Page 9

Eight

Acaia

I leaned against the ancient oak, my muscles aching from the battle we'd just survived. Thornix moved with quiet grace, tending to the wounds of the forest itself. His hands glowed with soft green light as he pressed them to scorched bark and withered leaves.

"You're still bleeding," I pointed out, gesturing to the gash on his side that my clumsy healing had only partially closed.

He glanced down as if noticing the injury for the first time. "It will heal," he said dismissively. "The forest needs attention first."

I rolled my eyes. "There you go again, putting everything else before yourself." I pushed off the tree, wincing as my own injuries protested. "Come on, tough guy. Your turn."

Thornix hesitated, his ancient eyes filled with an emotion I couldn't quite name.

Finally, he nodded and allowed me to guide him to a soft patch of moss.

As I channeled what little healing magic I'd learned, I marveled at how much had changed.

Just weeks ago, I'd been a reluctant captive, viewing Thornix as my jailer.

And now I am healing him using forest magic.

"What are you thinking?" Thornix's low voice broke through my musings.

I met his gaze, struck by the vulnerability I saw there. "I'm thinking about how different things are now," I admitted. "How different we are."

A ghost of a smile touched his lips. "Indeed. I never expected a human to fight so fiercely for this forest."

"Yeah, well, I never expected to fall for a tree-hugger," I quipped, then froze as I realized what I'd said.

Thornix's eyes widened, and I felt a blush creeping up my neck. Before I could stammer out an explanation or backtrack, he caught my hand in his.

"Acacia," he said softly, "there's something I want to show you."

Grateful for the distraction, I helped him to his feet. "Lead the way, forest man."

He guided me deeper into the woods, to a part of his territory I'd never seen before. The trees here were older, their trunks massive and gnarled with age. The very air seemed to shimmer with ancient magic.

"This is my sacred grove," Thornix explained, his voice hushed with reverence. "The heart of my domain."

I stepped into the clearing, awestruck by the beauty surrounding us. Flowers bloomed in impossible colors, their petals glowing softly in the dappled sunlight. A small stream bubbled through the center, its water so clear I could see rainbow-hued pebbles at the bottom.

"It's incredible," I breathed.

Thornix nodded, a faraway look in his eyes. "This place has been my sanctuary for centuries. My home, my strength, and…” He hesitated for a moment. “And my prison."

I turned to him, surprised by the pain in his voice. "What do you mean?"

He sighed, lowering himself to sit by the stream. After a moment's hesitation, I joined him, our shoulders barely touching.

"Long ago," he began, "before humans built their terramares, before the monster districts were formed, I loved another."

The admission hit me like a physical blow. Of course he had loved before, he was ancient and immortal. Why did the thought bother me so much?

"Her name was Willow," Thornix continued, oblivious to my inner turmoil. "She was a dryad, beautiful and wild as the forest itself. We were young then, by the standards of our kind. Foolish, perhaps."

I remained silent, sensing the weight of the story he was about to share.

"There was a war," he said, his voice growing distant. "Not between monsters and humans, but between the old magic and the new. Forces of corruption sought to twist the natural order, to remake the world in their image of chaos and decay."

Thornix's hand clenched into a fist, and I reached out to cover it with my own. He glanced at me, surprise and gratitude flickering in his eyes before he continued.

"Willow and I fought side by side, defending this forest and all who called it home. We thought ourselves invincible, drunk on our own power and the strength of our love." He closed his eyes, pain etching deep lines in his face. "We were wrong."

"What happened?" I asked softly, though part of me dreaded the answer.

"The final battle," Thornix said, his voice barely above a whisper. "We were outnumbered, exhausted. Willow saw an opening, a chance to turn the tide. But it was a trap."

I felt my heart constrict, imagining the scene. "She didn't make it," I said, not a question but a statement.

Thornix shook his head. "I watched her fall. I felt her life force fade, felt the forest weep as it lost one of its guardians. And in that moment, something in me broke."

He turned to me then, his eyes shimmering with unshed tears. "I unleashed everything I had, every ounce of power the forest could channel. I destroyed our enemies, but at a terrible cost. The magic changed me. Bound me to this place in a way I had never been before."

