There was no one at the front desk, and the adjacent dining room was similarly empty. The clock on the wall showed a later hour than I'd thought. My confidence in us not only finding a hot meal, but even beds, was dwindling. Cade might have to have his magical breakthrough quicker than when we'd walked through the fae realm. I'd watched him struggle all afternoon to conjure the most basic spell, and it didn't make me feel any better about bringing Ayla. The whole point of him coming was so that he'd be an extra layer of protection for her. Now he was just…
Ayla laid her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, a smile on her face.
With a growl, I turned away. No use torturing myself.
I marched up to the clerk's desk, slamming my hand down on the bell and hoping someone heard me. I waited another few minutes then hit it again. Then again.
"That bell did nothing to hurt you," Elodia said, coming up beside me. "Don't take your frustrations out on it."
"I'm not." I smacked it again so hard that it flew across the counter to the floor. Elodia raised one eyebrow at me, and I grunted. "It's been a long day."
"Sure." She turned and leaned against the counter. "And it doesn't piss you off that Ayla refuses to look at you and is cuddling up with the wizard."
"It doesn't." I shifted my weight. "She can cuddle with whomever she wants."
"Mm."
The curtains behind the desk rustled and a short man with rust-colored skin and white hair appeared. He bent down slowly to pick up his bell and brush the dirt off it.
"Sorry, I was already in bed," he grunted, giving me a cold look. "What can I do for you?"
"Beds." Elodia elbowed me, so I cleared my throat. "I mean, we need beds for our group. Seven of us. And dinner, if you have it."
"I have three rooms," he said. "And dinner is whatever's left of the stew, but I can't promise much. How many bowls?"
I turned behind me to count. "Seven."
"I see only six of you."
I blinked, furrowing my brow at him. "I'm sorry?"
He sighed, a little annoyed. "Three gold for six bowls and three rooms."
"Seven," I insisted, turning to count. Ayla, Cade, Riona, Rutley, the troll, Elodia, and myself. "There are seven of us."
"I count three women, three men, including yourself." He shrugged, his tone growing harsher. "Am I supposed to see another one?"
"I do not require food," Lynton said, appearing beside me.
I turned to the innkeeper, looking for his response, and to my surprise, he looked stricken, like he was having some sort of episode.
The troll swiped the key off the counter and walked up the stairs. As soon as he was gone, the innkeeper softened.
"So…" He stared at the keys, confused. "Suppose I only have two rooms available then. Six bowls?"
My jaw fell open as I looked between the innkeeper and Lynton. "You didn't see that troll just now…"
The innkeeper chuckled. "You must've heard too many fairy tales. There's no such thing as trolls—haven't been seen around these parts in over a thousand years." He handed me the bowls. "If you ask me, you should eat and get some rest before you continue. Seems the mountain air has made you a little loopy."
He disappeared after that, and I just stared at the space he'd left, replaying the scene in my mind. He'd seen Lynton, had looked right at him. Then…just forgotten him. Just like the soldier back in Pennlan.
"You saw that too, right?" Elodia asked, beside me.
"I mean, I think I did," I said, picking up the keys and bowls. "Some strange magic floating around this mountain."
"You said it."
I brought the bounty back to the group, who perked up. Even Ayla opened her sleepy eyes and didn't have contempt in them, for once.
"We have two rooms," I announced. "So that means we'll be doubling up. Riona, you, Elodia, and Ayla—"
"I'll room with Cade," Ayla said, standing up quickly and snatching the key out of my hand. "Come on, Cade."
I worked my jaw and watched her disappear up the stairs, Cade offering me an apologetic smile as he followed behind her. That left…
"One room for the four of us," Rutley said with a grimace. "I guess we can cuddle."
"You can cuddle with yourself," Elodia said. "The fae girl can fix things, can't she?"
"I can't use magic either, remember?" she said with a grimace.
I released a groan. "Let's just see what we have to work with, then we'll panic."
⤖⤖⤖⤖
The room was minuscule, with one small bed crammed in the corner. Even if we all slept on the floor, I didn't know if there was space for three of us to stretch out. I glanced at the ceiling, annoyance rising and falling like the tide. Three magical creatures in the group and none of them were any use.
"So who gets the bed?" Elodia asked, grimly.
"We can take turns," Rutley said. "One hour each. I'm sure the troll will have us up early anyway."
There weren't any arguments, so we ventured back downstairs, gathered the bowls, and walked into the small dining area off the main entrance. The stew was only lukewarm, and nearly gone, so we shared what was left. Then we settled around the table and ate in silence.
I stared into the murky depths, biting back my frustration. It was, perhaps, too late to turn around, and I doubted Ayla would be amenable to such a thing. So the only thing to do was try to sleep and soldier on.
