Private Tales Long Days of Rest

[Neith]

The house was filled with the warm, savory scent of fresh breads, roasted vegetables and seared meat. Neith stood near the window, her sleeves rolled up, apron slightly flour-dusted, though she hadn't stirred the pot in some time now. Her arms were wrapped securely around Mar who purred, content in the crook of her elbow.

But Neith’s gaze was sharp, fixed, staring out through the slightly fogged glass. Her brows were faintly drawn, lips parted just enough to show the tight hold she had on her breath. Another cluster of soldiers passed, just beyond the trees,impossible to ignore.

Cassidy’s voice startled her.

She flinched visibly, her fingers tightening against Mar’s fur. Her heart thudded uncomfortably in her chest as if it'd tried to leap up into her throat. Mar let out a mild mew of protest but quickly soothed again, rubbing her face against Neith’s jaw in gentle reassurance.

"Hm? Oh… Eighty-four..." she replied quietly, staring toward the road.

Yes. She had counted. Neith always counted things when she was anxious; knots in wood, raindrops on glass, heartbeats between breaths. Today, it had been horses. Helmets. Swords.

“I don’t like it,” she murmured, shifting Mar so she could gently scratch behind her ears. “Something feels… off.”

She finally turned to look at Cass, her expression guarded, and she let out a breath that she hadn’t meant to hold. Her gaze lingered on him, searching his face now for reassurance, or confirmation of her dread. Mar wriggled out of her grasp and landed with a soft thump on the floor, tail swishing once before she padded toward the back room, as if even the cat had sensed the tension rising in the air.

“What if this peace wasn’t meant to last? What if they're looking for you. Or for me?” she asked, voice barely above a whisper as she wrapped her arms around her ribs. "I'm not ready to let it go, Cass.."

 

[Cassidy Ackerson]

Cassidy's brow furrowed as he saw the concern in Neith's expression. He'd thought himself to be the one suffering from anxiety over these constant armed passerby, but while he'd been out bathing no more than a few dozen feet away from them with only mild concern, Nee was wracked with worry even from the safety of their home.

Ackerson stepped forward reaching out to pull Neith in tight against his chest, still damp from the river, smelling of the crisp autumn air outside. "We have a lot of demons we've left behind, both of us..." He muttered to her resting his bearded chin on her head letting one of his hands feather through her hair comfortingly. "We'll never... be completely rid of our pasts. It doesn't work like that, darl."

He understood. They'd both fought so hard for this peace and quiet, the thought of it being rescinded in the blink of an eye was terrifying. When was everything they'd put themselves through enough? Would it ever be?

"But it's gonna take more than any ape with a blade to tear apart what we've built. If ever we lose this peace of ours..." Cass put on a warm smile as he slid his lips to her cheek, kissing her softly as he spoke in a whisper. "Then we'll just find it again. Long as we're together, we'll be fine." His words weren't some sugary rhetoric crafted to ease her mind; he believed in every one of them.

Behind him, he heard yet another group of horses thunder past the house. Cassidy's face tightened, but he maintained his smile as he took a step back, his hands sliding down Neith's arms to bridge her fingers with his own.

"I don't think it's anything to worry about, though. We are wedged between two cities who famously aren't too fond of one another. Plus, if they were looking for us, they'd have found us by now. The house isn't invisible."

Neith

 

[Neith]

Neith leaned into him the moment his arms wrapped around her, burying her face in the cool dampness of his chest like it could hide her from the world outside the window. The scent of river water and fallen leaves clung to his skin, grounding her better than any deep breath ever could. Her hands slid instinctively around his waist, clutching at the fabric of his jacket as if she needed something solid to hold onto.

His voice rumbled low above her head and she closed her eyes, listening, feeling the gentle drag of his fingers through her hair, letting his calm settle over her. She didn’t need to speak just yet. She let him talk.

But when he pulled back, lacing their fingers together, that aching part of her, the one that always expected happiness to be temporary, clenched a little tighter. She held onto him, her thumb brushing softly over his knuckles, as she looked up into his face.

“I know,” she said quietly. “I know you’re right. I know we’ve both lived through worse. And I know I should trust the quiet we’ve earned but…” Her gaze flicked back to the window, to the road beyond it. Her brows pulled slightly together, and her voice grew smaller. It had become too quiet for a while, too peaceful and perfect. The kind of stillness that came before something broke.

She swallowed, her throat tight, and she met his eyes then.. "I'm sorry. I'm just being paranoid.." her head shook and she sighed. "We've run out of flour. I can go into town and pick some up.."

 

[Cassidy Ackerson]

Both of them were feeling the effects of prolonged peace on minds that were far too accustomed to strife and violence, but those effects were clearly manifesting in very different ways. Wheras Neith responded with a mounting sense of dread, a tension that left her strung higher than even the most perilous of situations they'd encountered in Elbion or Oban, Cassidy almost missed the action.

Not so much that he would ever risk that harmony which they'd found, but even so... The thought that maybe those constant patrols were hunting him, that perhaps he'd get a knock on his door from a dozen armed men seeking his head on a pike... it didn't cause him worry so much as it did excite him.

But he'd asked to be done with that lifestyle, and he had all the reason he could ever want wrapped tightly in his arms at this very moment.

