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"I should have moved it right away, should've had more soldiers."
As soon as she entered the greenhouse and saw Saul's state, a wave of worry and fear washed upon Farah, followed by an even greater wave of guilt. She should have listened to him and killed the creature right away instead of keeping it in that damned barn. They should have posted someone outside of it. She should have gone with them. She should have known better. After Saul dismissed Terra and Sky, he explained to Farah and Ben what happened through hisses of pain caused by his injuries.
"The Burned One was loose before we got there. I saw someone... in the road." His breathing was short, and he was still in shock.
"Someone let is loose on purpose?" Farah asked, her mind already trying to figure out who could have done such a thing and why.
Saul looked at her and nodded as she exchanged a look with Ben. That meant they had an enemy within their walls, and they had to find who it was, quickly. Her throat tightened as she started thinking this was just the tip on the iceberg. Though she was worried for the safety of the school and its students, her main concern right now was the man whose head was lying on her lap. They all knew the only way to stop the infection was to kill the creature responsible for it; it did not matter how much Zanbaq Ben could make to give Saul if it lived. They needed to put it down, sooner rather than later, or Saul would die. And that was not something Farah was ready to think about.
“How is the pain?” she asked him.
“I’m fine,” he grunted.
She gave him a pointed look and raised an eyebrow, not convinced in the slightest.
“I need to take a closer look at your back, Saul.” Ben said. Farah looked at him busy himself with his oils and compresses and thought about how easily he got back in healer mode. You would assume that after sixteen years of peace, he would have been a little lost or hesitant and yet here he was, sharp and focused. Old habits die hard it would seem, and she was grateful for that.
Saul got up from her lap, now sitting next to her and she took a few seconds to examine his body. It was pretty bad, there were a lot of cuts and bruises on his skin but the worse was the gash on his back. She felt the warm and suffocating feeling of anxiety settling in her chest.
“I’m sorry,” she breathed.
Saul looked up, frowning. “Don’t start beating yourself up about that, Farah. You couldn’t have known. And if someone’s trying to put us in danger, they would have found a way to do so anyway.” His tone was firm and usually, she would have argued but now was not the time.
“He’s right, Farah. And we’ll have plenty of time to think about the 'why' and 'how' but right now, I need to clean these wounds and make sure you get all the Zanbaq you need to keep the infection at bay as long as we can. I’m going to pour some more on your back now. It’s going to hurt, sorry.” The earth fairy counted to three and as soon as the unguent touched his skin, Saul contracted every muscle in his body in an effort to stop himself from screaming.
Farah took his right hand into hers to support him. They say that the bond between a fairy and their specialist is unique and precious and she felt it now more than ever. They were always deeply connected to one another and that is why they made a great team: in battle, they did not need to talk to know what move the other was going to pull off; it was almost as if they thought as one. She trusted him to have her back as she channeled her magic and he trusted her to have his as he fought, sword in hand. No hesitation, no question, just an acute, unexplainable sense of the other. If she was being honest, it was so strong that it felt overwhelming sometimes. But maybe that was because of her own feelings tossed in the mix.
As Ben continued to tend his wounds, Saul let out a scream. “Hang in there, I’m almost done,” Ben said, frowning in concentration.
Farah tightened her grasp on Saul’s hand. “Let me help, Saul,” she said, and he immediately knew what she wanted to do: the mind fairy was going to take his pain away and transfer it to her own body. She did it once in the past and he remembered clearly how draining it had been for her.
"Don't!" he exclaimed, strongly.
"I won't take it all, I promise, just a little so it’s more bearable for you," she pleaded. Saul shook his head. She mentally cursed him for trying to be so strong and heroic all the time, but she did not push further. Accessing someone's thoughts and feelings without consent was not something she wanted to do, even less so when that person trusted her as blindly as he did.
"Alright, I think it'll do for now," Ben said, as he started gathering the used compresses full of blood and ashes.
"Thank you," Saul whispered, his eyes closed. Farah watched her fairy friend leave the room, then looked at him with concern, not letting go of his hand.
“We have to send a team beyond the barrier as soon as possible, there’s no time to spare.” He nodded in response. He looked so tired and frail in that moment, it scared her more than she could explain. “I’ll go with them,” she added. Saul opened his eyes and looked at her as if she were mad.
“There is no way you’re going out there without me. We go as a team or we don’t go at all for that sort of mission; that’s the rule and you know it. Besides, you’re not part of the line of defense anymore”. She looked at him with her lips pursed. She obviously knew that, but she could not possibly sit back and watch the infection spread.
“I know, but my job is still to protect your life. That means hunting down and killing that thing. How do I do that from here?” she protested.
“Your job, Headmistress, is to stay here and make sure the students are protected”, he answered, insisting on her title. Farah let out a long sigh and closed her eyes in frustration. He knew her too well, she was not going to argue with that. Alfea and its students had to be her priority; that is what she signed up for when she became Headmistress and she would not fail them. Still, it did not calm her visceral need to do something, to help him, to soothe his pain, to cheer him up, anything.
She opened her eyes and glanced at him again, helpless. “What can I do, then?”
Saul looked at her with such intensity that she almost dropped her gaze. Everything that happened between them, that did not happen, that could have been and never was, everything she ever felt when he was around her and the way she always sensed him because of their bond, all the things they ever yelled at each other in the heat of the moment and all the things left unsaid, it all started to rise up in her chest. Don’t go there, she warned herself.
“You’re here,” he shrugged. “That’s enough for me.”
She gave him a sad smile and he slowly moved forward, his lips meeting her forehead in the softest kiss. Farah laid her head on his shoulder then and she felt him relax a little as he let out a sigh. She did not know how long they had before the infection spread too much to save Saul, or if the people they would send after the Burned One were prepared enough to face it. She did not know if they would have another quiet moment like that. But they had now, hands still intertwined, relishing each other’s presence, and maybe for the time being, it should be enough for her too.