Page 18

O n quick feet, Theo raced across the castle grounds. He found a path that led towards the mountainous landscape behind the castle. He weaved through a dead orchard and past brittle hedges.

Finally, he found a patch of dry bushes tall enough for him to squat and hide in. He snapped off the brittle branches and used them to form a circle on the white snow. Using the lantern, he lit the last branch and ignited the circle around him. He finished just as the wind picked up, hinting at the fog's imminent arrival.

"I have to do this." He turned toward the mountains and waited for the fog to toss him back into the human world. Guilt settled in his chest as he thought of Sebastian realizing he left. It has to be this way. "Come on, come on," he mumbled to himself. The distant rumble steadily grew into a roar. "Just a little longer and -ah!"

All at once a force slammed into him. With a grunt, he hit the ground chest first. He looked over his shoulder and to his shock, the prince sat on the back of his thighs half shifted. His antlers were long, reaching towards the turbulent clouds above, the claws on his hands pressed into Theo's back, and he had wrinkles on his spotted face Theo had previously only seen on animals. The lantern rolled away and flickered in the snow.

Theo tried to get up, but the prince's grip on the back of his neck kept him firmly on the ground.

"Stay," he hissed.

"I'm sorry, alright?" Theo shuddered hearing the growl in his voice. "Just let me up."

"Don't tell me what to do in my kingdom," he snapped. "You're waiting for the fog to come, right? Let's wait together."

The prince’s breath hit Theo's ear, and a salacious gasp left his lips. His reaction made his face grow hot. He prayed the prince wouldn't notice but a smug laugh let him know his hopes were dashed.

"Do you like the idea of being hunted?"

A loud rip rang out and Theo flinched. The prince tore the shoulder of his cloak and blouse open like they were both paper thin. Frigid air bit his skin but the shock of cold was short-lived. Next thing Theo knew, something hot, and damp traced his shoulder. He's licking me?

The prince's movements were slow, as if he was savoring the taste. He made his way to the crook of Theo's neck and his fangs lightly poked his delicate skin.

An involuntary strangled cry blended with a moan spilled out of Theo's mouth. Instantly, he felt himself getting hard there in the snow. "Prince Sebastian, wait," he rasped as mortification swallowed him whole.

"How curious," he said, ignoring his plea. "Prey will often try to appease a predator when cornered. Is this the human version of appeasement?" He dragged his claws down Theo's back, tearing more holes in his clothes just as effortlessly as before. The winter air seeped in through the jagged slits. "Don't worry. I'll keep you warm."

"What are you talking about?" Theo went rigid as he got his answer. The prince stuck his hand through the tears and caressed his skin.

His gentle touch was searing hot and Theo melted under it. His attempts to twist away halted. Instead, his eyes fluttered closed no matter how hard he fought to keep them open. He arched slightly on the ground and his shaky breaths fogged out in front of him. It was like he was meant to be touched by the prince and just hadn't known it yet. He didn't want him to stop. He didn't know if it was the lack of physical affection since he'd been in the veil, the prince's skilled hands, some type of enchantment, or true appeasement in the face of a hungry beast. All he knew was right now it was like his mind was possessed by desire. "What are you doing to me?"

"I should be asking you that," the prince said but this time instead of a growl it was more of a purr. He nuzzled into Theo's upper back and rocked his hips forward.

Theo felt the prince's undeniable erection against him and he gasped in shock. A small part of him wanted to run but more so he wanted the prince to go further. To tear his clothes off and take him there in the frost. “Sebastain?” he said softly trying to find a way to ask exactly what the prince wanted from him.

"Ever since you arrived things don't make sense,” he said in a quiet voice clearly not meant for Theo.

Teeth lightly grazed Theo's shoulder and it shook him from his lust. "Sebastian, please," he said with a trembling voice. "You're scaring me.”

This was enough to stir the prince's nymph side. He pulled his teeth away. "You're not playing fair," he said with a scowl. He released Theo's neck and gripped his face, lifting him up so their eyes met.

Theo swallowed, seeing what he could only describe as pure hunger in his gaze. He was sure the prince was about to take a bite right out if his cheek but instead the prince forced him to look toward the fog rolling over the mountains.

"Watch," he demanded.

"You have to let me go.” Theo tried to twist away. “At least put out the flames. If you come with me, you'll turn to stone."

The prince ignored him. Fog, ice, and dust rushed over them with a deafening howl. All Theo could do was shield his face best he could and wait. The gale force winds snuffed out the flames as they washed over the two of them. Had the prince not pinned him down under his stone body, Theo was sure he would have been sucked away with the debris. Then as quickly as it came it went racing across the kingdom towards the woods. Theo was left behind on the castle grounds.

Sebastian finally got off him. He strolled over to the flickering lantern, picking it up.

No. No, no. I'm still here? Theo coughed up dust and pathetically crawled after the fog as he watched it grow farther away.

"As a human I don't expect you to understand the veil's magic," Sebastian said coldly. "But I do expect you to know I am not a fool. I wouldn't leave you with a lantern if fire could actually help you escape."

He blew the flame out with an angry puff. "The magic in the veil’s wilds lets you cross in and out of worlds. Only in the veil’s wilds. Once a portion of the veil is colonized and inhabited, the land no longer has enough magic to allow the worlds to touch. That's why no one ever accidentally gets sucked into the veil and lands in a kingdom or village. They fall into the wilds without fail. It’s also why we don’t go accidently stumbling into the human world. You should have just asked us how it works. It would have saved you time and effort."

