CHAPTER XI
BIRD OF ASH
“Her skin shouldn’t have been that color…”
“She went into hyperthermia,” the sound of Clair’s voice greets me
from far, far away, “she had frostbite in her fingers, toes, nose and ears. She’s lucky to even have a semblance of her normal color now.”
“She is indeed warming to the temperature,” a stranger chimes in.
“But her body is still trying to recover?”
Is that Keane?
“Yes,” the stranger replies, “human ailments take time, Your Highness.”
“He’s our best healer, Keane.”
“She’s looking good already. The swelling on the side of her head has already gone down. We’re lucky she wasn’t concussed. Just a heavy fall that was enough to knock her out.”
“We need to let her sleep,” Clair says steadily.
Yes. Sleep. Please.
“I will not leave her side,” his voice replies.
“Then we’ll bring an extra cot to the room…”
“Morose confirmed that she didn’t eat much the last two days. Nor do they think she slept,” Clair’s voice is closer now.
“She pushed herself into exhaustion…”
Ancients, is that Desmond’s voice?
“Exhaustion?” McQuoid scoffs, “the girl made it rain ash.”
Is that what it was?
“The remnants of the slash still remain in the sky. I have no story to tell my people. They think it’s a dark omen, and who could blame them.”
“It’s already fading…” Keane’s voice sounds haggard, “give it a few days and it’ll be gone, Rion.”
The feel of rough but gentle fingers brush against the side of my temple, lulling me back to sleep.
“I will swat you down.”
Keane’s voice is hard now, but the sound of a small chirp below my ear is just as sharp.
“That baby beast will not leave her side,” Desmond replies.
I feel the brush of soft feathers against my neck again, still the softest thing I’ve ever felt in my life.
“I am not her enemy, nor am I yours. I’m just going to move the blankets over her shoulders-”
A quick movement and the sound of Keane yelling “fucker!” makes me grin in my sleep.
“Alright, we’re going to try this again.”
Keane’s voice is so near now.
“I’m sorry for threatening you…”
The feel of sharp talons grips my shoulder before they lean forward.
“You little shit!”
I laugh, envisioning Keane as he tries to interact with the proud little black bird from my hands. He’ll have a tough time making friends with that one, their proud egos are just too big for eachother.
“Alexis?” his voice reaches me again, “did you just hear me?”
I think my lips curve up in a smile because he lets out a heavy exhale.
“Thank Ancients.”
I slowly test my body under the blankets and hold in a groan. I can feel a plush pillow under my head and reach for my temples, my fingers pressing into the side I fell on to try to quell the throbbing pain.
“Can you please call on the Prince and Princess?” Keane asks someone from farther away, “she’s awake.”
“Millie.”
My voice comes out in a rasp, a mere whisper. I move my fingers down to my eyes and rub them hard.
“What?”
“Millie,” I say louder, voice cracking.
“Here, drink some water.”
Keane slips his hand around the back of my neck and lifts me up. I follow his lead but keep my eyes closed, feeling as his fingers jerk sharply behind me.
“Tiny bastard,” he grumbles.
Another small chirp sounds below my ear as the feel of a cool glass reaches my lips.
Keane tips the water into my mouth, holding me steady even though I know he received a not so pleasant nip from the bird.
I rub my eyes again and finally put my hands on the bed beneath me, pushing myself to a sit as I open them to a bright room.
The Prince is sitting in a chair next to the bed I’m on, his brown eyes watching me with deep concern.
I glance to his unkempt hair that looks like its seen too many hands running through it in one sitting, then look to the angular plains of his face that are as hard as the fiercest Discerni.
His features are sharp and tense, but his lips are soft and curve up in a sad smile.
He looks at me as a concerned parent would to a child, and I’m not sure I like it.
“Please don’t,” I groan and sit up taller.
“Don’t what?”
“Don’t look at me like a concerned father would.”
Keane gives a thick laugh, his brown eyes darting across my face as he shakes his head in surprised amusement.
“Concerned?” he asks, “yes. Always, Alexis. But Father? No…”
His playful eyes meet mine, causing my heart to skip a beat, “unless you’re into that kind of stuff.”
“There you are,” I chuckle softly, watching as he sinks back into his chair in relief.
“I was asking about Millie,” I tell him, letting my eyes roam to the room around us.
It’s not the guest room I shared with Alanna but it’s still a decently sized room complete with a small desk, bathing chamber and a balcony. I spot a cot at the side of the bed just as Keane nods in response.
