cascade | kotlc

12. Drakostomes

 "What happened?" June asked the second Sophie and Keefe stumbled back to the girls' main room.

Sophie collapsed into the nearest chair. Keefe flopped onto the ottoman next to her and stared at the ceiling.

"Sophie, no offense, but your eyes kind of look like alicorn manure," June said carefully. "I'm sorry if that was mean. But they're glittering."

"Are they?" Sophie mumbled as Della crouched in front of her and turned her face from side to side, then squeezed Sophie's cheeks, giving her a fish face.

"Was that too mean?" June asked uncertainly. "I'm sorry if I hurt you."

"No, I'm fine. It's just... I'm really tired. I need water."

"That's because you got light poisoning," Della said, pulling out a list. June realized it was titled 'Crazy Messes That Sophie Will Find A Way To Get Herself Into.' "Symptoms include fatigue, severe dehydration, a bluish tint to the gums, and glints of sparkle in the irises."

"Poisoning?" Sophie repeated. "So that's why my eyes look like alicorn poop?"

Della laughed, holding out a mirror. "It's a strange effect, I'll admit. Even stranger how it makes Keefe look like a Vacker.

June turned to look at Keefe. The shimmer in his eyes made them look teal, almost identical to Fitz's. She glanced over and blushed when she saw Fitz grinning at her, mouthing, spend some time later?

She nodded happily before pretending like nothing happened and turning back to Sophie.

"Always wanted to be a part of the family," Keefe mumbled. June winced at his overflowing sadness. She felt like she didn't deserve to be happy when he was suffering like this.

"Are you okay?" Sophie whispered.

Deep down they all knew he wasn't.

"You'll both feel better once you take Elwin's remedy," Della said, opening a huge medicine cabinet disguised as a shrubbery. She studied the shelves of small glass vials and picked out a tarlike vial and what looked like snot.

June turned away and went to Fitz, standing beside him. He motioned at her to take a seat with him and she sat down.

"I hope Keefe is going to be okay," Fitz told her quietly. "He's going through a lot. I hope Sophie can get him out of this mess."

"I hope so too. I can't stand being here, not being able to do anything, and just watching him break apart..."

Fitz wrapped his arms around her. "He'll make it through with Sophie. I know he will."

"I hope you're right."

"So are you guys ever going to tell us what happened?" Biana asked. "Because I think Dex is going to explode if you don't."

"Hey, don't put it all on me," Dex argued. "If Biana twists her hands any tighter, she's going to pull off one of her fingers."

"Fitz, you never told me what it was with that thing Dex was holding," June realized. "I was away with the Collective, trying to save our lives. What was that device for?"

"Oh, it was just the list of the Exilium Waywards. And it wasn't helpful, I promise. We found eight Psionipaths and there was nothing special about it."

June nodded. "That's unfortunate..."

Sophie summed up everything Gethen had said. Every word seemed to make Keefe slouch smaller, and June had to resist the urge to grab her gun, leap to Gethen, and shoot him in the heart a couple hundred times.