“Is there something you need, Lord Consort?” Seraphina asked, standing as Eli poked his head into the back room where her and Zee had set up shop.

“Seraphina, you know I’m not technically the consort.” Eli admonished her.

“Yet.” Zee added with a grin.

“How do you know I’ll say yes?” He teased Zee back. “Maybe now that I’ve spent some time here, I’ll back out of the whole deal.”

“My Lord Consort, I’ve known my queen her whole life.” Seraphina said. “She has never failed to acquire what her heart desires. I can see that she desires you more than anything.”

“Besides, the feeling is mutual!” Zee added. “You didn’t come to bed until 3 am last night. You spent all night talking with Aratessa. You’re obviously head-over-heels for her. It’s almost enough to make a girl jealous!” She said, tongue firmly planted in cheek.

Eli moved across the room and kissed her deeply for a long moment. He ran his hands through her hair just the way she liked, letting the world fall away around her. When they broke apart they were both smiling, eyes locked together. “I never want you to feel jealous.” He said, all traces of joking gone for the moment.

“I don’t. I promise.” Then, the ghost of a grin appeared on her face. “Besides, you more than made it up to me afterwards…more than once.”

Seraphina blushed at her comment, but that only seemed to encourage Zee to keep going. “I mean, if we were here much longer I’d start calling for backup from the rest of the girls. You’re insatiable!”

Eli had taken only a small group with him to Purgatory for 2 days of intense preparation for their clandestine trip to Shadowhome. They’d debated for hours who should go, with Faelor even offering to send a team of his own guards in their stead. In the end, the need for stealth and speed won out leading to his selection of a smaller team who could each create illusions: Zee, Ziran, and Sira. He’d also asked Minerva and Vespera to come along to help coordinate the raid from Purgatory. Before he left the rest of his women made him swear up and down that if things went poorly he’d create an emergency portal and get out of there. In return, they committed to working on helping the various realms hunt down the remaining rogue lizardkin while he was gone.

Since he’d arrived, the days were filled with intelligence reviews about the House of the Snake and combat lessons on how to fight dark elves. Seraphina proved to be an unrelenting teacher, often using her shadow magic to disappear and reappear behind each of them before leaving them with painful welts and bruises. Gradually they learned to anticipate her moves though, and she was forced to call upon more guards to fight them on an even playing field.

Aratessa spent the majority of her time with them in those planning sessions, but had to excuse herself several times to deal with other matters requiring her personal attention – often inviting Eli along to see for himself what the responsibilities of being the Lord Consort would look like. The few times he joined her, she ensured he sat on her marble throne and lounged languidly on his lap as she made decisions. Despite her apparent flippancy, Eli saw up close that she weighed each decision fairly before coming to conclusions. For the granddaughter of an apparent tyrant, her leadership style was quite collaborative – often deferring to the opinions of the experts in her court.

By contrast to the intense days, the nights were a welcome relief. Eli spent the time lounging on a couch in Aratessa’s bedroom, speaking with her about everything from their hobbies and interests to their larger goals in life. The short peeks she gave him underneath her flirtatious veneer showed a woman who deeply cared about her people, seeing them as extensions of her own family. She valued the traditions and history of her house, but was also willing to set them aside when they interfered with practical solutions. She yearned for children of her own someday too, and Eli could see from the way she talked about them that she’d be a loving mother someday.

“Hang on. Seraphina, you’ve known Aratessa her whole life? Including when she was a kid?”

“Yes, Lord Consort.” She replied. “I was already a guard when she was born. Why do you ask?”

“What was she like as a kid?”

“She was…precocious. She’d sit quietly at dinners with her mother and father, and I could see that she always understood far more of the conversation than she let on – including subtext and context. As an adolescent she’d already accepted many roles and responsibilities for governing, and when her mother died she took over the rest of it. She has carried that weight since.”

“Did she ever go through a rebellious phase?” Eli asked.

“No. She was always responsible, respectful.” She paused for a moment, then smiled. “Except when you used her nickname. She hated that.”

Eli leaned forward conspiratorially. “What was the nickname?” He whispered.

Seraphina leaned forward, grinning slightly before whispering back. “I’ll tell you once you are truly the Lord Consort.”

