Private Tales Have you heard there's a rumour in Alliria?

[Gawyn]

"Perhaps that is a good thing," Gawyn murmured and then said no more on the subject.

He led her down the path until they came to a small pond with glittering gold fish and an ornate bridge that crossed over it to the other side. Midway along the bridge was a bench which was where he finally came to a stop. Willows bowed their proud backs over the pond so that their leaves just grazed the ponds surface. Ducks and swans swam lazily along the lilypad's and a few begun to head in the direction of the two figures who had stopped to watch.

Gawyn produced a bag of bread crumbs from his pocket and handed it to her to throw whilst he leaned on the railing.

"The last time I was here was nearly 500 years ago. A lot has changed," he mused.

 

[Althea]

Thea wrapped both of her arms around one of his, resting her cheek against his bicep every now and then, trying her best to pass it off as being cold rather than weak. She seemed to tire so quickly, but she didn't want to go back so early.

She let out a soft laugh as he handed her the bag of crumbs. "I can't remember the last time I did something so.. peaceful." she smiled at him, dipping her hand into the little sack and scattering a handful of the crumbs into the water below to watch the ducks and fish battle over the meal. She chuckled quietly and glanced at him before throwing another handful. After everything she'd gone through in Thyasari, everything she'd faced in Alliria, here she was feeding the ducks and it was like she felt her soul breathe.

"It's so calm.." she sighed.. "I do like it here. I'm sure I would adapt to the peace and quiet." she said softly and threw him a light smirk. "And you wouldn't need to worry about me here, Nurse."

 

[Gawyn]

Gawyn laughed and stole a handful of crumbs to throw to the ducks himself.

"That is very true, I wouldn't have to worry about you here," that didn't mean they he wouldn't anyway. At least if she were here he would be able to come up with excuses to pass by the area in the name of Oriasa. There were plenty of cities not far from here who would be good people to reach out to and renew the friendships they had once had. Perhaps he could grow his city to rival Thyasari and make it a more welcoming and warm place to visit.

"I take it that means you've decided...?"

 

[Althea]

Thea sighed and nodded slowly as she watched the ducks squabble for bread below. "I have.." she answered quietly, leaning on the railing and pursing her lips.

"See I figured that I sort of like you worrying about me.." she shrugged, and her lips twisted into a wry smirk as she cast him a sidelong glance.

"I want to go with you.. For a little while, at least. If, that's alright." she cleared her throat.

 

[Gawyn]

She could have knocked him over with a feather. He had been expecting an answer of course to the question he had asked days ago but he has almost resigned himself to the answer he had suspected which hadn't been... this. He realised, with a start, that he had been staring at her with his mouth hanging open.

"I..." he cleared his throat and gave her a bashful grin. "Of course it's alright. I'm not going to lie though..." he threw the breadcrumbs he had been holding. "I am a little surprised," he glanced at her out the corner of his eye. "Was it my sterling nursing skills that convinced you?"

 

[Althea]

The silence was deafening, and she looked up cautiously, her cheeks burning as he seemed somewhat stunned by her answer. She was grateful for the grin however, and let out a breath she hadn’t realised she’d been holding.

Thea cleared her throat and returned her attention to the water below, leaning on the rail and huffing quietly. “Something like that.” she shrugged.

I wasn’t ready for you to leave me?

“I suppose I’m just.. Not quite ready to settle into the quiet life. It’s nice, and peaceful.” she frowned.. “But this place has no need of me. I thought, maybe if I came with you that, I could maybe be of some use.” she looked up.

“But, I’d appreciate it if we kept some details between us. Let them think me an elf, and i’ll come with you.”

 

[Gawyn]

Gawyn begun to frown as she continued on with her speech. Naturally he disagreed with the idea of her pretending to be something she wasn't but instead of jumping to change her mind he tried to consider it from her viewpoint. The loss of her wings would invoke pity. He wouldn't be able to stop that no matter how hard he tried; the Avariel's wings were like a part of the soul and to lose them... Even if it were not as a punishment would cause glances and whispered wherever she went. It was hardly the new start he would want for himself either.

