pixiedust.

Nothing she did was ever good enough. Zorya tried to be like her older sister, Fury, but she couldn’t capture the clever, beautiful, and level of her bravery. Thoughts of never living up to her parent’s expectations weighed on her. She sat on her bed with her laptop perched on her knees while she looked out into the night sky. It was beautiful and also haunting as she watched stars shoot across the sky. Maybe if she worked harder and didn’t take breaks, then she could at least be enough. That’s all she wants, for someone to look at her and tell her she’s enough.

Tears sting the rim of her eyes and her chest caves. She needed to get out of that house and get some fresh air. Yeah, fresh air will help. Whenever her anxiety grew within her, she knew she had been cooped up in the house too long.

Once she saved and shut down her work, Zorya threw up her onyx hair into a bun and pulled on a lilac sweater over the pink tank top she already wore. Then, she managed to get black jeans on without feeling like she tore up her room in the process. Her clumsiness wasn’t a good trait for her. When putting on skinny jeans, it’s a full-blown act not to fall over and/or break something. 

As she slipped on her sandals, she heard her father walking down the hallway and into the kitchen. If she was lucky she would be able to get out of the house without him noticing or paying any attention to her. Not that he did anyway. 

Gently, she opened her door and tiptoed her way down the stairs. From the stairs, it was a straight shot to the front door. But she froze the second she heard her father walking back to the stairs. 

Move your ass, Zorya!

Without another thought, she dashed to the coat closet and hid. If he knew she was sneaking out, he would definitely kill her and most likely ground her, even though she was old enough to make her own decisions, he still liked to make them for her and monitor her like she was a teenager. 

As soon as he shut his bedroom door, she pushed open the closet door and quickly exited the house. Swiftly, she made her way down towards the Istros and didn’t look back. 

____

Ruhn wasn’t entirely thrilled that he was a rebel now. He knew it was for the greater good but still, if everything went south, he would be dead. The same fate would happen to his sister if they found her, and he needed her for the throne. She was going to be the ruler of the Valbaran Fae, not him.

He watched the water ripple as several otters played out in the distance. He wished he could be as carefree as they were at that moment. He would give anything to go back to his sleeping in and partying all night days but now, it was always one big strategic move to get ahead of the Asteri. 

His thoughts faded as he sensed a female nearby. Her scent wasn’t familiar but it was calming. The clank of her heeled boots echoed through the air as she got closer but he didn’t look back at her. For the most part, he didn’t want to spook her but then again he wanted to see her. When he looked over his shoulder, his heart skipped several beats. She was beautiful and everything he thought was attractive in appearance. 

Please let her have a beautiful personality too…

____

Zorya stopped in her tracks as she saw a male sitting in her favorite spot on a bench that overlooked the waters. He had long braided hair and she knew exactly who it was. It was the prince. A true prince that glowed underneath the moonlight. Perhaps, she should have turned around and not bothered him but it was hard not to look away from him. He was beautiful in the most masculine way. Probably even the most beautiful male she’s ever seen. 

If only she was good at flirting and not awkward around other people, then maybe she would have a shot with him. Butterflies erupted in her stomach as she took a few steps closer to him and the waters.

“You going to stay back there or are you going to come to sit down?” His tone was anything but mean. It was a genuine question. So, with all of her courage, she got closer until she was sitting on the bench. Her cheeks had to have been red because a smirk tugged on the prince’s lips. 

“Sorry, I’m not used to others being here at the same time I am and I didn’t want to bother you.” She admitted. His violet eyes met hers and he grinned. 

“It’s alright, I’m not usually out here at this time.” Because he was always at parties with his friends, she assumed. But she didn’t say that. She only nodded once then looked out to the waters. “You seem familiar,” his eyes narrowed slightly at her, “like I’ve met you before.” 

Zorya quickly shook her head. He probably saw her sister in her and that’s why he might have recognized her. That could have been the only he could know of her. “We haven’t met but you may know my older sister, Fury Axtar.” The words left a bitter taste in her mouth as she said them. He only nodded once and then asked another question,

“Why are you out here by yourself? It’s not safe.” 

“Needed to get out of the house.” It was true but it wasn’t the full truth as to why she wanted out of the house. She needed to get away from her parents and get out of the house. They only made her anxiety worse whenever she was near them. And that happened to be every day. Ruhn hummed in answer and looked back at the water.

“Why are you out here?” She couldn’t help but be curious as to why the prince wasn’t at a party on a Friday night. Fury had always told her to stay away from who she called “the frat pack”. Fury told her everything from them doing drugs to sleeping with women at each party they held. 

It didn’t matter to Zorya though. Ruhn’s intentions were good as far as she knew, and that was all that mattered. 

“Just need to clear my head about some issues going on.” His nail polish was chipped on the edges and he twirled one of his rings around his finger, maybe from a nervous habit. She wanted to calm him but she restrained herself, but he wasn’t hers to calm.

