The Immortal Prince ✔️

16

Word Count: 2010

~Vaela

Hale's bedroom door being slightly ajar is enough of an invitation for me to enter, seeking the Immortal out.

He rests against his wooden headboard, flicking through a book.

He doesn't even glance up. "For someone who is so concerned about seeing me naked again, you have a proclivity for walking rather confidently into my private space."

"You should have told me Larsen was coming," I snap.

Exhaling softly, he closes his book, dragging his attention to me. There is something painfully intimate about standing in his room. The large bed swallows have the space, making it impossible to be aware of anything else.

"How could I, when even I didn't know?" He kicks his legs out so he's sitting on the edge of the bed, resting the book on his bedside table.

I fold my arms over my chest, fingers drumming against my ribs. "Who is he?"

"A Noble, from a far away land. I wouldn't worry yourself, he will not be here for very long," Hale muses dismissively. My eyes narrow.

"Can he kill me?" I ask.

His eyes glisten, a dimple creasing in his cheek as he smiles. "Conceivably, anyone can."

My eyes roll. "You know what I mean."

"Yes."

It's not as if it's obvious. His touch alone can kill, which means I will be keeping to the furthest reaches of the cave.

"Great..." I start pacing.

"So don't become charmed with him. His touch will bring you a vicious, swift death," he muses.

Narrowing my eyes on him, I see the look in his eyes, challenging me to disobey that simple order. I have no interest in the dangerous Noble and his poisonous touch. I'm not a fool.

I pause, a thought dawning on me. "If he touched you, would you die?"

He tilts his head. "Are you plotting something?"

"And kill the only person who is keeping me alive right now?" I say breathlessly. It's frightening to think about how true that statement is. No one else has the power to keep me from death.

Hale exhales. "Yes, he can kill me, and other purebloods. That is why my siblings cannot learn of his presence here."

His tone and eyes darken together, making me shudder. They have all been virtually unkillable for most of their existence, and yet there is a powerful man who could wipe them from the realm with just his touch.

"Don't look at me like I would tell them." What I know of his siblings is limited to what I've read in decades old textbooks.

He sighs through his nose. "Is there a reason you came into my room, Vaela?"

Fidgeting with the hem of my shirt, I glance through the crack in the door. In Hale's room, I feel safe from Larsen, although it seems as though I've stepped into a room with an entirely different threat.

"I'm scared...Of him," I mumble.

Hale smirks. "A particularly strong breeze could likely kill you, mortal, so I wouldn't be fussed."

"I'm still scared of you, sometimes," I admit sheepishly. I murmur. Who wouldn't be? He's a Sin, generally untrustworthy and unpredictable. And I rely on him. A lot.

His eyes burn, drifting down me. "Are you worried my magic could kill you, or that I'll tire of you, and discard of you into the snowy labyrinth for you to die?" He asks softly. I stiffen, stripped to my barest vulnerabilities.