Twenty-One
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

He estimated perhaps five hours having passed since Izzy had fallen asleep atop him.

And he wasn't about to shift lest he disturb her.

Somehow, he was afforded sleep between bouts of waking, though it was light and restless since his coupling with the woman in his arms.

When she had started to snore gently against his chest, he had contrived a way to tug the coverlet over their bodies using a free hand and his tail. It was remarkably uncomfortable- this position- but he wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. Reclined back awkwardly against the pillows and the wall, he was half-propped upright which made his neck and spine crooked.

But as long as Izzy slept on... as long as she was tucked into his body and he within hers, he would remain as he was for an infinity if he had to.

After he dosed, he woke to a room that was illuminated by daylight. Which must have meant that they slept much of the day away, and yet she snored on.

The pressing need to relieve the spasm of pain developing in his neck, and his bladder, finally convinced him that he would have to move. He ran his fingers along the curve of her spine with infinitesimal reverence, feeling her warm and silken, and he murmured her name into her hair where his lips rested against her crown.

She didn't stir, immersed in the deep sleep of the exhausted. Kaede sighed, gently coaxing her to one side. Instantly, he found the absence of her body against his... odd. Unwelcome. Though the immediate urgence of his desire for her had lessened, it had never fully dissipated. He'd been half-hard yet as he remained clasped inside her, teetering on the edges of an all-consuming need that almost made him rouse her.

But he dismissed the notions that came to his mind at the evidence of her weariness lingering upon her face and tucked the covers warmly around her curled form.

Allowing himself one last moment to let his gaze roam over her sleep-rumpled form, he located his trousers from the floor, hopped clumsily into them, and then left her chambers.

The house was quiet- empty- and he recalled movements earlier in the day that he surmised were the sounds of Izzy's sister as she readied for her activities that appeared to take her from the premises. He wondered if he would meet her; if Izzy would allow him that sort of closeness.

After tending to the pertinent needs of his body, Kaede located the larder.

Gods... evidently Izzy had neglected to stock her kitchen. He made a mental note to rectify that, even as he found some stale cheese wrapped in a cloth and a few withering apples. A furtive search more located a few more staples that he could press into some poor excuse of a dough for bread. A nearly empty jar of honey would have to compliment that.

As he moved through her property, he took care of the cobwebs clinging to each rafter and corner- an easy feat that his abilities were quick to tend, small eddies of dry breezes curling through each nook and cranny. The mould would take a few days, but he tempered the dampness that gathered on the wood and paint. After he had compiled a decent fare for them to partake of, he would tend to some of the broken and aging furniture he had spied around the house. There were some tools in the stables he could make use of, and what she didn't have, he would improvise... or acquire.

While he had been in the stables the evening prior, he had garnered the begrudging compliance of the pixies he had disturbed, finding them to be useful allies, albeit annoying ones. The stranger that Lou reported loitering outside was some concern, so the creatures would stand as alerts should someone repeated the activity. His enchantment wards of protection- indiscernible to the naked human eye- he placed around the small perimeter of the building. A skill he and the other Beastkeepers used often when safeguarding their territories from creatures of a more violent tendency.

The same method applied here- if anyone or anything approached, he would know it long before it became a problem.

He was in the process of kneading a substantial mound of dough, his elbows, forearms and hands covered in flour, when the front door of the house was flung wide and feminine voices drifted down the halls into the kitchen.

"'Bout time you wanted to come home," one voice said with the air of someone uncultured, a somewhat aged quality to her tone. "I was in dire need of a dram."

"You are always in need of a dram," the other said- sweet, gentle, dryly rebuking... it reminded him of Izzy.

"Why wouldn't I be what with following you around London all damn day? Frightfully dull when I could be at a den getting my luck on. I am set on winning my fortune, just you wait. That faerie fortune sayer telled me so."

The other woman snorted softly with laughter. "I would also tell you anything if it meant you parted ways with that many shillings."

"I was not swindled!" huffed the older woman. "Any day now, you just wait, I'll be rewarded with all the blunt, whiskey and strapping young men an old, lonely spinster could ever dream of."

"I-" The younger sounding woman's voice came to a halt the moment she entered the kitchen and beheld him.

Elbow deep in bread dough and flour.

And very notably without his shirt- normally such a thing wouldn't cast a second glance at Ravensfield, or when he was on his own property in the forests that he shared with Caël.

