Born with a damaged heart, Leanna Weston has lived a sheltered life with little chance at adventure. When she hears that Finvarra's Circus is coming to her small town, she sneaks off to witness the magic first hand, sure that this is her only chan...
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Minerva stared down at the knit tablecloth, her sculpted brows gathered in contemplation. Finally she took a breath and with it, the mood in the tent thickened with black anticipation. To Leanna's eyes, the belonging shadows of the room seemed to darken as if invaded by Death. A death she was certain waited on the fringes for the coming demise of her dreams.
"Finvarra loved women," Minerva started, pulling Leanna from her brooding. "Human women in particular. I've always thought it was because mortal women have hearts, whereas Faeries don't. Perhaps curiosity over their emotions... their humanity?" Her gaze grew distant in thought.
A hum and a shrug brought her back to present. "When Finvarra saw a girl he desired, he persuaded her to steal away with him into Forever where they could dance the night away, and love freely with little regard for anyone else. Many legends spread in the human realm of girls vanishing at night, but there was no proof. The women Finvarra took were always found in their beds the following morning with only hazy memories of an icy palace, and the scent of vanilla on their skin."
Leanna lowered her eyes and rubbed her arms, remembering the scent all too well. Bitterness nudged her heart, and a slight of jealousy answered back.
Minerva leaned forward, smoothing the tablecloth in slow strokes. "One day, however, a girl did not return."
Leanna's eyes jerked up at the revelation.
"Her name was Aithne, the most beautiful girl in all of Éire. Her husband was so proud of her that he held festivals to celebrate her beauty, day after day. His castle was filled with music and dancing, feasting and tributes, all in her honor. The praises were so many; the winds carried them through the veil of our worlds and into Forever, into Finvarra's ears. Hearing of her beauty, Finvarra went to her that night, while her husband slept. Like the other girls, Aithne didn't deny him and Finvarra whisked her away to Forever, for what was supposed to be one night."
Leanna swallowed deeply, her cheeks hot and prickly. To hear of so many other girls burned with a fire she wished didn't exist. She pressed a cool hand on them as Minerva went on.
"Many nights passed with Aithne at Finvarra's side. You must understand, Forever is nowhere for a human. It is timeless, pure and clean. It is dancing and music. This purity makes it so that there is no sickness, no storms...just pure magic." Minerva's brows lowered, troubled. "Human hearts are dangerous, and their spirits corrupt and insatiable. In a land of such pureness, they become addicted to this magic, to this freedom. It becomes much like an addiction to laudanum. They want to live in it, forever. Aithne was no exception. It happened that when Finvarra meant to take her back to her home, she begged him to let her stay." She shook her head. "He should have denied her, but she was beautiful and he was..." Her eyes turned down, fishing for the right word.
Leanna knew the right word. "Blinded," she murmured, remembering Ellie's haunting revelation: Finvarra was blinded. She was beautiful and he was a fool...
