Hear my roar.

The Fire Inside

They had just arrived at the Castle of Night when Firefox pulled her aside.  

"No." The big red-head said firmly. "You're coming with me." Helena unhappily followed him. He opened a bedroom door, and pulled her inside. "Why were you at the healing camp?" He demanded. "You're not sick, and you don't seem to have any children... What's wrong with you?"

Helena hesitated. "I did something stupid, and hurt myself." She answered sullenly. 

"How?" Firefox pressed, voice edged with... Concern?

"Why do you care?" Helena hissed. "You're the Adderhead's herald... you're a murderer." She blurted out. Firefox narrowed his blue eyes, but, to her surprise, he did not shout at or strike her. 

"And you're a Strolling Player." He said coldly. A knock came to the door.

*******

Firefox looked over as two of his soldiers awkwardly led the Jungle cat into the room. Joy and relief washed over Helena's face.

"Storm!" She cried, running over to her beast, she knelt, hugging him, burying her face in his golden fur.  Firefox motioned for his soldiers to leave.

"You're very fond of your pet."

"Yes, I love him. How could I not? After all he's been through with me."

"How did you hurt yourself?"

The girl hesitated. "I... I cut my side open on a large piece of jagged glass." She pulled up her tunic, and unwound the bandages to show him the painful looking gash across her ribs. Firefox winced. He had seen hundreds of men wounded, he had inflicted hundreds of wounds, but with Helena, it felt wrong.

"Come with me." He commanded. Helena frowned.

"Where."

"To the best healer I know of. You need to get that looked at, or it's going to fester." Helena looked surprised. She rubbed her cat's ears, and then followed him down the long hallway.

Resa looked up as Firefox entered, He was holding Helena's arm.

"Barn owl." He said coolly. "I want you to look at her side." Resa again could not hide her surprise, Firefox actually cared for someone? A Strolling Player no less? The Barn Owl hurried over to Helena.

"This way, my dear." He said gently. Helena walked with him. Resa followed, ready to offer comfort to the girl. The Barn Owl clicked his tongue in dismay at the angry looking wound in the girl's side.

"How did this happen."

"I did something stupid." Helena said quietly. "I tried to climb through a broken window." Resa stared at the girl in disbelief, she had walked through the forest without complaint, gotten into a fight with a soldier, she had never once hinted that she was in pain.

"Why did you not reveal this sooner?" Resa asked her. Helena looked up at her with those beautiful silver eyes.

"Because there are others worse off." She said softly. Resa thought of Mo, and wanted to hug the girl for her bravery. Helena growled in pain as the Barn Owl rubbed an ointment into her wound.  "You're Resa, right?"

Resa nodded. "Resa Folchart." Helena smiled.

"I'm Helena Silver-Eyes." She paused. "How's Mina?"

"She's doing fine." Helena nodded.

"She's a good friend, I've known her since I joined the Strolling Players."

"How did you come to join the Strolling Players?" Resa asked as the Barn Owl wrapped bandages around the wound on Helena's side.

"After my family... I told you my mother stopped caring for me, she got a new husband, she didn't want me around, I reminded her to much of what she had lost..." Helena paused. "So I left, I found Storm, my jungle cat that night, poor little guy was in the same kind of situation as me, he was the runt, mother abandoned him. So I took him, I had no plan, I didn't know what I was going to do, that's when I met the Black Prince and his Bear. The Prince asked me what was wrong, why was I traveling alone? I was 15 at the time, most 15 year old girls did not travel through the woods alone. So I told him. He took me then and there, just told me to follow him, the Strolling Player's became my family, I learned to throw knives, sing, and play with fire... "

"You can talk to fire?"

"Yeah, it doesn't always listen to me though." She chuckled. "It is rather condescending with me sometimes, but it always answer's me." She smiled. "Sootbird is not the best mentor. So I chose knife-throwing, the Black Prince taught me himself, and he is a good mentor." The Barn Owl straightened.

"You'll be fine, dear." Helena thanked him, and trailed over to where Firefox was waiting. The Adderhead's herald grabbed her arm, though not roughly, Helena looked over her shoulder, giving a half-smile at Resa. Resa smiled back at her.