23.

Farryn awoke in a cold sweat, her body ached with every movement she made as she peeled her comforter off of her body before sitting upright. With a heavy sigh she slid herself off of the bed and to her feet, bracing a single hand on the mattress for support as she made her way to one of her bedroom windows.

Moonlight illuminated everything in a close vicinity to her home, many of the younger pack members were still milling about, a full moon usually brought restlessness to their kind. As a wet cough forced its way from Farryn’s lungs a knock echoed gently from her door, followed by the soft creak of the hinges as it was opened. A cool breeze entered her room, licking at her wet skin causing goosebumps to form. Celeste entered the room on silent feet. Farryn had learned that the Faerie chose when she wanted others to know she was around.

“Farryn you need to see a doctor. Your fever is getting worse.” For a moment, Farryn remained silent, her gaze on those who were outside before tilting her head just slightly to the side.

“Where do you come from? What made you want to leave your home?” Farryn’s voice was raspy, choked down to resist the urge of coughing again. She listened as Celeste hummed softly, debating how to answer her questions.

“Vini and I are from a small village in Kilshore, a small village that is filled with superstitious people. When I was born I was hidden from everyone else in the village, those born with silver eyes are supposedly cursed and bring death to anyone around them. My parents didn’t believe that, or they didn’t want to, I never knew which one it was but when my brother was born with the same eyes… well it got harder to hide two children. Neither of my parents had strong enough magic to glamour us, to trick the other villagers into thinking we had a different color.” There was a momentary pause before Celeste continued.

“Fae having children are rare. Have two is even more so. It was a strange place to grow up in because we were cherished by our parents so dearly, and reviled at the same time by everyone else. The first villager who died after we had been realized was chalked up to disease. The several others after? Well they couldn’t keep their beliefs pushed down any longer and I understand that. We were kicked out ‘for the safety of others’ and have been traveling ever since.”

The tone of Celeste’s voice made it clear that she was unsure why Farryn was asking about her home suddenly. Celeste approached the alpha slowly, observing the way her shoulders quivered with every inhale she made.

“Farryn? Would you like me to go get Rosemary for you?” Celeste extended her hand to brush her fingers against Farryn’s elbow. Her skin felt as if it was on fire. The alpha turned quicker than Celeste had expected with a sharp snarl, her eyes flashing blue before fading to a vibrant green, then slowly returning to her usual soft green. Celeste reeled back quickly, prepared to defend herself should the alpha snap but Farryn relaxed quickly as she rested her head against the cool window.

“I’m sorry, no, please don’t worry Rosemary over nothing.” Farryn pushed herself from the window and made her way back to her bed slowly as Celeste squeezed her own fingers in discomfort.

“Would you ever go home Celeste?” The question came as an even larger surprise than her first one. Celeste watched Farryn slowly ease her way into the bed, moving so slowly as if she was going to break if she moved to fast.

“No Farryn.” Celeste moved herself towards the bedroom door, waving her hand to open it on a silent breeze. Farryn watched through half-lidded eyes. “That village is not my home.” Farryn noticed the hint of a smile on Celeste’s lips, there was a glimmer to her eye as the door shut behind her leaving Farryn wondering how much of her story had been true.

~

Farryn was woken up by the feeling of a cold hand on her forehead. She groaned softly before cracking one eye open to find Chandler and Rosemary at her bedside, Chandler’s fingers brushing back a strand of hair that was stuck to the side of her face.

“Good morning Alpha, Celeste said your fever had gotten worse, I thought she was exaggerating but I can tell from your drenched bed that she wasn’t.” Rosemary had just finished wringing out a wet cloth and passed it to Chandler to drape on her forehead.

“I told her not to bother you.” Farryn grumbled as she lifted her hand to make an attempt to push Chandler away, but he didn’t budge.

“Well it’s a good thing she didn’t listen to you. You need to start taking medicine to fight this fever.” Rosemary dug through the bag at her side she had brought along and produced a bottle of pills. Instead of handing the whole bottle over she poured two bright yellow pills into her hand and paused before looking up to Chandler.

“Can you fetch her a glass of water please?” Chandler’s eyes drifted to the sick alpha, hesitating to leave her side before dipping his head silently and heading out of the room. Rosemary watched him leave the room before moving closer to Farryn’s side and lowering herself to force the alpha to look her in the eye.

“You don’t need medicine Farryn.” Rosemary gripped the young woman’s chin and tilting her head around as Rosemary watched her facial features. As her head was maneuvered around, her vision swam. Her stomach began to flip by the time Rosemary finally stopped with a disapproving hum.

“I’ll be sending Tony to find you a High Priest of the Moon Goddess. I’m not equipped to help you Alpha.” Farryn’s top lip curled into the beginnings of a snarl but Rosemary smiled sadly instead of pulling away in fear or respect.

“I don’t know your past Alpha, and I respect your title enough not to pry, but you need to speak with someone who can help you reconnect to the Moon Goddess. Preferably before you finish this spiral downwards.” Rosemary stood herself upright as Chandler entered the room slowly, his eyes locked on Farryn who sank further into her bed in a poor attempt to hide.

Rosemary slid the pills back into the pill bottle quietly and returned the bottle to its spot in her bag. “Alpha.” Rosemary dipped her head in parting as Chandler made room for her to exit the room.

