The Eyes of The Rhoynar Queen
We walked for the first few minutes of our reunion in total silence. An awkwardness hung on me as I resisted the urge to reach for his hand or steal glances at the blond boy who had so hurt me. To resist the urge to graze my fingers delicately against his cheek... to resist the urge to love him. It wasn't until we'd hiked through a denser section of prickly underbrush that finally Scor broke the silence with a joke. We both burst out laughing at the mention of my mom finding him in my bed this morning, and just like that we were Al and Scor again.
My longing for him remained but I felt at least like I could breathe again.
After his quip, we spent the better part of an hour just catching up and chatting about the two camps of friends that had been divided by allegiance over our feud. Who had seen who and what had we been up to all these many months apart. Half an hour into our merriment and a branch cracked loudly in the distance. We froze in place, not daring to shift for fear of what might have caused the sound. When no horrendous creature emerged we decided against participating in the hunt altogether. Scor concluded that our duel had brought us sufficient notoriety enough for one international society function. Besides, neither of us really felt like hunting and killing some enormous wild Tork (demon boar) or merlin knew what else could be lurking in these woods. Not after the drain of our fight and apology.
I decided instead to fill him in on my musical ventures to his great surprise and asked him if he was at all interested in starting a band with me. He said he'd give it some thought but I could tell he was really impressed at how much interest I had generated for my songs. Scorpius mentioned he'd bought tickets to the Weird Sisters upcoming reunion tour concert in London. All of our friends were crazed over the songs and only Lily and Louis knew the truth about the ASP.
I switched topics out of embarrassment, failing to mention that I would be performing live alongside the famous group for the three songs I'd cowritten and featured in.
"How was your summer working for Arcanis? That internship must be fascinating." It was my turn to focus my praise on the hopeless priss. "And Merlin Scor how you fought at Azkaban! And against me last night! You've learned so much!"
"I don't know if its that impressive really. You're still ahead of me by a mile."
"Socr, you heard what your grandfathers said about us? Garth was raving, and even Lucius was blown away!"
He dodged the compliments politely which I thought strange and merely outlined what work for the International Confederation of Warlocks was actually like. It was a dry account but I felt he was downplaying the pomp of it for my benefit. He was the assistant to the most powerful man in the world. Scor got to work with him every single day. I only got cryptic missions and random grillings from the man, and only that on very rare occasions.
We continued to hike as the day wore on, stopping only to drink water from the crystal stream that had earlier nearly frozen me. I took in his stunning features as he wiped the droplets from around his mouth and had to catch my heart from falling and shattering at the shock of the emotions bubbling inside me. Instead I smiled and splashed him mischievously. I covered my mouth to stifle my laughter and was not surprised to get a gentle blast of water magic as revenge. We chased each other around in a brief water fight, ducking behind trees and howling as we dodged and splashed this way and that. In the end I was the one who had to concede defeat.
"I yield Scor! I Yield!" I yelped, putting my hands up and surrendering.
As we continued our stroll I revealed to him the story of Ancalagon and Niime, surprised that I could still surprise him at all. His face contorted into shock when I produced the strange gem that allowed me to communicate with the immense titan. I pressed the object into the blond's hand and introduced Scorpius to the titanic creature. I marveled at the reverence Scor showed the great Wyrm, glad that the dragon seemed pleased with my closest friend. Immediately after I stowed the jewel in my secret pocket, the blond insisted I demonstrate a brief flight. I flew awkwardly from the ground to a nearby tree and marveled at the feel of my new found power. I grew warm at the attention and praise that followed the demonstration. "A Baba Yaga! Of course all the cool stuff happens to you when I'm not around!"
"I'll obviously teach it to you too Scor! Just don't share it with anyone else ok?" I offered watching his face brighten red. He nodded silently, realizing what an honor it was for me to offer to share it with him.
We laughed and continued to wander aimlessly through the forests as the hours slipped quickly by. We discussed theory and spellwork as we often did until finally I decided I needed to tell him about Raven. The blood oath was a dark piece of me now. Another dark piece anyway.
