Orison | Celeste Academy Series BK #3

Chapter Sixty-Eight ۞ Time to Return

Valeriana regained her consciousness in a familiar bedchamber. It wasn't the one in the residences of the Twelve. Rather, it was the one in the Ember Palace. Despite the short time she spent there, she loved the bed and its comfortable softness. It was a luxury she had fallen in love with.

There was a man hovering over her, attending to the injuries she sustained from the incident in Empyrean Volcano. She realized he looked familiar. He must've been the man who worked on heruu dislocated arm after she fell off that horse.

"Good afternoon, milady," he gave her a nod. "How convenient of you to awaken. How are you feeling?"

"Good afternoon," she replied sleepily, wanting to rub her eyes. However, her arms were feeling weak. "This is . . ."

"The Ember Palace," he told her. "You were out for a day."

I knew it.

"What about my . . . um . . . friends?" she asked. "Is Avaro alright?"

"I'm not sure about your companions but you were brought to me heavily injured," he said. "You fractured your shoulder and you had a minor concussion. Luckily, you had something with you with great healing properties. You're all right, now. I suggest taking it easy for a bit, anyhow."

He talked quite a lot for an old man.

Her entire body felt numb. It seemed almost scary just thinking about trying to move. "What something was that?"

"A dragon fruit. They're rare specimens. It's the first time I've seen them. Though I was not surprised since you came with a dragon."

She chuckled. Where is my baby? She looked around, but the room was empty.

The old man did a quick examination before smiling at Valeriana and saying, "I think you're in good shape. I'll go and call your . . . um, I'll go and call Lord Corvan and the others to inform them you've already awaken."

She muttered a small thank you to the man as he left. He gathered his things from the bedside table and made his way to the exit. The door was closed ever so gently behind him as his actions were quite slow.

Valeriana breathed out a sigh and tried to move her limbs. She had a major, head-splitting headache and she felt irritated and grumpy. Even the light innocently beaming through the windows made her mood sour as her eyes were blinded. She moved the pillows behind her and reclined against the headboard, wishing all of this was over.

She heard chatters down the hallway and loud footsteps. Looking at the door, a couple of shadows moved from the gap below and there were faint whispers. There was a commotion and it was pushed open, so harshly that it banged against the wall.

Valeriana practically jumped from the bed but managed to calm herself as her eyes landed on a familiar pair of emerald green. Unknowingly, a smile broke on her face as he made his way over.

Even so, his face was filled with a grim expression as though he was frustrated to no end. His shoulders looked tense. This made her lose her smile a bit.

Gavin had also entered, but seeing the situation, decided it was not good if he intruded on the two. What he did instead was grab the open door and pull it close behind him.

"Hey . . ." she began. "Are you okay now? I was so worried when Avaro—"

"You stupid witch," he muttered as he made his way over. "Why did you do that?"

"Do what?" she asked.

"You don't even know what you did to yourself." He rounded the bed and stopped just beside her, looking down at her hand. His brows knitted and he reached out for her wrist. He pulled down on her gloves and stared at the mark. The gloves she wore were fresh and silky. They weren't the ones she used back in the Empyrean Volcano.