He inclined his head, accepting the command.
"The whisperbloom worked into your dress and skin started clouding you," he said. "We stopped it with three things. The tea Martha brewed. The Nullshade I added to it. And the drops you just drank now—those will help clear what's left in your blood."
Elissa's fingers tightened on the blanket.
"And if you hadn't?" Elissa asked quietly.
"By now you'd likely be awake," Lucius said. "But drifting. Agreeable. Forgetful. You might not remember this conversation tomorrow. Or who put what in your hands tonight."
Lucius finished explaining how he had found her in the corridor and brought her here with Mack's help.
"I see," Elissa said quietly. Her fingers smoothed a crease in the blanket. "Then…thank you. Both of you."
Her voice was low but steady.
Lucius dipped his head. "There is nothing to thank me for. I was simply nearby."
"That was not 'nothing' a little while ago," Martha said softly. Her words were polite, but there was a faint tightness in them. "We're grateful, Your Highness."
Elissa hesitated, then looked at Lucius again. "You should be careful too," she said.
He blinked, taken off guard. "Me?"
"You helped me," she said. "If someone went to this much trouble to make me…easier, they may not like that you ruined it." She tried for a small smile. "It would be very inconvenient if you collapsed in a corridor next."
For a heartbeat he only stared at her, and then something warm and surprised broke across his face. He laughed once, quietly—not mocking, but genuinely amused.
"You're the one who almost fell on the stone," he said. "And you're worried about me?"
"I don't want anything happens to anyone... Because of me," she replied softly and after a little pause she continued. "And I happen to owe you a great deal already. I'd prefer not to owe you my conscience as well."
His mouth curved at that, but he didn't argue.
Silence settled for a moment, then Elissa drew in a breath.
"There's something I must ask of you. Both of you." She looked from Lucius to Martha. "Please don't tell anyone about this. Not today. Especially not Alistair."
Martha's brows pulled together. "Princess—"
"Please," Elissa said again, more firmly. "If he hears now, he'll make a storm of it. So will the others. Everyone will be watching me instead of the people who did this."
Lucius considered her. "You intend to pretend nothing happened."
"For today," she said. "Just for today." She repeated.
Martha's hands tightened on the blanket, but she chose her words with care. "I understand why you'd rather keep this quiet, my lady," she said. "But it isn't something we can hide forever. If it happened once, it can happen again. Prince Alistair should know. So should princess Kestrel, lord Dante and Vane. They can protect you in ways I can't."
Elissa's throat worked. "I know. I'm not saying never. Just…not yet. Let me face the ball without everyone looking at me like I might faint into the soup."
Martha exhaled slowly. "Very well," she said at last. "For today, we won't speak of it. But tomorrow, we tell Lord Alistair. And everyone who needs to know. I won't keep this from them longer than that."
Elissa nodded, accepting the condition. "Tomorrow," she agreed.
Lucius inclined his head slightly. "I can accept that," he said. "One day of silence. No more."
He glanced toward the window, judging the light. "As for lunch, I would advise you not to attend."
Elissa frowned faintly. "Hide, you mean?"
"For a few hours," he replied. "Whoever arranged this will be waiting to see if their work took hold. If you appear at lunch clear-eyed and steady, they will know it failed and may try again with something stronger. If you stay in your rooms, they will likely assume you are still under it and feel no urgency to change their methods."
Martha nodded. "He's right. You can't even stand without help yet, and there's no shame in missing one meal. We'll say you're resting after the journey."
Elissa's shoulders loosened, just a little. "Fine," she said. "I never liked lunch here much anyway."
"May I ask you something?" Elissa said voice low.
He nodded softly.
"Why are you helping me?" she asked. There was no accusation in it, only a tired curiosity. "You could have left me in the corridor and blamed it on altitude."
Skoll lifted his head a little at her tone, watching Lucius closely.
Lucius held her gaze, his expression unreadable for a heartbeat.
"Because I saw you fall," he said simply. "And because whoever did this chose a clumsy, obvious method. That usually means they think no one will question it." A faint edge entered his voice. "I dislike being taken for a fool."
Martha mumbled softly. "That's one way of saying you have a conscience."
Then Elissa looked at Lucius again. "You said I should take more of that water slowly?"
He nodded. "A sip every little while. If you start to feel your heart race or the room sharpen too fast, stop and tell Martha. It's meant to clear the fog, not set you running laps."
She gave a tiny nod.
Lucius rose from his chair.
Elissa let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding. "Thank you," she said.
He held her gaze a moment longer. There was something there—some mix of concern and calculation—that she was too tired to untangle.
"In that case," he said, his voice returning to its usual composed smoothness, "I'll leave you to rest. We'll all need our wits tonight."
He moved toward the door, then paused and glanced back, a faint spark of mischief warming his eyes.
"One more thing, Princess," he added. "When you are quite yourself again, you owe me something."
Elissa blinked. "Owe you?"
He inclined his head, as if making a formal request. "A dance. At the ball tonight. Consider it my fee for hauling you out of corridors and arguing with potions on your behalf."
The corner of her mouth lifted despite everything. "You negotiate your rewards very strangely, Your Highness."
"Strange, perhaps," he said. "But harmless. Be prepared, then." His gaze softened a fraction. "I'll come to claim it when the music starts."
For a heartbeat longer he looked at her—something unspoken in his eyes that slid past her tired awareness like light on water—then he inclined his head to both women.
"Martha. Princess." He opened the door.
Martha, who had been watching him with careful, measuring eyes, dipped in a small, proper curtsy. "Your Highness."
He stepped out and closed the door softly behind him.
Martha stayed staring at the wood for a moment, then turned back to Elissa with a long, slow breath.
Martha let out a breath she'd clearly been holding. "Well," she muttered. "You do pick interesting allies."
Elissa stared at the ceiling for a moment. "Do I?"
Martha glanced at the door. "That one knows things. And he's dangerous. But today he's dangerous for you, not to you. I'll take it."
Skoll inched closer, resting his head carefully on Elissa's thigh. She laid her hand on his fur, feeling the steady rise and fall of his breathing.
"Good," she murmured, more to herself than to either of them. "Because I'd rather like to be fully awake the next time someone tries to play games with me."