The Heir of Night

22

Time didn't exist during the moments Theia laid over Maia. She didn't breathe, didn't move, just laid there and held her mother's hand. Her tears had gone empty and her eyes dried. All that remained was a silent mind and an aching, hollow chest. However long it took, Nyx returned with Madja. The healer kneeled beside the bed, resting her hand over Theia's as she spoke. Whatever she said didn't reach Theia's ears, she didn't want to listen.

After a while, Nyx's hands appeared around her waist and tugged her back. Theia hadn't noticed two other healers in the room, both females. They held long poles connected by a fabric, which Theia watched as Madja pulled her mother onto it. Madja laid a cloth over Maia's body and held Theia's face as she spoke. Theia heard nothing but her pulse and loud ringing as her eyes fell to the stain of waste on the bed from Maia's relaxed organs.

"Don't let a male touch her," Theia croaked, lifting her eyes to Madja. The older female nodded and brushed back Theia's hair before she and the other healers carried Maia from the room. Nyx still held her waist, but Theia just stared. She nearly forgot he had been in the room, or that his hands were on her.

"You need to bathe and change your clothes," Nyx murmured into her hair. She realized how close he was, how intimately he held her. Her muscles had no strength, but still she pried his hands from her body and crumpled forward.

"Don't touch me," she whispered, letting her head hang. When she opened her eyes again, they fell to the pants she wore. Indeed, her proximity to Maia when she died left stains that mirrored the one on the bed. Her stomach twisted, throat tightening. She was in need of a bath, but the mere thought of walking to the bathing chamber had her nearly doubling forward in exhaustion.

"Let me help you," Nyx offered, placing a hand on her shoulder. She didn't want help, she didn't want to accept help. She did once, and now her mother was dead. Theia sighed, sitting up slightly. Once she was clean, she'd strip the sheets and lay in this bed to savor the remainder of Maia's soul, however long it took. She closed her eyes and leaned back into Nyx's touch.

He understood what she meant. Nyx slid an arm onto her lower back and beneath her thighs and lifted her. Theia just laid in his arms as he walked her to the bathing chamber, as limp and empty as Maia had been for most of her life. Theia stared blankly as Nyx turned the faucet on and dumped soap into the running water. She only realized how helpful he was offering to be when he stood her up and took the buttons on the back of her shirt between his fingers.

"Nyx," Theia whispered, cowering under the touch. He paused, letting his fingers rest on her back.

"I'm not going to look, I promise. Just let me do this for you. It's the least I can do. I'll leave when you're in the bath and come back when you're finished."

With a sigh, she hung her head and let him unbutton her shirt. She shivered under the touch of his fingers on her bare spine, and her arms when he pulled the shirt from her body. Nyx kneeled behind Theia, grasping the loose waist of her pants and tugging them down. She crossed her arms over her chest when he stood again. Her legs still shook, and she wasn't sure if it was from being nude in front of him or the shock of the entire night.

Nyx placed a hand on her lower back and the other on her wrist to lead her into the bath. When Theia sat beneath the suds, she didn't look up at him. She heard him gather her dirty clothes from the floor and leave the room. As soon as he did, she sunk beneath the surface. It felt easier to live beneath the weight of the water. Her lungs ached, but it took away the focus from the rest of her pain. She had been so angry with Maia that she almost felt guilty for grieving her so deeply.

It still didn't feel real. Perhaps she'd leave this tub and return to Maia's room to see her speaking with Madja about yarn or cards. Maybe she would tell Theia how ugly the wool dress is, or how Theia should be doing more for her. Anything would be better than her absence.