Memories in the Moonlight

Chapter 10

The air in the woods quickly got cold, but Harlow didn't mind this. She had the fire trapped within her body to keep her warm, whether she could wield it or not. It constantly reminded her that it was there, clawing at her skin from the inside. Kiran on the other hand shuddered off and on in his area of the clearing. He was tucked in tightly to himself, jacket pulled as far around him as it could go.

Feeling badly for him for a moment, Harlow debated offering her own jacket over to him for warmth. She quickly shut that down though, knowing he wouldn't do the same for her. "You know if you remove my power damper I could make a nice little fire." Harlow offered, hoping to manipulate him into agreement. The itching under her skin had long since grown unbearable, and she wanted any way to get it to stop.

Kiran shot her a nasty look in response. It was so dark now that his eyes were barely visible, but Harlow could feel them piercing into her. He was really such a grumpy male when he was uncomfortable. Even a century ago when things were different between them he had a bit of a temper. Of course, he had never turned it towards her before, but it always lay under the surface. But he was so easy to provoke, and that was the whole fun of it.

"Fine. Just suffer then, you big baby." Harlow rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest.

"You have had your— your power locked down for four years," Kiran started between shudders, teeth chattering wildly. "If I took that damper off, there's no way you could control it."

Harlow thought about this for a moment, processing the information. "Four years? Hmm, I guess you don't want me to burn down the whole realm then. Pity." She kept her tone nonchalant and bored, happy to play the part. She was always considered a villain in Vrahan, and now that she had become what they always treated her as.

The trees around the paid whistled with the wind, shaking and bowing violently. To the South where Vrahan was located, the weather was typically calm and warm. Some of the other kingdoms up North, specifically the Witch Kingdom of Arfor, experienced wicked weather. Harlow knew the Witch Kingdom well, and the unforgiving environment was rather uninteresting to her. She grew up in Arfor, the child of an illegal affair between a witch and a fae.

It was not an easy upbringing for Harlow as a half-blooded creature. She wasn't exactly wanted by either side, neither the fae nor the witches eager to deal with her behaviour. When she was young she stayed in Arfor under the care of her mother as her father had renounced all responsibility before she was born. It had always been clear that she was an unwanted child, left alone to do as she pleased for most of her youth.

Harlow was forced to make a choice on where to live when she had grown, choosing to move to Vrahan to start over. Her and her mother did not speak again after Harlow left the Kingdom of Arfor. Harlow did not even know if her mother was still living. Most of the different kingdoms did not bother to connect with one another except when an outside threat had been detected. Each magical group was mostly sufficient on their own.

There was nothing left in Vrahan for Harlow, nor in the rest of the realm. After Aeron was killed, all the warmth in her life seemed to fade away. Aeron had been the one she could always rely on, no matter what kind of situation she had gotten herself into. He was more of a parental figure than her own parents had ever been. In a world without Aeron, Harlow was just left with a pit of burning rage in her stomach. She was beyond eager to have King Hollis feel the same pain that he had made her feel.

Neither one of them dared to sleep, less because of what lurked in the woods around them. They had heard the occasional howl or branch snapping, but nothing was ever close enough to cause concern. No, the two stayed up through the night for fear of what the other might do. Kiran was sure that if Harlow got the chance, she would run for the hills to escape punishment. Harlow herself was convinced that Kiran wouldn't hesitate to kill her if she dropped her guard even slightly.

Kiran just sat, eyeing Harlow for most of the night. He didn't move much, except to shiver every once in a while. Just before the sun opened up over the horizon he broke the silence between them. "I'm not going to hurt you. I never have, and I never will." His voice cracked as he spoke, and he cleared his throat afterwards.

"I don't know that for certain. You are the King's son. It's your job to hate me and to hurt me." Harlow turned her head towards him as she spoke, eyeing him carefully.

"You have my word. I don't give a shit what my father wants. I do not hate you, and I will not hurt you." Kiran replied quickly, lifting his chin slightly.

Harlow raised her eyebrows. It was blasphemous for anyone to speak of King Hollis in that manner, let alone his own son. "Sounds like someone did some real deep thinking." She snapped back, her first instinct to protect herself. He had to be trying to trick her, Harlow was sure of it.

Kiran inhaled deeply through his nose, shaking his head back and forth slowly. "You should have said something all those years ago, Harlow. I wish that I had known."

She didn't know how to answer that. Kiran's words were such a shock to her system. There was no way that he felt the same way towards her that she had for him. For the Gods sake, she was a criminal and he was the head of the Vrahan guard. She was by all definitions the enemy, and he was speaking to her as if they were some long lost lovers. Harlow didn't realize that she had been staring at him, slack-jawed, until he gave her a strange look.

Immediately she climbed to her feet, bushing grass and dirt off of her pants. She reached down to grab her bottle of water before stretching upwards. Her body still pinched and burned from the inside, she wasn't sure how much longer that she could take it. "We should get going. The sun is coming up and we should make it by sundown if we leave now."

Kiran followed her lead, standing up. He slung his bag over one shoulder and looked over towards the horizon. Orange sunlight was beginning to spill over the horizon, staining everything golden. He began walking, passing close by Harlow. As he did, he spoke softly. "I mean it. I won't let you get hurt." He didn't pause a second more, taking off towards Vrahan.

Harlow's insides pricked, and this time it wasn't her trapped fire that did it. She inhaled deeply, allowing the smell of fresh rain and cedar trees to coat the inside of her lungs. Her heart beat wildly in her chest as she stumbled after him. There was absolutely no way that this was happening, he had to be trying to trick her. Or maybe not, maybe they had just forgotten how good they had once been together.

You are an idiot. One time someone is nice to you, and you decide that you're having your happily ever after?

She tried to snap herself out of it as they walked in silence. The warm first light of the day washed over her, and Harlow soaked it in. This was something she would definitely miss when she was inevitably locked in a dungeon for all eternity. Dusk and dawn had always been peaceful for Harlow, no one around to harass her or report her. She was always able to have a little bit of time to herself.

Harlow and Kiran marched on throughout the day, passing multiple kingdoms as they went. The Vampire Kingdom of Cemora, the Wolf Kingdom of Daepar, and the Mermaid Kingdom of Luidis were among the ones they had walked by. As the pair passed each Kingdom, Harlow noticed a few creatures on the outer edges watching them. Without even being able to see their faces, she knew that they were disgusted.

Dead ahead lay the newly rebuilt Kingdom of Vrahan. Kiran seemed to stiffen slightly as they approached, straightening his back and shoulders. The towers of the castle now appeared to be taller, and made out of stone. In fact, most everything was made out of brick or stone now. Non-flammable materials only to rebuild, Harlow guessed. The kingdom rose up tall in front of her as they got closer, seeming to loom down over her. It was waiting for her, it was better now and wouldn't be disrespected again.

Harlow heard a Fae gasp as they got closer, turning towards the kingdom square. "Alert King Hollis!" The Fae shouted. "Kiran has returned! And he has brought the half-breed bitch with him!"

• • •

Hi everyone! I am overwhelmed at the amount of love and support I've gotten for MITM over the past couple of days.

Thank you to everyone who has voted, commented and messaged me about my book. It means more to me than you all will ever know.

I love you guys so much!

Ari