Douce Dépendouce

Chapter 15

— Warning —
• This story contains mature language that some may not be comfortable with. Read at your own risk •

With my free days to myself, I mainly spent them alone. I had gone to see Hu and take him out for a ride and to simply spend time with him. After we had done our lesson, I had given him a good grooming session and fussed over him. I had done the same the next day, along with turning him out despite the rain. When I had gotten home from the stables, my phone was bonbouded with texts. They were mainly from Linda and gave everyone a brief idea of what we were to be discussing and what our goals would be about Pandora. I replied to a few and received brief replies, one message standing out to me the most.

What are we doing about New Years? Jorvik likes to go out for any occasion.

It was sent by Lisa, no surprise. Linda had replied with a simple sentence saying that we'd do the usual and once we knew more about the dates and locations, we'd discuss it. In hindsight, it was her way of saying to put that aside and to focus on the Druids for the time being. I found it interesting how dedicated Linda was to the Druids, we all were. She often was told to light up and to live her life a bit by Alex and Lisa, and myself. She sometimes listened, but always put work before pleasure. I smirked at my thought and placed my phone away, plugging it in as I went to get changed into night wear. As I got off the bed, I felt an ache form in my chest. I sucked in a breath, coughing to try and clear my throat. I mumbled as I knew I had caught something, probably something from venturing out into the great beyond of rain. I looked through the bathroom drawers to try and find any type of medicine, only resolving in nothing. I grimaced and later got changed, heading my way to bed and soon tucking myself in, slowly closing my eyes as I hoped it was a light cold.

The next morning I woke up feeling groggy. As soon as I had opened my eyes, I could feel my body straining. I rolled onto my side and let out a cough, my chest wheezing. I sat up, getting out of bed and working my way to getting dressed. I pulled on a thermal top and riding pants and settled with a thick jacket before I pulled on my boots and headed out. I dug my hands into my pockets and through coughing, worked my way to the bus. As I arrived to Valedale, I looked around at the village, the feel of people still waking up as little to few lights were on. I headed to the Secret Stone Circle and did the ritual before I entered, taking the second portal to Fripps lare. When I entered, Linda and Lisa were already seated. I walked over, seeing the same books mixed with others from yesterday. I took a seat, taking off my jacket and clearing my throat, resolving in another cough. As I did so, Linda brought her attention up, her eyes looking over me.

"You ok? You look ill," she asked, her voice cold but not harsh.

I nodded. "I'm fine, just a light cough."

"You were fine yesterday," Linda replied, her eyes tracing over my neck and face. "What happened?"

"When I was out getting information, I made the dumbass decision to not go by horseback. I walked from the bus top to Nilmers and back again," I replied, having to clear my throat once more.

"At night? You walked home in the middle of the night?" Lisa asked. "You'd freeze."

I sighed, not even getting the chance to speak before Linda spoke, "Did you stay the night? At the Circus?"

I swallowed back the slight heat that formed, forcing myself to continue. "Yes."

Lindas eyes narrowed, her gaze instantly going dark. Lisa's expression was light, unsure of what to make of it before the sound of someone entering brought our attention up.