78. Broken Bonds

{Naya}

"Usher? A djinni? That's impossible."

I gave my friend a hard stare. "Portia, think about it. How long has Usher been in your family? You're twenty-two. Usher has been around since before you were born. You've got to admit that this is not normal for a cat."

Portia shook her head and blinked several times. Finally, she huffed, "Where is he? Usher, come here. You have a lot of explaining to do, young man."

Zayn lifted a finger. "Actually, your cat would technically qualify as a female since it is a sila."

Portia's eyes widened. "What? Usher!"

She got up and invaded every room in her apartment until she was carrying Usher by her armpits back into the living room. Usher was a Maine Coon, the largest breed of housecat there was. Her coat was a mish-mash of gray, black and brown. Speckles and spots covered her mane, while broader patches blended along her spine. She had three white socks and one completely black left front paw.

Portia turned the cat around so that she was looking into her eyes. "Usher, tell me this isn't happening. You're a djinni and a girl? Then how do you explain all the guy-on-guy cat sex with Raymond?!"

Usher let out a disaffected "mrrow."

I said, "Why don't you put the cat down, Portia, and let her speak for herself."

Portia reluctantly set her cat down on the coffee table. Usher looked around, licked her paw and said in a perfectly crisp, feminine voice, "I was hoping that it wouldn't come to this."

"I think I'm going to throw up," Portia muttered.

Usher shook her head. "Don't, Mistress. You need to know the truth. Yes, I'm a sila. Naya's demon has known this from the start." She nodded in Ritsu's direction. "Yes, I can see you, monkey. I appreciate you keeping my secret for as long as you did."

She looked back at the rest of us.

"There is something about me that none of you know. It has to do with Uriel, but not even he knows the truth. You see . . . I was the one who helped him become a changeling."

Aqua's anger flared up.

"What?"

Ritsu put his hand on my shoulder just in case I tried to throttle the cat. I wasn't going to, but I was very close.

Usher said, "It's not what you think, Naya. Five thousand years ago, when Uriel was just an infant, his family was in danger. There was brutal violence going on all around him. His entire family was innocent, but they were caught up in it simply because they were in the wrong territory. Many died. There was so much violence that djinn fled from the humans, where we had once lived alongside them. There was no one around who could take Uriel in. He would have died if I hadn't taken him away from that place. I brought him to a group of ifrits who agreed to change him. The transformation prevented him from dying as a human would, but he still had no one to look after him. So I watched over the child while he grew into himself. His suit of fire sustained him. I only stepped in when he was in the most dangerous of situations. Otherwise, Uriel never knew I was there. If he ever noticed me, I was nothing more than a mysterious sila that came as a miracle in his time of need."

I spoke up. "Uriel talked about you. He told me that sila have gotten him out of a couple of jams. That was you all along?

Usher gave a firm nod. I relaxed. Ritsu let his hand drop from my shoulder.

Usher continued, "I wanted to keep being there for Uriel, but at the same time, I wanted to leave the world of djinn. Too many of us had become enslaved by humans. Too many djinn had turned on each other. We were becoming weak. Friends that I had for centuries were starting to disappear. So I chose this form, a human family to take me, and I made sure that I was as far as possible from my place of birth."

Since Usher could see him just fine, Ritsu asked her outright, "Did you have anything to do with the sila that helped us in the desert?"

Usher inclined her head. "In a way, yes. Whenever a sila comes out from the shadows and touches the life of anyone – human or djinn – those individuals are marked. Only other sila can see this mark. They know that you can be trusted and that you deserve to be helped. Because of Naya and Uriel's bond, the mark he carried transferred to her. The sila you encountered in the desert recognized it."

That explains a lot.

I thanked Usher for telling us the truth. She apologized for hissing at Uri when I brought him around. She said that she didn't expect someone from her past to show up after all these years. His presence made her fearful of returning to the world of djinn.

Then I told my side of the story. Everything that happened in the desert. The parts I drew out were our final moments in Nastarajan. The abandoned temple. The dying marid. The transmutation circle. Janus. And then finally, I told her about Vishmar.

"Usher," I said, putting all my faith into this last chance to save Uri, "after Vishmar enhanced my powers, he said that I would have to find someone who can show me how to use them against Janus. I have a plan to get Uri back, but I don't want to accidentally use these powers the wrong way and get myself locked up right alongside Uri. Vishmar also said that we have to use Janus' collection against him. Is there a way that we can do that with my new marid magic?"

Usher closed her eyes and meditated on my words. "The answer is clear to me. We have to make Uriel too strong for Janus to control. And the only way to do that is . . ." She opened her eyes and lowered them.

