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As I looked around the room once more, I realized that Trevor and Thorn had both disappeared, though they'd probably just gone upstairs. What I didn't expect was Thorn to return as I was buttering my bread, carrying a raven.
"I'm going to send a message to the council," he grunted.
Usually my gaze was glued to Thorn but in this instance it was stuck on the bird that was as black as night. A small scroll had been tied to her leg. I had never heard of messenger ravens before, but it shouldn't have been all that surprising. They were some of the most intelligent creatures.
As soon as the raven saw me it started going wild, flapping about in Thorn's grip as he struggled to contain it until it finally wrenched itself free. It came over and landed on my lap, pecking at my leg a little bit as though it was demanding my attention. It reminded me a lot of the luna moths that had gathered on me when I was in the veil. The gentle presence of it calmed me, seeming to connect with something inside me.
Hesitantly, I reached a hand up and petted the raven on the head. Just a gentle pat, pat, pat trying to assure it or something. Whatever it had been asking of me the pets seemed to satisfy it, but instead of going back to Thorn, it just nestled down on my lap as though it was going there to roost for the night.
"Wasn't exactly what I had in mind," Thorn said as he came over and picked up the raven, who cawed in something that sounded like annoyance.
He took the bird over to the door and opened a square window, through which he unceremoniously shoved the raven, closing it before the bird could get back in. I wasn't the only one that heard the raven pecking at the wood door for a few moments afterwards, its little claws scrabbling in the wood and its beak, no doubt leaving indentations with the force at which it was knocking.
"What in the name of the gods was that?" Ronan asked, seeming confused by the whole thing.
"Like I know," I muttered as he stared at me as though I should have the answer.
A soft snore sounded to my right, and I realized that Wyn had eaten her food and fallen asleep, possibly even missing the raven escapades that had just happened.
"There should be a stable on the other side of Sanctuary where we can get horses to make our way to the capital," Ronan said as he caught my concerned glance.
"We'll be walking," Thorn cut in. "That was a message to the council, letting them know we have a new moon marked with us, one that needs protection. I have no doubt that they'll send guards to...help."
The way he phrased that made me more than a little nervous. I wanted to ask him what he meant, but I also couldn't bring myself to open my mouth, too overwhelmed by everything else that was going on to worry about tomorrow at that moment, especially when there was food in my belly and Wyn snoring softly next to me.
Chapter
Seven
Senara
Soldiers were coming to protect me. Just what I needed. It made the urge to run, to get away from Thorn, that much more potent.
A certain feeling had surged within me a few times in my life, one that made my stomach churn and my chest feel tight. It had never failed to steer me away from danger, which was why as flickers of those sensations ran through my body an uneasy feeling had taken up residence in my gut.
Part of me hoped that the raven would get lost, but the rest of me knew that it was too much to ask. Not only were the ravens intelligent creatures, but this one had been trained to be a messenger raven.
A shudder ran through me and I had to fight the urge to curl into the chair I'd been sitting on. A chair that was bigger than most. If Wyn hadn't been there as well then sitting in it would have made me feel like a child. My feet didn't touch the ground and if I sat with my knees bent over the edge then my back couldn't rest against the back of the chair either. It made me realize how much smaller we were than Thorn and Ronan and probably fae in general if they were anything to go by.
"Come on, short stack, let me show you to your room," Thorn said as though he'd sensed the direction of my thoughts. "Ronan grab the other one."
"Her name is Wyn," I said, exasperated.
"I know that," Thorn replied, sounding just as exasperated.
It was like we were two teenagers going at each other's throats. Neither of us wanted to let the other win or get the last word. Still, I found myself getting up and following him upstairs.
The small pathway that had been carved into the tree started with a few steps before transitioning into a gentle slope as it wound around in a large circle. I realized we were skirting the inside of the tree, which seemed to have remained untouched from the carving of the rooms.
Thorn stopped abruptly. "This one's yours." He pointed to a small room off to the right hand side. "Wyn will be in there with you, don't worry."
As I walked in, I saw that there was one large bed big enough for the two of us to cuddle on without any issue. Though thinking about it a little more, it was probably just appropriately sized for the fae.
Ronan moved around me, carrying a sleeping Wyn the whole time before delicately laying her down on the bed and pulling a blanket that had been resting at the foot of the bed over her so she didn't catch a chill. It was more than Thorn would have done for me, I was sure of that.
"There should be fresh clothes in the trunk" Thorn's voice sounded behind me and I nodded, turning to say something but finding him already gone and the door shut, leaving me to my thoughts.
I moved over to where Ronan had laid Wyn on the bed. "Wyn? Wyn, wake up." I whispered her name over and over again unsure how acutely the three fae men would be able to hear us if we talked aloud.
