[IC] Journey to the East

[snelss0]

At the sight of their companions collapsing, the remaining archers moved and began to spread out. Their captain still had the commanding presence to keep them from fleeing, but now they hid behind cover to prevent more lighting from streaming directly at them. Aimee had gone full force into helping and destroying. By the time Elann had killed the two, Aimee had successfully downed many more. Elann was no combatant though. Only Yahal was guiding her shots. An arrow soared at them and she was certain it was going to hit one of them, but it seemingly was pushed down by Noah using his orb.

She let out a nervous breath and saw her husband struggling, so she took a protective position so that he could hold onto her shoulder if need be for balance and so that she could protect his weakened body with her own.

"We are going to get through this," she said to bolster his adrenaline, his pain, and to get him to ignore it.

She then felt Yahal's guidance once more, leading toward two other families. The searing light did not shine that time as neither wore armor and with decent accuracy, Elann injured both men, even though they were moving targets. While she did not kill them, her shots falling short, she wounded them enough to give them pause to be killed by those who they were harming.

The tides were beginning to turn and word came to her for Noah.

"I know it hurts love. Can you harm the leader? If he is killed they will flee, I think."

She would have done it herself, but she was too busy like Aimee preserving the lives of those who were in the most danger. Another arrow zipped past them being poorly aimed and Elann felt led to penetrate the tree he hid behind with her ability. The arrow loosed and went through the bark, the middle and penetrated to hit the man square in the chest. After the light died down, she looked to make sure Aimee was alright. Her sister and Noah were first in her protection, and she would shoot anyone who came close to threaten them.

[Illumin0sity]

Noah’s face showed his discomfort. The hand holding the gem still crackled alive with energy but the glow had been halved from the radiance it emitted before the lightning bolt was expelled. Noah was taking the glow as an indicator of the gem’s charge and the static around his hand as a display of the next spell’s ready and deadliness. The hand at his side came up to his face as he searched his pale palm for blood. When it came back clean, he nodded to Elann’s words and took a breath. In the distance his sister was still readily protecting a batch of commoners. She was fighting with a guard, her magic and his steel acting as the shield for the batch of people they had in a corner of the camp.

He looked to Elann as her bow strained to loose two more arrows in succession. He watched the projectiles sail through the air to strike at their targets, making them pause and stumble with their new pain before swords were driven through them to their ends. Noah’s eyes went back over the field afterwards, noting the guards were pressing in on the bandits and repelling them. The collection of magic and steel on the trio’s side gave them an added advantage, there was also the fact that divine presences resided over the battle. Zulrav lent his aid by producing winds for Aimee’s magic and the stormgems were invaluable to Noah’s safety.

Noah heeded Elann’s words and found the leader atop his horse, protected by four bandits who were acting as his buffer from the pressing guards. He brought his gem up again and let the lightning erupt from the rounded tip towards the bandit leader. Determined to end the battle, Noah let the gem surge with its remaining reservoir, and watched the bolt, unblinking, as it struck the man in the center of the chest, the impact throwing him off his horse who bolted through the buffering footsoldiers. Noah dropped the now dull stone as the heat from the eruption was enough to scald his hand in that instant. He shook his palm as the shouts of the bandits came and went, a retreat being sounded to their relief.

He looked to his hand in the moonlight and noted the temporary red spot the stone had imprinted on his fingers and palm. The stone’s glow was no more as it lay dully in the grass at his feet. Noah looked up to see the guards chase off the remaining bandits. His left hand went back to his right side, the ache he ignored temporarily to dispatch the bandit leader now coming back. He staggered back to the wagon and rested his bottom on the ledge to catch his breath.

Aimee quelled the flame in her hand and returned the campfire to its natural state. There was a hollow feeling in her chest and a buzz felt in the forefront of her mind. She swallowed thirstily and knew that she was nearly overgiving in her feverish defense of the campers. The guard she fought with clasped his gloved hand over her shoulder and complimented her valiance with a nod of respect. She muttered a thank you but found herself looking more for Elann and Noah. She had barely witnessed the last strike of lightning which streaked out from the wagons, so that was where she went, running in the darkness.

[snelss0]

While the evil of the bandits had been extinguished after both Aimee's and Noah's valiant powers, Elann could hear the wailing and crying of those who had lost people, those who were afraid, and those who were calling out to see if their loved ones were okay.

