"Will she be alright?" Adam asked. He was feeling tensed. For years he'd been a part of the Band Court. And for years, he'd never had an unwanted encounter with a mortal.
"She will be. She has to be." Kerby was uncertainly certain. "I mean, she's in a hospital now. I'm sure the doctors can take good care of her." He was sitting on the couch, looking lazy as he scanned the map.
"What if she tells people? About us? About blood pirates?"
"You didn't hint anything about fairies, did you?"
"No."
"Well, then you have nothing to worry about. And even if she did know, I doubt the F.P.D. would believe her." He sighed. "Now, can we just keep looking where the goddamn Hotel Lewis is?"
"F.P.D.?" Adam sat on the carpeted floor, a map of Flynn in his hands.
"Flynn Police Department."
"I wonder how you know a lot of things..." Adam was thinking. It's one of the things that he admired about Kerby. Well, aside from the fact that Kerby had never turned down a request from Adam. But that was Companion stuff. As his Companion, Kerby was inclined to protect him with his life, and watch him at all times. So he was always around Adam.
Every single moment of his life.
"If you go out and socialise with people, maybe you'd know more than I do."
"You believe that?" Adam was doubtful.
"Of course." Kerby dropped the map on his stomach and faced him. "I'm tired. Can we look tomorrow?"
"You go ahead. I'll look a while longer."
"Don't stay up too late. We have training early morning." Kerby stood up and clapped his hands over his pant and shirt, blowing the dust off him.
"Okay." Adam frowned. Morning was only a few hours away.
He could hear Kerby's steps echoing off the stone walls of the corridor, a retreating sound that signalled a dawning feeling in his stomach. Loneliness, it was. And he hated it.
More than anything else.
He focused his attention back to the map, his eyes absentmindedly dropping over the Neville Twins and the hospital two blocks away.
There was a sound, a clearing of throat.
When he looked up, he saw Tasha, in her nightgown. Her hair was now black, long curls that were much like an abyss that reached her hips. An endless darkness. Her eyes remained the same, but her ears wear no longer pointed and feathery. Instead, it was the roundness that was very like a mortal's. She had worn a glamour ring, Adam realised.
"Hey," she said in a small smile. She glided over the cold floor. "Where's Kerby?" Her eyes were somehow droopy. Had she just woken? She landed on the carpet inches away from Adam, soundless like a black fog.
"He went to bed," Adam said, his eyes settling back over the map. He wondered how Tasha was always wary of Kerby during his absence when all she did when they were in the same room was either comment about his poor taste in clothing or assault him verbally of his overconfidence. "Do you perchance know where Hotel Lewis is?" he asked instead.
Tasha placed a finger under her chin. Then sighed. "That I have no idea," she said. Her voice was like the wind, hollow and round. It was a magnificent alto. "I may have to ask the winds later, maybe the clouds, too." She shrugged. "Or other sylphs."
"Wonderful." He smiled. "Thank you, Tasha. You always have better ways of acquiring information than anyone in this building."
Tasha only mirrored the smile. "Have I ever told you?" She began, "For a pureblood, you're too kind to your Companion." Tasha pulled a thin strand of black hair, studying it like a scientific specimen. "Most gentries don't let their Companions leave their side."
Adam felt a familiar pang in his chest. "I'm not a gentry, you know that," was what he said. Not any longer, was what he didn't say. It was the truth and he couldn't lie. He gave up his royal rights when he joined the Band Court, earning him negative remarks and comments. A Lost Boy, they called him. "How about you? Have you a candidate in mind? For Companionship, I mean."
She curved her lips, "At the moment, there is none."
"The Vily must be anxious." Adam was amused.
"Not at all. Do you have anyone to recommend?" Tasha moved closer, bumping Adam's knee.
"Well, there's Curly and the twins," Adam offered with a shrug.
Tasha released a sound that could only express distaste. "Curly..." She looked thoughtful. "He doesn't seem like the companion type. I mean, he's a good healer. In all honesty, he's a great Cureborn. Maybe one of the finest among halfbreeds. But I don't see him following someone all day." She was right. Curly was a kind of person who'd be more delighted to care for his garden and talk to plants. The kind that liked to be left alone in his own world. "The twins, on the other hand, are marvelous warriors..."
"Well, they're Battleborn," Adam managed to say. "Born to fight."
"Yes. A great material for companionship. But those boys appear to be brutal at times. They let their blades talk instead of their mouths," she explained with a sigh.
