(Snowe's POV)
After they talked for a few more minutes Zai told me to join them in person, since he got the vibe that Tana was no threat to me. I used his element to rush over and I was shocked when I entered the room and saw her, she seemed like a Mystical being instead of just a person. It was as if she was constantly emitting a warmth, like sitting in the sunlight. I'm not sure how Zai could have told me she was ugly. She was wearing a short yellow wrap-around dress, with a white ribbon tied around her neck like a choker necklace and a matching ribbon on her left ankle. She was shoeless but bith her fingernails and toe nails, were painted a pale pink color.
He jumped from his seat to embrace me and said proudly,
"This is my wife!" ... So I guess I don't need to worry about him having developed feelings for her, even if she looks like this. There was also 2 other unfamiliar women in the room. One looked like a human in her mid 40s, and the other... was a very pretty, slender, and tall woman. She had silver eyes and her lashes looked they were sprinkled with glitter. She must be a Metal worker. Her complexion was 2 shades darker than mine and unlike me and Tana her long black hair was bone-straight. She wore a long formfitting silver gown and her nails were painted similarly to Tana's. It's hard to tell if she's Infaniyan or Afarian, at this point it shouldn't matter.
"It's lovely to meet you! You're so gorgeous! I'm happy you found someone Zaikel." Tana said with a voice oozing sincerity and happiness. It was almost hard to take a compliment from someone so stunning but nothing in her tone or mannerisms made think she didn't mean it.
A man was sitting next to her with his arm over her shoulder. He had two long cornrows which were tied together with a thin black rope at the base of his neck; it was long, his braids stopped at his hips. The hair was a gradient from light pink to lavender and ending in a dark purple. His lashes and eyebrows matched that dark purple; and he had sky blue eyes. He did not disappoint on the attractiveness scale, it was almost off the charts, and he was topless, only wearing a necklace up top, so he was boldly bearing his Chosen tattoo, and he had on black pants that resembled Hakama, with brown leather sandals. His necklace matched Tana's. He was the only man in the room I didn't recognize so I know he's the one who bonded with Tana, Insinz. His eyes met mine for a second then he seemed to lose interest and turn back to Tana. "I don't expect to leave immediately but the sooner the better! I know you all have affairs you need to get in order, just meet me back here when you're ready." She proclaimed while holding his hand. I want to get to know Zai's family more... maybe they can all attend our wedding if this all wraps up well. No I need to focus, now isn't the time to think about that.
"You can stay here... of course. You rescued Aluma, protected her all these years ... and helped Innoccence. I owe you." RJ offered. Tana smiled and nodded,
"Thank you for that, I appreciate it, truly." The way she speaks is so old-fashioned and proper, and her voice is so mesmerizing, that I feel safe hearing it. It's how I wish my mother sounded when she spoke to me.
"Oh it's nice to meet you too!" I yelled after finally processing all this new information. She looked at me and giggled slightly before giving me another dazzling smile.
"I like you, you're adorable." I blushed brightly and then she gave Zai a thumbs up, "You found a good one." Zai grinned widely and said,
"I know that's why I won't ever let her go."This worsened my shyness so I hurried to take a seat while Zai kept a tight hold on me. I'm not sure exactly how I warmed her over but I won't complain.
"Hey, Snowe, welcome to the chaos." Valin greeted. Zai sat down next to Valin and then pulled me down into his lap, making me feel a bit more tense.
"Okay since everyone is here now... we should go over strategies," Insinz stated pulling a scroll out of thin air. Every strategy that seemed viable was recorded onto the scroll and then a movie version of the strategy was projected from it, showing all the possible pros and cons of each suggestion.
"That's so cool." I mumbled out loud. I'm still getting used to modern technology on Earth, I didn't know Afaria had a way to show us all a visual represntation of our thoughts in real-time. Insinz cracked a smile then and said,
"Moving on," Then he made more suggestions to his brothers. Zai insisted that I be with him until he has to face the King. Insinz and RJ are to work together because their powers apparently compliment each other the best. Valin is with Cera... Me and Cera never got to get close. I wonder if there's a way for me to change that? I guess it can wait till after the battle. "Yeah... I think that'll work, even Vetro wouldn't survive that..." Insinz stated, happily returning the scroll into the void it came from.
