3. Alandra

I tried to break eye contact the minute I saw Arim's fathomless gaze burrowing into me.

"I'm, ah, sorry. I don't believe we've met?" I mentally curled in on myself as he stepped closer, trying to hide my magic under a blanket of this realm's mundane reality.

Good night, but he was an impressive sorcerer. Arim, Guardian of Storm, dripped with dark, menacing energy. Like most sorcerers from Tanselm, he'd been taught from an early age to revere his power, exalting himself above those with little magic.

Like the Dark Lords, many of the Light Bringers thought themselves better than those outside of Tanselm. They liked to sweep all of us Shadow dwellers into a big pile of unimportance.

Considering what I knew of Arim, I figured he wouldn't resort to magic to see inside a plain human. Tricks and spells against the Trudy Warners of this world wouldn't be worth his time. I just had to make sure he didn't see me as anything other than Trudy.

"No, we haven't met." He forced me to move back as he advanced into the house. "What exactly did my nephew want with you?"

I felt a subtle tug on my mind and hid my surprise. Having to hide from my people for a year had given me a lot of practice in living incognito, and I finally had a decent reason to thank my annoying aunt for forcing me out of Aelle.

I strained under Arim's fierce magic but managed to transform that into normal anxiety. I hoped.

Wringing my hands, I glanced up at him through my lashes. "I-I, well, I'm not used to visitors." I gave a nervous laugh. "Aerolus is such a nice young man. He didn't want much." I tried a small smile. "Look, Mister…?" He didn't fill in his name, and I sensed he wasn't buying my version of Trudy. Time for a diversion. "I told him about the woman hanging around your house, and he —"

"What woman?" Arim looked ready to bite me in half, his tone clearly superior.

His manner made me think of the noble Aellei, which set my back up. I couldn't help myself as I fired back at him.

"Excuse me." I glared up at him and assumed Trudy's best professorial tone. "But I don't recall inviting you in here. Just who are you?"

Arim didn't blink, but I could see a subtle tightening of his brow, a telling reaction that in Aerolus signaled puzzlement. Studying the sorcerer, I noted the many similarities between uncle and nephew and wondered if all Storm Lords had that same arrogance. And that same potent, sexual allure.

"My name is Arim," he enunciated each word. "Now, about that woman you mentioned?"

He pulled back his attempt at reading my mind. Was he gathering energy for a harder spell, or had he finally bought my act?

Arim's gaze began to burn. I hastily focused and told him what I'd told Aerolus, sensing I'd worn his patience thin.

As I'd planned, the description of myself set him on edge.

"You say she had a glow to her skin? White hair and violet eyes?"

"Yes. She was obviously wearing a costume of some kind, which I found odd."

"How could you tell her eye color from here?"

I flushed. "I have a telescope I use for star watching. It must have been pointed at your nephew's house the other day."

"I see." He eyed me up and down, and I sensed he did indeed see. Thank the shadows for Trudy's aura of desperation. "I should be grateful you have an appreciation for heavenly bodies." Though he spoke plainly, his words dripped with sarcasm.

Despite the danger of the situation, my Aellei blood begged I have some fun while pushing him to leave. "You know…" I gave him a slow, hungry smile, one that had his face clearing of all expression. "You could thank me over a light dinner. Maybe a glass of wine?"

He just stared at me.

"Or we could skip dinner and go straight to dessert." I winked at him and gave him a thorough onceover.

To my delight, he flushed and took a step back.

"Actually, I have to return to my work."

"What's your rush, Arim?" I shot him Trudy's best flirty smile.

He forced a smile. "I am behind on reports. I'm sorry."

"Oh, why not put that off and stay a little longer?" I stroked the upper slope of my breast with enough sexual innuendo to set a house on fire. "Let's make it a real date, and I'll cook you breakfast tomorrow."

"I'm sorry to have taken your time, Professor."

I tried to look forlorn when I really wanted to laugh. He smothered my mind with a powerful mental suggestion to forget all about him.

Ha! Try to con an Aellei, Light Bringer and feel my wrath. "I'm sorry, but what was I saying? Ah, I forget your name."

"I was never here." He vanished in the blink of an eye.

Had I been a real human, I would never have known of our meeting. As it was, my kind loved Dark magic. And the Light Bringer had been brimming with anger, coloring his energy just enough to empower me.

