Chapter 9 Borrowed Clothes and Broken Promises #2
"Oh, the others will catch up eventually.
" I waved a dismissive hand, though in truth, I'd worked quite hard to reach her first. "Taranis is probably still consulting his maps and calculating optimal pursuit vectors.
Ryu's likely trying to track you from the air but getting distracted by his own reflection in lakes.
Desmond moves at, well, a bear's pace. And Lucas.
.." I paused for dramatic effect. "Actually, he might be the first to find us.
That wolf's quite good at tracking when he puts his mind to it. "
"And you're quite good at deflection," she observed, pushing her empty bowl aside and picking up an apple.
She bit into it with deliberate slowness, juice glistening on her lower lip before she wiped it away with her thumb.
"You still haven't told me why you're suddenly willing to follow me into the hills.
I figured you'd be pushing for me to follow you to faery instead. "
My fingers tightened on my mug, unable to tear my eyes away from those lips.
"You appear quite able to run off wherever you please," I said, keeping my tone light despite the way my chest tightened at the memory of her earlier disappearance.
The steam from my untouched porridge curled between us like a veil.
"I sought you out to break the curse on my realm.
Perhaps I started off on the wrong foot by not trusting your instincts.
Maybe it's time I learned to follow rather than lead. "
"Flattery will get you everywhere," she drawled, but her eyes remained sharp as cut amber in the morning light.
Her fingers drummed against the weathered table, each tap sending tiny ripples across her cooling tea.
"Except the truth, apparently. I don't like being lied to, Aeolus, even when it's done with such pretty words. "
I leaned forward, letting my carefully maintained facade crack like ice in spring, and dropped my voice to barely above a whisper.
"The truth? Fine. The curse spreads like poison through my realm, but the fae are not the only ones affected.
Whatever malevolence haunts those hills may be connected.
And while I have no doubt you're more than capable of handling it alone.
.." I gestured to where her hands trembled against the wooden surface, "you're not at full strength yet. "
She studied me for a long moment, and I felt the weight of her gaze. "And you think you can help? When your own powers are diminished?"
"I think," I said carefully, "that two diminished powers might be better than one. Especially when none of us truly knows what lurks in the dark anymore."
That earned me another smile, the reaction warming something in my chest I'd thought long frozen. "You're impossible."
"I prefer 'improbable' actually. Sounds more sophisticated."
She shook her head, but I could see the decision forming in her eyes. "If—and that's a big if—I let you tag along, we do this my way. No running back to report to the others, no trying to convince me to wait for them. Deal?"
I pressed a hand to my chest in mock offense.
"My dear Phoenix, I would never dream of going behind your back.
" The lie rolled smoothly off my tongue, even as I crossed my fingers beneath the table, an ancient gesture that technically invalidated any fae promises.
Not that she needed to know that particular detail.
"Liar," she said, but there was no heat in it. Her eyes glinted with knowing amusement. "I can practically see your fingers crossed under the table. Not exactly subtle for a supposedly devious fae."
"Caught in the act," I sighed dramatically. "I should warn you, I'm tragically out of practice with deception. The Court would be positively mortified by my performance today."
She stood. "Don't push your luck, Aeolus. We leave in ten minutes."
"As my lady commands." I gave her an exaggerated bow at the waist, earning an eye roll that did nothing to dim the spark of amusement in her gaze.
The moment was shattered by an angry shout from the doorway. "Thief! Those are my clothes!"
A red-faced man stood in the entrance, pointing accusingly at Adara and her 'borrowed' clothes. Behind him, two town Wardens appeared, their brass badges gleaming.
"I believe there's been a misunderstanding," I said smoothly, rising to intercept them before they could reach Adara. I positioned myself between her and the advancing trio, my posture casual but my stance ready to move in any direction necessary.
I let my fingers dance subtly at my side, but the magic sputtered and died. I masked my alarm with a broader smile and reached for my coin purse instead.
The man's expression wavered between outrage and greed. "They're fine wool, imported from—"
I produced a heavy purse, letting the coins clink suggestively. "Worth twice their value, I'm sure. Plus additional compensation for your discretion?"