Footsteps down the stairwell drew my attention. Cade had come down alone, but I hadn't expected Ayla to make an appearance anyway. His useless staff clicked on the wooden floor as he joined us at the table.
"How is she?" I asked, not meeting his gaze.
"Exhausted. But she won't let you know that," he said.
"And how's…" I gestured to his staff. "That whole magic thing going?"
"I don't understand it at all," he said. "The magic is there, I can feel it. But every time I try to cast, it's like…" He made a noise like rushing water and gestured around his head. "I can't focus."
"What does that matter?" Rutley asked.
"No focus, no magic," he said with an apologetic smile. "I couldn't even conjure a bowl to the room. So here I am."
I made a noise. "There's nothing left. We took the last of it."
"What meager amounts there were," Elodia grumbled.
"You didn't save any for us?" Cade asked, annoyance in his voice.
"I thought you could, you know, magic more," I said, a little guiltily.
"I can try…" He pointed his staff at my half-empty bowl and stared at it intently. His nose twitched, and he jerked as if something were buzzing around his face. But although his staff glowed softly, nothing happened. "Damn it all."
"Well, that sucks," Rutley said. "What are we supposed to do if we encounter something that wants to eat us out here?"
"Use your sword, you dolt," Elodia said. "You still know how to do that, don't you?"
He grunted and returned to his stew.
"I'll keep trying, but…I don't know," Cade said, almost defeated. "I've gotten used to having it at my fingertips." He caught my gaze, a little mirth in his eyes. "What is it about these trips and me losing magic?"
"I don't know, but it really makes things harder," I said. "Considering the four of us get to share one bed."
He made something of a strangled noise. "There's only one in our room, too."
My pulse spiked, and I gripped the wooden bowl harder. "Make sure you…" I stuffed down visions of what he and Ayla might do with one bed. "The troll will probably want us up early. I wouldn't stay up too late."
"I'm not planning on it, but sleeping on the floor…" He made a sound as he looked back toward the stairwell. "And now I have to tell Ayla there's no dinner for her."
With a sigh, I thrust my half-eaten bowl into his hands. "Here, I'm done."
"Are you—"
"She's the one who needs to keep up her strength." I grunted, my stomach protesting. "So make sure she eats all of it."
He rose slowly, nodding. "I'll keep working at it. Maybe it's like the fae realm, and I just need to get used to whatever magic is in this land."
"No." Riona's voice was quiet from the other end of the table. I'd almost forgotten she was there. "The reason you couldn't use it in the fae realm was because that staff wasn't made for you. Your new staff doesn't have that same problem." She lifted her gaze to stare at him. "There's something else happening. Something…" She licked her lips. "Something else keeping it from you."
Cade rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "What is it like when you try to cast?"
"I just can't," she said with a glare.
"Are you—"
"If I could," she snapped, "I wouldn't be sleeping on the floor tonight." She rose and handed me her bowl. "You can have mine. I'm going to take the first shift of sleep. Wake me in an hour or two."
The group remained silent as she ascended the stairs. Elodia was the first to speak. "Why do I get the feeling everyone's pissed at everyone else on this trip?"
I sighed, the back of my head aching. "I'll go talk to her."
⤖⤖⤖⤖
I knocked softly on the door and cracked it open. Riona was a dark blob on the small bed. She'd cast the blankets and pillows on the floor, presumably for us to share, though it wouldn't do much against the cold.
I sat down next to the bed, leaning up against the wooden frame and waited.
"Yes?"
"You okay?"
"Fine." She flipped away from me.
I kept silent, rubbing my hands together and waiting.
"Ward, go to bed."
"I'm just sitting here."
"You're…" She sat up, annoyance clear on her face, even in the dark. "Just stop. Nothing's wrong, other than…" She huffed. "Ayla hates me."
"Ayla doesn't hate you, she just…" I shook my head. "I don't even know what to tell you. She's angry with me, so I don't have any advice."
"Why is she mad at you?"
"Because I had the audacity to care about her," I said, more under my breath than to Riona. "It's probably better that she's mad at me than the alternative."
"Meaning?"
I didn't really feel like elaborating. "Hopefully Cade can reason with her," I said, after a long pause. "They're clearly back to being best friends." I stared at the floor, a chill skittering down my spine. "Though it would be really nice if he could use his magic. I don't like our chances on this journey without a little magical help."
"I think if he could use it, he would," Riona said, very quietly. "He's not about to let Ayla suffer needlessly."
I noted she didn't include herself in that statement, but I didn't want to pry. Riona had always kept her secrets, and usually for good reason. Her heart was always true, though.
"I'm sure everything will be better once we reach the troll kingdom," I said, lying down on the floor and covering myself with the threadbare sheet. "If we don't kill each other before then."
She snorted. "Sleep well, Ward. I missed you."
"Likewise."