Blade's Edge || Deception Book II ||

Chapter 24: Tropical Paradise Pt. 2

Luke squeezed my hand and I glanced at him. "What?" I asked, meeting his gaze.

"Nothing," he replied, not looking away. "I just can't believe today."

I smiled slightly, my gaze shifting to the fading light where the sea met the sky and squeezed back. "Me too. Today is definitely one that I'll keep in my heart forever."

Even though I couldn't see, I knew he was smiling. I kept my expression warm, that spark of exhausted exhilaration in my eyes as the sun dipped lower beneath the horizon.

We were on the beach, the dark ocean to our right, the jungle to the left, and the town ahead of us. After lunch, we'd gone to the rapids, where both of us had almost drowned, then to Marino Las Baulas National Park, where Luke almost got his arm bitten off by a jaguar because the two of us, in true demigod fashion, had gone off the trails into the thick of the jungle.

I snorted, replaying the moment in my head. Looking back on it, it was hilarious, but both of us had been terrified at the moment. At least, until I realized it was a jaguar and the jaguar realized I was me, licked me, purred, and padded away. Luke's face had been absolutely priceless.

"Whatcha thinkin' about?" Luke said as we rounded the tip of the cove and the glowing town of Tamarindo came into view.

I smirked at him. "You. And the giant, furry beast."

Even in the darkening light, I could see Luke's eyes glimmer. "One, said giant furry beast had huge teeth and claws. Two, you were the one that panicked when a snake hissed at you."

"That's because I thought it was a branch until it moved. And, it was a side-strip pit viper. I thought I was going to die. It was a venomous snake for gods' sake."

Luke chuckled, dodging the swipe I sent in his direction. "If any mesoamerican gods exist, they'd be offended by your distaste of such a sophisticated animal."

"They'd be more offended by you calling an even more majestic animal 'giant furry beast,' you doofus. Jaguars were more important."

"Yeah, but the most important was the feathered serpent, which would be related to a snake," Luke countered, raising an eyebrow. "So-"

"Sure, sure," I said airily, tugging him along. "Jaguars are superior. But whatever."

"You're just saying that because it licked you," Luke muttered as he fell into step beside me, though I pretended not to hear.

We lapsed into silence, the quips fading into the gentle sound of the lapping waves on the beach as twilight faded into dusk. Even at nightfall, the jungle was alive behind us. I could hear the whisper of the leaves, the moan of the breeze, the rustle of the undergrowth, and all manners of croaks, hisses, hoots, and chirps from its inhabitants. The jungle was a living thing, and I loved it. It'd been such a long time since I'd been out in the true night. The darkness was where I thrived, where I walked hand-in-hand with the shadows of this world, where the threads of all life were laid bare to all children of the night.

I felt a smile, a true, genuine, smile spring to my lips as the breeze curled around me, singing the whispers of the darkness. Dusk was here, the time where the day yielded to the night, its mystery wrapping around me. My shadow-walker powers flickered and I was so, so tempted to let my magic spring out and play.

"Hey, is that music?" Luke asked suddenly, stopping.

I blinked, Luke's voice jolting me to reality and the epiphany dissolved, replaced by fast-approaching horror. What had I almost done? If Luke hadn't spoken, if he hadn't stopped, I might have let go. Being here, at the border of a jungle that pulsed with life at deepening night was dangerous. I clamped down hard on the inner barriers of my power, shoving them and the dizzying terror down, down, down.

"Ri? Are you listening?"

"What?" I said, telling myself to calm down. Nothing had happened, and though I was sure my eyes had probably started flickering with magic, the darkness likely hid it since Luke didn't seem to notice anything.

"Music," Luke repeated, pulling me with him as he increased our pace. "Can you hear it?"

I tore my mind away from any thoughts of my shadows as I matched his pace, the two of us flying over the beach as the last streaks of light were swallowed up by the ocean. I focused my attention on the glowing town ahead of us and faint music reached my ears. "Yeah," I said, regulating my breathing as we sprinted over the surf. "Yeah, I can hear it."

We slowed down as the town grew closer ahead of us and stopped as we both beheld the view.

"Oh, wow," I said quietly. "It's like something straight out of a fairytale."

The streets of Tamarindo were shining with golden orange lamps, the music weaving through the air courtesy of a group of musicians seated underneath the canopy of a palm tree next to a cafe, but it was the atmosphere that took my breath away. From the look on Luke's face, I knew he felt the same.

Dozens of people were dancing in the streets, laughing, clapping, cheering, smiling. A vice was suddenly clamped around my chest, tightening with each breath as the two of us stood in the shadows at the edge of the firelight. Watching the tourists and native residents alike so carefree, just out to enjoy the night, I realized that no matter how far I went, no matter where I travelled, I would never be normal. I was a demigod and there was nowhere in the real world that I could truly ever belong. Even here, thousands of kilometres away, I couldn't escape the burden of my life.

It was like I was looking through a mirror into a whole other world, and I was never more conscious of my inability to walk that path.

Luke's grip on my hand had tightened and abruptly, he said, "Let's go."

"Where?" I asked as I let him lead me away from the crowd back towards the waves which were starting to shine with moonlight.

He stopped at the edge of the surf. "Dance with me," he said, extending my hand to him.

"What?" I replied slowly after a heartbeat, the moonlight catching his eyes as he slowly reached for my hand, his eyes never leaving my face.

"What's so hard to understand?" he asked. "Dance with me, Ri."

Don't cross that line, my mind warned me as I glanced at my hand and raised it slowly. But there was such silence around us despite the music, such sorrow hanging between us, our wishes twining into one, that I decided to damn the consequences and stepped up to the line.

When my eyes met his, the world faded away. There was Luke, his fingers warm around mine, and everything else, my secrets, my lies, Kronos, the gods, faded into nothing.

Luke slid his other arm around my waist as I braced mine on his arm. He looked at me, his gaze knowing, and began to move. It was slow at first, but then the music swirled around us, building up, up, up.

"We might never be able to be normal" Luke murmured, "but that doesn't matter. It never will."

"I know," I managed, my eyes never leaving his.

And then the music shattered through the night, each note racing through the currents of the world like my shadow fire. Luke didn't break his stare, and I didn't either as both of us danced across the waves, our steps never faltering, lethal like the first time last summer when we'd sparred together.

The moon rose higher, casting its silver light into the world, and as the rest of the world faded away, the waves, sounds of the forest, celebration from the streets, and glow from the town blurring until there was nothing except the boy in front of me, I realized that maybe, just maybe, fairy tales did exist. 

***

Oh jeez. I feel so damn single right now. Which is funny, since I was the one who wrote this. 

Why do I do this to myself? 

Anyways, thank you for reading, and don't forget to vote and comment! I love you guys.

- Aeryndyl