Page 19 of Swords and Curses

"I'm okay, I think. Where's Eldon?" The last thing she remembered was him catching her.

"He's off somewhere. He said that you needed to sleep and would be fine again once your magic stabilized."

"Did he tell you what happened?"

"Yes, and while I'm pleased you tapped into your magic for lessons, I can't say I approve of his methods."

"Don't worry. I slapped him for you."

"You should've kicked him in the groin like Saul. He's still complaining about it." Balthasar's grin was mischievously feral.

"He was the one that told me to aim for the groin! I'm sure the three J's will assist with bags of frozen peas on their return," Rosa huffed, and she climbed out of bed. "Yuck, I'm still in my dirty clothes!"

"Be careful on your feet. You might still be a little wobbly."

Rosa unzipped her hoodies and made for the bathroom door. Then with hand on forehead like an old-time damsel in distress, she moaned, "Oh, no, I'm so weak and defenseless and wobbly! If only I had some handsome man to assist me in the shower so I don't fall over."

Balthasar took the hint and followed her, picking up her discarded clothes to put in the hamper. Rosa's nerves felt on fire as she stepped into the scalding water. The amount of magic she'd released had left her feeling raw and uncomfortably emotional. Balthasar's arms came around her in a protective circle.

"You know I can fight off wolves on my own," he said. "You watched me do it with three, remember?"

"I know, but I wasn't thinking about that, was I?" Rosa said, turning to hug him, her face nestling into the curve of his chest. "Eldon still shouldn't have used you as bait."

"No, he shouldn't have, but he knew exactly what buttons to push with you, and he was right about one thing—your love,ourlove, can make you vulnerable."

"That's bullshit. It means I'll fight harder to keep you safe," Rosa argued. "I lost you once, and I won't go through that again. I won't let the Autumn Queen have you or take the memories of you away from me again. I'll go to Faerie and burn it to the fucking ground first."

"Easy, Wylt," Balthasar teased as he massaged her shoulders. "There will be no more romps into the Aos Si for us."

Rosa smiled and kissed him, but her growing unease made her chest tighten. She had seen the queen's rage at Celyn and the snow that had begun to fall. She was going to stop at nothing to keep her kingdom, even if it meant the destruction of the whole of the Aos Si.

Down at breakfastthe next morning, Eli greeted her with a hug, enthusiastically asking her about how she felt and how her magic was.

"It's okay, I guess," she answered, taking the seat beside him.

"This is excellent news. I'll have to start training you in battle magic immediately," Eli stated, pouring her coffee.

"Try not to overwhelm her, Eli," Balthasar said gently.

"I'm not overwhelming her. I'm simply excited to start training Rosa. She's much quicker than the both of you."

"She is now that she's destroyed my manhood," Saul said from across the side of the table.

"Don't pout. It will grow back," Rosa said and stabbed a sausage with her fork, enjoying his wince.

"It already has, and it is bigger, better, stronger…"

"Enough, Saul. This is the breakfast table," Eli interrupted.

"She needs to learn how to use her sword more than she needs to learn battle magic," Eldon said. He strode into the room, resplendent in a crimson shirt, grey and black scarf, black jeans, and Doc Martens. Rosa grinned. There was something about the Vane men and clothes. "Magic can fail her where steel cannot."

"The swordismagic," Balthasar pointed out. "If she can grasp both concepts of sword fighting and magic, they will work seamlessly together when she wields it."

"Do I have to wield it?" she asked quietly.

"It would put the fear in any Seelie that you encounter," Eli said. "The Autumn Queen let Ryn use it to keep her court in line. He never even had to draw it."

"It's yours now, Rosa," Eldon stated. "Don't fear or worry over its past."

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