The Forsaken Hero

I drifted through a world of darkness for a long, long time, lost in memories, nightmares, and visions. Time held no meaning, save when I was forced to relive agonizing minutes and hours of my life, or what may very well become it.

At last, the parade of Fate drew to a close. A light broke through the darkness, soft and warm, beckoning me forward. I reached out to it, and the light enveloped me. My soul grew heavy, and my mind clouded, shackled by my still-sleeping body. The light retreated, leaving me cold and alone again.

”...can’t allow that,” R’lissea’s voice wafted through the haze. Her voice was taught and panicked, the way it was when she gripped her skirt or staff.

”We have to tell them something. It’s been a whole week!” Elise replied, equally tense. ”And the banquets tonight!”

My eyelids resisted, my body restrained to a gentle groan. Everything hurt, from the tip of my itching horns to my aching tail.

”Then we’ll have to refuse in her stead–” R’lissea began.

”Perhaps this is something she should decide for herself.” A deep, masculine voice interrupted. It was familiar, but I couldn’t quite recall the face it came from. Could it be Luke? Had he come to see if I was alright again?

My heart fluttered at the thought, and, at last, my body responded. I tilted my head, blinking bleary-eyed at the room. It was small and cozy, with a cheery fire burning in the small hearth. Stars winked at me through the window. It was open, the sheer white curtains stirring in the cool night breeze. A familiar room, yet my memories were scattered, and I couldn’t place them.

R’lissea stood over my bed, frowning at each other. Fyren leaned against the wall beside the window, watching me with no small amount of relief. And Luke? Where was he?

”Xiviyah?” R’lissea gasped as she caught my anxious gaze. ”You’re awake!”

She knelt at the bedside, slipping her hand under the sheets. I shivered as it found mine, soft and warm. Her eyebrows furrowed.

”You’re cold,” she said.

I nodded, and she glanced at Elise. The golden-haired irl nodded and snapped her fingers, soul casting a spell. A fireball appeared above her palm. The air warmed, and I took a shuddering breath.

R’lissea felt my forehead, using a spell to check my body. She shook her head.

”No wonder. You’re energy levels are next to nothing, too low to even regulate your temperature. I can’t believe you actually managed to wake up! At this rate, it should have been a few weeks.”

”Where is he?” I croaked. My throat rasped like it was filled with sand, feeling bloody and raw.

”Hmm?” R’lissea tilted her head, concentrating on another spell.

A burst of Life Magic left me breathless. My fingers curled into the sheets, and I groaned, everywhere itching at once.

The sensation vanished a moment later, leaving me panting. As I tried to raise my head, my body actually responded, feeling much lighter. Even thinking came easy, like someone had blown the fog away.

”Better?” she asked.

I nodded and, with her help, slipped my legs off the side of the bed, sitting up.

”You look pale,” Elise said.

”That’ll fix itself when she gets something to eat,” R’lissea said. ”Would you let Rivlitt know she needs something light and wet? Preferably just a bowl of broth.”

Elise nodded and left the room.

My stomach rumbled at the thought. I touched it, flushing slightly. That was when I realized I was dressed in one of my nightgowns. My eyes grew wide, and I clutched the sheets to my chest, staring at Fyren.

He tilted his head. ”Is something the matter?”

The voice resonated with the masculine voice I’d heard when I was half-asleep. My lashing tail froze, falling limp to the bed. My gaze dropped to my lap, the sheets slipping from my hands. He wasn’t here.

”Fyren, would you step out a moment?” R’lissea asked frostily.

He frowned, about to protest, but a sharp look from the Life Hero saw him out the door. She sighed and smoothed a crimson lock out of my eyes, tucking it behind my ear.

”You were looking for Luke, weren’t you?”

I bit my lip, tail rustling in the sheets. ”He’s not here.”

”I asked if he wanted to see you, but he refused,” she said. ”He didn’t want to enter Haven.”

”Haven?” My head jerked up, eyes wide. ”That’s...but how? And Fyren!”

She shrugged, smoothing another strand of hair behind my horn. Her hand lingered,, fingertips brushing the smooth, sensitive ridges. I shivered.

”You opened a portal before you fell unconscious. It pulled us all in, including Fyren. Fate thought it might have been some sort of subconscious defense reflex.”

Memories of the battle trickled back, making my head hurt. As my face scrunched up in pain, R’lissea tried to lift her hand, but I leaned into her, eyes closed. There was something soothing about stroking my horns. The sensation of someone else touching them was more...intense, but I found it comforting.

”Ah, Xiviyah, I’m sorry,” she said, moving to stroke the back of my head instead.

