Characters: The Pale King/The White Lady, The Pure Vessel, Hegemol, Isma
Word Count: 7.956
Summary: Pendry recovers from having a heart attack, Rydelllia has to be a nurse, doctor and mom at the same time and Hollow feels a lot of guilt.
(Author's note: After the massive cliff hanger I put on you in the last chapter, I decided to write the next one quicker. Well, quicker also meant three weeks, but it is finished now, hooray! Sadly, I don't feel so good today, having a stomach ache, so I hope I don't overlook any mistakes.
Pendry is having something like a heart attack, but not a literal one, because these are not humans and not mortals, so I made up an in universe explanation of it.
I look forward to delve into the chapters after this one, for the plot I have envisioned for the second half can finally unfold.
Also, you don't want to know how difficult the first part of the chapter was for me, but I managed and I am quite proud of what happened.
Please enjoy and as always, I am eager to read your opinion in the comments.)
Rydellia ran into Hollow on the way to Pendry's chambers.
She had felt it clearly. There had been a sharp pain in her chest, bad enough that she needed to stop sorting through her documents and use a moment to catch her breath. Right after the pain had subdued, she noticed that her connection with Pendry had been cut off. It had been too sudden to be his doing, something must have happened to him.
Now, that she saw Hollow in the corridors, clearly agitated and upset, she certainly knew that something was up.
"Get me to him.", she said. "When I felt correctly, it happened in his chambers, right?"
Hollow nodded and turned around, running down the corridor, or more they tried to run, but they got off balance from the sudden turns and speed and their own emotional state probably, so that Rydellia had to catch them. "Easy now.", she said. "If you fall and hurt yourself, it won't help your father. Let's walk quickly, but safely."
Hollow nodded another time and the both of them soon stood in front of Pendry's chambers. When Rydellia opened the door, her fears became reality.
Pendry laid on the floor, clearly unconscious, his robes a tangled mess around him, his light barely present.
"What happened?", she asked Hollow, but quickly took her question back when they wanted to start signing and struggled keeping their shape-shifted fingers in form. "Tell me later, we need to take care of him first."
Rydellia was at her husband's side in two steps and gently picked him up, laying him down on his bed. She faintly noticed how Hollow stepped at her side when she opened up his robe to see no external injuries. It was an issue from the inside then.
She laid a branch on his forehead and breathed a sigh of relief when she noticed that he didn't have a fever, though he felt far too cold. Her branch found his claw and once she clutched it, she laid some vines around his arm and began to infuse some of her own soul into him. Hopefully Hollow would help get some clarity into this situation. She doubted that any mortal doctor would be able to help her husband in this state.
Pendry was faintly aware of some words spoken right next to him, even though he couldn't place why he heard everything like if he was in the middle of fog canyon.
iWhat have you said... him... to get... state?/i
There was silence for a little while before the voice spoke up again.
iMore sturdy... don't worry... won't happen... me./i
Another bout of silence before the first (and only voice) was speaking and this time he made the words out clearly. "Well then, if you prefer to stay silent for now, I won't force you, but eventually you have to tell me... Oh, he's waking up. My wyrm, can you hear me?"
"...Root?", he asked, surprised at how weak and strained his voice sounded. He had recognized her voice, felt her presence next to him, felt her soul streaming into him. Wait, he felt her soul streaming into him? Had he gotten hurt? He jolted up and hissed when a sharp pain hit his chest, two of his arms clutching at the spot.
"Don't move, Pendry, you need to lay down.", Rydellia said, a gentle, but firm branch forcing him to lie back down.
Pendry finally opened his eyes, looking to the left to see Rydellia there, her vines engulfed around his arm as well as Hollow, who he had never seen so devastated. Everything on them seemed to droop down and they stared at the floor and their posture screamed nothing but guilt at him.
"...What happened?", he asked.
"I was hoping you could tell me. Hollow told me that you collapsed after they said a certain thing to you, but they refuse to tell me what it was." She gently stroked over his prongs and rested her branch for a while there. "But I can tell you that you suffer from a heart attack. Your flow of soul is all messed up. It will take a while for your body to recover. I am currently healing you. That is also the reason why Hollow won't tell me what they said to you, because they believe it could affect me as well."
Pendry stared at Rydellia and Hollow in silence as his mind tried to piece together the last moments before he had collapsed. He had talked with Grimm and Grimm had proposed a plan to him... a plan for which he needed a vessel, something that he didn't have anymore and then, in his chambers, Hollow had told him something important.
They had told him that one of their siblings had made it out of the Abyss right behind them! They had told him that another one of his children was alive!
