Apprentice of Death

Celeste was surprised to hear that King Adrian and Cinder were down in the courtyard, so she greeted them. Some attendants had come for their horses, and they were waiting by the fountain when Celeste came down the stairs in her white dress and silver grey shall. Cinder had never seen her in anything else. She wore a look of concern on her beautiful face, looking them over and wondering what the problem was.

“I hope everything is alright? Is there a problem?” she asked Cinder.

“No, Celeste. There is no problem. Do you mind if we stay for a little while before continuing to the Kingdom?” Cinder asked her.

“Certainly not. Do you require anything?” Celeste asked, curious as to the purpose of their visit. Adrian also was unsure why they were there, so he simply let Cinder speak for them.

“No. Just some time,” Cinder answered her with a smile, “Feel free to carry on with your work, and don’t worry about us.”

Celeste nodded her acceptance and left them to return to her apprentice. She was still curious but too busy to remain with them to watch. Others in the courtyard and surrounding balconies were looking at them with curiosity, but they seemed familiar with who Adrian was, at least; their minds accepted his presence to a degree.

With a smile, Cinder took Adrian’s hand and led him out of the courtyard and down a long corridor. She could hear the minds of the other witches and warlocks as they observed her casually and almost intimately, touching a werewolf; even if it was Adrian, it was still shocking for them to see and hard to accept. It had also been difficult for them to accept her relationship with Sebastian, perhaps even more so because he was more of a stranger than Adrian.

Cinder turned out of the corridor and entered a small garden, guiding Adrian by the hand. An overgrown graveyard with ancient headstones rested in the far corner of the garden. As soon as Adrian saw where she was leading him, he pulled up short and would go no further.

“No, Cinder. Don’t bring me here. It’s too painful.”

“Adrian, trust me,” she thought, looking back at him, still holding his hand. His eyes were almost pleading, but he let her lead him to the graveyard.

In the corner was a very old headstone, weathered with age and covered in moss, though the words carved into the stone were still discernable. Adrian stood before it, looking down upon the grave of the princess, he had loved so long ago, his heart throbbing with the ancient pain of loss and grief. Cinder pulled on his hand to go forward but released him to approach the grave on his own, encouraging him.

Adrian took a deep breath and walked forward to the grave, the pain of the loss coming to the surface. He knelt on one knee before the grave and placed his hand over where the princess had been buried, thinking about her and all he had lost that day. Deep down, Adrian knew he had avoided coming here for hundreds of years because he was afraid to let her go, that somehow grieving her and moving on meant a betrayal. He didn’t feel that he deserved peace after what had happened to her because of him.

Cinder had heard these thoughts buried deep in his mind and wanted to help set him free. She had similar thoughts concerning Garret, but at least she had taken the opportunity to grieve. Unbeknownst to any but Sebastian, she had visited Garret often in the earth where he was trapped to see him. He had granted her any forgiveness she had sought after she had explained all to him about the Oracle.

She still felt the truth of her Pathway bringing death, and loving other men frightened her, but it was already too late for her with Adrian. She was in love with him but wouldn’t act on it to save him. She did want to help him grieve and forgive himself, though. She brought death with her, but she had at least grieved Garret and been given the gift of forgiveness. Cinder looked down on Adrian’s form and wanted the same for him, to set him free.

She sighed with a knowing patience and spoke to him in his mind, “Adrian, it’s time to forgive yourself. You were not the cause of her death; Dominique was. You loved her. It wasn’t your fault that she died; it was his. Forgive yourself and let go.” He heard her words to him and knew she was right. He had been carrying the princess’s death with him for too long, hanging onto the guilt and pain to punish himself.

All of the pain he had been avoiding for years finally came crashing over him in waves, causing him to sink down onto both knees and rest his forehead against the earth of the grave. He was so torn up that she could see him quivering as parts of his body started to partially change into his Lycan form, as a great howl of grief escaped him. Cinder sighed, feeling his horrendous pain, but she also felt his release of it and the feeling of healing that began to seep in after letting it go. He sat for a long moment, touching the earth while he grieved, and finally said goodbye, feeling cleansed somehow.

The feeling of being free from a burden he had carried for centuries was so cleansing that he sat back on his heels by the grave and lifted his face to the sky, breathing in a new sense of life and peace. It felt like the poison he had been living with had seeped out of the cracks of his heart at last, and he was healing after so long.

Adrian stood and turned to look at Cinder. She met his gaze with a caring one and a small smile, hearing the healing that had finally come to him. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her as he walked to her slowly.

He looked into her understanding and knowing eyes with deep gratitude, thinking, “Thank you.” She gave him a slight nod, holding her smile for him, and then turned her face to the grave.

