REPAIR

20

The group's journey to the Solstice Sanctum the following morning was uneventful, and Aria was incredibly grateful for the ease of it. They made it to the grounds by early afternoon, Luka ahead of the rest of the group—as always. She was pretty sure she could draw his tail from memory at this point.

A lesser seer greeted them upon their arrival to show them to their rooms. It was the first time everyone but Aria and Luka had been to the Sanctum, except for Evelyn, who had apparently been there on a mission years earlier.

There were a lot of oohs and aahs at the blanched stone grounds until they crossed the threshold and their magic was drained. Aria giggled at Finn's quiet curse at the feeling of being stripped of his powers. She had to admit, there wasn't a much better response to experiencing that for the first time.

Aria was comforted by the fact she and Taren were shown to two rooms in the same quarters she and her parents had stayed in when they'd visited just a few weeks ago. She would take any bit of familiarity she could.

After dropping them off, the seer said, "Selene knows you wish to meet with her. Someone will fetch you when she's ready. "

"When will that be?" Aria called after the acolyte but was ignored. Okay then , she sighed and began unpacking, something she was growing used to doing. As she pulled her clothes out, it dawned on her that she had run out of clean ones. She knew she should have packed more. She'd never had to wash her own clothes before… But now was as good a time as any to learn, she supposed. It's not like they could really do much until Selene beckoned them, anyway.

She gathered up her soiled clothes and went looking for somewhere to clean them. As she wandered aimlessly into the courtyard, she found a group of seers seated around the fountain.

"Sorry to interrupt, is there somewhere I might do my laundry here?" she asked as each one turned to look at her suspiciously.

"Just off the dining hall," said a small woman, formerly a shifter based on her rounded ears. Aria wondered what had driven her—or any seer, for that matter—to give up their familial magic for the seer abilities. She never could fathom giving up her wings, or her connections to the earth and wind, just to speak with the capricious god. Devoting her life to Mallium sounded like signing up for a life in the dark realm, and no amount of omniscience was worth that. Mallium was basically a temperamental, disinterested father, and to serve him every minute of every day… No, thanks, she thought. But of course, she would never say that out loud. She cursed herself for even thinking those things on his most spiritual grounds.

"Thank you," she gave the woman a slight bow and made her way to the dining hall, vacant during the late afternoon. She spotted the washroom that jutted off to one side of the hall and found it fortuitously empty as well. Although, she wouldn't have minded someone else being there so she could have an example. But how hard could it really be ?

Aria turned on the spigot and filled a bin with water and a dash from a box of powdered soap that rested on the shelf above the sink. By the time she'd clumsily wrung out her few articles of clothing, the afternoon had passed and the dining hall began to bustle.

She borrowed a tub to carry her still-wet clothes through the halls. As she walked back through the courtyard with the heavy bin, she spotted Kam and Leah seated at a table. Beside them, Evelyn laid in the sun reading. Her ivory skin would have blended into the white stone around her had it not been for the long gray tunic she wore. She looked up from her book without emotion as Aria passed. Aria gave her a faint smile anyway.

Arms full, Aria fumbled to open her door. Finally, she got the latch open and walked in, quickly setting the tub down on her desk. Before she realized what was happening, someone had shut the door behind her.

"We need to talk," Evelyn's low voice came from behind her.

"Fuck!" Aria yelped in surprise, turning to face the shifter. She cursed her lack of magic, wishing she'd been able to sense Evelyn's light feet. Evelyn glared at her, fire building in those golden eyes. A true predator assessing her prey.

That may have intimidated her before, but now it annoyed her. Aria's eyebrows raised incredulously as she crossed her arms. "Oh, now you want to speak to me? I thought we'd gotten past the attitude, but you haven't even looked at me…" she didn't need to say since I saved your life . She shook her head. "What is it?"

Evelyn's gaze remained piercing. "We need to talk. About Luka."

"Oh. Is… Is everything okay?" Aria asked, more concern in her voice than she meant to show .

"He's fine," the panther said firmly. "But I saw the way he looked at you last night," her eyes moved away from Aria. "They're looks I know well. But you need to know that he's more fragile than he seems. And we can't afford for him to be distracted right now."

Aria's eyes searched Evelyn's, confused about where this warning was coming from. All she found were those golden embers. Had Luka said something to Evelyn during their little chat? Or was she just taking the first opportunity she could to get Aria alone and threaten her?

"I told you that night by the sea, I'm not interested," Aria replied dismissively. "But even if I was… He's an adult. I fully believe he can handle himself. Make his own decisions. I don't get why—"

Suddenly Aria was pinned against the wall, one of Evelyn's arms above her head and the other around her throat. Her mouth went dry. Evelyn was far stronger than Aria, and Aria was basically defenseless without her magic. She had to play this right, or she would be in trouble. The walls here were thin but she had no idea if Taren was in their room to hear her if she screamed. Her pulse pounded against Evelyn's palm.

Evelyn spoke calmly but firmly, her hand tight around Aria's neck. "My squad is the only family I have left. Luka especially. If you hurt him in any way, I will not hesitate to return the favor."

"Haven't we already done this dance before?" Aria rasped from behind Evelyn's grasp. "Wasn't saving you enough to earn your trust?" Evelyn's fiery eyes softened just a bit at that, so she continued carefully. "You are more fragile than you seem, too, Evelyn. I know you're more than just a bodyguard to him. You care for him, I can see that. I appreciate that. I wouldn't be here with your squad unless I wanted to protect both of our realms. That includes Luka. And you. But I can't help save us if I'm dead," she squeaked, clawing at the hand gripping her.

