Seeing with the Shadows

Chapter 20

“LENA! LENA! She has a fever...”

“What?” The cage swung, and Lena made the mistake of looking down. She let out a shriek.

“Shush!”

“Talla?”

“Yes, it’s me. Now shut up! We’ve got to get you out of this this! It’s almost dawn, people will be out of bed and looking outside soon. At six... or five thirty...”

“It must’ve been Misha.”

“Ashley?”

“Yep, right here. How else would Talla be up here?”

“I don’t know… Misha Controlled me to get in and made the door bigger and then smaller then she took it off. And they all know my fears, now.” Lena said miserably, “The bars have a spell on them.”

“Unbreakable...” Talla murmured.

“How’d you know?” Lena asked.

“I’m in Third year, that’s how. Not Second. Now... let’s see...” Talla put her hand through a space between two bars. “I’ve got it!”

“What?” Ashley asked, “We need to be quick.”

“Patience, small First Year. I’m in charge here. You can Fly through anything... even spells, unbreakable ones, at that. And you can take people with you... Flying through things. So do it. You can keep half of your body out, or whatever, just get her out!”

The sun was climbing higher, and as the sky grew a rosy pink, lights were slowly flickering on as people got up early to go for a swim or finish homework. Ashley took a breath, and then flew into the cage with Lena. She grabbed her arm firmly and suddenly they were all suspended in the air. Lena tried to squirm out of Ashley’s grip, but then she remembered that she couldn’t stand on air.

“Just. Get. Me. Down.” Lena managed. She was getting really dizzy and hot. With a quick movement, making Lena feel like vomiting, Ashley landed on the roof. Then, she flew through it. They landed about ten feet from Garry, but managed to duck behind a cabinet.

Ashley flew so fast Lena didn’t have much time to get her stomach in order. As soon as they got to the dorm, Lena speed walked through as her friends swarmed her with questions, got into the bathroom, and promptly threw up in the toilet. She assumed she would have felt better, but with the fear of heights, the flying so fast she threw up, the Pixir bites, the spikes’ imprint in her hand, the shock of it all, and the vision... not to mention it was boiling in the school... well, she wasn’t in seventh heaven. Her shoulder was starting to burn, and the skin was reopening where the teeth had bit in.

Lena moaned and clutched her head... it was so hot, so confusing... As her stomach churned again, Talla pushed her way past the gaping First Year and two Second Years. Phelicia rubbed up against her, but it didn’t help.

“Lena... why don’t we get you into bed. I’ll cancel all your classes for the next three days, to give you some time.”

“You don’t- ugh!” She grabbed the side of the toilet and threw up again, “O- kay...” she let Talla lead her to her bed.

“Guys. This is a serious warning. Some Pixir bites and fevers like this are contagious. Like this one. Stay away from her...everyone has to bunk on the other side of the room.”

“Got it.” Quoim said.

“Uh huh...” Calista flicked her hair back and stared at Lena in concern.

The cut was opening and closing, blood trickling out every time it reopened. She couldn’t fall asleep because every minute it was closed, it ripped open again. Her head burned with fever.

Talla looked at the pillow, where a red stain was spreading. “I’ll be back.” She sprinted out of the room.

A couple minutes later, she returned carrying a new sheet and a bottle. Yanking the blanket off Lena, she opened the window, and after a moment of consideration, threw it out the window. The room began to get cold, and Calista reached over to close it, but Talla stopped her.

 “Don’t. You. Dare. Touch. That.” Calista quickly withdrew her hand. Lena was starting to shiver. “Right.” Talla shook the sheet out, and let it fall over Lena.

“Doesn’t she need... something else besides a sheet?” Quoim asked, concerned.

“Don’t you trust a Healer?” Talla snapped.

“I do, but- it just seems like-” Talla turned towards her, raising an eyebrow, and Quoim decided not to finish the sentence.

Talla turned to Ashley, “You should try to sleep before classes start. Thanks for your help.”

“Okay. But if you need an extra person, I’m here.” Ashley walked out the door, and they could hear her footsteps, she was running back to her room.

“And for your information, Quoim, this sheet will never be too will never be too cold or too hot for her, and it cannot be made dirty. It will absorb her blood, and anything else, and stay clean.” Talla informed Quoim. Quoim just nodded and sat down on her bed, pulling the comforter around her.

“Lena, what happened to your shoulder?” Calista exclaimed when she caught sight of the blood.

“I… OW!” Lena screeched at the sight of what Talla was doing.

Talla ignored Lena and continued pouring the cleaning liquid into her bite. “This cut isn’t an ordinary scrape. It’s a Pixir bite. And if I’m guessing correctly, it was Naran’s Pixir. This fever could go on for a while.”

Lena’s stomach kept on churning and twisting. She felt very nauseous. On top of all the shock she was under, her shoulder was stinging and bleeding like crazy.

Maru huddled next to her, but she pushed him off, it just made it worse, which made Maru started meowing loudly and angrily. Phelicia sat on Maru, and joined his chorus, croaking. After a while she flew off him and sat on the windowsill, singing quietly, but it echoed around the outdoors so quite a few windows were opened angrily because it was so loud. Phelicia’s feathers caught the light, turning a bright, blood-ruby red.

After a while, Maru jumped up next to Lena, and she was too tired to push him away. He knelt besides her and started licking her cut in short, repetitive, raspy licks with his scratchy tongue. After a while, the pain ebbed, and her shoulder began to close up. Soon, Lena managed a sleep, though broken many times because of the fever.

AUTHORS NOTE: so I tried to fix the formatting so its not as big spaces in between the paragraphs in this chapter. When I get the chance im going 2 go back and delete the like ten thousand spaces in between every paragraph in the other chapters. Sorry this is so shorttttt im just really busy right now. VOTE COMMENTE FAN

<3

tova