Playing with Fire [COMPLETED]

45 ~ the end

"I want to rebuild my Court, but .... all I can do is destroy things," Ruin whispers.

We are laying in bed, in Rogue's Court, the hearth crackling quietly. He shifts in the bed, curling his wing around me. He scoots closer to me, his orange eyes ablaze. I reach up, touching his cheek. He smiles, and so do I.  His expression softens as he studies my eyes.

"That's not all you do," I say softly.

"Oh? What else do I do?"

"You make me whole," I whisper.  "You save me. You keep me sane. Make sure I'll be okay, even when all the colors fade to black. You were the color in my world, when nothing helped. You kept me .... me."

His eyes glitter.  He tilts his head forward, brushing his lips against my cheek. He looks up into my eyes, his own blazing with his tears. "I love you so much, my Mortal-Heart."

"I love you, too," I say softly.  "I love you more than you could ever know."

"The same for you, my dear."

That night, I can't sleep, so I slip out of bed with Ruin and make sure to check through the bond that he's asleep. He is, and so, I pad downstairs. When I reach the dining room, I find Rogue sitting alone at the table, nursing a crystal bottle of liquor.

She looks up at me, her eyes bright.  "Hey, there. Ruin mentioned that there's this girl you two met, uh ... Lyric, was it?"

"Uh, yeah. She saved our lives," I say. "Why?"

"Ah, no reason. I know her. She's likely gonna be here tomorrow, I asked her over to help with Ellory and Death. They are headed back to Death's Court soon, and I wanted Lyric to check to make sure she's okay. That is all."

"Aw, well, that's nice," I say.

She snorts.  "Don't get used to it." She takes a large swig of her drink, then looks at me. "So, you two heading back to Ruin's Court, too?"

I nod.  "Yes, he wants to rebuild."

She salutes me with her bottle.  "Well, I wish you both the best of luck. If you two didn't already offer Lyric a place in his Court, I'd have offered her one here." In a lowered voice, she says, "It gets awful lonely here sometimes."

"Rogue..." Looking up at me, she sniffs.  "Do you think you'd want to come with us to his Court?"

"Ach, nah. I can't. Wither's here. She's gonna need a Court of her own, as will Mirage. What about your sister, uh. The other one. Not Mirage."

"Farrin? Yeah, I - I don't know if she'll want a place in Ruin's Court. She does not like him," I say.

"She will get over it," Rogue mutters.  "You two.... you've got something special. And if anyone denies that, they're blind and dumb."

"Thanks, Rogue," I say.  "You're a nice person."

"I ain't no person, Elorha," she scoffs. "But.... yeah. I get what you're saying.  Thanks."

"Don't mention it," I say.

"Oh, and Elorha?"

"Yes?"

"I'm uh, sorry. For having to watch your sister's body .... die again. Pain went way too far with that."

"Yeah, well, what else is new? Pain going too far seems to be her norm," I reply.

She snorts.  "Amen, sister." She swigs from her drink again.  "I am sure you know this, but .... this ain't over. There's still that primordial essence to contend with." Rogue leans forward, looking at me.  "The Hollow."

I'd forgotten about that.  My blood goes cold.  "You think that is going to make an appearance?"

"No doubt of it," Rogue mutters.  "But hey, that's tomorrow's problem, not now's."

I sit down across from her. "Mind if I have a drink?"

She laughs.  "Mine, not yours, girl."

"Alright, alright," I say, raising my hands in defeat. "To tomorrow's problems, then."

"I'd toast ya, but you ain't got a drink," she says. She grins at me as she drinks.  "I'll drink enough for both of us."

"Thanks, Rogue," I say. "Thanks. For everything."

She nods.  "Like I said, don't mention it."

We sit there for a long while, her drinking, us both talking. But even though I know I'll be exhausted tomorrow, I sit there, listening to her talk about life. I don't mind her company, and I hope she doesn't mind mine, either. Rogue and I sit there in the dining room for hours, and when the sub begins to paint the sky pink, she sends me back to bed.

And as I lay down beside Ruin again, his arm wraps around my waist, and he pulls me closer to him. He and I lay like that, for a long, long while. Until I finally fall asleep.

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Look for the next book in the series, Trials by Ice, out soon.

That is, if you wish to continue Ruin's and Elorha's story....

Because this is the end, for now ....