uneasy. I know he is old, but no creature I've ever encountered felt of such ancient, primal magic as that of the beast under the sea.

"And it gave you nothing?"

"It let me live," I say, hedging around the topic. Edward shifts on his stool, and when I look up at him, his hands are fisted against his thighs.

"Something I am grateful for every moment," he mutters.

I have to look away from him. The tension growing in the room is a little unfamiliar. This isn't just lusting, this, whatever it is, is deeper and darker than pleasure.

Finally, Edward clears his throat. "Very well."

He finishes off his bowl of oatmeal and stands from the barstool. In the kitchen, there are black scorch marks where he bent me over the counter. I stare at them as I finish eating.

"Who are we going to see?" I ask.

Edward looks up at me. "Someone very old." When I hesitate, he continues. "She is considered somewhat of an oracle."

I frown. "Can she be trusted?"

Edward sighs. "She isn't someone I'd willingly be indebted to," he says carefully. "But as you've pointed out, we have currently exhausted all other options."

"Why didn't we start with her?"

Edward sighs. "Because she is as likely to try to eat me as she is to help. I rather hoped to avoid her council."

I look down at my bowl, poking at my food. Part of me feels guilty for not telling him what I know, but I need to process it more, because no matter how I look at it, it's a price I'm unwilling to pay, and I can't bring myself to quite tell Edward that just yet. Do I want to go to an oracle that may eat us? No absolutely not, but I need more help.

We clean up the kitchen as best we can before attempting the rest of the cottage. It's useless. The force of our magic has destroyed nearly everything.

"I feel bad," I tell Edward as I change back into my clothes. They are dirty as hell. We need a refreshing STAT. It's too bad there was no washer or dryer here.

"We have thoroughly destroyed this place," Edward agrees.

I work on braiding my hair to keep it out of my face, but my fingers still as my eyes narrow on him.

"What are you thinking?"

He looks at me. "I'll burn the place down."

My fingers slip out of my hair. "What?"

"It'll be a kindness," he says simply.

I gape at him. "Edward, you're insane." I shake my head. "We aren't burning their house down!"

Edward raises one eyebrow at me, his eyes sweeping the room.

It's absolutely destroyed, with scorch marks across the bed and up the walls behind it. There are even some on the ceilings.

"We'll send them money," I insist.

Edward rolls his eyes.

"They will get more money from an insurance payout," he points out.

I can't believe what I'm hearing. "You don't know they are insured!"

Edward turns to the bed, grabbing his shirt that I've recently shed. He slips it over his head and looks back at me.

"I'm not responsible for their neglect if they don't have insurance," he says stiffly. "Gather your things. I'll set the fire as soon as you are far enough away."

I want to protest more—this is in-fucking-sane—but Edward stalks out of the room before I can fight with him.

I gather up our things, throwing them into our backpack. I stop in the kitchen to grab some food as well as a can opener before stalking outside.

If I'm honest, the thought of this sweet little cabin being gone breaks my heart. I'm sentimental and even if there is nothing more between Edward and me beyond universe-altering sex, this is the place where it started.

I head out of the cottage, turning away from the shore. Up a small paved path is the car, and I let out a long breath before trudging toward it.

I pull open the back seat, tossing the backpack in before I turn to the house. I don't know what Edward is doing in there, and I really don't want to know.

It doesn't take long to see the smoke clouding the windows, or the flames flickering beyond them. My heart clenches, relaxing only slightly when Edward appears outside the cottage. He makes his way up to my side, stopping to stand near me as I lean against the car. "Don't worry, Little One," he says gently. "I'm sure there will be plenty of opportunities for us to burn a path and leave our mark elsewhere."

I snort and shove myself off the car, smacking his arm. He grins at me and I shake my head.

"Shut up," I say weakly. "Let's go."

Edward nods and heads around to the passenger side as I climb behind the wheel. We roll the windows down as I start up the engine. I look over at him and take a deep breath. "Okay, where to?"