Chapter 4- Scars, Stars & Almost
Arwen POV
The scent of blood, salt, and charred wood clung to everything. I sat with a grimace while Jessa, our healer, pressed another blessed salve soaked cloth to the gash across my ribs. The bitch stung like betrayal, but I didn't flinch. Couldn't, not with Rhiannan sitting across from me, shirtless under a blanket, being patched up herself.
She hadn't made a single damn sound. Just clenched her jaw and stared straight ahead like pain was an old friend she didn't owe rent to. Gods. She was made of iron and wildfire. I stared dumbly, inwardly thanking whatever God or Goddess that had matched me with this fierce woman.
Jessa cleared her throat as she finished up, eyeing me staring with an amused glint in her eyes."You're lucky that thing didn't rip your spine out, Captain."
"Yeah, well. Next time I'll tell the kraken to use a safe word," I muttered.
Rhiannan huffed a laugh. A laugh. The first real one since she fell from the godsdamned sky into my world. It hit me harder than any beast could've. The sound was like bells tinkling in the air. Absolutely beautiful. Gods, I was already falling. Hard. I breathed in deeply.
"Can I go now?" she asked, stretching experimentally, testing her newly healed wounds. "Magic healing is fucking awesome!" She grinned, impressed with Jessa's abilities.
"Not until dinner," I said, standing and offering my hand. "The crew wants to honor the dead."
Her jaw twitched, but she took it. Her fingers were calloused. Warrior hands. Not nobility or royalty soft, like I'd guessed at first. Dinner was rowdy, reverent, and emotional as hell. The crew passed around mugs of honeyed spiced rum. A candle was lit for each lost soul, set afloat on tiny driftwood rafts. Rhiannan stayed mostly quiet, but her eyes scanned the room, memorizing faces, honoring them in her own way.
I caught her flinching every time someone toasted us. "To Rhiannan and our Captain! May the sea fear them as much as we do!"
She hated the attention. That made her even more of a goddess in my eyes. I could relate. Being a part of the royal family my whole life had been in the spotlight. I was used to it, but I still despised it.
By the time the plates were empty and the rum ran dry, the music softened to sea shanty lullabies. Pirates slumped in corners or staggered off arm in arm. The stars had crept above, sharp and silver.
"I need answers," she said suddenly, her voice low but fierce as we stepped out into the quiet corridor of the ship. "What the hell happened today? Why do I feel like I could tear the sea apart with my bare hands?"
"I don't know," I admitted, then reached up and rubbed the back of my neck. "But I know someone who might. An old friend. A mad bastard. Wizard named Cal. He's got a tower a few day's sail from here. If there's an answer buried in runes or time itself, Cal's your best bet."
Her brows pinched. "You trust him?"
"With my life."
She hesitated, then nodded. "Then we go."
Just like that. No more arguing. No demands. Just that same wild fire in her eyes, like she'd already decided to burn down destiny if it tried to cage her.
We walked in silence, the gentle sway of the ship rocking beneath us. When we reached her quarters, she paused with her hand on the latch.
That damn pause. It stretched between us like a live wire.
Her long auburn hair was tousled, cheeks flushed from warmth and drink. Her lips were parted slightly as she looked up at me, uncertain for the first time since I'd met her.
Her voice came out soft. "Do you want to come in?"
My heartbeat slammed. The bond between us buzzed louder, deeper. My soul screamed yes. But I saw the storm behind her eyes. She wasn't just deciding if she wanted me in her bed. She was deciding if she was ready to start falling.
And gods, I'd rather bleed again than make her fall too soon.
I leaned in slowly, brushing a knuckle down her cheek. Her breath caught as her cheeks flushed pink. She was beautiful when she blushed.
"Not tonight," I said, voice barely a whisper. "But soon. When you're ready. Not when the bond tells you to."
She blinked up at me like I'd just flipped the script on her entire life. Then she opened the door, stepped inside, and didn't close it for a long moment.
"Goodnight, Captain."
"Sleep well, goddess."
And then I walked away, fists clenched, heart thundering, knowing I'd made the right choice…
…even if it killed me.
