Dream Weavers

Chapter Twenty One

Aline made her way back to the square and sat on the fountain in the center. This was the only place that she had met everyone she cared about, considering this was the most popular and busy square. There was no other place to go, and she didn't want to go back home quite yet.

Time ran by as she watched fae scatter around her, talking to others. She heard the castle bell ring and she glanced up at the castle. There was nothing telling her that she had to go, or if it was even meant for her--so she stayed put.

Eventually, someone came behind her, tapping on her head. Looking up, she grinned when she saw that it was Quill. "Quill!" She hadn't seen him in awhile--not since their last conversation in her bedroom. He looked happy enough to see her, though.

"Who's your escort?" Quill asked, sitting next to her. He held a book in his hands, his fingers marking the page where he was at. "My escort's a fae named Judith."

"I heard you punched him," Aline joked, watching Quill's eyes widen. "It's Hain," she said. I hope, she added silently. She hadn't gotten any indication of who her escort was, and she wasn't sure how Quill had found out his already. Maybe he'd been there by chance?

Quill flushed red and shifted away, laughing nervously. "Well--"

"It's fine. I'm glad you did it," Aline admitted. "I punched him too after we made up."

Quill sighed. "Well--I was already angry at myself for being a coward and then Hain just ended up pissing me off further because he tried to ignore me so then I just punched him on the arm."

"You gave him a bruise," Aline said, watching his reaction. She tried to not make her cheeks flush at the thought of the bruise. "He said you packed a punch. Honest."

Whatever happened in that alleyway stayed in that alleyway. Hain would probably act like it never happened. Aline would too, so she couldn't blame him.

"Really? He's not too badly hurt right?" Quill asked, fiddling with the pages of his book. "He...ended up calling me a coward when I refused to go out on a mission again and...yeah."

"I'm a coward too, you know," Aline reminded Quill with a smile. "I just run away from things emotionally. Not real things. I think that's worse." She broke off her smile and stared down at the ripples, wanting to touch the water with a finger. While her being a coward was her fault, she had to remind herself that what had happened to her wasn't her fault.

"Well...everyone has their problems, right? It's just up to you to not run away like I'm gonna try not to. I don't know what I can do to help myself but..." Quill glanced down to the book and shut it, a feather sticking out of the pages now to mark the place. "I'm sure that if you just give yourself time, you'll be fearless."

Aline smiled. If only he knew.

Worthless. Two-faced. Liar. Double-crosser. Pushy. Loud. Annoying.

You'll never be a Dreamweaver.

Aline clutched at her satchel as the words bounced around her head, making her bite her lip. She didn't have to listen to them. She didn't have to listen to them anymore. While she didn't know if Jay was sorry for what she had done to her, she knew Hain was.

"Hey."

Aline lifted her head to see Radin standing there, his arm in a cast. "Radin?" A wave of dread overcame her and she leaned away ever so slightly, hands and tail curling around her ribs. There was a sharp pinch in the back of her mind like her ribs were aching again.

Radin shifted his weight from one foot to another. "Aline." He waved his unbroken arm at her like a child.

"How are you? How's...is your arm okay?" Aline asked, standing up. He had been one of the ones to hurt her ribs and crack them, to bruise her jaw and make her and Hain drift apart. She hoped that he was happy for what he had done.