An inheld yawn wrinkles the edges of my mouth, and I must shake my damp head a few times to clear the weariness from my mind. It is difficult to focus, and yet this is how I have felt for the past week, unable to rest despite the exhaustion that weighs on me. A few minutes is all I ever get before I wake, either from a detailed nightmare or simply panicked without cause.
We are closer now, and as the dawn begins to warm the edge of the horizon it occurs to me that he might see this about me, and worry. So I turn away, and miss the visceral reaction he has to my mention of a deal. I am watching the sun creep into the sky, and have only his words to indicate his response. Had I been facing him, seen the tension in his shoulders, perhaps I might have been more concerned with my reaction.
"She told me I could visit home for a night, and that if I stayed, Loess would be in Hyaline's debt for the rest of the year." The white mare had offered an alternate, and though I had considered it briefly, it was far less interesting. It had included returning to Hyaline and remaining under constant surveillance. I have had enough eyes on me in my lifetime that such a deal would never be acceptable.
"The other option involved waiting for more important people to sort it out while I waited under constant guard." More important being himself, Kagerus, and Solace of course. I wonder if Wolfbane suspects how much that grated - the fact that I was not important enough to negotiate my own freedom. He might, I think, and glance back over my damp shoulder.
He is no longer smiling.
My fault.
My reaction is swift: wings drawn up tight and a step to the side to better center my weight. There's no chance of escape with sodden wings, but by the time I throttle my instinctive fear I have remembered who he is, and where I am. Still in Loess, still safe. The projected calmness is held on a tight leash, and I've gained control of my emotions in the time between beats of startled heart.
"I thought taking Valdis might remind them how we feel about being indebted."
@[Wolfbane]
We are closer now, and as the dawn begins to warm the edge of the horizon it occurs to me that he might see this about me, and worry. So I turn away, and miss the visceral reaction he has to my mention of a deal. I am watching the sun creep into the sky, and have only his words to indicate his response. Had I been facing him, seen the tension in his shoulders, perhaps I might have been more concerned with my reaction.
"She told me I could visit home for a night, and that if I stayed, Loess would be in Hyaline's debt for the rest of the year." The white mare had offered an alternate, and though I had considered it briefly, it was far less interesting. It had included returning to Hyaline and remaining under constant surveillance. I have had enough eyes on me in my lifetime that such a deal would never be acceptable.
"The other option involved waiting for more important people to sort it out while I waited under constant guard." More important being himself, Kagerus, and Solace of course. I wonder if Wolfbane suspects how much that grated - the fact that I was not important enough to negotiate my own freedom. He might, I think, and glance back over my damp shoulder.
He is no longer smiling.
My fault.
My reaction is swift: wings drawn up tight and a step to the side to better center my weight. There's no chance of escape with sodden wings, but by the time I throttle my instinctive fear I have remembered who he is, and where I am. Still in Loess, still safe. The projected calmness is held on a tight leash, and I've gained control of my emotions in the time between beats of startled heart.
"I thought taking Valdis might remind them how we feel about being indebted."
@[Wolfbane]
