Wind Wielder

Chapter 14 - Midnight Rendezvous

Magic palaces were a wonderful thing.

Madja and Zara had fallen into a simple routine for the next week. Wake, heal, stretch, then go to the dining room for lunch. Madja left Zara to her own devices in the afternoons and evenings, as the healer undoubtedly had other tasks to tend to in the later half of the day. Aside from muscle tremors and spasms that had yet to fade and nightmares almost every night, Zara was faring much better with Madja's healing, food, and fresh air.

The access to the wind in this place, the constant sunshine on top of these mountains, it was breathtaking. Zara smiled as she leaned over the banister, admiring the dark night sky in all its glory.

Zara couldn't wait for Kazia to see. She had always loved the stars. The way they looked here in the Night Court was ethereal, twinkling in bright whites and greens and reds in their many galaxies and constellations. Zara could practically see the grin on Kazia's face now. The way it would light up her whole countenance, the way Kazia would bite her lip to keep from asking Rhys all kinds of questions about the constellations. Kazia would have the greatest shock, learning he was in fact not a heartless High Lord. But Feyre, if Feyre was there too for the meeting, Kazia would ask the High Lady all the questions in the world about the stars. She would ask Zara to send the winds sweeping through her soft golden plumage, just the way she always liked it.

Zara bit her lip, looking down at the banister. Gods, she missed Kazia. It had only been two weeks, but Zara couldn't wait to see her again. To share this new part of herself with Kazia, this secret she had kept for so long. Zara wondered how Kazia would feel about it all, how pissed she would be with Zara for hiding her abilities from Kazia. But given time, Zara knew Kazia would forgive her eventually. The lightning wielder could only hope her father would think the same.

 Zara scoffed, looking up to face the stars again, letting their light hit her face. She doubted it. Zara doubted Zephyr could ever forgive her for being infinitely more powerful than he wanted her to be. This would not only stretch the little bubble he had wanted for Zara as a lady of the Court, it would shatter it. She could only hope the fallout between them wouldn't be too severe.

Zara felt a cool brush of air on her wrist, and moved to flick the small tendril of wind away. It came back a second time, and she looked down in confusion as she realized she could not speak to this odd brush of air.

Upon looking down, Zara realized it was in fact not the wind, but a small tendril of shadow wrapping around her wrist. She jolted in surprise, and removed her hand from the shadow's grasp. The poor thing wilted, its little dark edge curling inwards, and slowly sinking down to the floor. Feeling sorry for it, Zara reached her hand out hesitantly once more.

The little black shadow turned a happy shade of gray, and curled around her finger once more, nuzzling in between the space between her first and second knuckle of her left ring finger. Zara could not resist the confused smile pulling on her lips. "Where did you come from?" She asked the little shadow.

It unfurled itself partially from her finger, to point to the door. Zara turned, seeing there was in fact more tendrils of shadows curling underneath her doorway. She raised a brow. "Did Rhys send you to collect me to come speak with him?"

The little shadow leapt off her finger, twirling excitedly towards the door. Zara grinned, and reached for her satin robe, wrapping it tightly around her as she headed after it, out the door and down the dark hallway. More shadows seemed to join them as they walked, past the living room and down into the opposite wing of the Moonstone Palace. They clustered around one doorway in particular, leaking out the sides of the chamber door and down the hall towards her. These shadows felt greater, darker, more ominous. The little shadow curled around her finger seemed to curl around her tighter, as if excited.