Adam closed the map and moved his eyes over Tasha. "I'm sure whoever's going to be your Companion will be a lucky one. Not every one's given the chance to get acquainted with the Vily's beautiful daughter."
Tasha's lips windened into a smile. Her cheeks turned red. And her eyes shone. "As long as they can fly. My winds dislike carrying any other who's not me."
"I guess my team's off the list." Adam exhaled. Curly and the twins couldn't fly. He jumped to his feet. "I'm going to bed now. You should, too."
Tasha gave him a wry smile, but she went on her feet, too. "Right. Long day." It didn't sound like a realization. It was more like a reminder of work to be done.
Lots of them.
Adam navigated through the shadowed hallways toward his room. The tall windows gave him a visual of the view that laid under the dark night. Golden lights dotted the barely awake city. The tall buildings were like black towers that housed a Rapunzel in their highest floors, waiting to be found by a prince.
From where Adam stood, he could see the river that ran under the bridge just across the street. It was even darker than the skies, flowing like a current of soundless shadows.
When he opened the door to his room, a loud snoring made its way to his ears. Kerby, he groaned inwards. He stepped in and closed the door with a click. On his bed, Kerby laid on his stomach. His arms and legs were spread as if the room and everything else inside was his.
Which isn't.
With annoyed eyes, Adam strode towards his Companion. He planned on pushing him off the covers. But he stopped himself when he saw his face.
The golden-haired boy was deeply asleep. Dark circles ran under the shadows of his long black eyelashes. And his lips were partly agape. Kerby looked tired.
Somehow, Adam felt guilty. Sometimes he forgot that the other boy was only part fairy. And part fairy meant tiredness came faster than it did to Adam.
Adam exhaled. He leaned down to open the drawer under the bed. He grabbed a thick blanket, careful not to wake Kerby.
He unfolded the soft material and let it spread over the floor. He began to unlace his boots and remove his outer garments: jacket and pants. Not a minute longer, he was lying over the blanket, the cold emanating from the hard floor underneath.
But he didn't care.
He was too tired.
So he let the darkness consume him.
When morning came, Adam was woken by a tapping on his shoulder. When he opened his eyes, a pair of striking blue eyes stared back. "Why did you sleep on the floor?"
"You were snoring loudly when I came last night."
Kerby chuckled. "Oh, I'm sorry. I seem to have quite a liking to silk covers."
Adam was about to say something when he saw that Kerby was wearing a black pair of sweatpants and a hooded jacket. "Those are mine, are they not?"
A grin spread across Kerby's face as he avoided Adam's eyes. "My hand might've slipped into your wardrobe." He moved away, sitting on the floor, his back leaning by the side of the bed. "Anyway, the Dryad wishes to speak with you and me."
"Any idea why?"
Kerby shrugged. "Probably another quest. I heard a witch has gone rogue."
"We should see her then." It was Adam's turn to grin. There was nothing more exciting than being out into the field of his expertise. Which was mostly kicking Blood Pirates' butts and hunting down rogue witches or fairies who broke the Order.
He stood up and went straight to the bathroom, scooping his neatly folded towel on the black wood dresser beside the door.
Once inside, he stripped off the remaining clothes that hinted about last night's activity. He didn't realise there were tiny splatters of blood at the hem of his shirt. Good thing it didn't touch his skin. Otherwise he'd be burned. And burned skin was never comfortable.
He stepped under the the shower and turned the knob. Water sprinkled out, showering him in pure numbness.
Mornings were cold. But the water was colder.
He stayed there for awhile. Then he began to scrub away the smell of sweat from his skin, letting the scent of soap overflow into his nose.
When done, he grabbed his towel and began to dry himself. And stared at the mirror not long after.
A pair of green eyes looked back at him: one had flecks of brown at the center, the other was the greenest of all the greens he ever saw. He had a mass of golden auburn hair, that which turn to almost gold when hit by sunlight.
He had the face of his father, Kendalion. All angles and cheekbones.
He sighed and turned around to see his back, where his Birthmark presided like a green tattoo. The tree's trunk ran along his spine, ending in zigzagging roots at the bottom. And along his shoulder blades up to the nape of his neck, the leafless branches fanned in beautiful tangles.
But they weren't beautiful now. His Birthmark had lost its colors long years ago. It was now a pale sickly green. And along its lines, cracks and red and dark veins ran over his skin. And the pain he felt was no better than how it looked.
It was a ruin.
It was also a secret he had kept from all who knew him, even Kerby.
He bit his lip and walked out of the bathroom. Outside, he rushed to pull on a long-sleeved black shirt, a pair of tight-fitting black jeans, and his pair of combat boots that laid just beside the foot of the bed.