Eli chuckled, shaking his head as he thought about what Seraphina shared. “You know, it’s funny. You said she’s weighed down by all her responsibilities, but I’ve never really seen that in her. She cares about people, yes – but I don’t think she’s weighed down by it.”

Seraphina’s slight grin turned into a broad smile. “There has been a lightness to her since she met you that hasn’t been present since she was a child. I can tell that in you she sees a partner, an equal. She sees someone who will share in her burdens, and in return will lovingly share in yours. In so doing the weight on both your shoulders will lessen, as the two of you together equal more than just the sum of your parts.”

Eli’s eyebrows raised as he searched for the right words. I never knew I was having that sort of impact on her. He thought to himself.

He was saved from responding when Aratessa herself opened the door and re-entered the room. She smiled at him before standing over the table with their plans spread out in front of it. “Thank you for being patient everyone. The angels were demanding that I allow a wider array of traders into their pocket dimension.”

“What did you decide?” Eli asked.

“I told them that they can have more food merchants, but there’ll be snow in the demonic pocket dimension before I let a weapons merchant in there.”

Eli chuckled at her joke as Minerva and Vespera entered the room behind her. When they closed the door Zee moved to join Aratessa by the table. She smoothed the edges of the map in front of her, then nodded. “Alright. Let’s run through the plan one more time.”

Seraphina started. “At 6 am tomorrow, we’re going to Shadowhome via one of the ‘unofficial’ portals that’s been set up by the Hightower family.”

“Ode to joy.” Eli muttered to himself, recalling the appropriate portal songs. “Then hall of the mountain king.”

Seraphina continued to speak. “Ziran, Sira, Zee, and Eli will go first and ensure that the Raven Queen’s spies did their job in clearing the room for us.”

“We’ll use our mirages.” Zee interjected. “If it’s a trap though, they might have silencing spells at the ready – so we’ll have to fight our way out.”

“If it’s not, then Aratessa and I will follow with a small group of elven guards once we know it’s safe.” Seraphina added.

“Right. Once we’re in we’ll be behind most of their defenses so we’re not expecting much resistance. Even so, we’ll need to move quickly and quietly.” Zee said, looking at Eli.

“Hey, I can be quiet!” Eli mock protested.

The room chuckled, and Aratessa picked up where Seraphina left off. “There are 2 possible places where the Snake’s leadership could be: their war room, or the living quarters. We’ll hit the war room first-”

“-And place enough C4 there to blow the whole castle up-” Zee interjected again.

“-then if they’re not there, we go to the living quarters. Once we do that, then we retreat to the portal, escape, and blow up the whole thing behind us.” Aratessa finished.

“Simple.” Eli commented.

“Is our equipment ready?” Seraphina said, turning to Zee.

“Arrived this morning.” Minerva confirmed. “Everyone is welcome to use their favored weapons and armour, but just know that there’s a good chance we’ll be silenced at some point throughout.”

“At which point I’ll cast ‘spell of 9mm’ at them.” Eli joked.

Zee shook her head. “Just remember: these are suppressed pistols – they’re meant to be quiet, which means they sacrifice stopping power. Some magic can stop lower calibre bullets, and many magical creatures can heal through a gunshot wound. Use them only when we’re being silenced, for maximum effect.”

“Got it.” Seraphina said.

“Minnie and I will hold down the fort while you’re gone.” Vespera said. “We’re going to lose radio contact once the portal to Shadowhome closes though, so if you’re not back in 24 hours we’ll start raising alarms.”

“Thank you, both of you.” Eli said. “I don’t think there’ll be any reason to do that, but I feel better knowing we’ve got people watching our backs.”

“Is there any more preparation you need to do?” Minerva asked.

“I’d like to check my equipment one more time.” Zee said.

“I’ll go with you.” Seraphina added.

“Us too.” Ziran said, referring to himself and Sira.

Eli nodded. “I’m going to make some potions in advance, just in case.”

“Oh, you should use the alchemy station we’ve got set up in the west wing then.” Minerva replied excitedly. “I’ll show you where it is.”

