Chapter Thirteen
Therewasstilltheproblemofhowexactlytheywouldgettothehag.Florianhadspentmostofthepastdayporingoverhisfather’snotes,rereadingeverythingJerahhadwrittenaboutthehagontheslimchancethathe’dmissedsomething.Heskimmedallhisothernotesaswell,lookingforanyothermentionofwhereshewas,orhowtoreachher,hopingforanyotherinformationthattheymightneed.
But it wasn’t looking promising, and as the days passed it seemed more and more likely that they would just have to go in blind. All they really had was the mark on the map, Kallik’s half-remembered offering, and Tatiana’s promise to look for more information.
“I feel like I’ve read the same page seven times already,” Florian groaned, rubbing both hands over his face. He and Kade were sequestered up in the study, Kade sitting at one of the small tables with papers spread out in front of him, and Florian curled up in one of the plush chairs with a stack of notes on the end table beside him. Kade glanced over at him with a similarly exasperated look on his face, though a hint of a small, amused smile twitched at the corners of his mouth.
“Take a break, then,” he said simply, and Florian shook his head.
“I feel like I’ve readallof this seven times,” he said, gesturing at the stack of papers. While Jerah’s handwriting was relatively tidy, at that moment he thought that he would be glad to never have to read anything in the same small, slanted script again. He didn’t think that he had ever read so much in his life.
He glanced back over at Kade miserably, watching as the other man’s countenance changed from teasing and tired to more serious, almost concerned.
“You really don’t think there’s anything else?” Kade prompted, and Florian grimaced. He didn’t think so, but to say they should give up wasn’t entirely appealing, either.
“I don’t know,” he settled on, shaking his head. “I guess there could be. But I don’t want to waste time on it either.”
Kade sighed, leaning back in his chair and looking over the pile of papers in front of him.
“You’re probably right,” he said. “Let me just keep looking for today. If we can’t find anything by the end of the day, then we’ll leave it. It’s not like we’re leaving tomorrow or anything. Does that sound okay?”
He supposed Kade was right. Even if they stopped right then, it would still take at least a day or two till they were ready to leave, enough time to pack and sketch out a path on the map they had. While he was sick of looking at the papers, if Kade wanted to keep going, he certainly wouldn’t stop him.
“You don’t need to ask me for permission,” Florian said, shaking his head. “That’s fine. I’m done with this for now, but if you want to keep looking, go ahead.”
“What will you do now?” Kade asked. The question made him pause, lips pressed together as he considered it.
“Hmm,” he said. “I’ll see if Tatiana found anything. And maybe...” He frowned, remembering how Kallik had told them that they’d need to bring an offering, something sentimental. “And maybe figure out what I’ll offer the hag when we get there.”
Kade winced, as if only now remembering that detail. “Good idea. I guess I should think about that too.”
“I guess I’ll see you at dinner, then?” Florian asked, a tiny thrill of nervousness rising in his chest as he said it. He and Kade had been all but inseparable since... Well, even before they left for Earth. They had barely been apart from the moment they had decided to stay together. It seemed silly to be nervous about leaving him now, when they would see each other in a few hours; but it really would be the longest that they’d been apart since before his coronation, since before his father had died. It didn’t make sense for it to feel significant, but it was unsettling all the same.
“Yeah,” Kade said with an easy nod, seeming not to share his distress and looking back down at the paper before him. “I’ll see you then.”
Florian hesitated, then stepped closer to Kade instead of heading for the door. The other man glanced back up in surprise, and Florian leaned down to kiss him when he did. He felt Kade smile against his lips, and it eased some of the tension in his chest.
“I had to give you a goodbye kiss first,” he said softly when they pulled away, and this time Kade laughed.
“You’re cute,” he said, shaking his head as he glanced back down at the table with a shy, flustered grin. Florian smiled in return, standing up straight with a sense of relief, or something like it. Lately, he had too often only been able to feel anxious, or nervous, or okay at best. It was nice to have something soft and light between them now.
“Go on,” Kade urged him, still grinning. “The more you distract me the less I can look through.”
Florian laughed, but took a step back. “Okay. I’ll see you later.”
He left the library feeling lighter than he had in weeks.
But finding Tatiana proved to be a harder task than he first thought, and he had looped the castle twice before finally arriving in the kitchens, where she was talking with one of the workers. From what Florian could overhear, it seemed as though they were discussing what ingredients were on-hand, and what they were expecting to receive the next week.
“Oh, Florian,” Tatiana said, as she noticed him poking his head through the door. “What are you looking for?”
“You,” Florian answered, stepping inside. The worker, a fae woman who looked about the same age as him—though it was hard to tell with fae—gave a respectful nod as he approached, then took a step back. “Um, I was wondering if you had found anything from Jerah, from, um, what we talked about with getting to the witch.”
Tatiana blinked. “Oh! I nearly forgot. Yes, actually, I did find something. Here, come with me.” She turned to the woman. “I’ll be back in just a moment, Letty.” The woman nodded, her eyes lingering on Florian, but Tatiana was already turning to go, so he followed.
Tatiana led him upstairs to her room. He stopped at the doorway, uncertain if he should follow her, realizing he’d never seen her room before. It was on the same floor as his own, but far on the opposite end of the foyer. She glanced back at him from where he lingered in the doorframe and laughed.
“You can come in,” she said, waving her hand, and awkwardly Florian stepped inside. Her room had much more personality than he was expecting; where Jerah’s room had been plain and practical, hers was clearly lived in and well-loved. The room was full of plants with several shelves set up around the room to hold them all, and some hanging on walls and from the ceiling. Books and other trinkets were scattered between the plants as well, and even the sheets on her bed had a delicate pink floral pattern.
