Inky and Midnight were once again waiting for us when we finally emerged from our sex afternoon. It had been one of the best afternoons of my life because there had been no stress in the back of my mind. We got to screw our way around the lair, without worrying the world would end while we did.
“What do we do now?” I asked as we strolled through the Library of Knowledge.
He looked down at me. “What do you mean?”
I shrugged. “Like, day to day, year to year, century to century. How do immortal creatures prevent boredom?”
His lips twitched. “Lots of sex. It’s really the only cure.”
A snort of laughter escaped me. “We should run with that theory and never look back. But seriously, outside of the sex, what else will we do?”
Shadow took my hand, and we were back to being couple goals as we strolled through the shelves. “We’ll always be busy with the Solaris System and our friends,” he warned me. “It’ll take me many years to restore the balance in Shadow Realm, and you have the Nexus and your creatures to watch over.”
Yeah, that was true. “Our friends often have dramas?” I hadn’t missed that not-so-subtle warning.
“Like you wouldn’t believe,” he said with a short laugh. “On a smaller scale than my mother, but there’s always something. Each of them is powerful and important in their world, and with that comes a ton of drama.”
I thought about it for a moment before shrugging. “Is it weird that I’m excited to see what will arise? It’s weird, isn’t it?”
I was no longer afraid of the future or the next big bad. I was certain that together, nothing would be a real threat to us.
“You’re brave and loyal, Mera,” Shadow told me. “You don’t fear for your safety and you will always help out a friend. Your excitement makes sense, but it terrifies me.”
I scoffed. “You’re not terrified of anything, Shadow Beast.”
He stopped me suddenly, wrapping his arms around me as he held on with a desperation he rarely showed in public. “I almost lost you. The way that felt, the choices I made… The world would not survive it again. I would not survive it.”
I held on with everything I had, holding his broken pieces together. “This helps,” he whispered into my hair. “It really helps.”
“Then I will hold you forever,” I declared.
I felt the brush of his lips against my neck and then he lifted himself up. “Are you okay?” I asked him seriously. “I mean, really okay? With Dannie and everything that happened. I’m sorry about your mom, Shadow.”
He took a moment to answer, like he wasn’t quite sure. “I will be okay, if that makes sense. It’s just going to take time and having you at my side is all I ever wanted. A true mate.”
“I didn’t even know I could ask for something as amazing as this,” I said, serious for once. “You are a gift that came from nowhere, with your grumbling, growling, snarling, asshole of a personality. Not to mention one huge dick. Like, that is such a bonus—”
It was at this point, laughter spluttered from between my lips as Shadow shook his head, his expression amused and exasperated. “Ah, Sunshine, life is certainly never boring with you.”
“I pride myself on that,” I said as we finally continued walking toward the dining hall.
When we entered the hall I got why the library had been all but empty before.
Everyone was in here for the celebration feast.
Cheers went up as we stepped through the long rows, and even though Shadow didn’t do much more than nod and walk along looking broody, I found myself thanking them all and smiling a lot, even after my cheeks started to hurt.
Thankfully, we reached our section before I whipped out the queen wave, our pack having commandeered three tables. Angel was in her usual spot, and I fell in beside her, able to land easily since my wings and hers were both tucked away. “Is that really weird for you?” I asked before wondering if it was rude to be so blasé in mentioning her lost appendages.
Thankfully, she was used to me and didn’t miss a beat. “I fall over more than I stay straight at the moment,” she told me. “My wings were always there, and I feel both cold and naked without them, but I’m testing not having them out all the time. I blend better in this form.”
“You’re never going to blend, my friend,” I said, resisting the urge to hug her again because she was probably over that by now. “But I do understand. How was Honor Meadows anyway?”
She smiled. “Peaceful. We have a few layers remaining in our land, and so far, no one has tried to declare war on us and steal it. I’d call it a win.”
“We’ll destroy any who try,” Shadow said, and he meant every word.
“They will learn to respect us as a pack,” Lucien added, leaning forward, “wine” in his hand as he took a sip. “The entire Solaris System will learn.”
I didn’t argue because there had to be a hierarchy in these worlds, a pecking order, so to speak, to keep everyone in line. I preferred us at the top because I trusted every being in our pack.
Len leaned forward as well, and I was so happy to see him, that one would think it had been weeks rather than hours since he’d left us to go to Faerie.
“Did you get you know what hidden away?” I asked him. “Safely. With, like, seventy layers of protection?”
His smile was sad, and I hated to see him sad. “It was destroyed. We have the means to do that, and once the power was drained and released back into the universe, we made the difficult decision to let that stone go. It was just too powerful.”
Did you keep the grains of stone? Galleli shifted in his chair, his huge wings tucked neatly behind him.
Some of Len’s melancholy lifted. “Of course I did. If we ever need a really awesome boost in our spells, that shit is Grade A. But it can never be used in the same weapon-like manner again. And that’s the most important part.”
