With a nod, his eyes close and his brow furrows in concentration. His lips part slightly, and the sun hits his face at just the right angle, illuminating that hard, angular jaw and the closely shaved beard that lines it. He looks… remarkably handsome. Devastatingly so, and I can’t keep my eyes from scanning up and down his toned frame, admiring every inch of him. He’s wearing navy fitted trousers that show off the strong muscles in his legs and backside, and an equally fitted cream tunic that strains against the muscles in his arms as he moves his hands up to conjure. A stray lock of his hair falls across his face, and I reach out to brush it away before I know what I’m doing. His eyes suddenly open with my hand in front of his face. His lips twitch, like he knows exactly what I was doing. “Can’t keep your hands off me, witchling?” That cocky grin makes me clench my fists to keep from punching him in the face.

“No, I was… uh… just going to conjure light and water into my hands to see if that helps you.” The excuse tumbles out of me too quickly, and I internally groan. Trying to restore some modicum of dignity to myself, I do just that, so flustered the magic sputters for a moment before two swirling balls of water and light appear in either hand. “Focus on bringing them together into a gentle mist of light,” I murmur, cheeks still heated from embarrassment. That pesky piece of hair drops in front of his eyes again, but he shakes his head to move it out of the way, returning to his task without teasing me anymore. Thank the aether.

His attention focuses on the two orbs. The ball of water slowly moves from my right hand and covers the light, then both grow larger, moving out and away from my body until a glowing mist surrounds us. We’re encased in shimmering light, and he looks every inch the Shining Prince in the gleam. He smiles at me through the bright mist, unadulterated joy erupting across his features. The smile resembles the ones I glimpse briefly when he’s laughing with Silene and Fionn, the practiced, simpering pursing of his lips nowhere to be seen. My breath catches in my throat, and I’m frozen to the spot as his olive eyes find mine. We stare at one another, something shifting between us.