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Chapter Fifty-One

RAIN

W hen Keir told me he was in the process of moving, I had a moment of panic.

For some reason, my first thought had been that he was leaving Silver Oaks.

When he explained he was moving into Torian's suite, I was conflicted.

Yes, Torian needed help. No, Keir wasn't leaving school. But those two living together?

Not a good idea.

Oddly, the rest of the week was uneventful.

Torian made an effort to be respectful of Keir's presence.

Keir went out of his way to stay out of Torian's space.

At lunch, the pair had even started talking!

It was almost like the tension in my friend group had finally started to ease.

Granted, it wasn't gone completely, but it was now at manageable levels.

So when Aspen asked me to help her carry a few more plants down to the atrium on Saturday, I did what any sensible friend would: called in help.

Because while her magical issues were getting better, they were far from gone.

On the upside, I always had the available power needed for my own lessons.

Sadly, that meant Aspen was still dumping magic into both me and her plants on a regular basis, and we weren't allowed to live in a jungle, according to Ms. Rhodes.

Keir and Wilder showed up at the door to offer some muscle.

Aspen opened her gate, which led to a less popular corner of the atrium, making it safe.

Yet when we got down there, Torian and Hawke were waiting with gardening supplies.

They had those little spades, a rake, and three bags of what only said "top soil," but I had a feeling they were fae plant specific.

"So this is a thing now, huh?" I asked, heading over to pet the Burst. Bubbles immediately filled the air, making me smile.

"Aspen?" Keir asked. "When are you growing Rain one of those?"

"Shh!" she shot back. "Don't ruin the surprise."

"I was just asking," Keir drawled, "because maybe it's easier to grow two? I need one to torment your brother with."

Aspen just scoffed. "That's Tor's favorite plant. He keeps one by his desk."

Keir's brows lifted as he turned to gape at Torian. "You've been holding out on me?"

"It's an Elysian Burst," Torian grumbled. "They're native to where I grew up."

"Mm." Keir just nodded, coming over to pet the plant before me. "Do they run out of bubbles?"

"Nope," Torian said.

"Always in colors?"

"Mhm," Torian admitted.

So Keir just raised his voice. "Aspen! We all need these!"

"Ok!" she groaned. "I'll make those all next week, ok? They should be ready right around the Spring Equinox." She jerked her chin at Torian. "Which means you're probably getting another one for your birthday, you know."

"So you need to grow yourself one for yours," he teased. "You know, since you're so much older than me."

"Fuck off!" Aspen laughed.

"Oh! We need one by the tub," I decided. "A long soak after Hawke abuses me and Keir in practice, and giggles to go with it? Kinda sounds like date night, hm?"

"Oh, Hawke!" Wilder teased. "I didn't know you had it in you to handle both of them!"

"Fuck off," Hawke mumbled, and yet the tips of his ears were getting red.

So I nudged Keir in the ribs. "You should try kissing him. He's pretty good at it."

"You most definitely should not!" Torian huffed, turning away just to head back towards his sister.

Keir and I shared a look, and then I checked with Aspen. She rolled her eyes, making it clear what she thought about her brother's moods, but now I was curious. Did Torian just not want Keir around, or was he jealous of someone else getting time with Hawke? Did he have a problem with Wilder too?

"Yeah, so..." I said, desperately trying to think of something to change the conversation. "Aspen, do we need to plant these anywhere in particular?"

"You point," Wilder told her, picking up a small pot, "and we'll dig."

"Oh, I like this!" Aspen joked. "Ok, Wilder, yours goes..." Her words trailed off as her eyes went wide. "Nevaeh?"

Standing at the edge of our little secluded area, the girl in question was wringing her hands together and looking like she was about to bolt. Her eyes jumped from Aspen to me, then over to Keir before flicking across the rest of the guys.

"Um, Torian?" she said, her voice cracking with anxiety.

He looked back, and the expression on his face was nearly a snarl. "What the fuck do you want?"

"My magic back," the girl whispered. "I came to trade."

"No." As if he'd closed the door in her face, Torian turned back to Hawke and began handing out plants and tools. "We can put these by the pond."

"You want to trade me!" Nevaeh said, raising her voice. "I'll even promise never to harm you or your sister again, but I need my magic back. They say you can give it. That if a jevadu pulls magic from a person, it doesn't just go away. That it can be given back if it hasn't been used, and - "

"That is not how it works!" Torian snapped.

"Oh." Nevaeh's entire body slumped, but she still didn't leave. "Will I ever have magic again, or am I just human now?"

"It'll come back in the fall," he grumbled.

"Seasonal magic ebbs and flows with the seasons.

I'm not yet strong enough to remove your ability to touch it.

Otherwise, you'd be dead, because I would've.

" Pulling in a breath, he turned, those eyes of his somehow feeling more glacial than his sister's.

"You were going to destroy things I care about, so I destroyed the one thing you do! "

"I never wanted Winter magic!" Nevaeh hissed at him. "Don't you get it? I didn't ask to be this thing! I didn't - "

"Oh, he gets it," Hawke said, cutting her off. "You're also doing nothing but digging your hole deeper, you idiot!"

Nevaeh bit her lips together and took a step back. "Fine! So you know, I didn't want to attack you, but Harper said I had to. She said that if I didn't, her mother wouldn't let me stay anymore, since I'm just a worthless Winter bitch, so I tried to stun, not kill."

"That was too much magic to stun," Torian said almost lazily.

"Because I knew the court would try to stop me!" She huffed out a breath. "Whatever. You still need to know that Harper Valentina is trying to get revenge on Aspen." Her eyes darted over to the pair of us. "She said you ruined her, Aspen. She wants to make you pay."

"What?!" Torian demanded. "And how do you know this?"