The anger and frustration in Evelyn seemed to melt away, a dam finally bursting under pressure. Evelyn's brow furrowed as she relaxed her hand and backed away from Aria, waking from her fury-induced state. She bumped into the bed with the back of her legs and collapsed into a sitting position on the edge.

Aria rubbed at her raw throat with a wince. Evelyn sighed, head hanging. "I just don't want to lose anyone else." Oh , Aria thought. That's what this was about. "I'm sorry," Evelyn said weakly, looking up at Aria slowly, her eyes peeking out from under her dark lashes. "I swear I'm not normally this awful. I just get… protective. My instincts kick in. And there's just been so much going on…"

It was the first vulnerable thing Aria had ever heard her say. This woman was giving her whiplash. "D—Do you want to talk about it?"

"Why?" Evelyn snorted. "So you can laugh at my misery?"

Aria's eyes narrowed. "Is that really all you think of me?"

"I don't know what I think of you…" Evelyn admitted shyly, shaking her head. "I think that's what's eating at me. The more I learn about you, about Taren, the more I question my own feelings about Allar. The fae. All of it."

"I thought you said you already knew ‘ all about me ,'" she quoted Evelyn's words from their first meeting with a laugh.

"Well, I thought I did," she said, the faintest hint of a smile playing on her lips. "You have proved me wrong."

"And yet, I still know almost nothing about you… Except that you're a stubborn, loyal little shit," Aria joked.

"There isn't much to know," Evelyn's smile faded.

Aria grabbed her desk chair and pulled it across from Evelyn to sit facing her. Maybe if she could keep Evelyn talking, they could both walk away unscathed. "I don't believe that for a second. No one protects their family so fiercely without an interesting story."

"My story is more sad than interesting, unfortunately," Evelyn muttered.

"I'd like to know it anyway. If you'll let me." Aria paused. "Learning more about each other—our histories—might help us bring our realms together. Help us get some perspective. But it's okay if you don't want to talk about it. I understand that, too."

Evelyn looked at her then, those predatory eyes softening. "What would you like to know?"

"First of all," Aria started, "why have you given me the cold shoulder? I know I'm not perfect, I've said my own share of petty shit—"

Evelyn loosed a heavy sigh. "Yeah, I owe you an apology," she said, "for my behavior lately. The thought of losing my life and leaving those babies behind…" she trailed off, but Aria didn't push her, despite her confusion. After a moment of what looked like internal discourse, she continued. "I was orphaned at a very young age when my parents disappeared on a spy mission in Allar. Their bodies were never recovered. I was lucky to be recruited by the Legion Academy when I was still just a cub. They assumed I would have the same skills as my parents and thank the gods they were right. Otherwise, I would probably never have made it…"

Evelyn's head hung heavily as she assessed her hands clasped in her lap. "I was raised by the Academy to be a weapon from the time I could walk," she said. "I basically grew up with Luka, he was really the only constant in my life. I had no family, and the soldiers I grew close to were often sent out on missions. Some never made it back," her eyes welled. "Sometimes I go back to the Panther Province and volunteer at the orphanage in the capital. Those kids, they have nothing. I like to take them out to swim and run around, just to give them a little bit of the childhood I never had, with the safety of my protection…" she paused again, struggling to get through her thoughts. "And when that ledge crumbled underneath me… they were the only thing I could think about. Not Luka, not the squad, nothing else crossed my mind. Just those cubs who expect me to come back to them. I've lost so much in my life, I can't do that to them, too." A warm tear fell down Evelyn's cheek as something clicked in Aria's head.

"It was you," Aria realized, "that day at the river." Evelyn's reddened eyes met hers, confused. "I saw you one day while I was on patrol. I saw you playing with them in the water." Aria's eyes danced across Evelyn's face. "It was evident how much you care for them. I'm glad you'll be able to go back to them again in one piece." And she meant it. If her risk had resulted in those cubs getting to play in the river with Evelyn again, it was worth it.

"Well that shows you how much I was paying attention if I didn't see you," Evelyn allowed herself a small laugh. "Those kids can be very distracting."

"If it makes you feel better, I only saw blurs of color through the wall. The splash was what caught my attention," Aria teased, relieved at the lighthearted conversation that began to flow. The tension that eased.

"Those little fuckers," Evelyn giggled, that wonderful trilling sound reverberating through the room as she shook her head. "They're finally big enough that they managed to push me in that day."

"Thank you for sharing this with me, for trusting me," Aria said after a quiet moment, her eyes narrowing in sincerity as she placed a hand on Evelyn's that were still clasped in her lap .

"Apparently," Evelyn met her eyes and sighed dramatically, "I can trust you with my life."

Aria smirked. "Is that such a bad thing?"

"Not bad. But can you blame me for being skeptical of you? All things considered?"

Aria sat with that. "No, I guess I can't. But I can blame you for your little tantrum just now. I swear to Mallium, everyone I know just gets a kick out of scaring me to death. Why can't anyone just sit down and talk like adults?"

Evelyn smiled smugly. "I saw an opportunity to talk to you without Luka around, and I seized it. Not all of us were raised with the manners of royalty, Princess. Some of us have had to rely on instincts."

"And what do those instincts tell you about me? That I needed to be ambushed in order to have a conversation?" She rubbed at her throat, causing concern to wash over Evelyn's face.

Evelyn pulled Aria's hand away gently, assessing the redness there before meeting her gaze. "You have my word. It won't happen again." Her eyes lingered on Aria's. "How can I make it up to you?"

Aria mulled it over, letting out a breath.

"Do you know how to dry clothes?"