Page 137 of Of Realms and Chaos

Dipping me at the close of the song and flashing a look of thanks, Cyprus reminded me of one final version of family. The one thing that made it complete.

Bellamy.

“Thank you, for everything. I love you, gorgeous.” Cyprus’s words paired with the wink of a brown eye left me giggling. Bowing, he made to leave, his direction indicating that the party would be over if he did not get some liquor in his system. Suddenly in urgent need of that dangerous honesty, I called out to him.

“Cyprus!” At my shout, he stopped, looking at me over his shoulder. Trying and failing to stop my emotions from getting the better of me, I breathed out every fear of rejection and stupidity, opening up my soul for the hurt in favor of the chance at joy.

I love you, too, little whisp. Thank you for showing me what it is to trust and love—for being my family.

His cheeks darkened, the smile he flashed a dazzling show of white teeth as he nodded and stalked off. Noe found me not long after, standing off to the side and smiling to myself as I watched the celebration grow. She was wearing a soft pink band around her breasts and a low-sitting, loose skirt that matched. Brown sandals graced her feet, similar to the red ones that I wore, though mine wrapped all the way up to my thigh. Like me, she wore a vibrant red lip and kohl on her eyes. Diamonds adorned her ears, neck, wrists, and waist, all strung on silver chains. She had let her long golden brown hair hang down her back, looking like a tamed waterfall. As always, she was stunning.

“Why are you alone? This party is for you!” She shouted the last words as the music grew louder, a flamboyant tune that made my chest flutter. It was beautiful, just as everything about this night was. I looked to her, watching her face as she fluffed my curls, enjoying the way they had all grown so comfortable with me. Enjoying the fact that I was no longer feared by them.

“No, we are celebrating Star Festival. I just thought today would be a nice one to pick since it already held something special. I read about it in—”

A loud crash cut off my sentence, and we watched in horror as a mortal boy tried and failed to get up after falling backwards in his chair and bringing down a tray full of wine, the shadows once carrying it dissipating. Running over to him, I quickly leaned down and helped to shoulder his weight. He sighed, smiling over at me momentarily before his eyes flew open in surprise.

His grip on me was hot and sweaty, slipping down my arms as I held him aloft. He began mumbling in what sounded like the dialect of Behman, whatever he was saying clearly meant to be a plea of sorts. Unable to hold back my laughs, I gripped the boy tighter and hauled him to a nearby wooden chair beside one of the many extravagant spreads of dishes. He slumped back, eyes wide and full of what could only be described as horror.

“Let me get you some water and something to eat. Bread will soak up all that wine, and I am a firm believer that carbs can heal any wound.”

For a moment, he merely stared at me, his black hair stuck to his tan face with sweat and his blue eyes darting between my own. When he finally nodded in resignation, I tried to give a comforting smile and gently tapped his shoulder with the tips of my fingers. Then I was off, searching the entirety of the decorated training yard to concoct the most epic of all dessert spreads. If the pastries did not soak up the alcohol, then at least it would not taste too foul when he vomited it back up.

Lian found me as I was piling a third scone onto the plate, tsking her disapproval. I peeked at her from the corner of my eye, stopping with my hand outstretched and whipping my head towards her in stunned amazement.

Lian had always been one of the most beautiful females I had ever seen. There was something about the blue of her hair in contrast to her dark, upturned eyes. Or maybe it was the way her flowing purple dress atop her defined and heavily honed physique made her sharper, a beauty as lethal as nightshade. Yes, that was what Lian was, a dangerous and stunning bit of nature.

“Serving food to another male? How scandalous.” There was a moment where I remained stone faced, but that was quickly ruined when she leaned in and whispered, “Which of his heads do you think Bell will cut off first?”

My laugh was a combination of surprised choking and genuine amusement, which left Lian smiling far too broadly when paired with those mischievous eyes. I offered her the plate, gesturing for the boy whose head had fallen forward onto the table. Scoffing, she lifted her nose and made her way to him. From a distance, I could just make out the drool that was escaping his mouth. Poor thing. He was in for a horrible day tomorrow, and based on Lian’s wicked glee that jostled my mental gates, I had a feeling she would make sure of that.

“You know, I probably would have just frozen off his cock. Nothing crazy.” His voice was a caress at my back, a pair of warm lips grazing the jagged tip of my ear.

I shivered at the touch, but his words left me rolling my eyes as I turned my head to bring our lips mere inches apart. “Dramatic. Even for you, demon.”

He scoffed, pinching my hip slightly and forcing a yelp free of my mouth. As if I had played right into his hands, he smirked before dipping his face and connecting our lips. Because I was a brat to my core, I reached down and pinched his already erect member through his trousers, earning a returning cry.

He backed up, mouth agape and eyebrows raised as he looked at me, the offense on his face so clear that I could do nothing but giggle and take him in. He wore a silky black top, the center split down to his navel and embroidered with red gems. His toned stomach showed every ounce of extra training he had done in my absence, the muscles flexing as he leaned back against the table. A red chain hung down his exposed skin, just like my back. Though his connected the top two corners of his shirt, the weight of them pulling the fabric further apart rather than securing them in place. He had on plain black trousers, his boots matching. Under his eyes—which practically glowed like a pool of stagnant water beneath the shine of the moon—was a thin line of kohl, his gloriously full lips slightly red from our stolen kisses. Freckles dotted his cheeks and nose, like my own personal constellation.

But it was that hair, the forever-disheveled waves that caught and held my attention. He ran a hand through it absentmindedly, looking slightly stressed if his frantic gaze and fidgety hands were any sign.

“Are you okay?” I asked, unable to ignore the behavior.

He pulled me into him, holding the back of my head with one hand as he scanned the area. I knew exactly when he found what he was looking for, because his body relaxed against mine. Before I could make any jokes about his lack of interest in me, he leaned down, delivered me one more bruising kiss, and then spun me around. Henry was heading our way, carrying what looked like a small circular cake on a ceramic plate. The edges were red, a line of white cutting it in half horizontally. Cream-colored icing seemed to drip down from the edges, and I noted a group of colorful sticks poking up from the top.

Bellamy’s Trusted quickly found their positions around me as Henry approached, holding out the plate to me. Wrath and Farai also made their way over, their smiling faces bringing me more joy than I could possibly express. I looked down, noting that they had somehow written words onto the frosting.

“Happy Birthday Asher!” was written in black, the phrase so new yet so comforting. It was stupid to celebrate, but I still could not help the way my chest ached, birds taking flight in my stomach. After all this time, I could still feel Mia and Xavier within me, like a foreboding and heavy darkness that drenched my soul in constant gloom and torture.

But as Bellamy reached around my shoulder with a small black flame at the tip of his finger, lighting what I could now see were tiny candles, I felt that blackened fire somehow bathe my soul in light. I watched as the darkness fought and lost to its twin, the flames just as all-encompassing and bleak but also full of a love I had never felt in my life.

With almost all of my family around me, I smiled and forced back the tears that threatened to spill. Bellamy let his lips meet my cheek before he spoke into my ear.

“Make a wish, Princess.”

What did one wish for when they had already been blessed with so many gifts?

Chapter Forty-Four

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