10.
~ The ride back to the castle was a quite one. Perseus seemed to pick up on their mood and rode slowly. Keeping a generous length away from the bay. Ariadne felt wounded by Arthur. His words had hurt her in a way she couldn't define.
She wasn't angry about Arthur's romantic advances on her. She had enjoyed their time at the falls until he transformed back into the cold and distant thing he was now.
Ariadne was feeling hungry and dizzy from too much sun as they finally reached the castle. She was glad to see it. She wanted to go home and never see him or this place again.
"I'll put the horses up." Arthur said gently as she clumsily slip off the gray again. Perseus still solid and noble as his rider was no horsewoman.
"Alright." She said. The first word she had said to him since he told her she wasn't apart of his family. Since that wall between them sprang up once more.
She sensed Arthur wanted to say something else but held back. Maybe he wanted to apologize, but he said nothing.
~ "You are sun burnt!" Grace exclaimed as Ariadne came into the castle. She wanted to slink off to her room and re-dress in her own clothes. However, Grace was too quick and sprang on her out of nowhere. The old lady had been sitting at a table, playing a card game with her grandson Eames, when Ariadne tried to sneak in.
"Arthur!" She barked at him as he came in behind her. "Why didn't you make her wear a hat? How could you be so careless?" She snapped at him.
Arthur took a deep breath and let it out as he shut the door. Ariadne noticed that her skin felt tight and stinging. She caught a glance at her reflection in the hall mirror and saw her face was bright pink.
"Oh no." Ariadne whispered as she could already feel the painful sting of the burn. She looked at the hall clock and was shocked to see it was almost five o'clock in the evening. She and Arthur had been at his waterfall all day.
"Arthur, this is unacceptable!" Grace was saying to him.
"I'm fine, Grace." Ariadne tried to explain as she turned to the old lady. She noticed Arthur wasn't sun burned. He had worn much less clothing then her and he wasn't even tanned or red.
"You most certainly are not!" Grace barked at her.
Eames was smiling from his spot on the table.
"What were the two of you up to?" He asked in an amused little voice. His accent so different from everyone else but Grace.
"Nothing." Arthur growled at his cousin.
"You two look like you've been swimming." Eames mused. "I know you would never go on the ocean."
"Shut up, Eames!" Arthur barked. That angry scowl back on his face.
"I should go." Ariadne coughed as she was filled with a sense of nausea.
"Are you alright?" Arthur asked. His face growing concerned as she felt she might throw up.
"Bathroom?" She asked knowing it was going to happen. Not able to stop it.
Grace pointed to a door and Ariadne ran for it.
The next thing she knew, Ariadne was throwing up and Arthur was holding her hair back.
She was crying at the humiliation of it. These people, who were so nice to her and invited her into their home, only to have her vomit heavily in their bathroom. Arthur, who had treated her to such a lovely day out. Their kissing and exploration of the falls, and each other, had been so perfect and wonderful. Now he was seeing her retching on her hands and knees.
"I'm sorry." She cried as Arthur helped her wash her face. He gently pressed a cool cloth to her brow. She felt so dizzy as he helped her stand up. Her body leaning back into his as he was immovable and held her steady.
"It's not your fault, Darling." Eames was saying. "It's Arthur's. He forgets normal people get sun burned."
"Eames!" Arthur barked as she couldn't stand up anymore.
"Put her to bed, Arthur." Grace was saying gently. The old lady was worried. "I'll bring up some water for her to drink."
~ "I'm sorry." Ariadne said realizing that Arthur was carrying her up the grand staircase. "I'm sorry I threw up." Her arms were wrapped around his neck as she couldn't keep her head up. She buried her face on his shoulder and let his carry her. She felt exhausted suddenly and was glad she barely had to hold onto him. His arms strong enough to lift her up and not falter.
"It's alright." Arthur whispered as they reached the second floor. He effortlessly carried her to the guest room that was hers.
"Grace was right. It's my fault." He said as he laid her down in the bed. Her body feeling hot and burned. "I kept you out in the sun too long."
"It hurts." She said as her head ached and her skin felt tight and painful.
"Grace is going to bring up a cream for you." He whispered as she realized he was pulling off her too big pants and tucking her into bed.
She didn't remember much after Grace came in the room and made her drink water, take an aspirin and rubbed an ice cold cream over her skin. Immediately making the sting feel better.
~ When she woke up, it was night out. Her skin felt cool and soothed, and she knew she had slept for hours. Her body was stiff as she numbly thought to use the bathroom. She didn't look at her red, peeling face in the mirror as she used the toilet and took a cold bath.
Grace had mercifully left some sandwiches, water and best of all, more of the cream on the night stand. Ariadne rubbed it's soothing balm into her burn after she ate. Her dizziness easing as she finished the last crumb of her meal. She redressed in another old fashioned night dress and climbed back into bed.
She wanted nothing more then to drop off into sleep when a scream jerked her awake.
It was a loud, frightened cry and it made Ariadne sit up in bed and race to her door. It hadn't been her imagination. It wasn't a dream. It was real.
She waited with her hand on the nob, her heart ready to burst from her chest as another scream ripped through the night air.
Like she was possessed with a bravery she never felt, she threw open her door and raced down the hall. The screams belonged to a woman and overlapping her frightened wails, were the shouts of men.