RUIN

Magnum is bent over the map Forbearance gave us, the one that'll lead us to the pillars. They're nestled in each country at various points, and we can only hope that we'll be fast enough to avoid the Fae. Shatterjaw is looking at it as well and then comparing it to the other maps Magnum has and he has a lot. We're in his study and half of the bookshelves are maps of the world. Twilight has come with a certain amount of despondency from Yaris. He sits at the window and looks at the view vacantly. I know he's struggling—I'm struggling—but I don't know what to say to him. I had one sibling growing up and she died as an infant. I was so young that I barely remember her. I can't imagine having eighteen siblings in total and six of those dying before I'm born.

But it's not that they died. Not really. It's that they were sacrificed by his father who I was sure was a monster before, but I know he is now. I keep trying to come up with the right words and I ache to hold him, but instead, like some useless chuff, I'm on the other side of the room, leaning on the wall and listening to Magnum and Shatterjaw argue.

I can't take it anymore.

"Look," I cut in, not caring who I'm interrupting. "We need to get to the Ordeshian pillar first. That's south by what… a week? Two weeks?"

"A week on horseback, two weeks on foot," Magnum confirms. He's taking leaving this place well, but perhaps he's sick of it. I don't know. I can't read him very well. "And if we take the eastern road out of the mountains, then we can stop in Frostlight, the closest trading post. I'll get us rides and equipment since, frankly, all of you are about as equipped for traveling as a bored lord who spends all his time in the library."

Shatterjaw clenches her teeth.

"It's too soon," she insists. "We should north across the border first and destroy the Oscillan pillar. That will distract the royals and make sure that we have more time and ease when traveling. I don't know anything about what happened at the palace after—" She clears her throat. "—after we left, but there's probably a manhunt for us. We should delay getting closer to everything for the time being. It's not safe, Ruin."

I rub my face.

"Look. Maybe it's fine."

Shatterjaw glares.

"Not to be indelicate, but Yaris fucking killed Miguel, Ruin. He was the only heir the king had. That comes with severe consequences."

"I can glamour us," Yaris says from the window. He doesn't look at us, but we all seem shocked that he's finally spoken. He hasn't said a word since we left the dragons and that was hours ago.

"Are you sure?" Magnum says, talking to him with his usual ease, which is also somehow jarring. "We wouldn't want to stretch you too thin."

Yaris waves the concern away.

"I will be fine. Five people is nothing. You humans do not remember the abilities of the Fae very well. I was drained earlier because of the… the blood magic and using the Veil. I would use that now if I could, but I cannot—not without risking alerting my father to our whereabouts. Once we start destroying the pillars, he will put two and two together anyway. Old-fashioned travel with glamour will have to do."

He sounds almost… normal, but his eyes are so hollow that my heart aches.

Magnum nods.

"It's decided then. We'll leave in the morning for Frostlight. I'll take first watch. "

Shatterjaw scowls at that.

"We're capable too, you know."

"I don't really sleep like you do," he says with a shrug. "Rest while you can. Things are about to get serious."

"As if they weren't already," Shatterjaw huffs and starts gathering up the maps. I break away from the wall and head towards Yaris, who's still leaning on the window. I don't know if he wants to be touched so I lean next to him and look out down the brilliant mountainside. The sky is bathed in dark blues, purples, pinks, and a hint of orange. The moon is hanging low, about to begin her ascent. My fair prince is still unglamoured and I steal a glance at him and his black horns with shining silver runes. His auburn curls look like they need care, but he looks like that all over. I haven't really insisted he bathe because so much has happened. His pink rose eyes look soft and devastated as he stares at the pine trees and derelict structures. I sigh softly.

"Hey," I swallow, and he glances at me. He doesn't even smile. "Do you… want a bath?"

Yaris looks surprised.

"Magnum has a bath?"

I nod.

"Big one too. With hot water."

He offers a small smile.

"Are you telling me I smell?"

I laugh at that, feeling a bit lighter.

"No. Well. Yes. But that's not why I asked."

He tugs on a curl and frowns at how greasy it is.

"Why did you?"

I shrug.

"You look… out of sorts. I thought… perhaps bathing would help," I shrug. "I don't know. It helps me."

Yaris takes a deep breath and nods.

"Sure."

I talk to Magnum who says we can use whatever soap is in the bathroom as well as the towels and then I take Yaris' hand and lead him out of the room. He vomited so much earlier that suddenly I wonder if he's hungry or thirsty. Shit. Should've thought of that sooner.

"Are you hungry?" I ask as I take him down a corridor and up a flight of stairs at the back of the fort. Everything is in shades of gray with neglected rooms. It's a very big place for just four people, let alone just Magnum. How long has he been here?

