Exile in the Water Kingdom (The Elemental Phases Book 3) (17 page)

She
bit her lower lip.  “Gion?”

As
always, when Ty called his name he instantly stopped.  “Yes?”

“Maybe
tomorrow, you could play something else for me.”  It took all of her courage to
get the words out.  “I like Handel almost as much as Strauss, you know.”

 Gion’s
gaze flared with some warm emotion that she couldn’t identify.  “
Water Music
?” 
He guessed.

“I’m
very fond of
Water Music
.  And you can do the
Air
part of the
first suite, if you feel like having fair representation.”  That quiet flash of
humor was as close as Ty could come to encouragement.  It took all of her nerve
to be even that bold.

Luckily,
Gion didn’t need any more encouragement than a small, tentative smile.  He
stalked back to her, gripped the lapel of her robe and slammed his lips down
onto hers, again.  His mouth opened against hers, demanding everything that she
had.

Gion
was obviously a “give an inch take a mile” sort of guy.  Now that he’d kissed
her once, he thought he could do it whenever he felt like it.

Her
cousins were not going to like that.

Ty
found she was fine with the idea, though.

She
positively
loved
that Gion wanted her.  It gave her so much more
confidence.  For the first time in her life, Ty felt strong and beautiful.

Gion’s
mouth marked her like a brand.  Hard and hot and possessive, it burned away
whatever lingering negative, mental associations Ty still held towards
kissing.  Kissing Parald always left her vaguely repulsed.  But, amazingly, she
liked
the feel of Gion’s mouth on hers.  It wasn’t just the energy and
passion sweeping her up in the moment.  She genuinely enjoyed the taste of him.

Ty’s
lips softened beneath his, accepting.

She
was just convincing herself that they should try the whole sex thing again,
when Gion pulled back, leaving Ty dizzy.

“I’ll
play you anything that you want.”  He told her gravely, stepping away.  “Except
disco music and Dolly Parton.”  Gion turned on his heel and went prowling out,
again.  “Make sure your bedroom windows are locked and secure.”  He ordered
over his shoulder.

Ty
blinked.

He’d
already checked her windows twice before she went to bed.  He was just making
an escape, because she’d been scared earlier.

Damn
it.

Was
Gion really serious about waiting ten years before touching her, again?

Ty
pouted slightly.

…And
she liked Dolly Parton.

Soft yielding Minds to Water
glide away,

And sip, with Nymphs, their
elemental Tea.

Alexander Pope- ‘Rape of
the Lock’

Ty
took a sip of her morning tea and tried to look as innocent as possible. 
“Cross, can I speak with you privately after breakfast?”  She smiled
artlessly.  “It’s nothing important.  I just have a little question.”

Ty
was actually a better actress than people gave her credit for.  In public,
she’d managed to hide her panic and social anxiety behind a queenly mask of
indifference for years.  She thought she’s delivered that casual invitation to
Cross with the perfect amount of “just another day at the office” boredom.

Unfortunately,
her cousin saw right through her.

“What
do you want to ask him?”  Nia demanded.  She hated to be left out of anything. 
“Why can’t you ask me?”

Nia
and Cross were back in the Water Kingdom today.  Certainly, that wasn’t
unusual.  Nia spent at least half her time in the Water Kingdom and she still
represented the Water House on the Council.  A big part of Ty saw Nia as the
real ruler of the Water Kingdom.  Her cousin was a hundred years older and a
thousand times more qualified than Ty.  The Water House was Nia’s home and she
was
always
welcomed there.  Ty adored Nia.  Loved her more than her own
life.

But,
she still came very close to pegging an English muffin at her precious cousin’s
big, dumb head.

“It’s
a private question for Cross.”  Ty said firmly.  She glanced towards the dining
room door for the fifteenth time since breakfast started.  Gion hadn’t come
down, yet.  “And maybe for Tharsis.”

“Me?” 
Tharsis looked up from his Cap’n Crunch.

“Tharsis
and Cross, but not me.”  Nia scowled over at her Match.  “What does Ty want to
ask you about that I can’t hear?”