”Why?” I asked, blinking my eyes open again. The headache faded as everything fell into place.

”For touching your horns. I wasn’t thinking.”

I touched the base of my horn. ”Is something wrong with them?” I asked, tail flicking again.

”No, it’s not that...” For some reason, she was blushing. ”It’s just...well, Evla mentioned that a demonkin’s tail and horns are very sensitive, and touching them is a very, erm, intimate gesture.”

”Evla? When did she-” My eyes grew wide. ”Wait, it is?”

She rubbed her cheek, flushing darker. ”Y-yeah, not like, um...that. It’s more like holding hands, I think. You didn’t know?”

I shook my head, overly conscious of my tail as it curled into my lap. I gripped it tightly, not caring when it started to ache.

R’lissea coughed. ”I, uh, wasn’t sure. You always seemed protective of them, and I’ve never seen anyone touch them before.”

I nodded, biting my lip. It wasn’t that I didn’t let anyone touch them, it was just...uncomfortable. They were so sensitive that even brushing them sent titillations down my spine and caused my tail to curl. Like being touched on the neck or inner thigh.

Whenever R’lissea or Elise stroked my hair, they seemed to pick up on it and avoided touching them too much. I’d always been disappointed; I rather liked the pleasant tingle, but now I blushed at the thought.

I groaned, burying my head in my hands. R’lissea patted me on the shoulder.

”It’s fine. It’s not like you’ve ever been in a position to have the knowledge, right? I mean Luke wouldn’t–”

Luke? Her voice faded into the background. Had Luke ever touched them? My face grew darker as I recalled sitting beside him, watching the sunrise. He’d stroked my hair idly, his hand dancing tantalizingly close to my horns but never touching them. I’d thought he was just teasing me because he knew they were sensitive, but now...? He was a demonkin born and raised in Enusia. he had to know, right?

I tried to shake the thought, but it wouldn’t leave. He’d been so careful and deliberate. Was he being respectful, or was that one of the ways demonkin flirted? Maybe he didn’t like my response. Was that why he had been so cold in Blacksand?

”Ahhh, why did you have to tell me that?” I moaned, covering my horns with my hands and rocking back and forth on the bed. There was no way I’d ever look at them the same.

”Wait, are you saying Luke actually–”

”No!” I squeaked, shaking my head furiously. ”He didn’t, but I–”

What about when my tail curled against his? Was that sending him some kind of message, too? I’d felt so warm and safe with him that it hadn’t even occurred to me that it was anything but an instinctive reaction!

R’lissea giggled, wrapping me in a big hug. She nuzzled my head with her cheek. ”You’re adorable. Most girls would kill to have a guy like him fawning over them.”

”It’s not like that, he’s just...he’s not!” I said, squirming in her grip.

She didn’t respond, but somehow, that made it even worse. I wanted to explain to her that she didn’t understand Luke, that there wasn’t room in his heart for something like that, for someone like me, but a knock at the door startled us both.

”Have you finished changing? The remnant has prepared supper,” Fyren said.

I went silent, again conscious of the nature of my clothing. There hadn’t been a chance to change wardrobes since my sunpurge, when this kind of light attire was necessary. Blacksand was in ruins, but maybe we could still find something more modest. Not that I wanted anyone to watch me in bed or while I slept, but given how things always turned out...

R’lissea giggled.

”We’ll be down in a second.”

She gently pried me out of her arms and helped me to my feet. She picked my spatial ring up off the nightstand and handed it to me.

”Alright, find that white satin dress for me. We’ve got to get you ready.”

”T-the satin one?” is stammered, still crimson. ”But that’s my nicest dress.”

I gasped, flushing red again. Did she want to show me off to Luke?

”Calm down,” she said with a giggle. ”It’s the only one you have nice enough for the banquet. We were worried about what to do when the emperor requested your presence, so it’s perfect you woke up.”

Banquet? I blinked, falling in a daze as I pulled the dress out. Was that what she and Elise had been arguing about? But why did I have to go? They wouldn’t make me stand up in front of everyone, would they?

The thought sent a shudder down my spine. The number of banquets I’d been to that hadn’t ended with me humiliated and in tears was approximately one, when Tana and Sorrin got married.

”I’d...rather not,” I mumbled, hugging the dress to my chest.

R’lissea gently took it and started tugging at my night dress. ”Come on, it’s not so bad. It’s to celebrate us, after all. We saved their city.”

Before I could protest again, she had me out of it and into the satin gown. She smiled and touched my hair, carefully avoiding my horn.

”Now, turn around. It’s going to take me a second for your hair.”