“I can understand that. Maybe not your exact situation but something similar.” She twisted her fingers in her lap and lowered her head.

Ruhn glanced at her and she saw a flicker of something in his eyes but she couldn’t place what emotion it was. But after a beat of silence, he spoke, “Want to go to my house and hang out? I know you don’t really want to go back home. I have a few friends that can make anyone smile,” he said with a grin.

wc: 300+

warning(s): dirty talk, jealousy, implied smut etc.

_____

Emilia was only playing cards with the other demon princes. Nothing more. But she could an intense increase of a certain emotion radiating from her husband. She turned to look back at him but he was gone. “Excuse me for a moment,” she placed her cards under the deck and went to find her love. 

If she knew him well enough then he would be hanging around the bar. When she entered the bar, a shiver ran down her spine. A warning. Then her back hit the wall and Wrath was in front of her, his eyes a dim gold. They bore into hers and she grinned at him, “Hello, husband.” 

“Not enjoying yourself?” He drawled and took her chin between his fingers. She narrowed her eyes at him, 

“Jealous?” This time it was his turn to grin at her. He traced his thumb over her bottom lip and cocked his head to the side. 

“Why would I be jealous when you’re the one that will be squirming on my cock.” He growled and placed his hand around her neck. She wanted to say something, but a heady feeling of submission coursed through her veins. His possessive grip held her in place as he brought his lips to hers. He claimed her mouth with so much passion that she knew what kind of night it was going to be. 

She could feel the dull throb between her legs so, she squeezed her thighs together trying to tamp it down but Wrath took notice of the movement. He chuckled darkly and placed his lips over the shell of her ear and whispered, “You like it when I talk vulgar to you, don’t you?” His free hand slid down her side and onto the back of her thigh. He pulled her leg up around his waist and smirked at her as he pressed his bulge against her core. 

A gasp fell from her lips and she bucked her hips to get some type of friction but it wasn’t enough, “Quit teasing me, Wrath,” She pouted and bumped her nose against his. His grin widened. 

It was torture seeing Ruhn with another female. Kissing, hugging, and her making him smile as you could have. Bile rose in your throat at the thought of confronting your feelings for him but your feelings were all but forcing you to. Your chest was tight and your heart was racing, beating against your ribcage. 

You wanted to be the one to make him smile but he was happy and ruining that would only make you feel worse about the situation. So, you shoved the feelings down and sat on the invisible box that held them, not letting them break the surface. You knew your friends, which are his best friends, knew about your feelings but they had never said a word about them. They probably didn’t want to hurt your feelings which was okay. 

You hurt your own feelings every day regarding this issue. It was hopeless and you knew it. 

As you waited for Ruhn, and hoped that he didn’t bring her on this same mission that was supposed to be just you two. You wanted this time with him since you hardly get time with him as it is.

Flynn bumped your shoulder with his bicep and frowned at you, “Still waiting huh?” You look up at him and match his expression. “You know if you would tell him your feelings then maybe–” 

“No. He’s happy and I don’t want to be the one to ruin that. I know he doesn’t share the same feelings.” You sigh and turn toward the vehicle you were taking for the mission, “Besides, he has something better with her.” Something like disappointment flickered across the male’s face as he walked beside you. 

“You’re his mate though. You felt the bond snap into place, did you not?” he said as he lowered his voice to where you could were the only one to hear him. You give him the look and with that, you got into ATV and strapped yourself in. 

This was supposed to be a simple mission. Get into the Asteri’s “palace”, grab the documents, and get out. Simple enough. The only hard part would be getting in and out but luckily Declan had hacked into their systems. 

“We ready?” Ruhn said as he climbed into the vehicle and looked at you. He could sense something was up and you knew it by the face he gave you. Great. He’s going to bug you now about it during the ride to the palace. 

“Yeah, I’m ready. Let’s get this done so we can come home and eat pizza while the four of you play video games.” You put a smile on your face because that’s exactly what you all will do. It’s like nature to the five of you now with Tharion included in the mix. 

The prince chuckled and shook his head, “You’re right, we definitely need pizza and beer tonight. We’ll even get your favorite pizza.” You look at him and narrowed your eyes. 

“Why are you sucking up to me? You never get my favorite since you all think it’s disgusting.” 

“Listen, why the fuck would they put Pineapple on pizza, I don’t get it.” 

The two of you were already halfway there by the time the argument had ended. You looked at the trees as they passed by. There were so many things that you wanted to say to Ruhn but they were a lump in your throat. Maybe you should say something, just to let him know that you're his mate. That, again, would only make things complicated for him and you. So, you kept quiet. 

“We will need to stop several blocks away from the palace so they don’t pick up on us on the radars. Want to use your transportation skills so we can get in there without someone seeing us?” He said. 

You showed him a grin and drawled, “Good thing I’ve been practicing like your sister has or else we’d be screwed.” A snort left the prince's mouth as he came to a stop in between the mountains that surround the palace. That was the only way the both of you could keep yourselves hidden in case guards wanted to pop in and scope the area. With your luck, it was very much a possibility. 