Aimee was one of them, running to them to find Noah safely rested on the wagons edge with the stone now fallen down by his feet. Elann stood before him with an arrow notched and eyes darting about the camp for anyone else. It was so dark out and the campfire didn't help her as it only made more shadows. It seemed the last sounds of battle in the forest were heard and the remaining guards came back. She would give Aimee a quick hug as she ran up and emotionally would call out.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt? Are they gone?"

It was clear Elann had not expected a bandit raid up here between Syliras and Zeltiva. She had known bandits as being where she lived, but up here it seemed less needed. She exhaled after the hug if given and let her check on Noah. Elann could see he favored his hand that had held the orb and she looked to him to see if he was okay.

"Are you fine? You look hurt."

She renocked the arrow and strung the bow over her back so she could better come up to him. Giving him a quick kiss, she lingered close, not caring if he wanted her there or not. She needed him and his comfort as she was terrified. Yahal pointed her eyes though to the nearby families and her heart filled with sorrow and compassion for them. As soon as she was capable to move from Noah's side, long after comfort had finally come between them, she would slide slowly from him and knew she would have to use her gift to help the people.

[Illumin0sity]

Aimee bound towards Elann and Noah. The dirk in her hand was still clean, unused, and was tucked into her palm by the hilt as she jogged towards the couple. Her heart dropped because she couldn’t see Noah from the angle she was approaching. She could see Elann and didn’t see a clear amount of panick in her face that denoted Noah being injured, at least gravely. She came further still and it wasn’t until she saw Noah resting on the ledge of the wagon did she embrace the Benshira in an hold that told of her gratefulness that both of them were alive and relatively well. The same couldn’t be said about the other families, but theirs didn’t suffer any casualties but mentally. The wails made Aimee all the more gratified by Elann and Noah’s safety.

Aimee followed Elann to Noah’s side and peered at her brother concerningly. She placed her dirk on the floor of the wagon beside him and watched him nod, just holding his hand at his side. “I’m fine,” he said, parroting Elann’s concern. He brought his left hand to grasp at Elann, disregarding the discomfort of the burn to physically feel his bondmate’s safety. It wasn’t until the afterglow of the battle did he remember his mother’s story detailing the death of her own bondmate. He didn’t think he could bear to witness Elann’s death. Despite the doubts in mind, he still loved her dearly.

His hold of her was unwavering and solid. The wailing around him communicated that others were not as fortunate as him. His mind drifted to Alena and her family. They were the only others he cared about in the caravan, and if it weren’t for him having had been injured, he doubted he would’ve even cared for their lives either. What mattered to him were Elann and Aimee, and that was all.

Noah felt Elann tug from him and he hesitated to release her. In fact, he looked at her with a deep sense of confusion in his brows. When he looked at her he was all the more reluctant to give her up to the rest of the camp.

[snelss0]

Elann felt the resistant pull of her husband and lingered even longer, but eventually she pulled away and looked to him.

"I have the ability to help them. My gift from Yahal allows me to soothe those strained, cursed, and the afflicted of the mind. There is no better time than now to help ease their burdens."

Noah was right, it wasn't her problem, but she had invested into these people. They were becoming like family to her in a way, and Aimee could probably see that too. Three weeks on the road with someone, sharing meals and constantly talking, you either hate them or love them by the end of it. Elann had to comfort them, express loss with them, and emotively feel their pain with them. Darkness had a way of creeping into those who faced death and by being one with them, you could bring great comfort to them.

Elann took a step back from the edge of the wagon toward the people and saw he sought to follow, so she took his unburnt hand in hers and walked slowly first to the doctor's family who she had saved by shooting the first man who had charged them. As she did she beckoned for Aimee to follow too as it would be much more heartfelt to have her there. Elann activated her gift and washed them all with the purity of Yahal, erasing slowly the darkness that tried to creep in.

Giving her life to the people, Elann would feel great emotion and it would be hard for Noah to endure, but he also would be able to see the families she visited in their sorrowful state before and how cleansed they were after Elann spoke with them. If he felt too overwhelmed by it, she would dull their bond only with his permission, but focused mainly on helping the others.

The soldiers went about gathering wood and stones to cremate the dead bodies and they helped people take down their tents as they were not to stay in the area that night. Elann made it her priority to focus on the people instead.

[Illumin0sity]

Elann’s need to help others was unfortunate to Noah. He wasn’t so selfish to not want to aid others, like Aimee, but the degree in which Elann did so seemed excessive. To him, it would’ve been more than fine to reside in the company of one another because of what they had witnessed and been through in the raid, and no amount of time in her lingering would satisfy the want within him. Dragged, he went with her to Emery and Alena’s family. Elann had protected them, and so they were okay. Alena was being held by her mother and Emery was assessing all that happened.

