“What’s going on?” That’s followed quickly by, “What did you do to the wall?”
My head jerks up to see Rauk standing in the doorway. I glance down at Auri, but she’s staring up at me with wide eyes. I take in the paint all over her face and can’t keep in my laugh. Itry; I really do, but it just bursts out. Auri waits a beat, and then she joins me. I look back at the wall, and she does the same. I take in my tree and start laughing all over again; it really is terrible. I finally get control of myself and turn to face Rauk. His frown deepens as he steps towards us, and I suddenly move in front of Auri. I lift my chin and stare at him. He stops right in front of me and stares down at me. He doesn’t look away. “You don’t have to keep protecting her.” His voice is low. “I would never hurt her.”
I cross my arms over my chest. “Well, you should tell that to your face.”
He stares at me, his expression unreadable. “It’s really hard to take you seriously with paint all over your face.”
I don’t know what to say to that. I can’t really tell if he’s upset or not. I turn so I can see Auri, and I watch as his gaze shifts to her too. “You too?” he asks, but his voice is softer now. “Did either of you manage to get any paint on the wall?”
“We did.” I turn to face the wall. “We did. Can you tell who painted what?” Rauk steps up next to us, and I take a step away from him, putting some space between us. “Okay, I’m just going to tell you. This area was Auri’s. She painted this section with the water and the snow. It's really pretty, isn’t it?”
He nods. “Good job, Auri.”
“And these beautiful flowers were done by yours truly. And what do you think about this tree? Pretty magical, huh?”
He stares at the wall and then glances down at me. “It looks like something you would paint.”
“You know what?” I start, but he stops me.
“It’s all wild and edgy and...dangerous.”
I look at the tree and squint. “You got all that from my tree?” He nods, and I lean forward so I can see past him to Auri. “Told you mine was better.” I hear a tiny sound, but I know it was a laugh; and that makes my heart sing. When I look back at Rauk, he’s staring down at me. For once, he’s not scowling; of course, he’s not exactly smiling. I’m not really sure what it is he’s doing.
Elowen’s voice interrupts us. “Who’s ready for—oh my.” She walks over to where we’re all standing and stares at the wall. “Is that a tree?” she asks, sending Auri and I into a fit of laughter all over again.
Chapter 22
Dinner is a lively affair. Auri fills Elowen in on our afternoon escapades, and Elowen gives some ideas for what she thinks we should add to the scene. Rauk is quiet during the meal, but that’s not really a surprise. After we clean up, Elowen tells Auri she needs to take a bath. Elowen stops next to Rauk, and he looks up at her. “I’ll be in to help; just let me know when she’s ready.” Elowen nods and moves towards the door.
I follow them. “Elowen, I can do it, so you don’t have to worry about it.”
The chair behind me scrapes against the floor. “I’ve got it.”
I turn to face him, ready for a fight. But that’s not what he gives me. He stops right in front of me, and I get a reminder of just how big he is. Him just standing there reminds me of all the things I’m frustrated about with him. So my question is aggressive when it comes out. “What?”
“Thank you.”
I frown. “What?”
“Thank you for what you did,” he pauses. “Are doing for Auri.”
I stare at him. “What is happening right now? Are you actually being a nice human being? No, not possible.”
He sighs like I try his patience, and that’s good because that’s what I’m trying to do. “I haven’t heard Auri laugh in a really long time.”
His words give me pause and make me sad at the same time, but then I remember all the things I’m upset with him over. “Well, maybe if you weren’t so cruel to her all the time, you would hear her laugh more often.”
Those dark eyes stay on mine, and I catch the flicker of anger. To any normal person, they would see it and back off; to me, it just makes me ready to challenge him. “I am not cruel to my sister.”
“You’re the very definition of cruel,” I return.
He makes a sound at the back of his throat. “You’ve been here for what? A few weeks? And you already have your judgments made?”
“They’re not judgments; they’re facts.”
“Well, maybe you need to get your facts right.” He strides past me and out of the kitchen. I stride right after him but then stop myself. Following him now won’t do any good. Elowen’s waiting for his help to get Auri in the tub. Stopping him now will only hurt Auri and Elowen, so I let him go. I pace the huge main room by the fireplace and think through what I’m going to say to him. As frustrated as I am about everything here, I need to keep in mind the entire reason I’m here—to convince him tofight in the battle against the guivres. The longer it takes me, the more my friends are dealing with. I wait and wait and wait some more. I get tired of pacing and eventually sit. When I finally realize he’s not going to come back out, I head to my room angry and annoyed. I think through all the ways I should have handled tonight differently. I should have walked back there and demanded he talk to me. I shouldn’t have waited; I should have gone back to check on Auri. But it’s too late now, and everybody’s probably in bed. I head to my room and stare at my bed for a few minutes before I decide to take a bath, thinking maybe it would help me chill a little. “Probably not,” I mutter. Only after I’m fully relaxed do I climb out of the tub and get dressed for bed.
When I lay in bed a few minutes later, I stare up at the ceiling and think through my points in the argument I’m going to have with Rauk. It takes forever for me to fall asleep. I sleep in longer than I mean to. When I get out of bed, I rehearse my points once again. I want to get back to the Wolf Kingdom, and this is the way I’m going to get there. A niggling in the back of my mind reminds me that I would have to leave Elowen and Auri, but I push it away. I need to stay focused today; this is the reason I’m even in this kingdom. After I finish dressing, I head to the kitchen and push open the door. “Morning, Elowen.”
