Page 6 of The Seventh Swan
As afternoon slowly began to turn to evening, he went to the pond and gathered more plants.Starwort, of course, for healing and protection.Bittersweet nightshade for death and rebirth.Compass flower and Whimsey to stay true and never submit.Weeping willow he had already collected, for melancholy that should not be ignored, but also for the tenacity to keep going.
Only two ingredients remained.One he had, the other he must request and hope to be given.
The rain returned as he headed for the house, pounding down relentlessly, soaking the poor hair he'd worked so hard on in the night.Ah, well.
Unfortunately, the foul weather did not abate, pouring down relentlessly with little break for three long days.On the third, the gloves he'd woven finished their work and faded to nothing, leaving behind two women who cried happily all the day and offered him anything at all he wanted in thanks.
"A lock of hair," he finally said, when they would not accept that he required no payment for something he had done unasked, entirely of his own volition."It will be safely put away, never used for curses or other darks working, only to help some person in need."
"Of course!"Lady Celina said happily, and they each cut a lock of hair, bound at one end with ribbon, and presented them proudly."Thank you again for such a kindness."
What he'd done was little enough, and what three healers before him should have done, but he only bowed his head, drank his coffee, and ate something called coconut cake that he was growing quite fond of.
Finally, on the fourth night, when the rain broke and the water had drained enough to walk through it without much trouble, he returned to the pond.It had overflowed its banks, rising high up the incline, delighting the fish and ducks who called it home, and the frogs that had been singing ceaselessly for amorous attention from one another.
Fireflies winked around the edges, pieces of escaped starlight, before they faded off as full dark took hold.
He had not been standing there long when Oskar appeared, framed by the silvery branches of the weeping willow, staring at the pond like his heart was lost in its depths.The silence stretched on for some time, until even the frogs had grown quiet, when Oskar asked, "Why was the phoenix killed?"
"The tale of you and your brothers is quite famous here in your homeland.In mine, there is also a famous tale, about a man known as Ivan the Heartless.He befriended a phoenix, a wolf, and a mare, and traveled the whole continent with them, learning magic as he went, so that he might break the spell placed upon them.For the wolf had a jealous sister who wanted his life, and so she took them into the woods and changed them, told everyone they died, and gave each to a different person across the land.
"Ivan came to know the phoenix, and eventually the other two, but the only way to break their terrible enchantment was to marry the woman who had harmed them and then kill them.He freed them all, the man simply named Grey and his beloved Vassilissa, who would later be called the Golden, and his dearest friend, the faithful Tarabanov."He smiled faintly."My parents, and my uncle, and my godfather who saved them, whom everyone calls Heartless, though he is nothing of the sort."
Oskar stared at him wide-eyed.
"They are happy to be human again, and do no want to be anything else, but sometimes… sometimes my father says he misses hunting like a wolf, and my mother remembers fondly what it was like to run as a horse, and of course, my uncle has a beautiful voice that enchants all who hear him sing, but he misses when he could sing as a phoenix, to which no human could ever compare.It was he who gifted me the feather, and said that someday, I would need it for something vital.
"So you are not alone, Lord Oskar of the Pond.Transformation is a complicated magic for good reason, and often reveals more than any of us wants to know."
Tears fell down Oskar's cheeks."They were all so happy.So relieved.Thank god that's overandwe're finally freethey said, over and over they said it.But I do not feel free.I miss sailing through the sky and gliding through the water.I did not mind preening or diving for fish or sleeping amongst reeds, whatever that says about me.I do not hate being human again, but…all I had left of the sky was that wing, and they took it from me.Replaced it with cold metal that forever reminds me that my place is on the ground."
"Did you retain any feathers?"
Oskar angrily wiped the tears from his face, yanking out a kerchief for his nose, and eventually said, "Yes.I went to where they'd thrown it away like trash, left to rot and fester and return to the earth like an unwanted thing, and saved five of them.Nothing as beautiful as your phoenix feather, but precious all the same."
Saveli took a deep breath."Tomorrow, if you are willing, if you can trust me.Bring me three of them.Bring me those pieces of your heart, Oskar of the Pond, and I will return them to you a hundred fold."
"What do you mean?"
"Let me work my magic and you will see."
Oskar hesitated, then simply turned and walked away, vanishing into the dark as always.
Normally, it was not so difficult to get people to trust him.They were swayed by his titles, or his power, or his beauty.But Oskar knew only the most fanciful of his titles, and would not be impressed by the others anyway, and magic had already broken his heart, and he did not seem to notice or care about Saveli's beauty.
He returned to his room and prepared all the flowers he'd gathered, tearing them into tiny pieces and combining them all in a bowl so their oils and scents would meld.Then he drank a potion to counter the effects of the bittersweet nightshade, and washed thoroughly before enjoying another long, hot bath.If there was one thing he missed about home whenever he traveled, it was that he could have a boiling hot bath whenever he wanted.Spoiled brat?Absolutely.Was he sorry?Not in the slightest.
When he had cooked himself long enough, he pulled on a sleeping gown and climbed into bed, but sleep was slow in coming, and when it finally arrived, it brought more dreams of a swan bathed in moonlight flying off toward the stars to be quickly lost from sight.
At breakfast, Althaus had a list of names for him."Thank you.I did not know their hands could be fixed.I thought if three healers all said the same thing, it must be true."
"Do not punish yourself for the lies of others.Know, however, that they will be punished.Are your wife and sister well?"
"They're not here because they wanted to get an early start on shopping, buy gloves and rings they could not wear before or only with great difficulty, like their wedding rings.We cannot thank you enough."
"You have done so, I promise.I am off to speak to irksome healers."Starting with the bastard who had cut away a wing without permission.
His horse was as happy as ever to be out and about, and did not mind the requested faster-than-usual pace.Saveli paused briefly in a meadow to weave a crown that left his fingers red and swollen, but another potion once again saved him from poison.
