fall for a guy that’s been nothing but an arrogant prick since I met him. A guy that holds me tightly and strokes my hair, who touches me and makes me come because he wants me to think of him and only him. Who got jealous when he thought Solat was flirting with me. Who won’t let anyone touch me because he wants to be the one touching me. I wipe away my tears, sniffing.
Yeah, Aron’s a jerk and a half, but I still love him. His arrogance is the perfect foil for my salt. He doesn’t care that I’m a potty mouth, that I’m surly in the morning, or that I have a soft heart underneath all my vinegar. He likes all of that about me.
Thunder crashes outside, and I lift my head, surprised. Uh oh. That’s not a good sign.
I get to my feet, rubbing my temples. So far, no brain-shattering migraine, which means this is just a show of temper and not an actual drawing on his powers. Even so, I need to find Aron and talk to him, calm him down.
I head down the ramp, mindful of what the Spidae said. Bottom of the tower. He’s there. I head in that direction, picking up my football and my skirts so they don’t drag on the floor. I can still see the discarded strands everywhere at the Spidae’s feet and fight back a shudder. I can’t imagine those were anything good.
Another blast of rage echoes through the tower, and I wince as the parapet I pass by lights up with lightning. The sky outside is fading to twilight, the evening sun bleeding red across the horizon. I need to find Aron before it’s dark because I don’t see a single torch, and I don’t want to think of what’s waiting in the shadows. I clutch my football to my chest, suddenly a little afraid of this tower and its denizens. I know I saw a giant spider in the room with the Spidae. I don’t want to know what he eats.
I mean, the answer could be “travelers” like Yulenna suggested. Then all my choices will be made for me. I bite back the hysterical laugh bubbling in my throat and walk a little faster.
I pass by a new pair of rooms, where I see Markos and Kerren lying on pallets on the ground. They get to their feet at the sight of me, Kerren pulling out his sword. I shake my head, indicating that they should stay, and continue on. The next room has Solat and Yulenna, but they’re completely unaware of me, judging by the way Solat looks like he’s trying to suck Yulenna’s face off. Okay then. I don’t say anything to them, just continue on as more thunder rumbles.
Aron’s the one that matters. I have to get to him.
Every crack of lightning, every peal of thunder hurts my heart. Not in a physical sense, but in an emotional sense. I know Aron’s hurting. He’s upset, and I want to help him.
He thinks he can save you.
Has my big arrogant jerk fallen for me, too? My heart hammers at the thought, and it makes me speed up.
I can hear Aron before I see him. The boom of his voice carries through the hall, shaking the cobwebs as I approach.
“You have to let me see her! She is mine!”
“I do not have to do anything,” the Spidae says, the voice cold and utterly familiar. It sounds just like the man I left upstairs…but this is future, isn’t it? Unless the one I talked to was future. Unless they don’t have divisions like that at all. Unless he was just fucking with me the whole time.
Entirely possible, given that he’s a god of fate. Or an Aspect of one.
Thunder crashes again, and I inwardly wince, imagining Aron’s fury. My head is still okay, and when I put a finger under my nose, it’s still dry. No nosebleed. This is all just flash.
“You don’t understand,” Aron’s voice carries as I hesitate outside the doorway. “I hurt her. I have to let her know I didn’t mean to. I have to make it up to her. She’s mine to protect. My responsibility.”
“Why should I let you see her at all?” the Spidae asks.
Thunder crashes so loudly that I jump. “Because she’s mine,” Aron roars, fury making the small hairs on the back of my neck stand up. The air is charged with lightning.
“And look at how you break your