You and Ruhn jumped out of the ATV, and cleared the area just as a precaution. When both of you are done, you grabbed Ruhn’s hand, not thinking of the spark that passed through your veins as you touched him, and transported him out. With a pop, you two landed just outside of the Archives doors. You smiled to yourself and felt pretty proud as well. 

Ruhn placed his hand on the doors and turned the knob with a gloved hand but before you could look inside, boots began to echo outside of the hall you were in so, naturally, you shoved Ruhn inside along with yourself and hid behind a shelf next to him. At least you two had gotten into the archive. 

“Why is it that I can hear your heartbeat so loudly in my head?” He whispered to you with worry that filled his eyes. You closed your eyes and took a breath. Nope. You weren’t going to tell him. 

“Could be your heartbeat because mine is fine,” You quipped. He rolled his eyes and blew out a breath. The doors banged open, and guards poured into the room but Ruhn was already in motion. Light from the Star sword slashed through the air followed by a scream from one of the guards. You had gotten your dagger out as you joined in the fighting. Your blade struck true in one guard then another and another. 

After the guards had been taken down and you two had caught your breath, you felt a sharp pain in your side. When you pulled your hand away from it, panic began to flood your senses. You turn to Ruhn but he was already taking off his shirt to give it to you for a bandage. Heat blossomed over your cheeks and chest as he tied his shirt around your middle to stanch the blood. 

His hands moved with precision and he was quiet. Too focused on you to see that more guards had filed into the small space you were in. You tapped his arm and nudged your chin toward the desk in the very back with books strewn across it. The guard's boots had gotten closer to both of you but you focused your eyes on the desk and laid your hand on Ruhn’s shoulder. “Get ready.” You whispered to him and in seconds you were in front of the wooden desk. 

“We need to get the book and get out,” Ruhn said, but his eyes were trained on your wound. “Your wound is bad.” You could care less if the wound was bad, as long as you got the information that you needed about the different worlds. You shook your head, and scanned over the books, collecting what you could before the guards reached you. His demeanor had changed though which frightened you. If he was on edge, then that meant something was truly wrong. You handed him two books and made quick work of visualizing where to teleport. 

Before you could, though, guards swarmed around you and the prince. You sent up a prayer to whatever gods there were and with one swift movement, you grabbed your dagger once more and rammed the blade in between two pieces of metal on the side of the guard. As you pushed up the blade, ribs cracked but once you got to his heart, he fell to the floor with a pool of blood around him. The other guards hesitated when they saw the star sword and your handiwork with a blade. 

You wanted to be smug but your vision began to tunnel and your stomach turned over in itself. The world spun around you and the next thing you knew your vision had gone black. 

A faint voice pulled you from your sleep, but when you opened your eyes, there was no one. You probably hallucinated the voice, but it was clearer this time when it spoke. You sat up from the couch you were lying on and looked behind you. Ruhn walked into the room, his eyes not leaving yours. “What happened?” You said. 

“Why didn’t you tell me, Y/N?” His voice was steady but you could tell he was doing everything he could to keep himself that way. He found out that you’re his mate, you felt it in your bones. Your mind thrust itself into a panic. He was happy without you, and now, somehow, you had fucked it up. Just as you did everything you touched. Tears brimmed in your eyes even though he hadn’t yelled or screamed at you. Your body was gearing up for a fight but you were too tired to. 

“I’m sorry, Ruhn. You were happy,” you were quiet as you said the last part. Your heart slammed against your ribcage and you desperately wanted to be out of the room and in your bed. You wanted to hide. Ruhn narrowed his eyes at you but then as he took a step toward you, you felt the tug in your chest. Heat flooded your cheeks and your heart moved up into your throat, a lump that made you unable to say anything else. 

“I want my mate.” He said as he took another step and then another. Tears spilled down your cheeks as you watched him. Did he actually choose you or was it a figment of your imagination? You had been really stressed but the way he took your hands and pressed them to his lips sent shivers down your spine. Then, he pulled you into him, your face buried into his chest. You took in his scent and immediately comforted. You gripped the back of his shirt and held him closer if that was even possible. 

That had to have been a dream but you held on to it, to him. His hands smoothed down your hair as he kissed your forehead. You closed your eyes and waited for the moment to pass, for you to wake but it never came. The two of you stayed like that for a while, and it seemed like he didn’t mind it but you pulled away to look up at him. 

“You’re in love with her though, princey.”

“Not as much as I am with you, baby. Why didn’t you tell me?” He took your chin between his thumb and index finger which kept your eyes glued onto his. “How come I never saw it before today? Y/N, when you passed out in the archive, I felt your life force. I felt your pain. Before then, I didn’t feel anything. But now, I feel it.” He paused for a beat then added, “I told Seraphine that you were my mate and that I should be with you.”