Elements of Emotion

Chapter 13: Defrosted Waters

Caelian blinked his eyes open, feeling warmth wrapped snugly around him. It took him a few moments to realize he was tucked into a bed. It felt strange, in a way. It was the first time he had ever properly been in a bed instead of curled up on top of one. His shoes and jacket were even off. It certainly was more comfortable this way, he had to admit.

He sat up and rubbed his eyes. The bed had a familiar scent, but he couldn't quite place it. It was a bit fishy smelling, but strangely nice and comforting. The room he was in was simply decorated. He looked over to the full-length mirror, seeing his disheveled self stare back at him. There were a few posters stuck onto the smooth white walls, and a see-through glass floor that showed the rippling water underneath the building. Did that mean the ice had melted?

He looked towards the door when he heard another door slam somewhere else in the building, accompanied by muffled yelling.

"Don't talk to me! I want nothing to do with either of you!"

Caelian recognized Zephyr's voice. He heard quick footsteps approaching, and a moment later Zephyr opened the door, looking flustered. He didn't notice Caelian was awake until after he gently closed it and took a step forward.

"Oh, you're awake," he said.

"Where am I?" Caelian asked as Zephyr walked over and sat on the bed next to him.

"This is my room, sorry," Zephyr said. "You passed out so Gale said we should take you to my parent's house, since it was close by."

"Oh, okay," Caelian said, glancing around the room again. "Who were you yelling at?"

"Don't worry about it," Zephyr mumbled. "Anyway, how are you feeling? You hit your head pretty hard on the floor. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for helping me," Caelian said. When he looked back to Zephyr, he noticed that he was staring. "What?"

"O-Oh, nothing, it's just... nothing," he mumbled. "Are you thirsty or do you need anything?"

"No, I'm all right," Caelian said as he gently pushed the covers off of him. "Are Damien and Evelyn here too?"

"Yeah, they've been staying here too. They're out in the living room."

"How long was I out for?" Caelian asked as he shakily stood up, causing Zephyr to stand and grab hold of him to help him balance.

"A few days," Zephyr said.

"A few days?!" Caelian repeated as he nearly fell over.

"Yeah, you were out for a while..." Zephyr said as he carefully let go of Caelian, keeping his arms raised, ready to catch him, until he saw that the young man could stand by himself. "I put your stuff over on that bench."

Caelian gingerly stepped over to the bench that Zephyr had motioned to and sat down to work on putting on his boots.

"So, what are you going to do next?" Zephyr asked.

"I guess head towards the Scorched Lands," Caelian said as he finished quickly lacing up his boots.

"Already?" Zephyr asked.

"Well, yeah," Caelian said as he put on his coat, "I still have two elementals I need to purify."

"You don't think you should rest a bit more or anything? I can help out—"

"No, it's fine. Thank you, though." Caelian smiled, earning another stare from Zephyr. What was that for? And why was his face turning red?

"What about you?" Caelian asked. "You're not a disciple anymore, what do you plan to do?"