He turned to see what she was looking at. He saw vines flowing around the area as he looked, twisting and creeping to create an arbor around the old weathered headstone. Flowers appeared all over the vines as they continued to weave, and then they bloomed, surrounding the grave with beautiful blue and purple flowers, adorning it with their beauty and life. A bed of beautiful ground cover with white flowers crept and covered the grave, marking it clearly with its soft, plush beauty.

Adrian, touched deeply by Cinder’s display, turned back to her and pulled her into his arms, holding her with one hand on her back and the other on her head. He clung to her, holding her to him as he looked at the beautiful grave. She let him hold her momentarily and then looked up at him. He gazed down into her eyes with that loving intensity she had seen while they danced, which made her heart beat faster. She reached up and gently touched his face, happy that he was letting go of some of the pain he carried.

He looked at her for a moment, and the hand on the back of her head gently held her face as he looked at her, not hiding the love he felt for her. Her breath caught, and she held it when she saw him slowly bringing his face down to hers. His face stayed close to hers for a moment as he looked at her, stealing a quick glance at the grave. He caressed her face, and then slowly, he leaned in, and his lips brushed hers, their breath mixing as they looked at one another.

Her fingers trembled where they rested against his face, her heart aching for him as much as he was for her. He had never held her so close, touched her this way, for fear of how it could be a problem with Sebastian and because of the pain he had carried with the princess’ death, but that was all gone now. Now, he finally felt free to love her, to touch her, to kiss her. The tiniest smile pulled at his lips, and he gently closed the distance between their brushing lips, kissing her slowly, lingering on her lips, before looking at her again.

“Are you kissing her or me, Adrian?”

He brought both hands to her face and looked deep into her eyes, answering, “You, Cinder. I’m in love with you.”

He bent to her again, gently capturing her lips again in a slow but passionate kiss; heated from inside by all of the restrained longing he had held for her. He stole her breath, and his kiss made her feel light-headed, so she brought both hands to his face, holding him to steady herself as she kissed him back.

His declaration had her heart beating fast, her heart aching at his kiss, as her will to never act on her love crumbled into a heap of rubble at her feet. She knew that she was in love with him, too, and no amount of self-restraint and denial on her part would change that. His hands left her face, surrounding her and holding her tight against him as they kissed.

He finally released her lips, leaning back to look at her, his breaths coming in fast, shallow movements of his chest. Cinder leaned her head against his chest, thinking about what had just happened, as he gently held her to him, stroking her head. His heart was racing in his chest, his breathing still moving his chest up and down; it had been so long since he had felt this way.

There had been different women through the years that many had tried to get him interested in, but he had never been able to really love them, not like this. He had liked a few of them, but it had never lasted; it had never been like that first love so long ago, so he had moved on because he could never ask a woman he didn’t deeply love to sacrifice a future of children to be with him; he was a dead end with the curse upon him.

Cinder interrupted his thoughts when remembering the time, thinking, “Come on, we need to get home, or they will start to worry.”

They left the graveyard holding hands and returned to their mounts, waiting in the courtyard with an attendant. Celeste had met them in the courtyard to see them off.

“Thank you,” Cinder told her as she warmly hugged Celeste.

“Sure,” Celeste replied.

She had heard Adrian’s howl of pain earlier and had checked on them. She had seen Adrian at the grave and what followed with her magic sight; she had known for some time that Adrian was in love with Cinder, but their shared kiss confirmed for Celeste that Cinder was also in love with Adrian. The ease at which Cinder touched and loved a werewolf amazed even Celeste; it challenged and convicted her on some level as she watched the young witch’s total lack of prejudice. Quite the opposite, she noticed; Cinder held a great love for Adrian’s kind, and it showed in almost everything she did, from her choice of a Bondmate to her Life Pathway.

Celeste looked down and saw the moonstone necklace that Cinder was wearing, and Cinder could feel Celeste’s surprise.

“What’s the matter, Celeste?” Cinder asked.

Celeste looked up from the necklace and met Cinder’s eyes, asking, “Do you know the rarity of these stones? Do you understand what you’re wearing?”

In truth, she didn’t, so she responded, “No, Adrian didn’t explain anything. He just asked me to wear it, saying it would help protect me?”

Celeste drew in a breath, reaching out to gently run her fingers over the stone as she thought, “Yes, it carries its own magic that gets restored under the full moon. They are extremely rare and are one of the few magical treasures of the werewolf Kingdoms, often only reserved for royalty. It is the most valuable thing that a werewolf could possess.”

Celeste met Cinder’s gaze as she finished with, “He must love you a great deal, Cinder.”

Celeste’s words were revealing and helped clear away some confusion about Adrian’s gift and Dominique’s reaction to it. Cinder turned to look at Adrian, who watched her say goodbye to Celeste from the back of his Prowess. Cinder could see so much in his eyes; it made her blush, thinking about Celeste’s words. Cinder turned back to look at Celeste and gave her a smile and a hug for goodbye. Cinder then walked to her Prowess and climbed into the saddle.

