Flora couldn't hide the shock in her face from such a statement, nearly dropping the jars and cans that she held.
"Burst?" She exclaimed. "Like, exploding?" She asked, unable to hide the fear in her voice.
"No!" Erick quickly answered. "Well, not exactly." He winced, picking up the last of the food from the bag.
"What do you mean, not exactly?" Flora asked incredulously, gesticulating around the room with an arm full of canned food. Erick sighed through his nose before continuing, closing his eyes as if to reset the conversation.
"Magic is a complicated thing." He started. "Why don't we walk and talk?" He asked, motioning for the door of the room. Flora nodded, her mouth a thin line as she held back her retort. Of course it's complicated! She wanted to say, as if it wasn't the very reason they were on the cusp of a civil war.
"Don't give me that look." Erick said, though he said it with a smirk. "There's a lot I'm sure you don't know." He continued as he walked out of the room, Flora following close behind him. "It's not wrong to not know," He told her over his shoulder as he walked down the hall. "It's just that you were raised differently." His voice went quiet at the end of his sentence, as if caught in a memory. Flora couldn't tell if it was something he hated or something he cherished.
"But one thing's for certain," he said, looking over his shoulder to face her. "You have magic, and it's ready to come out." He told her with firm certainty. It surprised her. If he knew, and he was so sure, how come she didn't know?
"I don't know if you remember," Erick started, quite possibly hearing her thoughts once again. "But we are connected." Erick told her as he went down the staircase to the lower floor. Flora had forgotten, but she wasn't about to tell him that. She could only hope her thoughts didn't betray her as well. Erick laughed, letting her know that she had indeed been betrayed.
"I didn't think much of it at first." He said as he turned from the first floor landing towards the kitchen. "But I realized that the heavy weight on my chest wasn't my own." He told her, his voice going solemn. "Then I worried I had caused you such terrible grief that…" Erick's voice went quiet. "I was very worried." He said at last. Flora felt her heart sink at that comment. She continued to follow him through the dining room, barely taking it in as she focused on what he had to say.
"The longer it went on, the worse it got." He told her, his voice becoming solemn. "I realized there could only be one of two answers." He said, stopping at the kitchen door. "But I've determined it's the better of the two." He told her with a wry smile before heading into the kitchen.
"Wait," Flora said as she followed him. "What were the two answers?" She asked, setting the food down on the first available counter. Erick grimaced as he set down the rest of the food.
"Well," he started, much slower than usual. "The first was what most people who are gifted with magic experience when they haven't used it in a while." Erick informed her. "I believe this is the solution for many reasons, especially considering we've been so close recently. I imagine the Selfrund bond is responsible for it." He said. The information made sense yet still managed to surprise her.
"The second," he continued. "Was… essentially crippling grief." He finished with a strained face, eyebrows creasing as he frowned. "And I can't say that doesn't still worry me." He told her in a much quieter tone.
Flora felt her heart drop all the way into the depths of her stomach. She was suffering from grief, immense grief, and she wasn't dealing with it appropriately either. Hearing Erick admit his own worries and guilt had an oddly satisfying feeling of justification to her, but also troubled her just as much.
"How are you sure then?" Flora asked tentatively, her voice a little shaky. Erick didn't answer right away, his eyes casting over with a look of thought as he considered his words.
"It's hard to explain the exact feeling." He finally said. "But a part of me just knew." He told her, looking her in the eyes as he said it. There was a depth of emotion there that caught her off guard. It was so much more than just guilt or grief, but a combination of the two as well as something else that Flora had trouble placing. She had a feeling that it had to do with love and care.
Flora swallowed before responding. "So, where do we start?" She gave him a wry smile, unable to truly be happy in the moment but at least she was making the attempt. Erick returned the gesture with a similar smile.
"First," he started, grabbing one of the jars of fruit preserves. "We eat."
Erick sat with Flora outside and behind the house. He had brought out a blanket to sit on the grassy field that sat just a little ways from the house, a tree offering them shade as they overlooked the horses in the fenced pasture. He had made them each a simple sandwich of peanut butter and jam, certainly not much for an appetite like his but it would have to do.
Flora didn't seem to mind as she ate hers without complaint. He hadn't said much after that got out here, the two of them sitting in silence in the late afternoon warmth. His mind had gone through several ways to introduce the topic to her, but telling Flora about her magic after sex had not been one of them.
"What," Flora started, startling Erick out of his thoughts. "Does a selfrund bond do, exactly?" Flora asked, turning to face Erick.
"Simply put, it connects two people." He told her. He recalled having discussed this with her before, but reflected that he hadn't gone entirely in-depth. It would seem that neither had Esther, despite her meddling in his personal life.
