Eden

I feel sick to my stomach as the world reappears before me, Jericho keeping a hold of me until I'm steady enough to stand on my own again, the smell of amber and rum filling my senses. I inhale deeply before pushing away from him slightly to take in my surroundings. I turn in a full circle, my beloved forest nowhere in sight, and despite my efforts panic sets in as I realize I won't be able to return until my mission is complete.

"I had to move us far away from the perimeter of the forest, I didn't want to risk anything seeing us appear too closely and get curious." Jericho says in a hushed tone, somehow his voice brings me comfort, and I take an obvious step away him as I take in the darkness of the night. The forest is still thick in this area, but instead of beautiful green leaves, the trees are bare, giving a dead feeling to the land that surrounds us. The night almost completely silent, like a burial ground.

A large bird swoops in to perch on a nearby tree, startling me at the sudden movement. It looks like a large raven, but when it spreads its wings to fly again I catch a glimpse of the reflective white specks covering the underside of its wingspan, making it appear as though its feathers contain a small galaxy of white stars. I've seen many birds, but none like this.

I watch it fly into the distance before landing again and beginning a sorrowful melody that could almost bring one to tears.

"A nightbird." Jericho says to me, snaking an arm around my waist as he does, bringing me closer to his side.

"I've never seen one before, it's magnificent." I whisper to him, still watching the bird as it cries into the night.

"They appeared shortly after the last witch vanished. Some say they are the souls of all the witches who never came to be. Forever cursed to roam the land at night, singing their lonely song." As Jericho says this to me I feel guilt begin to claw it's way to the surface. All the witches have vanished, while we few have hidden away in the forest, safe and care free, living in ignorant bliss, while our Sisters died out completely.

But you didn't know. I tell myself, but the guilt remains.

How could I not have known..

"Those are just stories though, Eden, I didn't mean to upset you." It's as he says this that I realize tears had made their way to my face, leaving trails down my cheeks.

I wipe them away quickly, hating how vulnerable I am in this moment around Jericho, especially when it's just me and him in this darkness. I should have waited till morning. Leaving without sleeping was dumb on my part, and I'm surprised Jericho didn't insist on resting before we left the forest. I don't see how anyone could get sleep in a place like this.

"I'm sorry, you didn't upset me, it's just really hitting me.. what's happening.. What all is depending on me to succeed in this mission.. if I fail-"

"But you won't." He cuts me off before bringing his face to my hair and inhaling deeply, his action making me go completely still, unsure of what to make of his odd behavior.

He chuckles at my reaction, obviously amused. "You think I don't notice you enjoying my scent any time I'm near you, Witch?" He whispers into my ear, his breath caressing my skin.

"I-" my mind is blank, I have no come back, no words make their way forth. I was sure I was being sneaky in my awkward obsession with how this damn Reaper smells. It's almost addictive, and I'll never admit it aloud.

"It's okay." his whisper sounding more animalistic as the seconds pass. "Because I fucking love your scent too, Eden." My pulse thunders in my ears at his confession.

His arm that's wrapped around my waist brings me from his side to his front, bringing us into an embrace, and he continues to run his nose up and down the side of my neck. I find myself leaning my head to the side to give him more access. I can feel him smile as he brings his lips to my ear and softly bites it, before kissing and licking the surrounding area. "Tell me, Eden, I want to hear you say it." He says in my ear, the tone animalistic. My face heats as I realize what he's trying so hard to restrain from as I feel his erection pressed against my hip. "Hear-what?" I stumble over my words.

"Tell me how much my scent drives you wild... How wet I make you." His voice rumbles in my ear, sending chills down my spine despite the heat that radiates from his body, warming me to my core.

I try to think straight, and push away from him. I look away, taken aback by his filthy words in my ear, his outright cockiness agitating me slightly considering our current situation. "And how the hell would you even know when I'm wet?" I ask without thinking, and he smiles devilishly at me, savoring the moment as he says the answer I already saw coming the moment the question left my mouth.

He looks me in the eye as he answers. "Eden, I can smell how wet you are for me." He almost growls the words, his eyes darkening with each passing second.

At that moment I realize he probably smelt me the first time at the small creek when we were washing clothes, when my mind lingered on indecent thoughts of him.

I don't even know what to say as Jericho stares at me, waiting for a reply, a reaction, something.

"Now's not the time for this." I whisper to him, refusing to meet his heated gaze any longer, knowing how I feel is no longer a secret, or perhaps never was. Not with this Reapers ridiculous senses.

"As you wish." And just like that the heat from Jericho's body is gone, leaving me feeling oddly cold and unprotected as he lets his arms fall to his sides, standing up and straightening his spine. He smiles down at me and brushes some of my long dark hair from my face, tucking it behind my ear.

He's a Reaper, Eden.
You can't be with him.

I repeat these things to myself in my mind, knowing falling for him will only lead to heart break and disappointment if I fall too deeply for something that I can never truly have.

But at the same time, I can't deny this attraction I have to him, it's almost unnatural. I've been with male's before, I've had relationships, but I've never felt such a pull towards another being. Like my soul ignites any time he's near me.

"Tell me, what was the deal Aries struck with the gods? Why all this trouble?" I ask Jericho, trying to move the mood in a different direction.

