“Well, isn’t this awkward,” Reva said from the doorway.
Ryven rolled his eyes at her as he dug through the dinner spread out on the table. “What’s awkward? The fact that you’re still in my home?”
She ignored his comment and joined me on the floor. Her night clothes were made out of silk and I wondered if she bought them when she was above ground. I knew Sita could work this kind of magic but I also knew she didn’t have the time. She needed more help.
“Livia is going to come help you get ready for the ball and I’ll help you get dressed. Are you excited?” At least she waschanging the subject. We were all excited even though things were stressful and uncertain.
I jumped from the floor and flew into the kitchen. “Do you know where Alric is?”
Ryven’s gaze darkened as he took me in and satisfaction heated my blood. I still had an affect on him even if he didn’t want to act on it and had to leave. “Why?” He asked around a mouthful of food.
“Because I’ve been waiting weeks for you to come back so I can help the people here. For whatever reason, Alric didn’t want me to go into the gardens or the fields until you were with us. Now that you’re back, we shouldn’t delay. I heard the reports snow was falling just last week. If we are going to work some magic, literally, we need to hurry.”
Ryven sighed, shoved a pastry in his mouth and motioned for me to leave ahead of him. He rolled his head on his shoulders and I heard a few pops before we were out of the door. Reva was right on our heels, sword in hand, silk pajamas still on. At least she had the decency to put her boots on, even if they weren’t laced.
“Shouldn’t we tell the others?” I asked as the door swung closed behind us.
Reva rolled her eyes. “If they were concerned about us, they wouldn’t be floating around that hot spring like this is a vacation. If they panic because we left, it’s their own damn fault.”
Alrighty then.
Alric was waiting for us in the kitchens. I grinned. “How did you know?”
“The moment I got word Ryven was back, I knew it was only a matter of time before you dragged his sorry ass here.” He hooked his thumb toward Ryven, who looked like he would rather be anywhere but here.
When Reva stepped around me, Alric looked like the cat that had the canary. His eyes got big as he took in her night clothes and then her unlaced boots. “Aren’t you a goddess made real?”
She scoffed but even in the low lighting, I could see his words affected her. Her usually pale complexion was starting to turn a soft pink. Ryven cleared his throat and Alric snapped to attention. Reva’s lips curled slightly and it was my turn to elbow her in the ribs. I didn’t care what she said, she was smitten with the poor man. She could try to deny it all she wanted. No wonder he followed her around like a lovesick fool.
The gardens had been pickedover. How we had an overabundance of food really surprised me. There were a few buds on the plants but other than that, it was slim. My work was cut out for me here. At least that was what I thought until I buried my fingers in the dirt and I felt the pull. A spark seemed to ignite in my chest and before I knew what was happening, my hands were glowing beneath the dirt and the poor plants that’d seen better days started to perk up before my eyes. With a harsh exhale, I felt the magic leaving my body in large gulps, almost as if the plants were thirsty and I was their only nutrient. I closed my eyes and what bloomed within the darkness was fascinating. I was the only source of life here in this dirt. These plants wouldn’t survive the winter and wouldn’t return in the spring if I hadn’t come when I did.
I pitched forward, completely depleted. Hands wrapped around the tops of my arms and hauled me from the now overgrown vegetation. I didn’t have any energy to open my eyes,but I could feel it. I could feel the happy plants around me. They were thriving now. They would live. The pull was still in my chest, there was more work to be done.
“Take me to the fields,” my voice sounded far away.
“Absolutely not,” the voice was almost as distant as my own.
Once again, staying conscious wasn’t an option and whatever they were saying around me was lost to the darkness around my mind.
“This happens every time?”Reva’s voice broke through the darkness and for a moment, I thought she was speaking to me.
“Unfortunately,” Alric didn’t sound amused or even remotely happy. I couldn’t blame him though I had just fixed all of the farming issues he was stressing about. It was then that I noticed, my body was being jostled around. I rubbed my eyes to get the grit from them and focused on the way my body felt. I didn’t feel as drained as before when I’d used my magic, which felt like a win even if I didn’t voice it out loud.
“There is too much work to be done, she cannot do it all on her own,” A voice rumbled from beneath me and my eyes zeroed in on Ryven carrying me up the ramps to our home. There were dark circles under his eyes that only pronounced how green they were.
“What do you propose then? Does someone else out here have the same magic as me?” I asked, quietly, secretly loving the feeling of his arms around me but also silently berating myself for the thought. I didn’t need to like the way this felt. I didn’t need to get addicted to his hot and cold urges. I needed to be able to care for myself so I didn’t keep falling into this mess headfirst.
He clenched his jaw and I wanted nothing more than to run my finger down the bulging vein on his neck.
Treacherous body.
“You can’t do this all on your own,” he started.
“I won’t be, that’s why all of you are here, is it not?” I finished.
The vein bulged even more and I found myself wondering what it would feel like to press my lips there. I really needed to get a grip on these feelings.
A soft hand wrapped around my own, “You aren’t alone, but we can’t take these things on for you, even though we want to. You can’t burn yourself out trying to save the world.”
