Page 24 of The Prince's Sacrifice

Pel’s eyes flew open to find that Tor was looking at him with a patient, completely open expression despite the fact that he’d been reaching out this whole time, and Pel hadn’t managed to do a single thing.

Tor continued, “Envision your magic flowing into your hand, pooling in your palm. Think about it stretching out into your fingertips—and beyond.”

This sounded too simple to Pel, but it wasn’t like he had a better idea. And he could readily admit which of the two of them was the magic expert here.

Pel closed his eyes again.All right, little ball of magic. Flow to my hand, please.

Really, he supposed that was no weirder than Pel envisioning a ball of magic in his chest to begin with. Whycouldn’tit be in his hand instead of his core? In comparison, Tor no doubt had so much magic it was coursing around his whole body, but Pel still had enough to fill his hand. Probably.

Everyonedid, he reminded himself sternly; it just took Unremarkable more effort to pool their small amount in one spot. He tried to envision his magic in his hand. It helped that it was a small surface. Was that why Tendrilling always happened with clasped hands? Could Extraordinary have been Tendrilling by bumping shoulders or tapping knees together this whole time?

He shook his head, trying to brush off the thought. He was supposed to be concentrating onhis magicand Tendrilling with the very patient man across from him. Tor hadn’t asked him to possess more magic. He hadn’t asked Pel to be anything other than what he was. Tor knew Pel was Unremarkable, and he’d never shoved it in Pel’s face the way others had done.

His warm hand was still firmly clasping Pel’s, gentle and steady, and Pel just needed to get his magic there so that he could respond. Did it feel like there was something extra warm in his hand? Was Pel imagining it? Or was that Tor’s hand and magic, just waiting for him?

This wasn’t just Tendrilling, this was Tendrilling withTor.Pel thought about his magic and how much he wanted to reachout and touch Tor. He’d had the courage to ask, and now he just needed todo it. Tor’s magic was right there, everyone was capable of this, he just had to reach out and—

Pel gasped. He knew the moment he’d succeeded. He didn’t know what he’d been expecting, but it wasn’t this. He couldfeelTor,feelhis magic in a way that was difficult to describe. He’d already been touching the other man, after all. Magic touching, it turned out, was completely different. It filled him with warmth and a sense of Tor that he hadn’t had before.

They’d touched virtually everywhere physically, but this was a different way to connect. It felt dizzyingly intimate, and Pel struggled to remind himself that many people did this casually. Newly Manifested teens often checked strength, and many adults casually checked compatibility. It shouldn’t be a big deal.

Pel honestly couldn’t imagine ever doing this—or wanting to do this—with anyone else.

He’d always thought of Tendrilling as that visible connection of magic twining around two clasped hands. He’d thought of it as something external—and therefore hard for Unremarkable.

But it was so much more than that. Yes, their joined hands were the connection point, but the magic thrummed through his entire body, lighting up every part of him, a bit of Pel in Tor, and a bit of Tor in Pel.

It gave him a glimpse of what it would be like if they bonded, when that magical exchange would be permanent.

Just at the moment, it sounded like the best idea ever, but he was pretty sure that was the magical high talking—and he hadn’t even thought Unremarkable could get those.

Sternly, he reminded himself that this was all new—the Tendrilling, the sex, the relationship. He was no doubt overreacting.

But it was just so… warm and happy and welcoming andTor. He’d never felt anything so beautiful.

Pel opened his eyes and looked at their clasped hands, where magic swirled. He couldn’t actually tell whose magic was whose. It was all fused together and swirling around their skin. Not searching anymore, because Tor’s magic had found what it was looking for.

In this moment, they could be equal.

He finally tore his gaze away from their hands and looked up at Tor, who was already watching him. As soon as their eyes connected, Tor grinned, and Pel grinned helplessly back.

“It worked,” Pel said blankly, still a bit stunned.

Tor’s smile widened. “It sure did. Better than it’s ever worked for me before.”

Shyly, Pel asked, “Really?”

Tor nodded, eyes alight. “Really. I’ve never felt this compatible with someone before. And also oddly like I could climb this mountain in a single bound. And I still don’t like mountains.”

Pel could do nothing but laugh. “I think it’s a magical high.”

Tor nodded. “It must be. It’s stronger than I expected. And kind of awesome.”

“Yeah, it is.”

Pel sounded very smug, and he didn’t even feel bad about it. The way Tor was behaving, there was no mistaking this for some casual connection that didn’t matter, and Pel couldn’t help but be delighted.

“Thank you for having the courage to do this,” Tor told him, expression turning a bit rueful. “I kept telling myself that I didn’t want to scare you off, but the truth is, I wasn’t totally sure you wanted this.” His gaze slipped. “You haven’t wanted to tell anyone, and so I thought you didn’t want anything more than what we were doing.”