Private Tales Healing of the Heart

[Sierra]

"And I get to help him," Rose beamed. And by helping it was mostly just playing with all the jewels and baubles that went on the shoes. Sometimes modeling the shows after they were made even if most of them were too big for her. In Rose's mind playing dress-up was certainly helping.

"Well, I'm glad you're helping," Sierra smiled and winked at Cillian. But she kept her thoughts about Cillian's answer hidden. She mulled them over silently in her mind. She had no plans to go back to the Academy anytime soon. She'd left things with a very trusted colleague. She'd heard rumors of Talus retiring.

And a very big part of her wanted that, too.

To walk away from and leave Vel Anir for a long time. Perhaps forever. She didn't want Rose growing up there. She never had.

But she also wouldn't allow the city or the Academy to fall back to old ways. So she didn't want to go too far. She wanted to be able to come in and consult when they needed her. If they needed her. She knew there was a target on her head now, too. And she'd do whatever it took to keep Rose safe. As she always had.

 

[Cillian]

Cillian shot Rose a grin. If it wasn't clear by now then it was then that the pair had gown close over the weeks they had been together alone. The leprechaun hadn't tried to keep the girl out of his way or treat her like he had no interest. He'd loved her with all his heart like he would his own child.

"An' it's teh best 'elp I've ever had, sweetpea," Rose seemed to practically beam under the praise and wriggled in her seat as she tucked into her food. Cillian chuckled and as he went to take another bite glanced back across to Sierra, noting the small frown between her brows. He chewed slowly before saying in a casual manner. "Yer both welcome teh stay, 'owever long yiz want," he glanced down to Rose. "I know I could use teh Princess' 'elp wit meh orders."

 

[Sierra]

Rose beamed at his title for her. She finished her last bite of fajitas, the yum-yum thoroughly devoured. "Can we stay Mommy?" Hopeful blue-eyes looked to Sierra's.

Leaning across the table, Sierra held out her napkin and began wiping Rose's little-messy fingers off as she held them forward. Then she smoothed some of her daughter's dark hair behind one ear. "We'll take it one day at a time, kiddo." She was careful with her answer. She didn't want Rose to get disappointed in case they had to leave sooner than...sooner than she wanted to. In case something happened. And Cilli didn't know what he was really offering. Did he?

Rose couldn't hide her disappointment at the answer.

"Okay, time to go get ready for your bath. You know the drill. Brush your teeth and get your towel ready. I'll be up in a few minutes."

"Okay," Rose huffed, disappointment lingering in her tone as she slid from the chair. The sounds of her footsteps echoing up the stairs.

Sierra turned to Cillian. "I just want you to know that with the Rebellion, there will probably be some powerful people after me. You should know everything you're up against if we...stay." Did he want this in his life? Added danger....added uncertainty.

 

[Cillian]

"Humans dinnae worry me, Duchess," Cillian said with all the confidence of a man several millennia old... and who had already lived through the near extinction of his people. Those that had survived had survived for a reasons. Of course he wasn't about to tell the woman he found himself stumbling over that he had once been a renown killer of her kind. It didn't scream romance. His arms draped casually over the back of the other chair.

"Go, spend some time wit' 'er, we can talk abou' it when she is sleepin'," he smiled and then, because he couldn't help himself, gently spanked her backside when she moved past him. Before she could thump him he was on his feet and innocently tidying away the dirty dishes.

 

[Sierra]

He might feel the hairs on the back of his head suddenly turning grey at the look she gave him. She knew fae were powerful. She knew they were damn-near immortal. But did he know these weren't just ordinary humans? These were humans who could command nature. Who could control the flow of blood in the body.

With a quiet huff, she wound her way upstairs.

Rose had everything ready with a new ducky in one hand. Sierra went through the bathtime routine with relative ease. And after drying off a squirmy toddler, she got her nice and tucked in under the covers. Sitting next to Rose on the bed, Sierra was just getting to the end of the story her daughter had picked out.

"...and the littlest unicorn said as she went to sleep, afterall tomorrow is another day." Rose was already out, one arm flopped over her head and half leaning against her mom. "The end," Sierra whispered and began to ease herself free.

 

[Cillian]

Cleaning up downstairs didn't take too long. Cillian was a cook that liked to keep things clean as he went and that meant little washing up at the end of a meal. That was just as well for the first time in a long time he felt tired. Fae, the older they got, didn't seemed to need as much. They could go a few days without needing a good, deep sleep but Cillian liked to catch a few hours every night if he could. Tonight, however, he felt as though he could have slept the whole thing through.

He stretched as he stepped out onto the deck at the back like a lazy cat then took a seat on the old bench which creaked slightly under his weight. The night had fully settled in now and stars sparkled above him in a dazzling display. He could faintly hear the end of the story upstairs and he smiled to himself then leant his head back and enjoyed the feeling of contentment that settled over him.

