Chapter 57
Chapter Fifty-Seven
Autumn was tired of being in bed. At least she was permitted to sit up now; she wasn’t trapped on her back, and she had Solace and Valor to sit with her when the Highest called her loves away.
But being trapped in bed like this was both exhausting and frustrating.
It was giving her far too much time to think.
Too much time to agonize over what Skirion would do once they freed him from Charan. She needed him to add his story to the sphere, but he might want nothing to do with her. He might be like Auster had been and try to kill her.
She was safe with her loves, didn’t need anything more than what she had. Her heart was selfish; she wanted Skirion’s love too, or at least his friendship. She was turning their relationship over in her mind, trying to figure out if he had ever seen her.
She was thinking about it so hard that she didn’t notice Auster come in until he kissed her, startling her so badly that she nearly fell out of bed.
“What were you thinking about?” He gave her a concerned look.
“I was trying to figure out if Skirion ever saw me, or if he only saw Eleni.” She said, firmly keeping the sadness out of her voice. “If he only saw Eleni, I’ll have to take a different tack with him.”
“He will not admit to it at first,” Auster sat on the edge of the bed. “Skirion is as stubborn as I was, and the one who was pushing to return to Eleni before she left. He was furious with us; I think that might be part of the reason I could never wake him.”
Autumn nodded slowly, “As long as he will listen, I think I can make it work again.”
“Just be yourself,” Auster said, kissing the back of her hand. “He’ll come around, like we did.” He sat back and smiled. “Would you like a bath?”
“I’m not allowed to get up,” Autumn sighed. “I would kill for a bath.”
“Light said you can have a bath, but I have to carry you there and back.” Auster grinned. “I’m more than happy to do that.”
“Yes, please,” she held her arms out to him. “I’ll ask the unseen to change the sheets while we’re gone.”
Auster nodded, lifting her from the bed and cuddling her close. “Off we go then.”
Both of the eagle-foxes were sitting next to the tub when Auster set her down for just long enough for her to shed her nightgown. He shed his own clothing before lifting her and taking her into the bath. The foxes hopped in too, making Autumn giggle.
“They do this every time I have a bath.” She told Auster. “They like to swim with me.”
“It’s cute,” Auster said, settling back on the seat and handing Autumn a bar of soap.
Autumn washed herself, and then Valor and Solace as they swam up to her. “Yes, dear hearts,” she smiled at them as they swam circles around her. “Thank you for keeping me company.”
Auster helped her out, helped her dry the foxes and herself before he took her back to bed. She snuggled down into the clean sheets and smiled up at him. “Is Courage still thrashing you?”
Auster nodded, grinning back. “He’s amazing, just the way he handles himself. I wouldn’t have thought he would be so fast, but he’s faster than I am.”
“I know,” Autumn smiled. “I think I spent more time in the dirt than I did actually fighting when he trained me.”
“He trained you too?”
Autumn nodded, “Me and Eleni both.”
Auster nodded, “I can see that, you move like you’ve had some training.”
“Boreus and I used to spar,” Autumn said. “We haven’t, not since you came home, but it might be time to start again.”
They chatted until Boreus came bearing supper, or at least he was heading the unseen who carried in the dishes. Autumn had been released to a regular diet, and some of the things on the platters made her belly growl with anticipation.
They dined, and Autumn watched Auster devour his plateful and go back for another.
Food made her sleepy, but she was determined to stay awake and talk to them.
They were to head to Charan soon, and while she would give her all to protect them, there was still a chance that they wouldn’t make it back.
Or that she would come back alone.
“You won’t,” Boreus took her hand. “Autumn, I swear it, you will not come back alone.”
“I would simply not come back.” She whispered.
“I would fight in Charan until the threat was ended for good, and then I would spend the rest of my existence trying to make up for failing you.”She wiped at the tears on her cheeks.
“I’m being silly, borrowing trouble. If we do it right, we won’t even be noticed. ”
“That’s right,” Auster said. “We will be quick and quiet and make it back together.”
She nodded, trying to shove the awful thoughts away. There was no miasma to blame for this, she was just tired and scared of losing them to whatever lived in Charan.
* * *
The rest of the days passed, Autumn rested and tried not to think too hard about what was about to happen. Once she was up, she spent three days with Courage re-learning how to move. Then he brought her loves into it and they spent a further week being taught how to move as a cohesive unit.
It was shaky, but by the end of the week, Autumn had a much better idea where she could defend them without being in the way of what they needed to do.
They went to kneel before the Highest the day before they were due to leave, receiving final instructions and their blessing. Light pulled her aside after they finished and opened a tiny window to the street of the village where the old man had lived.
“You have a temple, Compassion.” She said, turning the window to show her the little temple. “You have faithful now, leave them a blessing before you go.”
Autumn nodded, raising her hands and pointing her gratitude towards the window in the air, drawing Compassion’s tree and sending it to land in front of the little temple.
Light’s oracle was brought from her temple where the tree’s outline was pronounced a true message from the Goddess, and a celebration broke out at the message to her faithful.
Autumn looked up at Light, smiling. “I will return.”
“I know.”