Miri pretended to cough.
"Not sad. Something got in my throat.
Then she didn't tell Dale what the birth of her son meant to the fairy. No fairy told that to the Chosen One. She let me remain ignorant and proud. For mortal men, the birth of a son and heir was a triumph. For fairies, bitterness, and defeat. Because male fairies did not exist.
The boy was born a man. Mortal. He could not come to Eleseum. He could not become a part of it, become immortal. And fire fairies almost always had boys. Because they were so few. Not a rarity, but a defective copy.
The fiery fairies were too attached to the mortal world. And their connection to Eleseum is too weak. Why this was the case, her mother could not explain to Mirielle. Only a wise queen could give an answer.
So Mirielle was eager to go to Eleseum before she married Dale. She wanted not only to see the enchanted fairy homeland but also to get answers to her questions. Discover the purpose of the fairies that Arelato was torturing her about.
Why do they have to leave the beautiful forest? Why do they get along with the mortals, give birth to new fairies, if they are already born, do not get old and do not die?
With her head up, Miri met the bottomless look of Arelato, black as a nightmare. Calmly accepted that he saw, as always, a conversation with Dale, which she just remembered. He knew all her thoughts and doubts. You can't hide anything from the kidnapper.
- I'm sorry, Miriel," he said. - I'm sorry I stopped you from fulfilling your dream.
- I made it worse for myself," she muttered. - If you wanted to know more about fairies, you should have kidnapped the one you'd already been to Eleseum. Don't be a fool like me.
He reached out through the table, took Miri's palm and squeezed it.
- And I don't regret it. I'm glad Orshava came across you.
Miri's heart was beating more often. And the kidnapper suddenly got up suddenly from the table without letting go of her hand. He walked around, stood by her chair and knelt down on one knee. Black, like the abyss of hell, eyes were opposite the eyes of the fairy.
He whispered, hot and tempting:
- Now you are free, Miriel. Your fiancé did not wait for you but chose another woman. You are no longer bound by obligations. You can look for another Chosen One. Or you can not look... Maybe he's very close. Very close, Miriel...
Arelato's palm lies on the thick hair of a fairy. He put his fingers inside the ginger-haired curls, gently guided Miri through it, increasing his shiver. The kidnapper's face approached so that her lips were about to touch her lips...
- Think about it, Mirielle," burned her with hot breath. - Give me the happiness to be your chosen one. With me, you will not perceive the bitterness of your loss. I am a magician. I am mortal. But I will give you much more happiness than your craftsman could... if I hadn't betrayed you. I will let you go to Eleseum and wait for you to return. I'm ready to wait for you, Miri...
For the first time, he called her by a tender name. Mirielle felt like a drop of water on an icicle that was warming and melting under the sun. And then Arelato finally touched her lips... Gently - but at the same time powerfully. Properly. As if everything was decided for her.
Mirielle pulled away, washed her head.
- I will not choose you.
The dark flame broke out at the bottom of his eyes. He couldn't hold it together, grabbed the girl by the shoulders, pressed her tighter. Miriel tried to push him away with the power of a fairy, but the stream of magic bound her, and she froze in place, unable to move.
Her velvet voice enveloped her, penetrating every cell of her body in a masterly manner:
- Stop it. You want it. You want me, just like I want you. I know your thoughts, I feel your desires. Do not resist. Let me kiss you. Let yourself... Give yourself up...
Arelato is a prick on her lips. Miri felt his tongue powerfully sliding her lips apart, and her hand sliding behind the neckline of the dress, to the delicate skin of her nipple...
And the next second, they were both given an icy stream of water. Miri squealed, and Arelato swore fiercely. The stream of Nielgari Falls seemed to have gone mad - the water had changed direction and was no longer flowing down into the mountain lake, but was beating sideways - right on the stone ledge of the terrace.
Hurrying up, Arelato put up a magic shield. Water was beating against him, and the floor and walls were moving.
- The devil strips me! - The kidnapper shouted out. - Doramon! What the hell did they do this afternoon?! They always attack at night! All fourteen years only at night - no other way!