Raindrops on Roses
And now that we have that oc post here is a story because? I can. There are no roses in this story, but I had of “Favorite Things” from sound of music stuck in my head while I was writing it.
Annabell stood in the corner of the dimly lit chamber, watching from the shadows as the healer checked Sara’s breathing and pulse again, indifferent to how this mousy, red-haired woman looked back at Annabell every now and again, as if to check that the vampire wasn’t about to pounce. She much preferred the older man who had been in here earlier; he hadn’t been quite so jumpy.
Not that it mattered. Anna had been here long enough to be used to wary stares of others, especially the ones not familiar with the Queen’s court. Not familiar with the fact that, while Annabell was not human, while she possessed magic enough to kill everyone in the kingdom and then some… she wouldn’t. Because there was only one person on this earth she cared enough about to kill for, and that person was currently laid up in bed with fever. Besides, Annabell was no human, but she was not a monster, either. (Despite what some of the nobles whispered behind her back.)
“Um,” The red head muttered into the quiet room, and Annabell’s head snapped up at once. The medic took a step back from Sara’s bedside in a respectful bow. “Her fever is down from what Healer Rodney said it was earlier, so I believe it should break tonight. That’s good.” The girl did not make eye contact with Annabell as she spoke, and the vampire did not expect it. She simply nodded, brisk, and waited for the girl to continue her report or to leave, as she clearly wished to.
“Apologies, sorceress.” The young woman bowed, again, this time more of a curtsy. “For my… hesitation.”
It took Annabell a moment to figure out what she meant, until she realized the healer was referring to how she so clearly stammered over her words in fear, and some such. But Annabell only felt one thing right now, and that was concern for Sara, so she didn’t dismiss or accept the girl’s apology, merely sat down in the chair she’d pulled up to her queen’s bedside, and cupped her cheek to check her fever herself with a cold, pale hand. Though Annabell emitted no body heat, she could feel heat perfectly well, and agreed with the healer’s analysis. When she looked up again, the red haired woman was gone, as she’d expected. Fine.
Now that they were truly alone, Annabell focused on the bond between herself and Sara, crimson eyes glowing bright red as she placed her hand on Sara’s chest, just above her heart. She could hear her lover’s heartbeat, even and steady, but that was not her focus. She concentrated on the sound of rushing blood until it filled her ears, until it was all she could hear. Blood, like waves on the ocean. Plasma of life, heartbeats entwined together for eternity. A blood pact like theirs wasn’t common-- actually it was unheard of, between human and vampire-- but it allowed Annabell much.
As her hearing returned, her thoughts felt slow and sluggish, a chill having swept through her body like an icy gale. They were not her feelings, but Sara’s-- Annabell added another blanket to the two quilts already present, and tucked Sara in more until the feeling abated in her own body, replaced by a pleasant feeling of warmth. Annabell shook her head to clear it, then poured a glass of water from the pitcher in the corner. Sara would need that too, when she woke, likely dehydrated alongside exhausted. As the feeling of Sara’s ills cleared, Annabell took her seat again. They felt much of the other’s feelings through the pact; though by virtue of her magic, Annabell could sense more than Sara. It was useful, Annabell felt, to know what Sara needed even when she was asleep. When Annabell would otherwise be helpless to assist her. She saw her dreams, too, when she fell asleep, as Sara did her’s, though the queen reported it as never anything she could make out. Perhaps that was a lie, but Annabell could never tell. She, on the other hand, got dreams of family gatherings and sword training. And the moment of Sara’s father’s assassination, over and over again. Replayed. Annabell had never told her that, though.
She wondered what Sara was dreaming about now. She could probe, find out if she was in distress, but she tried not to invade the other woman’s privacy when she could help it. Besides, her expression was peaceful, even with her fever. Annabell suspected her sleep was peaceful, which lightened her worries a little.
With Sara comfortable for the moment, Annabell turned her senses to the room around her, the hallway, and the outside world, keeping alert. She knew there were guards all around in the castle, of course, but Sara’s safety was of the utmost importance here, as usual. The hallway sounded normal, and raindrops from the storm outside splattered against the windowpane like blind birds, heavy and thick. In the quiet abyss of the room, Sara’s breathing the only noticeable sound, Annabell sighed. The storm had been raging for days, and in fact getting caught out in it had been the reason Sara had fallen ill. Well-- the stress of running a kingdom also contributed, but it was the rain that had made the queen so violently cough and shiver, unable to find warmth no matter how Annabell bundled her up in blankets. Not even Annabell could offer help, emanating no heat to warm her. That always made her feel a tinge of sadness-- even though no heat could have warmed Sara after the storm anyway, Annabell knew well that touching her was like touching the shade itself. Cold, and never comforting.
Ah, but now was not the time for her thoughts to take over. The wet cloth on Sara’s forehead had begun to dry, so Annabell wrung it out, wet in the basin, wrung it again, and returned it to its place with the efficiency of a surgeon. Annabell hoped Sara’s fever would break tonight, as the healer hypothesized… Sara had already been ill too long for the vampire’s comfort.
A groan-- no, barely even that, a murmur, really-- broke Annabell away from her worrying, and for a moment Annabell held her breath, a reflexive action she’d picked up and yet, never intended to actually do. She concentrated on the sounds, the symphony of Sara’s body, her heart and her brain, and she read the signs correctly; a moment later, Sara Penderghast’s eyes fluttered open, revealing glassy, tired blue eyes, nonetheless trained immediately on her.
“Anna,” Sara muttered, a smile at the edge of her lips. “Good… evening? Is it evening?”
“Just about.” Annabell replied, with a smile of her own, fangs momentarily flashing in her relief. Not that that mattered, in front of Sara. “How are you feeling?” She asked a moment later, having handed Sara the glass of water, from which she sipped, the flush in her face seeming to decrease somewhat.
“Tired. But… warm. Not too warm, just… good-warm.” Annabell smiled again. Her normally eloquent queen, reduced to a few broken sentences in her exhaustion. Well, as long as she was comfortable.
“I made sure you had enough blankets,” Annabell replied, and Sara nodded against her pillows. “Thank you… but I’m sure it was awful to feel what I felt, sick like this. I’m sorry.” Ah, leave it up to her queen to apologize for what she couldn’t control.
“Darling, it was nothing I couldn’t handle.” The vampire assured her, and Sara nodded again, eyes closing after a moment.
“Mm… the last time I was awake was morning and I know you didn’t sleep last night,” Sara said, voice slightly slurring now but still regal. “Lay with me. You should rest.”
For a moment, Annabell considered reminding her that as a vampire, she didn’t need nearly as much rest as humans did and she could still remain awake for several days if necessary… but didn’t. Sara was giving her an option, and Annabell truly did desire to lay beside her, cool her fever, if she could. Still, she hesitated.
“You won’t be cold?”
At that, Sara gave a little laugh, one that sounded like music even when her voice was so raspy.
“Oh, Anna, there’s more than enough blankets. I promise.”
“Alright, you win.”
“I usually do.” Sara huffed in an appropriately queenly manner as Annabell slipped under the covers, and Sara nestled in close to her. The oppressive heat of the fever soaked deep into the vampire’s bones but didn’t bother her.
Nothing mattered, as long as she could hold Sara here, warm and safe, for as long as her queen needed.