Dinner had been surprisingly comfortable. More than Chenzhou had been expecting.
Though he was disappointed Anna wasn't feeling well.
Perhaps he was too idealistic, thinking it was possible for Anna and Eirian to coexist, but the tightening in his chest, the weight blanketing him growing a little bit heavier every day, the pain that never seemed to fade—maybe it was all finally driving him mad.
Maybe he wouldn't even wake up tomorrow morning.
It wouldn't be the worst thing, he realized. The exhaustion slowed him to a shuffle as he finally made it to his rooms. He didn't keep guards with him anymore. There was no point. No one needed to put in any extra effort; his own body would betray him before long.
Did Eirian suspect something? What was she expecting from the head healer?
The man was easily overshadowed by his more talented juniors. Still, he'd managed to hang onto his position through sheer brown-nosing and the unfortunate fact that what he lacked in the surgery, he made up for in the office.
He always insisted on taking Chenzhou's appointments personally, despite his failure to identify what was wrong with him.
When he was younger, he'd considered firing him, ignoring the backlash from the families that supported him. Still, after a few years and a dozen other healers failing to find anything, he'd decided to stop wasting time on him.
As long as the hospital continued to function at top capacity, Chenzhou had other things to do with his limited energy.
Anna was already in bed when he let himself in, brushing her hair at her vanity in the candlelight. She always extinguished the torches when she wasn't feeling well, and Chenzhou knew to leave her alone until she approached him.
He made it through washing off, changing, and climbing into bed before she turned to him, tucked under the blankets already.
"How are you feeling, my love?"
She gave him a weak smile. "Better. I'm sorry I missed dinner."
He shook his head and shifted to try and get comfortable. "You need rest."
She moved closer, tucking herself into his side, her hand resting on his chest. "Was it terribly awkward?"
"Not at all, surprisingly."
"Oh?" There was an odd note to her voice as she curled closer, her hand shifting to rest over his heart.
"She brought a soldier with her. Met him today, new him in the capital."
"A lover?"
Chenzhou gave a soft laugh. "No. He's a baby. Marian's cousin. I think she's going to make him her assistant. Gods know he has the energy for it. Talked the entire meal."
"Wow." Anna's always had more energy for the social side of things. "That's good, though. Someone she can talk to."
Chenzhou hummed in agreement, eyes drifting shut.
"He can help bring her up to speed. Take some of the responsibility off you."
Chenzhou took a deep breath, laying perfectly still the way the healer had taught him to bring on sleep despite the pain. "Too young," he murmured after her quiet words registered. She was warm at his side. Comfortable like blanket charmed for warmth. She'd been his only source of comfort for so long, a candle flickering in the never-ending darkness.
He turned his head, buring his face in her hair and inhaling the faint scent of almond and vanilla from the oil she used to keep it smooth and shiny. She'd been using the same oil since they'd met.
He was just on the edge of sleep when she spoke again. Just a whisper that his mind struggled to register.
"Maybe you could find someone older?"
Chenzhou hummed, desperate to fall over the edge into sleep. Pressed against him, Anna's body relaxed, softening as she too slipped into sleep.
***
In her rooms, in the steaming tub out on the balcony, Eirian took a deep breath. Letting the scent of peonies fill her nostrils. Marian had recommended the oil, produced by a friend of her family and one of her personal favorites.
She was bustling back and forth between the main room and Eirian's closet, sorting her clothes for the next day. Chenzhou had a weekly status meeting with his generals that he'd invited Eirian to attend. Easing her into the daily life of the Camelia and she wanted to make a good impression, having Marian pull her red and gold robes and a black dress that was the closest she could come to the Camelia's colors, until she could order a new wardrobe.
The sky above was hazy, the stars barely visible, but Eirian couldn't be sure if it was the miasma or normal clouds.
Dinner had been much more relaxed than she'd expected. Finn's presence had served its purpose and now he was sleeping off the wine and his nerves in one of the nearby spare rooms.
He was cheerful enough to stand out in this gloomy place and Eirian generally perfered to surround herself with cheerful people. He was energetic enough to be a useful assistant or something along those lines and it would be a good reward for using him tonight.
She'd figure it out tomorrow. For now she stretched out. The only upside to being short and petit was that there was plenty of room to stretch all her limbs out and float in the tub. The banked fire beneath kept the water the perfect temperature and she closed her eyes, let the water block out the sounds of the world.
Her magic sung in her veins, in time with her heartbeat, echoing through the water. It hadn't retreated far from her finger tips, not since her arrival. Always poised to burst out of her due to the presence of the miasma.
Eirian had never hidden her magic, despite the danger than came with it and the longer it sat coiled and ready to fight, the more the chances increased that the miasma would react to it.
A smarter person would probably reel it back in. Try to keep it hidden to buy time, to keep the element of surprise.
Eirian had never been the type to hide though. At least not where her strength was concerned. She could easily win a battle of might, any kind of struggle of brute force. She was a decent strategist, mostly because Eric loved strategy, figuring that would make them a good pair with his mind and her fists.
And he wasn't wrong. They'd been a great team, close enough in all things that they could have been twins.
And now they were seperated by hundreds of miles. He'd been scheduled to return to Aontacht about now, provided there were no delays. He'd hear about the marriage soon.
And he wouldn't be happy. She needed to write him before he stormed the Camelia to protect her. As amusing as that would be, there would be an unnessary amount of bloodshed.
~ tbc