Rayne woke up feeling like she had been hit with a hammer across her skull. It took her several moments to acclimate her eyes to the dark in the room. She scanned the room for clues to where she was. She couldn't see anything, just hazy shapes in the dark. "Liam, are you there? Can you hear me?" she called out. Rayne tried to move but found one leg bound with a silvery chain.
"He isn't here, and he can't hear you," a voice said from the shadows. "Don't be afraid, he is unharmed." A woman wearing a long black dress stepped forward. Rayne couldn't make out her face in the darkness. "You will be given food and clean clothes, then we shall talk." With that, the woman turned and left.
The room lit up just a bit and several creatures entered the room. She recognized them immediately. They were Tuatha de Danann - elven fae. They quickly cleaned up the room and placed a bountiful meal at her table. The older woman from before was there and addressed her, "Rayne of the Raven clan, I bid you greetings. Your bondage is enchanted. The chain will move with you throughout the room, but will not permit you to leave your chambers. You may travel within these three rooms as you wish. The privy is off to your left, and the library to your right. The Lady of the House has given you a scrying globe to check in on your lover. He can neither see nor hear you. However, you are permitted to write him a letter, if you wish to ease his worries." She handed Rayne a paper and quill. "Our Lady will speak with you again after dinner." The old woman clapped her hands, and all the attendants quickly left the room.
Rayne sat before the food, trying to absorb all she had just been told. She quickly got up and tested the chain. Just as the woman had said, it grew in length just enough to allow her to travel in the approved areas. However, when she tried to step through the same doors the Fae had left by, the chain pulled her back to the center of the room. Determined to escape, she attempted to leave four times, each time ending in the same result.
She suddenly remembered the scrying globe in the library and raced towards it. She spoke softly to the stone, begging to see Liam, but nothing appeared. Finally, she asked to see Loki, and a swirl of green mist cleared to show Loki/Liam in a simple cell with a bed and sink. He too was bound with a silver chain. He paced the floor frantically, calling out, but she couldn't hear what he was saying. He looked as if he had been crying, and his knuckles were bloodied from trying to break the door. Rayne's heart broke at the sight of him. She longed to touch his cheek and tell him she was safe. She began thinking about all the things she wanted to say to him. As she began, she noticed the quill writing in the air. "Of course it's enchanted," she said out loud. She quickly formed the letter in her mind,
Liam,
I do not know where we are and why they have separated us, but please know I am safe. I have not left you by choice. I love you, Liam. I've been given a scrying globe to see you, but I cannot hear through it. Please know I am watching over you.
Oh, and so you know this is really me, I would love the chance to um, overfill that bathtub again.
All my love forever,
Rayne
When she mentally signed the letter, it rolled itself up and vanished. She quickly looked at the globe again. Just as she expected, the letter appeared mid-air and fell into Liam's hands. He looked around confused and cautiously opened it. Tears filled his eyes, he laughed slightly, and he looked around the room not knowing where she could see him from, but she saw his lips moving, mouthing the words, I love you. Tears rolled down her face as the orb went dark. Rayne went back to the table, but couldn't bring herself to eat. She just wanted answers, and she wanted Liam. She sat there watching the sun sink lower in the sky, knowing the Lady would return soon. Maybe this time she could get some answers.
As the last ray of light fell, the Tuatha de Danann returned and cleaned away her uneaten meal. They extinguished all but one candle, far from the door. "Was the meal not to your liking," she heard a voice ask. All the servants knelt immediately. She waved them out. In the dim light, it was impossible to see her face. She made a point to avoid the light.
"I'm sure the food is delightful, but I'm not very hungry. Captivity tends to make a stomach uneasy," she said as she tugged at her silvery chain. "May I see Liam?"
"Not at this time. Loki, or Liam as you call him, is in a cell," she pointed a finger at Rayne, "You may trust him, but I do not trust the God of Mischief to run loose in my palace. Speaking of Loki, how did you manage to fall in love with a rogue Norse God?" The Lady sat down in an oversized chair across from Rayne as if they were two old friends catching up. Rayne thought it best to go along and answer her questions.
"I didn't know he was really Loki until we arrived in Ireland. I've always known him as Liam. I didn't plan to fall in love, but I did, and I cannot imagine my life without him regardless of who he really is or his past. He knows that I truly love him and trust him with my life." Rayne spoke earnestly and without hesitation. "Why am I chained?"
The Lady paused for a moment, tilting her head to the side, "I needed to make sure you were not going to harm anyone since you have bound yourself to Loki. I've looked in your soul and know you wish us no harm."
"What do you mean 'bound myself'?" Rayne asked. The phrase surprised her.
The Lady laughed. It was a sound like ravens wings rustling in the wind. "Not to be too personal, but when you gave yourself to him, physically, you created a bond between you beyond the physical. You both did. That was the green glow you saw, you share the color green for your passions. Did you not intend to bind yourself to him? Do you regret it?" The Lady stood, moving a few steps closer to Rayne, but still avoiding the light.
Rayne stopped for a moment to think. Had she meant to bind herself to Liam? No, she hadn't meant to, she didn't even know such a thing was possible, but she knew she was glad it had happened. She had no doubt in his love for her or hers for him. She looked directly at the Lady and answered her truthfully, "No, it was not intentional, but it was what is meant to be. I do not regret my actions. I love him and he loves me."
"I see," the Lady folded her hands in front of her. "He is not who I would have chosen for you, but alas, that choice was never mine to make." Rayne looked at her not understanding what she meant. The Lady walked towards the door, paused, and turned to look at Rayne again. "You may go to your lover in dreams tonight. Just focus on him, and you will be in his arms until the sun rises. I will come to speak with you again tomorrow after dinner. Blessings upon you Rayne, blessings." With that, she turned and left the room.
