The Night just Walked in.
Just after midnight, Day 12
[ Continued from here. ]
I lead her by the hand, out of the Tavern and out into the street. The shadows sing at our approach, and leap like excited children at our feet. They sense my joy. They revel in it. They take power and life from it. They lap at my skin and squeal at the taste.
And her...she is not Anushka. She is not to be bent, nor consumed, nor used. She is one of us, one of the old powers, the old gods, and finding her is the most unexpected pleasure imaginable. I am drunk with the joy of it, of seeing this daughter of giants walk in my domain, and I link her hand in mine and walk the night like I have not in years.
...at times I slip to my other self, and instead of a man a massive black dog bounds at her side, taking her hands gently in jaws that could crush bones...
...at times the moon bathes us with her light and sings the most heartbreaking and glorious of songs...
...at times I pull her to me, into the wings of my coat, and fall back into the shadow of a building, only to reappear down the street, skipping through the shadows like they were cracks in a wall and laughing as I do so. The night is mine, the dark is mine, the shadows are mine, and I share them with her and glory in her delight. Tonight the gods walk the streets of Excolo, and even if the mortals do not know it I think many have uneasy dreams, and old ghosts long laid to rest stir at our footfalls.
We dance the night, hand-in-hand, we dance the shadow.
And we finally turn our dance down the path to the manor, to my temple. The door is open, it is always open at night now, and I pick her up to sweep her across the threshold, kissing her passionately and tasting apples and salt from her lips.
[OPEN to Verdandi & Anushka]
[CLOSED]
[Do I even need to say ADULT CONTENT AHEAD at this point?]
[ Continued from here. ]
I lead her by the hand, out of the Tavern and out into the street. The shadows sing at our approach, and leap like excited children at our feet. They sense my joy. They revel in it. They take power and life from it. They lap at my skin and squeal at the taste.
And her...she is not Anushka. She is not to be bent, nor consumed, nor used. She is one of us, one of the old powers, the old gods, and finding her is the most unexpected pleasure imaginable. I am drunk with the joy of it, of seeing this daughter of giants walk in my domain, and I link her hand in mine and walk the night like I have not in years.
...at times I slip to my other self, and instead of a man a massive black dog bounds at her side, taking her hands gently in jaws that could crush bones...
...at times the moon bathes us with her light and sings the most heartbreaking and glorious of songs...
...at times I pull her to me, into the wings of my coat, and fall back into the shadow of a building, only to reappear down the street, skipping through the shadows like they were cracks in a wall and laughing as I do so. The night is mine, the dark is mine, the shadows are mine, and I share them with her and glory in her delight. Tonight the gods walk the streets of Excolo, and even if the mortals do not know it I think many have uneasy dreams, and old ghosts long laid to rest stir at our footfalls.
We dance the night, hand-in-hand, we dance the shadow.
And we finally turn our dance down the path to the manor, to my temple. The door is open, it is always open at night now, and I pick her up to sweep her across the threshold, kissing her passionately and tasting apples and salt from her lips.
[OPEN to Verdandi & Anushka]
[CLOSED]
[Do I even need to say ADULT CONTENT AHEAD at this point?]