A Court of Flame & Shadow - Eris x OC

The Middle II

Glynn arrived the next day, the owl on his shoulder. They winnowed by the edge of the forest and the gargoyle walked the rest of the way. The fire under the cauldron was out. Vel was straining out the liquid, using magic to braid it into ribbons and dividing it into three bottles. The male looked much worse for wear, even from far away she noticed the cracks that were all over his chest. He was walking slowly, limping slightly from some unseen pain in his joints. His back was even more bent than she remembered and his wings were dragging on the ground behind him. The paper-thin membrane connecting the bones in his wings was shredded.

"Good to see you in one piece," Glynn said by way of greeting.

"I could say the same to you. Let's head inside, it's warmer there."

Glynn sighed deeply. His chest rattled grimly and he fell into a coughing fit. Pebbles clattered as they fell to the floor. "Even the Summer Court is too cold for me nowadays." He was bent over so deeply that Vel could place a hand on his shoulder without much difficulty. His skin was hard as granite but there was a deep gash down his back, spreading out into smaller and smaller cracks like a grand river.

The owl flew up and went to sit on the portico. It hooted once as a reminder. "Have a bit of patience, you menace." Glynn turned his head to say something but she just shook hers. "Sorry, I was talking to the owl." Once inside she motioned to the two armchairs and the fireplace to the left. One of them still had her forgotten book split open on the armrest. "Make yourself comfortable, I'll be with you in a moment."

Vel made her way to the cold box in the kitchen and pulled out a skinned rabbit she'd hunted earlier that day. She went back outside and threw the rabbit high up in the air without looking. The owl flapped a flurry of feathers her way and caught it before flying off towards the forest. "Don't expect this much next time, yeah?" She yelled after him. She picked up the three antidote bottles and made her way back in, closing the door behind her.

Glynn was sitting in the yellow armchair, the one closest to the fireplace and furthest from the windows. His wings were draped over the backrest and his eyes were closed. He would have seemed dead if not for the labored rise and fall of his chest and the rasping sound of his breathing. She left two bottles on the kitchen counter and took the last one to him, plopping down in the other chair. Reaching out an arm, she shook him gently.

"I have something for you to try." She dangled the bottle in front of his face, the liquid inside swirling green and golden in the firelight.

"Something to put me out of my misery?" Glynn took the glass from her and held it with two long grey fingers.

Her eyebrows knitted together. "If death is what you seek, I'd rather do it with a knife. Faster and cleaner." Glynn smiled grimly and she chewed on her bottom lip for a moment. "I think this will help differently. I only managed to run one test but this mix stopped the spread of the disease. There wasn't enough time or materials for more tests. I'm not sure ... how long the effects last or if they will even work with a condition so advanced, but I figured it was worth a try."

"Stop the spread? Do you see the shape I'm in?" Glynn raised his voice and here was another coughing fit. He covered his mouth with a grey handkerchief but when he pulled it away more pebbles and rocks were falling in his lap. One of them was the size of a quail egg. "Apologies Oracle, but ... if I had to live an eternity like this I would much rather die. I cannot work. I cannot fly. I can barely walk or talk. I cannot even keep food down anymore."

"I wouldn't have called you here if I didn't believe in this, Glynn. Even if it doesn't reverse the effects of the sickness it would at least buy me time to try more things." Wariness was written all over his face, from the whites of his eyes that were now a yellow-grey to the deeply etched wrinkles like fissures in a mountain. So she went on. "What do you have to lose by trying? You said it yourself – it can't get worse than this. And if after trying, you'd rather still rather put an end to it ... I'll give you a quick death, I promise. You just have to ask."