Brimming with good cheer, that I'd managed to fool the powerful sorcerer and that I'd soon be returning to the shadows in the spaces Between, I shimmered back into myself and left Trudy's house.

* * *

The minute I entered the pocket of space between worlds, I felt Aerolus. I'd left him a subtle trail — one only he could see — weeks ago, having assumed we'd have met again before now.

Sensing tendrils of elemental magic, I sought the source of my frustrating desire.

Many thought the Between was a place of mist and magic. But it had its own energy apart from Tanselm and the other fae worlds. The Between was its own space that didn't subscribe to normal things like gravity or physics. Here, magic shaped everything.

I flew through the dark and through light, through monochromatic nothingness and into a brightly colored, lavender- and indigo-streaked sky, despite there being no sun or moon to ground me.

Trees grew from the ground that was not earth or rock but a flat surface for those with different magics to traverse. I liked clouds though, as did many others, so I navigated a sky dotted with fluffy white clouds, this area of the Between saturated with my magic.

Both Light and Dark, shadows of energy.

I entered the small, floating structure that served as my temporary home. Made of a hard substance that both protected and contained my magic, the cottage felt more like a small part of a larger estate, much like the tower room I'd left in Aelle.

In this place, I'd gathered enough odds and ends to remain comfortable if not content.

A large bed, a small desk, and a table and odd chairs sat in various spaces in my open living area. One aspect of this new home thrilled me. Light never seemed to go very far in the other parts of the Between, and the glorious darkness was filled with the untapped potential of great magic.

But not here, where I could bask in the light and not feel uncomfortable. Because most of this magic came from the opposite spectrums but became what I wanted it to be. A place where a Shadren could experience both Light and Dark without issue.

And speaking of Light… There, at my desk, studying some hastily "borrowed" scrolls I'd recently added to my growing collection, sat the yummy Aerolus Storm.

"Well, well, well." I set foot on the plush carpet that served as the flooring in my comfortable shelter. "Aerolus Storm, as I live and breathe."

He glanced up from my desk, a pinch of annoyance on his handsome face. His eyes glowed bright silver. And, as if I was back looking through the telescope, I felt a flash of lust sear me from head to toe as I stared at him.

"The woman in white." He rose to an impressive height, only adding to his aura of power. "It's time I stopped avoiding you, hmm?"

"Yes. It's time we talked, Wind Mage."

"My name is Aerolus, which you already know." He circled the desk and approached until he stood a few feet away. The fact that he towered over me only irritated me further.

"By what name are you called, purie?"

Purie.Little one.

I scowled. "I'm no child."

"I can see that."

I didn't know what to make of the look he shot me. "I've been waiting for a while, buddy. Do you have any idea what kind of trouble you're in?"

He shook his head and took a step closer. "We're always in trouble."

"I'm sure you are." I sniffed, wanting to be appeased. "I'd like to know why it took you so long to find me." I crossed my arms, waiting.

He studied me like an intriguing species he'd recently discovered. I wanted to throw something, stamp my foot, scream in frustration. But I'd only look childish — the last thing I wanted to appear if I were to hold the upper hand.

For the past year, I'd watched Aerolus and knew his many moods. Right now, if we were back in Seattle, I had no doubt he'd do his best to pin me under a microscope for dissection. For some odd reason, he had yet to realize how lucky he was I paid any attention to him.

"You're here," he said bluntly, his voice a raspy seduction in itself. "You're real."

I frowned. "Yes. I'm here, and I'm real. Honestly, Aerolus, I've been waiting a long time to have this discussion. Frankly, I'm having doubts you're worth the trouble."

He was worth the trouble though, and that was part of the problem. The other part was this weird attraction that kept growing and showed no sign of stopping. The way he looked at me made my heart race. My body tingled, and I kept fantasizing about him being inside me.

A Light Bringer a part of me.

Unfortunately, knowing Aerolus, he wouldn't suffer from unfulfilled desire but from an overabundance of scholarly enthusiasm. The man had shown little to no interest in sex for an entire year.

At least, until his performance this morning.

I flushed, hoping he credited my rosy cheeks with anger.

He stepped closer, only a few inches separating us. "Oh, purie. You have no idea how much I wished I'd responded sooner."