"Is that why you never leave your territory?" I asked, pieces falling into place.

He nodded. "I became one with the forest that day, more tree than nymph. And I vowed never to open my heart again, never to risk that kind of pain."

The weight of his confession hung between us. I struggled to find the right words, to offer some comfort for a loss centuries old but clearly still raw.

"Thornix," I began, then faltered. Instead of speaking, I shifted closer, wrapping my arms around him in a fierce hug.

For a moment, he remained stiff in my embrace. Then, with a shuddering sigh, he melted against me. I felt the dampness of tears against my neck and held him tighter.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered. "I can't imagine how much that must have hurt."

He pulled back slightly, meeting my gaze with an intensity that took my breath away. "Can't you?" he asked softly. "You've lost too, Acacia. Your home, your dreams, your freedom. Yet here you are, fighting for a forest that was once your prison."

I swallowed hard, thrown by his insight. "That's different," I argued weakly. "I didn't lose someone I loved."

"Didn't you?" Thornix challenged gently. "You lost the future you thought you'd have. The person you thought you'd become."

His words hit home, and I felt my own eyes fill with tears. "Maybe," I admitted. "But I've gained something too."

Thornix's hand came up to cup my cheek, his thumb brushing away a tear that had escaped. "As have I," he murmured.

I leaned into his touch, my heart racing. "Thornix," I breathed, not sure what I was asking for but knowing I needed something.

He hesitated for a heartbeat, searching my eyes. Whatever he saw there must have convinced him, because suddenly his lips were on mine, soft but insistent.

I responded immediately, wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling him closer.

Thornix's hands tangled in my hair as he deepened the kiss. I felt the forest come alive around us, responding to our shared emotion. Flowers burst into bloom, their sweet scent filling the air. The stream's gentle burble became a joyful song.

When we finally broke apart, both breathing heavily, I was stunned by the raw emotion I saw in Thornix's eyes.

"Acacia," he said, his voice rough. "I never thought I'd feel this way again. I never wanted to. But you..." He trailed off, seemingly at a loss for words.

I smiled, feeling a warmth spread through my chest. "I know," I said simply. "Me too."

He pulled me close again, resting his forehead against mine. We stayed like that for a long moment, just breathing each other in. The forest hummed with contentment around us, as if it, too, had been waiting for this moment.

"So," I said eventually, not wanting to break the spell but needing to lighten the mood a little. "Does this mean I get to call you my tree boyfriend now?"

Thornix laughed, the sound rich in a way I'd never heard before. "Is that what the humans are calling it these days?"

I grinned, delighted by this playful side of him. "Well, what would you prefer? My leafy lover? My chlorophyll companion?"

He silenced me with another kiss, this one lighter but no less affecting. "How about simply yours ?" he suggested when we parted.

The sincerity in his voice made my heart skip a beat. "I like the sound of that," I admitted. "As long as you know that makes you mine too."

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Thornix said softly.

We spent the rest of the afternoon in that sacred grove, talking and laughing and sharing soft kisses.

Thornix told me more stories of his long life, of the changes he'd seen in the forest over the centuries.

I opened up about my life in the terramares, the dreams I'd had before being matched with him.

"What are you thinking?" Thornix asked, echoing his earlier question.

I smiled, snuggling closer to him as we watched the sunset. "I'm thinking that maybe fate got it right after all."

He pressed a kiss to the top of my head. "Perhaps it did," he agreed. "Though I suspect you would have found your way here even without its interference. You're far too stubborn to let a little thing like destiny push you around."

I laughed, elbowing him gently. "You're one to talk, Mr. I-Vowed-Never-to-Love-Again."

"Ah, but I never stood a chance against you," Thornix said, his tone light but his eyes serious. "You stormed into my forest and my heart, leaving me no choice but to fall for you."

I felt a blush creep up my cheeks. "Careful," I warned. "Keep talking like that and I might start to think you actually like me or something."

Thornix's expression softened. "I more than like you, Acacia," he said quietly. "I love you."

"I love you too," I whispered, the words feeling both terrifying and absolutely right.