Soul Fire

1.4

Stella's eyes lingered on the attached bathroom as she took a deep breath. She heaved herself out of bed and stood on two wobbly legs, feeling like the world was slipping out from under her. She leaned against the wall before eventually slumping back towards the bed. Every single breath felt like fire as her chest expanded against her bruised ribs. That pain by itself was enough to prevent Stella from moving.

Stella hated feeling so weak, and part of her hated the stupid red-haired girl for draining her so severely that she couldn't even walk to use the bathroom. She wondered if that was what she deserved for putting Sun-Weaver on the line like that.

Stella would not apologize. She gambled her throne to give Bloom a sliver of a shot at survival. That girl who Stella had only just met, who Stella had no connection to at all. Maybe that made Stella weak.

You bow to nobody. The words rang in Stella's head like a silver bell.

Stella ignored her urging bladder and allowed herself to fall back into a restless sleep.

Bloom opened the door softly to find the golden haired girl asleep once again. Bloom was still reeling over Stella's confession and there were so many questions swirling in her mind. Bloom looked down as the glass of water in her hand. She softly walked towards the bed and, as quietly as she could, set the glass down on the bedside table.

When she looked back towards Stella, her eyes were open, watching her. "I need to use the bathroom."

Bloom nodded. "Okay."

Stella slumped against Bloom's weight, and she struggled to keep her upright. When they reached the door, Stella claimed she would be fine from there and shut the door.

Bloom waited on the edge of the bed for the door to unclick again. Eventually, it did, and Bloom was there to help Stella back into bed.

Stella had kept her teeth gritted the entire time, trying to keep from wincing or screaming out as her side exploded in fire. She was definitely worse for wear at the moment, covered in scratches and a few shallow gashes. Those ghouls knew how to put up a good fight. They knew all of her weak spots.

Bloom climbed on the end of the bed, wrapping her arms around her legs and resting her head on her knees. "I'm not going to pretend...." Bloom hesitated before continuing, "..to know what it's like. To have an entire kingdom on the line. You didn't have to try to save me, and you did anyways. It seemed like an impossible situation to have to be in. So, thank you."

Stella just nodded. Breathing hurt quite a bit at the moment, and she didn't know if she would be able to talk. Bloom shifted before eventually untangling her arms and climbing off the bed. "I'll let you rest."

So Stella did.

That afternoon, Seth returned with a grin on his face, and Bloom shot to her feet before rushing to the door. "Did you find him?" She said breathlessly, pushing past him into the hallway. Kiko came bounding towards her, his tongue hanging out the side of his mouth. Bloom choked out a sob and sank to the ground, her hands pressed over her face as tears streamed down her cheeks.

Kiko licked her hand, tail wagging and she wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing the top of his head over and over. She sat there, in the empty apartment hallway, hugging her dog and best friend, for what could have been minutes. She held onto him even when he was antsy to pull away and go do something else, but she couldn't bring herself to let her best friend go. Eventually, she untangled her arms and got up to her feet, letting herself back into the apartment.

Seth had a glass of water in his hand and was looking in his fridge. "I'm starved." He said mindlessly, reaching towards the back to grab something.

"Seriously, Seth, thank you. For helping me and finding Kiko. You didn't have to do that, and I owe you one."