Noah all but ignored Emery and his wife, meeting Alena’s eyes as she looked up from her mother’s chest to see the approaching trio. Aimee showed her a smile and checked in with Emery’s wife, Helena, as Alena was set down. The girl came to Noah and hugged him around the legs. He rest a hand on her shoulder and the other on the back of her head, the strands of her hair felt under his burnt palm. There was relief in him to see her alive and a small sense of joy in having her see him walk as he had promised she would see. Like Aimee, Noah ventured to Helena. Alena held both his and her mother’s hands while the male was just looking around as the guards prepared to move again. Aimee talked quietly with Helena while Elann and Emery went about to tend to the grieving, fearful, and wounded. Those who had died were to be cremated, and the guards were going to tend to that.

The chimes ticked by and Noah didn’t stay at Elann’s side. The swelling emotion in his bondmate for all the people wronged by the raid was channeling down their bond and was approaching heights of threatening whelming. Since he was not near her, he could not ask her to close off her end. It was clear what Elann’s priority was, annoyingly enough, but Alena drew his mind away from his bondmate’s actions. As if in shock, she brought attention to his walking and asked how he felt. He answered earnestly, saying he was sad but he felt better. He turned the questions on her, asking how she felt in return. Their conversation went on aimlessly until the fires of those to be cremated were lit and the wagons were being reloaded. In that time, he was waiting for Elann to return.

[snelss0]

In Elann's eyes she had given her first fruits and love to her husband and family. She had set them as the priority, and having let their worries and fears fall, she then went to those who had not been so fortunate. In the same way that Noah felt estranged by Elann, his abandonment of her felt painful. She wished he was by her side, walking with her as she did what so clearly helped others.

Time passed and as her and Emery finished talking to others, it was time for the bodies to be cremated. Noah was still talking to the little girl and they both seemed to be distracting one another. They began to light the first fires and smoke billowed up into the sky as the clouds loomed overhead. It was fortunately not raining though and the bodies began to burn in the intense heat. It was then that Elann wanted her husband. Her task for the most part had been done and she wiped the tears from her eyes before going to him. Such a brutal sight was not what she was expecting to see that day and she hoped he was still open to her.

Walking up, her feet dragged in the grass, unknowingly being cut by the small blades of green.

"We are done."

She let out a heavy breath and it seemed what tension was in her began to fade. Instead it began to be replaced by a strange sort of peace, far more powerful than what she had before she had left his side. It was the peace that came from helping others when going through a hard time. She felt rewarded, even if there was no reward, and she somewhat felt okay.

As she looked over, all her hard work had been destroyed, but fortunately their tent hadn't caught on fire or been destroyed by a sword or anything.

Looking to him, she asked in Fravata, "How is Alena doing?"

[Illumin0sity]

Noah walking with Elann from family to family and battlezone to zone wouldn’t have been favorable to him. He didn’t want to witness her immense love and caring for people who were strangers to him. Atop that, it wasn’t that easy to walk as it were and the raid had done a number on his own stress levels. If it wasn’t for Alena, he didn’t know how he would’ve felt about it all, but the girls cheerful voice despite the destitution around them was uplifting to the Kelvic’s heavy and conflicted heart, which weighed his chest and mood down. Aimee nor Noah were outwardly affected by the death around them. They killed without a second thought to defend themselves and those around them, and they saw death regularly. In their opinions, the bandits got what was deserved and Aimee knew they were with Dira now, about to be judged for their time on the land.

Noah looked up from Alena to Elann as she announced her presence. Still holding the male’s hand, Alena used her other to wave to Elann and greet the Benshira. The distraction Noah had given her from the area around them was enough to keep her mood light. It might’ve been a different story if her father or mother had been killed in the raid but, as it were, they were alive and well.

Noah pulled his hand from the hold with Alena’s and set it atop her head. She drew closer to him, hooking her arm around his leg as he answered Elann’s question: “She's doing alright. She’s happy now.” He looked down to her and she looked up to him, smiling softly. He returned the smile before looking back to Elann. “How are you?” he asked in Common, relieved the bond was lessening in its steady stream of heavy emotions.

[snelss0]

Elann was thankful for Alena and that she allowed Elann to do what she did by distracting Noah. The little girl with her tiny hand was held in Noah's large one and it was cute. Her sweet little arms wrapped then about his leg as he moved to touch her head and Elann grinned once more. The girl was too cute to keep any sadness in Elann's heart, and as Noah spoke to Elann in Fravata, she nodded. He asked her in common if she was okay and she hummed approvingly.

