Between the Veil and Crown

Kylin 21

Amelia made sure that Morganne no longer needed her assistance before heading back to her cottage. The trip back was not a particularly smooth one, as Selim had not softened any towards Kylin and he resented the fact that Kylin was to stay with them for an indefinite period of time. It did not help that concern for Kylin led to Amelia giving him more attention than she gave Selim.

Kylin now had stiff control of his right side, though he used it as little as possible. There were times that he found moving it just so, or keeping it in a certain position caused a burning pain that he could only assume was the remnants of the venom.

As a result, Amelia avoided giving him two handed tasks, or tasks where his right hand had to be used more than a paper weight. Usually they were tasks helping her prep her potions ingredients for the winter, or helping making potions with the ingredients that wouldn't last. Given the precision and care the work needed, Kylin found himself unable to disappear inside his head as he was back at the headquarters. In the evening, after dinner, Selim constantly tried to engage him in verbal sparring. By the time bed time rolled around, trying to reflect on the events was hard to do with his exhausted mind.

One morning, he woke before Amelia did. Deciding not to stay on the couch until she woke up, he quietly left the room, glancing back to make sure he did not wake her. She had not even stirred, her hair splashed across her pillow in a tangled mess. He closed the door slowly, wincing slightly at the quiet click when it shut. He stepped back and glanced around. He wasn't sure when Selim woke up, as he had been getting up after Amelia, and she had already given Selim his dose of obsession potion by that time.

The kitchen was devoid of life, save Kylin, however. On the table sat a cup where Amelia had Selim's dose already prepared and waiting. Despite the work that been done to insulate the house against the frost that now sat outside, there was a chill to the air, a sharpness that helped drive the grogginess from Kylin's waking mind. Mixed in that sharpness were the scents of the ingredients and concoctions Amelia had stored in her rather large pantry.

Kylin stepped around the table to reach the window, glancing out at the thin sheet of frost on the browning grass. In a moment, he told himself, he would grab his cloak and head out to feed the animals for Amelia. But first, he wanted to take the time of quiet and peace, before dealing with anything living. It had been over a week now. It shouldn't be too much longer before the horse master sent him his new horse.

There was a painful stab in his heart, remembering the reason why he needed a new horse. He closed his eyes and inhaled sharply, not sure if he wanted to dwell on Wylett's death or to push it away. Emotion took no heed of what he wanted, however, and it formed a lump in his throat that was hard to swallow. He took several deep breaths.

Wylett was a good horse, he told himself. It was going to be hard for him to take on a replacement, however necessary it was.

But maybe a new horse was what he needed to help move on. After all, grief aside, it was odd to know that at this moment, he did not have a horse in Amelia's stable. Waiting for him to leave when his visit with her was over.

He turned to gather his cloak and head out to the stable to feed Amelia's animals. Before he could take more than a couple of steps, he heard movement from Selim's room and he stopped, wondering if it would be wise to leave Selim alone in the kitchen. It was about the time the previous dose was wearing off, and he heard nothing from Amelia's room that indicated she was getting up herself.

In a few moments, Selim stepped out, looking as though he was barely awake, let alone functional. He did not immediately see Kylin as he was intent on wiping the stubborn sleep out of his eyes. When he lifted his head, he stopped, surveying Kylin. Kylin could see in his eyes the fogginess of not just sleep, but of the effects of the potion wearing off, causing Selim confusion.