The sudden memory hit him with such an intensity, that his chest tightened and the earlier pain came full blown back, making him frown and hiss in pain, his tail lashing out from under the blankets. He felt how Rydellia tightened her vines around his arm and as more soul flowed into him, easing the pain, his gaze went to Hollow. As they noticed his stare, they started scribbling in their journal and when they presented it all Pendry could see was the word sorry in various shapes and sizes, though all of the letters looked trembled.
"You don't have to apologize, Hollow.", Pendry said, trying to sound soft and reassuring, but instead his voice seemed to crack and his words came out even more whispering than usual. "I am the one who is at fault."
Hollow started to droop again and laid their journal on their legs, staring down at the ground, before hugging themselves. Pendry desperately wanted to get up and comfort them, but he was currently incapacitated.
"Regardless if anyone is at fault about this situation.", Rydellia said and Pendry really wished she hadn't said that as Hollow winced at her words. "I finally would like to know what shocked you so much that you collapsed."
"Root, I can't tell you while you still heal me.", Pendry whispered. "It was... heavy. Hollow is right, it could affect you. I still have to digest it myself."
"If you say so.", Rydellia rolled her eyes at him, clearly unhappy with him believing that she couldn't take it. "But you better tell me once I stop healing you."
"I will once you take a break to refill your soul.", Pendry promised, turning his head to stare at the ceiling. This probably would take some time.
"Good good.", Rydellia nodded to his words. "It will take some time still until I am out of soul, so you better not move and stay in bed, my Wyrm."
"It isn't like I can just leave...", Pendry murmured, raising the arm that Rydellia had engulfed with quite some effort. "Not as long as you infuse me with soul."
"You also will stay in bed once I am gone.", Rydellia's words were resolute. "Hollow, you will watch over him as well, right? ...What's wrong?"
Pendry turned his head again to look at Hollow, seeing them in that miserable state still. If his heart hadn't already been broken, it would break again at this sight. They raised their head at Rydellia's question and then simply shook it. It appeared they didn't want to talk about it.
"Would you maybe like for me to explain your father's sickness?", Rydellia asked, having caught up on their distress, clearly trying to offer a distraction. That actually got Hollow to raise their head again and look at her.
"Let me explain it then.", Rydellia basically hummed, though Pendry knew she was mostly doing it to calm him and Hollow down, "You must be aware that us Higher Beings are dependent on soul, it flows through us like blood, it basically is like our blood. If a Higher Being dries out of soul, they will die sooner or later. It actually could be that you are an exception, my child, for your body possesses void and therefore could be sustained with it as well."
Rydellia stopped her explanation at this part to brush over their shoulder, cementing her explanation.
"However, your father here suffered what we could call a heart attack. His flow of soul is now all messed up and won't sustain his body like usual anymore. It needs to be corrected and that is what I am doing right now."
Hollow picked their journal back up and as they gripped the pen, Pendry finally noticed why, their shape-shifted fingers were gone and nothing but little stumps had remained. That they were so stressed that they couldn't even keep their fingers in shape stressed him in turn, so that his chest ached again. His discomfort must have shown on his face, because he felt Rydellia's branch stroke over his wings.
"You want to know if you can help?", Rydellia said, clearly narrating for Pendry what Hollow had written down. "I am afraid you cannot. You don't have an affinity for sharing your soul with others, and even if you had it, the healing spell that I am using takes years of practice. It is different than simply filling up soul, for I basically need to rewrite the way soul moves through his body."
Hollow looked down again, their stumps tapping against their knees, looking as if they were deep in thought. They then wrote something else in their journal and presented it to Rydellia.
"It won't do anything good to douse him into hot spring water, correct.", Rydellia said. "Like I just explained, it is different from simply filling up soul, which is all that the hot spring water does. It won't be able to correct the messed up flow. Giving your father a bath would only make him smell nice, though he only shall need it should he start to reek. Or if he soils the bed."
"I don't plan on soiling the bed.", Pendry complained, but Rydellia pretty much ignored him. "The best way you can help is watching over him when I need to be absent. You can keep an eye on him, fetch me if his condition worsens, help him, should he need something or simply entertain him while he is stuck in bed."
Hollow didn't write anything else in their journal anymore and instead laid it back down on their legs. Then, they grabbed for their nail which apparently had laid on the floor and clutched the weapon tightly. It was clear that they had hoped that Rydellia would have said something else to them.
Between the three of them, a sort of an uncomfortable silence spread. Pendry could feel both Rydellia's judgement of him not coming clear about what had caused his condition and Hollow's overwhelming guilt hanging around in the room, on top of him still having to work through the shock of Hollow's earlier statement. He had to admit, a part of him wanted to get up and run right to the Abyss, but he knew it wasn't possible. Not only because Rydellia was currently healing him, but also because of how weak his body felt. If he felt like this while Rydellia was healing him, the moment she stopped he wouldn't be able to get up on his own. He certainly would need help for basic necessities until he was well again (or Rydellia's claim of him soiling the bed could become true).
