68 Death's Clock

After watching Queen Cara sculpt for a few hours, I finally decide to get up and search for some food. Whatever she did earlier had me feeling a little better and my stomach was currently demanding food.

As I walk into the kitchen, several servants turn to look at me with wide eyes. They all slightly bow to me as one of the female elves walk up to me and ask "What can I do for you, My Lady?" I think about telling her to just call me Eris but I quickly dismiss the idea.

"I'm hungry and was wondering if there was anything I could grab real quick," I say looking over to the fresh bread. She bows her head and says "Of course, follow me." I watch her starting to walk away and look back at the bread with longing.

I sigh and follow behind her as she leads me to a small dining room. She pulls a chair out and says "I will have someone bring you something to eat immediately." I nod and thank her as she helps scoot my large chair in.

I look around the room in wonder as I place my hand on the large wooden table. Delicate designs mark the outside of the table, showing its rich history. As my hands glide over the designs, small traces of magic can be felt.

Someone walking into the room breaks me out of my silent awe but when I see that it's Kian, I give him a small smile and ask "Are you not busy?" He looks me over before giving me a smile while saying "You forget, you are the one I'm supposed to be protecting, remember?"

He pulls a chair out and sits down as he says "I went to check up on you with the Queen but to my surprise, you weren't there. Are you done for the day already?" I give him an 'ah-hah!" smile as I say "Yes, we're done and because I only have two days until I go back... I want to relax a little."

He gives me a heart-stopping smile as he says "I like the sound of that. I'm not going to lie, I was a little worried about you this morning. You looked very white but it seems I was worried over nothing." I give him a small smile and say "Don't worry. I'm as healthy as a horse."

He makes a face at that example but I'm saved when the ladies walk in with several plates. They begin placing the food and quickly grab another plate for Kian. Once we're alone, we both begin to eat but it was mostly me.

As I was enjoying a wonderful soup, I look over to Kian to see him watching me. I frown at him and say "That's uncomfortable..." He chuckles and looks away while saying "Sorry." I smirk and go back to my soup but when I look down, I remember the magic I felt from the table.

I turn back to Kian and ask "How old is this table?" He looks at me with confusion before looking at the table and shaking his head. "I'm actually not sure. It's been here for a very long time though. Why?" I nod my head and place my hand back over the designs as I say "When I felt the magic, I found myself fascinated."

"Magic?" Kian asks with a frown. This time I look at him in confusion and say "Yes, magic. Can't you feel it?" I ask looking back at the table. His frown deepens as he lifts a hand and places it on the table. He sits in silence for a few moments before looking back up at me.

He lifts his hand and shakes his head saying "I don't feel anything..." I blink in surprise before putting my fingers back on the delicate carvings. Nope, there's definitely magic in it... Huh. I look back to Kian with surprise and say "That's odd."

He looks from the table then back to me as he asks "You can feel magic?" I nod my head and go back to eating as he says "That's not really odd. The Queen often says she can feel magic in things and since you two are related, it wouldn't be strange for you to be able to do the same thing."

I nod and store that bit of information away for later as I continue to enjoy my meal. When I feel my back starting to ache, I slow my eating and sip my water slowly. Kian starts telling me stories about singing rocks but my entire focus is now on keeping a straight face.

Normally, I would have more time between bouts of pain but it seems to be progressing. My hand holding the cup of water starts to shake, causing the water to almost spill so I use every ounce of control I have left in me to place the cup on the table.

"Eris?" Kian calls out to me, bringing me back. I look up to him with wide eyes as I say "Hmm?" He slightly frowns at me and looks over my face as he asks "Do you want to see the singing rocks?" I look over to the window and see that the sun is still up in the sky so, with a deep and controlled breath, I look back at him with a strained smile as I say "You know... Let's see them together tomorrow. I'm actually still really tired from yesterday and after practicing with the Queen... I'm exhausted."

I feel a bead of sweat slip down the side of my face and down my back as the pain starts to grow but his sharp eyes catch the one on the side of my face. He frowns and quickly gets up asking "Are you okay?" I quickly wave him off as I say "Of course! It's that time of the month, you know? That on top of everything else that's been happening... it's really exhausted me."