The Right Course
Aaryn woke with a soft jerk from the memory of crazed green eyes, the scent of harsh fires and wet soot in her sinuses.
She blinked, and they faded. Because there was something else too, beneath the lingering scent of destruction.
Mossy wood and honey and heather. The sweetness of overgrowth.
It was startlingly refreshing, a little jarring, something welcome after the too-vivid memories of flames and smoke and loss. It was Thea.
Thea, whose neck Aaryn was shamelessly burrowed in. Aaryn was half atop her, right leg bent and resting over her bare thigh, arm slung across her torso, and head nuzzling into the space between her neck and shoulder, a curtain of dark hair obscuring her view.
Aaryn's breath caught at the smoothness of Thea's skin against her, at the arm resting across her back, hand loosely cupped around her hip.
"Okay?" Thea mumbled, word drenched in sleep, her chest steadily rising and falling beneath the weight of Aaryn. Not a dragon's whisker separated them.
Her tension would wake Thea, so she forced herself to relax.
It was easier than she expected, melting against Thea, because at least she was asleep, at least she wouldn't know—
"Hey. There," Thea said, quietly, so quietly.
Well, scale.
Aaryn smoothly meant to slide away, but Thea's arm tightened, holding her in place. She gave up pretty quickly. "Bad dream?" Thea asked.
Aaryn's cheek pressed into Thea's shoulder, her heart giving a fateful thump. "Memories, I guess."
"I'm sorry," Thea murmured. Aaryn felt her shift and turn, then a soft pressure at the top of her head.
"Not your fault," Aaryn squeezed out.
This was sleepy and warm and so very lovely. But something itched beneath her skin. Excitement or dread, or maybe it was simply determination.
Thea read her like a book.
"Do you want to learn about magic today?" Thea asked, the morning seeping into them, and awareness more so of the events of yesterday, of what lay ahead.
"Does the sun rise with each morning?" Aaryn countered, lifting her head and finding herself far, far too close to Thea.
Dangerous, the way Aaryn's eyes dipped to her lips. Lingered. Better, preferable memories played in the forefront of her mind.
"Well?" Aaryn teased.
Thea was daring and exciting, leaping from dragon to dragon in the actual sky. Thea was also… this. Cute and hesitant and ever afraid of somehow offending Aaryn with her affections, because Thea didn't know the way this druid stirred dragons up in her belly.
"I suppose it does," Thea agreed.
And then kissed her.
Outside the bubble of Thea's home, all hands were on deck, and there was hardly anyone to spare a moment, let alone an entire afternoon to answer questions about magic. Instead, she could turn her energetic eagerness elsewhere.
"Where do you think they need us?"
"Well, Starspark is needed here," Thea mused quietly, and glanced down.
Starspark was curled around a small group of kids. One of them clutched a singed stuffed dragon, and from feet away their guardians watched on with soft expressions, tin bowls from one of the nearby kitchens clutched in their hands.
"Important work, if you ask me," Aaryn said. "How about I visit the healers after I go see Carissa?"
"Yeah, you go check in there. I'm going to find Vaelen on Claw Hold, make sure the madwoman has slept."
Aaryn squeezed Thea's hand in support, sensing her worry despite how casual she tried to make it sound.
"Go see her. Good luck."
Aaryn drew in a deep breath and knocked on the door to Rolim's home. It felt much different, newer, heavy, compared to the other times Aaryn had knocked on Carissa's door. When Aaryn had been naive and unaware of what was really going on beyond their castle walls.
Now it was basically a stranger that answered the door. Carissa's peach hair was a mess, and not from a good night's sleep.
"Hi," Aaryn said meekly. "Want company?"
Carissa nodded, pushing the door open, and walked away. She slumped into a chair at a table, a steaming cup of tea in her hands. "No word of him?" Aaryn guessed.
Carissa's gaze was sharp as Aaryn swallowed and took a seat.
Rolim's home was decorated just how she’d imagined: an ex-bachelor's place of residence with new touches of femininity—flowers in a glass jar bowing under the weight of time—and lives intertwined—two pairs of slippers by the door, a colorful blanket stitched big enough for more than one body.
"Vaelen will find him," Aaryn told her. And she had faith in that, more faith than she'd had in anything, even Evergale.
"I hope so," Carissa whispered. "And if not…
" She drew in a deep breath, yet did not look any calmer when she exhaled.
The spark in her eyes instilled fear in Aaryn, though she couldn't quite put her finger on why.
An unsaid sentiment lingered. Aaryn didn't know what it was, and she was too afraid to ask.
