Cursed Blood

My smile never dropped as I did the reverse process of escaping and snuck my way back into the castle, my flying improving on the daily. I made sure to place everything back in its original positions and wash up as soon as possible to hide the fact that I'd been gone. The window had been opened with a note sitting on the sill from Janora, reading; I left this open not too long ago, and if you're not reading this in half an hour, I'll close it and wait for you to drag your sorry ass back inside this castle. She had popped her head in while I'd been brushing out my tangled, wet hair, her face melting into a grin. I'd mouthed a quick thank-you to her before returning to my task of making myself presentable, knowing that I had dress fittings to play along with now. Part of me was exhausted from my short adventure that had really felt like an eternity, but it made me all the happier.

If only this good mood lasts until the ball tomorrow night...

I dressed myself in thin night clothes and tied back my freshly washed hair, smoothing out the flyaways before grabbing slippers and stepping out into the hall. My dragon friend, who was basically actually mine nowadays, was nowhere to be seen as I crept to the end of the hall, trying to spot where Janora had gone. She and her friend would be presenting the dresses to me, and I knew I had to find her before someone decided to tease me about my rather girly pajamas.

"Cloud..?"

Damn.

I blushed, turning around to see Andrew staring at the frills and thin silk covering my body. He began to go pink, from what I assumed to be amusement.

"Hey, sorry, have you seen Janora?" I blurted, taking his attention from the pajamas to my face. He blinked for a few seconds, slowly processing my words before he sputtered, slapping his own face. I frowned, raising both eyebrows as he rubbed his hands over his eyes.

"No, I haven't," he finally answered, "but Cloud, you should probably change."

I waved him off. "I can deal with embarrassment! I need to find Janora so that I can have my dress fitting," I explained, motioning to my pajamas. "That's the only reason why I'm wearing these right now."

"Cloud, do you know what happens when a guy stumbles upon a girl like you running around in frilly pajamas..?" Andrew groaned, glancing down once before covering his eyes. I frowned, crossing my arms and leaning onto one hip.

"I was raised with boys, Andrew. My brothers only ever made fun of me."

He sighed, waving off my confusion. "Whatever, whatever." The warrior glanced down once more, his eyes focusing on something other than whatever he found so daunting.

"You have a tattoo?!"

Sheepishly, I followed his eyes to my thigh, where the scar was hidden by my tattoo. I'd forgotten about the symbol, too wrapped up in everything that was happening on a daily basis. It had already become a regular part of me, with the wings dripping down my thigh helping me out into perspective who I was. Or they at least calmed me down about being who I was, somehow. Being me felt more like an expression of power instead of a curse at the moment.

"It's something I got done..," I answered feebly, shrugging a bit.

Andrew paused, his eyes searching my face for something. He was probably dying to ask a multitude of questions, but he held his tongue and glanced down at my thigh once again. Suddenly feeling bold, I stuck out my leg so that he could see it clearly, a shy smile on my face.

"Pretty. Who did it?"

I opened my mouth to answer before shutting it almost instantly. Revealing Zen's identity, while may not seem important at first, would still allow them to add more data to their collection on the Darkblood camps.

I could become a spy without even knowing it, I realized, my eyes widening as I dropped Andrew's gaze. Doubt had filled my mind by now, and once again I could feel a waver in my trust.

"I-I should find Janora," I blurted, turning on my heel and jogging down the hallway, my chin tilted down as I began to fight with my own thoughts. I turned into one hallway, leaning into the wall, holding a hand over my mouth as I tried not to scream in frustration.

Am I a spy for them? Is that what this is?

But then why didn't they send me after Terrance sooner?

They could've been trying to gain my trust and train me into a spy without me even knowing.

But I could've been useless, they don't know my power. I could've been a healer for all they know.

My head hit the wall, the blow soft enough not to give me a headache. I stared down the hall without really paying attention, my mind whirling.

"What to do, what to do..," someone mumbled. My eyes widened, and I began to focus on what was actually in front of me.

A man. His eyes were bright red, and his skin paler than Shade's. Platnium blond hair hung down in front of his eyes and reached down to his shirt in the back. He looked surprisingly well-dressed, but his attire was accompanied by a scabbard slung across his back. The sword's hilt reached about a foot above the top of his head, and the tip brushed the floor when he moved. All in all, I felt myself gaping at the massive weapon. Even I was slightly afraid of the mysterious man carrying that around. Not only was he terrifying just by existing, I was also spooked by the fact that when I tried to move away, my body was met with a wall. I could move forward, but when I tried to back away, I hit an invisible barrier.

"Not everyday you meet someone that has the gift of immunity," the man murmured to himself, picking at his fingernails as he leaned against the wall. "Especially when that immunity made them survive a botched reincarnation."

I sputtered, forgetting my fear. "Reincarnation?! Are you even talking to me?!"

Red eyes found mine, flicking over to me with surprising speed. "Of course I am. No one else is in this private pocket in time, angel. Only you and I."

I gulped, using the invisible barrier for support to hold myself up. I was afraid, and already confused. This mysterious man wasn't helping either. I wanted to curl up into a ball and eat another apple -- since that had led to me having a pretty decent day.

"Do you know who I am, angel?"

I gave him a once over before shaking my head. The man sighed, folding his arms over his chest. He had the stern look that my father normally had, and for once, he didn't look all too scary. Part of me even wanted to smile as I held his unwavering gaze, knowing I was searching around in the dark at the moment.

But that was what I had always been doing.

And I was tired of being in the dark. I didn't know what I was doing, and it was driving me nuts.

I swallowed the last trace of fear and balled my hands into fists, holding my head high as I glared at the man. He lifted an eyebrow, clearly interested in my change of heart.

"Listen here, mister. Either you're going to tell me what you want," I spat, "or you're going to leave me the hell alone. Too many people have been feeding me lies and riddles. So either be straight up or screw off."

My face heated up from anger as we stared each other down, the man weighing his decisions in his head. His eyes drifted down to my leg, where my tattoo was on display, and his eyes grew sad for a split second.

"Sorry, Storm-Cloud. I can't give you those answers, so I will respect you and leave."

"Finally, thank--"

"But," he interrupted, pushing himself off the wall. I stood my ground as he strolled toward me, stopping a good foot or two away.

"I will give you a hint, angel."

He leaned down to my height, his red eyes glowing for a moment. His own wings and horns sprouted from his body, but where mine were dark and angelic, his were wiry bat's wings.

"Search for the gods. Then you will get the key to your answers."

I opened my mouth to ask a question when he gently kissed my forehead, cutting off my thought process before melting out of existence like he was never there. The sense of power was gone from the hallway, and I knew the barrier would've dropped.

Which left me there, gaping like a fish with my hand pressed against the ghostly feeling of lips on my skin.