"I'm doing okay."

Some times she wished she had a magic that could heal people, protect them, to do something that would enable the people she cared about not to be hurt. Though she wished for those things, she couldn't express that to her husband, and certainly not in front of the little girl who was content with him. In the end she was fine, and Yahal was pleased with her work; being no longer felt among her presence. Having done his will, she remained by her husband's side not leaving it.

"I am so glad you are up walking around," she said with glad relief, and then looking down to Alena, she asked, "Aren't you glad Noah is walking around too?"

The guards were finishing up the deconstruction of the campsite and a call was heard for them all to get aboard the wagons. Some people still cried at the thought of leaving their loved ones on the side of the road, even if they were ashes now, but Elann, Emery, and others words had helped them in small measure. Elann was not so far off from Aimee and Noah in seeing death as a natural thing, but how others dealt with it was important to her. If she died, she would want someone to stay with Noah to console him, and if Noah died, she would want someone to stay with her.

"Did you want to ride with us Alana until the wagons stop again?"

Whether the answer was yes or no, Elann would have to help Noah get up into the wagon, and fortunately because of the three's quick actions, only one of the horses that pulled the man wagons had run off in the fight. The rest were either retrieved or unable to run. Fortunately there had been a few spare horses and oxen that could help with the load even if more had died. The road to Zeltiva was no easy dream in Elann's mind anymore, but at least the weight that had been on her heart for the past few days had faded to nothing.

[Illumin0sity]

Noah nodded approvingly at Elann doing alright. There seemed to be a great deal on his bondmate’s mind, but unless she divulged it, Noah wouldn’t ask then and there, perhaps later. Elann piped up speaking to both Alena and him, pointing out that she was glad he was walking. He showed the both of them a halfhearted smile. He just wanted to lie down and sleep then, and the adrenaline had long died away, along with the herbal painkiller, so he was standing there throbbing. Noah attempted to ignore it for the sake of Alena and Elann being out and about, but it was becoming a great source of discomfort.

Alena hummed happily in reply to Elann’s question. “He promised to see me when he started walking again,” the little girl said, bringing her other hand up to pat Noah’s atop her head.

Noah forced his smile a little wider as he looked down at Alena and her cheerful voice. His eyes then fleeted to the openness of the clearing where the cremations had taken place. The guards were calling for those remaining to board their wagons because they would be moving within the next few chimes. Noah was glad to hear it and it meant he could rest his strained being.

Alena hummed an affirmative to Elann’s offer, taking a moment to confirm it with her mother before trailing after Noah and Elann again. Helped into the wagon, Noah went far to the front and sat with a pillow pressed against his lower back. Alena trailed after him, sitting at his side with her curious eyes constantly glossing over him. Aimee was the last to come in once the wagons started moving already.

The new rocking of the cart in the dead of night was lulling to the distressed Kelvic whose head was more rolling with the movements, his eyes sleepily closing. He was roused by the touch on his hand, Alena setting hers atop his as she leaned into his left side. He was drawn awake as it seemed Alena was being drawn to sleep. He lifted his arm and brought the little girl closer to him, figuring, like Elann, she would want to siphon from the heat he produced. He was quiet in his fatherly attentions to Alena as she drifted into sleep. Noah reached forward slowly and pulled the fur blanket over him and her legs, looking up to the rest of the wagon when she was adequately tucked in with his gimped arm.

Aimee made short work of falling asleep on the bench, in Noah’s shirt and a few new holes in her tights. The dirk had been replaced with her trunk, but she was lying on her back, her head turned towards the canvas wall. Her deep breaths could be heard in union with Alena’s softer ones. Though he was tired, Alena at his side was keeping him awake and there was a new sense of alertness in him.

[snelss0]

"Mhm and hopefully soon he will able to get his stitches out. It might be a few days. I'm sure glad you help your dad and mom make people better."

It was hard work getting Noah into the wagon in as painless a manner as they could, but given their practice, it had been getting easier. His increased mobility slowly also was making things a bit better on them. Once him and Alena were both lifted up into the wagon, Elann took off her bow and arrows and climbed up with Aimee into the back. There was bedding and the tent to straighten up that the guards had thrown into the back, but by the time the wagons started moving, Elann had rolled it up and set out the rugs and pillows to once more make a bed for her husband and this time Alena when she slept. He had settled up near the front with a pillow at his back and the fur blanket over him. Alena was fast falling asleep and Elann came to lay a blanket over Aimee as she laid facing the walls of the canvas.