But this was London, and he was probably breaking all sorts of societal rules by firstly, being half-dressed and, secondly, meeting his mate's sister for the very first time, especially in such an unceremonious manner.

Izzy's sister, who was immediately identifiable as such due to their similarities- short, with matching hazel eyes that contained a myriad of intriguing greens and browns, took him in while the air charged in the silence that followed. Her eyes were near to bulging as they found his form braced against one end of the rickety wooden table that centred the small room.

"Cor." Another woman appeared from behind Cassandra Hawkins- plump, middle-aged, with a mop of curling brown hair that was streaked through with silver. Her face was wickedly cheerful when she found the source of Cassandra's inertia, yet Kaede found an immense kindness radiating from her that he found comforting. Excitedly, this woman pushed her young ward out the way and made for him. "See here, missy, already the soothsayer's words are coming true! My fortune has changed- and what a fortune it is!"

But Kaede couldn't pay her any mind, for the shock and fear that he felt pouring from Cassandra Hawkins was a palpable thing- and why wouldn't she be concerned? A near-naked Other male in her sister's townhouse with no formal introduction between them would be a great cause for concern and he could only imagine the sorts of conclusion she was drawing.

Quickly, in a sign of deference, he held up his dough-caked hands, splaying his fingers wide. "This probably looks rather bad," he said quickly.

"No, no, I rather think it looks quite good!"

He ignored the old woman, who was currently beside him and prodding his flank with a crooked index finger. "I can explain," he said instead.

But the younger Hawkins sister only narrowed her eyes at him in suspicion. In a motion that was quick and deft, she had bent double (without removing her gaze from his), hitched her skirts, and extracted a wickedly curved-blade dagger that had been holstered to one calf. This, she leveraged at him with a steady hand, and then she opened her mouth, "IZZYYYYYYY!"

"Hush, girl!" the old woman told her, peeved. "You'll ruin all my fun! Your sister would only be rid of him!"

Kaede snorted. "Uh-"

"IZZZY!" Again, Cassandra hollered to the ceiling. "I WANT AN EXPLANATION!"

"I-"

But his words were halted by Cassandra jerking her weapon with a swift motion that indicated him to be silent. "Not," she grit out emphatically, "from you."

Kaede felt his lips thin, frustration broiling within him. Stubbornness appeared to run in the family as well as a penchant to carry sharp objects to harm males in their nearby vicinity on their person. He wondered if the younger Hawkins could whip a pistol around in the same way Izzy had done the first time he had spied her keeping Theo in tow.

He wouldn't put it past them.

"Tsk," the old woman made a noise, prodding the underside of a bicep he had held up. "Muscle upon muscle, I say. Cassie, why don't you go upstairs to your chambers and let us adults work things out. Alone."

"Aggie." It was spoken in a tone of warning and annoyance. "Clearly he is not one of your fortunes. That soothsayer was lying to you."

"Pah, that's what a typical sceptic would say." She pinched his rump.

He felt his tail flick in agitation and cast the irrepressible chaperone an irked glare. "Madam, I belong to Izzy."

The woman grinned up at him unrepentantly, revealing a gap-toothed smile. "I don't see none ownership claim lying around here," she pointed out gleefully.

"Shut up!" Cassandra snapped. "Both of you! Aggie, he is an imposter on our property!"

"Cassie!" This from Izzy, who had finally made her way downstairs. Kaede felt himself relax at the sight of her. She marched quickly into the kitchen; a soft linen gown belted around her waist. Her hair was a tangled mess over her shoulders and waist, something infinitely primal making him swell with pride at the knowledge he was the cause of it. Her face still held traces of her exhaustion, but when she met his gaze as she approached her sister hurriedly, there was warmth within their depths.

"Izzy!" Cassandra said frantically, brandishing her knife at Kaede. "This... this man is in our kitchen! Is he... are you?"

A moment before she met her sister's gaze, hers lingered over his naked chest and a heated blush bloomed over her cheeks. She ran her hand over her face, a deep sigh leaving her, before she urged Cassandra's hand to lower and gently retrieved the dagger from her fingers. "He is my companion," she told her calmly.

"Companion?" Cassie sounded sceptical, still eyeing Kaede as if she longed to shove that blade in his gut and kick him to the curb.

Companion? Kaede was irked by that description, but he was astute enough to know that presently wasn't the best time to address that particular label in terms of what they were to each other.

"It is... well, there is a lot to explain," Izzy said.

