Chapter 725: Ti to Breathe
For several minutes after Isabell spoke, Ashlynn sat in near perfect stillness on the soft carpet before the hearth. Only the sounds of the crackling fire and the falling rain on the terrace outside filled the sitting room while everyone waited nervously to hear how Ashlynn would respond to Isabell’s words.
"I need so ti to think," Ashlynn finally said, lifting her head and looking around at the chaos her loss of control had brought to her room. From the scorched rug to the door that Virve broke in her haste to reach Ashlynn’s side, even the puddles that ford after Heila charged in from the terrace, leaving the door open and swaying in the wind, in order to reach Ashlynn a few seconds sooner.
All of it combined to make it look like a fight had broken out in Ashlynn’s sitting room, and perhaps one had.
It was the people, however, who truly tore at Ashlynn’s heart. Heila stood anxiously at her side, trembling ever so slightly as if she were afraid to make a move. Her soft ringlets, usually styled neatly around her horns, hung limp and wet around her face, dripping more cold water onto the floor. Virve only looked better by comparison, but the veteran soldier’s eyes never stopped moving from person to person and the open doors to the room as if she was afraid so new threat would erge to strike at Ashlynn while she was vulnerable.
Isabell’s appearance was the most heartrending. Heila and Virve had both co rushing because they felt Ashlynn’s pain, but Isabell had stood at the center of the storm, refusing to leave Ashlynn as she confronted the powerful witch with painful truths. Now, her skin was burned, her hair disheveled, and it was clear that her body had been battered by mystical forces beyond anything the aging engineer should ever endure from a friend.
"Isabell," Ashlynn said softly, lowering her head in sha for a mont before forcing herself to et the other woman’s steely-eyed gaze. "I’m so sorry. I didn’t... I should never hurt soone who cares for
enough to tell
what you did. I..."
"Don’t," Isabell interrupted curtly. "Whatever you’re going to say, don’t."
"Master Isabell," Heiala began, clutching Ashlynn’s arm as she felt the powerful witch flinching back from Isabell’s words. "I know that..."
"Shush," Isabell said, holding up a hand, making a sharp motion as if she was cutting through the diminutive woman’s words. "I said, don’t say it because I don’t need to hear it. You think I’ve never seen soone lose control of themselves when they hear the worst, most heartbreaking news they’ve received in their entire life?"
"So what if you hurt? So what if you lashed out?" Isabell said with a huff. "Haven’t you suffered enough just now without beating yourself up because of ? So I don’t want to hear it. You want to take so ti to think, I think that’s good. There are plenty of pieces to pick up in the anti," she added with a wry smile as she looked around the room. "So focus on that and don’t worry about ."
"Are you like this with your own children?" Ashlynn asked with a light chuckle at Isabell’s gentle scolding. "I, I won’t press an apology," she said. "But you can’t hide the pain you’re in just by sitting still like that. I don’t think I can manage healing right now, but Heila’s just as good at healing as I am, if not better. She’s been itching to take care of you ever since she got here," Ashlynn added, reaching out to ruffle the horned woman’s damp hair.
"Go," Ashlynn said softly, giving Heila a gentle push toward Isabell. "You can take her upstairs to tend to her injuries. And, Isabell, I’m sorry, I know we had other plans for this evening but..."
"It’s fine," Isabell said, waving off the apology before Ashlynn could finish it. "You need to think. I’ll tell Tiernan enough that he’ll understand. I’m sure Sir Ollie, Lady Heila, or Captain Virve can host us later on if there’s a need. You just take the ti you need to think. It’s fine if it takes a few days to sort things out," she added.
"Before I left, I encouraged Jocelynn to stay close to the ship captains that Owain recruited in the hopes that they could beco knights," Isabell said as Heila helped her to her feet. As soon as she moved, Isabell took a deep, sharp breath as she found several sharp aches and pains across her body in places she hadn’t even realized she was hurt. "At the very least," she added. "Jocelynn shouldn’t be in any imdiate danger. You can take so ti to make your decisions."
"I know," Ashlynn said softly. "Virve, can you help Isabell upstairs? After that, you should et Ollie at the gates. I’m sure he’s worried after feeling what two felt, but he’s still a bit short of reaching the outer walls."
"I’ll take care of him, and I’ll see that our ’special guests’ don’t cause him any trouble," Virve promised before stepping up to Isabell and holding out her arms with a clear offer to help.
"My hero," Isabell teased as she allowed the towering witch to scoop her up off her feet. Isabell found Virve’s touch to be surprisingly gentle, and her reddish-brown fur was even softer than it looked, helping her to relax while the larger woman carried her off like a child who had stayed up past their bedti.
"We’ll take care of everything," Heila promised, hesitating to follow Virve and Isabell out of the room. "And Lady Nyrielle will be awake in just a few hours," she added nervously. "But, will it be all right for you to be alone until she wakes? If you want, I can fetch Talauia or Georg or..."
"I’ll be fine," Ashlynn said softly as she forced herself to stand and turned in the direction of her bedroom. "Like I said, I need to think, and having so ti to be quiet and alone will help. Take care of Isabell and tend to the wounded when they arrive. Just knowing that you can take over for
is already a trendous help."
"If you say so," Heila said, giving Ashlynn a brief curtsy before she left the room to follow after Virve and Isabell. Along the way, however, she couldn’t shake the feeling that Ashlynn wouldn’t be all right, and she wondered... Did Ashlynn really need to be alone in order to think? Or was she trying to send them away for so other reason?
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