Page 2 of Tik-Tok

Fulfill his life’s work.

A devious grin spread across his face.

Chapter Two

North

Tonight was the night. North was going to confess her love to Birch. Then kiss him anywhere and everywhere. Be it her room, his room, the grass, the water, wherever he wanted.

Birch.

She’d been in love with him for as long as she could remember. His short blond curls, his dark orange eyes, his muscular body, his skills with a bow… But it wasn’t just how he looked. He was gentle, kind, strong, and valiant. He waseverything.

Birch was there when her father—Tin—was too strict, when her mother—Thelia—was too demanding. He’d brought her wildflowers when she’d felt lonely, sad, or just because. There were nights when Father and Mother were sleeping so deeply that she would sneak out of her room to watch him get in extra practice with his bow. Then, after, her body was always so wound up with wanting his kisses, his hands stroking her bare flesh, him inside her, that she would seek release from her own fingers. For years, she’d known he would only see her as a youngling, but she wasn’t anymore. North was twenty now. She wasn’t as shapely and alluring as her mother or grandmother, but she hoped he was able to seeher.

In personality, North wanted to be more like her grandmother—Reva. Bold. Daring. But she wasn’t as powerful as Reva or Thelia. She was without magic, while everyone else in her family could bring the Land of Oz to its knees if they chose.

Thelia could tear the world apart, Tin was able to open portals and wield an axe better than anyone, Reva created storms, and Crow—her grandfather—had magic that allowed him to shift into a bird. While she had nothing…

Outside her window, the night had already swallowed the world—it was time. Birch would be where he always was when they visited her grandparents in the North: behind the palace, practicing his archery near the stables. North had already told her family she was tired and would retire for the night, while Thelia and Reva played a game of cards, with Crow occasionally joining in, as her father watched. Tin and Crow rarely spoke to each other unless they had to, but they tolerated one another in the same room. An improvement from her youth when they’d constantly instigated arguments.

North wiggled into a simple yellow dress with pearl buttons lining the front. She ran her hands through her silver wavy hair.

Quietly, she tied the corner of her sheet to the bed post, then knotted a few more together before carrying them to the window. She pushed up the glass and let the sheets spill over the side. Giving it a sharp tug to make sure the fabric was sturdy enough, North grabbed onto the cloth and shimmied down the side of the palace. Green vines speckled with blue and white flowers covered the Northern palace walls. A cold wind blew fiercely, disheveling her hair as tiny snowflakes swirled around her. The cold didn’t affect her though, not as it would a human’s sensitive flesh.

Once her feet hit the ground, North craned her neck to search the garden. Trees with ivory blossoms and pale azure leaves enveloped the area—icicles caught the moonlight where they hung across the curved branches. Snowdrop flowers cloaked almost every inch of the landscape at the palace, aside from the winding paths leading to the entrances. Stars painted the sky around a sliver of moon, giving off a bright yellowish radiance.

In the distance, faeries sang a slow, melodic song. A blue glow flickered from small snow bugs as they danced above the faeries. North inched to the side of the palace and peered around to the back where two guards chatted with one another.

“Gods,” she muttered under her breath, knowing if the guards found her, they would report her to her grandparents right away.

North hesitated, deciding to go the longer route, but then a faerie with iridescent wings hovered above her, seeming to notice her predicament. Holding her breath, North motioned her head at the guards. The faerie gave her a beaming smile and darted forward, spewing an elaborate question. As soon as the guards’ attention fell on the faerie and her inquiry, North hurried past them on light feet to a cluster of trees, then straight for her grandmother’s stables.

She trekked across the hard ground, wearing her warmest boots, and skirted around the icy trunks. In the distance, she caught a glimpse of soft light spilling over the field.

North sidled up to the dark building, its obsidian bricks glistening from the glow. The light coming from the field turned out to be dozens of lit candles, forming a circle, with two lanterns in its center. The flames highlighted Birch’s golden hair, the deer-like antlers at his forehead, his tight tunic and pants. Was this for her? Did he somehow know she was coming to confess to him how she felt?

“Birch?” North called, taking a few steps forward.

He whirled around, his eyes wide. “North?” he said. “You shouldn’t be out here.”

Shouldn’t be out here? Her stomach sank as realization struck her. “This isn’t for me…” She should have known—he’d never treated her as more than a sister.

“For you? It’s for Gemma.” He paused, moving toward her. “I’m planning to ask her to marry me tonight.”

Her cousin. Not North. Hercousin.

She hadn’t even known that he and Gemma were more than friends. Hurt bubbled inside North, laced with anger. She turned, sprinting back toward the palace. But she wasn’t fast enough. Birch gripped her elbow, halting her. Her back struck his chest, and she couldn’t stop the butterflies from storming through her, even though he was going to propose to her cousin. North had always looked up to Gemma, and she could see why he would want to marry her, but that didn’t make it any better.

“What are you doing?” Birch asked, the first to pull away. Otherwise, she would have stayed pressed up against him for all eternity.

North looked around for her cousin, but she wasn’t there yet. Gemma probably knew about her infatuation. Both Reva and Thelia could tell, but North had always denied it.

“You’re asking her to marry you?” North whispered.

Birch bit his lip. “Yes.”

“Why?” She could have said anything else, but apparently, she was one to relish in humiliation.

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