Cassie crossed her arms petulantly, glaring at her sister. "Go on."

"This is Mr Kaede C'lainn," she said, indicating him with a vague gesture of her wrist. "I met him during my stay in Ravensfield, and we became... close."

"Ah, what a shame," Agatha complained bitterly, shuffling away from him. She turned her back on all of them, heading into the larder. "I'll 'ave to drown my disappointments, I suppose."

"Close?" Cassie's gaze switched between him and Izzy, a look of disgust and incredulity pinching her face. "With him?"

"Cassie, I can imagine this must come as some shock," Izzy began to urge patiently, "but a lot has happened since I left you."

"Clearly," her sister scoffed.

Kaede thought he witnessed a muscle tense in Izzy's jaw, but she held herself remarkably composed in what he was coming to understand was her sister's innate obstinance. "I hadn't planned on returning in quite this way," she continued, ignoring the jibe, "but we had an altercation, and Mr C'lainn and myself are still yet coming to an understanding."

"It seems you have already come to an understanding," Cassie snarked, before throwing up her hands and glowering up at her only slightly taller sister. "I honestly cannot believe you!"

Kaede almost flinched at the higher octave of the other girl's voice. "Your sister," he said, directing his words to the younger Hawkins, thinking to diffuse the situation before it could escalate or worsen, "has acted with only you in mind. It is commendable, her care for you."

It only earned him two matching identical, hazel-eyed glares of discontent. "Cassie, why don't we have some tea-"

"No!" she hollered, stepping away from Izzy's outstretched fingers that were reaching to touch her arm. "This is... this is so very unfair! Why are you allowed to have... illicit relations with any male you deem acceptable, but when Mr Harry Fletcher offered for my hand-"

Izzy tensed, her eyes darkening. "Harry Fletcher is one and thirty years old!" she snapped. "You have not yet had your first season! What, pray tell, is a man of that age wanting from a girl your age, Cassandra?"

"Ugh!" Cassie folded her arms over her breasts and shoved past her sister, her footsteps stomping up the creaking steps with theatrics that would do well on any stage. "I will never know, will I, since you are intent on controlling every aspect of my LIFE!" And then a door slammed resoundingly from upstairs, and Izzy's shoulders slumped forward.

She looked worried and defeated, hugging her waist as she stared after her sister.

He found a bedraggled rag and wiped off some of the flour and dough from his forearms before coming around the table and taking her in his arms. She turned to him effortlessly, without restraint, and her arms wrapped around his waist as a small sigh left her, her cheek resting above his heart. "I apologise," she murmured, a weariness flavouring her soft tone.

"Whatever for?" His fingers found her tangled locks, running through them slowly and working a few of the knots out as gently as he was able.

"Cassie can be... vexatious," she said, tipping her face up to his. "Especially the last few years. Our relationship... takes strain."

"She is young. It'll pass."

A rueful smile curled her lips. "I hope you are right."

He dropped a kiss to her temple and then released her, guiding her to a chair at the table. Aggie emerged then, a rather large flask clasped between her fingers, and joined Izzy in an available chair beside her. "Headstrong and stubborn lass, that one," she commented, tucking the flask into a pocket of her skirts. "I wonder where she got that from."

Izzy gave her a half-hearted glare. "Has she been keeping you on your toes, Aggie?"

While they spoke, he set the dough aside to rest and began to clean the surface of the table he had been using, catching Izzy's attention as he did so. Whenever he felt her eyes on him, his skin prickled with that awareness... something he welcomed.

"She is busy," Aggie said conversationally. "She likes to visit her new friend often- some well-to-do family in one of them nice areas. You needn't concern yourself too much. She may be precocious, but from what I've witnessed she's got a decent head about her. Wouldn't let me part ways with all my blunt when I took her to the fortune woman."

At that Izzy's eyes bulged. "You took her to a fortune teller?" Her tone was accusatory, but her attention was diverted when Kaede began to set a pot of water to heat above the fire of the stove contraption set against one wall. "You do not have to do that, Kaede."

Absently, he scratched at an itch that developed against his wrist. "I want to," he told her.

"You needn't worry," Aggie said dismissively. "It was one of them folk that travel between cities, passing through the area- all very proper. Said I'd be overwhelmed with three things soon enough- whiskey, a new male friend who would tend to my every need-" At this, she winked at Kaede, who frowned, rubbing his wrist. "-and money. Two out of three ain't 'alf bad in my opinion." For emphasis, she pilfered the flask from her pocket, flicked open the nozzle, and took a large gulp.

