Rhys and Cassian had spent a very long time convincing Devlon to allow the girls to train instead of their chores.
Cassian had brought me with him. It felt like a peace offering. A way to get me out of the house and around others. He said I could train the girls. I hadn't trained them in such a long time. Since before the Spring Court.
I watched the girls sparring, studying their techniques. I was disappointed in the obvious lack of training.
Half of them were clipped, and half of the clippings were botched. Which meant most of them had trouble with agility.
My own wings still ached most days, the wounds having never properly healed.
I thought I was ready to come back here. Unfortunately, I was wrong. Every time a male even passed by, my heart rate went up and I had to stop myself from bolting the other direction.
Something moved in the corner of my eye. I turned, noticing a small figure moving behind the trees. A little pair of wings. I looked over at the girls once more before stepping into the trees.
I approached a small shivering figure. A tiny, female Illyrian, likely no more than nine years old.
She had long blonde hair that was wrapped around her shoulders. Her deep blue eyes were filled with so much pain. Her pale skin was covered in dark bruises.
"Are you alright, chiquita?" I asked in the Illyrian tongue, kneeling at her side.
She stared up at me, tears streaming down her face. I went to wipe the tears from her eyes, but she flinched away.
"What camp are you from?" I wondered. Her eyes widened at the remark, and she shook her head.
"I can't go back," she whispered, her Illyrian accent strong as she spoke the language. "He said he'd clip my wings if I ran away again."
I felt a stab of agony in my heart. I stared at the little girl for another second. She reminded me so much of myself at her age.
I couldn't just leave her in the snow to die. And I was not going to send her back to someone who would just clip her wings.
"Come with me," I decided. She seemed wary of me. I didn't blame her. I hadn't trusted Iridessa at first. "I won't make you go back there, okay?"
She looked into my eyes before finally nodding. I scooped her up and held her in my arms, wrapping my useless wings around us to keep her warm. She was still shivering in my arms.
"Training is done for the day," I announced to the girls.
They all disbanded to set up for the solstice. The little girl had her face hidden in my shoulder.
"Hold on tight," I cautioned, holding onto her as I winnowed away.
I appeared in the front of the lodge and opened the door. I stepped in the door and snapped my fingers so the snow on us disappeared.
I placed the little girl on the ground and she stared up at me in confusion. She was still shivering.
"I'm going to run you a hot bath," I decided. "There should be some clothes in the attic that will fit you. Are you hungry?"
She shook her head. She was horribly underweight, even for her age. "When was the last time you ate, dulzura?"
"A week ago," she admitted.
I put a can of soup on the stove for her. She was staring at the ground now. I knelt by her side and brushed her hair away from her face.
"You won't go hungry while you're with me, okay?" I said to her.
"You really aren't gonna make me go back there?" she questioned, her voice not raising above a whisper.
"No," I swore, shaking my head. "What's your name?"
"Saphira," she whispered. "But nobody's called me by my name in a while."
I nodded, her words confirming my suspicions. Slaves were never addressed by name. I may had forgotten mine were it not for Az and my mother.
The door opened, and Cassian stepped in. Saphira squeaked slightly, hiding behind me. Cassian took in the sight of the two of us before turning to me with a confused expression.
"He's not going to hurt you, Saphira," I promised, leaning down and picking her up.
She hid her face in my neck again. I shot him a glance, telling him to be gentle and not too loud.
"This is Saphira," I said very quietly. "Saphira, this is Cassian."
"Hey, kiddo," Cassian greeted with a soft smile. She glanced at him, trembling in my arms. I sighed.
"I'm going to run her a bath," I said.
He nodded, and I carried her off to the bathroom. I motioned my hand, and the tub filled with warm water.
"Are you okay if I leave while you get in?" I asked her. "I'll bring you back some soup, okay?" She nodded.
"Don't let him come in here," she pleaded. My heart ached.
"I won't," I swore. "And he would never do that, okay?" She nodded.
While I knew Cassian would never lay a hand on her, she had every right to be scared. I'd been scared of every older male I'd encountered for years after what happened to me. I still was.
I stepped out of the room and saw Cassian staring at me with a raised eyebrow.
