Curse of the Fae (PA #3)

Chapter Two

Ari (Sloth)

'Eureka' is the state motto of California. A word associated with panhandlers discovering gold, its origin is entirely Greek.

But Greece is unofficial Seelie territory. The light fae were drawn to the warmer climates of places like modern-day Greece, Mexico, or Egypt, while their Unseelie counterparts explored the colder territories of modern-day Ireland, Scotland, and broader Scandinavia.

So, why does Darragh use it?

Why is he here?

Why now?

Why, why, why.

There is something amiss with this timeline. The events don't flow smoothly into one another; the choppy wrongness pierces my eardrums like an instrument out of tune.

Galileo killed his father three years ahead of schedule. Even with my thinly-veiled encouragement, I didn't expect him to choose today to strike a killing blow. Or kick, if the blood and brain matter on his shoes and the bottoms of his pants are any indication.

Ragnar killed Headmaster Heartwright when I've only seen Willow do so. It's a pivotal moment for her that will never come to pass, and the repercussions for her character development are a mystery to me.

Darragh is here in Purgatory when Willow is supposed to rescue him in Faerie. He is here when he should be there. Events are happening now when they should be happening later.

Endless possibilities. That's all that time is, but my understanding of likelihoods granted confidence when there apparently was none.

The strands hummed their secrets and the Fates showed their plans, but I was far too cocky in believing I had it all figured out. Even killing myself to see everything hasn't helped me.

I made a promise to Willow that I would avoid the allure of time, and I've kept my word. The unknown breeds bitterness, but spending my life in dreams of different realities isn't worth making Willow cry.

I'm adjusting as much as I can, but the world moves faster than I can handle.

It's a strange thing watching Willow and Darragh connect in a way that only pieces of the same soul do. Aligning with familiarity after so many years apart. Jealousy is a useless emotion I won't waste effort on, but I do wonder how their reunion will impact our relationship.

There is such a thing as making up for lost time, and Darragh has lost more than the rest of us. I won't begrudge him for monopolizing her until he's certain of her existence. Kian's the same, albeit in a both more and less intense way.

"What the actual fuck is happening?"

Alex's stunned exclamation is the splash of cold water on an otherwise frozen scene. Surprise doesn't begin to cover the expressions of my parents and my sisters, while my brothers volley between anger and fear. Galileo is still mostly in a stupor of his own making, and Kian's dragon shines through his eyes.

Darragh and Willow are in their own world, where entire civilizations can rise and fall without their notice. It's everything the mate bond should be, and I'm glad that Willow finally gets to feel it.

Perhaps now she will understand our ever-present need to be around her. Experience is the greatest teacher of them all.

"This is—" Rome begins a sentence that will forever remain unfinished because crazed laughter shakes away logic and any sense of reason.

"This is a shit show," Alex concludes.

Ragnar can only nod, and Kian's dragon is too busy glaring to bother listening. They're both considering ways of separating Willow and Darragh without harming her.