"I understand, Nee. I do." She didn't need to articulate her fears to him. Cass knew her well enough to recognize that which wasn't spoken outright. As she met his eyes, he leaned down to place a gentle kiss to her lips, before slowly stepping back from her. "Tell you what. I think some fresh air would do us both some good, maybe we're getting a bit of cabin fever, yeah?"

He knew Neith hadn't been planning on cooking with flour tonight, and the errand was a distraction, but he was never above indulging her.

"Lemme run upstairs and get dressed." Cass unwrapped his coat from his waist and hung it up on the wall, "You go ahead and get the cart ready. Maybe we can grab a bite from The Bowl while we're there, Rowlf should be back by now, I figure." There was nothing like dining out to take the edge off of things, in his humble opinion. The Stone Bowl was a lovely little soup stand they'd found in the town not far from them, and Ackerson shamelessly sought any opportunity he could to give them their hard-stolen coin.

Cassidy moved back toward the stairs, stopping halfway to cup his hand under his beloved's chin and flash her a smile. "How's that sound?"

Neith

 

[Neith]

Neith knew she was being paranoid. She knew the tension tightening her chest was irrational.. But fear was a difficult beast to reason with, and love only made it more tenacious. She had almost lost him one too many times, and the peace they’d carved out of blood and grit sometimes felt too fragile to last.

Still, she returned his kiss with quiet tenderness and nodded, casting a glance toward the burning pot of stew on the hearth. With a soft sigh, she crossed to it, pulling it off the flame and waving away the smoke with the cloth in her hand.

"Sounds good," she murmured, though her voice was distant.

While Cassidy climbed the stairs to dress, Neith went outside. The crisp air did help, a little. She fetched the horses, murmuring gentle encouragements as she hitched them to the wagon. Her movements were quick and efficient, though her mind was elsewhere, already playing tricks on her with moving shadows behind the trees.

Stop, she told herself. Stop. It's nothing. It’s quiet.

Cass joined her just as she was adjusting the last strap, and soon they were rolling down the dirt road, the wheels creaking softly, the trees bowing gently in the wind above them. The town was only a short ride away, nestled in the valley like a painting. As they neared, the distant clatter of blacksmiths, the smell of hearth fires and bread baking in ovens, and the laughter of children in the streets slowly grew around them.

But still, Neith’s eyes lingered a little too long on every passing figure, on the clusters of soldiers standing here and there. Her fingers brushed the dagger hidden beneath her shawl.

 

[Cassidy Ackerson]

Cassidy didn’t let worry show in front of Neith. Right now, she needed him steady - an anchor, not another set of shaking hands. Only when the bedroom door clicked shut and he started rummaging through his clothes did he let concern crease his brow. Logic told him there was little to fear. But logic didn’t change the fact that Neith’s instincts had almost never been wrong.

She’d been raised in strife, always keeping to shadows, always watching. If something deep in her bones said eyes were on them, that danger was close, well… Cass would be a fool not to believe her. She’d never been the hyper-paranoid type.

As he tightened his belt around his trousers and pulled his shirt up and over his head, he turned to look out of the window, into the beautiful spring day surrounding them. Picture of beauty, that. Could something so menacing, so deadly, truly be lurking in what few shadows the sun cast? He already knew the answer, had seen it spelled out too many times to be so naive.

He'd keep his ears open, his eyes peeled. If any man, beast, or spirit high above tried to bring harm to her, he'd a lovely blade to meet the threat, magical cat or otherwise.

By the time they rolled into town, Cass had hoped the familiar sights, smells and sounds of a place that brought her comfort might loosen the knot in her shoulders. But even as dirt gave way to cobblestone and hawkers’ calls drowned out the birds, she was elsewhere, eyes scanning, mind miles away.

"You know..." He coughed, gently nudging her with an elbow as he pulled the wagon to the side of the road. "We haven't actually discussed any details. About a wedding, I mean..." It wasn't as though either of them could parade themselves about in any large capacity, sure, but the occasion ought to be marked properly. Honestly, Cass had just hoped to pull her thoughts in a more positive direction. "You... got anybody out there? That you might want to invite?"

Cass had a few friends scattered in the world. Though… somehow, he wasn’t sure how she’d feel about sharing the day with a gnoll.

Neith

 

[Neith]

Neith’s gaze had been darting from stall to stall, from the crowd to the rooftops, chasing shadows that weren’t there. His voice pulled her back as surely as if he’d taken her hand. She blinked, dark eyes softening when they found his, as they always did, and the edges of her mouth curving despite herself. That warmth she couldn’t ever quite hide when she looked at him rose to the surface, bright as the spark of excitement in her chest whenever she remembered that he'd asked her to marry him.

Her fingers moved to the ring on her hand, twisting it gently as though it were still new to her, still unbelievable. She lowered her eyes to it, a wistful smile tugging at her lips before she gave the faintest shake of her head.

“No... No one,” she admitted quietly, the words almost swallowed by the noise of the street. The thought of her father crept unbidden into her mind. He’d been all she’d had, until Cass.

“Just you, and Mar of course..” she added as she leaned into him, seeking that familiar comfort.. “That’s all I need..”

She tilted her chin up toward him, a teasing glimmer flickering into her gaze despite the softness of her tone. “What about you? You must have lots of friends I haven’t met yet.” Her brows rose, almost challenging, though her smile betrayed her curiosity.