"But," he continued at the face she gave him, unable to hide a smile. "There's obviously more to it. It's a magical bond, and allows the two to know each other. They can share thoughts, emotions, and even pain." Erick grimaced at the memory of Flora's near death experience, the wound she suffered from her father's sword nearly killing her - and possibly him in turn. That piece of information he would not share, not yet anyway. Flora looked to him in realization.
"Did you…?" Her question trailed off, but he knew what she was asking.
"Yes." He replied quietly. "But don't feel guilty, you couldn't have known." He told her, trying to ease her emotional burden. He knew it was more than heavy enough.
"So it's just…" Flora paused, looking back out at the pasture as the horses frolicked. "Magic? Magic just gets to dictate people's love life?" Flora asked a little incredulously.
"I mean, yeah?" Erick couldn't help but give a huff of a laugh. "I suppose I never thought about it from a human's perspective." He stated. At the questioning glance she gave him, he pressed on. "It's just another step in life for many shifters, especially dragons. It's a part of out culture - we leave home and don't come back until we've found our selfrund." He told her. Her eyebrows raised in surprise but otherwise said nothing, waiting for him to continue.
"Magic dictates it, yes, but it's still ultimately a choice." He informed her. "But it would bring dishonor to your clan and family if you rejected a selfrund bond. At least in dragon culture." He finished, though he knew there were plenty of questions just over the horizon.
"Reject it?" She asked. "You can reject it?" She asked, her voice surprised and face looking astounded.
"Yes," he replied. "Though from what I hear it never goes over well." He said quietly, his voice going dark as he recalled the warnings from his mother. She had risked life and limb staying with his father, unicorns and dragons being mortal enemies. And yet she had stuck by him, knowing the dangers of rejecting their own selfrund bond. In the end Erick thought it was for the best, and not just because he got to be alive in this moment. Their love had been apparent, running deeper than most even with a magical bond tying them together.
Flora was quiet for a long time, watching the horses in the field. Odysseus stood quietly with Penelope, ever the well behaved stallion. Condor on the other hand was galloping up and down the fence line, swinging his head and kicking up his heels - well, fetlocks in his case. It was by all means an easy afternoon, one to be enjoyed. It was hard for Erick to enjoy it though, given the current situation he was dealing with.
"I don't want to lose you." Flora said very quietly, bringing Erick back from his thoughts. "Maybe we could just…" Flora trailed off, still not looking at him. Erick felt a strain on his heart and a weight on his chest at seeing her distress. "Maybe we could just take some time to figure it out?" She asked tentatively, chancing a look in his direction. Erick couldn't help but give her a sad yet sincere smile.
"Of course," he replied. "I would like nothing more than to spend some time with you." He told her, risking a gentle gesture by placing his hand on hers. She made no move at first, a part of her tightening at his touch. Then, after the briefest of moments, she interlocked her fingers with his. They continued their lunch in peace like this, one hand holding the other's while they finished eating lunch.
Flora wished this afternoon could last forever, but all too soon lunch was done and the two had work to do. Of course, they had spent some time together just enjoying the summer breeze, but even Flora had to admit that she didn't want to sit around all day. Even though her physical exertions from earlier had left her relishing in the restful feeling, there was a sense of restlessness to her. So when Erick decided it was time to go, Flora had no complaints.
She did however, have complaints when he dropped a stack of books in front of her. She must have had quite the look on her face, because he barked out a laugh before explaining it to her.
"These are just a few books on the basics, things like the history and brief inner workings of magic." He told her while flipping through a few pages of the topmost book. "The things in these books can apply to most types of magic." He told her.
"Most?" Flora asked, cocking an eyebrow in his direction.
"Blood Magic tends to be the most difficult to document, and most elusive to be gifted." Erick replied. When she gave him a confused look he continued. "My Aunt Martha is one of very few to have been gifted it." Erick winced at the mention of it, recalling her use of it to hurt both Flora and himself. "Even she never fully understood the depths of that power. She rarely used it to begin with, let alone learn the sub-factions of it." He explained, eyes going dark with the memories Flora was not yet privy to. Yet, she reflected. She realized she was already anticipating sharing more of her life with him, and she expected he would do the same with her.
"It's the only magic bestowed upon us by Erebus," Erick continued. "And is the only one looked on with more disfavor than Night Magic." He finished with a wry smile, flipping through the pages of the seven circles of magic before closing the book. Flora set her hand on top of his, setting the book aside for a moment as she looked up into his face. She saw a torrent of long held back emotions swimming beneath his eyes, and a smile that barely held it all together.
Erick turned away before saying anything. "Don't worry about it," he said with a huff that Flora assumed was an attempted laugh. "You likely take after your mother, having some form of Spring Magic." The mention of her mother brought back a pain she had not felt in years, and found it difficult to tuck away.
