Claiming The Remnant

Chapter 44

[ Garrett ]

A quiet knock at the door startled me from my uneasy sleep. Forgetting that I was in Zach’s ‘room’, if you could really call this hovel of a space that, and that I had been awkwardly perched on a hard chair all night it took me a second after I opened my eyes to find both my barings and my legs.

“Healer Poflorin.” I greeted him at the door. The young Healer looked like he hadn't slept, he also hadn’t changed his clothes.

“Captain.” He said back, voice catching and full of emotion as he tried to peer around me into the room. “Umm…” His lip quivered.

“Is everything alright Healer? Have you come to check on Zach?” I asked. Seeing how his eyes welled and breath caught I stepped aside and let him in. Poflorin went straight to Zach. He brushed the lad’s green hair away from his forehead with a feather light touch.

“Mon Moitié?” The Healer whispered. Oh, not friends. More than friends. Zach stirred just a little, gravitating towards his golden haired boyfriend; his other half.

“Rin.” He sighed softly, mostly still asleep. Poflorin heaved a deep breath, somewhere between relief and an attempt to calm himself. I felt a little awkward, a third wheel in this personal moment.

"Thank you. Thank you for taking care of Zach last night. If you hadn't been there Captain, I don't know what I would have done. The whole thing was a mess but you knew what we needed." The Healer's voice cracked with the weight of his feelings as he spoke.

"It's what anyone should have done, it's what you would have done if you had to choose." My words were earnest as I squeezed his shoulder in sympathy.

"I c-couldn't, I couldn't have picked him. No matter how much I would have wanted to." The horror that he felt at the words he spoke was unmistakable. "If Lady Esther dies, we all die." It took a moment for me to get over the shock.

"Benton?"

"Benton." He confirmed. "We still can't find Amerise."

I had an idea of where to find her. It wasn't what I wanted to do. With Jo was where I wanted to be. Soothe the hurt, untangle this new mess and find my own solace in our connection but duty called and apparently the fate of everyone was on the line too.

"You stay here, I'll fetch Amerise." Reaching around him I pulled over the chair that I had been sitting on.

"But she's my charge." He protested weakly.

"That may well be young Healer but," I met his eyes, "no disrespect, you only turned 16 last week or the week before? You might feel grown up but you are basically a child. This is way too much of a burden, it isn't fair, you shouldn't be having to choose between your love and everyone else. On top of that, where I suspect Amerise to be is not for young eyes. How old is Zach by the way?"

"15. I don’t think His Majesty realised this would be such a complex undertaking. He just wanted to give me a chance, show my Father that I was ready, let me prove to myself that I'm capable."

"Ye Gods, 15! That's all very well and good but it doesn't make it right. He should have stopped your involvement the second he realised. That is what adults are meant to do. This business of children being exploited for their magic needs to stop. Just because it doesn't seem that way to you and you want to do these things doesn't make it right. Zach almost died. Not to mention how traumatic it was for him firstly to be putting his hands around a dead woman's heart and secondly to have almost killed us all." Poflorin didn’t seem entirely convinced so I continued. "He almost lost control when we were inside the wall."

"But…"

"But nothing lad, I'm going to go find Amerise, then I'm going to speak with His Majesty in regard to his involvement of you both, while I'm at it I'm bring up this s**t hole of a room at the arse end of the castle!" I growled barely pausing for breath. "After that I'm going to find Jo and then if I can get that sorted I'm going to get some bless'ed sleep." Livid though I was, I managed to keep my voice down, Zach was still sleeping after all.

Poflorin simply nodded and sat in the chair, taking Zach's hand.

In the hallway I thought my anger would dissipate but the situation kept rolling around in my head making me angrier and angrier. Just as I reached the stairs a young girl was coming down.

"You." I barked without thinking. "Which of these…" Her eyes lit up bright red as panic washed over her face. My anger was muted and calm washed over me. She turned to run. "Hold on, you're not in trouble, I wasn't mad at you. I'm sorry." I said in a rush before she could disappear. A sigh escaped me when she stopped. She was just a child. Another child working away in the castle. "What's your name, young lady?"

