Evermore

Clay

    The crackle of the fireplace gently woke her. She slowly opened her eyes and looked around the teapot.
"I'm still here." She thought to herself. Her delicate fingers ran along the harsh feeling of furnished clay, and she shook her head and chuckled a little.
    "A teapot, hmm." There was still an herbal smell and a slight stain mark that only she could notice. She took in the herbal aroma with all her might. It reminded her of home. Of cooking with the elders on cool autumn nights and collecting them as a child. It made her homesick even though she had only been gone a day. It wasn't the length that bothered her; it was the fact that she might never get home. A loud thump caused her to jolt under her covers.
    "Ow damnit-" Florian cursed as he hit his stomach against the counter. He looked over at the teapot, peaking his head around. "Hey, I'm sorry about earlier again. I was so foolish."
There was no response. Aconite hid and laid as flat as possible to make it seem like she had disappeared.
"Are you there?" He gently reached in to grab her and felt her presence. She gasped when his fingers hit the blankets, causing him to curl his hand back. "Sorry! So sorry! You don't have to come out if you don't want to."
Florian pulled up a chair and crossed his arms, resting his head on them. "Simon is gone now. He's with his parents so you won't have to worry about him anymore. It's just us." He nervously chewed on the corner of his mouth. "I'm going to make breakfast. I'll make you something." He turned his back to the teapot and began retrieving the ingredients. Once it was safe, from what she could see, she climbed out and onto the counter. She watched him work for a little while before looking over the edge, realizing it was too far a drop for her to make it.
"Woah woah! Don't do that!" He held his hand out in front of her; she jumped back.  "You could hurt yourself!" She rolled her eyes and looked up at him.
"Your attitude has changed significantly," Aconite grumbled.
"Well- yes. Yours has to. You went from high and mighty saving to extremely annoyed." He stirred the pot he was cooking in. "Which you have every right to be. I still don't understand, though. Why did you save me? Wouldn't it be either to let me die and escape?"
    She looked up at him. "I couldn't let you die. You may have treated me terribly at first, but deep down, I felt like-" She met his gaze, quivering slightly. It felt uncomfortable to have something so big watch over you. "I felt like you're a good man. I don't know. I'm not one to let innocent creatures die, and although you weren't innocent at the moment, it felt like you needed to live. I don't know how to explain it."
Florian placed a plate of food down, separating the two. He nodded. "You don't have to explain all at one time. I'm just grateful to be alive, thanks to you." He smiled and cut the food down into smaller bits for her. "I don't know exactly what you eat, but I figured I would make something for you. Country ham and some fruit? I've heard that fae are vegetarians, but I wasn't sure about you." Aconite stood up and walked over to one edge of the plate. It was rare that she had meat. If she did, it was usually stolen anyways.
"Sorry, I don't have anything small for you to eat, so I figured I would let you eat on one side of the plate and share."
He pushed the food towards her. "There. Sorry, you have to eat with your hands."
"It's alright." She took a bite of the ham. Its salty flavor instantly delighted her mouth, and she closed her eyes to take it. She hadn't tasted meat in so long that she almost forgot what it tasted like. She began to indulge in only eating meat and not fruit. She swallowed as if all meat would suddenly disappear.
"So I'm taking it you're not a vegetarian." He smiled.
The two had finished breakfast, and Aconite wondered when he would take her back like he said he would. She was scared to ask, but after she received a warm meal, she decided it would be fine.
"Sir, I-I hate to ask, but when will you take me home?" There was still a lot of uneasiness in her voice when she spoke to him.
"Well, I thought about it." He looked over to the boarded-up windows. "I think you should stay here for at least a few weeks."

"Weeks?!" She thought to herself, gasping. "W-What?! But you said-"
"You don't know how long you have been out, have you? Addy, you've been out for days. I honestly was scared you would never wake up. I've never seen someone sleep for so long."
Aconite gasped. "No, that can't be! You said 'earlier' like you meant yesterday!"
"Sorry I-"
She interrupted. "T-Take me back."
"Look." He sighed. "I can't, even if you were fine. A huge winter storm has hit, and another round is hitting later on. I promise to bring you back, but you're not in good health to return right now and not to mention the obvious deadly winter storm outside."
"B-But...I need to get home! Please, sir! I'll do anything."
"And you will, but for right now. You'll stay here. I promise I'll keep you safe and warm." He stood up. "I'll leave you alone for a little. I have to bathe. You can think about it here." He walked off.
Aconite felt like her whole world was crashing down. One night was bearable, but weeks?! That was something she couldn't do. She would have to figure out a way to escape.