Spurned Queen

Chapter 54: Fruit Salad

Lexi

"What was going on between you and Mum?" Tyler whispered.

"Me and who?"

"Mum. She was glaring at you half the time from behind that veil-thingy."

"Oh, sorry. That wasn't Mum. Technically."

"What?"

"I didn't tell you before, but then again, I haven't really processed it myself. That's Rowan. A mind controller."

"Hold on just a minute. You mean that that wasn't our mother, but some physic guy controlling her?" he hissed.

"Of course. Mum would never turn down the opportunity to end this war," I shrugged, tugging him along when he stopped in his tracks.

"Oh goddess," he groaned.

"Yep. So watch out."

He glanced down at me and shook his head, saying nothing else.

Up the pass in the mountains, probably a thousand years ago, there was a small cit asy. They lived in a patch of rich land at the top of the mountain, around a small crater lake that lay in the heart of the mountains. Up here, there was plenty of rainfall, plenty of minerals, and the place was easily defensible (the mountain pass was so narrow at some points that they had to move single file.) But there was not enough land to sustain them all, and after a couple hundred years, the soil was exhausted. The tribe moved away and the place was forgotten.

This was now the campsite of the shifters' army. It was a ghost town; with houses already built, all it took was a few renovations and viola! We lived in relative comfort.

For example, I had my own room. It was tiny, but I had made a few changes, such as the icicle that hung from the ceiling. It melted slowly, creating a steady drip into the bucket I had provided. I loved the sound; it reminded me of the caves.

I had just decided that I wanted a fruit salad when someone knocked.

"Come in!" I called and in came the last person I was expecting.

"You know how to knock?" I asked, shocked. He offered a short glare before his eyes were drawn to the dripping.

"Why do you have that?" Aevran asked.

"Because why not?"

His jaw ticked. "I guess I don't deserve to know that either," he said.

I shrugged. He wasn't wrong.

I stared at him. He stared at my room.

Eventually, I rolled my eyes. "Is there anything in particular you would like to discuss?"

Looking immensely uncomfortable, he closed his eyes. "I'm here to apologize," he grunted. I cocked an eyebrow.

"For what?"

His eyes rested on the icicle and stayed glued there. "Well... the last time we spoke to each other, I was pretty harsh on you. So, yeah. I'm... sorry."

Wow. He really had never done this before.

In the back of my mind, Lattis opened her eyes.

I remained silent, staring at him. After a few seconds, his feet began shifting and his eyes darting around again awkwardly. I said nothing. Watched him squirm.

When I decided he had suffered enough, I crossed my arms.

"Why are you apologizing?" I asked sharply.

"Why?" he asked, surprised.

"Yeah, why. Tell me the reason why you came here to say sorry."

He fidgeted some more. "Um, because... because... I don't like the way we've been these past two weeks. We've been ignoring each other and we're mates so it's uncomfortable."