"So Alex is your vassal? Your tactician?" Scor enquired seriously, his eyes fixed on a stone he was prying at with his left foot.
I nodded gravely back at him.
"Well… General more like. I know how he feels about me Scor. I've been adamant I don't want to use him but he insists he doesn't care if I feel the same way about him or not. He plans to protect me regardless of whether he can win my affection. It was his idea to form a secret society devoted to our interests."
"So he's told you how he feels about you? I think i'm the only one on my side of the family that knows he's gay." Scor remarked, observing me carefully for my reply.
"I promise I'm not taking advantage of your cousin. He knows I don't feel that way for him. He's just… been an incredible friend these last few months."
I tried to reassure Scor, but i could tell something was nagging at him.
"Do you want me to join this little group?" He asked irritably.
Did he feel left out? I stopped to grab his hand in earnest. I didn't hesitate in my reply.
"Of course I do! I trust you more than anyone else on the planet Scor. Even when we were fighting I knew you'd never betray me. Just like I never said anything to Hermione. You're… my best fucking friend… of course I want you to join." He nodded quietly to himself at that. "Its more about protecting Great Britain and the status quo than just about protecting me."
"So, Lily is your sister, Alex is in love with you and blood bonded to serve you… why Louis and the Scamanders?" He asked logically.
"Louis is my cousin… but Vivienne revealed to him that it was my spellwork from the book of death that saved Bill's life at Saint Mungos. You know when he was attacked at Azkaban. The Scamanders pledged loyalty to me when they found out I had dashed in to save their mum from Ancalagon's dragon fire."
He whistled at that. These weren't just regular kids playing at knights and dragons. There was blood magic involved. Lives saved by my actions. Loyalty and vows exchanged.
"You protected Lucius and stole from the ministry for my father… and we both would have died for each other that night beneath the forest… so you have me now too." He offered seriously. I nodded shyly in response knowing I had had him already for a long time now. It was obvious how the Malfoy family felt about me.
"Thats what you and Raven were talking about this morning? Who else might be inclined to join someday."
"Yes... well… on your end you have Rory… and Markus is your cousin… not to mention you saved him that night you found him collapsed in the street. That you frightened off his attackers before they finished their ritual means something. Markus has told Lily he plans on coming to Hogwarts to study this coming year. He's already made friends with our little Hogwarts planning committee… all of whom I think would be great additions to our order."
"I think the Muramasa's could be powerful allies too. I'll explain more in detail about them later. For now I need some time to think it all through."
"Already weighing in on strategy. See I knew we needed you onboard for this." I offered happily.
"What if I hadn't apologized sufficiently to your liking?" He asked cheekily, stopping us to engage me intently.
"I guess I would have been utterly screwed."
"If Alex is your general and chief strategy adviser and Lily your spymaster ninja assassin? What would I be?"
"You'd be my prince obviously. Majordomo maybe? No that doesn't work. Hmm or vice regent? Lorcan and Lysander are my personal guard, they'll be joining my defense training regimen this fall."
"Ok then Al. You're going to promise me something now before this game gets too far out of hand. That is if you want me to join."
SPOV
"Oh am I Scor?" He teased flirtatiously, his whole demeanor shifting. It was a habit he'd doubtless picked up from hanging out with Raven.
"If you're going to play games with me like my cousin does, then how about we do so like this?" I replied, pushing him up against a rocky wall covered in moss. He tried to resist but I grabbed both of his hands to pin them above his head. "You are never to let anything come between us again, got it? If I ever do something to annoy you, you'll let me come to my senses and apologize. I swear I'll do the same for you. Alright? No more fighting. Not ever."
"Never let anything come between us? Thats a tall order Prince Malfoy."
"I mean it. After our duel last night… I asked the muramasa twins to use fate magic to peer into our bond. I wanted to know… how deeply our connection went. They know for a fact our fates are intertwined. They said knotted together like a tangle of twine."