Galleli placed his hand on Len’s shoulder, and whatever he said was meant for the fae alone. By the time he was done, they both looked much happier. Spirits lifted. The loss of the family stone would take Len some time to get over, but the fae appeared to be dealing with it as best he could. Unlike Reece, who wasn’t even here.
“Where’s our favorite desert deity?” I asked the group.
Angel shifted in her seat behind me; I felt the movement, but when I looked her way, she was unmoving, her expression blank.
Shadow answered me. “He said there was some unrest back home that he needed to deal with. He’s not sure he’ll be back for a while.”
I narrowed my eyes on Shadow and he leaned in. “He needs some time,” he murmured. “Your death and Angel’s death didn’t sit well with him. He’ll be back when he sorts himself out.”
Reluctantly, I let it go because Reece needed to do what he needed to do. That was true of all of us. He was allowed to deal in his own way, but I would be getting the full story about him and Angel out of somebody very, very soon.
The food arrived then, and that allowed a sense of celebration to creep back into the atmosphere of the room. Drinks were brought out as well, and just like the first time I’d ever seen this group of friends together, Shadow and the other four enjoyed a dark amber liquid in crystal glasses. He offered me a sip of his, and I almost died at the first blast of liquid death in the glass before politely declining another taste.
The food was much better than the drinks, and when the table was literally groaning under all of the dishes, I started eating and didn’t stop.
“Everything tastes the same since your rebirth?” Angel asked, shaking her head at my skill level of shoveling food into my mouth.
I had to swallow before I could speak. “Yep, if anything, it all tastes better than ever. My senses are strong, but they regulate themselves, so I don’t have a freakout overload. It’s nice.”
“You know you probably don’t have to eat now, right?” Shadow said from my side, only shutting up when I tried to murder him with my eyes, mouth full as I slowly chewed and swallowed. “Never mind,” he added, lips twitching.
They’d pry food from my cold dead hands, and even then, I’d demand a last meal.
“I wonder how it will taste for me now?” Angel said, looking down at the food in front of her, which consisted of a creamy chicken pasta, with spices and dried tomato and lots of vegetables. In my opinion, it was one of the best dishes that had come out so far. Others might have disagreed, especially those around the table filled by a huge fish carcass, which smelled a tiny bit rotten. They clearly did not eat in the same food pyramid as I did, but that was cool. As long as they stayed downwind, no one needed to judge.
“Here we go,” Angel said, a pasta curl sitting on her utensil.
I found myself holding my breath, hoping that someday soon, she would need to eat in the same manner as myself. She popped it into her mouth and started to chew. Over and over, her brow furrowed, and I was about to hand her a napkin to spit it out when she swallowed.
No one spoke as we stared.
“It’s good,” she said suddenly. “It tasted good.”
She smiled broadly at me before near bouncing in her chair, acting nothing like my centuries-old friend. This new joy had come with her rebirth, and in a way, she felt younger and more vulnerable. No less badass, of course, but more emotional.
“Do you require food for energy now?” Shadow asked her as she ate another forkful of pasta.
“Both,” she told him, her eyes locked on the food. “I found I could meditate in Honor Meadows for energy, but an empty feeling persisted that’s only easing now as I eat.”
“Just like me,” I said happily. I’d never had admitted it to anyone, but I had been mildly concerned that food would no longer taste good to me after my own rebirth. Thankfully, I’d worried for nothing. “Twinning at its finest.”
Angel dropped the utensil into her bowl, turning to me with a sudden serious expression. “I’m honored to be your twin,” she said.
I blinked at her. “There’s some sort of context here I’m missing, isn’t there?”
“Twin souls, separated at birth,” Shadow said from beside me, still just sipping his lethal drink.
Turning back to Angel, I reached out and grasped her hand, squeezing it tightly. “Twin souls. I’m honored as well.”
This made her happy and even though I still really didn’t understand the significance, sometimes it was enough to just make them happy.
Happiness was all I wanted for Angel, and all the rest of our friends.
I tipped my head up to see Shadow, enjoying the way his eyes locked on mine, burning into me with their intensity. I remembered that moment on the lounge when his body had been buried deep inside mine, but more than that, it felt like his energy had filled me as well.
“Here’s to the beginning of our new life,” I said, clinking my respectable water with his glass of swill. “Thanks for kidnapping my ass. It was the best thing that ever happened to me. And you, of course, because… Shadowshine.”
He leaned over, and I felt his breath brush across my cheek, sending shivers down my skin. “You belong to me, Sunshine. Now and forever.”
As his lips met mine, all I could think was: Where’s the lie?
Shadowshine.
He’d been worried that one was too dark and the other too light with only destructive storms between us, but that was no longer the case. Now we were both filled with dark and light, and together, we were the storm.