"She was all alone in those mountains," I explained. "Her master was going to clip her wings if she went back there. I couldn't do it. I couldn't leave her, Cass."
"Of course you couldn't," he said, but the words were not mocking. "I wouldn't have left her, either. But what is your plan?"
"I don't know," I admitted. "I need to know more about her. If she has parents. If they're good enough for her."
"Good enough for her?" he mused. "You sound like an overbearing mother."
"She's so young," I said with a sigh, crossing my arms. "I want to help her." He nodded, getting himself some soup.
"She looks like Luna," he observed.
That was true. The blonde hair and blue eyes, and just a few years younger than Luna had been when she died.
"I don't think she speaks the common Fae tongue," I sighed.
"Good thing most of us speak Illyrian," he assured me.
"I'm not coming back here for a while," I mumbled. "I thought I could handle it, but I can't."
"That's okay," he said. "It'll take time."
I nodded, preparing a bowl of soup for the young girl.
I stepped back to the bathroom where the little girl was. She was in the tub, trembling again, tears streaming down her face.
"Hey, it's okay," I comforted, sitting on the edge of the tub.
She wiped her tears away, sniffling like she was embarrassed. I placed the soup down next to me and she grabbed it, beginning to eat.
When she was done with her bath, I dried her off and got her in some of Luna's old clothes that I found in the attic.
I tucked her into my bed. I would sleep on the couch. I stroked her hair back and made sure she was comfortable.
"Will you stay in here?" she whispered.
I nodded, getting into the bed next to her. She quickly huddled into my arms. I wrapped my wings around her to keep her warm.
I wondered if she'd ever known her mother. If anyone had ever cared for her before. She really did remind me of Luna.
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧
The next day, Cassian went off on his own. I decided to bring Luna to get some more clothes of her own.
There was a nice shop owned by a female named Emerie. I'd gotten leathers for myself there before. Emerie was a sweet, though quiet girl.
She smiled at us when we entered the store. She'd always had a sort of glow about her, though there was also a profound sadness there. She was clipped, so I could assume her childhood wasn't the best.
"Astraea," she greeted. "It's been a while."
"I know, I've been so busy," I lied, shrugging.
I was carrying Saphira, who was hiding her face in my shoulder. She was so nervous around people.
"Who's this?" she asked me.
"This is Saphira," I introduced. "Saphira, this is Emerie."
She glanced up, meeting the Illyrian's eyes. Emerie smiled at her. Saphira gave her a shy smile, but didn't speak.
"I wanted to get her some clothes," I explained.
"Okay," Emerie nodded. "What kind of things do you like, sweetie?"
"Anything that will keep me warm," she answered, her voice quiet.
"Well, let's take a look," Emerie encouraged as I set the girl on the ground.
I followed Emerie to the children's section with Saphira's hand in mine. She began pulling sweaters and pants from the rack.
"You can go into the dressing room and try them on," Emerie instructed. "Leave the ones you don't like behind, and bring me the ones you do."
Saphira nodded, taking the handfuls of clothes and making her way to the dressing room.
"Thank you," I sighed, brushing my hair behind my ear.
"Is she yours?" Emerie asked. It had been so long since I'd seen her, it would've been possible.
"No," I scoffed, shaking my head. "I found her in the woods yesterday. It seems she escaped someone who was holding her captive. I'm going to have her show Rhys so we can figure out who it was."
"Poor thing," Emerie sighed. "Are you going to take care of her?"
"I want to," I confessed. "Now that I found her, I wouldn't feel right giving her to someone else. I want to make sure she's okay."
"She seems to be very attached to you already," Emerie said with an amused smile.
I chuckled, nodding. Emerie's smile faded as her eyes caught onto something. I realized she was staring at my wings.
"You were clipped," she realized. I pursed my lips, staring at my lap. "Was it recent?" I nodded. "Wait here."
I glanced up as she left me to go to the back of the store. She came back a few minutes later with a small container.
"This ointment helps with the pain," she said, handing it to me. "I still have to use it, sometimes."
"Thank you," I said, grateful for her kindness.
Before she could answer, Saphira came out of the dressing room, her hands full with clothes. I chuckled, getting to my feet and going over to her to help her with them.