Pendry was unaware about how much time had passed, only that he had gotten drowsy in the meantime, when Rydellia broke the silence.
"It is time for me to refill my soul.", she said. "When I come back, I want to hear what Hollow said to you."
Pendry gave her a weak nod, indicating that he had heard her. He felt how Rydellia's vines vanished from his arm and she stood up, giving him a last stroke over his horns and then leaving the room. Pendry felt the last remnants of her soul circulating in him, when the pain in his chest came back full force.
He basically doubled over in bed, clutching his chest with all of his four arms and shutting his eyes as he groaned at the sudden outburst. That ihurt/i. Not as much as the Radiance having stabbed him, but it was close. He only pried his eyes open when an ice cold hand (or stub) tapped him. He saw Hollow kneeling on the bed, their whole body rigid, clearly deeply concerned about his sudden display of pain.
"Pain.", he gasped out. "Nothing... you can... do... Will pass..."
Pendry felt how something very cold rubbed gently over his wings and it worked, his body slowly relaxed and the pain became much more bearable. He sank back down into the pillows, noticing that Hollow fluffed them up for him, and let out a sigh when his body decided to leave it at a dull throb. Hollow sat themselves on the edge of the bed.
"Please Hollow, you don't have to blame yourself.", Pendry said, trying to reach out to them, but his body felt as heavy as a rock, so he simply had to lay there, trying to comfort his child with his words alone. "This isn't your fault. Nothing of this is your fault. It's mine."
Hollow shook their head and then got up, moving the chair that stood next to his bed back to his desk. There they sat down, looking at him, but didn't try to engage in conversation with him or even move. They looked so much like the Pure Vessel again, that Pendry couldn't bear looking at them anymore. It seemed that they didn't want to talk about it right now.
Pendry stared back at the ceiling, his thoughts wandering that this is how a normal teenager supposed to act, right? All broody and not wanting to solve the problem, only that Hollow wasn't brooding, they were overwhelmed by guilt for his condition. He wished so much that he could say something to them or comfort them physically somehow, but he knew that he wasn't in the right condition for it. He had to wait for Rydellia and hopefully after he explained to her what had happened, she would find the right words for Hollow.
"You don't look too well, my Wyrm.", Rydellia said once she had entered the room. Her gaze went from Pendry to Hollow and her frown deepened. "Alright, now tell me what happened between you two."
Pendry breathed a deep sigh. This would be hard to tell. "Root, before I can tell you what Hollow said to me, I have to tell you what happened at the Grimm's Troupe."
"Ah yes, I remember you wanted to visit them.", Rydellia said. "In fact, you needed a week before you finally went there. Is anything that happened here the reason for your condition?"
"Only indirect.", Pendry said, looking at Hollow, who, now that Rydellia was back, had started to stare down at the ground instead. "In fact, Grimm offered help. He wanted something in return though, something that I didn't want to do, but Hollow stepped in and I couldn't argue with their logic. However, that is not the problem..."
Pendry then explained Rydellia Grimm's plan and how it would involve needing a bug that would be strong enough to contain the Radiance for a while, something like a vessel.
"But... all the vessels are...", Rydellia said, her crown seemed to droop down and Pendry could see the hurt in her eyes.
"Exactly.", Pendry said. "I thought that too. Until Hollow told me that they hadn't been the only one to make it out of the Abyss. They told me that at least one of their siblings was still alive when I sealed the Abyss."
Both of Rydellia's branches flew to her mouth, the shock clearly visible. However, she got her composure back soon, unlike Pendry, who was stuck in this miserable state.
"Ah, I understand the degree of your condition now.", she said. "Of course that would upset you... I know how hard you took all of this."
"Correct.", Pendry nodded. "The knowledge that Hollow hasn't been the only one, that I may have doomed one of their siblings that made it alongside them and that maybe more of them still are alive, that is what shocked me so much. I am afraid... Rydellia... I would like to go to the Abyss to check, but what will I see when I open it up?"
"You are the only one who can open up the Abyss.", Rydellia said. "However, maybe you don't need to find one of Hollow's siblings, if they even should be alive. When we find a strong willed bug, they should be able to contain the Radiance for a while."
"No, the risk is too high.", Pendry sighed. "Even if I asked one of the dreamers, they could stay asleep for their whole life. I can't ask them another time to do this for me, even though I know Lurien would do it, I don't want to live with the knowledge that I sacrificed another innocent bug..."