"Oh really? So you swear it? You'll never let anything come between us? You'll forgive me for anything stupid I may end up doing?" Al teased coyly.
I pressed him harder against the stone and watched him wince and bite his lip as though he enjoyed the roughness of my touch. Does he even realize what he looks like? No wonder Raven was smitten with him.
'He is so fucking pretty for a boy.'
'Ashera save me…' I banished the thought before starting to speak again.
"Stop joking around Al! I'm serious about this. We have to stick together or I don't know how else to navigate the storm that's com—" He leaned in and kissed me gently then, interrupting my words with his tender attention. Why did I let him do it? Wasn't he healed enough already? We stood there for I don't know how long, snogging in slow deliberateness as I let him have as much of me as he wanted. Our tongues slid against each other and the longer the dance extended the more I wasn't sure I wanted it to stop.
"Forgive me still?" He asked deviously. I rolled my eyes before a smile sprang to my lips. I hated to admit how perfect his lush full lips felt whenever he did that. It was like a drug.
"I meant it. Promise me this. We will never fight like that again ok? Swear it on your life."
As I searched his face, the boys expression changed from mischievous to serious. He scrutinized me as intently as I did him.
"You really mean it, don't you?" Al queried intently.
"You're like a brother to me stupid. I love you. Of course I mean it."
He annoyed me by leaning in to kiss me again. I didn't let it continue as long this time. I pushed him back after a few seconds of contact. This time he smiled and shook his head.
Wait... He's toying with me... Cheeky fucker! He's just doing that to irk me now…
"Ok then. I won't play games with you anymore. I promise you SçΩr¶îµ§, I won't let anything come between us again. Ever."
His eyes flashed silver and a deep spell was wrought between us even as the ring on his finger glowed where my seal sat.
"So... You just wanted to see if you could… If i would… what? Shatter our renewed friendship right away? Over a few kisses?"
"You said forgive each other for anything? Did you not? I was testing your resolve. Trying to provoke you to anger by doing something that clearly crosses a line."
When did he get so… Slytherin? He struggled where his wrists were locked together above his head. "Are you perhaps planning to release me? Or does my Lord Malfoy have more devious intentions in mind for my use in his arms?" His beautiful green eyes were so seductively intense when they flitted to lock with mine that I had to look away from him. I involuntarily let go of his wrists and stepped back. He didn't move though, merely smiled.
When did he get so bloody smart?
I realized I had been on the defensive the entire time since he had forgiven me by the river. He was in charge of every move!
'How have I fallen so far behind?' I asked myself. My irritation vanished the moment the glint of blue light caught my attention. I peered at the spot on the rocks next to his face for a few moments. A queer light seemed to dance in the reflected golden aura that shone through the trees. A peculiar shade of blue lines… I noted as my hand rose to brush the thick vines from the space I examined. A blue hourglass!
"Albus! Look at this!" I shouted practically into his face. He winced in annoyance but detached himself from the large rockface to stand at my side.
"Is that? Avalon's seal? What on earth is that doing out here… Ashera bless me!" Albus cursed as I withdrew the blue book of time from its protective pocket in my robes. "You carry around yours with you too? How predictable are we?"
"Temporalus inflamare"
APOV
I took a half step back as blue fire ignited in the blond's free hand. I couldn't help but marvel as he worked and molded the flames into a semi solid goop. Fiendfyre, Phoenix fire, temporal fire…
This was time font magic. The realization hit me that the blue hourglass was indeed a marker, but of what I had no idea.
"Al… isn't Merlin and his treasury supposed to be buried in the enchanted depths of Broceliande?" He asked dumbly. His suggestion was ludicrous. It wasn't until the goop crystalized into a circular lens and Scor put it to his eye that I stopped to wonder.
He examined the rock face before him, scattering the moss and ivy with cruel strokes of his wand as he moved further and further to the right. Again I marveled at how effortlessly my wand bowed to his will. Was it just as in love with him as I was?
"What do you see?"
"Shush." He hissed at me in annoyance.
"Don't shush me Scor, what do you see?"
