Soul Ties

Chapter 3: You Promised

I let the cool water wash over my feet as we sit on the shore together, staring at the violet colored sky above. The day has finally come to an end, and I can now casually look up without the sun trying to blind me. Seren sighs next to me.

"Is it too much to ask for you not to go tonight?" she mumbles, more to herself than to me.

"You know I can't stay without my mother coming to look for me." I answer and she sighs again.

I want to reach out and hug her, but with the sun setting so quickly, it would be dangerous to act like nothing more than friends. Someone would definitely see us, and the last thing I needed was for us to be separated with only a couple weeks left until I had to leave.

"Are you going to talk to her? About...about everything?" Seren turns her head to face me, but I can't make myself look at her.

"I don't think I can, Seren. We're supposed to be honorable, and going against my mother, against what we have been taught since birth, seems like the ultimate betrayal."

The silence between us stretches for so long that I think the conversation is over until she whispers, "You promised me, Lynx."

My heart breaks at the sound of defeat in her voice. I did promise her I would talk to my mother, but how can I? What would I even say?

My mother wouldn't be disappointed in the fact that I've been hiding the love I have for Seren, but to hear that I didn't want to meet with Thysus would shatter her. After all the envy she had already received from the others here, adding a dishonorable daughter would send her over the edge. They would isolate her without question.

But what about Seren? How can I just leave her here without even trying to fight for what we have? In her eyes it would make the love I have for her seem conditional, which it definitely wasn't. I'd do anything for her.

Tell your mother, my inner thoughts teased. I didn't know who I was more afraid to disappoint. My mother, who had lost not only her soul tie, but the respect of all of her people, or Seren, the one I loved more than I loved myself and would risk the wrath of the Goddess for. The answer was clear. I would have to tell my mother and risk losing her faith and respect in me.

I grab Seren's hand, squeezing tightly when she tries to pull away, a look of shock painted on her face.

"You're right. I did promise you and I intend on keeping that promise. I'll tell my mother tonight and see if I can postpone the meeting with Thysus. Seeing as my mother received a favor from the Goddess once before, maybe she could ask for another and we'd be spared finding our soul ties. Maybe," I say a little breathlessly. "We could stay here together."

I don't realize I'm crying until Seren rubs her thumb across my cheek to wipe it away. Tears begin to form in her own eyes when she squeezes my hand just as tightly as I was holding hers. And then we're both laughing, a mixture of excitement and nervousness coming out of us. I pull her into my chest and kiss the top of her head.

"What will you say?"

I think about it for a moment with Seren in my arms. Looking up at the now darkened sky, my brain is trying to grasp on to one thought, but I am too overwhelmed with emotions.

What would I say? Where would I even start, and how would I convince my mother this was the right choice? Would my love for Seren be enough for Thysus to forgive me and spare each of our lives? I never viewed her as a vengeful Goddess, but I'd also never met her, unlike my mother who had actually seen her. Twice. My mother's life had been spared, and now so could mine and Seren's if I could just make them listen to what I had to say. I had to be brave and fight for what I believed in. I couldn't live my life being obedient just because that's what I was taught to be. My voice would be heard if I was loud enough, and I would be.