“I
don’t know, baby.  She hasn’t asked me, yet.”  Cross drank some orange juice
and shrugged.  “Playing the odds, though, I’m betting it has something to do
with the Phantom of the Air House.  He’s her new pet project.”

It
annoyed Ty that everyone was so negative about Gion.  Granted, his past
remained a bit checkered, but he did plenty of wonderful things, too, and he had
staggering talents.

Gion
was a good man.

“We’re
getting more inquiries from Air Phases wanting to come here, because of Gion.” 
Tharsis chimed in.  “Before, they all went to Job and the Earth House, but, now
that Guy’s here, they’re petitioning
us
.  They seem to feel safer with
him clearing the path.”

Brokk
frowned.  “More of them?  Don’t we have quotas?”

“No,
we don’t.”  Ty shook her head.  “Anyone who wants to come here is welcome.” 
She poured herself some more tea, stirring it with unnecessary force.  “And
yes, as a matter of fact, my question for Cross does concern Gion.  But, it’s
private
.”

“What
could Cross possibly know about Gion that’s private?”  Tharsis wanted to know. 
“Anything you wanna share with the rest of the class, brother-in-law?”

“Shut
it, Thar.  She wants to talk to you, too.”  Cross glowered over at Ty.  “Look,
whatever you ask me, you might as well do it now.  You know that Nia will just
get it out of me later, anyhow.”

Nia
shrugged.  “He’s right.  I will.”

Ty
considered that.  She looked over her shoulder, again.  Still, no Gion.  “Um… it’s
sort of awkward to talk about over breakfast, so…”

“Just
spit it out, Ty.”  Tharsis interrupted.  “Whatever it is, I’m sure Cross will
take it like a man.”

Ty
glanced at Nia, who nodded encouragingly.  “Um… alright.”  Ty let out a long
breath and turned to Cross.  “So, when you slept with women before Nia, did you
experience any strange sensations?”

Cross
choked on his orange juice.

Ty
cringed slightly as he coughed.  Cross gave a hacking sort of wheeze, trying to
breathe.  He face went red from lack of oxygen.

Brokk’s
eyebrows climbed up his forehead.

Tharsis
started snickering.

Nia
whacked Cross on the back.  “Honey?  Are you okay?”

“Shit!” 
Cross gasped.  “Ty…
fuck
.  I’m not talking about that with you!”

She
adjusted her glasses.  “I don’t mean it as anything that might embarrass you…”

“I’m
not embarrassed!”  He lied.

“…It’s
a completely scientific inquiry, I assure you.  Nothing prurient.”  Ty
continued swiftly.  “I just don’t know who else to ask.  Nia waited for you, I
know.  Really, I just need to know about the Phazing energy.”

“He
didn’t feel Phazing energy with other women.”  Nia insisted.  “Only with me.” 
She considered that and flashed Cross a glare.  “Right?”

“Of
course!”

“But,
how did your energy react?”  Ty pressed.  “Was it –like-- blocked or…?”

“No,
I didn’t feel it, at all.  It wasn’t there.  There was no energy, because the
other women weren’t my Match.”  He looked at Nia as if she’d suggested
otherwise.  “No one else is my Match.”  He repeated.  “You
know
that.”

“Sure,
I know it.”  Nia fluttered her lashes.  “Just so you know it, too.”

Cross
relaxed, smiling slightly.  He leaned over to kiss her.  “Baby, it’s not
something I’m liable to forget.”  His hand went down to caress her stomach.

Nia
winked at him.

Ty
wasn’t satisfied.  “Thar?”

Tharsis
slumped down farther in his seat.  “Yeah?”  He asked warily.

“What
about you?”

Tharsis
slid so far south that Ty could barely see his eyes over the table.  “You’re
not supposed to be with anyone but your Match.”  He hedged.  “That’s not the
way we were raised.  It goes against the teachings of Gaia and ruins the…
magical… something.”

Ty
sighed.  “Yes, I know that.  But, I also know that you very rarely do what
you’re supposed to do.”

