A week training with Fletcher had left me sore and bruised. But at least each night when I came home, Raydir was there waiting with a healing salve and a look of desire on his face that usually ended with us fooling around instead of treating my injuries.

“Are you sure you’re okay with me working with Darius?” I asked one morning, searching his green eyes for answers.

“Positive.” He kissed me. “Now, go, okay? I’ll see you later.”

I gave him another kiss before hurrying out the door. My bow and quiver were where we always kept them in one of the weapons sheds, so that’s where I headed first before making my way out to the archery range.

Darius sat on a rock, his arms crossed over his chest.

“You’re late,” he said, standing up.

Asshole.

“Oof, language.” He tsked.

I rolled my eyes. “Don’t say a word. We’re only doing this so I can learn to control my powers.”

Is that the only reason?

I said don’t say anything!

Mind linking isn’t speaking, Ar.

“Gahhhh! You are infuriating!”

“Good. Then it’s working.” He threw a punch in my direction.

I shrieked and crouched to the ground. “What the hell was that?! I thought we were using my powers!”

“Integration, Arwyn. I want to see what you’ve learned from Fletcher first.” He uncuffed his sleeves and pushed them up his arms. “Give me all you’ve got.”

I raised my eyebrows. “What?”

“Just do it. You won’t hurt me, I promise.”

Says the man I shot with an arrow. I huffed. “Fine.” I swung my arm at him, and he countered, flipping me to the ground. “Really, Darius?!”

He reached a hand out, which I gratefully accepted, and pulled me to my feet. “Good start.”

His eyes scanned over my face. “Let’s try something. Follow me.” He started to walk away, so naturally I hurried after him.

“Where are we going?” I asked.

Darius didn’t answer, just led me forward.

“You know sometimes actually telling me things is a good thing.” I pushed through the brush.

“This is one of the smaller bodies of water out here in the valley,” he explained. “And it’s a good way to practice your powers.”

I studied his face. “How do you know so much about the valley? You just got here.”

“Caesaria is the one who suggested it during the last Council meeting. And she was with you when you first learned of your powers?”

I hesitated. “Yes, technically. I was able to see underwater, and that was the first clue. Then I summoned a shield of water when Ray and I were, er, fooling around.”

Darius nodded in understanding. “I see.”

“But you knew all of that already. So how is this supposed to help me practice my powers?” I asked.

“Stand here and put your hand out over the water. Square your hips.” His hands slid down my sides, sending a shiver down my spine. “Close your eyes.”

Hot breath on my neck made me instinctively tilt my head to the side before realizing what I was doing, then jerking my head back up straight. What am I doing?

Darius stepped back to give me some space, lifting his hands from my waist.

I cleared my throat. “Now what?”

“Speak to the water.”

“Speak to—this is your idea of helping me control my powers?”

“Just do it, Arwyn.”

I stuck my hand out over the water and tried to focus. The water bubbled up slowly; a single trail of water like a piece of thread rose from the surface.

“Good, now keep that focus. Aim the water a little higher. He guided my hand with his so the water was positioned over us. “Now let it back down.”

I dropped my hand, and the trail of water came crashing down on top of us. Shrieking, I jumped out of the way, letting Darius get most of the impact. “Oops.”

He laughed, running a hand through his now-wet hair. “You did that on purpose, didn’t you?”

“No! I swear I didn’t!” I pouted and then smacked his arm when I saw him smirk. “How do you know so much about my powers?”

“My family was very big on educating me about the ways of the wolf and the powers that come with that.”

“Why?”

“Do you remember the day we met?” he asked.

“Yeah. You told me your last name wasn’t of any significance. Then at my fate ceremony—Harford. Your last name is Harford.”

“Right.” He sighed. “Here, let’s fully immerse you in your element. We need to continue the practice anyway.” Darius began to unbutton his shirt.

I froze. “What are you doing?”

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

“Your clothes are waterproof, my shirt isn’t. Immersing yourself in the water will not only heal the injuries I know you’ve sustained training with Fletcher but also give you a chance to really control your powers.”

I still wasn’t convinced. Nevertheless, I unlaced my boots and dove into the water. As if like magic, all the tension and exhaustion I had felt for the last week began to wash away—literally.

Darius dove in after me and emerged next to me. “How do you feel?”

“A lot better. You were saying something about the significance of your last name?”

“Right.” He sighed. “For the last several years, I have been living on my own. I grew up with my wolf spirit from the age of ten.”

“Because of the incident with Caesaria.”

Darius nodded. “After she left for the valley, I went off to live on my own in Gwyniar. I could’ve—should’ve—gone to the valley when Caesaria did. And I regret it.”

“So how does that translate to you knowing so much about the powers?”

“Well, I owe your father a debt because he covered up the scandal of my situation. Um, ok you’re gonna need to do the same thing as before. This time the force of energy should be stronger. You should be able to get a stronger stream.”

I thrust my hand in front of me, focusing my attention on the water like he showed me. The water obeyed me, rising above us. “It’s working!”

Darius grinned. “Of course it’s working, you’re trusting yourself. Now let the water fall back down—ease it down.”

The stream of water slowly retracted on itself back down into the lake.

“There you go! Perfect control.”

“Does that earn me another piece of your mysterious backstory?” I asked, whirling to face him.

“Indeed.” He leaned forward.

I could feel my heartbeat quickening. Oh my god, was he going to kiss me? Not again!

Darius smirked. “Not right now. Tomorrow during our next lesson.”

I gaped at him.

“The backstory, Arwyn,” he said, laughing.

