The black ice should have frightened her.
The smirking faces and coy tones should have horrified her.
The cruel words and self-assured creatures should have terrified her.
They didn't.
Ilayda's face twitched at the sight of the wall of black ice rising before her, glistening slickly in the pale claw-scratch of moonlight above. Her hands spasmed at her sides, the twisting wheel of water shivering along the bare lengths of her arms. Both hands slammed together, a brilliantly blue bubble forming around her fingers, but then she flung her hands outward from where she stood, a flashing whip of over-warm water slashing against the dark ice before her. As she was already standing near the mortal from before, she flicked her other hand in a rapid circular movement; a similar whip of water circled around their bodies, twitching like an aware animal.
"Quit." Her voice no longer sounded sweet, simply cold and matter-of-fact. "Leave now."