A
lot of Phases slept with people they weren’t Matched with, but the strict ruler
followers and the faithful romantics both stayed steadfast in the belief that
everyone should wait.  The Water House fell into the latter group.  At least
publically.  “For God’s sake, Thar, I don’t care if you had sex with some
woman.  I just need to know if you felt any energy.”

Tharsis
looked like a pouty child being called in front of the principal.  “No.”  He
muttered.

That
wasn’t what Ty wanted to hear.  “Nothing seemed… blocked?”

“Nope.” 
Tharsis developed a faraway expression.  “Everything went real fluidly, in
fact.”

Nia
rolled her eyes.

Damn
it.  Ty’s fingers drummed against table in consternation.  Her gaze slid over
to Brokk.  “What about you?”

Brokk’s
handsome face creased into outraged lines.  “I would never have intercourse
with some random woman.  I am awaiting my Match.”  He gave a righteous, Eagle
Scout sort of nod. “She deserves no less.”

Cross
and Tharsis both turned to glower at him.

Ty
had figured as much.  Wood Phases never colored outside the lines.  “When you
touch other people, though, you never feel any energy?”

“It’s
impossible to feel energy with someone who isn’t your Match.”  Brokk smiled
condescendingly.

Tharsis’s
head snapped up.  “Ohhhhhh… The energy.”  His attention zeroed in on Ty,
again.  “Now, I get it.”

“What?” 
Nia leaned forward.  “What are these questions really about?”

Ty
frowned down at her muffin and didn’t answer.

“She
and Gion have some kind of energy between them.”  Tharsis explained.  “I felt
it from four feet away when they touched.  It just zapped.”

“You
can’t feel energy with someone who isn’t your Match.”  Brokk stubbornly
repeated.  “It’s impossible.”

“Well,
I
am
feeling it.”  Ty retorted.  “So, impossible or not, it’s
happening.”

Nia
frowned.

“Grandpa
Munster must’ve put the whammy on you, then.”  Cross surmised, proving that
he’d been spending way too much time with Tharsis.  Not only did Cross feel
more comfortable talking to the Water Phases, now, but human television
contaminated his vocabulary.  God only knew what her cousin’s pop-culture
influence would do to poor Gion.  “Who knows
why
, but Gion’s gotta be
plotting something.”  Cross ate another mouthful of cereal.  “You should see
Freya about it.  See if you can’t get it fixed, before his evil spell spreads.”

Ty
hadn’t considered going to a doctor.  She should have.  Obviously, an expert on
biology and Phazing energy would be the best place to continue her research. 
Ty was more determined than ever to find out what was happening to her.

Ty
didn’t just
accept
things.  Not anymore.  She solved problems and found
solutions.  Until she found the answer, she’d keep searching through the
confusion.  And Gion confused her.  What Ty felt with him wasn’t natural.  It
couldn’t be.

Except,
it felt incredibly… right.

The
energy didn’t come from Ty
or
Gion.  It came from both of them
together
. 
She and Gion generated something very much like Phazing energy.  The books and
computer research all agreed with Brokk and said it was impossible.  Interviewing
her family was another dead end.  Freya was clearly the next best step in
finding out why Ty’s life persisted in becoming such an anomaly.

Ty
slowly nodded.  “That’s a very good idea, Cross.”  She looked over her
shoulder, again.

He
gave a little bow of his head.  “My kid’s gonna be a genius.  Just wait and
see.”

“Ty,”
Tharsis began, “sweetheart, I don’t think Freya will be able to…”

Brokk
cut him off.  “If you’re looking for Gion, he’s not here.”  He told Ty.  “The
Black Hole left twenty minutes ago.”

“Left?” 
Ty felt a jolt of panic.  “Where did he go?  Will he be back?”  If Gion moved
out, Ty didn’t know what she should do.  She liked having him here.  He
couldn’t just
leave
.

Nia
frowned at her alarmed words.

“Relax.” 
Brokk ate a bite of toast with Emily Post approved manners.  “He just went to
the human realm.  He’ll be back.”

“Shit.” 
Cross muttered.

“It’s
not safe for Gion to be out there alone.”  Ty insisted.  “He shouldn’t have
gone.  What does he even want in the human realm?”

“I
don’t know, but he brought that clipboard with him.”