"I'm two weeks into this book! I've not had the months of practice to familiarize myself with my font magic like you! Just give me a second you klutz."
I frowned at the use of the muggle jewish word. When did he add that to his lexicon? I bumped into his shoulder when he stopped in awe before a strange outcropping of overgrown stones and brush. The befuddled expression on his face did nothing but annoy me further.
"There's nothing here! Its all rocks and weeds!"
I snapped both my fingers and the stone was scoured with burning bramble as the green of life was singed away by fire magic.
He mumbled his thanks absently and handed me the opened book of time as he continued to examine the wall in front of him. I jolted my head upwards as my eyes had instinctively tried to wander down to peer at its pages. 'Not your font' i reminded myself, gulping at how close I had just come to a tragic end.
"So? Is it what you thought? Have we found some relic of the Avalon family?"
"Shu—One second Al. I just need some… time…" He had stopped himself in mid shush, realizing how bad an idea that would have been. A moment later and Scorpius retracted the lens from his eye, turning it back into fire. He closed his lids in concentration and frowned as he pushed to expand the cold fires in his palms. The flames engorged themselves slowly and finally he scattered them onto the wall in front of us. The second the fires left his hands they became a sooty smoke of sapphire dust. To my vivid astonishment the stones began to rewind themselves as time flowed backwards before us. Pillars carved with winding dragon edifices reshaped themselves from beyond the wear of centuries of neglect and erosion. Two enormous set of doors became visible as the blonds magic continued to work its wonders.
An entry! A tomb!
"Merlin's beard!" I heard myself shout as the last of the rust and damage had been removed.
"We may yet find Merlin's beard itself if my theory is correct. Hair and nails don't degrade Al." He joked morbidly. I didn't find this at all funny.
A keyhole in the shape of a wand appeared at the center of the doorway and I knew it was as Scor suggested.
"This cannot be happening!"
I heard a roar of curious apprehension bubble from Ancalagon's gem in my breast pocket. Are you alright little prince?
I'm fine great one… i'll fill you in later… this is just... remarkable.
"I'll let you do the honors Al." The blond turned to me to retrieve the book, shutting it tightly.
I moved towards the door cautiously and withdrew my wand, stopping to gawk at the marvelous detail of the tomb's entrance. "These markings are old Faeric. I've never seen such pristine writing before... Its not from the age of dawn though. That much I can tell. Its probably from the year three hundred."
I felt a nudge against my shoulder shake me from my dazed amazement.
"Hey… cute… archeologist… I'm still… holding back… the clock… its not… without extreme effort… that I'm keeping the entrance… rewound like this… so if you could… hurry..."
It took me a moment to realize what Scor meant before I leapt at the keyhole to shakily insert Excalibur with a twist. The moment the opulent wand slipped into the door a groaning rumble began to shake the very forest itself. Birds took flight and rabbits darted from cover to flee from the ominous sound of the earth trembling. I took only a brief second to appreciate how complicated the magic that Scor had performed was. It was no sooner than the doors had opened that I heard him release a heavy gasp. The whoosh of air escaped the blond just as the spell finally broke him. Luckily the entrance was already revealed. We had no use of the ancient magic any longer.
I lit a ghost flame in my hand with a modified lumos spell and merely began the stepped descent into darkness. With him exhausted I would need to lead us. We said nothing to each other as the phantom light flickered against the stone walls. My spell cast dancing shadows against the damp rocks and I couldn't help but remember those muggle Indiana jones movies. Explorers in the dark.
We both knew how monumental a discovery we had just made. Wether it would turn out to be a happy accident or an unfortunate blunder we had yet to discover. It did strike me as odd though. My old wand was obeying him like a humble servant. During our duel last night, just now while performing complex font magic. He had complete control of my first wand. Was it so fickle? Did it want away from me? I had Excalibur now but it ground at me to know how easily he controlled something that seemed an extension of my very being. Do I really belong to him so completely? Do I really ∫⊙⧩𝓮 him so much?