"Kaede, will you please sit down," Izzy demanded since he had then begun to procure the dainty cups and saucers for the tea he intended to serve her. Chipped porcelain, he noted.

"It's just tea, Iz."

"It is not," she protested, pushing her chair back and beginning to stand. "Look at this place... clearly you have been tending to more than just tea and I won't have it." She came around the table to stand before him, her eyes wide and imploring. "You are my guest. I would not have you doing anything."

"A guest?" He set the crockery aside, the delicate and worn pieces clinking together, and cupped her face. "I do not wish to be your guest. I saw an area within this household that I could fit into, things I know how to do and well, and I desire to do them for you. For us. Allow me the honour to tend to things you cannot, Izzy. There is room in my broken soul for this sort of mending, the sort you have given to me by allowing me into your life, and I hope you will allow me to linger."

"Oh, Kaede," she whispered, her eyes shining, and her fingers curled around his wrist... the same wrist that was itching something fierce. The movement caught his eye, her slender hand so small against his forearm, her touch suffusing him with affection, and with it... an ache.

His skin burned under her fingers.

"This world does not deserve you," she told him, her thumb tracing circles against his scalding flesh. She hadn't noticed, but he had. His gaze finding the searing brand that began to materialise and thicken upon his skin.

"Iz," he breathed. Beads of blood appeared next, charging the air with a metallic taint that made his nostrils flare, his skin puckering and twisting with sensation even as awe swept through him. She was still looking at him in that same affectionate way before, unaware that his entire world was being turned on its head, that all the pieces of his life were beginning to fall into place with a sense of harmony that made joy settle over his heart.

And there, on her own wrist beneath the hand curled around his arm, her own mark appeared- her skin seeming to pull tight and redden around the edges as the magic inked her delicate flesh. As if suddenly aware, her brows pulled taut with confusion and she glanced down, her lashes fluttering as a wince swept through her.

"Aggie, attend me!" Cassie demanded, sweeping into the kitchen with aplomb.

Even as pain burned through his arm, Kaede noted that the young woman had changed attire and now wore a pretty frock and coat, a matching pink reticule clutched in her small fists. "I have an appointment with Miss Grant and we will remain the evening."

Izzy withdrew from him, droplets of blood trickling over her fingers as she lowered them. "Cassie," she urged, stepping away from him. He dropped his one hand, holding out the one with the new mark for his reverent perusal.

"You cannot stop me," Cassie was saying stubbornly. "Miss Eloise Grant is my friend and a lady, isn't that what you desire for me?" She spun on her heel and stormed from the room, leaving Izzy to stagger against the table, a pained whimper leaving her lips as she struggled to ward off the pain and appease her younger sister's anger.

A door slammed from somewhere in the house. "Cassie!" Izzy cast a pained look at the old chaperone, still seated at the table and observing proceedings a curious expression on her face. "Please, Aggie."

The old woman stood hurriedly, giving Izzy a tender pat on the shoulder as she passed with her flask of liquor. Then she was after her young ward, following Cassie dutifully.

A shuddering breath left her before she swung her gaze to his once more. He saw her eyes wide and panicked, her face mirroring the pain that must be burning her flesh at the appearance of the mark. And then, making his chest constrict in alarm, Izzy collapsed to the floor.

A/N

Hello! So I know it's a day or two late, but I have been preoccupied as I had to help out a colleague by proofreading one of her research papers- a horrible task that I won't be so enthusiastic to do again (not that I am ever, yet for some reason people still ask it of me...)

Anyway, some of you were wondering when the mark would appear :) I was saving it for a moment that would inconvenience Izzy lol and you'll see why soon. Those of you who are first time readers and wondering what the hell the mark is, more will be explained later (or the blurb in the prologue of this story does a good enough job summing everything up).

Also, I would love to wish this lovely soul a very happy birthday for the 1st of February- had I known, I would have pushed to get out a few updates more, but I do believe they deserve a very happy blessing!  Eliahu72 I hope you have had a wonderful few days and a marvellous year ahead! 

Lastly, big thanks for all the support! If I don't manage to get to a comment, it's because I somehow lost track of it and am not in a moment of hyper fixation :( I rectify this as I can so sometimes you will see me responding weeks later- oh dear! 

Anyway, please do leave a comment! A vote- it means so much! 

Big loves, 

Ash x