Kathryne Kennedy - Everlasting Enchantment

Millicent climbed out of the pool. “Which would make me no better than my mother.” She swished the water off her skin with the palms of her hands. The forest didn’t seem as hot now, after her soak, but she eyed her clothes with a frown. She couldn’t put all that back on, especially if she wanted to hunt in human form.

Nell struggled into her corset, turning her back so Millicent could help her tighten the laces.

“I knew ye wouldn’t listen,” she grunted as Millicent yanked the ties. “But I think he’s a nice lad, cursed or not. Ye could do worse in a mate.”

Millicent stifled her frustration. “So let’s say I can’t resist his charms. Poof! He goes back into the relic and I never see him again. Enough, Nell. I’ll handle it my way.”

While her friend put on a thin, worn petticoat and her loose cotton dress, Millicent eyed her clothing with a scowl. She picked up a petticoat that could have served as a skirt with the quality of the fabric and began to tear out the horsehair lining that stiffened the hem. With just her chemise, corset, the petticoat, and corset cover, she’d be garbed well enough, by Underground standards.

They made their way back to the cave through glowing colors. After being in this place, the Underground would appear even more dank and gray.

“Nell?”

“Yes, luv.”

“Do you think I won’t be able to shift when I get as old as you?”

Nell looked up at her with a grimace. “Despite the red still in my hair, I’m very, very old, Mill.” The trees swayed and the fans swished above them. She sighed. “I’m not sure.”

Millicent nodded. “But it’s possible.”

“Oh, my gel, in my experience, anything is possible.”

She was waiting for him when the relic spat him forth again. Gareth studied her with appreciation while he collected his wits, which always seemed a bit scattered when he materialized from a smoky haze to solid form. She’d discarded half her clothing and looked the cooler for it. Fashions had changed over the centuries, and although he admired the gowns that made women look like delicate flowers, they had to be uncomfortable to wear. And deuced difficult to get them out of.

“I want you to teach me how to fight.”

She shouldn’t be able to surprise him. He’d known thousands of women. But this one always managed to do so. “I am at your service, my lady. But it seems that your cat knows how to use her claws.”

She shook her head, tangles of midnight hair sweeping her shoulders. “No. I want you to teach my human form how to fight.”

Gareth started to shed his clothes. This place might be beautiful, but the heat and humidity reminded him of the jungles of Mogow. He remembered their conversation about Nell being unable to shift to firebird at will, and thought he knew why Millicent had made the request. His lady did not want to have to rely upon anyone’s protection.

Now, or in the future.

He allowed his admiration for her to show in his eyes as he removed the last of his upper clothing.

“We’ll start with staffs, then I might let you work with my sword.”

She nodded as if she understood the importance he placed on his weapon.

A cackle of laughter from the depths of the cave made him realize Nell had taken a double meaning from his words. He turned and bowed to the old woman, strode over to the pallet of brush she lay upon, and took her hand. “How do you fare, my ladybird?”

“Ladybird—eh, ye’re a smooth one,” murmured Nell. “My poor gel has no chance against ye at all, does she?”

“It is my fervent desire that she does not.”

“Hmph.” She raised her voice. “Off with the two of ye, then. It’s not my idea of fun to watch two grown people whack each other senseless.”

The old woman confused him. She seemed to be sure of his failure, while at the same time aiding his cause. As if she could no more make up her mind to it than Millicent. He still felt in awe of the small woman, and the firebird she could become. He would have honored her wishes to stay away from Millicent if she had insisted.

But she did not.

Gareth bowed to her and took his leave, following the relic-holder from the cave, watching the sway of her hips with appreciation. Perhaps he might not have been able to stay away from his lady even if the firebird had insisted.

Millicent stopped at a smooth clearing of sand. He saw the strokes of a branch across the grains and realized she’d prepared this place in advance. Perhaps she was too keenly aware that he could deny her nothing.

She picked up two sturdy branches, and he recognized the spears he had made. Millicent tossed him one and held her own upright in front of her. Gareth shook his head.

“Hold it horizontal across your body, like so.” He stepped forward and took her hands, positioning the weapon correctly. It always shocked him when he touched her. A sort of shiver through his blood. “Staff work is different than real swordplay, but you must learn this first.”

She allowed him to touch her without pulling away. So, there would be an advantage to this after all. He’d never met a woman so unused to being touched, and his hopes soared that sparring with him would enable her to become accustomed to it.

If he managed to survive the day, that is. More concerned about harming her than protecting himself, she managed to bruise him more than once.

“You retain the speed and strength of your were-cat,” he panted after several hours of tutelage. “This gives you the advantage over me.”

“But not much,” said Millicent, scowling. “Not enough to beat you.” The thin skirt she wore stuck to her body with the sweat from their exertions, outlining the long length of her legs. When she turned to set down her spear, he swallowed at the sight she afforded him.

“You can’t expect to learn so much in a day, my lady. Remember, I’ve had centuries of experience.”

Millicent turned and collapsed on the sand, still breathing hard from their bout. She sat with her arms around her knees, staring off into the forest, her eyes following the movements of the multicolored mist that danced and wove through the trees.

