He nodded. "Please do. It isn't your fault." He said again. "Saying that is like saying…like saying it's my fault my magic doesn't work right, my fault that it tears me open. Like saying that it's her own fault that mt sister died. Like saying it's Mikhail's fault that he's-" he broke off before he could blurt something that wasn't his to say. "You see what I mean? It isn't true." He winced slightly as another wave of pain flashed through him.
Not your fault. He really did believe that, didn’t he? Would he change his mind if he knew? The things she’d done, the things she’d stood by and watched? But he had seen what she’d done just earlier. He had seen her put a room of people to sleep, and she had watched him light a living man on fire. They both had their problems.
The mention of Mikhail didn’t slip past her, but that wasn’t hers to worry about. Instead, she stepped over, crouching in front of and just a little bit to the side of Soren, hesitant placing a hand on his. “You really…think it’s not my fault. I’m going to-try. To try and think that, believe that.”
Soren looked at her, and nodded. "I don't know exactly what your father allowed to happen to you, and I won't pry and ask. But…I know that it wasn't your fault. It's not…things like that aren't the victims fault. Ever." He said, taking a quick breath as another jolt of pain shot through his body.
She nodded, with slight hesitance, but seemed to almost be staring to believe that. “How long does the pain last?” She asked, changing the subject as she eyed him worriedly.
Soren was about to reply, when Lena interrupted. "Depends on how bad the outbreak was." She said, stepping over to Soren and examining him. "Ah, Mikhail stopped you, didn't he?"
Soren nodded. "Yeah. He really shouldn't have. He knows…what that does to him." He said quietly.
"Well, that's his choice. And his job is to protect you. What did you expect, Soren?" Lena replied. "Open." She tapped his chin.
He obediently opened his mouth. She stuck something in his mouth. "Swallow. Dont chew." She instructed. He did as she asked.
Celeste stayed quiet, her hand still on Soren’s as she watched Lena work. She apparently hadn’t noticed yet, or she probably would have withdrawn it. As her eyes flickered between the two, she filed away the information on Mikhail for later, focusing on her relief that Soren would be fine.
"Lucky for you, it wasn't a bad one." Lena said. "But you need to minimize stress as much as possible for at least a week. Try not to be too active. Rest." She instructed as she worked.
Soren sighed. "I can't, i have to make decisions about the Dragon Festival-"
"Decisions others can make." Lena interrupted. "You know you don't have to be the one making them. Let others decide the route and everything. Stop micromanaging and let people do their jobs." She said sternly. Her eyes flickered to Celeste. "Spend time with this lovely young lady." Then she shook her finger in Soren's face. "But don't take her to bed!"
Soren's eyes were wide, and he coughed softly. "I, er…why does everyone assume I'm sleeping with her?!" He demanded.
Celeste blinked a few times, a light blush darkening her cheeks at Lena’s comment. “He’s-we aren’t-“ She shook her head, looking anywhere but at Soren. “She’s right about you resting, though.” She said, her eyes landing on her hand on top of his. The color on her cheeks darkened almost imperceptibly as she made to pull her hand away.
Lena sighed. "Pity. He needs a nice young lady to keep him from working himself to death." She said as she worked.
Soren rolled his eyes. "Lena, please." He said. He looked at Celeste, refraining from commenting on how fast she'd pulled her hand away. "I can't rest, I have so much to do."
"I think Mikhail would agree with me that you need to rest. In fact, I'm going to tell him so." Lena said.
Soren sighed.
“Soren, with the utmost respect, from what I’ve seen, you are absolutely horrible at taking care of yourself.” Celeste said, shaking her head as she tried not to think about Lena’s allusions to them as a…thing. “Please, let me help? This is what I do for a living, you know.”
Soren sighed. "I don't need rest." Hd said grumpily.
Lena snorted. "The bags under your eyes beg to differ." She replied.
Soren groaned. "You're ganging up on me!" He protested.
"Yes, for your own good." Lena said placidly.
"You should listen to professionals, Soren." Celeste said, raising an eyebrow at the King. She almost looked….amused, though her cheeks were still colored slightly with the earlier small blush. "She's right, you need more sleep than you're getting. You know, you can't get things done well when you're barely able to think clearly due to exhaustion."
"Yeah, but I'm not exhausted! I can still think clearly!" He argued, making a face.
"Yeah, for how long? How long until you crack under the stress?" Lena retorted, standing straight. "You will be resting. And if you don't…" She trailed off, shaking a finger at him in a wordless threat.
Soren sighed. "Fine."
Celeste huffed a laugh, pumping a fist in the air victoriously. "If not sleep, at the very least rest. Though, I have every intention of getting you to sleep." She said, looking up at Lena as she patted Soren's knee in a fake consoling gesture. "Thank you, ma'am."
Lena gave her a sly smile. "Of course. He needs time with…friends." she said, slightly teasingly.
Soren sighed, flopping backwards with a short groan.
Celeste glanced away, her cheeks heating up as she folded her hands on her knees. The scars still stood out on her skin, but after telling Soren the source of them, she wasn't as worried about people seeing them. She was, however, not entirely sure how to respond to the general assumption that she and the King were sleeping together.
Soren covered his face with a hand. "Lena. We aren't a couple. I met her literally this morning. Give it a rest." He said, voice slightly muffled.
Lena sighed. "Fine."
Though part of her was relieved, another small part of Celeste wondered what it would be like for them to be a couple. She told herself it was more of a general curiosity about romance, butshe found herself wondering more specifically about Soren. You don't really have the time for courting at all, Celeste. Besides, you've got too much baggage anyway. "I don't exactly have the time for a relationship anyway. My focus lays on my work."
Soren nodded. "What she said." He said with a soft laugh. He peered over at her. "What is your work, by the way? That…sleepy mumbo jumbo stuff?" He asked, wiggling his fingers vaguely.
Lena snorted softly, and started packing up her supplies.
“Something like that.” Celeste said, scrunching up her nose slightly at Soren. “I’m whatever I need to be. A therapist, a dream specialist, an insomnia curer, or just generally a Witch. It depends on who comes to me for help.” She smiled softly, looking off at nothing in particular. “I travelled for a while, doing it. That was fun.”
Soren nodded. "Oh. That's cool." He said. I've never been that free to travel. I've always been… the crown prince. If I travel, I have to have a ton of guards with me, and that takes all the fun out of it. He gave a small smile.
"You sound like just the person he needs!" Lena chimed, then left the room to put things away.
Celeste blinked a few times, watching Lena leave. “You were right about her being odd. She’s….nice, though.” She looked back at Soren, studying him for a moment. “What are some of your favorite things about what you do? It can’t all be bad, or you’d be a completely different person.”
Soren chuckled softly. "She's been like a second mother to me for…years." he said quietly. He shrugged slightly. "I…don't know. I like being able to help people that don't have as much, but…I haven't been able to accomplish much of anything." He shrugged. "I'll probably die from a knife between the ribs while i sleep."
Celeste listened carefully, glancing around as he finished speaking. After a moment, she placed one of her hands over his, biting her bottom lip for a moment. “That’s…worrisome, definitely. I may be slightly starting to understand why you don’t get more sleep. But, if it’s any help at all, you seem to be doing well.”
Soren nodded, chewing the inside of his lip for a moment. "Well, that's not what keeps me up at night, but yeah." He said with a shrug. "Mostly it's just…paperwork. Letters I have to reply to, requests I have to field…" He shook his head slightly. "Don't let anyone tell you ruling is a walk in the park." He chuckled softly. "It feels like school that never ends. And that's not a good thing."