Page 15 of Wicked Prince of Curses
I slowly lowered to the ground, forgetting Tharic completely as a wide grin stretched across my face. I looked up into aged—but beautiful and familiar—deep purple eyes. I nearly fell to my knees.
“Granmanmi.”
Her eyes twinkled, as her beautiful smile filled every broken piece in my exhausted hearts.
“Hello, granfifi.”
Chapter 8
Ifroze, instantly recognizing my error. We were not back home in Port Emprarèl—the capital of the Ouanaviel Island—the epicenter of the Ouanaviel Empyrean.
We were in Temple Efysis. Home to the Profèt, the High Farasee, and the elite of the Farasee Order. She wasn’t my Granmanmi here.
“Forgive me, Farasee,” I said, composing myself.
I quickly lowered into a respectful bow, curling my wings over my bent form. It was an act of respect to bow to our Farasees. Especially those with a known reputation throughout the empyrean.
“Farasee Asarah,” I said, still bowed. “Wings high and good dawn.”
The temple auditorium had fallen deathly quiet. You could hear a feather drop. Granmanmi Asarah was no ordinary female of the Order.
She was the only female Farasee who faced a Fallen Shadowlord head on. And won.
Not only had she killed the fallen angel, and took out a quarter of his legion by herself, she also used his decrepit carcass in a ritual that instilled protection of Temple Efysis againstFallen invasion. The empyrean had come to know the ritual as Blood Rites.
To every angel in this room, she was a living legend. And now they were looking at her up close, and would do anything to win her favor.
But tome…
She was the one who brushed my hair when I was a youngling, with gentleness and patience, wrangling out stubborn coils with makristi oil. She was the one who taught me how to recite the Davithien hymns. How to cultivate a deep love for the Infinite at such an early age. She fed me mangogos on her knees and snuck me fetafa—slabs of gooey cheese melted and mixed with honey—while Manmi and Papi weren’t watching. She was more than a second Manmi to me.
She was home.
“Granfifi.”
I lifted my head. Looked into her mauve eyes. There was a weight of love, a world of peace, an overwhelming sense of home I felt in that singular statement. I nearly sobbed.
Granmanmi’s eyes filled with pride. With joy.
She threw her arms open wide. Without a word I shot to my feet and threw myself into her arms, squeezing her tight.
“Granfifi,” she murmured into my hair. “I amso proudof you. Well done, my child.”
She embraced me like it was my tenth cycle all over again. For my riseday celebration, she’d made me my favorite cake from scratch. The gooey dessert was stuffed with chocolate, caramel, and toffee in multiple layers. A rare treat since Manmi kept me on a strict diet. But Granmanmi had made me the cake anyway and dared my parentlings to keep me from eating it. Granmanmi wrapped her wings around me now, tucking me close to her chest as she breathed me in.
“I always knew you would Ascend. Only the Infinite knows how long I have awaited this dawn. This season,” she cooed, breathing softly in my ear.
I tipped my head into her shoulder, burying my face in her neck, and silently cried. I didn’t care if the Ascendants looked on. I hadn’t laid eyes on Granmanmi incycles. Holding onto her now was a gift.
“My Safah,” she cooed. “How your Papi has tried to keep you from me.” She chuckled. “I always told him he couldn’t. Now that you are under the covering of this temple, ofme, no one can come between us.”
“Just like old times?” I giggled, looking up at her.
Her eyes twinkled like the stars. It was like staring into the universe and finding your place in the wildness of the realms.
“Just like old times,” she whispered, as if she was sharing a secret.
I grinned, clinging to my Granmanmi. It was like listening to a lullaby on a moody twinight while it rained outside. Like when Evanae—my little sister—and I would sit on the veranda and watch the rain droplets kiss the surface of the Ouanaviel Sea as Granmanmi would sit in the rocking chair and hum. She would create light shows for us with her ability to summon the stars.
