Approximately six months before Miza’s Rising

POV Valon

“Why does she always do this?” I think angrily.

I push myself to pick up pace despite the burning in my lungs as I breathe in the smells of damp soil and decomposing wood. I’ve been running for so long, but she’s still so far.

I smack the low-hanging branches and leaves out of my way as I run through the Verdant Forest from the Temple Compound, ducking under tree limbs growing close to the forest floor. I am heading deeper into the darkening depths towards the Tinere De Lea, where I know my girl is hiding out. Very few people outside of the temple even remember that this place exists.

“Miza, why couldn’t you hide in our apartment in the Palace or just go back to the Academy?” I think fighting the exhaustion.

Our little family, Miza, Justin, Don, and I, was first drawn to this place when Miza was five years old. She was probably drawn to the Great Mother's ancient den before then, but that was when she first started getting a taste of freedom when we moved her from her nursery to our apartment in the Verdant Palace. One shift change: Donte was in the offices working on her request to revamp the orphanages, and I was in my warrior exams; suddenly, the palace staff was in an uproar because the youngest daughter of the Imperial family was gone. Their beloved princess, who was a curly-headed ball of energy and joy, was nowhere to be found.

I listened to my feet as I ran to her, hearing the rhythmic pounding like drums, the blood pumping through my body. I wiped my forearm across my brow to help keep the sweat from burning my eyes. Along with the hammering of my heart, I could feel the thrumming of the ever-persistent bond driving me to Mizarmonie. It was the bond between the Goddess Leana and the God Liero that told me exactly where she was. When I arrived at the temple for our scheduled meeting to discuss our upcoming marriage ceremony, she wasn’t there waiting with the High Priest. I should’ve known she wouldn’t be. I duck under the trunk of a fallen tree, leaning precariously in my path, stumbling as I hit my knee, but I don’t stop. I can feel her anguish.

Donte and I explained to Miza shortly after he discovered that I was Liero reincarnated, who she really was. She took it better than I thought, but Miza was devastated about what it would mean for her future. Miza was eleven then and was convinced that she wanted to go to a high school in the United States of America, where her human mother was born. Miza had studied the history of our culture with far more diligence than any other royal who had lived for a long time. She read the temple documents and legal decrees thoroughly, so she knew what being the Goddess Incarnate meant in the eyes of the Imperial House Council, and she was terrified. There were tears and anger when she realized I always knew what our future would hold, but she understood that I was her Liero. She then understood why I never insisted that my parent's death absolve me of the agreement they made, even though I doubt the emperor would have listened if I had petitioned him to end our engagement.

Miza wanted a childhood.

The Imperial House Council had been very adamant that the contract marriage between my duchy and the royal house needed to be completed. They were always afraid that I would stop being a stupid boy and try to use the courts to release me from the contract. But the Council didn’t just want it to be completed. They wanted an heir. So, while I am older and far more prepared, despite my apprehensions, Miza was nowhere near ready. While I have not remembered large chunks of the millennia of my existence, I have always been all too aware that we are mates and forced myself to live with it, but there is no reason to force my mate’s current host to engage in something she isn’t ready for. I hate that I don’t know how to make the Council leave her be. With Miza’s thirteenth birthday approaching, we were running out of ways to stall because, legally, she would be an adult as a royal.

The IHC’s pressure was so bad that shortly before she turned 10, we started being more private about any affection we displayed. They tried to use it against us. The bastards tried to use our platonic bond that had grown because I had been there since the day she was born. I was just 20, and she was 10, and they had convinced themselves that our closeness was proof enough that the marriage should happen early. Of course, we are close. Outside of the doctor’s, I was the first person who held her, fed her, changed her, and interacted with her until her father assigned Donte to care for her.

The nursery staff was all afraid of the king’s wrath after hearing the circumstances of her birth. I shudder to think what would have befallen her those first three days if my mother and I had not immediately packed up and come when we received notice that a royal daughter was born and our contract was now in effect. We were shocked, but I loved her the moment I saw her lying alone in her little bassinet in the medical wing. That love is the reason that I have no qualms about marrying her whenever she is ready. Miza is my mate, regardless. I love her and care for her no matter what, but pushing her to get married or have children before she is ready, though, is out of the question. I’ll do everything I can to keep the sweet girl that she has grown to be as safe as possible. So here I am, running miles through the Verdant Forest because the little miss didn’t show up.

I can just see the grove of trees that form a natural gateway through the shrubbery and leaves. The closer I get, I can feel the faint pressure of Miza’s emotions getting stronger. It's chaotic. There is an acrid sense of fear. I push harder. How long had she been gone while I was out before this meeting? I’m going to throttle Donte. Cell Phones don’t work outside of the Palace in our realm, but our little family each has a call stone that we have imbued with the ability to send short messages. Miza disappearing would definitely be a good reason unless he didn’t know. I shake my head in frustration. I love that man, but Miza should always be our priority, so I can’t stop the anger I feel.

I am now running through the entrance of the Tinere de Lea. I skidded to a halt, scanning the area for her. The lake itself is large, but we generally stick to the cave system that the Primi Consortiu called home. I spot her sitting on the rocks under the small tiered waterfall. Goddess, this girl. It's the dead of winter here. I know it doesn’t get that cold, but the temperature is definitely too low for this. I quickly remove my shoes, pants, and shirt before running into the water.

