Take Me

“If Healynas referred to it as a mistake, that means he gave Jett powers but left him untrained. That's a lot of power all at once.”

“Now that you mention it, he said something about the void Jett opened.” I snuggled a little closer to him and wished there was a blanket around.

More than one would be better, actually. I wouldn’t have minded nesting with him then and there. He offered that much comfort, even with my body shouting various obscenities at me every time I moved.

“He wouldn't want you to be capable of that.”

“Can we take it back a little? What is a royal right? Why would he give that to me?”

“Normally, a royal right is reserved for members of the Fae who marry into a royal family. All of the royal families possess higher levels of power particular to their house. If an outsider is brought into a royal house, it only makes sense that they be granted the same power.”

“I still don't know what this has to do with me—or Jett.” Jett? Royal? I was having a tough time wrapping my head around that one.

Elliot sounded sort of choked when he asked, “Did he...mention me at all?”

Did he?

I closed my eyes and tried to take myself back to the conversation with Healynas. It wasn't easy, especially when my memory wanted to bury the encounter, particularly those moments when he had scared me most, which meant roughly 99.9% of the time. I would rather not have revisited the way it felt when he looked at me the way he did, like I was his next meal. Not exactly a happy conversation.

Still, Elliot made me remember something.

“Yes. He did. Healynas said his Sylph would teach me.” I reached out, ignoring the pain in my bandaged arm and grabbed him. “Is that true? Can you teach me? I need all the help I can get if he's going to do things like throw me off a cliff.”

It seemed like overkill, to put it mildly—throwing me off a cliff to see if I could control the air around me. Couldn't we have started from a slightly lower height? Maybe the roof of a single-story dwelling? A few mattresses stacked on the ground might have helped things, too.

He swore under his breath, something nasty that twisted his features into a mask of disgust. “I suppose I'll have to. He hasn't exactly given me a choice, but then that was never his way of doing things.”

“So, my first test was air. I guess I passed, since I'm still alive. Barely.”

He snorted softly, but it came out more like a faint laugh. “Yes, that could have gone much worse than it did. I only wish I could have helped you more.”

“Considering I'm still breathing, I think you did pretty well. And I did feel something when I used my powers. A sort of sizzling deep inside. Then it swelled and burst out of me.”

He stiffened. “Sizzling?”

“Like lightning.” I wiggled my fingers around. “Zap, zap.”

“I see.” But he didn’t sound happy about it.

“What’s wrong? Don’t tell me I can’t even get that right.”

“Normally, it’s more of a warm rush, but that’s just me,” he added when my breath caught in surprise. “I’m a Sylph, which could account for the difference. Don’t be so hard on yourself. Once you hone your abilities, you'll be unstoppable.”

I couldn't pretend that it didn't feel good to hear that. Being able to control air the way Elliot did? Shaping it and using it as a tool would be amazing. “What are the other tasks going to be?”

“I'm not sure, but I know what they'll involve. The other three houses… water, earth, and fire. It makes sense that Healynas would test your abilities with air first, as his is the house of air.”

“So he's going to expect me to control the other elements too? He threw me off a cliff to see if I could control the air. What will he do to see whether I can command fire?” I gazed at the bonfire Elliot had built, which no longer seemed as comforting.

All I could imagine was Healynas lighting me on fire then watching me try to extinguish the flames while I burned.

“I wish I knew. I wish there was more I could do to help you prepare. All we can do is train you and develop your powers before the tests come up. At least now, I know in advance.” Before I could voice the question that was ready to trip from my lips, he answered it, “I do know he’ll block me from helping you. No matter what task he assigns, I won’t be of any help, just like this time.

Of course not. Why would any of this be easy?

“You helped me enough. But if I hadn't slowed myself down, I'd be mush right now. I doubt even you could have put me back together.”

“I was barely able to put you back together this time,” Elliot lamented.