 

[Sierra]

There was a small glowing half-moon nightlight in the corner. And shifting patterns of stars glowed on the ceiling. Sierra marveled for a moment, thankful that her daughter could live a charmed life. Even if it was perhaps, temporary. Leaving the door slightly cracked, she crept back into the hallway.

Without being able to pinpoint why, she knew where Cillian was.

Her feet carried her to that back deck and the bench he lounged on. The cool, night air brushed across her skin like a welcoming embrace. And for a moment, she just stared at him. Backlit by the moon and stars. She didn't think he could see her. Tucking auburn strands behind one ear, she made herself move toward him.

While at the same time she felt as if she would never be able to walk away from him again.

"We need to talk," she'd ease down next to him on the bench.

 

[Cillian]

"But does it 'ave teh be tonight?" the leprechaun countered with all the charm in the world, delivered in one gut-punching smile he aimed full force as Sierra as she sat down beside him. His arm lazily stretched across her shoulders to cup one side of her neck and gently run his slightly rough thumb across skin a few hours ago he had been biting and kissing. He would certainly still rather be doing that. His fingers wound into her hair and he gently tugged her close to claim her lips in a kiss before she could answer. When he pulled back it wasn't to go far and his amber gaze burned into hers as he spoke.

"Yer take my breath away, Duchess. I dinnae want to waste wha' air the lord leaves me wit' on talkin'."

 

[Sierra]

A groan, half-whimper left her lips. Then an exasperated sigh. She felt everything from him. His desire. His lust. And for a long moment, she didn't know where his feelings ended and hers began. It was a strange connection. One that she'd never felt before. It was like stepping to the edge of a cliff and looking over a beautiful, vast, dynamic expanse. And there was another side. And every instinct in her was telling her to step off the ledge. To jump and she'd be at the other side. She'd be connected forever to...

"Wait," she pushed her hands against his chest. Fingers curling into his shirt. She wasn't sure if she was keeping him away or ready to pull him in closer.

"Stubborn man," she used the word even though she knew he was far from human. "This is serious. Dreadlords aren't just any old humans," she reminded him, trying to keep up her fortress. Trying to stay focused. Damn his smirk and damn those warm eyes that threatened to pull her in and burn her up forever.

"They can flood cities with a wave of their hand. Swallow an entire town with the earth. I just want you to know what you're getting into here." She released his shirt and stood, suddenly twisting out of his grasp. She didn't go far but she stood just out of hand's reach.

"And what is this?" Heartrate kicked up in her chest as she motioned between them. "I've never felt anything like...," her voice trailed off. For the woman that was damn good at hiding her fear, she couldn't hide this.

 

[Cillian]

Cillian wasn't naive and the memories of the Purge were still fresh despite the years that had passed since humans had murdered his brother and father in front of him. They could be dangerous, and Dreadlords were spoken of even among the fae for their powers over magic. If one of them could bend iron or move it... well there was little he would be able to do. But he didn't want Sierra to live a life of fear and here, in this glade, he could say without the lie curdling his tongue that nothing and nobody human could hurt them.

Simply because they wouldn't be able to find it.

The cocky smile faded on his lips however when she bought up the feeling between them. He'd been able to convince himself that it was one sided, just a stronger attraction that he had felt to anyone before, but deep down he had known it was more on a completely different level. But how could he explain that without her freaking out? What if she... rejected it?

He let a shrug roll over his shoulder and gave that lopsided grin again even if it didn't reach his eyes.

"Something teh do wit' what we were doing earlier? I'd be more than happy teh test tha' hypothesis..."

 

[Sierra]

With being an empath, she never tried to pry. But sometimes. Sometimes the emotions of others was too hard to resist. Especially when there was something strange growing between them. Something she feared she wouldn't be able to control.

And Sierra liked to be in control.

She read the air around him as his emotions rolled off his being like visible sound waves.

Protection.

Hesitation.

Fear?

Longing.

Was it his or hers or both? She blinked, a small frown ticking on her lips. The problem was, she needed him. She just wanted to be held by him. To be in those arms of his even if it meant suffering his insufferable smirk. It was clear he wasn't worried about those after her. And if he wasn't worried about it maybe she could suspend her own disbelief for tonight.

She closed the distance between them and lowered herself slowly, straddling his lap. Her fingers moved some of his unruly hair away from his face. "Maybe one day you'll tell me more so I'll give you tonight."

And then she kissed him. Nothing hurried. As if time was no longer a problem.

 

[Cillian]

Relief flooded him tinged with guilt. He wanted to tell her, in a way, and yet another part of him never wanted to raise the subject for his own protection. There were plenty of fae out there who had found their mate and had the bond rejected, but how many of them had found their mates to be humans? He had only a handful of years with her and if he said nothing she was more likely to stay than be scared away by something so... so fae.