Once she left, Rayne went back to the scrying stone and looked to see if Liam was still awake. She saw him lying on the floor against the wall, slumped over in sleep. She quickly closed her eyes and did as the Lady had instructed.
She opened her eyes to find herself in Liam's cell standing in front of him. She knelt down speaking softly to him, "Liam, Liam, wake up." Rayne brushed her hand along his cheek. She pressed her lips against his, holding his face in her hands.
Liam opened his eyes, then blinked, "Am I dreaming, are you really here? Are you hurt?" he wrapped his arms around her, breathing in her scent. He kissed her, "Ástvinur, I'm so sorry I left you alone. I didn't know where you were, or how..."
She cut off his words with her kisses, "Shhh, it's okay. I'm here for now. Come lay down with me. Please just hold me and I'll explain what I know so far." She took his hand and led her to the bed. Once she had settled onto his chest, she told him about the Lady. She told him how the Lady knew all about him as Loki and didn't trust him, about the spell she was using right now, and that it would only last until morning. Rayne hesitated to tell him about the binding. She wasn't sure if he knew already, and she wasn't sure what it really meant. What if he didn't want to be bound to her? Could such a thing even be undone?
"Do you know where we are, my love?" Liam asked as he stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head. "I can't see anything out of my window but endless green fields."
"I don't know yet." Rayne looked up at Liam, "I'll try to ask when the Lady comes to see me again. Liam, she told me something else," Rayne paused, nervously biting her bottom lip. "She said we were bound to one another. Did you know that?"
Liam's eyes seemed clouded for a moment, then he spoke softly, "I thought it might have happened that night in the hotel, but you didn't say anything, so I didn't push the matter. Did you not know either?" Rayne shook her head no. "Do you not want to be bound to me?" Liam's voice was low and shaky. "I understand if you regret it. You didn't even know who I really was when it happened."
Rayne leaned up and kissed him, "I am proud to be bound to you, Liam, Loki, my only love." Liam sighed in relief, pulling her in and kissing her deeply.
"I think you forgot Master," he whispered as he bit at her ear. He ran his hand down the length of her body caressing her gently, "Maybe someday even husband?"
She shivered at his words, "Someday, maybe. I think for now I like Liam, my love, and occasionally Master," she ran her hands through his hair as she teased him. "The sun will be up soon, and the spell will break. If she allows it, I will come to you again tomorrow night, but for now, please hold me, Liam."
He pulled her to him tightly, kissing her fiercely, pressing his tongue into her mouth, making her gasp. She rolled over on top of him, tugging at his pants. No magical shortcuts this time. He tore off her gown and flung it across the room. They pressed against each other's bare skin, hungry to feel one another. She covered his chest and stomach in kisses, making him moan as she would bite playfully at his tender skin. He wove his hands through her hair and pulled her mouth to his again, shifting her body to allow him to slip deep inside of her. Rayne softly moaned as he filled her with his thrusts, her hands on his chest pushing as they found their rhythm. He raised his hand to her cheek and she took his fingers in her mouth, slowly sucking on them. He held her hips tightly as he began to reach his orgasm, his moans filling the chamber, echoed by her own as she climaxed with him. She began to lay back down on his chest, knowing the dawn was almost there. She couldn't stop the tears that flowed. "I love you, Liam. I promise I will come back."
Before he could even answer her, or dry her tears, she had vanished. Her dress was gone too. There was no trace to prove she had been in the room other than the bed Liam was laying in. "I love you too, Rayne. I'll be here waiting, my darling, always." He spoke the words out loud, not knowing if she would hear them or not. Eventually, he drifted into a restless sleep.
Rayne awoke to find herself in her chambers, on the bed, back in her gown. She could still smell Liam's scent on her skin. The tears poured from her eyes. She curled into a ball, sobbing. She needed him to be here with her.
"I think it's good the Lady separated you two. You can't think straight when he's around," the old woman scolded her as she came around the library corner. "You keep thinking he's your savior, but dearie, you are your own savior. Matter of fact, you might be his, too. Get that chin up, you need to get dressed. Here, put these on!" She tossed some clothes at Rayne, "You have training today, Lady's orders."
"What about this?" Rayne tugged at the silver chain. "How am I going anywhere with this on? How do I even change with it on?"
The old woman cackled a loud laugh, "Oh you really are a mess! Here." She snapped and the chain fell to the floor. "Now don't get any ideas, girlie. I may look small, but old Maab can still take the likes of you!"
"Maab, as in the Fae Queen?" Rayne dropped to her knees, "Forgive me, I had no idea. If my grandmother knew the way I spoke to you, she would..."
"Rebecca would have laughed and said, 'That's my girl!'" Maab cackled. "She was a firecracker, and I see you are a lot like her, but not enough for my tastes yet. You need some more of her fire and independence. Big things are coming for you, dearie."
"Wait, you knew my Grandmother? But how?" Rayne gasped. "She was here?"
Maab shushed her. "You'll get all your answers in due time. For now, we need to get down to the field for training. I want to see those gifts Rebecca always talked about for myself."
Rayne was stunned at this revelation, but she got dressed and followed the Fae Queen to the battlefields outside. She spent the day listening to Maab's instructions and practicing her powers just like she did with her grandmother. She didn't know, but Liam could see her in the field from his window. She was too far away to hear his voice, but he saw her.
Author's Notes: I know, sappy, mushy love stuff...