They woke up to curtains being yanked open by Xylas. “I thought you guys came here to find the Ember Sea Stone, not sleep like the dead all morning.” Alyson flung a pillow in his direction, and he laughed. “You have ten minutes before I come back in here.” They heard him laugh harder once he saw both of their middle fingers in the air. Viri rolled over and looked at Alyson, who was hiding half of her face under the pillow groaning, “Please hurry up and put out so your new boyfriend can stop being such a pain in the ass.” She shoved Alyson and sat up in the bed. They both sat for a few minutes before getting up to wash their faces and get dressed in t-shirts and leggings.

When Xylas walked back in, Viri was making tea and fixing two bowls of cereal she’d found in the cabinet and Alyson was folding up the sofa bed. Xylas began to speak and Viri held up her hand for him to stop. “Please save your majestic, know-it-all bullshit until I've had some form of caffeine.” Alyson grumbled that she seconded that, and he put his hands up in defeat and went to sit on the loveseat by the sofa bed. He pulled out his phone and Alyson’s brows went up. He shrugged. “I may be an Ifrit, but I do choose to be a part of this century.” Viri asked how from the kitchen. “I have my ways.” Alyson responded, “So, they just let you come and go as you please?” Xylas glared at her a little and she gave him an innocent smile. “They don’t let me do anything. I’m an adult.”

Viri walked into the living room and handed Alyson a bowl of cereal and tea before going back to get her own and sitting on the sofa beside Alyson. “Well Mr. Adult, we’re waiting to hear about this life of yours.” Xylas sighed but he knew there was no getting out of it. “I’ve always been a rebel. At first, it started with me fighting being summoned here. Our kind are free to do as we please until we feel the summoning from an elder. Most Ifrit live solemn lives in preparation but I've always longed to be a part of the world instead. When I got here, I was so young compared to the others. I started sneaking out and no one would look for me because they figured I was just out sulking somewhere in one of these cottages. Instead, I was venturing out to see the rest of the continent and be a part of society. I even met Ifrit who’d never been summoned or were banished and led normal lives on other continents. I figured that was better than here since the Asai only ever saw us as servants. I could never stay gone for too long because the summoning bond to this temple would start as a small tug and then grow into an aggressive yanking on my soul that I couldn’t ignore. By now, most of the Ifrit here have realized that I leave the grounds, but I always come back so they don’t bother lecturing me. I hardly ever step foot into that temple, and they hardly ever come out of it, so mostly I'm alone and unbothered.”

“So, are you helping me see the jewel as another way to be defiant?” Viri asked. She knew it shouldn’t matter what his reasoning was, so long as she got to see the jewel, but she couldn’t help wanting to know. He was quiet for a while before he finally spoke. “I can sense an immense power in you, and I can’t help but feel like you’re the one that can change everything and set me free. I know you’re the only chance I’d ever get to try to leave finally so I'm not going to pass that up.” She took another bite of her cereal before answering. It was stale, but at least it wasn’t jerky and fruit. “I think you have me confused with some great being. I’m still trying to figure out who I am and what I can do. I can’t even answer those things and I just want to see how the stone reacts to me. I don’t know how any of that can help free you. I wouldn’t even know how to begin to do that.” He looked at the floor for a moment. “I can’t explain why I feel it. I just know what I sense in you, and I have to try.”

Viri’s heart ached a little at how defeated he looked. “Okay. We can table the discussion about the great mysteries of my past and future and get started on a plan to get into the temple. Do you think it will be difficult?” Xylas thought about it. “They hate outsiders and they’re so old and biased that they’d probably ignore the scent on you and blame it on trickery.” Viri sighed. As if the last few days haven’t been difficult enough. “First things first,” Xylas said while getting paper and pencil, “Let’s make a map of the temple.”

They drew and planned for hours, only stopping to make sad meals from packed food in their backpacks and things they found in the cabinets and fridge. They couldn’t agree on a plan they all felt comfortable with, so after a while, they called it quits for the night. Viri stretched and realized how stiff she was after being on the sofa for most of the day. “I need some fresh air.” Alyson groaned that she just wanted a bath and to lie down. She couldn’t blame her. Their brains were fried. Alyson kissed Viri on the cheek and headed to the bathroom, so she got up and decided to go for a walk around the marsh before it got too dark. “Do you want some company?” Xylas looked up at her expectantly. She knew she should say no, but she shrugged instead and said, “Sure.”

