The Heirs of Elysium

Chapter 3 - Yuletide

Ethon's PoV

Jumping out of bed, I rush over to the window and pull back the heavy velvet curtain. Outside, the lawn is covered in a soft blanket of white and the bare branches glitter in weak winter sunlight. Yesterday, there was no sign of snow, but Mother always tries to make the day magical for us.

It is one of my favourite times of the solar. When we were little, we would awaken with stockings brimming full of delicious treats and gifts. Rory, Al and I would rush to my parent's room and cover their bedcover with present wrappings and biscuit crumbs.

Now that we are older, we no longer get a stocking, although we still gather on their bed while my parents hand out gifts. With that thought in mind, I dash across the room and up the spiral stone stairs to Al's bedchamber.

Al is a brother in all but blood and I do not recall the time before he came into my life. He is the one who taught me to ride and to fight. He helped me hone my magic even though he has none of his own and is oft my guide in matters of the heart. Along with Merlin, he is my best friend in this entire realm.

We shared a room until he turned twenty-one and Father insisted that he needed his own space. Now he has made a home in a tower, above Mother's office. His chamber is a bit cosy and most of the walls are curved, but on the plus side, he has the roof terrace at his disposal.

Al is fast asleep as I burst into his room and he groans as I bounce on his bed. "Etthh!"

"Wakey, wakey sleepy head. It is mid-winter morn. Come on, let us go to my parent's chamber."

"We are not children any more, well ..." His lips curl into a wicked smile. "You technically you are."

"Pfft!"

The age of consent may be twenty-one, but seriously, it is a ridiculous rule. I may have only recently turned twenty, but I was never going to save my virtue for another solar. I am afraid that ship has sailed. Tonight, there will be a plethora of pretty young things attending the Yule Ball and there will be wooing-a-plenty. I mean, how could I possibly deny them all this loveliness?

After fussing with his hair, Al wraps a dressing gown around himself and begrudgingly follows me back down stairs to our living quarters.

Aurora is waiting for us in the main reception room. Her white blond hair is immaculate, her face is painted perfection and there is not a single crease in her silk dress. It is a stark contrast to my rumpled pyjamas and messy golden locks. Then again, she has always been the perfect one.

Sometimes I get the feeling that she looks down her nose at me, but this morning she greets me with a bright smile and a warm hug. Perhaps living away at the Elemental court has thawed her.

"Aurora, you are an absolute vision this morning." Al unleashes the smile that has left legions swooning.

"Thank you, Raphael." A slight flush paints her cheeks. He is a handsome chap, almost as good looking as myself. When he chooses, he can have a golden tongue, although he can also counter it with a wit as sharp as a blade.

"Al, can we borrow your ears?"

His grimace indicates that he would really rather not and he leads the way to my parent's door as if walking toward the gallows. They should be expecting us, but it is better to be safe than sorry since we really do not wish to be scarred by visions that cannot be unseen.

At his nod, we enter their bedchamber.

"Ethon, Aurora, Raphael! Merry mid-winter" Mother's greets us from her position, in bed with Father.