CHAPTER 1951: A STORMY HEART - PART 4

She disappeared from him wordlessly, taking the crown with her. She was gone for a time, but Oliver hardly noticed. The memory of her presence was enough to keep him warm for that short amount of time. When she did return, she handed him something strange. A ring of silver, covered in ruby jewels, with intricate little engravings of dragons and phoenixes on it.

"Remember her as she was at her best, Oliver," Nila said. "She would not wish to see her crown covered in mud and blood."

He looked at it, moderately shocked to be holding such a thing. It was enough wealth in a single bit of metal to see all of Solgrim bought. When it was so dirty, he could lie to himself, and pretend it was something less significant than it was.

She sat down next to him, and gently patted his head, as he observed it.

"How are you?" She asked him after a short while.

The question made him jolt, and he felt his lip quiver. He’d been fighting not to think about it, so he might carry out his duties. When he’d had something to focus on, it had been fine. "I’m okay..." he said. "You know... we’ve lost people before. I’m sure... I don’t know. I just think that, maybe I’d be more okay if, you know, it wasn’t my fault. I think it’s fine that it hurts, when it was... my fault..."

The tears ran down from his cheeks unbidden, and Nila could not help herself. She thrust him into a hug, her voice high as she declared it. "It wasn’t your fault!"

"But... I wasn’t fast enough..." he sobbed.

"It wasn’t your fault, Tempest," she said. "You can’t carry every bit of burden for yourself."

"But, Asabel... she would have been such a good Queen. If I had been faster, I could have..."

"No! Tempest, you can’t," Nila said, squeezing him tight enough that she might have shattered him. "You can’t. It’s not your fault. You did the best that you could. You’ve done so well. You’ve been so strong... And now look what you’ve done, dummy. Look at what you’re holding, at the responsibility that you snatched for the sake of your friend. She’s proud of you, Tempest, I’m sure of it."

Now Nila could feel her own tears running too. For Oliver, and his pain, and also for those that had died.

"It’s the last thing you want," Nila said. "I know it is. But you did it anyway, for her sake. You’ve been brave, Tempest. You’ve been really strong."

"It’s so dumb," Oliver said. "I shouldn’t be crying in front of you again."

"Shut up, dummy. I cried in front of you over the stupidest of things. If you can’t cry over this, then when will you ever cry?" Nila said.

"I’m scared, Nila," Oliver said, his fingers digging into her back desperately. "I don’t know what to do. I don’t know if I can bear it."

"It’s okay, Oliver, I’ll be here for you," Nila said.

"Oliver now, not Tempest..?" He jabbed at her, almost hurt, not even sure why.

"I can call you either, can’t I?" Nila said. "Would you doubt that I loved you less, for the name that I called you? You used to hate Tempest."

"You’ll disappear too, though..." Oliver said. "It’s impossible. Too much has changed. They’ll take you from me too."

"Do you wish for it to be that way, Oliver?" Nila asked, even though she could not bear the question.

"No!" He declared firmly. "I can’t lose you. I’ll be done, I really will. If I lose you, I have nothing left... You are the only home that I have, Nila."

"Then I will not go anywhere," Nila said. "I don’t care how impossible you say it’ll be. You’ve done more impossible things. I need you, Oliver, and I love you very much. I don’t want you to vanish, so you had better promise you won’t too."

She extended her little finger, and he grasped it with his. "So silly," he said, smiling, wiping some of the tears away.

"Do you promise?" She asked seriously, still grabbing his finger.

"I promise," Oliver said. "Forever."

"Then I promise forever too. I will not leave you, no matter what," Nila said.

Oliver nodded wordlessly, feeling more in love with her than he had ever before. The tears came more quickly now. There was no longer any place for words. He wept, his throat burning, and his body shivering, and Nila held him as tightly as she could, gently patting his head.

After a time, his eyes red, and his teeth chattering, as the sadness sat there, he looked up at her, and still grinned. "They’ve let me run away for a week," he said.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Realllllyy?" She asked. "Are you asking me to join you?"

"Who else would I rather go with?" Oliver said. "The world is far prettier when you’re next to me."

She blushed. "Don’t say things like that with such a straight face," she said, pinching his nose. "Disappearing for a week with you... Now that doesn’t sound so bad. Do you fancy an adventure?" She grinned at him mischievously. "The border is really pretty. It was prettier still when we crossed it. I don’t suppose our Yarmdon friends would mind if we spent a few days travelling through there."

Oliver inclined his head, his excitement growing, and his grin equally as mischievous. "And if they did, what would they be able to do about it?"

"Already talking like an arrogant King, aren’t you?" Nila said.

Oliver winced.

"Ah... sorry. I didn’t mean it." Nila said, seeing his hurt, and immediately back tracking.

"I don’t want to be a King..." Oliver said.

She patted his head sympathetically. "I know," Nila said. "I am not sure what is likely to happen with it either. But you need not come up with any answers now. We have a week together. Shall we go and explore as much as we can?"

She pulled him to his feet, and Oliver wiped the last of his tears away. He glanced up at the sky. "It’s already getting dark, you know. Don’t you know that it’s dangerous to be in the forest at night?"

"Realllllyyy?" Nila said, grinning at him, showing her teeth, the look in her green eyes playful. "For who?"

VOLUME FIVE PART ONE – END