The Other Side of the Lie (EDITING, ON HOLD)

Seventeen-Swift

He emerged the next morning stretching and yawning from his temporary room. It had been a long time since he'd slept in a bed, longer still in a bed without one kind of vermin or another or stains he didn't want to know the nature of.

"Wh–"

"Shh!" Mist cut off his question and put a finger to her lips.

"Wha...? Oh." Mist had pointed to two people sprawled on one of the pillow piles and Swift had instantly understood. A slow smile stretched across his face. "Oh!"

"Shut up you moron!" Mist whisper-shouted at him, then froze when Bella shifted. At the movement of the girl who was basically using his chest as a large, living pillow, Hawk blinked open sleepy eyes.

"Oh sh–" Hawk began but stopped when Bella moved restlessly again. Once she had settled down, he went on mournfully, "why in the world does this only ever happen to me?"

"It's only the second time," Hunter said from the doorway to the bedroom he had claimed the night before.

"If Hunter kills him," Swift murmured to Mist, "we'll just say Queen Raven did it and that Hawk named us his heirs before he died." Mist giggled.

Hunter shot them a dark look.

"Fine, fine." Swift held his hands up in a surrendering gesture. "Hunter gets to be king and we get control of the treasury, how does that sound?"

"Shut up, vampire," Hunter warned softly. "Because if you're the one to wake my sister up, you'll die instead of our resident idiot."

"I would take offense to that," Hawk answered, "if I weren't in a dire situation. Is anyone going to help? Your reward will be a word of gratitude."

Swift couldn't help but snort at the weak terms. "That reward is not worth losing such good morning entertainment."

"Wha–?" Everyone froze when Bella opened her eyes and gazed blearily at them all. When she realized what was happening, she leapt to her feet, a blush spreading across her cheeks.

Swift chuckled softly and gestured to Mist to follow him out into the underwater palace. "As much as this has been fun to watch, we should leave them to sort it out."

The hall outside their rooms was empty but for a young Sea fey maid who darted away like a startled minnow. She left behind a bracelet that Mist pocketed "to have an excuse to talk to the staff."

They wandered for a while, swimming down maze-like hallways that seemed to go on forever.

"How is your leg?" Mist eventually asked.

Swift stopped and rubbed it absently. "Sore, but the wound has sealed for the most part. The scab isn't gone yet, but that might be the water."

"What would the water have to do with the scab?"

Swift shrugged. "I have no idea. I just have never gone through the whole healing process in an underwater palace and gotten treated with Sea fey remedies."

Mist nodded pensively and continued on down the hall. After a minute or two more Mist halted and cocked her head.

"Do you hear that?"

"Hear what?" was Swift's automatic reply, but he did hear it. Shouting.

"Come on!" Mist swam ahead, and Swift caught up to her where she floated, frozen, before the exit that led to one of the courtyards scattered about the palace. During their explorations they had come across a few, but they had all been deserted. This one, however, was not unoccupied. Two Sea fey sparred in a ring created by the other fey who watched and cheered them on.