I woke like someone being drawn up from deep in a lake. Weariness flowed over me; tried to drag me down, but something else drew me awake. I dragged my eyes open, and took a deep breath. The world was dark, but I could hear a strange rushing, sighing noise in the distance. My mind was foggy. I vaguely remembered being dragged through hallways, then sitting on a couch, and a warm breeze. That was it.
I was lying on my side, leaning against something solid, something that rose and fell slightly. Something twisted in my stomach; shivered over me, but it wasn't fear, or even annoyance.
I twisted around, rested my forehead against him, and closed my eyes.
....
When I opened my eyes to light flooding the room, he was gone. I sat up quickly. Had he even been there last night? Had it been my imagination? I groaned and flopped back on the couch. Probably had been my imagination.
I sniffed. Then sat up and sniffed again. Something spicy drifted through the air. I had no clue what it was, but I was suddenly starving, and I needed it.
I stood up, and stretched, then leaned down and tried to touch my toes. The spicy smell was stronger. A few inches away from my nose was a table. On the table was a plate. And on the plate was a pile of something covered in a bright orange sauce. I plopped back onto the couch and leaned towards the food, breathing deeply. Never in my life had I smelled anything like it. I looked around for a fork, but there was none. A flat bready thing was sitting on the edge of the plate. I picked it up, and ripped some off, then scooped up some of the sauce and what I assumed was meat, and stuffed it in my mouth.
"Oh. My." The stuff was the best thing I had tasted in my life. Spicy, sweet, salty, sour, literally everything in perfect balance. And yet all of it so bright and pushy, not like the delicate food at home. I ate the entire plate as fast as I could.
Someone knocked on the door. I choked on my last bite, and almost died as the door opened. Finally, I swallowed, and was able to greet the elf who stood in the doorway with a rather perplexed look on his face.
"Clothes." He blurted out, then set a bundle on the floor and fled.
I went over and picked up the bundle, then stuck my head out the doorway. "Um. Thank you?" But he was gone. So I closed the door and looked at the bundle. It was mostly a long drapey dress thing, with a sash.
I looked around for a bath or something, but there was nothing there. I ran over to the balcony and leaned over. A dark blue pool was a storey below, surrounded by white stone and a high hedge.
"Um." I leaned farther over the balcony rail. There was someone in the pool below. I caught a glimpse of pale hair, and dark skin, then jumped back. Apparently the bath was outside.
"Um." I looked around.
"Lilya?"
I cringed. "Ye-es?"
"You coming down? Jump off the balcony! It's deep!"
"What?" I ran to the edge, and looked over. Raon was looking up at me from the middle of the pool, a grin on his face. His white hair was plastered down his back and across his chest.
I backed up hurriedly. "You're not...naked?"
A ringing laugh echoed from below. "Not exactly."
I frowned and looked back over the railing. "Well, I don't have anything to wear."
"That's fine."
My eyes shot wide open, but before I could think of a stinging retort, he laughed again.
"There's something in the clothes I had delivered to the room, don't worry."
I grabbed the pile and flung them on the marble floor. I could feel the dirt and sweat across my skin, all through my hair, and I couldn't stand it. The bright clothes floated to the ground. There was a long stretch of green cloth, a pale blue dress, and some complicated twist of white cloth. I picked up the white, and held it up.
"Well." I pulled off my trousers and shirt, and tried to figure out how to put the thing on. There were ties everywhere, and it was supposed to twist around the top.
I put it on the best I could, then looked around for a mirror. There was none, so I tried to see the effect of it without one. It wasn't promising. It was so short. And a bit too thin.
"Did you find it?"
"I think so!" I yelled back, and went to the balcony. I swung my leg over, gripping the wide lip on the outside with my toes. The marble was warm against my thigh. The sun was already high in the sky, and I squinted up at it.
"Just jump!"
I swung the other leg over, and looked down. Raon had moved to the other side of the pool, and was shading his eyes to watch me.
I shrieked, and leapt off the marble. I fell for an instant, then cool water surrounded me. My toes brushed the bottom. I opened my eyes, and looked up through the silent blue. The sun glittered through the water, gold beams slicing across my vision. My hair billowed across my face, and my lungs pinched. But I didn't want to move. A flash of silver made me turn, and I saw Raon. He swam through the water next to me, his dark skin pale. A length of white cloth swirled around his middle, flowing with his movements.
He looked over at me, then slowly floated to the blue tiles of the bottom, and looked up, his white hair a cloud around his face.
I floated down as close as I could, but my lungs pinched painfully, and I turned around, pushing off with my feet. I soared towards the sun, and my face broke the surface.
I laughed, and pushed my hair out of my eyes. A hand touched my waist, and Raon surfaced next to me. The sun glittered off the water, and filled my eyes. The scent of lilacs drifted across the breeze.
I twisted, and all of a sudden Raon's face was inches from mine. I held my breath. He was looking up, his eyes closed against the sun. Long, dark lashes lay against his skin, fanned out as if painted there. Then his eyes opened, and he looked across at me. Since the first time I saw him, he had always looked down at me, always above me. Now, we were at the same level. I didn't know what to do. Then he reached out, pushing a strand of wet hair off of my forehead. The place he'd touched burned like the sun.
His other hand rested on my shoulder, then suddenly, he shoved me down.
