Nicolaren

Finished with my back, he picked me up carefully, avoiding touching the sluggishly bleeding cuts on my arms. He deposited me on a chair and went to grab a bucket of water soap and a sponge. I watched him as he wiped away the blood from my face. His charcoal hair just covered his ears. It was messy, almost styled. A small lock had fallen into his face between his eyes. He finished cleaning my face and back, “Let’s see those arms?” He said it wasn’t a statement but more of a question. My mind was still foggy. I looked at him unseeingly. He took my left wrist carefully in his right hand. His left pointer finger traced the cuts on my forearm, and they closed almost immediately, showing healthy new pink skin.

He did the same to my other arm. Situating himself on his knees so his eyes were level with mine, he gently took my chin, turning it one way and another, touching the bruises on my face and neck. I don’t remember how that happened it was all fuzzy. Finally coming back into myself, I blinked, catching his eyes. One was a bright turquoise, the color of his magic, and the other was a pale gray. I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. He touched a finger to my throat, and the rawness vanished. Before I could say anything, he asked, “How could you let yourself be captured? Don’t you know he’s killed people before? You’re lucky I got here in time.”

“I was saving my brother and one of our healers.” I said softly, clearing my throat.

“You shouldn’t be here. He hates you more than anyone else. You’ve snatched more people from right under his nose than anyone would ever dare, too.” He said. I smiled bitterly,

“Why heal me if I’m just going to end up dead again?” His eyes grew hard as he took his hand away from my face,

“I don’t know. It would’ve been easier on you if I would’ve just let you die. I can’t explain it, there’s something about you.” He rose and picked me up in one fluid motion his clothes were smeared with my blood. I vaguely realized that mine were in tatters. I felt a slight breeze as we seemed to appear in a huge bathroom. I blinked, hadn’t we just been in grave’s solitary? He set me down on a chair and started a bath, the water loud in the silent room. I struggled to sit upright in the chair stiff from my healing. His hands gripped my waist, firmly helping me to sit up. A small spark of electricity raced away from where his hands gripped me. I frowned in confusion, writing it off as a lingering effect of his magic. Turning away from me, he snapped a glowing turquoise vile off the leather cord of the necklace he wore, pouring its contents into the water. I watched as the water turned a silvery blue, then faded swiftly. “It will help you feel better.” He said before I could ask.

“Do you need help with your clothes?” He asked. I shook my head, and he rose, going towards the door. Looking back, he saw me struggling to take off the remains of my shirt, my back and arms protesting the movement. Shaking his head, he appeared back beside me, his fingers softly pushing mine away from the fabric. He produced a knife from somewhere in his belt. I shrunk back, and he steadied me with a calm hand. He cut what was left of the shirt off me and did the same with my pants. He seemed to debate taking my sports bra off, and after a moment, cut that away, too. He lifted me off the chair and set me in the tub. I rested my head against the porcelain, fighting to keep my eyes open. The water was warm and soothing. “I’ll be back in a moment, I need to change.” He said and disappeared from the spot immediately. I don’t know how long I was asleep when I heard the door shut. Scrambling away from the doorway towards the back of the tub, my hands clenched into fists as water sloshed with the flurry of movement. Nico walked towards me, his steps silent on the marble floor. He had a towel in one hand and a long robe in another. I relaxed slightly when I saw who he was, but not so much as to leave my defensive position. He laid the towel on the side of the tub and turned around, looking towards the door. I pushed myself up, my legs trembling from the effort.

I managed to sit on the side of the tub before my legs gave out. Grabbing the towel, I tried to cover myself, but the exhaustion was too much. My hands refused to work properly, and the towel fell from my nerveless grasp onto the floor. Nico turned to glance at me, in one fluid movement he was up, and slid the towel over my shoulders, covering me entirely. Instead of letting me stand, he scooped me up into his arms. I felt the same odd sensation as before, the small breeze and the apparent materialization into a new place. He carried me down a hall that looked nothing like the stark cold cells of Grave’s jail. Stopping in front of a towering mahogany door, he put me down. One of his arms encircling my waist keeping me upright. His other hand came up towards the door, and two of his fingers shimmered with turquoise fire. He traced an intricate pattern onto the door, and it swung inward without so much as a creak. He lifted me up again, carrying me into the room and depositing me on the bed. The room was furnished in russet and gold, and leaves seemed to fall from the ceiling only to disappear before they ever touched the floor. The lazy spin of red, golden, orange leaves was mesmerizing. The floor was a reddish-brown wood.

