Page 37 of Kissing Potions and Elves
“I have a surprise.” He smiles, completely unfazed as he holds out his hand. He’s dressed in only his soft knit pants and sleep robe, so I assume at least some of Tressa’s magic is still lingering in his system. “Come. I want to show you something.”
I know I should probably encourage him to go back to bed, but I’m curious to know what it is, so I slip my palm into his.
He smiles. “Now, close your eyes.”
I do as he instructs and he carefully leads me downstairs and out the door into the back gardens.
“Okay,” he says. “You can open them again.”
When I do, I find a thick blanket spread across the grass, along with a few pillows and another comforter folded on top. Butterflies take flight in my chest. “Lyrion… what is all of this?”
“It’s a clear and beautiful night.” He gestures animatedly to the sky. “I thought we could look at the stars.”
To my surprise, he lies down on the blanket and pats the empty space beside him. Unable to deny his invitation, I lie beside him under the glittering night sky. My heart hammers as he scoots closer. So close I can smell the warm mint of his breath as he whispers in my ear. “From here”—he points above us—“you can see the Fox and the Hunter.”
I follow where he’s pointing, but I’m not sure I know what he’s talking about. “I… never learned the constellations or their proper names,” I admit, shame filling me at how uneducated I must seem to him.
He moves even closer, his face nearly touching mine. Gently, he takes my hand and extends my arm, pointing toward a cluster of stars. “Right there,” he whispers. “That’s the Hunter, and that’s his bow.”
“Oh.” A smile lights my face. “I can see it now.”
“Have you ever heard the story of the Celestial Warrior and the Huntress?” When I shake my head, he lifts our joined hands, tracing another shape against the velvet darkness, his voice low and gentle.“Do you see those bright stars there? It looks like a man holding a sword.”
I nod.
“That’s Vaelar, the Celestial Warrior.”
Still holding my hand, he moves my arm as he traces another sparkling cluster. “And there, just opposite him, is Calia, the Huntress. See her bow drawn tight, aimed at the endless sky?”
“Yes.” I squint, studying the patterns. “Who were they?”
“Vaelar was a warrior prince, born of noble blood, destined to rule his kingdom. Calia was a huntress from the wild forests, fierce and free.
“They met one night beneath the silver moon, drawn together by fate. But they belonged to different worlds and agreed they could never be together, that their love was impossible.”
I’m captivated by their story. “So what happened?”
Lyrion turns his gaze toward me, violet eyes filled with warmth. “They fell in love anyway. Despite everything that should have kept them apart, they chose each other. Their bond was so strong that even the gods took notice. And when they passed from this world, the gods, moved by their devotion, placed them side by side in the night sky, forever together.”
“That’s beautiful,” I whisper.
Errol saunters over to us and flops down onto the blanket.
Lyrion laughs softly, and I assume he must be communicating with my cat as he reaches out and strokes under his furry chin.
“What’s he saying?” I ask.
“He wants to know if there are any constellations named after a cat, but I told him there are not.”
I gaze up at the sky and then point to a cluster that looks almost like the outline of a cat’s face, complete with triangle ears. “What about that one?” I gesture to it.
“You’re right.” Lyrion’s face splits in a wide grin. “We shall name it Errol.”
I laugh, my heart full of warmth, while Errol purrs nearby, clearly pleased.
Lyrion continues to point out various constellations to me, and I listen, mesmerized as he tells me the stories behind each one.
After a while, my eyelids begin to grow heavy, and I struggle to keep them open. I glance down and see Errol is curled into a tight ball near our feet, already asleep.