Cold water filled my nose and mouth. His hand disappeared, and I pushed back to the surface, spluttering and spitting water everywhere.
"Ack!" I flailed around, and my hand caught against something. I pulled him closer, then right when his chest brushed my side, I heaved myself up and pushed him under. He grabbed my shoulder, and my head dipped under too. Then his hands were around my waist, and I was flung out of the water with brutal force. I came down a few feet away, sinking a few feet. I flailed to the surface, and swam towards the edge. I couldn't see him anywhere.
Something touched my leg, then Raon rose to the surface next to me, his face split in a grin.
I tried to push him away, but he grabbed my waist and pulled me closer. I couldn't breathe for some reason, but the thought flew out of my head as soon as it had entered. His chest brushed my ribs.
"Raon? You here?"
Raon froze, then looked over his shoulder at the palace. "What?" he said in an irritated voice.
"Are you busy?" The voice died away as a face appeared around a hedge.
"Busy? Obviously." Raon said icily.
The elf sneered. His hair was silver, not white, and his eyes dark. "I would just leave, but Father said he needed to talk to you, so I'd hurry up if I were you, little favorite."
Raon's jaw clenched. He pulled himself up onto the side of the pool. "And that's my eldest brother." he said quietly. "Myrda."
I raised my eyebrows. "Pleasant."
Raon rolled his eyes. "I know." He grabbed a white cloth from beside him and tied it around his waist, then twisted his hair up into a knot at the back of his head. "He's only a little bit nicer than Ryoc." Then he looked over at me. "Will you...wait here till I get back?"
I blinked, then nodded. Then I smiled. "Well, I'll probably get out and get dressed first."
He smiled, then got to his feet. "Just go through that archway. There's more clothes in the closet."
"Honestly, favorite, are you going to take all day?" a mocking voice echoed from the palace.
Raon grimaced then went after him, disappearing around a hedge.
I tried to pull myself out like Raon had, but my arms were sore beyond anything. I pushed myself as high as I could, then flailed around until I got my leg over the edge. Then I rolled out onto the warm stone, scraping my knees on the rough edges. I got to my feet, and shivered. My arms and side throbbed, but the wounds were closing.
Around the hedge, I could see a stone archway, so I headed that way. There was a white half circular room there, with a door straight ahead, and shelves on the left side. A closet was on the right, and I opened it. Brightly colored cloth lay on the shelves, organized by size. I pulled a dark orange cloth out, and it unfolded into a long tunic. I glanced around, then untangled myself from the white thing that stuck to my skin. I pulled the tunic over my head, then chose a pale blue scarf from a hook on the door and tied it around my waist. A long slit ran up each side of the tunic, to halfway up my thigh. Strings of beads hung from the armholes, draping across my arms. I looked at the long red scars that traced the length of my forearms, and ran my fingers over the parallel scars where Raon had cut the snakebite.
I shivered, then went to the doorway. It opened to a small covered courtyard, a long still pool running down the center. On the left, one of the walls was open, showing a view into a garden full of strangely colorful plants. Wide purple leaves stretched out from a gnarled trunk, bright orange flowers covered the ground. On the right, a spiral staircase led up to the higher levels.
I went towards it, and ran up. A shaft of sunlight shone down from straight above, making the white marble steps gleam.
At the first landing, I looked around the doorway, hoping nobody would be standing there. I thought Raon's room was on this level, but the palace was so big I hadn't a clue. I went up another level, and realized I might as well start looking here. This hallway curved out at each end, and had another hallway headed straight ahead off the stairway. It opened to blue sky at the end. The walls were covered in colorful murals of strange creatures and people. I had no clue which door was Raon's or if I was even on the right floor, so I went through the hall straight ahead, hoping I would see something familiar.
"...you can't have changed your mind." The voice drifted up from below the balcony.
I moved closer, careful not so as to not show myself to whoever was beneath.
"Father, everything has changed." The voice was Raon's. So the other one was the king?
I inched closer, cursing the fact I had chosen such stupidly visible clothes. Hopefully I blended in with the painting of a horned peacock behind me.
"Whether or not that is true, I've already given the order."
"When?" Raon's voice was suddenly urgent.
"Two days ago."
"No!" His voice was anguished. "Why? I sent word for you to wait!"
"Our empire will not get anywhere with pandering. The mission might already be done. According to the plan you agreed to."
"I was wrong! That was months ago! Do you know what you've done? There is something wrong, Father. They weren't staying with the plan even months ago."
The king's voice dropped, and I crawled closer on my hands and knees to hear better. "Yes, but now, my son, seventh of the Elvenaer, is-"
"Silence!" Raon roared. "I have no part of this now." His voice dropped, and a chill crept up my back at the venom there. "I'm no longer your slave, Father."
"It doesn't matter. This part is done. Now you complete it. Otherwise, I will."
I could see their heads now, through the lattice under the rail. The king was facing away from me, Raon towards me. His eyes flitted up and I pulled my head back quickly.
There was a long silence.
Finally, I heard the crunch of footsteps on gravel.
"Very well." Raon said quietly.
I backed away from the balcony, panic squeezing my chest. Whatever I had just heard, I was certainly not supposed to hear it. Had he seen me? I had only barely looked through the lattice.
I stood, and looked down the hallway, my heart pounding. I had to get back to the pool, without him seeing me. I bolted for the stairway and ran down it.