When Venoran had been attacking him, Perian had reached for the other man’s energy, and he’d grabbed onto it and pulled. Now, he was trying to do the opposite, was trying to take all of the energy he’d stored inside himself, and he was trying to push it out. He was trying to push itintosomeone he’d never seen, but Renny had described Kee to him, made them stand side by side for comparison.
This was a man who was a bit taller than Perian, and broader in the shoulders. He took after his father, and even right around his sixteenth birthday party, he’d taken the time to try to reassure his mother about his father’s health.
He’d tried to steal a kiss from Cormal, and while Perian thought that indicated extremely questionable taste, he remembered being sixteen and hormonal.
He was a boy who’d sneaked away from the castle and then managed to convince two Mage Warriors to indulge him in those escapes so that he could still experience a little freedom.
He was a man whom Prince Horsey loved so much that he hadn’t let another person on his back until Perian had come to the castle.
He was a brother whose sister loved him so dearly that even when she found out that he was accidentally draining her, she didn’t care about that, she just wanted her brother.
Kee had done everything right, had tried to protect his sister when the wraiths had gone after her, and whatever had happened in that horrendous battle, he’d somehow lost his body. It didn’t matter how anymore; all that mattered was that Perian had the sort of energy that Kee needed, energy that he could also use to survive, so that he wouldn’t need to use his sister’s.
Perian had so much energy right now, and he wanted Kee to have it. If there was anyone in the entire castle who deserved it, it was Kee and Renny. They’d coped with this terrible situation to the very best of their abilities for years. They loved one another, and they supported one another, and there was nothing that Perian wanted more than to help them right now.
He’dwilledMolun well because he believed so fiercely that he couldn’t die. Renny and Kee were going to be well, too. He wanted other people to be able to see Kee. He wanted Kee to be able to communicate with whoever he wanted. He wanted him to be able to read every book in the Old Tongue if that was what he wished. He wanted him to be able to ride Prince Horsey again.
Seven years was too long for anyone to be trapped like that, and Perian just wouldn’t have it anymore. He had all this energy, and he was freely offering it. He was giving it right to Kee so that he would be whole again, so that Renny would be whole again.
He heard a gasp and opened his eyes. He could almost see it now, a flicker in the space where Kee was sitting, something there that hadn’t been there before.
He redoubled his efforts. There was something there. There was something that only Renny had been able to see for almost seven years, but thatended today.
A bead of sweat dribbled down Perian’s face and dropped off his chin. It made him realize he was sweating a lot, an ache growing in his head. He squinted his eyes at the spot where Kee was, where he’d seen that flicker.
This wasworking. Perian just had to keep pushing.
He hadn’t known the effort that it took to hold Molun’s wound together, and that hadn’t stopped him. He’d done it with sheer willpower and hope. He could do it again.
He could feel a bit of a tug inside of him, something a bit uncomfortable, but he kept pushing.
Kee really needed the opportunity to actually kiss someone, right? Even if Perian thought Cormal was the worst choice in the world, if that was who Kee wanted, then Perian wanted him to have that chance. There were so many things that Kee needed to experience. He hadn’t felt the sun or the rain in years. He hadn’t been able to touch his father’s hand one last time before he died. They both deserved so much more than that.
He sucked in a breath. Renny had been right. Keewaswith her, and they could all see it now, even if it was a patchy, weirdly flickering swirl of energy that was next to her, that flickered almost into the shape of a person and then flickered out again.
But that wasKee.It was getting harder now, the pull so strong that it felt a little like it might pull too much out of Perian. But he remembered this when he’d been with Molun, when he’d started to get dizzy and then when his legs wouldn’t hold him up. He knew now how important it was to keep pushing.
He heard the sound of labored breathing and realized belatedly that it was his own. But that didn’t matter. Perian pushed harder, fed all of his energy to Kee, kept that connection lit up between them, because Kee and Renny had to be well.
And finally, before his very eyes, the image of Kee began to appear properly. Perian could see his eyes, first, gray like his sister’s, then his form, bigger than Perian had expected despite Renny’s description.
Yes, there he was, broad shoulders and thick thighs. He was sitting cross-legged, just like Renny was.
Perian swayed. It was a good thing he was already on the floor.
The doctor’s hands steadied him, and she cautioned, “I think that’s enough.”
Kee was still a bit see-through, though, even if Perian could see him. This was definitely not enough. He pushed harder, even though the world was starting to go fuzzyaround the edges. But that was all right, as long as Kee got solider, as long as he was sitting there next to his sister, and Perian could see him, just as alive and present as Perian was.
Just a little bit more—
Pain spiked, sudden and excruciating.
“That’s enough!”
Someone was yelling.
The world wavered, swirling unexpectedly, and then it dissolved.