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I run through the shallows and then dive, ignoring its frigid temperature as I push under the clear waters until I emerge close to where she sat. I feel the water as I swim through it, creating waves that lap at the stones. The water itself cools me after my long run. Thank the Mother for my warrior training. I reach my destination and haul my body out of the water into the cool winter air, slowly making my way to her over the slippery stone surface.

“Miza?” I call her name. “Babygirl, why are you out here alone in the cold? You may be a reincarnated goddess, but you can still get sick.” I question trying to add some humor to the situation.

She doesn’t respond to me. Miza just sits staring as if she doesn’t see me. I kneel before her, taking in her body language and appearance. She is still in her day clothes, not even dressed to go to the temple. Her eyes are red, so she must have been crying for a while just sitting there under the water. I groan in frustration. Where was Justin, or even her twin? The twins were often together, but then again, I doubt Mavrick would tell us anything she didn’t want us to know. I raise my hand to cup her cheek and give her a gentle shake, bracing myself.

“Miza?” I say softly.

Miza shakes her head, blinking her eyes as she comes back to herself. There she is. Miza shivers against my hand. I watch as her glossy eyes focus on me and fill with tears. The salty liquid tips over the edge, trailing down her blotchy cheeks. Miza's face crumples as a jagged sob wracks her little body.

“Fuck.”

I feel a pang in my chest as I watch my love experience anguish. Liero has tried to help me with the limited access we have to each other through our spiritual connection, but as far as I can tell, Leana and Miza have not connected. She is struggling through this alone.

Sitting in front of her, I pull her out of the direct flow of the waterfall and into my lap, wrapping my arms around her tightly as she continues to sob into my chest. Fuck them for this. I hate them so much. I hate her father. I hate our government. Damn it all. I might even hate myself at this point for not being able to fix this for her. I rub soothing circles on her back. I am so angry at everything and everyone. I love her so much, but all of this is just making her life so much more challenging.

She’s just a child, and she has such heavy burdens.

“Mizarmonie, Sweet,” I gently coo as I try to soothe her raging emotions. “ I need you to listen to me.”

I tell her as I place both of my hands on her cheeks, tucking my thumbs under her chin as I tip her face. I looked into her beautiful golden-brown eyes and forced her to hold my gaze. Leana’s eyes.

“I love you, Miza. I always have. I always will. But we will never marry unless that is what you want. I don’t know what we are going to do yet, but I will not let your father or Council taint the love that we have for each other. We have resources, so if we have to, we will leave Lestania, and when you are ready, we can come home.”

I watched the tears track, pooling around my fingertips. I could feel the faint traces of Miza’s anxiety. Her throat worked as if she were trying to get herself to talk. I waited in silence until she slowly closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and opened them with a renewed purpose. She nodded softly and then spoke.

“Relationships are weird,” She whispered, looking down as her hands began to fidget with the hairs on my chest. “We are all interconnected. You, me, Donnie, and Justin. The way some of the ladies of court discuss being with someone is stressful. They keep telling me that I should be used to the idea of sex and that they are surprised that I am bothered by the idea. I guess they thought you and Donnie would have focused on making sure I was ready since you’ve been here my whole life.” She stopped fidgeting and looked up at me.

Yea, no. We let the palace doctor give her the sex education talk when she got her menstrual cycle earlier this year, but sex talks are not relevant in our lives. I hate that people are making her feel that she needs to be concerned with this.

“You don’t really care if we get married after my Rising or when I am done exploring the human world, do you?” Miza looked at me for reassurance.

I shook my head. Although I had accepted my duty when I came to the palace, Miza herself would always be worth fighting for. I had loved her in many ways over these last ten years, and I would continue to love her more as we grew older.

“I was doing research,” Miza said. “Even in the human realm, they can’t seem to figure out when it is appropriate to marry people off, but some places have laws like the one that my mother tried to implement here. I want to go where Mom was before Father found her and showed her our world. She didn’t want that for me. She wanted me to have a life. Choosing an age based on puberty is so weird, V.”

She was shivering again, so I pulled her in close and began alternating, rubbing her arms and legs to try to warm her.

“Are you ready to go back? I don’t want you to get sick.” I asked her, and she nodded. We stood and stretched as we prepared to swim back to shore. Right before I plunged into the water, Miza stopped me, looking up with wide eyes.

“Val, you promise you won’t let them make us get married before I am ready?” she asked nervously.

I turned to her and smiled reassuringly.

“Until you are ready, we are just the bestest friends, and I am your loyal guard to any who asks.” I hugged her close and then rubbed our noses together. “I don’t know much about relationships either, Miza, but I do know that they are between people, not institutions, and people should only do what they feel they are ready for in any relationship. I like how we are now.” I replied firmly. She nodded shakily.

“Ok,” she said before jumping into the water and swimming off.

Nothing about the little family we created was standard for the royal family or Lestanian society as it was now, but our family was ours. I will be damned if I let any mortal hurt my love. We have shared so many millennia and lifetimes together. This one would be no different.

I will protect my mate for all of our existence.