They were quiet for the first few minutes of the walk, listening to the various sounds of the night. The sky was so clear, and the moon was full. She decided to break the silence first to keep this from getting too awkward. “I used to look up at the stars and wish to be more than human, you know. It just seemed like such an ordinary thing to be in a world filled with magic, but now I don’t know if I'm even excited by the fact that I'm magical. Even if I don’t know what or who I am, I know that I'm afraid to step out of the reality that I've known for so long. I don’t know if I'm ready to not be human.” She didn’t plan to tell him all of that but walking under the moonlight with him so close to her and his scent hitting her just made it so easy to tell him exactly how she was feeling. He was quiet so she peeked over at him, and he was already looking at her. He stopped walking so she followed suit and asked, “Have you ever been afraid of something you’ve wanted?” He stared at her with warmth in his eyes. “I’m afraid of the possibility of leaving this place. There’s no doubt in my mind that I want to be free, but what comes after freedom? What happens when I don’t have that pull in my gut to return to this place? But my fear of never being free makes that fear seem minuscule. Ifrit are long-lived but we can still die, as can anything that claims to be immortal. What if I die without having the chance to be free?”

She didn’t have an answer for him, and she got the feeling he wasn’t looking for a response, so they began walking again in comfortable silence. She glanced at him, and he was even more handsome in the moonlight. “You know, if you wanted someone to help you figure out the whole freedom thing, I’m surprisingly good at it. Or so I've been told.” She wanted to pretend like she didn’t know why she offered it, but she knew. She knew from the moment he walked through the door that first night that there was this weird sensation in her gut pulling her towards him. She just couldn’t tell if it was fate or a large intestinal ball of stupidity. He was quiet so long that she almost took back the offer, but he finally said, “You know, I want to believe that I'm only helping you because I feel like I might not have another chance at freedom if I don’t, but I also know from the moment that I saw you; I don’t think there’s a single thing I wouldn’t do to help you.”

Stolen story; please report.

She ignored the warmth that blossomed throughout her. “But you just met me...” Xylas interrupted and said, “I know it’s crazy but it’s how I feel and maybe it’s crazy, or maybe it’s fate, but in all my years, I've never sat awake on a porch at night thinking about a woman, until last night.” She looked at him doubtfully and he laughed. “I’m no virgin, but I'm also no sucker for love either.” She smiled to herself. “I could say the same thing about myself.” He grinned devilishly at her. “How much of my little confession could you say about yourself?” She pushed him and they both laughed. “I’ll tell you if we come up with a good enough plan to get the stone and get you freed because I refuse to keep spilling my heart out to someone I have to visit at a temple once a month like a grandparent in an elderly home.” His laugh made the hairs on her arm stand up and her temperature rose as he rubbed his knuckle against the back of her hand.

She needed to speak or else she’d wander around aimlessly just breathing him in. She settled for asking what Anzel was like. He looked over at her questioningly. She sighed. “If he is my father, I’d like to know what he’s like.” Xylas looked almost sad. “I don’t know, honestly. I’ve never met him as the other Ifrit have. I imagine he’s a stand-up guy because the Ifrit at the temple love him so much and after traveling around, I can’t say the same for what I've heard about how the Ifrit feel about some of the other Asai at their temples. I’ve heard stories of his kindness and his strength, and it all sounds as majestic as you’d expect a story about an Asai to sound.” She heard this disdain in his voice.

“You don’t like Anzel, do you?” He rubbed his fingers through his hair, and she wished she’d done it instead. She gave herself a mental slap to snap out of it. “I don’t particularly feel anything towards him, but I definitely don’t like being chained to a god that can’t even deign to pay a visit.” He looked so irritated that it made him look almost human. Gorgeous, but human. Enough so that she couldn’t fight the urge to reach out and hold his hand. He didn’t pull away and she marveled at the reds and golds wrapping around his skin. He felt warm – like sitting out by a pool on a sunny day.