“An excellent idea.” Aratessa agreed. “I have a few more things to finish before we leave. Why don’t we dine together tonight, as a group? Say at… 8pm?”

“Deal.” Eli said.

He kissed Aratessa then Zee softly before following Minerva out of the room. His eyes traced her curvy form even underneath her modest grey dress, enjoying the way her hips swished back and forth as she walked. Turning her head slightly she caught him staring and blushed slightly.

“If you’d like, you could… hold my hand.” She said softly as she began walking.

“Minerva, how lewd!” He joked before interlacing his fingers with her, swinging it slightly as they moved through the hallway. “I’d like that.”

She chuckled, breaking some of the tension between them. “I know we haven’t had a chance to spend a lot of time alone together since you asked me on a date, but I want you to know I’m still looking forward to it.”

“Yeah?” He asked. “What are you looking forward to doing?”

“Well, talking.” She started. “I finished that book you gave me and loved it, by the way. I have one for you that I think you might enjoy too.”

“I’d like that.” Eli replied, squeezing her hand softly. “Maybe you could give it to me when we get back from Shadowhome. What else would you like to do on our date?”

“Well, I’d like to…hold hands. Or maybe you could even hold me close.” She said, her cheeks turning the same crimson shade as her hair.

In response he let go of her hand and slid it around her back, underneath her wings. He pulled her closer to him as they walked, and she wrapped one wing around his broad shoulders. “Like this?” He asked.

“Yes, exactly.” She said, her voice nothing but a whisper.

“Minerva, I’m getting the feeling you show affection through physical touch. Is that true?”

“I… think so.” She replied. “I’ve never actually been in a romantic relationship, so this is all pretty new to me.”

“I see.” Eli nodded. “I didn’t know that, or else I wouldn’t have pushed you.”

“Don’t apologize.” She responded quickly. “I… liked it. It felt good.”

“Did it feel good when I kissed you on the cheek before leaving for Serapenthra?”

“I really liked that.” She said with a smile. “Oh! We’re here.”

They stopped in front of a dark wooden door. Minerva leaned over to place her hand on the handle, moving closer to Eli as she did. Eli got a whiff of her scent – she smelled like clean mountain air, or the ozone after a thunderstorm. Realizing how close she was to him she froze and locked eyes with him for a moment.

“I’d like to kiss you.” Eli said. “Would that be-”

He didn’t get the chance to finish his sentence.

Minerva practically leapt into his arms, pressing her soft pink lips to his. Both of her arms and both of her wings wrapped around him as she pulled herself close. The darkened hallway around them melted away for a few moments, leaving only the feeling of each other’s bodies. When she finally pulled away she was practically floating with happiness.

“How was that for a first kiss then?” He said.

She sighed for a moment, then laid her head against his chest. They stood in the doorway to the alchemy lab for a few moments before she pulled him inside. “As much as I’d like to bask in that feeling for a bit longer, you need to make your potions before tomorrow. I can’t have you dying before our date.”

“Fair enough.” Eli said, still smiling. “Want to stay with me though? We can talk while I work.”

“I’d love that.”

Eli moved to one of the alchemy workbenches underneath a window in the corner. He was already familiar with some of the distilling equipment and ingredients they’d stored in the glass cupboard on the opposite wall, but some of it was also a mystery to him. He held up a strange-looking mushroom for a moment before pulling out his phone to identify it using his app.

“Some of the felinekin in Aratessa’s house are life magic users.” She explained. “They brought ingredients and equipment from their home realm. She said that different schools of magic and thought add to her house.”

“That’s a good philosophy to have. Different types of magic ensure you can be flexible in combat. Different life experiences ensure that you see problems from more than one angle.” Eli paused for a moment as he furrowed his brow at his screen. “Just got to be careful in how you mix it all up. That’s how you end up storing ingredients which are highly poisonous to dark elves, but work great for felinekin.”

“Really?” Minerva asked, furrowing her brow and moving around to look at the screen. “That’s… potentially dangerous.”

“Given that we’re going up against dark elves tomorrow, it’s also potentially useful.” Eli said, setting it aside. “Speaking of different magic styles though, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you use your magic.”

“It’s…nothing to write home about.” She admitted shyly. “I was a servant, remember? I spent more time folding clothes and setting tables than I did studying magic.”