They thanked Celeste once more for her hospitality and then rode out the gates and into the forest toward the entrance to the Kingdom. A group of soldiers was just coming out of the outer gate when they arrived, led by Captain Lyles. He saw them and held up his hand to stop the troop, relieved.

“Your Majesty, the General had just dispatched us to come and find you both.”

“Thank you, Captain Lyles. As you can see, we are safe. You may take your men back to the palace unless you wish to do a routine sweep of the forest?” The Captain bowed and signaled for his men to continue into the forest.

The horses passed the soldiers, and Cinder looked behind her with a smile for Tristan. He smiled back and waved to her before turning to join his troop. The two riders entered the palace courtyard and handed off their mounts to some attendants who came forward for the horses.

Adrian and Cinder walked down the large hallway to the fork where Cinder made to turn to her room when Adrian reached for her hand. He held her up and looked at her. ”Come with me? I’d like to show you something special to me.”

She smiled and nodded, allowing him to lead her down the hallway toward the vast, ornate double doors that led to his chambers. He guided her through the great doors to his room as the soldiers opened them and held them for the two to pass before shutting them behind them.

She had never actually entered his room through the main doors, only through the hidden doors in the adjacent rooms; entering his room in such a public and official way felt strange. He held her hand as they walked across the great room slowly, relaxedly. She had been in his room a few times, most recently just before the Solstice Festival, but had never looked around.

It was an open, massive room with lighter-colored wood, with white everywhere she looked and some gold accents done in a tastefully beautiful but not overly ornate way. The giant curtains framed the vast windows and doors to his balcony were white, along with the seating area’s rugs, chairs, and pillows. His massive four-poster bed was made out of that lighter wood and was all white, with more translucent covering draped over the posters to create a beautiful curtain drifting in the breeze coming through the balcony doors on the far side of the room. It was a beautiful and elegant room that felt fresh and light. He watched her really look around, curious about what she was thinking. She blushed when she noticed he was looking at her.

He gently pulled her forward and walked over to the back wall of his room. He moved an emblem on the wall, and another hidden door opened for him, making her mouth open with surprise. He laughed a little at her expression and smiled, enjoying her being with him.

They entered a dark tunnel that seemed to continue on forever. Cinder couldn’t see once the secret door shut behind them, so she gripped Adrian’s hand with both of hers, relying on him to guide her with his werewolf eyes.

At last, she could see some light up ahead of them, growing larger and larger as they neared. They emerged from the tunnel, shielding their eyes from the sunlight streaming down them. Cinder held Adrian’s hand, standing beside him as she looked around her, amazed.

They were standing in another garden, surrounded on all sides by tall natural stone walls. In the far corner, Cinder saw a large pool of water with a waterfall flowing from a cave up in the rock wall. The pool seemed deep but was very clear, allowing you to see all the way to the bottom of its sapphire waters. Great vines grew on all of the natural stone walls, and in the gardens surrounding them were numerous kinds of flowers and plants with butterflies and bees buzzing around them.

Not far from the water was a round pavilion with great white columns and linen strips hanging between them, blowing in the breeze. Cinder saw that the floor in the pavilion was spread with soft furs and pillows meant for lounging, and there were several bookshelves full of books. Lanterns hung inside from chains, and more were outside near the steps hanging from posts, waiting to be lit for the evening.

Chirping and movement caught her attention, and she drug her eyes from the beautiful pavilion upward to the large natural rock walls surrounding them. She watched a large group of brightly colored birds flying to and from their nests on one of the walls; their song filled the air and coupled with the waterfall to create pleasant natural music and soothing sound.

Cinder turned her amazed expression on Adrian, mentally whispering, “Adrian, what is this place? Where are we?”

He smiled, pleased she seemed to like it, thinking, “It’s my secret retreat inside the mountain, behind the palace. The pool you see over there also has a naturally heated spring that feeds it. It’s where the palace gets its warm water from. I come here to escape when I can, though it doesn’t happen as often as I would like.” She turned to him, studying his face.

“Thank you for sharing it with me. It is so beautiful here, and I can see why it’s special for you.” She could tell there was something else he wanted to show her, but he was hesitant in asking her; for some reason, she couldn’t tell. “What is it, Adrian?”

He smiled and laughed while looking down, thinking, “I may never get used to you hearing my thoughts so easily, Cinder. I wanted to show you something, but it would require a swim. I wasn’t sure you’d be up for it with your dress.”

She smiled at him, and it was her turn to pull him along to the pool’s shore. She took off her shoes and waded into the water without hesitation and then turned to wait for him. He smiled at her and did the same. They swam out a ways, and Cinder watched as Adrian dove below the clear water.

