Bird in the Golden Cage

Chapter twelve

Aislinn and Nathaniel walked the streets of London in silence. The skies were overcast with gray clouds. The sunlight remained hidden somewhere behind them. The air was mixed with the fresh smell of rain and the foul smell of car exhausts. Even though there was a cold breeze, it was not cold. However, Aislinn was shivering because she had managed to get wet before. Nathaniel took off his leather jacket and slung it over Aislinn's shoulders.

"You seem strange as a human," she cut the silence between them.

"You don't like my human form?" Nathaniel asked her with a laugh.

"I like your pointy ears better." she grinned. "I prefer it to be you you, Nate. Fae prince," she said.

"People wouldn't take it as easily as you do, dear Aislinn," Nathaniel said.

"Not everyone is like me," Aislinn noted.

"No, it's not," Nate said.

"But I cause a lot of trouble," Aislinn remarked. "I think Karsyn hates me. That he definitely hates me."

"No, she likes you," he argued. "She just doesn't like what you did."

"She hates me. And even more so after today, when it was Malachy who helped me. If it wasn't for Karsyn stopping us, I would be here with him right now." Aislinn said.

"He just can't stay away from you. Someone might mistake you for not having a bond with me, but with him." he tried to mask his concern with a laugh, but Aislinn could sense his distaste for Malachy.

"Are you mad at me because of Malachy?" she asked Nate.

"I don't trust my brother, but you do. And I trust you, dear Aislinn." Nate replied.

"Now that I know what the bond means I feel like a terrible person. It must have been awful to feel what I did with your brother." Aislinn said guiltily. "You must hate me for that."

Nathaniel turned Aislinn to face him. He smoothed the unruly hair behind her ear with a gentle touch. "I could never hate you, Aislinn," he said. "But I do Malachy," he added.

Aislinn laughed. Sincerely and from the heart. "Now I understand why you couldn't keep your distance from me," she said.

"And I hope you understand why I had to bring you to Feria. If they found out there is a bond between us, they would hurt you and I couldn't protect you in the mortal world. You were too far. I had to bring you to me." Nathaniel said. "I couldn't stand the idea of someone hurting you and I couldn't stop it."

Aislinn couldn't stand Nathaniel's look full of tenderness and love. She looked away. "How can you love someone you don't even know?" that question hung in the air like a dire prediction. "What if the bond is wrong? What if the two of them only cause each other pain and suffering?'

"Love isn't about being perfect, dear Aislinn," Nate said. "but about being absolutely useless, ruining everything you can, showing the worst of yourself, and still loving the person in question. Because if you love someone, you love them with their demons and not just under certain conditions."

"But don't you feel like the bond doesn't give you a choice?"

"As far as I know, you don't exactly choose who you fall in love with in the mortal world," he remarked.

"Good reminder," Aislinn said.

"By the way, how did you find us?" Aislinn asked Nathaniel. "Karsyn didn't have time to let you know, and I'm almost one hundred percent sure that no one else knew where we were going. And Malachy wouldn't tell you."

"I knew Amara," Nathaniel replied.

Aislinn looked at him in surprise. So he was delaying after all. All this time he knew where to find the ring and did not take it. The longer the game lasts, the longer she has to stay in Feria until she can no longer return.

"Why didn't you take that ring long ago?" she asked him.

"Amara used to date my brother. They were close, very close. Cormac loved her. But then he met Niamh, Princess of the Sun court, and found that she was his bond. He gave that ring to Amara as a reminder of what was between them." he explained. "I knew what would happen to her if she lost that ring. I didn't want to disappoint my brother."

"I understand and I'm sorry for what they made you do," Aislinn said.

"What happened to Amara anyway?" she asked Nathaniel. "She just turned to dust," she did not understand it.

"The time that the ring protected her fromfor all those centuries has caught up with her," he explained.