When they turned to talk amongst themselves, I glanced down at my hand, flexing my fingers with a frown.
The magic had been there. I'd felt it gathering, but then simply.
.. evaporated. Another symptom of being too long away from the Court.
Each day in the mortal realm seemed to leach more of my fae essence away, a slow bleeding I couldn't stanch.
The Wardens shifted uncomfortably as I pressed gold into the merchant's palm. One opened his mouth to object, but a few more coins quickly resolved any lingering concerns about procedure.
"A pleasure doing business," I said pleasantly, though my smile held an edge sharp enough to make them all step back. "I trust this matter is resolved?"
As the merchant and Wardens retreated, Adara raised an eyebrow.
"That was quite the display of affluence.
But your magic," she said quietly once they were out of earshot, her gaze dropping to my hands.
"It faltered. Is something wrong?" Her tone carried genuine concern beneath the curiosity, as if she'd glimpsed a weakness I hadn't meant to reveal.
"Nothing to worry about, flame-bearer," I replied with practiced nonchalance, though I couldn't quite meet her eyes.
I flexed my fingers, forcing lightness into my voice.
"Even the brightest stars dim a little when they wander too far from home.
The Court's influence only stretches so much, especially as the blight strengthens. "
Inwardly, I cursed my slipping glamour. A proper fae lord shouldn't need to rely on mortal currency.
"Besides, the Court of Whispered Secrets ensures its emissaries are well-provisioned.
Speaking of which..." I gestured to the supplies I'd gathered earlier: healing herbs, rope, flint and steel, waterskins, preserved meats, and other necessities.
"The local merchants were quite accommodating once they saw the quality of my coin. "
"Is it that simple?" she asked. "You're just a guardian following orders from your Court?"
The question stung more than I cared to admit. "The Court has its interests, certainly. They had other options. My presence here is my own choice." I didn't mention how tenuous my standing had become lately, or how much I needed this mission to succeed.
She studied me for a moment longer, then nodded. "I need to gather my things."
As she headed upstairs, I dug into my breakfast and allowed myself a small smile of victory.
Phase one of tracking down our wayward Phoenix: complete.
Phase two was already proving more complicated than I'd expected.
I watched Adara's retreating form disappear up the inn's creaking stairs, my fingers absently tracing frost patterns on my mug.
I ate my porridge, which had thickened as it cooled, while considering my next moves carefully.
I needed to walk a fine line. Keep her close enough to help yet give her enough space to prevent her from bolting again.
Like trying to hold smoke in your hands: squeeze too tight and it slips away, too loose and it dissipates entirely.
And somewhere in these cursed hills lay answers we both needed, though I suspected we sought different truths.
The weight of my Court's expectations pressed down like a physical burden, even as my connection to their power grew more tenuous with each passing day.
I hadn't admitted to anyone how difficult it had become just to maintain my most basic glamours, or how the constant drain left me exhausted in ways I'd never experienced before.
The innkeeper watched our exchange with knowing eyes, his hand absently polishing the same spot on the bar he'd been working for the past quarter hour.
He'd clearly hosted enough supernatural beings to recognize the dance of power playing out in his common room.
I turned, offering him my most disarming smile, though his only response was a deepening frown.
Mortals these days; so frustratingly immune to fae charm.
At least he'd accepted my coin, even if he didn't trust my story.
A whisper of wind slipped through the inn's open windows, carrying pine and that familiar rotten sweetness I'd come to recognize throughout my realm.
Footsteps on the stairs drew my attention back to Adara's return. She'd added a worn leather satchel to her borrowed outfit, and her hair was pulled back in a practical braid.
"Ready?" she asked, though she was already moving toward the door.
I grabbed the provision packs, slinging them over my shoulder with affected casualness. "Lead on, my lady of flame and fury."
Her responding eye roll was becoming a familiar sight. "Keep up that nonsense and I'll leave you behind."
"You wound me deeply." I pressed a hand to my heart as I followed her into the morning light. "And here I thought we were becoming friends."