He was about to walk out of the door when he saw the writhing plant by the windowsill. Its leaves were yellow and close to dryness.
"Oh, Pedro," he called its name. And touched it with gentle fingers. A wave of green spread at the point of contact. The little plant was alive in seconds. Adam could almost see it smile. He sprinkled some water on its leaves and soil before he continued out the door.
Through tall windows, the hallway was streaming with light from outside. And through them, Adam could see the fairies that oversaw the rising sun. Sylphs, they were. The known fey of the skies. They danced in the air, carried by the winds, painting the clouds with warmth: yellow, orange, and white.
A sylphid passed by the windows, waving a hand at Adam. He waved back. And the creature flew away, back into the wispy and cotton-like clouds.
Adam turned away, continuing his walk toward the flight of stairs that led down.
The journey down two floors was brief. And the Main Hall immediately came into view, the magnificent chandelier hanging like a rain of crystals. The Main Hall was probably the largest and most spacious hall in the Clocktower, with its vast display of paintings of several of the Ancients and weapons of the past Lords and Ladies that governed Flynn.
Thick dark curtains hung over doorways that didn't have doors. Kerby was standing by one, his back leaning rather too comfortably by the wall.
"Took you long enough," he said with a pout. He had his arms crossed in front of his chest.
Adam eyed him coolly, "I needed to bathe." He didn't stop walking and continued under the paved curtains.
Kerby fell in step beside him. "Okay, so I overheard the Dryad speaking with Curly. And she didn't sound happy."
Adam raised an eyebrow. "When was she ever happy?"
They stopped in front of tall double-doors. An intricate insignia was carved over the thick, wide wood. It was a tree inside a circle. Atleast that was how Adam saw it.
The doors opened without either of them touching it. There was light, flooding the shadowy hallway.
Adam stepped inside, Kerby at his heels.
The Dryad's office came into view. The colors of the wood shelves and tables were richly brownish gold. At some parts, green gemlights grew and glowed.
There was also a tree at the far end of the room. It had golden scales and roots. It almost looked like it was painted. It had leaves that were so green and plush. There were brids, too, flying around it as they chirped. The tree appeared like it was a part of the wall, half of it buried into the stone surface.
But today isn't the time to appreciate such beauty, Adam thought.
At the foot of the tree stood a woman of fine figure. She wore a green and gold long dress. The cloth flickered with glitter and tiny crystals. Her skin was oak-white. She had high cheekbones and fierce gold eyes. Instead of hair, intertwined thin branches grew from her head in a spiral of flowers and leaves.
Her collarbones extended around her shoulders like a crown of antlers. A transparent cape like an insect's wings fell behind her.
The Dryad.
When she saw Adam and Kerby, she approached and sat at the head of the long table. The back of the chair rose high as of a throne. "Take seats," she commanded.
Her voice wasn't old. But it wasn't young, either. But something about the way she spoke suggested she had witnessed wars and chaos unfold.
Adam gulped as he sat at the farthest chair. The Dryad's tone wasn't welcoming. Her face had no expressionless, which was not a good sign. Kerby had been right. She wasn't happy.
"A delightful morning, is it not? The sun shines happily," she began. Gold eyes with no pupils dropped over Adam. "How was your little trip last night?"
Kerby acted a fake cough. "Trip? What trip? I suppose you mean trip to dreamland?"
"You know very well what I speak of, Maxwell. So do not attempt to lie on behalf of Adam. Like you have done so many times. And failed."
Adam shifted in his seat and gathered his courage. "We had to go, my Lady," he said as calm as he could, fighting the urging tremble at the back of his throat. He couldn't hide it. He couldn't lie. He was a fairy. "We are near at finding the Lord of Blood."
A frown appeared on the Dryad's face. She exhaled, rather too loudly, before she said, "Foolish child. I have warned you many times not to go looking for this creature. Let the Seelie Court handle such matters."
"But--"
The Dryad swiftly went to her feet. "Hush, you pureblooded fool! You are under my domain and I expect you to follow orders. How many times have you done this?"
"More than one can count," Kerby murmured beside him.
"I have been too considering because of what happened to your family during the Blood Night," the Dryad continued. "But this time, you will be punished. Remove your pins and place them on the table."
Adam's eyes widened. "What? No. You can't do this."
"The two of you are suspended to go on quests until further decision." She looked away, hiding the pain that washed over her face.
Adam's eyes stung.
It looked like he'd be spending more time in the training room with Kerby.