Rydellia stroked Pendry's wings as she said: "We will find a solution, my Wyrm. We will." She then looked at Hollow. "You have been rather quiet, my child."
Hollow raised their head and then looked down at their stubs. Pendry saw how they shape-shifted them back into fingers, with quite some effort, they even still wavered for a bit.
"I am at fault that father is sick.", they signed to the both of them.
"Hollow...", Rydellia got up and crossed the distance to them in two strides, kneeling down, to harmonize her big body with their smaller one. "Sometimes we hurt others, even if it was by accident. All you can do is apologize then, for you have to realize the errors of your ways. I am positive that you didn't want to hurt your father, and he isn't even mad about it, so there is no need to let yourself be consumed by your guilt."
"It's exactly like your mother said.", Pendry said, impressed how Rydellia had found the words he had struggled to find earlier, "You couldn't know what happened. You simply wanted to give me a piece of information, a piece of information that you thought I would need to hear. I am not mad at you, Hollow, I am grateful that you were honest with me. Truly."
Hollow looked from Rydellia to Pendry and then they started to sign, so quick and frantic that Pendry actually had a bit of trouble following their words.
"But... but... Father is sick because of me and I should have thought better about it, that it would shock him, that he is in pain because of that knowledge now, it was selfish of me to tell him, I never wanted for this to happen and... and... I don't deserve any forgiveness for my fault!"
Pendry and Rydellia both stared at Hollow, Pendry even realized that his mouth was slightly agape at their rant. He felt a shudder running down his carapace, seeing far too much of himself in their words, their feelings. Before he could even think of a reply, Rydellia was speaking.
"You are much more like your father than I thought! He forgives you and you can't believe it, yes, even actively work against his forgiveness, getting overwhelmed by your own guilt and emotions. Do you know how often I talk to Pendry about how he feels that he doesn't deserve your forgiveness? That he wonders why you don't hate him, even though you had a more than good reason for it after what he did? And me as well? We haven't been the best parents for you, I am the first to admit that, but you forgave us both. I decided to accept your forgiveness, but for Pendry it has been much harder. So, what I want to tell you... if you were able to forgive your father, then why don't you believe that he is able to forgive you? For an accident, nonetheless?"
Pendry's mouth wasn't slightly agape now anymore, it was gaping wide open. From all the things he had expected, it wasn't Rydellia giving such a harsh, but much needed lesson. To the both of them at the same time. When he looked at Hollow, he saw tears staining their mask. Rydellia's expression softened upon seeing it and she embraced Hollow with several of her branches and vines.
"It's hard to let go of your guilt.", she said, rubbing circles into their back. "But you shall not let yourself be consumed by it. Believe me, I know how hard it is. Both me and your father tried so hard, but we will never get truly rid of our guilt. However, your forgiveness helped us to realize that you wanted to be our child, that you accepted us as your parents. Now, please forgive yourself for your errors."
Apparently Hollow signed something to Rydellia, because she said: "Now, if you want to apologize to someone, it should be your father." She retracted her vines and branches and wiped the void tears out of their eyes. Hollow looked one last time at her before approaching Pendry's bed, who finally remembered to close his mouth.
"Father, I am sorry that I hurt you with my actions.", they signed.
"I forgive you for it.", Pendry said, feeling like they needed closure.
Then, after everything was said, they just stared at each other for a few seconds, before Hollow gave him a very careful hug. Pendry reciprocated it as well as he could, with his weakened and pain riddled body.
"I am glad you managed to make up.", Rydellia smiled. "Now I need to continue your healing, my Wyrm. Hollow, what do you think, do you want to help take care of your father? Find a Royal Retainer and let them prepare a hearty meal for him. It will only help his soul if he is well rested and well fed."
Hollow nodded and was out of the door, looking back at them both and giving them a little wave before they left. When the door clicked, Pendry sighed. "Thank you, Root, for giving them the words I couldn't say to them."
"They are just like you, my Wyrm.", Rydellia said, "They need a bit of gentle strictness. Though, know that my words are as much for them as they are for you. You know why we did what we did and I don't want to see you consumed by your own guilt as well."
"I know, Root, I know.", Pendry said, as he felt how her vines engulfed his arms again, letting himself fall into a state of drowsiness. As much as he wanted to follow his wife's advice, Pendry just didn't know if he would ever be able to fully forgive himself...
Hollow walked swiftly into a direction in which normally several Royal Retainers were seen, ignoring the ones already scurrying around, for they normally already had a task on hand. As they approached a duo of Royal Retainers busy with idle chatter, they stopped their conversation and bowed deeply to them. "Pale Heir.", they said as if talking from one throat.
