Chapter 9 #2
Ermir calmly turned to face him, worry and sorrow mingling on his features. Speaking loud enough to be heard over the howling winds, he said, “Prince Drayce. I am so sorry you made the climb up here, but she cannot see you today.”
“She will see me, but that does not answer my question,” Briar growled. “Why the fuck are you out here when she is in there? Something is clearly wrong.”
“The winds can be all-consuming,” Ermir said, turning back to face the archway.
Briar finally let himself look as well, and his breath stalled. There was a whirlwind inside the courtyard, leaves and dust swirling among it, but he couldn’t see Ashtine.
“Where is she?” Briar asked, taking a step forward.
“In the center of it,” Ermir answered.
“Again I ask you: why the fuck are you out here when your princess is in trouble?”
“I cannot help her,” he answered, and Briar could hear the angst in his words. He wanted to, but he wasn’t even trying.
Ermir lifted a hand, his magic wrapping around them and creating a barrier against the storm. They could still hear it, but at least they didn’t need to yell to be heard. “Ophelia would experience the same at times,” he said.
“And you stood back and did nothing? Nothing helped?” Briar asked, his gaze fixed to the courtyard.
“We tried,” Ermir said. “For decades. But it is a burden of a Wind Walker. Only they can find what quiets them. Ophelia struggled, just as I have seen Ashtine struggling these last years.”
“You have seen her struggling and done nothing?” he sneered.
“Do not presume to know the inner workings of our Court or the winds, Prince,” Ermir said. “You think I enjoy seeing her like this? She is like a daughter to me. If there was anything I could do, I would.”
“And Ophelia never found a way to balance her gifts?” Briar asked.
“Not until Ansel,” Ermir said, referencing Ashtine’s father.
“Even then, it took time. Their union was arranged, like all royal joinings are, but he found a way. He was the only one. I pray to Sefarina that Ashtine will find that peace one day. But today is not that day, and I have no choice but to watch over her while she suffers.”
“Let me into the courtyard,” Briar said, because standing back wasn’t an option.
He’d promised her he would always be there for her.
Even if they could never be anything more, he could do this.
Not stand back and watch, but he could step into her suffering and let her know she wasn’t alone in it.
No one else might understand the winds, but that didn’t mean she needed to endure her fate alone.
Ermir shook his head. “It is too dangerous, Prince.”
Briar turned, a dagger of ice forming in his hand. “That is my risk to take. It will be a risk you take if you deny me again, Ermir. Let me into the courtyard.”
The older Fae’s eyes went wide, bouncing between his face and the dagger. “Prince, you overstep—”
The dagger flew, grazing Ermir’s shoulder enough to cause blood to well. Another dagger had already formed. “The next one will not leave a simple scratch, Ermir,” Briar warned.
He’d expected rage, but the Second only studied him for a long moment before nodding.
He lowered his magic, the winds so forceful once more that Briar stumbled forward and the ice dagger was ripped from his hand.
He pushed against the wind, following Ermir to the archway.
The Second sent a small burst of his magic through the archway.
It glowed faintly, and he motioned for Briar to enter.
Each step forward felt like pushing against ten warriors in training.
More than once, he stumbled back, losing ground.
Even using a shield of his own magic didn’t aid him.
He was exhausted when he finally broke through the whirlwind, using his water gifts to wash the dust from his eyes.
He had hoped there would be a calm at the center, but while the winds didn’t assault him like they had outside her storm, what he found had him rushing forward.
Ashtine was there, on her knees and face in her hands. Her hair appeared to have once been intricately braided, but now it was a wild mess of knots. She was barefoot, and a cloak was nowhere to be seen. Her gown was sleeveless, and the skirt was as tossed about as her hair.
“Ashtine.”
Her name got caught in his throat, but she still somehow heard it. She slowly lifted her head, dull sky-blue eyes meeting his. She was as white as a phantom. Even her lips were bloodless, but the dark circles beneath her eyes told him she hadn’t slept in days, possibly weeks.