'Thats weird' I thought to myself. '∫⊙⧩𝓮!' I tried to use the word again but my brain wouldn't let me.
"∫⊙⧩𝓮" I whispered out loud in my irritation.
"What was that Al?" Scor asked.
The word would not come out as I intended. What was happening?
"I ∫⊙⧩𝓮 you Scorpius." I tried again into the air. Again neither of us could make sense of what I was saying. We didn't have much time to contemplate the oddity.
Finally the stairs leveled out and we entered an enormous underground chasm. The sight before me was enough to shake my attention away from the recent strangeness in my mind. I peered outward into the space to observe the scene. Stalactites hung like daggers from the ceilings where drips of water trickled in agonizing slowness from the ceiling above. A ray of light pierced the roof of the chasm, lighting the chamber well enough for me to extinguish my magic. Scor put a hand on my shoulder as he passed, noting my presence even when shook by his bewilderment. Again I blushed at the pang his touch sent through my heart. I'm hopeless.
"Look Al. Look what we found" The blond whispered, oblivious that even now my gaze could not break from his face. My head shifted finally and I was struck.
There it was. A large sarcophagus made of pink quartz, and behind it an enormous web of names etched onto an obsidian obelisk stretching up to the ceiling. Families who's ancestry was as old as the dawn. The Goddess Ashera and her seven children lay at the top, governing over all the rest. Their names were written in old Faeric but still I recognized the names of the mythical figures.
After creating all life it was said Ashera gave a choice group of humans their magic. These beings were named the purebloods. The truest families in our culture, however, were born from her seven direct children. The legend of Ashera went that she shepherded the lives of the mortals she had created for many years but despaired in the tales of love that blossomed between them. In her loneliness and desire to be loved as an equal, she split herself into two beings so she could feel the loving embrace of another.
So Ashera became Ljos the daughter of light and mother of all Light Elves, and Sval the son of night, and father of all Dark Elves. These two loved each other for many centuries, conceiving countless light and dark elves together. Eventually the two longed for eternal rest and so put into motion a very special plan. They birthed seven human children within whom they poured all the energy of the goddess Ashera. It would be these seven who's bloodlines would govern each a font of Ashera's magical power.
Uther Avalon, Hector Hecate, Mercura Maxus, Minamoto Muramasa, Perceus Peverell, Verus Slytherin and Lilith Rhoyne. I observed the names of the seven fontling princes and princesses with a pang of resentment. It was only by the fortune of my birth that I found myself amidst the trappings and burdens of my life. How different my story might have been had Harry never discovered his Peverell lineage.
"Hang on a minute... Richard Evans… Evans? Isn't that your grandmothers family name?"
The question shook me from my mental history refresher when I realized Scor was intently examining the web of names nearer the bottom of the obelisk.
"Richard Evans was my grandmother Lily's father if I recall. Why would my great grandfather's name be here on a family tree of wizards?" I stopped in complete astonishment at the glowing symbol etched next to the name. The symbol was unmistakable. Magical history class had taught me it was the only character ever used to denote the presence of a Squib.
I traced the Pink line eagerly back through several generations of magical lineage. Scor was looking too, his fingers running over the surface of names and dates until he stopped at Cornelius Evans whose mother was… Liliana Ambrosia Rhöyne. This couldn't be… I read and reread the name before me, then followed the Evans family back even farther. Female members of the Hecate family had married into the Evans line. They weren't muggles at all… they were purebloods… that had produced squibs… which meant that Lily Potter was a direct descendent of the princesses of the Rhöyne and of the Hecate. She was royalty. Which made me… triply so…
"Well that's a surprise if ever I saw one. Albus… your grandmother. The magic she performed to save her son from a killing curse. The Rhoynar are children of the seventh font. The Font of ∫⊙⧩𝓮! Thats how she saved your father from Voldemort. Its obvious now. Ultimate protection born of love magic. You are the last of the Rhöynar. I had no idea the Evans family were royal. You have the blood of Hecate, Peverell, and now Rhöyne."