Rhiannan POV
I woke up the next morning to the scent of sweet bread and citrus, something warm and clean draped over my shoulders, and my little fox creature curled up on my chest like he owned the damn place.
For a second, I forgot everything...where I was, who I was, what had happened. Then it all slammed back in. The kraken. The bond. Arwen. Random other memories from my previous life.
And the impossible fact that I was apparently stuck in some post apocalyptic fantasy hellscape that smelled suspiciously like heaven. Or maybe the future. Who the hell knew at this point.
"You're awake," came a voice I was starting to recognize way too well. I cracked one eye open.
Arwen stood in the doorway of the small cabin I'd been tucked into, shirtless, his thick chest dusted with scars and the edge of some tribal ink I hadn't seen before. He held a tray in one hand and smirked like he knew what the sight of him did to me. My breath caught as my thighs quivered, that shameless hussy inside me whispering dirty suggestions in my ear.
"You're annoying," I mumbled as I slowly sat up, still eye fucking him with zero shame.
"You're welcome," he said, setting the tray beside me. "I brought breakfast. And this."
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a slim silver cuff, sleek and etched with faintly glowing runes.
"What is that? A fashion statement? Magical cuffs!?" I glared angrily.
"It's a smart brain bracelet," he said, sliding it gently onto my wrist. "Connects you to FaeNet. You'll get information access, maps, local magic signatures, communications, and memes, though some of the memes are feral. Use at your own risk."
"FaeNet?" I blinked. "Like… faerie internet?"
He grinned. "Exactly that."
I snorted, grabbing a slice of fruit and chewing as I fiddled with the bracelet. It lit up, flaring softly against my skin like it already knew me.
"Where I'm from," I said between bites, "we had something called Facebook. It was like a cursed oracle you willingly gave all your personal information to."
Arwen raised a brow. "Sounds awful."
"It was. But people couldn't stop posting pictures of their brunch."
He laughed, a real one, warm and from the chest, and plopped down beside me. We ate in companionable silence for a while, the ship rocking gently beneath us and the crew shouting somewhere above as they reset sails for our journey to the tower.
Then it happened. The laughter, the lightness, it all cracked like thin glass. A memory slammed into me. The scent of cigarettes and moldy carpet. A locked door. The heavy weight of footsteps coming down the hallway. My own breath held so tightly it hurt.
I froze. Just for a second. But it was enough. Arwen's hand stopped mid air. His eye shifted toward me, going soft, serious. "What did you just remember?"
"Nothing," I said quickly, trying to smile.
"Try again."
My hands were shaking, the smart brain flickering like it felt the shift inside me. "I remembered… a closet. And a belt. And that goddamn laugh of his."
Arwen didn't ask who he was. He didn't need to.
Instead, he reached over and took my hand. My breath caught in my throat as unfamiliar feelings slammed through my body at his touch. I may be 26, but I had zero experience with men. I'd only ever kissed and done other things, and I honestly had never enjoyed it. It seemed tedius and a waste of time. This man, however, had my body lighting up like the stars themselves.
"I had a whip," he said quietly. "It was braided with metal and burned like sin. My father believed pain carved strength."
Silence stretched between us. I understood. Two broken kids in grown bodies, breathing in the same pain. "I didn't think anyone else would understand," I whispered.
"I do," he said, brushing my knuckles with his thumb. "I wish I didn't."
I looked up at him. The pirate. The fae. The panther prince with one eye and too many secrets. And I felt it...whatever this bond was, it wasn't just some cosmic hookup.
It was real. Something ancient. Something written into the stars long before I ever bled or fought or screamed. We were quiet for a beat too long, the tension settling between us like a held breath.
Then he leaned in. His lips brushed mine, soft at first, like a question. I answered by grabbing his collar and kissing him like I hadn't been touched in a hundred years. I had certainly never been touched like this.
The tray hit the floor. The smart brain dimmed. My creatures scrambled out of the room with squawks of outrage as we devoured each other. I gasped as he lifted me, slamming my back against the cabin wall with a low growl in his throat.
And then...Just as things reached the edge of unraveling, he froze.
"Rhiannan," he said, voice tight, "I want you. Gods, I want you so bad. But if we do this, there's no undoing it."
I looked into his eye, wild and golden.
"Good."