Eventually he sighed and nodded.

"If that is what you wish... but," he held up a hand. "I ask that you tell Aodhin. As my second he has a right to know who is entering our territory and, truthfully, he can tell when I am keeping something from him. I would not want this to strain our friendship." And the Avariel with wings that glittered like diamonds would not look on Thea with pity. If anything he would look on her with envy.

 

[Althea]

Thea's lips twisted and she sighed as she dropped her gaze again, her fingers tightening on the railing. The thought of anyone looking at her with pity or disgust made her feel nauseous, but she couldn't ask him to jeapordise his friendship over it.

"I understand.." she frowned. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't burden you with it." she huffed and rubbed at her face. "I just, didn't think I'd ever be around my own people again, after everything. If they knew what I done, and everything I've had to do since. I just don't want to be me, other than with you." she cleared her throat.

He hadn't looked at her the way the others had. He knew many things about her and still seemed to genuinely care. "It's been a long time since anyone cared about me. I'm not quite ready to let that go." she said quietly, her cheeks burning furiously.

 

[Gawyn]

Gawyn's brows knitted into a frown. It was hard to control his temper when he thought over what she must have gone through since they took her wings. It made his blood boil thinking of the act itself; what kind of authority had looked upon a girl in the throws of grief and decided to take more from her? He had never been a leader, he had always been a follower, but even in the few scant years he had led Oriasa he had learnt enough to know that punishments always needed to be the perfect balance of harsh but fair.

Slowly he reached out and gently cupped her cheek.

"Being you is not a shameful thing, Thea. The people of Oriasa would be glad to have you."

 

[Althea]

He had a way of making her feel vulnerable, and she couldn't tell whether she enjoyed or despised it. It was unlike her to seek comfort, but he'd provided her so much of it that the thought of being deprived of it caused her stomach to knot.

Her moonstone eyes rose to meet his, entirely at the mercy of his gaze. Her mouth went dry at his words, but her lips twisted into a pained smile, her only answer being a soft sigh and the slightest of nods. His hand was warm on her cool skin, and she leaned into it a little.

It was something she wasn't supposed to do, something she never had any desire to do, but without thinking she opened her senses and reached out to read his emotions. It was a dangerous thing for an empath to do, and she recalled all of the times she'd been brought to her knees by the deep rooted pain and grief or the physical ailments of whomever she'd touched. She'd long ago learned to block it, but she found herself far too curious...

 

[Gawyn]

He just wished she could see herself through his eyes...

Emotions swirled through him like a hurricane. Joy shone the most. Joy that she had chosen to come home and relief that he would not have to spend his days worrying about her from afar with no way to check she was well. But with it came pain and a rumbling anger that someone had made her feel so small that she wouldn't want to be herself. Gawyn liked her for who she was and he refused to think anyone who sat with her for longer than a few minutes wouldn't feel the same.

Then, underneath it all was that small budding, blossoming affection that he was nervous of what it might grow in to...

 

[Althea]

A sudden shudder ran through her, a quiet breath forced from her lungs as she turned her face away from his palm and felt the the sting of cold agains the warmth of where his palm had been. It'd been a few seconds at most, but within such a short time she'd felt so much that her mind whirled and she felt dizzy enough to have to lean a little more of her weight against the railings.

Her teeth latched onto her lower lip as she rode the wave of shame and guilt that came with having crossed a boundary that she shouldn't have. Emotions were personal things, and though she had a gift for sensing them or reading them in a person's expression or eyes alone, feeling them for herself was always a bit of a head rush.

She threw down the last of the breadcrumbs as she unraveled and processed what she'd felt, and told herself that she'd forget about the pain and anger, and most especially about that little something else she'd picked up on, sure that it was him and not her...But she couldn't unring a bell, and she feared even looking at him right now less her face betray the line she'd crossed.

