Page 74 of The Wolf and Her Shadows

“As if I don’t know you’re the one who asked Old Greyva to unbind my magic.” Rolling my eyes, I carefully lift my head off my mother’s lap to glance around the room, looking for said lover. “Where is Vannaria?”

“Right here, Your Majesty,” Vannaria says, appearing at my side in a whirl of shadows. “Apologies, I had only stepped out for a moment to check on the horses.”

Exhaling a sigh of relief, I instinctually reach out and grasp her hand. “It’s alright, it was just a bit strange for the lap I woke up in to not be yours.” I shift my attention back to my mother, enjoying the way her fingers are still running through my hair almost as much as when Vannaria does it. “That was where you’d disappeared to earlier, right? To talk to Old Greyva about what had happened to me?”

My mother nods, her expression darkening. “Yes, it was. I know tonight was meant to be a celebration, but I couldn’t bear the thought of you being violated in such a way for a moment longer than necessary.” Running a finger along my forehead, she attempts to smooth out the wrinkles caused by the way my brows are furrowed. “Your magic is as much a part of you as your wolf form is. And without your magic to help heal you during your transformations I can only imagine how painful they’ve been. Or hells, were you even still able to without your magic?”

“I was,” I reassure her. “It was excruciating, but still possible. Well, it was painful every time except for when Aren helped me through it. Not entirely sure what they did though, all I–”

“Aren?” She glances between me and Vannaria. “Who is Aren?”

“One of my mental companions,” Vannaria explains, tapping a finger against the smooth skin on her temple. “They have the ability to summon fire and apparently found a way to use heat to help alleviate at least some of Mariane’s pain.”

“Are they also a healer of some sort?” my mother asks, tilting her head and squinting at Vannaria’s forehead, as if attempting to see Aren for herself. “I’ve known a few pyromancers that were, although their methods were a bit cruder than what our magic can accomplish.”

“Not to my knowledge.” The elf shrugs, her eyes briefly locking with mine before returning to my mother. “Although it seems that means very little, considering how much Greyva knew about me, and my own magic, that I had been entirely unaware of thus far. It’s quite possible she knows more about the other two as well.”

Lifting Vannaria’s hand to my lips, I place a kiss on her knuckles. “We can ask her tomorrow. Or whenever you’re all ready.”

Her cheeks turn a bit purple as she smiles softly. “That we can. As for now, I do believe we should all get some sleep. It’s getting quite late, and I don’t know about you two but I’m absolutely exhausted.”

As if summoned by her words, the sound of a loud yawn fills the air, courtesy of my mother, the hand over her mouth doing very little to stifle the noise. Lowering her hand, she gives me a sheepish smile. “So am I, I’m getting too old to be staying up all night. I’ve already prepared your old room for the two of you. It should still be as you remember it, minus a bit of the clutter you’d left lying about.”

My eyes burn at the thought of my poor mother going into my room after I’d been taken. Not knowing if I’d ever return yet cleaning it up and keeping it ready for if I ever came back.

“Thank you, Mother,” I whisper, voice trembling slightly. “I’m sorry for leaving it such a mess.”

“Don’t apologize.” She shakes her head, blinking back tears of her own. “Instead, I want you to promise that you’ll stay long enough to clutter it up again.”

A single tear trails down my cheek as I nod. “I will. We will.” Glancing over at Vannaria, I give her a pleading look. “How long will you allow us to stay for? I know you must be in a hurry to–”

She places a finger against my lips, effectively silencing me. “We can stay however long you’d like, Your Majesty. I’ve waited twenty years to claim vengeance for my people, I can wait a bit longer.” Her finger trails to my cheek, wiping away yet another of my tears. “You’ve been on the run for two years, in near-constant danger for seven. While it won’t be safe to stay here for too long, you need time to rest.”

My mother sniffles, having lost her battle with her own tears, which are now streaming freely down her face. She gives me a watery smile before leaning down to place a kiss on my forehead. Her lips brush my skin as she whispers, “You found yourself a good one, Mariane.”

I lock eyes with Vannaria, knowing her long ears heard every word my mother said. Without bothering to lower my own voice, I say, “Yes, I most certainly did, didn’t I. And I think her and her mental companions deserve a safe place to rest for a while as well.”

The elf nods, a soft smile curling at her lips. “I think you might be right. And I’d like to start now, if it’s alright with you. Permission to carry Her Majesty to her room?”

Barking out a laugh, I lean forward off my mother’s lap and wrap my arms around my lover’s neck. “Permission granted, Your Highness.”

Without another word, Vannaria gathers me into her arms and stands up, clutching me tightly to her chest as she carries me to my old bedroom.

My mother trails after us, watching from the doorway as she carefully lays me down on the small familiar bed. A quick glance around the room confirms her earlier words. The only thing not the same as when I’d left is Vannaria’s travel bag and our neatly piled weapons at the foot of the bed. A wave of nostalgia washes over me at seeing my old sketches still pinned to the walls and my books haphazardly stacked on their shelves, just as disorganized as I’d left them.

While Vannaria begins digging through her bag for our sleeping clothes, my mother clears her throat. “If either of you need anything, feel free to wake me up.” She gestures to a pitcher and two small cups that were left on my night table. “The water should still be relatively fresh, but if you need more its–”

“In the kitchen,” I say, cutting off her rambling. “I promise I’m alright, Mother. While your concern is appreciated, Vannaria and I are both adults and perfectly capable of taking care of ourselves.”

Lowering her gaze to the floor, my mother crosses her arms and mutters, “I know that. I’m sorry, I just… I’m your mother, forgive me for being a bit over-protective after everything you’ve been through.”

I let out an exaggerated sigh of exasperation. “Fine, I suppose I’ll allow it.” When she looks up, I open my arms in an invitation for a hug.

In a flash, she’s crossed the room, embracing me so tightly it squeezes the air from my lungs. “I love you, Mariane.”

“I love you too, Mother.”

We continue holding each other for a long moment, neither one of us wanting to be the first to let go. Knowing my mother would likely hug me all night, if I allowed it, I slowly pull away, doing my best to ignore the damp spot on my shoulder left by her tears.