Twice Burned

Quinn

I heard rustling around me and felt a soft fabric wrapped around my body. I could remember the warmth of the healer's hands on my back, then the sensation of comfort running through my body, like my soul was free from all pain once again. I had felt my entire body relax at once, and fell into a deep sleep.

What seemed like moments later, I took a sharp breath in and turned my head on the pillow, opening my eyes to find I was in my own room once again. Nathan was standing next to the bed, looking half relieved and half angered at my awakening.

"How long was I out?" I asked, closing my eyes again.

"A few hours." Nathan responded calmly. That was never a good sign.

"A few hours?" I asked, my eyes flying back open. There was a second of silence, before I reached over and threw the covers off of myself, before trying to get out of the bed. "I have to go." To my surprise, Nathan grabbed my elbow and sat me back down again.

"Go where, Quinn? To get Zoe wherever you are hiding her? I've checked her room and she was gone." Nathan said, obviously furious. "What's going on, Quinn? Why is she here?"

I looked into his eyes to see real dismay behind them, then suddenly my face crumpled and the tears returned. I put my face in my hands.

"I can't even begin to tell you how sorry I am, Nathan!" I said through sobs. Nathan stayed silent, and I gazed back up at him through the water in my eyes and began to speak. "My father didn't just die, Nathan. He was killed."

"By who?" 

"A woman named Robin. She's a morpher, or a burner, I can't remember how it's possible, but it's true! She came to me the night he died and forced me to do unspeakable things, Nathan."

"Wait wait, a morpher and a burner? Together at the same time?" Nathan asked. "Quinn, that's impossible."

"That's what I thought, but she attacked me, Nathan, I'm telling the truth!" I pleaded. "She put a mind-controlling device on me, in the shape of a necklace, and I have the scar now."

Instantly I pulled the high-collared nightgown down enough for Nathan to see where the pendant lied, but Nathan gave me a blank stare when the cloth was removed. I was confused, until I looked down to see no scar in sight. 

"No, no no!" I said, also checking the scar on my palm from the shard of teacup glass, which had disappeared as well. The healers had probably healed my scars as well as my pain. "Nathan, you have to believe me, I was dying when I came back, wasn't I? How would that happen unless I had a wound I couldn't heal myself? I swear it!"

"Quinn, you're tired, you're obviously a little out of it. I'll leave you to some rest, then I will come back for answers to where Zoe is, alright?" Nathan said, heading to the door.

"No! Don't!" I said, springing from the bed. "Nathan, I'm begging you, if you leave now, I'll never get a chance to save Zoe."

"Right, from the double-fairy." Nathan said. 

I gritted my teeth. "Nathan!" I screamed. Without thinking, I lunged at him from behind and instantly my eyes glowed, freezing him in place. Then, I put my middle finger where his left eye met his nose, my thumb on his cheekbone, and my index finger on his forehead, cupping his left eye with my fingers. Then, with another jolt, I projected what I could remember of Robin into Nathan's head.

The first time I ever saw her as herself, she had melted from a simple maid fairy into a hellish fire demon within seconds. The brown hair had fused into a curly, firey red, and her face turned sharper and more brilliant than the one I had seen before. Her maid costume looked like it had burned holes straight through as she did this, her whole body growing taller and leaner. Her eyes were glowing bright green, but as they faded you could see two black eyes behind the glow, and the dimness of it revealed a jewel split in half, one half deep crimson, the other a genius emerald. 

I let this image play on for a little longer, even though it scared me to death to see it once again. I showed Nathan how her eyes then glowed red and held me in the same way I held Nathan in a frozen stance. Then she had put the necklace on me, how it drilled into my skeleton and pained me so much.  There were places where we talked only, but then she yelled and threatened me and my family, telling me to retrieve Zoe for her. I could still feel the heat of her skin when she got close.

Near the end of the scene, she morphed back into the maid fairy she was in the beginning, though her eyes didn't scream innocence anymore. They screamed death.

I yanked my hand away from Nathan and backed away, remembering that there was emotional transference as well. When I let go of him he thrashed like he was being attacked, then held his chest, but I couldn't tell if it was from the pain of the necklace he could feel through my memory or from the fear I gave him. He looked at the ground, saliva coming from his mouth as he stared.

"Nathan?" I asked, my voice trembling.

He stayed quiet, staring at the wooded floors. He then crouched down to the ground and put his fist on the floor, holding himself up. One hand went over his mouth, wiping the sweat and spit from his lips.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Nathan asked through his fingers.

"I couldn't. The necklace wouldn't let me, and even if I could, if I did, she would have killed you." I explained.

Nathan was quiet again, until finally he stood up and rubbed his face with both his palms, before coming close to me. I stepped back, afraid he would be angry, but instead he grabbed my shoulders and looked into my eyes.

"Where is she?" Was all he said.

"Holler Mountain. I was forced to deliver her hours ago." I said, ashamed of what I was saying.

"Nathan nodded and let me go, heading to the doors with his hand on his sword.

"Where are you going?" I asked, confused.

"I'm getting the guards, we're going after her." Nathan said, grabbing the door handle.

"Don't!" I yelled, putting out my hand to stop him. I didn't have to use my magic this time, and he looked right to me.

I came over and pulled him away from the door. "Why? She's in danger, Quinn!"

"I know, I know." I replied. "But, what do you think our kingdom will do if it's entire army is off to defend a human? There'd be chaos everywhere, and you know we can't handle that right now with my father dead. Plus, if we come with a thousands storming guards, Robin will know and she has her own army of burners, I know. We'd be defeated within the hour."

"So what are you saying, that we don't go get her?" Nathan yelled, once again furious.

"I'm not saying that!" I screamed. "I'm saying, you and I can get in there better than a whole fleet can. That is why I came back here, Nathan, to get you. I needed your help. I needed you."

Nathan bit his lip, something I had never seen him do before with his sharp teeth. After a moment, he nodded, then turned me around.

"Get dressed, we're leaving in twenty minutes."