"When do we leave?.." she asked quietly, realising how long the silence had stretched and clearing her throat awkwardly.

 

[Gawyn]

Shit. Did I say something wrong?

In a second she went from leaning into his hand and looking at him with what he had hoped.... he cast the thought from his mind. Clearly he had been wrong for now she pulled away from him like his very touch burned her and she busied herself instead with feeding the ducks. Perhaps he had just over-stepped with his comment. He shouldn't be pushing her he should have just been thankful that she was coming with him and not letting their paths part here. Hiding a concerned frown he let his hand drop and he too turned back to the railing to lean against it with arms crossed and stare out over the surface of the calm pool.

"I need to go back the day after tomorrow really," he had pushed his stay to the limits and had been gone now for over a week. Even with his speed in flight it would take a good few days to make it back to Oriasa. "But we won't go until the nurses discharge you."

 

[Althea]

"I feel fine.." she answered with a gentle shrug, though even this short walk in the cold was testing her, and she cast him a sidelong look, her lips twisting. "I.. Well, maybe another night in a warm bed, might be wise." she bobbed her head and dusted her hands.

She wrapped her arms around herself, shrugging off the cold and suppressing the need to yawn, as though her body was trying to protest her stubbornness. "We'll be flying, I suppose.. Will you be able to- Well I know you can I just.. Are you sure I won't be a burden?" she frowned and discreetly pinched herself for acting anything but normal.

 

[Gawyn]

Gawyn unclipped then shrugged out of his thick velvet jacket and wordlessly draped it over her shoulders. With the slits in the back for wings it wasn't brilliant at keeping in warmth for someone without but it was better than nothing. He couldn't just let her stand there shivering anyway even if she seemed to be pulling away from him. Focus. He couldn't afford to wallow over a pretty face.

"Tomorrow, then," he nodded though the glance he gave her expressed doubt at whether it would be tomorrow. At least he didn't voice it though. "We'll need to take more breaks than I probably would on my own, but that is not necessarily a bad thing," soldiers always had a habit of pushing themselves when they didn't need to just because that was what they were used to. "It will just mean the journey takes four days instead of three."

 

[Althea]

Thea's lips twitched into a shy smile as she felt the weight of his jacket over her shoulders and she clung to it, soaking in the warmth he'd left in its fabric. "Mhm.. Tomorrow.." she agreed and turned on her heel, threading her arm through his to begin the walk back. Already her body wanted to remind her of how frail she was, but she refrained from resting too much weight against him in a stubborn display of strength.

Four days. She could manage that. Though, the thought of flying still made her equal parts anxious and excited.

"I'll pack some extra pudding." she mused with a glance up at him.

 

[Gawyn]

Gawyn's brows lifted in surprise when she took his arm again. He had thought after she had pulled away he had overstepped the mark but it seemed he hadn't. Or maybe he had with his words and not with his gestures. The avariel wondered if he could live for a thousand years or more and still never understand a woman's intentions. Smothering a sigh at that sombre thought he went back to enjoying what she did give him and chuckled at her friendly jibe.

"This sounds like fair payment," he nodded sniffled then threw her a grin to make sure she knew he was joking. "Perhaps I can make a trade out of it. A taxi service in exchange for pudding cups," he tilted his head to the side in consideration.

 

[Althea]

She wished she could forget what she'd felt, and that she could take it back. But she wouldn't, and she couldn't. Whatever it was was both exciting and terrifying all at once, especially since she'd found herself feeling something similar every time she'd thought about him leaving her. If he ever found out that she'd invaded his mind like that, she couldn't expect him to trust her, nor still feel... whatever he felt for her. The last thing she wanted to do was ruin the only friendship she had, so she'd make sure she kept her senses to herself from now on.

"Deal." she smirked and drew in a deep breath. She could do that. Rather than let him leave him here, she could deal with the flight there.

