but she's bringin' the moon and stars to me -
He is grateful, for the opportunity given him to the faeries. Grateful that they have seen inside of his heart and know what he seeks—but he cannot help the seed of doubt that it plants within him. He cannot help the way that his stomach twists at his, perhaps, misstep. What he saw as protection perhaps she would see as a prison. He had thought that he had known but maybe he hadn’t—maybe he had been a fool.
So he is quiet, intense, as he makes his way back to Tephra.
The muscles in his jaw jump as his teeth clench, and the faint glow that always surrounds him is now more of a smolder, the heat of it simmering along the edges of his gold skin. But all of it softens the second that he sees her. The second that he is able to confirm that she is here and real and safe.
Magnus closes the distance between them quickly, gathering her into his chest and pressing a kiss into her temple, lingering there for a moment to just savor the sweet taste of lilies and honey. When he takes a step back, he searches for her eyes, brushing away her forelock so that he could see her more clearly.
“I just got back from the Mountain,” he says softly. “I,” he hesitates, “I went to petition for your immortality.” His stomach twists as he remembers the faeries’ words. “I have lost so much, Isle. I couldn’t bear the thought of ever losing you…but it was selfish, to do it without asking you first.” He hangs his head a little, grief touching the corner of his mouth, bruising his eyes. “I am so sorry.”
When he looks up again, there is still that edge in his mouth, a restlessness in his limbs.
“They granted me the quest—the option to try and earn it for you—but only if someone first makes a life-altering decision for me without my input. So I am putting it all before you. You can refuse the immortality and I won’t ever bring it up again—or you can accept it and make the choice for me.”
A faint smile touches his lips but doesn’t reach his eyes.
“It’s up to you.”
- Magnus
@[Isle]