The Royal Retainers had started to treat Hollow much like Father, using their title and bowing to them, just like they did with Father or Mother. Hollow felt like they would never get used to it. Of course they had also bowed when they still had been the Pure Vessel, but mostly Father had been with them then and their bows were for him, not them. And even if, they were supposed to not care. In the rare instances, a Royal Retainer had bowed without Father around, they had simply acted as if they did not care. They were supposed to be mindless after all.
After the duo raised from their bow, they looked expectantly at Hollow, awaiting their orders probably. Well, without a voice, Hollow couldn't talk to them like Father and they knew that only a few in the palace were capable of sign language and without anyone to translate for them, they needed to use their journal. The Royal Retainers waited patiently as they flipped to an empty page and wrote down their request.
What they didn't accept were more questions coming their way.
"Did his Majesty specify the type of meal he wanted?", the Royal Retainer on the right asked. "Other than it should be hearty?"
Obviously not, Father hadn't even said that he was hungry. It had been Mother who had requested a meal for him. They wrote down this tiny detail and showed it to the retainers.
"When it's the Queen's request, that must mean that he needs something healthy and sustaining.", the Royal Retainer on the left said. "Has his Majesty overworked himself again, maybe?"
Overworked? No, he hadn't overworked. If overwork was that thing where he fell asleep on his desk and needed to be carried to bed by Mother. He was sick. They wrote it down in their journal and presented it to the Royal Retainers.
"His Majesty is sick...?", the Royal Retainer on the right put a hand to their mouth in light shock, but seemed to regain composure soon. "Very well then, Pale Hair, we will make sure that a hearty meal fitting for his ill Majesty will be sent to his chambers as soon as possible."
Instead of moving though, the two just stood around and Hollow asked themselves what was wrong... when they remembered something that Father normally said to his retainers.
"Um, you are dismissed?", they wrote in their journal and once the Royal Retainers saw the sentence, they bowed again and went moving.
Where should Hollow head now? Should they go back to Father? No, they decided to follow the Royal Retainers, at least until Isma and Hegemol called out to them in the corridors. Distracted from hearing their name, they lost the Royal Retainers and reluctantly came over to their fellow knights. They had preferred to oversee the type of meal that was prepared for Father though. They knew best what he liked to eat and they wanted to suggest putting coffee into it.
"Hollow, sorry for interrupting you, but we wanted to talk to you about your armour. You don't have one yet and as a knight, you certainly can't go defending the kingdom in your robes.", Isma said.
"And unlike me, you have no natural shell that works as armour.", Hegemol added in his soft voice, patting against his massive shell as he spoke.
Hollow raised their hands to sign, trying to keep the signs simple, for the five great knights weren't as adept in sign language as Father and Mother yet.
"I can't. I have to take care of Father. Father is sick."
"The king is unwell?", Isma said, concern flashing over her face. "Since when has it been? Haven't you been outside with him just a few hours ago?"
"Yes.", Hollow confirmed. "It happened after we returned. Father got sick then."
"A sickness that happens so suddenly?", Hegemol frowned. "What kind of sickness does he have?"
Isma and Hegemol shared a look and Hollow understood their worry in an instant. They feared that Father had the infection! No, what wasn't the case at all, they needed to clear this up.
"Father is having a heart attack.", they signed, using both the signs for heart and attack, for nobody had taught them a sign for the incident in general.
"His Majesty was having a HEART ATTACK?!", Isma practically screamed the last word and Hegemol's face practically fell. Hollow took a step back, had they done something wrong? Was Father's condition even worse than Mother had let them believe? They actually started to shiver at the extreme reaction and they felt their arms creep around themselves again.
"Ah, please accept my apologies.", Isma stepped forwards and laid her hands on their shoulders. "I was just shocked about the news. I believe the Lady is with him, yes?"
Hollow nodded, of course, they wouldn't have left Father alone.
"Then he will be fine. I didn't want to scare you. We can talk about getting your armour once his Majesty made a full recovery. Let me go to my grove and find a few herbs that may help with his pain."
"Shall I get Ogrim?", Hegemol asked as Isma turned around to rush outside the palace. "Yes, please, that would be appreciated.", she said. Hegemol gave Hollow a nod and a wave before he followed Isma, leaving them alone.
Well, now they could get back to Father's room, they supposed. It surely would be too late to give instructions for his meal. Hollow turned around and went the way back they had come.
Pendry awoke to a mouth watering smell and his Root's voice.
"What? Hollow, no, putting coffee into a soup would have tasted horrible. Besides, in his condition he shouldn't drink too much of this poison anyway."
A sigh. "No, it isn't literal poison, it just isn't too good in large doses, haven't you seen how fidgety he gets when he drinks too much of it? And do you remember what happened to you when you drank a tiny little bit of it?"
