"What a shame she's fucked in the head," they said.
When Maeve had left Harper it had been with a sweet kiss to his lips and a tender brush of her fingers through Jude's curls, promising to be back from the shrine soon, knowing that her visit with Safrin was unlikely to keep her long. They didn't often linger these days, both too busy with their duties to do so, but the Nightshade hadn't expected to come home to an empty house. At first there wasn't a need for concern. No panic to edge into her bones and set her teeth on edge. Not until she saw the disarray the room was left in. The still scattered toys and the hastily opened drawers of Jude's dresser. The missing jars of baby food from the counter that accounted for more than just an evening meal.
A myriad of thoughts run through her head, each one worse than the next, and she's unsure of where to even begin. Harper wouldn't just leave. No. No. There was no way. Not after what had happened. Not after what they talked about. What they promised. The ring on her finger, whether it was an engagement ring or not, bound them together. They were intertwined now, but these thoughts are stopped before they can go much farther, Harper finding her standing there with fear in her gut. He doesn't answer her questions. Not until they're by the water, the chill biting at her exposed skin as she looks up at him with wide eyes, lost in the sea of his emotions and desperate for a lifeline.
Her hands grip his in a vice, unwilling to release him, pressing further into his space as if she could sink into his bones and live in the hollow of his chest and replace the pain that's settled there. "Okay." She breathes, unsure of what else to say and unwilling to deny him his request even as the unease itches beneath her skin.
Phoebe. Phoebe. Phoebe.
Maeve isn't sure she's ever despised a name so much. So quickly. Not even when she was involved with Sunjata. Not even when Nate lived to make her life hell. Not even then did she feel such a visceral reaction. Barely containing the fierce swell of possessiveness and jealousy that threatens to overwhelm the bond at Harper's own flare of hurt. Maeve doesn't pull away.
No. She steps closer. A growl somewhere in her throat despite the fact that there isn't a part of her that contains any animal instinct aside from the one to protect what's hers. Vaguely she hears what he's saying, but it's reaching her through muffled ears as if there is cotton stuffed inside of them. Not that she cares to hear how Phoebe struggled. Why would she care? They had been friends once, sure. There was a time they were close, but that was before she had abandoned Harper not once, but twice. Before she had left him with a baby and no one to lean on. It didn't matter that she didn't make the choice. It didn't matter at all. Not to Maeve. No, the Nightshade was convinced that Phoebe had made her choice as soon as became Frey's demigod. It was the same kind of selfish choice that Sunjata had made.
So so selfish.
It isn't until he says her name. Until the tears start that she snaps out of her stunned stupor. Her own jade eyes rimmed red and jaw feathering. She draws in a sharp breath, fingers slipping around his wrists, tenderly brushing her thumbs along the insides as she shushes him. "Harper... My love.. My light.. Look at me.." She pleads with him gently, somehow managing to keep her voice an even steady croon, urging him to bring his hands down as she molds herself to his front.
Only when he does meet her eyes, a smooth palm finding his cheek, wiping away the tears there lightly as she holds his gaze. "If she tries to take him I will track her down to the ends of the earth. I will not let her take him. If that means calling down Safrin's wrath on her then so be it. I won't hesitate." She'd kill her before she let it happen. The sincerity behind her words is palpable through the bond, wrapping around him like a cocoon as she draws his forehead down to hers. "She's not taking either of you from me."
Maeve had ruined people for less than taking what was hers.
A myriad of thoughts run through her head, each one worse than the next, and she's unsure of where to even begin. Harper wouldn't just leave. No. No. There was no way. Not after what had happened. Not after what they talked about. What they promised. The ring on her finger, whether it was an engagement ring or not, bound them together. They were intertwined now, but these thoughts are stopped before they can go much farther, Harper finding her standing there with fear in her gut. He doesn't answer her questions. Not until they're by the water, the chill biting at her exposed skin as she looks up at him with wide eyes, lost in the sea of his emotions and desperate for a lifeline.
Her hands grip his in a vice, unwilling to release him, pressing further into his space as if she could sink into his bones and live in the hollow of his chest and replace the pain that's settled there. "Okay." She breathes, unsure of what else to say and unwilling to deny him his request even as the unease itches beneath her skin.
Phoebe. Phoebe. Phoebe.
Maeve isn't sure she's ever despised a name so much. So quickly. Not even when she was involved with Sunjata. Not even when Nate lived to make her life hell. Not even then did she feel such a visceral reaction. Barely containing the fierce swell of possessiveness and jealousy that threatens to overwhelm the bond at Harper's own flare of hurt. Maeve doesn't pull away.
No. She steps closer. A growl somewhere in her throat despite the fact that there isn't a part of her that contains any animal instinct aside from the one to protect what's hers. Vaguely she hears what he's saying, but it's reaching her through muffled ears as if there is cotton stuffed inside of them. Not that she cares to hear how Phoebe struggled. Why would she care? They had been friends once, sure. There was a time they were close, but that was before she had abandoned Harper not once, but twice. Before she had left him with a baby and no one to lean on. It didn't matter that she didn't make the choice. It didn't matter at all. Not to Maeve. No, the Nightshade was convinced that Phoebe had made her choice as soon as became Frey's demigod. It was the same kind of selfish choice that Sunjata had made.
So so selfish.
It isn't until he says her name. Until the tears start that she snaps out of her stunned stupor. Her own jade eyes rimmed red and jaw feathering. She draws in a sharp breath, fingers slipping around his wrists, tenderly brushing her thumbs along the insides as she shushes him. "Harper... My love.. My light.. Look at me.." She pleads with him gently, somehow managing to keep her voice an even steady croon, urging him to bring his hands down as she molds herself to his front.
Only when he does meet her eyes, a smooth palm finding his cheek, wiping away the tears there lightly as she holds his gaze. "If she tries to take him I will track her down to the ends of the earth. I will not let her take him. If that means calling down Safrin's wrath on her then so be it. I won't hesitate." She'd kill her before she let it happen. The sincerity behind her words is palpable through the bond, wrapping around him like a cocoon as she draws his forehead down to hers. "She's not taking either of you from me."
Maeve had ruined people for less than taking what was hers.
Maeve