As they bumbled down the road, and Elann finished her work, her eyes kept on Noah and could see that he wasn't able to sleep. She came to sit next to his thighs and whispered to him.

"Do you want me to get you some of the tea?"

A loving hand then came to brush him lightly on the thigh. Her soft smile and large eyes peered into his in the darkness. All notion of sleep had gone from Elann and she was clearly trying to soothe him a little from the pain he had to endure that evening.

[Illumin0sity]

Noah’s hand idly came up to stroke the length of Alena’s hair as she slept. It might’ve been an obsession of his, hair, but he liked the feel of it between his fingers and liked how light and malleable if could be to outside forces. The hair and eyes of others are what he examined first when seeing others for the first time. Hair, like a dog’s coat or a bird’s feathers, told of the health of an individual and the eyes spoke truth more often than not. They were two great indicators for him, and he saw innocence when he looked in Alena’s eyes, her cheer being a great encourager of his mood to act as a distraction from what was around him.

He was able to see Elann glancing at him whenever he looked up from Alena. When he did look at Alena, it was out of admiration and warmth, as those were the emotions that resided in his gut to live quietly with the others of whispering happiness and muttering doubts. He looked up again; Elann was approaching and he followed her with his eyes until she sat near his thigh, whispering. The stroking in Alena’s hair had ceased and his arm rested on her little shoulder.

“No,” he said quietly. “I’ll go to sleep when we stop again.”

Having just witnessed the bandit raid and lived through it, the protective sense in him didn’t want to sleep until he was assured that Alena would be safe. As it were then, she was with him and not her parents even though they weren’t far away. Elann and Aimee showed themselves capable of defending themselves, but Alena was just a child and couldn’t do that for herself. If push came to shove, he knew he would choose Elann over Alena, but since push wasn’t shoving, the little girl was where his protections lay.

The stroking of her hair continued again as he realized his thoughts. There was discomfort enough in him to keep him awake and his mind would calm itself as time went on, even if the process would have been sped up by a good night’s rest. Be that as it were, he was awake because she was asleep and literally leaning unto him for support.

“I’m okay,” he assured Elann once more, looking to the girl at his side before looking back to his bondmate.

[snelss0]

It was interesting to her how rapidly attached to the girl he had become. She had expressed the same interest, the same desire to comfort him, and even snuggled close many times like the girl, but he seemed to take to her readily. Elann wasn't jealous, but she wondered at it. It was likely due to the first day she met Noah, trying to change him into being more of a human and the little girl hadn't tried to do that.

Elann looked down to the thigh of his she was rubbing. It reminded her of his injured leg. He said he was okay and she nodded while looking down to him. Slowly she looked up to him again to find his eyes were on her. He was a handsome man, and especially when he stared at her she could swoon for him, but in that instance she felt a little bit differently. He was cute with the little girl there by his side, and being a woman who always dreamed of having children, she wondered at it.

Elann knew that when children sleep, they sleep deep. They could move little Alena any time they wanted, but she let Noah stay there giving her comfort and she him.

A tension grew in her heart then and a little worry. As she pet his leg still, in a whisper, Elann said, "Noah...how can you ever forgive me? I've done so much bad to you. I've tried to change you from the first day we've met. I've laid terrible burdens on you and I shouldn't have. I should have been more like Alena; fascinated and loving of you for who you are, not what I wanted you to be. I don't want to hurt you anymore. From now on, I don't want you to worry about what I've said in the past or asked you to do. Just be yourself and I promise I will love you."

It was a long road to get her to that point as there were many behaviors that normal common folk just didn't do, but she would have to learn to love him for those things, and if the bond was true, eventually he would change, but even if not, she was going to love him regardless.

She seemed genuine in her words and saddened by what she had done to him. Her hand slowly came to a stop in rubbing his thigh as she entered into a realm of worried thoughts as to what he would say or do, but she knew she hoped he would comfort her and appreciate her saying such. Whether that would happen was all up in the air. Instead of rubbing him, her fingers treads softly over the fur blanket there.

[Illumin0sity]

Elann drew quiet and he watched her invisibly writhe in her thoughts. He was quiet in his watching, as he always was, and remained that way even after she looked back up to him. She was petting at his leg, speaking up in a whisper. His name came first, followed by a question that struck a sense of worry in him as well. It was hard to watch her as she brought up all that was on her mind, each word heavier than the last it seemed, and Noah’s hand stopped stroking down Alena’s hair as he drew into a physical and vocal silence with Elann’s promise.

