Thor & Evangeline

On that lonely night you said it wouldn't be love
But we felt the rush, it made us believe there was only us
The grove was certainly a quiet place best meant to shield hopeful lovers from prying eyes, but was that what we were? Were we lovers? Nothing had ever been spoken aloud but there was something soft and subtle about the way I looked at Evangeline. Even in the shadow of night I could decipher the green of her eyes and the surprise they revealed. That was one of the things I enjoyed most about her—the way that I could see her. Eva was a fearless creature and wise beyond her years but she was also honest. She didn’t hold back when it came to expressing her opinions and she didn’t falter when it came to saying exactly what was on her mind. Maybe that was what had drawn me to her… maybe I’d been looking for someone with enough strength to avenge the loss of my own.

The flicker of the campfire flames dances across our faces and warmed the cool night air, but it failed to comfort my racing heart. It made me think of the first time I’d met Evangeline and the things she’d shared with me. Some time ago she too had served as a powerful, if naïve, ruler. We shared the same woes in that respect, but she hadn’t abandoned her duties because of loss… Instead she had fought through the trials until she could simply fight no more. But I had yet to see that fire in her demeanor where matters of the heart were concerned. Did that mean that she had nothing to fight for? Was I not enough to tempt her affections?

I couldn’t help but doubt our entire affair, if only because I was the only one truly sacrificing to take her hand. How many times had I begged her to accept me, to allow me a single chance to make her happy? As I looked around at the dark forest that enveloped us in seclusion and secrecy, I began to question more than Eva’s intentions in coming to the Grove, but the truth of her confessions shared in the Edge as well. My mind was a terrible thing to navigate when plagued by turmoil, but when anxiety preyed on my weakness I couldn’t ever seem to win the ensuing battle.

All of my previous optimism had been cut down by Evangeline’s placid façade and while I fought to regain myself, she continued to press me with questions.

“You’ve been distant as of late. I had to know if the woman I was fighting for meant to return the sentiments… It’s like pulling teeth with you Eva. How many times do I need to question your loyalty and your feelings until I’m given a true answer?” I replied coolly. “One moment I think I see it and the next, I can’t see anything. I’m looking at you now and there’s nothing… nothing at all,” I concluded on a sigh. She would certainly be the death of me if I continued to court her, but Eva was worth the heartache if that’s really what I was presently feeling. I knew it was a mixture of anger and pain and doubt, but there was something fulfilling about all of those emotions. I didn’t feel the need to berate myself for feeling that way and it was a refreshing notion after so much guilt and sadness over the past.

It took some time for Evangeline to say anything else and I assumed it was because she was conversing silently with Tallis. That was another thing I’d come to expect of her... The bond she shared with the dragon was unbreakable and also one I could not yet understand without a companion of my own. However, I allowed her to share her thoughts with him uninterrupted- even if it drove me absolutely mad. I wanted to know her feelings just as much as she wanted to share them with Tallis.

When her eyes returned to me and she seemed satisfied to resume our conversation, I grimaced slightly. In between glancing up to Tallis for quiet answers and listening to her claim that she had come to the Grove seeking solitude, I started to laugh. It wasn’t the jovial, enthusiastic chuckle that Eva was most likely accustomed to, but instead a dark, thoughtful guffaw that made my skin crawl. “I don’t suppose that’s why you asked me the same question? Isn’t that why everyone comes to the Grove Eva, to think?” I urged angrily. She looked offended and perhaps a bit in awe that I’d been so presumptuous, but had she not given me the same suggestive stare upon finding me here in the ”Secret Grove”? If that was the lie she was going to feed me, then so be it.

Two can play at this game.