They walked together for a little longer and then he was suddenly standing in front of her. She caught herself before she ran into him and just stared up at him. He brushed a loose curl behind her ear and her breath hitched at the sensation. She knew he’d heard it because a small smile played on his lips. He began to lean in closer to her and her stupid heart started pounding like she was some teenager having her first kiss. She couldn’t help but pull away and he looked hurt for a split second, but immediately regained his composure. She realized then that she was about to become some stupid love story cliché that made her throw her romance novels across the room. She started fumbling for words to explain and salvage the moment because that quick flash of hurt across his face made her heart hurt, but she couldn’t get any words out and he was about to step away from her, so she grabbed his hands and took a deep breath. Damn it all to hell. She wouldn’t become one of those sad little women who couldn’t express their feelings just to drag out a love story. So, she squared her shoulders, stood on her tiptoes, and kissed him.

She couldn’t tell how long the kiss was, but she knew it was unlike any kiss she’d ever had before. It felt like the sun was setting on her. She felt empowered and intoxicated. She felt so warm, and it wasn’t until he pulled away that she finally opened her eyes and realized they were both on fire, but it wasn’t because of him. She’d gotten so lost in the kiss that her magic came alive. Plumes of red and gold were all over her and she could only marvel at it. She didn’t burn away her clothes. It wasn’t a harmful fire. It was just existing all around her. When she looked up at Xylas, he was looking back at her with such awe. He grabbed her and began kissing her with so much force that they fell back into the marsh. They both laughed so loud that birds flew from the trees around them.

When they finally calmed down, he stood up and held out his hand for her. She took it and stood up chuckling, as they dusted wet leaves and dirt off them. He tipped her chin up with his finger. “We should get back to Alyson because if we stay here any longer, this will lead to more than kissing and I'd like the first time with you to not be while halfway submerged in dirty swamp water.”

She felt heat rising in her, but she’d cooled off her magic, so she knew that wasn’t where it was coming from, and she knew Xylas felt the same by the way he looked at her. She shook herself. “You’re right. Let’s go back to the cottage.” They walked in silence, holding hands for the rest of the way. Did she have a boyfriend now? Would he call this dating? She’d wait until they got away from this place to figure out what they were to each other, but she knew after tonight that she wouldn’t walk away from this place without him. He made her feel like she could finally understand everyone pushing her to find love. If this was the build-up to it, then she could only imagine how incredible it felt to be fully loved and they were going to have that with each other for the first time. She couldn’t believe what she was becoming. She left home as a confused human who was very against the dating world and was now walking through a marsh as a possible Asai holding hands with someone she wanted to make a life with. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. She chuckled to herself, and he looked down at her. She just waved him off.

They walked into the cottage and Alyson took one look at them all muddied up and saw Viri’s disheveled hair and smirked. “At least some of us are getting some action.” She tossed her phone across the sofa. “I can’t even get a text message because I've practically been off the grid for several days now thanks to you, Viri. I haven’t spoken to my fiancé since the hotel, and that was only for two minutes thanks to me dying from a veggie burger that you also ordered Viri.” Viri tossed a pillow at her, and Alyson laughed. “You two need to bathe because you look like something out of a nightmare.” Viri flicked her off and Xylas just laughed as she wiggled her brows at them. “You know, you could just shower together to conserve water.” Viri glared at Alyson, who gave her a feline smile in return and went back to scribbling notes on paper. She asked her what she was writing notes about. “I’ve been planning, and I'll share my plans with you both when you don’t look like large muddy imps.” She rolled her eyes at Alyson and Xylas bowed to her and remarked about ladies going first. She rolled her eyes at him as well and picked up everything she needed to shower and headed to the bathroom.

She washed her hair and showered, but all she could do was replay the kiss in her head. She never really expected to have love in her life. Her mother didn’t seem to, or if she had, she never mentioned it. She’d just planned on being the cool aunt to Alyson’s future kids. It was crazy to even be thinking about loving a guy she just met in the shower. She imagined telling her mother about him when they got back to the city and she knew her mom would be surprised and excited for her, especially since that meant she’d calm down now. That string of thoughts immediately turned sour because she remembered that wouldn’t be the first conversation she’d have to have with her mom when she returned and thinking about the more pressing issue was ruining her shower. She’d also have to decide how to live life in the city as a magical being. Would she tell people? Or continue pretending to be human. It’s not like she was just some run-of-the-mill magical creature. She belonged to a god race, which in turn meant, she was a god. She wanted to be powerful, of course, but she wasn’t ready to be a god to people and she had zero plans of doing so. There was also still a one percent chance that she wasn’t even an Asai so this whole shower freakout was unnecessary. She needed to get out of her head and the quickest way to do that was to go back into the living room.