Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
ASHLYN
Asteady mist turned quickly to rain. Droplets clung to where my tears had been.
The canopy alongside us caught the brunt of it until it dripped down the sides of the road.
My cheeks burned from the way the wool cloak rubbed as it draped on the sides of my face.
“We should get off the road before you get soaked.” Fyn was the first to break the silence between us.
Thunder growled through the sky before it poured.
“I think it’s a little late for that.” Each drop prodded me until bumps rose on my arms.
Fyn quickly dismounted and reached for me. “Tree cover will be better than being out in the open.” His hand braced my back as I climbed down. “I’ll take the horses.”
Mud formed along the road. My boots struggled to break free from it as I made my way to the trees.
The mares didn’t resist as he yanked them further away from the open path. They didn’t move when he dropped their reins.
He was soaked.
I was soaked.
“If only it were a little warmer.” The towering trees did little to stop the rain. It would take far too long for the wool to dry.
I tugged the cap from my flask and raised it to my lips. Nothing hit my tongue. “Great.” I peered into the opening. It was empty.
“I ran out a while ago too,” he said it as if it would make me feel better.
It didn’t make me feel better. “It’s annoying how I never realize how thirsty I am until I’m without.”
“Well, water is falling from the sky.” He smirked.
“Are you suggesting I just open my mouth and get my fill?”
He turned from me, scanning the surrounding woods.
“Maybe there’s a stream or a lake somewhere nearby?” I was desperately hoping there was.
“Or something better.” He walked toward a large leafy plant that clung to the bottom of a massive tree. Each massive leaf curled upward. “Are you coming?”
I followed him toward it.
He pressed his fingers on the edge of a leaf, tilting it down toward his mouth. He drank from the waterfall it made.
I reached for one, mirroring his every action. The water crashed into the bridge of my nose and gushed down the front of me.
Fyn looked away from me, his fist over his lips. “I guess you are a bit shorter than me.”
Laughter pushed past my lips as I pulled the sopping part of my tunic away from my body. “I fear I’m only thirstier now.”
“Can I help you?” he asked.
“What are you going to do? Lift me up to it?” I shook my head. “I prefer to wait until we get to a stream.”
He pulled his cloak back, yanking his dagger from his belt. With a swift slice, he severed the leaf, balancing the base of it in his open hand. “Can you put my dagger back?”
I grabbed the hilt from him as his other hand reached for the leaf.
“Just don’t stab me with it, please.” He looked down at the sheath that hung near his waist, still cupping the leaf.
“What if I miss?” I tried my best to keep my face entirely still.
“These woods are easy to get lost in,” he grumbled as I reached for it.
His chest barely rose as I slid his dagger back into its sheath.
“Thank you for making that painless.” When I looked up at him, he was smirking. The water sloshed as he lowered the filled leaf toward me. “Place your hands near the edges.”
I cupped the leaf.
“I’ll hold it too, so you don’t end up wearing this one.” He slid his hands under mine, tilting the leaf toward me.
My eyes found his as I drank.
With each sip I took, he adjusted it.
He didn’t blink. His gaze was warm.
I pulled my hands back. “Thank you.”
He let the leaf fall between us as I wiped my lips with my damp sleeve.
“What makes your eyes glow like that?” Every fae’s eyes illuminated with subtle light.
“Some say fae energy is infused with starlight. It’s a part of every living thing in Nythrel,” he said. “Every year Aelira and Lioran infuse the land with the star’s magic in the Verdant Alignment. It’s a magnificent display. It’s too bad we will miss it this year.”
“It’s going to happen soon?” I remembered the stories my sister told of the ceremony. She used a crystal to transport the starlight from the sky to the ground. She said it would run through the land afterwards like a glittering display of silver light. Every bit of it rejuvenated the land.
“It will. Any day now. When the stars are at the highest point above us.”
A raindrop hit my forehead as I looked up at the grey sky that hid behind the treetops. The stars must have found humanity unworthy of their display—my realm wouldn’t even be able to imagine it.
I shivered as a cool gust of wind struck me.
“I’d give you my cloak, but I’m afraid two wet cloaks will do very little,” he said. “The cloud cover is thick. It may not let up for a while. We may have to ride to the next village in it.”
“That sounds miserable.”
“You could ride with me,” his voice lowered. “It would spare you from the wind at least.”
“You are tall enough.” Another chill ran through me as I said it. “And I am very cold.”
“No one wants you to be cold, raindrop.” He pressed his lips together.
“No. This has to stop.”
“I’m absolutely not going to stop.” He walked beside me as we made our way back to the horses. “Let’s go, raindrop. Before I change my mind.”
The rain didn’t stop.
Fyn raced Merda to the next village with Ivy trailing us. Every jolt had me far too close to him.
At least he didn’t call me raindrop again.
I had already forgotten the name of the village we were staying in when we settled in our room for the night.
“There’s no sofa. Just the bed.” Water dripped in a pool at my feet when I pulled off my cloak.
He grabbed it from me and put it on the back of a chair. “It’s unlikely it will fully dry by morning.”
“Sharing a horse is one thing, but I am not—”
“The floor will do just fine for me.”
“I need to get out of these clothes.” I hated the way they clung to me.
“There’s a washbasin in the corner if you wish to use it.” His hand rested on the door handle as he looked back at me. “Ashlyn.”
“Yes?” I tugged at the leather strap at the base of my braid until my hair fell free.
“I’m sorry I stole you,” he said. “I know it changes nothing.”
My shoulders fell as I looked up at him. “I appreciate the apology.”