The Lady of the Valley

TLotV Chapter 18

18.

Derek brooded. Well, he was always broody, Astrid thought. But he seemed extra broody now.

Ari was her first concern. After expending that much energy, on top of a crap night of sleep, she was wiped. But a quiet bath then a nap would fix that. They'd probably order pizza too, for good measure.

After seeing to Ari, Astrid found Derek standing in her living room, staring out the big picture window over the couch. She wasn't sure if he could see the subtle glow of the wards she had activated around the house. She was pretty sure he could handle himself out of them. But it seemed unfair to ask him to leave and make him the prime target for revenge from his sister. She and Ari had chosen to confront and bewitch his sister. They should be the ones to knock her down if needed.

Plus there was that haunted look glimmering in the back of his eyes when he talked about her. She didn't know how bad it was, but she wasn't willing to let that bitch get her claws into him again. She told herself it was merely honorable, and savvy, to want to defend him.

He'd stood at their backs, it only seemed fair to do the same in return.

Or maybe his mood wasn't fueled by concern about his sister. Perhaps it was because he was mad that she and Ari hadn't been helpless damsels in distress for him to rescue. It was easy to almost forget he was a product of a very different time. He acted modern enough, but the time period he came from was very different from hers. Who he appeared to be was just the latest volume in a very dark series.

"Is she okay?" Derek asked, turning around. For one stupid moment the shimmer of the wards glowed around him like a nimbus. Astrid blinked and it was gone.

Astrid sat at her desk, though she turned the chair around to face him. "She'll be okay. Look, if you like her, like you want to be friends or whatever you want, don't treat her any differently, okay?"

"I have to admit she seems a little more intimidating now," he grimaced. "I have...tender spots when it comes to mind control."

"It's not mind control," Astrid snapped. She wanted to stand up and pace, but Ari said people found that aggressive behavior. So she dug her hands into the chair and tried to remain seated.

"I'm not sure how else to describe it."

Astrid huffed. "Look, it isn't mind control when you go see a stand up comedian. Or a scary movie, or a dramatic play. People make us feel things all the time, just by existing and being in our lives. That's why we get attached to people.

"But if you plan to stick around you have to find a way to be okay with this. With who she is." Astrid sighed, then she made sure he was looking at her, not staring off into space. He was, watching her mouth move like he was reading some invisible captions issuing from her lips. "She's already lost friends for being weird. She already thinks she's a monster, Derek. She doesn't need more guilt from you."

He stared at her. "She thinks what?"

Astrid shrugged. "She's not. I know what a monster is and Ari's about as far from it as possible. But for some reason she thinks the opposite of 'monster' is 'harmless', and she's not harmless. She's powerful."

Derek still stared at her. Having his undivided attention made her feel uncomfortable. And exhilarated. She felt like he was memorizing every moment with her. She kind of liked it.

"What makes one a monster, Astrid?" Derek asked softly.

Heat burned suddenly up her neck. She folded her arms around herself. She hadn't expected that question. And it felt like a trap.