Page 171 of Lady of Starfire

“Ashtine.”

Talwyn reached for her, but a gust of wind slammed into her so hard she was thrown backward, landing hard on her back. She scrambled up onto her elbow to find ice swirling around Ashtine, her winds creating a swirling mass of the crystals, obscuring her from the rest of the world. There was nothing Talwyn could do. She couldn’t counter the wind and ice. She couldn’t reach Ashtine to try to calm her. She was utterly helpless as she watched her friend break all over again.

Talwyn couldn’t hear anything outside of the howling winds. They continued to swirl violently, but the ice—

The ice was being pulled from the vortex the princess was cocooning herself in. Ice shards were collecting in the air as if someone were piling them up, and then they melted, water cascading to the ground. Ashtine’s winds caused it to spray, and Talwyn felt the cold drops splatter on her face and hands. She lurched to her feet, trying to figure out the cause. Hazel had managed to get Thorne back to the aerie, but it wasn’t a Witch Talwyn’s gaze settled on.

It was Briar.

When the Water Prince had gotten here, she did not know. She did not care when or how, only that Scarlett had done it. She had come through and freed him from Alaric and sent him here.

He did not look at Talwyn when he moved past her, walking straight into the heart of Ashtine’s heartache. Talwyn stood and waited. One second. Two. Three.

The winds stopped as if the world itself had lost its breath.

And as the dirt settled, she found Briar and Ashtine kneeling on the ground. Her face was buried in his chest, and he was clutching her tightly, one hand running down her hair over and over.

“It is a wonder they are not twin flames,” came Hazel’s hushed voice from behind her.

Talwyn murmured an acknowledgment, continuing to watch the prince and princess. Briar framed Ashtine’s face with his hands, pulling back enough to brush his lips across her brow, the bridge of her nose, her mouth. Ashtine’s eyes were closed, continuous tears rolling down her face. The prince brought his brow to hers. Talwyn saw his mouth move but could not hear the whispered murmurings. Whatever he said had Ashtine nodding before he pulled her back into his chest.

“Perhaps it is something purer this way,” Talwyn said, as Briar stood, scooping Ashtine up with him. “They did not have a bond drawing them to each other. It is pure love that they managed to find despite all odds.”

“High Witch,” Briar said, bowing his head. “Thank you for allowing her to stay. It is not a request that I will be staying with her.”

His tone left no room for argument. He was not asking if he could stay in the Witch Kingdoms as a male, but commanding that Hazel allow him to do so.

“Understood, your Highness,” Hazel replied, her voice softer than Talwyn had ever heard it. “Talwyn can show you to her room. Should you require anything, speak to me or Jetta.”

“Thank you, my Lady,” Briar replied, turning to Talwyn. He gave a jerk of his chin, telling her to lead the way.

Talwyn nodded, averting her gaze and beginning up the path that would lead back to the High Witch’s Keep. Ashtine was nestled into his chest, a hand curled tightly into the material of his worn tunic.

“Tell me everything,” Briar said in a tight command.

“I think there are some things she will want to tell you herself,” Talwyn answered, wondering if he knew of Sawyer’s sacrifice yet.

“Then tell me what you will.”

By the time she had finished telling him what she knew of the happenings in Avonleya and what had happened since she had been traded for Cyrus and Neve, they were crossing the threshold into the room she had been sharing with Ashtine. She quietly closed the door behind them as Briar moved to lie the princess on the bed. She had fallen asleep on the walk back, and when Talwyn glimpsed her face, it was the most at peace she had seen her friend in months.

Briar moved to step back, but Ashtine’s fist curled tighter in his tunic. “My heart,” she murmured, her brow pinching in sleep.

“Hush, my dear,” he soothed, running a palm along her hair again, but he climbed atop the bed, never breaking contact with her. It took a moment, but he got himself positioned against the headboard, Ashtine’s head in his lap. He unclasped her cloak, gently maneuvering it off her. Talwyn grabbed a blanket to spread across her, and when she stepped back, she couldn’t help the emotion that swelled at the back of her throat.

Briar now sat where she had been for the last several days. And he should. That had always been his spot, not hers. She had stolen that from him, but… She had been so quickly replaced. Ashtine no longer needed her. Her Courts no longer needed her. She was no longer needed to make some trade with the enemy, or to give her power to right a wrong. Looking after Ashtine had given her purpose and kept her mind busy, but now…

“Talwyn?”

Briar’s voice was tight, but a thread of concern broke through.

She met his icy stare. There was a hardness there that she deserved. He knew she had stolen moments from him. That while she had been caring for Ashtine, she was also part of the reason she was in this state to begin with.

“I am sorry, Briar,” Talwyn said thickly. “For forcing her to make a choice she should have never had to make. For making her feel she had to prove her loyalty to me when it was never mine to demand. For taking so much from her. From you.”

“Looking after her does not atone for that theft, Talwyn,” Briar said, and Talwyn winced. She deserved that, and he deserved to reject her apology.

“I did not stay with her to atone for anything,” she replied. “She is perhaps my only true friend. I am only now learning what it means to be a friend in return. She has my love, and those babes have my love, Briar. I do not know if that means anything at this point, but they have it nonetheless.”

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