"I want to be there... when this all ends." Tana suddenly chimed in. she was smiling quietly and listening to the plans until this point. Insinz cupped her chin and leaned in like he was going to kiss her but then stopped himself and sighed.
"That... I'll need to train you in my element first.. also we need to discover what your affinity is." Tana's eyes widened.
"I never chose one." She commented. Insinz looked down sadly,
"You just don't remember... Vetro wanted to keep you weak... so he was draining your energy, the same way we're taught to do on humans. That's how he's grown so strong and he ... found a way to repress the memory of the day you chose your element so you wouldn't be able to choose another one or properly wield the one that you picked." Her mouth hung ajar then I saw her eyes moisten and she bit her bottom lip.
"I think that's all for now, let's all meet again soon once you're ready." She tried to sound upbeat but her voice was cracking... We all said our goodbyes, only Valin, Zai and I were leaving, everyone else just went to their respective rooms in the mansion.
(Tana's POV)
Raijian showed me to a guest room, it was overly girly, filled with pastel pink and white furniture. It's extremely odd that they'd have a room like this in a house made for only them. I thought I understood all the Princes fairly well but looks like there's still more to learn... Insinz manifested from my necklace once we were alone and said,
"It's so bright in here it hurts my eyes," I laughed a bit then watched him flop down onto the bed.
"I'm so sorry that you must suffer to be with me." I commented while sitting at his side. He rolled over and hugged my waist.
"I was prepared to suffer... it was in the contract when I signed up to be with you." I scoffed, "You want to ask me more... about your curse, don't you?" I stayed quiet so he sat up and kissed my forehead before continuing, "Originally, someone named Larina placed it on you. She's long dead but I could hear echos of her name when I tried to lift the curse and find its source... Curses usually end shortly after the caster dies but hers lasted longer because Vetro added layers onto it. One layer kept you from leaving him, Another one to forget your element and lastly one that repressed feelings that... might cause you to feel discontent."
"I still ended up feeling discontent though." I commented. Isinz nodded and sat up to say,
"That's because your strong will broke part of that layer yourself... it took you a long time, most people would have been discontent thousands of years before you." I took a deep breath,
"You're right... so when you cured me, you were able to see my past to a degree..." I noted rhetorically, "That's slightly embarrassing..." I whispered but Insinz continued as if he didn't hear me
"Your face couldn't be healed until he released all those extra layers and when you almost died and he could no longer strengthen his portion of the curse through sex, so I was able to finally heal you."
"I'm... so grateful to you... at first I wished I had really died but now I have hope for the future, because I'm with you," He laughed then nuzzled his nose on mine.
"Dont worry I won't kiss you... I want to though... I can't wait to see you in person again." I blushed then placed my hand on his and intertwined our fingers.
"I feel the same way... I miss being able to touch you anyway I want.." The clone's cheeks reddened then he turned away from me.
"I also have another confession to make..." I leaned closer to him to show my interest, "Hyzi... I have all of his memories. The Chosen are always incarnates of each other but I think this is different. I remember a whole new life... with you, I remembered loving you even before I met you... I had a headstart on knowing all your favorite things and knowing how beautiful you truly are. That's probably why you warmed up to me..." I was in shock when his eyes met mine again,
"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" I mumbled,
"... It was dangerous to admit it in the palace. The king would let a fling go, as long as you came back to him in the end. He only felt enraged when he realized you were serious about me. If I admitted to my past life and he somehow found out, I know he'd have killed me, so I stayed as quiet and unremarkable as possible... I wanted to tell you right away but I, thought it would cause you more stress than anything." I hugged him.
"I truly cared for Hyzi and I... was starting to fall for him but.. you don't feel the same as him to me... you may have his memories but you're the one who made my heart flutter long before it made logical sense. I love you, the Insinz-Hyzi hyrbid who's here with me. I just felt like I should tell you that... Also I understand, it makes sense that you would hide it at first and it was probably hard to admit to me after hiding it for so long but..." I kissed the tip of his nose, "I am not upset or disappointed in you... I love you." He looked like he was fighting back tears then he kissed my cheek and backed away slowly to make eye contact again.
"I love you too... and now you have proof that... no matter what happens after this war, I will always find you and come back to you." I flicked his forehead, "Ow!"
"Don't talk like you're going to die... dummy" He rolled his eyes then nuzzled his cheek on mine and laid with me until I fell asleep.