The Shadows Have No Face || 𝐀𝐂𝐎𝐓𝐀𝐑

The First of Three

I waited impatiently on the rooftop of the House of Wind. It was early morning, and the freezing air was making my fingers numb. Of course, I would be forced to wait this long for that stupid male. If only I had wings.

The Morrigan had spent last night at the townhouse, so the Spymaster was to fly me down the mountain to meet her. I was finally going to see that place.

That is, if he ever showed up. I'd been standing here for an hour now, bouncing from one foot to the other in an attempt to keep warm. Cerridwen gave this long wool coat to me-something about her not wanting me to freeze to death.

Finally, I heard footsteps going up the stairs, and felt the electric power of the shadowsinger. When I turned to greet him, I suddenly lost the ability to speak. I became terrified. So this is where all those stories come from.

His armor was near-black scales and leather plates. I counted seven glowing blue Siphons fit into his leathers. He had a look to him-that's what really scared me. A darkness lingered behind his eyes, and he walked with a weight that seemed to pull him to the earth.

Something else now caught my eye, and I was shocked that I hadn't noticed it before. Markings running down the lower half of his wings. Perhaps it's because he always kept them tightly tucked in, and never relaxed, or maybe this change in lighting. But the scars were large and deep, and looking at them made my mouth go dry. For the first time, I didn't want to know the story behind that.

As soon as he was near enough to hear me, I said, "Let's get going before my lips freeze shut." My teeth chattered loud in my head, almost hurting.

The ghost of a smile played on his face. "Hold on, I want to take in this view one last time."

I rolled my eyes. "It's not like it's gonna be your last time. Now let's go."

He laughed and said, "Hold on tight." He wrapped a scarred hand around my waist and flared those absolutely gigantic wings behind him.

"You better not drop me-" my words became a scream as we shot into the sky quicker than birds.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and tried pulling myself up, screaming incoherently about how much I hated every second. My feet were dangling as we rose higher, and I was sure I was slipping.

I felt his hand slither under my knees to lift me up, the other wrapping tight against my ribs. But I still clung like a cat to him. I wanted to keep my eyes closed, but I would be sick if I did.

It wasn't a fear of heights-that would just be hilarious. I was afraid of falling. I didn't trust him that much yet. So I was going to hold on as tight as I could, watching the clouds zip past us as we glided towards the city.

Then he just... decided to dive. My stomach rose to my throat, my heart to my head. I screamed for a long breath, pleading for him to stop and just drop me already. He just laughed. He laughed at me. It reverberated through my body, sending blood to my cheeks and making me regret every decision I'd ever made.

The landing was gentle, and I was a bit impressed by it. We stopped right on the front lawn of a charming house in the city center. I practically fell out of his arms and had to put my head between my knees for a moment, getting the adrenaline back down. I flipped my hair back and could tell it had gone frizzy and wild. Wonderful. Now I was going to have to spend thirty minutes fixing it again.

"So," I started, finally catching my breath, "this is where your High Lord and Lady live?"

"Half the time."

"You guys must own a million houses," I said through a huff. He nodded.

A noise caught me at a standstill. Laughter. The ringing bells of children's laughter. I closed my eyes... listened. The water from the rushing river, the laughter from children, the music from the Rainbow, the smell of food from everywhere. All of it. This was home.