By My Side - Sam/Aomaris Fanfiction

62) Worlds Apart (Sam)

I'd thought the memory spell worked. I'd hoped Phoenix would finally be able to get a decent night's sleep, because every night since they woke up in the hospital had been broken by panic attacks and nightmares. Apparently not, as I was woken once again by one of their heart-wrenching screams that echoed through my heart. Muscle memory made me reach for them automatically, to pull them into a hug and help them believe that everything was okay. I was wrecked with tiredness myself, but it was nothing compared to Nix's pain and I'd take being shattered any day if it meant I could make sure they were alright.

My hand touched nothing but air and I frowned.
"Nix?" I reached out again, but once again I felt nothing and it was then I noticed that the bed wasn't trembling along with their night terror shivers like it usually did. "The fuck?" I got up and switched the light on, staring around. The timer on Phoenix's constellation lamp had run its course, which meant it was at least one o'clock in the morning. Their phone was still plugged in and lying on their bedside table, but Nix wasn't in our bedroom. Normally that wouldn't bother me, I'd just assume they were in the bathroom, but a feeling of dangerous unease clenched over my heart and spurred me to leave the room and search for them.
"Phoenix?" My voice echoed down the empty corridor and I heard no response. I checked the bathroom, Nix's office where they did all of their writing, and the den in their old bedroom where they sometimes went if they wanted to be on their own. Nix was nowhere to be found. A mix of fear and anger began to simmer in my chest and I growled as I headed down the stairs into the lobby. If something had happened to Nix again, then nothing would stop me from ripping their assailant limb from limb. There was no sign of Phoenix in the dining room or kitchen either. The only other place they'd be was the lounge we liked to hang around in.

I stopped short as I passed the glass doors, turning my head slowly to see a glimmer of icy blue light. I'd recognise the colour anywhere; it was Nix's ice magic. I stepped out into the frosty December air, fixing my gaze on the source of the light that was pulsing gently. I was briefly distracted by the sight of Phoenix's bow lying in the grass, strung but abandoned. Next to it and spilling arrows everywhere was the brown leather quiver that Nix had made themselves, decorated with earthy green embroidery. I picked it up, ignoring the slight trembling in my hands. The strap of the quiver that went around their waist was ripped in two, and it suddenly became very obvious that something had happened to them. Clearly, Nix had been out here shooting, but from what I could tell? They'd vanished off the face of the Earth. I refocused my attention on the light next to Nix's bow and picked it up gingerly. A shiver ran through me as I made contact with it. It was a ball of clear ice, the magic of its creation preventing it from melting. The light began to pulse faster as I lifted it up to examine it. The ball began to float above my palm, and as I watched, it seemed to fill with white smoke. After a moment, the smoke cleared and a dark image replaced it. I felt something clamp over my heart as my eyes registered what I was looking at. There laid Phoenix, their hair splayed out around them, looking like they'd been knocked out. The room they were in seemed to be a dimly lit cell made of black stone bricks and iron bars. Back on their left wrist and glowing ominously was the phantom metal cuff we'd broken months ago, a sure sign that Malix was somehow involved. The image vanished as I lowered my hand and I stared at Nix's bow without really seeing it.

I dropped the orb back into the grass and collapsed to my knees, gripping the leather quiver with tears filling my eyes. All I wanted was for Phoenix to be safe. To have a life where we could be happy together without constantly looking over our shoulders for danger. Their image lit up in my mind's eye, beautiful and joyful, ravishing and carefree. My hand reached for them, tracing over their alluring form and I was unable to tear myself from their eyes. Their eyes were absolutely stunning to me, a gorgeous dark brown that captured my heart the moment I saw them for the first time. They were so full of love, and they never used to be. I vividly remembered how they'd looked when I first saw them. So scared, so vulnerable, and so incredibly fed up with what their life had become. I wasn't naïve, I knew that Phoenix still struggled with their depression and often believed they weren't good enough. But they'd come so far in the time I'd known them, and I was getting sick of all of the danger around them that was shattering their mentality beyond repair.