Splendid Fall

Ch. 37 Lost in Time

Chapter 37

Heyder sat holding Birdie's hand, his eyes fighting with the slumber that threatened to take him under. He did not want to fall asleep. He needed to stay awake incase she opened her eyes.

"Heyder,'' a familiar yet foreign voice came from the doorway.

The jinn looked up to find his mother standing outside the, her long hair tied back in a thick braid that fell down her back. She had changed into a comfortable long kaftan that grazed the floor as she walked.

"You really haven't aged a day, have you?" Heyder said, his eyes looking at his mother as she moved closer.

"You know we don't age like the rest, sweet baby," Ira chuckled.

"Yeah," Heyder nodded, feeling the tiredness in his bones and the years weighing down his shoulder. He did not know how to tell her he was aging like the ones she was looking down at.

"Did your men get everything they needed?" He asked instead.

"Yes," Ira said. "Their living relatives have been informed. They will be staying at court until we grow accustomed to this new....environment."

"Nothing has changed," Heyder said, leaning back in his chair and crossing his ankles beside Birdie where his long legs rested. "The Tyveer court is still the same. Every single brick."

"Everything has changed," Ira said, her voice laced with irritation. "My son...is the Sultan. How does that happen?"

"It's a long story," Heyder shrugged.

"And you're married to a witch?"

"She's the Witch Supreme, actually."

"Witch supreme or witch vermin," Ira rolled her eyes. "All the same breed."

Heyder instantly felt proud of his idea to have Maya and Hayden leave court. He knew they would be pissed when he returned but he was growing old and his chaotic mind could only handle one battle at a time.

"It's another long story," Heyder said, letting down a deep sigh. "And no, they are not the same thing."

"That's all you seem to be saying these days," Ira pursed her lips. "A long story."

"What else do you want me to say?"

"Where are the elders?" Ira asked, her eyes filled with suspicion. "Why are our resources going out of the veil and what is Ali's son?"

"Excuse me?" Heyder arched his brow.

"What is he? What is she?" Ira pointed towards Birdie.

"She's my daughter," Heyder, calmly and slowly as if he was speaking to a child. "And Adan is my godson."

"But what are they?" Ira asked. "How long have our kind been mixing with the others?"

"For a while now."

"And as Sultan you allowed it to happen?"

"Don't you think it would have been hypocritical if I didn't allow it to happen while both of my offspring were hybrids?"

"So your son is this way too."

"Yes," Heyder said, looking at his mother. "And?"

Ira's eyes narrowed, "What do you mean and?"

"You seem to have something to say about my children," Heyder placed his mother in the centre of his attention. "You can speak freely. After all, we're family."