"Okay," he murmured, alluringly close to your ear before he pulled away again and leaned back, his eyes roaming over each wing in concentration. "That should set you up for a while, at least until the muscles heal and gain some modicum of strength."
You twisted to look over your shoulder, though it wasn't hard to miss the splint he'd attached to the base of your wings, metallic points curving to apply a light pressure to the joints and bones that attached them to your shoulders.
"They should ease the pain you have when moving them, but don't expect to be back to one hundred percent any time soon...if ever, truthfully."
"I understand," you nodded, watching as he rounded to stand in front of you, then offering him a smile. "You have been a great help."
He wordlessly accepted the grace with a small smile and a dip of his head.
You couldn't believe that weeks had passed, let alone enough to add up to a near month and a half.
Prince Nuada and his trusty cave troll, Mr. Wink, had proven to be great company, once the initial shock of falling had faded at least.
The first five days have been a hard adjustment, full of varying emotions that could way from one to another in the blink of an eye.
Nuada had been there every step of the way to help you settle into a new reality, one where your wings could possibly be completely unusable and your chances of ever returning were completely thwarted.
The road had been long and seemed never ending, but their support was endless and you couldn't have asked for better company as you struggled with this major alteration in your life.
After a couple of days of physical rest, spent with Nuada making sure that your injuries were healing and that it wasn't too difficult for you to move beyond the weight of your wings, he and Mr. Wink found a way to wrap your wings up so that you could shift around without causing more harm.
Not that anyone thought that possible.
To begin with, days passed in slow uncertainty as you drifted in and out of groggy sleep while your body attempted to heal, with Nuada's help along the way.
You were surprised by how easy it was to talk to them, especially Prince Nuada, who seemed to have a patience very few would be able to compete with, though Mr. Wink had complex sides to him that you suspected very few people got to witness.
While you were healing and drifting in and out, Nuada used the growing moments of your lucidity to give you food, water, pain relief and to read to you until you drifted away once again.
When you could stay awake for longer and once your emotions had settled enough for concentration, you started having introductory conversations that grew deeper as the days turned to weeks.
He taught you a variety of subjects and he listened with great fascination as you explained the customs of your home, or what would have once been your home, and various abilities of your own such as All-Speak that was universal for angels to speak to all species of being.
Thinking of home hurt, now you weren't so sure where you stood with those of your calibre and truthfully, you were afraid to find out of the crimes you had committed to be worthy of becoming a Fallen.
You still didn't fully understand and neither Nuada nor Wink dared to ask.
They never pushed you for information that you weren't comfortable sharing and you gave them the same grace, though you feared that you had stepped over the line three weeks in when you had asked about the markings engraved in Nuada's skin.
He answered with a calmness that gave nothing away and his face didn't indicate any melancholy or resentment towards your question, yet something told you to move on from that line of questioning and you instead diverted the subject to hobbies.
This was where you learned of his interest in mechanics.
The further he got into that conversation, revolving mostly around things he had made or fixed, the more he opened up and soon a less reserved side to him appeared.
"Who would have dreamed of an elf so fascinated with something such as mechanisms?"
"It's a different world," he chuckled lightly, his eyes drifting to your wings.
Suddenly, his attention drifted away and you lost him for a long minute before he suddenly stood from his seat and strode across the room, white hair flaring out behind him with the force of his walk.
He was murmuring to himself as he started to look for something that you couldn't make out until he turned back to you, the items to sketch in his hands.
"In fact, this could be our answer, perhaps we can get your wings moving again."
From there he grabbed onto the chair he'd been sat on and moved it around to the other side, giving him a better look at your back and then he started sketching.
The planning only took a couple of days, his attention absolutely focused once he'd gotten started.
You watched on with fascination as he worked, enjoying the small habits he'd display as he concentrated.
Truth be told, he had started to make your stomach flutter in recent days and you were more than content to simply be in his presence as he went about his business, unsure of what to do with these newly stemming feelings.
You had heard of love, both the greater and lesser kinds, but it wasn't anything you had ever thought that you would experience.
Yet you knew what was happening as soon as your body started to react differently upon him entering the room in the mornings or when a sudden thought of him created an unusual reaction.
You had never experienced love before but you weren't ignorant to how it would feel and you knew that you were at least attracted to the elf.
How couldn't you be?
His clothes were ridiculously flattering and as regal as his title and the way he held himself and that was if you completely ignored his voice and manner of speaking.
His beauty was ethereal and you wanted it all to yourself, like a dragon wanting gold.
Things were easy enough to ignore until the touches start.
They hadn't been anything with more intent than to take measurements and plan out how the splints he was making would work, but the light and gentle way he ran his fingers over your feathers and was mindful the entire time cemented those growing feelings.
You pushed them aside as best as you could, hoping that they weren't obvious to him.
Though he was painfully receptive and seemed five steps ahead of everyone.
Sometimes it felt like the closeness and some of the lingering touches were purposeful, a small glimmer of hope that you didn't want to chase would root its place into your heart each time it happened.
So, you decided to try and divert this growing affection into gratefulness for his efforts.
This worked, for the most part, and he never seemed to catch on.
But in that moment, where he stepped back, inspected the wings and then met your eyes, your world could have crumbled.
"Thank you," you whispered, feeling a constriction building in your throat. "I can't ever express how I feel."
Nuada took in a sharp breath, looking a little uncertain of how to react.
Eventually, he moved forward and placed a hand on the top of your arm, giving it a gentle squeeze.
"I understand, you don't need to speak it."
You gave him a smile and dipped your head down, feeling an uncomfortable giddiness coming over you at his closeness.
"But I have something I may need to say, if I may?"
You lifted your head to look at him again, giving a brief nod.
"Of course, please do."
His eyes slowly roamed over your face and then he let out a small sigh, his shoulders drooping.
"A part of me is dreading your wings healing," he said softly. "That would mean you are ready to leave and I have grown used to having you around."
"I see," you laughed softly, "I would miss your company too."
"No, it's more than that," he frowned, shaking his head. "I would miss you, in your entirety."
He took a deep breath, a look of uncertainty briefly flashing across his face before he shook his head.
"My feelings for you are more than friendship and it may be above me, whether an elf with a title or not, to fall for an angel but I have."
It was the wrong reaction and you regretted it as soon as it happened, but a sudden burst of laughter came from you.
Not one of malice, more of a nervous surprise but that didn't stop him from pulling back, looking at you uncertainly.
"Sorry," you rushed, grabbing one of his hands in both of yours. "I didn't mean that cruelly, I was merely surprised. I...I didn't think you'd feel the same way."
"I hope this isn't some elaborate joke," he said, looking sceptical.
"No, not from me, I truly was just surprised that you returned my feelings."
"Good," he smiled with a soft sigh of what you guessed to be relief. "That will make your healing time a little easier on us both."
"Yes," you laughed softly, "no more worrying over secrets getting out."
"We can move forward in this together."
He lifted the hand you had clasped up, bringing his lips to your knuckles to lay a kiss upon them.
"Yes," he agreed softly. "Together."