War of Winter (Iron Fey Fanfiction)

Chapter 16 - Ghosts

All he knew was pain. Pain that lanced throughout every inch and pore of his skin and bones. The wound in his side throbbed and it felt as if every atom in the air were trying to tear him apart, bit by bit. He supposed that's what summerjade poison did to one's body.

   His mind strayed briefly to the female sidhe who'd held his attacker at knife point. Her long snowy white hair and piercing blue eyes and royal complexion would not leave his mind. Nor would the way she'd looked at him when she first saw the Summer faery holding him on the dagger.

   The way her face had constricted in fear and shock for half a second.

        The way rage had quickly overtaken the fear...

            The way she had reacted as if she were a mother snow leopard guarding her young while facing off a wyvern.

           The way she looked...

                Like she almost...

                                 ....cared...

    When Crystal found Rowan's chambers, one of his guards, Edgebriar, had been posted outside his door. The guard regarded Crystal with icy eyes, devoid of feeling. "Is he alive?" she demanded.

   "He is resting," Edgebriar said, a bit irritated, after a long pause.

   "May I see him?" Crystal was about an inch away from tearing out the guards eyes for the way he assessed her like she was a specimen to experiment on. She glared at him for all she was worth, daring him to challenge her.

    He took his sweet time answering. "You will have to ask the phantoms." He then proceeded to ignore her, although he kept one hand on his sword hilt. Ha. As if that little stick would protect him.

   Crystal looked around, about to demand of him exactly which phantoms he was speaking of, when one of the ghostly healers emerged from the door. But, Crystal noticed, without opening the door first. So, they really were ghosts, then. Interesting, Crystal thought.

   You may see him now, but be quick. He is still in a state of much pain and a bit of shock. Do not linger too long, the ghost spoke to Crystal through his mind.

   Crystal shivered as she watched it float away down the hall. It was eerie to have the voice in her head. It was raspy and a bit breathy, and it emanated cold. As if the ghost never experienced happiness in its previous life.

    Taking a deep breath, she turned the doorknob and slowly eased it open. She quickly stepped over the threshold into the dimly lit room, her eyes immediately adjusting to the sudden darkness. Two candles on the prince's nightstand did not do much to help.

   Crystal hesitated slightly before slowly approaching the side of the bed where Rowan lay, shirtless and asleep, although restlessly. Sweat collected at his temples and forehead, and his brows were furrowed slightly as if he were having a nightmare. She quietly pulled a stool up next to his bed and sat so that she was at his level. She tensed when she felt that strange chill, and looked over to the corner to find the other ghostly healer watching her from the shadows.

   She swallowed and held its gaze, trying to communicate that she meant the prince no harm. It must have finally got her message because it turned around and continued its mission of mixing together a tonic - probably for the pain.

   Crystal turned back to find Rowan had shifted his position, his head now turned towards her. His eyes slowly fluttered open and roamed for a bit before landing on her. He has a fever, she thought. Worry escalated in her gut, and she folded her hands together.

   "How are you feeling, your Highness?" she asked quietly, trying to remain diplomatic in the presence of a healer. The ghosts might find it a bit odd if she called Rowan by his name.

   He blinked slowly at her before swallowing. "Like shit," was his raspy answer. He smirked slightly and some relief pushed back the worry. But then, he winced. "Everything hurts like a fucking bitch. It feels as if...I'm on fire..." he groaned and rolled over, fumbling for something on the nightstand.

   Crystal glanced over to see it was a glass of water. She quickly grabbed it before he knocked it over and handed it to him, helping him hold it. He took a sip and then a gulp of the substance before flopping back down against the pillow.

   The ghostly healer floated over silently, holding a wooden cup of a thick green substance. Rowan looked from the creature to the substance and back again. "I am not drinking that!" he protested. There was more silence. Then Rowan shook his head. "No, I refuse." The healer must have been speaking to the prince from his mind, like the other one had with Crystal.

   "Your Highness, it will help," Crystal tried, begging him with her eyes to just drink the damn stuff.

   Rowan hesitated again before sighing and taking the cup, cautiously sniffing the substance inside and making a face. "If you say so," he muttered. He downed the cup impressively and without vomiting it back up, which surprised Crystal. The stuff truly did smell awful, like rotten seaweed and burning rubber.

   The healer took the cup and left to clean up its supplies. Crystal absently reached out and gently tucked a stray lock of dark hair behind Rowan's ear. He met her eyes and smirked slightly, although his eyes were heavy.

   "So you can be kind," he whispered as the healer, thankfully, left the room.

   "Don't mention it," Crystal replied, finding the floor suddenly very fascinating. She could feel his stare on her and felt her cheeks heat. "We're officially at war with Summer now," she told him, changing the subject.

   His expression turned serious. "I'm honestly surprised Goodfellow didn't start it," he muttered. Crystal twiddled her thumbs. She knew Mab would want Rowan to recover quickly in order to be able to fight in the war. Worry returned with a vengeance in her gut.

   "How long until you'll be able to fight, do you think?" Crystal asked him. He closed his eyes and shook his head.

   "I don't know, probably a day or two," he said, pushing the covers down a bit, using his glamour to make the room decidedly colder. Frost crept over the window and Crystal tried her best not to glance at his godlike torso.

   Apparently, she wasn't doing a very good job because Rowan was smirking at her again. She glared and clenched her jaw. "If you say anything, your Highness, I might have to kill you," she said, although not meaning any of it.

   Rowan smiled and laughed weakly. "Crystal, back in the cave...I really did mean what I said - about the rose." His face turned serious. "I wasn't joking around-"

   "How am I supposed to believe you?" Crystal demanded, suddenly angry. How could she have not seen it? How could she have been so stupid?

"How do I know you're not just playing with me like you do all of your other human whores?" Her own frost joined his around the room, making a crinkling sound on the window. She did not really care if it broke - it wasn't her window. "How can I ever trust you with me?"

   Rowan was silent. He wouldn't meet her eyes, and he said the two words she had feared the most. "You can't."