Erick said as he brought up one of the books from the bottom of the pile. It was a book specifically on the intricacies of Spring Magic. The book was titled Spring Magic: Its Many Sub-Magics and Its Uses. The sheer volume of the book had Flora much more worried than she initially was about magic.
She enjoyed reading, perhaps more than most women, but it had really been the only thing to do in her small amounts of free time. Usually it was something enjoyable, like a light novel. This however, was not enjoyable reading. Her education was nothing like Erick's, and she suspected it would take her a good deal longer to be able to read something like this when compared to him.
As if sensing her worries, he chuckled. "Don't worry, I won't make you read these cover to cover." He told her with a soft smile. "But you will have to read a good bit." He warned her with a lazy grin. Flora was unable to hold in her sigh of defeat upon learning this, but otherwise said nothing.
"Good," he said, straightening up from the table and standing over her. It was hard for his large form to not tower over her, her face now level with his crotch. She tried very hard not to think about this as he continued to discuss her new education regimen. "I expect you to have read at least a few chapters in that first book by the time I'm back." He told her.
"Back?" She asked, an unnecessary jolt of anxiety running through her body at the thought of him leaving. You wanted to be alone, and besides, he's the king. He's got better things to do than read with you. Flora berated herself.
"I'll be back." He told her gently. He ran his hand across the side of her face, lingering there for a moment as he spoke. "I meant what I said," he told her, his voice low and soothing. "I want to spend some time with you, and I would also appreciate some time away from the court and my dreadful family." Erick teased, giving Flora a small pinch before drawing away.
"But I do have things that still need to be taken care of at the castle." He said with a heavy voice, and Flora almost thought she heard him sigh. "I'll see you in a while." He told her, giving her one last grin before turning to leave.
"I'll see you soon." Flora replied quietly as she watched him leave the sitting room, soon to leave the house and her with it. She should not feel like this, not so soon. Images of him in all black clothing still plagued her mind, no matter how many times she tried to replace it with images of him between her legs. While it was certainly appealing, it only fed her sickening stomach into a turmoil of rumbling emotions. With a deep breath, Flora cracked open the first book and began to read.
Erick left Flora then, the weight on his chest never lifting as he did so. He pushed it aside as he pulled Odysseus out of the pasture, taking the horse back to the small stable to be tacked back up. The ride back to the castle was much quicker than a walk, and Erick was hoping to make his time in the castle as quick as possible.
He meant what he said to Flora, he needed a break. He knew it would not look well on him to essentially hole up after a public execution, but he was the king, and if he couldn't use that power for some alone time then he didn't want to use it at all. Don't be so selfish. He reminded himself as he pulled himself up onto his horse, setting the dark stallion into an easy trot away from the farmhouse.
He had to admire the place, especially given his experience with the place. He had spent more than a few spring evenings there while Leon had been out. Maybe don't tell Flora about that one. A voice in his head warned him and he grimaced at the thought.
He was surprised she wasn't angry with him. He had known and avoided her for three years. She had not even noticed the bond, and he was happy with letting her live her own life however it went. It had been a quiet suffering for him, one that only got worse as time went on. And now there's no going back. He thought, Odysseus easily following the trail back to the castle with little input from him.
He was unable to ignore her inner turmoil, as it not only affected her emotional state but her physical as well. He wasn't sure if she even noticed it, the way her body held everything in, to the point of pain. Does she just blame it on work, not realizing she's done it to herself? He wondered. His grip on the reins tightened as he thought about how she came to be like this, how she had developed this form of emotional burial as her coping mechanism.
The line of thought had himself stressed out, his jaw set in a tight line and his mouth pressed thin as he arrived back at the castle. He let a stable hand come up to take his horse, making sure to give the young boy strict instructions before striding up back into the castle. He was not alone anymore, or with Flora, and it was time to get back to the real world. That meant returning to his normal and more regulated behaviour. It was something he had carefully honed and worked on for years, his parents having made him ready well before he actually became king. No more smiles, no more laughter, only King Vincorne.
Erick marched up the steps of the castle entrance, barely acknowledging the guards stationed there as they opened the doors for him. He strode down the halls, courtiers and castle staff alike all bowing before him. It was not something he could ever get used to, but at least he could ignore it. Bertram, his Castellan, sidled up to his side.
Bertram had been appointed when his father had risen to power, the previous Castellan falling to his father's blade. Like Erik's reign, Garrett Vincorne had started his ruling with an execution and a wiping out of traitors and conspirators.
Bertram was neither of these things. He was a relative of his father, a cousin twice removed if Erick recalled correctly. The old man had auburn brown hair, not unlike a liver chestnut horse, with green eyes that stood in stark contrast. His face was clean shaven, a typical style for unicorns, and his forehead was marked with the small yet unmistakable mark of a unicorn star. Streaks of grey lined his temple, but he otherwise appeared young, a man in his thirties perhaps. Unicorns aged much slower though, and for a wealthy - and therefore healthy - male, their lifespans could be nearly double that of a human.
