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“More like spell them to never leave.” I snort at the idea, having seen enough. “Look over this junk, let’s make sure there are no more friends hiding.”
“You got it,” Faelor says, crossing his arms over his chest. I turn to leave, but his voice stops me. “Is she alright?”
“Yeah. I think so.”
A piercing scream shatters the quiet, drawing both Faelor and my attention. He’s on his feet, both of us staring at the tapestry, listening, then we take off, bursting into the cavern and skidding to a stop at Calamity’s door. She’s sitting up in the bed, her chest heaving, eyes wide as if she’s seen a ghost.
Jesper, looking as startled as I feel, stammers out, "She just screamed. I... I don't know why."
My eyes slide to hers. “Are you okay?”
She nods, rubbing her throat, a grimace crossing her features. "Yes, I'm fine. Just a bad dream, I guess."
I release the air from my lungs, the tension in my body easing. She swings her feet over the side of the bed and I send Jesper a look, a silent command to leave us, then crouch down before her. “It’s gone.”
Her eyes scan me, lingering on the claw mark across my chest. "You're hurt," she says, a flicker of concern in her gaze.
“How’s your throat?” Grabbing the glass of water from the table, I hand it to her. Her hands shake as she brings it to her lips, and a cringe twists her features as she swallows.
"Sore, but manageable. Did that thing try to decapitate me? I’m not even sure what happened.” She tenderly presses her fingers to her throat. I wish I could take away the pain, but unfortunately, I don’t have that power.
“I think it hit you with its tail, actually. It didn’t have any weapons, but it had claws and some sort of scaling on its tail. I didn’t see it happen. I’d just woken up to sound and saw you on the table with that thing over you.”
Her eyes find mine. “I got tail whipped?” The look on her face… It’s like its attack was somehow below her, not good enough to have taken her out.
I can’t help the smile that pulls at my lips. So innocent and so stubborn… It’s almost cute. “Yeah, you did… Why were you up, anyway?”
“Couldn't sleep.” She shrugs.
“The last I’d checked on you, you were drooling.”
Her eyes round, her jaw falling slack. “Was not.”
I bounce my eyebrows once, choosing my battles. Until the pieces click in my mind. Of course she was fine while I was awake, but I’d fallen asleep and my magic stopped. I’d overheard her talking to her beast–out loud, for some reason. She’d been too worried about something to sleep, and must’ve stared at theceiling for at least an hour, so I’d helped. I gave her a dream, one I’d thought she’d enjoy. The way she’d looked at our table, after leaving the spring, it was almost as if she wanted to join, so I used that.
Once I’d fallen asleep, whatever had been plaguing her mind and keeping her awake must’ve resurfaced. But the way she’d woken up just now… She was afraid. She screamed. Maybe it wasn’t something bothering her, keeping her awake, but more being scared of what would happen in her sleep. Like Elaria…
“You have night terrors, don’t you?”
She blinks at me. “How did you–” Glancing away, she chews at her bottom lip. “I didn’t think it mattered.”
Exhaling deeply, I reclaim my seat on the bed, kicking my legs up and resting my back against the headboard. “It matters when you scream bloody murder in your sleep.” I study her face, the way her eyebrows go straight, the way her golden eyes almost lose their vividness.
“I didn’t want to be put into a coma, and it’s sort of embarrassing.” She averts her gaze, her cheeks turning a bright pink.
“Embarrassing how?”
“In the sense that adults aren’t supposed to be scared of the dark. We’re not supposed to have irrational fears, either.”
“Irrational? That’s nothing close to irrational, especially when mostadultsaren’t held captive by their father.” She looks at me quizzically and I elaborate. “My twin sister had them, and she was by far one of the strongest women I’ve ever known.”
The color seems to return to her eyes, her fingers gently rolling over the hem of the quilt. “You helped her?”
I nod. “And not in the coma way. As kids, we always shared a room. For the most part, just having someone else in there with her kept them away, and when that wasn’t enough…”
“Your gift,” she says, filling in the blank.
“Yeah. There was never a reason for them to start. They just did, but as long as she wasn’t alone at night, she was fine. She said just having me, or as she got older, her husband in the room made her feel safe.”