Theo looked down, feeling dejected and stupid. "I told you, I raise my sisters. I know you can't understand, but since my parents died, I have a responsibility to them. I have to go back."

"My parents passed, too. Did you forget?"

"No, but—"

"I have a responsibility to my kingdom. If someone had wronged your sisters, would you not fight to make sure your sisters were satisfied with the repercussions? My people have suffered countless deaths and endless injustices because of my father. Any time I can give them justice, I will. That includes holding you responsible for what happened."

"So, I suffer so your kingdom is sated? My sisters lose another family member in the name of morale? Do you really think that's fair?"

"No. But it is reality." He gripped Theo's arm and yanked him to his feet as if he was feather light and dragged him towards the castle. "The world is painfully unfair, isn't it?" he said with a dry laugh. "Everyone here will die before your sisters age too greatly. You will go home and forget my entire kingdom like it was simply a bad dream. You will live more of your life out of these walls than in them. I will be a mad beast hunted by someone that passes through, or a statue for another careless traveler to crush. Maybe you'll see my opal eyes sold at market in a few years by another human who travels through the veil."

"I get it," Theo said quietly.

"No, you don't, because you can't." He leaned in and spoke in a deadly tone. "Don't ever speak to me about fair or next time I will leave you chained in the darkest corner of my castle. Do you understand me?" He shoved Theo hard and sent him crashing through the castle doors.

Theo caught himself on his hands, but his knees clacked on the tile, and he yelped in pain.

"Sebastian, what are you doing?" Oliver exclaimed in shock.

He and the rest of the guard were near the entrance. They had been chatting before, but now they stared in silence at their prince, lingering between man and beast, glaring down at Theo.

"I understand," Theo said in a barely audible voice. He had poked fun at the prince many times, but feeling his actual strength, Theo was reminded this ethereal being was choosing constantly to not harm him. He had gotten too cocky here. "I'm sorry."

"Is everything alright?" Jacques asked, looking between the two of them. "Sebastian? Your teeth and—"

"I'm fine," he spat, stepping around Theo and walking onward. "Keep Theo with you. I don't want to see him today."

"Sure," Oliver said. His eyes drifted to Theo's shredded clothes, but he said nothing as he offered him a hand.

Once on his feet, Theo rushed to follow the prince, trying to think of what to say to truly convey how sorry he was, but Lyle stepped in his way.

"Take another step towards him and I'll make sure you regret it." He kept his eyes on Theo as he called to the prince. "Sebastian, can I join you?"

Sebastian glanced back. "You may. Just hurry up."

Theo was dumbfounded as Lyle smirked, patted his shoulder condescendingly, and followed Sebastian up the hall. He watched the way Lyle put a hand on his lower back and walked him up the hall, and there was a pull in his chest. He wanted to chase after him, but Jacques gripped his wrist.

"Come on, Theo," Jacques said, leading the way. "You can hang out in our room for the day. Following will give Lyle an excuse to harm you, and I don’t want that."

Silently he followed them to their room. The space reminded Theo of fall. It was dripping with lots of gold, warm browns, and splashes of color that mimicked autumn leaves. After giving him warm pajamas to change into, Jacques and Oliver disappeared off into their closet, leaving him with Henri in front of a fireplace that was roaring.

The fireplace was made of braided tree roots and its trunk stretched up and disappeared into the ceiling. Theo curled up in a chair while Henri sat close to the fire on the floor.

Theo watched as Henri stuck his stone hand into the flames and turned it over, letting the fire engulf it with no expression.

When he noticed Theo's staring from the chair, he chuckled. "When you're stone it's hard to get warm. I swear some days I want to roll in the flames, but the skin patches I have left won’t allow it.”

"I guess that makes sense," he said, watching the heat rise off his stone palm in awe when he finally pulled it out of the fireplace.

Oliver and Jacques came back in the room and tossed Theo a dark pansy purple knitted blanket. They settled in, cuddling on the couch under their own blanket.

"You sure you're not hungry?" Jacques asked for the second time today. "We can bring breakfast up."

"I don't have an appetite right now." Theo stared at the fire as Sebastian leaving with Lyle replayed in his mind over and over. "I need to apologize. Any tips on how to do that without getting attacked again?"

"So, he did attack you?" Henri asked, sitting back on his hands. "We saw your clothes but I had hoped we were wrong."

"He did," he admitted. "But he didn't bite me or anything."

"He's never done that before. First his antlers and now he's lashing out," Oliver said, frowning. "The curse might be accelerating. Shall we tell him we're concerned? He told us to speak up if he ever became too dangerous."

"We knew the curse would consume him over time. But let's not assume it's a problem yet," Jacques said, looking to Theo. "Can you walk us through exactly what happened out there?"

"Well..." Theo swore he could feel the prince's tongue on his shoulder again and his cheeks went hot. "He just aggressively told me not to run. He wasn't exceptionally violent but a bit physical. I upset him and he shifts when overwhelmed. It was my fault. It didn't feel like I was dealing with an uncontrolled animal."

"That's not as bad, I guess," Oliver said, still looking distressed. "I understand he wants you to stay but I didn't think it was that important to him that he'd react so harshly."

"I hope you won't hold his outbursts or going to his suite with Lyle against him," Henri said with a tired smile. "Sebastian has a lot on his shoulders, so small things can tip him into an irritable state."

"Right. I'm sure I can smooth it over tomorrow." Theo watched the crackling fireplace, trying not to think of Sebastian in Lyle cuddled by the fire down the hall.