Never Green | ONC 2023

eight - flames and shadows

"Lela told me I would find you here. And Cyra, and Cygnus. They all watched you walk into the forest. You're here to collect flowers for Lela's arrangement?"

A nod is the response he gets from her, as well as a gesture to the lycoris that surround them. 

"Are they not weeds?"

Rinley does her best not to cringe. "Why were you bothering my family with my whereabouts? Have the merchants returned? Does Wilmot come bearing new goods?"

He shakes his head. "I thought you could use the company."

To this, she does frown. Company? Why would she need his company? "Well, I appreciate the thought," she says, "but I'm quite all right on my own."

"Sure you are."

She isn't going to get rid of him easily. Her gaze falls back to the forest. 

"Sometimes I forget how pretty you are," he says.

Her heart pounds in her chest, a sour feeling entering her throat. "What?" comes out merely as a whisper.

"Well, I get so caught up with my studies and research, plus Father is always asking for my hand in the workshop. I forget to take in your pretty face properly."

"Uhm... thank you?" Rinley folds her hands in her lap, unsure what to say next. 

"You really are like your beautiful sisters, you know. All the Maer women have that look and feel about them," he continues, but she'd prefer to bury herself beneath the earth they sit on.

"Percy..." she tries to find the right words, "I came out here to be alone with my thoughts. I appreciate your company, really, but I'd like to be alone right now."

He nods, shifting his legs closer to him, ready to stand. "You know, you can confide in me about anything, Rin. I'm here. Us fellow researchers must stick together. No one else understands our need for answers."

She swallows her retort. "Thank you, Percy. I will certainly call on you when I need you."

His smile is wide and genuine. He must really think he's charming her. "Until then, dear Rin." He takes her hand, planting a kiss on her knuckles, before rising and walking back to the village.

Her hand hangs in the air, shock keeping her limb frozen in place. There has never been a more evident display of interest in courtship. At least not to her. This is the first time Percy has ever tried this kind of advancement. Though she is pretty, like the rest of the beautiful Maer women. His name was definitely among the men who all tried for Cyra's favour a few moons ago. 

Something snaps in the forest, and her attention circles back around to the trees. She's on her feet before she can think it through, this time her longing for Aramis weighing heavier in her bones than before. She doesn't call out for him though, just follows the sounds. It might even be a stag, but anything, anyone, would be better company than Percy at this point.

But then she sees green skin, and his hair, moving near some trees. The weight on her chest lifts, and she feels like flying. 

"Aramis!" she cries, picking up her pace. "Ara—"

The figure turns around, and she stumbles. With them is someone with light purple skin, and another with a deeper green.

Rinley forces herself against the trunk of a tree, clamping a hand over her mouth, chest heaving. It's the creature who appeared not too long ago. The one that harassed her sister. Everything inside her goes frigid. She does her best to peer around the tree, kneeling down as far as she can go while still watching them.