She took a deep breath and followed him under the water to the bottom of the pool. He continued swimming toward a hole in the side of the rock wall there, so she followed him. Swimming in a dress was difficult, and she started falling behind, so he reached out and took her hand in his, pulling her along after him with his powerful strokes.

They swam through another short tunnel and came up in an underwater cave. Cinder treaded water while looking around her, amazed at the sight around them. Inside the cave were hundreds of moonstones poking out of the rock walls. They let off a soft light, like the moon, lighting up the cave and making the water they were in shimmer on the surface. She reached out with her hand and touched one of the precious stones, captivated by its beauty. The stones the two of them wore also emitted a soft glow.

“Adrian, this is so beautiful!” she whispered while touching the moonstone with her fingertips. She looked around them again in wonder. “I thought they were rare and precious?” she asked him.

“They are. No one knows about this cave but the line of Kings. The moonstones are reserved for our people in case of great need, and I replenish an emergency cache of them from this cave when it’s needed. I take it Celeste informed you a little about them earlier?”

“Yes.”

“What else did she tell you?”

“That they had their own magic restored under the full moon,” she replied. He nodded.

“Did she say anything else about them?” Cinder didn’t want to admit Celeste’s words about him loving her deeply if he had given her one.

She smiled at him but revealed nothing, though she couldn’t stop the slight blush that colored her cheeks. He was about to question her again, so she took another deep breath and dove under the water before he could stop her or ask her any other questions; this line of conversation could only lead to discussing how she felt about him.

He followed her out of the cave and to the pool’s surface. She didn’t stop for him and swam as quickly as she could, heading toward shore. They swam to the side, and Cinder reached to pull herself out when Adrian’s hand caught hers and pulled her to him.

“What else did she say, Cinder? Tell me the truth.” She closed her eyes and swallowed with the emotion of the truth.

She opened her eyes and knew he could see that tender vulnerability as before, answering, “That you must love me a great deal, to have given me one.”

She swallowed with the emotion again, turning her eyes away, and refused to look at him. His hand, placed on the side of her face, brought her eyes to his. They stayed like that, looking at each other in the warm water for a moment.

“Please tell me what you’re thinking,” he pleaded with her. She didn’t know what to say.

She loved him but was terrified of loving another after what had happened to Garret because of her chosen Pathway. She remembered the Oracle’s words about her life being filled with death, her early death, and she didn’t feel she could cause Adrian more pain after losing the first woman he had loved so long ago. What could she tell him?

She did her best to blink back the tears trying to come to her eyes. She loved Adrian, and because of that, she was incapable of being selfish with him and loving him when it would only cause him more pain.

“Adrian, you shouldn’t love me. I will only bring you pain in the end. You don’t want to love someone else who you’ll lose.” He scowled out his confusion, turning his head a little as he looked into her eyes.

“Lose? What do you mean, Cinder? Do you plan on leaving here?”

A pained grimace came to her face when she answered him, “No, but the Pathway before me is not an easy one. I . . .I can’t speak about what the Oracle has told me; I’m sorry.”

He knew. His mind had gotten there faster than she could back up or find some way to cover up the truth of what faced her. He was shocked, the wind being knocked out of him at the truth; she was going to die, and she knew it.

She pulled away from his embrace and left the water in a hurry, needing to get away from him before she burst into tears.

He shook his head and followed her out of the water, adamantly thinking, “Not so fast, Cinder. Are you saying you’re going to die?”

She didn’t turn to look at him as she answered, “I can’t speak about anything the Oracle revealed to me. We should get back.”

She started walking to pick up her shoes and go back, but he grabbed her arm and whipped her back around to him, pulling her in for a kiss. It was a kiss with a desperate edge, where he couldn’t bear the thought of losing her. It was already too late for him; he loved her fully, and his heart broke at the thought. His kiss awoke and stirred Cinder’s feelings, and she couldn’t help but kiss him back with the same desperation.

“Adrian. Adrian, I love you. I . . .”

He pulled his face away to look into her eyes, gazing upon her face with that deep look of adoration and love, amazed at the wild beauty of her illuminated eyes. His eyes were an illuminated electric blue, passion, and desire for her consuming him as he held her in his arms. Her eyes were also a glowing indicator of her burning desire for him, even if it was tempered with great sadness at the thought of her impending death, of causing him pain. He looked in wonder at them, still so amazed that a witch could love one of his kind, before she pulled him to her for another desperate kiss with a tiny sob.

He started to pull away from her when she held him to her, thinking, “It’s too late, Adrian. I love you, and I know it’s too late for you as well. If this is the only moment we will have, then let’s not waste it. Make love to me, Adrian.”