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Books were scattered all over the tables, near melted candles occupying the space where books were not. The library had been clean before the female had gone in to begin her research. She had quickly gotten all the books on the subject she was studying, and she had scoured through them steadily throughout the day.
Elide Lochan, Lady of Perranth, sat in the library in her keep, searching through books as she had been doing for days now. Her black hair framed her face as she bent her head down to read the book she had recently found. It had been two months since the final battle and she had finally found some time away from her duties as Lady, so she had decided to bury herself in some books.
Lately, she had been wondering more and more things about her heritage, and it had been bothering her, especially as her life with Lorcan had begun to unfold. She had voiced her worries to the dark warrior, but he had only told her that he didn't mind in the least, as long as they were together. She had never had any problems with her mortality before, but she refused to simply be with Lorcan until her death, she wanted to live with Lorcan.
Her dark eyes scanned through the book she had been reading, biting her lip as she read. She had often wondered how she was only part Ironteeth witch, and she had decided to devote herself to finding some answers about this. Ironteeth were only female, so her grandmother would have been the Ironteeth to start her line, which would have made her mother, Marion, a witchling when she was born, but she had only been half witch somehow.
So far she had read that in very few instances, Ironteeth witchlings were born mostly human, but retained some of the traits that betrayed their witch heritage. She searched her memories of her mother, trying to think if she had ever seen any of those traits as well. When she could think of nothing, she sighed heavily and leaned back in the chair she was sitting in. Her foot was sore from all the walking she had been doing the past days during her work as Lady, although it did not hurt quite as much as it would have if Lorcan hadn't been using his magic to brace it.
Her lips pulled up slightly in a fond smile as she thought of the dark haired Fae warrior. Her husband had done his best to help her with her duties, since he was Lord of Perranth, but he had never been one for politics and government work. There were times when he did wonderful as Lord, and there were times when she had to reprimand him, which often caused him to grumble about it.
She glanced back down at the book she had been reading-a book about witch heritages and certain traits. She knew that witches were most notable for their iron teeth and nails, of which she was sure she did not have. They bled blue blood, which was also not true, as her blood was red. They had specialized eyelids for flying, increased speed and agility, which she was sure she did not have any of. Most notably, though, they ceased to age after a certain point in their lives. When she had spent time with Manon and the Thirteen during her time in Morath, she would often ask questions about their immortality and other abilities.
She knew that witches stopped aging in their late teen years, but the lack of magic had caused them to age ten years. She was unsure whether her mother had possessed any of the traits of the witches, but she wondered if she could have any.
While the female was pondering, the male she loved walked past the library, stopping and leaning in the doorway when he spotted her. He knew she spent a lot of time in the library as of late, but he was unsure of why she had been there. She had brought up her mortality to him, but he never thought why that was an issue then and that his reassurances had ceased them. He knew he could alert the female with just a thought, but he was content with watching her look through the books.
Elide flipped through a few more pages of the book in her lap. Manon had told her that she had stopped aging when she was sixteen, but Elide would have been sixteen during the ten year magic gap, so even if she had been immortal, she wouldn't have known until the magic had returned. She bit her lip again as she read through a page in the book. She felt a whisper in her head and she turned her head to see the warrior leaning in the doorway. A sheepish smile worked its way onto her lips, "Can I help you?" She asked lightly.
"How long did you plan on staying in here today?" Lorcan asked with an air of calm. She ushered him into the library and she slowly lifted herself from the seat, "Did you need me for something? You could have told me, and I would have been there." She answered lightly, an air of duty surrounding her. Lorcan breathed in through his nose, savoring the smell of his wife's scent.
"No, it's nothing. What are you reading today?" He questioned as his dark eyes shot down to the book she had laid upon the table, "Just some research." She replied quickly, placing her interlocked hands behind her back.
She watched her husband as his eyes darted over the books. She felt a rush of heat through her, as she noticed he saw the titles clear as day-it was like he was finding out a secret, "Why are you reading these?" He growled as he turned his gaze back to her. She rubbed her thumb over her interlocked hands, biting her lip, "I'm a quarter Ironteeth witch. Haven't you wondered if I might have some traits?" She asked as innocently as possible, despite the shame she felt for keeping it hidden.
Lorcan's big hands found her shoulders and then were upon her cheeks, his dark eyes searching hers, "Is this about your mortality?" He asked quietly, his voice rough. She nodded quietly, "I told you it was alright, Elide." He whispered, his eyes darkening slightly.
The female's own eyes had shuttered, "It's alright for you because you can find someone else after me, but I will only be with you, Lorcan. And it's not enough." She spoke with equal quiet. Lorcan's hands tightened on her cheeks, "There will be no one else but you, Elide. You know that." He growled softly, his canines bared slightly.
She leaned into his touch with a frown, "It just doesn't feel right. I want to see things with you, things beyond our work in Perranth." She mumbled with a troubled tremor, "Then we can travel. I've seen Erilea, I can show you places." He answered. She shook her head, wrapping her arms around his torso, "It won't be the same." She argued.
Her lifted her chin to look into his face, his jaw set stubbornly, "And why get your hopes up? If you don't settle into your immortality, then you are back in the same predicament as before." He asked earnestly, "But atleast then I would have dreamed." She answered just as stubbornly.
Lorcan's eyes focused on the woman that he loved more than life itself. He didn't want to feed her information that could turn out to be false, but he knew that she would not give up until she found out either way. He sighed, "Your birthday has just passed. Do you feel like you've gotten any older?" He questioned with a raised eyebrow. She furrowed her brows as she thought through his words, "I guess not really." She murmured slowly as she looked at him, "What's your point?"
"You look like you haven't aged a day since I've met you." He spoke as he realized the truth, his eyes widening, "You are now twenty, but you look like you did when I first met you." He felt a flutter of hope in his chest, and he bit back the rush of happiness. He had accepted that she would eventually leave him, but as he thought through the time he had known her, he realized that his statement was true.
He looked down to her in awe. Her eyes shone bright with tears, a smile plastered on her lips, "Do you mean that?" She breathed. He nodded, unable to find the words as his heart swelled with love and protectiveness, "It has only been a few years, so it may not be true." He added, although he doubted every word he said.
Elide's heart beat faster, and she knew he could hear it, but she didn't care. She had spent days in the library, buried in hope and despair, but those twelve words set her heart soaring with happiness and pride. This male had made her so happy and so angry sometimes, but she knew that their love was something that could not be surpassed.
Lorcan's eyes remained fixed on hers, pulling her closer to him, his thoughts fluttering to the final battle with Maeve and the fake reality she had spun. Looking down at this woman as he thought of this, he knew now, "I have thought for a long while now that this was true, but now I know for sure. Elide Lochan, you are my mate." He whispered fiercely, his breath catching slightly. Elide looked up at the dark haired male,
"And I'm sure that you are my mate, Lorcan Lochan." She agreed with a teary-eyed smile.