Grounding the Storm ✓

Chapter 14

After training, beaten and bruised, I arrive back to my chambers to find Mani stocking my closet with dresses, gowns, pants, shirts, jackets, cloaks, and everything else under the sun. An array of smooth fabrics greet me—from silk to tulle to lace and wool. I've never owned such exquisite clothes and judging by Mani's grin, this is his favorite part about being a stylist.

Each piece of clothing is tailored to fit my body, but slightly bigger as he expects me to gain weight from full meals here at the castle. Given that exception, the clothes he forced me to try on fit wonderfully. A range of boots sits against the back wall of the closet, from knee-high to ankle and leather buckles to wool slippers, for the cold nights here at the castle.

Jewelry of all shapes and sizes is arranged neatly onto the display case in the closet and the gowns...I've never seen anything so beautiful. Mani is nearly jumping for joy when I hold a dress up against me and twirl with the lace skirt and shimmering bodice, the fine color of rose. The stocked closet almost has me excited for the engagement celebration until I remember I'm shackled for life.

Still, that doesn't stop me from pushing through every piece of clothing and finding hints of design I favor about each fabric. The royal family doesn't take advantage of these luxuries, Renit could walk around this castle, looking like a king if he wasn't so stubborn.

Instead of taking the long trek back to the kitchens for lunch, I eat with Mani in my chambers, sitting on the floor in the middle of the room. The entire time, the old man talks about different hairstyles for my cut of hair, short and parted to the side, and what he can do with paired outfits.

Slowly, my aching body repairs itself from the training Renit forced me to partake in. There had been little after I learned to control it, Renit went over a routine for the next few days while we weren't training. At least for a few minutes every day, I have to come out to the grasslands and release my power so it's not built up inside me.

Once I've learned to relieve that power without an Outburst, we can move on to the next step in our gruesome training which is: merging our two powers together as one. Power has to recognize power and I'm not ready to have Renit inside my own, taking it for himself. But to be his Grounding, our power has to be willing to bond together.

Just like we have to bond as witches. The thought alone makes me want to stop eating my lunch.

After a quality meal, I scrubbed myself clean of all the dirt and grime and allowed Mani to style my hair. The normally waved strands of my hair, he straightened into sticks and framed my face in a much more professional fashion I had ever been able to in Arego. We didn't have the tools, nor did we have the time.

For the first time since arriving, I'm allowed to sit and look out the window to the city beyond. Will I ever see it? The clean stone streets, the bustling market, the friendly people. Will they ever allow me out of this castle?

I tuck my knees against my chest and sit on the window ledge, onto the cushions placed there for this purpose exactly. Today, the silence isn't bothersome. In the distant streets, people mill about, few pointing up at the castle while others don't bother with a second glance. Although I can't hear or know what they are doing, their presence helps block out that heavy silence.