It seemed she came to finally understand the hurt that had been inflicted on him throughout the months, and a few months was a short amount of time in which requests were repeatedly made, seemingly without consideration for the past ones. He didn’t necessarily expect thank yous and commendations, but when so much was asked without pause, it was exhausting and he began to see she didn’t appear to appreciate the changes he had made for her. It was difficult enough adapting to the ever-flowing heavy emotions she often flooded him with. She was an intense creature and he was not, so the load of an overloaded bond and then stress of being asked to continually make progress with no break was too much to bear.

Elann retracted her hands from him and left him alone to think. His voicelessness allowed the silence to creep on into the caravan, only disturbed by the wagon’s wheels rolling over the bare road and the frame creaking when it swayed. The flap was closed, giving them the privacy for this conversation despite two sleeping persons very near. He was still reticent, uncertain if he wanted to speak and answer her words with a confirmation of some sort. He couldn’t hum and say he heard her because nothing would come from it. He wanted to choose his next words carefully because they would hold a great deal of meaning behind them.

Noah’s eyes fell from Elann and went to Alena at his side, his hand resting over her shoulder. He took a quiet breath, saying, “I don’t know.”

It was a simple saying but it was earnestly communicating his not knowing if he held the capacity to forgive her in that moment. Time enough had not passed for him to recover from their last spat, let alone the others preceding what was his final stand against her. He also didn’t know what she could do to earn his forgiveness and overall trust back. The course taken to the destination had been riddled with pitfalls and surprises for him, all emotionally jarring until he snapped as any being would when they felt mistreated. Him snapping brought nothing but an emotional hurt for Elann and then having the argument seemingly turn into the point where he was the perpetrator and not the one defending himself.

“You mean a lot to me,” he voiced, looking up to her again.

It was another statement that meant more than the words would allow. He could explain, and he probably should’ve, but the way he felt would only lead to him stumbling over his tongue. His words spoke of how he hadn’t left her because he clung to the hope things would change or he would learn to overcome his own problematic behaviors in order to spare either of them the breaking of a bond.

[snelss0]

It was hard to hear someone who professed their love for her say that he didn't know if he could forgive her. It was understandable as their fight hadn't been that long ago, but hearing his words showed just how truly hurt he was inside. She wished she could ask him why he hadn't communicated how her actions were hurting him, but he had, and she had ignored it to a point. She had been selfish in her demands and all she could do was look down to his lap and nod disappointingly.

His voice cracked through the air again and his words this time brought a little hope back to her distress, evening her back out, and she looked up to him with a little smile. It was then she leaned in to lightly place a kiss on his lips, lingering there romantically a moment with him. It was her answer to him, but just so he didn't feel she ignored him, she also spoke in a soft whisper.

"You mean a lot to me too."

Both of them knew they couldn't discuss the event in any way louder than they were, so Elann gave up on the conversation and instead showed him the affection of his wife. Much like Alena, she then lay against her husband. Instead of being up under his arm like Alena was, she took up residence more along his legs, nuzzling there lovingly and laying perpendicular to his body. The wagon wasn't very wide to so easily let her do that, so her legs tucked up and she lay in a fetal position there, lovingly brushing his thigh once more with a hand.

She hoped that her apology and love would bring him peace, even if their relationship couldn't mend. She didn't like to see or feel the tension between them and it was really a way for him to see what she was trying to do. The past few days she had given him space, tried not to push him in any way, and let him be himself. Who knew if he would notice that now? She just lay there in the same manner until finally, some bells later down the road, they finally came to a stop. It was well into the night and they had made enough headway in their trip to have another attack on their caravan seem more trouble than it was worth.

It was then that Elann slipped from Noah and said, "I'm going to go see what the wagon master wants us to do, then we can give Alena to her parents. She probably won't even wake up."

[Illumin0sity]

It wouldn’t be an easy road for Noah to forgive Elann. There had been a lot in him which had been pent up, objections that were made in his own meek way that were ignored. It was what he thought about as she kissed him, and he kissed her in return to cement himself saying she meant a lot to him. Her words, after the kiss parted, fell on his ears and he listened, taking it as another promise of a better road from here on out. In the end, her promises could only be fulfilled by action and it was what spoke readily to him as opposed from words being flung to fill voids of silence. She voiced what was on her heart and he appreciated that. To show his appreciation his other hand came onto her head, fingers in the strands as he usually did when he wanted to show his care for her.