"If you tell me I can't drink coffee for the next few weeks, I will go right back to sleep.", Pendry commented on the conversation that he hadn't been a part of so far.
"Ah, Wyrm, you are awake.", Rydellia smiled at him. "It would be better for you to not drink coffee as long as I heal you, it could mess up your soul, you know that." Her smile turned into a frown for a second or so. "Hollow organized some food for you, which has arrived in the meantime." Rydellia picked up a bowl which still was steaming hot, if the vapor coming from it was any indication.
"A nice and healthy soup with herbs from Isma's Grove and some vengefly meat."
"It certainly smells good.", Pendry said, trying to get himself up into a sitting position, but failing. That was when he noticed that Rydellia wasn't healing him right now, she either needed to take another break or had stopped so that his body wouldn't be too confused when he put food into it.
He also realized that Hollow had rushed to his side, piling up the pillows and trying to help him sit up, but with his body feeling so heavy, it didn't seem to do anything at all.
"It doesn't seem as if you can eat on your own already.", Rydellia mused. "Say aaaah.", she said, having dunked a spoon into the soup and presenting it to him.
"What?! Root, I am not doing this, I can eat on my- hngh!", Rydellia hadn't even let him finish his sentence, but instead put the spoon into his mouth during his verbiage. He felt a light blue glint on his cheeks as he tasted the soup, truly the cooks had taken the utmost care with the meal, and almost sighed contently when the warmth spread in his body after swallowing and dulled the pain.
"See, isn't that better?", Rydellia said. "Do you want to feed him as well, Hollow?" She handed the spoon to their child, who had already dunked it carefully in the soup.
"Being fed by my wife is one thing, but being fed by my- angh.", Pendry's complaining was cut short by Hollow using the exact same trick Rydellia had just used to get the soup into him. With a sigh, Pendry accepted his fate. A lot of spoons of soups later his stomach told him that he was full and not a single drop of the soup remained. He must have been hungrier than he realized.
The best thing though was that the pain in his chest was much much duller now. He could only suppose that Isma's herbs were responsible for it... which meant.
"Why does Isma know about my condition?"
It was Hollow who winced at his words and looked down at the floor. It was Rydellia who picked up the word for them.
"Hollow has met Isma and Hegemol when they were organizing your food. They wanted to talk to them about armour, but when they said that they needed to take care of you, they asked about your illness. Hollow told them, but mostly because Isma and Hegemol were worried that you came down with the infection. Don't worry though, they only told the other great five knights that you suffered a heart attack, the Royal Retainers only know that you are currently out of commission due to your sickness."
"I see.", Pendry said, feeling how his tail crept over his leg and curled around it. His telltale sign of getting nervous. His sickness truly was a big inconvenience, especially when he needed to take care of the infection instead. "We had a much greater problem when I really had gotten afflicted with the infection, but thanks to my nature of Higher Being, I can resist the old light's dreams well enough."
Of course his knights didn't know about the finer details of the infection. Only him, his Root and Hollow knew about the Radiance and the dreamers, to an extent, because he had to explain the sealing plan to them. It wasn't strange of them to have assumed the infection when Hollow told them about a sudden sickness befalling the king.
"By the way, on the topic of the infection...", Rydelia said, "What did Grimm actually request of you so that he will help?"
"He wanted for me to fulfil the ritual.", Pendry said, staring at the ceiling. That was one of the things that only slowly entered his mind again. That Hollow would have to summon that nuisance of a Grimmchild and find the flames to feed it with.
"Ridiculous. Our kingdom is not yet in shambles.", Rydellia said, her crown rustling in annoyance.
"Not our kingdom. Hers.", Pendry replied. His gaze went to Hollow who had stopped looking at the floor and followed their conversation. "Hollow will be the one to fulfil it though. I plan to oversee it, of course. I don't let them walk around alone outside the palace with the infection around."
"That probably means that you got a charm, Hollow.", Rydellia's gaze was on their mutual child.
Hollow nodded and got something round out of their robes, the colour very well showing that it was indeed the charm that Grimm had given them earlier. Or yesterday. Pendry actually didn't know how long he had been unconscious.
"Ah no, don't equip it.", Rydellia was quick to prevent Hollow from pinning the charm. "The moment you do, you will summon the Grimmchild, the new body for the Nightmare King. It is... a bit feral, you shouldn't summon it in front of your father when he is still sick."
Hollow stared at the charm and then carefully stored it away, gaze on Pendry. He didn't need for them to sign to know their question.
"Don't worry, Hollow, Grimm hasn't put you on a time limit.", he said. "You can start with his request after I fully recover. Like I said, I won't let you brave these tunnels alone."