“Millie has been fine. Alanna got your note.”
I let out a deep breath. “Did you just call for the Prince and Princess?”
“I did,” he watches me intensely.
I look down at my body, to the now tattered gold satin shirt and the dirty tan riding pants hiding underneath the blankets. Someone has taken off my boots but I still look a proper mess, not to mention that I smell distinctly of campfire and wet mountain air.
“Can you hold that request?” I pull the blankets off and slowly swing my feet off the bed, “I need to wash first.”
Keane looks over me in assessment before nodding. He stands up and holds out his hands for me to take, carefully helping me up as I attempt to stand on shaking legs.
“Through that arch,” he juts his chin, “I’ll give you some privacy.”
“No,” I reply quickly, not letting go of his hold.
Keane looks down at me again, his brown eyes still assessing. Whatever he sees in my gaze makes him smile knowingly.
“Then I will hold the request and call for some water. I’ll meet you in there shortly.”
I let him pull away this time, watching as he walks towards the front door and gently opens it before bounding into the hall beyond.
I notice in another corner of the room that my travel packs have been transferred here, the bags resting next to Keane’s in an open pairing anyone can see if they entered the room.
I walk to my pack with a groan and pull out my spiced soap, every muscle in my body aching and sore.
The tub is filled when I reach it, its steam moving high into the cool air.
I pull up a stool and drop a towel and my soap on top, then bend over with a grimace and slowly pull off my socks.
My hands are no longer shaking but they do ache when I pull down my pants, leaving my gold shirt to fall loosely just above my bare thighs.
Everything is sore, but when I hear Keane shift his weight at the archway behind me, I manage turn to him easily and with a smile.
He watches me, brown eyes darting to my knees that I know are severely bruised.
He narrows in on the coloring, taking in the area before his eyes move past my thighs and up my shirt, to my jaw and the side of my face.
I can feel the swelling there from my falls as well, no doubt what he’s looking at now.
“It is the sign of a Warrior to have scars and bruises covering their body,” he notes, slowly walking towards me, “they are respected, a sign of a battle well fought…”
Keane reaches for my face, gently resting his hand on the side of my jaw as his eyes narrow in a scowl. I watch as his brown gaze looks down at me with a new coldness I haven’t yet experienced, the sight of it sending a shiver up my spine.
“But in all my years spent in Warrior, you are the first woman to ever make me resent the bruising on your skin, Alexis. I resent the pain I know they will cause you.”
“I am not a child, Keane,” I give him a small scowl of my own, “I can take a few bad falls.”
His eyes dart across mine, nodding in agreement. “You can take three times this pain, Alexis, and still get out of bed in resilience and strength as you do now. But that doesn’t negate the fact that I’ll still resent the pain that’s being caused on you.”
“But you gave me a bruise just recently…”
“One of pleasure,” he smiles softly.
I sigh, “it’s not that bad, Keane, I promise. I’m immensely sore and tired, but the only pain is in my head. It hurts, but its bearable.”
Keane’s eyes flick down to my shirt, trying to spot any other bruising underneath the gold fabric. I know there will be a lot, especially around my arms and elbows, as those areas truly took the brunt of my falls.
“The room they found me in was frozen over,” I explain, “the ground was a thick slab of ice. It was unlike anything I had ever experienced before… beautiful and cold, sharp and daunting. I moved too hastily in the moment, in multiple moments, and forgot about the slickness of the ground below me. I tried to break my falls, but what you’ll see next is a product of my own doing, nothing more… ”
Keane watches my lips, listening to my words as I raise my arms slowly above my head with a wince.
“I’ll need help with the top, please.”
He brings his gaze farther down my body as his fingers grab the hem of my shirt.
He pulls it up gently, knuckles skimming against my bare stomach, and moves the fabric over my neck as a small chirp greets the room in annoyance.
He pulls the shirt over my arms and wrists before tossing it to the side, his eyes falling perfectly on my body as he takes me in.
I stand tall in front of him, unashamed of the clumsiness that marred my body, and watch as his gaze lingers between my legs before moving up to my chest. He takes a small step around me, his head darting to my back before his gaze follows my arms and elbows and then down to my rear.
I hear a small breath leave his lips before he finally moves to stand back in front of me, his brown gaze catching mine in deep desire.
“For how long?” he asks quietly, eyes piercing mine.
I shake my head in confusion. “I guess since I first fell in that room, so however long ago that was from now.”