Carrick's gaze went to Anastasia who was still standing and looking at the food. "Pick up a plate and serve food for yourself princess!" he said as he shook his head.
Embarrassed, Anastasia quickly picked up a plate and served rabbit stew for herself from the pot. She picked cheese cubes that were wrapped in a cloth on her plate. Carrick got up from his place and offered her to sit. She smiled and thanked him. She could feel Darla's eyes on her but she avoided her.
"Ileus, I know this inn in Óraid where they serve one of the best roast lamb with green sauce. We are going to stop there!" She offered him a spoonful of stew. He tried to take the spoon from her hand, but she took the spoon to his mouth. "I will make you eat today to my heart's content!" she said.
Ileus opened his mouth and she gave him the stew.
She grinned. "I love feeding you! Here, have more," she gave him another spoonful. "I remember when last year all of us went hungry for a period of two days when we were entering Sgiath Biò." She looked at Anastasia. "Those were such tough times, but I managed to survive it because you took good care of me. I had fainted and you had made sure that you go and hunt food for me." She gave him more stew. "However, now we have to ration our food and I feel that you are also busy guarding…" her voice trailed off as her glance slid to Anastasia. "But it's fine, we will still manage, because we are all in it together!" She said with a big smile.
Anastasia stopped eating. She fidgeted with her cheese on the plate. She was sure that once they reached Óraid, she would find her own way. She didn't want to be a burden on them, and Darla just made her feel like it. Even after trying in so many ways to help her, Darla was nearly impossible. At each and every step, Darla made her feel like it. Frustration brewed in her already tense mind and she hoped that it all got over soon. She looked up at them when suddenly her eyes went past them towards the trees in the distance. A flicker of movement caught her eyes. She focused to see through the dark branches that were intertwined with each other making it impossible to penetrate her vision. Perhaps it was just a squirrel. Returning her gaze back at Darla and him, she felt uncomfortable. Darla had moved closer to him and now her knees were touching his thighs. Anastasia took a small bite of cheese and chewed it until it was a paste, unable to swallow it. She heard Carrick, Zlu and Kaizan jesting with Darla, but she was least bothered.
From the corner of her eye, she found Carrick gazing at Zlu with fondness.
All of a sudden, Darla leaned forward and was about to press a kiss on Ileus's cheeks when he got up from there. Shocked, she jerked her head back. "Where are you going—" she stopped speaking when she saw what happened next.
Ileus had got up. He made his way to Anastasia and took the plate from her hand. "Stand up," he said in a tone, which wasn't a request.
Anastasia looked up at him with a question in her wide eyes. His countenance was so dangerous, possessive and feral that she didn't counter him. As soon as she got up, he sat on her stump and tugged her hand to sit in his lap.
"Ileus!" she gasped.
He gathered her in his arms, coiled them around her waist and made her sit comfortably on his thighs. "Why aren't you eating your food Ana?" he growled and gave her a piece of meat.
"I—"
He stuffed the meat in her mouth as soon as she opened it to speak. "Eat. We will talk later."
Her breathing became shallow. Everyone in the group fell silent and she could feel Darla's eyes boring huge holes in her body. She chewed and swallowed the meat and he gave her more. "This is odd," she muttered. She was sure that she had blushed because she felt she was on fire.
"Do you think I am bothered whether it is odd or not?" he said and gave her more.
Ileus was feeding her… forcefully, tenderly...
A restrained smile came on Kaizan's lips. Tadgh, who was coming towards the group after laying the bedrolls inside the tents, stopped to see them. Zlu had stopped stroking Carrick's back and the two were watching them dumbfounded, and Darla—her face became pale.
Ileus wiped the soup that trickled from the corner of her mouth with his thumb and licked it. Anastasia was unable to contain her joy and a soft halo formed around her. She looked beautiful and for a moment Ileus kept on looking at her. "You are glowing Ana," he whispered.
She didn't say anything but when she looked at her hands, she found them to be normal. She thought he was teasing her again, so she picked up a piece of meat from the stew and gave it to him. "I am not glowing and stop teasing me."
Ileus gulped the meat down and pressed a kiss on her cheek. "I am not teasing you right now."
Warmth surged her heart and spread to her skin. Maybe she was glowing. "Thank you, Ileus," she rasped.
"You don't have to thank me. I am doing what I want to do," he replied softly.
A cough from the side disturbed their conversation. Anastasia bit her lip. She looked at Kaizan who had finished his food and was looking at them intently.
"Princess," he said.
"Call me Anastasia."
Kaizan's brow lifted, while Ileus's lips downturned.
"Princess," Kaizan continued, "What do they call the Faes who have left Vilinski?"
Anastasia narrowed her eyes at him.
"I remember Nyles being very scared of leaving the kingdom," he said in a very flat tone.
She picked up a cube of cheese from the plate and popped it in her mouth. Once she had swallowed it down her throat, she looked at him and said, "They are known as Fallen."