Hollow nodded another time, their body relaxing a little bit.
"It's good to see that you managed to make progress, even though you still need to sort a few things out.", Rydellia said. "Now, rest, my Wyrm, for it will be easier for me to heal you when you don't use up too much strength."
The next two or three days continued like this. Pendry was still forced to lay in bed, only being allowed to get up for things that were absolutely necessary, Rydellia healed him several times a day, though the healing times got shorter, and he got food that was both healthy and hearty. Hollow stayed with him whenever they could, which was almost all the time. Because Pendry was stuck in bed, he started to tell Hollow some stories of his youth, when both him and his Root hadn't been married yet, and very much still had been two love-struck higher beings, trying to share every waking moment with each other.
Hollow loved hearing these stories, for Pendry knew they loved romance stories and the story of the Wyrm and the Root was a romantic one indeed. Well, for mortals it probably was different, for it wasn't common in a lot of the Noble's circles to try to win your lover's heart with the biggest and most bloodiest prey, but his Root always had loved his courtship. Higher Beings just were different in this aspect.
Though, as much as Pendry loved Rydellia, the position he was into right now was much to his displeasure. Rydellia had picked him up and practically carried him through the corridors of the palace, for she had decided that he now smelled bad enough to warrant a bath.
"Root, that's embarrassing, what if somebody sees?", Pendry murmured, cheeks tinted blue as he held on to her with his two upper arms.
"A wife carrying her husband is nothing to be ashamed about.", Rydellia hummed.
"Yes... I mean, no, but... I am still the king and this looks a bit... I don't know, it's embarrassing.", Pendry said. It probably was his weakness that embarrassed him most. Rydellia had carried him countless times already, mostly after she put him to sleep.
"Oh, but it could be much more embarrassing, my Wyrm.", Rydellia smiled at him. "For example, if I would have needed to bathe you because you soiled the bed."
Now Pendry's cheeks flushed blue in an instant. "I told you I didn't plan on soiling the bed.", he half hissed. He wasn't a little hatchling anymore anyway. Hadn't been for centuries.
"That's nothing you plan.", Rydellia said and tickled his wings, forcing him to smile, though he still gave his wife a tiny glare. "Ah, teasing you is always so fun, my Wyrm.", she chuckled as they entered the bathroom, in which a basin full of hot spring water waited for Pendry.
Rydellia unclothed him with one single motion, centuries of practice, and carefully lowered his body into the water. In an instant, Pendry felt how the soul in it soothed his aching body. He wasn't completely healed yet, of course, but laying in bed all the time made his body all sore, so the healing effect on his aching muscles was very well appreciated.
"Your flow of soul should be back to normal in a few more days. I thought that it might need a week for you to heal under my care.", Rydellia said as she prepared a washcloth. With nobody present to watch them anymore, not even Hollow, Pendry let himself taken care of by his Root, leaning into her touch when she started to gently clean his carapace, removing any dirt that had gotten stuck in it, getting him back to his shining white colour, which turned even shinier when his kingslight started to glow stronger again, a sign of his content.
Rydellia continued to clean him, moving the wash cloth along his tail and squeezing water out of the tassel, her twig fingers brushing along his wings as she cleaned the delicate body part, the only other person he ever had allowed to touch them was Hollow. Memories drifted back to their visit in Deepnest, where they had shared a bath in the natural hot spring after their encounter with the Nosk. That felt like ages ago now. Thinking about it, he had been so busy with his royal duties, Hollow and the infection, that he had neglected his relationship to his daughter. He should write Herrah soon and invite her into the palace, so that at least the children could bond with each other. Hollow clearly had always loved to interact with their little sister.
Pendry hadn't noticed that he had closed his eyes and let himself completely drift away under his Root's care, he only noticed that she had reached his horns and carefully cleaned each and everyone of them with practiced strokes. Not a single word was changed between them during this interaction, but Pendry didn't need any words. His Root knew perfectly how to take care of him and he had no reason to tell her to stop.
After Rydellia was done with cleaning him, she joined him in the basin and simply held him in her arms as a low sounding rumble sounded from his throat, a wyrm's sign that they were happy and felt taken care off.
Pendry cherished these moments. His Root was the only person he could show his weaker side to and not fear to get tossed from his throne or lose his followers. Even if he wouldn't have been sick, he would have greatly cherished this moment, in his current moment of illness, he appreciated the safe haven of his wife only the more.
They stayed in this comfortable embrace for a long time, until Rydellia decided that it was time for him to go back to bed and lifted him out of the tub, gently drying him off, being especially careful around his delicate wings. Tonight Pendry slept unusually well, with not a single nightmare grazing his dreams.