Yaris shakes his head.

"No. Not at all. But thank you."

I sigh softly and hope he'll be hungry after the bath.

The master bathroom has a door into it from the hall but also from the master bedroom. I'm curious what the master bedroom looks like, but I really don't want to go snooping and the door is closed anyway. The bathroom has stone tiles and bone white walls with geometric patterns of periwinkle and gold. It's beautiful in a way. The tub is a massive thing that could easily fit two Magnums with gold trim and a dark interior. There's a shelf of towels in surprisingly good shape nearby and several different glass bottles of soaps and oils along the edge of the tub. The tub is a faded black—so faded that it's a chalk grey. The toilet is in a stall in the corner and there are two sinks with mirrors in the middle of everything.

Yaris sits down on a bench as I close the door and then starts to slip off his boots. I turn on the water, dump some soap into the tub, and then go over to Yaris to help. He startles when I grab a boot.

"What are you doing?" He asks, baffled, eyes wide.

"I… thought you might want help," I say, now unsure. "That and I like undressing you."

He laughs and I relax a bit. He is still there. Just processing.

"Do you now?" His mouth twitches in amusement and I grin at him.

"I am kneeling between your legs, you know," I say and bite my lip seductively. He snorts and shakes his head.

"I need to bathe, Ruin. I stink."

I nudge him.

"Later then."

Someone knocks on the door and we both jump.

"I know you don't really have clothes, so I brought you some," Magnum says through the door. "Probably not what you're used to, but… they're clean and should fit."

I'm not sure how he could have clothes that would fit either of us. He's just so… big. Nevertheless, I open the door, and he smiles down at me.

"Here you go," he says with a nod and hands me what looks like two scouting uniforms. I can't help it.

"Where'd you get this?" I blurt, astonished. He winks.

"I deal with a lot of trespassers and I'm not wasteful by nature."

He says it like that's normal and then leaves before I can comment. I close the door, scowling, not sure how I feel about wearing some dead man's clothes.

I set the clothing on the bench next to Yaris as he slips off his shirt and I'm immediately distracted by his lean, exquisite body. I don't miss his pale skin at all—this rich brown suits him somehow. His muscles are defined and not heavy, but powerfully compact and lithe in a way that screams grace. He's smooth everywhere except for that nasty scar above what I can only assume is his heart. It was in his other form and I'm dreadfully curious, but it seems rude to ask.

Yaris loses his dirty pants and underwear next, and his legs are all strength and agile balance. His cock is soft and hangs temptingly but I doubt he's in the mood to do anything. I certainly wouldn't be if I was him.

"Ruin?" Yaris sounds amused and I blush, looking up at his fathomless eyes.

"Yeah?"

"Are you going to bathe with me?"

"Yeah. "

He chuckles softly.

"Then perhaps you'd better stop staring and get undressed."

I blush deeper and quickly strip as Yaris climbs into the massive bath and gets settled, shutting off the water. A minute later, I've joined him and I'm very self-conscious. My body isn't bad to look at—it's just that in comparison he's a fucking god who should be worshipped and I'm just some pathetic follower. Most of our sex has been in darkness or under the sheets. I feel exposed for some reason.

Yaris wets his thick hair, and I can see him relaxing, muscle by muscle, as the heat seeps into him. My eyes wander to his chest again and I look at all that coiled muscle in want. But then I watch as he washes his hair and seeing him with the water reminds me of a question I had.

"Yaris?" I shift and reach for a washcloth, wetting it and then sniffing bottles. They smell distinctly like Magnum.

"Yes?" Yaris scrubs his curls, lathering the shampoo and working it into every inch of his head.

"What did you do to the water? Earlier?"

There's a slight pause in his lathering. I don't think he knows I've seen it because it's so minute, but I suddenly feel like I've asked an impossible question. My stomach tightens.

"I charmed it. That was Fae magic," he says after a pause before rinsing his hair.

"Oh. Is that all?" I ask teasingly trying to erase that look off his face.

He nods after a few moments and then uses magic to cleanse the water before rinsing again. He doesn't elaborate and I suddenly feel guilty. He's taut again and he shouldn't be.

"I'm sorry," I blurt, and he looks at me in surprised. "I'm sorry, Yaris. I don't mean to—I'm not very good at… I mean… I'm sorry."

He pauses and stares, water dripping from his thick hair onto his shoulders and chest. The silence is unbearable and my cheeks heat. I want to be swallowed up in the ground so he'll stop looking at me like that—like it's somehow his fault I can't stop tasting my fucking foot.