I looked at him skeptically. "Said the Ljosalfar Prince? do you not have the blood of the Muramasa, Maxus and Avalon families coursing though your veins? You also have Valois blood in you if I'm not mistaken."
"What I mean is… That is why the Valois are so intent on having you marry Apolline. They want to incorporate the rest of the royal families into their bloodline. They want the crown."
"You don't really believe they knew about… this?" I waved my hand at the obelisk in a vague swatting motion.
"Maybe not… but you will be Prince Peverell one day… I assume that they intended to use that at least. The question is…" Scorpius stopped at that, his eyes scanning the wall. I followed his line of sight, watching his hand move to gently caress a name, a name I had not heard in a long time. Limstella Malfoy. I was about to console him when I noticed another oddity.
"I found Salazar Slytherin here. Let's see. He was the youngest brother of Basilis Slytherin who married a Valois Patriarch. I wonder if we might find Voldemort farther down?"
SPOV
At that I began to panic. I couldn't let him see Marvolo's name. It would ruin everything I had fought to rebuild. He would never trust me again. I had to think of something fast. What happened next genuinely surprised me. To my great fortune it had the effect of distracting my brunette from his earlier task.
I watched as Albus's name appeared next to mine in glowing letters.
"Albus… forget that… i need you over here right now… not funny…"
He came back from his search to behold the most bizarre thing we'd yet seen. "His highness Albus Malfoy, the Svaltalfar Prince of house Röyne, Duke and heir of house Peverell, an Earl of the Hecate clan…"
"Impossible."
"Look, there's a line between you and me not between father and you. It doesn't think you're my brother… but rather…"
"Your spouse?"
"That's absurd… Svaltalfar?" The whispers of the Goddess's song flitted through my head.
"I forget that you haven't always been nobility. You might not have known the entire legend. The same way that the Malfoys and Valois are said to have married the royal Children of Ljos at somepoint in history… so its said that Svalta or his direct royal heirs married a Röynar princess. The Goddess felt that neither race would accept the products of such unions and so hid our attributes inside of us. The color of our skin, the true color of our eyes. All of it so that we might be normal. That or it all faded as we married countless more of our own kind. Nobody knows."
"That doesn't I think solve the question of why it thinks I'm a Malfoy." The stunned boy mused. I shifted uncomfortably next to him as he continued to stare.
Finally he looked down at the ring he wore on his finger and began to blush furiously.
"No way… we can't be... married…"
"A ring, a promise to never let anything come between us, and a kiss" I realized, speaking my guess out loud.
APOV
And we consummated our union... that night in the Hero's beacon. He still didn't remember but I could hardly forget. It wasn't exactly the order traditional couples did things in but it had all happened. We exchanged a prolonged look when whispering voices interrupted the awkwardness, replacing it instead with fear. We drew our wands but I knew the blond was still drained from earlier.
"Here… lies… Morganna le Fey… a princess of the seventh font… greatest love in life… of Merlin Avalon. Who dares… disturb her repose?"
A pink candle lit with a like colored flame flew softly through the air towards us. It hovered and swayed gently in place before a great painted mask of Venetian style appeared above it out of thin air. A great spirit! Like the Keeper of death.
"No intrusion intended great one! I am a Rhoynar Prince and this is a descendant of Merlin himself. We were only exploring. I promise. We knew not who's resting place we had stumbled upon."
Behind the mask materialized into being a truly gigantic woman with cascading locks of amaranth pink hair and eyes like cherry blossoms. She removed the mask and leaned down to observe me skeptically.
Her nostrils inhaled delicately but to my horror she wrinkled her nose in distaste at the scent she took in.
"You… are very odd… sweet prince. You are undoubtedly of my clan but you reek of dragon too. You are equally drenched in the smell of clever Perceus. As if his shade tried to smother you with all the finality of Death."
She inhaled again, closing her eyes to think.
"I detect a faint hint of Hector too, I think. Not to mention a hideous drop of my other brother's serpent stench, which lingers about you like a whisper of venom." She looked over to Scorpius then and smiled. "You will be very handsome one day indeed, Utherian."
