"I know. We both know," she whispered. "We'll do what we can to get you the help you need. You have my word," she whispered to me.
"Thank you," was all I said.
I felt like I should have said more, but exhaustion sank its claws into me like a feral cat. I could try to shake it off, but it'd just cling on tighter. I sighed and let my wooden eyelids fall shut.
"Thank you," I repeated.
"It's alright. We may not be able to understand, not truly, but we are here for you in any way we can be," she whispered.
"I know…auntie," I whispered.
She hugged me tighter when I used her accurate title for me.
After my father died and my mother devoted herself to the kingdom, she became the mother and father I didn't have. She didn't like me using the word much, but when I did, I knew it meant a lot to her.
"We'll get this sorted," she promised.
As she held me, all I could do was think, I hope so, Auntie, I hope so.
Chapter Two
Quillon
I curled my lip as Rafferty ate like a wild animal. He kept grabbing handfuls of meat and shovelling it into his mouth. I wrinkled my nose as some of the gravy landed on my hand. He had always had the most appalling table manners, but it had just gotten worse in our exile.
"You're disgusting," I said to him, my tone blunt.
He stopped and looked up at me, his hands dripping with gravy. "Go fuck yourself," he snapped back.
"We all know you do every night," Tarian added.
I snorted because it was true. Our walls were thin, and everything he did was loud. If we could leave these lands, I'd make him pay for my therapy.
"Well, if your cock was "
"We really don't need you to finish that sentence," I said.
"Are you sure? I'm happy to"
"Positive."
He snorted and returned to eating like the animal he was. I knew it was part of his curse, but fuck, it was revolting to watch.
He finally finished eating and gave me a toothy smile. He had gravy around his mouth, and I once again had to screw my nose up at the sight. He rolled his eyes at me and didn't comment, but thankfully wiped his face with one of the napkins around him.
"So, what are the plans today?" he asked once he had cleaned up.
I shrugged and looked at Tarian, as he usually arranged our days. He sighed, rolled his eyes, and muttered something I couldn't quite catch under his breath. He looked up and shrugged. "I thought we could have a more relaxed day today. Maybe do some training this morning and then relax in the afternoon around a fire," he said.
I smiled at him; that sounded like a great idea. I wasn't in the mood to be anything too crazy today, so his plan sounded right up my alley.
"Alright, let's go and get some work done," I said.
We stood up and walked out of the small cottage shack we shared. We made our way outside, and as soon as we did, the angry twin suns beat down against us as if they had a personal vendetta. The thicket around our house formed a ring, leaving a clearing free of trees for us to use. It had taken us a long time to clear them, and every now and then we removed more trees to improve our training.
I walked over to the side of the house and grabbed some targets I had prepared earlier. I set them up and nodded to the guys. "Alright, let's get started."
Rafferty moved a ways back and took a deep breath. I watched as he created two small balls of glowing fire in both hands. He thrust his hands out and threw them, making them land directly in the centre. He psychically told them not to ignite, and they didn't, disappearing on command.