The walk back to the hospital was beautiful. The air was cold and crisp, and the serene, muffled silence that came with the gentle snowfall. Though she couldn't deny the reprieve she felt when she felt the warmth of her room envelope her and sting at her chilled cheeks.

The nurse gave them both a scrutinising look and pursed her lips. "I'll fetch you something warm to drink along with supper." she said. "Then its back to bed with you." she arched a brow, and slipped out of the room with a light smile.

"I wouldn't want to get on her bad side..." she smirked, shrugging out of his jacket to hand it back to him. "Thank you." she said a little awkwardly, realising how cold he'd probably been.

 

[Gawyn]

Gawyn shook his wings of the droplets of water that had formed on them during their walk as they stepped into the threshold of the warm room and got another, darker, look from the nurse. He grimaced and watched her go before glancing back to Thea with an uncomfortable look.

"I think I am on her bad side. I definitely will be when you discharge yourself tomorrow. I'm just glad she can't throw fireballs or call lightning down to strike me out of the sky," he shuddered at the thought. Wrathful women had done far less when they thought a man was in the wrong never mind a nurse when she thought her patient was being put in danger. They made mothers look tame.

He flopped into his usual chair.

"You definitely need rest if you plan on walking out of here tomorrow."

 

[Althea]

Thea let out a breathy laugh and shook her head.

"That's on me, not you. I'll be fine, and I'll be sure to tell her that you tried your best to convince me otherwise." she smirked. As much as she had to admit she'd enjoyed being taken care of, she'd been cooped up for long enough, and she knew from experience that it never did her any good. Besides, she'd delayed him enough, and she thought of his people, and the little girl waiting for him to return.

"I will. I'm going to rest better than anyone has ever rested in the history of resting." she assured and pulled herself into bed after getting into some dry nightclothes. By then her tea was brought to her, as well as two bowls of rabbit stew and warm bread.

 

[Gawyn]

Gawyn smothered his laugh and turned it into a cough as the nurse walked back in with the food for Althea. As usual, he would get his own from the canteen later on. As he wasn't a patient he wasn't afforded the same kind of service nor the nice demeanour as Thea. He threw them a disarmingly charming smile when they glanced in his direction but like water off a ducks back it seemed to have no effect.

"Perhaps you should let her get on with her rest, hm?" one of the elves asked pointedly and Gawyn quickly snatched up his book and waved it.

"Of course ladies, not a peep. I'm just here to tend to any of her needs should they arise," the look he got was thoroughly disbelieving but they did leave without further argument. "Do you think all medics go to a singular school where they teach them how to be so scary?"

 

[Althea]

Thea quietly tucked into her supper, stifling her grin by shoving a lump of bread into her mouth. Hundreds of years old and these nurses still managed to make her feel like they were wayward children up to no good. She snorted at Gawyn's musings as they left and her head shook.

"You've led armies in great wars and you find them 'scary'?" she laughed incredulously.

Thea didn't eat much. She never did have much of an appetite, but she drank her tea and settled herself.

"You could read to me, if you like.." she asked with a lilt of amusement in her tone as she eyed the book he once again had his nose buried in.

 

[Gawyn]

Gawyn shot her a raised brow look that seemed to scream and you're not scared of them? Give him a blade and tell him to charge at the faceless masses of an enemy any day over going toe to toe with a healer. He was flipping back to his spot in the book as she ate and settled down to pick up from where he had left off. He hadn't made it much further along when Thea piped up with her suggestion.

"I...err..." a blush suddenly blossomed across his cheeks as he looked back down at the book in his lap. "I don't... I don't think you'll like it," he swallowed.

 

[Althea]

"General. Are you squirming?..." she asked with a gasp as she sat bolt upright and slammed her hands down onto the quilt.

"Are you reading filth!?" she burst out and a hand rose to cover her mouth.

 

[Gawyn]

"No!" Gawyn's eyes bulged and he spluttered. Her assumption was even worth than the truth and now he was caught between the two humiliations. He shrunk down in the chair and wished the ground would open underneath him.

"I can't read."