Chapter 18 Where Love Trips Over Itself
779 Words
Tala did not raise her voice.
That was how everyone knew it was serious.
“You have overstepped,” she said, standing before Liraya with her hands folded calmly at her waist. “Again.”
The Dalaketnon court stilled. Even the leaves seemed to pause mid-sway.
Liraya regarded her with faint amusement. “I saved her.”
“You bound her,” Tala replied. “There is a difference.”
“I prevented her from being concluded.”
“You decided she was yours to manage.”
Liraya’s smile sharpened. “And you decided to bring a child into a forest that eats daughters.”
Kisê made a strangled noise. “Oh this is bad. This is very bad.”
Amihan stood frozen between them.
Tala stepped closer to Liraya, close enough that their shadows overlapped. “You will loosen your hold.”
“I will not.”
“Then I will tear your court open from the inside,” Tala said quietly. “With manners.”
Liraya laughed. It rang like glass.
“I would love to see you try.”
Kisê leaned toward Amihan and whispered loudly, “I don’t know whose side I’m on but I”m bringing snacks if this turns into a duel.”
Amihan snorted despite herself.
Liraya’s gaze flicked to Kisê. “You.”
“Yes?” Kisê said brightly.
“Leave.”
Kisê blinked. “Just me?”
“Yes.”
Kisê pointed at herself, then at Amihan. “You’re separating us during a tense emotional confrontation? That’s villain behaviour.”
Liraya sighed.
The floor shifted beneath Kisê’s feet, gently sliding her several paces away.
Kisê waved as she went. “If anyone dies, I told you so!”
The tension cracked. Just a little.
But not enough.
Tala turned back to Amihan. “Come with me.”
Amihan hesitated.
Liraya’s eyes softened. “She stays.”
That was when Tala lost her calm.
“You do not get to decide who keeps my daughter,” she snapped. “Not after Kael. Not after the Collector. Not after everything you’ve taken.”
Silence fell hard.
Liraya’s expression cooled. “You are standing in my mercy.”
“And you,” Tala replied, “are standing in mine.”
The forest shuddered.
Somewhere deeper within the court, a path groaned open.
Liraya’s eyes narrowed. “You are dangerous,” she said softly.
Tala smiled without warmth. “I learned from watching you.”
🌿
Amihan fled before either of them could stop her.
She didn’t run far.
Just far enough to breathe.
Ilyaon found her sitting on a fallen log, fingers twisted in her skirts, eyes unfocused.
“Hey,” he said gently.
She looked up. “They’re going to tear the world apart.”
“Probably,” he agreed. “But not today.”
He sat beside her, close enough that their shoulders touched.
“You okay?” he asked.
She shook her head. “I don’t know what I’m feeling anymore.”
“That’s allowed,” he said. “Feeling is messy.”
She laughed weakly. “You’re very calm about this.”
“I’m not,” he said. “I’m just trying not to scare you.”
She turned to him. “You don’t.”
He hesitated, then reached for her hand. Not urgent. Just offering.
She took it.
“I worry about you,” he said softly. “Not because I have to. Because I want to.”
Her chest tightened.
“I like how you exist,” he added, almost embarrassed. “It makes the world feel… steadier.”
She swallowed.
Before she could overthink it, she leaned in and kissed him.
This kiss was different.
Warm. Earnest. His hands came to her waist carefully, as if checking whether he was allowed. When she didn’t pull away, he kissed her back, slow and sweet, lips lingering as if memorizing her.
And in the middle of it—
Silawán’s hands.
Silawán’s voice.
Silawán’s mouth.
The memory slid unbidden into her mind, sharp and intimate.
Her breath hitched.
Ilyaon pulled back instantly. “Hey. Did I do something wrong?”
“No,” she said quickly. Too quickly. “I just—“
She couldn’t finish.
He searched her face, concern threading through his expression. “You don’t have to explain.”
He brushed his thumb over her knuckles. “I’m not going anywhere.”
That made it worse.
She nodded, heart pounding.
Behind them, the air shifted.
A presence pressed close.
Not hostile.
Interested.
From the trees, Liraya watched.
From the roots below, the forest listened.
And somewhere between bone and breath, the Collector adjusted its calculations.
- Writer
