Casualties of the Dimming Light
Cath’s smile wouldn’t go away. She looked like a fool smiling in satisfaction at the illusion of their own intellectual superiority. It was an odd grin, to be sure. Keelan wasn’t taken by her at first, the younger of the Zvijezda sisters, Brani, was much more to his carnal tastes, but Cath’s strangeness endeared her to him as the two spent more and more time together. The feelings were the strongest he had ever felt, but they still weren’t particularly strong. They never would be. They never could be. He had never felt like others felt. His emotions were dulled. That’s just who he was. Cath was setting herself up for pain. He knew he could never be what she wanted, but he liked being around her too much to throw her away just yet.
This cold logic inside of him was his strength. He knew he was what this crumbling city needed. Someone to disregard king and country. Someone who could ignore the troubles of the present to build for the future. The people here needed him, even if they would fight him every step of the way. He was destined, or so he believed, to bring the light of peace back to these people.
Cath’s grin turned flat and she titled her head like a puppy.
“What are ya’ thinkin’ so deeply about?”
Cath would never understand. That girl couldn’t see 5 seconds into the future, let alone 5 years. He would have to get rid of her eventually, before she had a chance to get in the way. Keelan softly smiled before giving his reply.
“It’s nothing, Cath.”
“Aww, come on. Tell me!” Cath replied, staring into Keelan’s eyes in bemusement.
“Nothing you need to worry your cute little head about.”
Cath began to grin like an idiot again. She was so easy to manipulate, Keelan thought. Just drop her a compliment on her looks and she turns to mush. So simple. He envied that simpleness, however. It made Cath who she was. It made Cath endearingly pleasant to be around. Maybe he too could smile like that if he was as simple as she, but that wasn’t the way the dice landed for Keelan. That wasn’t his destiny.
Keelan looked out the window of his room. The moon had seemed to finish its ascent into the night sky. The light of the sun had fully retreated until the following morn. Like the sun to the moon, he and Cath would have to only catch glimpses of each other in the distance. Their bond needed to break if they were both to ever prosper.
“You should head home now, It’s getting late.” Keelan stated
“Oh, c’mon!” Cath replied. “I won’t be able to visit like this when ya’ move to the castle.”
Cath flashed a pout and Keelan knew he couldn’t refuse her. Maybe he was the one who was truly easy to manipulate. He would have to work on that for the future. Keelan let out a sigh and smiled softly back at Cath.
“Fine, just a little longer.”
Cath began to blather on like she always did, and Keelan feigned attention as he always had. She had her fingers too deeply into him, it seemed. In that moment he wished nights like this could go on forever, but he knew that they could not. He could never be what she needed him to be, and every moment he let her stay only made the eventuality hurt her more. Still for now he could not throw her away, but the time would come. Certainly the time would come. Cath’s smile would have to go away.
