Princess of Flames

A Walk

          She raced down corridors and rooms, her knees threatening to buckle until she reached the Great Hall. She stumbled in out of breath. Her father came to her side to help set her down on a chair. "Manon's ... here." Was all she said before she collapsed.

           She woke up to find Breanna and Rowan sitting by her bed. Breanna just reading and her father with his head in his hands. Breanna looked up and saw she was awake and tapped Rowan on the shoulder. He looked up and swiftly grabbed a glass of water as she sat up. "What happened?" Her father slowly looked at her. "You fainted." Well duh, as if that wasn't obvious. "Well, I know that." "We think it has something to do with your magic. When you tunneled into your power a few days ago-'' "What! A few days ago. How long was I asleep?" Breanna looked to her and said, "Three days." Three days, gods. "How?" "As I was saying," He said with a hint of annoyance. "When you tunneled down into your power did you see a bottom?" "No." "We think that you have been tunneling into your power for a while after that, haven't you?" "Yes," she admitted. She wanted to have a lot of magic for her to show off to her mother. "Taylor, you need to let small bursts of it out, or else this will happen. When it builds up like that, then you can't even control it when there is that much pressure." He looked at her sympathetically and she hated it, if she said as much he added. "I will talk to Aelin about it to make sure she knows how to make you control it. You have more magic than we guessed, much more." He gave her the glass of water. "I need to tell your mother what happened, she has been stressing about it." He stiffly stood up and walked out the door. She doubted that was true it was probably the other way around. He was the one in here, he was a little frantic when explaining. Her mother was calm about this sort of thing, not that she doesn't care; she just wants to have someone who is not frantic and who can think. Her father is overprotective about most things because she is the oldest and apparently the most reckless. Breanna moved from her chair and sat down next to Taylor. She wrapped her arms around her chest giving her a big hug. She had kind of needed that and she guessed that Breanna needed it too. Asterin barged in just then. "Taylor, get up. This is way too long to be sleeping." She strode to the window, opened the curtains, and threw the blankets off of her! "Asterin! What the he-'' She looked at Breanna wide-eyed. "Heck, are doing!" Asterin just smiled at her. "Since you fainted, I and my mother decided to stay for a few more days. And I saw Rowan leave your rooms so I figured you were awake. If not I had this." She opened the door and grabbed a bucket of water. Breanna was still wide-eyed.

           So over the next few days she wasn't allowed to leave her bed. Rowan was driving her far too close to insanity. All she could do on her own were sleep and eat, except for the times Rowan tried to feed her himself and she snarled at him and he just sat back down all the while she glared at him. Her mother told her that it was normal and that when she had burnt out that he had done the exact same thing. And that it was apparently just fae male, territorial nonsense. After that incident with Asterin her father decided she was only allowed to come in when he was there. But late at night she sneaked in and they had talked and laughed, quietly. And the next morning she got up and decided that she was going out for a walk. Her father came in just after she got dressed. He glared at her. She just gave him a look that dared him to send her back to bed. Luckily for him he relented. "I'm sending Lysandra with you though." She rolled her eyes. "I don't need a babysitter. I can take care of myself." Was he deliberately trying to get on her nerves today? "Lysandra needs to get out just as much as you, and now that Aedion is in Caraverre, she can get out of the castle more." She figured out of everybody Lysandra was not so bad. Lysandra had recently, as in five months ago, given birth to a little baby boy. Gavriel, they had named him after Aedion's father who had died saving him. Aedion had brought them back to Caraverre because Evangeline had wanted to see them and Caraverre is closer to Arran. Now Aedion and Lysandra had two boys. She guessed that was why Aedion doted on Taylor so much, he was almost as much of a father to her than Rowan was. So she said, "Fine."

           Taylor and Lysandra walked down into the Oakwald. Lysandra was in her human form so they could talk. "So I heard you had a little magic outbreak a couple days ago." They had been walking in silence so she guessed that Lysandra wanted to start a conversation. "Yeah I had a headache when I was flying and then-" "You were flying. Oh no, did Asterin get you to ride a wyvern." Taylor just gave her a knowing look and Lysandra chuckled. "You're so much like your mother with the attitude and sarcasm. You don't have either of your parents' eyes or hair, but your mother has told me that is how she knows and has known from the day she saw you that you were going to be the most wonderful Queen of Terrasen and that we are lucky to have you. Not your power Taylor, but your heart we know that it burns with the same fire as your mother's. And that is why you will be the most amazing Queen." Lysandra had tears in her eyes. She hated to admit it but she did too. "I just wish I could see it." That's right, Lysandra had a mortal lifespan and Aelin didn't so by the time she became Queen, Lysandra wouldn't be there to see her crowned. Taylor just reached out and embraced the Lady of Caraverre. She knew there were no words she could offer so they stood in silence.