48

A R R O W

✿

I smelled her before she climbed out of the round window onto the roof. She smelled like the cool sea breeze, reminded me of the moonlight's radiance and glitter on the blue water surface of the Veshari. Quiet, mysterious and beautiful.

With lightning quick reaction, I spun her onto the roof and pressed my arm against her neck. Cut off her air supply. Just a little tighter and I would snap her neck and end her life.

June gasped. "Oh! You gave me a fright.” Her glittery red eyelids blinked quickly and she looked at me with wide, midnight blue eyes. "Hi... Arrow."

Her voice brushed silky smooth over me and my soft breathed name made my heart clench. I wanted to hear it again from her beautifully curved mouth.

A silent growl started inside me and made my chest vibrate, while no sound came out. My wolf inside me roared and jumped against the bonds.

"You're wondering what I'm doing here? I'll answer the question if you'll take your arm from me.” June ground out softly, her lashes curling like two dark crescents against her tanned skin.

My eyes narrowed and I didn't move an inch. But to my surprise, she wasn't angry. She smiled slightly and then said carelessly, 'I come here every night. Minkaujin looks lovely from up here, don't you think?” She waited for my reply.

She had neither defended herself nor attempted to reach for one of the many knives tucked into her belts slung across her chest. Either she was a miserable warrior or she was smart enough to know that even with hundreds of her little daggers she didn't stand a chance against me.

When she realized I wasn't going to answer her, she said, "We can enjoy the view together if you want."

She might be an enemy, might have intentions to hurt my pack. Still, I let go of her and sat up, but she wouldn't let go of my eyes.

The small smile on her lips faded as she wrapped her arms around her bent legs and stared at the city. She stayed like that for a while, then suddenly said, "Silence."

I pulled my hood lower over my face. It was a purely automatic movement. Habit.

“It's the silence I like so much. Minkaujin is never quiet, but up here, with everyone else asleep and the lanterns still lit, it feels like you're all alone. In complete peace.”

The wind blew June through her long, golden blonde hair and she pulled her blood-red coat closer around her. I nearly growled. She should disappear and through the window back into the palace, where they protected the panes from the cool wind. Islanders weren't made for the cold.

“My father used to tell me that five thousand sun revolutions ago Ozuro fled over our city, and in the night adorned the Vesharic Sea with its blue tongues of fire. Everyone who saw him watched the spectacle in silence, transfixed to what he was going to do next. Ozuro also liked the silence. Do say that's why he left Minkaujin because it's too loud for him.” June rested her chin on her knees. “If I were a dragon, it would be too loud for me too. I would leave too, but not just for the silence.”

Why else? I wanted to ask, but I remained silent. She might be an enemy.

She lay on the roof and stared at the sky, her golden blond hair fanned out around her. Then she suddenly exclaimed, "Oh, I forgot about that!" She reached into the pockets of her coat and pulled something out. They were blue rubber snakes. She bit into one and then handed me the other. "You want one too?" she mumbled through her mouth full.

I kept looking at her.

"Then don't, but I have to warn you Arrow, they're delicious." With a slight shrug, she bit off the rubber snake's head and chewed.

What a curious girl.

"I found them under my pillow this morning."

She has what?

"It must have been the Seigars."

I didn't understand anything anymore of what this girl was saying. Pure gibberish.

"Don't say you don't know what Seigars are! They are little dragon spirits. They can be quite annoying, and they're always begging for attention, even chewing your ear off if you're not careful enough. Apparently they like earwax. But if you're kind to them and something important comes up, they'll give you something.” she babbled in a low voice, staring up at the stars while nibbling on her rubber snake here and there. “Not many see them, but I do. My sister thinks I'm crazy, like Shiyan or all the rest of the people from Minkaujin. Grandfather says they can only be seen by those who want to see them.” June turned her head and looked at me. "Have you seen her?"

I didn't say anything about that.

Without looking offended, as many women seemed to be around me, she looked up at the sky again and continued softly, “Seigars can be nice too, sometimes. Also, they like sweets as much as I do. At first I didn't understand what the rubber snakes were doing under my pillow and why the Seigars put them there, but then I saw you and your pack in the dining room and I knew. They sensed you."

When she had swallowed the last bite of her blue rubber snake, a horn call sounded. "I have to go." Instantly she sat up. "The ship is sailing."

She was right. Xenos and Arya would leave with the Dragon Warriors to kill the Ruinbringer and June had to be taken as backup. It was a contract. You don't harm our people and we don't harm your people.

June paused and then looked at me. Her midnight blue eyes shimmered in the moonlight. 'You chose the wrong one for your insurance, you know? Reyna and Shiyan - they don't care about me. I think if I don't die in this fight, at some point they'll take the initiative and want me dead.” She whispered, her face showing vulnerability.

A growl started inside me. I couldn't take her with me, couldn't stop her from getting on that ship and fighting. She could be dangerous for my pack. Still, nothing was further from my mind than letting her go. My wolf was banging against the walls and I had to clench my fists and pull myself together.

June shook her head as if ridiculing herself. “Bye, Arrow. It was nice meeting you.” She bit her lip, then gave me a soft look. “You know, it's okay that you don't talk much. I feel like I still understand you. I can see it in your eyes.” She reached up and gently, just a tiny bit, pushed back my hood.

I froze to ice.

"For some reason I wish I could see you again, which is funny because I don't know you and you don't know me." She grimaced thoughtfully and frowned. Then she nodded, as if she was now quite sure. "Yeah, it must be the Seigars, they must have been whispering weird stuff in my ear while I was sleeping."

A feeling I had lost eight hundred suns ago surged up in me and my wolf bared his teeth with a smile. This girl was crazy. And I liked it.

As if of its own accord, my hand rose and rested on her cheek. My glove nestled against her soft, suntanned skin. Astonished and slightly shocked, she stared at me with open lips.

"I'll see you again," I ground out harshly. It does not matter for what reason. I would find her. Always.

My thumb brushed her cheek and she gasped. Then her hand crossed mine and our fingers intertwined.

"What...?" She looked at me with confused, almond-shaped eyes, as if she didn't understand what was happening.

"June," I whispered, burning the name of a girl into my heart that would always be mine. I didn't care about the consequences. "June." I repeated, staring into her crystal midnight blue eyes. My wolf howled, realizing what the man in me had long understood.

mate.