Page 133 of A Touch of Stars and Stones
“I trust you’ll inform my father we’ve returned!” Ten’s gruff voice calls back to the Warriors, and he doesn’t wait for confirmation.
We wind our way back towards the stable and, after looking for the stable hand, realise I’ll be putting Nettle to bed on my own, with no idea how to unsaddle a horse.
Fortunately, Ten takes over without a word between us. His hands lift me and place me on the ground, no pause to ask if he should or not, and he gets to work.
After Nettle is safely tucked back in his stall, I say goodbye, and we walk back to our rooms, the silence still heavy between us.
Lingering. Filled with words unsaid and possibilities unfulfilled.
There’s nobody in the corridor as we walk along the curving path towards our doors. The sadness I felt earlier about being alone has shifted, no longer clamouring around me, and I take a deep breath.
Our pace slows as we reach my door.
“Goodnight.” I force the words past my lips. I can’t bring myself to look him in the eye, not even in the shadows of the corridor.
“Goodnight, Ever.”
I turn, but he catches my shoulder to stop me, bringing his face to mine and kissing my cheek. It has none of the heat or passion from our first kiss when desire sparked like a flame rushing over me. This is quick and chaste like he can’t quite let me go without planting it on my cheek.
My eyes find his, that beautiful deep chocolate colour I’ve always seen as offering comfort, but now... I nod to him before opening my door and escaping inside.
When the knock at my door vibrates around the room, I’m already awake, up and ready, and have no question about who’s practically banging it down.
Sleep wasn’t something that found me easily last night. There were too many intrusive thoughts to keep my mind occupied, despite only wanting to hide from them all.
I pad to the door and open it to a grinning Calix, who looks more than rested.
“Ready to get your powers back?”
“Sure. Come in. I need my boots.” I close the door behind me, and Calix lingers, nearly bouncing with energy, and it’s on the tip of my tongue to ask what his secret is to the good morning mood.
The faint hum and gentle beating of power had slowly returned during the early hours of the morning. It wasn’t like after the Transference, this grew, rising within me, and thewarmth that I’d become accustomed to feeling from the pendant at my throat did, too, as if coming back to life.
“Does your ring go cold?” I ask. “At new moon?”
“I guess. I hadn’t really noticed that.”
“I felt it. The lack of power.”
“It’s a little strange. The first time it happens. Like you’re missing something, but you’re not sure what.”
“Is it the same before the Transference, too, the new moon having the same effect?”
“Yeah. We might not have our full power, but the latent power in us still fizzles. Like everything connected to Aslendrix is cut off for the period of the new moon.”
I lace my boots as he talks.
“Ready? You might want to check in with Perrin, too. That cheek looks swollen.” He eyes my face and then turns and grabs the door and opens it for me.
And I walk right into Crimson.
Standing with Ten at the threshold of his door.
She looks over to me, then back to Ten, and gives her brother a scowl before heading towards the food hall.
My stomach twists at the implications, and my eyes flash to Ten. He doesn’t owe me an explanation, but my heart screams that he does. After everything that happened yesterday, the promises that he dropped, and now this?
“She came to yell at me, that’s all.” He jumps in before I can say anything.
