I looked down at the bottle, which had the sort of pharmacy printout I was used to, proclaiming that it was full of oxycodone. The fae weren't shy about using things humans came up with, I thought with some bitterness. They'd gone and stolen away anything they wanted, me included, without regard for who it hurt. But I was glad for the meds. Having to heal on your own from ragged holes was brutal even in the best of circumstances, and the drugs would help. I looked up at the guard, wishing I could thank her, and nodded. "I'll do my best to take care of him."

"We know, your highness," she said. "You play a careful game with the courtiers, but we soldiers know him better than the High Court does. He trusts you, and so we trust you, too."

"Oh." Warmth blossomed in my chest from those words, my fingers tightening around the little bottle. I'd never expected acceptance from the fae, let alone such an unconditional statement like that. I was human, Dain was hated, and sometimes it felt like everyone was waiting impatiently for us to get on with it and murder each other. But the High Court wasn't the whole of the world, or even most of the world. I wanted, suddenly, to see the rest of it with him—to travel with people who respected and even loved him, and see what he was like when he wasn't always waiting for the next attack.

"We have the door," she said, with a smile and determination in her eyes. "He's all yours, your highness." When I nodded to her, she turned and left, closing the solid door between Dain's bedroom and sitting room, leaving me and the crown prince alone together.

Once, that would have left me scared and ready for battle. Now what I wanted to do was take care of him, even if he growled and snarled about it.

I went over to the bed where Dain lay quietly, his forehead creased as he breathed with agonized care. They'd gotten most of the blood off of him, though he still had some in his hair and I could see some on the corners of his mouth and between the fingers of his wing-hand. Someone had bothered to put him in clothing not that different from mine, though it was fae instead of human, a dusky blue shirt and loose tan pants. It was the first time I'd seen him wear anything with any sort of color to it, save for the occasional red or violet accent on court clothing. It made him look vulnerable and human, like he was just as fragile as anyone else.

"Hey," I said softly, getting onto the bed with care so that I wouldn't jostle him. "How're you feeling?"

"I've been better," Dain said, the words halfway to a groan, and rather self-deprecating.