Eli began to crush a handful of leaves with a mortar and pestle as she spoke. “There’s nothing wrong with that. What school of magic did you learn though?”

“Light magic.” She replied. “It’s the main school of magic taught to most angels.”

Eli furrowed his brow as he selected a bottle full of dried-and-crushed plants similar to a pepper from the shelf above him, sprinkling it into his leafy paste before continuing to mix. “I remember the angels light magic. They could throw lances of light, right?”

“That’s right. The really advanced users could form light into all sorts of physical objects – shields, swords, tools. Their level of control over hard-light was incredible. I can’t do any of that though. I can light up a room, but that’s about it.”

“I could have told you that.” Eli said. “You light up every room you walk into. I was asking about your powers though – what can you do with your light magic?”

“No, I-..oh.” She said, blushing at the unexpected compliment. “Thank you. What I mean was that I can use my magic to generate light.”

“That sounds useful! You could even use it in combat.” Eli replied, seeing that his potion was ready.

“What? How?” She asked.

“Lirith sylveriel!”

His hand glowed gold – a glow which was quickly transferred to the potion. When it faded he scraped the paste out of the mortar and pestle into a glass bottle and set it aside. Seeing the confused look on her face he explained. “I asked Zee to get me some metal bottles and a bandolier for when we go to Shadowhome. I’ll transfer this into them later tonight. As for your original question: humans invented a device called a flashbang – it’s basically a chemical reaction that causes a bright light and a loud sound, and it’s used to disorient an opponent. You could use your magic to do something similar – disorient them in combat, then either take them out while they’re blinded or get away.”

“I’d…never thought about doing that.” She admitted.

“Lilly once taught me that sometimes what powers you have are less important than how you use them. I’m trying to remember that.”

“She’s a wise woman.” Minerva agreed.

___

After several hours of potion-making mixed with talking, Eli filled his bandolier with a healthy number of potions and poisons before showering, changing, and meeting the rest of the group for dinner. He strode into the main dining room wearing another set of silk-weave clothes that had been made especially for him - these ones adorned with the seal of the House of the Spider on the top. He took the time to personally thank each of the 6 guards who would be joining them on their trip to Shadowhome, commending them for their bravery and ensuring that they knew he’d do his best to protect them.

The formal dining hall somehow toed the line between stuffy and cozy perfectly. There was a roaring fireplace on one end which crackled and popped, and along the walls there were various paintings and tapestries showing the history of Aratessa’s house. The middle of the room was dominated by a large stone table with 20 seats around it – some of which already had place settings with freshly shined silverware and clean white plates.

Finally, the kitchen staff entered the room and began placing meals on the table in front of them, signaling that it was time to eat. Some of them looked familiar to Eli, whereas some looked completely foreign. He took his seat between Aratessa and Zee, kissing them both before digging into the food with gusto.

Everything he tried was delicious, and it felt like the moment he finished a dish the staff were right beside him, collecting his plate and offering him the next course. The conversation around them gradually became more lively and joking, and he allowed himself to forget about their mission and just enjoy the moment.

When the final course came out, it was accompanied by two tiny shot glasses – one filled with a light green liquid, and the other with a clear liquid. When he raised one eyebrow at Aratessa, she grinned mischievously. He couldn’t help but notice that only he and Zee had shots in front of them.

“This is a game I wanted to play in Serapenthra, but we never got the chance. The green one is naga venom.”

Eli arched one eyebrow, remembering Ashni’s warning about a naga’s venom. “It…induces feelings of arousal, right? And love?”

“Yes.” Aratessa said, grinning. “Now I know we need to be sharp tomorrow morning, so the clear glass has the antivenom. With this amount of venom you won’t necessarily need the antivenom to survive, but it will cancel out the effects and sober you almost instantly.”

“So…what did you want to do?” Eli asked.

“Take the shot. Have some fun, tire yourselves out. When you’re done, you can take the antivenom and you’ll have the best sleep of your life. You’ll wake up refreshed and ready to go.”

Eli looked over at Zee. He arched his eyebrow and she cocked her head in agreement. Together, they reached forward and downed their drinks in one gulp.