Gareth sat beside her, shoulder to shoulder, pleased when she didn’t immediately pull away from him. The lady made such small allowances seem like a great gift. He flexed his arms, enjoying the loose feel of his muscles. It had been too long since he’d had a challenging fight. True battle left him angry and sad, but a session of strength and skill always relaxed his mind and body.

Millicent appeared to be feeling the same quiet contentment, for they sat a time in silence, listening to the soughing of the branches in the wind.

“How long do you plan on staying here?” asked Gareth, his voice low, hesitant to destroy the peaceful feeling between them.

She closed her eyes, tilting her head back to catch an errant breeze. “Long enough for Nell to recover her strength. Shape-shifters don’t take well to confinement.”

He admired the smooth curve of her throat, the outline of her full lips. “And then?”

“And then we travel deeper into the Underground until I find a way to get this relic off my wrist.”

Stubborn wench. He’d already told her there was only one way to remove it.

“There must be another way,” she continued as if she’d read his mind. “Tell me exactly how you got trapped in the stone.”

Gareth sighed. He would do anything to convince her he spoke the truth. “I seduced Merlin’s lover.”

Millicent huffed. “Why am I not surprised?”

“I was young and foolish,” replied Gareth defensively. “And I thought I was in love. Those are the only excuses I can offer, lady.” The colorful glow of the forest faded as his vision turned inward. He still remembered every detail of that day. The feel of triumph when Vivian surrendered to him. The look of betrayal on Merlin’s face when he’d found them together. “Merlin wove a spell that shivered the stones of Camelot. I could almost see the magic he called, forming in his palms, twining about my body. I remember struggling into my clothes, telling him I loved her, worried I’d have to draw my sword against the king’s advisor. “’Twas bad enough I had broken faith with Merlin, but I didn’t want to be forced to do so with my king.”

She stared at him with ever-widening eyes, as if she couldn’t quite believe his world had once existed. But when she spoke, her voice sounded no louder than the sigh of the wind, tinged with awe and sympathy. “What did Merlin say to you?”

“He said, ‘Only true love will break this spell, boy, and I curse you to search until you find it.’ And then I fractured into a thousand pieces, and knew despair when I later materialized to Vivian from out of the relic, and she could not break the spell.”

“Merlin said nothing more specific?”

“No. Why should he? He intended for me to suffer for my betrayal. He did not want to make breaking the curse easy.”

Millicent frowned. “So. You began to search for your true love.”

“Yes. I had to learn to become intimate with a woman quickly, to sense her desires and longings, to discover if she could truly love me. If she might be the woman who could break the spell, for I long for nothing more than to be free.”

“I understand. My were-cat values freedom more than life itself.”

Gareth brushed her shoulder. He believed her. It felt good to be understood, if only a little. And it felt good just to be with this woman, to talk and share their minds if not their bodies. The thought startled him, for he had never experienced such a feeling before.

He changed the subject, suddenly eager to know more about Millicent’s own life. He wished to understand what might have shaped this fascinating woman at his side. “If you do not return home soon, won’t your family and friends wonder what’s become of you?”

A lizard-like creature scurried across the sand toward Millicent, and Gareth redirected its path with a nudge of his boot, not knowing if it might be poisonous or not. He’d yet to find anything in the forest that would harm his lady, but he would take no chances.

The corner of her mouth twitched. “I have no family, and Nell is my only friend. I suppose Bran might wonder what happened to me. He won’t easily find a replacement.”

Gareth felt a prick of jealousy. Alas, it had been long and long since he’d felt that particular emotion. “Who is this Bran?”

She lowered her head and looked at him. “He’s the tavern owner of the Swill and Seelie. Where I work.”

“And what do you do in this place?”

Her golden eyes danced. “I wipe tables, serve ale, and between Bran and me, keep the patrons from dismembering one another.”

She laughed at the look on his face.

“It’s the favorite pub for my kind, and our animal-natures don’t always mix well. Fortunately, I’m one of only a few predators in the Underground, and most don’t want to tangle with me. It’s why Bran hired me. A were-bear likes it peaceful.”

Gareth found himself smiling with her. “Bran shape-shifts to bear?”

“Mmm. He likes honey and scratches his back on door frames and speaks slowly.” Her smile faded. “Yes, I suppose he just might wonder what happened to me.”

Gareth noticed she didn’t say this Bran might care about her. His tone became low and coaxing, unsure of how far to push her confidences. “What became of your family?”

For a moment he feared she wouldn’t answer. Her expression became guarded and wary. But she deigned to reply, and in that moment, he knew she’d decided to finally trust him.

“I don’t know who my father is. And my mother died when I was little.” She took a deep breath, as if afraid that her voice would falter on her next words. “My mother had been used poorly, by one man after another. Men like to torment a beast, you see. Or enrage it.”

Gareth had met many men with twisted desires. He had yet to understand it. “I’m sorry, my lady.”

She looked genuinely confused. “For what?”

“That your life has taught you to care for so few.”

Millicent smiled widely at him, exposing the long canines at the corners of her mouth. “Ah, but Sir Gareth. Don’t you see there’s freedom in that?”

His name on her lips sounded as sweet as wine, and for the first time, he understood her nature. She seemed to read that understanding in his eyes and accept it.

He had wanted this woman before. Now it became a burning desire. “There’s freedom in loving too, my lady. Won’t you allow me to show you?”