Scorpius looked downwards, unnerved at the attention the spirit gave him. Her beauty was obvious despite her enormous scale, or maybe because of it.
A sigh of boredom escaped her before she spoke again.
"I suppose you came for these?" She drawled in disinterest.
A wave of her hand sent the lid of the sarcophagus grinding off of its base. From within the rectangle receptacle flew a book of blotched pinks. It looked like the cover had been blurred by countless tears that had fallen upon its surface. Each tear had smudged the pinks into a medley of bright hues. Rose, flamingo, coral, bubblegum, blush, amaranth, cherry. The tome came to rest in her right hand, where in her left sat the candle.
"It cannot be. The tome of love." Scorpius noted dumbly, retrieving his blue book in turn. Likewise I pulled the black book of death from its secret pocket as well as the tome of nature. My blonde's eyes went wide when he saw a fourth book emerge. "When did you get that?" He asked in shock. I had forgotten to mention that his boss had relinquished his family treasure to me.
"Now this is interesting. Four have gathered in a single place. That is no coincidence surely... young princelings."
"We did not come for your treasure great spirit of Lilith. Although now that we are here, I admit it is tempting to indeed retrieve my birthright."
She smirked as if to say 'of course not'
"Lilith? She's the spirit of the founder of your family?"
"Its your turn to shush Scor…" I gritted out at him from the side of my mouth. I was internally begging him to be quiet.
"Now that I see your black grimoire I know why you reek of Perceus. You had a run in with his abominable shade, didn't you?" She giggled, which I did not find endearing. Perceus's 'Keeper', his Shade, had nearly killed us. In fact it was the last night Scor and I had been friends... until today. Unpleasant memories flooded back to me as I struggled to shake the sound of my cracking spine or the burn in my fingers as I recalled the effort of dragging my paralyzed body over the hard stones to protect his unconscious form.
"Have you some test for us as well? Fairy queen!" Scorpius asked harshly. Ashera, I do wish he would stop talking. "Because frankly i'm not in the mood for this."
"I'm sorry to have to do this to one of you… since you're both so very handsome… but such is life. Only one may leave here alive. Wether or not you should wish to reclaim this tome. Never have two people left here before. It takes two to enter and no two have yet to pass my test.
"Don't be ridiculous Spirit. We don't have time for your threats. One as beautiful and pure hearted as you would scarcely seek to kill two lost children."
"She's not joking alright. Scor do you trust me?" I asked turning my back on the gigantic spirit to grab Scor's attention. This was not good.
"Of course I do."
"Then I'm going to sacrifice myself for you." I whispered under my breath.
"Not this again. We just went through this not a half hour ago!"
"I love you Scor." I whispered kissing him quickly one last time. "Just trust me this time." I think it was the way I said 'this time' that convinced him. He eyed me skeptically but his nod gave me the courage to do what I thought needed done.
"Alternatively you could choose another path I think. Words that kill… would you speak them to me now?" Lilith asked sadly. "You might try and solve this my brother Verus's way. You have a drop of his will within you too. Speak the killing curse to me and I shall let you both leave here."
"NO! My lady. No, I would not speak those words to one such as you. Begin your test. As a member of your family I know already what I must do."
"Then choose! Your life or his?"
"No! This is absurd! I will not allow it." Scor's objection resurfaced and I rolled my eyes at his obstinacy. Was he so worried about me?
SPOV
As soon as I had finished my sentence the fairy queen's face changed dramatically. Her eyes which were at first soft and kind became harsh and vulpine, a mercurial silver seeping into them.
Her features which were refined and tranquil before, twisted into a dark mask of fury. Like an image of the tempest of wrath itself she grinned to reveal teeth like fangs and a face like a demon's.
"Then I will speak the words myself! AVADA KEDAVRA!" She cursed with a crooked finger outstretched towards me. To my horror Al leapt in front of the green flash, taking the full brunt of the killing curse which had been meant for me. His body absorbed the light and a darkness washed the bright tone from his skin momentarily. A cold lifelessness stilled the brunet as he fell backwards.