"Sami." She was tentative in her reply.

"I am Garrett Preston, Captain of the King's Guard. I'm sorry I scared you, would you please stop using your magic on me?" I spoke slowly and made no movement toward her. Sami's eyes slowly dimmed back to brown and my emotions were my own again. "Thank you."

"P-please…" She stammered looking scared. Hum, my title probably hadn't helped with that but I needed my authority.

"How old are you, Sami?"

"Twelve." She whispered. "Did Ms Doran send you for me?" She sniffed.

"No. Are you in trouble with Grace?" My heart dropped when the girl nodded. "Well, Sami, I actually want your help. Which of these rooms are empty?" Sami pointed at the first door. It was locked.

"Ms Doran has the keys." She said with a little more confidence.

"That's alright, I have my own key." After flashing her a smile I booted the door open. My expectation was that my actions would scare the girl but she giggled in shocked delight. The room was similar to my quarters, only the furniture was more abundant and fancier. "Sami, fetch some sheets for the bed please while I light the hearth."

She legged it out of the room without a word and was back quickly. The fire was cracking, the bedroom warmed and all the dust sheets removed by the time Sami returned with the linen. After I helped her make the double bed I decided to see if she would help with something else.

"Sami, would you show me your hair please?" My hands came up in a gesture of peace. "You don't have to." I reassured.

Cautiously the girl removed the cloth, showing me her raven black hair with a thick red stripe. The shade was bright and the volume more than enough for what I intended. Perfect.

"Come with me." Sami followed as I took the hall to the end and lightly knocked Zach's door before entering. Poflorin had fallen asleep on the chair, bowed over at an uncomfortable angle so that his head rested on the mattress. Their hands were still entwined and Zach was peacefully asleep. I had actually expected that Poflorin would find it hard to fall asleep despite his clearly exhausted state, hence I asked Sami along. "Poflorin?" I roused him gently.

"Captain?" He said with sleepy confusion.

"Come with me, I sorted you two a better room." He looked at the sleeping Zach. "I'll carry him and Sami? Can you keep him asleep while we take him to the much nicer room that we just prepared?"

"Err…" She swallowed and looked at me with worried eyes. "It's helping right? Zach is going to be ok with that?"

"Yeah, Sami, it would be really helpful. He needs his rest." Poflorin sighed gratefully.

Sami eyed him warily. I didn't blame her. Poflorin with his golden blond hair and highly acceptable magic was untrustworthy in her world.

"Healer Poflorin and Zach are together, you can trust him." My reassurance went a long way, well from the tiny pathetic room at one end of the hall to the comfortable spacious quarters at the other end. Sami's eyes glowed softly, keeping Zach fast asleep even after I had put him in the bed and tucked him in.

"Sami?" Poflorin gave her a hopeful look. "Would you mind helping me sleep?"

She nodded.

"Get in bed then." I told him when he looked lost. He blushed hard when I pointed next to Zach. "Don't be so bashful, it's just sleep." I chuckled. "Oh and anyone gives either of you s**t about the room… they answer to me."

"Thank you, Captain." Poflorin's tired voice floated up from where he was snuggled. "Thank you, Sami."

Sami and I tiptoed out of the room.

"Your help was a real blessing." I praised once I was sure we wouldn't wake the boys. Sami beamed. My own feelings were mixed. It was as though within one breath I had both exalted and contradicted myself. Providing Sami with an opportunity to see her magic in a positive light was a beautiful thing to do but then again I had done exactly what I had just been raging against; the exploitation of children just because they have magic. It was a mild example but an example nonetheless. Perhaps I couldn’t really understand but things needed to change. “If you need anything… you can come to me, ok?”

Sami, with fierce eyes, squared up to me and put out her hand.

“Well, that was quick.” With a smile I put some coins in her palm.

“I worked, I get paid right.” Sami jutted her chin confidently. Seemed like Sami was the kind of person that took s**t and made compost “But… thank you Captain, I like doing something for Zach. He has been really good to me.”

“It was lovely meeting you Sami.” I patted her on the head and she huffed in protest. Leaving the scowling young lady behind me I finally headed out to find Amerise.