Two days later Pendry still wasn't allowed to leave the bed for long, but at least Rydellia had allowed him to look over the paperwork. Of course it hadn't stopped coming in over the course of his illness, though Lurien had held his promise and only sent in what he deemed to be utmost important to be approved by the king.
Hollow was with him, playing their harp, a gentle relaxing tune, a background noise that Pendry very much appreciated. While Hollow didn't have a huge array of songs to play yet, they had already mastered this one, making Pendry feel at ease when he listened to it. No wonder that Lurien liked for his butler to play the violin while he painted, he felt a lot more productive with the tune filling the room.
Pendry wasn't allowed to use his own soul to verify the documents, so he used a soul pen to carve his signature and his sigil into the rock, still amazed by what mortal bugs had managed to do with the bit of soul they were allowed to use. It had been Lurien who had come up with the concept, to make writing on rock easier for the bugs, for it was hard work to carve into the rocks with hammer and gouge all the time and paper was a precious good that was mostly used for books.
Over the course of Pendry thinking about the achievements of his folk, he hadn't noticed that Hollow had stopped their playing. As he raised his head, surprised by the sudden silence, he saw them staring at him.
"What is the matter, Hollow?", Pendry asked. "Do you need a break?"
For as much progress as they had made, Hollow was still awful in asking for a break should they need one, for whatever reason ever, so Pendry had made it a habit to ask them for any troubles regularly. It was a bit ironic, kind of, because he himself was notoriously bad at taking breaks as well, but at least he wasn't a child anymore and knew his limits.
Hollow shook their head. They didn't need a break then. "Is it anything else?", he asked. Maybe they wanted to talk, but didn't want to interrupt him during his work.
"This is how I learned to write.", Hollow signed as reply, pointing at his documents. "You always had me around when you did this, often put me on the table, and you would murmur the words to yourself. I memorized the symbols to the words."
"That's... impressive.", Pendry laid his pen down, paying full attention to his child now. He hadn't even thought about how they had taught themselves to write, but it made absolute sense. When they had still been a fresh hatchling, he had been more lax with them. He hadn't thought about that he could taint a creature with no mind and had let them sit around, sometimes even on his lap, when he signed and wrote documents, often murmuring to himself (or had he murmured to them), to fill the silence of the room.
"I looked at many letters during that time.", Hollow said. "Thinking if I fill my mind with them, I would stop thinking. But that was thinking, so I had to stop doing it. The letters never went away though."
"I am so sorry I put you through this, Hollow.", Pendry said, an ache in his heart and it wasn't his illness this time.
"It's fine.", Hollow said. "I just have one question... What exactly are you doing when you write on these rocks?"
"Ah, these are the documents I have to verify so that the city functions.", Pendry explained to Hollow. "We have rules in this city and people have to ask for permissions when they want to build, or open up a business or get their child into a school or want to join the force of the sentries. And since the infection, we of course have the list with the latest victims.", he sighed, he didn't like looking at this list. "Lurien handles most of this stuff, but as the king, I need to take a look at them and verify his decisions or decline them. Normally, I can verify him, he's the best I could wish for as the position of the watcher."
He noticed how Hollow made a gesture that looked a bit like a snickering and his cheeks flushed a bit at it. "A-anyway, how about I show you how to handle the documents? As the heir, you might get into the position of having to handle them in the absence of me or your mother."
Hollow seemed to be more than eager to listen to his instructions and so the two of them spend the rest of the day going through the documents together, with Pendry explaining to Hollow all he knew about logistics of the City of Tears, which wasn't that much actually. He just fully trusted. Lurien to be right about this stuff. Most of the time.
They only noticed how many time had passed when Rydellia came to bring him dinner, a smile and a frown on her face at the same time when she saw Hollow as hard as work as he was, though after dinner, she just wordlessly healed him again and in her eyes she saw, that she was proud.
While Pendry certainly would have liked not having to be stuck in bed for a week, some moments felt like it had been worth it. He certainly had needed this break.
(Author's note: Hmmm... please imagine Hollow playing the White Palace theme, thank you very much. Also, they are shipping Pale Watcher, very much ^^
Which part was the one I liked to write the most? The non sexual intimacy between Pendry and Rydellia when she bathed him. Sometimes you just need something where not a single word is spoken.
No Grimmchild shenanigans in this chapter yet, because Pendry still needed to heal, but they will come, I promise. I just don't know when... I still need to outline the exact order of plot points I have in my mind, for I finished writing my current outline.
As always, any like, kudo or comment/review is very much appreciated. This fic sits over 500 kudos and I am so amazed that you guys like it so much! Thank you! I hope you will follow this fic to the end ^^)