Naveen

 

I made sure to bank the fire, and prepare the horses for bed before I even tried to look towards the tent.

 

I decided to just take first watch. I settled down outside the tent, impaling my giant blade into the ground so I could lean against it and rest.

 

I kept watch but couldn't help but let my eyes close. I kept my ears open as I dozed and I jerked awake at a small noise in the tent. Carefully I peeked inside to watch her sleeping form.

 

I started to pull out of the tent but then she said my names. My new identity and my old. With surprise my lips parted and I slowly eased into the tent. During the watch I had stripped out of most of my armor, leaving boots and leather greaves on my arms. I gently brushed hair out of Rinas face and watched her.

Rina:

I mumbled a little more then I quieted. After a moment I shifted a bit and rolled into him.

I gasped softly as she rolled into me, my arms going around her instantly to hold her.

Rina:

I relaxed in his arms and fell more deeply in to sleep, calmed by his hold on me and by the sound of his breathing.

I breathed out slowly, gently adjusting her blanket to cover us both. My fingers traced elvish words along her spine as I slowly drifted off to sleep with her in my arms. The words rang softly in my mind until it too drifted off to sleep.

"My moon, my blessed moon. Light my life in the dark, show me the way even through the nightmares of the world."

Rina:

I woke up in the morning with my face nestled against Talon’s chest. I was disoriented and I couldn’t remember anything happening last night. Had he pulled me closer when he came in?

I dozed peacefully, my breathing soft and light as I continued to hold her close. I felt at peace, comfortable and content to have her like this. I may have still been wearing leather greaves and boots but it was still perfect.

Rina:

I pulled out of his arms slowly and shuffled out of the tent, grabbing my things as I did so. I didn’t know how I felt about the situation, only that I didn’t know what to do now.

I stirred as she was got up but didn't sit up until she had actually left the tent. I glanced around the small space before focusing on the place she had left through. A small sigh left my nose, a mixture of contentment and disappointment.

Rina:

I put on my boots and weapons belt then went to the horses to prepare them for travel. I didn’t know if I should mention anything to Talon or not.

I slipped out of the tent and began putting it away into its waiting bag. i took a moment to redress in my armor again before going over to join Rina.

Rina:

I glanced at him as I strapped the saddle onto my horse. “Good morning.” I murmured dropping my gaze.

"Good morning." I replied, throwing the saddle onto the back of my own horse. The beast of a horse shifted slightly, before giving a snort. A fine war horse, it almost made me want to keep him once this was all over.

Rina:

The morning was quiet but once we were on the road I was thinking about what we had to do next. “There should be a small village we can stay in tonight. Brain arranged for further instructions to be left with someone there, I believe we will have to leave our horses in a stable there. We will be walking most of the way tomorrow but we should… we should reach the vampires by nightfall tomorrow.” I told him trying to be a professional about it as I could.

"Alright, do you want to push hard for the village? Give us time to relax a little before tomorrow?" I asked softly, moving my horse beside hers in a gesture of comfort. There was little I could do to disspell her fears, but I was trying.

Rina:

I smiled softly. “I hadn’t thought of it, but yes, I think that would be nice.” I answered. It would be good to have a little time to rest before tomorrow.

"Then let's push shall we?" I flashed her a grin and kicked my horse in the sides to get him going from a steady walk to a good trot.

Rina:

We had to rest the horses a couple times, but we made it to the village with a couple hours of daylight to spare. I asked around for Moroe, the man who had supplies and further instructions for me. We was not home when we arrived, but his son took our horses to tend to them, and his wife was very accommodating and brought us in for dinner.