The Deal with the Demon Prince

*Chapter Eighteen*

*Chapter Eighteen*

“You’re acting weird.”

“Am I?” Avary replied distractedly.

Aurora sighed. There was no point in arguing with him. Because of the incident that she couldn’t fully remember, they’d wasted a good few hours. The sun had disappeared a few minutes earlier. They two were relying on the small sphere of fire in Avary’s palm to navigate through the tortuous path in the forest. Aurora could feel the wood pulsate with an unknown energy. It was as if the disappearance of the sun had aroused several nocturnal creatures.

Aurora let out a muffled groan as she bumped into Avary’s shoulder, almost losing her balance. She opened her mouth to protest. Avary closed his fist, shutting off the only source light that ignited their surroundings. Before Aurora could utter a single word of protest, Avary had clamped his hand over her mouth. Aurora glared at him with indignation and resisted the temptation to bite into his hand. She blinked, trying to adjust her eyes to the darkness.

“Stay here,” he whispered before disappearing.

Aurora’s hand reached out to grab him, but he was already gone. She cursed silently in her head. The forest suddenly seemed alive. It was as if the trees stared at her through eyes in their bark. You’re imagining things, she told herself.

The wind that caressed her skin earlier turned into razor sharp daggers that now sliced her flesh as if the mere disappearance of the sun had caused the temperature to drop drastically.

There was a soft growl, and she snapped around. A pair of crimson eyes stared back. Aurora froze. The pair of eyes grew in size, and Aurora watched with dread as the creature stepped out into the open.

The creature resembled a lion with sleek black fur. Its thick black mane shook as it stepped out, and a pair of large black wings shot out on its side. It crouched, and its tail twisted upwards like a snake. Aurora took on a defensive position. Her eyes glowed faintly, allowing her to see clearly in the dark.

“Avary, I’m going to survive and kick your ass for leaving me in a place like this.”

“I know you’re there!”

The shrill laugh echoed around the forest, making it impossible to make out where it came from. Avary snarled and pulled back his fist. In one punch, the giant decades-year old tree fell down. Animals squealed in fright at the sight.

“Phoebe!”

“Okay, okay, sheesh.”

The girl with wavy blonde hair leapt down from her hiding position that Avary couldn’t care less with. Her knees bent, and she crouched down to absorb the impact of the fall. Her hair bounced in the process, and she glanced up with a pout from beneath her lashes.

“What are you doing here?” Avary all but shrieked.

“Hey! You’re having fun here! It’s only fair that you share it with me. Don’t be greedy.”

She threw her head back and laughed. Avary glowered at her with all his might.

“Phoebe, go back. This is not a place -”

“I can go wherever I want!”

Avary groaned. This was starting again. He hated arguing with her. He had never – and most probably will never – win an argument against her. Her pride wouldn’t allow her to lose.

“By the way, where’s Adrian? It’s been a while since I’ve argued with him.”

Avary gave her a look of disbelief. If she were to argue with Adrian, it was be beyond a disaster. The two were like oil and water; they were immiscible. It wasn’t that Avary was protecting Adrian, far from it actually. He just didn’t want to have all the drama to appear. Phoebe’s stubborn nature would not let her lose, and that would in turn anger Adrian. Avary did not want to continue thinking about it. He tried to keep his annoyance out of his voice but failed miserably.