A Court of Snow and Storms

15. Flower Power

    "Did you ever?" Ellie asked.

    Wynter rubbed his arm with one hand. "When we escaped Melantha's fortress. I was chained up in...in her bedroom. The fight took place in the dungeons. When Helion and Lucien tore through the wards, my magic was restored and I was able to break out of my chains and escape. I slid down the railing and jumped onto a chandelier suspension to escape the corpses that were after me. I broke the rigging myself and smashed my way through every level of the fortress until I reached the dungeons."

    Ellie watched him as they walked, emotion shining within her blue eyes. "I wouldn't have been brave enough to do that," she said. "And to survive through the Cauldron's power immediately after." Ellie shook her dark head. "You are brave, Wyn. So very brave."

    No, I'm not, he thought, but he didn't voice the words. They reached the kitchen and Wynter closed the door. "What do we do first?" He asked.

    "Is there something we can use to tie them into separate bunches?" Ellie asked, making her way over to several hooks hanging from a lower portion of the ceiling. That portion was angled down towards several fireplaces. Normally, pots and pans would've hung from the hooks, easily accessible to servants working near the fires.

    Wynter opened a drawer and took out a ball of twine. "Will this work?"

    "That's perfect." Ellie took the twine from him and they set the periwinkles on a table. "All you do is take a fistful and bind them together, then hang them upside down for several days until they're dry. That's my method, anyway."

    She demonstrated with her own cluster. Wynter cut a length of twine and bound a handful of his own periwinkles. Ellie dragged a chair beneath the hooks and hopped onto one. Wynter smiled to himself as she stood on the tips of her toes to reach the hooks. He touched a hand to her waist and offered up his flowers after she'd hung her own. Ellie hung them, then took his offered hand and let him help her off the chair.

    They returned to the table and began working on more bunches. They took turns hanging the flowers. Wynter didn't need a chair to hang them, but he was sure to keep a hand near Ellie when it was her turn, just in case she lost her balance. He found himself enjoying the process more than he thought he would. Or perhaps, he was simply enjoying Ellie's obvious delight as they worked. Either way, it overshadowed the dismal events that had taken place earlier, and for that, he was grateful.

❅•~❅~•❅

    Elodie sat in a chair, weaving a few of the leftover periwinkles into a strand. She could form a crown small enough for Mitsi if she wanted, or she could wear the strand in her hair. Wynter was hanging the last cluster of periwinkles. Elodie laughed to herself, spying the tiny purple petals that dotted his hair.

    Wynter stepped away from the flowers, crossing his arms as he inspected them. A pleased grin spread across his lips. Elodie tilted her head, looking him over. There was a casual air of ease around him that was different than before. She'd never seen him like this.

    Usually when she came, he was dressed in a tunic, complete with boots. Now, he wore a comfortable dark blue shirt which shamelessly flaunted the muscles in his arms and stomach, the angle of his broad shoulders, and the solidity of his chest. His black pants were plain, embellished only by the lacings that secured them. They hung low on his hips, and if his shirt wasn't partially tucked in, Elodie thought she might see more of him than she needed to. He was barefoot and his hair was only partially tied up.

    He was a beautiful male. She'd known that before she'd ever seen him. People sometimes said that he could challenge Rhysand's claim to the title of Prythian's most beautiful male. Elodie didn't think Wynter was the type of person who would want to hold such a title, but if her opinion counted for anything, she agreed with what those people said, and she'd only seen the High Lord of Night a handful of times. Not even the brutal scars across Wynter's throat, or the ones she knew he hid, affected her opinion. If anything, they only enhanced it.

    Elodie blinked suddenly, lowering her gaze. Did Wynter know she'd just been staring at him? Had it made him uncomfortable? Her cheeks burned with guilt and embarrassment. She shouldn't even think such thoughts about him. Not only could it make him uncomfortable, but suppose it caused her feelings for him to deepen? That would bring trouble for both of them.

    "Ellie?"

    "Yes?" Elodie looked up, hoping she wasn't as flushed as she felt.

    "You're unusually quiet all of a sudden."

    "I'm sorry. I was..." Elodie trailed off. Wynter sat down beside her, bracing his elbows on his knees and letting his hands dangle in between his legs. "I was watching you," she admitted.

    "Oh." Wynter pressed his lips into a thin line, his cheeks growing red.

    "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have. I know I shouldn't have," Elodie quickly apologized.

    Wynter shook his head. "It's all right. There's no need to apologize." He smiled, his face growing redder by the minute. "Mother knows I've watched you plenty."

    "You have?"

    He nodded. "Every time you came to visit for the past year. When I shadowed you home. Before Melantha, when we'd see each other in the streets." He met her gaze. "It's only fair that you're allowed to do the same. I'm not uncomfortable, and I'll tell you if I am."

    "Are you sure?"

    Wynter nodded again. Elodie glanced at the strand of periwinkles in her lap, then back to him. She rose, drifting behind him. Wynter remained still as she threaded her strand of flowers through his hair.

    "Purple is a pretty color on you," she murmured.

    "It would be prettier on you." His breath caught as she combed her fingers through the ends of his hair. Elodie did it a few more times, before he spoke again. "I wish there were no memories accompanying this," he rasped. "But there are. And the memories are bad."

    Elodie ceased at once and moved in front of him. She knelt as he closed his eyes. "I'm sorry," she said.

    "Don't be. Nothing you have done has made me panic or feel uncomfortable. The way I react to you is solely because of myself and my memories."

    "What do you mean?" Elodie asked.

    "What you were just doing, playing with my hair... Melantha would do it to me, because she knew I hated when she did it and I could do nothing to stop her. When you did it..." Wynter trailed off, shaking his head. Guilt flooded his icy blue eyes. "I want to sit there and know that it's you, but my head tells me it's Melantha. My head tells me I can't enjoy it because it's something she did to me. I know that logic isn't right, but..."

    "Wyn, don't apologize. Don't feel bad or guilty for having boundaries because of what happened. I understand," Elodie answered. "And if you want to talk about it, any of it, I'm here. I may not have advice for you, or know the right words to say, but I'll listen. Sometimes that's all anyone needs."

    She covered his hand with her own. "I want to help you." Wynter opened his mouth. "Despite what you may think," she continued before he could speak, "you can be helped. You can overcome this. You can find yourself again. I know you can. You are a fighter. You are strong and brave and kind. And no matter what anyone else says, remember this. To me, to the females you protected, and to their friends and family, you are a hero. A prince. A savior."

    Elodie squeezed his hand tightly. Wynter was silent, just staring at her. She saw the glint of tears in his eyes. "You are not a tarnished, broken male. You are beautiful and reborn. Like a phoenix from the ashes."

    Wynter gave a choked laugh. "And you said you wouldn't know the right thing to say." He drew a periwinkle off the table and tucked it into her dark locks. His fingers grazed her cheek. "Trying to push you away was the worst mistake I ever made."

    Elodie smiled, ignoring the way his words, his voice, the tears in his eyes, tugged at her heartstrings. "I agree."