"I've arranged the documents and appointments you requested, Your Majesty." Bertram informed Erick, bowing slightly at the waist as he addressed his king.
"Good." Erick replied simply with a nod. He continued walking through the castle to his office. He had very little time before his scheduled appointments with various representatives, and he still had much to do.
It was true that this whole thing was short notice. A lot of what he did for Flora recently was short notice. She made him defy sensibility and logic, and it was starting to show. He had gone too far now and was willing to give her anything and everything. If she asked for the moon, then he would rip it from the sky himself. It was completely nonsensical and went against everything he had been raised for, and yet here he was. He would do anything for her, and it worried him.
Apparently, Erick's recent behaviour did not go unnoticed or unmentioned. As he arrived at his office, he found his Captain waiting there. Dante immediately came to attention at the sight of Erick, Bertram directly behind him.
"I've been looking for you." Dante stated, walking up to meet Erick halfway. His eyes lacked their usual spark of mischievousness, causing Erick to frown.
"What for?" He asked flatly. Despite their friendship, this was a time for business. Dante was unfazed as he explained his situation.
Dante's eyes darted between Erick and Bertram before speaking. "There's been some rumblings around the court." He stated. Erick had a good idea what he meant, but he pressed his Captain for more.
"Has there?" He asked, cocking an eyebrow. Dante pressed his mouth into a thin line, the muscles in his jaw working as he considered his next words carefully.
"I'm concerned about your safety." Dante said quietly, leaning close to Erick as he spoke. Bertram took the hint and stepped back from their conversation. "There have been more insurgents in our ranks than we initially thought." Dante swallowed nervously, the apple of his throat bobbing with the movement. Erick narrowed his eyes at the statement, clenching and unclenching his fists as he considered his options.
"I can't go back on my word." Erick stated after a moment. Dante shifted uncomfortably.
"Look, I get it," he started. "But maybe you should-"
"No." Erick cut him off louder and firmer than he meant to. Dante flinched at his response. He knew he was being stubborn, that he was being unreasonable. It was his dragon nature coming through, and for once he wasn't fighting it.
"I have to go back." He told his Captain. I finally get to have her. He thought, knowing Dante would hear. He knew it sounded desperate, and wasn't willing to share it with anyone else. Dante gave him a pained look. They were interrupted by Bertram clearing his throat.
"If I might interject," he started tentatively. He was not gifted with Night Magic, so he had not heard Erick's silent thoughts, and yet he had clearly picked up on their conversation. Like most unicorns, Bertram wielded Spring Magic, which sometimes included exceptional foresight. "I would have to agree with the Captain." He said quietly. Erick narrowed his eyes at the Castellan, considering his actions carefully.
"I can make arrangements." Dante stated before Erick could say anything harsh to the Castellan. He was distantly aware that he was more pent up than usual, but the thought did little to quell the fire that had ignited inside his chest. The idea of leaving Flora alone, or even bringing her back to the castle, had his hackles rising. It was one thing to simply go back on your word, which to Erick was already bad enough. But if the people responsible for his parent's death - directly or indirectly- were out there and willing to strike again, he was not going to leave her unguarded.
"Then that takes care of it." Erick stated, moving to leave and end the conversation. Dante took the hint and bowed, leaving for his own work as Erick went for his office. The entire time he could hear the buzzing of Bertram's mind as it ran through the vast number of worries that were just dumped on him. Erick knew what he would say, even before he started to say it.
"No." Erick said firmly, opening the door to his office and striding in.
"But I didn't-"
"And I said no." Erick emphasized, swinging around to face his Castellan. "I've already made up my mind." He told Bertram, making sure to look the older man in the eye. Bertram wisely submitted, looking away and swallowing his next words.
"You are dismissed." Erick said with finality. He could feel the strength of his magic pulling on him, practically begging to be used. Instead, he gave a quick flick of his hand, and with it the command to leave. Bertram bowed deeply from the waist, making sure to give Erick his respect before leaving.
The entire affair left a churning feeling in his gut, and a tightness in his chest. Erick knew his parents' murder was an attempted coup, that the whole family was meant to die. He also knew that those responsible for it were only biding their time to finish what they started. Despite any attempt to make his youngest brother's death look like an accident, it would still be attributed to them and he knew it. All of his careful planning would be wasted, and the sting of the tattoo would feel hollow on his skin.
What worried Erick the most was how easy it would be to kill Flora. With the strengthening of their bond it was only a matter of time before it solidified, their lives forever tied together. Her death would mean his death, and it was more than likely that his enemies knew as much. He knew Dante would schedule better protection over the farmhouse, but what was meant to be an escape now felt like a trap, one he refused to walk away from.