Briar lowered to his knees, wanting to reach for her, but not sure if he should. Truth be known, now that he was here, he had no godsdamn idea what to do or how to help her.
“Ashtine,” he said again. “Tell me what I can do.”
“You came here.” It wasn’t a question, and gods, she sounded so incredibly tired.
“I told you I would always be here for you, my dear,” he answered.
“You came,” she repeated, as if she didn’t believe he was kneeling in front of her.
“I did.”
“Why?”
“You called for me. Or I suppose Nasima did the calling,” he replied.
“They are quieter when you are near,” Ashtine said, her voice somewhere between an awed whisper and a sob. “I do not understand why.”
“Then I will stay. We can understand tomorrow,” Briar said. Looking around, he found her storm had lessened some. The winds still swirled, though not as violently. He could see glimpses of the gleaming white skystone. “Do you wish to stay here? In the courtyard?”
“I wish for a bed and to sleep. That is all I wish for. It is all I have desired for days,” she said, still not moving.
“Then let’s do that.”
“The winds do not let me,” she whispered. “They never cease.”
“But they are less in the moment, yes?” Briar asked, unable to help himself as he reached out and pushed her hair from her face. Her eyes fluttered closed for the briefest of moments. “Speak, Ashtine.” He didn’t say it harshly, but it was a command to answer.
“Yes,” she murmured. “Because you are near.”
“Then I will stay near. Are you ready?”
He didn’t wait for an answer this time. He stood, then he bent and scooped the princess into his arms. She didn’t fight him. There was no protest. She only sighed, a sound born out of weariness, and rested her head against his shoulder.
But the whirlwind around them faded, the gales slowing until they were nothing more than a gentle breeze stirring around them. He imagined this was the way the courtyard normally looked. Peaceful and stunning with the skystone glinting in the midday sun.
As he approached the archway, he saw Ermir standing on the other side, a cloak in his hands. Standing next to him was Sawyer. When he stepped out of the courtyard, Ermir placed the cloak over Ashtine without a word.
“I will be staying with her,” Briar said to the Wind Court Second. “It is not a request.”
“Indeed, your Highness,” Ermir replied. “Had you attempted to leave, I would have asked you to stay.”
Briar glanced at his brother, who only gave a small nod of his head, before they turned and followed Ermir.
He carried Ashtine all the way down those steep stairs.
The courtyard was warded. There was no way to make portals at the top.
But Ermir did not take him back to the Citadel the way Briar had come on Abrax.
Instead, Ermir veered left, leading them through a small grove of evergreen trees. They emerged sometime later, where the Second pulled open a door that would have been easily missed without guidance.
“The princess’s safe route,” Ermir explained as they entered a dark passageway. “I do not wish for her to be seen in such a state.”
Briar made a sound of acknowledgement. Ashtine hadn’t said a word, and he hoped that meant she was asleep. They climbed several flights of stairs before he was led into a set of rooms he could only assume were Ashtine’s private quarters.
“Her bedchamber is through that door,” Ermir said, nodding to a doorway. “Send word if you need anything. Her handmaiden, Noelle, may be in and out. She can be trusted.”
“Thank you, Ermir,” Briar said.
“No, Prince. I believe it is I who should be thanking you,” the Second replied.
Briar only nodded before carrying Ashtine through to her bedchamber. He wasn’t sure what Sawyer was planning to do, but he also didn’t care as he gently laid Ashtine down. He removed the cloak and replaced it with a heavy wool blanket, but the moment he stepped back, her eyes opened, finding his.
“You will stay?” she asked.
“If you wish,” he replied, but that was a lie. He wasn’t going anywhere, even if she wished him gone.
“You will still be here when I wake?”
“I will always be here for you, Ashtine. Sleep.”
But it wasn’t until he’d removed his boots and climbed atop the bed next to her that she finally found rest. Her fingers curled into his tunic, keeping her tethered to him.
The sound of wings rustling drew his attention to the window where Nasima was perched on the ledge.
She clicked her beak, feathers rustling again.
“Thank you,” Briar said softly.
The hawk made another clicking sound before she launched back into the sky.