Sometime during the hours Noah fell into a light sleep that he ebbed out of every few chimes, his hands making sure that he still felt both Alena and Elann, his ears making sure he still heard Aimee’s deep breathing not that far away. Each time he awoke the check was made and, in his stillness, his injuries weren’t bothering him considerably. The quiet rumblings of the wagon’s making their way off-road was what woke him again and alerted him to their stopping. There had been a few quiet murmurs heard outside of the wagon, probably the guards and the drivers communicating that they were to be stopping. He was awake now and his eyes fluttered fully open when Elann began to move.

Aimee stirred as Elann rose. The wolf woke up with a throbbing head and it forced her to get up slowly, her hand over her forehead to denote that it ached. Her hands felt cold, tingly, yet numb all at the same time. The hollow in her chest was gone though, and she was grateful for that at least. She loathed waking up to the wagon because all she wanted most of all was the be home and waking up in her bed with her loud siblings and quietly existing mother. Since she did not have that now, she sat up and watched Elann drop down from the wagon.

The wolf hung her head and brought her hand up to push the bulk of her hair back so it wasn’t in her face as she looked to Noah. Their eyes met clearly in the darkness but hers fleeted to Alena. The way the girl was niched into Noah’s side made him seem odd in her opinion but she held her tongue. She knew her brother was holding his tongue in speaking to her and his mind probably whizzed with thousands of questions pertaining to her magic use and more. She waited for him to speak but he didn’t. Looking over to him again, she saw his attention was on Alena and his hand was softly rubbing her shoulder.

Aimee ended up lying down again and turning towards the wagon’s wall, body curling underneath the blanket Elann had provided for her. She was sleep before Elann returned, and didn’t seem to wake for anything thereafter.

[snelss0]

Elann never drifted off. Her bond would remain buzzing all night, yet there were times when her husband's faded. Elann actually enjoyed traveling at night. It seemed to make the distance they made take no time at all. Laying on her husband's lap with her head, she continued to pet his thigh, lulling him into deeper sleep, but then the wagon would bump and he would come back awake.

They went on like that until she had felt them come to a stop. She eventually head out the back and met with the people who were being gathered up. It was pitch black out, but the head wagoner had a lantern. He expressed how they were camping here for the night and then there were some questions raised as to how safe it was. He spoke to the distance they had traveled and how unlikely it would be for them to pursue. He then went into how the guards were going to keep an eye out all night long and that people should pitch their tents.

Much like in the earlier evening, the cook went about getting a fire started, but there was a lot more grumbling due to the darkness. Eventually he got it going though as the questions finally stopped hitting the wagon master and sleepily he began to cook another meal for people who wanted something. Alena's parent came to Elann to ask how she was doing and she said fine. They told Elann they would come get her after they set up their tent.

It was then that Elann came back by the wagon and quietly climbed up inside. Feeling Noah's bond active, she moved silently over to the tent and knelt down to speak softly to her husband.

"They will come get her in a few minutes. I'm going to make up the tent because we are stopping here until noon. Did you want something to eat? I think the cook is making something."

If he did, she would as quietly as possible, haul the tent out and leave it in the spot she was going to set up, but she would first get him food. If not, she would just begin to set up the tent and light a lantern inside since it was so dark. The moon was thickly behind some clouds and only the fire seemed to give the small area a tiny bit of light.

Eventually Alena's parents and Elann would come back to the wagon and they would express their thanks for watching her. Elann would come in and collect the little girl, who naturally did not wake up and would likely wake up in their tent like it was all a dream. Elann would then proceed to help Noah move to the tent where an extra nice comfy bed had been made. Inside it was light, but from the outside, there was little evidence that a lantern was indoors.

[Illumin0sity]

Having seen his sister awake, Noah didn’t know what to say in regards to the magic he had seen. He didn’t judge his sister but understood how dangerous it was to wield it. He could see the greatness of lethargy in her eyes and the fatigue that must’ve been in her mind. She had held her forehead when she sat up and sat up slowly to denote her sluggishness. It didn’t take a genius to figure out she was affected negatively by her use of magic. Then, Noah thought on how it hadn’t been mentioned in the year they were exchanging letters and there was a sense of betrayal in him for his sister not telling him what she was involved in. Caesarion was a user of Reimancy as well, and it was who he thought of when he looked at his sister’s now crumpled frame on the bench.

Alena took a deep breath into his side, her warm breath on his skin, and drew his attention there. Looking down, he could see she was still adequately asleep and was far gone in comparison to his own sleeping, which happened in chunks of chimes and not hours like hers. It was mostly because he felt as if he had to protect her from any perpetrators who may have followed the caravan, though that was unlikely. Stroking her hair again, he looked up to see Elann returning to the wagon and pressing through the flap to appear as a recognizable shadow which walked towards him and Alena.

