The Princess of Cithrí - Chaol Westfall Fanfiction

Part 21

Sparse rays of light glimpsed through the windows, casting a dark gloom over us, but not dark enough to maintain the sleep. It was dawn. I curled into myself, clutching the thin blanket to my chest. If felt like awful cramps surging through my whole body, and I had no idea what had caused it. The sleeping drug? The struggle? Or just the heart break? If this is what heart break felt like, I didn't want to love ever again. A body slipped across the carriage, sitting by my head, their hands tucking my hair under me. "How do you feel?"
It was Rowan, his emerald eyes scanning into mine for an answer. "Like I've had poison forced down my throat." I huffed, pushing him away and sitting up. I held my head, god it hurt.
He rolled his eyes. "Stop pissing around. I didn't mean about that."
I took a deep breath of the carriage air, it was already contaminated with human mustiness. Legs swung off the carriage bench opposite, they were too short to touch the floor. "Hey trouble." I said, scruffing Vanir's hair. He squirmed away, holding the bag of treats he had been shoving into his mouth.
I raised an eyebrow.
"Dorian, as a leaving gift." Rowan explained, handing me a small handful. "Take it easy, ok? Its sickly stuff."
I nodded, and slowly bit into the first bar, letting the sugary creaminess melt on my tongue. How many years had it been since I had last had sugar? I couldn't even begin to count. It would have been back when mother was alive. "I feel like crap." I said to Rowan, he smiled pitifully. "You'll get over it. All the love you need is here."
I didn't know what to say, as I twisted the decorative wrapper and popped another sweet in my mouth. I leant onto my older brother, scanning over the carriage; it was small yet spacious for three of us. The seats topped with long, burgundy leather cusions. Drappy dark cutains swayed with the movement, it was like we were on a boat, the carriage obviously of cheap build. On the floor slipped under the bench were more bags - I assume ours - then there was a small bow and arrow. I frowned, who's was it. Why did we even need it?

Chaol and I would have eloped in something similar to this. We would have entertained each other for thw whole journey lips trailing over every inch of one anothers skin. His fingers squeezing and carressing me like I was his queen.
I shuddered. He would have said endless streams of words about his love for me. He would have done anything to make me laugh and smile. I squeezed my eyes shut. That would only ever be in my dreams now. A distant memory of the love we had once had for one another. No one would ever be able to make my body tingle with a smile, a simple glance was all he had to give me to drive me senseless.

Rowan pressed a hand on my shoulders. "Don't think about him." He whispered, as if he could understand. He had left his woman knowing she loved him. The last I could remember of Chaol was his tear streamed face as he insisted that he had never loved me, his expression as I begged for help on the street floor.

Vanir shuffled over to one of the windows, brushing back the curtains. "Rowan!" He smiled delighted, pressing his face up against the glass, crystalised sugar lining his mouth. "Its the race ponies."
Rowan frowned leaving me - how odd to see the city race horses this far from home, they would never attempted this road it was too dangerous for their fragile legs. They sounded to be galloping, drawing nearer and nearer. There was a loud juddered, Vanir crashing off his seat onto the floor. I clutched the cusioning under my butt. Shit, what was that? There was a tremendous shriek from the horses and then the next thing I knew I was flying towards the left wall.