Whatever she was about to say, I wasn't going to like it.

I could feel Aqua flaring up again. "Usher, please. Just tell me. Things are hard enough as it is. I don't expect it to get any easier."

She made eye contact with me again. "We have to sever the bond between you two. Uriel will feel it and think you have died or abandoned him. Then he will lash out. The collector will be weakened from trying to control him. That's when we will strike."

I was right. This was not what I wanted to hear right now. Without our bond, what did Uri and I have keeping our relationship together?

This isn't about making sure you have a boyfriend at the end of this, I told myself. Do you want Uri to be in a cage all his life? Do you want him to become Sabur one day?

I took in a deep breath before asking, "W-what do I have to do in order to . . ." I couldn't say it.

Usher didn't wait for me to finish. "You'll have to strip your inner fire of its marid essence by switching it with a different type of djinni. You can have my essence. I'm old and knowledgeable enough to wield the power that comes with a marid."

Aqua went ablaze. I doubled forward. I could hear Mom inhale sharply.

"Honey, what's wrong?"

There was a shuffling and then Zayn barked, "Don't touch her! She can't control her temperature."

Mom must have reached for me. I could hear Portia having a similar reaction. Sinbad had to hold her back too. I moved to the floor so my flaming hair wouldn't ruin any of Portia's furniture.

Ritsu came down with me and whispered into my ear, "I'll carry you to the bedroom. I'm sorry, Mistress, but we have to take care of this immediately."

Mom was crying now. I couldn't imagine what it was like for her to see me like this, choking on my own fire and writhing in pain.

I managed to say between gasps, "Fire. Wants. Keep. Bond."

From the coffee table, Usher said calmly, "But if you do, it will kill you. And you'll never see Uriel again."

My throat screamed as I forced out, "I know."

"That's it," Ritsu grunted as he scooped me up. "Usher, tell them that we need a minute. We'll be back."

Even though my eyes were shut, I could tell by the cool, hard surfaces that Ritsu had carried me to the bathroom. He set me down on the edge of the sink and lifted up my head.

He kissed me once. "It's getting worse."

Aqua angrily tried to reject Ritsu's icy therapy. She didn't want to be silenced anymore. Hearing that her bond with Uriel's fire would be taken away forever allowed her to stave off Ritsu's advances.

I gasped, "She's trying to get access to the power Vishmar gave me!"

Ritsu kissed me roughly and said, "Mistress, look at me."

I opened my eyes.

"You have the power here. Not her. I can help you, but you have to be completely vulnerable. It's the only way."

"I'm trying," I ground out.

Ritsu shook his head. "No, you're not. You keep thinking about him."

In that moment, I wanted to punch both Ritsu and Aqua in the face.

"Uri is my boyfriend. I can't just forget about him!"

"Do you love him?" Ritsu asked. "The first time I asked you that, you said that it was none of my business."

I blinked. "Of course I love him. How is that going to help me right now as I sit here literally cheating on him?"

Ritsu growled, "Well, he loves you just as much. If not more. But guess what? Right now that collector is doing everything in his power to make Uriel forget about you. He'll use pain. He'll use Uriel's fire against him. He'll tempt him with women."

"Uri would never –"

"But what about his fire? Just because he's attracted to yours doesn't mean he's loyal to it."

Aqua was in denial. And it hurt.

"Stay with me, Mistress. My point is this: You and Uriel love each other, but right now neither of you can be held responsible for your actions because of the circumstances. If Uriel gave into his fire to escape torture and pain, would you forgive him?"

"Of course," I whispered.

Ritsu's golden brown eyes softened. "Well, I'm asking you to reject your fire in order to avoid the same. Let me take your pain away." He leaned in towards my ear. Chills blossomed in that area as he tested his icy lips to the baby hairs at the nape of my neck.

"I can silence her long enough for Usher to do what she proposed. And then that's it. We don't have to do this anymore. No more betrayal. Ever again."

I gently pushed Ritsu back so that he was facing me again. "Why would you do that? I thought you liked being intimate with me?" Yet he was willing to cut it short just so I wouldn't feel guilty about it.

"Because," Ritsu said, his voice small and self-mocking, "I've fallen for you, Mistress. Even if I wasn't your servant, I'd do anything to make you happy."

I no longer needed Ritsu to coach me into being vulnerable. I kissed him on my own now. I cared less about the relief that came with his cold magic and more about satisfying him. I couldn't love Ritsu the way I loved Uri. But I could thank him for everything he'd done for me up to this moment.

I had no regrets as I reached past Ritsu, locked the door to the bathroom, and flicked off the lights.