"NO!" I shrieked as I caught Al's lifeless body in my arms. What had he done? He said I could trust him! Had he known this was coming? Did he make a mistake? "ALLLLLLLL!"
"I thought you knew what you were doing Al! Al! This can't be happening! Why would you trick me … Al?" I asked shaking him. A moment later i saw his face as a smile grew slowly across it. He was looking up at me cheekily from my grasp as though amused to observe my concern. The only thing I could think to do was drop him. So i did. I watched him fall backwards and hit his head with a loud yelp.
"I AM NOT AMUSED BY EITHER OF YOU! HOW DARE YOU WOMAN!" I shouted up fearlessly at the great spirit of Lilith.
For the first time in his life Al looked frightened then. Wind began to howl in the enormous chasm as a fluttering hummed from the darkness below. A throng of pink furred creatures I had never seen before errupted in frenzied flutter from deeper down in the cave system.
"Babits!" Al yelled as the adorable pink bat like creatures swarmed angrily in the hail of wind created by the spirit. They were so adorable that I failed to register the reason for Al's fear. Until I saw the needle like teeth.
"HOW DARE I?" She cursed back at me in a rage. "Careful handsome! I predate the Master and his silly Sanctuary! I hail from the very age of Dawn! I may be a spirit but I am the reflection of the eldest daughter of Ashera herself! I was once one of the SEVEN! and so need not explain myself to larvae who are but a mere two seconds old. Your beloved can explain to you what just happened and why it was a gift and not a curse. The oldest form of magic now protects you both. That boy—" she shouted, pointing at Al. "—Would have died for you. Right now. I felt it in my spell. I felt when it collided with him that you would have done the same. You are in the presence of someone who would do anything to protect you. This is insanity. People go their entire lives without finding such a love. That you fail to appreciate what was just done sickens me. The tome and candle are yours, descendant. Now take your handsome Avalon from my sight and go! Before I feed you to my friends."
Al grabbed my hand and we bolted up the stairway as fast as we could manage.
"Can you believe it? We have the book of Love!" Al shouted excitedly as we emerged back into the night air of the forest. As he turned to me with that twinkle in his eye I couldn't help myself. I backed him up against the same rock I had earlier, seizing his chin to lean in for a kiss. This idiot had jumped in front of the green blast for me. There was no guarantee he would have survived. His theory had only been a theory until he had tested it.
'This boy would die for you!'
"Scor… stop…" He tried in between my kisses. "I feel fine now…"
I did not stop. I continued for a few full minutes, feeling my every ache and worry ease as our tongues danced together. There was a heat that began to burn inside of me as the bluescale was all but singed from my body. I knew it would be gone for good this time.
"What's one more after all that?" I offered when I stopped. He looked at me dreamily before sense came back to him.
"What was that for? I felt fine." Al frowned, tilting his head at my like a puppy.
"Same reason I guess you kissed me that night you snuck through my window. When you escaped your guards and they raided my house."
They had kept us apart for almost a year that time. Away from school away from each other. It was when we first developed the ugly condition that afflicted us. He had kissed me after our reunion. This time it was my turn to feel that relief and gratitude. Together again.
"Oh yeah… I forgot I'd nearly gotten you both killed that night."
"How could you forget? You protected me then too. You threatened your dad right to his face. Stood between him and me and shouted your loyalty plain for all to hear. I hope that's not a portend of things to come. One of the real reasons you and Alex and Lily are forming this group of yours. Or am i wrong?"
"I will always be there to protect you Scor. Like I know you would for me. You're just a bit slower than the great Albus Malfoy is all."
"One day I'll be faster. I promise." I swore, caressing his cheek with my thumb. I used the digit to nudge his face playfully off to one side before moving away to release him. "Lets get back. I'm sure everyone is worried about us."
"Who cares about that? We're missing all of the delicious food!" Al yelped, grabbing my hand. He stowed the pink book with the other two and we began the long walk back to the portal.
