Chapter 60: Chapter Sixty

“It’s cold out here.”

I can’t deny the shaking in my body has only grown more violent since our discussion, and my teeth chatter against each other like swords clashing during a war. My legs still feel unsure of my weight, though, so I remain crouched for a moment to see if they will cooperate or not. Every part of me is too stunned to move, but I know that the temperature will only get colder into the night and I can’t very well stay out here until sunrise. Even by that time, I’m not sure I will be able to process all of this new information.

Toshiro stays beside me, watching my process carefully from a respectable distance. Seeing that I’m still making no attempt to communicate or rise to my feet, he works his jaw as if trying to find the right words to say. “If you don’t stand voluntarily, I will carry you back in. We cannot stay out here.” Something in his tone has hardened, though it isn’t unkind. A sense of urgency seems to have settled over him, reflecting in the fathomless pits of his eyes. I swallow and try to push myself up, pressing my numb hands against the pathway for leverage. My legs wobble, threatening to give out beneath my weight. Toshiro sees my struggle and rights himself beside me, holding me upright with an arm around my waist and the other on my arm. “Gods,” He mumbles, pushing the hair from my eyes with warm hands. “You should have told me you were so cold. Just let me carry you.”

I shake my head, biting down on my lips to try and force them to stop chattering. “I can walk.” I insist, though my voice wavers audibly as my body continues to quiver. “I’m not cold.”

Toshiro clenches his jaw at my stubbornness as the familiar royal aura begins to form around the outline of his body against the moonlight. His eyes glance off of the lights as he leads me from the path deeper into the garden as if I weigh nothing more than a stack of books from the library. “I don’t have time to argue with you,” He growls softly beneath his breath. He turns to snarl over his shoulder at Arcane, who had wandered somewhere out of view in her curiosity. “Get over here.” He orders, the energy around him shifting with his urgency.

I clamp my mouth shut, trying to keep myself from biting my tongue. “I can walk,” I repeat again, sounding no less sure than I had a moment ago. Arcane comes bounding from somewhere deep into the expansive garden, joining us as Toshiro drags me towards the fountain that I heard earlier. There is a clearing laid with brick and stone in the shape of a massive circle, surrounding the cascading water that falls into a pool below. There are several benches lined around the fountain and Toshiro deposits me onto one of them, silently ordering Arcane to stay put at my feet with a look.

“You’re in shock,” Toshiro explains, taking a step back. His ears flicker behind him, to the opposite side of the fountain and he holds a finger to his lips, the small ground lights that line the brick catching the gold in his irises. “Stay still and be quiet,” With his instruction, he waves his hand in front of Arcane and me and turns to stride across the pathway circling the fountain.

I strain my ears to listen to what is going on behind the white and gold statues that stand erect in the pool of water, but the splashing is making it difficult. With a glance down at my legs, I notice that they’re gone, with just the bench below me. Though I can feel Arcane’s breathing from her side pressed against my leg, I don’t see her either. To confirm, I hold up my hands to see the fountain through them, as if they aren’t really there. Whatever Toshiro just did with the wave of his hand has rendered Arcane and me invisible, which makes me all the more curious about what is going on across the fountain. I adjust the silk around my shoulders before falling still, deciding it would be wise to follow Toshiro’s orders. Whatever it is that he senses is enough of a threat that he cloaked our presence here and make his edginess return.

Aside from the sound of the water splashing into the pool below, I hear nothing for a few long moments. I don’t sense anything out of the ordinary either, making me start to wonder if Toshiro is just being paranoid from what happened at supper. I can partially see his lower half through the water, though the rest of his body is hidden by the fountain. His arms are relaxed at his sides, leaving his katana sheathed. I’m just about to grow impatient with his foolishness when his voice flits across the water sounds, speaking to someone I can’t see. “She is unharmed…” I catch snippets of his conversation with the unknown guest, but his tone remains even and relaxed. “I will handle it… Yes, I understand that… Fine… I will let her know…”

My curiosity is eating me alive, momentarily making me forget about the news I’ve just heard a few moments ago. Ascian is keeping a secret about my true identity from me, I have a magic of my own and I may very well be being used by the man I agreed to marry. That’s all fine, I suppose. It isn’t as though I wouldn’t guess that Ascian might be manipulating me for his best interests, considering who he is. I had more faith in him than that, but self-preservation is in his nature, after all. Just because he is keeping my identity a secret doesn’t necessarily mean that he is using me for some unknown purpose, using my sister as bait to get me to comply… right? I shake my head of the thought, but the confusion sticks with me as I turn the ring on my left hand in circles, unable to sit still all of the sudden. The jewelry seems too heavy against my skin, making me grateful to be sitting.

Moments pass before the one-sided conversation stops on the opposite side of the fountain, making me perk up again. Toshiro’s legs bring his body backwards a few paces, just enough to allow me to see his profile, illuminated by the ground lights. He’s looking up, at something perched on the statues of the fountain above him. I have no doubt that he can feel my gaze on him, but he doesn’t turn to look. Instead, his lips move again and he nods his head, almost in a respectful bow. I cannot think of anyone that Toshiro, the high and mighty Fox god, would consider bowing down to. My question is answered, however, as I follow his gaze at the bird that takes off from its perch, feathers as black as the night around us.

My breath hitches at the sight of the raven, making me realize what was going on. Ascian did mention that he would send his birds for me to speak to, in order to bring messages to him while he is departed. I swallow, my throat feeling too dry all of the sudden as I watch the raven fly into the night, oblivious to Arcane and myself sitting just on the other side of the fountain. If Toshiro felt the need to hide me from my husband’s messenger, it can only mean that he is being truthful about his suspicions. The realization sits heavy as a weight in the pit of my stomach as the raven disappears, remaining as still as the dead until Toshiro finally breaks form his trance to return for me. When he does turn to face me again, his expression is tight and his muscles taught, eyes flashing like daggers in the lights.

“Wasn’t that-” I start, but Toshiro shushes me with a look. He waves his hand over my face, making both Arcane and me visible to the eye once more. He nods curtly and offers me his hand, unsure if I still require assistance to walk. I use the offered leverage to stand, but insist on walking back to the Palace on my own. I move to withdraw my hand back at my side, but Toshiro’s fingers linger, drawing my attention back to him. It makes sense that Toshiro would be able to understand Ascian’s words through the body of the crow. He is an animal, himself, after all.

“Yes, it was one of his. He came to ask about your progress, and somehow, caught wind of the attempt on your life,” As he speaks, he curls his fingers over my own and a warmth kisses across my palm, caressing the places that the rose had pricked me. Once he is satisfied, he releases me, gesturing towards the palace doors. “Let us continue this conversation in the warmth of the walls. It’s still too cold for you here.”