I cleared my throat. “Right. The backstory. So, does this mean we’re done for the day?”

“Not quite.” Darius led me back to the spot we had been practicing in before. “Now that you’ve immersed yourself in the water, that should’ve given you a bit more strength. So let’s go for a few more rounds.”

We set up again, and despite the supposed newfound strength, Darius still got the upperhand. Most of the time. This went on for a while, yet nowhere in here had I used my powers. I was beginning to think he just wanted to see what I’d learned training with Fletcher.

The sun started to dip lower in the sky, but the warmth of the air did nothing to stop the sweat that continued to drip down my back.

“Just a little longer, I promise,” Darius said. “You’re going great so far.”

I rolled my eyes. “You must love tiring me out.”

He smirked. “The only way to get good is to keep training. Now, c’mon. One more round.”

I sighed and planted my feet again. With a few twists and punches I almost had Darius beat. Until I tripped over a loose root and dove headfirst toward the ground. My ankle twisted with a sickening crack. I grasped at the grass as pain shot up my leg.

“Arwyn!” Darius ran to my side.

“Is that good enough for you?” Tears stung my eyes but I refused to let Darius see me cry.

His blue eyes scanned my face and then down to my ankle. “That doesn’t look good.”

“It’s fine.” I tried to wave it off. “I can walk.” As I got to my feet, my bad ankle collapsed under me. Darius caught me and my fingers clawed at his shirt.

“I got you. Ar, you need medical attention.”

“No.” I shook my head. If Raydir knew, he’d ban me from training. But there would be no hiding the fact that I couldn’t walk.

“I reject your no. You need to go see Raydir.”

I huffed. “Fine.” I started to hop away but was quickly stopped by Darius who scooped me into his arms.

Reluctantly, I clung to his neck. “Do you really have to carry me like this?”

Darius laughed. “It was either this or throw you over my shoulder like a sack of potatoes. I thought this was the friendlier of the two options.”

“Friendly is one way to put it,” I muttered.

We got to the medical cabin a few minutes later where I was immediately ushered to the side.

Izel thanked Darius for bringing me in and shooed him away.

“What happened?” she asked.

“Training.” I winced as she slathered something on my ankle. “That hurts.”

“You are lucky Raydir went for a house call,” she said. “He’d have a field day if he knew.”

“I know.”

Izel gave me a sideways glance. “Ray is only trying to protect you. That’s why he didn’t want you training like this.”

I crossed my arms over my chest. “I know he is. But how come he—”

“Because he loves you.” Izel wrapped my ankle tightly in gauze. “He’ll get over it in time, but remember this is the same way you reacted when he first started training.”

She had a point.

“Here”—she handed me a cup with some gunk in it and then a separate cup of water—“Drink this. It’ll help with the pain.”

“What is this?” I wrinkled my nose and doubled over into a coughing fit when I sniffed it.

“It’s better if you don’t ask.” Izel tucked her hair behind her ears. “If it were me, I’d be careful.”

“About what?” I sipped at the cup of water after forcing the other liquid down my throat.

“About how much time you’re spending with Darius. I mean, the guy showed up out of nowhere when no one asked him to follow you out here. And he’s staying when he knows you have a boyfriend. It just feels weird to me, that’s all. Like he has another motive.”

I swallowed, the water turning to lead in my stomach. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t agree. “Maybe that’s all the more reason to spend more time with him, you know? Find out what he’s really after.”

Izel shrugged. “Yeah, I guess that’s one way. Just do me a favor and don’t lose sight of what brought you out here in the first place. Darius or no, you and Raydir have something special together. He told me that you have a link with Darius, too, but believe me when I say that your link with Raydir is stronger.”

“How do you figure?” I asked.

Izel glanced at a spot to her left before turning back to me. “Because no stupid choosing ceremony can break the bond of soulmates.”

***

That night was just like any other as Raydir and I lay in bed next to each other. When Raydir had come back from his house call and seen me in the medical cabin, he’d immediately worked to convince Izel to let him take me home where he could keep an eye on me.

“How are you feeling?” he asked, brushing his fingers through my hair.

“Good. I’m sorry about all of this.” I gestured to my ankle.

“You don’t need to apologize,” he said. “I’m just glad that you’re alright. And that Darius…well, that he was there to help.”

“Me too.”

Silence lingered between us. Maybe this could be a way for me to show Raydir that I was beginning to trust Darius.

I ran my fingers through his hair, closing my eyes and breathing in his scent. This felt so right, just the two of us together without a care in the world.

“I wish we could stay here forever,” I said.

“Training with Fletcher again tomorrow?”

I nodded as Raydir rolled onto his back beside me. “And with Darius too.”

“Mm hmm. You work well together.”

“Yeah.” I looked into his eyes. They were filled with an emotion I couldn’t quite place. “Why didn’t you want me to train?”

Raydir sighed. “Because I was afraid of what it might mean. Arwyn, you’re so strong and talented and determined. It just feels like one of these days, you could get hurt from that. Especially with this rogue running around.”

“I’ll be okay, I promise.” I cupped his face in my hands before leaning forward to kiss him. “This is why it’s better I train with others instead of by myself. Because you know that was the alternative.”

The corners of his mouth twitched up into a smile. “You’re right.” He kissed me. “We should get some sleep. I’ll have to wake you up in a few hours for more of that medicine that Izel gave you.”

I wrinkled my nose and pouted. “Do you have to?”

“Yes.” He tilted my chin up with his finger. “Sweet dreams, Ar.”