A Kelpie of Rowan

Chapter 22

He sighs. The girl is lying at the very edge of the water, her fingertips almost touching it. She's still for now, the skin of her hands cool. But when she wakes, it will be raging once again. He crouches and shifts a lock of fiery hair off of her face. He should have guessed that she'd be exhausted, she expended too much energy. He glances around briefly. There are a couple of smooth stones in the river, far flatter than the ones up on the bank. He reaches into the shallow water and fishes one of them out.

He doesn't need to write on it for this, just get the stone to the kelpie boy. He tilts his wrist and flicks the stone across the water, watching it vanish between one leap and the next. He steps backward, not wanting the kelpie boy to see him when he emerges from the water. He lifts his hand into the air to grasp a low hanging tree branch, pulling himself up to perch among the leaves, hidden from sight. He's just in time, the water at the center ripples and a black horse emerges from the water.

The kelpie tosses his head when he sees the girl, confusion and concern shining in his dark eyes. He surges forward, trying to gallop to the edge of the river despite the water slowing his pace. He's frantic with worry. He stops at the edge of the water and shifts into human form, bending down to scoop the girl into his arms. He steps back into the water, preparing himself to shift back. As he does, he glances around the riverbank, searching for anyone that could be there. Then the kelpie returns to his horse form and turns to head back to his realm, the unconscious girl slung over his back. The water closes over him smoothly, leaving naught but the barest ripple to indicate where he had been only mere moments before.

~~~

Andrian tries to get through the passage as quickly as he can, he doesn't know how long Rowan will remain on his back and if she slips off while they're going through, she could lose the protection around her and drown. At last, he emerges into the pocket realm's river. He looks back to check if she's still there. She's shifting off his back, sliding to the side. He snorts in alarm and shifts, scooping her back into his arms. Rowan's head lolls back, her red hair streaming over his arm to dangle above the water. Andrian wades out of the water, hurrying back to his house. When he gets there, his brothers look up from their chairs in alarm.

Cáel is first to speak. "Why are you barging in here, Andrian?"

Camden wacks his twin's arm and frowns, his eyes flicking between Rowan's prone form and Andrian's face. "What happened to her?"

Andrian shrugs. "I'm not sure. A stone came through the river, so someone was trying to get my attention. But when I got there, she was unconscious and there was no one else in sight."

"So she must have been the one who threw the stone, just before she passed out."

Andrian nods. "Yes, there's no other explanation. But why did she pass out?"

Camden shrugs. "You'll have to ask her that when she wakes."

Andrian nods and walks past his brothers to his room, gently placing Rowan onto his bed. Her hands fall so that one is lying flat on the sheets and the other is resting on her stomach. Her hair streams around her, laying like a cloud around her head. Her eyelids flicker, her eyes are shifting beneath them. She's beginning to wake up.

Andrian sits in a stool beside his desk, leaning back against the wall to wait. The light in the room flares, almost as if an intense sunbeam flickered through it. The light fades just as fast, leaving nothing amiss. Rowan shifts, her eyelids flickering again. A low, quiet groan makes its way past her lips and her fingers clench against the bedsheet. A bead of sweat appears on her forehead, causing Andrian to frown. When did it get so hot in here? Rowan groans again and her eyelids flick up then down again. She'll be awake in a few seconds.
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Who do you think the first person was? What do you think happened to Rowan? Why is the room hotter? Tell me your thoughts!

I also have an update for you guys. I finished transferring notes to my laptop to take with me to college(six notebooks worth, SIX: Gov/Econ, AP Bio, Marine Bio, AP Environmental Science, AP Statistics, and AP Calculus AB) since I've finished transferring those, I can now increase how much I'm writing each day. So I should be doing two, maybe three chapters most days. (Weekends are the exception, they're busy. Chores and long walks/hikes, and virtual meetings with my friends. So on weekends, I can make a promise of one chapter, not more) even though I'll be writing more each day though, there will still be one chapter posted per day. Might not be ideal for you guys, especially if you really like this story, but it helps me to have chapters saved up for if there's a day I can't write. I.e. moving day(starting college in August, and I'll be moving to Hawai'i during the first couple days of the month. Don't know how well I'll be able to write on that plane) Also, since I'll be writing more but publishing chapters at the same speed, it will take me less time than expected to really start writing Frosted Dreams. Speaking of Frosted Dreams, let me know if you want to help me decide what book I write after Frosted Dreams. I'll put the option in the next chapter if you guys want to help.

Happy reading and I'll see you next chapter!

~Goddess of Fate, signing out.