His hands slid up her thighs, over the curve of her backside and to her hips as she settled herself in his lap and he gazed up at her with that lopsided half smile as she spoke - though it didn't quite reach his eyes. He could see her lips moving and he knew the words to be sweet, meaningful things but he could only think of how he wanted to capture the way the stars sparkled in her eyes in that moment behind the curtain of her hair.

He let himself drown in her kiss, his hands stroking over her lower body as his tongue explored with hers, their bodies pressed together. When he pulled back he grazed her bottom lip with his teeth in a playful manner.

"Yer both safe 'ere lass, that I can promise ye. Only another fae could find t'is place."

 

[Sierra]

Her fingers trailed idle paths on his shoulders. Down and across his chest. She caught a ripple of guilt before it was flooded over with desire.

“One fae is already too much,” it was said with a smile against his skin. A warm press of her lips on his own. Even as the back of her war-trained mind thought about potential threats. If any fae came here who thought to do any of them harm, so help them.

She may be human but she was a goddamned dread lord.

Her hands slid lower down his sides. She wanted to fill him with every ounce of pleasure he’d filled her with on that lawn. To make him forget he was tethered on this earth. To shatter him.

In the best way possible.

 

[Cillian]

Cillian was more than happy to let Sierra have her wish. And every other wish she would ever have. He gently slid his hands to the backs of her thighs then in one swift movement stood up with her still held quite firmly in place with her legs about his waist.

"Maybe somewhere a bit comfier this time," he chuckled and shifted his hold to free up one hand that could sweep her hair back from her face. His hand stayed there to cup her cheek and draw her into a kiss and then they were moving. It was hard to tell how exactly they got to the bedroom but one moment they were in the cool of the night air and the next the warmth of his simple bedroom, the soft feathers of the bed pressing against her back.

 

[Sierra]

She didn’t argue as her tongue thoroughly explored his mouth and other parts of his body. Hands feeling along his skin. Taking their time. Moments of urgency slid seamlessly into slower moments of reverence. She didn’t know who crashed first. Only that she woke the next morning first.

Curled up in his arms.

It jarred her how normal it felt. How it felt as if they’d already been doing this for years and not mere days. How she couldn't imagine doing this with anyone else.

A skeptical voice whispered a warning in her mind that it wouldn’t last. He’d leave or disappear like Hal had. He’d get bored. Shifting in his arms, she buried the voice and slipped out of bed.

She couldn’t cook for shit but she was determined to surprise him. Quietly and quickly getting dressed with the practice of a soldier being woken for multiple middle-night battles, she slipped from the room. A quick check on Rose who was fast asleep.

In no time, she had her grey-white mottled horse saddled and she was off. Determined to find a cafe for a few to-go orders.

 

[Cillian]

Entering a veil was easy.

Leaving it?

As Sierra continued on her way she might have noticed the sheer beauty of the surrounding area. Colours seemed brighter, the scents on the dawn carried wind were sweeter, even the songs of birds she would have known her whole life were so sweet they made some lesser fae cry with the joy of it. The morning despite the time of year was surprisingly warm and pleasant, though nowhere near the overbearing heat that summer wrought.

The idyllic path thread its way through undulating countryside before a small town appeared nestled in between two small hills. Smoke wafted into the sky signalling life.

 

[Sierra]

This wasn't what she'd expected. She'd expected the road to Vel Anir. The woods that hugged the Falwood. The familiar babbling brooks and rivers with a town not too far away. But this was...different. Could a wild night of sex make someone start experiencing hallucinations?

She frowned and shook her head, smoothing her features over.

The dreadlord decided to keep going as her eyes caught the wisps of smoke rising up into the bright, clear sky in the distance. Onward she would go. She wanted a bag of pastries and two steaming cups of something with caffeine and chocolate. Sierra urged her horse forward and as she got closer, she began to notice that for once, she was the minority.

A feeling she hadn't had in...ever.

Balls of light flew and zipped in front of her face and whipped in the air, sing-songy voices chattering. Short, squat beings scurried across the road in front of her. Glowing eyes and pointed ears turned in her direction. She could feel their curiosity...their attentions. And quickly their dismissal. Her fingers tightened on her reins, back straight. A satyr trotted by, stuffing a piece of bread in his mouth.

Sierra called out, "Excuse me! Can you point me in the direction of where you got that?"

Gods, at least it looked like a bakery was nearby.

 

[Cillian]

The Satyr turned goat-like eyes towards her and bit into the warm bread again.

"D'ish?" he asked round a mouthful and then swallowed. "From the bakery, down there, to your left, can't miss it," he went to take another bite and then his nostrils flared and suddenly his attention focused solely on her and not on the piece of bread in his hand.