He slides closer to me, quiet, like some silent predator, and my cock twitches as he corners me and leans into my space, smelling like Yaris and looking like an ethereal being of light and darkness and want. He strokes my cheek and I'm almost worried he's about to hurt me. He hasn't hurt me at all. At least… not like Miguel did. But my stomach twists harder this time and I wonder if he's about to.

He strokes my wet blond hair away from my eyes and then kisses me so tenderly, so completely that the knot in my stomach comes undone and is replaced with butterflies. I shiver and moan as he makes love to my lips and cradles my face gently. I feel silly for being afraid. He's nothing like that. He wants me, but I know if I told him to stop, he would.

And I don't want him to stop.

All my blood travels south as he leans in closer, putting his strong hands on my hip. His tight grip is wonderful and harsh, and a wanton moan escapes me. I don't know how long it is, but by the time he's pulling away, my cock is straining for him and my lips are swollen.

"Fuck," I gasp. "Yaris."

"You have nothing to apologize for," Yaris whispers and runs his fingers through my hair. "Nothing at all, my Ruin. I am simply sorry that… that I cannot answer questions without shutting down. And… I do not wish to answer anything right now. My mind is so loud that it is drowning out the sun. Can you… would you…?"

His cheeks darken and he looks at me guilelessly. I know what he's asking and I'm happy to give it. I'm good for something, at least.

I nod and pull him into an explosive kiss, everything suddenly urgent. His cock brushes my thigh as I wrap my legs around his hips and pull him impossibly close. Our moans and pants overtake the room and he's touching and massaging and gasping with such pristine skill that I'm quickly clay in his hands. I rut against him, needing him just as badly as he needs me. My back is pressed against the incline and he steals all of me. Every inch of me is his as he ravages my mouth and ruts against me. I feel myself growing desperate and throw my legs over the tub sides, widening me entirely.

"Yaris, please," I whine. "Yaris, fuck me. Fuck me, Yaris. Please. Please."

He's panting as he pauses and looks down at me greedily. My breath catches. He is so magnificent.

"Beg," he says in a chilling tone, and I feel a thrill pulse through me as I grip him and wail for him. I don't care who hears me. I need him and that's all that matters.

"Yaris, Yaris, fuck me. Take me. Make me yours. Yaris, please. I'm yours, master. I'm yours."

I don't know where the "master" came from but Yaris' nostrils flare and he strokes my taint, my ass puckering for him. After a moment, he summons that slick nectar onto his fingers before he reaches down again and penetrates me. I shiver and moan and wail louder. I can tell he adores the noises I make, and my cock is rock hard as he finds my spot immediately. I've had a lot of lovers, but none of them have known me as quickly as Yaris does. None of them have found my pleasure so fast.

It's like we're made for each other—like he is the sky and I am the moon and we are inseparable over all of time. I think I may love him, but I'm so enamored by his fingers that it doesn't matter. Not right now. I'll think on that later.

Yaris adds a second and then third finger. My cock pulses as my ass is alight with arousal and I gasp loudly, gripping his shoulders.

"OH, FUCK!" I wail. "I'm going to—!"

I'm a bit ashamed, but incredibly relieved as I come. I know I didn't last long, but I don't think he minds. If anything, he chuckles with pleasure and withdraws as I dirty the water. I'm vaguely aware that he's summoned that nectar again and then I feel his cock pressing against me. Shit, I'm so sensitive. Oh, gods.

"Yaris," I groan. "Oh, gods. I can't—I can't. Fuck."

But I want it so badly. He pauses and searches my face and I'm a hot mess. I kiss him passionately and rut.

"Never mind. Fuck me, Yaris. Fuck. Make me scream."

My sensitive ass and cock scream with pleasure as he slides in and I'm a limp mess as he fucks me hard. It takes a few thrusts, but my cock starts to chub and I'm very on board with this. I cling to him and moan in his ear as his powerful body burrows itself into me deeply. I'm so raw from nutting already, but my body wants more, and I beg, practically weeping, as Yaris speeds up. He seems to be sweating as he pants in my ear and then kisses me harshly. I'm about to come again, but I don't have time to warn him—I just wail tenderly and come undone in the next thrust.

So does he.

His heat fills me entirely and I shiver as he takes his time, gasping and thrusting jerkily until his orgasm is finished. I collapse against the tub, and he steadies himself above me, looking at me with a strange expression. After a moment, I reach up and stroke his face.

"Do you need more?" I ask hoarsely and he chuckles lowly.

"I need to clean the water so we can finish bathing," he says quietly and kisses my lips. "And then we will go back to our bedchamber, and I will make you scream all night."

I shiver because I know he most certainly will.