we are slaves to the sirens of the salty sea
He smiles and it reminds her of Ivar. Reminds her of how quickly she slips between the teeth of predators. She feels a wave of adrenaline race through her, this knowing that the waters were getting deep, but she does not make a move to retract—not yet. She is too curious, too hungry for the knowledge that lies beyond, and she is not willing to bend just yet. Not willing to slip into the water and to the ocean.
Instead she remains still and lets him move closer to her. Realizes that she is vulnerable and that she has no idea what other things lie beneath the darkness of him. He could have all kinds of abilities and she would have no idea. There is something so thrilling about the idea that this moment could be her last.
She doesn’t run though.
She watches as he approaches and feels her heart thud in her chest. She wonders if she has any power here—if there is more to her beauty than something nice to look at—but the thought slips away like minnows in the water. There is little chance that her beauty would shield her now and little chance that it would give her any kind of hold over the strange man of shadow before her.
It doesn’t stop her. Nothing does now. He is close enough to touch, but there is no scent—nothing about him that she could maybe hold onto for later. Still, she feels like she can feel the essence of him. As though it hangs in the air like a weight. Something tangible that presses into her very bones.
“Okay,” she affirms, and without further ceremony she takes the final step toward him. Her mouth finds the endless black behind his jaw, where the flesh would be soft, and she is surprised to find anything at all.