"Human," he breathed. "We don't see many of you this far out."

 

[Sierra]

She couldn't help it. Instinct. Reaction.

The dreadlord plucked an invisible strand of her magic as she felt his interest as her own. And turned it the other way. A thick, warm, tight blanket laying over a growing prickling interest of curiosity and fascination.

Was it a human? Nah. Don't care. Mmm, this bread is so good. Move along, move along.

Urging her horse forward, its hooves clattering upon cobble-stones, Sierra finally saw the bakery. Even the smells from here were making her mouth water. A wooden sign hung over the doorway: The Upper Crust. Using her magic, she spread her blanket of disinterest outward in a growing circumference. Dismounting, she tied off her horse and stepped inside, a small bell chiming at her presence. And though she was tall, she found herself dwarfed by the shopkeeper.

 

[Cillian]

The towering troll turned and cast its shadow over Sierra and most of the shop. With curling tusks that protruded from its bottom jaw and curved upwards, a flat snout and eyes no where near human it might have looked a horrific sight. The type of thing children conjured in their nightmares. It was spoiled, however, by the bright pink pinafore wrapped around its large barrel like stomach. In its hands was a tray of freshly baked pasties which they set down with tender care on the side.

"And how can I help you, sugar?"

 

[Sierra]

Sierra had seen some horrors in the wild part of the Falwood when she, Hal, Talus, and Luther had been dropped with other recruits in some twisted lesson of survival, alliances, and betrayal when they were children. Beasts and things that slithered in the night they prayed never to see. Things that caused even the elves to forsake that part of their territory. But her skills had always alerted her to the beasts intent and alignment.

Malevolence and hunger.

And while mildly terrifying if only for the sake of no previous exposure, she did not feel those things from this baker.

Still.

Sierra tried not to stare.

"I'm looking to buy some pastries and...some coffee and one hot chocolate if you have it?" While she spoke, her magic remained on alert, keeping an air of normalcy to those who ventured within her sphere.

 

[Cillian]

The troll seemed to weigh up the woman before it for an unhealthy long time. As though it couldn't quite figure out what was wrong but that it knew something wasn't quite... right with the situation presenting itself.

"What kind of pastry? We have jam fillings, chocolate, human baby, and I should have some mushroom ones just coming out..."

The troll pointed out each of them in turn.

 

[Sierra]

Human...baby.

She was starting to question the placement of Cillian's hidden glen and his definition of SAFE.

Her grip on her magic only tightened. "Jam, chocolate, and mushroom will do." She took a breath and tried not to eye the baby-filled ones for too long even as her stomach roiled. Almost as an after-thought she muttered the two words that should probably not be muttered to fae.

"Thank you."

 

[Cillian]

A pin dropping would have made a loud noise in the silence that opened like a dangerous maw in the room. The two other customers who had been in the bakery also turned to look at the human, their brows drawn as they tried to work out--

"Human," the sidhe customer purred suddenly and a dawning fell on the other customer and the shop keeper at the same time. "How... did you find your way here little bird?" her head cocked to the side sending icy white hair tumbling over one shoulder. Her almost completely black eyes narrowed in suspicion and she took one step forward---

"SIERRA!" Cillian burst into the bakery with a shout then started at the crowd gathered. He looked as if he had just rolled out of bed for he was missing a shirt and his hair was wild.

"She's with you, leprechaun?" the troll huffed a little, tension easing out of his shoulders. The Sidhe stepped back and had a look of innocence now.

"Aye, she's wit' me. She's Rose's ma'm," he explained and gently put a hand on Sierra's shoulder, tugged her protectively towards him.

"Sweet Rose?!" the whole shop seemed to breathe. "Oh, take her these, these are her favourites," the troll explained and bent to stuff four hearty cookies into a bag before holding them out towards Sierra with a smile.

 

[Sierra]

A hand had fallen to one of her hidden knives. Her magic gathering like a tidal wave ready to be released. Ready to show them she was far from a little bird.

Auburn-hair shifted wildly over her shoulder, grey eyes snapping to Cillian. How had he...what the hell was going on? A mildly offended look crossed her face as Cillian tugged her closer.

She was handling things.

She reached for the bag of cookies. "Rose will be glad to have these." As long as they weren't sprinkled with baby-flesh candies or the snot of goblins. Keen-eyes tracked the customer that had been the first one to call her out. Eyes narrowed for a moment on that white hair and then she offered the troll some coins.

The troll gave her a funny look.

This time, Sierra's own stress and irritation began bubbling to the surface. Gripping the cookies and pastry, she turned sharply and headed back out the door and toward her horse without waiting for Cillian to follow. He had some godsdamned explaining to do.