sparrow and lion

Chapter 13: the final night, Part 3: an end

Perhaps Wren should have known there'd been a trick behind it. Then again, perhaps he had. He knew better than anyone that Leo never asked for anything. She certainly didn't beg.

It was just that she really had been looking forward to the festival. And who could say that she was the one at fault for the dog's training in this instance? Hadn't it caused quite a kerfuffle only weeks ago when the noblewoman had spotted the dog after years had passed and demanded it be returned to her? If even the court was in disagreement as to whom the beast rightfully belonged to, how could full responsibility fall squarely on Leo's shoulders?

Truth be told, however, Wren went along with her request because he felt guilty. A new trade negotiation was due to begin in only two weeks. Leo didn't know yet. Eileen would be arriving in her father's retinue. Leo had grown no fonder of the girl over the years. Wren had. Eileen had grown fonder of Wren as well.

Eileen's opinion of him would likely change if she knew where he was.

He was looking for Leo in a house of ill repute. The men and women were not even clothed in passing. He had never seen anything like it. He had purposefully never seen anything like it. The lord was too disinterested to try to press the pastime onto Wren and Wren himself had decided long ago that he would never risk the consequence of such a transgression. He was just praying that word of this didn't reach Eileen.

This was where Leo and Wren had ceased to understand each other. She had always been the one who knew how to respond in every situation. Leo knew how to play the court's games. It was Wren who was forever making mistakes that entangled him in controversy and gossip. Leo was the sunshine and Wren was just her shadow. It was how he wanted it to be.

But that was then, and this was now. The sunshine was gone. It had turned into a flame. And flames don't cast shadows. They devour everything they touch. But both are bright and no one noticed. Wren noticed.

Leo had often been in trouble. Now she was always in trouble. But something about it seemed wrong. Leo rarely complained about the amount of time she spent banished to her rooms. She didn't try to escape her punishments like she used to. But it was more than that. Leo's escapades had always had a reason or an explanation. Now they didn't. Sometimes Wren suspected that Leo didn't want to be doing the things she did. Leo was only doing them because they were bad.

It haunted him. It drove him away. It pulled him closer. Leo and Wren had both had a choice. They had not made the same decision. He just didn't understand why.

It was impossible to look for Leo without seeing everything else. Wren couldn't listen for her voice without hearing the sounds. His face was hot. There was something different around every corner. He felt sick. Pain and pleasure looked the same in this place. Maybe it was just pain pretending it was something else. Wren didn't want to think about that.

Hands reached for him as he passed. Voices called. The halls seemed to get narrower. The noises seemed to get louder. People leered at him as he squeezed by. Whispers tickled against his ears. Fingertips groped him. Three forms stepped out to block his path. Wren stopped. He stared at the floor. They didn't move. He couldn't get past them without touching them. He didn't want to touch them. Where was Leo?

"Excuse me," he thought he said.

"Please let me through," he thought he told them.

"I'm looking for someone," he whispered.

One of them reached for him. They touched him. "Baby, I'm right here," the person said.

Wren's eyes felt full of sand. Breathing wasn't working. Everything was too loud. His chest was tight. He tried to speak. Nothing came out of his mouth. There were more hands on him. He couldn't move. He couldn't see. He couldn't understand. He was just looking for Leo. Why was this -