"She called me last night," Nevaeh explained.

"Aunt Taylor - uh, Harper's mom - hasn't been able to get Harper back into Silver Oaks.

Harper was pissed about it and talking about how they're calling the Wild Hunt on Aspen, to get rid of their problem.

I..." She took a step back, looking ready to bolt.

"I thought you should know. That's not right, but I can't stop them.

I can't even try to talk them out of it, because they just keep asking if I like being on my own or if I want to be dead like everyone else from Winter! "

"Shit," Wilder breathed.

"What. Did. They. Do ?" Torian demanded. "Tell me exactly, Nevaeh, or you'll lose a lot more than your magic."

"Tor - " Aspen tried.

"No one touches my sister!" he roared.

"And we've got her back," Hawke said calmly, clasping Torian's shoulder both to calm him and prevent him from chasing Nevaeh down.

"Tor, back up," Aspen demanded, stepping towards Nevaeh. "I won't let him hurt you, but tell me what they said?"

"Harper was calling you a stupid bitch," Nevaeh explained.

"But she says that about everything that has to do with Winter magic.

They think if all of us are dead, the magic will flow into Summer, and the nobility will become even more powerful.

That's why the Queen's doing it, right? She has to know something we don't. It's why she has the crown. "

"It's not," Torian snarled.

Nevaeh flinched, shifting so Aspen was between her and Torian. "But Harper says she's got a way to call the Hunt. Well, with them coming twice now, and so close together, I just wondered if maybe she does."

"Harper wouldn't have anything to do with them being here," Wilder countered. "She's not here ."

"But..." Nevaeh looked at me desperately, then back to Aspen. "She was here. Aunt Taylor and Harper came to petition to have Harper reinstated. "

"When?" I asked.

"I don't remember!" Nevaeh whimpered. "I don't, it's just that with the things she was saying, I thought she might be doing something.

I mean, she always made it sound like she was unstoppable, and her ideas made so much sense in the moment.

She even had me convinced I could change my season, but it doesn't work.

It never works. Harper's just powerful because of her mother's nobility.

It makes her a real lady, not like most of the people here, so she has more power, right? Inheritance and all that?"

"Not really how it works," Wilder said.

"Kinda how it works." Torian stated.

"That!" Nevaeh said, pointing at them. "I don't know what it means, but that's how she does it.

She knows things I don't, and she makes me feel stupid for not knowing, but when I try to learn, she tells me I'm wrong because I'm Winter, and Winter can't do anything anyway because the Queen will exterminate us.

The only reason I was safe was because my whole family's Summer, but she doesn't like me.

She doesn't want me around, and if I don't have my magic back, I don't know what they'll do to me over the summer! "

"Tor, give her the magic back," Aspen said.

"No."

"Give it back and make her get the information you're trying not to ask!"

Torian slashed a hand through the air. "I will not! She came at us, Aspen. She tried to hurt Hawke! I have my own promises to keep."

"Then I'll give it back!" Aspen snapped, reaching out quickly to grab Nevaeh's hand.

"By taking this, you agree to never harm us again.

You will not ignore potential harm to us, just like you did now.

If you learn more, you will share it, not hide it.

You also will not ignore, leave so you don't hear, or avoid anything we might need in any other way.

In exchange, you can have your magic back.

" She tilted her head slightly. "Do you agree? "

"Aspen, don't," Torian warned. "You - "

Aspen just ignored him, closing her eyes the moment Nevaeh nodded.

All around us, white began to brighten. The lush colors of the leaves and flowers in here felt like they dulled.

The air felt dense and dry, but not cold.

Just when I began to feel like I was struggling to pull in a breath, motes of bright white drifted inwards, aiming for Nevaeh.

Like snowflakes, they clung to her skin.

Like fireflies, they refused to fall from the sky, floating lazily in the air until they made contact.

More and more gathered on her, making the girl glow.

The more that attached to her, the faster the rest moved, until Nevaeh was shining brightly - and then the power all sank down into her skin.

Nevaeh sucked in a breath and her eyes flew open. "It's back!"

"He can take it again," Aspen warned. "But the court pays its debts. You didn't have to tell me this, but you did, so this is the least I can do."

"I will honor my promise!" Nevaeh breathed, clutching Aspen's hands in both of hers. "Poppy doesn't want to hurt any of you, and she's my friend now. I..." A desperate laugh slipped out. "I know it makes me a loser, but I never wanted to be Harper's friend. But family, you know? I had to."

"I know," Aspen said. "Trust me, I know. I mean, Tor's my brother."

Nevaeh laughed nervously at that. "Right. Good point."

"I want to know what they did!" Torian demanded.

"I don't know!" Nevaeh said, letting go of Aspen to back up. "Harper just said you'd never find 'it.' But I don't know what 'it' is! I'll see if I can find out!" She looked at Aspen again. "I owe you more than simply not ignoring things. I know that. I will make this even."

Before Aspen could reply, Nevaeh turned and ran, ducking around the many bushes and trees in this place to get out of sight. The rest of us just stood there, stunned almost, until not even the sound of her could be heard.

Then Wilder began to chuckle. "And that's going to cause a whole new set of rumors."

"Why?" I asked.

It was Keir who answered. "The sidhe can't take or give power, Rain. Jevadu are male."

Aspen just flashed him a smile. "I sing well, does that help?" Then she turned and grabbed a plant. "Rain, let's put these over here."

All I could do was shake my head and laugh, but in reality, whether she was sidhe or something else, did it matter?

Not to me. Aspen was beautiful, amazing, brilliant, and perfect to me.

Human, fae, or anything in between didn't matter.

She was my girlfriend, and that was enough to make me not give a shit about anything else - except keeping her safe.