The girl’s parents were coming to get her in a few chimes. He nodded then shook his head at the offerance of food. “I’m not hungry,” he said. He had eaten a large dinner earlier that evening before the raid, thanks to Elann, and was still too on edge to even think about eating again. “I just want to lie down,” he admitted honestly.

Elann went away again, taking the tent out of the wagon to set up. In the time she was gone Noah waited for her to return and when she did, Alena’s parents were with her. There was an exchange of looks between Emery, Helena, and Noah. Since Noah couldn’t move with ease, Emery scooped Alena up and Helena thanked him for showing their daughter kindness and watching her. Noah figured there was awkwardness in her voice because of how close him and Alena were but he didn’t quite understand why it would’ve been a problem. With them gone, Elann helped him out of the wagon and into the campgrounds where they went to the barely lit tent which turned out to be well lit on the inside.

The migration woke up his dormant and sleeping injuries with irritation but they were soothed again as he lay down the bed Elann crafted for him. Still clothed in trousers, he lay on his stomach with his head resting down on a pillow. The little sleep he got was enough to make him not immediately pass out, enough to keep his buzzing quietly in wakefulness as he watched around the tent and listened intently on what was going on behind the thick walls.

[snelss0]

Elann moved the last of their things into the tent for the bed and set them down as Noah entered. They had handed off the little girl just moments before and now they both could rest. The way her husband moved spoke of his soreness, but his sounds and looks of soothing seemed to come out once he was laid down.

Closing the tent up, his wife made sure they were going to be nice and warm inside. The tent while being set up had faced the fire and thus had absorbed as much heat as was possible, and now closed, it would keep the cold out.

Knowing her husband, she saw him there in his trousers and knelt down next to him and began to undo them while looking to him. The act was not sexual; she was just trying to make him comfortable by slipping them off.

"I'm so tired..." she voiced. "Aren't you?"

She had been awake all day since early morning, walked a great deal of it, and had been busy in the evening. On top of that there was the battle, heightened emotions earlier, and then a stretched out journey into the night. Lastly she had set up the tent and prepared it for him the best she knew how. If he hadn't resisted her, she would even fold up his clothing next to the bed for him to wear in the morning.

Her soft cotton dress, yellow in color arched across her chest, keeping her form concealed, however the back was slightly lower. There as she set his clothes and pulled a blanket over him was her pearlescent angel wings; marked on her back. Elann reknelt next to him after picking up her brush. She ran it through her hair as she quietly got ready for bed.

[Illumin0sity]

Noah lied down and watched Elann move through the tent, closing it up before moving to him. He rolled carefully onto his back and watched her undo the string of his pants before pulling them down his legs and off. He didn’t resist her movements, simply rolling back over onto his stomach to clutch the pillow below him again. She stated her tiredness, asking the same of him, and he hummed in agreement. He had slept the day away but the night was far more eventful than he bargained for. It was a stressful evening and the gems took far more willpower than before to strike out against their assailants; the chaining lightning alone was draining as if he was using Reimancy as well, but he had to call upon the mental strength to bid the gems to do what he wished.

Watching her still, he observed her dress coming off and traced the iridescent gnosis marking of Yahal with his eyes. Elann hadn’t told him about it for a considerable amount of time since them become friends and then a sect of lovers without the physical loving. When she did tell him, he wasn’t allowed to see it in full because it took up the whole of her back. He was allowed to see the portion which took up the upper part of her shoulder, and from seeing it he was appreciative of its beauty because it was beauteous in his eyes. His own gnosis marking was made up of shimmering silvers and blues, a hurricane which swirled in real-time on his back, orbiting a common eye.

Noah was quiet as she came to kneel beside him again, the brush being coursed through her strands soon after it was picked up. He was an onlooker and had no problem silently watching people or things go through their motions. It was what he often did in the wild where creatures were always tiptoeing around just hoping they could go about their day without encountering something life threatening, something like him. When full, he didn’t bother the woodland creatures as much as he watched them, and to him Elann resembled one of them. In fact, most humans resembled that. He figure they had the same ideals in mind: hoping they could get through the day without something distressing them.

Watching Elann, above all, had become a way to pass the time for him. In Syliras, in her apartment, if he wasn’t watching her go through the living room cooking breakfast, or any meal, or going about her other trifle tasks, he was watching the citizens of Syliras through the window. He could exist in utter quiet, and it showed here as his eyes, olive in the warm lantern light, followed Elann and her movements without a peep from him. It could be supposed he watched her with a sense of affection because she was the center of his attention.