Instead, Aaryn retrieved them food, because Carissa did not seem to intend to do so for herself. And then Carissa got tired of her hovering, and she was promptly dismissed.
That, at least, seemed very Carissa.
Aaryn found herself in the healer's tent, expecting a flurry of chaos. Instead it was quiet, calm, and organized: jars and salves and supplies stored immaculately, voices quiet as they moved from person to person, seeing to everyone who needed help.
They placed her on salve duty, and Aaryn walked the nearby grounds with supplies to clean and dress shallow burns, and to direct those hurt to the right druids.
She saw to a grumbling elf woman, and an older human man with a kind smile, and an energetic teen who didn't even seem to notice the burn on her arm. "That's a real dragon," she murmured, practically vibrating.
Dragons were so rare and few now that some people went their entire lives without seeing one in flesh and scale, and only just then was Aaryn reminded of this. In Evergale, Aaryn had thought they were lucky. But here? They were downright spoiled, with a dragon around every corner.
The day passed quickly, Aaryn revisiting the main tent for more salve or bandages every so often.
Once things got settled, once the new refugees found their place, then Aaryn could awaken her magic. In the meantime, she wanted to help. She could help, now.
She was mulling these thoughts over as she made her way through the ever-thinning crowd of those seeking care. It was a familiar shine of pale green hair that caught her attention, bringing her feet to a halt.
"Runa?" Aaryn asked.
The guard looked up, but she didn't look like a guard any longer. No sign of Evergale's crest, or even her armor. Instead she wore plain clothes, and it struck Aaryn as odd, like she was seeing something she wasn't meant to.
"Aaryn?" Runa asked, eyes widening. She stood and bowed before stopping halfway and shaking her head in embarrassment. "Sorry, habit. You're here. But—"
"I should be the one asking that," Aaryn breathed. "Are you alright? What are you doing here?"
Runa embraced her with one arm, warm and familiar even though Aaryn couldn't remember ever hugging the guard before.
"I was visiting my parents," she said as Aaryn studied her for injuries. It wasn't hard to find them.
Aaryn remembered now. Her parents, the fishermen. "In Skymore," she said in awe. "Are they alright? Where are—"
Runa nodded. "I managed to get them on a dragon. They're fine."
"You're clearly not," Aaryn said, motioning to her arm, which was covered in seeping bandages.
Runa swallowed and averted her gaze from it. "It's fine. I will live. I just—I tried to help, and I accomplished nothing but hurting myself." She released a slow breath after she finished speaking, and Aaryn winced at the pain in her expression.
"Come with me," Aaryn said. "Let's see if we can find you a healer."
Runa followed, but with a questioning look at her apparel, said, "You yourself seem like a healer."
Aaryn smiled at her kindness. "Not at all. We'll find someone more advanced. How did you end up in Skymore?"
She didn't answer for a while, and eventually cleared her throat. "Well, after I lost you at the ball, I was relieved of my duties," she said quietly.
Aaryn's steps halted, and she covered her mouth with her hand as horror dawned on her. "Runa. I am so sorry."
The former guard waved a hand. "Worry not. I should've done a better job looking after you." She smiled softly. "But it seems as if you've learned to look after yourself. And others," she said, motioning to the small bag of ointments and pain relievers Aaryn carried.
Aaryn's cheeks bloomed with color. "I'm still sorry that you were caught up in it all."
"I think it's not your place to apologize," she said, expression falling as she gazed out at the makeshift camps full of survivors. "We all know who's responsible for this."
Runa's face hardened. Aaryn had never seen the guard look so angry.
"We do."
"Magical," Runa whispered in awe as the healer's palms glowed softly. Aaryn watched the relief cross her face as the magic healed her, her wounds dissipating like fog on glass.
Aaryn was surprised by her wonder. She now knew Evergale spared magic for battle—staves charged with spells to activate when needed, armor that was enchanted for their protection. How could they spend such a precious resource for harm and not healing? Even on their own guard?
"There we go," the healer—Enya—said with a sweet smile. She patted the now unblemished skin. "Right as rain."
"Thank you," Runa breathed. "I will not accept your generosity lightly."
Enya chuckled warmly. "You're indebted to no one here. Take care of yourself."
Aaryn nodded to her, and didn't get a chance to properly thank her, because Runa was too busy doing so, at least thrice more before they were dismissed. Enya pressed a small jar of salve into Aaryn's hands. "For Thea. I think she'll need it."
Aaryn's stomach churned with worry. Why would Thea need burn salve? She hadn't been hurt last night, right? Aaryn would've known.