Jericho goes and sits at the base of a nearby tree, patting the ground beside himself. I look around and decide I have no better options. I sling my backpack onto the ground beside me and sit with Jericho.

"I'll explain another time, for now you should get some sleep. When the sun rises we will have to leave this bare forest quickly. We'll be exposed and easy targets. Plus, we need to remain quiet, there are things that hunt in the night." He says, and I figured as much with him keeping his voice down since we appeared here, though him saying it aloud makes me feel more uneasy.

Sighing, I lean against the trunk of the large tree. "I doubt I'll be getting any rest like this, it was a mistake to leave without resting first, why didn't you teleport us somewhere.. safer?" I ask.

"I can only travel so far when I teleport, and this was the furthest I could get us, on foot it would take a day to get back to the edge of your forest." He states while looking at me, seeming to debate with himself before moving closer to me, offering his shoulder for me to rest my head on.

I lean my head onto his shoulder, and he wraps an arm around me. I find myself enjoying his closeness despite my better judgement to protect my heart from this beautifully dangerous male who seems to know just what to say and do around me. While I, on the other hand, become a pile of mush around him, unable to control my thoughts or feelings.

I lay there with my eyes closed, willing myself to get any sort of rest before we begin our travels once the sun rises. I wiggle around, trying to get comfortable, before Jericho grabs my whole body, moving us around so that he's laying flat on the ground with my body resting on top of his, my head on his chest.

He grabs my backpack and shoves it under his head, propping it up off of the hard ground, before wrapping his arms around me. "Jericho, this is.. barely appropriate for us to be laying this way," I peer down at my legs that have become uncovered, I never got to change and I'm still wearing my brown skirt and purple top I put on before everything went wrong.

"And who is here to judge our actions?" He replies. "I can release you, if you'd prefer.." He says reluctantly.

"It's not that I'm not comfortable, or that I don't want to sleep with you," My face heats at my words. "I-i mean, well that's not what I meant, I meant sleep on top of you." That didn't sound any better.

His chest rumbles with his quiet laughter before he starts nuzzling his face into my hair on the top of my head. "I like when you can't seem to think straight." He mumbles. "I like when it's obvious how much I affect you. How much you say you want me without words."

I raise my head up so I can look at him as I reply. "You flatter yourself too much, Reaper, you think you have more of an affect on me than you do." I don't outright deny his effect on me, but I won't have him thinking he's got some kind of hold on me.

He smiles down at me. "I could prove you wrong." He cups my chin in his hand as he whispers.

"I barely know you." I reply. I wanted to taste this Reaper, I wanted to see if he could ignite my desire in reality the same way he had in my dreams.

But I don't know this male. I met him just a day ago. What happened in my cottage was a mistake.

"I'm taking that as a no then." He chuckles.

"You'd be correct in that assumption."

He releases my chin and lays his head back down. "Get some rest, Eden. We have a long journey ahead of us."

"I could sleep on the ground, you know."

"It's your choice." He states simply.

I squirm out of his hold and lay beside of him instead, resting my head on his arm. He wraps himself around me, enveloping my body with his. "You're far too comfortable cozying up with me, don't you think?"

"Why wouldn't I be? You're a beautiful female with a scent that drives my inner demons to the brink of insanity."

My pulse quickens, and I become too aware of all the places our bodies touch.

"What's it like? Working for the god of death?" I ask, changing the subject.

"It's not something I would have chosen if given the choice. It's my sole purpose for existing though. I've found ways to live at peace with what I am though."

"A Reaper?"

"A monster. Feared by all and hated by many."

"I.. I'm sorr-"

"No need to apologize." He says, cutting me off. "I have been alive for a long time, I've accepted what I am long ago."

"It's not right though, to hate someone just because you assume the worst based on what they are. It's a simple minded thing to do. They only hate because that hate has been passed down by generations.. You aren't born hating other beings, a hate like that is taught."

"Such wise words from such a young witch." He says softly.

I turn myself and prop my head up on my hand. "Do you even know how old I am, Jericho?" I question.

"Let's skip the guessing game, and you just tell me."

"I'm a little over a hundred and twenty-six." He simply grins at me, his eyes alight with amusement.

"Mm, yes. So young."

"Okay, and just how old are you?"

His grin widens. "How old is death itself, Eden? I've been existing right along side the god of death for quite a while."

My eyes trace the perfect lines of his face. His straight nose, high cheekbones, full lips and sculpted jawline. His golden eyes surrounded by thick lashes.

"Careful, I might think you're admiring my face if you stare much longer." His voice brings me to the realization of just how openly I was studying his features.

"Well, you don't look too bad for being so damn old, I suppose." I say as I turn back around to lay my head on his arm and try to get some rest.

He chuckles. "I'll take it as a compliment. Get some rest, Eden."

I close my eyes and will myself to fall asleep, knowing I need the rest. I fade in and out, the sounds of the forest keeping me awake. Eventually I fall into a deeper more restful sleep. I dream of women clothed in dark gowns that glitter like the stars in the night sky above. I dream of their sorrowful song, reaching its crescendo as the women take flight, transforming into large ravens, flying off into darkness. The glittering specks upon their wings fading into an endless night, though their haunting melody remains, echoing through the air.

(Edited on 11/23/24)