“What is going on Farryn?” Chandler extended the glass of water, but she made no attempt to reach for it. Instead she closed her eyes, an attempt to dismiss her Beta. He sighed gently and set the glass down with a soft thud. The bed dipped with the weight of Chandler sitting at her side.

“You’ve been through this, before haven’t you?” Farryn forced herself to roll over onto her side and place her back to the male. Her fingers curled into the sheets of her bed as she remained silent. “Why do you keep doing this to yourself?” Chandler reached over to gently brushed her hair back again.

A small shiver escaped her as a current of electricity followed the motion of his finger. Farryn released a deep growl before she rolled over quickly, using all of her energy to push Chandler off of her bed. The suddenness caught Chandler off guard, the male hitting the floor and looking up with wide eyes.

“As your Alpha I do not appreciate the personal questions you seem to enjoy asking. Let me make this crystal clear for you Chandler. You are my Beta. You are not my mate. You are not my boyfriend, and you are *not* my friend. Now get out of my room.” Farryn’s nails ripped into the sheets of her bed, her arms trembling to hold her weight upright as she bared her teeth.

The look of shock morphed slowly into a mixture of pain and sorrow before he gathered himself and rose to his feet. His head was lowered in a show of respect but also to ensure his eyes stayed off of her. “Apologies Alpha, I meant no disrespect.” Chandler quickly left the room, tail between his legs.

Farryn allowed herself to relax back into the bed as tears welled up. She had seen him hurt, he had been upset by the loss of his title, but the look on his face at her words and the sound of his voice hurt Farryn too. Her mind felt fractured at the moment. Just a few days ago it burned to feel Chandler touch her and she hardly cared when the things she said upset him, or anyone else for that matter. But now, it was as if she felt his pain too.

With a groan Farryn lurched from her bed, her stomach flipping as she rushed to the bathroom. For a moment she kept herself leaned over the toilet, prepared to lose yesterdays lunch but it seemed to have been a false alarm. She stood up slowly and moved to the sink where she splashed cold water on her face. While dabbing her face dry with her towel she lifted her gaze to the mirror and stumbled backwards in alarm.

Her back hit the wall with a loud smack as she tripped over her feet and collapsed to the ground with a sob. Her bedroom door was opened quickly as Xavier, Celeste, and Vini all rushed into her room on high alert. She kept her face buried in her hands as Xavier and Celeste entered the bathroom while Vini kept a respectful distance outside the door.

“Farryn what happened?” Xavier placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. She shook her head furiously, pulling her body away from Xavier as a harsh cough took over.

“Xavier, give us a moment.” Farryn could hear the Fae whispering to the male as she ushered him out of the bathroom but between her sobs and coughing, she couldn’t make out any words. Once she was sure the door was shut, she forced herself to calm down enough to speak.

“Celeste, they can’t see me like this, I-I don’t know what to do.” Celeste crouched down in front of the alpha and placed her hands on her wrists.

“Farryn, I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what is wrong.” Neither woman spoke. The bathroom was filled with the sound of Farryn fighting for a breath before she lifted her head enough to make eye contact with the Faerie. She watched as Celeste’s serene face cracked. Her silver eyes widened just slightly, the only sign she gave of surprise as she watched Farryn’s eyes shift into the three different colors rapidly.

Celeste released Farryn’s wrists to sit back on her heels. “I thought I was imagining that last night… what did Rosemary say?” Farryn tilted her head just slightly, a flicker of confusion crossed her face before she looked down at the palms of her hands.

“That I need to speak to a High Priest, but I can’t, I’m not ready for that.” Her brows furrowed slightly as her head tilted, the motion was as if she was trying to listen to something in the distance.

“It seems like you don’t have a choice anymore do you?” Celeste asked softly, to which Farryn shook her head no. “If you hide this, it will make things worse. You have people who care, and who are worried that you can’t lead them. Do the work to get better Farryn.”

Farryn lowered her gaze in shame, her hands moved from her face to her shoulders where she held herself as Celeste stood up. “I won’t ask you to share your story with me, but whatever your history is, it’s history. It’s time to move forward.” When Celeste opened the door, Xavier was standing outside waiting with his arms crossed over his chest.

For the first time since Farryn had known her, there was no snide remark or flirty comment towards the male. They traded places easily. Celeste moved to her brother’s side, whispering quietly in his pointed ear as Xavier took the place that Celeste had previously been in, crouched in front of her. Farryn was slow to look him in the eye, she expected disgust at the sight of her. Instead there was worry in his eyes as he reached out and cupped her cheek, gently brushing his thumb over her cheek to wipe away a stray tear.

“When did it get this bad?” Xavier whispered softly, Farryn had to strain her ears to really hear his question. She sniffled once before wiping her eyes.

“It started last night. Everything keeps going foggy, it’s like… there’s a fight inside my head for control and I just don’t have the energy to try anymore.” Xavier sighed softly as he moved his hand from her cheek to her arm, keeping constant contact with her.

“A fight between who? You and that white beauty?” He brought a smirk to his lips in attempt to lighten the mood, but it wasn’t helping Farryn at all. The tears were quick to return as Farryn sucked in a shuddering breath before squeezing her eyes shut.

“No, I mean yes but… it’s her and Namia.”