Covering most of the floor were deep red rugs trimmed in gold that looked lusciously soft. Bookshelves lined one wall as ivy twined along the shelves and trim of the walls. A fire burned in a sandstone fireplace placed by the wall towards the end of the bed. The lamps that hung from the ceiling gave the room a warm glow rather than a stark contrast. Pots of rare flowers, herbs, and alchemical ingredients lined the walls encircling the room. A small table with a couple of chairs occupied the corner as a candle burned on its surface. A dresser was tucked on the other side of the bed, beside a doorway leading presumably to a bathroom. Maps depicting faraway lands decorated the walls where no plants hung.

The bedspread I sat on was exquisitely soft and warm, between the fire and the homey feeling of the room my eyes drooped. I fought to keep awake as I remembered what I was going to ask,

“Aren’t you going to get in trouble for this, bringing me here and not locking me up?” I asked my words slurring together, showing how tired I was.

“You let me worry about that, go to sleep. You need it.” He said firmly. I tried to argue but got no further than a “But” before sleep overtook me. I woke up somewhere around dawn the next day. Nico was nowhere to be found, so I sat up carefully. I winced slightly, and the pain was bearable, but I was incredibly stiff. Swinging my feet over the side of the bed, I stood up slowly as the bathroom door swung open, and Nico came out, scrubbing a towel over his tousled black hair.

“Oh good, you’re awake. Can you walk?” He asked, draping the towel over his right shoulder. I grimaced, pushing myself onto my feet, steadying myself against the bed. My legs were sore but not as near beats up as the rest of me. I walked slowly and carefully the circuit of the room, stopping only to pull the thin robe tighter around me. He watched me carefully, his eyes steady, no way to tell what he was thinking. “Well I’m impressed. I've never seen anyone able to walk fine after that big of a healing.” He said finally. He disappeared a moment and then reappeared with some white linen clothes. “Put these on, I’ve got to get you back to solitary before Axl, or worse, Dante comes looking for you.” He said carefully, handing me the clothes.

I slid by him, closing the door to the bathroom, and froze. Like the room, the bathroom was a season. Snowflakes fell from the grey ceiling spinning to disappear just before they touched the floor. The marble floor looked as if it would be cold to the touch, but as I stepped on it gingerly, I was surprised by the heat flowing through it. Winter flowers decorated the room in small pot fixtures attached to the walls. The small lamp that hung from the ceiling gave the entire scene a magical glow. I stopped gawking and hurried to put on the clothes, remembering what Nico had said. Folding the robe, I placed it on the small table beside the sink. I came out of the bathroom, my legs already starting to ache from being upright for those few minutes. Nico lounged in one of the chairs by the embers in the fireplace. He put aside the book he was reading and stood up, cracking his back. “You ready?” He asked, starting towards me. I nodded, trying not to sigh with relief as he picked me up, giving my aching legs a rest.

Solitary appeared just as suddenly as his room disappeared. He carried me towards the back wall, drawing level with a cell, and he fished out a key from somewhere in his pocket. The door opened with a metallic creak. He placed me gently on the stone outcropping that was apparently supposed to be for sleeping. Grabbing one of the shackles attached to the wall by a chain, he placed it gently around my right ankle. The cold metal made me shiver, I put my foot dawn, causing the chain to clink against the floor. “Don’t move too much, and it won’t rub.” He said, his gaze troubled as he stood up. He locked my cell and turned away. I saw his form start to shimmer and scrambled towards the bars,

“Wait!” I said half panicked. He became corporeal again, turning to look at me.

I thrust my hands through the bars, grabbing at his shirt. He caught one of my hands with his own, stopping my reach. His hand was huge compared to mine. It enveloped mine as if it were a child’s. “Thank you.” I said, my voice barely audible in the echoing hallway, I gave his hand a soft squeeze before saying softly, “My name is Coryn, by the way, in case you didn’t know.” His eyes softened at my touch,

“Coryn,” He said, repeating my name in his warm tone. “Nicolaren, but I prefer Nico.” He said after a moment pause. He ran his thumb down the top of my hand once more before shimmering out of existence. I sat back down on the stone bed, my hand tingling with the memory of his touch. Pulling my legs up to my chest, I laid my head on my knees and waited.