Arise - Book Two of The Spinner's Curse

Objects of Affection and Rejection

                                        Chapter Three:

                                         68 Years Ago

                                                Eira

Alec’s gaze met mine across the covers, his eyes circled by thumbprints of blue. “Did you sleep at all?” I asked. He blinked in answer. I groaned. “Alec, you can’t keep doing this, you really can’t.” He rolled away from me and I could feel the magic between us begin to pull. I snuggled closer to him, keeping the blanket firmly shoved between us. I pressed my forehead into his back, letting the heat of his skin feed the hunger within me. It wasn’t enough, it would never be enough until the day I let our skin meet and our bodies were engulfed in invisible flames. “You have to sleep.” I said, knowing he wouldn’t listen. He never listened.

“It’s the only time I can bear to be away from you,” he said, his voice gruff and full of pain. I flinched. I envied the girls who would find his words romantic, who would smile and swoon and feel like their feet had disappeared for a moment. I knew that Alec hated every moment he was with me. I could feel his emotions dance in the motes of magic tying us together. He held nothing but contempt for me and I couldn’t blame him. I couldn’t.

Since that day eight years ago, Alec had suffered for my shortcomings. Every time I obtained a slap, the pain would radiate through the thread uniting us, magnifying and rippling into his skin. His pain became mine and mine was his. It was torture; Mother’s favorite kind.

As we grew and the slaps became harder, became more than just slaps, Alec began to bear the weight of my punishments. When Mother realized she could inflict pain on either one of us and make the other feel it...It became a game to see how much we could endure. Alec bore the scars; Mother didn’t want to ruin “my pretty face.”

I traced one of Alec’s many scars with my finger and he stiffened beneath my touch. Even wearing the gloves, I skated a thin line. There could be a hole, a seam could pop, or I could suddenly rip the thin fabric from my hand in a wild rush of power. It had all happened before. But I couldn’t help it. His skin glowed, tinged with both golden light and magic, it held a beauty nothing on earth could match.

“Eira, don’t.” I pulled away, contrite.

“I’m sorry,” I breathed. He shrugged and climbed from the bed. I didn’t flinch at the pinch I felt as he moved across the room to where his pallet was made up on the floor. It was our routine. At least, it had been since Alec first discovered that, when one of us was sleeping, the magic pull was fainter and easier to bear.

He curled on the floor, his back to me and I counted the breaths it took him to fall asleep. If I concentrated, I could feel each intake, could feel his lungs inflate as air was sucked inside. It was strange and thrilling and took away some of the pain of his absence. When his breathing became even and the sound of his soft snores filled the room, I rose and made my way to my wardrobe.

I dressed quietly, although it wouldn’t be the first time Alec had seen me naked. I blushed and slid the gown over my gloved arms. Once upon a time, I loved gowns. I loved the way they fit on my body, the way they swayed when I walked. Now, there never seemed to be enough fabric. Mother insisted that my gowns be more revealing. She claimed I was “of marriageable age”, but I knew it was so that Alec’s resolve to never touch me would break.

I left the room before putting on my slippers. I didn’t want to take the chance of waking Alec. He slept so little. The curse was growing stronger, for both of us. I could almost see it in the fractured light of the hall. The string flowing between us was thicker, the light a little brighter than it seemed the day before. Tears burned against my eyes. Soon, being apart would be the worst punishment Mother could inflict. I ran to the throne room, wanting to make sure I gave her no reason to punish me.